The struggle with my stomach was a life-long one. Unfortunately, when we were younger, medicine was not as open-minded as it is today. Consequently, it took 22 years for my lactose intolerance to be diagnosed, and an additional 4 years for the rest of the triggers of my symptoms to be addressed.
After the initial diagnosis, and cutting down on dairy significantly (but not eliminating it completely), I was better but I still felt tired, sluggish, and out of balance with my body. I also had the occasional stomach problems. It had to be an acne breakout which was not going away to waken me. I knew that something else was going on inside me. To cut a long story short, after a number of tests, it was revealed that my microbiome and hormones were out of balance, I was lacking vitamins and I was sensitive to gluten, wheat, and sweet corn.
After doing my research, I felt that the best course of action to rebalance my health was using natural food, natural supplements, and a holistic approach. I was determined to find the root cause of the symptoms and not simply mask them with products and medicine. I was fortunate enough to find an experienced functional medicine doctor who has helped me immensely to feel ‘normal’ again and guided me continuously, every step of this process.
My functional medicine doctor suggested the Elimination Diet, and this is how my passion for cooking with real food took off and I have never looked back. Since my boyfriend had stomach sensitivity too at the time, he did the plan with me (he is amazingly supportive, I know!). Initially, we looked at it as a 4-week plan, but we felt fantastic just after a couple of days on it. So we cut off completely the foods our bodies did not agree with, and added the ones which did not affect us. The result felt amazing. We embarked on this re-balancing journey and began exploring the world of natural nutrition.
My boyfriend, Andrea, has been a constant support throughout this journey. My passion for food started through him, he always tries to experiment with different flavours in his cooking. Through this journey, he also found out his own food sensitivities and he is feeling much more energetic and lost weight just by substitutions.
This rebalancing process is an ongoing, life-changing one for us. This blog will document my journey of balancing hormones, microbiome, and overall gut health in a natural way using vegan and gluten-free recipes.
A healthy outside starts from the inside.
Robert urich
About Silvana
Hi, I’m Silvana, a financial auditor, with a passion for real food. Originally from Bulgaria, I moved to Malta when I was 13 years old, and have resided on this beautiful Mediterranean island ever since.
I love doing yoga, going for long walks in the countryside, reading and travelling! I have a passion for decorating for family and friends’ birthdays, for every and any occasion which comes my way! I always find ways how to reuse all my decorations (yes, even balloons!) in order to reduce any waste generated.
I love vegan and gluten free food, this is what we cook at home. However, I am strongly against food waste. Although I do not buy meat nor fish at home, I do not waste it if is served to me!
I love all things nature, and one day we dream to have a house with a garden where we could grow all our food.
I believe in balancing the body holistically, through food. When the body is in balance, we flourish, we feel better,more energised and make the most of our everyday life. This is my story and I would love to share it with you every step of the way.
Feel free to join me on this journey! It will be an interesting one, I promise!
Feel free to reach out! I’d love to get to know you!