"I have been given this product as part of a product review through the Chronic Illness Bloggers network. Although the product was a gift, all opinions in this review remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company. "
Thank you to Shannon Harvey for sending me her book, and for all the resources that she has made available on her website!
The Whole Health Life is an eye opening book that goes inside your body. It teaches you how to achieve health, happiness, and balance out your life. I'm an avid reader, so I was super excited to devour it! I was so fascinated that it only took me two days to finish the whole thing! Here is a summary from Shannon's website :
"Being healthy in this crazy, busy, modern world is not easy.
For Shannon Harvey, the journalist and filmmaker behind the feature documentary, The Connection: Mind Your Body, finding a solution to this problem became personal when she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that had no known cause and no known cure. After being told by her doctor that she could end up in a wheelchair, she realised she had to take action.
This inspired a ten-year journey, where she spent more than $30,000 on conventional and alternative treatments, searched through thousands of scientific papers, and traveled the world to interview dozens of pioneering health researchers from leading institutions such as Harvard and Stanford. On her road to getting better she met people with remarkable stories of recovery, discovered the truth amidst conflicting medical advice and sorted the quacks from the experts. She has now compiled the latest evidence and her personal experiences into one book to help you find the answers to good health."
Wow. That's basically what every Spoonie wants in their life, an easy path to normalcy. I think what really draws you in is that Shannon is a journalist, and a blogger, like so many of us. She doesn't settle for conventional answers, she asks "why?". Shannon's story is so relatable, it could be anyone's story, and that's the purest reason for my fascination. All of her research is tested, and not the common claims we often see writers make. Shannon dissects the information given, and figures out how we can implement it into our daily lives. Shannon also shows us that in order to change your life, you don't need to undergo a dramatic transformation. Her book is filled with many little things that are easy to manage.
I keep rereading the book, and using the multitude of resources on her website to take small steps in the right direction. I've seen how amazing and transformative this can be. If you still aren't convinced, here a my favorite quote from the book, which spoke to me deeply:
"It took in the years to fully taken the central adage held by those who successfully bear the burden of loving an addict- that the only person who can motivate recovery is a person with the addiction."
Thank you to Shannon for working with me on this review!