Turtle Soup

In 1995 my daughter was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. It all began when Amy was a junior in high school. She developed an anal fistula, which after repair and biopsy revealed Crohn’s type tissue.
A visit to a gastroenterologist provided her with a warning that she would need to “keep an eye out” for the disease to manifest farther up the intestinal tract, possibly years down the road. For the time being, watchful waiting was all we could do.

Five years later, sure enough, Amy was in big-time chronic pain, and a colonoscopy revealed Crohn’s lesions in the small bowel as the source of her discomfort. She was placed on medications with scary side effects and told to eat whatever she wanted, that there was no dietary solution to her problem. Amy would be facing a lifetime of medication, and in the worst case multiple surgeries.

Fortunately, with medication, she was able to achieve remission and get off the meds long enough to have her first child. But several months after her daughter was born, Amy’s symptoms returned with a vengeance…and the medications were not as effective this time.

When Amy and her husband were thinking about having a second child, they faced a difficult decision. They had received conflicting advice from multiple doctors about the safety of medication while pregnant. Amy did not want to expose a pre-born infant to the unknown effects of medication, but she also did not want to compromise her own health during pregnancy. One night in desperation I called a friend of mine who had been struggling with Crohn’s for over twenty years, and had five children of her own. I knew that she had used some sort of special diet to control her symptoms during and after her pregnancies. She told me about the Specific Carbohydrate Diet™  (SCD), and she agreed to call Amy.

Within the week, Amy had begun the first stage of the diet; within the month she was able to wean off her medications; and within two months she was happily and healthily pregnant—and feeling better than ever.

When Amy began the SCD, I volunteered to join her on the diet for moral support, becoming her Diet Buddy. Together, we learned how to bake with new ingredients and plan healthy meals along the SCD’s starch-free, sugar free, grain-free guidelines.

On the SCD, I was pleasantly surprised to find relief from health issues of my own. The first thing I noticed was that my osteoarthritis pain improved greatly. I also gained relief from my life-long struggle with embarrassing and uncomfortable bowel gas, and a bleeding anal fissure was healed. But it gets even better. After a very healthy SCD pregnancy, Amy gave birth to a thriving baby girl.

In Turtle Soup: recipes, You'll find delicious ways to cook and bake the SCD way. Amy and I have invented our own variations and combinations of  SCD legal ingredients and have reworked many of our family favorites.

In Turtle Soup: posts, You'll find articles I've written reflecting my own experiences eating and living SCD.

So, why Turtle Soup? The turtle, slow and steady, hard-shelled and sturdy, is an ancient symbol for health and longevity. And of course soup is the ultimate healing and comfort food. Mother always said, “Eat your chicken soup if you’re feeling ill.” And it’s no accident that step one of the SCD recommends cooking a giant pot of SCD chicken soup and eating it for several days!

I hope you have as much fun using the recipes in Turtle Soup* as we did creating them. May you find a way of health, happiness, and peace-of-gut. Bon Appetite!

*Check with your health care provider before starting a diet plan. Turtle Soup is not intended to be construed as medical advise or treatment for any disease or condition.

Click here for information on how you can get a copy of this beautiful Turtle Soup Cookbook Cover and a set of all my
Turtle Soup Recipes, especially designed for the
Specific Carbohydrate Diet™ 

"Keep it simple."

Comments

[dawn]

This is such a gift! Thank you!

[Amy Jo]

Beth,
I love your Turtle! (I would love a copy- a beautiful reminder to help me slow down, which I don't think is possible at this time in my life, however.) I'm glad you are sharing the recipes.
XO

[Rowan's mom]

Hi Beth,
Thanks for being such a great mom. You and your daughter are extraordinary examples for moms new to the SCD diet. Our son Rowan had brain surgery to remove a brain tumor and is on the autism spectrum. We are trying to find the courage and the resources to begin our own nutritional therapy to help heal his beautiful body and mind. Thank you for these recipes that I am sure were developed with a lot of love.
Rowan's Mom