FODMAP and 17ish

Well it has been a while, but it  is a slow night at work so via better bring things up to speed.  Well for about a year or so more my poor husband has been going to a specialist about his stomach pains.  He has been having them off and on for almost 6 years but we haven't been able to take him to w specialist until the previous year.  My poor hubby would throw up or just be sick or have severe abdominal pain, or all of the above at once, which was more often the case.  We couldn't find any triggers either.  I thought it might be food allergies or liver issues or pancreas issues, but when the pain would get so bad he would have to go to the ER  there was nothing abnormal in any of the ultrasounds, labs, or x-rays.  The only variation from his tests and a normal pain free person was that his bilirubin, which is related to liver function to those of you how aren't in the medical field like me, and you know the excruciating pain that would cause him to curl up like an armadillo. He even had an MRI which showed nothing.  Well this last year he got an endoscopy, which is basically a tube with a camera going from your mouth to your intestine looking for anything abnormal, and some gallbladder test although I can't remember the name.  It was something like DC or IC. Anyway they found that my Jon's gallbladder only works at 54% and that he has some scaring in his throat from years of heartburn as well as some areas that are pre-ulcerative. Well he tried several medications which gave him more heartburn and more stomach pain.  So the new thing we are trying for is IBS or irritable bowel syndrome.  Fun huh?  The Doctor has him trying this diet called FODMAP which in a nutshell stands for a bunch of molecules in certain foods which are harder to break down ergo causing stomach pain and cramping.  Well fine it will hopefully help the hubs so let's do it.  Well think about all the healthy foods like whole wheat bread, yogurt, broccoli, garlic, apples and just toss them right out. No pears, onions, mushrooms, honey, dairy or gluten of any kind, cauliflower, no fructose and also make sure nothing you buy has high fructose corn syrup.  Yeah easy right!  We have always tried to be healthy, always cooking with olive oil or baking with applesauce ( both a no-no), only have whole wheat bread and pasta and flour, always cook with veggies like celery, garlic and onion (no, no, and no) and I never have even bought shortening much less used it. We try to avoid trans fats and rarely deep fry foods and we only eat game meat.  So how did he get this crappy stomach condition along with gallbladder dysfunction and a disease called Giberts Syndrome which makes him super tired all the time? Gilberts Syndrome is something I got to learn about because I had never heard of it. It is a hereditary disease with no cure and no real emergant medical symptoms. The sufferer is just super tired and will have occasionally high bilirubin.  So anyway, the FODMAP thing is hard.  I am trying to find things he can eat for meals but everything has either a veggie he cant have or it has dairy or gluten. We have stared to try almond flour and other flours and almond milk (no soy milk or whey protein that is in his beloved protein shakes) and coconut milk at times, but finding recipes that won't make him hurt is stinking hard. I tried to look online and at the library.  They have information but no recipes. So I am going to try alternating weeks with the bags ones such as diary and gluten( one week gluten free, one week dairy free) and see if I can get my husband some relief because the diet has been helping decrease his pain. So wish us luck.  More update to follow.  One plus side, besides helping my hubs have less pain, is that the diet has helped me with my weight loss goal.  I am down to 145 as of Monday.  I was bouncing between 156-157.  I am also in my goal pants!  I just have 5-8 more pounds to go! That is my "yay me" moment.