My health journey

Last year I was diagnosed with a thyroid condition and I know this has nothing to do with autism but it has significantly impacted our lives and after going through some difficult times we are now making changes that the whole family will benefit from.

In the last couple of years I have spoken to my GP about feeling exhausted, brain fog, anxiety and depression. The GP said that it was all normal considering what I have going on in my life. It wasn’t until my anxiety/depression and exhaustion were at an all-time high putting me in bed for days/weeks on end that the GP decided to do some tests. The results showed that my own body was attacking itself. I was put on medication and months later I unfortunately felt no different even though my GP assured me my thyroid levels were normal. I asked to be referred to an endocrinologist who changed my medication because she felt my thyroid was still not functioning correctly and diagnosed me with severe iron deficiency. I had an iron infusion and I was blessed to start feeling a lot better very quickly. The energy levels were short lived and due to the high levels of stress in life I found myself having flare ups with my thyroid again putting me in bed with severe anxiety, lethargy and awful brain fog. (I have never experienced brain fog like this, everyone says to me I know baby brain but I have had baby brain and it doesn’t touch the brain fog I have experienced from my thyroid issues. I felt like I was getting an intro to dementia.)  

I really struggled with the concept that this could possibly be what my life was going to be from now on. How was I going to give my boys the best chance at a fulfilling life if I couldn’t get stressed out because it put me in bed.

With mainstream medicine failing to help me I reached out to family, friends, social media and basically anyone who would listen to try and find out if they knew anyone that had experienced this or something similar and what had they done. I started reading books and following people online that seemed to be getting somewhere. The answer I got was “ALL DISEASE STARTS IN THE GUT” and I needed to change my diet to improve my gut health. A lot of people had success doing paleo diet, keto diet, dairy and gluten free with an introduction to probiotics.

I started gluten and dairy free after my last flare up and I also started taking probiotics. I had no idea what I was doing and I felt like I was flying blind and I needed support. A friend put me onto a nutritionist and we are now starting a journey to repair my gut health and I was recommended the GAPS (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) Protocol.

I think it’s funny that I have been recommended a protocol that is documented as a natural treatment for Autism and many other neurological and physical conditions.

This is going to be an interesting and I’m sure rewarding journey with my family. I will keep you posted on our successes. Fingers crossed we have some exciting and life changing things coming our way.

If you are having any of the symptoms I had maybe speak to your GP about a blood test for your thyroid. I also encourage people to ask more questions and follow your gut (second brain) when it comes to your health. I have had doctors tell me all sorts of things and I am blessed to have a strong sense of self, knowing that if it doesn’t feel right get another opinion. 

If you would like to know more about an under active thyroid please visit https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/ConditionsAndTreatments/thyroid-hashimotos-disease
I am not a medical professional and recommend you seek help if you are concerned about your mental and physical health.

If you would like to know more about the GAPS diet you can go to https://gapsaustralia.com.au/ or you can speak to Paula a GAPS practitioner at http://www.nourishmenatural.com/

Thanks for reading

Jess x