Stacey Palmer, DNP, NP-C

My Journey to Plant-Based 

In 2016 my world was rocked by a thyroid storm that had likely been brewing for years, landing me in the ED with an eventual Grave’s Disease diagnosis. At 40 years old I was overweight, had already started consistently suffering from frequent and progressive GERD, had ongoing low back pain and had been hospitalized 6 weeks prior for a herniated lumbar disc. I should have been in the prime of my life, instead I felt like I was falling apart.

I had always been active, participating in group exercise classes and even trained for a half-marathon. I thought I ate healthy. I bought organic, minimized pesticides, chemicals and plastics, and cooked at home frequently. I drank red wine, used olive oil, and drank plenty of water. I followed the US dietary guidelines but still found myself trying every diet from Weight Watchers to Sugarbusters to Paleo to drop the excess weight that continued to accumulate. With the thought of taking my first daily medication, I began to read everything I could get my hands on about autoimmune and gastrointestinal disease. After 3 years, 12 books, and a GERD episode so severe I thought I had a ruptured aneurysm, I read the last book on my list: Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. It changed my life. I jumped in with both feet and immediately overhauled my entire diet. Within 48 hours, I noticed changes in all of my symptoms.

I lost 25 pounds the first 6 weeks and ultimately 40 pounds in 8 months.  Most importantly, I  reversed my Graves' disease and eliminated my GERD. It was unbelievable to me that it was so simple. No calorie counting, no macros or micros, and no tricking my body into metabolic states. I began to re-consider the conventional way we practice medicine and the infamous quote of Hippocrates, “Let food be thy medicine, and let medicine be thy food.” The answer to the the problem is not more medicine, it is whole food.

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It was at this time that I decided to return to The University of Texas at Austin to pursue my doctorate in nursing practice with a focus on plant-based medicine.  Since completing my DNP, I have continued to study the most recent research regarding chronic disease and diet in order to  bring the most comprehensive treatment approaches to my patients.