Bekah, so I went to a functional medicine dr. He ordered me candida testing, sibo testing & some food sensitivity testing even though I’ve done extensive cutting myself and have eaten paleo for about 2 years. He wants to do dust and mold testing too but I’m not sure the value in it when I consider the price. So relieved I found someone that has the same values as me. He’s expensive but my priorities have shifted. I can’t enjoy life keeping money in the bank that I won’t spend on him and I can’t enjoy it feeling exhausted and terrible all the time. Really want him to check hormones but he said we should deal with my stomach first. Just seeing him has made me so much happier already. (Im telling you this bc you suggested I check for candida/hormones for acne). YAY!!! I’ll keep you posted if you’re interested in how things turn out.
Yes!! That’s so good to hear and please keep me updated! I’m curious what he’ll prescribe once you’re done with testing. There’s not enough to be said for gut health. It’s an epidemic in our culture imo and people don’t realize just how severe yet. Good for you for doing the hard work and fighting to get to the bottom. I have no doubt you won’t ever regret that!
I’m having serious doubts now. The dr wants me to add back in the foods that I know cause me acne (dairy, soy, onions, flax, veg oils, sugar) because the testing will be “more accurate” that way. Its testing where they inject allergens under your skin to see if the areas swell up. This might be interesting because I do have sensitive skin.
I don’t know if its worth the mental anguish of giving myself acne for 3 weeks or so for a test result. Because of timing, I’d have 7 days of work after eating the foods(so 7 days of humiliation! And being afraid the kids i work with at school will ask about my skin like the last time I ate soy!) then 9 days off- April vacation! So more time to heal without being embarrassed. Im hoping 3-4 weeks at most for healing????
Amoungst all of this, i have to do the SIBO testing anyway (which requires drinking lactase aka milk sugar). I’m sure that alone will give me acne so I’m wondering if I should just go all out and eat the other things.
I’m thinking maybe this is one of those times I need to have faith that this is one last hurdle for my food issues. It might be helpful for hard days (on the rest of my life?) when I want to eat something I know will cause acne, to know that I *truly* can’t because I’m allergic/sensitive (even tho I know in my mind I probably am because of the acne and I avoid them all SO STRICTLY).
I get a lot of hate from people when I say I don’t eat something because I don’t feel like acne is a legitimate answer to why I don’t. And they say “You’re so skinny though!” and I’m too ashamed to say why I avoid the foods. I don’t go out to eat with work people either because it’s embarrassing not to eat all those foods. I don’t hassle waiters about food orders, but I might feel less obnoxious about it knowing its a legitimate issue. I think my mom resents my diet changes too and asks when I’m going to eat “normal” again or when I get acne from a food she says “maybe its from something else.. like hormones” which drives me crazy. I tried gluten free for a year then went paleo for a year and a half then wrote down foods for 3 months to figure out the final random foods that give me acne in 3 hours after ingesting. (I would say 10% of my acne is hormonal but its only that one week each month on the same days every time so its obvious).
Its a fight of emotions……. do I follow the dr and get “real proof” that I can know medically and emotionally inside of myself to be true (and have acne for maybe 3-4 weeks)……..OR…… not do the testing and avoid the acne (and live with knowing I won’t know “for sure”).
Oh man girl this is a lot! So this is just my opinion based on what you’ve shared but I really want to encourage you to follow your gut on this. You know your body better than anyone ever will. That being said I would already be telling people I was allergic to those things bc weather or not diagnosed you KNOW your body has adverse reactions and no one else needs to know details. I don’t think that should hinder your quality of life however… For instance if I was to go out under those circumstances id maybe just preface by saying something like “I’d love to go out! I have some serious food allergies/sensitivities so I may eat before but I’ll come hang out!” And trust me I know how much that sucks but you shouldn’t worry how other people think about your eating habits. If a waiter gets annoyed with you asking if there’s anything on the menu that fits those specifications than that’s her fault! You should never have to think twice about that or feel bad even if all you can order is a plate of steamed veggies (been there).
So basically that being said if I had nailed down for myself what didn’t set with my body I wouldn’t care much about a dr final word on that but that’s me.
It’s heartbreaking to me that the people around you aren’t more supportive of your need to feed your body in this way especially your mom. I don’t think it would hurt to have conversations with the people you care about and just say “look I don’t like this anymore than you but this is what I need for myself to live the best quality of life I can and I need to be supportive even if you don’t understand.” At the end of the day YOU are the only one affected by this and you need to take care of you. Somehow it’ll be really important to let go of the stress and worry of what other people think even if it means putting up with acne for a few weeks. Even the kids at school you could say “yea I’ve got some health issues that I’m trying to work out or I’m having an allergic reaction..” These are normal parts of life and I think that’s a great opportunity to plant a seed in some young kids that when they grow up and maybe deal with things like that that it’s okay! And that its normal and they don’t need to be ashamed.
So based on the foods you’ve mentioned you can’t tolerate I think it’s fairly obvious what’s going on and that the problem is in your gut. Those foods are all hard to digest which means they probably sit in your system too long and ferment causing toxins that your body has to get out any way it can (acne). My first recommendation would be to get a really HIGH quality probiotic and faithfully take the highest recommended dose for 90 days. 90 days is our cell turn over rate so I always recommend sticking with something that long. It just sounds to me that your gut is out of balance with good and bad bacteria which is why the trouble with yeast etc.
I hope that helps somehow. Keep checking in if you’d like and feel free to email too! I’m currently facing some pretty serious health issues myself so I’m right there with you. The difference between fighting for a cure and just masking the symptoms is huge and a lot of work but I believe worth it. There’s a book id recommend if I haven’t already called the body ecology diet. Even if you didn’t follow her diet exactly I think it would help you understand what’s going on better…
Dear Joanna, what 👆🏽she said + once you do finally figure it out and you found what works, you might eventually want to look into colonics. As no 2 people are alike completely, I too have had my share of tummy issues and a colonic is a nice way to reset and only put in the good. For me, I found doing 3 is good (plain, wheat grass, and coffee… yes coffee in your butthole ☕️😜😇). If you’re interested you can find plenty of wisdom over at http://gerson.org and their videos on youtube. nuf said…
As a side note, it’s really silly that small minded people assume everyone should be like them or that there is an ideal. We are blessed with our blemishes and inherent differences and if anything they are worth celebrating and sharing. It will be your gift to the next person to openly embrace the differences of others going forward.
good luck on your special “you” journey. slow down and enjoy the ride. we each have our own and honestly the joy is in the ride and not arriving
beautiful blessing
💗🙏🏽
The food and gluten testing has kind of got me curious to see if they will actually show up as allergens. I think I’m just going to bit the bullet and do it otherwise I’ll wonder about what the results would have been. I might regret my choice, with a face full of acne from eating the foods, but I guess it will really reaffirm to me (and my mom who doesn’t believe me) that foods do cause me acne. then I will NEVER have to eat those foods ever again if I don’t want to.
My issue now is whether to do mold/dust testing. Its also a lot but I think its to figure out my blepharitis (eyelid swelling) which no eye dr has been able to solve yet. I feel like the testing is pointless but then when I get up and look in the mirror its like “Oh god I should just rule out dust/mold” because some days they’re so swollen I look awful.
I can’t tell you how many times in the past 2 weeks I’ve decided and un-decided about it all. I even talked to my former professor about it because she’s into holistic healing and the one thing that struck me was when she said “If you don’t trust him to help you heal, who will you trust?” He’s kind of my last ditch attempt at it all.
I think the only other thing Im going to get sucked into paying for is hormonal testing if I want it but to me that will be 100000% worth it, no questions asked.
I agree- Body Ecology Diet !! I need to get that book. I listened to a podcast and it was pretty crazy.
As you can tell, Im confused about what to do.. I’ll know results of the foods/gluten/mold/dust (if I do them) right away but I’ll prob know the results end of April for the candida/sibo etc I’ve love to keep you posted via email. So hard…..
So hard. I’m sorry you’re dealing with all this. Like I said just trust your gut. There’s nothing to lose by going ahead with the testing it sounds like other than potential few weeks of symptoms. I know someone else dealing with the eye swelling and eczema too. Ugh hate that!
Yea the eye thing is so weird. Its like dandruff on my eyelashes which I know dandruff is also yeast overgrowth so MAYBE its also a candida thing. We’ll see if anything comes of it. The testing is insanely expensive. $400 each. X 4 sessions (mold/dust/gluten/foods. But each food is $18 so I guess I won’t have to do $400 worth its just thats how they price it as up to that price. I’ll have to work for 2 months straight to make it back, but I figure now or never since I still live at home
2/ pending spring
3/ tooth fairy 
awelltraveledwoman.com
Awe! It’s so great to see you posting again! Love it all. Smiles from afar ❤
Missed you! So happy you’re back.
Bekah, so I went to a functional medicine dr. He ordered me candida testing, sibo testing & some food sensitivity testing even though I’ve done extensive cutting myself and have eaten paleo for about 2 years. He wants to do dust and mold testing too but I’m not sure the value in it when I consider the price. So relieved I found someone that has the same values as me. He’s expensive but my priorities have shifted. I can’t enjoy life keeping money in the bank that I won’t spend on him and I can’t enjoy it feeling exhausted and terrible all the time. Really want him to check hormones but he said we should deal with my stomach first. Just seeing him has made me so much happier already. (Im telling you this bc you suggested I check for candida/hormones for acne). YAY!!! I’ll keep you posted if you’re interested in how things turn out.
Yes!! That’s so good to hear and please keep me updated! I’m curious what he’ll prescribe once you’re done with testing. There’s not enough to be said for gut health. It’s an epidemic in our culture imo and people don’t realize just how severe yet. Good for you for doing the hard work and fighting to get to the bottom. I have no doubt you won’t ever regret that!
I’m having serious doubts now. The dr wants me to add back in the foods that I know cause me acne (dairy, soy, onions, flax, veg oils, sugar) because the testing will be “more accurate” that way. Its testing where they inject allergens under your skin to see if the areas swell up. This might be interesting because I do have sensitive skin.
I don’t know if its worth the mental anguish of giving myself acne for 3 weeks or so for a test result. Because of timing, I’d have 7 days of work after eating the foods(so 7 days of humiliation! And being afraid the kids i work with at school will ask about my skin like the last time I ate soy!) then 9 days off- April vacation! So more time to heal without being embarrassed. Im hoping 3-4 weeks at most for healing????
Amoungst all of this, i have to do the SIBO testing anyway (which requires drinking lactase aka milk sugar). I’m sure that alone will give me acne so I’m wondering if I should just go all out and eat the other things.
I’m thinking maybe this is one of those times I need to have faith that this is one last hurdle for my food issues. It might be helpful for hard days (on the rest of my life?) when I want to eat something I know will cause acne, to know that I *truly* can’t because I’m allergic/sensitive (even tho I know in my mind I probably am because of the acne and I avoid them all SO STRICTLY).
I get a lot of hate from people when I say I don’t eat something because I don’t feel like acne is a legitimate answer to why I don’t. And they say “You’re so skinny though!” and I’m too ashamed to say why I avoid the foods. I don’t go out to eat with work people either because it’s embarrassing not to eat all those foods. I don’t hassle waiters about food orders, but I might feel less obnoxious about it knowing its a legitimate issue. I think my mom resents my diet changes too and asks when I’m going to eat “normal” again or when I get acne from a food she says “maybe its from something else.. like hormones” which drives me crazy. I tried gluten free for a year then went paleo for a year and a half then wrote down foods for 3 months to figure out the final random foods that give me acne in 3 hours after ingesting. (I would say 10% of my acne is hormonal but its only that one week each month on the same days every time so its obvious).
Its a fight of emotions……. do I follow the dr and get “real proof” that I can know medically and emotionally inside of myself to be true (and have acne for maybe 3-4 weeks)……..OR…… not do the testing and avoid the acne (and live with knowing I won’t know “for sure”).
Oh man girl this is a lot! So this is just my opinion based on what you’ve shared but I really want to encourage you to follow your gut on this. You know your body better than anyone ever will. That being said I would already be telling people I was allergic to those things bc weather or not diagnosed you KNOW your body has adverse reactions and no one else needs to know details. I don’t think that should hinder your quality of life however… For instance if I was to go out under those circumstances id maybe just preface by saying something like “I’d love to go out! I have some serious food allergies/sensitivities so I may eat before but I’ll come hang out!” And trust me I know how much that sucks but you shouldn’t worry how other people think about your eating habits. If a waiter gets annoyed with you asking if there’s anything on the menu that fits those specifications than that’s her fault! You should never have to think twice about that or feel bad even if all you can order is a plate of steamed veggies (been there).
So basically that being said if I had nailed down for myself what didn’t set with my body I wouldn’t care much about a dr final word on that but that’s me.
It’s heartbreaking to me that the people around you aren’t more supportive of your need to feed your body in this way especially your mom. I don’t think it would hurt to have conversations with the people you care about and just say “look I don’t like this anymore than you but this is what I need for myself to live the best quality of life I can and I need to be supportive even if you don’t understand.” At the end of the day YOU are the only one affected by this and you need to take care of you. Somehow it’ll be really important to let go of the stress and worry of what other people think even if it means putting up with acne for a few weeks. Even the kids at school you could say “yea I’ve got some health issues that I’m trying to work out or I’m having an allergic reaction..” These are normal parts of life and I think that’s a great opportunity to plant a seed in some young kids that when they grow up and maybe deal with things like that that it’s okay! And that its normal and they don’t need to be ashamed.
So based on the foods you’ve mentioned you can’t tolerate I think it’s fairly obvious what’s going on and that the problem is in your gut. Those foods are all hard to digest which means they probably sit in your system too long and ferment causing toxins that your body has to get out any way it can (acne). My first recommendation would be to get a really HIGH quality probiotic and faithfully take the highest recommended dose for 90 days. 90 days is our cell turn over rate so I always recommend sticking with something that long. It just sounds to me that your gut is out of balance with good and bad bacteria which is why the trouble with yeast etc.
I hope that helps somehow. Keep checking in if you’d like and feel free to email too! I’m currently facing some pretty serious health issues myself so I’m right there with you. The difference between fighting for a cure and just masking the symptoms is huge and a lot of work but I believe worth it. There’s a book id recommend if I haven’t already called the body ecology diet. Even if you didn’t follow her diet exactly I think it would help you understand what’s going on better…
Dear Joanna, what 👆🏽she said + once you do finally figure it out and you found what works, you might eventually want to look into colonics. As no 2 people are alike completely, I too have had my share of tummy issues and a colonic is a nice way to reset and only put in the good. For me, I found doing 3 is good (plain, wheat grass, and coffee… yes coffee in your butthole ☕️😜😇). If you’re interested you can find plenty of wisdom over at http://gerson.org and their videos on youtube. nuf said…
As a side note, it’s really silly that small minded people assume everyone should be like them or that there is an ideal. We are blessed with our blemishes and inherent differences and if anything they are worth celebrating and sharing. It will be your gift to the next person to openly embrace the differences of others going forward.
good luck on your special “you” journey. slow down and enjoy the ride. we each have our own and honestly the joy is in the ride and not arriving
beautiful blessing
💗🙏🏽
The food and gluten testing has kind of got me curious to see if they will actually show up as allergens. I think I’m just going to bit the bullet and do it otherwise I’ll wonder about what the results would have been. I might regret my choice, with a face full of acne from eating the foods, but I guess it will really reaffirm to me (and my mom who doesn’t believe me) that foods do cause me acne. then I will NEVER have to eat those foods ever again if I don’t want to.
My issue now is whether to do mold/dust testing. Its also a lot but I think its to figure out my blepharitis (eyelid swelling) which no eye dr has been able to solve yet. I feel like the testing is pointless but then when I get up and look in the mirror its like “Oh god I should just rule out dust/mold” because some days they’re so swollen I look awful.
I can’t tell you how many times in the past 2 weeks I’ve decided and un-decided about it all. I even talked to my former professor about it because she’s into holistic healing and the one thing that struck me was when she said “If you don’t trust him to help you heal, who will you trust?” He’s kind of my last ditch attempt at it all.
I think the only other thing Im going to get sucked into paying for is hormonal testing if I want it but to me that will be 100000% worth it, no questions asked.
I agree- Body Ecology Diet !! I need to get that book. I listened to a podcast and it was pretty crazy.
As you can tell, Im confused about what to do.. I’ll know results of the foods/gluten/mold/dust (if I do them) right away but I’ll prob know the results end of April for the candida/sibo etc I’ve love to keep you posted via email. So hard…..
So hard. I’m sorry you’re dealing with all this. Like I said just trust your gut. There’s nothing to lose by going ahead with the testing it sounds like other than potential few weeks of symptoms. I know someone else dealing with the eye swelling and eczema too. Ugh hate that!
Yea the eye thing is so weird. Its like dandruff on my eyelashes which I know dandruff is also yeast overgrowth so MAYBE its also a candida thing. We’ll see if anything comes of it. The testing is insanely expensive. $400 each. X 4 sessions (mold/dust/gluten/foods. But each food is $18 so I guess I won’t have to do $400 worth its just thats how they price it as up to that price. I’ll have to work for 2 months straight to make it back, but I figure now or never since I still live at home
I emailed you! Mines a yahoo account so it might end up in spam!