The past few months I have had three patients come back into treatment who have been non symptomatic for several years. When we delved into the "why" it became clear that it was related to diet. The big S word! and the big A word. Yes! SUGAR and ALCOHOL!  Neither of which really have purpose in our diets in my opinion. When asked, "but I was feeling normal and so I went back to eating 'normally', so I dont understand!" I responded, yes, you were feeling normal, so youi should go back to eating normal, but...what is normal? What IS normal? 

In my opinion, as a society, although things are rapidly changing, we have had a huge misconception regarding normal. Just because most people do it, does not mean it is normal or a good idea. Your body is where you live just like your home. And, we all know how important it is to keep our homes clean, otherwise germs spread and our environment becomes unhealthy. I suppose if we trash our home, we could always sell it at a loss and get some money and invest in another home and try again. The problem is, where WE live, in our bodies, well,..., we only have one. So, we are stuck with the heavy respinsibility of taking stellar care of it so it lasts for as long as we can keep on going. Everything we put on and in our body will impact our health. And, when we are in the process of becoming well, even otherwise healthy ingredients can not suit us at that time and may challenge us tremendously. 

If you have gone through this or any other form of treatment, alternative or traditional and you are feeling "normal", you should consider all of the things that lead you to becoming unwell in the first place, and those factors may reach as far back as youir childhood so think HARD! So, once you are well, you don't want to go back to what you considered to be normal-you want to go back to your NEW NORMAL!! Your NEW NORMAL consists of all of the things that we teach you through this process or, perhaps what you have learned on whatever path you feel got you well. Eating clean is a MUST!  This does not mean eating boring! This means clean. This means we need to rethink ingredients and how to put them together. One of my girlfriends texted me a couple of months ago a recipe for little dessert treats made with cacao and chickpeas and maple syurp. CHICKPEAS in dessert? YUCK! I was like....no way amd I making this. But, I thought to myself, OK, I will try and see, and you know what? They were delicious!!! I make all kinds of wonderful cakes and treats and I know many of you do that are delicious and using natural ingredients at the appropriate time for yoiu in your journey toward health keeps you on this side of healthy! 

The line between sickenss and health is a fine one. And, all the normal blood tests and other markers in the world often do not indicate serious unwellness because when the body breaks down and becomes unwell, often the things that are wrong may not be picked up on any tests. I am not suggesting that tests are not indicated, this isn't what I mean, I just mean that as the body starts to become unhealthy typically epople feel very unwell for a very long time before any markers get pushed far enough to indicate a problem. Thus often people will say how sick they feel despite the fact that no doctro can find anything wrong with them. Each of these people who had relapses are back on the road to getting better because I drove home the issue about diet and that what led them to becoming unwell in the first place will surely do it again if those habits are returned to. 

You may think it is undoable to stay on the straight and narrow path of healthy eating and clean lifestyle, but once you begin to feel how magnificent it is to feel healthy, it is not that hard at all. In fact, it is more hard to think about diverting off of the path. So take care of your body, just becuase it is a cliche, does not mean it isn't true, and, your body IS your temple! 

Dr.M