Ebony's journey to better health
We’d love to introduce you to Ebony. She’s a 39-year-old self-employed small business owner and mother to two boys. Through her small business, Dotty Black, she creates and sells gifts, cards, prints, keepsakes, and homeware. Her goal is to promote positivity through her bold, bright, and empowering creations. In December 2020, Ebony caught COVID-19 and has been struggling with the long-lasting side effects ever since. Her symptoms include fatigue, brain fog, and a tightness in her chest that did not go away. She discussed this openly on her platform, and we reached out to see if we could help. Within a few weeks, Ebony sat down for a health consultation with one of our practitioners, Aletta Sørensen. Together they went over her entire health history and discussed her current lifestyle, diet, and the goals Ebony would like to achieve. Aletta put together a nutrition plan to help Ebony improve her health and we sent Ebony a few supplements to take alongside her lifestyle changes. We’ll be keeping up with Ebony throughout her journey. In this blog, she’s shared her experience during the first week of her nutrition plan, read on to hear from Ebony herself:
Published
I have had an amazing first week!
As the days went on, I got into more of a routine with everything. My food delivery was already booked for this week, with choices I wouldn’t have gone with for the nutrition plan. My meals in the coming weeks will align better.
Before the plan, I had experienced about 10 days of bad fatigue hitting me around 5 pm. By 8 o’clock, I was ready for bed and would fall asleep with my children, wake around 11.30 pm and then stay awake till around two in the morning catching up on my evening chores. Then possibly struggle to get back to sleep.
None of this has happened since Tuesday. I know I have been coming out of my fatigue dip in the typical pattern I’ve seen in the past 15 months, but I strongly believe my energy levels this week have been so different from the past year.
One day I almost forgot to cook my dinner in the evening because I had no sign of hunger. I’m really noticing I am not hungry between my meals. This is very different from what it was before!
I’m really enjoying all the amazing flavours of foods I’m preparing for myself. Breakfast has been my favourite meal this week. I haven’t switched to any different types of tea yet, but I plan to try some next week.
Monday, 11th of April
Today has been a good start, I was slightly restricted due to not having all the recommended supplies, but they are due to arrive tomorrow.
BREAKFAST: Omelette with two eggs, mushrooms, red onion, parmesan, and garlic
LUNCH: None
DINNER: Butternut squash and bacon risotto with parmesan
SNACKS: Strawberries & blueberries.
DRINKS: Two cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk and 1.5 litres of water.
Tuesday, 12th of April
Today felt good, but I wasn't very prepared when we ventured out for the day. Went to a trampoline park with the kids. The choice of drinks and snacks in their cafe was awful and they didn’t even have still water. I have since ordered a new water bottle.
Despite our energetic afternoon, I didn’t feel fatigued in the early evening. I managed to get my children to bed without wanting to fall asleep with them. I stayed up until 10 pm which feels like a victory!
BREAKFAST: Banana Pancakes with two eggs, one banana, a teaspoon of maple syrup, strawberries and blueberries.
LUNCH: Grilled asparagus, tender stem broccoli, three rashers of bacon, cherry tomatoes (grilled) and corn on the cob. I made a dressing with sesame seed oil, fresh lime, lemon, salt and pepper.
DINNER: Chicken with a creamy sauce (made from crème fraîche, mashed potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms).
SNACKS: Deliciously Ella’s peanut bar
DRINKS: Three cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk and 2 glasses of water (didn’t feel like enough).
Wednesday, 13th of April
I’ve had quite a bad head all day today, unsure if it was because I’ve ditched my usual sugar intake or the fact I didn’t drink much yesterday.
BREAKFAST: Two fried eggs, and fried mushrooms in coconut oil. Fresh beetroot blended into houmous, avocado, rye bread, squeezed lime, and chia seeds.
LUNCH: Grilled asparagus, tender stem broccoli, three rashers of bacon, cherry tomatoes (grilled) and corn on the cob. Dressing made with sesame seed oil, fresh lime, lemon, salt and pepper.
DINNER: Meatballs, wholewheat linguine, chopped tomato sauce with beef stock paste, rocket salad and parmesan.
SNACKS: None.
DRINKS: Two cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk and 2 litres of water.
Thursday, 14th of April
I’m feeling really different today like my body doesn’t have fog hanging over it. I can’t describe the feeling, but it’s really good. I guess I've become so used to not feeling like this, that today felt different.
I also started taking all the vitamins and supplements that were recommended to me. The quality of these is so amazing, the turmeric syrup is something else!
BREAKFAST: Scrambled egg with almond milk, rye bread, smashed avocado, chia seeds, mushrooms and grapefruit.
LUNCH: Chicken with fajita spice, cumin, paprika, fried with red and yellow peppers and red onion. Served with a corn cob.
DINNER: One sausage, roast potatoes in olive oil, carrots, sage, and red onion.
SNACKS: Strawberries and cashew nuts.
DRINKS: Two cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk and 2 litres of water.
Friday, 15th of April
Tricky eating out tonight because I wasn’t sure how some foods were prepared. I avoided my usual chips and peppercorn sauce with my steak.
I don’t want to jinx it, but today we attended forest school around a campfire. At some of my worst times in the past 15 months, the fire smoke has triggered my chest, yet yesterday I was absolutely fine.
I also sprayed a light amount of perfume on my wrists when we went out and this again can trigger my chest into feeling like a burning sensation, but I didn’t experience it tonight.
BREAKFAST: Two fried eggs, fried mushrooms and kale in coconut oil. Fresh beetroot blended into houmous, avocado, rye bread, squeezed lime, and chia seeds.
LUNCH: Mixed leaf salad, tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, green olives, red onion, chia and sunflower seeds, with a slice of roast ham.
DINNER: (at a restaurant) Sirloin steak, broccoli with chimichurri, sweet potato wedges. Chicken & Duck dim sum with garnish and soy sauce.
SNACKS: An apple with some cashew nuts.
DRINKS: Two cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk, two cups of English Tea with soya milk and 1.5 litres of water.
Saturday, 16th of April
BREAKFAST: Two poached eggs, tender stem broccoli, rye bread, avocado, fresh lime juice, and two small beetroots.
LUNCH: Chicken in fajita spice, cumin, garlic, with green and red peppers, red onion, kale with flaxseed oil.
DINNER: Lemon and herb chicken grilled on bbq with mixed leaf salad, tomatoes, cucumbers, green olives, red onions, yellow pepper, chickpeas, and corn on the cob with flaxseed oil.
SNACKS: Chocolate fudge and peanut keto bar by Pulsin.
DRINKS: Two cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk and 1.5 litres of water.
Sunday, 17th of April
BREAKFAST: Two poached eggs, rye bread, avocado, fresh lime juice, two small beetroots blended into houmous, plus fried mushrooms with chia and sunflower seeds.
LUNCH: Chicken in fajita spice, cumin, garlic, with green and red peppers, red onion, kale with flaxseed oil and a mix of sunflower and chia seeds.
DINNER: Chicken and mushroom hotpot (from Hello Fresh) with crispy potatoes and roasted carrots.
SNACKS: Rye bread with peanut butter, cashew nuts, strawberries, raspberries, and grapes.
DRINKS: Three cups of English tea with unsweetened almond milk and 2 litres of water.
If you're interested in learning more about Ebony's journey, or would like to share your own, reach out to thehub@supplementhub.com.
Click here to find out how Ebony's second week went!