I’ve been very sick for maybe 2 -3 years, most would never have noticed. During this time I had my 3rd baby, so I chalked it up to this is just what having 3 kids is like . I’m 33 and physically fit. But the fatigue I had was unbearable. I was getting 8 hours of sleep, every night. But every day it was still wake up tired, take a mid day hour nap, wake up tired, fall into bed by 8pm exhausted. I was depressed from the fatigue. My skin was starting to act up. The brain fog was the most debilitating, I’ve always had an amazing memory. I won several awards throughout school for my memorization skills, now I could barely remember to pay bills, buy milk, was it Friday or Tuesday, what’s that word for such and such? I finished reading a book one week, and 3 weeks later I couldn’t remember the main characters name. I was having cycle issues which I’ve never experienced. Again I considered maybe im old and have 3 kids, but everyone else I know in the same age bracket seems fine. Other than all the under the surface issues, I was physically fit. Just that last 5lbs of stubborn baby weight but I’m in all my pre baby clothes again.

I was in a constant state of stress. After covid, I knew better than to go to my doctor and say I’m tired, stressed, depressed, and can’t think. We all know it would have been diagnosed as anxiety, here is an SSRI. Enjoy.

So I started replacing all our food for the better non processed version. I tried keto, felt much worse way more tired, maybe it’s keto flu? So I stuck it out but saw only worse results after two months, decided ok I’ll eat Whole Foods, but obviously I need carbs. Let’s reset. So I looked into intermittent fasting. I stuck with it again for two months to only feel the same if not worse.

Also this whole process is peppered with me getting every single cold and stomach bug my children brought home from school.

I then looked into a 72hr fast, perhaps I just need to detox some terrible thing out of me and start over. I made it to 60 hours (it’s extremely hard, especially when you still have to cook 3 meals a day for your kids) after that I felt no difference, same exhaustion, same mood swings, same constant illnesses same feminine problems.

I was running/exercise 3 days a week, eating better than I had in my entire life, getting 8 hours of sleep, making sure to get at minimum 30 minutes of sun(most times hours) taking VIT d, magnesium. Drinking herbal teas of ginger and tuner if nightly. Everything was the same. And then somehow through the brain fog I remembered in 7th grade I was diagnosed with Gilberts syndrome. A “benign” diagnosis I had been told which just leaves me a tad jaundice when I’m stressed or sick because my liver does not process bilirubin well. I looked in the mirror yea, I’m definitely looking a little on the “golden tan” side. What if it’s not benign? When I had gotten diagnosed there was zero information out there. Well I decided to look into now and there is so much more to work with. Doctors still call it a benign issue but there are a plethora of personal forums stating the opposite. And guess what I found one doctor who has dedicated there practice to the issue because they have it too.

Turns out fasting is a huge trigger. Low carb is a huge trigger, high fat is a huge trigger. High impact exercise is a trigger. Stress is a trigger. So the more I was trying to make myself well the more I was self sabotaging myself. The first trigger was likely the 3rd baby because hormones are processed through the liver and if the liver can’t keep up it just flood the body with the backed up hormones and now you have a hormone issue and a bilirubin issue. This was my problem. The bilirubin was up, making me yellow, fatigued and down right sick. The estrogen was way up giving me even more horrible problems, from skin, to cycle, mood swings, water retention.

This doctor listed the supplement combination and diet plan that works specifically for Gilbert’s. I’m on day 4, just day 4 and I made my bed, cleaned the wrap around porch, did dishes, and laundry. This was an impossibility 5 days ago. I’m still not at the energy levels of before this all began but I have a lot of hope this was the issue and this is the solution. I’m just so thankful for Gods intervention, for him leading me to the solution. And that it’s actually working. I didn’t know where else to share it but I just wanted to share it. If your sick too, I know a lot of us have been, I pray God gives you answers too, I know how hard it is to be under the surface sick with no answers. I would love to pray for you.