My Health Story

This is certainly a journey I didn't ask to be on, especially one that has created so many detours and speedbumps in my life. I first published my health story on my other lifestyle blog in 2014 (you can read it here). It felt raw and vulnerable, but at the time I also knew that I had to share my story in hopes that it would help others. Since that time hundreds of people have reached out to me in a similar situation, my initial post has over 12,000 shares on Pinterest alone, so I believe nothing I have been through has been in vain.

I have truly experienced the powerful benefits of a healthy diet. Food is truly medicine, the difference it has made in my life is almost indescribable. It is the force that led me to begin this blog, as I believe fully that changing what I put in (and on) my body brought me to a place where I was able to regain my health. The doctor's and medications and supplements helped, but it wasn't until I healed from the inside that I began to truly see a difference.

If you are new here, my story begins years ago as a young mom in a new city with three children to care for, my husband traveled for a new job frequently and I was often alone with pretty much no support system. One day I woke up and felt really off, and I noticed a rash on my stomach. I became dizzy and wound up in the ER within a few hours only to be sent home on Activan, completely brushed off. I then spent more than two years going through tests, seeking answers from different specialists (again, the whole story is in this post), until I concluded I'd had Lyme disease for several years, the entire time it silently wrecking damage.

In the decade plus that has followed, I have been treated by several knowledgeable doctors and tried many therapies (it is ongoing) to regain my health from what has quickly become an autoimmune issue. I am better now than I have been in years, but it is a process as with the long delay in treatment I had, there was no quick cure. Cleaning up the damage that Lyme wrecks is an ongoing battle beyond just eliminating the Lyme. Again food has been my most powerful tool, along with lifestyle changes and supplements, in helping me feel good again.

I have done antibiotic therapy and herbal regimes, and consumed countless supplements and taken many, many expensive tests. Each of these, for the most part, has helped me reach a new level of health, but one of the most powerful strategies I have used has been to change my diet, reduce toxins, get enough rest and sleep and to keep a positive mindset. Early on I eliminated gluten and processed foods, and reduced as much sugar as I could, these made a huge difference. A few years later, desperate to fully regain my energy and vitality, I strictly followed the AIP protocol for 2 months which also helped me make huge strides towards feeling normal again. Just this last year I went through a gut health protocol which helped me regain quite a bit of my former vitality, it's a process but one I continue to learn from.

Obviously at the middle stage of life there are biological factors at play beyond the autoimmune challenges I face. Changing hormone levels, intense stress from life and the world we live in, environmental toxins and declining food quality all work against the good things that are out there, so I prioritize overcoming those challenges daily in addition to a nutritious and nourishing diet. Also, with my system already weakened, I want to do everything I can to minimize my future risk for other serious health issues (like cancer, Alzheimer's and such). It's a lifestyle commitment, and an active choice, but it pays dividends in how I feel and I am trusting that making good choices now will provide for a better quality of life in the future.

Going through this, and learning about how I could change my lifestyle to improve my health has become the driving force behind this website. I am currently studying holistic nutrition and will also soon have an additional certification in autoimmune nutrition. My passion has become prioritizing wellness as to leave no room for disease.

Thank you for being here.