This post was originally written as a guest post for my dear friend Mrs. Joli, at
Following Where He Leads in March of 2014. I'm thankful she asked me to write about my journey with PCOS and healthy eating because it made me sit down and think through the whole story! God so clearly orchestrated it all. Since writing this blog, I have also begun using Young Living Essential Oils, which have only furthered my journey into more natural living and blessed our family in more ways than I can count!
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It's an honor to be a guest writer here at Following Where He Leads. I
follow Mrs. Joli's blog faithfully and I jumped at the opportunity to
be featured here! The story I'm going to share today is one of trials,
hard lessons, God's faithfulness, and...food. I pray that the Lord will
use it to encourage your heart and cause you to ask questions about
things that you've always just assumed to be true.
When I was a little girl and well into my adolescent years, I remember getting frequent compliments about my complexion.
"Your skin is flawless!"
they would say and then proceed to ask me how I managed to keep clear
skin during the tumultuous teenage years. I didn't know how to answer
that because I didn't know that God had chosen to give me clear skin up
until a certain point in order to teach me a mighty lesson about caring
for my body and trusting Him with the outcomes and details.
In August of 2012, I was living in China--the summer heat and smog were
almost suffocating. I was weary from a busy summer of hosting teams,
getting engaged to the man of my dreams, escorting a sweet little boy to
Hong Kong for surgery, and being unable to come home for my sweet
Mimi's funeral. They say the days are long but the years are short--as I
look back on this busy time I realize how true this statement is! One
day I noticed that I had a few red pimples on my face. Nothing too
concerning considering the stress I'd been under. But after a few
weeks, I barely looked like the same person.
My cheeks and chin were covered with nasty dots of angry puss. It was
so alarming that Dr. Steve was sure I had contracted some sort of
bacterial infection. He put me on an antibiotic, which I gratefully
accepted. This antibiotic led to a series of 5 different antibiotics
and finally to a teary meeting with the dermatologist in which he said,
"If you don't go on Accutane, I don't think you're face will be clear for your wedding in June...or ever".
(This was many months later, after I had returned to the US). But
after much research, I found out about Accutane's long list of
terrifying side effects, including severe birth defects if I were to
get pregnant. Being six months away from my wedding, this just wasn't
something I could risk.
The dermatologist suggested that I go ahead and schedule my first
appointment with the gynecologist. When I began telling her my
symptoms, she suggested we do some blood work to test for polycystic
ovarian syndrome (PCOS). She didn't think it was likely, but wanted to
make sure. A few weeks later, I got a phone call from her that
confirmed that I did indeed have
PCOS .
My testosterone levels were off the charts, which explained the sudden
outburst of acne, untreatable by antibiotics. We were dealing with a
hormone issue, not a bacterial infection. She acted as if it was no big
deal and said birth control would fix the problem.
But for some reason, I questioned her advice. I asked if the symptoms
would return if and when I stopped taking birth control. The answer was
yes, most likely. I realized then that I could take medication to mask
the problem and give me a false sense of security, or I could try
getting to the root of the problem. The Lord was also prompting Michael
and I to ask other serious questions about birth control--for totally
different reasons than acne. He was nudging us to believe that we could
trust Him with our lives, our agendas, and yes, even our bodies.
I returned home that day feeling defeated. I looked like I just might
have this awful acne on my face forever. My wedding photos would be
plagued with an undeniable mark. I looked hopelessly at people with
clear faces, trying to remember what it felt like to be one of them. It
was in these moments of intense insecurity and vanity that the Lord
drew me near and whispered His truth to my wayward heart. He nudged me
to practice an attitude of thankfulness as I got ready each morning. I
would thank God for my blue eyes, my hair, my eyelashes. My lips would
repeat phrases of thankfulness while I begged my heart to follow. One
day, Michael gently reminded me of one of our precious friends who was
battling cancer. She lost her hair with chemo treatments and was almost
bald on her wedding day. But she was one of the most radiant brides I
have ever seen in my life. It's because her beauty came from a place
far beneath the surface of her skin. Her beauty came from a passionate
and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. I wanted that kind of
beauty. This earthly tent will one day fade away and we will be given a
new, glorious body that we will enjoy for all of eternity. Truly, the
writer of Proverbs was correct,
"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised." (Proverbs 31:30).
Feeling renewed, I began researching
PCOS.
I reached out to anyone I could think of who might be able to offer
some advice. I resolved to trust the Lord whether He chose to heal my
face or not. If you are unfamiliar with PCOS, I'll quote another
blogger at
Keeper of the Home in her definition,
"It is a hormonal disorder that can look a bit different in each woman,
but generally it involves sporadic or non-existent ovulation, higher
than usual male hormones, and sometimes actual ovarian cysts. For most
women, it means that their entire hormonal balance and menstrual cycle
is completely out of whack."
I learned that the root of PCOS is an insulin resistance. In fact, many
doctors relate PCOS to type two diabetes and prescribe diabetes
medication as a manager of PCOS. I also learned that PCOS is one of the
leading causes of infertility among women. Panic filled my heart as I
reminded the Lord of
my desperate desire to be a mom someday. He gently reminded me that He is faithful. He simply desires my obedience and my heart.
So, now that I was learning what this disease actually was, the question
was what could I do about it? Stephanie's blog - Keeper Of The Home -
was a God-send as I began navigating this journey. I learned that
there is hope for people with PCOS! She encouraged me that I could make
simple changes in my diet and lifestyle and see big results. I learned
that I was actually putting things into my body that were essentially
acting as poison to my endocrine system--processed foods, refined sugars
and grains, ingredients that I couldn't pronounce, fat-free products,
soy, and more. Sure, I tried to eat "healthy"--you know, low-fat butter
spray (no calories!), fat-free flavored yogurt, and high-fructose-corn
syrup laden granola bars truly were my idea of healthy. I had counted
calories my whole life.
Could it be that these "healthy" things were actually destroying my body?
This began a journey of the Lord retraining my mind and my heart to
eat in a way that He actually designed to work best with my body.
I took the plunge. I traded margarine for full fat butter, coconut oil,
and olive oil. Skim milk for whole, raw milk. White flour for whole
grains that had been properly soaked. Refined sugar for honey and grade
B maple syrup. We began making homemade bone broth and yogurt... just
to name a few. It was overwhelming and exciting all at once. I guess
it may sound a little extreme, but I once I learned how harmful some of
the things I used to put into my body were, I couldn't go back! The more
I researched and learned, the more I realized that I have a great
responsibility to honor the Lord with what I put in my body. The
results can be left up to Him.
After a month of eating this way, we began to notice that the bumps on
my face seemed a lot flatter. The redness was still there, but the
massive blister-like bumps were beginning to fade. After two months,
they were gone completely.
And five months later when I walked down the aisle in my white wedding
dress, my face was clearer than it had been in almost a year.
Our Almighty God healed my face. Not because He had to. He would
still be just as trustworthy and faithful had He chosen not to heal my
face. But, in His gracious power, He chose to use this journey to teach
me a few lessons that I will cherish in my heart forever.
1.) True beauty is something that can never be taken from me if Jesus
is the object of my heart's affections--no matter what happens to my
earthly body.
2.) I simply cannot trust everything that well-meaning doctors tell me.
I have the ability and responsibility to research and prayerfully make
decisions that are best for myself and my family
3.) God designed my body to work best when it's being nourished by whole foods, not by man-made chemicals.
(*side
note* I do still consume sweets, fast food, and Campbell's soup on
occasion. It's not about making a strict list of rules to follow, it's
about loving Jesus and doing my best to nourish my body in a way that
honors Him)
As I type this blog, I am sitting in a rocking chair nestled in the
corner of our sweet baby boy's new nursery. My belly is getting bigger
by the minute as we anticipate his arrival any day now. Yes, the Lord
did indeed heal my face, but through this journey to whole foods, He
gave me another miraculous gift. A precious baby. He used my acne to
reveal a deeper problem that could have had a major impact on my ability
to get pregnant. But in His sovereignty and grace, he chose to reveal
the truth and heal my body through natural means before it was a
problem. Praise Yahweh.
Our Father's ways are perfect, even when He takes us on a roller coaster
of a journey to get to where He wants us. May you be encouraged to
trust His gentle nudges and to explore the ways He created your body to
function at its full potential. It's liberating and fun and trust me,
you'll feel better, too!
