Journey to Discovering BII

Vulnerability: The state of being left without shelter or protection against something harmful.

I left my body, mind and soul in a vulnerable state and I wish I could take it all back but I know not to live in regret. I believe there is a meaning behind every action and moment. I know that the reason I am here, at this moment, sharing these personal revelations is that I may be able to help one person avoid this all.

I recently learned of a tucked away little secret that so many doctors are not wanting to acknowledge. It’s called Breast Implant Illness (BII) and it has shocked me how many women (over 40K in just one support group), including myself are going through the same experience. Maybe it is still so hidden because it is a combination of individuals not wanting to talk about their cosmetic surgery and people not wanting this to get out to the mass audience but we have to start educating women on the deadly effects that implants have on our body. 

Our bodies are rejecting the breast implants. These implants are two toxic bags placed into our bodies just waiting to implode. The silicone shell is being released into our systems, there are leaks in the implants that are going unnoticed on scans, they are slowly leaking into the body and some saline implants have actually become mouldy inside. The silicone used in the implants are made up of 40 harsh chemicals and heavy metals, defined as cytotoxic, neurotoxic, carcinogenic and harsh irritants to live tissues causing inflammation. To add, in March 2017, the FDA finally issued a warning confirming that breast implants cause BIA-ALCL cancer which is not breast cancer but rather a cancer of the immune system.

This is my journey to this point... 
Back in 2005, I had my breast augmentation surgery. At the time, I had recently lost a bunch of weight and I felt like I needed breasts that would match the rest of my body. I did my research and decided to go with saline implants. Silicone was still illegal that year. The surgery went well and all seemed fine afterwards. Little did I know that my body had already started the process of rejecting the implants but I wouldn’t figure this out till 2018.

Fast forward to 2018 and the following is all the health complications I have had since my surgery:  

• 2006 - I was diagnosed with depression and it lasted for a while. Controlled by a strict routine.
• 2007 - constant UTI that lead to a kidney infection
• 2008-2010 Back pain in the middle of my back to lower back. The pain was so unbearable at one point that I went to the emergency. They had no explanation and just wanted me to take painkillers (which I declined). 
• 2009 to currently - adrenal fatigue, constantly running on adrenaline (fight or flight mode)
• 2011-2012 - menstrual bleeding for a full year. Doctors could not explain it. All the tests came back normal. 
• 2013 to currently - fell on my knees walking a dog and hurt my pelvis in 2013. The pain continued in my back/pelvis. I could never sit on the ground again without pain. The pain gradually moved to my hips and thighs. Legs have gotten tighter and tighter over time leaving me unable to be active. Chiropractors, doctors, naturopath and physiotherapists can't explain what the injury is and why I haven't recovered. 
• 2016 - foggy brain (trouble finding words and having a fluid conversation) began and noise sensitivity
• 2017 - started finding holes in my muscles, doctor/specialist can't explain it

Currently dealing with: anemia, candida, foggy brain, hair loss, noise sensitivity, severe physical fatigue, adrenal fatigue, headaches, joint pain, hip/back pain, swollen lymph nodes, temperature intolerance, mentally exhausted and a large amount of inflammation in my body. I'm just plain worn out!

img via @breast_implant_illness

I have slowly felt like I’m deteriorating. I couldn’t put my finger on it but knew I shouldn’t be feeling like this at the age of 32. I always thought it was just low iron and that was the reason I had no energy. I couldn’t figure out how my peers were able to complete a day of work and continue on to enjoy more activities. I was happy if I had enough energy to last half a day at work. I’ve been constantly running off adrenaline which has left me even more exhausted. I didn’t understand why doctors could not explain why my body ached and nothing was healing. I tried my best to keep my level of pain to myself because I thought this was it, this was something I was going to have to deal with for the rest of my life, so why complain. I would have my once a month break down when the symptoms would become too much but I would continue on. 

The moment that I snapped out of it and said ‘wait, this doesn’t make sense!’, was the moment my naturopath said I had really high levels of Candida. I'm a Certified Holistic Health Coach and my lifestyle and diet do not equal high Candida, so I began to research more and more. One day I randomly came across a posting about BII journey and I had never heard of BII. I began to trickle down the rabbit hole of research. All these women’s stories and symptoms sounded just like mine. I couldn’t stop reading it. I started to cry, and relief poured out. I wasn’t alone and this wasn’t just in my head. Breast implants are poisoning women! 

So what are the next steps? First and foremost, to remove the implants. I have scheduled to have my implants removed at the end of July 2018. My health and wellbeing are more important than ego. I want to be an active part of the family and that requires me to be healthy. The second part, to detox the heck out of my body. I’ll let it first heal itself for the first weeks and then start implementing cleanses to rid of the toxins. Something I did not expect to be dealing at this stage of the journey is the regret and disappointment in myself. I'm mad that I didn't think about this in the beginning, that I didn't put it together at any point over the past years and that I wasted so much precious life. I want the women who are thinking about getting the surgery done to do their research and talk to all these women who are going through so much sickness and disease, is it really worth it to take the chance?

It’s time to take back my life and live to my full potential. I miss being active and healthy. I’m so grateful I came across ‘Healing Breast Implant Illness’ and want to thank all the women in the Facebook group who support and encourage one another without judgement. I'll be continuing to post updates about my journey here and share my experience.