One common symptom of chronic illness or dysautonomia involves having digestive problems. You may find yourself continually swinging between moments of rapid gastric emptying and delayed gastric emptying. There are times where I’ve had to literally run to the bathroom ...
View Post The importance of tracking your bowel movements
Organising an efficient cleaning schedule can be difficult. One day you’re on top of all your cleaning tasks. Then the next day is spent attending appointments or work, and the chores start to build up, leaving you overwhelmed and not ...
View Post How to use task batching to create an efficient cleaning schedule
There are so many things that make chronic illness tough. The pain, the exhaustion, brain fog. They’re just a few of the physical symptoms that make daily tasks challenging. Then there are the mental frustrations that go along with having ...
View Post Remember this the next time you’re feeling stuck
How is it that time of year again? I can't believe Christmas is already around the corner! Have you already started the shopping process? I try and start as early as October so that I'm not wading amongst crowds. If ...
View Post Christmas gift guide for people with chronic illness
If you like, you can read about my story with autoimmunity here. Prior to my diagnosis, doctors would tell me my symptoms were due to stress. So when my specialists figured out the conditions I had (Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, undifferentiated connective ...
View Post 8 questions I asked myself after my chronic illness diagnosis
Painsomnia is an inability to sleep (insomnia) due to chronic pain. And when cyclical, can exacerbate symptoms of chronic illness. When dealing with an entire night of pain, I feel exhausted and my heart tends to work harder the next ...
View Post Tips for managing symptoms of painsomnia
I started meal prepping before I had chronic illness. It helped a lot when I was working full time and didn’t have the energy to cook when I returned home. Since being diagnosed, it’s helped even more. Spending extra time ...
View Post How to start meal prepping with chronic illness
The time was fast approaching and I was about to start my 4-week practicum. I was extremely nervous. For the last two years, I had struggled to stand for long periods of time without my heart rate increasing and causing ...
View Post Tips for student teachers with chronic illness
Specialist appointments started to become overwhelming, I was tired of taking supplements multiple times a day, and I was over having my blood drawn. I just wanted to feel normal. So I shifted my health issues to the back of ...
View Post 4 ways to effectively monitor your chronic illness
I was worried about whether or not I would have the physical and mental stamina to make it through a semester. I contemplated whether it was worth spending money on a degree that I may not be able to finish. ...
View Post Tips for balancing college with chronic illness
I don’t think I’ve eaten a tomato-based pasta sauce for over a year. I find them highly acidic and I’m often left with acid reflux hours after enjoying a bowl. For me, the aftermath just isn’t worth it. Don’t get ...
View Post Nightshade-free ‘nomato’ beetroot marinara
Unfortunately, it’s not just the crust that can cause complications. It can also be what’s used as a base and the combination of toppings. You can’t always ensure your order won’t be cross-contaminated with allergens. And when you go through ...
View Post Chickpea flour crust pizza
When I experience these symptoms, I know I’m close to fainting. I suffer from inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST), a type of cardiac arrhythmia and a form of dysautonomia. The “inappropriateness” means it can be activated out of nowhere. IST creates ...
View Post When dysautonomia makes you fear going out in public
So when it comes to deciding on a fruit jam to pair with an oat slice - I immediately reach for raspberry. If you’re not a lover of raspberries like me, you can switch the ingredients to make an alternative, ...
View Post Raspberry chia jam oat slices
I was one of those people that would wait until the last minute to shop for gifts and then battle against the crowds. After one particularly stressful year, I decided it was the last time I was going to put ...
View Post Reduce stress & save money this holiday season
As soon as I had my first bite, I was trying to guess what he had used to season his rice. Growing up with him as a chef has influenced how I see food today. My father has 14 children ...
View Post Easy curried fried rice with vegetables
And if you’re suffering from chronic illness, receiving gifts you're unable to use can be just as daunting. You're left feeling terrible. Too terrible to admit to the buyer that you can’t make use of the gift due to allergies ...
View Post A gift guide for those with chronic illness
Creating a daily routine has allowed me to maintain balance in the cleanliness of my home, all without depleting my energy. Before implementing my cleaning routine, I would often find myself not knowing where to start. I would glance at ...
View Post How to avoid exhaustion when cleaning with chronic illness
Why Laura? Why would you ruin a good thing by adding vegetables to a dessert? Crazy right? But before you decide that’s too odd a combination for you, I really recommend you give these a go! There’s a saying ...
View Post Healthy cacao brownies with sweet potato frosting
Why did I create this list? Basically it was to expose myself to life changing experiences - for myself and to share with my husband. With chronic illness it’s so easy to focus on the pain or the fact that ...
View Post 30 Things to do before you turn 30
The ratio of recipe wins to losses all contributes to the fun behind recipe testing. Of course, there are more losses than there are wins for me. But when there’s a winner, it almost feels like the whole dynamic shifts ...
View Post Chia jam drop cookies
You all know the struggle. The last two weeks have been spent submitting a bunch of assignments and sitting exams. It sounded like I was on track but really I wasn’t. There’s one assignment I’m avoiding - a 1,750 ...
View Post Cacao brownie-cookies
It’s a common assumption that any bodily changes are just a result of getting older. I know I thought that way. Whenever a new issue arose, I’d push it in the back of my head not wanting to come across as ...
View Post 11 early warning signs pointing to my autoimmune disease
I wanted to let you know in advance - there’s something different to this curry and yes it means an extra step and just a little extra time but it is 110% worth it! The variation with this curry is ...
View Post Roasted sweet potato & chickpea curry
I’ve loved banana bread for as long as I can remember. The only problem was - I had no clue how to cook it! I’d always have my sister go down to the local fruit store and purchase a loaf that ...
View Post Coconut banana bread
To be honest, at times I find it difficult to say no when I’m offered food containing gluten/soy. I’m very shy about having to explain to someone, no sorry I can’t eat that, I have an autoimmune disease. In ...
View Post Anti-inflammatory noodle soup
I spent the last week recipe testing and to sum up the experience in one word, I’d say it was “difficult”. That’s probably too nice a word to explain it all, but lets just stick with “difficult” haha. Everything I ...
View Post Mediterranean quinoa salad
