Sweet Treat

In honor of Valentine's Day Mom and I made these AMAZING gluten-free brownies. Okay, Mom really did all of the work since I feel so crappy, but I read the directions to her and (barely) managed to sit up long enough to measure the dry ingredients. :) I also put all of my TV watching to use. On one of the food shows I saw the women put chunks of semi-sweet chocolate on top of the brownies before they baked them, so we tried that out. Yum! Very therapeutic to hammer the chocolate into chunks.

Because of the antibiotics, I am trying to limit my sugar intake as much as possible in an effort to avoid the additional complication of yeast overgrowth. Right now I am taking heavy duty probiotics and really missing my coconut ice cream and other little treats. I'll put these brownies in the freezer and just eat them in little bits, but I just can't give sweet treats up completely!

You know how when you take antibiotics the little instruction sheet says that taking antibiotics can cause other types of problems such as yeast infections? Well, taking long-term antibiotics definitely increases this risk. Getting a systemic yeast problem on top of all that is already going on would not be pleasant.

Some people with Lyme who are on long-term antibiotics cut out all carbs, but my Lyme doctor doesn't push the anti-yeast diet. I just try to be reasonable with my choices while still eating as many fruits and vegetables as I can for the nutrition. I also have the option of taking an anit-fungal such as Nystatin as a preventative measure, but haven't done that yet.

Anyways I'm at the 17 week mark. Malarone=miserable, even at just two doses per week. (I started this post on Monday and am just finishing it on Wednesday.)

The best little note I got re: my 17 week mark was the following:

"In honor of the Olympics, here is your week 17 gold medal and podium:
[O]<=====>

___|-----|_____"

That's it for now. I think I'll have a bite of those brownies before I nap! Belated wishes for the following:

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Chinese New Year !

and

Happy President's Day!

Blessings,

Emily

Photo: Gluten-free brownies for Valentine's Day