Barley Blue Holistics 

In 2015 I was diagnosed with M.E or Chronic fatigue syndrome plus with all my extensive illness investigation they found a very small amount of endometriosis. 

Before my diagnosis I was an extremely active; having horses, swimming, busy social life, working full time and training to be a further education teacher. 

I am not sure what happened or why but I started to become very ill.  I developed severe fatigue and complete exhaustion. I was so exhausted that my arms and legs wouldn't move and at times I lay in bed and not able to move my entire body. I was in my early 20's. I know i did push myself to get the best out of myself for every hour of the day and my day job was stressful with an horrendous management team , who had absolutely know personal wellness skills. 

My diagnosis took around a year and by that point i was in a wheel chair and having home help. My previous life had ended. I was in a state of grief and was so angry for a long time. It took me along time nearly a year to come to terms with this new way of life, living with this illness. I didn't understand myself, who I was and at time, what was the point. I didn't know what to do with my self. 

I was in this state of the illness for 2 years. I was in pain and was put on huge painkillers and still having to be taken to hospital for overnight stays as my body couldn't cope.  To be honest I had almost given up. I lost a lot of friends, i couldn't work, I could barely feed myself. I had carers coming in twice a day to wash and dress me and to get me out of bed and put me to bed. I couldn't sleep with having insomnia. I was lost.  

One night i hit my low. My body was giving up. I remember calling my parents and saying i was dying. I was take to hospital in an ambulance with high white cell count and in so much pain. I was in hospital for a week that time.  So i didn't die. When i was released home, i was back in the same four walls with nothing going on, no moving forward. I decided that there must be something that could help me. Something that could give life, this weird life a point, a meaning.

After much researching, i decided that i would try reflexology.  I went once a week to local lady where i used to live in the Fens. I never expected it to work or do anything. I ended up going once a week for a couple of years. By the end i could walk, and i started working again. For me reflexology made me enter a different mind and body space. I honestly cant explain the feeling of being in some of the mind places i went or even if i was thinking. But i honestly believe that reflexology assisted my recovery with my own intention of getting better. 

I went from strength to strength. Yes i still had to pace myself and be very controlled over what external influences had over me such as noise, people and expectation. But i was now a functioning member of society again. I was a new me, i think a better one, a better version. 

Now fast forwarding to 2021 i was rushed to hospital with severe abdominal pain. Turns out that small amount of endometriosis i was told i had in 2015 had spread to a lot of internal organs and caused a grapefruit sized cyst on my ovary. I had 2 surgery's in 2021 with the removal of an ovary and Fallopian tube then kindly put into the menopause for 9 months to stop the spread of any endo tissue that was left. Then on to hormone therapy after that. 

Before i was rushed to hospital, i was working and living my normal very active life. Then bang yet again due to illness i was set back. The anger of not again crept in. I didn't know what to do with my life yet again. Then i thought well reflexology helped me the last time, lets jump on that. I was having frequent reflexology treatment again, and i felt it was making an improvement to my condition and mental health. 

It become clear to me, that I wanted to help people and provide a service that could help enable change in well being. I felt that with everything i had been through and how my experiences with reflexology helped me, that it could help others on their own journeys.  So i decided to train to become a level 5 reflexologist. 

This story is my own personal journey and is not to be republished without consent from myself the owner of this story. Written in 2022 by Kate P Francis.