What I learned during my journey living with food intolerances
I've been managing food intolerances for more than fifteen years. Here are ten things I've learned along the way, maybe you recognise yourself in some of them.
If you feed your body with unhealthy food continuously and consistently, eventually your health will decline.
There are more and more people who are intolerant to certain foods. Understanding is growing. Almost everyone knows someone who's impacted. It's good to open up about your condition to others. You might learn something new that could help you. Or you might hold some information that's valuable to others.
You might think you remember exactly what you ate and what triggered you, but things become blurred quickly. It's best to keep a note of what you had and how you felt. Intolerance symptoms often only show up a day or two after you ate. It's best to keep a note of what you had and how you felt. Intolerance symptoms often only show up a day or two after you ate, here's how to track without it taking over.
Almost all recipes can be adjusted to make sure they're safe to eat. But it's not easy, and accepting that some meals don't turn out as you're used to helps manage frustrations. Be open to experiment.
Sugar, snacks, unhealthy food keeps you addicted. Once you break that cycle, you crave it a lot less. In fact, you start longing for healthy food.
Supporting yourself through food intolerances can be expensive. Supplements, treatments, consultations, in addition to organic food, free-from food, and other pricier options to eat safely, add to bills every month. But your health is your most prized possession and it's worth prioritising. You might not need to keep up the same level of expenses forever, it might get easier. If time is less of an issue, cooking from scratch is the safest and cheapest way to eat safely.
When you're desperately looking for answers and healing, you'll sooner or later come across beliefs and guidance systems that suggest every body can return to its equilibrium, you just need to be able to control it through your mind. That can open up fear and uncertainty about whether you're failing yourself. Equally, there are unrealistic promises that you can heal food intolerances in record time. Again, you can easily feel like you're failing. Beware of both if they make you feel less than. At the very least, approach them with scepticism and a lot of self love. You are not failing yourself.
The medical advancements are truly staggering. Doctors can work miracles. But mainstream medicine is still missing many answers. Not being able to get a diagnosis doesn't mean you don't have a condition, that it must be stress or psychological, or that you're possibly even imagining it. It simply means your condition is more difficult to diagnose.
Never stop hoping that things will improve. Maybe you can't heal completely, but at the very least, you can find better ways to manage your condition. Here’s what that process actually looked like for me.
Special days, such as birthdays, where food plays an important part, can be very tough. Focusing on other things, such as being with friends and family, rather than eating, can help a little. But be prepared to still feel rough, there is no easy way out.
If you're managing food intolerances and want support with both the practical and emotional side of it, I've put together a system that brings it all into one place. You can find out more here: https://www.nurtureandthrive.live/food-sensitivities-support-system
Or start with my free Food Sensitivities Starter Guide: https://www.nurtureandthrive.live/free-resources
About the Author
Nurture & Thrive is written from lived experience of managing multiple food sensitivities over more than 15 years. The content reflects personal experience of navigating symptoms, diagnosis, and recovery, and is focused on the practical and emotional realities of living with it day to day.