I am 58 years old and have been ill for at least 40 of them. The list of chronic issues is almost too long to explain. First were the migraines, pounding, persistent ones that could last for stretches of a week at a time. My gastrointestinal health was also poor, leading me to have a collection of ulcers and an almost constant feeling of bloatedness along with leaky gut and candida. On top of all that, I was diagnosed with Behcet’s Disease, a rare disorder that causes blood vessel inflammation throughout the body. It manifested itself most clearly through retinal problems, but also added vasculitis and arthritis into the mix too.

My whole life up to this point, I had been eating what I thought was a healthy diet. I ate almost exclusively organic food, much of it raised right in my own garden! I didn’t understand my unhealthiness.

My patience reached a breaking point when my Behcet's became so severe that I was spending thousands in medical bills just to combat it. When the most basic treatments weren’t working, I was advised to take the next step, which involved injections every two weeks to quell symptoms. At this point, I visited a naturopath, as I felt that the cost and the physical toll of so many chemicals was adding up too quickly. Upon performing a blood test, the doctor determined that not only did I have allergies that were at dangerous levels for some foods, like tree nuts and dried beans, but that my body was hyperreactive to many other foods too. He didn’t put me on the Blood Type Diet, and instead implemented a broad, sweeping suggestion that removed a huge amount of foods from my diet based on my allergies. I lost 40 pounds during this stretch of time where I had little to no options for what to eat. As soon as I tried to reintroduce anything different to my diet, even if it seemed like a healthy choice, the stomach pains and chronic problems flared up. While the weight loss was promising, the protocol wasn’t something that could be maintained long-term. I felt lost.

My friend mentioned the Blood Type Diet to me at this point of despair and I immediately bought the book and started reading. Just from Dr. D’Adamo’s descriptions, I sensed that I had to be a Blood Type O. I took the test, and sure enough, I was. When I read about secretor status, I also had a strong inclination that I must be a non-secretor due to my body’s sensitivities, and yet again, I was right. Just feeling like Dr. D’Adamo knew me already made the book and the diet seem incredibly promising to me.

The results only furthered this feeling. After just a few weeks, I lost 7 pounds and didn’t have the digestive struggles of before. After one cheating weekend where I ate only avoid foods, the weight and sluggishness all came back. It showed me how powerful eating right can be. I am looking forward to continuing the journey and healing the leaky gut and other chronic issues I have over time. Losing the weight and getting off my pricey prescriptions are the dream goal, but just being able to be in a body that isn’t overweight and rife with pain and chronic issues is a blessing on its own. I can’t wait to see where this journey takes me. I have great optimism as I near 60 that these years ahead might be the healthiest of my life.