Excellent health, incredible energy and stamina, and a zest for life blessed me for 26 years. Very few days of school or work were missed due to ill health, and when the occasional sickness occurred, healing quickly followed. With such a dependable immune system, I never worried over quality of food, hours slept, or administration of self-care—all components integral to good health.
In my 26th year of life, however, all of that changed. A slow and steady downward decline into chronic illness had begun; which presented panic attacks, followed by autoimmune disease, a Lyme diagnosis, and finally an unrecoverable crash. I have received over 20 different diagnoses from a variety of healthcare specialists. But ultimately, between food choices, pregnancies, and life stresses, my body finally gave up and stopped finding homeostasis. Luckily, my spirit found strength where my body found weakness. The past three years have been spent seeking, digging, praying, sorting, researching, crying, and nourishing my way back to stability.
Along the way my focus shifted onto the power of food and its ability to heal. I learned that the Standard American Diet has created problems, which reveal themselves in any number of symptoms ranging from autoimmune disease to blood sugar irregularities to high cholesterol to depression and anxiety. In this discovery and quest for natural healing, I realized that if I wanted to heal, I would need to be the key player in my wellness. Even doctors with the best intentions could not care for me on a molecular level, only I could do that.
I started by transitioning from just gluten free (which I had been for years) to grain free. Then I removed dairy after that. Slowly but surely my food choices became cleaner and smarter. The cob webs started to lift and over the following months I became much less housebound and much more lifebound. The process has taken time and I have had to learn how to deal with life’s stresses much differently. I may always be a work in progress; but for now I have literally been brought back to life through nutrient dense foods. My goal is to share my story, share my journey, and share my recipes in hopes that others who are struggling may find life again as well.
On a lighter note, I never knew how to cook. I met my husband barely able to boil water and really did not learn how to cook from scratch (or whole foods) until after I became very ill. Family and friends can confirm that i was nothing short of a disaster in the kitchen! So to those of you who feel like it isn’t possible to teach an old dog new tricks, this old dog learned a few and it has made all the difference in the world!
Happy Noshing!!!!!
Want to work with me?! Let’s do it. Go HERE to learn more!
XOXO,
Jen, The Whole Foodist
