A woman's life became hell overnight when she developed a
severe allergy
to almost everything except four foods.
Amy Francis-Smith
's daily life
became a nutritional Russian roulette, marked by uncertainty and fear, as she struggled to identify what food she could consume without triggering an allergic reaction.
The situation worsened to the point that, at its worst, the woman from Leicester (United Kingdom) developed allergies to almost all foods, even seemingly harmless ones like carbonated water.
In this way, his diet began to be reduced until there were only four foods:
beef, pears, zucchini and rice.
But not only to food, but the strange reaction extended to
public transportation
,
air fresheners
, and
extreme temperatures
of heat and cold.
Not only that, he also faced disbelief and skepticism from doctors, who sometimes suggested that his symptoms were psychosomatic or even self-inflicted.
An ordeal that started back in 2015 and led her to experience frequent visits to hospitals and increasingly
greater isolation
, reflects
La Vanguardia.
What caused the allergy and the correct medical diagnosis
After suffering from what few imagined, the correct diagnosis finally came when she was finally told that she suffered from
mast cell activation syndrome.
"It is the inappropriate and excessive activation of mast cells without clonal proliferation," reports the
MSD Manual
, the site of the medical reference and treatment book first published in 1899.
And he specifies: "Symptoms are mainly due to the release of mediators and include pruritus, redness and dyspepsia due to gastric hypersecretion" -
In this case, the diagnosis is made through a skin or bone marrow biopsy.
But he also suffered from
Crohn's disease and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome
, hereditary disorders that affect connective tissue.
Without a doubt, this diagnosis represented a
turning point
for Francis-Smith, who was finally relieved to know that her symptoms had a real medical basis.
Recovery of health, architect and "freedom"
With the support of her family and her partner, the young woman embarked on a long path to recovery, focused on stress management
, nutritional control and reducing inflammation
.
Precisely this holistic approach allowed him to gradually expand his diet that had been restricted, significantly improving his health and well-being.
Years later, the woman tells how she is through her Instagram account: "Life during the last decade was inexplicably difficult at times. I suffered, I suffered pain, I was on the verge of losing my life several dozen times."
And he speaks of his auspicious present: "Now I have freedom. The problems of the past no longer haunt me and everything seems as if it happened another life ago.
I am in the best moment of my life
and I hope that from now on everything will get better." ".
And boy is he right. Francis-Smith celebrates an improvement in his health, but also his
academic and professional achievements
, as he completed his degree in Architecture at Birmingham City University.