Migraines
Eczema
Ear Infections
Sinus Infections
Strep Throat
Vertigo
Food Allergies
Constipation
Diarrhea
Food Intolerances
Chemical Allergies
Seasonal Allergies
Joint Pain
Nerve Damage
Raynaud's Phenomenon
Hypothyroidism
Fatigued Adrenals
Brain Fog
Severe Fatigue
Gall Stones
Appendicitis
Ovarian Cysts
Do any of those sound familiar in your life? This is a list of the conditions that we face or have faced in our family. The way that we face these challenges has changed a LOT over the years and I would love to share part of our journey with you in an effort to encourage you to ask questions for your own health. Just because someone with initials after their names says something does not mean that we just do whatever they say.
Sometimes they suggest what they "think" is best. Sometimes different doctors have different opinions.
Our bodies are more complicated than modern medicine knows how to address.
I never used to even question what the pediatrician or doctor told me to do. So what changed?
My eyes were opened, unfortunately my children have suffered at the hands of my ignorance. Now we are taking our lives back.
Step #1 in our journey happened when I was pregnant with my first born. I was sick. I had horrible pain. At one of the numerous visits to the OBGYN (and I really loved my doctor and trusted her completely), I asked her about it. She said she didn't know what it could be.
So my medical career on google began. {I know you're laughing because you're guilty too}
What did I discover? Great advice! Track what I was eating with the pain and see if a fatty meal triggered the pain. Well that was easy since I love, love, love ice cream.
Boom! That was it. That meant there was a high possibility that it was gall stones, a common ailment in pregnancy because of the changes in hormones.
Another visit to the OB. She gave me some painkillers to take when the "attacks" hit. Then she sent me to a surgeon who suggested the issues may go away after having the baby.
So the last two months of pregnancy I just endured with little to no fat. It was a little like torture, especially since I also turned 30 in that time - no cake, no ice cream. Boo!
Back to the story.
To skip over the boring bits, I'll summarize. My baby girl was born via emergency c-section. I was so worried she would be deprived on my boring diet, especially since I was losing a pound a week instead of gaining. Nope. She was covered in rolls and weighed over 8 lbs.
The pain did not go away and 4 weeks later I had my gall bladder removed.
The end. The pain went away and I felt great!
Oh I wish that were the end. I had all the same pain, and now the pains from 2 surgeries. It was horrible. I was in a very low place. When I called the surgeon and told him, he said to keep taking the Percocets. What? I was a mom with a newborn and needed to get back to work soon {I was still working out of the home at that time}. I cannot keep taking strong pain killers.
So I just dealt with the pain. A lot of pain.
2 years later. I found relief.
But in the mean time, I had to learn what it meant to be an advocate for my new baby.
Stay tuned for the next part of our journey...
Tuesday, May 30, 2017
Thursday, May 25, 2017
Best Spring 2017 Reading
I love learning, therefore, I love books.
One of my favorite things to read are inspirational biographies. This is what I read or listened to lately that I think would enrich your life as well.
The Insanity of God
This book starts with Nik Ripken's personal testimony and how he and his family came to live on the mission field in Kenya and Somaliland (which is heartbreaking). After some tragedy, he begins to question how people can endure under such persecution. How can this possibly further the Kingdom of God? So he goes on a quest to interview different people and groups who have lived under such persecution and ask them how and why they survived. What a page turner! This book is full of heartbreak, but also such beauty rising from the ashes. In my opinion, it is a must read for all who live in the blessing of a free society who struggle to even comprehend what it is like to live under persecution.
The Boys in the Boat
This is a secular book that documents the story of the boys, particularly one young man, who competed in the Olympics in Nazi Germany. It switches back and forth between the story of the young men and a historical look at the politics of that time period. I listened to the audiobook (and the narrator was fantastic) and found myself at the edge of my seat during the race scenes. This is a wonderfully inspiring book of tenacity and great strength.
A Thousand Miles to Freedom
This is a heart wrenching tale of a young girl born in communist North Korea. The descriptions of the despair and hunger under this tyrannical government is hard to even fathom. Living in the free USA, we cannot imagine a government willing withholding food and starving the people to death. Hungry people are more easily controlled, I suppose. But this family makes the hard decision to find freedom. They endure the physically and emotionally painful journey of sneaking out of North Korea. What an amazingly, true tale of endurance in the face of political oppression.
Amos Fortune, Free Man
This was a book that I read with my daughters in our homeschooling year. This was an interesting story of a free black man living in the times of slavery in America. We don't hear of this happening very often, but there were some free Africans living here. He was a strong, hard-working, thoughtful man living in a difficult, primitive time and his story is definitely award winning.
What have you read lately? Anything worth sharing? Please leave a comment below and let me know what I should add to my book list for summer.
One of my favorite things to read are inspirational biographies. This is what I read or listened to lately that I think would enrich your life as well.
The Insanity of God
This book starts with Nik Ripken's personal testimony and how he and his family came to live on the mission field in Kenya and Somaliland (which is heartbreaking). After some tragedy, he begins to question how people can endure under such persecution. How can this possibly further the Kingdom of God? So he goes on a quest to interview different people and groups who have lived under such persecution and ask them how and why they survived. What a page turner! This book is full of heartbreak, but also such beauty rising from the ashes. In my opinion, it is a must read for all who live in the blessing of a free society who struggle to even comprehend what it is like to live under persecution.
The Boys in the Boat
This is a secular book that documents the story of the boys, particularly one young man, who competed in the Olympics in Nazi Germany. It switches back and forth between the story of the young men and a historical look at the politics of that time period. I listened to the audiobook (and the narrator was fantastic) and found myself at the edge of my seat during the race scenes. This is a wonderfully inspiring book of tenacity and great strength.
A Thousand Miles to Freedom
This is a heart wrenching tale of a young girl born in communist North Korea. The descriptions of the despair and hunger under this tyrannical government is hard to even fathom. Living in the free USA, we cannot imagine a government willing withholding food and starving the people to death. Hungry people are more easily controlled, I suppose. But this family makes the hard decision to find freedom. They endure the physically and emotionally painful journey of sneaking out of North Korea. What an amazingly, true tale of endurance in the face of political oppression.
Amos Fortune, Free Man
This was a book that I read with my daughters in our homeschooling year. This was an interesting story of a free black man living in the times of slavery in America. We don't hear of this happening very often, but there were some free Africans living here. He was a strong, hard-working, thoughtful man living in a difficult, primitive time and his story is definitely award winning.
What have you read lately? Anything worth sharing? Please leave a comment below and let me know what I should add to my book list for summer.
Wednesday, May 24, 2017
Another change of direction
Going - In Faith
One other big change has been where we live.
God has directed our family to move to another state, hundreds of miles from where we called home our entire lives. Neither my husband nor I have ever lived out of state. We did move away from our respective hometowns, but we were close enough for birthday parties, family visits, holidays, etc.
But we both felt the tug on our hearts to step out in faith. It took 3 years for it all to become clear and a reality. We moved to a town where we knew no one. We weren't able to even identify a church we would attend before we moved (which we did not feel comfortable with).
But God {two of my favorite words}...
God is not only good, He is generous and gracious.
He directed us to a house on a quiet street with wonderful neighbors.
He directed us to a church just a few minutes from our house (we are still pushing the limit for getting there on time, though. Some things never change - ha!).
He has grown our faith and trust in Him in ways that cannot be described.
This has all been a wonderful testimony for our children. They have been witnesses to how scary it can be to move states away, but how wonderful it can be to trust in God.
Have you ever stepped out in faith like this? Comment below and tell me about it. I'd love to share in the beautiful way God has directed your steps as well.
Blessings
One other big change has been where we live.
God has directed our family to move to another state, hundreds of miles from where we called home our entire lives. Neither my husband nor I have ever lived out of state. We did move away from our respective hometowns, but we were close enough for birthday parties, family visits, holidays, etc.
But we both felt the tug on our hearts to step out in faith. It took 3 years for it all to become clear and a reality. We moved to a town where we knew no one. We weren't able to even identify a church we would attend before we moved (which we did not feel comfortable with).
But God {two of my favorite words}...
God is not only good, He is generous and gracious.
He directed us to a house on a quiet street with wonderful neighbors.
He directed us to a church just a few minutes from our house (we are still pushing the limit for getting there on time, though. Some things never change - ha!).
He has grown our faith and trust in Him in ways that cannot be described.
This has all been a wonderful testimony for our children. They have been witnesses to how scary it can be to move states away, but how wonderful it can be to trust in God.
Have you ever stepped out in faith like this? Comment below and tell me about it. I'd love to share in the beautiful way God has directed your steps as well.
Blessings
A new direction
I have not posted in a while and many things have changed in my life. One of the biggest changes is our family's transition from conventional, allopathic medical treatments to more of a natural, holistic and homeopathic lifestyle.
Soon....
Very soon...
I will start posting about the different things that have worked so well for our family.
Why would I take the time to do this? I mean to each his own, right?
I believe our nation is full of sick people. They don't even realize it.
They are eating "food" that isn't really "food".
They are using medications that just suppress symptoms and never heal.
They live in chronic pain.
Our children will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. Our children are being diagnosed with cancers, autoimmune disorders, anxiety, neurological disorders.... and the list goes on.
I believe there is an entire generation that has been robbed of a quality life because they do not know how to nourish their bodies.
As a Mom, it especially breaks my heart when I see how this affects the children.
So be watching for encouraging ways to move you and your family to a more natural, wholesome, healing way of living.
Soon....
Very soon...
I will start posting about the different things that have worked so well for our family.
Why would I take the time to do this? I mean to each his own, right?
I believe our nation is full of sick people. They don't even realize it.
They are eating "food" that isn't really "food".
They are using medications that just suppress symptoms and never heal.
They live in chronic pain.
Our children will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. Our children are being diagnosed with cancers, autoimmune disorders, anxiety, neurological disorders.... and the list goes on.
I believe there is an entire generation that has been robbed of a quality life because they do not know how to nourish their bodies.
As a Mom, it especially breaks my heart when I see how this affects the children.
So be watching for encouraging ways to move you and your family to a more natural, wholesome, healing way of living.
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