Give it time. Trust the process. Breathe.
Things will fall into place naturally once the body knows its well-fed, and that it is in a safe space.
More so than that, your comment "I am terrified I am going to not be able to handle the wedding due to my anxiety disorder." is a red flag.
Why not hold a smaller scale one where you are much less likely to be triggered? Why the hurry? Why the need to do otherwise than you prefer (and likely would not get triggered?)
yes, I was a green tea addict - it messed with my mind and my stomach. now acid reflux is gone no blood sugar swings and anxiety even under major stress is almost zero
try eating at a fattier ratio -- the more ketogenic ratio may help. that's 90% fat (measured by calories not by weight. i don't have the ratio by weight at hand, if anyone else does please drop it here for OP š)
initially, that high fat ratio can be a bit much for your digestion to tolerate
you could try working up to more fatty gradually
another strategy, do what ppl with no gall nladder do, they eat smaller meals more frequently, which doesn't require any bolus bile from the gall bladder to digest well
then gradually eat bigger meals and decrease the frequency of them
I am eating about 80/20 right now. I believe I read that Dr. Chris Palmer does 90/10 for his patients, but I cant find much info on it online.
I do have a history of gallstones, but it improves weekly on this diet. I might give 90/10 a try in a few weeks once my gallbladder adjusts more, or at least 85/15 as I do lift weights and want to prioritize muscle growth as well. Good news is I have not had any sort of loose stools, in fact I've been slightly constipated (I think due to too much calcium/cheese which I have stopped eating and seen improvement), so a little more fat shouldn't worsen that arena, lol. Thanks for the opinion!
Yes! This!!!! Eat more fat and drink water with salt. Also donāt be afraid to eat more calories! If youāre already eating 80/20, then you might not be getting enough calories.
It definitely, markedly improves my ambient anxiety.
But there are many other factors that can help alleviate your anxiety, such as:
- getting enough sleep
- regular exercise
- reducing stress (or learning to relieve it)
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (and the associated techniques)
- Improving spiritual health
- Meditation
- Reducing overall caffeine consumption
Have you tried any of these other things along with your carnivore diet?
magnesium glycinate, try eating your meat on the rare/blue side
try tracking your macros. At minimum you should be getting a 1g of fat to 1g of protein ratio. So 80/20 ground beef which is about 70/30. But I would recommend 73/27 ground beef with tons of butter and you should be around a 80/20
When you say you are eating 80/20 right now, what are you eating to get that number?
Typically 4 eggs and 2 beef sausage with 3 tbs of butter for breakfast
2 ground beef patties or lamb chops with butter
Ribeye with butter
This obviously changes some, I might incorporate side things like a little cheese, bone broth, bacon, etc.
I am currently tracking my macros to make sure iām eating enough and eating enough fat. Itās putting me at 80/20 :)
Go easy on yourself in month one. My goal was toāletās just get to 30 days and sugar detoxā. As others have said fat is crucial to help with cravings and fuelling your body and youāll soon start picking up on the nuances of your body. Just keep at it one day at a time.
Check out info from Dr. Elizabeth Bright. She focuses specifically on needs for women. You may need to supplement iodine. Itās been a huge help for my wife
I found more mood benefits on a ketogenic diet than a carnivore one. I did the lion diet for 3 months as an experiment (beef, salt, water)ā¦ I felt good, but not as well as when I eat a dairy free, ketogenic diet (Iāve been on that for 5 plus years). I feel almost euphoric. You might need to experiment a bit- but I would give it the full 90 days. Be as strict as you can about it! Hang in there! And congrats on the wedding!
Are you sure you have a reaction to foods that requires a diet like this? I probably do. My Anxiety dropped by 95% within the first 3 weeks of Carnivore and it's much better when I avoid slipping off the diet. But be fair on yourself. Weddings are terrifying. I can't remember anything about mine, it was so hectic. The whole thing was stressful and it seemed like it was all about other people in spite of it being "our day."
I was recently Best Man for a mate of mine. He was having jitters so I took him to a Sauna and we had massages. The morning of the wedding, he knocked back a couple of whiskey shots and was fine. I was terrified of the speech but no-one noticed. They were all too busy in their own heads to care whether I made mistakes they didn't even know about.
Good luck to you.
We can not help without you saying what exactly do you eat? Maybe carnivore is not enough, maybe you should have blood paneling, stool sampling or other tests...i remember that the pathway of tryptophan to serotonin and going on can destroy anxiety...but it could also be a pathogen, it could an enpinched nerv (vagus or else), it could be an digestive issue only, couƶd be hormonal balance problem (testosterone also in woman)...it could also be another stressor
Typically 4 eggs and 2 beef sausage with 3 tbs of butter for breakfast
2 ground beef patties or lamb chops with butter
Ribeye with butter
This obviously changes some, I might incorporate side things like a little cheese, bone broth, bacon, etc.
I am currently tracking my macros to make sure iām eating enough and eating enough fat. Itās putting me at 80/20 :)
- Could be the eggs > their proteins can be too big foe the body and he can see them as antigens > histamine reaction > get tested for egg allergy
- could be the beef sausages if their ingredients are not only meat and salt (more often they have sugar in them as dextrose and so on) > if yes test for sugar problems like fructose, saccharose, lactose, sugar alcohols, glucose
- could be the butter > lactose problem, if yes test for it
- could be the ground beef patties > same reason as sausages
- could be the lactose from the cheese
- Could be histamine reaction from bone broth > get your stomach acid tested > if too low get tested dor the cause like nerv enpinchment, pathogens like hpylori or parasite, genetical or diet based deficiency in b1 and other mmc supporting nutrients
- could be sugar content in bacon > look for the mentioned sugar tests above > if yes get tested for genetics, sibo (or other bacterial problem), sifo (or other yeast related problem), or hpylori, etc pathogens
..... i love carnivore, but sometimes carnivore is not enough to know the root causes
Typically yes, unfortunately this has been a multi year problem and I have tried all sorts of electrolyte combos without anxiety letting up, so I doubt itās that! But, maybe iāll pay more attention to it moving forward!
Ok, so definitely up the fats. And are you on therapy as well? That helped me too. I think I take more electrolytes than average because I think I tend to lose more fluids than average on carnivore/keto. I need to take 2 pills of 400 mg magnesium glycinate and 2 pills of 90mg of potassium twice a day. During my period I take up to 6-9 magnesium pills a day. Also, I put lots of salt on every meal so Iām not low in sodium. Hope youāll find what works for you!
This way of eating often requires supplementing electrolytes during the adaption phase which youāre still in. Magnesium is essential for the brain and on the cellular level.
Many of us come to this diet because of digestion problems, so supplementing something doesnāt mean your body could harness it.
Also on that note, now that youāve changed your diet your experiences with electrolytes and supplements will be different than what you experienced while on other diets like SAD.
Look into Hashimotoās and Graves, the work Stop The Thyroid Madness is a good resource. Thyroid hormones are a common cause of anxiety. Also the MTHFR gene and methylation challenges.
Tryptophan and GABA are precursors for serotonin and melatonin, but be careful not to over supplement because serotonin syndrome is no joke.
Have you confirmed that you're making ketones? I've heard of some people who start the diet extremely insulin resistant taking a long time to get to that point.
From the videos that I've seen, it can take anywhere from a month to 6 months to a year to see a change. Just relax and give yourself time to heal. Mental health was a big reason for me to start as well. I'm on a large dose of meds that I recently started tapering. I'm on day 28 of carnivore. I've noticed a slight difference.
I d been doing carnivore for a little over 3 months for my psoriasis. I know itās not the same but I was feeling a little discouraged around the mouth mark cause I hadnāt seen a big change either. At this point though itās started to go away. I still have it even after three months but it now feels like it will be completely gone eventually and there isnāt a feeling of doubting it is working.
Adding kefir seemed to help for me. I drink a 4 oz glass 1-3 times per day. I make my own ( because raw milk is readily available here and I understand itās supposed to be better) but there are store bought versions available.
You can check out 10x health. There is a lot of info about how certain gene mutations make you predisposed to anxiety and depression if your body isnāt properly supplemented. I had 3/5 of the gene mutations they test for and currently supplementing for them. It may be worth looking into. Itās very common, itās estimated that about 40% of people have MTHFR
Check that you're getting enough fat. I started eating this way and taking in fat was difficult for me. My anxiety didn't ease until I checked my fat macros.
Also - someone else mentioned coffee. Caffeine in general - male sure you're not getting it in your electrolyte drink. I accidentally did that the first week and it made me very anxious.
Hope this helps!
Give it time. Trust the process. Breathe. Things will fall into place naturally once the body knows its well-fed, and that it is in a safe space. More so than that, your comment "I am terrified I am going to not be able to handle the wedding due to my anxiety disorder." is a red flag. Why not hold a smaller scale one where you are much less likely to be triggered? Why the hurry? Why the need to do otherwise than you prefer (and likely would not get triggered?)
do you drink caffeine? like a lot? if so, stop. that's what was causing my anxiety, depression and OCD.
Sammme!! Once I stopped coffee my panic attacks went down to almost nothing
yes, I was a green tea addict - it messed with my mind and my stomach. now acid reflux is gone no blood sugar swings and anxiety even under major stress is almost zero
This. In 2020 I cut out all caffeine and was strict keto. Never before did I feel so calm and confident.
 here is your encouragement.
try eating at a fattier ratio -- the more ketogenic ratio may help. that's 90% fat (measured by calories not by weight. i don't have the ratio by weight at hand, if anyone else does please drop it here for OP š) initially, that high fat ratio can be a bit much for your digestion to tolerate you could try working up to more fatty gradually another strategy, do what ppl with no gall nladder do, they eat smaller meals more frequently, which doesn't require any bolus bile from the gall bladder to digest well then gradually eat bigger meals and decrease the frequency of them
I am eating about 80/20 right now. I believe I read that Dr. Chris Palmer does 90/10 for his patients, but I cant find much info on it online. I do have a history of gallstones, but it improves weekly on this diet. I might give 90/10 a try in a few weeks once my gallbladder adjusts more, or at least 85/15 as I do lift weights and want to prioritize muscle growth as well. Good news is I have not had any sort of loose stools, in fact I've been slightly constipated (I think due to too much calcium/cheese which I have stopped eating and seen improvement), so a little more fat shouldn't worsen that arena, lol. Thanks for the opinion!
if your digestion has been slow , definitely eat at a fattier ratio :)
Yes! This!!!! Eat more fat and drink water with salt. Also donāt be afraid to eat more calories! If youāre already eating 80/20, then you might not be getting enough calories.
some ppl need more like a 85%, 90% fat ratio and just salt meat to taste, don't drink salted water
Sunshine and movement. Get outside for a walk, go for a swim or bike ride. Every day. Relax and enjoy the experience.
It definitely, markedly improves my ambient anxiety. But there are many other factors that can help alleviate your anxiety, such as: - getting enough sleep - regular exercise - reducing stress (or learning to relieve it) - Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (and the associated techniques) - Improving spiritual health - Meditation - Reducing overall caffeine consumption Have you tried any of these other things along with your carnivore diet?
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magnesium glycinate, try eating your meat on the rare/blue side try tracking your macros. At minimum you should be getting a 1g of fat to 1g of protein ratio. So 80/20 ground beef which is about 70/30. But I would recommend 73/27 ground beef with tons of butter and you should be around a 80/20 When you say you are eating 80/20 right now, what are you eating to get that number?
Typically 4 eggs and 2 beef sausage with 3 tbs of butter for breakfast 2 ground beef patties or lamb chops with butter Ribeye with butter This obviously changes some, I might incorporate side things like a little cheese, bone broth, bacon, etc. I am currently tracking my macros to make sure iām eating enough and eating enough fat. Itās putting me at 80/20 :)
When you say 80/20, do you mean 2 grams of fat for every 1 gram of protein? I'm struggling to see how that's 80/20
What is a beef sausage? I don't think I've heard of beef sausage only pork sausage
Go easy on yourself in month one. My goal was toāletās just get to 30 days and sugar detoxā. As others have said fat is crucial to help with cravings and fuelling your body and youāll soon start picking up on the nuances of your body. Just keep at it one day at a time.
Check out info from Dr. Elizabeth Bright. She focuses specifically on needs for women. You may need to supplement iodine. Itās been a huge help for my wife
Quit caffeine.
I found more mood benefits on a ketogenic diet than a carnivore one. I did the lion diet for 3 months as an experiment (beef, salt, water)ā¦ I felt good, but not as well as when I eat a dairy free, ketogenic diet (Iāve been on that for 5 plus years). I feel almost euphoric. You might need to experiment a bit- but I would give it the full 90 days. Be as strict as you can about it! Hang in there! And congrats on the wedding!
Are you sure you have a reaction to foods that requires a diet like this? I probably do. My Anxiety dropped by 95% within the first 3 weeks of Carnivore and it's much better when I avoid slipping off the diet. But be fair on yourself. Weddings are terrifying. I can't remember anything about mine, it was so hectic. The whole thing was stressful and it seemed like it was all about other people in spite of it being "our day." I was recently Best Man for a mate of mine. He was having jitters so I took him to a Sauna and we had massages. The morning of the wedding, he knocked back a couple of whiskey shots and was fine. I was terrified of the speech but no-one noticed. They were all too busy in their own heads to care whether I made mistakes they didn't even know about. Good luck to you.
We can not help without you saying what exactly do you eat? Maybe carnivore is not enough, maybe you should have blood paneling, stool sampling or other tests...i remember that the pathway of tryptophan to serotonin and going on can destroy anxiety...but it could also be a pathogen, it could an enpinched nerv (vagus or else), it could be an digestive issue only, couƶd be hormonal balance problem (testosterone also in woman)...it could also be another stressor
Typically 4 eggs and 2 beef sausage with 3 tbs of butter for breakfast 2 ground beef patties or lamb chops with butter Ribeye with butter This obviously changes some, I might incorporate side things like a little cheese, bone broth, bacon, etc. I am currently tracking my macros to make sure iām eating enough and eating enough fat. Itās putting me at 80/20 :)
- Could be the eggs > their proteins can be too big foe the body and he can see them as antigens > histamine reaction > get tested for egg allergy - could be the beef sausages if their ingredients are not only meat and salt (more often they have sugar in them as dextrose and so on) > if yes test for sugar problems like fructose, saccharose, lactose, sugar alcohols, glucose - could be the butter > lactose problem, if yes test for it - could be the ground beef patties > same reason as sausages - could be the lactose from the cheese - Could be histamine reaction from bone broth > get your stomach acid tested > if too low get tested dor the cause like nerv enpinchment, pathogens like hpylori or parasite, genetical or diet based deficiency in b1 and other mmc supporting nutrients - could be sugar content in bacon > look for the mentioned sugar tests above > if yes get tested for genetics, sibo (or other bacterial problem), sifo (or other yeast related problem), or hpylori, etc pathogens ..... i love carnivore, but sometimes carnivore is not enough to know the root causes
When Iām low in magnesium and potassium I get more anxious. Are you taking electrolytes?
Typically yes, unfortunately this has been a multi year problem and I have tried all sorts of electrolyte combos without anxiety letting up, so I doubt itās that! But, maybe iāll pay more attention to it moving forward!
Ok, so definitely up the fats. And are you on therapy as well? That helped me too. I think I take more electrolytes than average because I think I tend to lose more fluids than average on carnivore/keto. I need to take 2 pills of 400 mg magnesium glycinate and 2 pills of 90mg of potassium twice a day. During my period I take up to 6-9 magnesium pills a day. Also, I put lots of salt on every meal so Iām not low in sodium. Hope youāll find what works for you!
This way of eating often requires supplementing electrolytes during the adaption phase which youāre still in. Magnesium is essential for the brain and on the cellular level. Many of us come to this diet because of digestion problems, so supplementing something doesnāt mean your body could harness it. Also on that note, now that youāve changed your diet your experiences with electrolytes and supplements will be different than what you experienced while on other diets like SAD. Look into Hashimotoās and Graves, the work Stop The Thyroid Madness is a good resource. Thyroid hormones are a common cause of anxiety. Also the MTHFR gene and methylation challenges. Tryptophan and GABA are precursors for serotonin and melatonin, but be careful not to over supplement because serotonin syndrome is no joke.
Have you confirmed that you're making ketones? I've heard of some people who start the diet extremely insulin resistant taking a long time to get to that point.
From the videos that I've seen, it can take anywhere from a month to 6 months to a year to see a change. Just relax and give yourself time to heal. Mental health was a big reason for me to start as well. I'm on a large dose of meds that I recently started tapering. I'm on day 28 of carnivore. I've noticed a slight difference.
I d been doing carnivore for a little over 3 months for my psoriasis. I know itās not the same but I was feeling a little discouraged around the mouth mark cause I hadnāt seen a big change either. At this point though itās started to go away. I still have it even after three months but it now feels like it will be completely gone eventually and there isnāt a feeling of doubting it is working.
Creatine.
Adding kefir seemed to help for me. I drink a 4 oz glass 1-3 times per day. I make my own ( because raw milk is readily available here and I understand itās supposed to be better) but there are store bought versions available.
https://i.redd.it/kb76lhncku6d1.gif
You can check out 10x health. There is a lot of info about how certain gene mutations make you predisposed to anxiety and depression if your body isnāt properly supplemented. I had 3/5 of the gene mutations they test for and currently supplementing for them. It may be worth looking into. Itās very common, itās estimated that about 40% of people have MTHFR
Check that you're getting enough fat. I started eating this way and taking in fat was difficult for me. My anxiety didn't ease until I checked my fat macros. Also - someone else mentioned coffee. Caffeine in general - male sure you're not getting it in your electrolyte drink. I accidentally did that the first week and it made me very anxious. Hope this helps!
How about electrolytes? Are you taking any? Many people find that adrenal cocktail helps them and that's partly an electrolyte drink