As this blog grows, there will likely be a lot of health oriented posts. And although I do a lot of things to my body that are far from healthy (Margaritas and Hot Cheetos anyone?), I am always researching and learning how to improve my health. I generally consider myself a very healthy person in the sense that I have no serious diseases and am able bodied. No limbs missing or eyes falling out. However, when I really start looking at all my symptoms and issues, I question just how healthy I actually am. I actually kind of feel like a mess. So why do any of you care about my health? You probably don’t! But some of you may have a lot of these similar issues as many of them tend to go together. And for those of you that do, I invite you to join me on my journey to healing! For me, I’m pretty certain it starts with the gut.
Guess I Should Add My Disclaimer… I’m no doctor or expert. I’m not saying you should listen to any of my advice. I’m also not saying you should ask your doctor, because I think the large majority of them want to do nothing but slap a pill on your symptoms. However, I do urge you to use that noggin’ of yours and make up your own mind on whether you want to talk to a doctor or do your own research or whatever. Lawyers come at me.
My Symptoms/Issues
Eczema – This started maybe 5 years ago or so in my ears which is just fantastic. So far, it is only in the canal of my ears and seems to be staying there. It started in one and went to the other about a month later, and never went away since. It itches, it weeps, it bleeds, and I always scrape it off because it starts to build up layers in my ear, which I’m sure just makes it worse. It ebbs and flows, but ultimately is extremely irritating and uncomfortable.
Then about two years ago, I suddenly had an outbreak on the back of head on my scalp. This is itchy, but generally a lot more bearable. I’m lucky that my eczema has been in two places no one can see, however I don’t know where it’s going to go next.
IBS – First of all, I don’t believe in IBS. It’s is kind of like if someone has a virus telling them they have sneeze disease. IBS is nothing but saying “Hey your gut is really screwed up, we don’t know why, but good luck!” I digress, that was my diagnosis. What was actually happening was for over a decade now I had my morning “movement” like clockwork, but it comes urgently and it is the general consistency more or less of pudding (sorry, gross I know).
I never had an issue of having to run to the bathroom all day, so it is not diarrhea in that sense. There are also a lot of undigested parts and frequently mucous. It’s generally only solid when I’m hungover, as I’ve sucked every ounce of fluid out of my body. Think that about covers it.
Other gut/stomach issues – I am bloated all the time, and quite gassy (out both sides). Also, struggle quite a bit with heartburn.
Sinus Issues – I have long had sinus problems, and at some point a few years ago I got allergy tested. I came up positive for dust mites and cockroach feces. Generally, I am somewhat congested or have a runny nose the majority of the time. Every pocket I have is usually stuffed with tissues.
I frequently get pain in one spot over my one same eye which I’ve determined is a sinus location. Actually, there was a point many years ago that I had a chronic sinus infection in this same spot, everyday for about a year. I went to doctors and nothing they gave me fixed it. We were even starting to talk surgery. Finally, I decided to start eating raw garlic cloves. I ate like 5 cloves a day and in literally 3 days it was gone. This thing that I’ve been treating with antibiotics and allergy medications and everything under the sun for a YEAR went away in 3 days. I’ll never handle a sinus infection any other way. Magic.
I also have these awful purple circles under my eyes that I think stem from the dust mite allergy. It’s vain, but it also makes me look like I’m always tired. I believe this has affected many areas of my life, especially jobs and interviews because I come off completely exhausted and unwell.
Dental Health – This isn’t a big one, my teeth are generally very healthy, but I do have a few spots of gum recession and a few short roots on my front teeth, probably from orthodontics.
Anxiety/Depression – Ah, everyone seems to have this these days (and I believe most of us probably actually do). This is likely a product of our lifestyles, but I also think largely because of what we do to our bodies. My anxiety has been pretty bad for a while, my depression comes and goes and was never too catastrophic thankfully. This is also probably the biggest reason for fueling my, what I will admit, is an alcohol addiction. I have finally connected that after a raging weekend I am extra anxious and depressed Monday and Tuesday until it clears my system.
I have really improved my anxiety and depression lately with becoming a bit more spiritual and getting into the Law of Attraction, and just taking steps to make my life better. But alas, it lingers. You can read more about my journey with this here.
Acne – I’ve struggled with acne since I was a teenager along with my sister. We took internal antibiotics, topical antibiotics, used Proactive, Differin, Murad, every OTC treatment you can think of, dietary changes, birth control, everything. I think birth control helped some, but I had to switch around because of other symptoms and some brands made it much worse. Finally, I came across Spironolactone. I don’t remember the specifics, but I took it in the smallest possible dose, skipped most of the dosages, and stopped taking it entirely in less than a year and my acne has largely been gone ever since. This is kind of a mystery to me because everything I read said once you go off it it will come back. Just recently though I had an outbreak close to what I had pre-Sprinolactone which was several years ago which was concerning.
Brain Fog – I really have a hard time concentrating on anything. I struggle at work with this especially. People say things to me and I feel like I am giving it all of my focus on concentration and then I totally can’t remember what they said. Or maybe I’m just bored shitless and don’t care, I don’t know.
Fatigue – Again, a common one. I pretty much always feel tired. I have a lot of crashes in the day. Actually the one thing that makes me feel really awake and alert is alcohol, which is yet another reason why I have grown to um… overindulge. Another reason I am tired is because I don’t sleep well, which brings us to my next issue…
Insomnia – Even though I’m tired most of the day, I can hardly ever fall asleep at night. Once again, this is something that has gotten better. I used to lay awake in bed for two or three hours every night before falling asleep regardless of what time I woke up or went to bed. Nowadays it’s usually 1-2 hours. But rarely do I go to bed and fall asleep within an hour unless, you guessed it, I’m drinking. I also tend to wake up every night between 2-4 and sometimes struggle falling back asleep. In the morning, I never want to get out of bed and never feel refreshed.
Low blood pressure/always cold – I’ll lump this in one because I think they go hand in hand. My blood pressure frequently reads about 90/60, and this is when I’m at the doctor and somewhat anxious compared to my normal state. They always say it’s fantastic, but I don’t agree. It makes me tired and cold.
Low Libido – Self explanatory. I’m generally not too in the mood and think my hormones are screwed up and to blame.
Bruising – My ex used to call me an old apple (first flag), but it’s accurate. I get deep, dark bruises all over me and I don’t even know what they are from half the time. I look like I’m into some intense sports or someone is beating me up.
Joints pop and click – I’m not entirely sure if this is normal or not, but I feel like I’m clickier than most people. Back-burner issue.
TMJ – I have TMJ and teeth grinding problems. I think this has more to do with my lower jaw not developing like it should have, but who knows. TMJ seems to be pretty misunderstood.
I think that about does it! Yikes, that was more of a list than I thought. I swear I’m not a hypochondriac.
My Theory
Long story short, my theory behind the vast majority (if not all of this) is leaky gut. In a nut shell, leaky gut is when damage to the gut lining occurs that opens up the tight junctions in the gut wall. This allows substances to leak into the bloodstream and cause inflammation and all sorts of issues. It affects every function in our body.
Why Would I Have Leaky Gut?
I believe there are two major contributors to my suspected leaky gut. I think it began with all of the rounds of internal and external antibiotics I was on in high school for my acne. I stayed on the prescriptions for months if not years, I honestly don’t remember. Way longer than anyone should be on an antibiotic.
Secondly, I believe birth control contributed to my leaky gut. You can agree or disagree, but my own research has led me to believe there is a lot of sense and truth in this.
In addition, I know my diet and alcohol consumption have done nothing to help this, but I don’t believe it was the leading cause. However, I have consumed a lot of processed food and drinks throughout my 20’s and early 30’s, and although I haven’t really gained weight from it, I know it’s not healthy.
So What Now??
Now I start the journey to healing! And for me, my first go at it (this time around anyway) is going to be the Carnivore Diet! Follow my 30 day experiment here!