Many people ask me how I got started in natural health. Well, let me tell you, this is a good story. Sit back, grab a water and let me tell you a tale.......
In 1991, my mom was diagnosed with Breast cancer. Wow, that was SCARY! I was just a junior high school brat at the time and had no idea what to expect. That ‘C’ word was associated with death, doom and gloom. My mom, however, took it all in stride. She wasn’t too worried and even made jokes about it. She elected to have a full on mastectomy, to avoid the risk of the cancer coming back. That was the plan, anyway......
Fast forward to December of 1996. My mom had a nasty cough she couldn’t shake. Went to the doctor and they took X-rays and found out her lungs were FULL of tumors. They did a biopsy on these and found that these were breast cancer tumors, not lung cancer tumors. Man, were we shocked. She had made it 5 years from her original diagnosis date and we were so hopeful the remission was permanent.
At the urging of one of her siblings, my mom went to secure a second opinion from another doctor. That doctor told my mom that with or without a bone marrow transplant, she would be dead inside 6 months. YIKES! Turns out, that was probably the best thing that happened to my mom. After that initial shock, my mom was ANGRY. She decided then and there that the only person who knew when she was dying was her God and not some medical doctor.
After this, my mom requested my brother and I take her to an arcade. We thought she had lost her mind. But, we took her anyway. Once there, she went to the Pac-Man game and stood there for a moment and said we could leave then. Uh, okay, we thought.
From that moment, every night when my mom went to bed, she imagined Pac-Man eating her cancer. She prayed. She elected to also do the Chemotherapy. My beautiful, wonderful, sometimes annoying mom has been cancer free for over a decade now. Her combination of solutions worked in her favor. She went from a stage 4 cancer patient, to a lively cancer survivor. Not all her cancer fighting compadres were so lucky. Her absolute belief in remission, her use of visual aids to eradicate the tumors, her positive attitude, her thoughtful prayers; these are some things that set her aside from her ‘chemo group’ as she called them.
Around that time I decided to go to school to become a doctor. I wanted to help people be healthy. I received a full scholarship to a local, small college. I stayed home during college, as these were still the days of ‘cancer’ being an occupant in our house. Approaching graduation, I began interviewing medical doctors to see where I wanted to specialize. There was a prevalent theme I encountered: the doctors were frustrated with the health-care system / insurance companies. You see, this is about the time that patient care became ‘managed’ care. The insurance companies were now standardizing treatments and creating protocols to follow - instead of simply doctor recommendations. (Pros and cons here.) At this point in my life, being graceful in conversations and conflict was not a talent. I knew that if I had to ‘fight’ an insurance company for what I knew to be best for my client, that I would get angry and lose my temper.
I took a step back. I decided to re-evaluate my life and choices. Ironically, I ended up going to work for an insurance agency. Several, actually, over the next 10+ years. During this time, I witnessed the cost of health insurance skyrocket while the coverage drastically reduced. I fielded calls and questions from family and friends alike, on how to combat this. Thankfully, much of my time in the insurance industry was more on the business insurance end, not in healthcare.
Then, about 2-3 years ago, I started having these weird, random stomach pains. I mean so bad that I would sit up, ready to attack, if you so much as touched the area of concern. This was no acid reflux. This pain went from just below my breastbone, up my esophagus and caused a sensation of being choked, in my throat. The first year I experienced this (as an adult), I was in and out of the Emergency Room or Urgent Care facility of many local places. I had ultrasounds, a CT scan, HIDA scan, endoscopy and a colonoscopy. The medical doctors prescribed acid reflux medicine one after the other, to no avail. At some point, one medication seemed to keep it at bay, and I felt great after the colonoscopy. I would even joke with my friends that I must have been full of s**t. (Little did I know how true that would end up being).
The problem remained dormant for only a few months before coming back with a vengeance. I got to the point that I was not able to even keep down water. Off I went to the hospital, again. This time, I was subjected to a gastric emptying test (radioactive eggs, and all), and another endoscopy. I was so uncomfortable I was in tears. I didn’t know what to do and just wanted whatever was misbehaving to be removed.
When my primary care doctor came into my hospital room to deliver the results, I was so eager to get a solution. I asked her what the problem was. Her response: “you”. WOW. In my head, my first thought was: ‘you’re fired’. She went on to remind me how great I felt after the colonoscopy and how she had cautioned me to eat better in the past, to no avail. She reminded me that my poor lifestyle choices were impacting my body.
You see, I was the QUEEN of out-exercising a bad diet (ask anyone who knows me, they’ll confirm); I was quite a drinker. I LOVED carbs, and chocolate and GREASY foods! MMMHMM. My doctor told me that I needed to make some changes. She told me that I needed to take 6-12 months off of booze, caffeine, tomatoes and citrus. I told her she was ruining my life (only slightly jokingly). But, I was sick of being sick, so I agreed.
Holy cow, what a difference that made! INSTANTLY! I had always thought of myself as a happy person, not realizing the times I would get testy over something minor, until I didn’t anymore. I had not realized how much of my life was centered around booze and/or food. The money. The missing time. The feeling icky. It was all balancing out.
Prior to that last hospital visit, I had had an appointment with a Naturopathic student. Her and I had discussed my lifestyle and some foods I should incorporate into my diet and some I should remove. This was 3 days before that last hospital visit. Three weeks after that last hospital visit, I made the decision to go back to school to become a Naturopathic Doctor myself. I was simply amazed at how much better I felt after such minor changes.
That last hospital visit is going on about 2 years ago now. While I have added tomatoes, citrus and some caffeine back into my diet, I have not drank since (well, except Kombucha). I probably never will drink again. For me, that is a slippery slope I would rather not revisit. Am I a perfect eater? Heck no. Do I do significantly better than before? Heck yes!
Since that beautiful turning point in my life I have tried a variety of different diets or way of life changes. I have done ‘Whole30’, ‘Ketogenic’, ‘Master Cleanse’, etc. I have gone wild and eaten everything in sight a time or two also. I am not perfect, and never wish to be. I also am very aware of what I am eating, and the effects it has on my mind, body AND spirit.
My friends, my reason for sharing my story with you is to let you know that I have walked similar paths to what many of you are walking. I have been a smoker, a drinker, a sugar addict. I have been a very health conscious eater, and I have fallen face first into a plate of brownies and devoured them all. Every single day we have the choice. Every single MEAL, we have the choice. Every single MOMENT we have choices.
One of my favorite things about natural health remedies is that they work. For EVERYONE. Not every herb is going to work for every person, no. That is a beautiful thing. Knowing we have a wide range of options is amazing. From nutrition to essential oils; from reflexology to bodywork; from exercise to meditation - we have so many paths we can explore. Not only that, being healthy doesn’t have to cost a ton! Baby steps are still steps also. I don’t ask anyone to make a complete life overhaul overnight. It took many of us DECADES to get where we are at, and it will take some time to ‘unget’ where we are.
What do you choose? How can I help you, on your path to improved health?
Much love and health to you all. Thanks for reading. I would love to hear from you.
Gloria
