Welcome to my story and what brought me to be so passionate about helping other women that have walked the same path as me.... The Journey of Chronic Gut  & Digestive Pain.

My journey begins with the endless rounds of erythromycin that I took from the ages of 15-18 years because I suffered with severe acne and it claimed to help. Well it sure did help with that issue and my face was clear but it wasn't until many years later that I would come to understand that it wreaked havoc on my guts and would set the stage for one of the most severe infections I had ever had in my life.

At 19 years old I started to suffer with anxiety on a regular basis, the need to be perfect and not let anyone down. My anxiety came to an all time high at 22 years old where I could barely leave my house. I needed to know where every hospital was in case I had a "panic attack" which I was having with more and more frequency. I was hospitalized at 23 for a panic attack and erratic heartbeat. Later that year I had to have a dental procedure of which I got a nasty infection from and had to go on antibiotics. I had not taken any since I was 18 but guess what, that didn't matter because my body was primed with an unhealthy intestinal environment and after 2 heavy rounds of antibiotics I couldn't hold in food, I had severe diarrhea, I was very weak and dizzy and suffered with severe abdominal cramping. I lost a lot of weight and couldn't even stand upright without almost falling over at the worst of it. I literally had to crawl around my apartment to get anywhere. Upon medical diagnosis through a colonoscopy, it was found that I was suffering with "antibiotic induced colitis" and a C.Difficule infection. I won't even get into the meds and enemas they had me on.

It took me approximately 6 months to be able to return to the work force, but when I did I wanted to learn everything I could about holistic health and healing, how I could support my nervous system (anxiety disorder) and what foods I could both eat and enjoy without pain. I started going for massage therapy (I loved it so much I signed up to become an RMT), chiropractic care and doing yoga and mindfulness practices. I went gluten free and dairy free and started cleansing. I had always been physically active so that wasn't an issue. These measures kept me very healthy overall but... now I am in my 50's, have taken additional training and realize I was really only managing my condition. Over the last decade I have; entered menopause (41 years- so pretty early), gone through COVID-19 (didn't we all),  went through a divorce after 17 years and had to start over in life at 50. My stress had been through the roof for like 8 years. I am honestly surprised I wasn't sicker but.......I was in burnout, I had constant fatigue, I didn't sleep well, I had put on 50 pounds, my joints hurt, my mental health was severely suffering and I ALWAYS looked 9 months pregnant. My belly hurt so much all the time, I couldn't wear anything around my waste comfortably and I knew I needed to not only get back to my old health plan but add to it as well. My biggest thing was accountability and support..... I needed it..... I needed a coach to help me tackle one step at a time of how and what I should be eating to lose weight in a healthy way and most important... GET RID OF THIS CHRONIC AND PAINFUL BLOATING, PRESSURE AND DISTENTION that I lived with every day of my freaking life! I used a low FODMAP diet to reduce the belly bloat, mindful eating practices to prepare my body for the journey of food and liquid, craniosacral therapy with visceral manipulation to address the oversensitive nerves in my gut, reduce anxiety and promote enhanced fascial gliding, and daily yoga practices to enhance my mind-body connection with all parts of my life, not just my guts. It was like "gut rehab"!!!

And because I have had such incredible results with this multi-disciplinary approach I hope to share my mind-body medicinal approach with you, so you can start living a more vibrant life too!