Learning to live healthy

Hi Y'all! My name is Maddie and I could tell you the good stuff about me but let's be real, you're probably here because you have some of the same health issues I have. So, let's talk about that instead. My illness started from the very beginning of my life, although I wouldn't come to realize how connected all of these issues are until my 30's. As a child I had chronic stomach aches and not just your average tummy ache but the kind that stop you in your tracks and shut down all your plans. My mom took me to the doctor over and over and the most they could come up with was "maybe she's lactose intolerant". I also was diagnosed at 7 yrs old with attention deficit disorder (without the hyperactivity). At 17, I was diagnosed with ITP (a rare autoimmune disorder affecting the platelets in my blood). So began my journey with autoimmune disease. Thanks to God and a great hematologist, after 2 years on and off steroids and many days spent in the hospital getting IV treatments, we finally found the treatment to cure the ITP. Unfortunately what we didn't know is that my immune system simply redirected and started attacking new areas, specifically my joints and glands. However, because my bloodwork did not show these antibodies, it would take me 10 years and going through many gaslighting doctors for these diseases to finally show up in my bloodwork and boy did they show up and show out, enter Rheumatoid Arthritis and Sjogrens Syndrome diagnosis. While I am grateful for modern, western medicine and recognize that without it, many of us wouldn't be here today, including me, I have had a front row seat to see all the failures and areas desperate for improvement. Number one on my list being the inability to look at the whole body and see any all possible root causes or triggers.

Now that you know my health backstory, let's talk about why I'm here. I've spent about 5 years now dedicating all of my free time to finding new ways to heal that don't include a visit to the doctor. I've tried a few of them half heartedly and had some success but I know that if I really go all in, I could at the very least calm my inflammation significantly and maybe even put my disease into remission. So that is the plan. I will be testing different diets, lifestyle changes like exercise, breath work, etc and while I know this will be my own personal experience and by no means is this an accurate scientific study nor is it meant to be anything other than interesting information, it may just help some of you get ideas on how you can help yourself.

Unfortunately, with all the harmful chemicals in our food and environment, the way we eat and the general lifestyle of our culture, more and more people are getting diagnosed with autoimmune diseases and cancer. I know too many people who have received terrifying health diagnoses just in the last few years. As much as I want to give those people advice, it sounds silly coming from someone who isn't doing those things to heal herself. So there's no better time than now. Join me on this journey.