From a Mediterranean Diet to Weight Struggles
Maria lives in northern Michigan with her husband. Maria’s father was Lebanese and was “raised there and came here when he was in his late teens,” so she grew up eating a Mediterranean-style diet.
She says she “never had a weight problem or any health problems growing up, and I had five sisters, and we were all pretty healthy.”
When she “got to my college years,” Maria discovered “pizza and beer, and fast food, and the weight started coming on.” She saw her weight go up and then suffered a broken leg in a car accident. While bedridden, she saw “the weight really came on…that was back in the 90s, and ever since then, I’ve battled my weight.”
Battling Lyme Disease and Trying Keto
In 2015, Maria contracted Lyme disease. “I got bitten by a tick and had the bullseye rash, and the glands, fever, and aches, but my doctor at the time didn’t really know much about it.” Three months after her bite, Maria was given some antibiotics.
Also, in 2015, Maria went on a ketogenic diet, and “I lost a ton of weight-it was super easy.” She lost 40 pounds in about eight months, though a move, a new job, and more stress caused her to gain all the weight back in only three months.
The Impact of Her Husband’s Imprisonment
Maria’s husband spent 13 years in prison due to his affiliations with the Mafia. Maria says, “I had waited for him while he was in prison, and my goal was to get super thin and get fit because he was really fit, and I wanted to look good for him. I did everything I could… I starved myself, I tried keto again, I did all these different things, and nothing worked.”
Discovering the Carnivore Diet
She realized this was because of Lyme disease and said, “It was like my body broke; my whole metabolism just broke.” She thought she felt “old and achy.” She was bloated, and her joints ached so much that she had trouble getting off the floor. She had heartburn, “so bad I was popping Tums like candy.”
Her eyes were watery, she was sneezing a lot, and she even “had tooth and gum pain,” as well as brain fog, hives, and eczema. After searching, she found Dr. Baker, Michaela Peterson, and other carnivore stories.
Regaining Health on a Strict Carnivore Diet
She decided to try it and did a strict carnivore diet for one month. “All of the eczema, rashes, and everything I was dealing with went away!” She did briefly return to her old diet, but symptoms reminded her of her carnivore experience, so she transitioned back to it, again finding the results she needed.
Maria has now gotten rid of the long list of medications she was on; “I started walking several miles and even running here and there, and is overall much better. Even her mood and energy levels have returned. “I could go on and on about how good I feel on this… I’m still astounded!”
