Lately, this quote has been on my mind. Today, I want to share a personal story that motivates my work.
In December 2013, I got sick. I was six months into my emergency medicine residency, working strenuous 80+ hour weeks under immense stress, all while caring for my two-year-old.
During an October trip to visit in-laws in Vermont and enjoy some hiking, I returned with fleeting flu-like symptoms that swiftly transitioned into severe, unrelenting headaches unresponsive to standard medications. Despite my primary care doctor’s diagnosis of migraines and prescribed medication that proved ineffective, my condition worsened. Brain imaging showed no abnormalities, yet the debilitating headaches persisted, sapping my energy and leaving me constantly unwell.
I sought answers from every available doctor. Normal lab results and uncertain explanations led nowhere. Struggling to persist in my work, I eventually had to take a medical leave of absence, a decision met with skepticism by my residency program leadership. Having invested heavily in medical school loans, completing my residency now seemed uncertain.
I returned to work sooner than I was ready. Some doctors suspected Lyme disease from my Vermont trip as the cause of my symptoms. Desperate for a solution, I underwent various treatments—massive antibiotic doses, dietary changes, vitamin IVs. I feared another health collapse and this turmoil affected my personal life profoundly.
Over three to four years, I slowly improved. Lifestyle changes, vitamin and nutrient support and stress management seemed to help. Yet, uncertainty haunted me, with periods of progress interspersed with setbacks.
In the years since the start of my illness, I’ve dedicated myself to learning about what might have gone wrong within my body. My goal was twofold: to recover and understand illnesses defying clear medical explanations.
Now, at 41, a decade after falling ill, I’m the healthiest I’ve ever been. I believe severe stress during my medical training unmasked an underlying Lyme infection, leading to adrenal gland dysfunction—specifically, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis dysfunction—resulting in a complete health crash.
My health is now a priority, and sharing what I learned about getting healthy is my passion. Unfortunately true health does not result from band-aid solutions or quick fixes- it requires work and dedication. But to me, it is truly worth it. There are no special secrets to what makes the human body work the way it was designed to. As humans we need to take excellent care of our biology. This means good sleep, light/dark exposure, movement, good nutrition, social connection and stress management (more to come on this in future posts). I, like many others, treated most of these as a luxury rather than a requirement for healthy functioning.
Though the keys to good health and longevity are simple, they are often not easy to implement. I hope that you too will find that they are worth it. As always, if you have concerns about your health, please schedule a visit and I will do my best to guide you to your optimal health.
