Marie’S HEALTH STORY

PLEASE FIND ALL INFO ABOUT MARIE’S WHOLE FOOD AND CELIAC COUNSELING ON THE INTEGRATIVE HEALTH PAGE UNDER THE HEALTH TAB UP TO THE RIGHT OR CLICK BELOW

I grew up in Växjö, Sweden on home cooked meals: meat, fish, potatoes, plenty of elbow pasta cooked in milk and butter, delicious baked breads, cinnamon rolls and cookies and ice cream. The greens on the plate usually only consisted of cucumber, tomatoes and sometimes iceberg lettuce.

From the age of two I was covered in full-body eczema and my mother is convinced that the itching was triggered after she took me back for a second shot of the smallpox vaccine. The skin condition stayed until I moved to Los Angeles at 21 to attend Dupree Dance Academy. It turned out that people in California drank less milk. This included me, and my eczema therefore disappeared. 

Between the of ages of 2-21 there were endless visits to doctors, blood tests and cortisone salves of many kind.  I had to sleep with gloves every night as not to cause my raw skin to break open, and I more often that not had to take sleeping pills in order to sleep through the nights. I was lucky to go on winter holidays in order to get away from the harsh climate and enjoy the sun of southern Europe. I could let my scarred eczema covered body heal as I swam in salt water and lay in the sun. The abundance of fresh fruit and absence of milk didn’t hurt.

Although I was diagnosed as lactose intolerant when I was 13, life just went on as normal with no dietary changes, since changes were just too strange. The doctors dismissed the big white guiey-slime-round-balls that grew in the back of my throat, calling them symptoms of colds; however, by now most of us know these as candida -- an overgrowth of sugars.  It was much later at age 30 that I learned from my friend, Aleya, that it was indeed candida.  She gave me information on how to clean it out of my system. 

And so my journey to get a cleaner inside of my body began!

And it turned out that my lactose intolerance was in fact stemming from my Celiac Disease. At age 36, in the midst of my father’s passing, my husband taking a job in Iraq, and a move from Telluride to Sweden and back to Telluride with two small children, strange symptoms arose. My symptoms came in forms: the worst abdominal pain ever; lost weight; totally bloated belly to the extreme; throwing up every day; always in the bathroom; smelling like rotten egg; bleeding if I picked up something as small as a grocery bag; massive canker sores in the sides of my mouth; foggy mind; lost of feeling of fingers, bottom of feet and toes; dragging feet; and extreme fatigue. The tiredness was frightening since I had always had so much energy, being a hiker/runner/yogini/gym-goer/massage therapist and also an energetic mother of two young girls. All of that had to stop, however, since I didn’t have the energy to walk from one room to the other without sitting down and taking a break.

After seeing several unhelpful doctors, Dr. Grundy in Telluride, Colorado saved my life by giving me a blood test for Celiac and the results showed 100% positive. She said there is no medicine for this disease and that the only cure is to eat gluten free for the rest of my life. I was stunned at the news but also determined to pull through with my new mission. I was advised by a holistic eastern doctor to do a 3 month sugar cleanse of ALL sugars (fruits, grains, dairy, etc.) and so that I did.  Although the following years were NOT easy, it brought back to me a very clear mind and fresh gut flora, which allowed me to be able to absorb all the nutrients in my new diet.

Trading out white french bread (along with all the other yummy gluten stuff) with GF took some trial and error.  However, within two years I had my health and strength back, and my activity levels were back up to normal.

All the villi within my lower intestine had grown back, and, while absorbing nutrients again, I was feeling strong and clear minded. I have now become a pro of reading food labels, and even the cravings for any grains are few and very far apart. Clearing up my body from gluten and also lately from all refined sugars and adding a whole bunch more whole foods to my diet has been a game changer for my whole system. It’s a journey, one step at a time, and so well worth it.

Teaching fitness classes as a teenager, receiving dance education in Sweden, becoming a massage therapist in 1995 and a yoga teacher in 2001 were all steps along the way to an education with IIN and becoming an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach. This education is creating a healthier me and allowing me to be able to help others!

If you find any part of yourself in the words above and could use a Health Coaching session in Gluten Free eating, or a sugar intake reset to get on the right track with your overall eating (both on and off the plate), please contact me at mariegreenhealth@gmail.com.  I can help you feel better!

To Your Health, 

Marie