What I Bought and Loved in June
A life update, list of good things that happened, and the things I purchased and loved in june
I’m taking a break today from writing about clinical conversations like navigating perimenopause, what I learned after GLP1 induced biliary stasis, and critique pieces on wellness culture to share some updates about my life & purchases that made me happy last month.
I have a few other things to celebrate, too.
I’m close to finishing my certification in The Practitioner Blueprint, which is an advanced blood chemistry course. It has radically improved my approach to my own health and the way I work with clients.
My reason for joining the course was selfish. My own health had plateaued and when I hired a functional medicine doctor to help me, her advice brought my body to an even worse place.
Fortunately for my fiercely independent “I’ll do it myself,” attitude, this course existed.
It’s unlike any program I’ve been in as a Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner.
When I watched the first module of the practitioner blueprint, I started crying. It wasn’t just that she was speaking the language of my body, she was actually showing me how to help myself.
When I told the functional med doctor I was in this course and what it covered, her response was, “you will likely learn more than I know.” It was actually an uncomfortable conversation and ended with her referring me out… aka not “wanting” to work with me any more.
At first I was emotional - like - I just went to the first functional practitioner i had been to in years… and similar to others i had seen along the way… she doesn’t know what to do with me?
It triggered an abandonment wound while simultaneously activating a bat shit crazy drive to prove I can figure this out. That I’m not broken. That I will show the world that healing is possible even when the odds are stacked against you.
From black mold, to trauma, to vaccine injury, to a complex genetic picture that makes healing my body more challenging than most...
I would find a way. And I would do it softer than I have ever done it before. Without rigidity, refusing to eat ice cream with my kids, or obsessing all the time.
I’d be lying if I said it has been easy or that I’ve been perfect in my attempts.
To research, study, troubleshoot, and heal at 38 with three small children and a business that’s been surviving on a kickboard since my last pregnancy has been.. hard. I’ve crumpled on the floor in tears too many times to count… only to find they watered my heart and urged me to keep going.
As I’ve begun to slowly implement the gentle strategies that this course teaches, with b vitamins, gallbladder support, minerals, and beyond…
I’ve already noticed subtle improvements in just a few weeks.
It’s not as fast as I want it to be. At all.
Like i wanna feel hawt healed and ready to rock.
But instead I am celebrating that my head is finally above water and i am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
My bloating is going down, I think my weight is finally starting to shift based on how my pants fit (in the no scale club and love it here), and my dysautonomia picture is starting to improve.
I feel like I’m coming up for gulps of air and that’s why i’m excited to share the good parts of last month.
Happy Things in June:
I got free pancakes with my family at Snooze. FYI if you sign up for their app you get a free flight of pancakes and they have gluten-free. The kids were so excited and it made my heart really happy.
I started working out with my best friend who lives in New Jersey. We are doing the Peloton total strength with Andy (iykyk) and I’m feeling stronger already despite not making it to every workout.
I started posting regularly on social media again. For some reason, my posts are really taking off on Facebook and one got 1.7 million views (it has nothing to do with my business but a win is a win).
We went to our special camp spot with our best friends. I’ve written about my friend Lillie before, and I just feel like my mom used angel magic to put her a block away. I’m really grateful we get to raise babies together.
We kicked off our monthly summer garden club in June. Truly another magical thing I get to be part of. The quirkiest, kindest people love to grow things and I’m here for it! One person hosts each month, gives us a tour of their garden, and we potluck snacks.
Hung out by the creek for Father’s Day. Life has been a little lifey lately, especially for my husband who is working his ass off. He comes home every night, eats dinner, helps put the kids down, then fires up his laptop to keep working until 1 AM. So we decided to spend a full day in the mountains. He biked around with the kiddos, we had a picnic, splashed, and then came home and he tried to teach the girls to ride bikes. It was a great dad day.
My sister and niece came to visit. She’s never been here in the summer before and I just loved taking her to my favorite spots. I will always wish life had kept us closer together geographically, but it makes these visits even more special.
I hit my first $1,000 estimated yearly income on Substack. I think the last time I felt this excited about something was 2018 Beautycounter. It has been really fun to serve my community and I am just hoping I can keep being a resource for people while also doing something I love.
I joined the Christina the Channel Manifestation Challenge inside her app. I live for some good energy work and can feel my spidey senses coming back online.
My garden is growing and I have the sweetest little helpers who get excited about seemingly mundane things like the shade of strawberries changing, pink petals, and ladybugs.
What I bought in June
I really grapple with sharing what I’m buying because, quite frankly, I’m a little ashamed. But I always love when people spill the tea on what they purchased so I figured I’d do it, too. I’m a girl’s girl after all.
I had four goals for June and one of them was to perfect my skincare routine. So I went to the Olive Tree People quiz to see if maybe I was missing something that could help me glow up a little. I ended up getting the Corrective Face Serum. It’s a potent antioxidant serum that helps overall glow for maturing skin. So far, I’m def feeling glowy. I also bought the pearl primer serum.
Speaker - We had an old Bose portable speaker for about 10 years and it broke 3 years ago. For father’s day, I got my husband a new one that he’s only been subtly hinting he wanted for … 3 years. It was on super sale when I bought it but back up in price now. Flag it for later if you need one!
Clothes - My body is in a weird place for the first time in a long time. It felt like overnight, i gained belly and hip fat that will not budge after taking antibiotics recommended by my (former) functional med doc. While I am not going to purchase a bigger wardrobe entirely, I did need a few things. I ended up getting three affordable items on amazon during prime day (boo, hiss) including this green and navy set that I’m low key obsessed with, these overalls (below) in blue and black, and some athletic shorts.
Swedish Bitters - I had previously been using cholenest at the recommendation of my funcitonal med doctor, but in the program I’m in, the teacher recommends swedish bitters. They are SO STRONG. I can literally feel my gallbladder contracting after I take them. I got these at Whole Foods but will never do it again since they are on sale at iherb for $14 (linked)
Thank you so much for being here with me and reading the words I share each week. My goal is to deliver you high quality posts about health and spirituality that act as balm for your weary heart + body.
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Love you all!
Whitney
I'm a little weepy because i've already received a text from a friend saying she loved my newsletter today. "Should I be sharing more personal content," I wonder as I re-read my post...... lol. Ugh I love you all so much you don't even know. Thank you.