Hey everyone! So I thought I’d tell you a little about my journey who I am and what I’ve been through, in hope to help others. (Get ready for a short novel)
My name is Abbey, I’m currently 21, happily engaged and learning to love my body.
My journey stated when I was 17, I was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) I had 10 cysts the size of grape fruits on each ovary, I knew at this time in my life that being overweight probably didn’t help with this, but being young I thought I would be “fine” though in the back of my head knew my diet was horrible, I ate takeaways often, consumed a lot of alcohol and did zero exercise.
Though soon after at the age of 18, my “I’ll be fine” motto got taken away from me when I was told I had pre diabetes and had to lose weight if I wanted to save myself a life time of medicating. I tried everything, meal replacements, exercise, you name it I probably tried it.
At 19 I had managed to lose 13kgs by myself, but sadly I was still classed as unhealthy and I still had pre diabetes. I started personal training, changing my diet, stopped alcohol… still nothing.
20 rolled around faster then I expected still no changes in my body, so I gave personal training one more go and still yup you guessed it nothing… I was giving up at this point.
I was then handed a dynamic nutrition card and I thought to myself “why not, what do I have to lose, some pounds and inches would be great” though I still didn’t ring…
Not long after being given this card, my PCOS decided to play up for the 1000thtime that year and I was sent in for an emergency cervical biopsy where I was diagnosed with stage 2 pre cancerous cells on my cervix, though they were deciding to stay dormant for me but I also knew I didn’t have much choice what they did.
I’d had enough of the worrying, the crying and the anxiety attacks not to mention my body in general; I still struggled to look at myself in the mirror as well. I looked at dynamic nutrition card one more time and without hesitation I was on the phone to Steph, and I’ve honestly never looked back!
Steph has taught me, that my new life style is extremely easy which completely surprised me!
When I cook dinner , I meal prep for the next day so I don’t forget, I now choose the healthier options on the menu when I go out (even if that means altering it with the chef) I pack food, if I know I am going somewhere I won’t be eating for awhile because my body needs fuel. Steph has defiantly made this feel more like a lifestyle change rather than a “diet”.
And I’m happy to say that since starting my journey with dynamic nutrition starting at 28% body fat I have dropped down to 23% and I am the leanest I’ve ever been! (Super stoked with that achievement).
Just going back to the never ending PCOS story, I recently got my results back from my last cervical biopsy and I’m completely cancer cell free and the pre diabetes is under control now. My specialist looked at me in shock and said “keep doing, what you’re doing, because it’s working”.
I thank Steph for this, if I hadn’t had the support and motivation from her, I would have given up and probably been in a worse state of health without the great nutrition advice and exercise tips, but most importantly I have myself to thank for not giving up.
My advice for anyone suffering with PCOS would be to keep going, the journey can be daunting and long, but it is so so worth it, trust me. Tell yourself everyday that you will not let a syndrome take over your body, but you will take control of your body instead. AND to anyone always look at how far you’ve come rather than how far you have to go- that always keeps me motivated.
I’m still learning to love my body, but I can finally look in the mirror and be proud of who I’ve become. The day I can say I love my body completely – “I can say I finally did it” and that will be worth every single moment.
