New year, New Blog

Hello there, I have finally decided to tell people a little about myself. I am not the greatest writer but I feel that I have much to share in the hopes that it will help others like me. I have always been “healthy” and played sports growing up. I burned the candle at both ends in college, working full time and going to school full time and then left a very nasty engaged relationship which I still sometimes feel traumatized by. My poor husband is a gem is all I can say! Anyway I became diagnosed with autoimmune Hashimotos around 22 years old. I remember having a difficult time getting diagnosed as I was so young. I was also told it was irreversible and would be stuck with this hell forever. I decided to fight and become the “poster child” for hashis by reading everything I could and making sure I didn’t end up overweight like everyone else I knew.

I tried every diet, every fad and exercised excessively. I thought I was healthy. Then over the years I was struck with recurring colds, sinus infections, allergies, anxiety and panic attacks that were so bad I couldn’t go to work or even drive 5 mins away to Wal-Mart because I thought something was going to happen. I was on so many medications for this stuff and I hated it. I still felt awful. I then picked up running and did a few half and full marathons and then was struck with multiple stress fractures as I was then diagnosed with osteopenia in my 30’s. I was horrified and immediately began weightlifting. I ended up reversing the osteopenia over time but then started getting other just weird ailments that I couldn’t explain. Then the migraines started which really freaked me out as I thought I had a detached retina during my first visual migraine. I was always tired, achy, stuffy, brain foggy and a host of other things that just drove me crazy. Again, everyone thought I was healthy. My BP was good, my resting heart rate was awesome, and my TSH on paper was fine. I knew I wasn’t fine and asked to be tested for Lyme. All 3 times those tests came back negative. I thought I had to have it since we live in the woods and I worked for my husband’s landscaping company for a few years slinging mulch, splitting wood and cutting down trees.

Then at 38 years old I decided to try CrossFit after dealing with my last aggravating autoimmune issue of having a “acute stress reaction” as my doctor called it. I had intense headaches with my blood pressure and heart rate going though the roof at my last stressful job and after a EKG and cardiac ultrasound they found nothing wrong, I was done. I still remember my first day at Cross Fit because I had my ass handed to me and could barely walk the next day and I thought I was fit! I continued and was hooked immediately and soon after I was back to feeling like shit again and sore all the time. I decided to get a nutritional consult done only to find out that I was way under eating, like 1800 cals a day under eating and was barely getting any carbs or fat. No wonder my immune system and nervous system hated me. It took a few months of eating like a athlete did I start to feel like myself. I had more energy and started to PR most of my lifts. I then started coaching CrossFit at my gym and started to compete a little more and realized I actually wasn’t that bad of a athlete! I have done very well the past few years as a masters athlete in the Open and this drive has fueled me to be the best I can be. THAT is what led me to the real autoimmune journey and meeting my Functional Medicine Doc who literally saved my life! Stay tuned for more of my journey!