Back in December 2020, I realized that I was having a health problem. I was dealing with some unexplained pain on my lower left side, above the hip. And I also had a unexplained weight loss of about 20 pounds. When you are 6 foot 2 or so tall, you really do not want to weigh around 125 pounds. That is way too thin!
So off to the doctor I go. The diagnosis is that I am dehydrated, and I need to drink more water. The doctor thought I was having an issue with my kidneys because of the dehydration, but that wasn’t totally correct, in my opinion.
Next, I went to a naturopathic physician, but his treatment protocol didn’t really help. It was just supplements and testosterone, and while that may have been of help, it really wasn’t the correct diagnosis that I needed to hear.
In the meantime, I developed an inguinal hernia situation that was very painful, almost unbearable, and I decided on surgery to relieve me of the pain that was in connection with that. I didn’t really want to have the surgery, but I went through it anyway, and it was a strange, surreal experience, since it was my first and only surgery.
Next, I remember going to another naturopathic treatment centre or clinic, and their way of dealing with my issues was to tinker around with my diet and nutrition. I think it helped, but it still didn’t really get down to the core of what I was dealing with.
In the meantime, I was doing research, reading and downloading information that I thought was relevant to my case. I was trying to understand what was going on with me. Did I have leaky gut? Did I have a fatty liver disease? What was ailing me?
I was still reading and researching, trying to understand. Pancreatitis? Constipation? Indigestion? Gas? Bloating? I was beside myself in frustration trying to come to terms on how to fix and reverse my situation.
You learn a lot when you go through situations like that. I was wondering about certain intestinal issues that I was having, so at last, I decided to see a naturopathic physician who had some experience in dealing with gastrointestinal issues.
She proposed that I should do what is known as a G.I. Map test. This is a test where a stool sample is taken, and then sent to a lab to ascertain what is going on in the gut. I finally got the diagnosis that I had to wait several years for.
I had both a SIBO, and a Candida infection, bacterial and fungal, in my gut! This diagnosis would explain why I was having my gastrointestinal issues. So I changed my diet around in order to cleanse and detox from those unwanted visitors that were stealing the nutrients that I really needed. This would at least partially explain my weight loss.
After getting a scheduled colonic, and modifying my diet in such a way as to cut down on sugar, which fuels these unwanted invaders, my treatment plan gradually helped to restore and renew my health back to where it was. I have gained the weight back, and no longer have the issues that I have had before. But this experience may have been necessary in order to help me to be more understanding, and empathic toward others who are also going through various health issues, and to also help to prepare me to share what I learned so that they too can restore and renew their way back toward health.
I am not 100%, but I am doing much better. If anything, I may still need to gain more weight, and develop some muscle mass. As it is, I am around 142 – 145 pounds, when ideally, I should be more like around 170.
So this is my main health story, and how and why this became a major interest. The human body has the ability to heal itself. We just have to allow it to do it’s thing, by removing the roadblocks that hinder it, which is usually a poor diet, and a lack of proper hydration and exercise.