Spotlight on Health: Melissa Davis

A note from Mari: Over the next few months, I am going to post inspirational stories of successful weight-loss, and good health -- for inspiration, and motivation. (For me, and you!) All of those who are spotlighted will have a different way of accomplishing their goals. I do not endorse, or promote, any particular way to achieving good health, but I DO promote finding what works for you, and DO IT!  My hope is that you will find someone who resonates with you, and if you are fighting the battle, you can do what it takes to CHANGE YOUR LIFE! You can do it!  -Mari 

Melissa is my sister-in-law's sister. She is a beautiful woman, with a beautiful family. She has an eye for beauty, and she uses her talent to take amazing pictures. Go to: http://melissadavisphotography.com. I appreciate her story, and the brutal honesty of the pictures she shares. You would never know looking at her now that she was ever anything other than glamorous. Her story shows that even the "Barbie" girls have struggles and body-image issues. We ALL do. We are all in this together people. Don't judge a book by its cover! 

Hi, I'm Melissa. My journey to good health started a long time ago, so I'll start from the beginning! I was born premature in 1980 to wonderful ...JUST KIDDING, I wont go back THAT far ;)

Growing up, I was the thin kid and I was always called "Barbie", "model",  "hollow or chicken legs" and even "tall glass of water". I could eat with the best of them and not gain a pound, lucky right? Well it would have been great if there wasn't something in me that said I wasn't good enough, fat even! CRAZY right? Look at me, I was anything BUT fat!  I was always trying fad diets (only to fail) and comparing myself to others. It was a mess, it really was.

Now enter REAL life. You know, marriage and kids...and I entered it YOUNG! Let me break it down for you...

2001 : Married at age 20 only to gain 20 lbs the first year because let's face it, marriage is a big adjustment and an even bigger one at age 20. Everyone gains 20 lbs in their first year of marriage right? ;)

2002 - 2004 : PREGNANT. Yep, the full three years it seems! I had my first son in Nov 2002, miscarried and then had my daughter in July 2004. I was the girl who continued to eat what I wanted because I was eating for two after all and I sure did use that excuse a LOT. Back then I didn't know about good nutrition or chose not to learn about it, so I was the junk food queen. Wendy's cheese burger and fries were my late night cravings and don't get me started on ANYTHING chocolate! If it wasn't good for me, I ate it. Vegetable, what's that?

The day I went into the hospital with my 9lb baby girl, I tipped the scales at 230 lbs! People don't believe me when tell them this, so I show them this picture just for fun. I also have the most amazing picture my sister took of me RIGHT before I popped. It was at such a desirable angle, but I can't seem to find it anywhere. darn ;) She'll vouch for me, it wasn't pretty!

I spent the next, hmm...5 years yo-yoing UP and DOWN, up and down. I used Weight Watcher's points to lose weight and then I'd gain it back again. The only problem with this method is that while I lost weight quickly, I still had NO IDEA how to eat right. I'd virtually starve myself for an entire day so that I could go out and have something at a restaurant or I'd eat crap, but it was in my points, so I lost weight. Still, I didn't know much about nutrition.

I had people asking me what I did to lose weight so quickly, so I'd tell them, but it wasn't until years later that my REAL journey to optimal health started! Hang in with me for a minute, because this is were it REALLY all started...

May 2008 : I took a Vivarin to stay awake through a midnight movie. 20 minutes into the show, my body experienced something it had never experienced before. I ran to the bathroom SURE that I was going to throw up all over the place and I spent the next week horribly sick. I went to my OB/family doctor and after trying small things for roughly six months, I had my gal bladder taken out. I remember being excited to go into surgery. I wasn't scared at all because I had felt horrible for the past 6 months and was READY to feel better.

November 2008-December 2010 : These years were spent feeling sick daily and I'd wake up at night with my heart pounding, run to the bathroom feeling like I was going to throw up, spend hours sitting on the toilet trying to "release" whatever was inside me that was making me feel so badly (sorry, graphic image there lol). My body would shake and it scared me.  My doctor (whom I loved) had moved to a new practice and we didn't have the insurance he took, so I suffered saying  "I'll go to the doctor soon" but then I'd have a couple good days and think I was getting better, so I'd put it off (and honestly, I was so bummed that I couldn't see my doctor, I didn't want to find a new one). In December I decided to see another doctor and right away he ordered a endoscopy for me.

2011 : Started with an endoscopy on Jan 3rd telling me that I had gastritis. I knew nothing about that and didn't get much feed back from the doctors either. Okay, maybe I did, but I was in a dark place and didn't listen or chose not to hear. I spent the next four/five months so sick. It was horrid, there is no other word to describe it!  I didn't go anywhere unless I had to. I laid in bed for HOURS on the internet looking up my symptoms and trying to learn how to eat to fix the gastritis. I was doing everything right. At first I was so sick, I wasn't eating much of anything and lost 20+ lbs. I was keeping my "diet" to soft and bland foods. I really thought I was getting somewhere, but I wasn't feeling better. My symptoms from the past three years were the same, but WORSE, much worse. I thought I was dying. I went to the ER, Insta Care and had test after test, but no body knew why I was feeling as bad as I was.

November 2011 : In one of my many search moods, I decided to entertain an idea that my sister-in-law had said to me in years past. Panic Attacks. I had brushed it off because I felt physically sick. I didn't understand...

I typed "symptoms of a panic attack" into trusty Google and found this:

   
• Difficulty breathing (CHECK)


   
• Pounding heart or chest pain (CHECK to the pounding heart)


   
• Intense feeling of dread (CHECK)


   
• Sensation of choking or smothering (CHECK, I used to swallow over and over thinking something was in my throat)


   
• Dizziness or feeling faint (CHECK)


   
• Trembling or shaking (CHECK)


   
• Sweating (CHECK)


   
• Nausea or stomachache (CHECK)


   
• Tingling or numbness in the fingers and toes.


   
• Chills or hot flashes (CHECK, this went along with my trembling)


   
• A fear that you are losing control or are about to die (DOUBLE CHECK)

WOW, after THREE YEARS and seeing SO MANY doctors, I found out I was having MAJOR anxiety and panic attacks!! I immediately started seeing a therapist and learning about panic attacks and how the body reacts cut them nearly in HALF. At it's worst, I was having 3, 4, 5 or more panic attacks a DAY and so 1 or 2 a week seemed great! I continued to go and learn...they got better and better BUT I was still feeling sick.

Marchish 2012 : I went to a health and wellness nurse and after doing a lot of blood work, I was borderlining an autoimmune disease. My vitamin levels were dangerously low and we did a full immune system test that showed an intolerance to Sulfites (as a preservative). Up until 2011 when I got really sick, I had never changed the way I was eating. I was still the junk and fast food queen! I never had doctors look at my diet and don't get me started on the fact that not ONE doctor (and I saw many) noted my symptoms and suggested it may be panic attacks.

SO, if you made it HERE, my journey to good health started when I chose to change my diet! I had NO IDEA what I sulfite was and no clue how bad processed foods were for us. The saying "if you can't pronounce it, you probably shouldn't eat it" is one I've lived by! My journey this past year has been slow and steady. We cut out all processed foods (including processed sugars and flour), switched to 100% whole wheat bread with just a few ingredients, cut out milk and buy mostly organic and I've learned how to clean eat. This was a hard change. There were times I wanted to cry, if I am being honest and my 10 yr old isn't quit on board yet either. It's hard to give up things you love, but my health and family were suffering and it's just the change I needed!

I now eat when and what I want with no restrictions as long as it's clean and I maintain a healthy weight. No more yo-yoing! It's great to have the freedom to enjoy my food and not gain weight. I have found that if I am craving ANYTHING, it can be duplicated into a clean eating recipe, even chocolate chip cookies!

My panic attacks are few and far between (unless I'm really tired and then I get all sorts of thrown off lol) and over all my quality of life is so much better than the past! Like anyone, I have my ups and downs, but leaning how to eat right has been huge for me! Now if I could only jump on the exercise bandwagon, I'd bet set ;)

:) Melissa

For some clean food ideas go: HERE