Hello

Everything is harder when you don't feel well.  I know this because, well, I was sick. Not many people knew I was sick and I wasn’t even sure I was willing to admit it myself. I still got up every day, I still went to work, but sometimes I could barely get it together.  A type-A go-getter, I felt like I was aging, fast, and I was only 40.  

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Eventually, I worked with a doctor who told me I had to accept that I was sick and acknowledged people wouldn’t look at me and know I was sick but I needed to know I was and treat myself that way. Wow.

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I knew something was wrong months, maybe even a year, before I figured out what was wrong. I went to countless doctor’s appointments and no one could tell me what was wrong with me. It began with chronic dizziness and I was more tired than normal. Then, I was gaining weight uncontrollably – eating “better” than I ever had and working out twice a day. Sometimes I couldn’t stay awake during the day. I felt drained after a workout, emptied after yoga. I felt drop down tired even after a full night’s sleep -- if I could sleep. My entire body hurt all the time– especially my joints. My knees made a grinding noise, my hips ached and I didn’t even look like myself. And none of it made sense.  I had spent so much time "taking care of myself" -- I couldn't understand why I felt this way.  And it was frustrating.

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Some of my friends blamed getting “older” and I refused to accept it.  In fact, before getting sick, I was in the best shape of my life, but possibly (very likely!) too skinny.  I was shuffled from appointment to appointment no one could quite pinpoint why I felt the way I did. 

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In the past, I was always what I considered to be “balanced healthy”. I worked out a lot (maybe too much!), I ate what I wanted with balance (mostly healthy foods but I certainly didn't shy away from the occasional treat). I thought I took great care of myself. 

 

I realize now I was so busy "taking care of myself" that in doing so I was always busy. Running myself ragged. Working two jobs. Always on the go. My relationships weren’t great. I commuted two-hours door-to-door (yes, each way) and had long, stressful days in a crazy, deadline driven career. I began to just make it through the day going through the motions -- merely (or barely) surviving.  

 

Despite a healthy diet, I knew my issues had to be related to food because I felt horrible after I ate and I just wasn't digesting right anymore.  I haven’t mentioned yet, but I think we know each other well enough now ... I went 6 weeks without pooping. Yup, I said it -- I went 6 weeks without any relief. Most of us feel terrible when we don’t poop for a day or two – but 6 weeks?! I still wonder at what point that’s toxic. Thankfully, I never found out.

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Ultimately, I had to recover from adrenal fatigue, digestion issues (leaky gut), hypothyroidism and hormone imbalance.  ​

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Today, I feel like a different person. What did I do? I learned about inflammation, how the body holistically functions, how the gut works and why it is paramount to our health, how one thing affects another and how EVERYTHING is connected. I learned these issues had been developing within my system for years, likely even since childhood.  

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As I look back, I realize I was subjected to surgeries and procedures offering to "fix" some potentially early signs of these problems. Tonsils removed at age 6 -forever changed my immune system.  A LEEP procedure to remove part of my cervix when I was 27.  A hysterectomy to remove what was ultimately a non-cancerous uterus - forever altering my ability to bear children.  All of this, due to inflammation.