Stress, Gut Health And This Damn Plateau!
Just got off the phone with a functional medicine doctor from INEVO Body that I'm working with. It's an online service that allows people to purchase consultations, labs and supplements directly from home. This functional medicine doctor is helping me figure the source of my fatigue and this annoying plateau I've been stuck on for over a year now. You may remember last year when I got blood work done through a regular physician, he immediately wanted to put me on thyroid meds and all sorts of hormones. After a lot of thought, research and 2nd and 3rd opinions, I decided to hold off on all that and try to figure it out naturally. It's been very frustrating trying to sort out my symptoms. From this stubborn plateau that won't budge no matter what I do, to my extreme fatigue, digestion issues, inexplicable sadness, brain fog and sleep issues. As we spoke just now, he asked a million questions, including about my current stress level. From 1-10 I said 4. Because although I have stressful moments, I lead a very peaceful life. He then asked about my stress levels during childhood. 😱😬 Uh.. well.. that's a different story. Definitely a 10. I was under constant stress and turmoil since very early on. Well apparently it is very possible that my gut issues (which I can trace back to a very early age) began during those times, since digestion is directly impacted by stress. Sleep as well. I'm a very light sleeper and need Melatonin to even get any sleep at all. Well since I was always on high alert as a child, never knowing when I'd have to jump out of bed and call someone or worried that something could happen, I never allowed myself to reach a deep sleep. So my body just does what I've trained it to do since back then. The inexplicable sadness/depression is likely also due to digestion issues, since that is where Serotonin (the happiness hormone) is produced. And apparently all of the stress I put my body through during the bulk of my weight loss has caught up to me as well. Everything plays a part! It's crazy how much stress can f*ck us up! 😫 I'll be doing a new saliva, urine and blood test and we'll see where I'm at with all this. I'll keep sharing about it on here because it's all part of the journey and it's honestly why I'm here. The good, the bad, the ugly... I'm keeping it real. Big hugs to all! 💕