“My Depression and Plant-Based Transition Testimonial”
Written By : Abisola Amina
11/4/2020
I would like to thank all my Ancestors, mother, loved ones, close family and friends, acquaintances and strangers who all showed up at varying times to help support me along my journey and path! Ase’O
It really does take a village!! I am eternally grateful for every single person who has impacted my life and helped change me in one way of another! Ase’o
In 2018, I was already fighting a severe 4-year bout of chronic depression and was also suicidal. These mental states further triggered other health issues such as Fibromyalgia -(Daily Chronic Pain & Fatigue), Pre-Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), Insomnia, Leaky Guts and other Digestive Issues and Anxiety. Dealing with these symptoms on a daily basis is quite difficult.
Having chronic pain every single day zaps you of all your energy and weakens your mind. One of my biggest struggles I encountered was the brain fogginess, memory lapses and difficulty concentrating or doing any mentally challenging work or activity was near impossible. Because of the constant dull, never ending pain of fibromyalgia made getting out of bed and taking a shower on some days an insurmountable task. The mood swings, irritation and feelings of anger from the PMDD symptoms every month during my period cycle made life most miserable and I was tired of feeling so hopeless all the time dealing with the many unpleasant symptoms of depression.
So, I decided to take a friend’s advice to start a whole plant-based lifestyle to heal my body and mind. To ensure my success because my life depended on it, I took the following steps within the first 3 months before starting my journey to prepare my mind and body for the long and strenuous journey ahead. I knew this was my last resort and that it would also take EVERYTHING LEFT INSIDE ME TO SUCCEED!
I spent a lot of time alone thinking and visualizing about exactly WHO I USED to be and HOW to change, WHO I wanted to BE, HOW I wanted to FEEL and WHAT I wanted to Look like. (EXACTLY WHO I AM NOW!) I connected with my ancestors and grew deeper spiritually. I opened my mind to new possibilities and new ways of looking at life. I started seeking the real truth about why I was suffering and in pain like I was. I wanted to know why I was in this dark place since I was a teenager. I was ready for the real answers to my questions. I was ready to heal myself completely!
I meditated often and, on some days, when I had more energy, I spent a lot of time in nature working through my thoughts and creating and imagining the life I would have once I overcame my mental illness. The healing power of nature and spending time alone outdoors are life changing. The beach literally became my home during my dark times and it contributed tremendously to my getting and feeling better. Most of my emotional and spiritual breakthroughs happened in nature. Embrace your own company and learn to enjoy solitude.
I researched how food can be used to heal my mind and body. I slowly weaned myself off all sugars, all artificial foods, all dairy, iodized salt, all meats and all meat products. I learned that a whole plant-based/vegan diet helps to improve mental health and can help treat symptoms of mental illness.
I decided to take a more natural/organic approach to treating and healing depression. So, I got off all pharmaceutical medicines I was taking including antidepressants, sleeping and pain pills. (Please I STRONGLY ADVISE you to consult your doctor before doing so.)
I did a full body detox and fasted from food for a period of time. During that fasted state, I was able to give my stomach and digestive system a break so that the various medicinal herbs used to cleanse my body could have been absorbed and heal my digestive issues and assist the nutrients from the plant foods and natural medicines to further fortify me.
And finally, I learned how to prepare and cook my own plant-based meals so that I took complete control over my health and what goes in and out of my body. By learning to cook my own meals, it allowed me to be creative and explore new seasonings and plant foods I never tried before.
All these changes, despite the fact I prepared myself for them, was still a very difficult process for me because being depressed, having a life-long battle with binge emotional eating, and having very low energy on most days, I turned to food for comfort. I’ve had an adverse relationship with food since I was a child and junk food was a compulsion and was used to fill a gaping hole I felt inside.
By October 2018, there weren’t any other options left for me, I had already been hospitalized months before so I definitely knew I had already exhausted ALL of them! This had to work for me or else I KNEW I WAS GOING TO DIE!
Throughout this process I was scared, suicidal and struggled everyday with suicidal thoughts and feelings. So, I ensured that it worked, by taking small consistent and deliberate action every day. I remained focused and asked my ancestors for courage and strength on the days that were very difficult, I gave myself NO EXCUSES.
I hated every minute of this process for the first 6 months but I was committed to TAKING MY LIFE BACK and becoming the version of myself I always wanted to be. I had a lot of work ahead of me, I had over 100+ lbs. to lose and my emotional/psychological issues to work through while trying to strengthen my mind!
I was dependent on the support of friends and family to help me and been unemployed for nearly 4 years so I had very little money to spend on vegan/plant-based food. I still didn’t use this as an excuse to quit! For most of my journey, I ate only what my family could have afforded and I ate the same meals over and over again without fail (I literally ate boiled green bananas, veggies and lentils for months because it was the fastest to cook, easiest and most affordable and TASTY!!! It’s a good thing…I love lentils! LOL).
But I was very determined to get well even if I was getting tired of eating the same foods. I encouraged myself and stayed on the plant-based lifestyle by eating locally and seasonally. I ate (and still eat) what’s in season and I started to really for the first time enjoy food. I ate more diversely once I could have afforded more varied ingredients!
BUT I didn’t use the excuse that the “vegan/plant-based lifestyle” is expensive or unaffordable to quit! I kept going even if I was crying a lot and miserable! But as time progressed, I learned to be gentle with myself and also became more forgiving of my weaknesses and gave an account of myself to a friend, when I did falter along the way. I DID have 3 occasions when I ate pepperoni pizza (Yesss! It was one of my addictions! Chocolate was another!)
BUT as I got stronger mentally, these cravings also eventually disappeared. I asked a friend who was already experienced in this lifestyle to be my ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNER and I was honest with her about my struggles and, this act alone helped me stay on course.
I also took a variety of MEDICINAL HERBS to enhance my nutrients and minerals particularly Sea moss, Vervain, Dandelion, Bladderwrack, Sarsaparilla, Cleavers, Yellowdock, Ashwagandha, Red Clover, Damiana, Red Raspberry etc.
After 3-9 months of consistently putting in the effort, I saw and felt a lot of major results physically at first and as I continued other mental symptoms started getting even much better and I started to gain mental clarity and fortitude.
Two years later, combined with my regular spiritual rituals and practices, I am down 100+LBS and I feel amazing and finally feel grounded and balanced within my own body, my own mind and my own spirit! Even though, I still have daily struggles and symptoms I face, I have managed to find this feeling of calm and balance from allowing Mother Nature and my Ancestors to heal my mind, spirit and body whether through eating plant-based or using natural medicines, or using nature’s healing energies for inner peace and stability.
I hope my story helps to support and encourage you through your own process of healing. Mental Illness is not written on our faces and any one at any time can be suffering secretly.
So please be sensitive with people and their journeys because you never know what people are truly going through!
So, Let’s End Mental Health Stigma Now!
Join our YouTube Channel & Facebook Group for mental health support and information:
YouTube: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCpCG7k3gH8sR8d9oYuxulUw
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/1157590377698626/?ref=share
#itisnotwrittenonmyface
#letsendmentalhealthstigmanow
