My Story Part 3: How I Got To Where I Am Today
Seeing my son sick, I now had a deep passion for understanding what was causing his body to function the way that it was. I was trying all types of different diets, adding and taking away foods. I started looking into going back to school for nutrition because I knew I needed to get to the root cause to be able to restore his body to health again. And I also knew I needed to continue to address my own health so that I could be there for him in the way he needed most. How could I possibly know if I was choosing the best foods for us as a family? It was all so overwhelming. I felt like I was trying so many things, taking random shots in the dark, but still not sure if the options I was picking were truly healthy or not. And yet, I knew food was the foundational piece that needed to be in place in order for healing to take place for both of us.
Throughout this process, I continued to struggle with many symptoms myself (read more about the beginning of my health journey here). I was doing everything that the doctor said to do while also trying to help my son feel better. But the stress of it all was not helping either of us. My best friend told me about a nutritionist who spoke at church and might be able to help point us in the right direction. She grabbed her business card and encouraged me to call her since she knew I was interested in learning about nutrition. I learned she was a FNTP (Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner), and amazingly enough, she was hosting a free class that night! It happened to be literally 5 minutes from my home in a Chiropractor’s office! When I walked into the meeting, she had a huge whiteboard with the words “Have you tried every diet out there?” that greeted us. It listed all the diets I had tried and then some!!! Can you imagine how excited I was to be there and learn more after reading that? Knowing that I wasn’t alone in trying so many different diets and still not having any answers was (in a lot of ways) the thing that truly kick-started my healing journey.
The most important thing I learned that night was how vital a diet rich in real, whole nutrient-dense foods is for the overall health and wellness of our bodies! I also learned how to read ingredients (not just labels) for the first time. What was truly shocking is when she started talking about the importance of eating FAT (healthy fat)!!!!! Remember, I was told to avoid fat because of my pancreatitis diagnosis. It was demonized and considered very bad for the condition. Little did I know how much my body needed it and the importance of consuming healthy fats for longevity and vitality. The one thing I will never forget though, was when she said, “I want you to be able to bite into a piece of bread with butter on it and be able to see your teeth marks in the butter!!” WHAT IN THE WORLD! She was saying the opposite of what my doctor had told me. Well, actually what the piece of paper they sent in the mail outlined… you see, my doctor never called me personally to help me put a plan into action. I just received a letter in the mail stating the diagnosis of pancreatitis and that my only option was to go on a low-fat diet. So you can imagine what a shock it was to hear that fats are not only important but necessary!
I was willing to try anything to feel better and help my son! I knew I had to put going back to school aside and hire her to teach me all things nutrition so that we could restore both me and my son to health. One thing I haven’t elaborated on yet is that I suffered from acne for many years. Sometimes it was so severe I wouldn’t leave my house. It was depressing and very hard to deal with on a daily basis. So a huuuge part of why I wanted to see her was also backed by the desire to see if the work we did together could help heal my acne. I decided to stop doing this on my own and work with someone who could truly help me.
She was very thorough with me, and our first appointment together lasted almost 2 hours long!! I barely would get 10 minutes with my primary doctor so this was a welcome surprise. I’m not bashing doctors in any way – I believe they are amazing and are so needed. They save lives! And there is absolutely a time and place for conventional medicine. But unfortunately, my doctors (I say doctors because I kept going from one to the next) were only trying to mask my problems, not find the root cause. The FNTP put me on a protocol of removing, wheat, dairy, sugar, and gluten. I was also advised to take certain supplements to support my body’s healing process at the time. She also started introducing detox therapies in my protocol as well. I was learning so many things from her and was starting to feel the best I’ve felt in years!
I lived off the SAD diet for many years and was using a lot of processed foods like earth balance, vegan cheese, and rice milk that had so many fillers and synthetic ingredients that were just inflaming my body. At the time I could only afford to have her help me. But I started to implement everything I was learning into my routine and incorporating the foods I ate into the meals I made for my family as well. It was so much easier cooking the same meals for everyone and honestly it was exactly what they needed for their health. Especially since my youngest son had started to develop allergies to any food he ate. The options available were increasingly limited but I felt good knowing I could make him nourishing foods at home.
During my time seeing the FNTP she was hired at a doctor’s office and had to move about an hour away. I was devastated because she had been so close and I regularly took advantage of all her free classes. I was hungry to learn about everything she spoke about. So even though I was sad to see her go I was willing to make the commute and continue learning as much as I could. Little did I know what a blessing it would be in my son’s life and mine!
