Debra Peek-Haynes

on


Debra Peek-Haynes
Did you know that to change your body, you must first change your mind? It's true. Negative thinking, stress and roller coaster emotions will hold hostage your desire to eat and live healthy. I firmly believe that whatever your condition-diabetes, obesity, heart condition, stroke, cancer, lupus or any other, you must start with changing your mindset in order for your body to follow. 

This is a lesson that I had to learn during my process of not being able to conceive. After several years of being married, my husband and I decided to start a family. After I discontinued taking birth control pills (at the time I didn't realize some of the damage they had done) my cycle stopped. In order to find out what was wrong, I consulted with my then gynecologist. After running tests, she diagnosed me with being premenopausal.

This information was even more devastating when coupled with the fact that the doctor called my husband, before I could even get home to speak with him. I searched for a doctor to help me, but to no avail. Each visit to a new specialist left me distraught and exhausted. Many were unkind and offered little if any hope for a positive outcome. One female doctor told me that if I got pregnant, I would lose the baby in the eighth month and possibly develop Lupus. Then she left me in her office in tears. I visited five physicians in Dallas seeking an answer.

Oh! But God stepped in my situation and gave me the tenacity and determination to find an answer. My husband and I had loved ones praying for us. We were careful to share our pain with a faithful few that we could trust, and asked them to pray for us. I thank God for my mother’s determination that stuck with me during those two difficult years. As my mother always told me, “Every knock is a boost!” There was a constant push in my spirit that kept asking God to show me what to do. Had it not been for the love of God, the patience and love of my husband, and the love and prayers of family and close friends, I would not have made it through.

After many trips to the doctor in Dallas, I took a break to visit family in Detroit. A good friend visited my brother’s home. During our conversation, my brother and my friend started talking about a doctor in Detroit who was a gynecologist, but was now practicing holistic medicine. I listened to them talk as if I were a bystander ease dropping on a conversation. I decided this was someone that I might want to see.

The next day I boarded a plane back to Dallas. I sat next to a lovely older lady. We began to talk about a strange subject - colonics! She was a colon therapist. I asked her where and how did she get her patients and she immediately took out a business card with the name of the doctor my brother and friend talked about the night before. The card read, Dr. Jewel Pookrum! This was my sign. I shared the experience with my husband and we made an appointment to see this doctor during our Christmas visit to Detroit.

Dr. Pookrum took approximately two hours in my examination. She evaluated my situation and explained the plan of action necessary for my healing to take place. The first step she gave me was to change my mind and not to tell myself I was menopausal. During this process, I had to read information about not only my condition but about health in general. Dr. Pookrum put me on a macro vegetarian diet, herbs and a regimen of taking care of my body. My cycle returned without drugs and we became pregnant within a year. I knew that God had an answer for my situation. No matter what the doctors said, I was not yielding to their verdict. I had a healthy baby girl and a wonderful pregnancy experience.

My challenge became a blessing to our family and to those who I meet that desires better health. After the birth of our beautiful daughter, I did not stop my better health journey. 
I learned that you must have a goal bigger than your current situation if you want to improve your future. Ask yourself, what is your goal? What do you want to accomplish or see in your future? If you want to be healthy and enjoy your family, that is a goal worth working toward. The most important lesson that I learned is the first step in any healing process is to change your mind.

Romans 12:2 - Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. 

I share these lessons in hopes of inspiring people that are stuck in an old mindset that restricts their progress in better health and better living.

I am still on my journey and I invite you to walk with me and let us see where God wants to take us and who can we bless along the way. This is a “whosoever will journey”. Please come with me…