I am a runner...

I am a runner. This is ingrained in me. I've been running my whole life, but started running on a team when I was 10 years old. I never considered myself a competitive person. I do not need to win every game in order to have fun; but I don't like people running ahead of me...so I had to be in front. I guess some people consider that a competitive behavior.

I've told my story a hundred times and a dozen different ways but I have yet to talk about this part. It hits me sometimes, late at night, this urge, this energy that I cannot explain. It's a desire so deep in me that it doesn't even make sense to me. I just want to RUN!

When I was diagnosed, almost exactly 2 years ago now, with celiac's, hashimoto's and stage 4 adrenal fatigue, the reason I went to the doctor wasn't because of all that pain, it was because it started hurting too badly to run anymore. That was my passion, running kept me grounded. I had this horrible pain in my lower left leg. Like nothing I'd had before, and I had been hurt several times in my running career. This was different.

I'd gotten shin splints before and what what that felt like becuase in high school my coach told me it was totally fine to run on shin splints (I just needed the PT to tape them every day before I ran). So, each day before practice I went to the school PT and had my shin muscle tapped to the bone so I wouldn't feel the ripping pain while I practiced. It didn't last long (about 4 months) before I could no longer walk without shooting pain. I stopped running at that point. 17 years old and I had to pause my passion to heal. It was shortly after that point that I was diagnosed with clinical depression and panic disorder. I should have known then!

Fast forward 10 years later, I am running every day and this new pain comes on. I knew I couldn't hide from this pain or tape it down. So I dug deeper. I went to a chiropractor who specialized in this sort of pain and help tons of runners. He told me it was muscle related and that he saw it all the time. I spent over $1000.00 just to hobble out a month later when he told me nothing was wrong and he "fixed" the muscle. Then I went to THE sports medicine doctor for the chargers and he ordered an MRI. He found not one, but 3 grade three stress fractures in my left leg. I could have broken my leg just walking around!

Now that I am sitting in this man's office, I have a few more questions. For starters, what in the world is so wrong with my body that my bones couldn't handle the pressure I was placing them under? Drum roll please...the celiacs disease had stripped my body of it's nutrients and weakened not only my whole digestive system but also my bones. Now, I was afraid of my kitchen (my safe place) and had no outlet (running). It's been two years now and everything I do for my health is 1st for my children so they never have to have a sick mom, 2nd for my husband so I can live up to my end of the promise to stick around through this life and any other, and 3rd so I can RUN. The desire is so strong and it comes down on me like a ton of bricks.

So, I want to tell you right now, if you have stopped something you love so much that it hurts, becuase of your health, please reach out and let me try and help! I want so badly to run again, and I will. But if you are struggling to get your passion back, do not ever give up that dream! It is part of who you are like running is a part of me.

I've given myself the grace to rest and heal and build my body back up for one more year, mark my words: you'll see me back on a track!

Be well, and get back out there my friend!

Let me tell you about my church...I feel "Glorious"

I grew up in a very confining church, with a set of rules and regulations that when bent led to a whole lot of judgment. That was never my style and I never felt comfortable judging or being judged for something I thought wasn't all that bad. Since I've grown and had my own opportunity to find my truths I've learned to feel spiritually connected in so many more ways than I ever felt in that brick building surrounded by people looking to damn me. Some of those things are: being connected to nature, through hiking, running, paddleboarding, walking next to the ocean, staring at a sunset and listening to music. Recently, an incredible song, that is gaining popularity by the second, has given me that "Hallelujah" feeling like nothing I have felt in a long time.

So much has happened in my life, as with any other 30 year old woman I am sure, but I feel like I had to dig my way out of a very large hole and then learn to sustain that way of life without much in the way of examples. None of this is meant to come off as a complaint. I am actually incredibly grateful for all that I have been through because it has shaped me into someone I am pretty fond of.

But let us get back to this song...

I first saw the music video while scrolling facebook, now watch carefully, this video is magical. I lost my grandmother back in February and I had no idea the impact on my life this event would have. I've lost several people, who I was extremely close with and I thought I knew then how to deal with grief. This was different. This video hit something in me that I didn't quite understand. Then I dug a little deeper. As you know by now, I could never stop at a simple solution. My crazy, never ceasing, always searching brain wanted more! So I kept listening and listening until I got some basic understanding of why these words are like church to me. When I got sick, so much of me was lost to a world of distain, disappointment, discouragement, and certainly distaste! I lost my connection to food and my outlet in exercise and then...I lost a bigger part of me...Hope. There were countless nights that I prayed I wouldn't wake up the next day. What was the point of putting so much pressure on all the people I loved if this was going to be my quality of life. When I finally stopped the pity party and decided I wasn't a victim, never had been and never will be. I started to get my life back. Now two years later, I am starting to feel things again that I hadn't felt in a long time.
Macklemore opens the song
"You know I'm back like I never left
Another sprint, another step
Another day, another breath
Been chasing dreams, but I never slept
I got a new attitude and a lease on life
And some peace of mind
Seek and I find I can sleep when I die"
Now, I'm back! I feel it, it's all coming back. Who I am, who I was and who I want to be, it was all there all along and I just had to uncover it again and again and fight for myself and stop apologizing all the time for who I am. This song, man, it says everything!

This is my journey, there are some serious bump, big ass mountains in the way. But I am finally learning to stop seeing them as blocks and to start seeing them as lessons. Changing this mindset and making the decision to stop bitching and moaning about how hard life is, has changed how I see every scenario in my life. Even the small petty things are lessons learned.

The chorus of this song is what really gets you, I dare you to listen to these words and not close your eyes, looking up, picturing the most incredible church chorus, singing, praising, appreciating the life you've been given. I cannot help but feel gratitude and, of course, GLORIOUS!

'I feel glorious, glorious
Got a chance to start again
I was born for this, born for this
It's who I am, how could I forget?
I made it through the darkest part of the night
And now I see the sunrise
Now I feel glorious, glorious
I feel glorious, glorious"

How can this be just a song. It is changing parts of me I forgot to appreciate, parts I've forgotten to love about who I am! I was born to help people and encourage change in a big way. I have more to give and I am not stopping anytime soon. And now..."I'm back..."

"I said amen and hallelujah, let me testify too
Another morning, a morning, don't let self get in my way
I got my breath, I got my faith and I remember why I came"

Dear Wildlife...my experience eating clean while camping

Now don't get me wrong, I am pretty lucky. I have a trailer, a stove, a travel BBQ, a fridge, and a cast iron pan (I never leave home without it), and a family that eats the same way I do. So I realize I am at an advantage here. But if you want to be a clean eater, and your health is important to you 365 days a year regardless of where it is you are calling home for the week, then I've got a few tips for you.

Eating the way I do and caring for my body the way I do takes a lot more prep and forethought than simply grabbing something to-go. So, whenever I am going on a trip, be it 2 days or 10, I do all my meal planning, shopping, and prep in advanced. For this trip I sat down about a week early and mapped out all of my meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks) with my family, then I shopped specifically for those meals.

Dinners for 10 days:
1. Hamburgers with Potato salad
2. Trout
3. Meatloaf
4. BBQ ribs
5. Chicken Salad
6. Sausage
7. Tacos
8. BBQ chicken
9. Steak Night
10. Out to dinner (we found a great little place in LeeVining)

Once I have my list now I know what to buy and what to cook ahead. Every night when I was cooking dinner during the week before our trip I doubled my meals. One night we had meatloaf for dinner and I made 2, and put one in the freezer for the trip. I made roasted chicken one night and cooked 3! Two I strip

ped down and froze for the trip, one we ate for dinner.

There are a few advantages to camping this way and only one disadvantage. The bad thing is all the time spent thinking/shopping and prepping. But the best part is: when you are out enjoying your vacation you can spend less than 5 minutes cooking each day! Less time cooking means a lot more time playing! Bonus: you get to feel great the whole time too!

For side dishes I made big salads, and brought tons of foil packets full of veggies and good seasonings. For breakfast we had paleo pancakes (I pre-cooked and stored in ziplock bags and reheated on a pan), with eggs (cooked fresh each day) and bacon (prepped ahead). For lunches we made tuna and chicken salad ahead and use lettuce for wraps. We brought tons of clean snacks like chips, granola, RX and lara bars, and cookies. We never felt deprived and we got to play from sun up till sundown without any interruptions.

All of this is to say, that it can be done. You can eat clean and be on vacation. There is nothing convenient about being a healthy or clean eater, but you can make your life easier by planning ahead and staying on top of things. If this is an area that you are really struggling with, let me help!

You can schedule appointments with me here as well as following me on social media for all the latest updates and tips here. I do hope this helps you!

Be well my friend!

If you give a mom a macaccino...

If you give a mom a macaccino, her kids will probably need a tissue, then she will realize that the kitchen is a huge disaster and start to clean that up first..."MOOMM!!!! I need a tissue again" then she will bring her daughter a tissue and realize the living room is also a mess and start to clean that up. Then she will have forgotten all about the macaccino and now it is cold, into the microwave it goes...and so on and so on until she gives up and dumps the damn thing in the sink. Mom - 0, Macaccino-1.

Have you ever read the book "If you give a mouse a cookie"? It is my all time favorite kids book because I totally relate to both characters. As a mom, I am the little kid helping the mouse by picking up after all of his misadventures in "helping". I also identify strongly with the mouse, starting new projects every few minutes and never quite finishing anything. At the end of the day there is this unimaginable exhaustion that never seems to be quite curved and yet...nothing truly got accomplished. I read this amazing story years ago and it totally resonated with me and gave me this beautiful analogy for motherhood. At least it was good preparation!


All of this to say...
1. Us moms need to slow down and drink our hot beverage!
2. We need to focus on one task at a time
3. Give ourselves a little more grace at the end of the day!
4. Mommin ain't easy but this little stage doesn't last forever. I am learning to love it instead of being sad for my messy house!

I am really working hard lately on trying to do one thing at a time and work on completing that task before I start the next one. (Although, as I type this I am sipping my drink...can't win them all!)

Be well my friends!

This is my journey too. How to survive a flare.

I pride myself on my level of care and love I provide my body but even doing all the good that I possibly can, I am not immune to my autoimmune diseases (pun intended). This year has been hands down one of the best so far. Starting in January (or a little before) I decided to stop being so upset with the lot my life had provided for me and start living to the fullest potential that I can. I really have given it my best shot to stop trying to control everything and instead let the universe guide my path. It has been truly a remarkable journey. However, whenever you are trying to make these great changes in your life other things will get in the way as well. My year and world was rocked to the core this past February when I lost my grandmother and had to deal with family drama beyond any possibly imagination. It wasn't the loss exactly but everything that came with it that shook me.

When huge emotional shifts take place in your body it doesn't matter how clean your pantry is or how many vitamins you take or the fact that I get 8 hours of sleep every night...it still took a major toll. This past few days I have been too ashamed to admit it but I was hit with a massive flare. One that has taken me down for several days and kept me from doing the things I love. I am trying to find meaning in it all...but maybe, just maybe the whole point is for me to share this experience.

I am on this journey right alongside you all. I am working just as hard as you are to reverse my cell damage and repair what has been taken away. Along the way there are going to be bumps and pain but it is about getting back up and seeing what you can do next.

Monday evening I went home feeling a little off but I figured if I got a good night's sleep and took my vitamins I would feel better by Tuesday. Tuesday at 2am I woke up writhing in pain with a massive interstitial cystitis flare. One like I have never experienced in the past. Immediately I went through a mental catalog of everything I'd done that past weekend to see if I could pinpoint the culprit. I mentally scanned my food journal, sleep record, activity level, stress level etc., and yes I had worked a little too hard and on Sunday I had 2 glasses of wine instead of my usual 1 and I hadn't been getting the sleep I usually get...but overall it was the stress that brought me down. This flare brought me to my knees on Wednesday night in tears. I want to be there and encourage all of you that we can get through this. This isn't the flare that I won't recover from, this isn't the time to give up. So after I let myself release some of these emotions, I dried myself off, went to the kitchen and started the next treatment. I made a clay mask for my abdomen, took colloidal silver and an extra large dose of straight chamomile herbs to calm the muscles, put my infrared heating pack on and watched a movie. The point of all of this is to say that we can make it through anything we want. There is no problem that we cannot reverse if we work together and support each other. Trust me when I say, I want to help you too. I am on my own journey right here next to you and I want you to know that I won't be knocked down by these things and I won't let you get knocked down either.

Today, is a new day and I am feeling much better. I felt inspired to tell you my story as hard as it is. You all know by now that I have 4 autoimmune diseases and I am not immune to flares. I use them as a reminder to love my body and appreciate all the hard work it does for me and as a reminder to rest. We have too much to be healthy for, we have to be like the bobo doll and just keep getting back up!

Thank you for reading
Be well!

Sharissa Bradley

Impulsivity and Jumping in

"Hello, my name is Sharissa Bradley and I am impulsive"

"Hi Sharissa!!"

Almost every decision I have made I have made it impulsively: saying yes to my husbands proposal, having my first baby (and my second), taking jobs, buying a home, buying my car, starting projects etc. I am that person who can convince anyone of anything (maybe manipulative is a better word) and can convince myself of the next best thing like no ones business. But when it came to taking the plunge in my own health it took months of research and explaining and long periods of self doubt before I came to the conclusion that I had nothing else to lose.

Can anyone tell me why it is that when it comes to our health we can come up with one million excuses to not take the next step? Too expensive, cannot afford a coach, cannot afford to eat healthy, I am going to start on the first of the month, I need to start on a Monday but I keep messing up Monday morning so I have to wait a whole week to start again.

Why is this? Why isn't our health our number one priority. If you are sitting at home again spending another day too tired, too sick, or simply or not feeling well enough to be social or playing with your family then how come you cannot see it is time for change? Don't feel bad...I did the same thing. But why?

I want to tell you a little something about being an impulsive person that is so incredibly frustrating. I can be very easily convinced to try new things...next week I am jumping out of an airplane, this past Friday I walked a red carpet as a model (a 30 year old mom of 2 little kids...yes ME) because I am tired...truly sick and tired of letting my health control my life. I JUMPED and you should too.

For some reason we can be so easily convinced to buy the latest gadget, a new TV, remodel our house...but when it comes to spending money on changing your life it is so hard to make that leap. I know from experience. I spent most of my life satisfied with the fact that I was always going to be tired and weak and uncomfortable in my clothes because my doctor said that was a normal process of getting older. I was skeptical of the health trends and fads (or so I thought). When I finally hit my rock bottom I had no choice but to seek out alternative care. I went to acupuncture, chiropractic, integrative medicine doctors, and herbalists. I finally started to see some relief, that in combination with changing my diet I was able to reverse heal and become whole. It is hard to explain health to someone who has never felt well...I am selling you on a dream that you didn't know you could dream. When I was sick there was no one like me to help, I couldn't find someone who would hold my hand and teach me how to not only survive but thrive...so when I got well enough I became that person for everyone else. You do not have to suffer any more, you just have to determine what your health and life is worth to you. Do you want this to be your quality of life now? Or do you want the dream you didn't even know you could dream about?

Follow my pages, subscribe here, on facebook and on instagram and get some free tips every day, and when you are ready give me a call and I will show you the dream. You cannot afford to spend one more day missing your life, take a leap of faith and be impulsive for the right reasons.

Be well and thank you for reading,
Sharissa Bradley B.A., M.A., & C.N.C.

Come on body, get out of bed: Adrenal Fatigue

Come on body!! We push our precious bodies so far and they work so hard for us! Especially here in Southern California, I don't know about you, but I will push my body until it collapses (12-15 hour days sometimes). I am a typical overachiever, I was pregnant in grad school and had a 2 year old and still pushed myself to finish early. It is no surprise after giving everything else in my life 100% of my energy that at some point my body screamed out....STOP!

It is funny how it happens. We are going along, everything is fine, working hard and pushing ourselves. 4-6 hours of sleep is enough right? WRONG! Your body will figure out a way to knock you off your feet if you are not listening to it. Unfortunately, for some people that means their body stops working properly. This can show up in a variety of ways, you could be feeling slightly more tired than usual and no amount of sleep seems to help you catch up, you could be exhausted instead of exhilarated after a workout, you could be cranky for no apparent reason, or wake up feeling more tired than you were when you went to bed the night before, or maybe you are tired and cranky all day then around 6-7pm you get an enormous surge of energy and all of a sudden you could clean your whole house and do all your food prep. Everyone else is sleeping and even though you have been tired all day long (wishing you were in bed) yet now you couldn't go to bed no matter how hard you tried.

All of these symptoms and more are signs of adrenal fatigue. Adrenal Glands are tiny organs that live on top of your kidneys and help to regulate the HPA (Hypothalamus - Pituitary-Axis). They regulate hormones and are responsible for cortisol and adrenaline production. When you push your body too hard and don't give it proper food and rest these tiny organs can start misbehaving producing only tiny bits of cortisol in the morning leaving you sluggish and tired and higher amounts in the evening giving you that much needed surge of motivation at the WRONG time of day! Exercise will push these glands to produce adrenaline which will further tax them leaving you  more tired than when you started. Boy oh boy, what a complicated mess!!

So what do we do when we find it nearly impossible to get our heavy body out of bed every morning? How do we heal these precious organs and get out of our incredible bodies way of healing itself?

1. Make sleep your #1 priority!!
(Side note: I was diagnosed with stage 4 adrenal fatigue 2 years ago and my doctor told me this and I literally laughed in her face. I told her, "you know I have 2 children under 3 years old and you want me to sleep 8-9 hours a night??").

This is the most important thing you can do for your body. Our bodies heal when they are at rest, if you are not sleeping, you are not healing.

2. Stop any physical exertion that you can. Walking is great but nothing too hard and do not push yourself! If at any point you are getting that adrenaline surge, you are further taxing those tiny organs.

3. EAT!! When you skip meals your blood sugar tanks too low, when your blood sugar gets too low your body over compensates by producing adrenaline. You are not running on your "stored fat" you are running on adrenaline. Excess adrenaline will get stored in your fat cells as toxins. You are not doing yourself any favors by skipping meals. Eat regular meals and keep your body running on glucose and fat not adrenaline! Give those puppies a rest.

4. Eat high quality foods and enough to keep you satisfied all day.

5. Practice some self love! You have pushed your body to it's breaking point, now it is time to give it some grace and for goodness sake #loveyourself

6. Get a coach: find someone (if it isn't me) that can help you through this process. It is a long road but one worth taking. Especially if you have someone leading you every step of the way!

If this sounds like you, please reach out, I would love to help you heal!

Be well my friends.

There is no such thing as a magic pill...

It is very rare that I will sit on the couch and watch TV. I am the type of person who needs to be constantly busy. If I sit down for any length of time when the sun is still up I start to think about all that needs to get done and I cannot relax. With that said, last week I got hit with the most horrible flu bug. Getting this flu, in part, was exciting (I'll explain this in a minute) but mostly it knocked me off my ass! I was stuck on the couch for a few days with such bad nausea that all I could do was chill (very unlike me) and I watch regular TV with commercials *gasp*. It is amazing how many drug commercials there are these days. One in particular struck a chord with me. 

There is a new weight loss drug out there called Contrave (clever name). The pill claims that it works on two areas of the brain to control your craving (pleasure center) and to make you feel fuller longer (hunger center). With possible side effects of depression and suicide. The commercial shows women working together to form a brain and shows women in restaurants refusing dessert. Why is this such a big deal? Why is this so frustrating for me?

There are a few key points this ad is leaving out about what exactly this pill is doing to your brain. Any time you take a medication there is going to be some effect. As long as you are taking this pill you will be stifling your pleasure center in your brain that area that makes you feel good and the area in your brain that tells you are hungry. By clogging those receptor sites in your brain you'll also be blocking your natural hormone production of the hormone leptin. As well as the hormone ghrelin. The "hunger hormones," leptin and ghrelin. Leptin is a hormone, made by fat cells, that decreases your appetite. Ghrelin is a hormone that increases appetite, and also plays a role in body weight. If you block your own bodies production of these two hormones you will never be able to control your cravings and therefore weight gain.

You cannot block these hormones without having some seriously negative repercussions. Not to mention blocking the pleasure center of your brain (the one this drug claims will help you stay away from French fries and ice cream) what other pleasures are you going to be blocking? It’s no wonder the two biggest side effects are depression and suicidal thoughts. Don’t mess with your brain people. Our body knows exactly how to heal itself, it knows exactly how much to eat and when to stop. There are other problems at play here and there is no magic pill to cure them. Especially not if you want long-term results. You cannot take a drug to cure cravings.

If you or someone you know is seriously struggling with an uncontrollable appetite or cravings and uncontrolled weight gain, please know there are bigger things at play and there is no one pill. Get yourself a coach, or call me and we can work on it together. Please let me know if I can be of any help to you. My goal is for lifetime success and longevity!

Be well friends!

An Open Letter to The Universe

The month of April, for me is the month of mindfulness and I want to share something very personal with you. My business coach taught me to ask the Universe for what I want. So this is my open letter to the Universe.

I strongly encourage you to figure out exactly what it is you want in life and start asking for it. You can use my letter as a model if you'd like. Most importantly, you need to know that you are responsible for your own reality and one way to break the cycle is to know what you want and ask for it! Here is my rendition:


Dear Universe,

Thank you for my life and existence, my gratitude for this life is immeasurable. I would like to allow myself all this life has to offer and stop keeping myself from love, peace, joy, abundance, and above all happiness. I will do that by spelling out my letter to the Universe.

I want to own my own business but not let it own me. I want time for myself and my children without feeling guilty for taking the time for those things. I want financial independence, freedom, and wealth in all areas of my life beyond any measurable scale. I want to get out of my own way and stop abusing myself by withholding love and affection from myself. If I can only love others as much as I love myself; I want to show myself unconditional love. Because I deserve it. I want ringing positivity in my household.

I want to feel so amazing on my own health and healing journey that I cannot help but spread wellness to everyone I encounter. I want enough joy to share. I want to help change the lives of women everywhere so no child ever goes without a mother.

I deserve to be paid well because the information I have is valuable, important, and worth sharing. My time and education is worth paying for. I deserve to buy myself nice things with no added guilt. Dear Universe, I am willing to meet you halfway. I am willing to live on a set spending plan and cash diet. I am willing to attend 2 marketing events each month. I am willing to give myself "me time" each day because I am worthy of self care. I am committed to allowing the Universe to send me the women/men/and families who need me, in tremendous amounts. I believe this is all possible because I know this is my path, my journey, my calling, my passion, and my gift. I will not settle for less, because I am worth it!

_____________________________________________________________

I really hope you find this letter inspirational. I also hope you are able to figure out what is most important for you and learn how to ask for what you want. We have the ability to attract positivity into our lives if we are willing and open to accept it. This is a hard lesson for me and I am just starting my journey. I hope this finds you well!

**Please feel free to replace the word Universe with whatever rings true for you. For me the word Universe is synonymous with God.

. 

MindSet Challenge 2017

I have been getting down on myself and I can recognize the patterns. It is time to change my mindset. So, along with doing my whole30 challenge group every month this next month will be special. Starting April 1st (this coming saturday) I will be incorporating the miracle morning into my routine. This is a #mindsetchallenge and I will be committing myself to 30 days of the miracle morning.

April will be all about whole foods and whole mindset. If you haven't heard of the the miracle morning check out the site. You can buy the whole book or enter your email address and get the two chapters free that you need to get started. The goal of the miracle morning is to give yourself time every day with the intention of bettering your world. The rules: wake up at least 30 min earlier (the book recommends 1 hour but I am going to start with 30 min) and give yourself 5 minutes each with each task.

The tasks: Silence, Affirmations, Visualizations, Exercise, Reading, and Scribing (journal). The two downloadable chapters give more information on each of these things but I will give you a brief intro of what I do. I like to do my silence, affirmations and visualizations after I journal. I like to get all my thoughts out on paper and then use those thoughts to create my affirmations for the day. After this I like to read from an educational book  (I really use this time to better myself physically, emotionally and mentally) lastly I go for a nice walk around the block. If I am lucky my kids are still asleep and I can sneak out while everyone is resting and go for a quiet walk. What I notice is that I cannot seem to pay attention to my music. Business ideas and family hacks start flooding my mind and I want to use the time to work through all that the universe is providing for me.

You can do these in any order that you'd like to do them and you can take as much time on each one as you'd like. I like to do about 5 min total on visualizations and affirmations but I read for about 20 minute and my walk its typically more like 30 minutes. Do what works best for you! Here is the 30 day quick start guide with a calendar to mark off the days. I will be keeping track of my journey throughout april on my Facebook page and on the blog.

I really do hope you decide to hop on and join me on this challenge. Only good things can come from this and who knows maybe the next challenge will be #noTVmay. Please let me know if you have decided to join me so we can keep each other accountable! I am hoping to have the opportunity to see your lives change too!

The importance of keeping a "clean" pantry

On February 21st my grandmother passed away. Growing up I had an incredible connection and relationship with my grandmother. When I was older and out on my own I would pick her up once a month and take her to lunch and a movie, even older still I would go to her house once a week for tea and cookies. She got me hooked on drinking tea which is a love I now share with my friends. There is just nothing like a spicy tea with gingersnap cookies. Up until about 5 years ago we were very close. Outside family members eventually pulled us apart and I lost my coveted relationship. I only got to see her and ask for forgiveness just one day before she left us. This past 4 months has been riddled with death in my family and in my close circle of friends and in these horrible moments of grief and longing I want to reach for my go-to feel-good snacks. For me it was: chocolate chip cookies, sourdough bread with cheese, and my all time favorite, peanut butter and jelly. Of course, following the the autoimmune protocol doesn't afford such treats. In fact there isn't a single thing in my list of comfort foods that could be consumed without utter pain and regression.

This brings me to my point. About a year after my initial diagnoses my entire house got cleaned out of all the things I couldn't eat. I kept a few "clean" snacks for my kids...things I wouldn't be tempted by. I continue to shop this way now. I do not buy or allow any foods in my house that would hurt me. I am blessed to be surrounded by people who support me and my goal of extreme and complete health.

By having a clean pantry and a clean fridge I cannot easily grab the things I think will make me feel better. The argument: my grandma died this week and all I wanted was comfort foods, if I am already hurting what was a piece of gluten cake going to do to me, but my pantry was clean and my fridge was clean and I couldn't make bad choices, this is the importance of being prepared.

This isn't just true in times of hurting this is especially true if you are starting out your journey. It is a lot easier to fail if you have all the bad things at arms reach.

If you just jump in and don't prepare yourself then you are preparing to fail 

If there is anything I can do to help support your journey or help you clean out the bad things, I am here for you!

Turning 30 and reflecting back

Turning 30 felt more significant to me in many ways. Of course, there is a societal aspect of pressure involved in turning 30 and being in a certain place in life but this was different. This birthday really felt like a milestone for health. I needed to prove to myself that I could be just as strong, if not stronger, than I was before I got so sick. I truly feel like I was robbed of 2 years of my life (directly following the two years that grad school took). Illness stole my energy, my strength, my happiness, and tested my faith and, on occasion, my will power. I tried not to give up hope so I gave myself an imaginary timeline. By the time I turned 30, I told myself I would be strong, I would run, hike, be awake all day, play with my kids, and discover the purpose for my illness. I am proud to say that the weekend before my 30th birthday I spent 5 days hiking and exploring. I cooked and and ate incredible food, that I wasn't afraid of, all in a TRAILER! I am prouder to say that I have found the purpose of this whole mess, or rather, it found me. I spent so long wondering if I'd ever have a good day and now I have so many good day it is hard to even recognize the bad ones. All of the fear, hard work, and discipline with my diet (all the times people asked me "so what can you eat?"), sleep and alternative medicine has paid off 10-fold. More exciting and more joyful than my own health journey: I have discovered the reason for being sick was to teach me empathy for others struggling down this path. I pray every day asking for more people to help, to let me help them win their battle. My journey is clear now and my future looks bright. I am so grateful for my tribe and my community for getting me where I am and grateful that "30" provided such a beautiful deadline for the hardest part of my calling. Please accept my humblest gratitude for the birthday greetings and well wishes, especially to those who made time to see me, this year meant the most all. Thank you.

Now is the time to seek health and wellness. I'd sure love to help you if I can.

In health,
Sharissa