My “why”. . .

We’re jumping in the time machine today. . .  back to the beginning of my long journey of becoming a Holistic Nutritionist. 

The year was 2017 and I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I was at the top of my career and living the life I thought I wanted. But something was missing. 

After months of researching graduate schools, I landed on the American College of Healthcare Sciences and I began the application process. 

Deciding to go back to school was two-fold, as you’ll see. First, I wanted to change the world. Second, I wanted to solve my own health issues after Western medicine failed me. 

Instead of reinventing the wheel, I’m sharing with you my actual application essay. Yep, this is what I thought was top-notch writing at the time. 🤣 But somehow, I was accepted, so I’m not going to question it!

Although there are a million ways I would rewrite this application today, the “why” has not changed. (In full transparency, I edited the following for grammar and formatting, but that is all.) These are my words from 2017.

Kick up your feet and enjoy the story of why I set out on a mission to change the world. . .

My passion for nutrition has developed over the past 10 years. 

Beginning with an interest in reducing my carbon footprint, my interest morphed into general health. 

Instead of reading the latest beauty magazines or books on Amazon’s best-seller lists, you will find me reading books by Michael Pollen and John Robbins.

My idea of a good movie is Food Inc., Supersize Me, and documentaries on sustainable farming. I share what I learned with everyone who would listen, and sometimes, with those who were just being polite.

Naturally, that evolved into taking a look at what I was eating. No more Tuna Helper or Hot Pockets! 

I began shopping at the farmer’s market every Sunday morning. 

My fiancé gave me a membership to our local co-op for Christmas. 

We joined a CSA. 

One day, while browsing Amazon’s new releases, I saw a book by Alicia Silverstone called, The Kind Diet. I purchased the book immediately. When it finally arrived, I excitedly began reading, not knowing that the book would change the rest of my life. 

A few pages into the book, I called my fiancé in tears and told him, “I no longer eat meat or dairy.” I have been vegan ever since.

For the last four years in my current job, I have worked with my clients (people with disabilities) on their worksites and helped them learn the required tasks to become independent workers. 

While sitting in break rooms and watching what people were putting into their shopping carts at grocery stores, I was in disbelief. 

Being a job coach, I get a unique lens into people’s everyday activities. 

I watch workers eat, day after day, things like Mountain Dew, Cheetos Go-Gurt, and Twinkies for lunch. I watch moms pile their shopping carts with sugar, processed foods, and meats full of nitrates. Fresh fruits and vegetables are a rarity. 

I often find myself wondering how these foods are affecting every person in that family. 

But then I am given my answer by simply glancing at the headlines of magazines and newspapers. And at my Autistic client sitting across the table from me, eating his second pudding cup. 

We have a very big problem in this country. 

Obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and the list goes on. It takes very little effort to find research proving that these conditions are oftentimes preventable with the right nutrition. 

Then I ask myself, do people just not know? 

Do they just not care? 

Are they too busy or do not know how to cook? 

Or is healthy food just too expensive? 

Whatever the reason, I want to be part of the solution.

If only someone could teach my clients how to eat healthy and change their lifestyles to support good nutrition. They could be given meal plans, shown how to cook with fresh ingredients and discover how affordable real food is. 

Someone could help to reduce their symptoms and ease their pain. 

I want to be that person before it is too late. 

I want to learn how our bodies work and process foods. I want to become more confident in my ability to answer questions. 

I am ready to make this career change and turn my passion into my new career.

Now is the perfect time for me to start on this journey. 

Professionally, I am at the top of my field, however, I am not able to actively participate in the solution of one of the biggest problems we face as a country. I want to be part of the solution, not merely a Band-Aid.

That’s the end of our time-traveling journey. Back to reality. . .

If you’ve made it this far, gold star for you!

I want to also touch on the point that there is an obvious gap in this essay. The part about going to grad school to solve my own health issues.

That is a huge part of my story and now, I talk about it all the time. But that wasn’t always the case.

Going through other parts of my application, I did find references to this aspect of my story, but at the time, I wasn’t comfortable talking about it. 

I did not realize that I was in the middle of the exact same issues my future clients were facing which was priming me for knowing exactly what they were feeling and thinking. 

I did not realize the magnitude.

I did not recognize it as an attribute to my future practice as a health coach.

Instead, I was embarrassed and desperately wanted to make it go away before anyone noticed.

I do openly talk about this story today, but like so many, I was ashamed of my story and I wasn’t sure how it would end, so it was easier not to talk about it. 

But I assure you, battling my own health issues was just as big of a motivator as anything else. 

And now you know my “why”. 

If you would like to learn more about my battle with debilitating digestive issues and how I overcame them, please save your seat for my next live training, The Secret to Amazing Digestion. You will learn the many mistakes I made so you can avoid them and learn what to do instead.