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I don’t consider myself unhealthy. But I’m no fitness freak either. As a 32 year old mum of 2, I do what I can to maintain a balanced lifestyle, whilst looking after the kids. 

Recently I noticed my energy levels dropping. I felt tired but struggled to sleep, which made me pretty grumpy. What I found tricky was that I couldn’t figure out why. It’s not like I was ill.

I googled ‘low energy levels and unable to sleep’ and looked for possible diagnoses. As you can imagine, all sorts of things turned up. I really wasn’t sure what to do – I didn’t want to go to my GP, as I didn’t think I was sick, but at the same time I really wanted to get back to feeling my best. 

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It wasn’t until September that, when chatting to another mum at my daughter’s pre-school, I found out about Thriva.

Thriva send you a finger prick blood test that you can do at home. From that you can then see what’s going on inside your body – tracking stuff like cholesterol or blood sugar. 

I must admit, I was scared it was going to be a gimmick, but what really won me over was the personalised recommendations they give you alongside your results. It’s clear and simple advice from a genuine doctor that can help you understand what’s going on inside your body and how to improve it. 

Click here to use the Lifestyle Reviewer code giving you a 20% discount on the Thriva website.

I’ve taken two tests since, and not only have I been able to understand why I was so tired, but also have been able to track the improvements I have made. I now have way more energy to chase after my young girls and crucially, also sleep much better!

Here’s how it all works in more detail: 

You go online to Thriva.co. You take a quick questionnaire and build a basic health profile (answering questions like ‘do you smoke’ etc).

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You then set your health goals. For me it was ‘more energy’ and ‘better sleep.’ Based on this, they then recommend what sort of stuff you should get checked. For example, I checked my vitamin D, vitamin B12 and B9, but also looked at my liver function and thyroid, as well as other biomarkers. 

Once that’s done, you complete your order and wait. It takes about 2 days to get your kit through the door. 

It’s a fun little box that comes with all you need to take a blood test – two little tubes, some lancets (the things you use to prick your finger) some wipes to clean your finger, some cute plasters and simple instructions. 

The blood test takes about 10 mins to do. I was a little bit nervous but it was genuinely really easy to do. Normally I’m quite squeamish with blood but this was completely fine.

Click here to use the Lifestyle Reviewer code giving you a 20% discount on the Thriva website.

Once completed, you send off the two tubes to the labs (same ones used by the NHS) and within another 48 hours you get results. 

To get your results you log onto your online dashboards and you find that a GP has gone through each one of your biomarkers and written up a small explanation on the specific result. They then give you a more overall summary, and offer you tips on things to do to hit your health goals.

For example, I found out that my vitamin D was low. This is a seasonal thing (you get your vitamin D from the sun). Vitamin D impacts both energy levels AND sleep. I also found that my B12 was low, which also impacts energy. I’m vegetarian and you mostly get B12 from animal products. Seeing all the results is fascinating – you get the information you never had before. There were several other small improvements I was advised to make, from diet through to exercise. After my first test I didn’t feel like I had to make radical changes but the different I felt in myself following the advice was genuinely life changing.

Click here to use the Lifestyle Reviewer code giving you a 20% discount on the Thriva website.

The doctor on the Thriva report recommended that I take some vitamin D supplements in winter, think about either eating more eggs and dairy for my B12 (alternatively she also suggested taking B12 supplements). Thriva also gave me other lifestyle suggestions via their ‘health plan’ function. For example they advised I continue to do aerobic exercise and gave me the option to add a calendar reminder so that I actually stick to my routine. There’s loads of neat stuff on their platform like this.

Lastly, the other great thing about the product are the trend graphs, which map out your results over time and allow you to  track your progress. 

Since using Thriva and following their advice, I actually found that my energy levels slowly started to rise. This was also reflected in my results – my second test, three months later, showed that my vitamin D was now back to normal, and my B12 levels were ‘optimal.’ I was so impressed that I bought my husband a test for his birthday. He’s not the healthiest of individuals and can frequently be found down the pub with a burger and pint and his results reflected this – high cholesterol amongst other stuff. The test gave him the jolt he needed to be a little more health conscious whilst also giving him the right advice on how to still “enjoy” life but look after himself a bit better.

The thing I love is the tone Thriva use. They never tell you off for being ‘unhealthy.’ Instead, it’s like having a guide holding your hand and gently encouraging you down the right path. I’d highly recommend Thriva to anyone who is looking to level-up their health but isn’t quite sure how.

Editor Update: Since reading this review, the kind folks from Thriva have given our readers a special discount of 20% off. Click this link to automatically get this discount. Alternatively you can use code LIFESTYLEREVIEWERBF20 at checkout.