More Proton, Nutrition, Stress, and Breakfast!

Today was a cloudy, drizzly day in Houston and it doesn't look like it's going to clear up anytime soon. Jule took me to proton therapy at 7 AM. It seems to be going faster to me, although the clock says that it is still taking between 30-40 minutes each time. I'm now so used to it that I just snooze while I'm in there. I hardly notice the discomfort. Other than the mask being tight, my head being strapped down to a table by a white mesh mask, a bite guard that carves into my gums, and the sensation of lying on a hard, cold, metal table, it's well suited for napping. And there's always music and nice technicians. What else could a girl ask for at 7 AM every morning?!

After therapy we met with the nutritionist. She was very encouraging and helpful. She said, of course, there is no guarantee that my change in diet will have any affect whatsoever. However, all research on nutrition suggests that a high protein, low carb, low blood sugar diet is the best internal environment for fighting off the cancer cells and slowing the growth of the tumor. This is apparently true for all types of cancer. Over the last several weeks on this diet journey there have been many questions come up, therefore, we talked with her at length and she gave us some recommendations based on research. First, she said I need to be getting closer to 1500 calories per day. That way I can maintain my weight rather than lose at the steady rate I've been losing. Second, she told me to increase my protein to 65-70 g per day, which I am already pretty close to. Third, here is what she said about carbs: never go below 20 g per day, stay below 60 g per day, aim for an average of between 30-40 g per day. That's pretty much where I've been staying so no big change there. She also endorsed my 10 g or less of simple sugars per day but said that sugar I get from natural foods should be evaluated more positively. The fourth and major change is to start counting only net carbs, which means I can subtract the fiber from the total carbs and not count fiber at all. Most of the complex fibers pass right through, apparently, so no need to count them. So, overall, we were very happy with seeing her and having our questions answered. In particular we were confused about total versus net carbs so we are happy to have that cleared up. 

After our appointments Jule, Jason, and I had a quick breakfast before Jule had to be off to the airport. We finally found a breakfast cafe in Rice Village that didn't serve only artistic fare. Don't get me wrong, I like my hipster frou frou cuisine like everyone else, but sometimes you just want to find a place where you know what to expect when you read the menu. I had a delightful, straightforward southwest omelette with no truffle oil that did not disappoint.  

I came home and caught up on a little work and then, of course, as is my normal routine now, I had an afternoon nap. I awoke to Jason telling me all about the research he read while I was sleeping. Apparently there is a ton of research on the environment in which glioblastoma thrives. There are several neuropeptides that exacerbate the growth of glioblastomas, all of which are related to internal or external stress. So, apparently, not only do I have to change my diet, I have to work on my stress tolerance. I asked him if he could just get me some handlers to "handle" people around me who stress me out, but he declined. Apparently this is an inside job. I feel like my stress is what motivates me the most so this is going to be interesting! He's probably going to send me to monk school or something. If he does, please smuggle in nail polish & moisturizer!