Today we’d like to introduce you to Pete Ostergren.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My mother’s pregnancy with me was quite difficult. She previously had a miscarriage that damaged her cervix. When she became pregnant with me, the doctors consistently told her there was no hope. She spent at least 19 weeks of the pregnancy lying down at an angle to give me the best chance of surviving. Once I was born, the doctors termed me a “miracle baby” because I was never supposed to survive.
It had always been my belief (and later confirmed by multiple doctors) that due to the stressful nature of the pregnancy, I suffered some neurological/physical damage in the womb. As a little kid, I always felt sick, off, or simply not right. Lights bothered me immensely, loud noises gave me physical pain, I was constantly fatigued, and my stomach always hurt.
As I got older, we tried seeing different doctors, but we never got any answers other than severe allergies to multiple things. I was constantly in physical pain, and I struggled with my mental health as a child as well. However, I made the decision when I was nine (things started to get much worse at this point) that I was going to commit to living a normal life (as much as I could) despite always feeling sick.
I went to school, played sports, hung out with friends, and kept my mouth shut for the most part about how sick I always felt. Doctors didn’t seem to have the answers, and complaining doesn’t do anyone any good. I wanted to be tough and strong, so I kept moving forward.
By the time I got to High School, things continued to progress with my health, but I was playing year-round sports and had aspirations to play college soccer. By the time I was a freshman in college, playing soccer, my health took a serious turn. My whole life I had always felt sick every second of every day, but this was the first time in my life where I was suffering spells that had me completely out of commission and in bed for multiple weeks at a time. Still, no conclusive answers from the doctors, although they knew something was physically wrong.
My health stayed about the same for the next couple of years until my Junior year of college in 2016. Things took yet another turn. The everyday sickness got much worse, the spells that kept me in bed became more prolonged and more frequent, and I developed other severe symptoms, as well as worrying physical signs. I developed massive golf ball-sized lymph nodes in my body that would not go away. I went through 3 surgeries whose cause was seemingly unexplainable to the doctors, and my chronic physical pain became worse.
Despite being extremely unwell, I continued to play soccer in college until I graduated. At that time in my life, I was a strong mix of stubborn and unwise. I knew my body was failing, but I refused to bend the knee. I started playing semi-professional soccer, hoping to lock down a professional contract. After attending a combine, I got offered a trial for a professional team in Sweden. Two days after the offer, my body completely gave up, and nothing was the same ever since.
I spent the next several weeks in bed, sick as I had ever been. Modern medicine (even the best, such as Dana Farber and Johns Hopkins) no longer had answers for me, and eventually told me I was crazy and that it was “all in my head”, although the physical evidence was clear as can be. I turned to alternative and natural treatments that confirmed everything I had been going through, and provided massive relief, although it was not true healing. Even the alternative doctors didn’t know what was wrong with me. “I have no idea what’s going on, but I think I can at least help the symptoms”, they’d say.
By January of 2018, I was sick as could be, and continually going downhill, but I could go back to work as long as I powered through. I started training athletes in strength and conditioning. I was no longer an athlete myself, but I could help those who still were. And though it was extremely unwise, I started obstacle course racing and long-distance trail running with some coworkers at the gym. I had no business doing anything of the sort with how sick I was, but I couldn’t bear to live a life where I was giving in to my sickness.
I also had an infection in my hand that I had contracted a year earlier. Antibiotics were killing me and sending me to the emergency room every time I took them, because my body was too sick and weak to handle them.
In June of 2018, I competed in a World Qualifying event for obstacle course racing. My health had only gotten worse at this point, along with my hand. 12 miles into the race, I broke my leg on a rock. After I broke it, I completed another 26 miles and 80+ obstacles. I blacked out and collapsed unconscious at the finish line, and I felt that the race almost killed me, as sick as I was, combined with the broken leg and infection in my hand. I should have never participated, but at that point in my life I was still too stubborn and unwise to listen to my body.
Shortly after that race, things took yet another turn. My health became dangerous. I had always had food sensitivities, but now it seemed that every single thing, no matter what, made me horribly ill. My brain function started to decline rapidly. It began with severe brain fog, but it progressed to the point that I could barely function. I was forgetting who people were for short periods of time, I forgot my own name a few times, I couldn’t remember anything that had happened. I had to write every single important detail about my life or I would forget.
I was still working my job, but I could not stand up at work. I had to hold onto anything within my reach to stand up. My leg wouldn’t heal, and my hand infection became so severe that it started to eat the bones in my hand. My knuckles looked like they had a ping-pong ball inside of them. The pain was so severe that I was only getting 2 hours of sleep a night by taking 2000mg of ibuprofen (extremely unhealthy), numbing gel, and a bag of ice. It felt like my hand was being crushed in a vice 24/7. I tried different antibiotics but the effects were so severe that even the doctor told me to try no longer. Surgeons refused to operate on the hand for months because they believed we could find an antibiotic that would work.
I was days away from cutting my own hand off because the constant pain was driving me insane. But at the last minute, I convinced a surgeon to operate. However, the surgery was too much for my body to handle, and the surgeon only got out half of the infection. It came back with a vengeance, combined with my health suffering even more after all of this.
At this point, I knew I was dying. I couldn’t eat without getting severely ill, the infection in my hand wouldn’t die, my leg wouldn’t heal, my brain was declining intensely, and I had a never-ending feeling of sickness that never ceased. I used to think I would rather have the flu every day than feel what I was feeling.
I knew that if I quit my job, it would be over and I would just collapse and die. I convinced myself every day that hope was just around the corner. The alternative treatments stopped helping, and the suffering became so severe that I wished I was dead. Every day that I woke up I would say “you can quit your job tomorrow, but you have to go to work today.” At the end of every day I would get home, collapse on the floor, and tell myself that I did it and I could quit the next day. And the very next morning I would tell myself the same thing “you can quit tomorrow, but you have to work today.” I did this for months until February of 2019 when I finally found some answers.
A couple towns over, there was a doctor that was known to be one of the top alternative Lyme doctors in the country. I had been tested for everything (including Lyme 3 times), but I wanted his opinion anyway, because I was desperate. He had a long waiting list, but because of the severity of my illness, he fit me into his schedule. Long story short, we did some intense and diverse testing, and he told me that I had one of the worst cases of Lyme that he had ever seen. “You’ve had it for at least 10 years, and it’s wreaked havoc on your cells and every organ in your body*. He had me undergo a CT scan which revealed brain damage, and he then started me on very intense treatments for Lyme that did not involve antibiotics. I had to quit my job and focus on healing.
I also got another hand surgery to remove the infection. This helped, but alternative treatments from the Lyme doctor were what finally healed my hand.
After months of this, I could tell that the Lyme was being killed, and eventually was gone, but the damage to my body was severe. I had been bedridden since I quit my job, and I could not eat anything. I had to force-feed myself at least once a day, although it would make me horribly ill for the next 6-8 hours. “You have to eat every day”, I’d tell myself. “If you don’t eat, you’ll die.”
At this time, I also had one more intense and unexplainable surgery (my 6th surgery) that left doctors baffled.
At this point I linked up with another alternative doctor who was renowned for “curing the incurable”. He was a few hours away, but with the help of my parents driving me, I was able to see him consistently. He told me that in 45 years he had never seen anything like my case. The treatments started to pay off as the months went by, and I would notice small improvements. By February of 2020 I was able to start going on occasional walks or light swims, and I could eat a handful of things and only feel moderately ill. I was still bedridden for almost the entire day, but I was getting better.
By fall of 2020 I was healthier than I had been in years. I moved to another state, started trail running again, and got a full-time job. I still felt sick all of the time, but I could eat a list of at least 10 things, I was active, and I was living on my own and providing for myself.
This lasted for a short time (about 18 months) until I felt my health start to slip again. I ended up having a relapse summer of 2022 which was much worse than the first…
(To try and cut this long story short, I will break down the next 26 months of the timeline quicker than the first portion of the story)
Summer of 2022– relapse, bedridden again, able to eat this time, but only a small list of things. Due to years of brain damage, I developed an extremely severe case of Electric-Hypersenstivity (EHS) that forced me to live completely off-grid (no phones, lights, AC, heat, cars, electricity of any sort. I could not even live in a house with the breakers on. I could feel the electricity and it would make me extremely ill to the point that I wanted to die. It was not a mental disorder, I got reviewed by a board of mental health professionals with over 350 years of cumulative experience who unanimously said that this was not a mental issue, it was physical. I did not have to know that I was around electricity to feel the symptoms. I could tell any time I was in the vicinity of a cell phone, wifi, or a house that even had the refrigerator plugged in. I couldn’t be close to power lines, cell towers, or anything with electricity).
I know that sounds nuts, and I’m hesitant to tell that part of the story, but it is the truth, and I have heard of others out there with that issue. Many people are becoming more sensitive to electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs), but there are few who suffered as severely as I did.
Over the next 26 months I went through more alternative treatments (home visits) and slowly found healing. By September of 2024 I started to slowly return to a normal life. Over the last 14 months things have progressed in my favor, physically. I can eat whatever I want, I am back to trail running and climbing, my brain functions well, I can use electricity in any capacity that I want, etc. It has been a slow journey back, but I am getting closer and closer to 100% for the first time in my life.
This last year as I have been recovering and re-entering normal life, I have been training a handful of people remotely. Some of them athletes, but also people with chronic pain. After years of chronic pain (and severe movement and neurological issues due to my brain damage where I couldn’t walk correctly or move normally) I am passionate about helping others in that area. I specialize in movement and biomechanics, and I have reprogrammed my body and nervous system to move fluidly and pain free.
Currently (Nov 2025) I feel healthy enough to pursue I life full-time. I am looking for a full-time career, while continuing to remotely train people on the side. I live in the mountains of North Idaho, and I am excited to finally live a normal and healthy life.
I spent a cumulative several years completely bedridden, years unable to eat, unable to use electricity for a long period of time, suffered 6 surgeries, horrible chronic pain and sickness, and now I’m ready to get after life.
*a note to the reader*
— I apologize for how chaotic that was. There are so many aspects to that story and it’s honestly hard to write or talk about it. I was fighting the urge to breeze through it while trying to be clear and give you at least a decent semblance as to what I went through. I hope it was comprehensive enough and gave you enough information. I appreciate you taking the time to listen.
It’s also difficult because I spent years getting mocked and ridiculed by doctors or even people that were close to me. I was walking around knowing the truth while everyone called me a liar. I knew I was sick. I knew I was dying. I knew a lot of my symptoms sounded nuts. And most tests couldnt find anything conclusive. At the end of the day I had a severe case of Lyme disease that ravaged my body for about 15 years because it went undiscovered. I also know the issues during the pregnancy started me off with a weakened immune system, some neurological disorder, and other physical issues. All in all, it was just a combination of many things–a perfect storm. There are many people out there like me that are truly sick and suffering and are not getting anwers from the medical system. I want them to know they’re not crazy. Your sickness doesn’t have to have a name to be real. It’s real because it’s killing you. I got better without having an “official” diagnosis. They can too.
Thank you for reading,
Pete
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I feel like this was answered in my story. I wrote so much there and would hate to reiterate and take up more time of whoever is reading this.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I’ma health and fitness professional. I spent most of my career training college athletes, but because of my experiences I am not equipped to help people who are currently recovering/have recovered from serious illness. I also help people with chronic pain. I specialize in movement and biomechanics and reprogramming the body to move correctly and be optimally aligned
What matters most to you?
My faith in Jesus Christ. I am a Christian and a follower of Jesus. I believe in the Bible, and that He is the way the truth in the life. throughout all of my struggles I have grown closer in my relationship to God and I want those who are suffering to know that even if there is not much hope here on this earth, there is hope for eternity. And even if you’re suffering in this life, you have a God who loves you and wants to have a relationship with you.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://onward-fitness.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pete.onward/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61569415007835
