Thanks for joining me!

Living in constant pain really takes a toll on all aspects of your being.

It disrupts all facets of life. From the smallest areas to the most important parts of your life. Debilitating illness set-in in October 2010, creating a major turning point in my life.

Little did I know what it would take to get answers and a diagnosis, or the journey I had just embarked upon.

Haruki Murakami once said, “When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.”

Looking back over the last decade, it is difficult to wrap my mind around all that has taken place and all that my body has endured.

With chronic illness it is easy to feel as though your body is failing you, but overtime I began to realize not only was my body working hard to get well, it was fighting like hell to communicate what was wrong.

A decade of daily pain, debilitating symptoms, and life half lived.

Somewhere along the way I lost my voice. It was early on in this journey that after repeatedly being told there was nothing physically wrong with me and it was only in my head that I lost the confidence I once had, but I did not give up.

Though it may seem needless to say, this not the life I dreamt of.

With debilitating illness, you have no choice but to surrender. There is not ignoring anymore or pushing through. It stops you in your tracks.

During some of the darkest moments, I got through by believing I would get through this and share my story someday. While some of my friends, family and followers have heard bits and pieces of my story, there is so much I have never told another soul.

I am finally launching this website to share my life with you. This blog will consist of my experiences with chronic pain and illness,  how I cope and find meaning in life, the lifestyle choices I make and why, experiences as a motherless daughter, and of course everything gluten free and Hawaii.

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson