Georgia G.
Background
I’ve always enjoyed cooking different recipes from around the world, including authentic Greek family favourites handed-down from my mother, for my meat-loving children and husband. However, with an under-active thyroid, my cholesterol had been slowly creeping up over the years. Low thyroid hormone levels can mean that your body doesn’t break down and remove the LDL cholesterol effectively and it can then build up which is what happened to me.
My GP was keen for me to start taking statins a few years ago but I wanted to avoid this until another check-up with my GP in Autumn 2020 showed that my cholesterol levels had increased further so he was now insisting on statins. I was very upset to discover this and during lockdown, the stress of family life juggling work and children was increasing and getting on top of me. Despite my best intentions to exercise more, this just wasn’t happening either.
My teenage daughter had also recently decided to eat less meat and go more plant-based so I was keen to discover vegetarian and vegan recipes the whole family would enjoy.
Why Gisèle so Well?
Vicky and I met through our children’s nursery school more than ten years ago now, so she was the first person I wanted to talk to about my most recent upsetting cholesterol concerns. When I reached out, she told me about her new online Autumn Reset and it sounded like the perfect way for me to focus on my health priorities and get some much-needed support to make the necessary changes.
What’s changed for you?
Vicky helpfully tailored one of our weekly sessions to educating us about managing cholesterol and explaining the guidelines from Heart UK’s Ultimate Cholesterol Lowering Plan. As a result I’ve been including plant sterols, mixed nuts, soya and oats daily to help lower my cholesterol. I now also understand the importance of a high-fibre diet both for reducing cholesterol and improved gut health.
It was also great to share new vegetarian and vegan recipes in the group - a Mushroom Bolognese was a big hit with my family, they didn’t even realise it didn’t contain the usual beef mince!
We got a new puppy just before Christmas and with Vicky’s Movement & Mindfulness Challenge in the New Year, that definitely helped to ensure that I got into the habit of going for long, brisk walks every day. I’ve also started meditating for a few minutes whenever I feel stress levels rising. Overall, I think I’m more aware of the importance of mindfulness and am eating more mindfully too.
Vicky has worked hard to help me despite me feeling beyond help - she is inspirational and thoughtful in all areas I’ve needed.