Gut Healing Stage 1

When I was diagnosed with Leaky Gut I thought I could work around it and just eliminate the foods that irritated my gut and I would be fine, That it would heal itself. Boy was I wrong! I needed to take drastic steps in healing my gut and here is my journey.

At first I would just experience bloating and cramps when I would eat dairy. So I stayed away from dairy and switched to Almond milk or Flaxseed Milk. Than I was experiencing the same symptoms with starchy carbs like potatoes, grains and breads. So I eliminated those as well. At this point I was only eating protein, veggies and fats. I was just fine eating this way because I really enjoyed it. But when we would go out and I would want the occasional pizza or hamburger than I would suffer, this I was not okay with.

Than it got to the point that I was tired for no reason and no matter what I ate I would get really bloated and my stomach would cramp up for hours after eating. One particular day I had eggs for breakfast and than we went on our usually morning walk and about a block in I was doubled over in pain, I had cold sweats and I felt like I was going to throw up, similar to having the stomach flu. I spent all day in bed with really bad cramps. At this point I was done! I could not take the pain anymore and I didn’t enjoy eating anything. Some days I would avoid eating all together.

Being a Health Coach I knew this wasn’t right for my body and I shouldn’t be living this way so I had to do something. I did some research on Gut Health, Microbiome, Leaky Gut, different diets, Healing Foods and so many more things. Than like out of the blue my favorite Dr. Dr. Okouchi came out with a Gut Restore Program. As soon as he announced its release I jumped on that like it was a cupcake with sprinkles. This ended up being one of the most pivotal moments in my life and my career, he taught so many important lifestyle changes and healing modalities that are important to overall health.

With his program I would not only be working on healing my gut; I would be working on my sleep, physical activity, mental health, light exposure and nutrition. This was a whole life overall and its exactly what I needed. Now that it has transformed my life I get all my Health Coaching clients to heal their gut as well.

So my first two days of the Gut Restore were the toughest part for me. These two days were a bone broth fast; I had tried to do 48 hour fasting in the past but I always could only make it 24 hours and I would be dying of a headache. Of course there would be no caffeine or solid foods, only water, bone broth, electrolytes and a few supplements.

The first day seemed to go pretty well, yes I was so hungry but I felt pretty satiated with the bone broth through the day and I made sure to stay hydrated as much as possible. I ended up peeing so much those first two days. I had about 6-7 cups of bone broth each day. The second day I was famished and I just wanted some solid food, and I had a pretty bad head ache.

During this period I was taking an Alkalizing supplement, gut healing supplements, electrolyte drink, and enzymes. The water I was drinking was not purified, not bottled water. I was drinking Reverse Osmosis water with trace minerals added in. I would also add some pink salt and lemon juice in the water to help with hydration.

I really gained respect for the feeling of hunger and appreciation for food. I know a lot of times we just eat because were bored, or because were actually thirsty and feel hungry. I am a chef and I meal prep for people so I am always around food and feeding people but this really gave me an appreciation for what food does for our bodies and the energy and information it provides for us.

I finished up the second day strong and could not wait to wake up the next day and have some solid food. These first two days of the bone broth fast were crucial to the healing process. The fasting helped to detoxify all the bad things in my system while allowing my cells to preform healing processes that usually only take place when they aren’t being used to fuel the body and during the sleeping process. The fasting also allows the cells to use stored fat as an energy source. The bone broth provided my body with nutrients like proteins, fats and collagen to nourish and start the healing process.

The bone broth I was drinking was from Kettle and Fire. I really like this brand because they use grass fed and pasture raised animal sources along with quality ingredients and no food coloring, additives and sugars. I tried to make my own but the smell of it and the richness was too much for me and it made me want to throw up so I had to pass on that. You can make your own and there are some great recipes out there, I just chose to forgo that and just drink Kettle and Fire bone broth.

After those first two days I was excited to start my eight week journey to a healthy gut and healthy body. Stay tuned and check back for the next part of the healing journey.

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