Hey there! I’m Kayla Chandler, Certified Holistic Nutritionist, with a deep passion to help others achieve optimal wellness.
Being raised in southern Mississippi, I grew up eating all of the rich and delicious southern dishes… from fried chicken and mac & cheese to biscuits & gravy and pecan pie! Oh… and it didn’t help that my mom was like the local Paula Deen of our community!
Although my mother’s food was insanely delicious, as I approached my teens, I began to pay more attention to my waistline. However, instead of focusing on health, I focused on counting calories. And, this whole calorie counting thing went on all throughout my latter high school years and into my college years until I was about 22.
All throughout these years, I was still eating junk (GMO) foods, gluten-filled foods, drinking diet sodas, etc. So, my diet wasn’t the most nutrient dense. But, as long as I stayed under my daily calorie limit, I was satisfied.
Well… for many, eating this way doesn’t catch up with them until around their 30s or 40s. But, because I was predisposed to celiac disease (which I had never even heard of), it caught up to me fast… and I mean FAST!
My Wake Up Call…
One evening I began experiencing tension in my stomach that began as cramps then progressed to excruciating pain. So, I took some pain medicine, and it didn’t help. I put a heating pad on it… that didn’t help. The pain continued to worsen throughout the night (it was horrible!). So, I went to the doctor the next day, and he didn’t know what was wrong with me. I visited another doctor…. he didn’t know what was wrong with me. Finally, I went to my OBGYN and even though she didn’t know what was wrong with me, she was able to reduce the severe inflammation while giving me a heavy dose of antibiotics. I was in the hospital for several days.
After being released from the hospital, I was on a mission…
At this point, with no solid answer from the doctors, I was on a mission to find out what was wrong with me. One day, while watching Dr. Oz (which I rarely watched back then), the topic was on celiac disease and gluten intolerance. This was several years before the gluten-craze made the mainstream, so I literally had never even heard of this condition. Much to my surprise, the doctor he had on the show began listing all of the symptoms of celiac, and I had every last one of them!!
I quickly learned that you could get tested for a gluten allergy via a blood test. And, a few days later, I learned that I do, in fact, have celiac disease. In a sense, I was relieved because now I knew why (all these years) my digestive system was always giving me issues, such as bloating, gas, minor cramps, etc. Now, I could finally begin the process of healing.
Knowledge is Power…
After learning I have celiac, I completely changed my diet overnight. Keep in mind, this was several years before gluten free diets became popular, so my food options were very limited. For example, the gluten free breads back then literally tasted like cardboard! So, I opted to eat foods that were naturally gluten free, such as eggs, fruits, veggies, meats, etc.
But, little did I know…. this was only the beginning of my health journey.
I would soon discover that my gut, small intestine, and overall digestive system were so damaged that my body was barely absorbing any nutrients from my foods, which of course meant that I was severely depleted in many vitamins and minerals leading to a whole slew of health issues.
My body initially felt better after going completely gluten free; however, it didn’t last long because my body was so depleted of nutrients due to my damaged gut and small intestine.
The Healing Begins…
I was determined to feel better and to heal my body. I dedicated most of my spare time to learning more about health, especially gut health. And, over the course of 5+ years of learning, testing, and implementing certain strategies, I can honestly say that I am a brand new woman! And, believe me, I tried it all – juice fasting, cleansing, vegan diets, paleo diets, hoards of supplementation, coffee enemas, probiotic therapy, heavy metal cleanses – you name it, I most likely tried it.
I used to wish that I was like everyone else who could eat anything without any issues (like my boyfriend). But, I now look at this experience as a God-send because it has greatly increased my knowledge of health and wellness and has allowed me to share with others who also have digestive issues and autoimmune diseases what works and what doesn’t work.
If you can fix the root of the problem instead of treating the symptoms, you will drastically increase your chances of being healed. I discovered several things that were at the root of my health issues in addition to having celiac disease, such as heavy metal toxicity from having amalgam fillings. By finding the root problem(s), and sometimes there are more than one, you are better able to strategize your healing protocol, which will speed up your path to wellness. My hope is that i am able to assist you in this process via the information I share on my blog.
My Newfound Passion….
Because so much of my adult life has been dedicated to healing myself naturally and sharing my knowledge with others, I then decided to make health a career by becoming a Holistic Nutritionist, which I’ve been for 4 years now. This has allowed me to help others reach their health goals and finally feel good again!
My blog is a combination of my favorite healthy recipes, healthy lifestyle advice, natural remedies, and even some of my favorite fashion finds! So, feel free to stick around, and I hope you’ll find something on my blog that benefits you.
xoxo Kayla
