Q: What made me deep dive into health education and supporting others along the way?
My symptoms appeared strong when I was in my senior year of high school. I was a sports-driven child and very active. I remember being the only girl I knew who did not have their menstrual cycle yet. At that time, I thought I was lucky, but little did I know that was the indicator that something was off internally. Not only no menstrual cycles, but I also struggled with severe acne.
At the time, still under my parents’ insurance plan, yay! The first step was to go see a dermatologist for my breakouts. That dermatologist's solution was to put me on spironolactone and birth control. When I began her regimen, the birth control induced a period. But biologically, that was not the correct way for my first menstrual cycle to appear. Now that I was “bleeding”, my skin was my next huge concern. I was constantly reading health articles on mind body green (IYKYK throw bacck), dissecting everything I could about what could be a trigger and what I needed to clean up in my diet. Nothing was budging.
A few years later, I went in for my first OBGYN appointment. During the initial evaluation, she found cysts on my ovaries. She came into the room and told me I had PCOS and Hashimoto's (based on a single thyroid marker, not a full panel), and then informed me, at 21, that I would never be able to have children. I left that appointment feeling defeated and lost.
From then on, it sparked this ten-year span in my twenties to clear up my skin on my own, and really deep dive into what PCOS even means. At the time, there was not much info, but now we know it is a multifactorial set of symptoms. Throughout all the providers I met along the way to support me from every aspect of skin health, hormone health, migraines, digestive health, thyroid health, I started to slowly figure out how the body works in patterns, what needs to be supported foundationally before starting any type of eradicating of pathogens, the themes of safety, nourishment, inner self-talk, and so much more. Not to mention the trial and error I endured of expensive testing, supplement regimens of 10+ items, and still feeling like crap.
It was a ride, and I am still evolving and learning the body. As things can pop up, I have the tools and understanding of what I need to do, and the lifestyle to sustain me in a nourishing way.
I always used to think why me? This sucks. I should be thriving. I work out, play sports, but why am I not feeling my best? Turns out there was so much I did not know that impacted my health.
I've learned a lot along the way, and I want to share that guidance with the people who trust me for support!
Thank you for being here! ♡
