Twenty years ago, Krista Rowan went to bed one night feeling perfectly normal and woke up the next day in a full body flare. Everything hurt and she was not able to even get her shoes on.
Luckily when she got to her GP he did recognise the significance of her symptoms and gave her a referral to an emergency waiting list for a Rheumatologist. Two weeks later she was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis.
Krista was engaged to be married, starting a new job and buying a home with her future husband and her focus became all about getting functional again and fitting back into her old life so she embarked on medication.
Some of the medication gave her blips of hope but eventually, that medication stopped working and it was onto the next round of meds. A few years later, new symptoms began to appear but she put it down to the RA and kept on going, working hard, trying to prove that she could still do all the things she did before.
Eventually she discovered that she had thyroid issues and Fibromyalgia which meant finding more medication for the new symptoms.
In 2015 Krista found herself in bed, working from home. Her fingers were fused together so she could “type like a boss” but she was falling asleep in conference calls and starting to slur her words and she knew that she had to find a way to stop and evolve into the life she had now.
She gave up her corporate career of 20 years and began to focus on her health and seeing Dr Terry Wahls book mentioned on a random Facebook post caught her attention. When she began to find out more about Terry, Krista knew that she had to see her.
She booked a trip from Canada to Iowa to attend a seminar and that was the moment when Krista began to realise the possibilities and everything shifted.
Krista had to really flip her perspective about doctors and medication, find someone to work with who aligned with her values and goals and take her power back.
Hearing about how Krista made that change and began taking those baby steps to get her health and vitality back is so inspiring. You can listen to the podcast using the player here on the blog, or find the Emotional Autoimmunity podcast on iTunes, Spotify or most podcast players. If you know someone with RA this is a great one to share with them.
In January 2000, Krista was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis; an autoimmune disease where her immune system attacks her joints, and affects tissues, skin and organs. A few years later, symptoms of Fibromyalgia and thyroid disease also emerged. Having experienced chronic pain, disability, stress, depression, and relentless inflammation for years, she understands first hand what people experience when their health is deteriorated, and quality of life is severely impacted.
As her health spiralled deeper despite modern healthcare interventions, in 2015 she mustered strength through frustration and fear to understand why her overall health seemed to be getting worse.
With nothing to lose, she began employing a broad range of holistic approaches to address root cause drivers of illness and disease. This shift in thinking and action, resulted in dramatic improvement to her health!
Fuelled by her new lease on life, she is now on a RE-mission to help others with chronic illness reclaim control and quality of life through shifts in mindset, stress management, nutrition, environment, and overall lifestyle improvement. Krista lives in Ontario, Canada with her husband and family.
You can find out more about Krista at her website Alive to Living.
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Episode 21 James Stratford: Rebuilding his life with Psoriatic Arthritis.