My Mystery Illness, MTHFR

It was actually early 2015 when I suddenly began having strange symptoms:  migraines, confusion, lack of balance. In time, anxiety kicked in, and then tics and tremors. It was truly unnerving. I kept wondering, “What is wrong with me?”

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5 Safe Ways To Detox

Why is detoxification important?   
According to Dr. Oz, “when our bodies become “toxic,” it means that our natural means of ushering out metabolic waste from normal human metabolism, environmental pollution, and what has become known as the Standard American Diet, have exceeded the threshold for what the body’s innate detoxification system can tolerate on its own. With this toxic load, every system in the human body can become affected. From our head to our toes and everything in between, toxicity makes us sick!”

How My MTHFR Affected My Surgery

Due to a host of female troubles, I decided to have a hysterectomy. It was done laparoscopic so there were fewer complications.

For years I’ve been dealing with fibroid tumors in my uterus and cystic ovaries. In time this condition led to other issues. Whether or not my problems resulted from the MTHFR, I couldn’t say. But regardless, here we are.

What Is MTHFR?

MTHFR stands for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase, now isn’t that a mouthful. Everyone of us has the MTHFR gene that causes us to produce the MTHFR enzyme. This very important enzyme is the catalyst for many important processes that take place within our bodies; such as amino acid balance, DNA synthesis and repair, regulating gene expression, converting inactive folic acid or folate into the active form your body uses.

Why Blog About MTHFR

As I mentioned in my first post, My Mystery Illness, the first year I got sick I went to many doctors; both local and in the big city. They all did the same thing. Run some tests, scratch their head, and give me a pill. The problem? My symptoms were all idiopathic, unexplained and specific to me. None of their tests could show any reason for my daily migraines, my sudden inability to walk independently, and my strange tremors.

What Is Leaky Gut?

I’ve mentioned Leaky Gut several times now. It’s also called intestinal permeability. What causes it? Put simply, the things we put in our mouth. Our gut lining is supposed to be a protective layer against such things as undigested food particles, toxic waste products, and bacteria inside the digestive tract. When that lining is damaged it allows these things to pass through the intestinal wall, into our bloodstream and throughout our bodies, wreaking havoc along the way.

Are Pain Relievers Safe?

Another important non-food source to consider carefully is pain medication. Like most women, I have taken Ibuprofen,  Aleve, or some other NSAID for just about every pain for most of my life; from my monthly cycle to my East Texas sinus headaches to my aching back; along with a host of other over the counter products that are supposed to relieve my pain.

Food Vs Vitamins

So as you can see from my Lifestyle Diet post, the foods we eat are of great importance. However, it’s just as important to think about the other things we put in our mouth. For example, off and on for many years I took a multi-vitamin with essential minerals. Healthy right? Could be.

“The” Lifestyle Diet

So as I mentioned before, the early days of my illness were quite strange and confusing. For years I had suffered from the occasional attacks of chronic fatigue. I figured it was something I had inherited from my mother, because she had suffered from it for many years. Then one day, my sandwiches began to irritate my stomach. I thought it was a bug or something. But it didn’t go away. It got worse. It was mostly breads and then milk. But as my mother pointed out, I had always drank milk and it had never affected me before, so I ignored it. Or I should say I tried to ignore it.

My Latest Relapse

What do you do when despite everything in you screaming “NO!!!” your body slides back into a relapse?

Why Choose A Whole Foods Diet

 

I was desperately looking for answers as to what was wrong with me. Finally, one confusing appointment after another, I finally stumbled upon a diagnosis of sorts. But even that is a mystery for the doctors in my area.  Now let me clarify, there are a few that are familiar with the cardiovascular side of MTHFR. (Thankfully I caught that early.) It’s the other side that evades the local doctors. It can cause anxiety, depression, neurological disorders, food intolerance, autoimmune disorders, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, (yes I’ve had all of these), in addition to autism (two daughters with Autism Spectrum Disorder), and a host of others. Now when no one in the medical profession can help you, its downright upsetting.