About
“I’m interested in women’s health because I’m a woman.
I’d be a darn fool not to be on my own side”
– Maya Angelou
Hi and welcome to Fruitful Flora, a platform dedicated to women who want to find out about the science behind healthy living. I’m here to help you find internal balance; hormonally, physically and mentally. I’m glad you’re here!
My name is Flora, and I’m a medical physiology graduate. As a result of my own struggles, I have become passionate about finding natural solutions to hormonal imbalance, period problems and gut issues. I’m a strong believer in functional medicine, a philosophy that seeks to identify and address the root cause of disease.
We live in a world with a distorted view on what it means to be healthy and attractive. Sadly, the internet is a minefield of misinformation, which can lead us to make bad choices when it comes to our lifestyle. I want to put an end to diet culture and unhealthy eating habits by teaching you how to nourish your body, maintain a healthy weight and improve your overall health without depriving yourself.
Through combining my personal experience with the latest scientific research, this blog will bring you foolproof methods to boost your health and wellness, along with many laughs along the way. Prepare yourself for posts ranging from intuitive eating, positive body image and eating disorder recovery to hormonal and reproductive health, self care, life updates, daily eats, meal inspiration and much more.
You are not alone! My dream is for this blog to become a community where we feel positive and hopeful about our bodies, our health and our daily struggles.
My Story
I haven’t always been as strong and healthy as I am today— I’ve confronted disordered eating, hypothalamic amenorrhea, irritable bowel disease (IBS) and body dysmorphia.
Like a lot of women, I’ve struggled with my body image for years. As a teenager, I was drawn into diet culture and became fixated on achieving society’s “perfect” body type at the time — rake thin, with a flat tummy and thigh gap. I began punishing my body with restrictive eating and over exercising, without stopping to think of the effects this was having on my health.
In 2016, aged 18, I moved from rural Wales to London to embark on my educational journey. My perfectionist nature consumed me and I was determined to be the best at everything. I was a first-class student, undertook every extra curricular activity possible, worked full time and led an extremely active social life (hello all-nighters). To anyone on the outside, I was excelling— but in reality my health was deteriorating by the day. I didn’t eat, I didn’t sleep and I certainly didn’t take the time to consider my mental wellbeing. I spent years pushing my body to the limits and the cracks were beginning to show. I’d become seriously underweight, developed severe IBS, and suffered from chronic stress and insomnia.
Transformation
My life transformed for the better when I stopped chasing society’s idea of perfection and began to focus on what made me feel good. I took my health into my own hands and began utilising scientifically backed methods to support my body through recovery. For the first time in my life I began to thrive, not just survive. I realised that having a balanced lifestyle goes way deeper than simply eating nutritious foods and exercising regularly. Health is multifactorial and requires finding balance in your entirety – mind, body and soul. To me, there are five foundational pillars to good health:
- Nutrition
- Exercise
- Stress Management
- Sleep
- Mindfullness
There is no “one method” to being healthy and it certainly doesn’t involve being perfect in all aspects of your life, far from it actually. Life is for living, not for spending our days worrying about our weight, whether we ate enough “superfoods” today or kicking ourselves for not squeezing in a workout into our hectic days. At the end of the day, health and happiness go hand in hand.
We shall walk side by side as we explore the truth behind healthy living. I very much look forward to our journey together.
Welcome to the family.
Flora.
xoxo
My Qualifications & Experience
In 2020, I completed my degree in Medical Physiology at Kings College London. During my time at university, I studied the human body in-depth, both in health and disease. My studies were focused around women’s health, where I looked at reproduction, endocrinology, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.