Sprinting Spoon

07/08/2023

Spending some time at the beach this weekend reflecting on all that has been the last 3 years of my life. Three years since I heard “we are about 95% certain that nodule is cancerous.” It took me on quite a journey—not just a journey about cancer but also about what is in my heart.

I think many people would say, “Why did you wait so long to have the surgery?” There were a few reasons.

1️⃣ I had TIME to pursue other options. My case was far from life threatening. Thyroid cancer does not behave like other cancers. It is not even “staged.” What was found in my neck probably should not have been found except that I’m a curious person with a history of thyroid difficulties and requested that we take a look at it with ultrasound.

2️⃣ thyroidectomy poses a significant risk of vocal damage. Most people know how much I LOVE to sing. My college degree is in vocal performance. I have been performing for 28 years and teaching for 18. The percentage of patients who have vocal damage from thyroidectomy is something like 40%. If I did not have to have the surgery, I did not want it!

3️⃣ (and maybe my biggest reason): I needed to address the WHY. Why did I get a cancer diagnosis at 33? How on earth did I get here? I was everyone’s “healthy friend.” Heck, I did coffee enemas BEFORE I got cancer. I was just getting off my thyroid medication when I got my diagnosis because I did not need it anymore.

So, I went on a journey of alternative therapies. I drank a LOT of juice, I did saunas, and red light therapy, and enemas, and supplemented, and changed my diet and my water, and slept. It was really all consuming for me for a while, doing all my “cancer things,” but I felt absolutely amazing. The best I had felt in my life. I found a new doctor who was comfortable with monitoring the nodule because it really was so small and “indolent.”

4️⃣ we wanted another baby. Just about the time we were thinking we wanted to have another baby, I got my cancer diagnosis. It put pause on our plans as I just was not comfortable doing that much detoxing while pregnant and was really just reeling from the whole thing still… (continued in comments)

07/10/2021

Does anybody else pick a ridiculous number of berries over the summer to use in the winter? Or love berries but they cost a fortune if you don’t buy them frozen? And what to do with all those berries when you are smoothie-d out?

We call it “breakfast ice cream” at our house, but really it’s breakfast, a snack, or dessert…so, any time.

I love it so much more than the standard “nice cream” (frozen bananas). The addition of avocados here makes it so much creamier and more like soft-serve. Plus, if you’re not a banana person, they sit in the background here.

I’ve been sitting on this recipe for months now (because 🚚➡️🏡➕🤰🏻), but it’s up on the blog now (link in bio). Or…https://www.sprintingspoon.com/blueberry-nice-cream

28/04/2021

Just gonna put this right here on my grid to remember our first, real family vacation where we just took a break from all the hard things that were the last 12 months and enjoyed each other. We built sandcastles. We caught lizards. We shot frogs. We collected (and ate!) clams. We swam and swam and swam. It was simple. It was the best two weeks I’ve had in a LONG time.

And also this girl. Putting this out there for all the people who knew I only wanted boys and called me after the ultrasound when we found out she was a girl. I didn’t know how much I wanted her, but God sure did. She’s been the best little buddy. Always making us laugh. So cute it hurts, and so spunky she already has an “initials” name.

Even though you say your brother leaves you for 40 weeks at a time when he goes to Kindergarten, I’ve loved our time together this school year—just you and me. 💜

08/04/2021

When I started diving into natural cancer treatments shortly after my diagnosis, I kept hearing this word over and over again: DETOX!

Such a trendy word these days. Everybody seems to be on some sort of “detox” or “cleanse.”

The kind of I was learning about was a long-term type thing. The kind where you clean out your whole body. The kind where every single cell in your whole body has changed. This was no “lose 5 pounds in 5 days” type of thing. In fact, it had nothing to do with the outside of my body and everything to do with the inside.

I started diving into the protocols I kept hearing repeated over and over again by all the doctors I could find who used alternative therapies.

My latest post includes 7 detox protocols (as well as links to products and how-to’s to make it easy peasy for you!).

Don’t wait until something “serious” to come up to work on your health! If you’ve got symptoms like
✔️ Digestive issues (bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea)
✔️ Skin issues (dry skin, eczema, acne, etc.)
✔️ Hormone issues (mood swings, menstrual cycle issues, etc., etc.)
✔️ Weight issues (unexplained weight gain or loss or stubborn pounds that won’t go away)
Odds are VERY good that you need to detox to open up/clean up those drainage pathways and get rid of toxins, molds, parasites, metals, etc.

Link in bio to the post or at ——-> https://www.sprintingspoon.com/easy-natural-detox-protocols

I am definitely NOT finished with detoxing. I’ve still got a ways to go, but I am MUCH better than before, and it feels SO good! My detox protocols make me feel great—so great that I keep doing them!

26/03/2021

I just sent out my Friday email to my subscribers. It's always "5 Things for Friday." It is fun. Sometimes it is more personal than my blog (cancer happenings, family happenings, etc.). Today it even included some fun discount codes. You can sign up on my blog at the top of the home page to stay in the loop! For today, you can click the link to see what we're chatting about. Happy Friday!

Happy first week of Spring, everybody! We got home from vacation on Saturday, and we were DELIGHTED to see that the sun decided to follow us back up to Michigan.  We've been having unseasonably warm weather here, and I don't hate it.  Bring me all your global warming please!  ;)  I think I was m...

12/03/2021

This is the verse that God spoke to my heart during my morning quiet time just over a year ago.

I thought I shouldn’t “bother” God with my small requests. (I’m not sure where that idea came from.)

So I started praying for things. Just little things. Prayers to find things we lost in the house, prayers for packages to come on time, etc., etc.

It blew my mind how quickly God would answer me with a “yes!” Just prayer after prayer after prayer.

I just felt Him strengthening my belief in Him. That He cares. That He does all things for His glory AND my good. That He is bigger than the biggest circumstances I will ever face.

When I got my cancer diagnosis, I knew what I needed to do. Pray. Pray. Trust & Pray.

Getting good news at my second opinion was a HUGE answer to those prayers even though I still have a cancerous nodule that is a bit larger than it was 1 year ago.

I’m still trying to be faithful with every day, taking care of my health as best as I know how. And praying that God will bring complete healing to my body.

He only gives good gifts to His children, even when they don’t feel good in the moment. As Spurgeon so aptly put it, “when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.” 💜

25/02/2021

A quick little update if you've been following along as I've shared about my recent thyroid diagnosis. Moral of the story: second opinion, second opinion, always get a second opinion!

While I've still got work to do to help this thing go away, I was SO encouraged to hear a doctor (who is at the top of her field) confirm what felt so true in my heart all along!

I'm still drinking allll the carrots over here, but the pressure to make this thing go away immediately is gone. I can keep watching this thing (every six months or so), and work toward better health a little more every day.

Thank you to everyone who has checked in on me! Your support means so much!

19/02/2021

Is it SOME KIND OF COLD where you live because here in the Mitten we are just trying to stay warm and praying for Spring (and Spring Break!). ❄️ ❄️ ❄️

I don’t know about you, but I want something warm and comforting for dinner. Every dinner.

This one-pot wonder right here is sure to please. Easy peasy, perfect for a busy weeknight, and paleo/Whole30 compliant if that’s what you’re after. Fills you up without weighing you down. ✅ ✅ ✅

Link in bio for the post or right here——>>> https://sprintingspoon.com/paleo-chicken-sausage-dinner/

03/02/2021

Things I have now that I wouldn’t have without a cancer diagnosis...

1️⃣ A Much Healthier Sleep Schedule (I NEVER would have changed my habit of burning the candle at both ends without cancer!)

2️⃣ A MUCH healthier gut (the ticket to a functional immune system). I had started working on this before my diagnosis, and it has only continued to improve!

3️⃣ Less Toxins in my body (I had NO IDEA how much toxicity was built up in my body—metals particularly but quite possibly also parasites)

4️⃣ No More Thyroid Meds! (This was a goal of mine for a while, and now I’m six months off meds with healthy levels!) Oddly enough, despite a thyroid cancer diagnosis, my thyroid is functioning quite well!

5️⃣ A Healthier Marriage (my cancer diagnosis brought up all sorts of fun stuff in our marriage and now we get to work on it all instead of just stuffing it for “later”)

6️⃣ So much more knowledge about a subject I didn’t know that much about, simply because I said “hold the phone” on surgery. I’m not saying never, but doing this now has taught me SO much. I will use this information for the rest of my life.

7️⃣ A total rehaul of all the chemical in my house (cleaning products, perfume, candles, makeup...I was mostly there, but now I am almost 100% there).

8️⃣ A healthier work/life balance. I’ve said “no” to things that didn’t bring me joy or just stressed me out trying to balance that with family responsibilities, and it has felt SO good!

Sometimes all I can think is “I don’t want to be doing this right now,” but I forget to see all the wonderful ways it has changed me forever. When I was first diagnosed someone told me “I believe your best health is on the other side of this,” and I 💯 believe that, too.

Sometimes I’m so impatient to get to that “other side,” but it’s just not yet. In the meantime, remind me to remember God’s unending faithfulness to me and all the ways He’s shown that to me already. He’s got me right where He wants me.

30/01/2021

Can I take a quick break from talking about cancer for a second so that we can talk about books please??? 📚 📚 📚

It’s the last weekend of January, so before 2020 gets too far away from us (um, please get far away from us), I wanna know what you read last year!

I read 24 books last year (and skimmed several others) to hit my goal. I have the same 24 book goal this year too. It’s achievable. It pushes me without being overwhelming.

It was HARD to pick my top three books, but here they are...

3️⃣ Little Women—in preparation for the movie that came out, what, maybe a year ago now, I decided to listen to this book. (Yes, audiobooks count in my list!) I can’t believe I never read this classic. It was so heartwarming. I loved each sister so much by the end. It was LONG (17 hours), so it took me a while, but I was so glad I read it.

2️⃣ The Road Back to You— I’m officially an geek (DEFINITELY a 3!). This book was very engaging and entertaining, and it was fun reading about my friends and family and myself!

1️⃣ Pilgrim’s Progress—another classic I had never read! (Handy when Little Women kept referencing it!) What a wonderful picture of the walk of faith with Christ. Loved this.

Honorable mention goes to for the three novels I read of hers that I also loved! (Another famous author I had not read before.) I’ll definitely be reading more of her books soon!

Currently reading:
Psalms
Beholding & Becoming ( )
What Every Child Should Know Along the Way
Fit for Life
Educated (audiobook)
and HARRY POTTER #7 (finally finishing the series!)

What are you reading? What should I add to my ? 📚

26/01/2021

I've been quiet on my blog for the past few months mostly because I've been using my blogging hours as my cancer protocol (and SLEEPING!) hours instead. It was needed. But, I'm back with a post on how to get cancer.

The first step in my healing process was to try to figure out how I got here in the first place. Then, I would work backwards to undo those things, detox, and nourish!

If you're interested in preventing cancer (the BEST and most effective kind of cancer treatment), I've detailed three, easy steps you can take right now.

Read about it here: www.sprintingspoon.com/how-to-get-cancer

16/01/2021

Hi! It’s me! I sort of posted “I have cancer!” and ghosted.

I’ve needed some space in my life. Some rest. And something I’ve never made time for—mental processing. If you know me, you know I just do the next thing. All.the.time.

This Fall I spent a lot of time “detoxing.” Which is sort of a cheap word in the health space these days. (But when you get out of a sauna tasting metal in your mouth, you need detoxing! 🥴) Normally, I would have spent those hours blogging—hence the radio silence!

I’ll be sharing more about my protocols soon, but for now, just know that I’ve been spending time I might have used for blogging focusing on what is best for right now.

And also these two. They are fun. They’ve forgiven me for snapping at them when they interrupt the thoughts in my head. They’ve prayed for me. They’ve given me snacks and created “supplements” “for that bump in your neck.” I am trying my best to lean into them.

I’m not exactly sure what comes next for me, but I’m planning to fill you in on the Fall (and some recipes, workouts, etc.) in the upcoming weeks!

Thank you, friends, for checking in! This whole thing has been much harder than I imagined, and I do appreciate your support!