A Success Story

I found this story on thekindlife.com and I thought it was amazing. I know several people right now who deal with alot of the medical problems this girl used to experience. Please read!


“I bought the Kind Diet and became a vegan on February 1, 2010 because of multiple health issues. I'll try to make the story as brief as possible but my struggle has been going on since 2004. In graduate school, I began to have migraines that would not abate and I was struggling to get to classes and concentrate. When the doctor prescribed two medications, I took them and hoped they would help. 



Well, they stopped the migraines but had horrible side effects (mouth sores, fatigue, rapid heart beat etc) and I took myself off them about 3 months after starting them (they were pulled from the market by the FDA one week after I stopped taking them). I also ended up w/ microscopic colitis (frequent, loose stools). My gastroenterologists recommended several diets; no lactose, no gluten, no rice, no raw vegetables (good one, huh) but nothing worked and her final recommendation was take up to 8 immodium a day. Believe it or not I actually did take the immodium but even 8 didn't give me much relief. 



Finally, I gave up and decided to just live with it. Last year; however, I began to have unbearable pain with menstruation and was missing work at the beginning and then was taking prescription pain meds just to survive for the first two-three days. I had an ultrasound that showed nothing abnormal and my OB/GYN said it was most likely endometriosis (I declined the laproscopic procedure for a definitive diagnosis). Of course, she recommended going back on the pill or chemical menopause (pill induced). I really felt like I just couldn't take any more medications because of the colitis I am well aware that sometimes the side effects are worse than the problem being treated.

This is when I stumbled across The Kind Diet. I bought the book, read it and went strict vegan as well as no sugar, no caffeine and no processed foods (anything out of a bag/box etc). I was on the diet five days when my colitis seemed to just disappear. I couldn't believe it!! I had been living for 6 years in my own personal toileting hell and in five days it was over. As if that weren't enough, 38 days after starting the Kind Diet I had my first menstruation and although I still felt crampy and crappy, I didn't have any pain and didn't have to take any pain medication.

Alicia gave me back my life, made me a happier, more balanced individual and has made me a huge advocate for The Kind Life. By the way, PTATC stand for Physical Therapist and Certified Athletic Trainer so many people look to me for advice on healthy living and now I feel as though I can give them honest advice and they can see how this way of living and eating makes me radiate on a daily basis. :)”

My Story

So I've created this blog to let some people in on my recent decision to eat vegan (no animal products - meat, dairy, eggs, etc). I know, I have some close friends/family who think I've just lost it, but let's start from the beginning...

I grew up eating everything. Never had to worry about food or what was in food. However, in 2007 my daughter was born and we found out she was severely allergic to milk proteins (whey and casein).
My husband also battled allergies to milk, tomato, peanut, etc..

OK. So my whole life changed when I had to start reading labels on food. My list of the usual meals for dinner? SCRATCH THEM. Actually I tried going without dairy for a whole week and whined like a baby the whole time.

Later, we found out my daughter had also developed an allergy to wheat. Our diet then turned to rice, vegetables/fruit, beans and meat. Very healthy I might add. But I still had to have my cheese; and I couldnt do without milk in my tea or cream in my coffee.

Thank God, my daughter outgrew her wheat allergy in 2009 but is currently still allergic to dairy. At that time, I decided to give up dairy for the most part for my daughter's sake. Also, my second daugher was born in 2009 and has NO allergies.

So here we are. Now I have to tell you Ive never been a HUGE meat person. I like meat pretty good... and theres nothing like a nice well-done steak or a piece of deli ham. But I have to be honest, most of the time I ate meat was because I thought I needed the protein and I didnt want people to think I was...weird.

Quite honestly the word "vegan" to me was foreign and my impression of "vegans" were silly tree-hugging wierdos who had about 20 pets and just wanted to be different. Not saying there are people like that out there, but my overall impression was completely wrong. My first REAL explanation of the vegan lifestyle was found in Alicia Silverstone's book "The Kind Diet". THIS BOOK HAS CHANGED MY LIFE.

For those of you who know me well, you know me and animals don't mix. Now, I dont believe in animal abuse or anything, but my motives for eating vegan are clearly not for the animals. For me, eating vegan is all about health and I'm not judgmental of anyone who chooses to eat meat. So lets get that out there right now.

Just in the past few months I've been eating vegan, my body has changed so much. I've lost 2 clothes sizes, my acne is clearing up, I sleep better, and I have ENERGY.
I feel like my skin glows and my stress levels have dropped. For you gals, lets say that horrible visit once a month from "aunt eve" is a piece of cake. No more eating a meal and passing out; or feeling bloated and gassy. The biggest thing I've learned is getting rid of meat and dairy has only helped me discover other foods I didnt know I liked. I eat BETTER and more DELICIOUS food now than ever before.

Going Vegan doesnt necessarily happen overnight. I already had to substitute for dairy for my daughter, so I had a head start. So this blog is for anyone who wants to follow this journey with me and understand where Im coming from when I say I eat vegan.