How pain and health crisis can become a catalyst for self-love and embracing your greatest passion.

At LoveSelf, we write about people healing with the power of real food and self-love. I am often asked why I started LoveSelf. Below is part of my journey. As the universe intends, I will continue to share. I hope you find LoveSelf’s articles full of inspiring love. 

Share YOUR story with us!

XO, Rachel 

Dearest LoveSelf’ers,

LoveSelf was born out of my very personal story of overcoming health challenges. My physical pain brought me face to face with what I call a “crisis of the heart”. As you will often hear me say it is our darkest hour that often brings forth our greatest joy.

LoveSelf is that joy. Over the years, I have been diagnosed with Lymes, Celiac disease, dealt with extreme autoimmune disease symptoms, inflammatory bowel, multiple surgeries, and damage to the nerves around my spine. There were many days that it took everything I had just to get out of bed.

One particularly eventful afternoon a leading MD reviewed my symptoms and the only thing he knew to say was “I am sorry. This is a disaster.” He gave me a referral to another specialist who could only offer options that felt more like death than life.

I recall those moments as the beginning of everything changing for me. I remember vividly, leaving the appointment alone, getting in my car, and beginning to cry. Not small tears. Weeping, bawling emotions from my core. My reaction was especially surprising because up to that point, I had lived from a place of positive bravado and thought wellness meant toughing it out. My tears subsided and an inner peaceful knowing spoke clearly.

The voice said, “I am doing it my way”. In the moment, I had no idea what “my way” meant, only that I was going to stop listening to the words of fear.

In the following months and years, I learned that our bodies have the ability to heal themselves, emotion and physical dis-ease are intertwined, food is medicine, and that self-love must always be our first love. 

After years of antibiotics, the core of my physical well-being needed attention. I was already gluten free due to the Celiac. As a huge food lover, I didn’t want to live from a place of sacrifice. Ultimately, I discovered the Paleo diet. In combination with a raw food diet and lactofermented foods, I began to feel so much better. I learned to create amazing refined sugar free, gluten free, grain free desserts, and still smile when I recall the countless requests I received for my yummy creations.

My health challenges became life awakening and life changing. I knew real food was the core yet I also understood that I couldn’t stop there. My quest became about empowerment and healing. I took steps to authentic self-love.

I understood that all life is interconnected energy, that living from a loving heart is the highest truth, and that the food we eat can inspire and heal us.

LoveSelf began with my own healing and became the catalyst to share the inspiration with others. On this journey of love and health, I have learned to listen to my inner wisdom. I followed my heart when it told me to leave all that I know and begin traveling to share the inspiring stories of others. I (quite literally!) put everything I owned into storage, packed two suitcases, and left on a journey to write about the light I see in others. LoveSelf was born! I had no backup plan. My only foundation was air and faith. People would often ask me why? I would say, “my heart is pulling and all I can do is follow”.

Today LoveSelf is a global community.

My dream is that we all live an inspired life with a happy belly and a loving heart. Our choices can heal us. Abundance is infinite and healthy is our right.

I am so incredibly honored to be part of your journey.

XO!
Rachel

The post How Pain Becomes a Catalyst for Self-Love and Embracing Your Greatest Passion appeared first on LoveSelf.

Real life wisdom from a woman who overcame depression and is living well with Celiac disease.

Figuring out that Celiac disease was at the root of many of my challenges was only half of the journey. Now that I am off of prescription medication, I am constantly balancing what it looks like to take care of myself and continue to heal. I have discovered there are a handful of tricks that help keep me on board when I feel the waves rocking me.

Below are eleven simple healing steps you can start doing today to improve your life mind, body, and spirit.

1. Eat Real Food

Eating clean, unprocessed and whole foods is key to self-love. There is something sacred and powerful in buying, cooking and knowing all of the food you eat.

The process of discovering the foods that are nourishing for your body can seem daunting but there is a ton of healing and grace that goes along with it. I like to view it as a game! For fun steps check out Rachel’s 8 Things I Learned that Changed the Way I Eat Food. 

2. Drink Water

Did you know that your body is 80% water? Something as simple as making sure I am hydrated is key in my energy and mood levels. Nourishing yourself in this way makes it easier to do all of the other self-care routines. Truly.

3. Exercise

Produce that serotonin and get moving! As a survivor of sexual trauma, I always found exercise difficult and triggering. Once I changed my diet, I found that exercise became easier and brought me tremendous release! I try to move my body for 30 minutes a day at least be it walking, yoga, running, hiking or stretching. 

4. Don’t Skimp on Sleep

It’s amazing what you are capable of when you are fully rested! Getting enough sleep is vital in making sure you have a clear mind and can take optimal care of yourself.

5. Get Outside

My favorite way to get my Vitamin D is to GO OUTSIDE. Vitamin D helps with inflammation and has shown to lower depression. Being in the sunshine helps you with sleep, gives you energy and boosts your mood. Not to mention being in nature is healing in and of itself.

6. Choose Spirituality

Making space in your life to nurture your relationship with spirituality will help you to remember what all of this is for in the moments when you don’t want to run, don’t want to cook another meal, or can’t handle the brain fog. There is something out there that is always able to fill you back up; something so deeply hopeful that you will be enriched and sustained through your journey. Finding spirituality that suits you can look many different ways and is entirely personal to YOU. 

7. Get Creative

Try drawing, writing, coloring, cooking, knitting, or anything that lights you up! Find ways to be creative in your life even if it’s in moments where things feel dull and lifeless. It’s a beautiful tool to help bring magic into the ordinary.

8. Choose Gratitude

Dealing with health issues can sometimes be a drag. In those moments when you want to have a cocktail with friends, would like to exercise but don’t feel well, or would dig having one of those double chocolate brownies. Practicing gratitude can be so inspiring and grounding. Try writing in a gratitude journal!

What are you grateful for right now?

9. Socialize

Being around people can be super uplifting. When I am feeling blue, I reach out to friends. There is something special and energizing about laughter and community. They can mirror back your progress to you, help you remember what you’re doing all of this or can simply get your mind off of things.

10. Honor your Aloneness

Healing at this level can bring up many different emotions and experiences. Taking time to be alone and to check in with yourself is key. I like to journal, meditate, hike, read, or get crafty

11. Forgive Yourself

When I shifted to an anti-inflammatory autoimmune disease diet, I also started working a spiritual self-study program that is all about changing your thoughts to ones of forgiveness. When you forgive yourself, you forgive the world.

Forgive yourself for everything in the past. It has created a beautiful you.

Forgive yourself for the judgement about your body, forgive yourself when you break and eat something you felt you shouldn’t, forgive yourself when you don’t exercise as hard (or as easy) as you feel would be best. Always remember to forgive! You’re doing the best you can.

I am currently still practicing my dance of balancing self-care and self-love by listening to my body and allowing clarity and peace to move through me. There are still days where I struggle and then there are days when I am so darn hopeful I feel like I am going to burst. This is what it means to be alive! I am so grateful to have gotten to this place I have always fervently hoped for.

I believe in the magic of self-love.

When we love ourselves we can more easily love others. I am so grateful to share my story and hopefully inspire others on their wellness journey. There is hope! You can absolutely do this!

The post How to Love Yourself in 11 Simple Steps. Healing with autoimmune disease. appeared first on LoveSelf.

At LoveSelf, we write about inspiring people healing with the power of real food and self-love. We believe that together we create a beautiful future for each other and ourselves.

It is time to tell the happy stories!

Do you know an incredible person with a healing story? Let us know! They may just be featured in our Inspiring Stories!

A Little Girl and Her Mother Navigate the Challenges of Celiac Disease
A Story of Celiac. A Little Girl. And Her Mother’s Love. Learn the Symptoms of Childhood Celiac Disease.

Celiac Disease and Depression
A journey to find healing and self love with the power of spirit and real food.

Healing from Rape, Injury, and Obesity. A Self Love Story
A woman’s journey of forgiveness, healing, and wellness. Her five wisdom tips to self love may change your life.

Bees, Healing Chocolate, and the Power of Spirit
A story of (quite literally) falling down, getting back up, and following your dreams on even the hardest days.

Cancer Survivor Becomes Healing Chef
A man’s journey of surviving cancer to become a healing chef and passionate inspiration for wellness.

Adoption and the Spirit of Food
An unbelievable story of two families, an adoption of a teenage boy, and the healing spirit of food.

A Woman’s Story of Healing an Eating Disorder by Growing Her Own Food
Wisdom Tips for Overcoming Eating Disorders and the Healing Power of Growing Your Own Food

The True Faces of the Hungry. They Look Like You.
The man the feeds the hungry and teaches us about forgiveness.

A Mom’s Journey to Healing Her Body Image
For the Love of a Mom and Her Baby. Healing the Pain of Body Image Issues

Ritz Carlton Chef Partners with Organic Farming Grandpa!
Learn how to create a perfect gluten free wellness feast from a Ritz Carlton chef and his sidekick Farmer Starkey.

Healthy Fast Food and the Mom Who Makes it Happen.
Find gluten free, paleo, non-GMO, dairy free, organic TO GO at Snap Kitchen!

Mongolia. Meditation. And the Heart of an Explorer.
How meditation and organic food inspired a young woman’s life in Mongolia.

The Beach. Self Love. And Healing Your Inflammation with Juice.
A story of healing from inflammation and leaky gut symptoms. How self-love can inspire you to follow your dreams. Wisdom tips and the restaurant designed for love and healing.

The Love of A Mother and the Joy of a Salad
The love of gardening and a salad. A young woman honors her mother and the mom is all of us.

A Tiny Organic Farmer, Fairies, and the Art of Saving a Seed.
How our food system has depleted over the last fifty years and the organic seed you can save. Steps you can take to save our produce and how a fairy may be the love that finds you.

Goddess of the Soil
Faith is a soil scientist and plant research goddess. Did you know healthy soil has the same microbiome as your gut. How healing the soil can heal your leaky gut and autoimmune symptoms.

Cook Like a Ritz Carlton Chef with Farmer’s Market Ingredients
A Ritz Carlton chef’s story about organic food and caring for his mother with autoimmune disease. Get inspired to create a stunning gluten free meal from farmer’s market ingredients and learn in loving others we love ourselves.

The Joy Bus of Tragedy to Triumph
Creating a Joy Bus. One woman’s journey to support cancer patients with love and organic meals.

Clean Your Liver. Change Your Life.
A healers story. Learn how cleansing your liver is an amazing step to healing physically and emotionally.

Raw Food Passion
Introducing Elaina Love – A raw food story of decadence, beauty, and health. She lost her child to cancer. The story of how her son became her angel and the raw food she creates to heal others.

A Vietnam Vet, Agent Orange, and Non-GMO
The story of a Vietnam era couple whose exposure to Agent Orange changed the way they look at GMO and chemical farming practices today.

Healing a Gluten Sensitivity with Wheat!
The story of gluten sensitive man and the organic heirloom wheat that healed his leaky gut symptoms and inspired a new dream.

Traveling to Malaysia for Organic Recipes
An expectant mother’s story of travel, honoring Malaysian heritage, recipes passed through generations, and the art of cooking organic food.

One Dietician’s Work to Change Hospital Food From Unhealthy to Organic
Winneshiek Medical Center introduces an organic vegetable garden. How to bring an organic garden to your hospital. Tips from the dietician that made it happen!

Bees Have Feelings Too! A Bee Education
Saving the bees! Learning from Liesa Helfen of Worker-B, bee keeper, and raw honey extraordinaire. Did you know bees have feelings? Learn about the amazing role of bees in keeping us healthy.

Afghan War Vet Grows Food For The Hungry
Meet Sonia Kendrick! Sonia is a mother, war vet, organic farmer and a true inspiration. She has turned her pain of food insecurity into a triumph of feeding the hungry.

Boston Ritz Carlton Partners with Foley Fish
Introducing Frank Kassner, executive chef at the Ritz Carlton and Laura Foley Ramsden, owner of Foley Fish. Together they bring you sustainable seafood and a happy belly.

Global Volunteer Returns Home: Providing healthy food to rural communities
In Fairfield, Iowa resides a lady with the heart of a caregiver and a mind of an electrical engineer. Introducing Jan Swinton, area celebrity, local food advocate, and natural farming networker extraordinaire.

94 Year Old Man and a Grass Sandwich
I have fallen in love with a man named Harry. Harry is 94. Witty, brilliant, kind, and endearingly cranky. Learn how Harry shares his love of raw food and how to make a grass sandwich.

The Colors of LoveSelf
Welcome to LoveSelf Magazine! We are on a mission to inspire loving choices for your body and the earth.

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