Kat’s Musings

Tag: Nutrition

  • Stop Romanticizing the Past: Embrace Today

    Stop Romanticizing the Past: Embrace Today

    We have all heard it. We have all said it. “Man, things were better back then.” People are always yearning for the good old days—start appreciating everything today:

    Nostalgia is not a memory—it is a seductive liar.

    It edits out the bad.

    The ugly.

    We airbrush the boredom, the limited choices, the untreated depression, the rotten teeth (yay for healthcare!) and the way information trickled so slowly that ignorance felt like wisdom. I kind of do wish we ladies were still dumb, though… I rely more on my man to know what is going on in the world so that I can just be delulu about things.

    And while we are busy pining for that heavily filtered past, the actual miracles are all around us right now. We are living in the most abundant, connected, opportunistic era in human history, and most of us are too busy doom-scrolling and whining to notice.

    Technology seems to be sprinting. AI that writes better essays than most college students. Instant access to the entire library of human knowledge in your pocket. You can video call your grandmother on another continent while ordering takeout that arrives piping hot. And still, people scroll past miracles to complain that their coffee order took four minutes instead of three.

    This change terrifies people. It always has. That is why every generation thinks the next one is doomed. But here is my hot take: your nostalgia is a coping mechanism for your fear of the unknown. It is easier to idealize 1997 than confront 2026. People are afraid. What is going to happen tomorrow or next month?

    It seems easier to romanticize rotary phones than master and learn the new tools.

    Stop yearning. Start appreciating—aggressively.

    The secret is not in the past. It is in the lens. Shift it—or stay miserable.

    Look at your smartphone not as a distraction device but as a doorway for wonder. With it, you can learn a language in weeks, watch a live surgery in Tokyo, or hear the voice of someone who died decades ago (I know… Creepy.) We treat these luxuries like it is normal. It is not. It is insane.

    We find food in our grocery stores from every corner of the world. Planes and automobiles have actually united us. We consume other cultures and cuisines. This is the true meaning of America.

    Surgery and modern medicine (despite its faults) make it absolutely insane to continue complaining about the small aches and pains. Some of us do not even walk; are you really going to cry about a hangnail?

    The internet has also demolished geographic and social barriers. You can meet your person- someone who actually matches your weird frequency- instead of settling for the least awful option within a 10-mile radius. I personally would despise settling down with someone from around here. The old days had arranged marriages and shotgun weddings. We now have sad dating apps and yes, we rate each other based on our looks. So yes, trade-offs exist, but pretending the past was pure romance is historical fan-fiction.

    In a culture addicted to outrage and comparison, choosing to appreciate the present is rebellious. It is punk rock. It flips off the algorithm that profits from dissatisfaction. People really do love to complain, criticize, and comment.

    Essentially, the world is blossoming with possibility while you are staring at old yearbooks. One thing that has always bothered me is that most of our bodies are a biological marvel capable of running, dancing, orgasming, and healing—and yet people are mad about theirs not looking like a filtered influencer. It is called do something about it—if a disabled girl can lose more than one hundred pounds, you can do anything. The body is truly a marvel.

    The mind is too.
    Your mind can comprehend quantum physics (or silly girly things—like writing a blog!) and write love poems, yet you use it to relive 2008 politics.

    The good old days are a trap. They keep you small, bitter, and blind to the abundance screaming for your attention. Every moment you spend mourning a myth is a moment stolen from building something better.

    The world is changing so fast that if you blink too long in nostalgia, you will miss the best parts of being alive right here, right now. The coffee is hot. The internet works—until the power goes out, because living in the woods is great. Your heart is beating. The future is wide open.

    Appreciate it all—fiercely, obnoxiously, unapologetically.

    Or keep complaining. The past will not care, and the present will keep delivering miracles whether you notice them or not.

    The choice is yours. But only one of them feels like living.

  • The Princess Within: Embracing My Damsel in Distress Heart

    The Princess Within: Embracing My Damsel in Distress Heart

    From the moment I could dream, I wanted to be a princess. Not just any princess—This was not a fleeting childhood whim; it was the quiet heartbeat of my entire life. Even now, as an adult, that little girl inside me still looks at the world through tinted glasses. She hopes for magic and rescue. She dreams of a love that feels like it was written in the stars.

    Ever since I was a little girl, fairy tales were never just bedtime stories. They were blueprints for how life should feel. I grew up listening to different princess stories than you. I mean every culture has its own rendition of Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White. I devoured these stories. I was captivated by the princesses’ grace under pressure. Their kindness eventually led to their happily ever afters. I did not just want the happy ending; I wanted the entire experience. I longed for the gentle spoiling by a doting prince (and life itself). I yearned for the soft protection from the world’s harsher realities. I craved that undeniable sense of being seen and valued.

    I craved being spoiled by life in the sweetest ways. Surprise flowers would delight me. Someone remembering my favorite coffee order on a bad day would lift my spirits. I cherished simply feeling like the universe had my back. Beside my desire for abundance and delight, I also deeply wanted to be saved. I longed to be rescued from sadness and loneliness. I yearned to escape the weight of carrying everything alone. I wanted arms that would wrap around me and say, “You don’t have to be strong right now. I got you.”

    This is not about laziness or entitlement. It is about yearning for a softer existence. One where my vulnerability is met with strength and my sensitivity is celebrated rather than criticized.

    Of course, every good fairytale needs its villain, right? In my story, my cousin first played that role. I affectionately refer to her as my “evil stepsister.” Growing up, her teasing and bullying left deep marks on my young heart. She was seemingly perfect and she made sure I knew that I was not perfect. Her actions portrayed her as the ideal antagonist in my personal fairytale. I continued to question my worth throughout my life because of it. 

    Essentially, those experiences did not break me—they shaped me. They reinforced my identity as the misunderstood princess waiting for her turning point. I learned to retreat into my imagination, where I could be graceful and worthy instead of awkward and overlooked. I built emotional walls disguised as daydreams. I always held out hope that one day my real story would begin. To this day, my mother loves to tell me that I live in lala land. 

    Looking back, I see how that dynamic taught me resilience, even if it hurt at the time. But it also cemented something deeper: my tendency to frame my entire life around the “damsel in distress” archetype. (Thank you Pretty Woman!)

    I have basically organized my whole existence around this identity, and I am finally okay admitting it. I love romance that feels epic. I adore knights in shining armor who make me feel protected and adored. I thrive when life offers little sadness and provides moments of pampering. But unfortunately it is  not all sparkle and glass slippers. It means I feel emotions intensely—joy like fireworks, sadness like storms.

    I have had moments where I wondered if this part of me was too much. I have turned to my boyfriend with wide eyes and asked, “Am I simply too much?” His responses have been patient and loving. They remind me that wanting to feel cherished is not a flaw—it is a feature. I am not terribly spoiled. I do not demand the impossible or throw tantrums when things do not go my way. I just carry this princess heart. It believes life can be kinder. Relationships can be more. I deserve to be treated with tenderness.

    This identity has influenced my career choices (or lack thereof), my friendships, and especially my romantic life. I seek connections where I can be soft without being seen as weak. I want to give my all to someone who sees my sensitivity as a gift, not a burden. And yes, I still believe in being saved sometimes. It is not because I am helpless. It is because partnership should include lifting each other up.  And I know that I inspire/ motivate him.

    The older I get, the more I realize that being a princess does not mean waiting in a tower forever. It means wearing the crown despite the life limitations that are around me. 

    I still want the magic. I still hope for grand gestures and quiet moments of being adored. But I am also writing my own story now. In this story, the princess has agency—does not just lay down. She attracts people who match her energy rather than just rescue her from it. 

    So here I am—still that little girl at heart, but with bigger dreams and a stronger sense of self. Proving that wanting softness in a hard world is not weakness and craving love that feels protective and spoiling is not childish.

    Life has not always been a fairytale, but I am learning to create the chapters I always wanted. And who knows? Maybe my prince is already here while still leaving room for a little magic.

  • Finding Balance: Nature vs. Modern Medicine in Healing

    Finding Balance: Nature vs. Modern Medicine in Healing

    The TV series Lost (2004–2010) was not just some island survival drama. It was a raw showdown between science and faith. It pitted sterile reason, lab coats, and control freaks against destiny and miracles. It involved surrendering to something far bigger. 

    Jack Shephard, the spinal surgeon and control-obsessed leader, was the ultimate “man of science.” He demanded explanations for everything. He worshipped logic and scalpels. He refused to believe in anything he could not cut open or medicate. Fix it with your hands, your drugs, your ego. That was his religion.

    John Locke? The paralyzed guy who stood up and walked after the crash. Pure “man of faith.” He saw the island’s hand in everything. The crash was not bad luck (like my brain bleed!)— it was a calling. He followed signs, intuition, and the island’s will instead of bowing to sterile facts and scientific predictions.

    Fast-forward to today: We are drowning in quick-fix pills, billion-dollar diagnostics, and Big Pharma.

    Count me out. 

    A growing number of us are waking up. We feel the deep, primal pull back to nature — the real healer. Trust your body’s ancient wisdom. Use plants, sunlight, and real food. Enjoy fresh air and embrace lifestyle changes. Do this instead of letting white coats experiment on you like lab rats. 

    Why stay a compliant “normie,” swallowing whatever the white coat cult prescribes? Modern medicine celebrates its success in eliminating smallpox. Thus, allowing it to quietly poison generations with chemicals, side effects, and dependency. 

    Nature does not even need a patent. It does not need clinical trials funded by the same companies that profit from keeping you sick. The Earth was not designed for our failure — it already holds every answer we need. We do not require priests in lab coats to “discover” what has been growing in the dirt and shining in the sky for millions of years.

    Pill over-reliance is a scam. It ignores obvious issues like shitty diets, chronic stress, toxin overload, and living like disconnected zombies. Modern medicine is decent at trauma and emergencies — sure, sew up the wound, stabilize the crash victim. But for everything else, it is a meat grinder. It treats humans like broken machines on a conveyor belt. It completely misses the soul and the root.

    This is not an innocent debate. It is a war for your ability to speak out. Especially after the Covid shitshow exposed how “science” can be bought, censored, and weaponized by institutions that value power and profit over truth and lives.

    Funny thing: many “miracle” drugs started in nature — aspirin from willow bark, penicillin from mold, chemo from plants. Then science got hold of them. It isolated the “active ingredient” and patented it. Then it jacked up the dose (and the price). This process thus turned the remedies into slow-acting poison. 

    Humans healed themselves with herbs, diet, movement, and connection to the wild for thousands of years before any lab existed. Traditional systems around the world knew this instinctively.

    Today, herbal medicine, acupuncture, forest bathing, and raw primal living still work. They are not fighting your biology — they are working with it. 

    I will say it plainly: I want the caveman life. Sun on my skin, dirt under my nails, real food, real movement, no plastic toxins, no endless prescriptions. Get me as close to that ancestral truth as possible.

    Science even admits it when it is not busy gatekeeping. Time in nature drops stress hormones. It lowers blood pressure. It also supercharges your immune system with measurable results. People feel empowered when they take control through nutrition, sleep, and exercise. They benefit by rejecting environmental poisons instead of sitting passively. They stop waiting for the next diagnosis and pill.

    The island is still speaking. 

    Are you listening… or still waiting for permission from your doctor?

  • My Passion for Nutrition (pt. 2)

    My Passion for Nutrition (pt. 2)

    Let us talk about something a little less emotionally serious. It is still very serious to me. I am referring to seed oils. These include canola, which comes from RAPE SEED. They also include soy and sunflower. My boyfriend and I decided that sunflower is the least unhealthy one so I can eat it a little. Corn is the worst. The stuff that is in everything from chips to salad dressing. 

    This is something that I have been wanting to write about for a while now. But it is difficult to get any studies or information on. Mainstream doctors, and even the based AI: Grok, say they are fine. They even claim they are heart-friendly. But dig deeper, and the bad side creeps out. First: seed oils are loaded with omega-six fats. Your body needs some, but the Western diet slams you with twenty-to-one ratios against omega-threes. That imbalance leads to chronic inflammation—think joint pain, gut issues, even cancer. 

    A recent twenty-twenty-six study on colon tumors had significant findings. Ultra-processed junk filled with these oils creates pro-inflammatory sludge around cells. This process basically turns your gut into a war zone. Tumors never heal no matter what measure you take. Then you have oxidation. 

    Fry fries all day? (A food that I love). They spit out toxins like aldehydes—a chemical linked to DNA damage, heart disease, even Alzheimer’s. Real-world fast-food chains reuse vats of toxic oil nonstop. 

    Processing is another red flag: chemicals, bleaching, deodorizing. Residues might be low, but why risk it when butter or olive oil skip the factory drama? And of course oils are cheap (have you noticed how the country loves to use cheap ingredients to poison us?!) they are everywhere in junk food. Obesity, diabetes, metabolic messes all coincide with the seed-oil boom since the seventies. It all started after we had leftover corn oil from the world war. People used it to lubricate the engines of the tanks. 

    When using whole fats (coconut, avocado or just butter or ghee), people report clearer skin and better energy. States are pushing for criminalizing seed oils —Louisiana and Texas label laws, school bans, etc .  We need to begin with the younger generations in order to fight against this madness. 

    RFK Jr. types (like me!) call seed oils poison. They should be outlawed because they quietly wreck  everyone’s health while Big Food profits. Big Food does not care. Food companies are forming partnerships with chemical companies. This is done to profit off the consequences that result from our food (see Bayer purchasing Monsanto). Thus you should go avocado, coconut, ghee. Cooking at home is also beneficial since you know what you are actually eating. Balance your fats. Your body will thank you and you will not be subservient to the fast food industry. 

  • Choose Your Fighter

    Choose Your Fighter

    Transformation: from disability to housewife-in-training (throughout the years of my illness)

  • My Journey: From Veganism to Weight Loss Success

    My Journey: From Veganism to Weight Loss Success

    A friend of mine recently reminded me about the five year stint I took from eating meat. It was from twenty-twelve until twenty-seventeen. I was vegan during this period. Eating meat again reopened my eyes. This reminds me of the many “fad” diets that I have tried. 

    After initially getting sick, I had testing to find out which foods I had an intolerance to. 

    At first, we saw a woo woo type doctor. He had me place my hands on a stone. I could do only my right one obviously. He told me that the stone showed I need to stay away from anything that comes from beef. My mother bought into everything that that “doctor” was shilling. However, my father and I had a hard time believing that prognosis. So I had my blood tested by an actual naturopath. 

    My blood tests showed that I had an intolerance to dairy and chicken eggs. I was extremely overweight at the time. So, I figured that I might as well cut out all meat and fish, as well. I did not quit because meat was too heavy, or bad for the planet, or—worst of all— too expensive.

     (Now I have a conspiracy theory that the doctors doctored those tests because I was so big and so sick). 

    Being vegan did nothing for me. It definitely was not difficult for me to give up meat; but I absolutely love sushi, ice cream and cheese.  But I knew that I could no longer overindulge in these anymore (that is the issue here— overindulgence)

    I mostly had a diet of carbohydrates during those years. This was obviously before I started my gluten free lifestyle. I could eat anything fried, doughy, and all of the pasta. And I still adhered to the diet. I also ate a diet full of beans and legumes. This ultimately made my body reject absorbing bean protein. Sigh. I do miss my hummus!—This recipe is not conducive to weight loss. 

    Now I simply eat whatever I desire. Because the second that that steak hit my tongue in twenty- seventeen everything clicked back into place. As if my body had been quietly waiting, storing up all this dumb, primal hunger. No guilt. No lecture. Just… meat. Warm, real, alive on the plate.

    Now, compared to when I decided to go vegan, I can demonstrate discipline. This change has been in effect as of twenty-seventeen. I control how much I eat. This was the major difference. How much I am consuming. As I have mentioned, I managed to lose more than one hundred pounds. 

    The body is created in the kitchen, not the gym. When I initially gained more than one hundred pounds— I killed myself in the gym and my parents had me see a personal trainer, but I kept eating more of anything and everything. That is why my weight barely budged. I was extremely unhappy and this—reflected in the mirror—and ultimately reflected in my health. 

    I have learned that weight loss and body image are based on my mental state. I finally found my voice and accepted my opinions instead of following the crowd. As a result, I got happier and met the man of my dreams. I also saw my body transform to mirror my state of mind. 

     I guess what I am saying is—sometimes you quit because you are scared. Or lazy. Or—in my case—it seemed the easiest way to lose the weight I gained. At least, I thought it was. And then one day you bite into something again, and remember: “This is why I liked it.” Not because it is fancy— although I do love that aspect. Not because it is trendy. Just because it is good. And good makes me happy. Happy equals healthy. 

  • Healing vs. Believing

    Healing vs. Believing

    I have traveled the entire world, read every book and attended countless therapies in order to heal. Through all of this experience, I have learned that if you do not want the help— if you do not believe—you will not heal. 

    Healing does not come when you chase it, it comes when you are quiet enough to listen. My parents took me all the way to Brazil to see a Seeing Eye “doctor” called John of God. John of God—real name João Teixeira de Faria—was a Brazilian faith healer who claimed to channel spirits to perform invisible surgeries without tools or anesthesia. He ran a center in Abadiânia (until the Me Too movement got him in twenty-eighteen because apparently the eighty-year-old man was sexually harassing women during his procedures) drawing thousands of desperate people—cancer patients, chronic pain sufferers, even celebrities—hoping for miracles. My parents wanted this miracle to happen for me us. 

    John of God would go into trances, say he was guided by dead doctors or saints, then operate by pressing fingers into eyes, scraping skin, or just waving hands. Some swore it worked: tumors vanished, backs straightened, pain gone. Others called it placebo at best, fraud at worst.

    I was in the placebo group and I can confirm that I was not mentally ready to take in any miracles or will his strategies to work. I was just along for the ride. Not understanding why this was happening to me but knowing that it would get better. 

    I mean— the place was magnificent.  Abadiânia is a little mountain-top village; there are no giant statues of Jesus Christ. Throughout the night, you can hear the stray cats fighting and roosters crow in order wake you every morning— as if it is an order. We had to wear all white clothing (this is best for letting in the spirit world). We wrote down our prayers/ wishes every day and stood in long lines in order to visit with John of God. We were prescribed herbal remedies and crystal “baths”— in which you lay in a tanning-like bed amongst the crystals for hours. I could not wrap my head around the fact that every single “patient” would be given the same prescription— despite their ailment. How could that help you if it was not designed specifically to your needs?

    Now I understand that it is all about intention. I can consume the same herbs as you but— for me— tumors would shrink/disappear and I would be cured of my paralysis, but others bones would be healed and bleeding would stop— with the same herbs. I guess sacred does not always mean that it is holy, because I would pray. For years, I was searching for a higher power, but I was asking the wrong questions. Healing is not always gentle— sometimes you need to be shoved. Life has shoved and shoved— now I am ready to listen. 

  • My Passion for Nutrition pt. 1

    My Passion for Nutrition pt. 1

    Let’s take a little hiatus from reminiscing about the past (it is not the easiest time of my life to relive). I want to talk nutrition. One of my passions in life. Something I can go on and on about. I already mentioned that I am absolutely enthralled by the movements being made by RFK and the current administration. One of the main targets is: glyphosate. 

    Glyphosate works by blocking an enzyme plants need to grow, so glyphosate is used to prevent the growth of invasive plants (i.e weeds)— think Roundup—plus it is an incredibly cheap product so obviously it is being used a lot throughout the country : farms, lawns, and even city parks. 

    Studies show that glyphosate can be carcinogenic when used heavily. Roundup has had to pay billions of dollars in damages because their products were proven to give users Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (plus caused the death of a pet!)

    This does not bode well for our farmers; as there is currently no other alternative for ridding the environment from weeds. Somehow European countries have figured out a way to grow their crops without having to deal with weeds/ needing a chemical to get rid of them. 

    So now the American people have to worry about gut bacteria, hormone tweaks, even birth defects— as traces of glyphosate are found throughout our food.  The new “trend” of gluten intolerance points to the fact it may be the substance that we spray our wheat with — not the wheat itself—as it is not a prevalent allergy in other parts of the world. Yes, glyphosate kills weeds great, but is it worth it?

    It appears as though we are only getting sicker in this country. I am no doctor or scientist; I am just a girl who has had her fair share of issues with food and I simply love “bro science” and listening to podcasts with Gary Brecka and Robert F. Kennedy jr.  

    I lived a gluten free lifestyle for years. Thanks to my Functional Neurologist, I learned that this diet was beneficial for my arm’s erratic movements. And ultimately, because I did not have any actual reactions to gluten, I chose to enjoy the food I was craving. It is not like I am about to eat an entire pizza or loaf of bread again, but goddammit, if my man wants to take me to a nice restaurant… I am going to enjoy every bite. However I acknowledge the fact that our crops and our wheat is tainted so I do opt for all organic and the most natural sources available.