Gut and Physiology Syndrome reproduces a November 2017 letter from Liliane Widmer about her 23-year-old daughter, Emili, who had been diagnosed with Lyme disease. Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride introduces it as the account of a young woman who regained her health with the GAPS Diet, became pregnant, and delivered a healthy baby.[1]
This article follows the sequence Liliane reported and keeps the details in her voice. If you need the general pregnancy route rather than the case itself, begin with Preparing for Pregnancy, Birth, and Breastfeeding on GAPS.
How to Read This Case Study
The letter contains a specific family chronology. It tells us what Liliane says happened to Emili, what the family did, and what outcome Liliane observed. It also records the conclusions Liliane drew from that experience. Keeping those pieces clear lets the story remain useful without turning one family’s sequence into a universal timeline.
| Period | What Liliane Reported | Practical Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Before marriage | Emili ate the GAPS Diet at home and felt well. | Her mother described GAPS as the family’s established way of eating. |
| After leaving home | She became less careful with her diet, developed significant symptoms, and later had Lyme disease confirmed by a laboratory test. | She stopped studying and returned to her parents when she became very ill. |
| Nearly six weeks at home | Her mother cooked continuously and saw her improve day by day. | Her husband visited on weekends while she stayed with her parents. |
| Pregnancy | She continued GAPS, took the two supplements named in the letter, and returned for help when fatigue and weight loss made cooking difficult. | Food preparation and rest became a family job. |
| Birth and early postpartum | Liliane reported a healthy baby born at 38 weeks and 5 days, followed by two weeks of postpartum food support. | Soup was left ready for Emili to eat when she woke to breastfeed. |
Emili’s Symptoms After Leaving Home
Liliane wrote that Emili had taken many antibiotics in her life. At home she ate the GAPS Diet and felt well. At 23 she married, moved away from her parents, and was no longer careful with her diet.[1]
Her mother described depression, lack of energy, difficulty controlling negative thoughts, and feeling sick most of the time. Emili stopped studying. Lyme disease was eventually discovered and confirmed by a laboratory test. When she became very ill, she moved back in with her parents and her mother returned her to the GAPS Diet that the family had already used at home.[1]
Almost Six Weeks of Cooking and a Visible Turnaround
Emili stayed with her parents for almost six weeks. Her husband came on weekends, and Liliane reported seeing her daughter improve day by day while she cooked for her throughout the stay.[1]
In a little more than a month, Liliane said Emili gained weight, regained energy, and had a better disposition. Color returned to her cheeks, along with what her mother called glitter in her eyes. Emili then went home with her husband and continued the GAPS Diet on her own.[1]
The Pregnancy That Followed
The following December, Emili told her mother she was pregnant. The family continued with the GAPS Diet and followed the chapter “Having a New Baby in the GAPS Family” from Gut and Psychology Syndrome. Liliane also recorded that Emili took bovine liver capsules because she could not tolerate the taste of liver, along with fermented cod liver oil.[1]
Those supplements are part of the case record. The letter does not provide a brand, dose, or universal pregnancy schedule, so they remain exactly what Liliane reported Emili using rather than becoming a new checklist for every reader.[1]
Food and Rest as Practical Support
Liliane described the pregnancy as going well, with monthly visits. A few times, Emili returned to stay with her mother because she was too tired to cook and had started losing weight. Her mother cooked while Emili ate generously, rested, and regained energy.[1]
The practical thread is easy to miss if the story is reduced to “she stayed on GAPS.” The food still had to be prepared. When Emili could not keep up with that work, another person stepped in and made sure meals were ready. The same kind of support continued after the birth.
What I Notice as a Mother Running GAPS
I have six children, and we have been running GAPS in our home since July 2024. I have not documented an Emili-like Lyme recovery in our family.[3] What I recognize is the work behind the short phrase “continue the diet.” Someone has to make the stock, cook the meals, notice when the person is too tired to keep up, and take over before an empty kitchen becomes another problem.
Liliane’s account makes that work visible. The support was not abstract encouragement. It was a place to stay, food ready as quickly as Emili could eat it, time to rest, and soup waiting during the first nights of breastfeeding.[1]
What the Letter Reports About the Delivery
At 38 weeks and 5 days, Emili gave birth to a healthy baby girl. Liliane described the delivery as normal, quiet, and fast.[1] These are the birth details reported in the letter.
The Two Weeks After Birth
Emili stayed with her mother for another two weeks after the birth. Liliane again cooked continuously. She left soup ready at night so Emili could eat during the early morning hours when she woke to breastfeed.[1]
That detail is one of the most useful parts of the story for a household plan. Postpartum support meant having nourishing food already made at the exact hour it was needed, rather than expecting a tired nursing mother to begin cooking.
The Baby-Feeding Details in the Letter
When the letter was written, the baby was almost three months old. Liliane reported that she was growing normally, breastfeeding, sleeping well, alert, and smiling. She also wrote that the baby had been given kefir, sauerkraut juice, fermented garlic water, beet kvass, and a purchased probiotic.[1]
Those foods and observations belong to this family’s case report. For the site’s source-based sequence and timing, use the Baby GAPS first-foods and weaning guide rather than treating the letter as a stand-alone feeding schedule.
What Happened Afterward
Liliane reported that she and her 20-year-old daughter, Carolina, had graduated as Nutritional Therapists. Emili had been Liliane’s client during that course. At the time of the letter, Emili was studying nutritional therapy and considering GAPS Practitioner training.[1]
Where This Case Fits in the Larger GAPS Framework
Campbell-McBride places Emili’s letter inside the book’s discussion of Lyme disease, MSIDS, and other chronic infections. That discussion presents GAPS as a way to support the body’s rebuilding, immune, detoxification, and microbiome work in chronic infection.[2]
- Lyme Disease, MSIDS and GAPS: Complete Guide for the broad source framework.
- What GAPS Says Causes Chronic Lyme and MSIDS for the testing, biofilm, co-infection, and long-antibiotic discussion.
- GAPS Diet for Lyme and MSIDS: Foods and Stages for the practical food route.
Plan Full GAPS During Pregnancy
Full GAPS Pregnancy: Week-by-Week Meals and Routines will turn the source’s Full GAPS pregnancy guidance into a practical plan for meals, preparation, and weekly household routines.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Reported Emili’s Case?
Liliane Widmer reported the case in a November 2017 letter reproduced in Gut and Physiology Syndrome.[1]
How Long Did Liliane Say It Took to See Change?
Emili stayed with her parents for almost six weeks. Liliane said she saw improvement day by day and described substantial visible change in a little more than a month.[1] That is the timeline in this letter, not a schedule the book assigns to every person.
What Supplements Did the Letter Name During Pregnancy?
The letter names bovine liver capsules, used because Emili did not tolerate the taste of liver, and fermented cod liver oil. It does not name a brand or dose.[1]
What Birth Outcome Did the Letter Report?
Liliane reported a healthy baby girl born at 38 weeks and 5 days in a delivery she described as normal, quiet, and fast.[1]
References
- Campbell-McBride, Natasha. Gut and Physiology Syndrome (2020), A-Z, “Lyme disease, MSIDS and other chronic infections,” Liliane Widmer case letter, pp. 427-428.
- Campbell-McBride, Natasha. Gut and Physiology Syndrome (2020), A-Z, “Lyme disease, MSIDS and other chronic infections,” pp. 426-427.
- Garnica, E. WFLI Family Story Source, family composition and July 2024 GAPS start, current through October 2026.
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