Jessica

Are you currently Keto or Carnivore?

Carnivore

How long have you been keto/carnivore?

2.5 years

Describe what a Typical Day of Eating Looks like for you.

My daughter has a g-tube and her feeds consist of 1 egg yolk, 1/2 cup of kefir and 300mls of blended beef liver, beef heart, ground beef, and butter. Occasionally she will eat chicken for lunch or dinner by mouth. She also drinks raw milk and we make your ice cream recipe but we use stevia instead of honey because sugar ferments in my daughter’s gut due to slow motility.

Describe the health changes you have experienced since going keto/carnivore.

We were able to (only by the grace of God) completely reverse my daughter’s diagnosis of intestinal failure and get her off of TPN completely. We also reversed her chronic urinary retention and her Chronic Intestinal Pseudo Obstructions. She was born with an ACT-G2 genetic disorder and had 16 surgeries for ostomy placement, multiple revisions due to extreme prolapsing, and central line placements.

She is now 2 years off TPN and 1 year with no central line. She gained 10 pounds in the first 2 months on carnivore after a diagnosis of intestinal failure and failure to thrive (age 2). She is now a healthy 4 almost 5 year old. She has not had a surgery (except to remove her cvc) in 2 years.

Your Keto/Carnivore Story

My husband and I were shocked when we learned that our perfect baby girl was not in perfect health. She had a genetic disorder that was not compatible with life, we were told. The doctors said she would live a very short life with lots of medical intervention and suffering. Perhaps she would need a multi-organ transplant to even have a shot of making it past a couple years old. Her official diagnoses included: an act-g2 genetic mutation, causing chronic urinary retention, chronic intestinal pseudo obstruction, and visceral myopathy, and many other diagnoses.

After countless hours grieving and feeling completely hopeless, While Riley was in the NICU, one morning, a glass cross on our dresser lit up our entire bedroom as the sun shined in like we had never seen it do before, so much so that it woke us up. We knew in that moment that Christ would carry us all, and that whatever was happening God had a plan, and he would place his healing hands on Riley.

The first year of her life was marked by around the clock catheterization, chronic constipation, and scary bouts of belly distention. As difficult as this was, it was about to get worse than we ever imagined.

the next year and a half, she had an ileostomy placed, had countless pseudo obstructions, central lines placed, and lived full time at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where we lived also. Her surgeries totaled 16, and she was on her way out of this life. The IV nutrition would soon claim her kidneys and liver, and she was diagnosed with intestinal failure and malnutrition. Her inability to digest food was taking its toll on her small, frail body.

Throughout all of this, our second child was born premature at 29 weeks, and when he came home from the NICU, he came to live with us in the hospital with Riley. My husband slept on a cot while I slept on the couch, pushed up to Riley’s hospital bed, with my son on one side and Riley on the other.

She was just over 2 years old at this point

Riley had received a baby bible book for Christmas and she was obsessed with one page in particular that she would turn to and ask us to read over and over – the page was titled “Jesus heals the sick”. This was another reassurance to us that God was in control, and he had a plan.

My husband and I got on our knees and prayed for her every night. I began to cry out to God – send me – use me and give me the wisdom to heal my daughter. I know, Lord, that you have put everything on this Earth required to heal her. Please show me the way, I will do whatever it takes.

We had sought out every medical professional who had any knowledge about her condition, but they all gave the same grim, hopeless answers. Finally, God showed us our path forward. And on one of my many sleepless researching marathons, I found a doctor of natural medicine who would help us. Her recommendation was to give Riley only animal foods – meat, fermented dairy, and eggs. Of course, that sounded extreme to us, but with her still being supported by IV nutrition, we felt the risk was relatively low, and we were willing to try anything. We began cooking huge pots of meat and organ meat, blending it, and adding it to her feeding tube.

Within 2 months she gained 10 pounds – from 26 to 36 pounds. Her frail, thin, gray limbs turned chubby and pink. Her patchy, grayish hair began to grow in thick and blonde. The dark circles under her eyes disappeared and full, pink cheeks came in. Her skin colored lips turned bright red. Her inability to leave the couch – and all her untouched toys became well played with, and she had more energy than healthy children. By her third birthday, she was a completely different child.

She continued to grow and thrive every day, with more of her symptoms clearing up as time went on. She quickly came off of IV nutrition, and even had her central line removed. Her liver and kidneys were quickly restored to good health, and her intestines are functioning at the level of a healthy person, now. By eliminating processed foods and foods that are fermentable, we were able to completely mitigate Most of her diagnoses. Her nerve endings began to heal as she got stronger and she is now showing healing at levels we never imagined. Riley goes to school and lives her life like a normal child, outside of a few, simple medical interventions per day.

She still has her ileostomy and g-tube, but 8+ hours of medical care day and night has become about an hour a day. She has not had surgeries or pseudo obstructions in almost 2 years. Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is studying what healed her in order to implement it for other children with her diagnosis.

A child in Chilè, Blanca, whos mom I connected with in an online group has followed our exact method for Blanca for over a year. Blanca, who was completely dependent on IV nutrition, was also malnourished and was unable to ever leave the hospital, is now also completely off IV nutrition, has gained more than 10 pounds, and is finally able to attend dance class, and to go to school for the first time. Riley and Blanca are no longer terminally ill, and it is believed among their doctors that as long as she continues to eat like this for life, they will live long, with very few medical interventions.

God had a plan for Riley. I thank him every day that she was born exactly the way she was. As hard it can be in our lowest moments, we have to trust in God’s plans, that they are greater than ours, and that they are meant for us to prosper, not to harm us. Without crying out to God and knowing in our hearts he would answer our prayers, we would have never recognized the miracles when he sent them our way. Perhaps we would have thought the Naturopath’s advice was ridiculous, and never even tried changing her diet. Faith keeps the path ahead of us lit, if even only for a few steps. God opens doors no man can open, and closes doors no man can close.

Our mindset is one of deep gratitude and joy. Each night we sleep in our own beds instead of hospital beds, each time we do her medical care, knowing she will live a long and healthy life, each time we clean up a floor covered in toys, Each day we drive her to school, we thank God with all our hearts that she can live a normal life. Stressful situations no longer shake us like they did. God has fortified us.

What is the best (or top 3) pieces of advice you could give someone starting their keto/carnivore health journey?

Start now!! Don’t wait.

Throw out all foods in your house that are not on carnivore

Get everyone in your household to do it together and watch everyone transform! This eliminates temptation.