I keep falling in and out of Love with Nutrition. I studied it in college, and then graduate school but after I got my Masters of Science in Nutrition, I wanted NOTHING to do with Nutrition.
I finally got over it when I realized I loved Nutrition, I just didn’t want to do it the way hospitals did it—or the way of the medical model. Counting calories made me want to lose my lunch. What I wanted was to do Nutrition the natural way, the way that made sense to me, the way that addressed the whole person as an individual.
Why?
Nutrition really is the foundation for our health and well-being. It’s the foundation necessary for healing. Without nourished cells, our bodies can’t heal, let alone function properly. Our minds suffer, our emotions are all over the map and we have symptoms. A well nourished body resists dis-ease and feels like home.
So off I went to Chinese Medicine School so I could practice Nutrition the natural way. With my license in hand after 4 intense years, I set out to combine the magic combo of Nutrition and Acupuncture only to find that people really wanted pain relief. What? I didn’t go into this Medicine to treat pain! You may laugh, but I really didn’t see it that way. I saw combining Nutrition, Acupuncture and Herbs as powerful tools to help people create whole body wellness. The kind that leaves a person glowing: physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
Because I wanted to eat and pay rent, I got really good at treating pain. It was fun, people would come in with neck pain, I’d put needles in their hand. I’d have them move their neck and they’d look at me like I was practicing voodoo, but the good kind. I loved it, as it was empowering to have an impact on others lives so quickly to reduce their suffering.
But, this wasn’t my mission, it wasn’t my passion. I was good at it, I enjoyed it but I knew there was more I was meant to do.
I found myself early on working with people who really wanted to eat well, but had overwhelming cravings for specific foods. The stronger the craving, the better the results. I used a technique that did the same thing for specific food cravings as needles did for pain. It transformed them on the spot, with a simple technique that blew peoples minds. I was in love!
While I’ve loved practicing and teaching this technique over the last ten years, I’ve discovered one thing:
when the body is not well nourished, healing is a challenge.
Nutrition is the foundation for healing. We have to start there, so the body and mind can make the shift to let go of cravings. The body needs the building blocks to do it, otherwise the brain falls back on old habits. Nutritional building blocks need to be in place.
Letting go of cravings is only the beginning of healing!
It’s the step needed so you can nourish your body back to wellness. A wellness that is unshakeable. A wellness that glows, that keeps you healthy even when others are stressed and catching bugs left and right or running to the vending machine. It’s much better than Whack-a-Mole: following symptoms and attacking them with your best efforts, be it with nutrition, herbs, pharmaceuticals or other healing techniques, just to have another one pop up. Believe me, I’ve lived this personally and professionally!
Name any dis-ease or symptom and I can describe how Nutrition can and will help your body function better and heal:
autoimmune, anxiety, depression, food cravings, heart disease, dementia, digestive disorders, thyroid disorders, etc.
There are obvious ones and not so obvious ones. Nutrition makes a profound difference in prevention and reversal of dis-ease.
So, I took my own advice and went back to school, yes again, to go deeper with Nutritional Therapies. I enrolled in one course, plus two year-long certification programs as I’m an overachiever. It’s been so much fun and I’ve fallen back into even deeper love with the human body. We truly are magnificent creatures.
My journey with Nutrition, with it’s twists and turns may be similar to a health journey you’re on. It’s hardly ever linear and we don’t always end up where we planned. But I do know that if we keep going, we’ll arrive in a new place that is healthier and more vibrant than where we started. It’s important to never give up!
Stay tuned, as I’m working on creating some free content to help you heal your body and better nourish yourself, so you can love the skin you’re in even more and live your best life.
If you’re not already on my notifications list, you can sign up for my tried and true tool to stop stress eating on the spot before it goes away. It’s to the right of this post towards the top:
Don’t Eat When You’re Stressed: Don’t Eat When You’re Stressed, Try This First.
My question for you is, what is ONE habit that you’re proud of that you KNOW is nourishing your body, mind and soul? It can be food related or some other lifestyle habit that you’ve nailed down. Share in the comments, or send me an email, I’d love to hear from you.
Mine? Daily meditation. It was and is a lifesaver for me!
PS. I moved with my husband to San Diego (more about that later). All of my services (except Acupuncture) are still available virtually, and I work with women (and a few men) worldwide.
PSS. Also I love figs, how about you?