Hi, I’m Autumn.
I developed a passion for healthy food and cooking at an early age after being diagnosed in my teenage years with Crohn’s Disease. After more than 15 years of living with this autoimmune condition, I have discovered there are reliable and healthy methods for controlling Crohn’s Disease without the use of medication.
How Did I Get Here Exactly?
After my diagnosis, I made the invaluable decision to put my health first because I never considered any other option. I was determined to live a healthy life. Thus, as the years passed I became an avid home cook that experimented with various diets as proper nutrition and lifestyle habits became essential for maintaining my wellness. My condition remained stable due to a commitment to a healthy diet combined with an anti-inflammatory medication regimen. Whereas many adolescents with Crohn’s suffer a reality of cyclical hospital visits and serious life-altering surgeries, in my day-to-day life I was able to carry on quite “normally”. But ultimately, as I realized my symptoms were the same on or off- medication,
my intuition steered me in an alternative direction.
The Road Less Traveled
Drawn to my passions for nutrition, health and cooking, I decided to enroll in Miami Culinary Institute in 2013. Shortly thereafter the relationships in my life coupled with my culinary experiences, inspired me to make a bold move and take a drug holiday. I clearly remember the day I informed my skeptical gastroenterologist that I would be stopping all my medications. It was a tense conversation to say the least, but I haven’t looked back since. In the last three years of medication-free life, I have a newfound sense of wellness, yet by no means am I cured. That would be impossible. Crohn’s disease, along with all the inflammatory bowel conditions, are incurable. The medical community still doesn’t have a scientifically proven theory as to the cause of these conditions. While I am living with a serious autoimmune condition, I am healthier than I’ve ever been, which I credit to years of discipline and determination to develop a natural and holistic way to manage my disease. The road to wellness is a life-long journey for me. I cannot foresee the obstacles ahead, but I am currently enjoying the ride.
My Mission
Today I am an educator, a holistic nutrition coach, personal chef and food blogger. I am on a mission to teach and inspire others to live their healthiest life and I am passionate about creating healing foods that are both delicious and healthy! I specialize in cooking for digestive disorders and overall gut health and draw great inspiration from South Asian, Indian, Italian and Middle Eastern culinary traditions. My personal culinary style, consisting of healthy food made from pure ingredients with rich flavors, is a direct outgrowth of my unique life experiences combined with my dedication to share my knowledge about the countless health benefits of eating nourishing whole foods. When I’m not in the kitchen, I can be found photographing my recipe creations, writing about healing foods on the ‘Heal With Autumn’ blog and dreaming about my next trip abroad!
At HealWithAutumn.com you’ll find all of my favorite whole foods recipes, alternative and natural living tutorials, health hacks, travel guides for the wellness seeker, my personal wellness experiments that I love to share with my community and so much more.
But enough about me, I want to know about you!
I’d really love to connect with you!
The best ways to connect with me are through facebook, Instagram or in the comments section of my blog posts! Come join my HEALing community, say hi in the comments of a post that looks interesting to you and tell me about how you ended up here. Oh, and don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter! Every two weeks I lovingly put together a selection of HEALing articles, recipes, how-to videos and events that I think you’ll thoroughly enjoy. Sign up here.
Warmly,
Autumn
P.S. You can read more about my own personal health story here: