QCC 157: Helping Teens to Heal – Q&A with Isaac Whitton

My son Isaac was diagnosed with severe OCD and anxiety in 2014 (when he was 13 years old), and so began our journey into healing the gut and working to improve his mental health.

For the first half hour of this episode I talk to parents of young people who need to move towards a healing diet and are not really keen to make changes, or are struggling to keep on track and focus on the long-term goals.

Isaac (now 19 years old) joins me for the next hour to answer questions from listeners.

Isaac shares:

his initial reactions to mum saying he needed to go on a special diet

what he found hardest about being on GAPS

how he coped with peer pressure while trying to stick to healing foods, and his advice for social situations

the improvements he saw in his mental and emotional health, and how long it took to see changes

how his skin and sleep has improved, and what he finds most affects them

the ups and downs with healthy eating (yep, it’s normal)

how he gets back on the ‘healthy eating wagon’ when he’s fallen off

what he would tell his 13 yr old self now he’s older and wiser

his advice for young people struggling with anxiety and mental health issues

how his experience with the GAPS diet has affected his thinking as an adult

avoiding addictions in other areas besides food – doing a ‘dopamine detox’

why he’s so much happier now, and what helps the most

his answer to the question, “Was it worth it??”!

Cooking segment!

We didn’t manage to cook on this episode as it was already so long, so here is a link to a video of my boys cooking together that your teenagers may enjoy.