Disability Planning, Preparedness, Sickness
THE MYSTERY BEHIND LUPUS
The Mystery behind Lupus, is forever ongoing. It affects 1.5 million Americans, and 5 million worldwide.
“Lupus changes people. It sculpts into someone who understands more deeply, hurts more often, appreciates more quickly, cries more easily, hopes more desperately, loves more openly, and lives more passionately.” Unknown
I love having you come on our show today to talk about the true mystery about your journey with lupus. I’m very excited to hear it from point A to Z.
And so let’s get the party started. Let’s talk about how it all started for you.
Sure, yes, absolutely. So it was a number of years ago seems like a lifetime ago, almost. In my 20s I started flying airplanes and absolutely fell in love with aviation, every piece of it wanted to know all about it. And so from the age 25 to 30 was flying a ton going through my ranks and all the ratings and teaching people how to fly and got my commercial and won some scholarships to do some other things. And it was really a fun time. But I wasn’t taking care of my body wasn’t taking care of the Spirit. And at the age of 30, my body just broke it just broke and wouldn’t do what I was asking him to do any longer. We my first episode, if you will, we were in Hawaii, enjoying a wonderful, blissful time in Hawaii is our favorite place to go. How can you not Hello, right. I know. It was absolutely gorgeous. In the last day, we were going to leave in the morning. And on the way to breakfast I decided I was just going to steal a few more minutes in the sun. But I hadn’t put on any sunscreen or anything because I was all dressed ready to go. And the sun can bring on a flare up in terms of auto immune particularly lupus, but I didn’t know this because I just this was hadn’t even started yet. But when we boarded the first airplane and they shut the door and we’re rolling down the runway, we were just taking a short hop from Hawaii to Honolulu. All of a sudden I couldn’t breathe. I was just gasping for air and scary place to be when that’s happening. It didn’t say anything to my husband till we landed again. It was just a 15 minute hop to Honolulu. But I said before we get on another airplane, I’ve got to see a medic. And so we did I didn’t even know if there was one up there you came back. Okay. Had to see a medic at the at the Honolulu airport and he listened to my lungs and said, you’re breathing in and out. I don’t see a problem. So what I know right, breathing lady Get lost.
So like popping Benadryl as we hop on this next flight, that’s a five or five hour flight over the water. It’s just miserable, but with enough rest. I think it was something in the plane then that I really had no idea. I just I was completely taken aback. I mean, I had the reason I was popping Benadryl is because for those five years when I wasn’t treating myself, Well, I was allergic to a lot of things. And so I always carried it with me not knowing that this was kind of the start of the whole autoimmune illness. So it didn’t alarm me to the I mean, I was alarmed, but not enough to go to say an ER, yeah, that was down the road. I with enough rest. I sort of recovered from that episode. Didn’t think too much of it.
A couple weeks later, I’m sitting at work having a sandwich and all of a sudden I can’t breathe again. So then I was able to go Yeah, it was just strange. Just autoimmune is just so strange. So I did go to my primary care. And she’s kind of said the same thing. Like that’s the we’re autoimmune is so strange. There’s no, we don’t really know what’s happening. I said, I can’t go home, like I’ve already been through this cannot do this again. So she got me in with an allergist that afternoon. Surprisingly, the only one available and that doctor had no idea at the time. He had interned in a lupus clinic. So he was I know, right. I mean, this is it was just this divine walk the whole you know, the whole walk, but I didn’t know what I mean. I still went in not being able to breathe or having that sensation. He asked me about 100 questions, took a bunch of blood work and didn’t even tell me why what he suspected. But the fact that he was living Listening, the fact that he was engaged, gave me enough comfort to go home that evening. those tests were very special took three weeks to get back in the meantime, episode after episode ER after ER. And it seemed like every time I saw a new doctor, they would prescribe a med that I was unable to take. I was allergic to it again, popping the Benadryl. So it was just this up and down just horrible, like, experience. One that I’m glad I haven’t, you know, had to go through those kinds of things again, so it was inside of the aviation industry.
A lot of those folks were saying, Go find a naturopath. And back then it wasn’t the easiest thing to do now,
right now. Right? So you hear it all the time, and it’s accepted. Back then it was well go see them if you know, you don’t want anybody to know, you’re sick type thing. Yeah, so right or go see that witchy doctor. Yeah. And again, I just happened to find like an expert in his field. But seeing that doctor for the first time, um, I, I found healing, the start of true healing within 24 hours, he somehow knew that the breathing issues I was having had nothing to do with my lungs. But everything to do with my stomach, my gut, I wasn’t able to expand my diaphragm to get a full breath because my gut was in such distress.
But like, Who knew? I mean, I certainly didn’t know. Right? And so he started me fasting right away on a liquid drink full of nutrition. And he had said, No, just do this for a week. I’m sure that that was a bite sized enough piece for someone to be able to follow his instructions. Yeah, that wouldn’t be too bad to do, right. I mean, you could do anything for a few days. It was Monday, and I was to do this till Friday. But Friday came. And I started panicking. I didn’t want to start eating. So he had given me because I was so sick. He had given me his cell phone instead, if anything happens, just give me a call. So I did, I called him and I said, Do I really, really, really have to start eating? I mean, for the first time, I’m feeling actually a little bit better. And he said, Wow, you’re blessed. No, you don’t. And so I continued on that for 90 days. During that 90 day period, I was buying that drink mix, if you will, that I mixed with water at the warehouse, because I was going through so much of it. And so it was it was fine. He just couldn’t keep enough of them shells. But that’s where I met, but they didn’t taste as good as they do now.
You know, I think God just hit that for me. Honestly. I one day I went in and was talking to a new someone I hadn’t talked to there before. And she was asking me Well, how does this taste for you? I said, Oh, it’s amazing. It I just know it saved my life. You know, I was I had her race it right. And I craved it, it was it must have had so much of what my body needed, that I truly did crave it. And so we started up this conversation, which after I left, I thought Oh good. She told me about her son that she had nursed back to health had almost passed. And she did it through nutrition. So when I left, I thought me and I really need to, I need to talk to her again, I need to know what she knows. And they didn’t want to call back and they didn’t want to let me they said oh, we talked to our manager and she doesn’t talk to clients. And I’m like, Oh, I really need to talk to her. So she did I said just please take my name and number. And if she’s willing to talk with me, I would just very much appreciated and she did call me and she gave me the name of the doctor who would really walk this journey with me a three year journey to healing. And I that was all of all of those experiences were very divinely led because like who would? It was one circumstance after the other that just was put in my path for you know the right place, right time type thing?
Because I think that’s what happens when you start going the right direction. It says okay, we got your back now.
We got to girl, let’s let’s keep moving forward. That’s exactly right. It’s the the universe will step in and give you what you need when you’re on the right when you’re on the right track. And even if you’re not, you know, you may stumble here or there but eventually find, you know, find the way Yeah. Did Is it very similar to when you started in that process because you didn’t really know what you were feeling and how you were reacting. But is it very much like Lyme disease because Lyme disease is a very similar type of hidden Yeah. I don’t I don’t even know what to call it because yeah, another half better.
Yeah. Weird. No hard to diagnose? Absolutely. So it is. And in fact, when I’ve talked to some people and seeing what other people have gone through with wine, this disease, I they’re so closely related in terms of symptoms that you know, who’s your guest is as good as mine type thing? Absolutely. They’re very, very similar.
So how did was there a wake up call for you?
Was there a real? the lightbulb went on for you?
Once you got through to a certain point of feeling a little bit better?
Definitely. And, you know, it was what you just said it was a wake up call, I was going the wrong direction in my life and had an opportunity to redirect. Yes, obstacles to overcome, for sure. But the redirection was in the right place that my life was supposed to go. And it was, you know, honestly, I wasn’t sure if I would survive, because I couldn’t take the normal course that other people could. And so imagine, coming down with an autoimmune the first one of the first things that you do is you go to a rheumatologist, I never made it that far. I was seeing ER doctors a lot. But there were no solutions. And I just knew, somehow in that space, there was, this wasn’t where I was going to find my healing. And in the natural realm, then with dealing just with food and supplements, and things like that. There was a lot of grace during this time, because I was so sick, but nothing I was doing was normal, in terms of what other people would do. So friends family, didn’t understand what I was up to. I did crazy stuff to get well, I read every cancer book of someone who had gotten welded, I did everything they did, there wasn’t anything on lupus back then in getting well, right. Yeah. And chronic illness was that it was chronic.
Um, so I was following protocol that other people couldn’t really swallow in terms of or understand or approve of. And so it was very lonely journey to wellness, because it was long. I mean, it’s like waking up with the flu for 1000 days. But every once in a while there was that little glimmer, I’d have a few minutes where I felt better. And then a week later, maybe up to an hour where I felt like, Wow, I didn’t feel terrible this last hour. So little glimmers of hope that kept me on that path doing what I need to do to get well.
So it’s 20 years ago, gosh, we didn’t have what we have now. I mean, even with Crohn’s disease with all the products of gluten free, and we didn’t have all of that sort of type of thing. And to me, it’s all very similar because our body’s reacting to something from either you’re putting in it or that you are around. I truly believe that, you know, it’s the water we’re drinking, it’s the drinks we’re drinking, it’s the food we’re eating, it’s, it’s everything. And it’s hard to eliminate those things out of your life. You can’t it’s like diabetics, you know, to go shopping or to go to a restaurant like everybody else. You have to be watching what you’re eating. Yes. So how did you get from really feeling sick and having that life changing career change for you?
Yeah, so as you mentioned, the eating I really had to eliminate everything. So I went through that first 90 days of complete elimination and the the drink mix, if you will, it was based on a rice based syrup. So when I added in food, all I could do was steamed zucchini, things you could see through once they were steamed I could pretty much see watermelon. Yeah and no and no fruit it was only vegetables, fruit wood. So one of the things that I had was leaky gut syndrome. And yeah, and so I couldn’t eat anything that would that would have sugars or anything in it and because the switches feed on that and create more right so for three years I vegetables morning noon and night once I started eating vegetables and we we fondly call it even today the walk meal I would cook in the walk and I still do vegetables is is pretty much what I eat. And I can do some rice products some and now they have lots of rice products like rice bread and rice noodles and so but but back then For three years it was vegetables morning, noon and night.
Wow. That’s a hard one to swallow basically because I mean, you can be a vegetarian but without fruit It seems so difficult, doesn’t it? But the sugar is not good for for really anybody’s got. And that’s yeah I had it I we were really treating that leaky gut I had a parasite too called blastocyst is hominis.
And so we were starving out the bad yeast, this parasite all have to do with a gut. Yeah, it was just so I, I, I know this could have gone another way. I know it could have gone where I would it wouldn’t be here right now. For sure. Like I said, there were many nights, I wondered if I would wake up the next morning, but I was my stomach was so sensitive that the only thing I could do was that rice drink and vegetables. That was it. And there was there was a time during that just a really short time during that period where I ventured out and had salmon and some chicken. And that was the one and only audible voice of God experience I’ve ever had. And one night I clearly heard everything you need to eat is grown out of the ground. And I was down to I know and I was down to my lowest weight. I was 105 lost. I had lost so much weight down to I looked like I was 13. I mean, that’s what I that’s what I weighed when I was 13 years old.
So I looked like I had anorexia. I mean, I looked terrible, right? And so I may I’m like, you’ve got to be kidding me God. And so I made a deal with them. I said, All right. Because I just started bringing these two things into into my diet. And I said, Okay, I’ll make a deal. If I lose one more pound, in this next week, then I I’m going to go back to eating those two things. And I gained two pounds that week. So that was my deal with God, he won. And that was it. You know, like that was a he really was my he gave me the next step. Every single step I took then I got the next one. But I had to be really faithful in that time to do what he said to do before I got the next step. And so it was blind faith walking by the smallest light possible that could light my path and I just followed it. I knew I was that close to not living really, you know, it’s just on my way out. So I had to I had to follow it. It was survival piercer absolutely did.
Did you feel a difference eating the chicken and the salmon? Like are you a totally vegan then now.
So now I I don’t eat any meat and or poultry or fish. I do eat eggs, and then in basically vegetables and some rice type products. But that’s that’s the extent of my my diet. It’s gotten smaller again. I did. So once I got Well, we were able to have children, which was a total blessing and had three boys. They’re all grown up now. But once I was on the other side, you know I had I healed i mean i truly did my blood tests were normal. I there was a time then that I by the time I was 3334 I was asymptomatic. My blood tests reversed. And all was well. And so we started having kiddos and as moms with kiddos you start eating off of their plate. Hold on. There you come. Okay, so after about 10 years, I was a really poor vegetarian, I was more like a carbohydrate. And you know, I eat carbs all the time I consent I’ve done.
So I went and flipped exact opposite and went to the Atkins and just ate meat and cheeses and stuff like that, which tasted awesome. The last couple of years, I’ve switched back over to the vegetarian diet, and I have felt like I’ve gotten 10 years younger. Oh, wow. So yeah, so I know for me now, for the rest of my life here. I’ll stay a vegetarian. It’s just the most healthy way for me to eat and feel. body feels good. Right? Absolutely. So feel great and love you. I love that, you know, we talked about I was just talking about having a conversation the other day with someone about depression and folks who suffer from depression have a baseline that even on their good days, their baseline is probably like one of our not so good days. And that’s the way my body is like my good days are really pretty good. But if I do something to thwart that it throws me down to Where I’m not, and I just don’t feel good. And I’m, I don’t want to not feel good anymore. You know, I’ve had enough days of that. Yeah. Where feeling good means something to me.
So I do what I? Absolutely, yeah.
I find with a brain injury that I had with a car accident that oils are good. So my body seems to function better with MCT oil and avocados and you know all of that stuff it, it feeds it. Yes. It’s truly funny when when you start listening to your body, to how you’re feeling when you’re eating certain things. Do you eat a lot of proteins of beans and peas them?
I don’t because those are like gas producing. And again, I’ve got to be careful I, I just don’t feel well. So and I know another gentleman. His name is Matt Embry. And he’s he’s from Canada, and he got a diagnosis when he was 19 have Ms. And his diet is much the same. Those of us who feel well who have been diagnosed with autoimmune can usually feel better if we’re specific dietary needs are, you know, requirements and that are followed. And he he does eat lean meat. His diet is lean meats, fruits and vegetables, no beings with guns or anything like that.
Because it is, you know, that just attacks the gut. Right. So corn and stuff like that’s difficult to, interestingly corn. Corn will bring on a flare in a minute. And I had read a study years ago about a woman who just had a severe corn allergy. And not lupus though, she was diagnosed with lupus. And when she took corn out of her diet, she was well, it was just a corn allergy. But those corn allergies can be extreme can mimic a lupus even to the point of testing positive for it crazy. So yeah, corn is not something that I go down that road at all with.
Yeah. So all the things that are similar are lawns disease, and lupus. What about Crohn’s disease? And there’s another one for the stomach. And that will IBS and, and I, yeah, fibromyalgia. So all of those kinds of things are all very similar to finding what it is that you can eat, that your body feels good for.
Yeah. And and, you know, it’s it’s too bad that that message isn’t delivered, necessarily, by Western medicine, don’t want to say that too loud. But like if if doctors would really acknowledge, acknowledge Yes, and just say, Hey, why don’t you try this? Because I’ve read plenty, even Heart Heart Doc’s who were wondering about, like you were mentioning earlier, diabetes is an autoimmune as well. And he’s a heart doctor started treating his heart patient or his diabetic patients who were also as heart patients with diet and found not only did their diabetes regulate, but their heart conditions did as well. Amazing what we can do with diet.
Did you try intermittent fasting?
I do that now. But I didn’t back that. I mean, every day was almost too fast for Yeah, 90 days of it back then. And then often, I would just, I would not even have the vegetables on a day I would you know, so. I intermittent fasting i think is is great for our bodies, and they and so much literature and information about that out now. Yeah.
Do you do it all the time, or just here and there then?
No, just in it’s almost, I wouldn’t call it a regime But often, I will eat my last meal at somewhere around two or three o’clock in the afternoon. So then it’s just sort of what it just sort of works in regularly for me that I’m not planning it out. Did you find any medicines or you know, whether they’re on the shelf or vitamins or anything that was helpful.
nutritional supplements are for me meds, I was just really allergic to everything out there. But there are nutritional supplements. You mentioned, oils, omega omega is are phenomenal for the brain. And so that’s something I take a lot of it’s great for brain fog, because with autoimmune generally comes brain fog.
But we would have to eat somewhere around 20 to 23 fish a week to get what our brain actually needs. And so we You just have to supplement with that. That’s something everybody should do. Antioxidants are super important. And probiotics and prebiotics are very, very important. I also take like eye vitamins, wanting to just keep those those things sharp and generally with autoimmune comes achy joints. So glucosamine is a really great, great thing to take as well. But there are difference in terms of absorbability and what supplements actually provide nutritional supplementation like help to the body because there’s a lot out there that doesn’t. So I found some great stuff.
Yeah, it sounds so much like fibromyalgia, you know, it’s like a combination of a whole bunch of things, right, like with the body and the soreness, and the headaches and the brain fog. And it’s unbelievable how all of those symptoms are wrapped up into one, your stomach not working right. You’re, you probably were you high and then lower, you know, you’d have a good day and then a bad day.
And well, mostly they were bad. You know, honestly afraid for a year and a half beginning for sir. Yeah, it was, yeah, for a long time. It’s just it’s just all bad. But, but I could see, you know, generally things I just had to believe what I was doing. It’s really amazing when I look back on it now because there were so many days that went by before I saw any improvement. Like why would you be doing this if you don’t but, but I did. And when you say Fibromyalgia that reminds me I, I had that diagnosis as well. There was a time when I was seeing that doctor for three years. He said, Well, you also have fibromyalgia. And good news is that usually lupus accompanied with fibromyalgia means you won’t have the damage to the major organs that lupus can do. You’ll just feel crummy for the rest of your life. And I’m like, thanks. I know. Right? So that was the bad news.
But I never I never talked about feeling not well for the rest of my life. Like again, there was that distinction that I made. I was always seeking. How do I get well read everything I could did every every research I material I could get my hands on I read every book about healing. I got every meditation I could have gotten about healing. I did like I was so bent on getting well that’s the only thing that came into my purview was how do I get well, so I think that was a huge piece of, of getting well is seeking it well, and not relying just solely especially 20 years ago. Like even 10 years ago, things have changed enormously with our foods have gluten free and our sugar free and our protein shakes and our you know, because those protein bars used to taste like cardboard. But now they’re not too bad. So they have come a long way. For sure. To to get something quick. That’s not like an Oreo cookie, or something. Right? Yes, absolutely. Yeah. So what about dairy? Have you stayed away from dairy as well?
I definitely try and stay away from dairy. And that’s something that really feeds autoimmune. When I watch Matt Embry, he says the same thing like his dad is a professor at a at a call University in Canada. And so are you was at the time when Matt got diagnosed. And of course, if your 19 year old son gets diagnosed with something like they should go to work to figure it out. And they I don’t have all of his research, but he does offer that and his research research has found that dairy will promote rapidly autoimmune. So that’s something that we need to stay away from. Yeah, all the good stuff, right?
Well, I just found out because I was wondering why I’m on the keto diet. So I eat butter. And butter was sitting on my counter. And it was not very yellow. And then I started thinking, why isn’t it melting? on the counter? Like what’s going on? Yeah. So then I started looking it up. And in February, I don’t know the United States but in Canada. They change the formula to what they can feed cows. So they’re giving cows palm oil is my understanding to increase the amount of milk that they can produce, so that they can make more dairy products that Yeah, but I thought why With all our wisdom and knowledge in the hierarchy, that we are supposed to avoid palm oil. It’s not good for the environment. It’s not good for the forests. It’s not good for our body. What are we doing? So many. So now I’m looking for real butter. Like and that’s hard to do. Is that not crazy?
Yeah, it totally agreed. I think there’s a there’s an Irish butter. That still is the real thing out there. But yeah, you it’s so important to continue. Yeah, we think we have it. And then we need to Yes. So I love your curiosity in terms of even looking that up, like what’s going on? And and finding that, that that’s the case. So that’s new to me. So I thank you for that. Because I’ll have to keep an eye out every night. I cook for my family too. So I’ll cook differently for me than I do for them. But I’ll because butter has a nice smell. But the other butter doesn’t. It’s like hard. It’s like a lard melt.
Wow. And so what does that gonna do to our bodies? it? I don’t know. But right. So that was scary. Yeah.
Then. So is the milk different? Is the cream different? You know, now you’re like asking about everything. Yes. It’s crazy. My mom was noticing that the milk has a skim of something around the glass. That is leaving like an oil. Yeah. So I don’t know if it’s in our milk now. But you know, they have to put it on the label every time. That’s right, because they’re not putting it into the end product. Yeah. They’re putting it into the feed that they’re giving the animals. Yeah. In some shape or form. I’m not really sure or understand why. Yeah. So if anybody out there knows. Write down a comment down below. I’d really appreciate it. listeners would to come on dairy farmers. Come on. Let’s look fine. Tell us why. Yeah, no, good. Good observation. Yeah, so what are they doing to their cheeses and everything else? Do you eat tofu? I don’t only because I’m allergic to soy. Oh, yeah. So that isn’t a protein that I can consume.
Gosh, that eliminates a lot of stuff.
Yeah, it’s easier just to think about what I can eat than what I don’t I’m in honestly, that’s just the way I have to look at it. And sometimes, I know over the years dieting and this and that I’ve always been that type of a person anyway, just tell me what I can do. I’ll make anything bad, if you will, when I was you know, doing the Atkins, I could make that a super. That’s when I did eat dairy I did for those for a few years there. And I have to say I didn’t feel bad on on that particular regime for a period of time. And then our body chemistry changes and then I had to change with it. So at the end, that’s a key thing. Our body is constantly changing. And to be in tune with what that is doing, you know, to listen, hey, why am I not feeling as well? Why am I more tired? When I get up in the morning? Why don’t I have as much energy during the day? These are questions we should be asking ourselves so that we can make the appropriate adjustments. What about goat products that were never tried and I’ve never tried them I go to great idea and I but at the same time, I’ve eliminated all of what would take its, you know what that would take his place of so it’s just better not to go down that road.
Because it might be an option for for some people. What about almonds, almond milk and almond butter and nuts.
So great guides to get I’m allergic to almonds so I can’t do the almond milk but I do rice milk. So if I you know and I can do some oat milk as well. So those are the the two things that are in my fridge right now. And then other stuff for my you know, for my family cereals, or any cereals that you can have like is there a granola or anything?
Great, another great question. So I am just thinking about what’s in my pantry right now and it’s rice checks if I have a cheat it would be that with some maple syrup and some rice milk. You know if I just want something sweet and feel normal? Yeah, yeah, it’s just it’s an easy, easy kind of small meal or whatever that I can eat if I get hungry
for lunch is there’s I think there’s rice roll ups now that you like a tortilla shells or there’s lots of corn ones but I think there’s rice now too. So you could use that with some vegetables and mayonnaise and mustard and kind of
So I don’t do the the condiments if you will. But what I would do is put the vegetables like, I’ll boil some vegetables and rice and put those in and have a have a vegetable rice wrap. Yeah, that’s it. That’s a tree.
That would be it sounds yummy. Yeah. So that could be a dinner too, I guess or Absolutely. Yep. So you have to make two meals one. One for you.
I do. I do. Indeed. So the kitchen. Yeah. Lots of fun.
So on to the next. So we talked about what we’re putting in our bodies. But we also have to know what medicines we talked about. What about in supplements? What about our environment, our water, our drinks, and our cleaning products?
Yeah, oh, just super on point questions, water, we do get purified water, we we we have a system to do that. And so it’s so important to drink good water know what kind of water you have had, if you don’t know, get it tested. In the US, it’s probably different than Canada. But in the particular neighborhood we live in the the water is so hard with calcium, they can’t even test how hard it is. So we Yeah, we have to do some alternate things there. And environmental. I didn’t know how much chemicals in this is more monitored and regulated in Canada than it is in the United States.
But there are a lot of chemicals and ingredients in just the things we brush our teeth with wash our hair, all those personal care things, cosmetics, laundry, cleaning all of those things here in the us that we just need to do better for so you can find some privately owned independent manufacturing companies that make them much cleaner. And I did that at 1.0. Fast forward probably 1518 years. And lupus is such a hormonal disorder that when I did all this research, when I was 30, I thought I’ll probably have some issues as I’m going through these hormonal shifts when I get older. And that’s exactly what happened. So I was able to live those 15-18 years or so just however I wanted stay out in the sun, what I wanted all of it. And then my body started slowing down again. And I started breathing heavy in this time. It wasn’t like I couldn’t breathe. It was just my heart rate was up all the time. And I went to the doctor and he sent me to the ER, once again on this road of what’s happening. And they diagnosed me with graves disease. Well, that’s an autoimmune issue where the the antibodies attack the thyroid, put your body in hyperspeed.
So my heart rate was 120, just at rest, which when I know right, I was on an eternal treadmill, I was tired, oh, my heart rate was going and so if I got up to unload the dishwasher was at 150. And if I was on the treadmill 180. So it can be dangerous. And they of course care about stroke and heart attacks and things like that. So I got home and I looked up what graves disease was. And I immediately called the endocrinologist and said, Hey, listen, you know all that blood you just took, could you please run a test for lupus? And she said, I can’t I won’t know how to read it. And I said, Well, I will. And of course my tests came back just as high as they had 1518 years prior. So devastated.
Absolutely. I didn’t know how I was going to get through this next bout of lupus because at the time, my husband had been furloughed from his position, I wasn’t working. And just to do what I did back that many years ago was 1000 bucks a month between supplements, the drink mix, I was offering food that you’re eating Exactly. And we didn’t have that we didn’t have it. And I went to bed one night and said, God, you’re gonna have to bring it to me. I had no resources, I had gone up to the clinic that I had healed with before. And it was going to be a $300 intake, they no longer took insurance all out of pocket. There wasn’t any money. And now we had three kids to support so it wasn’t like we could spend anything on my dealing.
It’s so frustrating because when you want to eat properly, it’s so much cheaper just to grab that McDonald’s hamburger and a bag of chips.
Yeah, it is the those go twos. Obviously that had to to stop like immediately. And I tried to replicate what I knew I had taken before omegas and antioxidants in these things, but to no avail. Because really the grocery store equivalent was not equivalent at all, but my niece had reached out and she shared with me a manufacturing company that I could start shopping that was clean, made great supplements. I did that and within the I mean the upside of the story was within three weeks I woke up one morning, no symptoms whatsoever. And within nine months, my blood tests reversed. So I know that chemicals that are in the things we use every day. I know that good nutrition. Yeah, if we can handle those things, those are key in terms of either regaining our health or remaining healthy.
And I know there’s a lot more products out there. Many more choices are Yeah. Then there used to be, I think, maybe 20 years ago, there was melaleuca. There was Watkins, there was. I’m not sure if Mary Kay fell into that for makeup or not. Then they may be now but not back then. Yeah, I’m just trying to remember some of the things but now there’s even at the grocery store here. There are organic products. I think Burt’s Bees have organic line. There’s makeup lines now. There’s laundry soaps that are organic, so to speak, I guess that’s how they’re labeling them. I’m not really sure what that means.
Yeah. And that’s, I think that’s key, the last time I looked, a lot of the things that we see out there have been gobbled up by the bigger companies. And people don’t know that. And so it is, what I can recommend is that people are extremely diligent in what brand they are using. Because there’s a lot of like you said, In the beginning, companies don’t have to put things on their labels here in the us back in the 1950s. There was legislation passed and for good reason back then it just doesn’t serve the people today. Yeah, for proprietary reasons. People in manufacturing companies don’t have to label put the ingredients that are in a product. So because it’s just again for proprietary so someone can’t another company couldn’t start up and use those same ingredients and make it then you’ve got competition, but now it just doesn’t support us in terms of the the shoppers, the consumers. So a lot of crazy stuff. I know there’s a lot of organic brands may naturally
But what is it it’s so difficult? It is whoever it is, I actually developed a class called what what toxins are lurking in your home. And I gave that at rec centers and libraries. Because I you know, people just need to be aware, I think that’s the first thing, awareness is key. And then the due diligence, like do your diligence, look and seek not just on a label, I there was one brand in particular that I had become aware of that the label looks on there’s, it’s an entire brand that you can find it the grocery store. And I went to I started just googling went to their website. And when you go to the website, that’s where you find where I found all the ingredients. And some of the really dangerous ingredients are in that brand. Just not on the label. But they do put it on a website. Yeah. So good.
That’s what I’m saying it’s a person has to do their due diligence, you have to look and if it’s something that is necessary for your next moment, do the research. Now, if it’s something that can wait on, you know, just do your research as it comes when you’re aware yet we don’t know what we don’t know. And when I got Well, in three weeks, after that last bout, eight, nine years ago, I went to work and I researched like crazy because I thought what on earth could be the things. You know, in these things. I’m using toothpaste and shampoo that could make me not just sick with one illness, but graves and lupus, like this is crazy. And I just would France. That’s all I did. I didn’t change any of my eating. During that time, a couple years ago, I changed but during that time, nothing and my blood tests went back to normal. I mean, that’s. So I did the research because I really had to, and I recommend that you know, for people who are struggling if you’re struggling with autoimmune or and there’s so much that falls into that category now eczema. Oh, definitely do the research.
Yeah, absolutely. I find I have a lot of I’ve had quite a few clients with lupus. And they would be good for a long time. And then, like you said you’d have about where it would reoccur. But do you know how long that time is going to last? And you don’t have to make that other shift again, like how do you change that? When it rains back?
Yeah, great question. So So for me, it was just another layer. It was what I was using in my home. For someone else. It might be some of the foods that they’re eating, but it just it just helps us layer by layer get better and better. The three things that I know are super important is what we’re putting in our bodies, what we’re putting on our bodies and the things that We’re breathing in and using to, you know, clean our homes and things like that we have control over those things. We don’t have control over what’s being sprayed outside or whatever. But the things that are inside our home, and that we put inside our bodies, we do have control over that.
Yeah. What types of things do you use for the family? Do you go the same way? Like you don’t eat differently, but is that it’s what I’m trying to say is that it’s hard. Not so much to have different foods for your family and you. But you want them to be healthy, too. So you want the mental stuff to stay healthy. You want the stuff they’re putting in their hair. Yep. And all of that kind of stuff. So you don’t do two types of things. We all shop the same store. Yep.
And everybody’s, well, you know, I have one of my kids, he has struggled with eczema and psoriasis, asthma, those kinds of things. And as long as he sticks with this brand, he’s fine. So even laundry detergent. I mean, that’s a big deal. Yeah, yeah, I’ve heard of that from allergies, and eczema and things like that, too. Yeah. We say excema.
And you say eczema? Either way. Yep. eczema, I can call it that, dude. It’s funny how we say things a little bit differently. What types of things? Do you speak on them when you do your speaking engagements? Sure. Well, I
love to speak on overcoming the obstacles in our lives, and using those obstacles to redirect us to the true path that we’re supposed to be on. That’s what happened to me and I listened those those folks out there who have overcome the obstacles can speak to very much the same thing. You know, we find our true selves, our other self, as some authors write about when we get to be challenged with adversity. And it’s what we do with that, that makes a difference in terms of not just surviving, but thriving, giving back to others, and sharing what we know, so that we can bless someone else along the way.
And it’s, it’s quite funny how you said that we have to learn how to eat, we have to learn what our environment is, we have to learn what we’re putting on our body. And it’s very similar, I found working with clients for risk, as well. Because with your backup plan, it’s nice and easy to use, but people don’t understand why they have to do certain things in the app. So when I created the emerging blueprint, that’s the part of the research that I like that, that you say that you help with, because that’s what I help with. So with people understanding, why do they have to have a will? Why do they need a power of attorney?
People think well, and they know they need it, but they don’t understand why? What is their life insurance policy look like? Under being able to understand it. So you can talk the same language, when you go in to see that financial expert, when you see that investment advisor, understanding what you have before you reach that point of discussion. And it’s very similar to what you’re saying, is understanding what’s in your products, understanding what it could do or influence to your body. You know, if we don’t understand it, we’re not going to do it. That’s what I found if you don’t understand what’s in the butter, and you just continue using it that way. But if you’re starting to read research and understand why you have to do certain things, it makes things so much easier.
Yes, so understanding does put us into action, where maybe we wouldn’t have before.
Yeah, yeah. And now I’m worried Well, what are they doing to the aches? What are they going to chicken?
I know it’s a list goes on? It does and I know a lot of people who raise their own chickens now get their own eggs and then those who don’t but are in the know by their eggs from them. So you know, we’re We are an evolving people and we will find alternatives. And I think that’s that’s what, like what you’re doing is so important, Tina, because you’re giving people simple, easy steps to take care of these things that we’re generally not good at taking care of And if we can look at our health in the same way you can take care of all those things. But if you don’t have your health, all those things don’t matter. The only thing that matters when you’re sick is how do I get well? And if we can take care, just be mindful, being mindful. What are we shopping for? What are we eating and finding those nuggets along the way? That, oh, I found this thing, you know, that. Just so glad I found this brand, or this, just this little snippet of information. And so it’s not, we can never do a big overhaul in our lives all at once. But we can take on something new every week. Like if it’s just one thing a week. Yeah, I’m going to tackle this this week. And it makes us feel so good about what we’re doing. Yeah, yeah, it feels this, you know, we just we know we’re on the right track. And, yeah, do you have any recipe books?
I don’t, because my so in my book called life after lupus. I do share what I eat and how I fix those things. But it only takes up a few pages because my diet is so limited, so it wouldn’t be worth it. But I can say, for your listeners, Matt Embry has a website called Ms. hope.com. And he provides a cookbook a free cookbook for anybody you can go there and download it and or you can have it sent to you for free. He literally does everything. So very generous with his time, I would recommend following him. You know if anybody does have MS and or any autoimmune disorder, follow the people that have gotten Well, he’s one I’m one. So Matt Embry, again, he’s a Canadian, and then myself on the life after lupus, two different autoimmune but very similar wellness stories.
Absolutely. Where’s he located in Canada? Do you know, Toronto or Ontario say Alberta, but I’m not sure. Okay. Okay. Yeah, just in case anybody in that area listening that? That would know? Yeah, that’s awesome. I would love to, you know, I be the perfect person, even though I don’t have that type of disease. But I would love to watch you on Instagram and Tiktok to what you’re making every day. So there you go. There’s a love for you.
Okay, all right. So many people that want to eat better. Right? And where do you start? Like, what do you do I, I 100%. Understand, you know, whether I want to lose weight, or whether you want to eat properly, or better, or mix it into your diet two or three times a week, or whatever that looks like, right? Yeah, yeah. Good. Good thoughts. I appreciate that. I see one of your watchers.
Okay, I’ll maybe have to look at doing that. Come to my kitchen. Absolutely. I want to see the tick tock dances as well. I haven’t ventured onto that platform yet. But I mean, people keep telling me really, but yeah, so anyway,
there you go. I’m one of many telling you now. So your books you only mentioned one. So what are your books all about?
So I do write daily devotions and prayers. And I have a book that is a 90 day devotional. I have a prayer book. I have written a bunch of poems to my kiddos. So for Christmas, I put all their poems that I’ve written them so they don’t have to find them in scraps, your backup plan, that’s a perfect fit. I wanted to you know, so they weren’t having to look and find all these things when I’m gone. I put prayers and poems in a book for them. And that’s part of the treasure box. Yes, yeah, yeah. And I told the kids we’re not going to do a four by you Christmas this year. And I didn’t want them to buy it was like all homemade gifts. So I decided to upload that on Amazon. And then my latest book is one on I’ve written about 100 songs and with each one of the lyrics with those songs goes a story. So I did publish that book as well called Gods whispers and melodies, and upcoming books a couple of journals that can help people really get a great start for their day and eventually writing on mindset in a biblical ways so that I think the maybe some believers some Christians who haven’t been able to accept some of the positive mental attitude things out there can can really see this is what Jesus said. It’s just in a different way. So that’s upcoming, those are some upcoming cool,
do you sing and play music as well? or? Yeah, and that’s, I have some of that on my YouTube channel. Oh, cool. Yeah. Did you want to do a little song for him? Not at all.
That has to be thought of and prepared and not a problem. It’s it sounds lovely. Anyways, it was a beautiful, I tell you inside of a few years and it was I was sitting at the piano one day and I just pray God was ever blessed praise and worship. And literally, his download of a song came that it could be a cantata, like could be done with an orchestra and, and it was so overwhelming out, oh my gosh. And that happened in three days. And then song after song just I just kept hearing the music and I go, and I find it at the piano. And the lyrics would come. And sometimes the lyrics would come before I’d get the notes, but it’s like God wrote this gorgeous music. And it was a very transformative time in my life. Like that’s how we he grabbed a hold of my heart and softened it and made it usable by him. So it was when I get too busy I quit hearing the music and that’s why I’m saying like, though that now we get through it right now but but when I get quiet and and really avoid the chaos, I start hearing the music again.
Well, it’s kind of like when you’re going inside yourself. And it’s a meditation type of thing that you can download this type of energy, right? What do you play the piano then? guitar or just the piano? Oh, that must be beautiful. Now you’ve got me interested in hearing these? So it’s on your YouTube channel?
Yes. Well, I have two YouTube channels. One is life after lupus and the others just my name where I you can find me under Andrea Lende.
I’m okay. Okay, perfect. So listeners, I’ve put down below all the types of all of Andrea’s descriptions below. I believe I have Anyways, I hope I have. I’ll double check it, but I’ll make sure it’s all there for everybody. Did you have any final messages that you’d like to give to people struggling with these types of auto immune diseases,
I just really want to impress upon any anyone suffering from autoimmune that there is a possibility of healing, that our bodies are meant to heal. And if we just open that up a little bit, we’ll be on a different path. And so that’s really my message for them. And for those who aren’t sick, see what we can do to just feel better. There’s so many people who are walking around and not feeling well every day. And there’s some very simple changes we can make to reverse that.
Yes, and a lot of times it ends up it starts in your stomach. It I’ve read that over and over that every disease starts in the gut. So what are we putting in? My mom, I remember being a young kid, and my mom would say, which one? Is the boss of your body? Is it your brain? Or your stomach? Yeah, I think it’s your stomach.
And now even a lot of psychiatrists are finding there’s there’s more neuro receptors in the gut than there are in the brain. So they’ll treat even schizophrenia now with probiotics. And within a year episodes are far diminished. There’s There’s magic in the gut. We just have to find it. Treat it well, because it does regulate everything else.
Absolutely. Suzanne Somers has really amazed me because she’s gone through cancer. Previously, she’s changed her diet. She has quite a few books out for eating, which are very, very helpful for anybody wanting to lose weight or eating healthier, as well. I don’t know if you’re aware, Andrea, but she’s come out with a gut protein mixture for your gut. And she and she has a pure organic skincare line as well.
So go Suzanne Somers. I’m right with you, right. Yep. Agreed. So anybody listening, check her her website out as well. If you’re wanting to look further into better products that you can’t find at the drugstore or grocery stores around you. That’s I guess, where the natural food stores have become so very popular lately, in the last, I’ve seen a real change in the last 10 years. Yeah. Yeah. For people. So thank you, Andrea, for coming on. I can’t believe all your words of wisdom. Oh, my pleasure. Thank you for having me, Tina. It was a real delight to have you come on and really give some people some inspiration to have a better day to look at what you’re eating. Look at what the environment is giving you. And if you’re not sure about your butter, put it on your counter and see what happens. Right. Oh, craziness. I just can’t believe the world we live in now. It’s But even before, like, Who would ever think that our dairy products would change? Right? Crazy.
Till next time, lots of love. Bye
I want to personally thank Andrea for coming on our Podcast with all of her wisdom around figuring out Lupus. There are many suffering right now with it and hopefully Andrea has made it a bit easier with some tips for you. Enjoy!
Here are Andrea’s Links:
website: https://www.believinghim.com
Author Page on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Andrea-Lende/e/B08MB5XCSC
Life After Lupus Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lifeafterlupus/
Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWdaqtF3fxfsuZ4gnNXQ9IQ
Downloads from God Podcast: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende
Author/Speaker303-960-7584
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