Day 23 | 3 Weeks Down!

I haven't been writing a lot lately - I'm still feeling depression and I don't do well in the day to day routine lifestyle. Sure, I can do it just like everyone else but I get bored very easily and want to focus on other things - this is part of the bipolar tendencies I get in these situations. I was officially diagnosed as 'borderline bipolar' in 2008 by a psychiatrist who saw me for 20 minutes. I had been having a lot of difficulty sleeping and staying focused after the issues with Google so I wanted to discuss it with someone who could prescribe medication - I felt he made a snap judgment and he wasn't empathetic whatsoever. I started the medication but it made the symptoms worse - the doctor didn't hear my concerns at all. I stopped the medication after 1 month so that I could keep two thoughts together - I preferred my previous lack of focus and concentration to the scattered and scary lack of meaningful thought.

So, I've been somewhat bored with focusing on my health. I'm just not used to making my health the center of my thought - the bipolar tendencies usually would have kicked in by now and whisked me off to a different location and situation. Unfortunately, problems and issues catch up eventually and take their toll. Where I am today is an accumulation of all the old issues I left after all the bipolar 'trips'. It sucks but being more conscious now prevents me from doing it again. I have a much stronger sense of responsibility toward finances and my future well-being - like it or not.

A more positive thing is that I haven't been having elimination issues since the weekend before last. I had bought beano and colace stool softener expecting to have the continued constipation issues but that wasn't the case at all. I actually have had 2 IBS-like movements in the past 5 days in addition to my regular movement in the morning. I actually don't know if its IBS or what I ate. I have been consciously eating more raw fruit and salad because these really help the natural digestion.

FOOD

I continue to imagine one-pot meals that are both satisfying and nutritious. I was craving mashed potatoes with spinach and an Asian flavor so I created my Spicy Teriyaki Mashed Potatoes (see recipe below). The flavors in this dish are amazing thanks to my discovery of World Harbors' sauces. These are fat free but carry a powerful spicy punch. I've even used them as salad dressing because you don't need to use very much with all the flavor they have. Here's the flavors I've bought:

• Steakhouse
• Chimichurri
• Lemon Pepper & Garlic
• Thai (red)
• Honey DIjon
• Hot Teriyaki
• Fajita
• Teriyaki

What I ate yesterday:

• Green seedless grapes
• Red plum
• Ezekiel raisin bread w/cherry jam
• Cucumber and carrot sushi
• Edamame w/sea salt and soy sauce
• Bean Dip w/romaine lettuce and grape tomatoes
• Pickles (Dave's spicy sweet and sour, Vlasic dill spears, Bubbies)
• Carraway crackers
• Salad with World Harbors honey dijon sauce as dressing (wow!)
• Kashi Vanilla Whole Grain Cereal (dry)

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RECIPES

Spicy Teriyaki Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:

• Yukon Gold or Russet Potatoes, cubed (enough to equal the vegetable mix when mashed)
• Vegetable Broth (no fat added)
• Spinach - frozen, chopped (steam in microwave, squeeze out water, chop and set aside)
• Corn - frozen, sweet (steam in microwave and then set aside)
• Mushrooms - baby bellas or cremini - quartered
• Onion - sweet or red - diced
• Carrots - small dice or rough chopped julienne
• Celery - diced or thin sliced
• Garlic - minced or smashed & chopped
• Zucchini - small dice
• Scallions - sliced white and green parts (for garnish)
• World Harbors Hot Teriyaki Sauce (this packs a lot of spice and flavor - balance it with the soy sauce - it is SPICY hot)
• Soy Sauce (low sodium)
• Soy or Almond Milk - unflavored/unsweetened
• Garlic Powder
• Sea Salt
• Cracked pepper

Instructions

1. Prepare the mashed potatoes by covering the potatoes with vegetable broth until boiling; reduce heat to low and cover the pot; let potatoes cook for approximately 15 minutes (1 inch cubes only need 10 minutes); strain and place potatoes in a good sized mixing bowl; mash or smash the potatoes, add soy or almond milk with sea salt and pepper until desired consistency is reached (over mixing will cause potatoes to get glutanous); cover bowl until ready to stir in the vegetable mix
2. For the vegetable mix start by dry sauteing the minced garlic for about a minute (move it a lot and quickly so it won't burn) and add in the onions (move around a lot and quickly until you see a little translucence. Add remaining vegetables continuing to blend and move them around to avoid sticking and burning; turn heat to medium. Add spices and sauces and continue to incorporate all ingredients until well blended. Turn stove off and leave vegetable mix on stove with lid for approximately 15 minutes to meld flavors. Once done, fold mixture into mashed potatoes - it doesn't need to be a perfect blend. Serve and garnish with scallions, if desired.