Our Story
During a routine doctor’s visit, some concerning blood work led my husband, Scott, to be referred to a liver specialist at Houston’s renowned Medical Center — home to some of the top doctors in the world. We sat across from that specialist, hoping for a plan.
Instead, without even looking us in the eye, he told us Scott had end-stage liver disease and less than a 50% chance of surviving two years without a transplant.
And that was the best case. It could happen at any time.
No hope. No options. No compassion.
A Crash, and a Choice
About a week or two later, Scott’s health crashed. He went from feeling fine to being nearly unconscious, sleeping up to 18 hours a day.
I had to find a way to care for him, for our furbaby Jack, for our home, and for both of our work projects — while spending every spare moment researching how to save him.
He stayed in that fragile state for nearly three months. To this day, Scott doesn't remember much from that time.
We Chose Hope
We both knew immediately: we couldn’t go back to that first liver specialist.
We knew how powerful the mind is. If Scott kept hearing hopelessness, it could become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
We canceled our next appointment without hesitation. And we made another decision: we didn’t tell our families.
We believe deeply in the power of energy and intention. We didn’t want fear, sadness, or the energy of death surrounding Scott’s recovery.
We chose to protect the healing space around him, speaking only hope, belief, and the possibility of miracles.
We also leaned into laughter therapy — watching funny movies, old comedy specials, and anything that could help lift Scott’s spirit. Laughter isn’t just emotional relief; it’s known to lower stress hormones and support the immune system, and we wanted to give his body every advantage.
We kept the TV on beach scenes with the sound of ocean waves, and used Tibetan singing bowls to create calming tones that support relaxation, energy alignment, and healing frequencies.
Everything around Scott — what he heard, what he saw, what he felt — was chosen intentionally to help his body and spirit remember what it felt like to feel good, healthy, and fully alive.
We made a conscious choice not to beg, plead, or ask “why us?”
Instead, we practiced what we call gratitude prayer — giving thanks for Scott’s healing as though it had already happened.
We spoke words of life and recovery over him daily, trusting that the energy of belief was more powerful than fear.
That doesn't mean we didn't have moments. I cried in the bathtub more than once. Hid in the closet so he wouldn't hear me break down. There were days it all felt like too much. But, even in those moments, we returned to belief. To love. To the idea that healing was not just possible — it was already unfolding.
A New Way of Living
Food Was Our First Medicine
It wasn't easy. Making a drastic overnight change was one of the hardest things we’ve ever done.
Even though we already understood that food and supplements could be powerful — having worked in the food and supplement industries ourselves — like many, we had fallen into overindulging in sugar, rich foods, and convenience.
Now, everything had to change. I went through our pantry and fridge and cleared out anything with sugar, gluten, sodas, seed oils — anything that could feed inflammation, disease or delay healing.
I returned what I could, donated unopened items to a local women’s shelter (they were especially excited to receive the soda and snacks), and tossed the rest. There was no “maybe later” — we needed a clean slate.
The Recipes Had to Pass One Test: Scott
I knew I had to find foods that were gluten-free, sugar-free, and low-carb — foods that would reduce inflammation and allow the body to heal — and meals Scott would actually want to eat, so he wouldn't feel tempted to give up or think, "If I am dying anyway, I may as well eat what I want."
But when you’re sick, all you crave are comfort foods. And suddenly, I was taking away everything he used to enjoy.
Many of the recipes I first found online didn’t taste good to him at all.
He asked me to find ways to make his favorites into low-carb, gluten-free versions — foods he could actually look forward to.
It took trial and error. It took patience. And every recipe had to be tried and tested until it passed both of our standards.
And ultimately — it took Scott’s choice.
Scott Chose to Fight
Scott made the decision. He chose to fight. He chose to trust that healing was possible. And once he made that choice, he committed to it fully.
He was the one who stuck with the new way of eating. He faithfully took his supplements, even when he didn’t feel like it. He trusted the process, even when it was slow, even when it was hard.
His blood tests tell the story of what happens when the body — and the spirit — are given the chance to heal.
I could do the research, find the recipes, and make the meals — but he had to sit down, take his supplements, and say yes to life — over and over again. And he did.
Together, we radically changed our approach to life, mindset, and food. We embraced low-carb, sugar-free, gluten-free living. We trusted that the body could heal if given the right support.
You Must Be Your Own Advocate
One of the greatest lessons we learned is this: You must be your own advocate.
You cannot blindly trust any professional — no matter how impressive their title. You must do your research. Prepare educated questions. Protect your hope. Trust your instincts.
I began searching for the best of the best liver specialist. We were grateful to live near Houston's Medical Center, but even so, the earliest appointment we could get was six months away. When I scheduled it, I joked, "Well, it's good my husband's not dying," trying to mask my fear with a little sarcasm.
But that six-month delay turned out to be a blessing. It gave us the gift of time — time to see what food and supplements could do. If Scott had been diagnosed with hemochromatosis right away, he might not have been willing to make the deep lifestyle changes his body desperately needed. Without feeling the real difference for himself, he might have been tempted to keep eating the way he always had. But during those months, he saw — we both saw — the miracles that are possible when you give the body the right tools.
The Turning Point
Short and Sweet Headlines are Best!
Around that time, I remembered a friend I hadn’t spoken to in years — but Bobby is one of those friends you can pick up with like no time has passed at all. His mom, Dr. Gracie Chukwu, is a Doctor of Naturopathy and a Certified Nutrition Counselor, and my friend Bobby, was studying to become a naturopathic doctor (now Dr. Bobby Chukwu). Bobby and I had been coworkers more than a decade earlier. We had spent hours in deep conversations about health, energy, and the body's ability to heal. I trusted Bobby, I trusted his incredible mother.
I reached out and asked whether they thought they could help — or if we should stay on the transplant path, even knowing our insurance would likely never cover a transplant. Dr. Bobby told me they had worked with patients with severe liver dysfunction before — and had seen real success.
We booked immediately. It was on of the greatest blessings of our lives.
Through the food and supplement protocols recommended by Houston Holistic Health Clinic, Scott began to improve. Even in the early days, when Scott was too weak to travel, we had Zoom appointments to keep moving forward.
When the six months finally passed and we saw the second liver specialist, Scott's bloodwork shocked everyone. His labs had already drastically improved — something the first doctor had said was impossible. But we dared to believe anyway.
The second specialist immediately confirmed what I had suspected through my own research: Scott had hereditary hemochromatosis.
(The first doctor had refused even to order the test — locked into his assumptions.)
Within the first five minutes of the appointment, the new specialist said words that lifted the weight of the world off our shoulders:
"Your husband is not going to die."
He was amazed by the improvement Scott had already made — just through food, supplements, and mindset — with Scott's MELD score dropping from 26 to 19 even before beginning formal treatment for the excess iron.
He told us he expected Scott's numbers to continue improving once the iron was brought under control. And they did.
Scott's MELD score continued to drop — all the way down to 8 — as he continued eating well, taking his supplements faithfully, and undergoing regular phlebotomies to reduce the overload.
At our most recent appointment, the same liver specialist told us Scott now has excellent liver function.
The Turning Point
Along the way, I experienced my own transformation — losing nearly 80 pounds after years of battling stress-related weight gain and hormonal changes.
I had been thin most of my life, but in my 40s, everything changed. Despite my efforts, the weight kept creeping on and nothing seemed to work.
I had tried everything — extreme diets, intense workouts, diet pills, even strict protocols like BBBE (beef, butter, bacon, and eggs). Nothing made a lasting difference.
Then I found a combination of strategies that finally shifted my body into burning fat for fuel.
For the first time, I could enjoy foods like cheese, heavy cream, and a little stevia — and still keep losing weight.
My Healing Wins
I didn’t just lose weight — I reclaimed my health. Here’s what healed when I stopped dieting and started nourishing:
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I healed my insulin resistance — no more sugar cravings, no more brain fog.
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I healed my hormones — and with them, my energy, mood, and metabolism.
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I healed chronic fatigue — and now enjoy deep, consistent sleep.
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I healed hypoglycemia — no more shaky crashes or emergency snacks.
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I healed fatty liver — something doctors once told me might never fully reverse.
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I healed my fascia — that often-ignored tissue holding tension, trauma, and pain.
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And maybe most importantly… I found emotional balance.
I no longer live in stress or survival mode — I live in alignment, joy, and trust.
But this transformation wasn’t just physical — it was emotional, too.
For the first time, I started practicing radical self-compassion — not just for who I am now, but for the girl I used to be.
The one who was 5'10" and 118 pounds but still thought she was fat.
The one who never felt like she was enough, no matter how thin she was.
Healing meant more than losing weight — it meant learning to love myself without conditions,
to speak to myself with real kindness — no criticism,
and to reclaim the joy I had spent decades chasing on the scale.
That meant learning to like and value myself exactly as I was — fat and all.
Scott always loved me that way, just as I was. He never changed how he looked at me, or how he treated me, no matter what I weighed.
He seemed to only see my soul.
We Also Started Choosing Presence
We slowed down. We began eating every meal at the table — no more rushed bites at our desks or zoning out on the couch.
We lit candles, turned on our favorite dinner playlist, and actually enjoyed our food.
We had real conversations — the kind that made us laugh, reflect, or just feel closer.
Mealtime became a ritual. A reset. A way of saying, this moment matters.
Healing wasn’t just about what we ate, but how we lived — savoring each moment, laughing more, and letting joy sneak into the everyday.
The labs tell the story, too.
Not just how far Scott has come — but how much we both healed, inside and out.
We’ll be sharing some of those numbers in upcoming posts, so others can see what’s possible when you support the body with food, supplements, and unwavering faith.
Why We Created Love Gratitude Joy
We’re Sharing Our Healing — to Offer Hope
Friends, family, and neighbors started asking: What are you doing? Can you share your recipes?
That’s why we created Love Gratitude Joy.
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To share recipes — low-carb, keto, carnivore, gluten-free, sugar-free.
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To inspire hope where others might feel hopeless.
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To celebrate the quiet miracles of healing, belief, and love.
Our Mission
Kristy, Scott, and our furbaby Jack