I remember sitting through a movie in extreme pain because I was so bloated after a meal I just had at my favorite Italian restaurant. What was going on…I used to be able to eat anything and all of a sudden it seemed like I was getting extreme gas and bloating from everything I ate!
I’d find strands of my once strong and thick blonde hair all over my dark hardwood floor but like most 27 year olds, I connected my dry and brittle hair to too many dye-jobs. What I didn't connect was that the extreme fatigue, intense brain fog, and painful gas and bloating I experienced daily was all part of a larger picture of thyroid autoimmune illness that followed many years of feeling like I was “crazy” without any explanation for what I was feeling.
MISSING THE EARLY SIGNS FROM MY BODY:
Up to the age of 27 I was what anyone would’ve considered a healthy woman. I didn’t give much thought to my food choices, could eat whatever I wanted and I felt "fine". I traveled, went to parties, had a few too many drinks and enjoyed my life without too many worries. Sure I was more tired than I should have been, would get colds a little too frequently and was a bit more on the constipated side, but nothing major. It wasn’t until many years later that I realized my body was trying to communicate with me that my digestion was off and my immunity was low, but I wasn’t listening because like everyone else around me I thought this was “normal”.
THE TRIP THAT I’LL NEVER FORGET:
One year I traveled to Cuba and got a stomach bug, took an antibiotic and got back to my normal self, or so I thought. Around this same time is when my hair started to break and fall out.
After a couple of months I started experiencing extreme fatigue no matter how many hours I slept, brain fog that lasted all day long and made it impossible to focus, extreme gas and bloating after eating many foods I could previously eat without any issues. My friend had to drive me home urgently one night in the middle of dinner with friends because my stomach was in so much pain and I had to leave work half way through the day on several occasions. I was struggling hard to get through my days and naps became a necessity to make it through the days rather then what once was a luxury.
I WAS ONCE A CARB LOVING VEGGIES DIS-LIKING GAL…WHAT HAPPENED?!!
My name is Ann and I am a Registered Holistic Nutritionist. This is Part I of my story of how I went from being a girl who hardly ate any fruits and vegetables and loved her carbs (the bad kind) to a Holistic Nutritionist who whole-heartedly believes we can alter the course of illness with food and lifestyle choices and need to learn to tune into the signals of our body.
Part II of my story tells you about my eventual diagnosis of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and the weight gain, low moods, anxiety and extreme fatigue that came along with it. I share the things that I tried to get better (and there were many) and what's helped me the most in my own healing journey.
Read Part II here...
Can you relate to some of the symptoms I've experienced? Book a FREE Discovery Session with me to find out how I can help you feel yourself again!