Naturopath

So, I'm getting married again in a matter of weeks and vanity has finally gotten the best of me. I need to do something about my skin once and for all.

One of my holistic mom friends recommended a naturopathic doctor she sees in Oakland and I figured I had nothing to lose by giving her a call. As it turned out, she had an unexpected opening the next day, so I left Olivia with my parents and had my first visit with a naturopathic doctor.

The visit was two hours of taking a health history and brief physical exam. I really like her and I felt very much like an equal and not at all like a patient. I felt heard and respected and there was no judgement or lecture or scolding.  She was super patient and thorough. So different from Kaiser!

She suspects my skin issue is related to a digestive issue, specifically that I don't have enough good bacteria in my gut as a result of too many antibiotics in my past. I'll be getting a ton of bloodwork done this week to give us a better idea of what's going on, and I feel really hopeful. I also left there with a strong fish oil and an herbal hormone balancing tincture they whipped up right there. It's the foulest thing I have ever ingested but I'm gonna take it. She also recommended a daily probiotic that has 20 billion strands and mine currently only has 3 billion. Yikes.

I happily paid my bill, knowing (and resenting) that Kaiser won't cover any of it. When I got in my car, I felt overwhelmed with the idea that I had just spent that much money on myself. I have a check at home from the last birth I attended that will more than cover the cost of my doctor's appointment but I felt so guilty for spending it on me.

It also hit me during the health history process that I don't get nearly enough sleep and don't take any time for myself. She asked a question about hobbies and interests and how I nourish myself and I just went, "huh?" I find motherhood and midwifery all consuming and I'm beat by the time I collapse into bed each night. I figured it was normal but it's definitely not feeling healthy for me at the moment. I really want to find a way to get some purposeful exercise each week, even though it will mean feeling guilty for taking time for myself and leaving O with Louis, who is also exhausted.

I'm excited about positive changes coming up!