I'm almost done with the first part of the elimination diet!!! WOOHOO!! Hopefully, within the next week or so, I will start adding foods back into my diet and seeing what my body is sensitive to. I hope it's not chocolate.

Over the course of the past three weeks, I have noticed some huge changes in my body! The biggest change has been my energy - before starting the elimination diet, I struggled to stay up past 9 PM and constantly felt exhausted. Regardless of how much sleep I got or how much coffee I drank, I always felt like I was running on fumes. I struggled to motivate myself to get out of bed and never had the desire to put on makeup, do my hair, or wear cute clothes. Last semester, I would fall asleep in class, which was so unlike me! I could barely pay attention and I would go entire class periods without taking a single note. Now, after three weeks of healthy eating, I feel incredibly motivated and energetic most of the time. I'm really focused in all of my classes, participating, taking notes, and even completing all of the assigned readings! My energy lasts me throughout the day, and I don't toss and turn or wake up in the middle of the night nearly as much as I did before. I'm also able to take a nap during the day if I want to, which is something I was never able to do before starting the elimination diet.

The second biggest change I've noticed is my skin. I've had acne since fourth grade. I've always had pimples and extremely oily skin. I've tried every skin product from Proactiv to Cetaphil, and I never noticed a true improvement in the way my skin looked. I would always have breakouts and feel really greasy by the end of the day. Now, my skin isn't oily at all and it's incredibly clear. I can honestly say that I don't remember the last time I woke up and looked in the mirror and thought "wow, my skin looks really beautiful and healthy today." I always felt disgusting due to all of the pimples and oil on my face, and was always embarrassed to take pictures because I knew people would be able to see all of my blemishes. Now, I think my skin looks so clear and healthy, and I can go throughout the day without worrying whether or not my face looks like I just stuck it in a vat of oil. Having clear skin has given me so much confidence.

The next thing is my hair and my nails. Before the elimination diet I had very brittle, easily breakable nails. Now, my nails are hard and healthy and I'm experiencing no breakage. My hair used to be very oily, and now I can confidently go two to three days without washing it without any oil appearing. My hair used to fall out in huge chunks, to the point where I was afraid I was balding, and now it has almost completely stopped falling out.

Another remarkable change has been my stomach. After meals, I would feel uncomfortable and bloated, followed my extreme hunger about one hour after I ate. I never felt satisfied and was always craving salty and sweet foods. I always had bloating in my lower abdomen, and frequently experienced constipation - on a weekly or biweekly basis. All of these things have been resolved. I occasionally am experiencing stomach discomfort, but I think that's a result of my body healing itself and cleaning out all of the toxins that I've been putting into it for the past 19 years. I'm now feeling full and satisfied after meals, and the cravings for sugar and salt have decreased greatly. Although, I hate Facebook for tempting me with ridiculous dessert videos - curse you, Tasty!

I'm also experiencing less pain overall. I've suffered from migraines most of my life. I would get these headaches that would last two or three days and completely debilitate me and my motivation to do anything. I haven't had a migraine since I changed my diet. I also CONSTANTLY had joint and muscle pain - mostly my knees and my back, which hurt almost constantly. I don't have the daily pain that I used to, and I've even noticed that I'm feeling more flexible and less tense overall.

The final change that I would like to talk about is my mood. Although I don't like to talk about it much, I've recently been dealing with a lot of anxiety and depression that has been hard for me to handle. The mood swings were beginning to completely take over my life, and the unpredictable irritability and sadness made it hard for me to go about my daily life the way that I normally did. Since changing the diet, I can truthfully state that I feel the happiest, healthiest, calmest and most stress-free that I have in years. Yes, years. I don't remember a time when I felt so at peace with myself, so out of my head and so in the moment. Yes, the past three weeks have been so challenging - the elimination diet is one of the hardest things I've ever done. But the way I feel? It's priceless. This healthy, happy, worry-free Marley is someone that I've been striving to be for quite awhile, and finally feeling like myself again is something that I cannot possibly quantify.

I would recommend this diet to ANYONE - even if you aren't feeling unwell like I was, having control over the things that you put in your body and the way that those things make you feel is an extremely gratifying experience. Yes, it's challenging, and you're going to struggle and want cake. But guess what? It's temporary, you get to add foods back in, and you feel like a million bucks! It is SO worth it to feel this way, even if it sucks not being able to eat what you want - that stuff makes you feel like absolute crap anyway, and there are a lot of healthier ways to feel just as satisfied!

I'm so grateful for the awesome support system I've had over the past three weeks - especially all of my readers who have been amazing! Your advice, encouragement, and good vibes are so very appreciated. Have a wonderful week!!