Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: My Story

I was at the peak of my swimming career when I got a terrible virus that lasted 2 weeks long.

It was awful…I was congested, had migraine headaches, body aches and lots of pain for over a week. It was so bad that the doctor was going to perform a spinal tap if my fever didn’t cease.

Luckily, the fever dissipated and I slowly began to get better.

You know, I was never a super healthy kid. I had chronic sinus infections, ear infections, and sore throats.

Only 4 short months before I qualified for the Olympic Team I had my tonsils removed in an attempt to reduce my chronic illnesses.

When I look back on my health history, it really is amazing that I was able to compete and succeed at the level I did with such a poor health constitution.

Eventually, after seeing many doctors, I was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) by a great doctor from John’s Hopkins University, Dr. Peter Rowe.

He was really the first doctor that listened to me and seemed to understand that I wasn’t depressed, I was just sick and tired of being sick and tired!

After the diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, I relentlessly pursued knowledge and new actions towards healing and getting back to my vibrant self.

I discovered Functional Medicine and the amazing power of food.

The Secret to your Body’s Energy Production

What I also learned, is that our mitochondria are responsible for energy production in the body.

When the mitochondria aren’t fueled properly, they begin to fail and profound fatigue sets in among a host of other health issues.

Fueling these mitochondria can be interrupted by poor diet and/or poor digestion from a host of issues including food allergies and leaky gut.
Unfortunately, I made the link between what I was eating and my chronic fatigue later than sooner.

Even though it took some time to connect the dots between food and function, it was for me, like getting the keys to the kingdom.

It was so liberating when I began to experience some relief of symptoms and know that I had control of it all, that it wasn’t some genetic issue or bullcrap I was stuck with.

Hopefully, your constitution is stronger than mine and you aren’t struggling with the same recurring health stuff that I did. But if you are…please know there is help and there are so many things you can do to reverse poor health. You are never stuck with any symptoms in my experience working with clients over the last 12 years.

Life after Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

While I’ll never train for another Olympic Games again, I can honestly say that I experience a new level of vibrant health and I have my new eating habits to thank for that.

While you may not have a diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, fatigue is repeatedly the number ONE reported symptom on my online health assessment.

Do you wake up tired after a full night’s sleep?

Are you struggling to recover from your workouts?

Are you sluggish throughout the day despite how much sleep you get?

Do you know that your energy could be better?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you might want to take a look at revamping your diet.

Your mitochondria might not be getting fueled the way they need to and no matter how much you sleep, nothing will change without a dietary adjustment.

Here are the Top 3 ways to Overcome Fatigue

This is a great start to getting the energy you want and feeling vibrant every day so that you can have the energy to do the things you are passionate about.

#1 Mindset

You’ve got to have a Champion Powered Mindset when it comes to your health. Your health HAS to be priority number one so that you can be your best in other areas of your life like sports, parenting, and work.

If you are chronically tired but refuse to give up sugary drinks because you “really like them”, then, I can’t help you.

If on the other hand, you are actively seeking out remedies and improvement with your health, then you are in the right place.

What is your health mantra?

Creating a health mantra (which you do in my online program) gives you a roadmap and foundation towards increased vitality.

In our family, we say, “Food First” as our mantra.

Whenever anything is ailing any of us, we first take a look at what we’ve been eating.

For example, I don’t eat grains because over the years I’ve learned they don’t work for me. However, last week, I dabbled in the grains for several days in a row and recognized that I was in a really foul mood. I wasn’t my normal excited, happy self. When I talked about this with my husband and he asked me what I was eating, I realized that the ‘dabbling’ in the grains had really affected me and my mood. As soon as I reset myself and re-committed to the foods that work for me, I experienced an immediate shift.

Create a health mantra today!

#2 Eat a Whole Foods Diet

That is food from nature in its most natural form. Get rid of low nutrient and processed foods (food in a box, bag or other packages).

Eat more: Fruits & vegetables (especially the green stuff), protein, whole food starches like sweet potato, squash, plantain, and lots of healthy fats like olive oil, coconut oil, olives, grass-fed butter, nuts, seeds, and avocado.

Eliminate sugary drinks (like coffee concoctions, juices, energy drinks) cereals, cookies, cereal bars, candy and processed junk.

#3 Get Rid of Toxic Chemicals in your Home

There are so many affordable, natural cleaning products readily available nowadays, so no excuses for the cheap, chemical infested cleaning stuff.

Also, get rid of the artificial, chemical smelling plugins and perfumes in your home. They are toxic for our bodies and place a burden on our liver. Anytime you burden an organ, you will experience fatigue.

If you haven’t already, take my High-Performance Health Assessment now to see how many unnecessary symptoms you might be experiencing that are taking you off your A-Game in sport, work, and life!

Sources:

https://thelivingproofinstitute.com/chronic-fatigue-syndrome/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26349970/

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25662535

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24711540

http://drhyman.com/blog/2017/05/08/getting-root-cause-ms-chronic-fatigue-syndrome/

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