I was convinced diet played a role, but wasn't quite sure how. I read book after book and watched documentary after documentary about different diets and the agricultural systems at play in how we eat and think about food.

 

I went back to basics.

 

I started shopping at our local farmer's market, connecting with the farmers there. I added more fruits and veggies to my plate, and stopped buying as much processed, packaged food. I wasn't sure what the "magic combination" for me would be, but I knew that seeking out real, whole food, as close to nature as I could realistically manage it, was a huge piece of that puzzle. I even got into making my own sprouted wheat bread. Hey, I was dedicated!

 

But something still felt "off". 

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That summer, a friend lent me the book, Wheat Belly, by Dr. William Davis. Immediately, things began to click.

 

I knew our food system had gone wonky, but I'd never thought about how pervasive wheat and gluten really were in my life, or how the modern versions of wheat and gluten are so different from what we, as humans, evolved to eat.

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The writing was on the wall.

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I could see all of my childhood meals, all the times I'd dined out – the flood of breadsticks and sandwiches and pastries and pasta. I could see how my poor body had been trying to tell me something for years and years, and how I was just now receiving the message.

 

By the end of that summer, I made my decision. I'd give up wheat for a few weeks and see what happened. 

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Two weeks in, I was feeling better.

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The digestive upset I'd nearly resigned myself to living with dissipated. No more acid reflux; no more sudden diarrhea. All the symptoms of your typical IBS-sufferer – gone. I was amazed. I'd spent so much of my life feeling sick, constantly worried my gut would act up out of nowhere. And then, it stopped. It was darn near miraculous.

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Today, I'm embracing an ever-evolving balance that works for me.

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Enjoying real, whole, nutrient-dense foods; incorporating a movement routine that I love; figuring out new ways to manage stress and sleep habits... All of these are a *huge* part of being at a healthier, happier place in my life.