Grab Your Copy of My New Book, Passports and Parasites!
After a crazy busy year of planning, writing, editing, proofreading, and publishing my first memoir, Passports and Parasites: An Extraordinary Journey of Adventure, Resilience, and Healing, I’m so excited to announce that my new book is officially available for purchase on Amazon, and Goodreads!
The book highlights the past 15 years of my life as an expat, including the highs and lows of Foreign Service life, the joys of traveling the world, and the unexpected health challenges that inspired my career transition into functional medicine. Passports and Parasites is both a travel adventure and a journey to health, healing, and resilience.
Here are just a few of the themes you can expect to read about as you travel along with me in Passports and Parasites!
Foreign Service Life
For those who don’t already know, my husband Kraig’s Foreign Service career brought us to Baghdad from May of 2009 until May of 2010. During this one-year period, we were given the opportunity to explore not only Baghdad, Iraq, but also Amman, Jordan; Cairo, Egypt; Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania; Arusha, Tanzania; Bangkok, Thailand; and Siem Reap, Cambodia. We’d spend the next 15 years living overseas in Beirut, Lebanon; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Lagos, Nigeria; and Curaçao, Dutch Caribbean.
We were also given the incredible opportunity to explore other parts of the world during this time, including London, Paris, Lisbon, Madrid, and Dubai. And while we’ve recently moved back to the States, who knows where the future will take us!
Pregnancy & First-Time Parenthood
Along with traveling the world, adjusting to Foreign Service Life, and meeting new people from various countries and cultures, Kraig and I had decided to expand our family while living overseas. We had no idea; however, that the road to pregnancy and parenthood would be filled with so many challenges. In 2011, I ended up suffering a miscarriage while living in Beirut; obviously, we were devastated.
Because this was my second consecutive miscarriage (the first occurred in 2008), my doctor wanted to run some tests to find out what might be causing me to miscarry. We eventually learned I was homozygous for Factor V Leiden (this increases one’s risk of developing a blood clot), as well as the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene.
Even though we took precautions to prevent blood clotting during the pregnancy, a blood clot formed somewhere in my body and I suffered a transient ischemic attack (TIA) while pregnant with our first daughter. An ultrasound confirmed that the baby was okay, but essentially, a blood clot traveled to my head and temporarily blocked one of the blood vessels feeding my brain. Thankfully, there was no residual damage and my cognition was not affected.
Despite these and other challenges, we welcomed our first baby girl into the world in the summer of 2012, followed by our second during the winter of 2015 (Keira was born in Seattle and Kate was born in Bangkok). It was a long and difficult road and we’re so thankful for all of the love and support we received during this time.
My memoir, Passports and Parasites, discusses our journey through pregnancy, miscarriage, parenthood, and everything in between. Get your copy now!
Parasites, Lyme, Hashimoto’s, & EBV
Like many other health and wellness practitioners, my own medical challenges inspired my career transition into functional health coaching, and eventually, practicing functional medicine. I’ve previously written about these health struggles on my website and blog, but you can get the full story as you travel along with me in my new book, Passports and Parasites. As someone who has battled several complex chronic illnesses firsthand, my memoir will give you hope and inspiration that healing is possible.
What People Are Saying About My Memoir
Since the release of my new book, I’ve been incredibly overwhelmed with all the positive feedback I’ve been receiving from readers all over the world! Here’s what people are saying about Passports and Parasites:
“An epic journey from the first page to the last!
“An amazing adventure!”
“Emotional, raw, and beautifully written memoir”
“Excellent and engaging!”
“Excellent and authentic book”
“Captivating memoir”
Download a FREE chapter of Passports and Parasites to see for yourself!
Grab Your Copy of My New Book
I wrote Passports and Parasites as a way of sharing my experiences and insights with the world and inspiring you to embrace the world’s beauty, travel freely, and discover the path to vibrant health.
Grab your copy of my memoir on Amazon, or Goodreads and please leave a review to help spread the word that it’s possible to find health, healing, and resilience from anywhere in the world.
