5 Simple Steps to Better Health

Guest Bio: Mia Russo Stern, Certified Health Coach

It was early 2013 when Mia Russo Stern got the scare of a lifetime. What started as a bizarre dream one night while on vacation turned into a sharp pain, the discovery of a pea sized lump, a hurried doctor's appointment and a breast cancer diagnosis at the age of 42.

Having lost both her parents not long before, and with two young children of her own, being paralyzed by the news was not an option.

Luckily, Mia had become very well-versed in alternative, integrative, and nutritional medicine when her own mother had faced pancreatic cancer. Mia naturally turned to these powerful tools once again, but with complete focus on her own health this time.

Mia kept taking steps further and healthier, investing in holistic wellness and enrolling in classes at the Institute of Integrative Nutrition in NYC. She committed to juicing vegetables, eliminated certain foods, and created healthy recipes like a mad woman, crafting with ingredients touted for their restorative and cancer-fighting properties.

Along the way, something happened. Not only did Mia take back my health—she is now cancer-free—but she somehow lost 24 pounds without even trying, even though she was eating satisfying meals in quantities that never made her feel deprived. What was even more remarkable about this is that she had tried in vain to lose those 24 pounds, largely put on during her two pregnancies, for years.

Now, Mia was eating more than ever before, loving what she was eating, and the excess weight was melting away. At the same time, she had plenty of energy and slept well, her bowel movements were regular, and her skin glowed. Mia felt like she had discovered the fountain of youth.

Mia never dreamt that everything that mattered to  her – food, friends, helping others, cooking, photography, technology, and health – could come together as if by Kismet and become the next stage of her life, but it has. And, it's her pleasure to share it with others.