When I got my sickest from mold illness, we had just moved from living in a tent to living in a little house on some beautiful property. There were a bunch of fruit trees in the front yard, a pond, a creek, and across the property and up a steep hill another pond. It really was almost perfect to live there for me, at least in my mind. I went on a daily hike through the property, up and down hills, through the beautiful trees, and over creeks. I had always loved the great outdoors. It was where I felt like me, like I was alive and part of God’s world. Anywhere and any way I could be in the outdoors was good for me. So, I am sure that it will come as no surprise that one of the hardest parts about getting so sick from the mold for me was having to slow down and be sidelined, because my body could no longer handle or recover from the effort.
Well, about a month into living there, I could no longer go out to see my favorite trees, creeks, and hills. I just didn’t have the strength and energy to do it. It was sudden, drastic, just cut off. I thought “oh, I am maybe coming down with something and am just getting older”. But I just did not have the strength and energy to do anything.
I lay down and started watching tv or sleeping during the day, waiting to get well. It just didn’t happen. Months into living in this house my energy and strength just did not come back. And if that was not bad enough, I started getting more weird symptoms – brain fog, muscle cramping and wasting, lack of ability to control stress and anger, not able to tolerate most foods, bloated belly, constipation, and diarrhea, not able to catch my breath if I moved much, not able to breathe even if I had not done anything but sit there. I had extremely dry but watery eyes. Those eyes itched so bad way back where nothing I did would take that itch away. My mouth was extremely dry, and no amount of water would help. And the list goes on and on.
It was such a drastic change that I thought it was just a nightmare and willed myself to wake up. But I didn’t….
I spent years in this state, doing “the right thing”, what I felt I was supposed to, just lay around waiting to rest enough to get well, trying to take natural stuff to “fix” the symptoms, and going to lots of practitioners. I didn’t know that we need to move even in sickness that lasts beyond a few days! That is how we really can get better. Actually, we detox things out of systems much faster that way. Let’s talk about this.
Have you found that you have mold illness symptoms? What is the first thing you decided to do about it, before you figured out it was mold illness and was not going to go away? My guess is that you did just what we have all been trained to do, rest, and find someone to fix the problem!
Exercise Is a useful treatment tool for those who suffer from mold illness!
When I started to get well, after I moved out of that moldy house, was when I started walking everyday again. I started out slowly, but before long I could go up and down hills again out in my beloved wilderness. I got myself and my life back much faster then. Honestly, the day I started moving my body again was the day I started truly recovering. In my opinion and experience, that’s why physical exercise is extremely important for those recovering from mold illness. There are just too many moving parts to us to ignore it. And most times just getting outside for a slow walk made my body and mind feel better and kept me going for another day. Even if I really did not feel like going out at first, I always felt better for having gone.
Exercise is important and powerful to expel toxins from your body. Have you ever known someone who exercises a lot to be sickly all the time? Scientific studies show over and over that as soon as movement slows or stops, so does overall wellness and healing. Even if we don’t have optimal health our bodies are designed to move. It is a scientifically proven fact that the more sedentary and inactive your lifestyle becomes because of the mold illness, the more your body will buckle to your symptoms and the more chronic your condition can become. I know, I did that!
I know from experience that you are just trying to regain a normal life since getting mold illness and seems like you will never get there. But this won’t always be the case. Daily exercise can not only keep the healthy strong, but it can do just as much for those who have the inflammation of chronic illness. I have seen it many times.
If you have chronic mold illness, you must make sure you are working on getting out of the mold and start your exercise slowly. You body is still too toxic at first, so you won’t be able to do much. You need a structured program. I am not talking CrossFit or powerlifting but knowing how to start slowly and work your way up as you are detoxing the mold and mycotoxins out of the body.
So, with mold illness, what can, and should you do for exercise?
But, if you are in the middle of mold illness and feel totally awful, you might be wondering, “How can I exercise when I am so sick and tired?”
Exercise sometimes feels like the wrong thing to do for mold illness but is the exact right thing for improved health and treatment outcome. This is because mold toxins are fat-soluble and are stored in fat tissues. Detox through sweating, increased oxygen production, increased blood flow, lowered blood sugar, cellular regeneration, decreased cellular aging, surges in testosterone levels, metabolic stimulation, and reduction in systemic inflammation are just some of the reasons exercise works for mold illness. It flushes mold and mycotoxins out of the fat cells to be eliminated out of the body. So also make sure you are staying hydrated and take your binder after.
Many people with sauna sessions to get their bodies used to elevated body temperature and sweating. Once this is tolerated well, people are encouraged to progress to physical activity that gets the same response. You must find a way to start exercising by moving any way you can. Then, you can build and adjust from there.
The method that worked for me was to walk for 5 minutes straight, just around my house. So, after that I took it outdoors. Then I added 5 minutes to that duration every 2 days, until I was moving continuously for 60 minutes. Then, I was then able to add core exercises. It was a long process and sometimes frustrating, but it helped so much. Taking it slow never caused me undo fatigue or set me back. Each day I progressed, I really felt like I was getting a better handle on my health and regaining some control over my life. That felt so wonderful.
Walking seems to be best to start out with for those of us with mold illness. It will help to get our circulation going to get oxygen to our muscles. That means that later on you can start really working your muscles. Anything that gets your blood pumping will help to awaken the healing mechanisms in your body. Exercising every day is most important. Consistency is key. Sporadic sessions will hurt your body—not help! Consistent, gentle sessions will cause your body to adapt and change.
If you’re suffering from mold toxicity, it’s imperative that you start moving your body every day. Don’t be discouraged by your physical or financial limitations. Vigorous walks, climbing stairs, jumping jacks, and even simply marching in place can help rid your body of mycotoxins. It is a process, but one of the most worthwhile processes that you will do for healing. Exercise is part of your medicine right now and can be part of your cure if you let it work for you.
If you need more help with your mold illness healing, reach out! I am here for you. Go here to set up a breakthrough call with me.
