I grew up in a household where my father never withheld any food item from us, because he had grown up in abject poverty. At the same time, he had sustained major injuries from sport. My mom was a personal trainer and gym enthusiast since my birth. He had pain when he moved. She was always moving. They ate very differently. I was in the uncomfortable middle. I loved sport, but always had sore joints and gut pain. And I could never seem to shake the podge, even despite 2-3 hours in the gym, 5 days a week in high school.

By 27, I had had a knee op, and by 31, had two daughters with severe allergies I had no frame of reference for! Real post-natal depression, income challenges and sheer desperation led me to dig my way out of the dark by researching, reading, talking with professionals, listening to podcasts and ending up with so much information in my head that I was more desperate than ever. Overwhelm. Tears. Conflict inside.

What I learned through those years was the priceless skill of listening to my own body. I began to drop what wasn’t “true” for me, or my family, and to try what worked for us. We unapologetically healed, starting with my kids’ allergies, my gut and my joints. To this day this approach has consistently served every member of our 5-person household.

This freedom has been indispensable!