Hi everyone, today I begin my journey from a high starch vegan to the life of a RAW Vegan. Over the course of this year I will self document my journey through the use of videography, photography and written words. As I journey forward, I will be honest about the moments in which I struggle, about the moments in which cooked food enters, and about the things that I miss the most, but also on this journey forward: I will share the positive light that exists on the road ahead of me.
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| Nonna Figlia and Uncle Tony |
I can not escape my genetic past, but I can learn to make healthy choices that will diminish
my chances of acquiring many of the diseases that have taken my family members and that currently plague members of my family now. I pray that my journey into a raw vegan lifestyle mixed with body movement will also be a testimony to other members of my family.
Genetic Diseases that have plagued my family:
- Heart disease
- Diabetes
- Multiple types of cancer
- Under-active thyroid
- Alzheimers
- Glaucoma
My birth father passed away when he was in early 40's from a heart attack and my half-brothers, from my father, have suffered health issues related to heart disease. Both of them are in their 40's and one of them is my exact age (I know, scandalous story on that one). Each of them have had a heart attack, one of them has had bi-pass surgery.
My mother suffered from mental illness in her early adult life and several chronic illnesses throughout her life. Some of her illnesses were genetic and some of them were due to the unhealthy choices she made. My mother, although she has since passed away, survived breast cancer, colon cancer and uterine cancer. She also had congestive heart failure, diabetes and an under-active thyroid. She was on multiple medications that at times affected her negatively due to their interaction with each other. Although unhealthy for the majority of her adult life, my mom worked hard to get healthy in the last few years of her life on this earth. Right before my mother passed away, she was just starting to lose weight, eating the healthiest she had ever eaten and she was becoming more active, but the years of unhealthy eating, disease and excessive weight had taken too much of a hold on her body and in the end was too weak to continue. She was a beautiful spirit and I know that she is still around me, because at times I feel her presence as though she is sitting next to me.
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| My sweet beautiful mom on the left and my sweet beautiful Aunt Marie. A few month before my Aunt Marie died of bone cancer. |
My aunt from my mother's side passed away from bone cancer and my grandmother was stricken with alzheimer's. I know that there are some things that can not be avoided completely and we are still learning about the many causes of cancer and alzheimer's disease, but I do know that I can do as much as I can to be the healthiest that I can be: mentally and physically and I can give myself the best chance for holistic longevity for a better quality of life in the time that I have on this earth.
I have a lot to learn over the course of this year and I am so thankful for the loving and knowledgable support that the ladies of Humbly Peax and Love and RAW Inc! are giving me. I could not make this journey without them. It is through their lessons that I will begin to understand the holistic nature of the foods that I eat, and the negative side affects that the foods I chose to eat before have had on my health. I have been a vegetarian for six years and a vegan for a little over a year but even in that process of living a healthier lifestyle, I have chosen foods, that although seemingly healthy, were not what was best for my body.
I am not a great writer and I know that some weeks there will be less written than others, but I hope that as I document my journey over the next year, that my story will show that we are never too old to change, and with the help of community support and knowledge shared, that we can stay the course of our journey and we can alter the genetic make-up that waits to take hold of our bodies. I also hope that in my journey, I reach others who are like me. I do not live alone and the man that I love is a carnivore. I have already learned as a vegan how to prepare similar meals side by side, but now my journey will take me to another level of thought and preparation with what I eat, while at the same time preparing a meal for him. I am also living in a low income situation with a food budget of $250.00 a month for the both us. So, the choices I make and where I can shop are based on finances, but I know that it will be doable and I hope to show that you can still make healthy choices even when you are in a low income situation and living with others who do not share your eating habits.
My Journey begins.....
Mary Anne is the owner of Ailgif Studios, Ailgif Media, and Ailgif Memories. She lives with the love of her life, she is a mother of two grown sons, a mother in-law to two daughter in-laws, and a Nonna to a sweet little granddaughter. She is a photographer, videographer, and visual anthropologist with a degree in Mass Communications and a minor in Anthropology. Her primary focus is in documentary photography and ethnographic multi-media projects for an applied purpose. Mary Anne's work as a photographer and videographer has been used by advocacy groups and health organizations to bring awareness to social issues and chronic health issues. She also provides her skills as a photographer to low income individuals in her community who are in need of photography services.
To contact Mary Anne email: maryanne@ailgifstudios.com
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