My Story
I have been in your shoes.
I will take the time and effort to get at the root cause of what is going on inside your body.
I was a chubby kid. I was bullied in middle school for my weight. In high school I watched all my friends have boyfriends. I remember once my friend told me this guy would go out with me if I lost 15 pounds. I never focused on taking care of me; even from a young age. I was primary caregiver to my 2 sick parents by 15. After having kids is when I really started to put weight on.
I was always interested in being healthy; I could just never get there or take the time to take care for myself enough to get there. I lived a life of shame and felt like I had to prove myself in most situations. People think if you're fat, you're lazy. We are not lazy people! I had some success but then nothing I tried was sustainable and I always gained the weight back. I read a lot of nutrition books, hired a coach who taught me how to lift weights. I never stuck to anything. I knew how to cook and bake but focused more on foods that were not good for me. I wasn’t connecting dots or even thinking about how food could help me. Food was pleasure to me and it masked my pain from all my trauma but I didn't realize it. Needless to say, I had not set up a healthy food environment in my home and it did have an affect on the rest of my family.
I was flying a lot internationally for work and it was hard to fit into the seat and buckle my belt. In 2018 I started to take a Glp1; shame drove my motivation to finally do something about my weight. It wasn't sustainable and I lost about 50 pounds and over 5 years gained most of it back.I weighed 320 pounds and was the heaviest I've ever been. I wasn't well. I had hypertension, type 2 diabetes, asthma, and edema in my left ankle. I didn't feel good, and I was on a lot of medication.I was 57 and both my parents died at 60 and I was scared.
I started to listen to podcasts about health and nutrition, and I started to learn some things. Despite being on tons of medications and having 3-4 regular doctors that I saw at that time, I was never told about how important sleep, food, light, water, nervous system are to total well being (not necessarily in that order).I was also never told that any of my conditions were reversable. I did not understand that I was accountable for my own health. I did not understand that what I was putting into my body was making me sick. Don't get me wrong, I am not blaming anyone. I just did not understand that I could be in control of my health. I had outsourced that to the traditional medical system. But I started to learn, and I trusted my intuition on who to follow, who to listen to, and what to read. I started to make changes.
The first thing I did was to get more sleep and better sleep.I started with going upstairs to bed at 9:00 pm and having a nice skin care routine. I bought a good air purifier for my room. I started to sleep well, tracked my sleep, saw improvement in how I was feeling. Then I allowed myself to get some personal coaching. This coaching taught me how to love myself despite the years of shame.It taught me that I was worth taking care of. It taught me how to take care of myself to get the results I wanted. I started to walk daily with my dog, Rusty. Within a month I was walking 2 miles a day in nature and sunlight. I was moving better. I started to lift weights again and made a humble gym in my basement. I started to eat whole foods. I started to cook healthy and I could make it taste good.I removed seed oils from my diet.I started to listen to my body. I had been so out of touch with my body, I didn't even know what hunger felt like. I didn't know what fullness felt like. But I learned and I listened well. I started to regulate my nervous system and got coaching and help with this too.
I was losing weight and had gotten off most of my medication within a year. I have to date lost 140 pounds and at 59 years old, feeling the best I've ever felt. I feel strong and healthy! I realized that self care is so important and has to come first. I started to learn who I really was and what my gifts are. I became accountable for my own health and partnered with my healthcare team. I asked questions and advocated for myself. I have removed and eliminated most of my medications because I no longer need them. This is the point where I learned that the traditional health system has standard protocols for everyone. Traditional medicine is focused on symptoms; not root cause. The body is designed to heal.
I decided to get certified in Functional Nutrition and quit my 30-year long corporate career and launch my new company, Cool Cookster. None of my doctors ever told me I could heal. In fact, they said I would be on medication forever. I want to help you empower yourself to get well. I am here to help you get well through food.I am here to help you discover which foods are right for you and how you can cook for yourself to heal. I am a certified Functional Nutrition Counselor. My goal is to get to the root cause of what ails you, especially when the regular medical community is not finding the solutions you need. In addition to functional nutrition counseling, I offer cooking instruction.Typical nutritionists give you a list of what foods you eat, but not everyone has the skills necessary to know how to prepare food, shop and get organized in the kitchen. Cooking for yourself is self care, it is a bonding experience with your partner, family and loved ones. It keeps you moving; it's good modeling for your kids. Most importantly, it will help you in your journey and it doesn't have to be overwhelming. I'll show you how! I will fully support you in this journey without shame and self doubt while focusing on your bioindividuality to get to the root cause of what ails you.