Filmmaking, writing, and...speaking about C. diff, the importance of a healthy gut microbiome, and the dangers of antibiotic overuse? I know, it's an eclectic mishmash, but once you get to know me, it all makes perfect sense.

Over the past few years I've had the privilege of sharing the stage with prestigious scientists and world-renowned doctors, as well as with other patient advocates. My footsteps in this world began in 2019, while on antibiotics to treat a sinus infection, I contracted Clostridioides difficile (C. diff), which is a resilient mother f'er of a super contagious bacterium that takes up residence in your gut causing dangerous swelling of the colon, extreme abdominal pain, fever, diarrhea, and vomiting.  After an initial round of antibiotics, I relapsed and spent a week in isolation in the hospital with sepsis. I almost died. You can read about that experience here: Girls Don't Poop: My Battle with the Superbug C. diff.

Two weeks after I was discharged from the hospital, I relapsed again. At this point I was given the gift of life through a fecal microbial transplant (FMT), which is when stool from a healthy donor is transplanted into a sick patient's large intestine, thus repopulating my microbiome with diverse good bacteria that smothered out the C. diff bacteria that was making me sick. You can read about that experience here: My Fecal Transplant, Your Immune System, and Covid-19.

With the FMT, I was cured immediately. Not only that, my gut is now healthier than it has been in my adult life, and my immune system has felt supercharged. Did you know that 70% of your immune system is housed in your GI tract? Not only that, but 95% of serotonin and 50% of dopamine is manufactured by your gut bacteria. This means that having a healthy gut not only gives your immune system a head start when you get sick, but it can also help regulate your emotions as you navigate this complex world we are now living in.  So, now I'm passionate about maintaining the health of my gut by giving it lots of TLC by eating prebiotic foods (these feed the good bacteria in your gut) and probiotic foods such as kefir,  kombucha, and lots of sauerkraut and other fermented foods.

These days I'm driven to use my voice and experience to educate others about C. diff and the dangers of antibiotic overuse (a practice that not only leads to antibiotic resistant bacteria, but also kills the good bacteria in your gut, leaving you defenseless against dangerous superbugs like C. diff), about the importance of eating for gut health, as well as hammering home the point that you should always always always wash your hands with soap and water after you use the bathroom and before you eat. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers will not kill C. Diff, so soap up and sing the ABCs while you scrub away (that’s about the time it takes to really get your hands clean).

I'm a proud member of the Peggy Lillis Foundation's Advocate's Council, which has afforded me the opportunity to lobby Congress, co-author a C. diff Nutrition and Lifestyle Guide, speak publicly, provide peer support to people who have been diagnosed with this disease, and to speak at three different FDA hearings. In 2022 I was honored to receive the Peggy Lillis Foundation's Advocate Award, which recognized my efforts to raise C. diff awareness and to advocate for patients.

I've also served as a C. diff spokesperson for Ferring Pharmaceuticals, which recently received the FDA's first-ever approval of a microbiota-based treatment for C. diff. It's an exciting time for harnessing the power of the human microbiome to treat disease, and I'm grateful to add my voice to the choir.