Almond allergy

So friends, if it's not one thing, it's another.  I'd really like to just catch up to life.  I know Peanut allergies are one of the leading allergies in the country.  I have never in my life been allergic to anything, well, until now.

Let's rewind to Friday, July 13th, my grocery shopping days.  I decided that I was going to start eating cleaner, more fruits, veggies, nuts, lean means, etc.  While shopping I picked up a bag of Raw Almonds, no big deal, I've eaten cocoa almonds like they were going out of style, so I didn't think anything of it.  I got home, and popped a handful in my mouth, they weren't great, but they were plain.  Later Friday afternoon, my stomach had the worst pain, I wasn't sure what it was, but passed it off that I would be fine.  I took 4 tums, and went about my evening, they didn't touch it, my stomach hurt for about 6 hours.

Saturday I went about my day, no stomach pain, good thing!  Sunday afternoon I was hungry and eating clean leaves snacks to, nuts, fruits or veggies, so I had a handful of my almonds.  Later in the afternoon I had stomach pain something fierce!  No position, or anything  I did made it go away.  Like Friday it lasted for at least 6 hours.

Monday morning I called the doctors office, I knew something was wrong, but still hadn't put it together.  I went in Tuesday morning, he said it felt like a blockage in my stomach, he wanted me to get a CT to see what it was.  Wednesday morning they called and said it was clear, there was nothing there.   My poor boys, I don't know how I got through getting their dinner on the table.  I sat against the wall balled up and cried it hurt so bad. Wednesday evening I took myself to the Emergency room with the worst pain I've ever felt, mind you I've had three kids!  I would have rather given birth without an epidural than deal with the stomach pain!   They hooked me up to an IV, gave me pain meds and took blood to figure out what was going on, and like the CT, everything was clear, at least the pain meds took away the horrible pain!  I asked about possibly being allergic to Almonds.  The doctor said, "no, if it were an allergic reaction, it would be more skin or breathing related."  I left still unsure of what was wrong.

Calling the Doctor Thursday morning, he was sure it was my gallbladder so he scheduled me a HIDA scan for Friday morning.  I did a lot of research Thursday, the first thing I looked at was that scan.  The HIDA scan injects Nuclear meds into your system.  That threw a red flag for me.  I'm still nursing, I can't have Nucs in my system.  I called the Pediatricians office and they said that I wouldn't be able to feed the baby for 5 days after the test.  Oh, hell no!!!  I would figure out the pain on my own, they weren't putting that poison in my system!  I wasn't going to not be able to feed my sweet boy, and he hates the stored stuff!

I spent the day researching.  Gallbladder was definitely possible.  I would avoid all trigger foods, find home remedies in case I got an attack, and take even better care of myself.  Come on, I eat right, walk/run 4 days a week, there is no way something like a Gallbladder is going to get me down.  I continued researching, talked with Steve about what I ate, and looked into raw almond allergies.  After the trip to the ER, I haven't eaten 1 raw almond, and my stomach is completely fine!  Here is what I found on Raw Almonds:

Raw Almonds

The skin of raw almonds contains enzyme inhibitors which make them difficult to digest, and this can be another source of stomach pain. However, raw almonds have more nutrition than roasted almonds, so many people prefer eating them in their natural state. Soaking the almonds first removes the enzymes. Put 4 cups of almonds and 2 tsp. of salt in enough water to cover, and let them soak for several hours. Drain and allow them to dry for a day.

Read more: 


http://www.livestrong.com/article/294643-stomach-pain-after-eating-almonds/#ixzz21e7HCue4




There should be a warning on Raw Almonds,
May cause Serious Stomach Pain!!! 
and you may not be allergic to anything else, but you can be allergic to Raw Almonds!

Hope you all are having a great week!  xoxo