Gifts are meant to be appreciated and taken care of, especially if of great value. Yet isn’t it such an irony that the gift of the greatest value is something that we don’t appreciate and take care of. Life is the greatest gift that God has given to each of us, yet we fail to appreciate it and take care of it.

I am so guilty of this. I haven’t been taking care of my life recently, so I have been falling sick again and again and again.

I’ve been nursing this allergy to change in weather for years, post my near death battle with dengue fever in 2001. Every time the season (from summer to rainy season in the Philippines) changes or not even the season, maybe a simple drizzle on a hot summer’s day, would send me into a dry coughing fit that sends me wheezing and short of breath just like a dying old lady. I kid you not. No, it was not asthma. It was just that random allergy that had no permanent cure, which has gotten worse as time went by.

In 2010, I got pneumonia. Though I did not get hospitalized, I was on bed rest for two weeks and not allowed to do anything strenuous. Going up two flights of stairs, which was less than 15 steps, for a glass of water felt like torture for me. On top of that, I had the flu at least once every two months. Aaaaaand I got vertigo, which brought a new meaning to “I’m spinning around”

In 2011, I was also sick at least once every two months with no clear reason WHY. Well, maybe self-induced by stress? A week before our wedding I fell sick, a horrible flu attack, but I had to finish work before I went on leave. I remember presenting to a panel weak and feverish. Though I did wow the panel with my presentation, I didn’t have the strength to celebrate.

Moving to the desert didn’t change anything too. I continued to have the regular flu bouts and prolonged vertigo attacks, which lasted more than a month. I think I’ve been sick at least 5x already this year. Visits to the doctor were futile as they provided short term fixes and not clear answers to my health problems. I was tired and wanted a real answer.

Why all of this happening to me?????

Thanks to a recommendation of a colleague I did get answers and a plan from a lovely naturopath, Dr. Parviz Rashvand. If the traditional western doctors didn’t have any answers, then he might. I’ve heard that his fees weren’t covered by insurance and it wasn’t cheap, but I’ve reached a point of desperation that I didn’t mind paying a shit load of money to get answers.

All along the answers were in my gut.

For the next 3-months, I will be working on giving my digestive system an overhaul, a nice and thorough spring cleaning to help clear out all the junk in my body, which has been one of the key root causes of my illnesses, through a diet changes alongside vitamin and probiotic supplements. Dr. Parviz gave a loooong list of stuff I can’t eat for the next two weeks:

And for someone who loves her food with a passion, it is the most difficult sacrifice ever. But I desperately want to get better, so I just have to do it. My life, the greatest gift I have received from God, deserves the utmost appreciation and care…NOW. I’ve been at this lifestyle change for 8 days now and I have been feeling very subtle, yet significant differences in my body.

This is perhaps the best gift I have given myself in years. Doing this will give me more years to spend with The Husband, my family and friends, more years to eat, more years to travel and more years to write my book! So I hope to get all your support and prayers that this would work out for me. I do want to get well, relieve myself of all the physical aches and pains forever and enjoy the rest of my life. Thank you Lord for another year (and more years to come)!

Happy 31st birthday to me

Delirious about delicious,

Didi

P.S. Yes, I am not shy about my age all because I do look so much younger. I don’t look 31 noh?

P.P.S. Sharing some details about the wonderful Dr. Parviz below or visit Synergy Integrated Medical Clinic