Naturopathy, Testing, And Me
I am so grateful that after completing my Health Coach training my health has improved by leaps & bounds. However during the Christmas period a few odd health issues arose & my intuition guided me to seek out support. As someone who has spent thousands of dollars on Naturopathy, Chiropractic, Physiotherapy, Coaching programs, Hypnotherapy, Psychology, Massage & Acupuncture (have I left anything out he-he) I felt a little uneasy about spending more money on seeking out help. After all I am a certified Health Coach, shouldn't I have the knowledge already?
But I felt more uneasy about going down the traditional medical route. My GP has no idea why I am in so much pain or why I was so ill. All I have been told is that my liver is inflamed, my iron is low & my inflammation levels are high (although getting lower). I was also reluctantly referred to a Rheumatologist & there was talk of getting referred to a couple of more specialists. This involved going on wait lists of over 4 months and spending thousands of dollars. The wait-list to go through the public system could take over a year. No thank-you!
So I trusted my gut feeling & did my research. I wanted somewhere close to my home & somewhere I could be tested. I didn't want someone guessing what was wrong with me, I wanted a baseline that I could improve upon. That is when I stumbled upon Malvern Natural Health Care. They offered Live blood analysis, pH testing and Mineral and Heavy Metal Toxicity testing through something called an OligoScan. Based on my previous experiences I knew it wouldn't be "cheap" so I rang & found out exactly how much it would be and budgeted a little more for supplements & booked an appointment.
The first test I had was a pH test ($10) which tests (you guessed it) your bodies pH levels from your urine. While my Naturopath was testing my urine (yummy right) I could hear him exclaiming in surprise. He showed me the colour of the strip that tested my urine and told me that in over 20 years he has never seen someone as acidic as me. I felt scared but he seemed excited so I took that as a good sign. He immediately ran off and brought back something for me to drink called "Basica" which is an Alkalising Mineral Formula and gave me a packet to drink twice a day for the next fortnight ($44 approx.). I was also instructed to drink cold-pressed juices with beets, carrots, celery, ginger, apple and parsley as well as big green salads with only small amounts of protein. Essentially my diet in the past has been too acidic and the acidosis was causing inflammation in the body. Hello pain! I was given InflamAid Plus and Lymphodran Plus to help with this as well as various other things. These supplements were around $44 each
The second test I did was the OglioScan ($130) which took me by surprise because it was so simple. Some sort of equipment simply touched my hand & the results were back immediately. It was like magic. There was a lot of information in the results but the biggest feedback was that my copper levels were very high & was blocking zinc in my body. This was causing hormonal imbalances. The next step was to up my zinc so it could break through the copper barrier.
My final test was the Live blood analysis ($37.00). A pin prick was taken of my blood & we could look at my blood under a microscope. My red blood cells which are supposed to move around on their own were clumped together again indicating inflammation. I also have Platelet aggregation which indicate inflammation in the gut (leaky gut syndrome). I was prescribed tablets for this but I didn't get them this session as I had a specific budget to work with. My blood also showed inflammation in the liver.
Overall my session hurt a little because I am very cautious with money (don't worry I am working on my money hang-ups too he-he) however I knew deep down that my health is the most important thing. I wasn't making any money by being so sick and in pain that I'm unable to work or enjoy life. I also found all of this cutting edge testing to be fascinating & I am so excited to have a baseline to work with.
If money is an issue and you are unable to see a Naturopath, I believe you can order pH testing kits online and you can visit a student Naturopath in your area. A couple in Melbourne are: https://www.wellnationclinics.com.au/ and http://www.holmesglen.edu.au/about_us/retail_services/wellnesscentre
Until next time, remember to stay committed to your wellness.
