Treating my Crohn's Disease

After having a flare-up of my Crohn's Disease this spring, I waited nearly 3 months to see a new gastroenterologist. Most of the Crohn's symptoms I had been experiencing had diminished. When I finally met with her in June, we talked through my experience, initial diagnosis and symptoms and she recommended a colonoscopy to understand/see everything that was going on - which was what I expected would happen. I was thankfully able to get an appointment for a colonoscopy 2 weeks later, and I hoped that answers would be around the corner.

It had been over 10 years since my first colonoscopy, and it was the prep that I was dreading most. Peglyte had been horrific, and I wasn't looking forward to drinking 4 more litres of that awful liquid. To my surprise, my doctor prescribed something a bit different for prep and there was no jug in sight! My preparation included taking a laxative pill, followed by something called PICO-SALAX (I got the generic version called PURG-ODAN). It was to be mixed with 150 mL of cold water and then followed by clear fluids of your choice. In the morning, you were to drink another 150mL of cold water mixed with the sachet and that was it!

While the prep was still tough (a clear fluid day mixed with a night of clearing out your colon is never going to be delightful) it was so much more manageable than Peglyte. I opted for coconut water, organic broth, and juices for my clear fluids - even having those choices made the experience more pleasant.

Heading into the colonoscopy I told people about the upside. When I had my first colonoscopy, I woke up from the sedation, the nurse asked me if I wanted a glass of juice and then the doctor came in and told me I had Crohn's Disease.

I didn't expect how hard the results would hit me this time around.

via Morgan Harper Nichols

If I'm honest, I don't know what I was expecting as I headed into the colonoscopy. I recognized that I had had a flare in the spring, but didn't give too much thought to the notion that things may have gotten worse; When I woke up from the sedation after my colonoscopy, my doctor came in and told me just that.

She described my colon as angry. She had found a section that had been difficult to maneuver around, filled with ulcers, inflammation and scar tissue. (When I visited her office a couple weeks later she showed me photos, alongside photos of a healthy colon - one of these things is not like the other). She told me that she was recommending biologics as a course of treatment, and made me a list of options that she wanted me to research. After hearing this news, I burst into tears. It was all so much to take in, and this definitely wasn't the result that I was anticipating.

I did a lot of wallowing and crying in the days that followed. It was hard to hear that my body was in such a bad place. It was hard to hear that the things I had been doing to help my Crohn's weren't helping enough. It was hard to hear that biologics were the recommended course of treatment. I was angry, sad, and afraid.

Biologics may not be a term that you're familiar with. They're a family of medications that are named so because they are created from biological materials, aka living cells. Some other things in this family include insulin and vaccines. Some of these biologics are specifically created to treat inflammation in patients with IBD. Because of the nature of these drugs, they're administered by injection or infusion, and many doctors anticipate that a person who starts biologics and has success achieving remission, will likely continue to be on them for the rest of their life. My doctor had given me a list of 4 different biologic options, listed some of the pros and cons of each, and asked me to do my own research before coming back to her with a decision in a couple of weeks.

When I was diagnosed with Crohn's in 2008, there were a few biologics being used to treat Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) but usually after trying a few other treatments that were deemed less invasive/extreme. In the research that Paul and I did, I've learned that the approach to using biologics has changed over time. Rather than using biologics as a second or third line of defence after trying other medications and steroids, doctors are now using a "top down" approach, and starting with biologics in moderate to severe cases of Crohn's or Colitis. They do this because of the efficacy of the treatment for those with IBD, and it also means that more patients will have fewer flares in the midst of trying other medications first. Fewer flares = less inflammation in the body, and fewer instances of using steroids to treat.

As someone who has always leaned more to the holistic side, it was tough to accept that a medication that I could potentially be on for the rest of my life was the right decision. Initially I was reluctant to accept this course of treatment as the right thing for me, but after learning and reading more and some big conversations with Paul, I decided that biologics were the best option. It also meant that I was in control of making the right choice for me right now - if left untreated this disease could continue to get worse, and if I had an even more extreme flare, I would have fewer options to treat it and be unable to advocate for anything I wanted to do. Starting this treatment now would mean that we could work towards getting into endoscopic remission (no / little signs of disease in my colon) vs. waiting to see what would happen next.

Of the 4 biologics my doctor recommended, all had been approved for use in Canada since 2013 - which means that they weren't even an option when I was diagnosed in 2008 - so crazy! Two of them were administered through an injection and two were administered through an IV infusion. I did some thinking and soul searching, and realized that I didn't feel comfortable, confident or good about giving myself injections on the regular. So that ruled out two options immediately. I learned more about the other two that were administered through an IV, and in the end I chose a biologic called Entyvio.

Entyvio was approved for use in Canada in 2015. It works by preventing an excess of white blood cells from entering the gut, which helps to decrease inflammation. Of the biologics I was learning about, it was the only one that was specifically targeted to the gut. There's been some studies that have shown its efficacy for people with IBD, and because of its gut-targeted approach, it sounds like fewer people have a negative reaction to it. Entyvio is also the biologic that some people end up on when others don't work. When I went back to my doctor and told her my decision, she reassured me that Entyvio was a safe option to try and reaffirmed my choice.

It's been an intense couple of months - from having a flare, waiting to see a specialist, having a colonoscopy and now starting a new treatment. I feel thankful to have a solid team in place, from a good support network to a gastroenterologist who I trust; She's really taken the time to get to know me as an individual, and offered a lot of reassurance about this course of treatment. I feel much more solid and grounded in my choice to start biologics, and recognize that it's the right approach for me at this time in my journey. It's still all a bit scary - biologics are new and there are a lot of unknowns, but I'm taking it all day by day. I'm hopeful and optimistic that it will help to get me into endoscopic remission, and enable my insides to feel as good as I do on the outside.

Please note that this is only based on my experience and opinions. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition

Crohn's Disease: 10 Years Later

It was sometime last year that I thought I would be great to write a post on my journey with Crohn’s Disease, and how different things were 10 years later. After my colonoscopy, diagnosis, and a brief experience with medication, I turned to more holistic methods to manage my Crohn’s in 2008-2009. I changed my diet. I studied nutrition. I worked on my stress. After 2 weeks of cutting out gluten and dairy I wasn’t in pain anymore, and for a really long time, my symptoms were kept at bay and I thrived. When I thought about writing an update post about my journey with IBD and what things were like 10 years later, I didn't imagine that I would be sharing details of new symptoms and stories of seeing a specialist.

The last time I experienced any major Crohn’s symptoms was four years ago. I noticed a reduction in appetite that persisted for a few weeks, so I tried to get an appointment with my gastroenterologist. I wasn’t going to be able to see him for about 6 weeks, and I figured it would sort itself out before that time. Then I got the flu and it was awful. Then my Crohn’s symptoms came out full force while I was dealing with the flu. And to top things off, I got my period. There was basically a flaring rager of a party happening in my body, and I was an unwelcome guest.

The flu passed. My symptoms started to diminish. I made some tweaks in my diet, and started to feel like myself again.

Fast forward to February of this year when I was on a trip to San Francisco. I was there mostly for work, but I also got to spend a few days exploring the city and soaking up the sunshine. I noticed that my appetite wasn’t showing up in its normal ways, which was especially strange since I had access to so many tasty restaurants and treats in a new city. I also had a bit of a sore throat, which I thought may be contributing to my lack of appetite and I had a canker sore or two appear in my mouth. It was all a bit strange, but I didn’t think too much of it since it was the midst of cold and flu season, and maybe my body was just fighting something off. 

When I got back to Toronto, my appetite didn’t return. I had a dentist appointment, and the hygienist mentioned quite a bit of inflammation in my gums.

Lack of appetite.
Canker sores.
Inflammation.

It didn’t hit me quickly, but eventually I started to link these things together and came to the realization that my Crohn’s Disease was rearing its ugly head again. I think it took me some time because it wasn’t presenting as more extreme, obvious symptoms (like diarrhea, blood in the stool, urgency before a bowel movement) and I was in a bit of denial that my disease could re-emerge. “I take good care of myself! I eat well! I am resilient!”

I had a big cry and a heart to heart with my partner. Once I realized what I was dealing with, I identified a few more symptoms: unintentional weight loss over the last couple months, lack of energy, and abdominal pain after eating. I vowed to get some blood work done and make an appointment with my GP and specialist so that I could work on getting better. I talked to those close to me about what I was experiencing, and gave myself permission to slow down. I talked to my lead who was super supportive, and encouraged me to take the time I needed to figure things out and put work second. Workouts stopped. Sleep was a priority. I was going to get to the bottom of this.

And then I fainted on the streetcar during my Monday morning commute.

It started off as a normal Monday. I got dressed and made a smoothie, which I packed in my bag. I normally drink my smoothies at my desk, along with some tea or fruit, or anything else that catches my eye from my work’s breakfast catering. I walked 5 minutes to catch the TTC and got on to a pretty packed streetcar. A couple minutes into the ride, I realized I wasn’t feeling great. I was standing by the stairs and knew we were a couple stops away from a lot of people getting off, so I could get myself a seat when they exited. I started to feel hot, so I unzipped my winter jacket and had the instinct to ask someone for help as my vision started to get a bit weird.

Then I woke up on the ground with some strangers trying to help me up. I had fainted.

A couple of very lovely humans helped me off the streetcar, and one woman walked me to safety and sat me down at a bus shelter on Queen St. She went and got me juice, and helped me figure out a plan and some next steps. We were a couple of blocks away from a hospital so I thought it made the most sense to check myself into the ER and see if they could find anything wrong. She walked me there, and I was so thankful for her kindness.

I spent the morning in the ER where they did an ECG to check my heart and did some basic blood work to see how I was doing. They didn’t find anything glaring and encouraged me to connect with my doctors.

I had a neglected requisition for blood work that I filled the next day and made an appointment with my GP. I tried to get an appointment with the gastroenterologist who diagnosed me with Crohn’s Disease and I saw a few times after, but found out that if you haven’t seen a specialist in over a year, you require a new requisition.

My GP and I chatted about my symptoms, the fainting, and my blood work that had come back. It showed that I was pretty anemic again and she wanted to dig a bit more into my iron levels with some more blood work. She also put in a new request for a gastroenterologist referral, and said that any other tests would go through that new doctor. I was pretty excited when I got an email later that day letting me know I had an appointment with a new gastroenterologist, but that feeling faded pretty quickly once I realized the appointment isn’t until June.

It’s been a couple of weeks since all of this happened, and I’ve been doing my best to process it all.

To be honest, at first I was filled with a whole bunch of feelings of guilt and shame that my symptoms had returned; I really thought this was a thing of the past and had put in so much work to feel good. I’ve talked through those feelings, and have reminded myself that this is an autoimmune disease. You can do everything “right” in the world, and your body can still start attacking itself. I’m thankful for Canadian health care, but it was definitely disheartening to realize I’d need to wait nearly 3 months to see a specialist. I also figure they’ll likely book me in for a colonoscopy, and waiting for that could also take some time, which means it could be late summer or even fall before I have a full understanding of what’s going on. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t scared about what they’ll find - I feel like I’m back at the beginning again, ten years ago before I was diagnosed. Writing all of this down makes me feel very vulnerable, because it's all the scary stuff in my innermost thoughts, and my instinct is to spare you all of that! But it's real and I think it's important to share.

I’ve managed to work on feeling positive amid all of this uncertainty. I started seeing a naturopath to help me in the interim while I’m waiting to see the gastroenterologist. I’ve started an iron supplement that is already helping with my energy levels. While it’s not fully normal yet, my appetite has returned and I’ve been navigating what types of foods make me feel best, and which ones exacerbate my symptoms. I've been eating smaller meals more frequently, and that seems to be helping. I did a new food sensitivity test, and I’m looking forward to getting the results this week. I haven’t started working out regularly again, but I’ve been doing some gentle yoga and meditating which has been a great brain break. I can feel my Type-A tendencies seeping through all of this, along with my desire to control as much as humanly possible with a really, really great plan. I'm working through that too, and trying to be gentle with myself.

While this isn't the Crohn's Disease update I expected to be sharing, I'm ready to navigate whatever comes next, armed with all of the knowledge and experience I've gained over the last ten years. 

8 Things I've Learned About Gluten Free Living

It’s been 9 years since I’ve been gluten & dairy free, and I remain symptom free from Crohn’s about 97% of the time (sometimes it creeps up if I have another illness or I'm terribly stressed)

About 2 years before I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, I did a detox with a friend that involved cutting out gluten and dairy. I hated it so much! Afterward, I remember writing on my MSN space (remember those?!) about how gluten free living might be for some people, but I certainly wasn’t one of them! Post-detox I went back to eating just the way I did before.

Fast forward to 2008 when I was diagnosed with Crohn’s after being sick for over a year. I was presented with the options of medication, hardcore medication or surgery, and didn’t love any of those options! I started seeing a naturopath and she encourage me to do a blood test to determine my food sensitivities.

The test showed a number of sensitivities, including gluten and dairy. This time I was ready to make a change. Within 2 weeks of cutting out all the foods on this lengthy list, I wasn’t in pain anymore. I followed this plan for 3 months, and then slowly started to reintroduce many of the foods, except for gluten and dairy. Thus began my gluten free life.

There are lots of different reasons why people decide to go gluten free - some by necessity (like being diagnosed with Celiac or a gluten sensitivity) and some by choice (because they find that eating gluten makes them feel bloated, gassy or just generally terrible) This post isn't to convince you that going gluten free is the way (after all, there's no one diet that's right for every single person on the planet), but more so to offer reassurance and guidance for anyone who is embarking on this lifestyle as a result of a diagnosis, a suspicion, or curiosity of how it could make them feel.

It's going to be scary, but you can totally do it

If you're like me, you probably grew up eating white or whole wheat bread, crackers, pretzels, cookies, cakes, soy sauce, frozen waffles, pancakes and donuts, all filled to the brim with gluten. The prospect of cutting all of those things out and entirely changing the way that you eat can seem daunting, overwhelming, or downright scary. I believe in you! My first experience cutting out gluten wasn't a positive one, but when I reframed my thoughts to see why I needed to do and embraced the foods I could eat, it seemed like a much more manageable change. Change is scary, but not impossible.

There are loads of foods that are naturally gluten free

Many whole foods are naturally gluten free. Lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats, beans and legumes, nuts and seeds are all gluten free, not to mention the variety of gluten free grains like quinoa, rice, buckwheat, amaranth and teff. All of these foods may not don a a gluten free label, but they are amazing options when it comes to adopting a gluten free life.

Gluten is sneaky AF

Once you get a handle on the foods that are naturally gluten free, it's also important to learn where gluten can be hiding because it's sneaky. Soy sauce, coatings, breading, seasoning, fillers - it's not pretty, but gluten lurks in a lot of surprising places. Outside of the foods that you know are naturally gluten free, start to read those nutrition labels! Some packages will say gluten free right on the front, but it's great to get to spot the different names for gluten and also have peace of mind before you eat.

Life is a lot more fun when you focus on the things that you can eat

This was a big shift for me and made a huge difference in my outlook on following a gluten free diet. There are so many incredible things that you can eat, bake, make or get at a restaurant that are all gluten free - focus on those! I remember being at a party and afterward crying because I had just wanted a cupcake. When you focus on the things that you can eat, you'll probably feel a lot happier and more fulfilled. 

Gluten free baking is an art, but not impossible

First rule of gluten free baking is that you're going to have to blend your flours. Most gluten free flours don't have the same elasticity that wheat flour does (that's the gluten!) so to mimic the texture and create baked goods that don't turn out like rocks, it's important to mix your flours. There are lots of great gluten free flours blends out there that you can get pre-made, or you can pick up a variety of your own flours and go to town! My go-tos tend to be brown rice, chickpea and oat flour. You can buy small amounts of these flours at your local bulk or health food store so that you can start experimenting to see which ones you enjoy most. 

Other people will have a lot of opinions about your diet

When it comes to making any sort of change in your life, people are going to have opinions. Some of them are going to be positive and encouraging, while others may be the opposite. I'm not sure what it is about the proclamation of going gluten free that causes people to get nasty, but for some reason it has that potential. Get out your rhino skin and remind yourself that their opinions don't matter. Does eating gluten free make you feel good? Do you feel less bloated / foggy / gassy / terrible because you're no longer eating a food that's not essential to your diet? If the answer is yes, then keep rocking your gluten free life and remind those people that you're not forcing your lifestyle change upon them - they can continue to enjoy all the gluten they want! Not only is change hard for you, but it's hard for other people too. 

Most things can be made gluten free, with a few exceptions

I've yet to have a really good gluten free perogi, and I also miss decadent desserts made with layers of flaky pastry whenever I'm visiting Greektown on the Danforth here in Toronto. That being said, I've made awesome gluten free gnocchi, gone for gluten free dim sum, travelled throughout the world and tried all sorts of great gluten free food. So it's pretty rare that I feel left out. Again, if you can place your energy on the things you can eat you'll feel a lot happier and fulfilled. 

Gluten free living has come a long way

In the 9 years that I've been gluten free, I've gotten to watch the emergence of so many gluten free cookbooks, blogs, books, restaurants, bakeries and more - it's phenomenal! Many traditional restaurants in large cities have a full on gluten free menu, or will designate which items are gluten free or can be made gluten free. Here in Toronto, there are so many awesome options for dining out, plus a wide variety of stores where gluten free products are readily available - including the bigger grocery stores! Whenever I travel, I always look forward to visiting new gluten free restaurants, and seeing what GF products may be available in that place. It's awesome to see that it's become so widespread and I feel thankful to have so many incredible Ashley-friendly options at my fingertips. I always cook gluten free in my home, and my friends and loved ones haven't had any complaints - I think that's a great sign!

I don't know that I had any idea that after that first three months of gluten free living that this huge change would have such a lasting impact in my life. I'm grateful that it's helped me to keep my Crohn's in check, introduced me to so many awesome restaurants, recipes, and people, but most of all, enabled me to thrive. I can tell you that as you transition to a gluten free lifestyle it does get easier and there is so much delicious food for you to enjoy! Be kind to yourself, arm your kitchen with a great cookbook or two, start to learn those sneaky names for gluten and it will become easier and more intuitive day be day.

Aiming to Thrive - The Evolution of my Diet

Photo by Nicole De Khors from Burst

Since beginning my weight loss journey in 2006, my diet has been in constant evolution.

I first started by cutting out the crap, cooking more and eating more fruits and veggies. Eating healthier was an integral stepping stone for doing an elimination diet to help manage my Crohn's (and within two weeks being symptom free) and then in the summer of 2009 going vegan.

And for a long time, being gluten free and vegan was a great thing for me. I felt healthy. And symptom free. And happy. It felt like the right diet for me and was easy to maintain.

And then I started to question whether my diet was still the most optimal. With health being the primary focus of my transition to gluten free veganism, I wanted to ensure that I was still thriving. I was confident that I was making healthy choices and was nutritionally balanced, but I just started to wonder if it was still entirely right for me. I wasn't feeling awesome all the time and started to doubt that I was giving my body everything it needed with the foods that were available within my dietary choices.

When I was in St. Lucia last year, the doubts started to creep in even more. Some big conversations about maintaining a gluten free vegan diet that was also lower on the glycemic index and giving my body what it needed in times of stress made me feel like I was suddenly at a tug of war with myself. It felt so awful because being vegan had become such a big part of my identity and I wasn't sure that I was ready or willing to give that up. It was no longer just about the food.

It somehow felt wrong to be doubting my choices, but rationally I knew that I needed to do what was right for me. My diet was in constant evolution based on how I was feeling and the information that I had about nutrition, but this felt bigger than that. With all that I had learned and believed about being vegan, could I fathom the thought of changing that?

I knew that I didn't want to go back to eating meat again - it didn't feel like the right decision for my body / digestive system and the ethical side of veganism / vegetarianism just made that a no-go for me. Cow dairy was also a no-brainer as I believe that it was a huge contributor to my Crohn's symptoms and I felt so much better without it.

With all of this to consider, the support of my fellow retreat-goers and a heart to heart with Meghan, one morning I had some eggs with my breakfast. Eating eggs after not doing so for three years felt very foreign and bizarre, but following the meal I felt really good. I bought my first carton of organic, free-range eggs when I returned from St. Lucia and started having scrambled eggs with salad and veggies a few times a week for breakfast.

And I started to feel like I was thriving again.

I felt energetic and stopped feeling faint from time to time. My hair became glossier and thicker. I felt good about the choices I was making with the types of eggs I was choosing and was happy to have some more variety in my diet. It was the right decision for me and where I was at. It's been about a year since transitioning to gluten free, dairy free vegetarianism and I feel awesome. I have vegan meals probably 75-80% of the time, with some eggs and goat/sheep dairy thrown into the mix. The added protein and variety has agreed with me.

The hardest part of this change for me has been coming to terms with the fact that I was no longer vegan. I wondered if I would feel hesitant to tell my vegan friends, or change my position among the community. I removed references to being vegan in all of my social media platforms and slowly started to embrace my choice and share it with people along with my rationale. Most people were very accepting and with those who weren't, I reminded myself that it was my life, my choice and most of all my health.

In the past couple weeks I've read a couple of really interesting blog posts from prominent vegans who have changed their diets. Both Kristen Suzanne (from Kristen's Raw) and Alex Jamieson have written detailed accounts of why veganism was no longer right for them, which compelled me to write this post. The reaction from the vegan community regarding both posts has been interesting, heartening but sometimes sad to read. I applaud both women for speaking so candidly about their decisions and have done the research to make the choices that are right for them and their families.

I love what Michelle and Lori had to say about changing and evolving diets in this post, and I truly agree with their sentiment that there is no perfect diet. I don't believe that there is one-size-fits-all diet for every person on the planet, nor do I believe that others should try to dictate or condemn the dietary choices of others. It's an incredibly personal decision, and at the end of the day we should try to make conscious, informed decisions about what is right for us and what will help us best to thrive.

And that's what I intend to continue doing in my gluten free, dairy free, whole foods focused vegetarian way.

Meghan Telpner's Foods for Healing

I was talking to some people in my office the other day about the way that I eat and the reasons why I do it. As I was talking about getting rid of gluten and dairy, I realize that it has been 4 years since my diagnosis with Crohn's Disease and more than three and a half years since I transitioned my diet to a version of what it is now.

Food has played a huge role in my healing, and I know that I wouldn't be where I am today had I not made the decision to start seeing a naturopath rather than injecting myself with lots of medication. Along the way I had people tell me I was crazy, making restrictive choices and that I should probably eat a steak once in awhile to stay healthy. I decided to ignore those people and do what made sense to me, and four years later, I am symptom-free. Not too shabby for a disease that has no cure. 

As I've mentioned many times before, someone who has played a HUGE role in this journey has been my favourite nutritionista, Meghan Telpner. I discovered Meghan's blog soon after my diagnosis, treated myself to some cooking classes and she's been a wonderful, sparkly fixture in my life ever since. It's been incredible to watch and be a part of so many of her amazing projects and initiatives, and I was even more excited for her to announce her brilliant new Foods for Healing course.

Foods for Healing details from Meghan:

1 in 5 North Americans suffer from serious digestive distress. Most of our modern health challenges have some level of inflammation involved. I personally, spent years suffering from serious digestive issues until in 2006, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease.

I have heard from so many of you asking what I did, what I ate, how I healed, and then how I worked with my dad to help him kick cancer, and how I have worked with hundreds of clients to get them on their own health train. I am thrilled to be able to share this information with you!

 Foods For Healing is a course I began teaching here in my kitchen to groups of 20 at a time. As the demand grew, I couldn't stretch my kitchen any further and so we have created this unbelievable course. We had people flying in from across North America to get to this workshop as there is currently nothing like it available.

This course will explain from start to finish the path of disease, how these imbalances can take over in our mind and body and then what you can do about it. The information included empowers you to take ownership over your health, and learn how with certain foods and specific nutrients, you can play an active role in your own healing- or simply in maintaining optimal health.

The course includes: 
Over two hours of lecture style teaching with images, diagrams, and incredibly easy to follow explanations.
Accompanying handouts of the slides to follow along and take notes.
Additional documentation offering detailed information on specific healing protocols.
8 cooking demonstration videos showing how you can put what I share in the lecture, into practice in your kitchen and in everyday eating.
A full 7 day meal plan + over 30 recipes.
A full transition plan to help ease your way into a foods for healing mind set.
Options to upgrade and get consultations and amazing kitchen equipment.
Completely secure access to all your course materials.
Flexibility to watch the videos and download the print materials at your convenience.
Lifetime access to the course materials.

This course is suitable for: 
Individuals dealing with everyday common/acute conditions like frequent colds/flus, PMS, headaches, low energy, insomnia etc.
Individuals facing long term, chronic health challenges including inflammatory conditions like arthritis, asthma, IBS and IBD as well as heart disease or cancer.
Individuals looking to build up their farm based medicine cabinet, looking for natural solutions to common health challenges.
Natural health practitioners wanting therapeutic foods to play a more powerful role in your patient’s protocols.
Students or recent graduates of nutrition programs who feel there was a healing foods component missing from the curriculum.
Yoga teachers, osteopaths, chiropractors, trainers and other physical health experts looking to better support the progress of clients.

The Curriculum:
This program literally covers the full spectrum of information including the physical aspects of health and disease, the emotional connection, and how food and lifestyle can play an important role in the healing. Divided into nine modules with a bonus section of “Tools”, the course materials has been broken down in easy to follow parts.

Module 1: My story and how I healed.
Module 2: Understanding the root of inflammation, food as medicine.
Module 3: The role of the digestive system in total health, managing stress and it’s impact
Module 4: Making the connection with food, conscious eating, assessing common dietary recommendations.
Module 5: General guidelines for eating for health and healing, the universal approach to health.
Module 6: Specific therapeutic foods for healing, dietary recommendations for the three stages of healing, specific nutrients for healing.
Module 7: Lifestyle habits and natural solutions.
Module 8: Healing beverages, therapeutics foods in practice, cooking demos
Module 9: Healing meals, therapeutic foods in practice, cooking demos
Tools: Meal plan, recipes, transition guideline.

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Whether you have a specific health concern or just feel like you need a bit of a tune up, this course has the potential to be totally game-changing for you. Meghan's style is ridiculously fun and easy to follow, the recipes are delicious (recipes from Meghan's classes are still staples in my kitchen), and you'll feel inspired and motivated to change your life. As someone who has healed a disease through diet and lifestyle, I can't recommend this course enough. Now is the time. No day but today.

Registration for Foods for Healing begins Friday November 9th, and as one of Meghan's affiliates, I'm able to offer you a 10% discount off the price of the course when you enter the coupon code "dancingthroughlife" at the checkout! So happy to be able to make it more cost effective for you to register and get your healing going. What are you waiting for!?

I'm also giving away one registration for the course!! For a chance to WIN, leave me a comment below telling me who has inspired you in your life so far. This is open to anyone worldwide. Contest closes at 11:59pm EST on Saturday November 10 and the winner will be announced on the blog on Monday November 12. Good luck!

It’s Been Two Years. And I’ve Done A Lot. The Naturopath: Revisited.

Last week I went back to see my amazing naturopath, Christine Matheson after not seeing her for more than two years.

Following my food sensitivity testing appointment in March 2009, she went on mat leave and I was left to fend for myself through the 3 month elimination diet that followed. She gave me great guidance to take with me as I embarked on the challenge and recommended another naturopath should I need further assistance. She returned from mat leave in the fall and as a result of my new job I’m back to having benefits which I am fully taking advantage of! A lot has changed since March 2009 and last week I got to recount the tale of my last 2 years to her:

Diet

This was obviously a huge change over the last 2 years. Within two weeks of eliminating a lot of foods from my diet, I started to feel better than I had in more than a year and half. I started off by cutting out the foods on my sensitivity testing list for 3 months. Following the three month period I brought many of the foods back in (minus gluten, dairy and eggs) and then that summer decided to go vegan.  Eliminating all animal products was something that we had talked about prior to the elimination diet, but it was absolutely my decision in the end. My diet has been pretty consistent since then and I feel amazing eating the way that I do. We discussed some items for tweaking and revitalized my supplement protocol to ensure that I continue feeling the best I can.

Work

Quitting my job and going to nutrition school was inspired greatly by my journey to healing. 2010 was such an amazing year and I’m so happy that I followed my heart. I’m still currently half a nutritionist and back in the office world, but I know that my “time off” was much needed. In the last 2 years I’ve been working to achieve a balance of things that make me happy with things that allow me to live the best life possible. I like where I’m sitting right now and am looking forward to the coming months. We talked about work/life balance and some strategies/resources to keep me happy and stable throughout the insanity of work/WW/school/performing that can sometimes be is my life.

Relationship

This was a big one since when Christine left, I was still engaged. Talking about the break up was actually more painful than I expected. Joey was a big part of my life for a long time and he was with me through a lot of change. While really sad, our break up was the right thing for both of us. That being said, the actual break up left me broken in more ways than I realized initially; There were some things that happened towards the end that really messed with my head and I’m still working to put the pieces back together. Much of it is related to body image, my weight and my general self esteem, which have been things I’ve struggled with over the last year. Talking this through with Christine really highlighted how much of a sensitive topic this still is for me. It’s definitely a work in progress, but I’m going there and feeling better every day.

The Pill

Going off the pill was another thing that we had wanted to tackle post-elimination diet and after some deliberation I went off the dreaded pill in the spring of 2009. If you’d like some great info on why not to be on the pill you can check out some informative posts on Meghan’s blog. There are numerous reasons why I should have gone off the pill but the main one was this: it was making me crazy. My hormones were so manic and all over the place that it was incredibly detrimental to my emotional health and well being. With some assistance from the brilliant ladies at Red Tent Sisters, I started following the Justisse method and felt in tune with my body and. Much. Less. Crazy.

There were lots of other details along the way but those were some of the big things we discussed in our time together. In some ways it was therapeutic and in others kind of painful, but overall I felt really positive when I left.

Christine gave me a lot of credit for all the changes that I had made. Sometimes I take for granted that this is just the way that I live my life. I forget that it’s not easy to have made all of these changes and live the way that I do, because it’s just second nature to me now. I’m so much healthier than I was 2 years ago and I have so much to be thankful for. She assured me that I looked fantastic and had so much to be proud of. It was wonderful to hear this from someone outside my immediate circle and the small suggestions and tweaks I’m going to make as a result of our visit are going to make things that much better.

• Back to supplements including some anti-inflammatory agents and a probiotic
• Suggestions for getting sugar back out of my life (due to the candida, I cut sugar out of my life during the elimination diet and slowly over the last two years it has creeped back in. It needs to go again!!)
• Recommendations of a visit with the clinic’s osteopath, a full physical with a naturopathic doctor and referral to a psychologist

I’m so excited to be seeing my naturopath again. She is fantastic at what she does and I’m really looking forward to stepping up my game and taking things to the next level with her guidance. I know that the changes are up to me, and I’m ready for them! I’ve come a long way on this journey and believe that this is just the next step. Sometimes I forget how far I’ve come and it was very grounding to reflect upon transformation that I’ve made. Because the universe felt I needed an extra little bit of perspective last week, I received the following email from a reader on the same day I went to the naturopath:

Subject line: Read your blog by accident

and just wanted to say you are a very inspiring woman...

i am a cancer survivor and have been waiting for the opportunity to start my journey back to health

i was looking for a copy of the a lulu lemon bag for my friend and when I found one and somehow

when i pulled it up it was on your blog.  reading about your health regime was very inspirational. keep up the good work!

betty

Betty – you honestly made my day and put everything into perspective for me. Thank you

[source]

For more information about Christine and her awesomeness, you can check out her website. You can also check out the website for Mahaya Forest Hill where she is currently practicing. Everyone was incredibly sweet and they offer a variety of services including osteopathy, chiropractic, homeopathy and acupuncture.

What changes have you made over the last couple of years? How does it feel to revisit the changes you’ve made and see how far you’ve come? How do you keep those changes in perspective?

When Life Sends You Lemons, Kiss Goats

Yesterday was not one of my best days. It started off well:
Woke up around 9:00.
Made a smoothie (banana, blueberries, spinach, soy, spirulina)
Biked to the gym.
Went for a 30 minute run & BodyFlow class.
Biked home and prepped lunch for my picnic in the park with Lindsay.

So far so good, right?

Lunch was brilliant. I made rice paper veggie wraps and carrot slaw with mango chutney dressing. Lindsay brought an amazing quinoa tabbouleh. I wasn’t having a great day emotionally and Lindsay and I had a pretty intense conversation about life, habits, body image and all kinds of good stuff. I love her to death and am so happy to have such a beautiful friend to share my innermost thoughts with.

When I got home, I noticed that there was a piece of mail waiting for me on the dining room table. Something told me it was the letter that I had been waiting for over the last couple of weeks. In June I applied for the UCBeyond Scholarship.

UCB Canada, a division of UCB Inc., is dedicated to creating unique programs and tools to aid Crohn’s disease (CD) patients in reaching above and beyond the boundaries of their disease and fulfilling their educational ambitions. This award is a one-time scholarship of up to $5,000.00 CAN. In 2010, eight (8) scholarships will be awarded to individuals diagnosed with CD.

When I had learned about the scholarship, I was jumping for joy. $5,000 would cover the remainder of my tuition and books for school and would relieve me of a great deal of financial stress. It seemed like an amazing gift from the universe and I was determined to win. It was a fairly extensive application but I gathered all of the necessary components, including 2 fantastic references from 2 trusted, influential people who I have worked with very closely.

“Ashley has turned the challenges she faces with Crohn’s into opportunities. She takes a passionate and enthusiastic approach to all that she does, while ensuring that she stays true to a message of ‘Crohn’s won’t get the best of me, I will get the best of me.’ Rather than letting her symptoms slow her down, they have actually helped fuel her interest in nutrition – a subject she is now pursuing with formal education.”

“Ashley carries with her a dynamic energy and charisma that is absolutely infectious. Her personal story is one of the most inspiring I have come to know. After overcoming a challenge with her weight, to then be diagnosed with Crohnʼs disease, might be enough to discourage anyone that the path to health could be found through healthy eating. Ashley however, believed that the changes she had already made, only prepared her to go a step further and through her efforts and attitude is living symptoms free.

Simply helping herself, would not fit with Ashleyʼs inherent generosity and giving nature. It took much strength, confidence and bravery to leave her place of full-time employment to embark on her formal nutrition education. She made the transition with, what I have come to know, in her normal fashion- with spark, enthusiasm, dynamism and unwavering commitment.”

I got the information required from my school, gastroenterologist and worked really hard on my one page essay, telling my story of diagnosis, treatment, and new life. I felt confident sending in the application and was anxiously waiting to hear back from the committee sometime in mid August.

Well yesterday was that day. And I didn’t win one of the 8 scholarships. I was speechless.

I had been thinking nothing but positive thoughts about the scholarship; I was so proud of my application; I had so many amazing people supporting me, but alas it was not enough.

After a lot of crying and hugs from Lindsay and my roommates, I just wanted to curl up in a ball and hide from the world for awhile. Sometimes I just need to do that, but instead I remembered that wallowing really isn’t my style and that Lindsay wouldn’t care if I cried for the entire duration of our walk. So we walked and ended up in Riverdale Farm.

As much as I had wanted to hide from the world for a little bit, the walk, sunshine, adorable animals and amazing friendship was exactly what I needed. We continued our walk all the way to the Annex where I met up with other friends and ended up having a great evening, despite how I was feeling on the inside.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t upset about the scholarship. It would have taken away some definite financial stress and enabled me to continue moving forward without having to worry about tuition or books, making my life a little bit easier. That being said, I know that it’s not the end of the world and that I will continue to “keep on keepin’ on”. I was going to go to school without the scholarship so I’m confident that I’ll figure it out. I’m constantly thankful for this amazing life that I’m living, and you really can’t put a monetary value on that.

This morning I reread my scholarship application, and I’m still really proud of all the work that I put into getting to where I am today:

While there have been moments in my life where my disease has been an issue, it has been more of a blessing than any sort of misfortune. I feel that I have struck a beautiful balance of things in my life that I love (nutrition, helping others and performing), and I now feel healthier than ever. By writing about my experience on my blog and through my role as Honorary Chair, I have been able to share this inspirational and uplifting story of health, balance and happiness with others. My education in holistic nutrition is going to empower me to inspire and help even more people, and this scholarship would allow me to do that without financial concern. My life has changed instrumentally since being diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I have worked incredibly hard to get to where I am today, and look forward to what the future holds for me.

Scholarship or not, I’m truly excited for the future.

Just Another Sunday In The Park With Crohn’s

I can’t believe the 15th annual Heel ‘n’ Wheel-a-thon is now behind us!

It’s been a very busy couple of weeks leading up to the event and I had the honour (as honorary chair, tee hee) to chat with some local media leading up to the event. I was excited to know that on Thursday I made the cover of the Beach/Leslieville/Riverdale Mirror!The article discussed my involvement with the event and focused on my desire to raise awareness of IBD in Canada.

As I wrote my honorary chair speech on Saturday, I realized that I was less than $200 away from reaching my fundraising goal of $3000 so I solicited some donations on Facebook and Twitter over the course of the afternoon and was able to hit $3000 on the dot! Thanks so much to everyone who donated – I can’t wait to see if the Toronto event hit its goal of $325,000!

All week the weather people were talking about thunderstorms and rain for the day of the walk, which made me pretty sad. Apparently it NEVER rains on Heel ’n’ Wheel day and I didn’t want my year as Honorary Chair to break that tradition!! I got up bright and early on Sunday and was greeted by cloudy skies. Clouds I could deal with! I arrived onsite a little before 7 am and spent the morning helping wherever I could… and socializing with other members of the Committee… and seeing friends – old and new! I spent a bit of time with Hannah, who was the awesome Honorary Chair last year. I remembered seeing Hannah’s team (the Cranky Colons) with their bright green t-shirts at last year’s walk. Her mum was on the organizing committee and it was awesome to meet Hannah this year and chat about our similar (yet very different) journeys with this disease. I also had the pleasure of meeting super cute Megan who writes The Gut Gazette Megan and I have been corresponding via email and blogs for a long time now, so it was awesome to finally put the online persona and actual person together! Megan and her team the Grand Poo-Bahs were decked out in purple t-shirts and did an amazing job fundraising!

My friends Lindsay, Michelle & Brenda arrived to join me on the walkIt was so sweet of them to join me for the event and I was excited to have some great friends to enjoy Sunnybrook Park with! After a super fun and energetic warm up(with scissors no less) we were ready to hit the road! I got to cut the ribbon…  and we were off! We enjoyed stickers and delicious fruit  along our beautiful 5k in Sunnybrook. The weather held up and it was the perfect temperature to be walking. The 4 of us had a lovely time chatting along the route and cheering at each of the route stations. We took about an hour to do the 5k before hitting the finish line Just like last year, the food was still an issue for me at the event… made worse by the presence of a dessert truck Seriously? I recognize that there may have been a time in years past that I might have jumped on the opportunity for a deep-fried twinkie (!) but things have changed since then, and I truly believe that at an event around raising money and awareness for Inflammatory Bowel Disease, we should be promoting HEALTH. Deep-fried things on sticks, pizza and burgers don’t promote health to me at all and I hope that moving forward it is something that will continue to evolve. One of the members of the organizing committee and I are going to chat about ideas for next year and I hope that I can leave an imprint on the event in that way. I brought my own food for the day and had fun chatting with the healthier vendors in attendance like Bio K and Simply Bars.

After having my face painted I had the pleasure of thanking everyone for coming out and sharing a bit of my story. I felt really comfortable up on stage and later our PR Coordinator told me that I was very brave. It was a very successful (but long!) day and overall it’s been great to have been the Honorary Chair for this year’s event. It has enabled me to connect with some great people and has also given me the opportunity to share my story with others and in turn hopefully raise awareness of IBD.

Thank you to everyone who supported me in this event with words, donations or by joining me at the walk. I couldn’t have done it without all of you and I truly appreciate it!!

Heel ‘n’ Wheel-A-Thon in T-Minus 2 Days

The big day is just around the corner! I can hardly believe that it’s been a full year since the last time I did the event. At that time, it had still been less than a year that I had been diagnosed and was still working to figure this all out. So much has changed in a year, but I’m proud to say that I feel even healthier than I did at last year’s event and I am so excited to continue to head in that direction.

I hope that as a result of being the Honorary Chair and sharing my story that I’ve raised some awareness about the prevalence of IBD in our society. IBD affects more than 200,000 Canadians with more than 9,200 cases each year, but somehow before I was diagnosed I didn’t know anything about it. I want people to realize that they can speak up about this disease and that there are options out there. I realize that I’ve taken a bit more of an “unconventional” path to healing (not just medication and surgery but with primarily food!), but it has worked wonders and I’m so happy that I feel as healthy as I do today. Join me this Sunday in Sunnybrook Park at 10 am for the annual Heel ‘n’ Wheel-a-thon!

Lotsa Fun In May, Looking Forward to Being Busy in June

A few things I discovered (or remembered) this month… I’m addicted to quinoa flakes (with cocoa powder, sliced banana, cinnamon & Barney Butter all the way from Florida…)

On the subject of breakfast…protein in the morning helps keep me full (scrambled tofu with spinach, onion and mushrooms)Raw vegan brownies make me very happyI’ve been performing and auditioning a lot more lately including an 80’s themed show last Sunday, "Cabaret for a Cause" with the lovely Lindsay coming up on Friday and a Fringe show(!!) in July – (see the Facebook page for more details until it’s up on the Fringe site).  I’m going to be writing a blog post later in the week about how my pie of life has changed drastically as of late with all this performing… and how ridiculously happy I am as a result.

One last thing that makes me happy? People named Ashley (other than me!) and dressing up.  Top hats and corsets should always be required in life. Speaking of Ashley…  We’re planning a yoga class on Sunday (12:00 - east end Toronto location - $10 suggested donation) in support of the Heel’n’Wheel-a-thon!Digestive health is vital to our health and well being. Approximately 70% of our nervous system is attached to our stomach, small intestines and colon, so when our GI tract is not functioning at optimal level, we are out of balance. Inspired by the theme of The Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, we will explore the balance of our bodies inside and out, with a 1 hour yoga class open to all levels. It will focus on, you guessed it...our tummies! Through the practice of yoga, we can learn to not only strengthen and tone our mid-sections, but through breathing techniques and a series of specific postures, we can help to calm the nervous system and promote proper digestion and detoxification! You will radiate from the inside out!

Ashley Overholt is a student of Holistic Nutrition and a certified Ashtanga Yoga Instructor. She has studied with Diane Bruni and Ron Reid of Downward Dog, as well as Danny Paradise and Chuck Miller and Maty Ezraty.

Please send me an email (wwleaderashley@gmail.com) if you are interested in attending. Can’t attend, but would still like to donate? Check out my Heel’n’Wheel-a-thon donation page. The event is now less than two weeks away and I couldn’t be more excited!!