Rachel’s Struggles with Chronic Illness
Rachel lives in North Carolina and is 27 years old. She ate a standard diet as a child, with lots of “pizza and chicken nuggets.” She wanted to be a vegetarian, but her mother refused. Rachel still avoided meat as much as possible.
She was sick for most of the last six years, with celiac disease before that. In college, she started getting “unusual neurological symptoms,” which led to a diagnosis of hypermobile Ehler-Danlos Syndrome dysautonomia or POTS, celiac disease, intracranial hypertension, Chiari malformation, colored cord syndrome, adrenal insufficiency, and chronic Lyme disease. She had enough gastroparesis that she almost needed a feeding tube.
Rachel was able to see the “top doctors” specializing in those problems, but “they ultimately didn’t really help me, and I actually had five brain and neurosurgeries during that time.
A craniocervical fusion, a Chiari decompression surgery, a tethered cord release surgery, two venous stents placed in my brain… while some of those treatments did provide temporary relief, as time went on, I continued to get worse.”
With nonepileptic seizures, tinnitus, light sensitivity, and severe headaches, she was “completely debilitated with symptoms” and frequently required to lie in a silent, dark room. She used a wheelchair when not at home and spent “the better part of several years in bed.”
Rachel’s Journey to Natural Healing
Two years ago, when surgeons recommended a brain shunt, Rachel decided to go “a different route” with how she was approaching her health problems. She was looking for answers and a better quality of life through a natural route and considered plant-based regimens as well.
Rachel tried a vegetarian diet for about a month, “but that did not go so well.” She found out about the carnivore diet, researched it extensively for about a month, and decided to give it a try.
How the Carnivore Diet Has Helped Rachel
Since going on the carnivore diet, and with the help of prolotherapy on her upper neck, Rachel has been able to stop using a neck brace 24/7. Her Vagus nerve is healing, and the pressures in her brain are normalizing. She has also been doing some brain training work to address her subconscious and build her belief in healing.
“I eat a lot of cuts that have a lot of connective tissue, like chuck roast. At this point, I eat a lot of raw butter to up the fat intake; I do feel better with a higher fat intake.” She also eats bone broth and some organ meats.
Rachel’s Current Health Status and Progress
Rachel’s father did the carnivore diet with her to be supportive. She estimates that she is “about 30 percent better” and is now able to cook all her own meals and help clean the house. “I walked my first mile earlier this year, and now I go on a walk every day.”
Her EDS had also caused joint pains, but “it’s mostly gone. I don’t see subluxations and dislocations really at all anymore.” With the help of her new diet, Rachel is getting her life back!
