realizing I was misdiagnosed...

I just got my bloodwork back and was shocked to see the results, but they make so much sense.

I’m going to dive into the topic of my bloodwork below, but wanted to first touch on a little newsletter update/restructuring. When I first started this substack I was around 8 months pregnant (I think). I had already been writing a newsletter on a different platform so making the switch just made sense. However, since that time my content has shifted a good bit and I want to make sure I am providing you all with exactly the kind of information you’re looking for. So moving forward this is the plan for the newsletter. It’s essentially what I originally set out to do, but with more structure and a bit more realistic on timing regarding the work that will go into it. I hope you stay and enjoy it. 💛

1. paid - I want to make sure I’m hitting the goal of WEEKLY newsletters every single week. In order to do this and provide you with the highest quality content that I can each week I will be focusing solely on WEEKLY LOW INFLAMMATION FOOD PLANS, GROCERY LISTS, AND RECIPES. (will discuss more below) I plan on keeping these as budget friendly as possible and instead noting what “splurges” would really take the weeks list to the next level if you have it in your budget.
   I don’t foresee me removing grains totally from my diet, I do love the occasional sourdough, but the meal plans won’t be pasta heavy if you catch my drift. And don’t think these will be boring or not tasty, I’m going to do my best for us all because I do truly love food, cooking, and eating.
   *the meal plans will be for paid subscribers only*

2. free - Weekly brief blurb about that week :)

3. free - WEEKLY RECOMMENDATIONS for tv, videos, podcasts, music, books, and/or recipes. If you’ve been here awhile than you know I like to switch up the recs sometimes and will always keep you up to date on what I’m loving that week.

4. free - Weekly quick wellness tip to implement now.

5. paid - Lately people have been asking me for a course. Like a one stop shop to know how to live healthy, care for babies, have a healthy pregnancy, etc. I’ve been thinking about the best way to go about this and GUIDES ON SUBSTACK feels like the best option for now. My vision here is monthly or potentially bi-monthly guides that really dive into a topic that I know you all are craving. Think SUPPLEMENTS, BIOHACKING, PREGNANCY, BABY REGISTRY. These will take more time for me to develop since they’ll require so much research, thought, planning - but that’s exactly what I want them to be. I want YOU to know that you’re getting my full attention and effort when you read a guide. Eventually there will be a section of the substack “website” where you can search through each topic and find the guide that fits your needs.

I’m really excited for this shift and would LOVEEEE to know what “guides” you would like to see first! I’m leaving a comment button directly under this so you can comment and tell me what you’d like to see. 🫶🏻

BIG NOTE HERE: if you ever DM me on instagram and I don’t respond please don’t hate me, it gets overwhelming in there. 🙃 But the Substack chat is easy for me to manage, so if you ever have a question please drop it in there.

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📚 WHAT TO READ: I loaned my copy of The Carnivore Code to my best friends that live a couple hours away, so I went ahead and purchased a new copy. If you’re reading this, you can keep it now. 😘 I already structure a lot of my recipes around the “carnivore-ish” model, but I recall him having some extra weird ones in there that I want to utilize for our weekly meal plans!

📺 WHAT TO WATCH: If you’re not interested in Christian content then this suggestion isn’t for you. Scroll past.
If you areeee interested in it, I really like Ashley Hetherington and enjoyed this video! GETTING MY LIFE TOGETHER (WITH GOD) | productive days in my life ☁️ holy girl diaries

🎧 WHAT TO LISTEN TO: technically this is a video. In light of sharing today’s topic, it felt apropos to share a Paul Saladino video. He was truly one of the voices to change my life and food philosophy.

Stop wearing underwire bras. The underwire can potentially block your lymphatic system and contribute to toxin overload. To be honest, I don’t wear bras the majority of the time, but I also spend the majority of the time home and not filming. I have really been liking these organic cotton nursing bras from Third Love, but they have organic cotton regular bras too (this one is on sale for $29 if you’re a larger size!!!). Those are still a bit more “intense” for me, so sometimes I just wear a cotton sports bra or something.

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If you’re new here, hello hi my name is Tessa and I have suffered through a lifetime of chronic illness. Long story short, I was born with kidney and bladder issues resulting in multiple renal reconstructive surgeries from 1 month - 3 years old putting me into the category of “Chronic Kidney Disease”, was misdiagnosed with Sick sinus syndrome and had a cardiac ablation (heart surgery) at 11, got diagnosed with POTs (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome - heart issue) at 12, got diagnosed with EDs (Ehlers Danlos syndrome - connective tissue disorder) at 14, was on medical homebound in high school and couldn’t go to school, then made it off all meds except BC by 22 and off of BC at 26. Although I could get off of meds I still needed at minimum monthly IV infusions to aid in chronic dehydration, but sometimes would go more often. Early in pregnancy I was going weekly or biweekly until about 30ish weeks when I’m pretty sure my daughter’s stem cells healed me and I haven’t needed an IV since (except for during labor…)

18 years old and ready for surgery!

So if you regularly view my content (which why would you be here if you don’t but also HIIIII?) you may be thinking “ok soooo what’s up with the bloodwork you seem fine?” APPARENTLY I HAVE BEEN MISDIAGNOSED THIS ENTIRE TIME. again.

I recently did the Function Health (no waitlist through this link) bloodwork. They test for a ton of different biomarkers and are much more comprehensive than say a regular annual blood screening. I was most eager to see things like my cholesterol (which I know will be high because it always is and I’m fine with that), and overall vitamins. They also test for heavy metals in the basic screening! All in all, I wasn’t really concerned that they’d find anything I wasn’t already aware of.

I saw that of the 16 results received so far 3 were out of range. The 3? Autoimmune. My immediate response was panic - my second response was regret. I panicked that they found something that would be life altering and then regretting doing the bloodwork in the first place because ignorance is bliss. I didn’t want to know that I could potentially have something life altering and debilitating. The funniest part of that to me is that I forgot that I do have life altering and debilitating symptoms that I just manage through lifestyle and diet…

Though I’m trying out this new thing where if something triggers my anxiety I run towards it. It’s a really powerful skill and tool in not letting your anxiety get to you because you immediately train your brain that you will be ok when you look at or do whatever thing it is that is causing you anxiety. Like it’s a bloodwork result, not a lion trying to eat me. Anyways!

the almost never ending stream of IVs

Without getting too scientific on ya, they basically test the blood once to see if autoantibodies are present. If they are they test it two more times to determine the amount and the type of autoantibodies.

My final result pointed to one of these three clinical associations:

1. Systemic lupus erythematosus

2. Sjögren’s syndrome

3. Systemic sclerosis

The other two things it lists?

1. Mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD)

2. Polymyositis/dermatomyositis

MIXED FREAKING CONNECTIVE TISSUE DISEASE. I immediately googled “is Ehlers Danlos the same thing as Mixed Connective Tissue Disease?” It is not. Ehlers Danlos is characterized by defects in genes that affect the structure and function of collagen - which is a main component in connective tissue. Mixed Connective tissue disorder on the other hand is an autoimmune disorder that attacks the body’s own tissues.

I then immediately googled the other diseases and Systemic lupus erythematosus and Sjögren’s syndrome both fit and explain a lot of really weird things. Things like:

• Chronic fatigue

• Muscle and joint pain

• Chronic dehydration - body’s inability to properly produce moisture

  • Dry eyes and “puss” coming out of my eyes

  • Clogged salvatory gland - that I was scheduled for surgery to remove but fixed with diet

• Brain fog

• “sausage fingers”

• Cardiac issues

• Kidney issues

Everything made sense… so now I'm questioning everything. Do I have POTs or is it just this autoimmune?

Here’s the thing though. It doesn’t realllllly change anything because I’ve been managing whatever it is that I have through diet and lifestyle. But here’s where everything is different…

It’s one thing for me to know that I feel better when I eat a low inflammation diet and am very careful about the things I consume, but then give myself passes because food that is bad for you is sometimes a really nice “treat”. The treat that always ends in my eyes being so dry, my skin flaring up, heart burn, and feeling like I'm going to vomit - but I digress. It’s another thing for me to know that my body is literally attacking itself and it’s my job to keep my inflammation load as low as possible.

So long story short. Yes, I eat well. But I also give myself a lot of passes and if I’m not really intentional I can sometimes end up adding in things that I KNOW WILL bother me just because I enjoy the taste. And this is where the substack revamp comes in.

I want to be so intentional for me, Daniel, and Celia, but I also want to be intentional because I know it could help you all. Even if you don’t need to be on a low inflammation diet (or your food triggers differ from mine), having wholesome, nutrient dense, budget friend meal plans each week will make your life healthier and happier.

Moving forward I will be sharing weekly meal plans for each day, the grocery list, and recipes to make. Some recipes will be mine, others will be via the internet or cookbooks.

I already know what my food triggers are and the funniest part is that they are common food triggers for people with autoimmune issues. Nightshades (onions, tomatoes, peppers), coffee bothers me, most vegetables. So I know how I need to eat, I just need to execute. My hope is that if you’re on a health journey eating structured and intentionally through these meal plans will help you figure out what your triggers are!

NEXT FRIDAY will be my first totally planned out shopping list, meal plan, and recipe guide. I plan on sending these out every Friday morning so that you can shop for everything and plan for the week ahead during the weekend.

MY FIRST GUIDE will be on low inflammation eating and eating for autoimmune.

I am so excited to get more bloodwork done and get more answers. For now, I don’t actually have a ton of answers, but I do have a great new starting place and I love that you are all on the journey with me.

xoxo Tessa

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*The information provided is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment.