How I Found My Passion
As I start this new chapter, I wanted to take a moment to share my story.
I have spent my entire adult life feeling like I was missing something. Feeling this pressure to find my dream job, my passion, my purpose. I never imagined that through my personal struggle with a multitude of health issues, I would find the thing that I wanted to do most in the world. I simply want to help people be well. To be the happiest, brightest, shiniest versions of themselves.
I grew up a happy, healthy kid, eating a typical American diet. I went through life feeling pretty good, not thinking too much about what I was eating or how it made me feel. As I got a bit older, I started to notice that if I didn’t eat consistently and nourish my body on a regular basis, I would get headaches and feel irritable. If I ever had an attitude, my mom would ask me when I had last eaten something. Over time I began to have more digestive symptoms, headaches, acne, irritability. I kept going back to the doctor and kept getting unhelpful advice. They told me I needed glasses, I should take more supplements, I should get a colonoscopy. I started to feel like it was all in my head, like I would never find out what was wrong with me and I was doomed to feel terrible forever.
Jump forward to the freedom of college and my focus became having as much fun as possible with no regard for how it made me feel, or what it did to my body. I started noticing that certain foods made me feel poorly, but decided to ignore these signs in the pursuit of partying. Fast forward a few years to living in New York and diving into the magical world of 24 hour food delivery. Everything you could ever desire or imagine, delivered directly to your door (or desk) at any hour of the day or night. That combined with taking advantage of my job in the nightlife industry led to a gain of weight, loss of energy and feeling totally disconnected with my health and body. My digestive issues continued to get worse and my happiness continued to suffer. I felt terrible - all the time. I tried to focus on eating healthier, being more active, and finding moments of solitude in that endless barrage of over stimulation. After two, albeit fun, years in a city that did not feel like home, I decided to call it quits and move back to Oregon.
Coming home was the beginning of learning how to respect and nourish my body, how to incorporate radical self care into my life, spending my time in places and with people that brought me joy. I experimented with different diets, cutting out certain foods and adding them back in. I paid attention to how I felt after certain meals and tuned into which foods made me feel nourished and which made me feel sick. I spent more time outdoors, surrounded myself with family and friends who made me feel supported and understood. I started to feel like myself again. I started to realize that we all have the ability to wake up and pay attention to what gives us energy and what depletes us. We have the power to make changes in our lives that create radical transformation and healing.
The more I learned about nutrition and wellness, the more passionately I wanted to share what I learned with everyone around me. I wanted to help everyone I knew live their happiest, healthiest lives. After so many years of feeling lost and confused about how I would do my small part to make the world a better place, I knew I had finally discovered what I was meant to do. It is my mission to continue to learn and grow, and to help others do the same. To meet people with compassion, hear their stories, and work with them to identify changes that will foster lasting transformation so they can live their most fulfilling and balanced lives. Here goes nothing.
Be well,
Kelsey