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Now What Can I Eat?

Food (and Life) while Immune Suppressed.

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Alternatively you can email me on pippa@nowwhatcanieat.co.uk

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I want to eat more fish but a)🧔🏻 doesn’t eat fish and b)I have a very poor repertoire when it comes to fishy cooking...⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ How do you like using fish? What’s your favourite fish to cook at home?Some inspo please?! 🐟

Bedtime routine...⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ This little cup is probably the stuff of dentists nightmares but for me it’s become one of my favourite habits.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ A cup of plain Horlicks (other brands are available) with some added dark chocolate and a teeny splash of milk, whisked up, before bed.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ As someone who has struggled with sleep for a while now, and can be very bad at switching off, while I’m not saying this is a cure it definitely helps me shift from ‘steroid induced awake all the time & can run on no sleep’ to ‘oh okay, maybe a few hours with my eyes closed dreaming could be a good thing 💤’⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What are other people’s tips to try and reach a good nights sleep?!

The best weekend with the best friends 🐓 Hen do ✅...now bring on the wedding 💒

Define: Levels 📉⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ As a transplant patient immediately after your transplant and in clinic appointments for the rest of your life you have your blood taken to test your levels 💉⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ These blood draws check the basics such as white cell count but also check the level of anti rejection medication in your blood to ensure they are at a level which is therapeutic and the best possible to maintain health and combat possible rejection. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ These tests have to be taken at the same time of day every time to ensure they are always comparable and while the amount of anti rejection medication people take can be very different our levels should all be the same.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ If when these bloods are taken and the levels aren’t quite right it’s a dose change and then back in 2 weeks for retesting 💉

Although my working life has maybe not been as predictable or as smooth as I might have hoped after my transplant one of the things I have liked about the situation is the increased flexibility it allows me...⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ If I want to go to a gym class at 10am I can. If I want or need occasionally to stay in bed late I can. If I need to go to a hospital appointment in Cambridge in the middle of the day I can. If I need to attend a governors meeting I can. If I want a day off to visit my grandma for a dog walk and lunch I can. This increased freedom allows me to appreciate what I do have, it may not be the straight forward I had dreamed I would return to but sometimes it’s definitely better ♥️⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 📸 - lunch at grandmas

Ever salivated even just listening to people talking about the gooey chewy goodness in the middle of desserts?! Me too... but the reality of post transplant, and immune suppressed eating, is they are a no no ❌ as gooey normally means undercooked, undercooked means raw eggs 🥚 and raw eggs means a risk not worth taking 🙅🏻‍♀️ (🔊 psss... if they’re good brownies they can be just as good when they’re cooked through)

Mental health|Physical health⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ While I think many people would assume that with declining physical health often comes declining mental health too and while I understand this completely for me the reality was actually the opposite.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ While I was at my worst health physically often I didn’t have time to question, cross examine on look at the situation at anything other than a factual stance. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Now I am generally more well my mental health is often much more volatile, and not so black and white, as I question:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ • will I become ill again⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ • am I doing enough with my second chance • what could I or could I not be doing to make myself happier and healthier ...are just a few questions which can often drag me down a rabbit hole 🕳 of struggle and the reality is I’m not sure I’ve nailed a strategy to get out yet... anyone else?

There’s no denying that food waste is a big issue and something we should all be paying more attention to - food that doesn’t look quite right, is a little damaged or simple isn’t the flavour of the month or popular right now is going to waste across the country. You might think that restaurants could be some of the worst offenders but @the_tristan_welch and his team at @parkers_tavern in Cambridge are doing what they can to change that and highlight the issue with a monthly supper club - Rubbish Cooks. Created with donated ingredients which would otherwise have gone to waste the three course menu highlights the delicious things that can be done with ‘imperfect’ food in the hope of shifting attitudes and with the added bonus that £5 from every meal goes to a local homeless shelter. The meal itself was really nice, to be honest you would never know this was waste or rejected food...and maybe that’s the whole point. Each course looked and tasted like restaurant food and didn’t resemble what I might have classed as waste food in any way. Tristan and his team were out in the dining room throughout the meal highlighting the background and methods behind each course and really demonstrating the fact that they brought into the reason behind the idea. Having never been to Parker’s Tavern before I would definitely recommend a visit if you live in or you’re ever near Cambridge (I hear the hotels pretty great too since the refurb). Ticket releases are announced on social media and I would suggest if you fancy trying Rubbish Dinners you book your tickets fast when they’re released before they get snapped up...the November events already sold out but watch out in January for new dates and the opportunity to support 🍴

Courgettie... I think this was meant to be a fad and I imaging most people used their spiraliser only half a dozen times before it was banished to the back of a cupboard or lost in a house move 🔎...BUT this firey little number is perfect if you can sense a little bit of a sniffle 👃🏼 coming on and feel like you should be looking after yourself a little better 💞!! Crab 🦀 , chilli 🌶 and pea courgette ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ (Serves 2)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Ingredients⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1/2 onion⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1 clove of garlic⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1 large courgette (I used a yellow one here but green does exactly the same)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1 tin crab meat⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1 fresh red chilli⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1 small cup peas⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - 1 lemon ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Method⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Chop onions into a fine dice and soften, with a generous glug of oil,⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ in a large frying pan⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - While this happens slice your courgette. If you have a spiraliser use this otherwise simply slice longways into as thinner slices as you can and then slice to form spaghetti type pieces ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Now chop and add the chilli, seeds and all, to the onion mix⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Add the courgettie and your peas and a splash of water to help create steam into the pan. Place the lid on for 3/5 minutes until your courgette has lost its bite⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Remove the lid, add the crab⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Squeeze half a lemon into the pan ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Stir and add a final splash of oil and season to taste⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - Eat straight away with a squeeze of lemon or the grated zest on top and more chillis if you wish 🥣

Please note any views expressed on NowWhatCanIEat pages and social handles are my own. I am not a trained dietician and request not to be considered as such. Should any medical query’s arise from anything discussed in my post please seek the appropriate clinical advice.

In addition, while all recipes are cooked following the guidance I have been given on what it is safe to eat when immune suppressed they have not been checked by a dietician. If the advice you have been given differs from anything here please follow the advice of your team.

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