Naturopathy and natural medicine is more than just a job for me. It is the result of a compelling belief that diet and lifestyle are the two biggest curative forces we have. I know this from first hand experience.

In my late 20’s I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis (also known as inflammatory bowel disease or IBD), an autoimmune disease. This condition causes damage, ulceration, and bleeding to the lining of the colon. It’s a distressing condition, both physically and emotionally.  Shortly after this I was diagnosed with a secondary autoimmune condition known as Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

At the time I was in my last year studying to become a Naturopath. My doctor suggested a fairly standard medical approach which included immune suppressant and corticosteroid drugs. I had thought about it, read the feedback of other users of these drugs for this condition and decided not to proceed. The general consensus was it only relieved the symptoms short term and in some not at all.  Then there were the side effects.

My doctor had recommended a follow up in 4 weeks to see how I went with drugs and symptom relief. I had already decided to try the natural approach, after all I was almost a qualified Naturopath and would encounter this in practice to come.

So now was time to put theory into practice! I changed my way of eating to exclude processed foods that contained gluten, dairy and refined sugars and essentially ate only “one ingredient” whole foods.

I started taking herbal and nutritional remedies, and specific probiotics for autoimmune conditions.  This helped reduce inflammation of the bowel and started healing the integrity of my gut wall, small intestines, and colon! I also started keeping a diet and symptom diary to track progress and symptoms.

I was amazed that just after 2 weeks of following the program my symptoms were dramatically reduced. After 4 weeks my gut symptoms were completely gone! From my studies I knew that this wasn’t over, that I needed to follow this program for at least 3 months to allow complete healing of the gut. At my four week follow up with my doctor he was nothing short of amazed. He sent me  for another batch of blood tests to test my inflammatory markers and to his surprise the results were perfect.

This change has  become a lifestyle and not just a temporary diet! I manage these conditions through diet, keeping a balanced immune system, and a positive attitude. As 80% of the immune system lives in the digestive tract what we eat has a large impact on the health of our immune system. My Ulcerative Colitis has shown me first hand the importance of not only the right diet, but also: adequate and refreshing sleep, good stress management, regular exercise, and minimising toxin exposure.  Principles I now use every day in my clinic.

Over the last 8 years, I have worked with thousands of patients and have discovered that all autoimmune disorders share a common starting point. I have discovered that healing the gut and balancing the immune system is key to symptom free living naturally!

My treatment programs have helped thousands of people reverse autoimmune conditions and return to living an energetic, vibrant, and healthy life!