BEYOND SKIN DEEP: How Elly Helped Me Heal From the Inside Out
Words | Tiphany Katselas
For most of my life, I thought I just had “bad skin”. Eczema, rashes, constant irritation. A flare-up for every season, for every product I dared to try. Like many people, I got used to living with it, patching it up with steroid creams and switching moisturisers every few months, hoping the next one might be “the one”.
I’d never once thought to look inside my gut for the answers.
Then I met Elly. Not just as a friend, but as a dietitian who works with genetics to decode the roots of our intolerances and chronic inflammation. It sounds high-tech, but for me, it was more than that.
It was the first time someone asked:
What if your skin isn’t the problem? What if it’s a message from somewhere deeper?
The Start of Something Different
Elly always knew she’d work in nutrition — “I wanted to be a nutritionist since I was eleven,” she tells me, laughing at how young she was to have that certainty. “My mum’s Italian, so food was everything in our house. I’d make my own gourmet lunches before I even hit high school.”
She thought she’d end up in hospitals, like most nutrition grads do. But a harsh dose of reality (and an honest mentor) rerouted her path: “I was told straight up: you’re not cut out to be a hospital dietitian — you *like* people too much. At first, I was devastated. But she was right. I wanted to help people before they got so sick they landed in hospital. That’s how I found my love for preventative health.”
That passion led Elly to genetic testing, something she describes as “just another tool in the toolkit, but a powerful one.” Instead of trial and error, Elly runs DNA swabs and gut mapping to pinpoint exactly what your body can’t tolerate.
For me, it was life-changing.
My Turning Point
When Elly suggested we do my testing, I was sceptical. After all, I had already tried countless topical tests and skin treatments. But we did it. A simple saliva swab and the results showed food triggers I never imagined were linked to my eczema. When we swapped them out, added the right supplements, and tweaked my meals, my skin calmed for the first time in years.
“It was your case that really made me double down on how connected gut health and skin really are,” Elly says. “I’d always known the gut-skin axis was huge, but seeing it play out in you — it just clicked. If we can get to the source of the inflammation, the skin often heals itself.”
She’s right, and it did. So did other things I didn’t realise were off: my energy, my focus, my sleep.
So How Does It Actually Work?
“DNA testing for food sensitivities is really about looking at your genetic blueprint,” Elly explains. “Unlike a blood test, which changes over time, your genes stay the same — so it’s a more reliable guide. We combine that with microbiome testing, which shows what’s happening in your gut right now, and then layer in personalised nutrition advice.”
It’s not a cookie-cutter meal plan. It’s a strategy. Your plan, for your body.
And it works far beyond just clearing your skin. Balancing your gut can stabilise hormones, boost mood, regulate energy and even improve mental clarity. “The gut and brain are in constant conversation,” Elly says. “When your gut’s inflamed, your mood can tank, your anxiety spikes. It’s all connected.”
From Perth to Italy (Literally)
It still amazes me how far Elly’s work has spread. She’s run consults for people all over Australia, and even abroad.
“One client in Italy didn’t speak English fluently, so I recorded a whole personalised video in English, then AI-translated my voice into Italian so she could follow along. I even researched local Italian food brands for her meal plan and sourced supplements she could get over there,” she laughs. “It was a mission, but so worth it.”
What Elly Wants You To Know
I asked Elly for some advice to share with our readers:
“Stop cutting out whole food groups unless you know you need to,” she says. “Gluten-free or dairy-free diets without proper testing can do more harm than good. You could be starving your gut of good bacteria and missing essential nutrients — all for no reason.”
As for the supplement she thinks almost everyone needs? “Omega-3s, Vitamin D, a Probiotic and a high quality Magnesium — hands down. Most of us don’t get enough fish or sunshine and are stressed. These are vital for our immune system and functions”
The Takeaway
Elly didn’t just fix my skin… she taught me that my body was trying to talk to me all along. Sometimes, healing isn’t about what cream you put on, but what you put in.
If you’re curious about your own hidden triggers, Elly now sees clients all over Australia (and beyond). She’s offering Of Angels and Legends readers 15% off their first consult (just mention OAL when booking) — because feeling good should be personal.
[Book with Elly here] — your gut (and your skin) will thank you for it.
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