My Story

Hi! My name is Kathleen, and this is my blog, KatsHealthCorner.

Nutrition and health are few of my passions. I am sorry to say, but my family didn’t always use to eat healthily. Before my mother was diagnosed with diabetes, processed and packaged foods – chemically altered and deep-fried foods – cheap TV dinners and Hamburger Helper used to be dinner.  What my family ate only depended on “the cost” and “the taste.” I was tired. I was unhappy with my body. I felt physically weak.

When my mom was diagnosed with diabetes, we began to turn our lives around. We began looking at labels – we weren’t as concerned about what was in the product as what was on the nutritional label; nevertheless, as we made the changes–more home cooked meals, homemade bread, exercising–slowly, but surely, there was an improvement.

But then, over the years, I became – restrictive. The restriction didn’t develop all at once–kind of one little step at a time. No more moderation… I was all concerned with:

-the number on the scale

-the number of fat grams

-having to have a certain thing at every meal whether I wanted it or not

-eating even if I wasn’t hungry, because the clock said it was time to

-not eating even if I was truly hungry, because it wasn’t time to

-only eating a certain amount at a time – because even if I wasn’t satisfied, if I ate more, I would be “unhealthy.”

I wasn’t listening to my body. I wasn’t in-tune with my body. I practically ignored it. I was under this mindset for longer than what I want to remember – I was overly concerned. I do believe I was on the verge of an eating disorder, like orthorexia (the term was coined by California doctor Steven Bratman in 1997 and used it to describe those with a “healthy eating disorder;” in other words, it’s meant to describe those people who are overly ”obsessed with making healthy food choices”). I went to extremes.

It took time, but I finally came to the resolve that this was a problem – a problem I needed to overcome. I was only hurting myself – my body – my sacred and divine temple. I needed to develop a healthy relationship with food. I thought I was being “healthy” before, but in fact, I was just being restrictive. I needed a balance.

What I have learned is that every nutrient is imperative – calorie, fat, carbohydrate, protein, vitamin, mineral, photochemical – to my overall health. If I have an imbalance in just one of these nutrients, it wreaks havoc in my entire body. I now strive to feed my body the nutrients it needs — to listen to my body — to be in tune — to live in balance.

During this period of change, I started developing a love for nutrition, and to this day it is my pride and joy. When I have spare time on my hands, I’ll either be on the computer checking out health books from the library, researching the latest health news, or watching the latest health documentary.

When I’m not busy looking up health, I’m in the kitchen baking-up some goodies. I focus on eating real, whole, unrefined, unprocessed foods, and that’s what I bake with. It is one of my deepest passions. Fortunately, these pictures were taken before I got covered in flour.

I am so grateful for my Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. He never gave up on me. He was always there, ready to lift me up, and continually strengthens me. I am so grateful for my family. Their love and support keep me moving forward.  I don’t know what I would do without them. I am so grateful for all my friends for always being there for me, through my ups and my downs.

I love meeting new people, so drop me a line when you get the chance.

It has been a difficult journey, but you know, it’s something I work on daily. I can never give up. I will never give up. I have to keep moving forward.  Obsession is not fun. I have been that way, and what I have learned is that balance is the key to happiness.

 

Follow me as I strive to find balance with and within myself, and bake some goodies along the way.

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