Nissa Lee Naturopathy

Coming from diverse backgrounds, family situations, jobs and cultures, each MS Ambassador has a unique experience with multiple sclerosis. You can read more on the MS page here “Living with the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis has been the biggest challenge of my life”, is how Nissa Lee describes her diagnosis of multiple sclerosis a decade ago, a neurological disease that effects over 25,000 Australians. Sudden neurological symptoms including difficulty walking, loss of balance, fatigue and pins and needles throughout her body led to a a visit to the emergency department and a consequent diagnosis of multiple sclerosis at the age of twenty-four. The MS Ambassador Program warmly welcomes Nissa Lee to our team who hopes to share with Newcastle how her diagnosis has made her stronger, wiser and a more compassionate person who is daring to hold onto hope.

It has redefined what I see as important in life, how I define success, and has also shaped my understanding of privilege and disadvantage, health and wellbeing. Since then a lot has happened, there have been years of good health and also many ongoing challenges. It’s hard to explain the fear and uncertainty, as well as the fatigue and overwhelm that living with the challenge of a diagnosis of M. S has presented. The goal is to run health promotion programs focusing on improving the quality of life, health and wellbeing for people living with chronic and mental illness in our community.

The past five years of my life has been about learning how to eat to feed my nervous system the nutrients it needs to stay healthy. I also realised that due to all the complex links between the gut and the brain, that to feed my brain I really needed to make sure I had a healthy gut I want to provide practical tips, recipes, food lists and cooking classes on ways you can eat to feed your brain, look after your nervous system, reduce inflammation and balance immunity. The best visual diagram I have come across to show how to eat to feed your nervous system is this one by Terry Wahls.

Stay tuned for upcoming nutritional cooking classes and day retreats for people with M.S and their carers. I also did my Aikido (Japanese martial art) grading, fit in some visits to see special friends, saw lots of people in clinic, and I heard some great success stories with people saying they felt heaps better after seeing me in naturopathy clinic and following their personal wellness care plan. This week is all about prioritising the things that make life worth living- friends, adventures, feasts and bike rides! and if you are ‘sick’ all the more reason to fit in all the good things too- take a break, smell the roses, eat well, rest, get good healthcare..