I was twenty two years old and felt like 90. Everyday I would get out of bed not knowing if I could make it to my 4th year classes. Some days I would shower and by the time I finished I felt dizzy, sleepy, and my muscles felt like lead. I would be so weak I had to crawl on all fours back to my bedroom to lay down again. I would get 12-14 hours of restless sleep that would leave me feeling like a truck hit me. I ached all over and my head felt like it would burst with the pounding pain. It was like having the flu... for months... and then years. Some days were better. I could accomplish simple goals like writing a paper, reading for class work, walking to school to attend classes. But other days I would arrive to a meeting with my thesis advisor and she could tell by the dark circles under my eyes and the droop of my shoulders that I wasn't well enough to converse about the poetry of John Donne. I always say I finished my undergrad degree by grace. My English profs knew me and were very understanding about allowing me extra time to finish assignments. I just never knew if I could keep a schedule. Some of my notes were crazy to read because I'd make it to class, but then half way through the lecture, my brain would fog over and my hand would just slide down my page before I had to stop writing to put my head down. Great friends allowed me to borrow notes to catch things my mind missed. After my final year of course work was completed I went to a Dr. Mildon in Toronto who diagnosed me with CFIDS - Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome. After taking many vials of blood to examine, Dr. Mildon said I had a virus that my body was not fighting off. My immune system was not working well and I was deficient in many vitamins.
I walked out of her office with a diagnosis and a list of supplements to buy. I started taking handfuls of vitamins each morning - Evening Primrose Oil, Vitamin B6, B12, Zinc and others my mind can't recall - the year was 1992. I read a little more about Chronic Fatigue and found that little was understood about it except that people didn't generally regain health. My adult life was just beginning and I'd been handed a life sentence of flu symptoms.
I got married that fall to a very supportive and understanding husband. He and I talked about taking a year off - no schedule - to allow my body to recover. I was granted a deferral on an offer to Teacher's College and began married life with a sinus infection. The first time I signed my new name was at an Emergency room on my Honeymoon. I was handed one more anti-biotic. This was a regular winter routine for me. For all my teenage life, I would need anti-biotics two or three times a winter to treat a sinus or bronchial infection after a cold lodged deep in my respiratory system aggravating an asthma condition. I recall with perfect clarity trying to clear mucous from my sinuses and chest making the terrible orchestration involved and Lance calling from the other room - "I love you! I still love you!" Wonderful words for a moment when I really didn't feel at all attractive.
For many years, exercise was impossible. My muscles ached enough to keep me awake just from tapping my toe to music at a concert. I was on a downward spiral and had no answers about how to turn it around. Changing eating habits was impossible when I could hardly get off the couch most days. I did a lot of hand embroidery and knitting to feel like I could still contribute some beauty to the world. But my world shrunk - fast. I didn't have energy for going out - calling friends - joining activities. Lance's involvements with youth ministry brought some community into our home. I had some friends who faithfully reached out to me even when I didn't return phone calls or took a long time to respond. Lance and this community were a lifeline.
I stopped playing guitar because my arm hurt when I strummed the strings. I stopped singing because my throat often hurt and I felt too weak to exert the effort. But as my outward world shrunk, I was determined to grow my inner world through reading, prayer, and writing. I knew the sentence I'd been given wasn't the end of the story. I felt sure that God had plans for me that didn't involve lounging on a couch for the rest of my years. The diagnosis didn't write my future - God did. I trusted that I'd find the steps needed to heal.
The first step came from a book by William Crook: "Chronic Fatigue and the Yeast Connection." He explained that after years of antibiotic use, eating refined sugars and grains, and exposure to environmental toxins, our body's cleansing systems get overloaded. Antibiotics kill off protective bacteria along with pathogens. Our digestive tract is naturally home to a whole world of micro-organisms that help break down our food and work effectively to assist our bodies to clear out waste and maintain emotional and overall wellness. Yeasts co-exist with other microflora that keep them in balance. But when antibiotics kill off good bacteria with the bad, yeasts are left to overgrow to fill the space. They attack the intestinal walls to create a permeable cell structure that allows toxins and food particles to leave the gut and circulate through the body (often called 'leaky gut'). Food allergies and sensitivities become part of the result and the body is open to auto-immune responses - where it may begin to attack toxins in healthy cells in an effort to clean up the mess. The virus that entered my system at this stage was the last straw that broke the camel's back... or caused a health breakdown.
About this time, a friend sent me a letter explaining a Cleansing and Rebuilding Program designed by a master herbalist with a family herbal lineage from the Mediterranean. I had nothing to lose. It was a bit of an investment for us as a young couple living on one church salary, but Lance stood firmly behind any steps I wanted to make to regain health. After a few days on the digestive cleanse I felt like my body was drawing poisons out of my tissues before elimination. I would feel nauseous and dizzy before a trip to the bathroom where it was like I was unloading illness. I felt lighter each time. The program came with a parasite cleanse that was to be added only after elimination was happening very regularly so that any die off wouldn't stay long in the body. A cell rebuilder was taken with the digestive and parasite cleanse to ensure that new cells would be healthy and free of toxins. After about six months on the cleanse and rebuild, I felt like I had a turn around. I could now take another step.
Part of my journey to restore health included working through emotional trauma and learning healthy boundaries. Reading, journaling, prayer and the companionship of some insightful, supportive friends provided the framework I needed to find peace.
After eight years of digging for root causes of Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome, I began to experience real change. Emotional, spiritual and physical growth created new resilience in body and soul. The moment that stands out as a marker of how far I'd come in regaining strength was when I could paddle on our yearly Leadership Camp canoe trip and not ache afterwards. At the end of my twenties, we decided we could start a family. I could leave behind the mental picture of being the sick Mom who parents from the couch. Fast forward twenty years and we have three healthy boys who I was able to homeschool throughout their elementary years. My oldest has almost completed his first year at university in a double degree program and I still enjoy spending my days with my grade 10 and grade 6 sons learning about the world and our place in it. My energy is probably about 80-90% of normal most days. I'm not running any marathons, but I get some nice long walks everyday with my boys and our new toy poodle. I find gentle yoga stretches and resistance moves have been a complementary active routine we all do together on our school mornings. Stretches are key to reducing neck and back tension and retaining core strength. But I wouldn't be able to do my moderate activity without some real healing in all the body systems. I use Young Living's essential oils - Deep Relief and Panaway with Copaiba and Peppermint regularly for muscle support and pain relief.
Sleep is key! Solving the sleep issues has been so important in regaining wellness. Medically, I was put on a low dose of anti-depressant to help with sleep, but I found little benefit and after 6 months decided to stop. Much more helpful have been essential oils like Stress Away, Lavender, Orange, Rosemary, Thieves, Cedarwood, Valor, Bergamot that I rotate through or blend in a diffuser for nightly sleep support. I fall asleep and stay asleep through the night. Part of solving sleep issues was adding in hormone support with Progessence Plus and Clary Sage. These have helped my body regulate temperature and sleep rhythms, and have been invaluable in avoiding night sweats, waking through the night, waking too early and helping my mind relax to sleep.
Food is powerful. I had been handed a basic North American diet of meat and potatoes, corn, pizza pops, chicken nuggets, with a carrot stick or two and an apple with my bologna sandwich to round out a healthy plate. Sugary cereals in milk or toast and peanut butter with apple juice were the start to my everydays. Over the last twenty five years, I have learned to track down food sensitivities and eliminate them, while shifting my emphasis in food choices to a variety of vegetables, moderate levels of protein and abundant use of healthy fats from coconut milk, olive oil salad dressings, butter on my veggies to improve taste and satisfaction. To combat yeast, it was imperative to cut out all sugar and grains for a few months. I still feel best when I eat this way in general. When my Young Living upline arranged coaching to do a Whole 30 reset program in January 2018, I loved adding lots of new recipes from that program to help us satisfy our palate as well as our health needs. It was a great guide for reducing inflammatory foods and eating what makes my body happiest. I've loosened the reins a bit to include stevia and small amounts of dark chocolate to satisfy my sweet tooth. Lifewatchers and Janet Jacks book "Discover the Power of Food" has been a great resource to re-educate our thinking about food. I've been seeing a Naturopath and Chiropractor for alternative health care while loving the regular health checks and support from my General Practitioner. Thankfully, I haven't had many needs for medication beyond a regular preventative asthma inhaler. I haven't needed an anti-biotic for secondary infections for twelve years. Essential oils and the right diet have been excellent ways to heal and maintain good preventative care.
Staying hydrated has been important, too. I like adding a drop of Lemon, Lime, Orange, or Slique Essential oil to my water in the morning to support cleansing systems. I use herbal teas like Peppermint and Licorice to reduce after dinner cravings and support digestion. Ningxia Red has also been really helpful in supporting energy, immune health, and a feeling of vitality. Some Young Living Essential oils have been approved by Health Canada for ingestion. I don't add any other brand of essential oils to my food and drinks due to the amount of chemical extenders, synthetic fragrances and unclear sourcing I am finding when I research products. Young Living's Seed to Seal commitment has earned my confidence and passed Health Canada's scientific verification process.
Since being introduced to Young Living a year ago, I've enjoyed supporting my digestive system daily with applying Digize and Peppermint Essential oil topically (diluted with coconut oil in a roller). They keep yeast in check and nourish and tone the bowel. Having suffered chronic constipation for most of my life, these essential oils have made a huge difference. When the digestive system can heal and the cell walls repair, allergies and auto-immune responses can begin to change and even reverse. Emotional wellness and brain health are also linked to digestive health. The gut has often been referred to as the second brain because the brain and gut pass messages back and forth constantly. Health in the gut can make great change in mental wellness. My team will be offering a Facebook class on Auto-Immune Healing soon. I can email a transcript if you are not on Facebook.
Reducing chemicals and toxins in our personal care and cleaning products to unburden the body has also been a shift in my household. As the gate keeper of my home, I am getting educated about how to keep hormone disrupters, carcinogens and harmful substances from coming in my door. The 'Think Dirty - Shop Clean' app has been a valuable tool in scanning and summarizing ingredients that are given a rating from 1-10 on the dirty scale. Young Living has formulated many products for household cleaning, supplements, personal care, mineral make up, and baby products to make it easy to ditch chemicals and make the switch for wellness. A monthly Essential Rewards shopping program allows me to earn up to 25% of my orders back in points to redeem for free products. This monthly wellness program allows me to gradually shift products to healthier choices while deciding ahead what I will budget for these changes. Each box is fully customizable, gets reduced shipping costs, and often contains free oils from Young Living based on order size. This has been a great way to continue to invest in wellness month by month at a minimum of around $50 US.
I'm so thankful for the well timed gifts of resources and products that continue to restore and lead me to new levels of wellness. Adding support from a Naturopath and the gift of Essential oils from Young Living this past year has brought me to better health than I have had since I was twenty. Day by day, one investment at a time have been the steps that have led to healing. Western medicine is great at diagnosis, pharmaceutical direction and surgical treatments. But all practitioners would encourage us to take charge of our own preventative care. That is now where I like to focus. I love to do things I know are good for restoring and supporting wellness in all the systems of the body and catch issues before they become medically significant. Often symptoms disappear as I focus on overall health, responding quickly with support when my body lets me know it needs it. Essential oils have been a significant help in restoring balance and cleaning body and home effectively with great scents that support emotional well being as well.
To start your own Essential oil journey to support wellness, I'd love to talk with you and invite you into a vibrant learning community to help you become your own health advocate. A great place to start with essential oils is Young Living's Starter Kits that are designed to give a great foundation from which to learn and grow. The Premium Starter Kit has easy to use most common oils and blends to support every system of the body. We have Facebook groups, newsletters , online classes and of course personal service from me to help you gain confidence in integrating oils into everyday. To contact me, email at: pegthrive@gmail.com
To order essential oils, Ningxia, or Thieves Cleaning line, starter kits are a great value. Browse this site for more details on how to get started. We have text classes, a Facebook learning community, Facebook Class albums and a wonderful team ready to cheer you on as you take healthy steps!
Let's learn and thrive - together!
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