My Health Journey – Diagnosis’s, Updates & Why I Hate ‘Normal’ Results….

CATEGORIES:  Healing & Herbs Nutrition

So as you may already know I came to this whole Super Naturally Healthy thang really because I wanted to feel better and a bit more awesome. (It really is as simple that isn’t it, this whole healthy living thing – we just want to feel a bit more awesome!)

I was over having the embarrassing bowels, chronic diarrhea, depression, and thrush. I was done with the painful cramps and bloating that occurred every darn night. I was just done.

So if you’re unfamiliar with my story then click here for a wee catch up.

But to be honest I thought it was about time for a part two.

Despite the great progress in my health that I have had in the past 9 years, the past 18 months have felt really tough health wise. And while I never promote that I am perfectly healthy, or some total guru (I am not), I wanted to share with you a bit more of my journey and an update in hope that it encourages and inspires you to keep pursuing your own version of Super Natural Healthy. So be warned this is a wordy post!

Because guys – we are all created to be vibrantly healthy and it’s our responsibility to take steps and actions towards that. You can be wonderfully mysteriously, and gloriously well, inside and out.

How it began…..

Well about 2 years it began with some joint pain, which I assumed was just from using a computer all day, but it got quite bad. But after trips doctors and some frightening mornings where I couldn’t open the door (grabbing the door knob was  impossible), or open jars or grasp anything very well with my hands due to the stiff and soreness in them, I had a bunch of tests to see if I had rheumatoid arthritis or other forms of arthritis.

I was pretty scared as that was not an auto-immune condition I wanted to be labeled with. But tests came back ‘normal’ (oh how I have learned to hate that word when at the doctors), so I felt a bit ridiculous and they weren’t really too sure what was going on.

Along with this, I was getting weaker and my energy was dropping massively. I was exhausted in the afternoon, like ‘shoot me I am so tired‘ kinda feeling. And this is after at least 8 hours, sometimes 10 hours of sleep! Plus climbing mountains or long walks seemed to no longer be feasible, my knees were just too sore and stiff and uncomfortable. I basically felt like an old lady…..at 28 years old.

{Pssssst my Belly Bliss Bootcamp is starting soon. Do you want to spend 7-day with me and learn how to create one happier, flatter and blissful belly and life? Click here to join the Bootcamp!}

So more tests, more normal results, more thoughts that I was a total nut job and hypochondriac who actually needed to go get therapy…..

I suspected adrenal and thyroid issues as they run in the family and hello STRESS. Running your own business is no joke. So last year I got referred to an endocrinologist for what I thought would be a thorough thyroid panel test ( it wasn’t grrrrr…..) and again told it was all normal and there was no need to worry, AKA ‘stop being anxious you hypochromic female‘. I paid for a private adrenal saliva test which confirmed that my cortisol level were in the roof but I knew adrenal dysfunction was not the main issues, it was merely a fruit of the main problem. (Find out more about your adrenals here)

Last year I took 10 weeks off to travel the world, rest, get some vitamin D, thinking maybe I was just stressed out my nut and needed a break, that it was maybe all in my head. And while we had a fab time away, my joints were bad, energy remained low and anxiety relatively high. So a holiday obviously wasn’t the only thing I needed….

I came back chased up for more tests and more ‘normal’ results but I was feeling worse and worse. Not in a ‘I am dying‘ kind of way, I was able to work, do exercise in small doses and have days when I felt great. I was living my life and then I would hit a wall and have a run of weak days. Days that I felt like I was wading through treacle, where my whole body ached, my glands would swell and joints would be sore. I didn’t feel in optimum health daily and I have to be very careful of my energy.  I had put on about a stone in weight, was getting more bloating which was unusual and feeling off.

So towards the end of last year I was done. 

Done with beating myself up.

Done with feeling like the village fool in front of (some) doctors. (I have now found a lovely GP who listens!)

So I decided to pay a functional medicine practitioner for myself and whilst I had seen nutrition practitioners for myself in the past multiple times (as I practice what I preach) to be brutally honest I never found the ones I saw that helpful . It was one of the reasons why I started my own practice as I wanted to provide a much better insight and quality of service then what I had experienced.

But after recommendations and chat with Helen I knew I was in the right place – she is ace. Plus I had figured out how we could find some money to pay for private, functional, lab testing because, despite it all, I knew I wasn’t mad but needed some clear answers of what was going on inside my body outside of the realm that standard tests will allow.

And this is what has been so hard. The low energy, sure you can deal with it, the joint pain, was never totally debilitating that other people have, and in general I would say I was healthy. But I felt crazy. I am in tune with my body I knew that something was off but everyone just told me I was normal. That these symptoms must be in my head and made up. That I was just this over sensitive girl who is ‘obsessed’ with health and nutrition.

And while of course, I have days when I am sure I am dying of a brain tumor (I mean surely that’s not just me??) in general I know something is up because this is my body.

So I took the plunge and got a range of tests like a private stool sample test as the doctor refused to accept that I had parasite despite it showing up in my GP stool test, to find out more about if I had yeast, parasite or other infections in my gut (highly likely with my history). I then had an organic acids test to look how my effectively my body was producing energy. I had already had an adrenal panel done and a (half arsed) thyroid panel.

And guys finally things started to make sense and, what do you know, my intuition and inner knowing was right.

Results….

While my functional nutritionist is not the one who can diagnose conditions (only doctors can) we strongly suspect I have Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO, not currently tested by NHS despite it being a clinical condition), some yeast overgrowth, a parasite, HPA dysregulation and suspect Hashimoto’s, an autoimmune condition that impacts the thyroid.

I am currently awaiting some genetic testing too as we suspect I could have some genetic predispositions that means I don’t methylate properly (MTHFR) which is a KEY process in energy production and wellbeing.

Honestly, I cried when I got my private lab results. 

(And guys these aren’t dodgy test result, they are proper labs that many integrative medical doctors or naturopath would use alongside traditional testing.)

I wasn’t insane.

And I am still very much in this. I am not all better and perfect, I am still ‘treating’ the SIBO and pursuing getting a diagnosis of my thyroid condition (which will probably be unlikely as my test result show only a slight inclination but symptoms are there) and de-stressing and resting like a beast. My goal this year is to have 12 weeks holiday and time off so that I can truly rest well and heal. #hardtimes

So I am sure I will write about all of these issues in time to come in more detail as I imagine lots of these things could be impacted you too. But for now, just know you CAN be well. It’s probably not all in your head.

It’s been a pretty emotional journey and still is which is why I haven’t shared much about it in the past year, but I hope that this slightly self-indulgent rambling gives you hope. It’s ok to not be doing well, it ok to be tired, it ok to feel off. You’re not crazy and you’re not alone. I say this to my one to one clients all the time, your body is created to be wise and well and our job is just to get to the root and figure out why it’s behaving the way it is.

But you don’t have to live with it, being passive about your health is a choice and it is not one I will ever make.

I know I was created for divine, joyous and beautiful health and I am going to damn well keep pursuing it until I feel it in every cell and fibre of my being!

Pssssst my Belly Bliss Bootcamp is starting soon! Do you want to spend 7-day with me and learn how to create one happier, flatter and blissful belly and life? Click here to join the Bootcamp !