Nigel heals from schizophrenia, paranoia, depression on carnivore diet

The Struggle with Mental Health and Plant-Based Diets

Nigel is 21 years old, and was able to heal from a number of mental health conditions and gain 30 pounds of muscle on a carnivore diet.

Before discovering the numerous health benefits of a meat-based diet, Nigel experimented with both vegetarian and vegan diets, and struggled with his mental health. “I only wanted to play video games and was not having a good time at school or at home because of my mental health. I developed schizophrenia and I was paranoid,” Nigel recalls. “I didn’t realize I was acting crazy, and I didn’t think to question my diet because it was supposed to be the healthiest and most ethical.” He found he started to crave protein, and began drinking heavily and using a nicotine vaporizer while traveling abroad.

The Road to Recovery and Discovering the Carnivore Diet

After a year of not eating meat, Nigel believes his craving for protein and lack of food choices led him to add fish back into his diet. “Looking back, it may have been the depression getting to me,” he says. “At the time I just thought, the hell with it! Why be healthy?”

For the next year and a half, Nigel followed the standard American diet, and experimented with biohacking and protein-restriction. He added several herbal-based supplements to his diet, recommended by biohacker influencers, and began fasting up to 16 hours per day. “It was not animal-based at all,” Nigel recalls. “I was not feeling myself. and I would eat nuts and eggs and still be hungry. I thought that the less food you ate, the healthier you were, and I degenerated even more quickly than when I was on the vegetarian diet.”

Nigel’s Journey to the Carnivore Diet

As shown in Nigel’s before picture, he had grown very pale, thin, and his eyes were sunken in. He remembers “stumbling upon” the carnivore diet while watching videos from Dr. Shawn Baker, and later was intrigued by psychology professor Dr. Jordan Peterson’s interview on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast. “Jordan Peterson was talking about how the carnivore diet had changed his health. It just sounded so appealing to me since I had been restricting protein for months and months.”

Nigel began with simple meals that included cooked grain-fed beef and ate about four pounds of meat a day. Four months into his journey, he transitioned to a raw carnivore diet of meat, fish, eggs, organ meat, and dairy (although he occasionally does include cooked meat.) “Ever since, I’ve had more and more energy, and so much more libido,” Nigel reports. “I am more confident and happy.” More recently, he has been experimenting with adding small amounts of fruit to his diet as well.

The Benefits of the Carnivore Diet: Mental and Physical Transformation

In addition to healing his autoimmune and mental health symptoms, Nigel has made huge strides to improve his overall fitness and physical strength. “I’m able to push myself to the limits every time I go to the gym”, Nigel says. “I now have the physical and mental energy to do that, and I’m in the best shape of my life right now.” He’s put on an impressive 30 pounds of muscle. “Everything has gotten better since switching to no plants.”