Hi I'm Shontal! Let me walk you through my journey into holistic living. I hope to inspire you to take a deeper look into a healthier proactive lifestyle.
My Journey Into Healthy Living
How It All Began
After my first pregnancy, I found my health declining. At first, I thought it was all of the shifts that my body had made during pregnancy and post-pregnancy hormone changes. But after my second pregnancy, I knew something was definitely out of kilter. Altogether, I had gone to doctors for a total of eight years, trying to find a resolution through multiple tests, all winding up "within normal range", and ending up with no solid answers. In the meantime, I felt like I was dying inside. I had absolutely no energy, and eating, on any level, brought much discomfort for me in my digestive tract every single day. I was in my early thirties, I knew something was wrong, and I simply could not settle for these answers. So, I began advocating for myself, while I continued to pray for answers.
God opened the door and led to me speaking to a local natural pharmacist. As I began to tell her my story, within an hour on the phone, she had a diagnosis for me. I could hardly believe it. We proceeded with a simple test and it confirmed her diagnosis of adrenal fatigue. She then set me up on a whole food supplement regimen, along with some lifestyle changes. Within two months, I started noticing major shifts.
This moment in time radically changed my life and put me on the right track. After about two years, I stopped taking the supplements because I had felt much better. However, I still had some personal improvement to conquer and a few more underlying issues that I was still unaware of.
That is where phase two of this journey began. I was introduced to a local holistic Chiropractic Doctor. To start, he did a full blood panel and a hair toxin analysis, and the results connected to a root level of ailments that I was experiencing. Exploring a bit deeper, led to me finding out that I also had a couple of food intolerances. I know now, that these food intolerances were connected as far back as my childhood, as I had experienced lots of stomach troubles. Some detoxing, along with supplement support, and sound knowledge, put me on a whole new renewed level in my life.
This whole process was not an overnight fix. It took discipline, years of learning, understanding, and applying all of these newfound concepts. Before, I didn't know life with functional medicine. I had only known a conventional Dr. approach. What I later learned was that conventional doctors test and look for disease mostly and they should not be discounted for that. However, in conventional practice, there is not much help for you anywhere in between. That is where many patients find their frustration and walk away with no answers, as I did. Holistically, the functional side is examined and traced back to the root cause. This was a process that I chose to stay on track with because I saw it pay off the entire way.
After another couple of years had passed, phase three began. I found myself in a whole new place, reading natural healing books from the best authors in the field, researching supplements and all things holistic, joining online health summits and listening to podcasts, and all of the leading holistic gurus in my spare time, learning vast amounts of great knowledge. I had just become SO passionate about functional medicine because of how radically it changed my life, along with the lives of many others around me. During this decade, I had passionately been able to direct others to answers through the evolution and compilation that I had gained, helping others find answers.
In 2022, I decided to embark on a new adventure and attended The Institute of Integrative Nutrition. I geek out over all things holistic, especially science, and therefore plan to continue to further my education. I finished the Whole Person Health course that I also earned through IIN and I am still researching, reading, and listening. I just can't get enough.
The last fourteen years of personal experience, research, reading, and schooling, going hand in hand with my school of life, have taught me many life-changing things. I have continued to be an advocate for myself, my family, and others. I am in this holistic movement to bring about positive and necessary changes within others for optimal health so that they can learn from, build upon it, and outflow it to others. Our bodies have the amazing ability to heal themselves, alongside education and guidance.
God opened the door and led to me speaking to a local natural pharmacist. As I began to tell her my story, within an hour on the phone, she had a diagnosis for me. I could hardly believe it. We proceeded with a simple test and it confirmed her diagnosis of adrenal fatigue. She then set me up on a whole food supplement regimen, along with some lifestyle changes. Within two months, I started noticing major shifts.
This moment in time radically changed my life and put me on the right track. After about two years, I stopped taking the supplements because I had felt much better. However, I still had some personal improvement to conquer and a few more underlying issues that I was still unaware of.
That is where phase two of this journey began. I was introduced to a local holistic Chiropractic Doctor. To start, he did a full blood panel and a hair toxin analysis, and the results connected to a root level of ailments that I was experiencing. Exploring a bit deeper, led to me finding out that I also had a couple of food intolerances. I know now, that these food intolerances were connected as far back as my childhood, as I had experienced lots of stomach troubles. Some detoxing, along with supplement support, and sound knowledge, put me on a whole new renewed level in my life.
This whole process was not an overnight fix. It took discipline, years of learning, understanding, and applying all of these newfound concepts. Before, I didn't know life with functional medicine. I had only known a conventional Dr. approach. What I later learned was that conventional doctors test and look for disease mostly and they should not be discounted for that. However, in conventional practice, there is not much help for you anywhere in between. That is where many patients find their frustration and walk away with no answers, as I did. Holistically, the functional side is examined and traced back to the root cause. This was a process that I chose to stay on track with because I saw it pay off the entire way.
After another couple of years had passed, phase three began. I found myself in a whole new place, reading natural healing books from the best authors in the field, researching supplements and all things holistic, joining online health summits and listening to podcasts, and all of the leading holistic gurus in my spare time, learning vast amounts of great knowledge. I had just become SO passionate about functional medicine because of how radically it changed my life, along with the lives of many others around me. During this decade, I had passionately been able to direct others to answers through the evolution and compilation that I had gained, helping others find answers.
In 2022, I decided to embark on a new adventure and attended The Institute of Integrative Nutrition. I geek out over all things holistic, especially science, and therefore plan to continue to further my education. I finished the Whole Person Health course that I also earned through IIN and I am still researching, reading, and listening. I just can't get enough.
The last fourteen years of personal experience, research, reading, and schooling, going hand in hand with my school of life, have taught me many life-changing things. I have continued to be an advocate for myself, my family, and others. I am in this holistic movement to bring about positive and necessary changes within others for optimal health so that they can learn from, build upon it, and outflow it to others. Our bodies have the amazing ability to heal themselves, alongside education and guidance.
Connect With Me
Are you ready to ADVOCATE for yourself?
Are you ready to become the advocate your health deserves? Join me and empower yourself with the tools and knowledge to make informed decisions about your well-being. Learn to listen to what your body is telling you and prioritize your health needs. Start advocating for yourself today and transform your health journey, holistically, with the personalized support you deserve!