Each year, the government spends billions on the health care system. But the number of people getting sick kept increasing. They are also getting sick younger. I mainly worked in the emergency and get to see it over the 17 years of working as a registered nurse.  

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“A healthy person has a thousand wishes, a sick person only just one.”

 

In 2003, the woman I love the most, my go to person, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. My mom was only 44 years old. After endless doctors appointments, we were told her condition is a progressive disease and the only treatment to manage it was medication. Like many other patients and family members, they were often told the same thing. To take the medications and that was it.

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This was very stressful in many ways for my mom and our family. In my last year of nursing school, I didn’t want to live anymore. Thoughts of ending my life persisted for 6 months. One day, after crying to a doctor at the walk-in clinic, I was prescribed Ativan. A drug commonly given to those with anxiety and/or depression. With the prescription in my hand, I had to decide whether I was going to be on medication or do something else. I didn’t want to numb myself with drug and go through life like many of the patients. This was the first time I wanted to live more than I wanted to die. My biggest lesson: No one is going to live for you, except you. And living means getting my body and mind into a better state.

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“We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.”

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A major tipping point: In 2020, I started getting gurgles cough after I eat and when lying down at night. Frequently and intensifying over 3 years. I became short of breath easily for an active person with a normal body mass index. I had a bunch of other signs and symptoms. The scariest one of all, the cancer looking mole on my right cheek. Thinking it would solve the problem, I cut it out. It grew back bigger, angrier than before. All these carried on over 2-3 years. I wasn’t even 40 years old yet. 

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What was worse, my kids’ intermittent eczema became a chronic norm. I wasn’t sure how long I would last, whether I’ll be in a healthy state for my kids as they grow up. It was worrisome, depressing, and to the point of feeling hopeless.

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The blood work was normal, x-ray clear. Why was I getting worse? I know I wasn’t crazy. I was reminded of my mom with her Parkinson’s. I refuse to get sick like her. I had to do something. I didn’t know what or how. Something had to change. I became determined and refuse to let life beat me down again like it did in my early 20s.

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This is where the 17 years experience of being a nurse becomes valuable. All those years of listening to the patients’ success and failure stories. I remember whenever a patient improved, I'd ask them what they did and changed. The answer was never because, “Oh, I’m on this medication and it changed my life forever”. It’s always because they changed their lifestyle, mostly by changing their diet.

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I changed what I eat. First month, I didn’t see any results. Second month, I had more energy and could catch my breath more. Allergies and rashes were less. Third month, the mole on my face shrunk in size. Fourth month, all my signs and symptoms along with my kids’ eczema went away. A miracle! Another big lesson: Your diet makes a big difference on your physical and mental health.  

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I was trained as a registered nurse. There was so much push for medications for everything. To the point that I realized… this thinking doesn’t align with what I believe anymore. It led me to take a nutrition health coaching certificate. Then I completed a certified holistic nutrition and health coaching diploma. Finally, I quit my nursing job.

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Having new knowledge opens up my mind, applying it changed the course of my life. I believe it is in your best interest to become your own medical detective. You are the one to create your fate, one bite at a time. No one can do it for you, except you. Just knowing that is empowering. Knowing you have the power to live healthier, love more, and do what matters most.

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Join me in this journey to healthier living. It's never too late to start. Start today. 

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