This Endolife

Ever heard of the ‘endometriosis diet’ and have been confused about what it actually is? Then this episode is for you. Today is a career (and life) highlight - I’m getting to talk to Take Control of Your Endometriosis author Henrietta Norton. Henrietta Norton’s book was at the very beginning of my holistic journey with endo, and it was her words and endometriosis diet plan that helped me to really understand nutrition for endometriosis. Henrietta is not only the author of one of the best books out there on endo, but she’s also the founder of Wild Nutrition, a nutrition clinic and company specialising in women’s health and Food-Grown® supplements including the Endo Complex, which you’ve probably heard me raving about because I take it every single day. Henrietta is not just passionate about good food, she’s got the science to back it up - Henrietta is a registered nutritional therapist, a Functional Medicine graduate and is currently studying Nutritional Medicine - and that’s why I love her. Henrietta’s book i

In today’s episode of This EndoLife podcast, I’m talking to the wonderful Kate McGoey of The Balance Blueprint. I met Kate at one of my first day retreats and was struck by her positive experience of mindfulness for chronic pain and her pursuit to help others with endometriosis experience the same benefits. Kate has endured seven surgeries, extreme pain and other endometriosis symptoms, but several years ago began working with a nutritionist to manage her pain levels. This eventually led her to discover mindfulness for pain, which she now teaches through free guides, online courses and one to one support. Kate takes us through how chronic pain conditions affect our mental health, emotions and quality of life, why changing our experience of and relationship to pain is so important and how we can learnt to live more positively with endometriosis through mindfulness for pain. Kate is such a calming and soothing presence with such a wealth of information - it was a complete honour to have her on the show! This ep

Today I’m talking to the incredible Elena of Onna and The Yoni Empire, all about endometriosis-associated dyspareunia, otherwise known as painful sex, and how we can move from healing pain to finally experiencing pleasure. Elena lived with vaginal pain - specifically vaginismus - for seven years before beginning a journey that would lead her to not only heal her own experience of painful sex, but to make it her mission to help others living with dyspareunia. Like many of us, Elena experienced dismissal, misdiagnoses and unacceptable treatment options ranging from shrugs from the doctors to suggestions of cutting her pelvic nerves so she could have sex without any sensation whatsoever. Many of us experience strains on our relationships with endometriosis, especially when it comes to our romantic relationships - and sex is often one of the key areas of concerns. As someone living with endometriosis-associated dyspareunia, I’ve spent a long time trying to work out how to treat dyspareunia naturally - often as pa

Today I’m speaking to the super inspiring Aubree Deimler, founder of Peace with Endo. Aubree is an Integrative Wellness Coach and helps people worldwide to manage pain, increase energy and find peace with endo. She’s also the best selling author of From Pain to Peace with Endo and has just released her new book, The Energetics of Endo. Aubree’s new book takes us through her endometriosis experiences as she goes from healing on a physical level to healing emotionally and spiritually with endometriosis.In this episode, we discuss some of the spiritual root causes of endometriosis, how energy healing, such as reiki, can play a part in treating endometriosis naturally and how chakra blocks, such as the root and sacral chakras, can affect our reproductive health and our experience of endometriosis.I found this episode absolutely fascinating, and whilst it might seem a bit ‘out there’ to some of us, Aubree’s experiences really resonated with me on a deep level. As always, this show isn’t about stopping surgery or m

This episode is all about pelvic floor therapy for endometriosis and the huge role it can play in helping us live well with the disease. Heba Shaheed is the founder of The Pelvic Expert, an online platform that provides programmes and courses on pregnancy, birth recovery, chronic pelvic pain and menstrual issues - including endometriosis. Heba is a women’s health coach, yoga and Pilates teacher, physiotherapist and fellow endometriosis warrior. She provides support to people with endometriosis through her courses, talks and classes, and has recently developed an online programme specially for those of us with endometriosis. In today’s episode, we talk about the link between the pelvic floor muscle dysfunction and endometriosis, and how endometriosis negatively affects our nerves and muscles, as well as how our muscles and nerves actually impact our experience of endometriosis. We explore the role of physiotherapy and pelvic floor therapy can have in healing some of the nerve and muscle damage caused by chroni

Today I’m talking to Lisa Hendrickson-Jack, host of the Fertility Friday Podcast, Fertility Awareness Educator, Holistic Reproductive Health Practitioner and author of newly released book The Fifth Vital Sign. Since a teenager, Lisa used the pill to cope with incredibly heavy bleeding and excruciating period pain. At 18, she decided to come off the pill, address these problems head on and finally understand the mystery of her menstrual cycle. This led her to eventually train in fertility awareness methods, which are practices that allow you to track your menstrual cycle naturally and navigate your fertile windows. Through her book, podcast, course and blog, Lisa teaches people with periods how to chart their menstrual cycles naturally and if they’d like, come of hormonal birth control completely. In this episode, Lisa drops some serious truth bombs. We discuss the side effects of the birth control pill and the risks of using hormonal birth control to mask endometriosis symptoms without addressing the root of

Alice Smith is the 23 year old Trustee and Young Ambassador for Endometriosis UK causing a well deserved stir in education. The UK Government is reviewing what should be taught in Sex & Relationship and PSHE lessons in England, and Alice thinks it's about time that menstrual wellbeing made it on the agenda. 14% of menstruators are starting their periods in the UK without knowing what they are and 1 in 4 said they did not feel they knew what to do when they started their period*. This is a big problem. If young people aren't being sufficiently educated about what to expect from an 'average' period, how will they know when something's wrong? Alice and Endometriosis UK have launched a petition to get menstrual wellbeing taught in schools. They want the stigma and shame of periods to be broken, and for all pupils to understand what's 'normal' and what's not when it comes to menstruation, so people can recognise sooner the signs and symptoms of endometriosis, PCOS, fibroids and other menstrual related conditio

Today I’m talking to Britt from Food Period - a start up company, which in my opinion, is revolutionary. Food Period make 'moon bites'; natural and nutritious energy balls, which contain specific seeds that are used in the nutrition protocol known as 'seed syncing', which helps balance our hormones and create easier, healthier periods. As I’ve mentioned before, endometriosis is an oestrogen dominant disease, and seed syncing helps reduce oestrogen dominance and bring our hormones back into balance, so I was super excited to get Food Period on the show! Jenn and Britt’s story to starting Food Period is pretty much jaw-dropping, with it all stemming from Britt’s diagnosis of blood cancer, Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, which she’s thankfully now recovered from. Both Jenn and Britt go on a journey together to bring their periods and hormones back into balance, and are now on a mission to provide others with a natural option to regulate their periods and reduce the impact of menstrual related conditions like endometriosis.

In this week's podcast, I have the privilege of speaking to the wonderful Kristy Curry. Not only is Kristy super kind and lovely to chat to, she's also the co-founder of Flutter Health, the mobile endometriosis symptom tracking app that lets you track your period and journal your endometriosis symptoms, to better manage the disease. This is far from your every day period tracking app with fixed settings that frustrate you and don't match your experience of menstruation. Six week period? You can put that in. Every endometriosis symptom under the sun - even the obscure ones? You can put them all in. You can even track your endometriosis symptoms or unusual period behaviours, download the past few months as a PDF, and take them to your doctor so you can get better treatment, or even a diagnosis. I chat to Kristy about how her experience of endometriosis and period tracker apps led her to start Flutter Health with her husband. We discuss how tracking your endometriosis symptoms can not only enable you get more ac

In this episode I’m talking to Kate Magic, founder and Creative Director of Raw Living, Europe’s leading raw food and super foods supplier. Kate is a well known raw foodie here in the UK, having written the UK’s first raw recipe book back in 2002 and the world’s first raw superfood book, Raw Magic. Kate has now launched her latest book, The Empowered Woman, which is all about female hormones, women’s empowerment and working with our body to support our hormones in order to feel our best. In this episode, we're talking about her new book and dive into female hormone health and endometriosis. We explore the wide range of hormones in our bodies, how they work together and how they support us in our lives, we also delve into the difference between male and female hormone systems and how we can nurture these to live a life that empowers us, and how to treat hormone imbalances and the symptoms of endometriosis.  Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook or sign up to my newsletter.   Show

In this episode I’m talking to Cori Smith about his experience of endometriosis as a trans man and how we can make the endometriosis community a safer, more supportive place for transgender and non-binary people and others who do not identify as cis female with endometriosis. Cori is currently launching a lawsuit against medical institute in New York for discrimination based on his gender status. Cori has endometriosis and his story of how he was treated as a women vs how he was treated as a trans man is shocking, but so important to talk about and raise awareness of. Trigger warning: Cori went through some traumatic medical procedures and abuse from medical professionals, so if you’re sensitive to those kind of subjects you may want to forward those moments. I speak to Cori about the ways in which transgender and non-binary people are treated with endometriosis, why he decided to be brave and sue the medical institute and how we can make our support services and community more inclusive. Cori is doing incred

Our opening Season 3 episode is with the organic period subscription start-up TOTM. TOTM make tampons, pads and cups that are kinder to your vagina and are both sustainable and made without all the chemicals you find in your everyday period products. I talk to the lovely Fee and Alex about how TOTM started and why the founders were so passionate and determined to create organic period products. We discuss the chemicals found in tampons and pads and how those can affect our hormone health and even diseases like endometriosis, we also discuss how organic period products can help you have a better period and what the start up is doing to change the lives of those living with endometriosis. Listen and subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, listen directly/download MP3 here or just listen below! Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook or sign up to my newsletter.   Show Notes: This podcast is sponsored by you guys. I’m asking for your help and support to keep This EndoLife Podcast going - if

Today we're back for a special one off episode to raise awareness of the #WeMatterACOG  campaign. This campaign has been launched by social worker Casey Berna, Heather Guidone who is part of the Endometriosis Research Center and the Surgical Program Director at the Center for Endometriosis Care and Shannon Cohn of the Endo What? film. The #WeMatterACOG protest will be taking place this Thursday 5th and Friday 6th in Washington DC, outside the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and together, patients will demand that the ACOG address the endometriosis care crisis in America. You're invited to join the campaign, in person, online or by signing the petition. In this podcast, we talk about the poor standard of treatment and care for those with endometriosis, what needs to change and how patients can and are leading the way for better endometriosis care. Check out the show notes below to take part.   Let's get social! Come say hello on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook or sign up to my newsletter.

You can't go on to Instagram these days without seeing a picture or story of a gorgeous sparkling crystal. Crystals are big these days, and it's easy to go and buy a couple without knowing why, except for the fact that they look really, really pretty in your bedroom. You might have heard of terms like 'crystal healing' or 'crystal therapy' and wondered what the hell it is or maybe wondered if they could help you deal with some of the emotional or even physical issues that come with endo. So today, I'm talking with Tamara a.ka. Wolf Sister, about crystal healing and self-care rituals. Firstly, massive disclaimer here: crystal healing is not a cure for endometriosis. We know there isn't a cure, but as I always say, everyone is welcome to mange their endometriosis in the ways that suit them. And if you feel called to crystals to help you deal with depression, anxiety or maybe life with chronic pain, I want to give you the information to get the most out of crystal healing. I met Wolf-Sister a year or two ago whe

Ready to get spiritual? This week I'm talking to Gail Love Schock - Transformation and Happiness Coach, reiki healer, meditation teacher and Interfaith Minister and we're discussing mind, body and soul medicine. This is deeply spiritual one, and there's a reason for it. Gail Love Schock has endometriosis, though no longer has any symptoms and no longer identifies with the disease. Following her first laparoscopy, Gail had a spiritual experience that changed the way she cared for and communicated with her body, changing her life forever and ultimately, her experience of endometriosis. Faith and spirituality has played a huge part in Gail's personal life, wellbeing and work, and I wanted to chat with Gail about how this has affected her and how having a spiritual practice might help some people cope with endometriosis. We talk meditation and visualisations for endometriosis, how a sense of spiritual community can reduce feelings of isolation, depression and anxiety, and why she's reclaiming ministry for women.

Remember Heather? This genius creative was on the show when I first launched This EndoLife Podcast, talking about her diagnosis with interstitial cystitis and how changing her diet overhauled her health and allowed her to live again. Heather Crosby went on to found Yum Universe, and in more recent years, got so much into gluten free baking that she created the insanely good looking Gluten-Free Baking Academy. I've been eyeing up these recipes for a while... Gluten free English muffins, gluten free sourdough bread, gluten free wraps, gluten free bagels - BAGELS - gluten free cornbread, gluten free biscuits... It's aaaaall there. I know how tough the endometriosis diet is, and how cutting out carbs (read: bread), can be really, really hard. I miss toast like I missed my first ex-boyfriend, before I realised he was a dick. And to be honest, I have some go-to gluten free brands, but they're still not the same. Gluten free baking with The Gluten-Free Baking Academy is about understanding gluten free baking so you

Oliwia Drzymuchowska, founder of Womanology, went through 8 years of agony and unanswered questions before she was finally diagnosed with vulvodynia, vestibulodynia and clitorynia, amongst several other pelvic pain conditions. After being prescribed countless drugs and taking various hormones, she decided to take control of her health and find her own way of managing her pain. Now she lives practically symptom free and her journey has led her to found Womanology, an intimate wellbeing brand which encourages women to reclaim their womanhood. With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I chatted to Oliwia about painful intimacy and how her products can repair our relationships with our sexuality, why we need to break the taboo of female pleasure and how we can learn to love ourselves through reconnecting with our bodies.  

Pandora Paloma is a holistic nutritionist, life coach, yoga teacher and founder of Rooted London. After dealing with deep issues around her body and self-worth, Pandora embarked on a journey of healing, that saw her learn how to love herself again and how to listen to her body and take better care of it. Her experience inspired her to reach out to other women and support them to create positive relationships with themselves, especially with their bodies. She now supports female clients with endometriosis, infertility, eating disorders, PCOS, hormone conditions and various others. Through her unique approach to nutrition and health, Pandora encourages women to create an intuitive relationship with their bodies, where they're not only guided by the advice of Pandora as a nutritionist, but they learn to become aware of and respond to what the body and mind need. Pandora's work is largely focused on self-love empowerment, and her support doesn't end at nutrition. Pandora is all about looking at our entire lives,

Fangirling much? You know I am. Jessica Murnane has been on the podcast and This EndoLife a couple of times before. Jessica is the founder of the One Part Plant Movement, is author of the One Part Plant cookbook, and is host of the One Part Podcast. She has stage IV endometriosis, and was once at the point of a hysterectomy - her last attempt was with a plant-based diet and it changed her life. Now she's dedicated a new website, Know Your Endo and a new online course, The Endo Toolkit, to helping others live with the disease. I talked to Jessica about what inspired her to launch these new endometriosis projects, what she felt was most important to communicate and what we can expect from The Endo Toolkit online program. For those of you who are interested, enrolment is now open for the Early Bird bookings. To check out The Endo Tookit free tour, to find out more information or to enrol, click here. Show Notes The Course: A five-week online program to create tools to help manage endometriosis pain and sympt

Lucy Sheridan is the world's only Comparison Coach and an incredible bubble of energy! Whether it's comparing themselves to their best friends or comparing themselves to a stranger online, Lucy specialises in helping people get out of the trap of comparison and back into their own lives, feeling good. An issue I find many people with endometriosis deal with, is comparison. Endometriosis can force us to put our lives on hold or change direction, and it can be really hard to see everyone else (or so it seems) moving at 100mph towards their dream lives over on Instagram. I speak to Lucy about how to get ourselves out of the comparison trap when we can't seem to stop scrolling, how we can still move towards our goals and dreams at our own pace with endometriosis and why following the rhythms of our own bodies and lives is the most fulfilling route of all. I think this episode is a perfect starter for 2018...