I’ve been completely overwhelmed with health information lately. Maybe you’re feeling the same way. One doctor/report says to eat flax seed, the other says to stay away from it at all costs. One doctor says it’s so healthy to eat soy but the other doctor says no. The same thing is true from my friends: one friend says she stays away from soy, the other says she eats it every day. The peer-reviewed studies I’ve been reading are a mixed bag and my head is spinning.
What I’ve decided is with my complicated health history and my age, I’m tired of trying to figure out how to fix me. I am exhausted from worrying about what is right and what is wrong. I’m full of anxiety wondering if I’m doing it right or I’m going to end up with cancer soon. What I’m going to do to relieve the anxiety and stress is I am going to let someone else take the wheel and drive for a while, someone who has expertise in how the systems in the body works. I can’t imagine not reading any more health blogs or articles, but I’m going to stop implementing everything on myself. No more supplements, no more shakes, no more temporary, 10-Day eating plans that can’t be continued for the rest of my life.
I found Barbara Solomon on Dr. Ben Lynch’s site; she is someone who has experience with the MTHFR genetic mutation which is something I’ve tested positive for. Already after a brief phone conversation, I feel better because Barbara told me I don’t have the severe version of the mutation. When she discovered I take Sam-e, she immediately asked me how it made me feel. I replied that it helped me sleep for the first time in my life. Purely by accident, I found Sam-e many years ago and I’ve had very few issues with insomnia since then. Barbara was shocked that it didn’t make me feel like The Incredible Hulk with the raging anger episodes. She noted that something else must be lurking in my labs to answer the question of why Sam-e helps me. I cannot wait to figure out the puzzle that is me.
I’m going to follow everything Barbara (a certified functional health practitioner) tells me to do and I will do it with near perfection. Why? Because I’ve done things my way without success and now I need to follow someone with actual knowledge. My degree is in communications, not any health-related field.
Although I’m somewhat nervous about what my labs will show, I’m also excited to feel better. Follow me on my journey to better physical and mental health.
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What has your experience with Solomon been like? I’m thinking of going to see her next week.
Stop what you’re doing and make the appointment. Barbara Solomon was worth every penny. First and foremost, she was the one who diagnosed me just from seeing my labs. My labs were a year old when she saw me and she said, “Oh, looks like you had a virus when your blood was taken.” And then she said, “Aha! You have Hashimotos” which makes perfect sense. My symptoms for years have been exhaustion no matter how much I sleep, hair falling out (including eyebrows), can’t stop gaining weight despite dieting and exercise, and severely constipated.
In about 5 minutes, she diagnosed me when no other doctor I’ve seen for years has diagnosed me. Remember, these doctors saw the same old labs and said nothing.
Now comes the sad part…I didn’t follow Barbara’s advice to the letter because it was very hard advice to follow (for me). When I finally did take her suggestions?? I felt freaking amazing. For the first time in years, I was fully awake all day long and slept at night like a champ.
If you have major symptoms like me, Barbara is well worth seeing. If you want to pay fewer dollars and try to fix yourself, I highly recommend “Eat Dirt” by Dr. Josh Axe and following his blog posts. A whole bunch of advice given by Dr. Axe in his book was stuff Barbara told me to do over a year ago with the addition of mushroom supplements, Ashwaganda, and Rhodiola. I have a ‘Stressed Gut’ according to Dr. Axe and he lays out a plan to help.
I’m going to restart following Barbara’s/Dr. Axe’s advice after I return home because I know I can do better and I know what they both suggest will make me feel amazingly more human-like.
Thank you so much for reminding me of my commitment to myself. Let me know what you think of Barbara after your appointment.
Okay! I’ve made my appointment. I wonder if there’s a way we could support one another in making lifestyle changes. I’m fairly confident a few of those are comin my way! Thanks for the encouragement. That means a lot.
I wonder if there is a way…the most successful I ever was with a complete change was when I had to get weighed three times per week. Boy, that got me on board with sticking to my eating plan very easily. It also helped me to see (and my counselor) that I needed to eat all that they said to eat and to drink my water!
I’m wondering how we could do this. Perhaps if we met up in person one a week/bi-weekly/monthly?? Become friends on MyFitnessPal or hmmmm…the difference, of course, is that our goals will be different than simply losing weight. I feel that when I follow-through and follow the rules of both Barbara Solomon and Dr. Axe, my body will let go of the weight because I will heal my gut and my Hashimotos. So I suppose what I really need is someone I can say “Hey, I took all my supplements on time today.” Lol. I didn’t eat gluten/dairy/junk food/drink wine. I ate fish, vegetables, and drank gallons of water, bone broth, and coconut kefir!
What kind of support do you need?
I’d love to meet up or be friends on MFP! I need all the help/support I can get! I actually had a bad experience with Barbara Solomon. She refused to accept my legal signature as my legal signature so she would not honor our appointment. I was so disappointed. It seems so silly for her disapproval of my legal signature (which is accepted by all financial and legal institutions – and I’m a check-signer at my office) to prevent us from working together. Anyhow I’m learning more and more about nutrition and I’m excited to try Dr. Fuhrman’s 10 in 20 plan, and follow his Nutritarian recommendations.
I resonated with what you said about this not being simply about losing weight. It’s about healthful life choices, especially regarding food. When we eat well, we heal our bodies and the weight loss is a side effect. A very welcome side effect.
I think my support would look like ‘Hey, did you follow the 10 in 20 program today? How are you feeling? Did you shop and cook on the weekend?’ That would be awesome!
So – did you take your supplements on time today? Did you avoid gluten/dairy/junk food/wine? 🙂