Hi y’all,
I wanted to provide a head’s up that posts will be erratic/absent through September. The reason? Bread.
Back in May, when I posted my unscientific theory on why women like me might find health solutions that fall outside of the mainstream alluring, I mentioned that I’d been struggling with some stomach issues. The reality is that I’ve been struggling with these for decades, but now that I’ve been able to deal with some other issues in my life, the digestive pain has risen to the top of the list.
The salient thing here is that last month I started following a diet used for people who have CSID (congenital sucrase-isomaltase deficiency) because my history and symptoms lined up alarmingly. After the results of my breath test came back, we confirmed that I don’t have this particular disorder—which is good in some ways, but frustrating as I still have no idea what is wrong with me. As part of that diet, I cut out starches and sucrose and started feeling much better. However, as of a few days ago, my doc has informed me that to prepare for a biopsy to test for celiac in two months, I need to start eating wheat most days to make sure I don’t end up with a false negative.
And I guess my body HATES bread because I do not feel amazing. It’s not terrible. I’m still going to work. And I do get to eat bread. But it’s like, for the month where my diet changed, someone had turned off the background noise and I got accustomed to quiet. Now the sound is back on and I’ve forgotten how to block it out. Which is to say: bread is making me bad at writing. Or rather, being uncomfortable makes thinking creatively more difficult. I’m at about 50% efficiency right now.
Because I’m trying to finish my dissertation to defend in the spring, what’s left of my brain needs to go toward writing that (as well as a few projects for my day job with The Georgia Review). I have two unfinished pieces in the queue right now—at least one of them will go out in the next few weeks. I’m annoyed because one is a bit topical—it’s related to how the Barbie movie has highlighted how we talk about beauty, power, and gender in this nation but I’d like it to be more than it is currently. Who knows. It might get scrapped or recycled, or maybe I’ll adjust to bread and send it soon.
I hope to at least send some small things, possibly article or book recs to make up for the absence of longer pieces, but honestly I have no idea where I’m going to be in a week or month of breadmageddon.
Thanks as always for your patience and support. And if there’s something you want me to talk more about, let me know! (the state of literature, american letters, beauty trends—get at me)
no worries! good luck writing while being in pain! :(
and i vote to get the barbie piece in its full glory regardless of how many months down the line that may be!