Six years ago Kat Smith decided she had had enough of listening to female health related horror stories, so she took matter in her own hands.
6 years ago, I decided I’d had enough! Enough surgeries; enough rubbish advice; enough relying on others to fix me; enough blaming myself for my condition; enough of hearing horror stories from my girlfriends about their gynae problems and how their doctor couldn’t help them.
I spent a lot of time during my teenage years in the doctor’s room, complaining of fatigue, illnesses and colds and flu that never went away. As the years went on, I was prescribed more and more antibiotics, painkillers and eventually, antidepressants.
My immune system was clearly upset about something. We saw ENT experts, gastroenterologists, immunologists. Looking back now, it was obvious that I had endometriosis.
I had the family history, many typical symptoms including spotting, pain and heavy bleeding, but the doctors insisted it must have been some dodgy cervical cells that needed removing, then a nasty pelvic infection that needed 2 simultaneous antibiotics, then a bladder infection, and so it went on. For nearly 10 years.
Eventually, I saw a private gynaecologist who also insisted it wasn’t endo. So I insisted on a laparoscopy. The same gynaecologist in-fact who operated on my mother’s endo some 30 years previous, later confirmed as I came around from anaesthetic that I had stage IV endometriosis. I think he used the words ‘riddled with it.’ From there, he suggested a number of aggressive hormone therapies including GnRH agonists. I got a referral to a leading public centre in the condition where I underwent a further 3 laparoscopic excision surgeries and resolved never to hand over total responsibility for my health to the doctors ever again.
I had seen a number of naturopathic practitioners on my journey with endometriosis and I knew how powerful food and supplementation was. I had experienced it for myself. It’s easy to feel we can’t control this disease, but we can.
So I decided to make it my life. I left my career in teaching, spent 3 years retraining as a Nutritional Therapist where I learned the biochemistry and pathologies of the female body and then began working with women to discover what works best in balancing their hormones, repairing their digestion and generally improving their quality of life.
Now I help women to take back control of their health.
You are NOT destined to be in constant pain, exhausted, overweight or unhappy. You just need the knowledge to let your body reset to wellness. Nothing can be cured with a quick fix, a few supplements or a fad diet. It requires a comprehensive approach. You also need the support and permission to care for yourself. Most importantly, you need someone qualified to help you with a plan.
I recently joined the brilliant Facebook group ‘Women for Women (Malta)’ and couldn’t believe my eyes (well, I could actually) when I realised that a huge number of the posts were from women who felt helpless and confused about their female health issues. Most had been pushed from pillar to post and had no satisfactory help or solutions from their health care providers. The same messages keep coming loud and clear: “I know something’s wrong but nobody will help me.”
So what’s gone wrong? Allopathic medicine is not equipped to deal with the majority of female health concerns. Take endometriosis, my specialism. Why is it my specialism? Because I went through 4 rounds of surgery before I realised it wasn’t a solution, just a temporary measure. The same applies to a host of issues such as digestive issues, hormone imbalances, PCOS, menopause and, to some extent, fertility.
There is SOOOOO much we can do to balance our hormones and live symptom free, but this requires holistic, often pharmaceutical free advice. If only someone had told me these truths before I went under the knife again…and again.
Women deserve to be given the correct information about their health conditions: the right tests; nutritional guidance; physio; emotional support and so on. We have to take responsibility for our health. The first step is education.
Now I know the truth, I want to share it with you: It doesn’t have to be like this.
Have you had a similar experience to that of Kat Smith? Share your experience with us…contact us or send us an email at [email protected]
Best-selling Amazon author of ‘The Endo Supplement Guide,’ Nutritional Therapist Kat Smith lives in Gozo where she recently opened a female health clinic. Following a 15 year career in secondary school teaching, Kat retrained as a naturopath at the College of Naturopathic Medicine in London after a battle with stage 4 endometriosis. She now consults online and in clinic with women from all over the world, teaching them how to take control of their hormonal wellness using nutrition, lifestyle and supplement interventions. She passionately believes that women deserve a better quality of healthcare and should not suffer in silence with their misunderstood conditions.
Kat Smith – Nutritional Therapist CNM Dip
