Through my journey to vibrant health I am working with my incredible Health Practitioners to heal holistically. I have an Autoimmune disorder (awaiting further test results to confirm severity & specifics), including severe food intolerances, chronic digestive distress and malabsorption, which have resulted in malnutrition. My treatment plan comprises nourishing myself with Primary Food across the Spheres of my Life. BODY. MIND. SPIRIT. LOVE. HOME. WORK. and PLAY. Design. Dream. Delight.
In the last year, miraculously, I was able to stabilise my deteriorating illness. According to my Doctor, this is a huge achievement. A large component of this has been discovering my food intolerances and refining my allergen-free, anti-inflammatory Gluten Free, Low-FODMAP diet, prepared in accordance with Ayurvedic (Vata) and Chinese Medicine principals for my constitution.
I am SO passionate about Holistic Health and an utter foodie. I love FOOD. The history preparation, culture, tradition, ritual, family, memories, saturating all of my senses, shopping at my local farmers markets, celebration! I am passionate about learning to nourish & heal through food. And eating consciously, because our food choices affect not only our health and the health of our community, but of our Planet.
I am a passionate Sustainable Designer so I eat wholefoods, simply, locally, sustainably, fairtrade and organic where possible. I prepare all of my meals myself. I eat throughout the day, slow cooked porridges (pseudo-grains such as quinoa, amaranth, millet), a range of Low-FODMAP vegetables (including carrot, silverbeet, zucchini) cooked gently in herb stock (ginger, goku kola, cats claw, liquorice, peppermint), and locally caught white fish such as snapper. I do not drink alcohol or smoke. I avoid chemical exposure and create my own beauty products using cold-pressed coconut oil.
I practice yoga, meditation, stillness, mindfulness. I adore my work & my Loves! I am besotted by Life.
Now that I am working with my Wonder Doctor Mel, my health will slowly improve and I will be able to introduce more foods to complete my ideal Local Wholefoods Diet, including nuts and seeds, cold-pressed organic oils (coconut), more vegetables, fruit, spices and herbs (& making my own raw chocolate!).
I am eating meat and fish (local, organic) as part of my treatment under the guidance of Dr Mel. As I become stronger and can eat a wider variety of Whole Plant foods I will eat meat and fish occasionally, when I am lucky enough to form relationships with my fellow farmers.
I hope one day to grow a lot of my own food, as I create my own Holistic Health, Life Design Sanctuary LIVELIGHTLY.
In addition to gentle, holistic healing modalities, I will be taking a variety of supplements and medications which Dr Mel will carefully tailor and monitor as we rebuild my body, rebalancing my systems, over then next few years. I believe in a Wholefoods, Local Diet and a return to traditional agricultural practices. I don’t love the idea of taking medicine and processed supplements, but I’m placing my trust in Dr Mel and look forward to working with him, in collaborative dialogue to Heal.
A LITTLE NOTE I am sharing my experience with this yet-to-be-determined Autoimmune-ish illness as an impatient ‘patient’ (not a Doctor). If you or your Loves are suffering from anything similar, and I can help at all, I would be absolutely delighted to share more details with you. Simply tweet me @izennah or email izennahhogan@izennah.com. Sarah Wilson, Jess Ainscough and Chris Kresser have provided inspiration throughout my journey and their blogs are incredible resources.
I would be delighted to Tweet you!
Are you a foodie? How do you nourish yourself, deliciously?
