I have always had a sensitive gut. Even before everything fell apart, I had been living with digestive issues and SIBO, a condition where excess gas builds up in the small intestine. It was manageable until it wasn't.
In June 2023, I caught COVID. After that, my gut completely collapsed. I was dealing with diarrhea every single day. I was referred to Toranomon Hospital, one of Japan's most reputable hospitals, and underwent every test they offered. The result?
"Nothing wrong."
I was sent home with no answers and no path forward.
I was desperate. My English is limited, but I started searching on YouTube anyway, typing in "IBS" and watching whatever came up with subtitles on. That is how I found the carnivore diet. And that is how I found Dr. Anthony Chaffee.
I could barely understand what he was saying, but I kept watching. I kept rewinding. I kept reading subtitles. Slowly, it started to make sense.
I started the carnivore diet and joined Dr. Chaffee's Patreon community in April 2024. The early months were brutal. Fat adaptation took me nearly two years. I was still dealing with diarrhea four or five times a week. But I did not quit, partly because of the support from people in this community who answered my questions, shared their experiences, and kept me going.
Living in Japan made everything harder. There is almost no carnivore information available in Japanese. None of my friends or family understood what I was doing.
"Your cholesterol will go through the roof,"
they said. Eating out with people became nearly impossible. I felt completely alone in this.
But I kept going. And slowly, things changed, both in my health and in the people around me. Last month, a group of Japanese friends chose a steakhouse specifically for me. That meant everything.
Here is where I am today:
- Diarrhea has dropped from four or five times a week to two or three times a month.
- The brain fog that had clouded my thinking for years, partly from ADHD, is almost completely gone.
- I have more focus than I have ever had.
- I recover faster after strength training.
- I no longer get irritable when hungry.
- Joint pain, which I had accepted as normal, has disappeared.
- My triglycerides, which were previously elevated, have normalized.
- My weight has gone from 78 kg down to 68 kg.
There are unexpected benefits, too. I no longer have to think about what to cook. I buy meat in bulk online, since Japanese supermarkets carry very little, and I grill it. That is the whole meal. The mental load of planning, shopping, and preparing food has almost disappeared. My grocery bill has gone down. I have time back in my day.
Before carnivore, I was eating what I thought was healthy: nuts, avocado, vegetable juice, and oatmeal. All the things people said were good for you. It was making me worse.
I went from being obese to a healthy weight. I went from daily suffering to actual hope.
I am now planning to try the Lion Diet next.
None of this would have happened without this community. Dr. Chaffee's Patreon got me started, and the Mighty community has kept me going. For anyone reading this who is struggling and feels alone, especially if you are somewhere like Japan, where carnivore is almost unheard of, please know that it is possible to keep going. It may be hard at first. People around you may not understand. But the other side exists.
I am proof of that.
