There is a side of me that I don’t share on The Nude Mushroom. It is a part of me that I keep behind the scenes. This layer doesn’t fall in line with my message but it stands to be the strongest force behind it. It’s a part of my life that rocks me to the core but powers my message of health and wellbeing…if only you knew what your health could look like. If you peel back the layers, it’s more real, more raw, more deep…
For the last 8 years I have worked as a Paramedic. In that time my eyes have seen things you can’t really even imagine or begin to understand. I have been mentally, physically and emotionally challenged: Pushed beyond my limits; from my 8th hour without a meal or a pee break…to the 14th hour, after the pager went off 15 minutes before I was about to head home. You can’t really understand exhaustion until you have worked a string of busy nights and then switch into days 1.5 days later; we call it a sleep hangover. The truth is..I signed up for these working conditions…nobody said I have to like them, just the sacrifice I have made to help another human being in their medical emergency. It’s a real trade-off of sorts…of sleep, of strength, of holidays and family time… It doesn’t allow me to live 100%, the healthy lifestyle that I am pushing to promote but it sure is the fuel that will get me closer to it!
Really… all of that is beside’s the point of this blog, that I have felt so propelled to write. Seeing the worst of people’s health not only has pushed me to take my personal health more seriously but it has taken me down the path of training as a Nutritionist; allowing me to help more people prevent the illnesses I so often see. In my mind educating people on prevention seemed like the perfect solution to my frustrations as a Paramedic; arriving to patients when it’s to late, yet knowing 85% of chronic illnesses could have been prevented. They say “knowledge is power”… if only people understood how food affects our health. Nutrition gave me the tools to educate people on this exact notion…my family, friends, strangers…. I was going to change the world, one talk at a time. After 2 years practicing as a Nutritionist, countless talks under my belt and more passionate then ever, I sit here still trying to figure out why people don’t want to change. This is truly a blog about being a Nutritionist through a Paramedic’s eyes.
If you could walk into a house with me on a call and see a man laying on his couch, so sick he can’t move for days and surrounded by a sea of half empty pill bottles…you would want to change. If you could be with me while I watched a little old lady struggled to take a breath, dragging her oxygen tank beside her while she searched for her health card; a smoker for 25+ years….you would want to change. If you could see a grown man cry, as he feels a sense of impending doom… clenching his chest for the first time…you would want to change. If you saw what sickness looks like, everyday… You would want to change. The truth is, the information is out there…the writing is on the wall and there are people like me out there educating you at no cost, other then your time.
Good health is a luxury, yet we take it for granted and then question “why me” when we don’t have it anymore. It’s hard to change yes…but it’s harder to suffer in pain everyday, get a Cancer diagnosis, or find out you have heart disease: Make changes now…while you still can. Let’s start investing in our food, as a preventive measure, I like to call it a Health Insurance Policy… instead of investing in pharmaceutical drugs when your body is sick and it’s to late.
If you need help on your journey of change..please reach out to me tara@nudemushroom.com
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