From the outside, my story looks like a pretty "normal" one. I grew up in a loving family, made good grades, had a good social life, went to college, studied engineering, held the leadership positions, and got the right job. But, underneath all of the "normal" was years of health issues. From the outside, people could never tell. On the inside though, it felt like my body couldn't function.

​

Looking back now, it is easy to see the signs of what was going on. I was always the sick child, had debilitating allergies, recurring stomach issues, and infrequent bowel movements (BM's for short). I struggled with fatigue, chronic allergies, headaches, acne, weight gain, and all kinds of stomach issues. After being told repeatedly everything was normal and that I was likely just stressed, I learned how to live with it. I was given antibiotics several times a year for my sinusitis and took Advil, antihistamines, Pepto-Bismol, etc. to manage symptoms. It wasn't until I was 18 and a senior in high school when I learned I wasn't just stressed and something was wrong... I had food allergies.

​

After cutting out everything I was eating and switching to a dairy-free, egg-free, grain-free, and other allergy-free diet, I finally knew just how good it was possible to feel. I didn't have headaches, my acne cleared-up, I lost weight, I had energy, and I was having daily BM's. But slowly, the inflammation, fatigue, headaches, acne, weight gain, all came back proving it was not just food allergies.

​

My college years mainly consisted of class and doctor's appointments. I knew deep down that there was something wrong with my body. I couldn't digest food, my headaches were becoming migraines, my energy was non-existent, and my personality was disappearing. After going to several specialists, having numerous tests  (colonoscopy, endoscopy, MRI, blood work, etc.), I was told somewhere between the "you're stressed" and "it's all in your head"  that I was fine and everything was normal. But it wasn't normal! I was so confused how I was being told I was so "normal" but couldn't be a "normal" college kid. Every time I ate regardless of what it was, my stomach was in pain. I couldn't go a day without a headache. And I didn't know what to do or how to carry on. Thankfully, God is good and sovereign. He provided the people and paths to figure this out and the strength to get through college as "normally" as possible. 

​

In January of 2017, I made the decision to start looking into holistic options. I always had a deep conviction that all of my symptoms were related which integrative medicine would agree with. Long story short, God led me to a breathing specialist based in Colorado. I spent a little over a year training with him to optimize my CO2 for good health. The way we breathe can put us into flight-or-fight mode or rest-and-digest. Up to the point before I began this breathing training, I was chronically in flight-or-fight mode. The training I did is what I contribute my ability to doing so well in college. But still deep down, I knew there was something more going on than just my CO2 levels. 

 

For another year or so, I was working with a new functional medicine doctor who was the first doctor to commit to finding out what was wrong. She was the first one who ever believed me that something was wrong and the first one to work with me until we figured it out. We knew I had vitamin and mineral deficiencies (the first doctor to ever talk to me about this!), cortisol issues, and dysbiosis in my gut. Through vitamins, natural supplements, and herbal tinctures, I was able to have BM's every day, almost entirely eliminate my headaches, and have a good amount of energy. But still, I never experienced the great success of feeling good that was being promised. 

​

Finally after recently doing cellular health testing and hair analysis, I know the root cause of ALL of my issues - heavy metals, parasites, and yeast. I am working with a qualified professional to get my body in balance through an integrative and natural approach. The good news... it is working! 

​

After 10+ years of believing I had something wrong with my body and doctors telling me I was some mix of normal, stressed, and crazy, I am hear to share my story. I am healing my body from the inside out and am dedicated to helping others understand that our bodies are made to heal physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. I am not sure all of the ways I am going to do this yet; but, I know that God will and is orchestrating all of this for His glory... and I gladly get to be a part of it.

​

​