Hello, my name is Carolyn. Many of you have seen me in the office at the front desk. Let me take a moment to introduce myself and tell you a bit of my story.
I have been working for Dr. Jamie since the beginning of the year assisting her in the office, with the blog, and at cooking demos. I love working at DuPage Family Wellness. It is a job where I can use my strengths for things that I am passionate about, while learning and growing in the process.
My Passion
Before working at DuPage Family Wellness my focus was largely homeschooling my three children and running them to their activities (dance team, band, etc.) This was a great experience for a number of years, and we have found the local schools to be wonderful as well.
In addition to family, I enjoy (in no particular order) the fall, art, time with friends, coffee, a good therapist, reading, my dogs, plants that actually grow in my garden, aerial yoga, Thai food, hot tea, and natural living.
My Health Journey
My interest in natural living did not come easily. When I was a mom with young kids my health started to fail pretty dramatically. I had debilitating wandering pain in my body, chronic folliculitis, and recurrent ulcers of the cornea. My labs showed inflammation in my body, but a diagnosis eluded us.
Eventually the trouble in my body settled in my feet, and I lost the ability to walk!
My little ones were 6, 4, 2 years old, and I had to use a walker to take a single step. It was a very difficult season. Without a diagnosis we didn’t have a clear treatment plan and didn’t know if I would get better. At one point my husband’s friend called us saying he found a good deal on a wheelchair and wondered if he should get it for me.
We kept going to doctors and eventually found that I had complex regional pain syndrome type II (and possibly something auto-immune that they couldn’t name). The doctor offered me no explanation of what CRPS was or what my treatment options were. He simply sent me to a pain clinic that offered me nerve blocks.
I knew that while it might give me some temporary relief, this wouldn’t get to the root of my problems. I wanted to figure out what was causing these problems and address the deeper issues, so I turned to functional medicine, diet, and chiropractic.
Within a month of intensive treatment, I was back on my feet!
My Current Life
Today, 8 years later, most of my symptoms are gone or well managed. I find that my diet is an important factor in how my body feels, and eating foods that make my body react is not worth it.
For a while I followed a Paleo diet and still believe it is the best option for my body. But life is crazy and I am not there yet. I have committed to being strictly dairy and gluten-free, as these are considered to be some of the most inflammatory foods. I was surprised to find that in large part the wandering pain in my body stopped after eliminating these foods.
After following this diet for awhile, I tried to have some cheese at a special event. I was shocked that my body could not handle it at all. I had terrible stomach pains and could barely make it home. Months later I decided to try a little bit of butter. I was pleased that there were no digestive issues, but a few days later the wandering pain in my body started again.
The funny thing is that while I was eating gluten and dairy, I had no idea the impact it was having on my body!
My Wish
Recently I have been learning a great deal about our nervous systems, and discovering the incredible connection between our minds and bodies. If we are not thriving, it is crucial to look at all aspects of health - mind, body, and spirit.
I hope to encourage those in my life to embrace each of these areas as they strive to live wholehearted healthy lives! And it is my wish that we at DuPage Family Wellness can be a part of your healing journey in each of these areas of health as well!
Sincerely,
Carolyn