The Sensitive One

In this episode of The Sensitive One we get to hear the story of Rosemary, a UK woman who struggled with multiple food sensitivities and allergies that began in childhood and worsened with age. A few years ago she found herself in a precarious position when her small list of safe foods just kept getting smaller! Fortunately with the help of Helminthic therapy Rosemary was finally able to reverse her growing sensitivity to foods and become less food intolerant and more foodie.

In this episode I speak with Casi Cole, a Mum and Health Coach who successfully treated her daughters multiple food allergies and severe eczema using helminthic therapy (i.e. probiotic worms) in combination with diet, nutrients and herbal medicine. We discuss her experience discovering, researching and using this therapy and finding the support of a medical doctor.

Please note that this interview is not intended as medical advice and you should consult your doctor for advice related to using helminthic therapy.

It’s time to talk about worm therapy for allergies and autoimmune conditions, also known as "helminthic therapy". What role could intestinal worms possibly play in allergic and autoimmune conditions, AND can they help us to reverse these conditions?

In this episode I speak with Immunologist and Researcher Dr Paul Giacomin who works at James Cook University in the Australian Institute for Tropical Health and Medicine. Paul focuses his research on understanding how intestinal worms can affect the immune system and what potential benefits worms could have for treating chronic inflammatory and autoimmune diseases like Crohns Disease, Colitis and Coeliac Disease.

I first heard about Paul through his popular TED talk on using worms to treat Coeliac disease which appeared online a few years ago. Naturally I wanted to speak to him for this podcast to find out more about this fascinating research!

In this episode we discuss the results of the first pilot study they did to find out if worms could help people with Coeliac to regain gluten tolerance. We also talk about a controlled follow up study they did after this and what else it revealed about how we could possibly improve gluten tolerance.

In this Interview we answer questions like;

What are helminths?

How could intestinal worms benefit gut conditions?

Can worms alleviate conditions like Coeliac Disease?

Do worms alter our gut bacteria?

Should we be deworming ourselves?

In this new episode I speak with Lyndsy Chavarria, an integrative Psychotherapist and Registered Nurse.

Lyndsy has worked in health care for many years, and also knows what it's like to experience food and chemical sensitivities. Because of this she has a particular interest in counseling people who have been affected by food reactions and other health challenges. In this interview we discuss how having health problems can change our sense of who we are, our relationships and how we see the world. We talk about the pain and grief that comes with this and the gifts that sometimes emerge from these challenges.

Some key topics covered in this interview;

The connection between allergies, histamine and anxiety

Postpartum depression in parents of babies with health problems

Coping with variable food sensitivity and unknown reactions

Grieving the unseen losses that come with health challenges

Why chronic illness gets misdiagnosed as mental illness

Finding advocacy and how to advocate for yourself

You can find out more about Lyndsy visit her website https://www.rippleofhopedenver.com. To find a local counsellor who works with foods allergies you can access a directory from this website https://www.foodallergycounselor.com/directory.html.

In this episode I speak with Food Allergy Counsellor, Simone Albert. Simone's life and identity changed after her infant son had his first anaphylactic reaction. Seeing how this experience impacted her and her own family, she saw the need to provide mental health support to families like hers. Simone now provides counselling to individuals and families living with food allergies. She has also written a book, "Beyond the Allergy Diagnosis" to help families move through the allergy diagnosis and become stronger.

In this interview we discuss the traumatic nature of food allergies and how this can impact daily life as well as relationships between couples, friends and extended family.

Some KEY topics we cover include;

How to bridge the gap when others don't understand our experience

How personality can affect our coping style

Post traumatic stress following anaphylaxis and who is likely to be affected

How to help allergic children develop effective coping skills and independence

Where to seek mental health support for allergies

You can find Simone's book through many different online outlets including Amazon and Fishpond. If you live in Australia or New Zealand you can also purchase the book directly through Simone by emailing [email protected].

To find out more about Simone her website is www.foodallergycounselling.com, you can also follow her on facebook or instagram @food_allergy_counselling.

In this Episode I speak with book author and dietetics student Gabrielle Zimmerman. We talk about her experiences living with Celiac Disease and multiple food allergies and her motivation to write a book "When Food Can Kill You" to raise public awareness and support for people living with severe food reactions.

Some of the important topics we explore in this interview...

The challenges of misdiagnosis and getting a diagnosis

What it's like to date when you have food allergies

Losing friendships and gaining real ones

Coping with Coeliac Disease as a College Student

The challenges of travel and eating out and how to cope

Food labelling issues that can impact people with allergies

When Food Can Kill You is available in paperback or kindle through Amazon.

In this episode I speak with Jennifer May who is the principle nutritionist and director of Food Intolerance Australia and Sydney City Nutritionist.

Jennifer works with people from all over Australia who have food intolerances, and her unique approach is that she aims to help people regain food tolerance and return to a full and varied diet. Jennifer utilizes IgG food intolerance testing to look for specific food intolerances and in the interview we discuss the problems of interpreting and using these tests properly. Some other topics covered also include;

Why restricting foods long-term can cause more problems

Why counselling around food intolerances is so important

How to use nutritional medicine to heal food intolerances

Hair testing for food intolerances and whether this works

Changes in food tolerance during pregnancy

The underling causes of food intolerance

Jennifer's personal experience with food intolerance

For more information you can visit Jennifer's websites - https://www.foodintoleranceaustralia.com/ and https://www.sydneycitynutritionist.com/

In this episode I sit down with Joy Anderson who is a dietitian and lactation consultant who pioneered the treatment of food sensitivities in breastfeeding babies.

As a lactation consultant for many years Joy became aware that some babies were experiencing food sensitivity symptoms to mums breast milk. Seeing that there was a lack of awareness and support for this issue, not just from doctors but even from dietitians, Joy decided to go to University to study dietetics so that she could bring light to this area. After graduating she also authored the book "Food-Sensitive Babies: Dietary Investigation for Breastfed Babies" to provide other professionals with the knowledge and tools to help young babies.

Joy is now retired as a Dietitian however she continues to mentor other Dietitians working with food sensitive babies. You can find out more about Joy and her book at her website - https://dieteticsandlactation.com.au/.

What are food chemicals? Can food sensitivities run in families? What are the most common food additives people react to, AND are they always listed on the ingredient label?? In this episode of The Sensitive One "The Food Intolerance Dietician", Frances Walker will be answering these questions and more. Frances is based in Melbourne, Australia and works with some of the most food sensitive people in the world. In this episode she lays out the different types of food reactions that can affect us, what kinds of symptoms can occur and how she helps those who are affected.

Find out more about Frances Walker at www.thefoodintolerancedietitian.com.au

In this episode I provide a sneak preview into Season 1 of The Sensitive One where we discuss food sensitivities, intolerances and allergies. Join me as I interview dieticians, nutritionists, counsellors and everyday people to discuss what food reactions are, who can be affected, what it's like to live with them and how we can recover.

If you live with food reactions then you know it's not just about following a special diet. It can impact our mental health and put a strain on our relationships. In this season we talk about this and more, including bad dating experiences, lost friendships and the lack of clear medical diagnosis and support. Finally we talk about how to cope.

For more support with food sensitivity, anxiety and highly sensitive nerves visit www.brainbodywell.com.au