Welcome to Primal Roots! I'm Diane and here's my story.

I started my career as a psychiatric nurse practitioner with a strong desire to help people struggling with mental illness. I quickly became aware that many people were struggling with what we call "treatment-resistant" illnesses that did not respond adequately to standard medical care. I felt perplexed and even helpless at times as I tried various combinations of medications and supplements with my patients and still could not seem to help my most sick patients to feel better. 

At the same time, the stress of working with severely depressed and traumatized individuals was taking a toll on my own mental and physical health. Although I did not know it at the time, I was also living with mold and had toxic heavy metals in my body. The combination of everything just threw me over the edge and my health quickly fell apart. Despite a consistent habit of working out, my physical fitness plateaued and then began to worsen. I was always exhausted rather than rejuvenated whether I worked out or not, and I was recovering more slowly after exercise. Eventually I could not work out at all because of how drained it left me. My sleep was terrible and on my days off, I slept all day and still did not feel any better. I was irritable and did not have the energy or patience to spend time with my kids or do the things that were most important to me. I was drinking multiple energy drinks per day just to make it through a few hours of work or even have the mental alertness to drive my kids home from school. I had brain fog and was overall very depressed yet very anxious about my perceived failures. 

At just 30 years old, for reasons unknown to me at the time, I also developed severe joint pain and inflammation in my fingers, wrists, shoulders, and knees that would make it very difficult to get comfortable and I went from being a previous marathon runner to being unable to go for a simple jog without knee swelling and pain for days. I had strange digestive symptoms, blurry vision, light sensitivity, brittle/thinning and GRAYING hair, lightheadedness, vertigo, and would even randomly black out at rest. I started bleeding and bruising so easily that I was afraid to turn the steering wheel while driving, since it tended to burst the blood vessels in my hands. My thyroid area in my throat would often ache to the point that I couldn't focus on anything else, and I would get shooting pains up through my jaw and ears. I felt like I was gagging on a huge lump in my throat. I repeatedly went to see doctors to describe my concerns, but since my labs and basic tests were "normal", my issues were dismissed. I even had a doctor laugh in my face when I told him I wanted additional testing.

Eventually my symptoms progressed enough to finally get a diagnosis of Hashimoto's thyroiditis, although that did not explain all of my strange symptoms. I tried thyroid medication, probiotics, methylated vitamins, and various other medications and supplements but did not feel better. I continued to feel more sick and weak and progressed to serious adrenal fatigue and postprandial hypoglycemia. I couldn't even hold my phone without trembling and having my arm drop from the weight of it. I was no longer able to keep up with life and frankly did not even want to exist.

I cried every day because it literally hurt to be alive. I was so tired and so depressed. I could barely drag myself out of bed. I remember one day I showed up to work at the hospital 2 hours later than I was supposed to be and all I could do was just sit in the parking lot crying for another half hour. I finally went inside and as soon as someone asked what was wrong, I just completely broke down again in front of everyone. I quit working altogether shortly after that.   

I had an older sister who was diagnosed with late stage breast cancer in her 30s. She described a lot of the same symptoms as I had, leading up to her cancer. The cancer took her life just a few short years later.

In my desperation to recover some semblance of health and quality of life, I combined my professional medical training with an open-minded search for answers. That's when I found Dr. Daniel Pompa and his extensive research on neurotoxic illness, true cellular detoxification and ancient healing strategies. His program made so much sense, and I knew it was the key to reclaiming my life. I put everything I had into following the program strictly, and I saw amazing results.

In less than 5 months, the autoimmune markers in my bloodwork disappeared! My blood glucose became much more stable, my cortisol returned to normal, and my sugar cravings, fatigue, joint pain, thyroid issues, and brain fog disappeared. I completely stopped drinking caffeine and didn't even miss it! I found that I could focus on life, and actually started getting things done that were important to me without realizing that my body forgot to be broken that day, that week, that month.

To be truthful, it was hard work and a DEFINITE, PURPOSEFUL change from the way I was used to living. I had to re-learn how to take care of my health and actually recognize the small and big things that added up to make me sick in the first place. But my journey was and is 1000% worth it, and completely changed the way I look at medical treatment and where our current "standard protocols" are severely lacking. I am now super passionate about showing others the true path to healing, and I'm SO excited to share it with the world!!

If you find yourself struggling with thyroid or other autoimmune conditions, excessive signs of inflammation and premature aging, treatment-resistant health concerns, or other strange/unexplainable symptoms, there IS hope for a solution!

Don't let your circumstances define you. Take back control of your life!