Christina Meursinge Haack (born July 9, 1983), an American real estate investor and TV personality, has publicly shared her journey towards improved health and well-being. Beyond her professional life, Christina's story is one of resilience, self-discovery, and a commitment to addressing underlying health issues. This article delves into Christina Hall's holistic approach to wellness, exploring the various challenges she faced and the steps she took to achieve a healthier lifestyle.
Early Life and Career
Christina Hall began her career in real estate, meeting her future husband and business partner, Tarek El Moussa, in 2005 while working at Prudential. They formed The El Moussa Group in Orange County, California, specializing in real estate sales in Southern California. After the 2008 stock market crash, they ventured into flipping houses, expanding their business into Arizona and Nevada.
In 2011, Tarek El Moussa created an audition tape for HGTV, which led to the couple being signed to produce "Flip or Flop" in 2012. The show debuted in April 2013. In addition to her television career, Haack partnered with Spectra Furniture in July 2020 to launch a furniture line.
Personal Life and Challenges
Christina's personal life has been marked by significant events. She married Tarek El Moussa in 2009, and they had two children, a daughter born in 2010 and a son born in 2015. In 2013, Tarek was diagnosed with thyroid and testicular cancer. The couple pursued in-vitro fertilization, but after an unsuccessful first attempt, Christina suffered a miscarriage on the second try.
In May 2016, Christina and Tarek separated, and their divorce was finalized in January 2018. Christina then married English television presenter Ant Anstead in December 2018 and had a son in September 2019. They announced their separation in September 2020, with the divorce finalized in June 2021. Following her divorce from Anstead, Christina reverted to her maiden name.
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After her second failed marriage, she met Josh Hall, and the two got married in 2022. Christina Haack was trying to work through the unexplained symptoms she was experiencing.
The Onset of Health Issues
Christina Haack's health journey began around 2016 when she started experiencing "extreme stomach pain." She described the pain as "a horrible burning sensation." Despite seeking medical advice, her complaints were often dismissed as stress-related, and doctors prescribed medications that only masked the symptoms. Dissatisfied with this approach, Christina sought to identify and address the root cause of her health issues.
Unveiling Multiple Diagnoses
In an Instagram post, Haack shared that she had been diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease, Raynaud's syndrome, and PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome). Raynaud's syndrome primarily affects the blood vessels, causing spasms that inhibit blood flow, leading to pain and swelling.
During an interview with People, she spoke candidly about some of the symptoms she had dealt with over the years. "Five years ago I didn't feel great," she admitted.
The Importance of Diet
Wanting to get to the root of the issue, she started paying more attention to her diet. She realized that simply treating the symptoms with medication wasn't a sustainable solution.
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The Wellness Remodel
One of these quiet sessions is how she came up with the idea for her book, "The Wellness Remodel: A Guide to Rebooting How You Eat, Move, and Feed Your Soul," released in 2020. The book was Haack's way of helping others experiencing similar health issues. "I dive into autoimmune issues and naturopathic doctors and meditation crystals. And then also workouts and a variety of recipes," she told People.
Under-Eye Fillers
In 2022, Haack took to her Instagram Stories (via Yahoo!) to tell fans she had a health scare from the fillers in April of that year. She explained that she experienced extreme swelling in her face and posted a picture of what her face looked like during this time, captioning it, "It wouldn't go down with time. Never again." This led Haack to undergo treatment to dissolve the fillers.
Mercury and Lead Poisoning
After years of worrying symptoms and no specific diagnosis, Christina Haack turned to an alternative medicine and wellness facility for answers. She underwent tests which revealed she had mercury and lead poisoning. In an Instagram post Haack shared shortly before her diagnosis, she told her followers she was experiencing extreme exhaustion.
Haack also noted that she had "unexplained skin rashes, joint and muscle pain, dry eyes, GI issues, SIBO, acid reflux, brain fog, hormone imbalances, swollen lymph nodes and adrenal fatigue."
Quantum Biofeedback Machine Testing
Christina Haack revealed in her Instagram Stories that the tests she underwent at the alternative medicine and wellness facility included those conducted by a quantum biofeedback machine. "It tests for like 100 different types of molds, metals and bacterias, and my highest level of toxicity came back as an abnormal amount of gut bacterias, which is like SIBO, and also parasites.
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Addressing Gut Health
After Christina Haack made her diagnosis public, she spoke to E! News about the steps she was taking to get better. "I'm just really focused on doing a cleanse right now, eating super clean," she told the outlet.
Cleveland Clinic explains that SIBO occurs when the bacterial population in the gut becomes too high. This causes an imbalance in gut flora, which, in turn, leads to a slew of unwanted symptoms, such as diarrhea and gas. These overeager gut bugs can also negatively impact the body's digestion process, leading to issues digesting and absorbing nutrients from food. Aside from gas and an upset tummy, those with SIBO usually experience bloating, stomach pain, nausea, indigestion, and fatigue as well. SIBO can be difficult to diagnose because the tests that exist used to detect it aren't completely accurate.
Haack also shared to her Instagram Stories some of the treatments she tried. "I'm on a cleanse and a parasite cleanse," she shared (via People). "I heard it gets worse before it gets better.
Hyperbaric Chamber
Haack also shared to her Instagram Stories some of the treatments she tried. If you're wondering what a hyperbaric chamber is, we got you. First off, it's not as scary as it sounds - the chamber is simply a pressurized environment that allows the body to absorb more oxygen. While administering hyperbaric oxygen therapy, pure oxygen is released into the chamber, Mayo Clinic explains. Because physical injuries need more oxygen to heal, this therapy is typically administered to patients who deal with an array of physical ailments. Improving gut health or autoimmune diseases is not on the list of benefits, so it's unclear why exactly Haackunderwent it, though it might benefit her Reynaud's disease since this therapy can help heal wounds and skin infections.
Breast Implant Illness
When Christina Haack opened up about her health issues on Instagram, she told her followers that she wondered whether some of her symptoms might be linked to breast implant illness. In the Instagram Stories Haack shared about her diagnosis, she said she was "detoxing all of this through herbs and IVs" (via People) and that she would see how her symptoms improved with that treatment so she could determine if they were indeed caused by her breast implants.
Breast Explant Surgery
It appears that some of her symptoms remained because when Haack spoke to E! News in January 2023, she was preparing to undergo breast explant surgery.
Hall's Advice
Her advice to anyone dealing with uncomfortable symptoms is to address them as soon as possible. "If people aren't feeling well, take a look at your diet or what you're putting into your body or lack of exercise," she advised. So many of us take our health for granted when, in reality, we should do a little happy dance every day we feel healthy.