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“Fibromyalgia to Pain Free!”

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Shan Swain - originalToday we are pleased to share with you the guest post below written by one of our clients, Shan Swain. We hope that you find her return-to-health story to be an inspiration. Please share with anyone whom this may help! We are so incredibly happy for Shan that she is feeling so much better these days! Food is an amazing thing!

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Shan’s Story…

“It has been 9 months since I have started my new food journey. I must give you a little health history prior to this. About 15 years ago, I was beginning to have joint pain – it wasn’t bad at first but as time went on it increased. Between the cold weather and other health issues, exercise started to become more and more painful. I went from walking to not walking because of the pain. I would have to organize my schedule according to my pain level. In a matter of 5 years I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. The only thing they could do for me was physical therapy or medicate for the pain. So I begin to seek my own relief, like going for a massage (which I intently did for 3 to 4 years). Also, heat seemed to provide some relief and acupuncture helped for a short time. But even with trying all of this, my pain was still there and worse as the years went by.

In January of 2012 my daughter Courtney told me about an article she had read about someone who had lived for years with Fibromyalgia but was currently pain free. She told me that the gal’s name was Christy Pooschke and that she had a website full of information at http://www.CompletelyNourished.com. So I read Christy’s whole return-to-health story on her website, and in her story I found the light! I could relate to everything she was saying about her health issues, it was my story! The light was that Christy had discovered a solution to the PROBLEM – not a fixer upper or a band-aid, but a true, real solution!

I was a skeptic at first. It was hard for me to put my mind around all that I needed to change with my diet. I called her with no hesitation, and we scheduled a time to meet. In the mean time, we chatted on the phone about some of my history and food journaling. As the time was approaching for us to meet, I was beginning to have some doubt that this could possibly take my pain away. It seemed to me that I would be in this pain forever. But I started to go through my cabinets and switch out some of my foods that I have always eaten. I had no idea that these things could’ve possibly been causing my health issues all these years!

When the time came for Christy, my daughter and I to meet for our consultation…I still thought it wouldn’t work. But Christy put us at ease and said “these changes take a little time, so don’t overwhelm yourself.” She went through some of my foods and explained that it’s the ingredient information that matters because so many of the additives in our foods can make us sick. As we continued, she challenged me to start switching out my food for more additive-free foods and to cook my own food at home. Christy’s “Eating Additive-Free” Cookbook & Shopping Guide was a huge help in that regard because it is filled with recipes for the “typical American” types of foods my family already enjoys!

When we finished our consultation, I began to go full speed ahead and switched out everything in my cabinets for real food and clean food. This took time and required my attention as to what I really was eating. It was shocking to find out that something as simple as canned tuna fish often contains hidden MSG! One of MSG’s most commonly known side effects is headaches but also for me the effects of MSG were bloating, aches and joint pain, and chest pain that felt like a heart attack. A few times I thought I was having a heart attack, which led me to get an EKG…but my heart always tested out just fine.

I started to go out to eat less often and began cooking more at home. This gave me satisfaction to continue this new journey. Within 2 months, I started to feel a difference! The days and weeks went by, and I had less and less pain. I am not even aware of the joint pain anymore…unless I go out to eat. Then, soon after I eat I can either get a headache or joint pain which I know is from an additive in the food. It’s amazing how I can tell a difference immediately! I have been so careful (with help) when I grocery shop for clean foods. I make sure that I purchase real food ingredients. For example, now I make sure to select peanut butter that contains just peanuts and salt. Nothing more!

As for my activities I am trying to work in some simple exercises and walking. This has been amazing because the walking has been easier and fun! I’ve also been able to thoroughly enjoy several vacations with my family since recovering from my Fibromyalgia pain – and that has been an absolute blessing! I also love outdoor activities, and maybe I will try to bike again. In the mean time I am totally enjoying the flavor of my new foods, my new menu ideas and how much better I am feeling. This is now 9 months into my new food requirement. And I don’t say that lightly, it is a requirement for me to avoid food additives if I want to feel good. I have also lost 30lbs., not that it was anything I was working towards, it just happened as a “side effect” of avoiding the additives.

My final thoughts…if food additives are causing folks like me to be so sick, what other problems are people having that might be a result of their diets?! Let’s be sure to inform those who are in need.”

Very Thankful,
Shan Swain

Smothered Chicken Recipe

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Wondering if you’d enjoy the recipes in my “Eating Additive-Free” natural cookbook & grocery shopping guide??

Here’s your chance to take my cookbook for a “test drive” and try one of the recipes for free! Let me know how you like the recipe below. There are over 150 more waiting for you in my cookbook…enjoy! Click here for pricing info, ordering instructions and the complete Table of Contents!

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 TBSP olive oil
1 green pepper, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1/2 cup each: shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheeses

Spices
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic granules
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

*Check out our Grocery Shopping Guide for our tips on selecting the most additive-free versions of every ingredient used in our recipes.

DIRECTIONS:

brochure coverPreheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a large casserole dish.

Thin/flatten breasts: place on a cutting board, cover with plastic wrap and beat gently with a meat mallet.

Mix all spices together and spread over chicken breasts.

Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 170 degrees.

While chicken is cooking, heat oil in a large skillet.

Add veggies and sauté until tender.

When chicken is done, spoon vegetables over chicken and sprinkle with cheese.

Return to oven until cheese melts. Enjoy!

(Psst….If you enjoy this recipe,  be sure to get yourself a copy of our additive-free cookbook & grocery shopping guide, “Eating Additive-Free“! It’s stuffed with 150+ more tasty recipes!! Your satisfaction is guaranteed…or your money back!)

CHECK OUT OUR RECIPES PAGE FOR MORE GREAT RECIPES!!!

 

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One mom’s journey with recovering her son’s autism

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As a person who took my health into my own hands and recovered from a chronic illness that doctors believed I would suffer with for the rest of my life (i.e., Fibromyalgia), I am always interested to hear about others who have done (or are trying to) do the same for themselves. Obviously what works for one person is not necessarily what will work for others. But if spreading the word about these recoveries helps even one person, then it’s worth taking the time to do so.
Please read below to learn more from Channa Brennon about her journey to help her son recover from autism. As always, the content included here is intended for informational purposes only. 
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The following was sent to us from our reader, Channa Brennon….
autism recovery“I am always so glad to share my story with others, as I wish I had someone tell me in the beginning how powerful and dangerous the foods we put in our mouth can be.  I learned the hard way as most of us do. My son at three and a half was like a ferrel wild animal. He was violent, couldn’t talk and would never sleep. He was in severe pain. He would wake up all night long screaming. He was diagnosed PPD NOS….which falls under the autism spectrum. This was not anything but relief for me as I knew something was wrong with my son and finally I had proof.
After I fed him anything his stomach would blow up like he had swallowed a basketball. His colon was paralyzed. It literally stopped working. He would only poop with enemas, and everything he pooped was the whole food pieces he had eaten. Nothing was digested.
Surprisingly, the doctors told me there was nothing to worry about. I knew better, and I searched and searched and prayed for answers. Finally I met a woman over the internet who told me about Andy Cutler chelation and diet. I leaned that my son’s gut was so inflammed that nothing could get digested. I learned about food allergies, and yes my son was allergic to almost every single food he ate, but I found out about a rotation diet and cutting out all the grains and any type of processed food. I also started chelation which I believe had a part in the autoimmune issues/food allergies my son had.
I got a delayed food allergy panel and tried to keep out the foods he was most allergic too. I also cut out all grains from his diet becuse grains are hard to digest . I found that in the begining, with so much damage in his gut, he did good on homemade veggie soups – this was all he ate for about a week until the inflammation went down. Some people might think it’s extreme, but if you think about the fact that my son was wasting away on all the high calorie food I was feeding him, I knew I had to try something different. I alternated this with bone broth soups. And, as he became better, I added in more variety of whole foods. His food was as “clean” as I could make it. That meant no flavoring and no processed foods of any kind. Just simple organic veggies and later on beans, fish, chicken and eggs.
My son has come so far from where we started. He can now eat grains. I buy North carolina rice and organic oats.  I am working on learning how to make my own cultured sourdough bread. I also subscribe to the Eat Right for Your Blood Type philosophy, as my son and I are both blood type A and we do better on vegetarian fare. So I make lots of bean soups. I soak and sprout before I cook. We eat tofu that is non-GMO certified, and some chicken, fish and eggs. My son’s gut has healed to the point that he can eat goat yogurt that I buy from the whole foods store. It is my one and only processed food I buy for him and that is because they are one of the few clean company’s. Otherwise, everything he eats is from scratch. I never give in to processed things as my son can’t tolerate it.  It seems in your mainstream grocery stores everything is made with GMO foods – corn syrup, sugar and soy.
Forward to today… my son is 75 percent recovered. With a clean diet as number one priority, I believe we will find complete recovery. If you would like to read more about my journey, my blog is http://www.healyourchild.wordpress.com/.  Thank you so much for reading my story! Please share with anyone who may find it useful.”