Who Am I?

My name is Molly, I am a wife and mother of two children and one dog. I was born and raised in Grove City, Ohio until I was 18 and went to college. At Ohio University (a smaller college than Ohio State due East from Columbus) I tried different dietary lifestyles, eating less, eating more when I worked out, eating low-fat then vegetarianism. The latter two translated to a very sugary diet (albeit low fat) then bread and cheese (vegetarian). I was often sick and very tired. After college (I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and Hashimotos's disease). I taught young children for ten years and was exhausted everyday (I discovered I was severely sensitive to the airborne toxins in my school) . I stopped teaching when my first child was born (I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia) and I’ve stayed at home with both of my children for over 13 years.

I can’t recall a time when I didn’t think about what I was eating, whether it was healthy food or not. Nor have I ever thought I would do anything but teach. I grew up in the seventies and eighties in a family that believed in whole foods. We never called it that but we had a garden that took half the backyard and grew enough vegetables, that in the summer, the grocery budget decreased accordingly. Both of my parents were teachers; my grandpa taught in a one room school house. My brother is a teacher, my other brother a coach and our extended family tree holds teachers on many of it's branches. So my thought process was always, “When I’m a teacher I will….”.

I’ve always strived to eat better. Even when making HUGE MISTAKES like over-indulging on Twizzlers because they were clearly marked on the label, “A Fat Free Food!” Or eating a hamburger without the meat; white-bread-bun-only-sometimes-two because that counted as “vegetarian.”

There were two instances in my life that I consider my nutritional milestones. I met a fantastic naturopath/MD about 15 years ago that steered my nutritional path firmly in the right direction. I lost a significant amount of weight, thus allowing for a healthy first pregnancy. During my pregnancy with my second child, I was introduced to raw foods. I was able to significantly alter some concerns my doctor had and proceeded to have another healthy pregnancy. After my second child was born, I was also able to address my hypothyroidism and fibromyalgia with food and I stopped taking any kind of medicine.

My willing family members and friends have been my guinea pigs for years. I like the challenges they bring me with weight loss, nutrition, food addiction and confusion over health headlines or what they see on television.

All of the above brought me to where I am right now: at the beginning of an exciting, new, intimidating at times, nutrition career!