When I was six years old my mother announced that our family would sample the culinary delights from a different country at least once every month. Mom prepared food at home and we dined out at restaurants, as well. That may not seem extraordinary coming from today's standards, but this occurred during the early seventies, when many Americans didn't explore anything beyond white bread, meat and potatoes. For me, I not only discovered which fork to use with each course, I learned how to use chopsticks by the time I was seven. You won't catch me using silverware at an Asian restaurant!
Needless to say, it is because of this early introduction to Italian pastas, Mexican burritos, Japanese tempura, Russian stroganoff and the like, where I began my lifelong obsession with the deliciousness of food. Who needs diets when there is so much pleasure to be had with food! What I didn't know until my forties was how all the food I was consuming was affecting my health.
No, I am not talking (or rather writing) about having a weight issue. In this case, I am referring to my asthma. Since the days of my youth, I can very distinctly remember coughing approximately every minute or so, for about forty years. With the exception of when I slept or meditated, I was on a seemingly never-ending cough ride. Not to mention the fact that I couldn't run for more than a few feet, nor could I easily climb stairs or hills—and when I took any sort of aerobics class I absolutely had to rest for a minute every five minutes or so for the duration of the class. When I was finally diagnosed with exercise-induced asthma in my thirties it all made sense.
Inhalers didn't really work, so I decided it was best not to bother with them at all. Then something happened that would change my life forever. I got sick. I don't mean the lay in bed for a day or two until it passes kind of sickness, I am talking about ten months of my life. I started out with strep throat and chronic bronchitis which aggravated my asthma and proceeded to turn my normal little cough into a fully-fledged nightmare.
It was difficult to breathe as I choked to catch my breath. Fevers came and went and nearly every night I had to sleep upright just to try to have a chance at breathing. I can assure you this position is not conducive for a blissful sleep cycle. Instead of getting forty winks, I maybe slept for about an hour or two every night. It felt like an alien had taken up residence within me and was determined to find its way out—and I assure you that anyone within earshot endured nearly the same amount of pain just by listening to me.
I meandered from one doctor to another who all prescribed a plethora of antibiotics, inhalers, expectorants, nose-sprays and I don't know what else. I had never seen so much prescription medication in my cabinet before and while they certainly helped while I was ingesting the various pills, it was hardly a cure. Once I completed whichever cycle of pills I was on, my illness would return with a vengeance.
To make a long story short, I was finally guided by a wonderful doctor in France who informed me that I had an allergy to some sort of food and it was up to me to find out what the culprit was. After this pronouncement, I went on a lengthy period of trial and error and discovered that all milk products even in small increments put be back in this crying/choking/barely-able-to-breathe fit. So, I decided that all the yummy cheeses and yogurts I had been coveting would have to go. Immediately, I went from having the hideous cough back to the normal timbre of my lightweight-once a minute cough that I always had—and believe me, I was thrilled!
Life continued on and after two years of living milk-free I heard a lecture online where the chef being interviewed discussed how he had chronic asthma as a child. His mother took him to doctor after doctor around the country, until one physician had the answer. He handed this boy a book written decades ago regarding how asthma can be cured with an organic diet. This boy took it upon himself to learn to prepare organic foods, which not only led him on the path to finding his profession as a man, he also cured his asthma.
As I listened to his words over the airwaves, a clear sense of recognition took over me. My intuition was guiding me that what he had said was true and if I followed this same course of action, I would heal myself too.
...And that's what I did.
I began the process of elimination once again first by deleting wheat, gluten and soy from my diet as well as switching to an organic diet. From my herbs and spices to the fruits and vegetables (plus, the occasional meat) everything that beckons through my front door is organic.
I estimate that I am 90% organic as I still eat out at restaurants and while I watch for the elimination foods I have taken out of my diet, I am uncertain of where the food sources of restaurants come from. With that in mind, my asthma is about 90% better too. I rarely cough anymore. When I have an issue, I simply drink Breath Deep Yogi Tea and it alleviates my asthma better than any inhaler ever did.
I have always been an advocate for healthy eating, but I didn't hold all the facts before. It never occurred to me to question, where the food from the grocery store was coming from. The truth is, so-called organic food is actually just food. It is what we call "food" made by supposed conventional means that is really what is harming all of Mother Earth and all its inhabitants—and that includes us. Simply put, the genetically manufactured foods, the foods that have poisonous pesticides, the food that is created in an outdoor lab as opposed to working with nature, is creating a downfall for our planet and our bodies.
It is up to us to stand up and recognize that our bodies are our temples and they deserve to be treated as such. If the majority of people discontinued their use of non-organic foods, corporate farming would have to change to ethical farming practices.
It is the only way.
Thank you for reading about my Organic Bliss! If you would like to read this and other articles such as this one, please visit my Organic Bliss blog at http://organic-bliss.blogspot.com/
Lisa Tunney is a metaphysician with an accessible approach. She has been described as “Sex and the City meets the Dalai Lama”. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree from U.C. Berkeley and a Master’s Degree in Metaphysics from the American Institute of Holistic Theology. Additionally, she teaches Shamanism, Reiki, Intuition Development, Meditation and is a Philosopher and author of the upcoming inspirational books, Blossoming Butterfly and The Seed Planter. Through the various avenues of teaching she pursues, she integrates laughter, intuition, storytelling, and most importantly, it is her goal to help guide others to listen to their own Inner Wisdom.