Okay Wellness Warriors, Workers, and Advocates – besides the blog I also send out a monthly newsletter that features a yoga teacher, studio owner, or wellness peep that I have been blessed to have had our paths cross in some way shape or form and have learned something from. 
Historically- I have not included the interviews as blog posts but this one is so informative and interesting I wanted to share here as well. I met Karen when living in Zug, Switzerland and when I met her, heard what she did, and saw the passion & knowledge behind her starting Steps4You, I was immediately intrigued, moved, and wanted to know more.
For those who feel like they have been trying and trying to feel better but have no idea what direction to turn – she or someone like herself can help. A lot of times people go to the doctor and know something is off but are told everything is “in line” so they proceed. But for those of us that are a bit more sensitive, we know what it feels like to be well and to be a bit off and those markers are general guidelines but not a one all way to prevent and sustain optimal health. With the rise of alternative medicine, “lifestyle” doctors, etc. – I think we can all recognize that our modern busy world can take a toll on our health if we don’t take care of ourselves well. This often requires time, knowledge, education and a bit of dabbling to find what works for you and your system as well as the agility to know that it changes and shifts.
Karen stumbled into this as well in her own life. She saw when she had a family how important it was to make cooking and eating fresh meals part of their lifestyle. The convenience food can be for when you are on the go – but it is not sustainable for the long term for most of us. There is always the outlier right? The guy who lived to be 95 but ate pork belly fat his entire life. Yes, I get it. And just like with the COVID data, we see outliers – random children – stuff we don’t have total control over. BUT, in my eyes, when it comes to my body and my health – I value it so much and want to take the utmost care of it. I don’t want to ignore any of its cues esp after having had cancer.
So below is a snipit from our conversation. I hope this finds you well and gives you some ideas on how if you are getting some cues of feeling a tad run down, especially with the recent shifts in schedule and for some increase to computer time and decrease to people – then maybe it’s time to take a closer look at how you are fueling your body during this time. What I learned most from working with Karen is a reminder to eat the rainbow, check in with yourself periodically, and that is isn’t just what you eat, it is your relationships, how you breathe, how you connect to your community and how you live. They all have an impact to your health and to each other.
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Q: Can you give me your definition of wellness and if it has changed in recent years or over the years? A: It is a lifestyle where you feel you are healthy and can go forward in body/mind. 25 years ago –I believe it was seen as more of a diet but those are proving not sustainable. Living well has to have some consistency and a want to nourish yourself from the inside out with healthy well balanced meals, relationships to food, our bodies, our planet, and each other. Q: For those that don’t know you (yet), can you tell me about your background and education in science/nutrition? A: Sure. I started studying engineering at university but it didn’t feel very human so when I came in contact with a Masters of Nutrition I felt this combined the science with applicable human bodies and application. I could learn about how the body works, what it needs and how the food industry affects general health population. I noticed my children when they ate too much prepackaged food – they had health issues arise. My family then moved to France and I had time to cook with seasonal fresh ingredients and we all noticed a positive difference. This intrigued me to continue my study of the body’s cells and responses to certain foods. I then started to study the digestive system and the microbiome down there and it’s affects on the brain and overall health of people. An unhealthy gut can lead to allergies, asthma, depression, brain fog and all kinds of things we are seeing. Q: When I first came to you for an overall assessment, I was intrigued by the machine you used – can you tell me about it? A: Sure. It is called an OligoScan and it measure minerals, vitamins, fatty acids, heavy metals, oxygen levels, and the overall health of the cells. It is the basis I use to start and then give guidance from, reference at a later point. It is a spectrophotometric measuring which helps tell what is actually going on and more stable than a blood samples( influence by what you have been eating the last days). We see what is actually been the overall status quo for the past approx. 3 months of nutritional intake and behaviors of the body. We can then make a plan and use this again to reference at a later point. It doesn’t take long for your body to really like and change if fed well and overall stress monitored. Q: Have you seen any trends in your patients that related to geography? A: Yes, amongst the Swiss population a good percentage are deficient in vitamin D and lack iodine which makes sense because of the degree of the sun and soil with low salt (iodine levels) In California – heavy metals were prevalent which linked to obesity and stems from plastic bottle consumption and microwave usage. Lifestyle studies are so important to understanding how we take care of ourselves affects our communities. I love working with people to identify trends and set goals and small steps towards healthy changes. And I get to see the changes with them! Check out Karen’s Website for more info: https://www.steps4you.com/?lang=en
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