Just a Little Extra Protein
My husband and I are starting a medical weight loss program and I am pretty excited about it! We got blood tests done to see where all our levels were at, like you would in a typical physical. These tests were the last step before scheduling our first meeting with the doctor and moving forward with a plan.
A few days later, my results came back early in the morning and I scrolled through them while lying in bed. And there it was… “pre-diabetic condition” and I just kind of froze. Why don’t we just pile on ONE MORE THING right now! I thought as the anger began to rise. After I stewed over it for a little bit, I dove into researching it to find out what it is, if it can be reversed, and what to do next.
A New Plan
The first thing suggested was weight loss and that plan was already in motion, so I looked for something else to do diet-wise. Low carbs, low dairy, Greek yogurt every day, flax seed, nuts, lots of leafy greens, and just a little extra protein… All things I can implement right now! (I thought charismatically) One study kept popping up about a test group that was given two cups of raspberries to eat each day and they saw drastic improvement. I felt more hopeful knowing that it could be reversed before becoming full-blown type 2 diabetes. So, I jumped on my grocery app and put together a nice big order of all the things I needed to be consuming… and of course, a crap-ton of frozen raspberries. Little did I know, the raspberries are what held just a little extra protein!
I started my morning with a pea-based protein shake that I turned into a smoothie with coconut milk, a cup of raspberries and a scoop of flaxseed. It was, um, different, but definitely do-able. Lunch consisted of Greek yogurt, granola and my second cup of raspberries. Dinner was usually a leafy green salad. Adding in my stationary rowing machine every day for 20 minutes, and I was on a role! I felt great and felt like I was finally in control of making something better in my body. I did this routine for four days. But on the fifth day…
My Worst Nightmare Happened
I had my smoothie for breakfast, did my work out before lunch, and then sat down with my yogurt concoction as I put together another grocery order. I had just emptied the last bag of raspberries and I needed more before tomorrow morning. Half-way through lunch, something caught my eye in my bowl of mush. No, that can’t be a… it’s probably just a pit from a raspberry… wait, raspberries don’t have pits… oh… my… God! It’s a spider! It’s a !#?$#!@ SPIDER?!?
I pulled it out of my bowl and put it on a paper towel. I immediately called my dad and ran over to have him confirm my worst nightmare of all time. He confirmed it. A Google lens search gave me the name and origin of the spider. It originates in South America and is part of the black widow family. Thankfully, it is too small to bite humans. None of these facts changed anything, I freaked out for a good long time!
I proceeded for the next hour to try to make myself throw up, which I can’t do. All I can think about are the BAGS of frozen raspberries I consumed this week, convinced my throat might close up and I could die at any moment. After this experience, I swore I would never eat another raspberry again. And everyone said, “Well, it’s just a little extra protein!” in response to my very traumatic event.
Read more about this nasty guy HERE!
