October 2017 archive

My Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Sugar-Free Vegan Lifestyle

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The numbers on the scale continued to rise. I was bewildered and depressed knowing that my diet hadn’t changed at all. As my clothes grew tighter and my stomach more bloated, I realized that my assumptions had been wrong. Cancer treatment was not a sure way to lose weight, and in fact, many women actually gain weight during chemotherapy. I gained thirty pounds within the first six months of treatment.

I’ll never forget my very first chemo. A nutritionist came in to talk to me about diet and nutrition. He said that I would lose my appetite and that I needed to focus on consuming more calories than I was used to, to ensure that my body remained strong. He said, “If you want chocolate, eat chocolate. When you’re hungry, eat whatever sounds good.” And while this may be sound advice for those who truly do lose their appetites, for me, it was neither helpful nor beneficial to my fight against cancer.

The truth is, there are more opinions about the cause of cancer than I even care to address. Will being in the sun increase your chance of getting cancer? Yes. Will consuming copious amounts of sugar fuel the disease? I’m sure. Will eating red meat propel the growth of cancer cells? Maybe. Are there ways we can reduce our exposure and risk of getting cancer? More than likely. Do high-fiber, cruciferous, plant-based diets combat malignancies? Probably. There are books, websites, and plentiful resources that completely conflict with each other. How do we even begin to decide what is right? My answer? Do you what you feel is best for you. Read those books, watch those documentaries, listen to those professionals, and scour the resources, but always listen to your body and trust your gut.

Beyond the rise of the numbers on the scale, during my fights against cancer and years later, I noticed an overall decline in my health and wellness. Chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery recovery is taxing on one’s body, but even after they were completed, I felt lethargic. For months I assumed it was my body trying to heal from the amount of treatment I had received. I figured that the reason my body was not bouncing back as expected was due to the fact that I was experiencing menopause as a young adult. I had just fought cancer four times in three years and received a slew of treatments and several surgeries, so of course my body was tired! While I believe that is true, I also know that my body was craving good nutrition. The tank of this engine was dangerously low and it needed to be refueled.

I grew up with a southern cookin’ mama. Casseroles, fixins’, crockpot dishes, pasta, rolls, cheese, and butter. All the food that metaphorically wraps you in a nice, warm blanket and whispers in a southern drawl, “Sweet darlin’, you’ll be alright.” It wasn’t until my early twenties when I realized that though my heart loved that food, my body did not. I have been lactose intolerant since birth. My mom had to quickly eliminate all dairy from her diet because of my colic. I have vivid memories of eating ice cream as a toddler and breaking out in violent hives. I quickly learned to steer clear of milk, but continued to eat cheese, yogurt, and other processed dairy foods.

I have never been someone who loves meat. If you are like my husband, a self-proclaimed meataholic, your jaw probably dropped at that statement. Though I grew up with barbecue meat, grilled meat, and deli meat, it never appealed to me. In fact, I’ve always loathed steak. So, at 20 years old, I decided to radically change my diet. I not only stopped consuming meat, but also rejected all animal products, becoming completely vegan. Yet one year in, at dinner with my boyfriend (now husband), I caved. I just needed that sour cream! Processed dairy continued to pull at my heart strings, but I stayed committed to being a vegetarian (no meat, but some animal products).

After cancer, no amount of exercise was helping. I’d wake up early every morning to get a hard workout in, but the tired, bloated, and heavy feelings remained. I have always enjoyed juicing, so I would go on strict juice fasts to see how my body would react. I would lose up to ten pounds in one week and feel great, but as soon as I went back to consuming my normal diet, my body would revolt. I grew weary in my search for health, and started to feel like this was the body and the energy level I needed to accept for myself.

Somewhere on my social media news feeds, I saw something that caught my eye. The Whole30. Several of my friends were posting how amazing their experiences were, so I quickly researched to find out more. I loved everything that I read, and especially loved that the goal behind the program was not to lose weight, but rather to “push the reset button with your health, habits, and relationship with food, and the downstream physical and psychological effects of the food choices you’ve been making.” Without going into a comprehensive description, because there are several resources that give in-depth explanations, the Whole30 is a 30-day elimination of “the most common craving-inducing, blood sugar disrupting, gut-damaging, inflammatory food groups.” No added sugar, no dairy, no gluten, no grains, no alcohol, no legumes, no processed foods. At this point you may be wondering what one can actually eat while on the Whole30. The answer? REAL FOOD.

I decided to try it, and even suckered my husband into joining me. After the thirty days, we both felt incredible. Our views of food radically transformed, our energy increased, our physical appearances changed, and we agreed that we felt the best we had in years. Though meat can be consumed on the Whole30, I chose to continue on with my decade-long decision to remain meatless. My body and mind felt so rejuvenated after the thirty days, that I decided to go forward with a vegan, primarily Whole30 lifestyle. Because the changes I experienced have been so dramatic, I cannot imagine ever returning to the gluten-filled, dairy-full, sugar-loaded way I ate before.

Am I so rigid in my nutrition that I don’t allow myself certain non-compliant foods every now and then? No! My husband makes an incredible vegan black bean (legume) quinoa (grain) dish, and you better believe that I practically lick my plate dry. What I’ve learned by eliminating inflammatory foods is that my body functions best with real, natural, unprocessed foods. I no longer crave nor want items rich in gluten, dairy, or sugar. I eat a diet abundant of fresh vegetables, fruits, and nuts. And you know what? Never have I ever felt deprived. I am full, satisfied, in shape, and energized. And as a bonus, I’ve lost nearly all of the thirty pounds I gained during treatment.

Many of you have asked for my favorite recipe recommendations. To start, I highly recommend beginning the Whole30 and reading the resources of the program. There are several books, cookbooks, and websites dedicated to this lifestyle. Heck, go on Pinterest and search, “Whole30 recipes” and you’re sure to find no less than 900 options! For me, there aren’t many vegetables or fruits that I won’t eat, so my options are endless. Eliminating all gluten, dairy, sugar, and processed foods can be intimidating, but if you are committed, your life will be changed. And by the way, this is not a sponsored post. I simply believe that we are meant to eat clean, real food and I have found a program that believes the same.

I challenge you to start listening to the way your body and mind responds to what you are feeding it. If you are tired after consuming certain foods, your body is trying to tell you something. Listen to it.

The Power of Shared Story

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I was sitting in the fourth row surrounded by hundreds of people perched on the edge of their seats awaiting the wisdom that would soon flood the stage. With an empty seat in front of me, I had clear vision of the speakers who sat in executive leather chairs facing the audience. As the session began, a sense of relief spilled over me. The conversation instantly pierced my weary heart as I thought, “Me, too.”

As she poignantly responded to each prose, the speaker’s authentic approach penetrated the doubting places of my heart and called me to rise up in self-worth and acknowledge that I was no longer alone. She expressed inner thoughts that I felt were only crashing inside my own brain. She illuminated fears and self-doubt that I had previously assumed were only felt by me. She shared personal struggles that turned out to be universal among many. Her openness invited me into a place of belonging. Her willingness to share her story broke the barriers I felt trapped in for so long. I no longer felt alone.

This has happened to all of us at one time or another. Maybe you were sitting in a church service and the pastor said something that ripped through to your very core and felt meant just for you. Maybe a friend shared their story with you and you couldn’t resist nodding your head in agreement at every word they spoke because each one resonated inside your heart. Maybe you read a book or heard a song that finally put words to the way you had been feeling. Maybe, like me, you attended a conference and a speaker expressed a message that washed over your spirit like cool water in the midst of a drought.

From that moment on, your life was probably different. Not only do we feel a sense of relief when someone expresses feelings that we feel, but we are also overwhelmed with a sense of belonging and validation. The “Me too” feeling is powerful. It breaks down walls that we construct around our hearts. It shatters the windows of isolation that we look out from. It invites us to walk alongside each other instead of alone and behind everyone else.

In each of these scenarios, someone entered into a space of vulnerability and was willing to share their story with us. Had they resigned themselves to isolation, we would not benefit from inclusion. If stories and experiences remained locked within the bearer, no one would belong. We would all be alone within the confines our feelings.

The power of sharing our stories is monumental. When we give a voice to our feelings and a platform to our experience, we invite others into the fold. When we shed light on the dark places, shame is removed, fear is absolved, and doubt is erased. Light penetrates the darkness and shines truth over the lies we convince ourselves of. When one person is bold to share their experience, it releases others into the freedom to share their own. What our parents told us is true: sharing is caring. When we share our hearts with one another, we are caring for the well-being of one another.

Many people often tell me that they envy how open I am about my journey. Saying, “I wish I was as bold as you,” or “No one would listen to what I have to say.” And this pains me, because it’s not only untrue, but is a deception that so many fall into. The comparison game is unending. What we must first understand is the difference between circumstance and story.  Our stories are unique and individual, while our circumstances may be shared. Comparisons come when we confuse the two and believe that because our circumstances may be similar our stories must be comparative. The truth is, circumstances happen to us all, but stories are uniquely given to each of us and no two are the same. Comparison is harmful and devastating because it kills the message. It builds walls when we should be breaking them down.

Comparison, at its root, is a thief. It robs us of joy and life and abundance. Comparison causes us to draw within ourselves and continues the cycle of isolation. We must stop comparing our voices to one another. We must stop comparing our circumstances and our experiences. Instead, we should unite and share our stories to show one another that none of us are alone in our suffering, and in our grief, and in our pain. The truth is we are all suffering, and no pain is greater or less than.

Sometimes we wonder if we actually do have a voice. We confuse extroverted and introverted personalities for the effectiveness of platform. We assume that extroverts have a louder voice and introverts have a more quiet one. While the volume of our voices may differ, our platforms are the same. Think about this — do you interact with other people throughout your day, week, or month? Whether you are confined to your home for medical reasons, in a fast-paced sales career, or are a stay-at-home mother, we all have interpersonal interactions. It may be with your neighbor, your spouse, your children, your online community, or even strangers in the grocery store. If you have people around you (which you do), you have a platform to share your story.

Our suffering is not meant for us alone. Our circumstance ushers us into the arena together, for we all suffer. Rather than being trapped in the lie that no one else knows what we are going through, step out in faith and share. You’ll be surprised at the influence your sharing will have not only on your own heart, but on the hearts who receive your shared story. By keeping your story within, you are perpetuating someone else’s isolation. Sharing our stories is pivotal to freedom, healing, and restoration. We cannot heal what we don’t acknowledge. Freedom will never exist until the chains of silence are broken.

Your story is powerful and it needs to be shared. Invite someone to say, “Me too.”

Romans 10:14 (MSG)

“But how can people call for help if they don’t know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven’t heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it?”