Tracy's Wellness Journey: New Doc, New Approach, New Tracy

After being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes five years ago, I have been on a wellness journey of discovery. This year, I’ve taken some deeper dives into trying to understand what it means to be healthy, the mental-and-physical health connection, and figure out how a person would know that something is wrong without physical symptoms.

I was frustrated with myself and the level of care I was tolerating. I had known for some time that I needed to make a change in physicians. I felt as though I was constantly defending my position to not take unnecessary medications, and with each appointment, my anxiety level went up.

Yet another 90-minute wait to see the doctor was the last straw. Within two days, I had a new physician who was more aligned with my well care belief system. The fear of change kept me stuck for too long.

The World Health Organization defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental or social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”

During my new patient consultation, the doctor asked a lot of questions regarding my mental health, exercise, spiritual health, mindfulness, family, friends, childhood, nutrition, level of rest, and past traumas. Traumas?

I immediately wondered how traumas could influence my current health. I have spent the better part of two decades discussing my life with a mental health counselor and felt like I had everything under control. I was aware of the feelings and believed I had processed them efficiently, yet in the back of my mind, there was something still nagging at me.

Then she recommended hypnotherapy. In 2002, I had done a bit of hypnotherapy for anxiety, but that was different from what this doctor was explaining. I was open to exploring this type of therapy, which is the ultimate state of relaxation to get to the root cause of traumas and pain. I acted immediately and scheduled my first appointment with local clinical and transpersonal hypnotherapist Lori Burke.

The process works! I feel like a different woman. The world has been lifted off my shoulders. I feel more empowered and confident in my familial relationships, which is where most of the work needed to be done. I am eating and sleeping better, exercising more, and have begun to stack on more healthy habits that align with my future health vision.

Life is good. I am now understanding how wellness is not just the absence of disease.  

Physical, mental, and social all work together, and if one piece is not functioning at its optimum, you should take action to resolve the problem. Especially, if you are feeling emotional about things in your life. It might be the best thing you have ever done for yourself.  

— Tracy