We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Levista Harris a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Levista, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?

The turning point in my life was an urgency that quietly and suddenly settled in my gut in a period of six short months when I became a full time caregiver to my once vibrant mother. My husband, diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes, a heart condition, Covid then doctors wanting to remove his gallbladder both were living under my roof.

For years, I had been nurturing my passion for holistic wellness, sharing recipes and tips with family, friends, and strangers and it had now morphed into a relentless pursuit of knowledge. Gone were the occasional research sessions. My spare moments were now spent immersed in how Mother Nature could heal, how my natural healing skills could be used versus pills and invasive surgeries.

One evening, unwilling to accept the path chosen by the doctors, I began to implement a few lifestyle changes to see if I could make a difference adjusting their meals, and managing their medications, etc. After a while, we began to see positive results that even the doctors were pleased with. Sitting in the doctors office a few months later, and being told they now weren’t going to need to perform a procedure they had once insisted on, I thought, staring at the doctor shuffling through his previous notes and test results “This is what I was meant to do.”

For years, people had jokingly called me the ‘Queen of Healthy,’ a secret title I held dear. Now, after witnessing the transformative power of healthy living on my immediate family – my mother’s medication reduced, her monthly meals prepped, my husband insulin-free and thriving – the title felt like a destiny fulfilled. I wasn’t just offering advice; I was a healer, empowered by knowledge and fueled by love.

Levista, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a mother of 5, four I birth, wife and grandmother to one amazing little man. I was a childcare provider for 18+ years and when my youngest was 7/8 years old she had really dry, itchy and sensitive skin and it bothered me to see her uncomfortable and it was something I had seen over the years with the children who had come through the daycare. Well I got tired of trying over the counter products and wasn’t a fan of the steroid creams doctors would prescribe so I began to try to come up with my own. The first version worked for her as she had a mild case of eczema and the second version worked on moderate to severe cases like that of my eldest child and one of my daycare children pleased with the results and it’s vercital uses Body Treat Chef was created and I called my butter “Head2Toe Love”.

Since then Body Treat Chef has evolved to provide Skin, Hair, Home and Tummy treats for optimal health. With a strong belief that using natural and organic ingredients are the safest and most effective way to look and feel your best.

As a certified Wellness and HealthyME Lifestyle Coach. I work with individuals with type 2 diabetes, helping them manage their condition and improve their overall health and well-being. Using my expertise and personalized approach, I provide guidance on nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle changes to support my clients in achieving their health goals. I am passionate about empowering individuals to take control of their health and lead fulfilling lives.

I believe what sets me apart from others is I truly believe there is no one size fits all to health and wholeheartedly that food is Medicine along most importantly my ability to truly listen to a person ask the pertinent questions and provide solutions that fit them individually and their lifestyle.

I offer sessions and courses like Make Health Your Hobby and Smart Shopping pantry makeovers, as well as one-on-one, group and membership coaching.

The main thing I want folks to know is I strive to have and keep a brand of integrity and Nurturing others is my gift.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The very lesson I had to unlearn is what I now strongly believe in and that is there is no one size fits all in health. No one diet, no one exercise and if you are unwilling to adapt your mindset based on your bodies survival needs it doesn’t matter how much you learn the implementation simply will not happen nor will it stick. The basic keys to health are mindset, environment, nutrition, exercise and sleep. Once I started applying these to my own self-care and that of my loved ones I could see the proof in what I was learning.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

To be honest my biggest success is in how I helped my husband to lose weight, decrease his meds, assist in him being insulin free and essentially help him avoid an invasive procedure, and being able to raise my youngest child vaccine free using just holistic care and take that experience to help other parents the rest is just people realizing that unlike others I not here to attack them because my belief that there’s no one size fits all allows me to create plans based around each individual’s lifestyle because I genuinely want to help them succeed in helping to keep them and their families safe and healthy.

Contact Info:

• Website: HealthyMeLifestyle.com
• Instagram: @BodyTreatChef
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheBodyTreatChef?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Linkedin: Levista Harris

Image Credits
Danielle Brown Photography (photo on bridge)