Hello, I'm Elle
Welcome to my corner of the internet!
I am a Kiwi, cheese lover, chronic tea drinker and just like you,
I have a story.
At around 10 years old I began getting blood in my stools and remember lying on the floor scrunched in a ball in agony, telling mum I felt like I had glass in my tummy. I was using the bathroom in excess of ten times a day. After many trips backwards and forwards to the doctors, I was sent to the hospital for a camera up my backside and promptly told by the specialist I had ulcerative colitis (UC). I distinctly remember him saying it was an autoimmune disease, it was incurable and the best thing we could hope for would be periods of remission. It was a very hopeless, overwhelming and confusing time.
After a two week stint in hospital, I was promptly put on high doses of steroids which offered up a myriad of side effects - I gained weight, developed the characteristic 'moon face' and insatiable appetite and quickly became one very sad little lady. Many more drugs and side effects followed. I was continually told diet would have no effect on my digestion. As necessary as drugs were in those early days, they put me in an endless cycle of dependance - any time I tried to wean off the drugs, my colitis would fiercely react. I knew I wasn't treating the underlying cause and I was growing desperate for alternatives to the medication.
After much prayer, my mum decided to seek out an integrative GP. He was the first medical professional who believed what I was eating was directly affecting my disease activity. He immediately removed aggravating foods from my diet, supplemented with supporting nutrients and began to work at healing and sealing my gut. From that point on began my much more hopeful, health journey.
Over the next decade, I committed myself to healing my gut. I learnt how to listen to my body, to nourish it using food as medicine and to use the resources the earth has already so smartly provided, to heal and strengthen. The journey naturally led me to study, as I completed a bachelor in health science (naturopathy) in Sydney.
I wholeheartedly believe in treating the body holistically. We are all a complex make up of our genetics, our family history, our diet & even our life experiences. I honestly believe sustainable health improvements can be reached when all these things are considered.
My own health journey has led me to understand the importance of having a health practitioner you trust. Coupled with this supportive environment, my aim is to empower and educate you so you are ultimately able to become your healthiest and happiest self.
Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live - Jim Rohn
