Healthier Me

by on May 28, 2014

So 70 days ago I started on a journey to a healthier me. I had had enough of being tired with no energy all the time (no matter what I tried), feeling heavy and unwell all the time, and struggling everyday just to get out of bed to do the day by day basics.

I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia 8 years ago and I have been dealing with it since way before the official diagnosis. Since the diagnosis I have done all that I can to manage my condition. I managed to live life well and with as little stress as possible, resulting in minimal “flare ups” with my condition but still with minimal energy every day and pushing myself to do the day to day stuff. But, having 3 young children, a husband and my own business, stress tends to sneak in. And with a condition such as Fibromyalgia, stress is your worst nightmare! Your body is already under stress and carries extreme inflammation as a result of the Fibromyalgia which means that it is always compromised. Any additional stress or illness (such as colds, viruses, etc) that you get, pretty much tip your system over the edge resulting in your body shutting down. This leaves you with absolutely no energy, excruciating pain, foggy head, breathing difficulties and much more. The only cure is rest. Literally, rest is what is prescribed. This means that as a parent I need to ask family and friends to step in and help out with things like bringing the children to school, and all things related to children, food on the table, clothes washed & ironed, and the list goes on….. There is nothing like being stopped by your body and then having to “surrender” in order for your body to do what it needs to, to heal itself. As a result of this condition, I also managed to put on quite a lot of extra weight, which did not help my situation.

Being tired of the way that I was feeling, I decided to embark on a detox for 21 days. The sole purpose for me was to remove toxins from my body (because I knew that my toxin levels were extremely high while my antioxidant levels were extremely low) which was the main reason I was feeling the way that I did, unwell and struggling every day (Fibromyalgia is also a build-up of toxins in your body). I was under the care of my amazing Naturopath, who was working with me to try and balance out the toxin levels, but it seemed like a slow process and it wasn’t covering other health concerns that were still appearing.

So I committed to myself to try this detox program for 21 days. The program is all about removing toxins from your body and environment whilst increasing your antioxidant levels. With the added bonus of losing weight along the way.

Right from the start, it was easy! Week by week I was losing weight and feeling amazing. My energy levels had increased dramatically and health issues that were previously there, we’re non-existent! I was seeing an Osteopath to manage my Fibromyalgia neck concern every 2 weeks (for over 3 years) and I am now seeing her every 5 weeks! This is amazing in itself!

Before I knew it, 21 days was over and I had lost 10 kilos and over 45cms from my body! My energy levels were right up there, and I felt great! The best I had in years! Before the detox, getting out of bed every morning was hard, because my sleep was always unsettled as a result of pain. So I would be waking up in the morning as if I hadn’t even been asleep, not rested and not recharged for another day ahead of me. Now, I was waking completely rested, filled with so much more energy and ready to face the day ahead of me. Amazing!

So I decided to continue to do the detox until day 40. After day 40 I went and got tested to see what my toxin and antioxidant levels were doing? Well, I was pleasantly surprised when the results came back. Initially, this test had me off the chart with my toxin levels and nowhere to be seen with my antioxidant levels. I was in Oxidative Stress. What did that mean? Oxidative Stress is an imbalance between free radicals (toxins) production and the existing antioxidant capacity of our body. It is a condition which can lead to or accelerate the progress of diseases. Examples of Oxidative Stress include premature skin ageing due to build-up of free radicals (toxins) in the skin, fatigue, and much more. Oxidative Stress is a health risk, particularly if prolonged and associated with other risk factors such as hypertension, hyperglycaemia, obesity, smoking, stress, unbalanced diet and / or unhealthy lifestyle, environmental pollutants and much more. As you can imagine, I was only 39 years young and looking down a not so very healthy future ahead according to these test results.

Well, the result of my recent test showed me in the healthy range in the chart where my toxin levels had dropped by 100 and my antioxidant levels had increased by 1.4! This was massive! I was no longer in Oxidative Stress in Progress, but in the compensated oxidative stress range (closer to the ideal / normal status which is where I am aiming to be). I have another test booked in for a few weeks’ time where I am hoping to be in the ideal status. And going off the last test, I have no doubt that it will be!

Aside from the fantastic results from the test, I feel Amazing! I have now been on the program for 70 days (just over 2 months) and there is no turning back for me. I have lost 15.6kg and 87.5cm from my entire body. I can feel my body filled with vital energy, my organs working perfectly, I have a clear understanding of what my body wants to eat and I only want to feed it natural foods. I am in harmony with my new lifestyle and way of being and it feels right and sits perfectly with me.

I do have clear goals for myself this year, and still have more to achieve. I know this is a journey for me and I am realistic at the same time. I am now even more excited about my life and am looking forward to experiencing all that life has to offer me. For the first time in my life I am embarking on a 2 day 60km walk called The Weekend to End Women’s Cancer’s in February 2015. I have been training now to build up my endurance and fitness levels to be able to complete the walk. I never thought that with my Fibromyalgia I would ever be able to do something like this…. Well now, thanks to this program, I can do it and much more!

Because of the Amazing results that I have had and am still having, I have decided to become a consultant for this program to get it out to as many people as possible. I had tried on my own for many years to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but never succeeded due to hormones, emotional eating, no energy or pure laziness. But with this program, it has been super easy. If you struggle also, then I believe that this program is for you. Imagine if everyone in the world was eating healthy and removed as many toxins from their body, life and environment…. then illness & disease would not exist and the world and people in it would be a healthier and happier place! If you’re interested in knowing more about the program, please contact me and I can give you all the information and help you get started on your journey to a healthier you!