Welcome - My Seasoned Life
In May 2017, I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), a chronic autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system. Like many people who receive a life-changing diagnosis, I spent a lot of time searching for answers. After a year on medication that didn’t seem to help and left divots from injections, I began focusing on the things I could control: how I ate, how I moved, how I managed stress, and how I cared for myself.
That worked really well for many years and then everything changed the summer of 2021.
Five years ago, I became a caregiver for my mom. If you’ve ever cared for someone you love while trying to manage your own health, you know how quickly your own needs can slide to the bottom of the list. The routines that once felt manageable suddenly become much harder to maintain. For the first 3 years of this new role, I was purely surviving and some days I still am.
At 51, I’m also navigating a few other challenges. I have celiac disease, I’m deep in the adventure that is perimenopause, and I have PMOS, which means hormones, insulin resistance, and weight management are ongoing companions. Writing all of that out makes me sound like I’m collecting medical issues as a hobby, which I promise is not the case.
This blog and newsletter isn’t really about diagnoses.
It’s about trying to live well in a body that doesn’t always cooperate. It’s about caregiving, grief, aging, nutrition, movement, resilience, and finding joy in ordinary days. It’s about the lessons I’m learning, and relearning, as I try to become the healthiest version of myself.
My interest in health began in 2010 after I quit smoking. At the time, my diet consisted largely of convenience food (the employees at Taco Bell knew my order) and at 35, I felt exhausted. A nutritionist who happened to live in my apartment complex changed everything and I learned the impact diet and lifestyle had on how you felt. I became so fascinated by nutrition that I enrolled in nutrition school in 2012 and never really stopped learning.
So why start a Substack now?
Partly because writing helps me process life. Partly because I hope sharing my journey might encourage someone else. And partly because putting these thoughts into the world may be the accountability I need to prioritize my own health again.
If you’re a caregiver, navigating midlife, trying to age well, struggling with your health, or simply looking for encouragement along the way, I hope you’ll join me.
Welcome to my season of life.