Hi Everyone,
The following blog post was written by a friend of mine, Conni Dennison. We were connected a while back by a mutual friend and share an interest in health and nutrition. I have really enjoyed getting to know her! She is currently studying nutrition at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition as well as Bauman College. In addition to starting her own blog, she will soon be taking on clients as a Certified Health Coach. Stay tuned for many good things to come from her and enjoy her wonderful recount of her journey to health! She will be sharing with you her diagnosis and treatment of a very common issue known as Candidiasis. As she explains below, Candidiasis can contribute to digestive issues, fatigue, acne, depression, headaches, and more. If you experience any of those symptoms, read on!
Two years ago, I reached a point where I was completely
frustrated with my chronic stomach aches and digestive issues. It had been
going on for years and, while it ebbed and flowed in terms of
frequency/intensity, it was always present in my life. ‘It’ refers to the
constant state of turmoil my stomach was in on a daily basis. Knowing what I
know now, it is frighteningly obvious what was going on. But, at that time, I had
no idea that my daily eating and drinking habits, along with my use of
medication to treat occasional illnesses/infections and my long-term use of
birth control pills were all contributing significantly to ‘it’.
I began researching online, talking to friends and generally
trying to educate myself on what might be at the root of all of this stomach
unrest. I knew it was common for people to have stomach issues from time to
time, but this was different and I knew it. I was certain there was
(unfortunately) more to it and I was determined to figure out what it was and
identify a solution.
After a fair amount of homework on my part, I ended up
speaking with (and ultimately meeting with) a Naturopath. When I read through
her background and various reviews written by her clients, I felt fairly
confident in her expertise and was interested to see if she could help me
resolve this ongoing issue in my life.
Our initial call was brief, but informative enough to give
me confidence in moving forward with her and booking an in-person appt. In the
spirit of full disclosure, one of the major hurdles for me was the financial
commitment. It was definitely a substantial cost, but I can assure you it was
worth every penny. It was an investment in my health and the results were a
reward I couldn’t put a price tag on.
In our first meeting, my Naturopath (ND) did an extremely
comprehensive health history with me. She asked questions ranging from what my
diet consisted of to how often I had taken medication over the years to the
type of walls, rugs and ventilation in every apartment I had ever lived in. To
be completely honest, there were a few times during this line of questioning
that the cynical side of me came out and I wanted to roll my eyes and ask what
possible relevance this could have to my stomach issues. But she asked her
questions in such a methodical and thoughtful way that I felt fairly certain
she was going somewhere with all of it, so I cooperated.
At the end of our initial meeting, which was approximately
1.5 – 2 hours in duration, she told me what she thought was going on with me, but said that she wanted to take some
tests in order to be certain and give me a proper diagnosis and treatment plan.
What seemed odd, but now makes complete sense, was that she told me to continue
with my current (terrible) diet for the next couple of weeks so that the tests
could be administered under the conditions my body was accustomed to over the
past few years. I cringe – literally – to admit how bad it was, but I will be
honest.
An average day included a grande, non-fat (sugar infested)
chai latte, which sometimes served as both breakfast and lunch. Lattes have
always just stifled my appetite, so I would nurse one for a good couple of
hours and then not be hungry at all after I had finished it. Sometimes snack on
high sugar, low fat candy at work (think Swedish fish, twizzlers, hot tamales).
Dinner varied, but almost always involved something high carb/sugar as well. Whether
it was a lot of bread or sometimes even frozen yogurt – calling it nutritionally
deficient is an understatement. In all fairness, sometimes I would have big
salads and I also loved sushi, so on occasion I had healthy meals. But it could
have been much, much better.
I took the tests – which were not too pleasant (stool,
saliva…etc are standard testing methods) – and submitted them. Those next
couple of weeks felt like an eternity waiting for the results. My ND called to
set up an appointment when she got the results in. I still have my notes from
that call. What upset me most was the level of concern in her voice. She was basically
like ‘you have severe Candida and you need to get it turned around now’. I knew
a little about Candida, as I had two friends who had it pretty bad over the
years, but I didn’t know enough. I was determined to educate myself on it
though.
I won’t go into the details of my specific test results, but
it basically showed that I had serious Candida and that my immune system essentially
did not exist. This explained a lot because I got sick constantly – and also
had other chronic infections, none of which were life threatening but were
certainly not healthy or normal. For those of you who are not familiar with
Candida, here is a brief description:
According to
"Prescription for Nutritional Healing”, Candida albicans is a
"parasitic yeast-like fungus" that lives in the body. It's found in
the intestines, throat, genital tract and mouth. It normally lives in balance
with other bacteria in the body, but it can multiply and weaken the immune
system, resulting in candidiasis. Candidiasis has many symptoms, ranging from
constipation or diarrhea to bad breath to headaches, mood swings, vaginitis,
arthritis and depression. The book also says food allergies are common in
people with an overgrowth of Candida. A Candida detox diet will help cleanse
the body and get the overgrowth of Candida back under control.
My ND put me on a super strict treatment plan. Candidly,
when she laid out the guidelines for me, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
In a nutshell, I was told to eliminate – for 30 days – all bread, dairy, sugar,
alcohol and coffee, among other things. But these were the 5 main categories
that were crucial for me to avoid. I felt like air was the only thing not on
the list. But, once we discussed it in greater detail, it turned out there was
quite a bit I could still have – most meats, fish, quinoa, brown rice,
vegetables, most nuts (no peanuts)……not really fruit because that feeds candida,
but that wasn’t too big of a deal.
I knew I had no choice and, at this point, I was committed
and determined to eradicate this awful candida from my system so I just
accepted this treatment plan and dove in. I won’t lie – the first 3 or 4 days
were brutal. It was true withdrawal, not unlike what drug addicts and
alcoholics experience from what I’m told. Sugar is that powerful of an
addiction. I had massive withdrawal headaches and my body was BEGGING me for
carbs, sugar and caffeine. My ND had warned me that this would happen and just
said to do everything I could to resist the temptation and that it would
eventually pass. She was right. And once it did pass, I felt great. Each day, I
felt better and stronger and healthier. I never believed it would happen, but
within less than two weeks, my body didn’t even want bread or sugar at all. The
thought of it was totally unappealing to me. It was so liberating!
One of the hardest parts for me (and I am sure for most
other people who have gone through this) was giving up alcohol. I have never
been a huge drinker, but I definitely enjoy drinking wine/beer at dinner with
my husband 1-2 nights/week and it’s one of the things we look forward to most
together. It was tough to have an entire month of eating out with him and
ordering nothing but water with lemon. I guess in hindsight it was good
practice for when I am ultimately pregnant, but it was still very challenging,
I can’t lie.
As the days/weeks progressed, I felt better and better and
better! I had tons of energy and
started to sleep like a baby. I’ve
always exercised in the mornings before work, but it has always been a struggle
when the alarm goes off because I have never been a morning person. By the end
of week 2 of this cleanse, I was practically leaping out of bed in the morning.
I went on longer runs and honestly just didn’t want my workouts to end. I felt incredible.
By the end of the 30 days, I really didn’t even want to
reward myself with having all of the things I had given up for that period. I
allowed myself to have some wine on the 31st day because we were
visiting friends back east and it was fun to imbibe a little. But I truly
wanted to keep my diet on the same regimen going forward. My body craved
healthy food and wanted nothing to do with the junk I had been ingesting for
years prior to this cleanse.
There have definitely been times (primarily the holidays and
vacation) over the past two years since I did this cleanse that I have slipped
up and indulged in too much sugar/alcohol/carbs for brief periods and I won’t
beat myself up over that. Sometimes it’s almost good in that it reminds me of
how bad I felt all those years prior to ridding myself of the candida. As long
as I stay on track 80% of the time, I am ok with indulging the other 20% or so.
The more important point is that it shouldn’t have to be a sacrifice or an
effort. It really does feel that good to feed your body nutritious, whole foods
and the rewards come in so many forms – better moods, energy, sleep…..just a
better quality of life.
Candida is something we all have to an extent in our bodies
and always will from what I’ve read and been told. But if you have it as bad as
I had it, you need to address it and deal with it. Trust me, your body will
thank you for it.
Whipped Coconut Cream Frosting
