Heather Shover
Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach (FMCHC)
Neuroacoustic Sound Therapy Practitioner
Holistic Health Practitioner
Certified Emotion Code Practitioner
Certified Touch for Health Practitioner
Brainwave Entrainment Specialist
Hello my web friend and welcome!!
I am so excited to share my journey through eczema, Topical Steroid Withdrawal, and leaky gut / SIBO with you! YOU are the reason I started this website. For those of you suffering with eczema, gut issues, autoimmune diseases, or any other chronic health issues, my hope is that the information on this website will lead you to your path of healing. I have experienced the beautiful healing effects of Functional Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Sound Healing, Energy Medicine, Yoga, Ayurveda, Reiki and more, and sharing this information with you gives me an inner joy that is hard to explain.
“I couldn’t shake hands with people and, what’s worse, I couldn’t give my sweet children a bath because even something as harmless as water was far too painful.”
I used steroid creams for over 25 years to treat eczema on my hands and it eventually reached a point where it covered both hands and all ten fingers and formed little oozing, painful blisters under the skin. I couldn’t shake hands with people and, what’s worse, I couldn’t give my sweet children a bath because even something as harmless as water was far too painful. The steroid creams clearly were not healing the problem and I later discovered that they may have been causing the rash to worsen over time. I believe my skin became addicted to steroid creams!
I also struggled with leaky gut and SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth) that was possibly caused by overuse of antibiotics. In 2010, my OB/GYN put me on a daily antibiotic for 8 months of my pregnancy and then in 2014 my dermatologist put me on a daily antibiotic to treat the eczema. SIBO is very difficult to treat and many believe that SIBO is actually the root cause behind most Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) cases.
I stopped all antibiotics and all steroid creams on February 8, 2015 and that was the first day of the rest of my life. What followed was an excruciating Topical Steroid Withdrawal (TSW) period, a dramatic diet and lifestyle change, and an enormous amount of learning and enlightenment. Please note that I am not a doctor and do not recommend stopping any prescription medications without first consulting with a qualified doctor.
The Topical Steroid Withdrawal (TSW) period typically lasts between one and three years and people often have to quit their jobs, spend hours in the bathtub for relief, and tie their hands at night so they don’t scratch the uncontrollable itch in their sleep. The rash often spreads full body, regardless of where the creams were used, and the sufferer typically experiences extreme pain, swelling, oozing, nerve zingers, fatigue, and many other debilitating symptoms. Visit ITSAN.org for more information about Topical Steroid Withdrawal.
“Functional Medicine sped my healing and significantly shortened my withdrawal period. “
I was well on my way down this path during my steroid withdrawal period … and then I found Functional Medicine. I believe Functional Medicine sped my healing and significantly shortened my withdrawal period. I have made it my mission to spread information about Functional Medicine and other healing modalities to TSW warriors and to all people who are experiencing any type of chronic medical condition.
Today, I feel i.n.c.r.e.d.i.b.l.e.!!
So THIS is how we are supposed to feel?!?! I had no idea how bad I felt until I had something this good to compare it to! Before starting this journey, I thought I was a pretty healthy gal with a really annoying and painful eczema problem on my hands. Turns out I was a very unhealthy gal and was likely well on my way to numerous chronic health conditions (due to a suppressed immune system from years of steroid use) and would possibly have developed an autoimmune disease (as a result of leaky gut and SIBO).
(If you want the play by play of my Topical Steroid Withdrawal journey, complete with gnarly photos…. here you go. You’ll get the good, the bad, and the u.g.l.y. in this timeline of my recovery.)
After my healing journey, I felt such a strong calling to spread healing information to the world that I resigned from my position as a partner in a commercial real estate firm and followed my heart. I poured myself into teaching what I had already learned and into learning more so I could help more people in more ways. I am now a Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach (FMCHC), a Neuroacoustic Sound Therapy Practitioner, a Holistic Health Practitioner, an Emotion Code Practitioner, and a Touch for Health Practitioner. I am very clear and enthusiastic about my purpose here on this Earth: to teach and inspire healing in those who are suffering from chronic disease and are ready to be well and live life fully.
This website is my passion because I am undeniably and unapologetically o.b.s.e.s.s.e.d with spreading information about true health, about functional medicine, about the power of sound to activate our inner healer, and about supporting our bodies’ natural ability to heal to e.v.e.r.y.o.n.e I am lucky enough to encounter. You have found your way to this page for a reason and I consider myself blessed by our encounter. Please leave me a note to say hi.
You are on myHealthTorch.com for a reason. Light your torch and walk with me through this journey. And once you have turned your own health around, light the torch of another. Collectively, our health torches will set the world ablaze and together we will change the current trajectory of disease for humanity.
Let’s get to work.
Are you living with a chronic health condition and not getting answers from conventional medicine alone?
Please share your experience below. We can all learn from each other!
Heather, you are so amazing! The suffering you and others you help have been through is unimaginable. I’m so happy you have come through your experiences with a torch to light the way as a health warrior to help others take their power back! I am excited to work with you!
Thank you Allison! You are so kind! I’m really looking forward to working with you. 🙂
Hi Heather, thank you for sharing your story. I don’t know for sure what is going on in my body, but I do know I have used steroid creams on and off since I was a baby.
I had a few completely clear years while I was eating and living pretty healthy, but when I got pregnant it started again, mild on one hand. Fast forward to now, my baby is about to be one year old and cannot bathe him, I cannot put him in or take him out of the car seat, it hurts to do anything around the house, and if the pain and itching wasn’t enough, my face is red, patchy and swollen, so I am embarrassed to go out 🙁
I have gone to a functional medicine practitioner last week, but while getting the results for my labs, she wanted to give me cortisone cream!!! :S I told her about RSS and TSW, but I am hesitant in following her advice, and would love a second opinion.
I believe you are in Texas, so am I. Would you mind sharing the information of the practitioners that helped you in your journey?
Hi Ceci. I’m so sorry you’re going through this. TSW is hard enough on its own — but with trying to take care of a baby it’s a whole new level. I’ll send you a personal note about my Functional Medicine practitioner here in Dallas. xo
I am so glad that things turned around for you and you are so much healthier now! Who was the functional medicine doctor that helped you?
Thank you Maria! I’ll send you a personal note with the doctor information. Thanks!
I found you today. Can you share what supplements you used? We had a setback. Had to have prednisone in urgent care. Rebounding again after 3 years 🙁
Lisa, that’s a hard question because the beauty of functional medicine is that it’s specifically tailored to each individual. So what I was on doesn’t necessary translate to something that your body needs right now. That said, I’ll send you an email with some thoughts. I’m so sorry you’re rebounding. 🙁
This is exactly what I need. I cannot wait to learn more. Valencia
Valencia, so glad! I look forward to connecting with you!
Love the site Heather, it looks beautiful! ? Liv
Thank you, Liv! xo