In this inspiring “Healing Hero” episode, triathlete Maria Phelps shares her remarkable story of resilience. From her battles with bulimia that began due to a coach's misguided comments, to her mysterious symptoms, to her harrowing experience with misdiagnosis, and then to her triumphant recovery from the debilitating autoimmune disease, Sjogren's Syndrome, Maria's story is a testament to the unbreakable human spirit.
Through her powerful personal mantra, "Be the Possible," Maria exemplifies the incredible heights that can be reached with unwavering determination and the willingness to heal. She candidly discusses her challenges, from the darkest depths of her eating disorder to the frustration of doctors dismissing her symptoms, and the miracles, large and small, that led to her healing, along with a combination of medication, dietary changes, spiritual connection, and a strong support system.
Now, as a beacon of hope and inspiration, Maria is passionate about using her experiences to help others who are struggling with eating disorders, autoimmune diseases, or any seemingly insurmountable challenge. Join us for this uplifting and empowering episode that will inspire you to face your own challenges with renewed courage and strength.
Follow Maria on Instagram: @fitmortgagecoach
Website: www.kellybhaney.com
Email: info@kellybhaney.com
Instagram: @kellybhaney
Facebook: Kelly B Haney Wellness
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Kelly B Haney (00:07):
Welcome to the Heal and Stay Healed podcast,
where we talk about healing and,more importantly, staying
healed from chronic disease andother ailments and issues.
We'll cover all the crazythings about health and life the
good, the bad, the ugly and thehilarious.
My name is Kelly and I'm asurvivor and overcomer of severe
(00:31):
autoimmune disease, and I can'twait to share with you what
I've learned so that you canheal and stay healed too.
Thanks for listening and enjoythe show.
Welcome back and thank you somuch for joining me today.
(00:55):
In this episode, we are gracedby the presence of special guest
and healing hero, maria Phelps.
Maria is a mom, mortgage broker, competitive runner, triathlete
and track coach who is here toopenly and vulnerably share her
powerful personal story.
Maria has been through it, toput it lightly, and today she
(01:17):
tells the tale of her tumultuousbattle with the autoimmune
disease Sjogren's syndrome,where one of the hardest parts
of the battle was getting adiagnosis.
But as if that wasn't enough,before her autoimmune challenges
began, maria experienced arelentless struggle with bulimia
.
She shares with us the ups anddowns of her journey, how a
(01:38):
mindset of steadfastperseverance brought her through
the worst of times and how shehas regained her quality of life
, learned from her greatestchallenges and found new purpose
.
Maria has quite a story toshare and she tells it today in
order to help others whostruggle with similar things to
what she has faced, by givingthem hope and letting them know
(01:58):
that they are not alone.
A quick content warning for thisepisode we do discuss eating
disorders in detail, as well astouch on self-harm and suicidal
ideation.
Now let's get started withMaria Phelps.
Hi Maria, welcome to the show.
Maria Phelps (02:17):
Hi, thank you for having me.
It's a pleasure.
Kelly B Haney (02:21):
Thanks so much for being here, really excited
for this conversation today.
Can you tell us a little bitabout yourself, just to get
started?
Where?
Maria Phelps (02:34):
in the world are you and what do you do in your
day-to-day life?
Yeah, so gosh, it's kind offunny.
What sums me up is actually myInstagram handle.
So I'm the Fit mortgage coach.
So I I'm a mortgage broker, soI am half owner to a mortgage
broker shop in Whitefish,montana.
(02:54):
It's called Black DiamondMortgage, and I've been a part
of that company since 2015 andthen became half owner in 2022.
So that portion is fairly new.
But I'm also very active and I'ma triathlon coach and a running
coach and I now have thepleasure of coaching high school
(03:17):
track this year and I'm prettyexcited about that.
I did junior high track lastyear and was able to jump up to
high school track this year.
So I really I like being activeand fit and it's just it was
kind of a fun play on words soI'm a fit mortgage coach.
So that kind of sums it up.
(03:38):
And then I have I have two kidsthat keep me super busy.
My son just turned 18 and mydaughter's 14.
My son is active in sports andmy daughter does horse jumping,
so I feel like we're alwaysdoing something.
Kelly B Haney (03:52):
Yeah, it sounds like a busy life.
Yeah, and I I had theopportunity last summer to get
out your way.
I have a good friend who livesout in Western Montana and that
was my first experience in thatpart of the country at all and I
just have to say how lucky youare that it is otherworldly in
(04:13):
terms of just how beautiful itis out there and you get to
experience that every day.
Maria Phelps (04:18):
Yeah, I mean I grew up here.
I was born and raised in theWhitefish area.
I now live in Columbia Falls.
Born and raised in theWhitefish area, I now live in
Columbia Falls, which is justdown the road, and I love it.
It's funny, though, likegrowing up we lived so far out
of town that I actually I kindof hated it for a while.
(04:40):
So you know, there wasdefinitely a period of time
where living way out of town isreally hard, but just as a young
kid and I didn't really respectthat until I got older and and
now I like it but.
But we don't live way out oftown anymore, but but I love it
now.
Kelly B Haney (04:54):
Okay, Well, one of my favorite questions to ask
people is do you have a favoritequote, short poem or music
lyric that has positivelyinfluenced you or impacted you
that you'd be willing to sharewith us?
Maria Phelps (05:10):
Yeah, so it kind of had been brewing for a couple
years.
But the phrase that I have isit's actually based on scripture
and there's a lot of scripturesin the Bible that talk about,
you know, through God, allthings are possible.
And I just I think it was likelast fall, so maybe like six
(05:32):
months ago this phrase came tobe and I was like, wow, I really
liked that and it just stuckwith me and it's basically be
the possible.
And I just, like you know,through my journey and some of
the things I've been able toaccomplish, it just really
sticks out at me because I knowthat through God, all things are
(05:54):
possible.
But I want to be the possible.
So I actually have it.
I, just for my birthday, I gotit tattooed on my arm.
Nice, yeah, it's just myconstant reminder to that I can.
I can absolutely be thepossible that is talked about in
the Bible so many times.
Kelly B Haney (06:13):
That's really beautiful, be the possible.
I have several inspirationaltattoos myself.
There's no better way to remindyou yourself of something other
than to literally tattoo it onyour body.
So, yeah, that's really nice.
Thank you for sharing.
Well, today you are here, youtell us your story and I just,
(06:35):
first of all, I just want tothank you upfront for being here
and for your willingness toshare what I know firsthand are
things that aren't always easyto revisit or to talk about or
to be open about.
So, on behalf of myself, onbehalf of everyone who is going
to hear this and receivesomething good from it, I just
(06:57):
want to thank you upfront, firstand foremost.
Maria Phelps (07:00):
You're welcome.
Yeah, I'm excited to share.
I am definitely willing toshare with anyone who's willing
to listen, If it helps just oneperson.
You know that's what it means.
Kelly B Haney (07:11):
So 100%, yes.
Well, let's just have you share, let's take it from the top and
have you talk about your wholejourney, and I know we really we
have to go back to high schoolto get started, is that right?
Maria Phelps (07:31):
Yeah, kind of it.
It definitely high school isprobably the starting point.
The one thing that I thinkanyone with an autoimmune
disease has to remember is atleast in my experience and
several other people that I knowis that autoimmune is
definitely not linear.
It doesn't just happen from oneinstance, and so when I look
back at what was going on inhigh school and then college,
(07:53):
like it's all connected, it justtook me a really long time to
realize it.
So, yeah, yeah, I was an athletein high school.
I loved it.
I was always a hard worker.
I was the type that wouldalways win the sprints.
We would be running sideline tosideline and I just I always
worked hard.
I had a really hard work ethic.
(08:14):
I was not as good in school.
Like what really got me throughschool was actually being in
sports.
And then, when track came along, track is so individual that I
was literally able to do all thethings I wanted to do and no
one could stop me.
And so what was really cool?
My freshman year, I actuallygot close to breaking the high
(08:38):
school school record in the myfirst meet as a freshman in
track.
So so I was known for beingable to jump, and so I did end
up breaking the school record,which was really cool, and then
I broke my own record a coupleof times, and so I just I love
(08:58):
track.
And what was really difficultwith track is that, now that I
know what I know, I was notrunning properly by the time my
sophomore year, the end of mysophomore year, I really had a
lot of foot problems, and sowhat was happening is I was
ending up like running funky andso I ended up getting stress
(09:21):
fractures my junior year.
And so I just remember, gosh,after every track meet I would
be icing, and during the trackmeet I was just downing so many
ibuprofen just to try to getthrough the track meet.
And I look back and I'm like,wow, why did the coaches let me
do that?
But I realized that it wasreally easy for me to hide how
(09:45):
much pain I was in, and so thenmy wrist was bothering me from
when I actually was tumbling myfreshman year.
And so I remember going to thedoctor.
So this would have been springof my junior year of high school
and I was kind of just talkingto the doctor about my wrist and
Then I said yeah, and my feethurt a little bit.
(10:05):
Well, they ended up doingx-rays on both.
But then the x-rays and theMRIs on my feet was really bad.
Basically one of my bones wasalmost dead.
When you look at an MRI yourbones look really nice.
That particular, without thatparticular bone is black.
(10:25):
And the doctor was like,literally, if you keep running,
you're going to crush your footand you're not going to be able
to run again.
So I had to have surgery and Ihad surgery literally right
before divisionals and stayedtrack.
My junior year and I justremember sitting on the
sidelines like this is terrible,I'm watching the races that I
should have been winning I wentahead and signed like a letter
(10:49):
of intent to compete at MSU.
So they still wanted me to run,even though they knew my foot
problems.
And so my senior year I had asuccessful year.
I placed at state and, I think,four events.
So I did really well.
But I hurt, I was in a lot ofpain, and so I get to Montana
State, but at the time I don'tthink I was emotionally ready to
(11:14):
be in in college actually.
But then, you know, we startedtraining and so I was doing
school and I was training, butthen I was also trying to make
friends, and college is reallyhard when you're not super
outgoing, like just like beingin that environment was really
(11:35):
hard.
And then you know the coach.
One of the things that he toldme is he's.
It was right before Thanksgiving, my freshman year, and he said
you know, you look strong andyour form is doing well, but you
know, if you can lose a couplepounds, we can probably get your
feet to not hurt so much.
(11:56):
So of course I wanted to nothurt and and he also said, you
know, it'll help you go faster.
So I figured out through thatThanksgiving break that I could
I had a sweet tooth and I said Isaid to him you know, maybe
there's a way I can like stophaving you know sweets.
(12:18):
Well, I figured out that Icould eat sweets but then throw
it up, just fine.
And then so that I went toThanksgiving break.
It was about a week long breakand I came back and I don't
think I actually really lost anyweight.
But I think to him, like, maybeI looked like my, maybe my face
looked a little thinner orsomething I don't know Like, but
(12:41):
in that week he gave mepositive affirmations and he's
like you're looking great, like,keep doing it.
And so that literally justcreated a cycle.
And because I had my own dormspace, I was able to I mean it
was, it was terrible I would, Iwould binge, and then I would go
(13:01):
back to my room and I wouldjust have trash bags and I would
literally throw up in my trashcan and then just take it
outside, like I was literallyable to hide my bulimia really
easily.
So that was my freshman yearand then we started into the
indoor season.
So when you're, when you'retraining for that many events,
(13:24):
you you're doing probably fivehours of work every day.
And so college was really hardfor me because by the time we
got to where we were competing,I had lost some weight.
I, I was jumping better, but Ihad lost weight.
And so, um, there there's a,there's a period of time when
(13:46):
you're a runner that losingweight can help you, but then it
ends up going in the wrongdirection.
And so I was right.
And muscle too, right, right.
Kelly B Haney (13:58):
Exactly.
Maria Phelps (13:59):
Yeah, so when the indoor and outdoor season was
happening, the only thing that Iwas really doing well was the
800, which I think, just becauseI had I had some endurance and
I had stamina, but I was just Iwould take laxatives.
You know like you're supposedto take like two laxatives, I
(14:25):
would take 20, literally likealmost a full box of laxatives.
Cause we would go before thesetrack meets, we would go to
these buffets and you know likemaking sure all the athletes are
fed and I would eat a ton and Iwould puke up as much as I
could and then anything that didmake it in my system I would
try to get rid of it the otherway.
(14:47):
Um, can I interject and justask you some?
Kelly B Haney (14:51):
questions.
Yeah, so you never had an issuewith bulimia until your coach
made this correct what heprobably thought was just a
general comment.
Correct literally that.
Maria Phelps (15:08):
I was.
Yeah, I literally was veryconfident in high school.
I had no problems with food.
I would.
I was strong, like I.
I went, I was in the weightroom, I was eating fine, I I
mean, I had a very goodrelationship with food and I
never it was never a thought ofmine that I would have an eating
(15:32):
disorder at all.
And and it was literally hiscomments and then his
affirmations of like, oh, you'relooking great.
And then, um, so yeah, it itsucks.
Like his, his comments and his,his thoughts of what I needed
to be successful were just superskewed and it's like.
(15:53):
It's like how can someone thinkthat they know what is good for
you, when it's like I know mybody, I know what I feel good?
And when you look at any runner, like you do, you see runners
that are small.
But then you see runners like Ihave literally competed against
women at the worldchampionships for the half
(16:15):
Ironman and they are bigger thanme and that's okay, and they
kick my ass.
Yeah, like, it has nothing todo with size, like, but it just
it makes me so angry that I'mlike wow, like I have personally
seen women who are 20 poundsheavier than me kick my ass.
(16:35):
They're amazing and, and I'veseen them 20 pounds lighter and
they still kick my ass Like it's.
There's no like one way.
And so yeah it, it destroyed me.
And so I competed my my freshmanyear for indoor outdoor season.
I get to summer season, or justthe summer, the off season, and
(16:56):
I started riding a bike a lotand I ended up losing a lot of
weight.
I ended up becoming a littlemore anorexic than I was and
then I ended up almost droppingout of school before school
started, because now everybodyon the team knew what I was
going through.
I ended up leaving the schoolfor about a month, going down to
(17:17):
Wyoming and living with aboyfriend at the time and just
to kind of get my head in theright place.
But it wasn't the right place.
I ended up leaving there,breaking up with him, going back
to school, trying to do trackagain, and then by the time
winter came, so it was rightbefore finals in December of
(17:38):
that year I went to the coachand I said you know if I, if I
could just do the 800, maybe thelong jump, javelin like I don't
think I can train for theheptathlon anymore.
And and at the time I wasactually running faster than his
800 runners.
So I was like, if I can justfocus on a couple things like
that would be great.
But he said no.
(17:59):
And then I called my mom up andI said mom, I want to come home
.
And she said Can you pleasefinish finals?
And so I did.
I finished finals, but yeah it,my.
My college experience was prettycrappy, and then I ended up
just dropping out after threesemesters and coming home.
What was tricky, though, when Icame home, is that when I left
(18:25):
high school, I didn't have thebest experience or best
relationship with my mom, and socoming home to my mom was a
little tough, and we have agreat relationship now, but we
just didn't have the greatestrelationship in high school, and
so, when I came back home, mygoal was to not live there for
(18:47):
very long, and so I ended up wasable to get an apartment and
get a job and kind of get intonormal life, I guess, but I was
still very much bulimic andanorexic.
Kelly B Haney (19:00):
So that didn't change when track went away.
Maria Phelps (19:03):
Yeah, it didn't.
And then I did find a reallygood group of friends.
I met, actually, my now husbandthrough through this process,
and so this was 2003.
And I ended up becomingbecoming a Christian.
I gave my life to Jesus andthat was really cool because I
(19:25):
it was something, that it was apiece of me that was kind of
missing.
It was like when I was incollege I was praying and I was
trying to figure out like I waspraying to somebody like I mean,
I grew up kind of Catholic, butI didn't.
I didn't know anything aboutGod.
And then, but I met this reallycool group of people that
(19:46):
introduced me to a church thatreally just taught me, like, who
God was.
But I was still very bulimic andit was like God did not take it
away and so I had to go througha lot.
Well, actually, in that I wentthrough a lot of healing just
(20:07):
through, kind of like digging upsome old memories and just
trying to heal through some pain.
So I went through a couple ofyears, so that was 2003.
I went through a couple years ofstill being super bulimic,
hiding a lot of stuff, thinkingthat God was going to change
things.
I mean, there was times when Iwould binge 10 to 15 times in a
(20:29):
day, like all my money was goingto food and just trying to just
I don't, I don't even know Likeit's so, like what, some of the
stuff I did I still to this dayI'm just like, why, like?
But I have journals saved and II sometimes will like go look
(20:50):
through them and I was like, wow, I was not in a good place,
like mentally, just um, therewas a time too when I was taking
uh, I was taking likeantidepressants and then I
wasn't sleeping well and Iremember calling my boyfriend
who is now my husband, callinghim and just saying I just took
10 of these pills, and so thenwe had to call the doctor and
(21:15):
and they're like, luckily I tookthe right 10 pills and it was
something that I could handle,but it was like stupid stuff,
like that.
Kelly B Haney (21:24):
You were trying to harm yourself at that point.
Maria Phelps (21:26):
I was.
Yeah, I was like I'm justbecause they were sleeping they
were basically sleeping pills, aform of pills, and I'm just
like I just want to fall asleepand not ever wake up.
Kelly B Haney (21:34):
I mean to live that long with it, to be that
consuming.
You said 10 to 15 times a day.
I mean it's really hard toimagine how you must have felt
after dealing with this for solong.
So significantly, I'm guessingyou felt trapped and
understandably, yeah prettyhopeless in that place.
Maria Phelps (21:57):
It is hard.
It's like it's hard to fathom,like like, literally, you're
sitting over the toilet 15 timesand you're just like it cause.
What happens when you, when youbinge and purge you, you it's
like a dopamine rush, like youliterally get it's.
It's an addiction and like, assoon as you throw up, it's like
(22:18):
a high and then you want itagain and it's, it's so
addicting and it's just.
It's really hard to explain andit's really.
I mean, I have scars on myhands from just shoving my hands
down my throat.
Like that's what makes thissuch a terrible disease, because
people don't understand it.
(22:39):
They don't.
They're like well, why wouldyou do that Like, why would you
keep doing that?
Kelly B Haney (22:43):
When you said it took your money but it also took
so much of your time, of yourfocus, of your attention.
I mean, did you feel justcompletely out of control and
that you got to a point whereyou thought I just want this to
end.
I just want to end it?
Maria Phelps (22:58):
Yeah, and there was like I've had, I've I've had
razors to my wrist sitting inthe bathroom, just like I'm I'm
done, like I can't, I can't dothis anymore and um, it's very,
it's so trapping, like you can't.
And again, like people don'tunderstand, like my parents
didn't understand, my boyfrienddidn't understand, like they
(23:20):
were with me even even again, myhusband now he's like I'll hold
your hair back, like I'm hereto help you, like I just don't.
He didn't know how to help me.
And yeah, I just I wanted torun away and then it, but like,
in that moment you're likeyou're hiding food, you're
sneaking it, you're sticking itin your pockets, like just
(23:43):
stuffing as much as you can, andthen just so you can go to the
bathroom and get it all outagain.
But there was a few, there was afew things that happened during
that period of time.
I kind of talked about my kindof digging up a few things in my
past and healing some of thehurts that I had.
But the other thing thathappened is I was working as a
(24:04):
CNA, so I was working in thehospital and I was actually I
don't know why, but even I thinkit was God at that moment had
allowed me to share my story,even though I was still very
actively bulimic.
So someone who I was talking to, we were just like helping a
patient and they're like, oh,you need to talk to this gal,
(24:26):
patty, she has an eatingdisorder too and she's had it
for a long time or whatever.
So I actually I went and I metwith Patty and I meet this gal.
She's very skinny, like you see, you can tell, her frame is
really skinny and just she's inthese scrubs and just the scrubs
are kind of hanging off of herand her face is really thin and
(24:49):
I mean she, she just she looksreally sick and I.
So I just started talking withher and we met a couple times.
Well, she said something to methat literally just changed my
life.
Actually, she said I havedecided I'm okay with dying
young.
I was like I was taken aback.
(25:11):
I was like I I realized in thatmoment that I was not ready for
that and so that was probably Idon't know probably about six
months before I ended up findingout I was pregnant with my son.
But that was life changing forme, because I was like okay, I
have to figure this out BecauseI do not want to be her, I don't
want to be dealing with thisfor 20 years and I don't want to
(25:34):
accept the fact that I'm goingto die young.
But she did.
She accepted the fact thatshe's going to die young and
that was not going to be me,that was not going to be my
story.
So then, you know, more healinghappened, but then it kind of
the the huge pivotal moment forme and the last time I actually
was actively bulimic was, um,about six weeks after I found
(25:56):
out I was pregnant with my son.
Six weeks after I found out Iwas pregnant with my son, I just
remember I was not feeling welland I go to the doctor and
they're like you're pregnant,and I, of course, freaked out
and I binged and purged.
And then I went and told myboyfriend at the time, like I'm
pregnant, what are you going todo?
And he's like, well, I guesswe'll get married and all this
(26:17):
stuff and um, but then, aboutsix weeks after, I was at at
work and I literally I wasbinging and I go into the
bathroom and I try to throw upand I physically could not.
It was like God was just, likehis hands were wrapped around me
and he's like you are done withthis.
(26:38):
And um, I was, I was crying, Iwas, I was trying, I mean, I had
made myself throw up 10,000times and I just I could not
that day.
And um, that was, that was theturning point for me.
And so, from that moment on, Imean, my son just turned 18.
I, he, I call him my saviorbaby.
(27:00):
He like just, it was the momentwhen I realized, like it's not
just me anymore, it was, I wastrying, I had this life inside
me and it was a really hardpregnancy.
My teeth fell out, like I had.
I had to get some root canalsdone.
Um, I mean, my nutrition wise,I was just like that pregnancy
(27:20):
was hard on me, but now he's 18.
Kelly B Haney (27:24):
I have so many follow up questions.
Yeah, I mean it sounds like,well, you got a miracle, you had
a miracle happen.
Was it literally like that wasthe last time?
Was it not even a struggleafter that point?
Maria Phelps (27:38):
Yeah, it literally was um, I couldn't make myself
throw up anymore and there wasdefinitely moments where, um, I
had I still had issues with food, but it wasn't it wasn't me
trying to make myself throw upanymore, it was more of like, um
, I still had an eating disorder.
I just wasn't actively throwingup anymore Because it took.
(28:02):
It took a long time for me tounderstand the food relationship
was still issue.
Yeah, but yeah, and actually,what has happened?
It doesn't happen as muchanymore, but sometimes I have
dreams and it doesn't happen asmuch anymore.
(28:41):
But sometimes I have dreams andI have visions that I have
thrown up in other instances,where it's almost like the that
I was taking a ton of pain pillsand I ended up throwing up in
the shower and I was just like Iwas screaming at my husband.
I was like I'm bulimic again.
He's like no, you're not,you're sick from the pain
medication.
Like, give, give yourself abreak.
And so, yeah, there wasdefinitely moments like that,
(29:01):
but it was, it was absolutelymiraculous to me.
Kelly B Haney (29:04):
Yeah, such a part of you for so long.
And then to just, yes, youstill had the eating disorder,
but to be free from the activepart of it, that was dangerous,
not just for you but, at thatpoint, for your unborn child.
Even with knowing, like I havethis life inside of me, I have
to protect it.
For you to still just be ableto stop like that is nothing
(29:25):
short of miraculous.
Maria Phelps (29:26):
And I think, like I think part of it now that I've
gone through that and then Ialso went through a similar
story with alcohol that I wasliterally able to just stop one
one day.
I was like you know what?
That was my last drink that Ihad last night.
I'm done, like I think mypersonality is like I'm not a 12
(29:49):
step program type person, I'man all or nothing.
And I have to get to the pointwhere I'm like, okay, I'm done,
I'm ready, like let's go.
And I think not everybody'slike that, everybody's different
.
But yeah, that's kind of the.
The base of my story is reallyis my eating disorder from
(30:10):
college and into gettingpregnant with my son, and then
through that I had my son and mybody was definitely broke down
and I started to have, I startedto have issues, I started to
have pain, I started to have gutproblems.
So it's just interesting, Likewhen I look for the four year
(30:31):
period of time roughly that Iwas four or five years that I
was actively bulimic.
It literally took until likeyear seven probably before it
really affected me to where Icould feel the effects, if that
makes sense, because then, like,we tried to get pregnant with
my daughter and it was reallydifficult.
(30:53):
I was a lot healthier then, Iwas eating better, but I had I
struggled to get pregnant withher.
I had a couple of miscarriagesand um, but then we got pregnant
with her and when, in betweengetting pregnant with my or
having my son and gettingpregnant with my daughter, I
ended up having that wristsurgery.
And so when I look back allthese little things, like I had
(31:16):
a massive infection in my wristand I stayed in the hospital for
three days and so that affectedmy immune system.
And then, okay, now I'm goingto have another baby.
And then so when I would go todoctors and it's like I don't
feel well, I can't like like myjoints hurt, like I don't
understand what's going on.
The one doctor was like, well,you have mono and that's what's
(31:41):
causing the pain.
Well then, years later Irealized like I probably did
have mono, but it was probablyfrom prior and it just mono like
stays in your system.
So these doctors didn't knowwhat to do with me.
They're like just kind ofgrasping for straws, so then
just having some of thoseenvironmental factors and then
(32:02):
moving on later and you knowthat wrist infection.
And then I went through probablylike a five-year period of time
where I was kind of okay, butthen I just, overall, didn't
feel well.
I was always either constipatedor had major diarrhea.
I was like, why can't I benormal?
(32:24):
Like, like, what is going onwith me?
And then there was a turningpoint.
This was in 2017.
I ended up getting a bug biteactually on my leg and it was my
lower calf and that bug bite.
I just remember that onemorning I said I was talking to
(32:44):
my husband.
I was like I, this little bite,like it looked like a spider
bite, but it didn't representitself that way.
So I was like, ah, it'sprobably fine.
Well then it ended up growingto be gosh, the size of a soda
can, like I mean a couple inchesin diameter.
And then I went to the doctorbecause I was like there's this
(33:05):
huge rash on my leg now and theysaid I had eczema.
So they treated me for eczema,but then it started to migrate
and I actually got a patch onboth of my inner thighs and then
it went down my other leg andso it was very systemic and so,
uh again, they sent me to thedermatologist at this point and
(33:26):
they're like you really do haveeczema and I'm like this makes
no sense.
This was a bug bite, like Imean, maybe, maybe it triggered
eczema, but I guess their, theirexplanation was.
I just felt like it wasbullshit.
It just did not make sense tome.
And so then at that point solater in 2017, I ended up going
to my primary doctor and I waslike I just I'm depressed again.
(33:50):
I'm like like things are notworking well in me.
So she gave me Prozac,prescribes Prozac in November of
that year.
Then by March I it was a normalday, everything was fine, I was
getting ready.
They have this big princessball and so my daughter she was
(34:10):
little, super cute, and we weregoing to just get dressed up and
go to this princess ball.
So I'm sitting there and I'mtrying to put mascara on and my
hand started shaking and then,literally like I just went
downhill from there.
It was like something in mybody triggered and I, my hand
was shaking.
(34:31):
I couldn't.
I couldn't do any finedexterity stuff.
My digestion basically shutdown.
I, my stomach was completelydistended.
I couldn't eat anything.
I mean, I couldn't like nothing.
It was like nothing wasdigesting.
I had complete nerve pain downmy whole right side, my legs and
my arms.
(34:51):
Um, I was just, I was inexcruciating pain.
Um, I started drinking morebecause the alcohol was.
I would drink red wine.
The alcohol was starting to.
It would help numb the pain,numb the nerve pain.
And so I went through probablygosh, eight months of just
(35:15):
drinking a lot, going to allthese doctors.
I just remember I did nerveconduction tests.
They thought I had MS for awhile.
They couldn't figure it out.
I had no lesions.
So they're like well, thisisn't the case.
And then they, when they didthe nerve conduction test, that
was actually the last test theydid and they said, well, your
nerves are conducting just fine.
(35:35):
So here's a prescription forProzac.
And I was like no, the lasttime I took Prozac I then had an
autoimmune response, likesomething, and so I was like
hands up in the air, like so,just, I have to stop you for a
second, because you'representing with all these
physical symptoms and you getwritten a prescription for
(35:56):
Prozac.
Kelly B Haney (35:56):
Exactly, and you get written a prescription for
Prozac?
Maria Phelps (35:59):
Exactly, yeah, this will solve the problem.
Because they couldn't likethere was like my autoimmune
markers were actually fine, Likethere was.
I had a few weird blood testsbut, like my, my blood work was
actually okay and so theycouldn't.
They're like no test is showinganything.
(36:20):
So you're crazy.
It's in your head, lady.
Yeah, exactly, exactly so.
Um, so yeah, I was at a pointwhere I was gonna go to another
state to actually I was tryingto figure out find a doctor that
could maybe help me.
But then I randomly ran into arheumatologist that I've
(36:43):
actually I knew because Iactually connected him with my
dad and that's kind of adifferent story.
But he helped my dad get onto agood journey with his healing,
with his autoimmune and stuff.
And I randomly ran into him atthe grocery store and he asked
how my dad was doing and I said,hey, he's, he's actually doing
(37:03):
great, you know, thanks to you,Like you really helped him.
But then he looked at me and hewas like, well, how are you?
I was like, well, I'm actuallynot doing that.
Well, I'm trying to find somedoctors, you know, probably in
Spokane, that can maybe help me.
And he asked me a few questions.
And then he said I think I knowwhat's wrong with you and I
(37:25):
need you to look up this disease, Sjogren's syndrome, and I need
you to let me know what youthink.
But then I want to do sometesting next week in my office
and I looked it up and it madecomplete sense.
Sometimes it affects peoplewith just dry mouth and dry eyes
.
Some people it affects a lotmore with their joints, their
(37:46):
ligaments, their digestion, allthis stuff.
And it was just.
It was like wait a second, isthis literally like what I have?
Because it all made sense, LikeI was, I was starting to read
through some forums and likejust hearing people's
experiences and so um.
So then the next week I wentinto his office and he literally
(38:09):
had just gotten done doing aninternational study on how to
use ultrasound imaging of yourthe glands in your face and neck
to be able to diagnoseSjogren's syndrome.
Because he said that Sjogren'ssyndrome, unfortunately, is one
of those autoimmune disease.
There is a marker for it, butit only represents in that
marker about 50% of the time.
(38:30):
So 50% of the patients don'tactually have a blood autoimmune
marker for it.
And he, but he did theultrasound imaging and found the
lesions in my, in my glands andmy face and neck.
And he's like you, absolutelyhave grade two, Sjogren's
syndrome, and there's three, Iguess.
So, um, so, luckily at the time.
(38:50):
Well I'm I keep thinking, man,if I would have had grade three,
like what did?
What would that look like?
Um, but, uh, but yeah, hestarted me on Plaquenil
hydroxychloroquine.
Kelly B Haney (39:03):
I just want to interrupt one second and talk
more about Sjogren's, becauseSjogren's is one I mean, there's
so many autoimmune diseases.
Now Sjogren's is one that I wasnot that familiar with and when
we had our initial conversationI was like, well, let me learn
more about Sjogren's.
And Sjogren's is, I think, areally good example of just how
(39:26):
crazy autoimmune disease is allacross the board, Because you
look up Sjogren's and it'll say,oh, the symptoms are dry eyes
and dry mouth.
But then, like you said, youdig a little deeper and it's
like no, it's, it's.
It's.
It's way more than that.
It's systemic, it's joint pain,skin rashes, cough, digestive
(39:46):
issues, fatigue, nerve damage,damage to most of your organs,
and it's.
It's just crazy, because yourexperience seems to be very
common, and I know that alsoVenus Williams has Sjogren's.
I had the same experience whereit took I think it took her she
said six and a half years toget a proper diagnosis, and then
(40:10):
I found that on average it cantake up to seven years to
correctly diagnose Sjogren's,and meanwhile you and all these
people out there are justsuffering and being told to take
Prozac, yeah, and meanwhilethis is going on systemically in
your body and you feel like acrazy person.
(40:30):
But it's a very, very realthing.
So how did that feel when youfinally had someone tell you
this is what this is, and you'renot crazy?
Maria Phelps (40:40):
Yeah, no, it was just the relief of that Like it
again, like knowing that I'm notcrazy, okay, it's not in my
head, like these are real thingsthat I'm dealing with.
And and it was scary because,yeah, when you do read about
Sjogren's, um, literally, likeone of the reasons he wanted to
put me on Plaquenil is becausePlaquenil has been used for
(41:03):
years with Sjogren's and that itit actually helps protect the
organs.
He says it's not going tonecessarily help the damage
that's already done, but it'sgoing to help protect future
damage from happening.
And that was super importantfor me because he's he told me
he's like it's going to.
(41:23):
It's going to break down yourgut, it's going to break down
your muscles.
It's going to like because whenyou think about like, if, in
simple terms, like whatSjogren's does is it affects
your mucus and saliva producingglands, well, your mucus and
saliva producing glands areimportant for every system in
your body Everything from, likeyou said, your nerves, your
(41:45):
muscles, your joints, youreverything.
So, as soon as those, if youdon't have that protection, then
it can, literally it can breakdown your liver, it can break
down your intestines, like downyour heart, like all this stuff.
So, having that relief to knowthat I was not crazy, and that
was huge for me and it was, andI think part of that too helps
(42:10):
in my healing, because it'sreally hard to heal when you
don't know what's going on andyou're depressed.
But when it was, it was like Imean I can't say that I was like
instantly better.
It took.
It took probably six to eightweeks on the Plaquenil before I
started to see some change.
(42:30):
But, um, it was like, okay, Inow know what I'm fighting.
Like now, let's, let's fight itand let's out.
And so, um, yeah, he started meon the medication and then with
that, I started doing my ownresearch and was like, okay,
what else can I do?
Because I I don't like justbeing on a medication.
(42:51):
And so that was that was fallof 2018.
And then so 2019, I finally waslike 2018.
And then so 2019, I finally waslike starting to move again.
I mean I went from being activeto not even being able to walk
around the block and so Istarted doing 10 minute walking
workouts and then I did.
I think I did a 5k race in in2019.
(43:15):
And then I started riding abike and then in 20, at the end
of summer 2019, I was feelinggood enough to where I did an 85
mile bike ride by grace.
So that was like I justremember going around it's.
We've got this big reservoircalled Lake Kukanusa, and so the
race is literally just aroundthe whole reservoir and I just
(43:38):
remember I was crying the last10 miles.
I started crying because I waslike this is the farthest I've
ever biked.
First of all, and I literallycouldn't even move last year,
and so just to see thedifference a year had done in my
journey, and then, yeah, andthen, actually, after I rode,
(43:59):
after I did that bike race iswhen, uh, the beginning of 2020,
I decided to do triathlon.
And that's how I got intotriathlon, cause I was like,
well, actually, one of myfriends said, you know, since
you like biking and it's easy onyour body, and that's why I
liked biking, cause it, it wasdefinitely one of those things
that it didn't hurt me as muchas running.
(44:20):
But she's like it's hard to dobike races, like there's not a
lot in Montana, but you could dotriathlon, like there's a few
more triathlon races, and so Iwas like, well then, I have to
learn how to swim.
But I decided to.
I decided to learn how to swimand then I became a triathlete
in 2020.
I decided to learn how to swimand then I became a triathlete
in 2020.
But I still, once I got into2020 and I was starting to be
(44:44):
more active, I still knew thatthere was like I wasn't perfect,
like I I still had things I hadto work through.
So that's when I decided to do alittle more research and maybe
do some allergy testing.
And that's when I actually gotintroduced to a functional nurse
(45:05):
practitioner who got like wedid all the testing.
I mean, I did so many testsbecause that was one of the
things that my rheumatologistsaid.
He said you know, this canaffect your organs.
So you, really you have to doblood work, we have to make sure
your systems are fine.
And so I met up with this galand we did a lot of testing and
(45:27):
we found out that I cannot atall have any gluten at all.
She said you're allergic to thewheat germ Alutin, which is
literally on everything, and soyou really you can't even cross
contaminate.
And then we didn't do a biopsyto see if I was truly celiac,
(45:48):
but she said you have everythingthat would indicate that you
are actually celiac and I don'tthink we need to do the testing
and I'm like that's fine, Idon't want to do another.
I don't want to do another test.
Kelly B Haney (45:59):
You had enough information at that point, no no
gluten, exactly, exactly.
Maria Phelps (46:04):
And so, um, yeah, we did a bunch of tests.
We found out that, yeah, celiac, and then, uh, no dairy and
then a few other things that Iwas pretty sensitive to, and so
I switched up my diet completelyand that was like every time I
did that, I what I was measuringwas actually my performance,
(46:25):
because I started getting moreinto running and being
competitive again, which I guess, like part of that too, is like
I again was super competitiveand I loved it, I loved being
active.
And then my college journeyliterally shot that down for me,
but I still had it inside of meand so, like, once it got taken
(46:49):
away, I realized like now, likethat was really hard because it
was different when, when Icould still go and run or, you
know, do something active, youknow, even though I was like
bulimic or like I had kids orsomething.
But once it all got taken awayfrom me and I literally couldn't
(47:10):
move, that that was really hardfor me.
That was like I don't need, Ican't even imagine it'd be.
It's totally not the same, butit would be similar.
Like you just wake up one dayand you can't, can't walk, and
so I just like like that's how Ifelt, like I was just like I
(47:32):
can't do anything.
Now how do I change this?
And then, like, when all that'staken away from you and then
building back up again, like itwas a really big deal for me.
And so I think, even now, tothis day, I look at it and I'm
like how can I even get better?
I just I keep working towardslike OK, can I get that extra
(47:53):
one or two percent?
And I think, because I waspushed down so far and I was in
such a hole for such a long time, either mentally with my
bulimia or physically when I hadthat flare, I just I still want
to get that one or 2% to seelike how, how much more can I
get?
Kelly B Haney (48:12):
Gratitude must factor in, where you know what
it's like to have what was alifeline for you taken away.
So I can imagine that, as thatwas returning to you slowly but
surely, you must have just beenseeing everything with new eyes.
Sure.
Maria Phelps (48:28):
Yeah, and that's where I like to share my journey
, because I feel like somepeople will look at me and
they'll be like, oh my gosh, Ican't believe you're.
You're running this much.
And I mean now I'm training formy second marathon and all this
stuff.
And I have to remind them like,hey, just because this is what
I'm doing now, like I literallystarted with 10 minute walking
(48:49):
workouts, so don't say you can'tdo.
I mean you don't have to dowhat I do, but you can do a lot
more than you think you can ifyou give your body the tools
that it needs.
And sometimes it takes theright doctors to get the right
tools, takes the right mindset,it takes the patience I mean
(49:09):
just being super patient withyourself.
But yeah, I'm very thankful andI think, like when I share
pieces of my story, like throughsocial media, every time I
share something, people aremessaging me, commenting me on
things like thank you forsharing your story.
I've heard, I've heard peoplelike you know doing their first
(49:31):
5k, just because they're likeyou, encouraged me that I could
do it.
So, yeah, yeah it's, it's cool,it's um.
There's definitely a lot ofgratitude because I know that,
yeah, I could maybe wake upsomeday and not not be able to
walk.
I don't know, I, I, I guess II'm just at a spot where I'm
(49:55):
like, okay, if this is what Ican do right now, I'm going to,
I'm going to try it and see, seewhat happens, and then
encourage others to do it, andwho knows what tomorrow will
bring, but I'm going to do whatI can today.
So well.
Kelly B Haney (50:08):
It certainly sounds to me like you are deep
into the path of healing.
You're hitting it from.
You've mentioned your, yourspiritual healing A lot of times
.
You've worked on your emotionalhealing.
You're certainly working onyour physical healing, and the
fact that now you are at thestage where you are giving back
what you've learned because youcan, you can speak with
(50:29):
authority, not just on yourbattle with autoimmune disease,
but going back to the eatingdisorders like that opens up a
whole nother world of peoplethat can learn from you, be
inspired by you, find hope inyour story.
So it's such a powerful storyon so many levels because you're
not just hitting that oneaudience, you're hitting two for
(50:49):
all the people out there whohave struggled with eating
disorders.
And then the fallout like yousaid, your body was so depleted
that it then led to all theseother things happening.
You're still now a beacon ofhope, because I'm not a
triathlete, most people are nottriathletes and after everything
you've done, you're out therejust crushing it now and loving
every minute of it, and so youare a true inspiration.
(51:13):
Really, you've been through it,maria, like you have been
through it, and you're herebefore me today.
You're.
You're here before me today,smiling.
You're full of life.
I can feel all of your energycoming all the way from Montana
to DC here, so you are just sucha good example to all of us of
someone who didn't give up, whokept going and who learned a lot
(51:35):
about herself along the way,and now you're giving back to
others.
So you are a beautiful person.
Thank you for being here today.
Thank you for being so openwith us.
If people want to reach out toyou, to connect with you, how do
they do?
Maria Phelps (51:51):
Oh for sure, yeah.
So I again.
I'm super open on sharing mystory, giving my examples of
what I did.
I can try to help anybody thatasks.
I'm on Instagram quite a bit.
They can find me at FitMortgage Coach.
I get quite a few people thatare asking me questions about my
story, so I'm happy to share.
Kelly B Haney (52:13):
Thank you so much for being here.
I so appreciate it.
We had an early start time forme.
It was early for me and it wastwo hours earlier for you, which
is impressive.
So I'm going to thank you foryour time and let you get on
with your day, thank you so much.
Maria Phelps (52:27):
I appreciate you.
I'm excited to hear more ofyour podcast.
I've listened to all of them sofar, so keep going.
I think it's great what you'redoing.
Kelly B Haney (52:37):
Thank you so much for joining me today for this
healing hero episode with MariaPhelps.
I highly encourage you tofollow along on her journey and
reach out to her on Instagram atfit mortgage coach.
Thank you so much for listening, and if you received value from
this episode, I humbly ask thatyou support my ability to
produce this podcast bysubscribing, downloading
(52:59):
episodes, rating and reviewing,and please share it with whoever
you think may find value in itas well.
I am so honored to walkalongside of you as we heal and
stay healed together.
Welcome to the Heal and Stay Healed podcast,
where we talk about healing and,more importantly, staying
healed from chronic disease andother ailments and issues.
We'll cover all the crazythings about health and life the
good, the bad, the ugly and thehilarious.
My name is Kelly and I'm asurvivor and overcomer of severe
(00:31):
autoimmune disease, and I can'twait to share with you what
I've learned so that you canheal and stay healed too.
Thanks for listening and enjoythe show.
Welcome back and thank you somuch for joining me today.
(00:55):
In this episode, we are gracedby the presence of special guest
and healing hero, maria Phelps.
Maria is a mom, mortgage broker, competitive runner, triathlete
and track coach who is here toopenly and vulnerably share her
powerful personal story.
Maria has been through it, toput it lightly, and today she
(01:17):
tells the tale of her tumultuousbattle with the autoimmune
disease Sjogren's syndrome,where one of the hardest parts
of the battle was getting adiagnosis.
But as if that wasn't enough,before her autoimmune challenges
began, maria experienced arelentless struggle with bulimia
.
She shares with us the ups anddowns of her journey, how a
(01:38):
mindset of steadfastperseverance brought her through
the worst of times and how shehas regained her quality of life
, learned from her greatestchallenges and found new purpose
.
Maria has quite a story toshare and she tells it today in
order to help others whostruggle with similar things to
what she has faced, by givingthem hope and letting them know
(01:58):
that they are not alone.
A quick content warning for thisepisode we do discuss eating
disorders in detail, as well astouch on self-harm and suicidal
ideation.
Now let's get started withMaria Phelps.
Hi Maria, welcome to the show.
Maria Phelps (02:17):
Hi, thank you for having me.
It's a pleasure.
Kelly B Haney (02:21):
Thanks so much for being here, really excited
for this conversation today.
Can you tell us a little bitabout yourself, just to get
started?
Where?
Maria Phelps (02:34):
in the world are you and what do you do in your
day-to-day life?
Yeah, so gosh, it's kind offunny.
What sums me up is actually myInstagram handle.
So I'm the Fit mortgage coach.
So I I'm a mortgage broker, soI am half owner to a mortgage
broker shop in Whitefish,montana.
(02:54):
It's called Black DiamondMortgage, and I've been a part
of that company since 2015 andthen became half owner in 2022.
So that portion is fairly new.
But I'm also very active and I'ma triathlon coach and a running
coach and I now have thepleasure of coaching high school
(03:17):
track this year and I'm prettyexcited about that.
I did junior high track lastyear and was able to jump up to
high school track this year.
So I really I like being activeand fit and it's just it was
kind of a fun play on words soI'm a fit mortgage coach.
So that kind of sums it up.
(03:38):
And then I have I have two kidsthat keep me super busy.
My son just turned 18 and mydaughter's 14.
My son is active in sports andmy daughter does horse jumping,
so I feel like we're alwaysdoing something.
Kelly B Haney (03:52):
Yeah, it sounds like a busy life.
Yeah, and I I had theopportunity last summer to get
out your way.
I have a good friend who livesout in Western Montana and that
was my first experience in thatpart of the country at all and I
just have to say how lucky youare that it is otherworldly in
(04:13):
terms of just how beautiful itis out there and you get to
experience that every day.
Maria Phelps (04:18):
Yeah, I mean I grew up here.
I was born and raised in theWhitefish area.
I now live in Columbia Falls.
Born and raised in theWhitefish area, I now live in
Columbia Falls, which is justdown the road, and I love it.
It's funny, though, likegrowing up we lived so far out
of town that I actually I kindof hated it for a while.
(04:40):
So you know, there wasdefinitely a period of time
where living way out of town isreally hard, but just as a young
kid and I didn't really respectthat until I got older and and
now I like it but.
But we don't live way out oftown anymore, but but I love it
now.
Kelly B Haney (04:54):
Okay, Well, one of my favorite questions to ask
people is do you have a favoritequote, short poem or music
lyric that has positivelyinfluenced you or impacted you
that you'd be willing to sharewith us?
Maria Phelps (05:10):
Yeah, so it kind of had been brewing for a couple
years.
But the phrase that I have isit's actually based on scripture
and there's a lot of scripturesin the Bible that talk about,
you know, through God, allthings are possible.
And I just I think it was likelast fall, so maybe like six
(05:32):
months ago this phrase came tobe and I was like, wow, I really
liked that and it just stuckwith me and it's basically be
the possible.
And I just, like you know,through my journey and some of
the things I've been able toaccomplish, it just really
sticks out at me because I knowthat through God, all things are
(05:54):
possible.
But I want to be the possible.
So I actually have it.
I, just for my birthday, I gotit tattooed on my arm.
Nice, yeah, it's just myconstant reminder to that I can.
I can absolutely be thepossible that is talked about in
the Bible so many times.
Kelly B Haney (06:13):
That's really beautiful, be the possible.
I have several inspirationaltattoos myself.
There's no better way to remindyou yourself of something other
than to literally tattoo it onyour body.
So, yeah, that's really nice.
Thank you for sharing.
Well, today you are here, youtell us your story and I just,
(06:35):
first of all, I just want tothank you upfront for being here
and for your willingness toshare what I know firsthand are
things that aren't always easyto revisit or to talk about or
to be open about.
So, on behalf of myself, onbehalf of everyone who is going
to hear this and receivesomething good from it, I just
(06:57):
want to thank you upfront, firstand foremost.
Maria Phelps (07:00):
You're welcome.
Yeah, I'm excited to share.
I am definitely willing toshare with anyone who's willing
to listen, If it helps just oneperson.
You know that's what it means.
Kelly B Haney (07:11):
So 100%, yes.
Well, let's just have you share, let's take it from the top and
have you talk about your wholejourney, and I know we really we
have to go back to high schoolto get started, is that right?
Maria Phelps (07:31):
Yeah, kind of it.
It definitely high school isprobably the starting point.
The one thing that I thinkanyone with an autoimmune
disease has to remember is atleast in my experience and
several other people that I knowis that autoimmune is
definitely not linear.
It doesn't just happen from oneinstance, and so when I look
back at what was going on inhigh school and then college,
(07:53):
like it's all connected, it justtook me a really long time to
realize it.
So, yeah, yeah, I was an athletein high school.
I loved it.
I was always a hard worker.
I was the type that wouldalways win the sprints.
We would be running sideline tosideline and I just I always
worked hard.
I had a really hard work ethic.
(08:14):
I was not as good in school.
Like what really got me throughschool was actually being in
sports.
And then, when track came along, track is so individual that I
was literally able to do all thethings I wanted to do and no
one could stop me.
And so what was really cool?
My freshman year, I actuallygot close to breaking the high
(08:38):
school school record in the myfirst meet as a freshman in
track.
So so I was known for beingable to jump, and so I did end
up breaking the school record,which was really cool, and then
I broke my own record a coupleof times, and so I just I love
(08:58):
track.
And what was really difficultwith track is that, now that I
know what I know, I was notrunning properly by the time my
sophomore year, the end of mysophomore year, I really had a
lot of foot problems, and sowhat was happening is I was
ending up like running funky andso I ended up getting stress
(09:21):
fractures my junior year.
And so I just remember, gosh,after every track meet I would
be icing, and during the trackmeet I was just downing so many
ibuprofen just to try to getthrough the track meet.
And I look back and I'm like,wow, why did the coaches let me
do that?
But I realized that it wasreally easy for me to hide how
(09:45):
much pain I was in, and so thenmy wrist was bothering me from
when I actually was tumbling myfreshman year.
And so I remember going to thedoctor.
So this would have been springof my junior year of high school
and I was kind of just talkingto the doctor about my wrist and
Then I said yeah, and my feethurt a little bit.
(10:05):
Well, they ended up doingx-rays on both.
But then the x-rays and theMRIs on my feet was really bad.
Basically one of my bones wasalmost dead.
When you look at an MRI yourbones look really nice.
That particular, without thatparticular bone is black.
(10:25):
And the doctor was like,literally, if you keep running,
you're going to crush your footand you're not going to be able
to run again.
So I had to have surgery and Ihad surgery literally right
before divisionals and stayedtrack.
My junior year and I justremember sitting on the
sidelines like this is terrible,I'm watching the races that I
should have been winning I wentahead and signed like a letter
(10:49):
of intent to compete at MSU.
So they still wanted me to run,even though they knew my foot
problems.
And so my senior year I had asuccessful year.
I placed at state and, I think,four events.
So I did really well.
But I hurt, I was in a lot ofpain, and so I get to Montana
State, but at the time I don'tthink I was emotionally ready to
(11:14):
be in in college actually.
But then, you know, we startedtraining and so I was doing
school and I was training, butthen I was also trying to make
friends, and college is reallyhard when you're not super
outgoing, like just like beingin that environment was really
(11:35):
hard.
And then you know the coach.
One of the things that he toldme is he's.
It was right before Thanksgiving, my freshman year, and he said
you know, you look strong andyour form is doing well, but you
know, if you can lose a couplepounds, we can probably get your
feet to not hurt so much.
(11:56):
So of course I wanted to nothurt and and he also said, you
know, it'll help you go faster.
So I figured out through thatThanksgiving break that I could
I had a sweet tooth and I said Isaid to him you know, maybe
there's a way I can like stophaving you know sweets.
(12:18):
Well, I figured out that Icould eat sweets but then throw
it up, just fine.
And then so that I went toThanksgiving break.
It was about a week long breakand I came back and I don't
think I actually really lost anyweight.
But I think to him, like, maybeI looked like my, maybe my face
looked a little thinner orsomething I don't know Like, but
(12:41):
in that week he gave mepositive affirmations and he's
like you're looking great, like,keep doing it.
And so that literally justcreated a cycle.
And because I had my own dormspace, I was able to I mean it
was, it was terrible I would, Iwould binge, and then I would go
(13:01):
back to my room and I wouldjust have trash bags and I would
literally throw up in my trashcan and then just take it
outside, like I was literallyable to hide my bulimia really
easily.
So that was my freshman yearand then we started into the
indoor season.
So when you're, when you'retraining for that many events,
(13:24):
you you're doing probably fivehours of work every day.
And so college was really hardfor me because by the time we
got to where we were competing,I had lost some weight.
I, I was jumping better, but Ihad lost weight.
And so, um, there there's a,there's a period of time when
(13:46):
you're a runner that losingweight can help you, but then it
ends up going in the wrongdirection.
And so I was right.
And muscle too, right, right.
Kelly B Haney (13:58):
Exactly.
Maria Phelps (13:59):
Yeah, so when the indoor and outdoor season was
happening, the only thing that Iwas really doing well was the
800, which I think, just becauseI had I had some endurance and
I had stamina, but I was just Iwould take laxatives.
You know like you're supposedto take like two laxatives, I
(14:25):
would take 20, literally likealmost a full box of laxatives.
Cause we would go before thesetrack meets, we would go to
these buffets and you know likemaking sure all the athletes are
fed and I would eat a ton and Iwould puke up as much as I
could and then anything that didmake it in my system I would
try to get rid of it the otherway.
(14:47):
Um, can I interject and justask you some?
Kelly B Haney (14:51):
questions.
Yeah, so you never had an issuewith bulimia until your coach
made this correct what heprobably thought was just a
general comment.
Correct literally that.
Maria Phelps (15:08):
I was.
Yeah, I literally was veryconfident in high school.
I had no problems with food.
I would.
I was strong, like I.
I went, I was in the weightroom, I was eating fine, I I
mean, I had a very goodrelationship with food and I
never it was never a thought ofmine that I would have an eating
(15:32):
disorder at all.
And and it was literally hiscomments and then his
affirmations of like, oh, you'relooking great.
And then, um, so yeah, it itsucks.
Like his, his comments and his,his thoughts of what I needed
to be successful were just superskewed and it's like.
(15:53):
It's like how can someone thinkthat they know what is good for
you, when it's like I know mybody, I know what I feel good?
And when you look at any runner, like you do, you see runners
that are small.
But then you see runners like Ihave literally competed against
women at the worldchampionships for the half
(16:15):
Ironman and they are bigger thanme and that's okay, and they
kick my ass.
Yeah, like, it has nothing todo with size, like, but it just
it makes me so angry that I'mlike wow, like I have personally
seen women who are 20 poundsheavier than me kick my ass.
(16:35):
They're amazing and, and I'veseen them 20 pounds lighter and
they still kick my ass Like it's.
There's no like one way.
And so yeah it, it destroyed me.
And so I competed my my freshmanyear for indoor outdoor season.
I get to summer season, or justthe summer, the off season, and
(16:56):
I started riding a bike a lotand I ended up losing a lot of
weight.
I ended up becoming a littlemore anorexic than I was and
then I ended up almost droppingout of school before school
started, because now everybodyon the team knew what I was
going through.
I ended up leaving the schoolfor about a month, going down to
(17:17):
Wyoming and living with aboyfriend at the time and just
to kind of get my head in theright place.
But it wasn't the right place.
I ended up leaving there,breaking up with him, going back
to school, trying to do trackagain, and then by the time
winter came, so it was rightbefore finals in December of
(17:38):
that year I went to the coachand I said you know if I, if I
could just do the 800, maybe thelong jump, javelin like I don't
think I can train for theheptathlon anymore.
And and at the time I wasactually running faster than his
800 runners.
So I was like, if I can justfocus on a couple things like
that would be great.
But he said no.
(17:59):
And then I called my mom up andI said mom, I want to come home
.
And she said Can you pleasefinish finals?
And so I did.
I finished finals, but yeah it,my.
My college experience was prettycrappy, and then I ended up
just dropping out after threesemesters and coming home.
What was tricky, though, when Icame home, is that when I left
(18:25):
high school, I didn't have thebest experience or best
relationship with my mom, and socoming home to my mom was a
little tough, and we have agreat relationship now, but we
just didn't have the greatestrelationship in high school, and
so, when I came back home, mygoal was to not live there for
(18:47):
very long, and so I ended up wasable to get an apartment and
get a job and kind of get intonormal life, I guess, but I was
still very much bulimic andanorexic.
Kelly B Haney (19:00):
So that didn't change when track went away.
Maria Phelps (19:03):
Yeah, it didn't.
And then I did find a reallygood group of friends.
I met, actually, my now husbandthrough through this process,
and so this was 2003.
And I ended up becomingbecoming a Christian.
I gave my life to Jesus andthat was really cool because I
(19:25):
it was something, that it was apiece of me that was kind of
missing.
It was like when I was incollege I was praying and I was
trying to figure out like I waspraying to somebody like I mean,
I grew up kind of Catholic, butI didn't.
I didn't know anything aboutGod.
And then, but I met this reallycool group of people that
(19:46):
introduced me to a church thatreally just taught me, like, who
God was.
But I was still very bulimic andit was like God did not take it
away and so I had to go througha lot.
Well, actually, in that I wentthrough a lot of healing just
(20:07):
through, kind of like digging upsome old memories and just
trying to heal through some pain.
So I went through a couple ofyears, so that was 2003.
I went through a couple years ofstill being super bulimic,
hiding a lot of stuff, thinkingthat God was going to change
things.
I mean, there was times when Iwould binge 10 to 15 times in a
(20:29):
day, like all my money was goingto food and just trying to just
I don't, I don't even know Likeit's so, like what, some of the
stuff I did I still to this dayI'm just like, why, like?
But I have journals saved and II sometimes will like go look
(20:50):
through them and I was like, wow, I was not in a good place,
like mentally, just um, therewas a time too when I was taking
uh, I was taking likeantidepressants and then I
wasn't sleeping well and Iremember calling my boyfriend
who is now my husband, callinghim and just saying I just took
10 of these pills, and so thenwe had to call the doctor and
(21:15):
and they're like, luckily I tookthe right 10 pills and it was
something that I could handle,but it was like stupid stuff,
like that.
Kelly B Haney (21:24):
You were trying to harm yourself at that point.
Maria Phelps (21:26):
I was.
Yeah, I was like I'm justbecause they were sleeping they
were basically sleeping pills, aform of pills, and I'm just
like I just want to fall asleepand not ever wake up.
Kelly B Haney (21:34):
I mean to live that long with it, to be that
consuming.
You said 10 to 15 times a day.
I mean it's really hard toimagine how you must have felt
after dealing with this for solong.
So significantly, I'm guessingyou felt trapped and
understandably, yeah prettyhopeless in that place.
Maria Phelps (21:57):
It is hard.
It's like it's hard to fathom,like like, literally, you're
sitting over the toilet 15 timesand you're just like it cause.
What happens when you, when youbinge and purge you, you it's
like a dopamine rush, like youliterally get it's.
It's an addiction and like, assoon as you throw up, it's like
(22:18):
a high and then you want itagain and it's, it's so
addicting and it's just.
It's really hard to explain andit's really.
I mean, I have scars on myhands from just shoving my hands
down my throat.
Like that's what makes thissuch a terrible disease, because
people don't understand it.
(22:39):
They don't.
They're like well, why wouldyou do that Like, why would you
keep doing that?
Kelly B Haney (22:43):
When you said it took your money but it also took
so much of your time, of yourfocus, of your attention.
I mean, did you feel justcompletely out of control and
that you got to a point whereyou thought I just want this to
end.
I just want to end it?
Maria Phelps (22:58):
Yeah, and there was like I've had, I've I've had
razors to my wrist sitting inthe bathroom, just like I'm I'm
done, like I can't, I can't dothis anymore and um, it's very,
it's so trapping, like you can't.
And again, like people don'tunderstand, like my parents
didn't understand, my boyfrienddidn't understand, like they
(23:20):
were with me even even again, myhusband now he's like I'll hold
your hair back, like I'm hereto help you, like I just don't.
He didn't know how to help me.
And yeah, I just I wanted torun away and then it, but like,
in that moment you're likeyou're hiding food, you're
sneaking it, you're sticking itin your pockets, like just
(23:43):
stuffing as much as you can, andthen just so you can go to the
bathroom and get it all outagain.
But there was a few, there was afew things that happened during
that period of time.
I kind of talked about my kindof digging up a few things in my
past and healing some of thehurts that I had.
But the other thing thathappened is I was working as a
(24:04):
CNA, so I was working in thehospital and I was actually I
don't know why, but even I thinkit was God at that moment had
allowed me to share my story,even though I was still very
actively bulimic.
So someone who I was talking to, we were just like helping a
patient and they're like, oh,you need to talk to this gal,
(24:26):
patty, she has an eatingdisorder too and she's had it
for a long time or whatever.
So I actually I went and I metwith Patty and I meet this gal.
She's very skinny, like you see, you can tell, her frame is
really skinny and just she's inthese scrubs and just the scrubs
are kind of hanging off of herand her face is really thin and
(24:49):
I mean she, she just she looksreally sick and I.
So I just started talking withher and we met a couple times.
Well, she said something to methat literally just changed my
life.
Actually, she said I havedecided I'm okay with dying
young.
I was like I was taken aback.
(25:11):
I was like I I realized in thatmoment that I was not ready for
that and so that was probably Idon't know probably about six
months before I ended up findingout I was pregnant with my son.
But that was life changing forme, because I was like okay, I
have to figure this out BecauseI do not want to be her, I don't
want to be dealing with thisfor 20 years and I don't want to
(25:34):
accept the fact that I'm goingto die young.
But she did.
She accepted the fact thatshe's going to die young and
that was not going to be me,that was not going to be my
story.
So then, you know, more healinghappened, but then it kind of
the the huge pivotal moment forme and the last time I actually
was actively bulimic was, um,about six weeks after I found
(25:56):
out I was pregnant with my son.
Six weeks after I found out Iwas pregnant with my son, I just
remember I was not feeling welland I go to the doctor and
they're like you're pregnant,and I, of course, freaked out
and I binged and purged.
And then I went and told myboyfriend at the time, like I'm
pregnant, what are you going todo?
And he's like, well, I guesswe'll get married and all this
(26:17):
stuff and um, but then, aboutsix weeks after, I was at at
work and I literally I wasbinging and I go into the
bathroom and I try to throw upand I physically could not.
It was like God was just, likehis hands were wrapped around me
and he's like you are done withthis.
(26:38):
And um, I was, I was crying, Iwas, I was trying, I mean, I had
made myself throw up 10,000times and I just I could not
that day.
And um, that was, that was theturning point for me.
And so, from that moment on, Imean, my son just turned 18.
I, he, I call him my saviorbaby.
(27:00):
He like just, it was the momentwhen I realized, like it's not
just me anymore, it was, I wastrying, I had this life inside
me and it was a really hardpregnancy.
My teeth fell out, like I had.
I had to get some root canalsdone.
Um, I mean, my nutrition wise,I was just like that pregnancy
(27:20):
was hard on me, but now he's 18.
Kelly B Haney (27:24):
I have so many follow up questions.
Yeah, I mean it sounds like,well, you got a miracle, you had
a miracle happen.
Was it literally like that wasthe last time?
Was it not even a struggleafter that point?
Maria Phelps (27:38):
Yeah, it literally was um, I couldn't make myself
throw up anymore and there wasdefinitely moments where, um, I
had I still had issues with food, but it wasn't it wasn't me
trying to make myself throw upanymore, it was more of like, um
, I still had an eating disorder.
I just wasn't actively throwingup anymore Because it took.
(28:02):
It took a long time for me tounderstand the food relationship
was still issue.
Yeah, but yeah, and actually,what has happened?
It doesn't happen as muchanymore, but sometimes I have
dreams and it doesn't happen asmuch anymore.
(28:41):
But sometimes I have dreams andI have visions that I have
thrown up in other instances,where it's almost like the that
I was taking a ton of pain pillsand I ended up throwing up in
the shower and I was just like Iwas screaming at my husband.
I was like I'm bulimic again.
He's like no, you're not,you're sick from the pain
medication.
Like, give, give yourself abreak.
And so, yeah, there wasdefinitely moments like that,
(29:01):
but it was, it was absolutelymiraculous to me.
Kelly B Haney (29:04):
Yeah, such a part of you for so long.
And then to just, yes, youstill had the eating disorder,
but to be free from the activepart of it, that was dangerous,
not just for you but, at thatpoint, for your unborn child.
Even with knowing, like I havethis life inside of me, I have
to protect it.
For you to still just be ableto stop like that is nothing
(29:25):
short of miraculous.
Maria Phelps (29:26):
And I think, like I think part of it now that I've
gone through that and then Ialso went through a similar
story with alcohol that I wasliterally able to just stop one
one day.
I was like you know what?
That was my last drink that Ihad last night.
I'm done, like I think mypersonality is like I'm not a 12
(29:49):
step program type person, I'man all or nothing.
And I have to get to the pointwhere I'm like, okay, I'm done,
I'm ready, like let's go.
And I think not everybody'slike that, everybody's different
.
But yeah, that's kind of the.
The base of my story is reallyis my eating disorder from
(30:10):
college and into gettingpregnant with my son, and then
through that I had my son and mybody was definitely broke down
and I started to have, I startedto have issues, I started to
have pain, I started to have gutproblems.
So it's just interesting, Likewhen I look for the four year
(30:31):
period of time roughly that Iwas four or five years that I
was actively bulimic.
It literally took until likeyear seven probably before it
really affected me to where Icould feel the effects, if that
makes sense, because then, like,we tried to get pregnant with
my daughter and it was reallydifficult.
(30:53):
I was a lot healthier then, Iwas eating better, but I had I
struggled to get pregnant withher.
I had a couple of miscarriagesand um, but then we got pregnant
with her and when, in betweengetting pregnant with my or
having my son and gettingpregnant with my daughter, I
ended up having that wristsurgery.
And so when I look back allthese little things, like I had
(31:16):
a massive infection in my wristand I stayed in the hospital for
three days and so that affectedmy immune system.
And then, okay, now I'm goingto have another baby.
And then so when I would go todoctors and it's like I don't
feel well, I can't like like myjoints hurt, like I don't
understand what's going on.
The one doctor was like, well,you have mono and that's what's
(31:41):
causing the pain.
Well then, years later Irealized like I probably did
have mono, but it was probablyfrom prior and it just mono like
stays in your system.
So these doctors didn't knowwhat to do with me.
They're like just kind ofgrasping for straws, so then
just having some of thoseenvironmental factors and then
(32:02):
moving on later and you knowthat wrist infection.
And then I went through probablylike a five-year period of time
where I was kind of okay, butthen I just, overall, didn't
feel well.
I was always either constipatedor had major diarrhea.
I was like, why can't I benormal?
(32:24):
Like, like, what is going onwith me?
And then there was a turningpoint.
This was in 2017.
I ended up getting a bug biteactually on my leg and it was my
lower calf and that bug bite.
I just remember that onemorning I said I was talking to
(32:44):
my husband.
I was like I, this little bite,like it looked like a spider
bite, but it didn't representitself that way.
So I was like, ah, it'sprobably fine.
Well then it ended up growingto be gosh, the size of a soda
can, like I mean a couple inchesin diameter.
And then I went to the doctorbecause I was like there's this
(33:05):
huge rash on my leg now and theysaid I had eczema.
So they treated me for eczema,but then it started to migrate
and I actually got a patch onboth of my inner thighs and then
it went down my other leg andso it was very systemic and so,
uh again, they sent me to thedermatologist at this point and
(33:26):
they're like you really do haveeczema and I'm like this makes
no sense.
This was a bug bite, like Imean, maybe, maybe it triggered
eczema, but I guess their, theirexplanation was.
I just felt like it wasbullshit.
It just did not make sense tome.
And so then at that point solater in 2017, I ended up going
to my primary doctor and I waslike I just I'm depressed again.
(33:50):
I'm like like things are notworking well in me.
So she gave me Prozac,prescribes Prozac in November of
that year.
Then by March I it was a normalday, everything was fine, I was
getting ready.
They have this big princessball and so my daughter she was
(34:10):
little, super cute, and we weregoing to just get dressed up and
go to this princess ball.
So I'm sitting there and I'mtrying to put mascara on and my
hand started shaking and then,literally like I just went
downhill from there.
It was like something in mybody triggered and I, my hand
was shaking.
(34:31):
I couldn't.
I couldn't do any finedexterity stuff.
My digestion basically shutdown.
I, my stomach was completelydistended.
I couldn't eat anything.
I mean, I couldn't like nothing.
It was like nothing wasdigesting.
I had complete nerve pain downmy whole right side, my legs and
my arms.
(34:51):
Um, I was just, I was inexcruciating pain.
Um, I started drinking morebecause the alcohol was.
I would drink red wine.
The alcohol was starting to.
It would help numb the pain,numb the nerve pain.
And so I went through probablygosh, eight months of just
(35:15):
drinking a lot, going to allthese doctors.
I just remember I did nerveconduction tests.
They thought I had MS for awhile.
They couldn't figure it out.
I had no lesions.
So they're like well, thisisn't the case.
And then they, when they didthe nerve conduction test, that
was actually the last test theydid and they said, well, your
nerves are conducting just fine.
(35:35):
So here's a prescription forProzac.
And I was like no, the lasttime I took Prozac I then had an
autoimmune response, likesomething, and so I was like
hands up in the air, like so,just, I have to stop you for a
second, because you'representing with all these
physical symptoms and you getwritten a prescription for
(35:56):
Prozac.
Kelly B Haney (35:56):
Exactly, and you get written a prescription for
Prozac?
Maria Phelps (35:59):
Exactly, yeah, this will solve the problem.
Because they couldn't likethere was like my autoimmune
markers were actually fine, Likethere was.
I had a few weird blood testsbut, like my, my blood work was
actually okay and so theycouldn't.
They're like no test is showinganything.
(36:20):
So you're crazy.
It's in your head, lady.
Yeah, exactly, exactly so.
Um, so yeah, I was at a pointwhere I was gonna go to another
state to actually I was tryingto figure out find a doctor that
could maybe help me.
But then I randomly ran into arheumatologist that I've
(36:43):
actually I knew because Iactually connected him with my
dad and that's kind of adifferent story.
But he helped my dad get onto agood journey with his healing,
with his autoimmune and stuff.
And I randomly ran into him atthe grocery store and he asked
how my dad was doing and I said,hey, he's, he's actually doing
(37:03):
great, you know, thanks to you,Like you really helped him.
But then he looked at me and hewas like, well, how are you?
I was like, well, I'm actuallynot doing that.
Well, I'm trying to find somedoctors, you know, probably in
Spokane, that can maybe help me.
And he asked me a few questions.
And then he said I think I knowwhat's wrong with you and I
(37:25):
need you to look up this disease, Sjogren's syndrome, and I need
you to let me know what youthink.
But then I want to do sometesting next week in my office
and I looked it up and it madecomplete sense.
Sometimes it affects peoplewith just dry mouth and dry eyes
.
Some people it affects a lotmore with their joints, their
(37:46):
ligaments, their digestion, allthis stuff.
And it was just.
It was like wait a second, isthis literally like what I have?
Because it all made sense, LikeI was, I was starting to read
through some forums and likejust hearing people's
experiences and so um.
So then the next week I wentinto his office and he literally
(38:09):
had just gotten done doing aninternational study on how to
use ultrasound imaging of yourthe glands in your face and neck
to be able to diagnoseSjogren's syndrome.
Because he said that Sjogren'ssyndrome, unfortunately, is one
of those autoimmune disease.
There is a marker for it, butit only represents in that
marker about 50% of the time.
(38:30):
So 50% of the patients don'tactually have a blood autoimmune
marker for it.
And he, but he did theultrasound imaging and found the
lesions in my, in my glands andmy face and neck.
And he's like you, absolutelyhave grade two, Sjogren's
syndrome, and there's three, Iguess.
So, um, so, luckily at the time.
(38:50):
Well I'm I keep thinking, man,if I would have had grade three,
like what did?
What would that look like?
Um, but, uh, but yeah, hestarted me on Plaquenil
hydroxychloroquine.
Kelly B Haney (39:03):
I just want to interrupt one second and talk
more about Sjogren's, becauseSjogren's is one I mean, there's
so many autoimmune diseases.
Now Sjogren's is one that I wasnot that familiar with and when
we had our initial conversationI was like, well, let me learn
more about Sjogren's.
And Sjogren's is, I think, areally good example of just how
(39:26):
crazy autoimmune disease is allacross the board, Because you
look up Sjogren's and it'll say,oh, the symptoms are dry eyes
and dry mouth.
But then, like you said, youdig a little deeper and it's
like no, it's, it's.
It's.
It's way more than that.
It's systemic, it's joint pain,skin rashes, cough, digestive
(39:46):
issues, fatigue, nerve damage,damage to most of your organs,
and it's.
It's just crazy, because yourexperience seems to be very
common, and I know that alsoVenus Williams has Sjogren's.
I had the same experience whereit took I think it took her she
said six and a half years toget a proper diagnosis, and then
(40:10):
I found that on average it cantake up to seven years to
correctly diagnose Sjogren's,and meanwhile you and all these
people out there are justsuffering and being told to take
Prozac, yeah, and meanwhilethis is going on systemically in
your body and you feel like acrazy person.
(40:30):
But it's a very, very realthing.
So how did that feel when youfinally had someone tell you
this is what this is, and you'renot crazy?
Maria Phelps (40:40):
Yeah, no, it was just the relief of that Like it
again, like knowing that I'm notcrazy, okay, it's not in my
head, like these are real thingsthat I'm dealing with.
And and it was scary because,yeah, when you do read about
Sjogren's, um, literally, likeone of the reasons he wanted to
put me on Plaquenil is becausePlaquenil has been used for
(41:03):
years with Sjogren's and that itit actually helps protect the
organs.
He says it's not going tonecessarily help the damage
that's already done, but it'sgoing to help protect future
damage from happening.
And that was super importantfor me because he's he told me
he's like it's going to.
(41:23):
It's going to break down yourgut, it's going to break down
your muscles.
It's going to like because whenyou think about like, if, in
simple terms, like whatSjogren's does is it affects
your mucus and saliva producingglands, well, your mucus and
saliva producing glands areimportant for every system in
your body Everything from, likeyou said, your nerves, your
(41:45):
muscles, your joints, youreverything.
So, as soon as those, if youdon't have that protection, then
it can, literally it can breakdown your liver, it can break
down your intestines, like downyour heart, like all this stuff.
So, having that relief to knowthat I was not crazy, and that
was huge for me and it was, andI think part of that too helps
(42:10):
in my healing, because it'sreally hard to heal when you
don't know what's going on andyou're depressed.
But when it was, it was like Imean I can't say that I was like
instantly better.
It took.
It took probably six to eightweeks on the Plaquenil before I
started to see some change.
(42:30):
But, um, it was like, okay, Inow know what I'm fighting.
Like now, let's, let's fight itand let's out.
And so, um, yeah, he started meon the medication and then with
that, I started doing my ownresearch and was like, okay,
what else can I do?
Because I I don't like justbeing on a medication.
(42:51):
And so that was that was fallof 2018.
And then so 2019, I finally waslike 2018.
And then so 2019, I finally waslike starting to move again.
I mean I went from being activeto not even being able to walk
around the block and so Istarted doing 10 minute walking
workouts and then I did.
I think I did a 5k race in in2019.
(43:15):
And then I started riding abike and then in 20, at the end
of summer 2019, I was feelinggood enough to where I did an 85
mile bike ride by grace.
So that was like I justremember going around it's.
We've got this big reservoircalled Lake Kukanusa, and so the
race is literally just aroundthe whole reservoir and I just
(43:38):
remember I was crying the last10 miles.
I started crying because I waslike this is the farthest I've
ever biked.
First of all, and I literallycouldn't even move last year,
and so just to see thedifference a year had done in my
journey, and then, yeah, andthen, actually, after I rode,
(43:59):
after I did that bike race iswhen, uh, the beginning of 2020,
I decided to do triathlon.
And that's how I got intotriathlon, cause I was like,
well, actually, one of myfriends said, you know, since
you like biking and it's easy onyour body, and that's why I
liked biking, cause it, it wasdefinitely one of those things
that it didn't hurt me as muchas running.
(44:20):
But she's like it's hard to dobike races, like there's not a
lot in Montana, but you could dotriathlon, like there's a few
more triathlon races, and so Iwas like, well then, I have to
learn how to swim.
But I decided to.
I decided to learn how to swimand then I became a triathlete
in 2020.
I decided to learn how to swimand then I became a triathlete
in 2020.
But I still, once I got into2020 and I was starting to be
(44:44):
more active, I still knew thatthere was like I wasn't perfect,
like I I still had things I hadto work through.
So that's when I decided to do alittle more research and maybe
do some allergy testing.
And that's when I actually gotintroduced to a functional nurse
(45:05):
practitioner who got like wedid all the testing.
I mean, I did so many testsbecause that was one of the
things that my rheumatologistsaid.
He said you know, this canaffect your organs.
So you, really you have to doblood work, we have to make sure
your systems are fine.
And so I met up with this galand we did a lot of testing and
(45:27):
we found out that I cannot atall have any gluten at all.
She said you're allergic to thewheat germ Alutin, which is
literally on everything, and soyou really you can't even cross
contaminate.
And then we didn't do a biopsyto see if I was truly celiac,
(45:48):
but she said you have everythingthat would indicate that you
are actually celiac and I don'tthink we need to do the testing
and I'm like that's fine, Idon't want to do another.
I don't want to do another test.
Kelly B Haney (45:59):
You had enough information at that point, no no
gluten, exactly, exactly.
Maria Phelps (46:04):
And so, um, yeah, we did a bunch of tests.
We found out that, yeah, celiac, and then, uh, no dairy and
then a few other things that Iwas pretty sensitive to, and so
I switched up my diet completelyand that was like every time I
did that, I what I was measuringwas actually my performance,
(46:25):
because I started getting moreinto running and being
competitive again, which I guess, like part of that too, is like
I again was super competitiveand I loved it, I loved being
active.
And then my college journeyliterally shot that down for me,
but I still had it inside of meand so, like, once it got taken
(46:49):
away, I realized like now, likethat was really hard because it
was different when, when Icould still go and run or, you
know, do something active, youknow, even though I was like
bulimic or like I had kids orsomething.
But once it all got taken awayfrom me and I literally couldn't
(47:10):
move, that that was really hardfor me.
That was like I don't need, Ican't even imagine it'd be.
It's totally not the same, butit would be similar.
Like you just wake up one dayand you can't, can't walk, and
so I just like like that's how Ifelt, like I was just like I
(47:32):
can't do anything.
Now how do I change this?
And then, like, when all that'staken away from you and then
building back up again, like itwas a really big deal for me.
And so I think, even now, tothis day, I look at it and I'm
like how can I even get better?
I just I keep working towardslike OK, can I get that extra
(47:53):
one or two percent?
And I think, because I waspushed down so far and I was in
such a hole for such a long time, either mentally with my
bulimia or physically when I hadthat flare, I just I still want
to get that one or 2% to seelike how, how much more can I
get?
Kelly B Haney (48:12):
Gratitude must factor in, where you know what
it's like to have what was alifeline for you taken away.
So I can imagine that, as thatwas returning to you slowly but
surely, you must have just beenseeing everything with new eyes.
Sure.
Maria Phelps (48:28):
Yeah, and that's where I like to share my journey
, because I feel like somepeople will look at me and
they'll be like, oh my gosh, Ican't believe you're.
You're running this much.
And I mean now I'm training formy second marathon and all this
stuff.
And I have to remind them like,hey, just because this is what
I'm doing now, like I literallystarted with 10 minute walking
(48:49):
workouts, so don't say you can'tdo.
I mean you don't have to dowhat I do, but you can do a lot
more than you think you can ifyou give your body the tools
that it needs.
And sometimes it takes theright doctors to get the right
tools, takes the right mindset,it takes the patience I mean
(49:09):
just being super patient withyourself.
But yeah, I'm very thankful andI think, like when I share
pieces of my story, like throughsocial media, every time I
share something, people aremessaging me, commenting me on
things like thank you forsharing your story.
I've heard, I've heard peoplelike you know doing their first
(49:31):
5k, just because they're likeyou, encouraged me that I could
do it.
So, yeah, yeah it's, it's cool,it's um.
There's definitely a lot ofgratitude because I know that,
yeah, I could maybe wake upsomeday and not not be able to
walk.
I don't know, I, I, I guess II'm just at a spot where I'm
(49:55):
like, okay, if this is what Ican do right now, I'm going to,
I'm going to try it and see, seewhat happens, and then
encourage others to do it, andwho knows what tomorrow will
bring, but I'm going to do whatI can today.
So well.
Kelly B Haney (50:08):
It certainly sounds to me like you are deep
into the path of healing.
You're hitting it from.
You've mentioned your, yourspiritual healing A lot of times
.
You've worked on your emotionalhealing.
You're certainly working onyour physical healing, and the
fact that now you are at thestage where you are giving back
what you've learned because youcan, you can speak with
(50:29):
authority, not just on yourbattle with autoimmune disease,
but going back to the eatingdisorders like that opens up a
whole nother world of peoplethat can learn from you, be
inspired by you, find hope inyour story.
So it's such a powerful storyon so many levels because you're
not just hitting that oneaudience, you're hitting two for
(50:49):
all the people out there whohave struggled with eating
disorders.
And then the fallout like yousaid, your body was so depleted
that it then led to all theseother things happening.
You're still now a beacon ofhope, because I'm not a
triathlete, most people are nottriathletes and after everything
you've done, you're out therejust crushing it now and loving
every minute of it, and so youare a true inspiration.
(51:13):
Really, you've been through it,maria, like you have been
through it, and you're herebefore me today.
You're.
You're here before me today,smiling.
You're full of life.
I can feel all of your energycoming all the way from Montana
to DC here, so you are just sucha good example to all of us of
someone who didn't give up, whokept going and who learned a lot
(51:35):
about herself along the way,and now you're giving back to
others.
So you are a beautiful person.
Thank you for being here today.
Thank you for being so openwith us.
If people want to reach out toyou, to connect with you, how do
they do?
Maria Phelps (51:51):
Oh for sure, yeah.
So I again.
I'm super open on sharing mystory, giving my examples of
what I did.
I can try to help anybody thatasks.
I'm on Instagram quite a bit.
They can find me at FitMortgage Coach.
I get quite a few people thatare asking me questions about my
story, so I'm happy to share.
Kelly B Haney (52:13):
Thank you so much for being here.
I so appreciate it.
We had an early start time forme.
It was early for me and it wastwo hours earlier for you, which
is impressive.
So I'm going to thank you foryour time and let you get on
with your day, thank you so much.
Maria Phelps (52:27):
I appreciate you.
I'm excited to hear more ofyour podcast.
I've listened to all of them sofar, so keep going.
I think it's great what you'redoing.
Kelly B Haney (52:37):
Thank you so much for joining me today for this
healing hero episode with MariaPhelps.
I highly encourage you tofollow along on her journey and
reach out to her on Instagram atfit mortgage coach.
Thank you so much for listening, and if you received value from
this episode, I humbly ask thatyou support my ability to
produce this podcast bysubscribing, downloading
(52:59):
episodes, rating and reviewing,and please share it with whoever
you think may find value in itas well.
I am so honored to walkalongside of you as we heal and
stay healed together.
Popular Podcasts
Cold Case Files: Miami
Joyce Sapp, 76; Bryan Herrera, 16; and Laurance Webb, 32—three Miami residents whose lives were stolen in brutal, unsolved homicides. Cold Case Files: Miami follows award‑winning radio host and City of Miami Police reserve officer Enrique Santos as he partners with the department’s Cold Case Homicide Unit, determined family members, and the advocates who spend their lives fighting for justice for the victims who can no longer fight for themselves.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.