Hey there! Thanks for reading!
So, as you probably know, I talk a lot about food. I give you recipes, info on healthy eating, some mind shift tips and meal planning advice. Maybe you’ve read about my DIY beauty products and natural deodorant. It’s all great stuff. And, it really only makes up a small portion of what I talk about as a health coach.
The other day I was at a book launch party, and I spent about an hour with one person. I know I know, you’re supposed to network at networking events! But when you find someone that gets you, it happens! We spoke about fecal transplants, fertility, infertility, hormones, poop (maybe that’s a given with fecal transplants… did you know you can do them at home?), yeast infections, anal and vaginal fissures and so much more. It was the first time we met. She sent me a follow up note letting me know what a treat is was to be able to speak about those things with someone else.
There is nothing that I won’t talk about and almost nothing is too weird for me (nothing has been too weird for me yet, but hey, you never know!). I’m telling you this because I want you to know that you can talk to me. I’ve gone through my own health struggles, and as a coach I’ve worked with many people with all types of symptoms, from diabetes to chronic headaches, trouble with digestion (SIBO, IBS, food allergies/sensitivities) to anxiety. Many of them started off with multiple symptoms that didn’t connect. And, for many, together we’ve been able to identify the root causes of their symptoms and address them. For others, we find ways for them to work with what they’re dealing with in a way that minimizes their discomfort and stress.
It can be hard to ask questions about what’s going on with your body. In general, it hasn’t been very accepted. Women are told to be hush hush about their periods (and anything related to our vaginas), men are taught to be hush hush about everything (or to make jokes about anything uncomfortable), no one is supposed to talk about poop (did you know there’s something called a Bristol scale? Here’s a link… it’s like the shit list posters from college that made fun of different kinds of poop, except this is a medical scale and it’s really informative). But the things that are deemed “gross” or “too personal” are really important health indicators. It’s all connected and important.
You know, the first time I wrote an article about dealing with endometriosis (I was diagnosed in 2014), all these people I knew wrote me telling me they had it, or their partners had it. So many people suffer alone or in small circles, but we really all have so much in common. So, talk to someone. Your friends, family, doctors, health coach, therapist, whatever. Because together, we have so much more information and knowledge to share. Our collective experience points to patterns and solutions, and creates comfort and camaraderie. So, let me know. What’s going on with you? What are you too embarrassed to ask?
