I'm MamaC. An EveryMom that lost the "sparkle in her eye" over the last ten years and am working at getting it back. I had a history of stomach aches, poor immunity, severe insomnia and sugar addiction my whole life. I wasn't really trying to fix them - I just thought they were a part of me, something I had to live with. Just like my cheapness, Type A personality and love for Ukrainian dancing.
But things were gradually getting worse. Add two kids to the mix, an unexplained shoulder injury, a stressful job and the loss of my dad. My adrenal glands could no longer keep fueling me. About a year after baby #2 (2010) - I suffered severe burnout and adrenal fatigue. It was brutal but I think I needed to hit rock bottom to realize I couldn't keep fueling my body with adrenaline, caffeine and chocolate.
I started making some changes that got me out of the burn out stage - just well enough to decide to go for baby #3 (born July 2012). During my third pregnancy I gave up caffeine and I started sleeping. After my pregnancy I started "dieting" to lose some baby weight. I couldn't believe the amount of energy I had when I started eating low-carb and wheat-free. I felt incredible. I had more energy than I could ever remember even with a baby getting up 4 to 8 times a night. I was excited to exercise again. And the baby weight was melting away. I got a taste of how good I could feel and I wanted more of it. I didn't and don't want to go back to the way I was so I started embracing a completely new lifestyle - eating and living clean. My stomach aches were virtually gone, my insomnia barely ever came to visit, and I didn't catch any colds or flu's. Amazing!
I love to create and experiment in the kitchen but I was totally uneducated in nutrition and clean eating. So I was relearning everything I knew about shopping, ingredients, nutrition and cooking. And I started blogging what I learned so I would have all these recipes and meal ideas when I went back to work.
But.................about 8 months into my clean eating (and 2 months into my blogging) I started feeling "off" again. Mood swings (anger), sugar cravings like crazy, severely low iron, night sweats, anxiety, brain fog. This time I wasn't about to accept that this is just how it has to be. I have no stress and yet I was showing telltale signs of extreme adrenal fatigue. Again.
So I started my journey of figuring out once and for all what is wrong with me? The adrenal mystery. What is causing my symptoms? Breastfeeding? Lack of sleep? Candida? Food sensitivities? IBS? Some other digestive ailment?
I started the process of investigating (with the help of my Naturopath and doctor) what is going on............Click HERE to go to my MamaHeals page that discusses how I am healing my gut.
I got my food panels re-run and confirmed that my leaky gut has significantly improved but I have pretty strong food sensitivities to bananas, pineapple, Whey, Yogurt, Yeast, Mushrooms and honey.
I had low stomach absorption, low iron, low B12 and low white blood counts.
And it turned out I had a rampant case of intestinal Candida.
Fast forward, to spring of 2014. I made the difficult decision to change direction with my career in the Fall and took a part-time job (a "real" part time job). I really started embracing the "living in the moment" part of my commitment to living clean. That combined with finally weaning baby, sticking with my clean diet, going to bed early (and consistently), exercising 4 times a week and I am finally feeling better. I still take supplements (go here to see what I still take) as I'm not ready to transition off of them yet. But my eyes are pretty sparkly some days...............so have hope. Its a ton of work, but you can change. You can heal. You can sparkle again!!!!
At each step in the investigation my diet kept (keeps) changing and getting tweaked to account for new information. And as I become more aware of my body and my symptoms I am learning what foods work for me and which don't. Dairy is now 100% out of my life. Gluten and grains are infrequent guests.
As time passes I might have a different version of clean - but its my version of clean. My ingredients keep changing but in general I feel best on a low-carb, low glycemic index food diet with no grains or processed foods. I also have a daughter with pretty severe leaky gut and food sensitivities (to dairy, gluten and eggs to name a few) so I'm also busy cooking and creating new recipes that she will and can eat.
Thanks for stopping by and hope you enjoy some of the recipes! And the ups and downs of living with three kids, dealing with intestinal issues and a Type A personality when you LOVE food and cooking.
But things were gradually getting worse. Add two kids to the mix, an unexplained shoulder injury, a stressful job and the loss of my dad. My adrenal glands could no longer keep fueling me. About a year after baby #2 (2010) - I suffered severe burnout and adrenal fatigue. It was brutal but I think I needed to hit rock bottom to realize I couldn't keep fueling my body with adrenaline, caffeine and chocolate.
I started making some changes that got me out of the burn out stage - just well enough to decide to go for baby #3 (born July 2012). During my third pregnancy I gave up caffeine and I started sleeping. After my pregnancy I started "dieting" to lose some baby weight. I couldn't believe the amount of energy I had when I started eating low-carb and wheat-free. I felt incredible. I had more energy than I could ever remember even with a baby getting up 4 to 8 times a night. I was excited to exercise again. And the baby weight was melting away. I got a taste of how good I could feel and I wanted more of it. I didn't and don't want to go back to the way I was so I started embracing a completely new lifestyle - eating and living clean. My stomach aches were virtually gone, my insomnia barely ever came to visit, and I didn't catch any colds or flu's. Amazing!
I love to create and experiment in the kitchen but I was totally uneducated in nutrition and clean eating. So I was relearning everything I knew about shopping, ingredients, nutrition and cooking. And I started blogging what I learned so I would have all these recipes and meal ideas when I went back to work.
But.................about 8 months into my clean eating (and 2 months into my blogging) I started feeling "off" again. Mood swings (anger), sugar cravings like crazy, severely low iron, night sweats, anxiety, brain fog. This time I wasn't about to accept that this is just how it has to be. I have no stress and yet I was showing telltale signs of extreme adrenal fatigue. Again.
So I started my journey of figuring out once and for all what is wrong with me? The adrenal mystery. What is causing my symptoms? Breastfeeding? Lack of sleep? Candida? Food sensitivities? IBS? Some other digestive ailment?
I started the process of investigating (with the help of my Naturopath and doctor) what is going on............Click HERE to go to my MamaHeals page that discusses how I am healing my gut.
I got my food panels re-run and confirmed that my leaky gut has significantly improved but I have pretty strong food sensitivities to bananas, pineapple, Whey, Yogurt, Yeast, Mushrooms and honey.
I had low stomach absorption, low iron, low B12 and low white blood counts.
And it turned out I had a rampant case of intestinal Candida.
Fast forward, to spring of 2014. I made the difficult decision to change direction with my career in the Fall and took a part-time job (a "real" part time job). I really started embracing the "living in the moment" part of my commitment to living clean. That combined with finally weaning baby, sticking with my clean diet, going to bed early (and consistently), exercising 4 times a week and I am finally feeling better. I still take supplements (go here to see what I still take) as I'm not ready to transition off of them yet. But my eyes are pretty sparkly some days...............so have hope. Its a ton of work, but you can change. You can heal. You can sparkle again!!!!
At each step in the investigation my diet kept (keeps) changing and getting tweaked to account for new information. And as I become more aware of my body and my symptoms I am learning what foods work for me and which don't. Dairy is now 100% out of my life. Gluten and grains are infrequent guests.
As time passes I might have a different version of clean - but its my version of clean. My ingredients keep changing but in general I feel best on a low-carb, low glycemic index food diet with no grains or processed foods. I also have a daughter with pretty severe leaky gut and food sensitivities (to dairy, gluten and eggs to name a few) so I'm also busy cooking and creating new recipes that she will and can eat.
Thanks for stopping by and hope you enjoy some of the recipes! And the ups and downs of living with three kids, dealing with intestinal issues and a Type A personality when you LOVE food and cooking.
Great post! I am going to try some of your recipes.
ReplyDeleteGlad you found me. Let me know how the recipes work out for you.
DeleteI am a mum of two young girls (3 and 1) and I have just been diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. You inspire me to believe that it IS possible to recover from adrenal fatigue while looking after young children!
ReplyDeleteHave hope and keep trying new things (consistently). You will heal. You will have set backs but you will heal if you are committed to making it happen. It might mean giving up some things (career, staying up late, alcohol, treats, whatever) but what you are giving up is nothing compared to what you are getting back - the best version of you! I wish you the BEST OF LUCK and am sending you lots of positive thoughts because I know how tough it is to go through. But you will get through it.
DeleteI have never heard of adrenal fatigue or intestinal candida. I have been suffering for 5 years now with similar symptoms that you mention throughout your blog. Trying to find out what is going on with my body has been very frustrating; I have a slow working thyroid, which I'm on medication for (2 years now). I felt good for a short time but then fell back into the fatigue for no reason, symptoms of depression, etc. I am on a depression medication, which again made me feel good for a short bit before falling back into the original symptoms. All my test results came back normal. I know my body, and I know something is just not right. How can I have no energy, foggy mind, bloating, etc. but yet there's nothing wrong with me (according to doctors). I exercise regularly, eat healthy(mostly) and I keep gaining weight, which makes me feel worse about myself. After reading your blog and researching the two illnesses you mentioned, I definitely would like to look into it more. I had most of the symptoms and I think I'm going to try your recipes and take some of the supplements I read on another site that can help with intestinal candida. You are such an inspiration! Thank you for sharing your stories!
ReplyDeleteHi there, hope you are doing well and found something to help you with your struggles. If there is one thing I have learned is that you need to listen to your body, your intuition and keep trying new things until you get it figured out. Have hope - you can get back to the best version of you. Don't give up!
DeleteOh my gosh. So much more awareness needs to be brought forward on post partum women’s health. I feel like I have been struggling alone, and feel like my body has failed me since having a baby. He is now 3 and I’m still trying to find answers and a cure for all this internal chaos.
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