Although Grandma's passion had led me to the power of food, not all of her recipes were healthy. I kept her gusto and the love that she put into her cuisine but ditched the ingredients that bought her a one-way ticket to arthritis, diverticulitis and a host of other inflammatory conditions. I also ditched my own addictions and compulsions around food, especially sugar.

For nearly a decade now, I've been teaching others how to thrive by filling their bodies with energizing vitamins, nutrients, minerals, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. Not a day goes by when someone doesn't write me to say, "Thanks, I feel better now, too." Those letters from my readers are my digital cardinals.

I was asleep at the wheel before cancer shook me awake.

At one of my lowest points, sugar had a painful grip on me. I'd buy/binge and then beat myself up over my behavior.

I was not going to kick back and wait for the unknown. I was going to dive in and become a full-time healing junkie.

We always have the potential to rise. Rise out of our slump. Rise out of our negative thoughts. Rise out of our comfort zone. Rise out of our complaints. GET UP AND RISE. Rising is a choice that's one powerful thought away.

We're taught to solely blame our luck-of-the-draw genes for our health issues, rather than our daily habits, dietary choices, and interplay with the environment that surrounds us.