Category Archives: Chemical free living

Chemical free living, Genuine Reads For Genuine People, Gut health, Mind Stuff, Natural Personal Care, Non-foodie reads, Real Food

my liver is happy again!

Hello everyone, sorry it’s been so long since my last post (although I did make a point of saying how I’m being gentler on myself and that includes putting study, fitness, family and friends first before this blog … not that I don’t highly value you all, but I’m sure you can appreciate the pace of life and needing to prioritise. I’d be a pretty shocking role model if I was telling all of you to look after yourselves and yet running myself into the ground wouldn’t I?).

Anyways, for today, my pharmacology assignment can wait (I’ve only got 400 words to go and I may or may not be procrastinating … it’s a pretty heavy report and I’m brain-dead just thinking about it) and besides …I’ve got some news to share! Guess who’s liver is basically 100% regenerated and only has a bit of scar tissue remaining that will peel off over time? ….. MY LIVER that’s who’s!!!!!!!!!

As most of you know, in December 2010, when I was 14, I was diagnosed with a chronic autoimmune disease of the liver and there were times where it seriously looked like I needed to have a transplant. Just over 5 years later and 7 months before my 20th Birthday, I can proudly say that I’ve turned this illness around beyond what was ever expected. I was one of those “you’ll be on medication for the rest of your life” cases (and as you know this did NOT sit well with me).

I was told by my well-meaning doctor that there was nothing that I could do when it came to food/lifestyle, other than abstaining from alcohol (and let’s be honest I was 14 … it wasn’t like I’d even reached an age where I drank on a regular basis … mum may have made me some sneaky rum and cokes at home but that’s as wild as it got). I couldn’t accept this though, and went in search of anything and everything sans the medication that would improve the state of my liver (and this was a time where I was deliriously clueless about nutrition … we’re talking about a sadly manipulated young girl that thought flora proactive was healthier than pure butter and that “wholegrain” breakfast cereals were “healthy options” … I had a lot of learning to do).

It took me a year and a half to actually understand what “healthy” was. It also wasn’t until this point that the ridiculously high dosage of medications I was on began working. As soon as I got onto whole foods and ditched the processed breakfast cereals (even if they were “wholegrain”), muesli bars, flavoured milks and questionable frozen yoghurts the improvement in my liver function tests were amazing. At this point I wasn’t even gluten or sugar free … but I was mostly eating real food and my body was responding exceptionally well to all the subtle changes.

By the time I made the decision to give up all refined sugars, food additives, modern wheat, vegetable oils and GMO foods (it can take a while to understand just how many things these guys are in … as well as why they’re necessarily bad for you) my liver was consistently improving in leaps and bounds. Then I added a St Mary’s thistle supplement and boom … my blood tests were in the “normal” range!

I was loving my new diet (I mean banana pancakes for breakfast, chicken and mango salad for lunch, crispy salmon for dinner, and snacks of bliss balls and fruit with nut butter … who’s going to complain about that?) and, liver aside, I noticed that I was a happier, more resilient person when I wasn’t weighed down with refined carbohydrates and processed trans fats, that I’d unknowingly been consuming in what I like to call my “past life”.

As I’m sure you’ve either heard on a podcast or read in my “transitioning to whole foods” series, everything was a transition and I’ve never stopped learning or evolving things. Ever since I made the decision to heal with food and environment, I’ve had this inner voice telling me that I can do it … guess this intuition was right!

The point of this little rave … your doctors are amazing … and when you’re in a crisis they know just the pill that will save the day (I don’t think the medication would’ve worked without me changing my diet, but I also don’t reckon the diet would’ve worked (initially) without the medication being there to prevent autoimmune flare ups). However it’s just not in their training to expect alternative therapies (such as nutrition) to assist in the healing process. So if you find yourself in some hot water (or preferably before then guys … prevention is so much easier than cure!), don’t be afraid to trust your instincts and clean up your lifestyle … even if a professional with years of clinical experience laughs you off.

So here’s to the power of food as a medicinal option in it’s own right (you can’t see but I’m holding up a bottle of coconut water in celebration as I finish this post). And here’s to autoimmune hepatitis … for scaring me enough to change my world for the better (I clearly needed a good ass-kicking … let this be a lesson to you all … wake up and kick your own ass to make the change before autoimmunity strikes you down!).

Yours in medication-free clarity,

Rachie xxx

Chemical free living, Genuine Reads For Genuine People, Natural Personal Care, Non-foodie reads

A very brief post on coffee enemas

Oh hello there. You’ve found some very old content. Please read the disclaimer on this page before thinking I’m still a total sheep who has been sucked into a bone-broth worshipping fad diet. Been there, learned from that and am now a much less rigid human.

I’ve had so many questions and queries lately about coffee enemas that I thought I’d better do a post answering the most common questions.

Continue reading A very brief post on coffee enemas →

Chemical free living, Genuine Reads For Genuine People, Mind Stuff, Real Food

Transitioning to whole foods – October 2012

This was my first month of 100% whole foods. The only exceptions I made were ones I didn’t realise I was making; vegetable oil in an organic vegetable stock powder, not knowing that agave nectar was a burden for the liver etc.

I felt empowered by my new resolve; I had no restrictions, so long as the food was quality and minimally processed (to the best of my knowledge) … I’d become a true “qualitarian”.

Continue reading Transitioning to whole foods – October 2012 →

Chemical free living, Genuine Reads For Genuine People, Real Food

Transitioning to whole foods – September 2012

The month I turned 16, and I can categorically say that this was the month where I had my final ‘it’s not worth it moments’. I’d say that 90% of my diet was totally clean; wheat-free wholegrains, lots of veggies, fresh fruit, natural dairy (I’d switched to 100% organic milk), nuts, seeds, quality fish and meat and small amounts of things like honey and cacao. However there was still that 10% that I needed to improve on – for the sake of my physical and mental health.

Continue reading Transitioning to whole foods – September 2012 →

Chemical free living, Genuine Reads For Genuine People, Real Food

Transitioning to whole foods – August 2012

August. Bingo month. This was the month where I finally started to develop my own philosophy around food and nutrition. The month where I wasn’t as easily lead by what magazines or ‘experts’ were saying and learned to start trusting myself. I decided that it made no sense to me to use margarine, when butter is a natural alternative and a brilliant source of fat-soluble vitamins. I can’t remember exactly when or why I had this revolation, but it was well overdue.

My diet continued to evolve and eating 100% whole foods had virtually become second nature. I had my moments, where I would question myself or lose sight of what my real food philosophy was and get sucked into the ‘it’s not that bad’ approach (sunflower oil on dried fruit … I let it slide, pure icing sugar on a cake every once in a while … I figured it was a tiny potion of my diet and way better than an artificial sweetener alternative).

For the most part, I continued to learn and evolve, adding more and more nutrent density as I went. Here is an idea of a typcial day for me in terms of food in August 2012 …

Breakfast: Oats, cooked in water in the microwave, with acai berry powder, cinnamon and chia seeds stirred in after cooking. I’d usually sip on a herbal or green tea, sometimes (as a treat) with a bit of honey or organic stevia

Comments: Apart from the fact that I was cooking my oats in a plastic container in the microwave (double cringe), the breakfast itself; fibre-rich oats, antioxidant-rich acai berries, protein and beneficial fats in the chia and blood-sugar balancing cinnamon was pretty nutrient-dense and the herbal or green tea aided in digestion and balanced my energy quite nicely.

Morning snack: Organic Fuji Apple

Comments: So delicious and fresh from the markets that week. I can’t fault this snack at all. Hydrating, rich in fibre, vitamin C and antioxidants.

Lunch: Chia Spelt Bread with mashed avocado and a small container (a few generous handfuls) of tamari almonds

Comments: Sure the spelt bread still had gluten, but at this time, my body was responding really well to just being wheat free and I was glad to eat bread without feeling sick afterwards. Avocado is nutrient-density itself and the tamari almonds were a great source of protein and vitamin E, whilst also being salty and satisfying.

Afternoon tea: natural cheddar cheese and sultanas or raisins

Comments: The cheese wasn’t organic, or even local, and the dried fruit may have had preservative 220 in it (I can’t quite remember .. let’s just assume that it did). However, at this time, it was a sweet and salty snack that was both satisfying and delicious (and far more nutritious than the snacks of yesteryear; chips, sweet biscuits and chicken crimpies).

Dinner: Lamb, vegetable and cashew nut stir-fry with steamed Jasmine Rice

Comments: again, dinner varied every night, but most evening meals were either meat, veg and spuds or meat, veg and rice. I probably didn’t need the rice or spuds and would’ve felt better on just adding more non-starchy veggies, however for where I was at this time, just the fact that it was gluten free and mostly all from-scratch whole foods (mum may have used some questionable sauces … I hadn’t done a cupboard “clean up” at this stage) was good enough and made me feel pretty clean.

Dessert: I actually can’t remember for sure, I think I might have started doing fresh apple with natural peanut butter at this point or having some more tamari almonds with sultanas. Whatever I had, it was usually based around fresh or dried fruit and nuts. If we ate soup for dinner I’d usually have some Chia spelt toast with avo for ‘supper’ rather than dessert, or perhaps a toasted carrot and natural cheddar cheese sandwich.

Comments: Never perfect, but always whole food and nutrient-dense compared to what I used to consider dessert (I was once an absolute chocolate pudding, ice-cream or frozen yoghurt fiend … or homemade treats, like mum’s homemade caramel, banana or apricot slices … that woman has a gift for baking!)

Tip #8 for transitioning to a whole foods diet …

Enjoy the new philosophy that you’re settling into, there’s no need to rush or ‘over-educate’ yourself. Keep moving forward and making small changes, knowing that you needn’t change everything at once. By this stage your diet will be mostly whole foods and this is a huge accomplishment! In the months and years to come, you’ll probably eliminate the last few niggling things (a sauce with added sugar, a few preservatives here and there etc.), but for now, relax, smile and be proud of the changes you’ve made.

Chemical free living, Genuine Reads For Genuine People, Mind Stuff, Real Food

Transitioning to wholefoods – March 2012

In my last post I talked about how in February 2012 I started making tiny changes to my diet – barely even noticable. I did this becuase I wanted to and was eager to nourish myself. There were no expectations or ‘rules’ as such that I lived up to. It was just shifting and changing as I went, the ultimate goal to feel thriving and happy.

Continue reading Transitioning to wholefoods – March 2012 →