Mel Abbott Empower Therapies

20/12/2025

19/12/2025

A client sent me a link to this interesting article about gluten research, which really aligns with what I teach my clients. I have seen hundreds of people resolve their gluten reactions by using The Switch and resolving their beliefs about gluten, as well as calming their stress response so that their digestion works better and can handle the gluten. Here are some interesting comments from the research...

“Our findings show that symptoms are more often triggered by fermentable carbohydrates, commonly known as FODMAPs, by other wheat components or by people’s expectations and prior experiences with food.
The analysis combined data from numerous studies and revealed that only a handful of carefully controlled trials showed genuine gluten-specific reactions. For most participants, responses to gluten were indistinguishable from reactions to a placebo.

Gut-Brain Interaction, Not a Gluten Disorder
Biesiekierski explained that people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) who believe they are sensitive to gluten tend to react in similar ways to gluten, wheat, and placebo. “This suggests that how people anticipate and interpret gut sensations can strongly influence their symptoms,” she said.

According to the researchers, these findings indicate that NCGS should be seen as part of the gut–brain interaction spectrum, aligning more closely with conditions such as IBS rather than a standalone gluten-related disorder."

Click here to read the full article:

Scientists have discovered that most cases of gluten sensitivity stem from gut-brain interactions, not gluten itself.

19/12/2025

VERY EXCITING NEWS!

The professor of the C Diff research study that I'm in has agreed to do a Facebook Live interview with me next Tuesday morning when I go in for my f***l matter treatment! We cannot talk much about the current study as it is still in progress, but we're going to share some amazing facts about the development of FMT treatment and what the future will hopefully look like, plus you will witness me eating my "crapsules".

My session starts at 9.30, so keep an eye on Facebook that morning for when we are ready to start our live interview!

Here is the info about the trial that I am in:

C. difficile infection can cause severe diarrhoea, fever, stomach pain and occasionally death.
It is commonly treated with antibiotics, but often people do not respond, so the infection persists despite treatment or the infection quickly returns requiring a second antibiotic course.
However, only one in three people who experience recurring C. difficile infection are cured, and there is an increased risk of antibiotic resistance.

Healthcare providers may recommend faecal microbiome transfer (FMT) when antibiotics fail to treat C. difficile infection because of its high cure rate. FMT involves isolating healthy bacteria from faecal matter and transferring it to your gut. FMT is often given via a colonoscopy or a nasal tube, which is unpleasant. FMT capsules are a new approach to curing C. difficile infection and are not available in New Zealand. They are also less invasive than current FMT approaches and participants in our other FMT studies found the capsules tolerable to swallow
and digest.
This study aims to determine whether FMT capsules are better than the international standard treatment with vancomycin antibiotics or the same as vancomycin antibiotics plus FMT
capsules in curing initial persistent or recurrent C. difficile infection. The findings of this research may result in a more convenient and rapidly available treatment for patients and their healthcare practitioners.

19/12/2025

Time to cut the chronic anxiety cycles and bring calm to your life.

Sign up for the free webinar: https://empowertherapies.co.nz/pages/calmness-webinars

17/12/2025

So incredibly happy for this client! Here's what they have said:

“I’ve had virtually no symptoms since doing The Switch… I’m now living an amazing life, going back to study to follow my dreams, moving in with my partner, and making plans to go travelling. The Switch has changed my life. I’m now in a place where I’m the healthiest and happiest I’ve probably ever been. I can cope with stress now in ways I previously never would have been able to and use the skills I learnt at the course daily for various parts of my life. I am incredibly active now and can dive headfirst into whatever I decide to do. My grandfather who I was incredibly close to passed away a month ago and I was able to stand and speak at his funeral and I have also been able to deal with the grief of him passing without my health deteriorating. It truly changed my life. Thank you so, so much Mel.”

17/12/2025

I thought you might like a laugh over the list of services provided by the Egyptian hospital that i had to put my faith in when i was so sick there. It was a real case of just having to surrender and go with it.

Sure, their meds got rid of my stomach bug, but they created a far bigger monster with this C Diff that i have had for the last 2 weeks. Thank goodness for NZ hospitals to help get my health back on track...

17/12/2025

Thanks for so many lovely messages to my last post about being so sick with C Diff. Today is my first day doing a little bit of work - just 2 hours today. But I'm getting better with every day.

I'm now half way through my antibiotic treatment. I call it my advent calendar! Lots of nice windows of treats to open each day of the Chridtmas season! Next Tuesday is when i go for my crapsule treatment and I'm really looking forward to it. Hopefully I'll get to make a movie for you all.

So I'm still on limited work hours but i did just do a switch webinar group call and they are all doing great!

A lady with long-COVID said her palpitations are gone, her pain is gone, her energy is improved and her doctor is thrilled with her blood pressure readings.

Another with post-viral chronic fatigue has done a voluntary placement all week and felt really good about it. She said it has put some meaning and purpose back into her life for the first time in 19 months and she's thinking she'll be ready to return to paid work in Feb or March,

Another with CFS for 30 years has been able to go out to a big family gathering without any stress about noise or food - she couldn't have imagined that a few months ago. She has also been able to use Switch to turn off pain from a sprained wrist.

Another with concussion and ADHD has given herself permission to enjoy the moment, breathe calmly, listen to music, play the piano, resign from a number of committees. Then when she was so much calmer, she was able to go out to dinner twice and feel able to talk to everyone on her table, as well as go round to talk to others at other tables. She hasn't been able to do that since her head injury. And she did a full day of gardening - HUGE wins once she created space to calm her nervous system and brain neurology.

Another with CFS said she's had much better energy and has even felt like socialising again, which is a big change for her. She's also used Switch to work on her self-belief, which is a game changer.

Another with CFS for many years was thrilled to feel well enough to organise her daughter's party the week before Christmas, plus be able to go out to dinner with friends. She said she didn't even have questions for me this week because everything is going so well.

And another was thrilled to be able to sleep on her shoulder for the first time in nearly a year. She was also able to go to town and do all her errands and Christmas shopping in one day because she was so much calmer and more energised.

So they are all doing GREAT!

And it was great that I also felt well enough to meet with them today and give then some support. Now I'm going to pace myself and have a bit of a rest since it's my first day back. I'm on the mend, but you can't rush these things...

16/12/2025

An Inspiring Story of Recovery: Restoring an Olympic Dream

Enjoy!

Jessie Hodges had just competed in her first Olympic Games when disaster struck. Going from her being at her fittest and cycling for 5 hours a day, she was g...

15/12/2025

🎄 If going to the mall at this time of year stresses you out, here's some ideas for alternative gifts and some of our favourite things we enjoy sharing with loved ones.

MEL'S PICKS
✨ Book: Celestine Prophecy - a nice fable style summer holiday read with good insights into understanding human dynamics, your own personality and how to recognise your intuition and signs of which path to take.
✨ Experience: can't beat a nice massage! Lovely to be treated to something so relaxing and rejuvenating.
✨ Giving back: Go tree planting on one of the Hauraki Gulf islands. You get a nice ferry trip and a day out while also helping to restore environments for native bird sanctuaries.
✨ DIY gift: I like making cards for people. I do it every year and share one of my merry xmas photos with it. I also enjoy making photo albums for people.

JESS' PICKS
✨ Book: Into the Magic Shop by James R Doty - a great true story about his childhood and how he learned to manifest things into his life and when you desire things that aren't aligned with your heart it will never work out.
✨ Experience: Whale watching, yoga membership or a restaurant voucher - I never buy physical gifts anymore so these are some of my go-tos.
✨ DIY gift: Photo books, homemade chocolate or date bark in a jar - that viral date bark recipe that was going around a while ago is delicious and SO EASY.
✨ Giving back: Adopt an endangered animal through a conservation program, volunteer serving meals at a homeless shelter, or take some time as a family to do a little beach clean on xmas day.

This season, you don't have to do it the way things have always been. Spend this time of year in meaningful ways and keep the overwhelm/stress low.

What's your favourite alternative gift idea or way you love to make the holidays special? Share below! 👇

13/12/2025

A little weekend reminder for you all 💙

12/12/2025

Thanks North Shore Hospital! You've been great today.

I arrived at 7.30am seeking their infectious disease service. ED sent me straight through to a lovely private pressurised isolation room with bed, chair, toilet and shower. There is no linen today so they made the bed for me with table cloths! Nurses saw me within 2 minutes. A doctor within 30. They had my results from yesterday - finally! We know why i am so sick. C Diff.
Caused by the brutal Egyptian antibiotics.

Even better, the doctor referred me to a research study at auckland med school so that i can receive treatment that is not available in NZ yet.

And wait for it...

It involves swallowing other people's poo!

Here is the info from the study:

C. difficile infection can cause severe diarrhoea, fever, stomach pain and occasionally death.
It is commonly treated with antibiotics, but often people do not respond, so the infection persists despite treatment or the infection quickly returns requiring a second antibiotic course.
However, only one in three people who experience recurring C. difficile infection are cured, and there is an increased risk of antibiotic resistance.

Healthcare providers may recommend faecal microbiome transfer (FMT) when antibiotics fail to treat C. difficile infection because of its high cure rate. FMT involves isolating healthy bacteria from faecal matter and transferring it to your gut. FMT is often given via a colonoscopy or a nasal tube, which is unpleasant. FMT capsules are a new approach to curing C. difficile infection and are not available in New Zealand. They are also less invasive than current FMT approaches and participants in our other FMT studies found the capsules tolerable to swallow
and digest.
This study aims to determine whether FMT capsules are better than the international standard treatment with vancomycin antibiotics or the same as vancomycin antibiotics plus FMT
capsules in curing initial persistent or recurrent C. difficile infection. The findings of this research may result in a more convenient and rapidly available treatment for patients and their
healthcare practitioners.

So i was randomly assigned to the group who receives antibiotics for 10 days followed by FMT so that's pretty good. Hopefully i will start improving soon, cos i have now had 10 days of being so sick and I'm so exhausted and so over it. I've lost 6kg this week!

I was starting to wonder if i was a but of a weak one to be so tired and sick and that maybe my bowel was just inflamed, so it was great to know that i an really genuinely sick. And apparently, as C diff goes, I'm doing really well. Many people would be sick enough to have to stay in hospital but they said my vitals are quite good, so I'm home now. Lots more sleep required. Everything exhausts me right now.

11/12/2025

50 years of struggling to a full recovery. Hear Greg's joy and how he got his life back.

Greg has suffered for 50 years from low confidence, anxiety, depression and fear. He's also had concussion with associated blurred vision,headaches and no e...