Growing up with an alcoholic father and a verbally and physically abusive stepmother, I learned a few things about myself. I had a fighting spirit, and playing outside every moment possible became my escape and my continued love for being active. Sadly, food became my “drug” of choice, specifically sugar. I ate to avoid my emotions, which pretty much meant I ate food and sugar all the time! I would take the money I earned sewing and delivering papers and sneak a ride down to the 7-Eleven and buy candy – and I’m talking about a lot of candy - that I would take home and hide!   

The positive and negative (self-sabotaging) belief systems that I learned at a young age became who I was - my story. That was until, when I reached my early twenties, I woke up to the fact that I cried all the time, had no friends, and trusted nobody. I was very unhappy. I knew I had to do something, but since I had no one to turn to, I started reading “self-help” books. 

Fast forward many years and a lot of work later, I consider myself a “healthy” person. I live an authentic life, have a loving husband, take part in an active community and have a career that I love. That is, a career where I can take that love of being active along with my optimistic view of life and desire to help and inspire others to change their beliefs and scripts to create a healthy lifestyle. I am continually growing and fine-tuning my happiness and joy by improving myself with education/certifications, awareness, and feedback. For me, being healthy is a journey, not a destination.