How I Reclaimed My Life: My Gut Healing Journey Through Fungal Infections and Gut Dysbiosis
- Oskar
- 7 days ago
- 6 min read
Updated: 6 days ago
Fungal infections can sneak into your life and turn it upside down. I know because it happened to me. If you’re feeling lost or worn out, wondering why your body won’t cooperate, I’ve been there. This is my story—of struggle, hope, and finding my way back to health. Maybe it’ll help you find yours too.
Here's how my gut healing journey and crisis begun unexpectedly.
It all started in September 2018. I was in Morocco with my partner, excited for an adventure—new sights, new flavours, the whole lot. One day, we ate at a restaurant in Rabat, the capital of Morocco, and soon after, I was hit with a parasite that kicked off a chain reaction I never saw coming. What began as stomach trouble spiraled into years of gut dysbiosis, Candida overgrowth, and later, a full-blown fungal infection tied to mold exposure. It’s been a wild ride, but it’s why I’m here today, sharing this as a holistic lifestyle coach who’s lived it.
Back then, I didn’t know what was happening. The diarrhea and cramps were brutal and I still remember our train ride from Rabat to Tangier (it was painful!), and a doctor in there gave me antibiotics. They helped for a minute, but when I got back to the UK, my gut never recovered. I was in my early twenties, juggling a business degree, late nights, partying, and way too much stress. My digestion was a mess, my energy tanked, and my relationship fell apart. I started wondering if it was anxiety or depression—or something deeper.
I went to my NHS doctor in London, hoping for answers. “It’s just stress from your studies,” he said. I felt dismissed, like my pain didn’t matter. I tried low-carb diets, and they’d give me a little boost, but then I’d crash again—sleepless, losing weight, stuck in digestive chaos. It was like my body was screaming, and no one was listening. It was a lonely time, I lost many friendships and had to retreat from life- as so many other things, my social life crumbled and it felt like a very dark time especially because I had no idea what was going on- back then I wasn’t even aware of the cause but I had my suspicions.
In 2019, I saw a naturopath in High Barnet, North London. He thought it was my gut and put me on a plan to support it. For a brief second, I felt like myself—until I crashed again. That relapse broke me. I couldn’t keep going like that. So, in late 2019, I moved out of London back to Oxfordshire where I grew up and took charge. I started researching, signed up for an advanced training program, a certification at the CHEK Institute to learn about fungal infections and parasites, and got serious about testing. I ordered stool and microbiome test kits from Healthpath, and worked with a great functional health doctor who did her own tests in a lab in Switzerland. The results were pretty scary: severe dysbiosis (lots of bad bacteria overgrowing, and few good ones to support me) and raging Candida overgrowth. At least we found the cause of my failed gut and compromised digestion and the downward spiral that led me on a completely different path in life, one I don’t wish upon anyone but a path that has shaped my deep understanding of health and holistic healing.
When I turned to natural methods—using herbs like oregano oil, neem, probiotics, and a diet that fit my body. Bit by bit, it worked. After more than two years of feeling like a suffering hermit, I started to feel alive again. The fog lifted, my energy came back, and I thought, this is it! It was a second chance at life and a chance I took and never let go.
Fast forward to 2023. I have been doing great since healing my gut and getting the fungus and the microbiome back in balance— I was coaching functional fitness, teaching Qi Gong and meditation, I met a beautiful woman in Germany and became a father! I was diving deep into holistic health studies, the microbiome and all things supporting a healthy life - it’s amazing how much life there is to live and explore when you have your health back!
Then at the beginning of 2023 I had moved back to the UK and was staying in an Airbnb in Brighton whilst viewing potential houses to move my family into. However, a few days prior I got COVID for the first time and it completely knocked me out! While I was down, I moved into the airbnb for the week, with a blocked nose (from covid), I didn’t smell or notice the black mold hiding under the bed, it was all over the wall and the corner of the room and on the bed frame/mattress touching the wall! I’ve never seen anything like it before. I was staying there breathing it all in and really began to feel even sicker than before I got there! My immune system, already shaky, couldn’t fight it. Soon, weird circular rashes popped up all over me, diarrhoea, brain fog, total body weakness —signs of an invasive fungal infection taking hold. Black mold is no fun!
It felt like a cruel joke, life was testing me, again! But this time, I knew what to do. I leaned on my training, past experience and my research and started a recovery process, —activated charcoal (to pull the fungus out), oregano oil and neem (anti-fungal), probiotics, low sugar antifungal diet - the whole toolkit, I did a lot in balanced approach which I'll talk about in a future post. It was rough, no question. Without everything I’d learned since 2020, I’m not sure I’d have made it through without professional support! But I did. The process of healing gut issues or fungal or mold exposure is a long one and you’ve got to be very committed! It for sure tests your whole being to the core.
Looking back, those years—of that parasite in Morocco, the Candida chaos, my gut becoming a wreck and the mold nightmare—taught me how much gut health matters, how much our life matters and how much good health matters. The gut is the root of so much, and when it’s off, your whole life can crumble. The NHS couldn’t help me; I had to figure it out myself with the help of holistic professionals. That’s why I do what I do now. As a certified holistic lifestyle coach, trained through the CHEK Institute, I help people like you—people who feel ignored or stuck with symptoms no one can explain. I’ve been through the wringer, and I’ve come out the other side with solutions that work. Lifestyle is everything - after all it was my lifestyle, diet, habits... that left me stressed and weakened for these infections to take hold, along with the antibiotics and lifes intensity! This is why when you are feeling off or something chronic is going on, you’ve got to look at the history of the problem and the symptoms- it will help you figure it out and get better, quicker! Sometime the root cause is mental or emotional, sometimes is physical, either way its all connected.
Healing isn’t a straight line. It’s messy, and it takes time. But it’s possible and you can do it. I’m living proof. My mission is to guide you through your own challenges, to dig into what’s really going on—whether it’s your gut, your environment, or both—and help you take your life back. You don’t need a doctor to tell you you’re broken, you need someone who’s been there to show you the way out. In the end, self- education and seeking professional guidance outside of the mainstream systems can be a powerful step to consider when nothing else seems to be working. That’s how I healed and that’s why I’m sharing my journey with you.
Finally, the pain I endured gave me the life I live now, married, a father to two beautiful sons, energetic and having a mastery in holistic health that I would have never gained without these challenges, one I can use to support my family, community and my clients. My mentor Paul Chek says - your health crisis is also your biggest opportunity for positive change, I agree, it really is.
In Health and Wellness,
Oskar
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The Bigger Picture: Fungal Infections Are Everywhere
My story isn’t unique. According to the Global Action Fund for Fungal Infections (GAFFI), over a billion people worldwide deal with fungal infections. About 300 million have serious ones, like Candida overgrowth or mold-related illnesses, and these silent invaders cause around 1.7 million deaths every year. Crazy, right? Yet so many go undiagnosed. If you’re struggling, you’re not alone—and there’s hope.
Let’s Find Your Path
I’ve fought my way through gut dysbiosis, Candida, and mold exposure, and I’m here to help you do the same because it takes a whole lifestyle change and a good support network to succeed!
If you’re ready to feel better and need support on your journey, let’s talk. Book a free 30-minute consultation, and we’ll figure out what’s holding you back—and how to move forward, naturally.
You’ve got this. I’m with you.
Disclaimer: This blog post is based on my personal experience and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any medical condition. Always consult a healthcare professional for medical advice.
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