Health and Wellbeing - Eat, Think, Feel
Nourish and heal your body with what you eat, think and feel
Wanting to make big or small changes towards a healthier and happier life can feel overwhelming. It can be daunting and exhausting, navigating your way through an abundance of online information, and professional services from people to guide and support you.
I am not trained in nutrition or health, but I am passionate about acknowledging how difficult this can be, and in the future create opportunities to help people on this journey, especially people who feel compromised with health conditions.
It is not selfish to focus on YOU, it is NECESSARY
Time for ourselves is something many struggle to find.
Working long hours, job searching, worries about paying the bills, the responsibilities of parenthood or looking after an elderly parent ...
It can feel like there is always something or someone more important than us, that needs our time and energy.
My health and lifestyle choices have not been the greatest throughout my adult life.
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I am sharing some of my own story and challenges to hopefully inspire others who want to make changes, but feel stuck and overwhelmed at the thought.
In 2013 after 2 years of living with escalating pain, I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, a condition that causes widespread chronic pain and extreme fatigue. This has been challenging, as a busy parent and working full time running my own not for profit organisations.
It was only in my late 40's I began to connect what I eat, not to what I weigh, or what size clothes I wear ... I was awakened to the impact certain foods and lifestyle choices had on my whole being.
I have seen people younger than myself with fibromyalgia walking on sticks, in wheelchairs, on multiple medications, yet their pain remains. They struggle to decrease or stop medications, due to side effects, making them feel frustrated, angry, defeated, resulting in more pain and depression. This was not a pathway I wanted to go down, and after a short period of time on medications, including Oramorph, I came off all pharmaceutical medications, and have refused to take any since.
For 6 years I visited chiropractors weekly. At the age of 48 I was woken up, and had a basic understanding of how poor nutrition, dehydration, stress and sleep deprivation had affected my health and pain levels.
However, long term bad habits are hard to break. I found it hard to discipline myself, struggling to find enough hours in the day, working excessive hours with hardly any sleep for 8 years, reaching for comfort foods for an quick energy fix, as my workload and associated stress continued to increase. A vicious cycle of destruction.
In 2016 I requested an appointment to see my fibromyalgia consultant, to ask why when I was admitted for
10 days for assessment, not one member of the team asked me what I ate. I was told 'There is no scientific evidence to prove that what people eat affects pain levels'. I disagree, but of course it is not only diet, we need to look at other areas of our lives too.
In 2017 I attended my healing course in Spain. I ate and drank differently, spent my days moving, stretching and focusing on my breathing, doing something I enjoyed alongside lovely people. On returning to the UK, I was mindful that my fibromyalgia pain had eased, but my symptoms escalated once more, as I returned to my stressful work and poor lifestyle choices. This has proven to me there is hope.
Scared of 'failure'? Don't let fear stop you from trying to bring positive changes to your life. People can guide you, but no one can do it for you, it is your responsibility.
No one says it will be easy, but one thing is for sure, if we do not try, we will remain stuck.
If you can find someone with the knowledge you need to walk alongside you, to support you, especially through those early days of transition, that's great!
Life is an adventure, a journey of self-discovery.
We will face many challenges, but remember, spirit is always with us, and we are never given anything we can't handle. This is how we learn and grow.
If you go off track, do not dwell on it. Pick yourself up, learn from it and try again. Never give up ... I haven't!
Jenny
