My Story

My Story

I was a slightly overweight 21 year old, who was drinking often, smoking spice, pot and cigarettes, and eating a lot of fast food when I decided to make the shift to becoming a better me.  One day, while I was sitting in my piece of crap, needing renovation rental (which I owned btw), with a boyfriend I wish I never had, I had some sort of clarity wash over me. A voice in my head said, "What the heck are you doing?!  You deserve better than this.  Get that guy out of here and stop being a screw up.  You are on the path to hell."  That voice was right.  I immediately told that guy to get out of my house and because he was crazy, I had to lock the door behind him and call an ex for help... I was a mess. The first thing I tried to do the next day was run.  I ran probably a half mile, returned and with-in 24 hours had the worst pain in my back that I ever had in my life.  Luckily my parents had come to help me with my rental and after a trip to the hospital, I come to find out I have kidney stones!  Worst pain ever (except child birth).  But it all started to go uphill from there.  I immediately cut out soda, since the doctor mentioned that could be my kidney stone issue- and I didn't want that pain again.  However a couple days later, I went to a party and drank, haha.  I'm mentioning that because I wasn't perfect at the beginning of my change.  I slid back here and there on my path to being better, just like we all do in the beginning.  But I was becoming a different person.

I continued to cut things that were deemed unhealthy from my diet and started implementing new healthy foods in my life, I gave up running for a bit (didn't want more kidney stones) but instead found yoga.  I began reading on kidney stones and yoga and began putting the things I read into practice.  Eventually, I began running again and in no time I was turning into a new Haley with dreams and visions and health.  I got what was then my dream job in a local health food store, became certified as a Holistic Life Coach, I was running an average of 20 miles a week, doing yoga daily, eating a vegetarian diet, reading often, traveling to Indianapolis by myself to try new healthy adventures and new healthy foods.  I was making great, healthy friends, and finding a healthy positive me!  Things were looking up, I was happy and I'm sure my parents were too.  During this process, I found a new hobby that I loved, Crossfit, at a local gym that I began to work at, alongside the health food store. AND I started the first ever 100% organic and free community garden in Kokomo.
While lifting weights, gardening and working, I started running into people that would help be realize and achieve another goal- to open a business and not just any business, a juice bar.  While things were looking up and things were happening- I also slipped into another hole that would enter me into another hell (but not as bad as the last guy!).  I ran into a guy that would be a big mistake.  Thing is my instincts told me when I first saw him in person (I had been chatting with him online for a year) that he was no good- but I had fell in love with his online presence.  I then began to smoke pot again with him.  While I was still developing my dream of a juice bar with these new found friends (who also smoked), I was also backsliding a bit into the old Haley.  Luckily my new health habits were strong.  I still stayed on all my other healthy habits.  I was still eating clean, reading, reaching for goals, exercising, being positive etc-  I was just with the wrong guy and smoking pot!  My relationship with my family started to suffer again, I had a guy and his plants in my house that I shouldn't have had, I got kicked out of my house, moved into a camper that I parked at the juice bar we just started and basically was a homeless-entrepreneur-hippy. HA (I can laugh about it all now).

Anyways, we all started the juice bar and began putting in a couple more community gardens and all was going well for awhile, but then this guy was pushing away my team and l was losing my confidence.  The location for the juice bar was awful and the town wasn't ready for such a business.  I also wasn't very good at budgeting and overall finances. By the end of the season, it was time to leave it behind.  And towards that end, this guy and I started fighting- an all out war.  I had become pregnant and had a miscarriage and we were in hell together.  It was awful.  The last day he was with me, after he had thrown me hard on the ground, I called someone to get him.  It was over.  The juice bar was over.  I had failed. And my world was crashing around me.

Now looking back, lots of good things were happening during the ups and downs of this roller coaster- and you know what, I don't regret any of it.  Those decisions and events made me who I am today and has put a new found courage and wisdom into me.
What I am saying is that even when you find a new better you, sometimes things happen in order to create an EVEN BETTER YOU.  

So to continue on...
Even though my heart was crushed from the huge failure and I didn't really want to show my face in public anymore... a few good things were happening during this hard time that was opening up a doorway into the light.  During the season of the juice bar, I kept running into a guy who is now my husband.  I had learned things to do and not to do in a business.  I had learned that I don't want to raise a child with a loser. I learned that life is special. I learned that I can overcome challenges.  I learned that if I had to be homeless that I could and that I could rise up out of it.  And I also learned that health really matters to be an overall good person and that drugs of any kind will pull you down.

My core habits of being healthy have continued into my future. I am now a happy wife of an amazing, supportive husband and a mom of a beautiful little girl.  I have received another certification as a Primal Health Coach (going on 2 years).  I eat very clean (mostly paleo-keto), I am drug-free and I do Crossfit and cardio daily.  I have visions and goals of where I want to be and am taking the steps every day to get there.  I am a better me than I was yesterday and 210% better than I was when I started. I am thrilled to see where I am in a year from now and in 5 years...etc.

It is truly exciting to look back and see how far I have come. My journey is not over.

I hope my story inspires you to take that first step on your journey to health and changing your life. And maybe even hire me as your coach for help <3

HUGS.