We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sandi Star a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Sandi thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.
Can you imagine a six-year-old child with migraine headaches? That was me. I would be outside playing and my head would start pounding. My vision would get distorted and I would start feeling sick to my stomach. I would have to come inside, take an Excedrin—which I now know helped set the stage for digestive issues to come—and cover my head with a pillow until the pain passed. As I got older, migraines became the norm. They would typically last three days and then start over again. My mom also had severe migraines. She would have to go to the hospital and get pain meds injected into her neck. I figured this would be something hereditary I would have to deal with for the rest of my life. Ouch! I ended up on heavy painkillers later that put me in a continuous mental fog and created continuing constipation problems. It was the first of many health issues I would have over my lifetime.
In my early teens, I developed thirteen cysts in my reproductive organs, which created hormonal issues and more pain and required me to have a partial hysterectomy at age 16. We were on the way to a doctor’s appointment and my mom took a detour to the emergency room after I went into shock in the car. I remember feeling out of control and so scared. My mom held my hand the whole way and kept saying “You’re going to be okay—hang in there!” I cannot imagine what was going through her mind. During the operation, they also removed my appendix and a foot of my intestine. The surgery left me with massive scar tissue that caused a great deal of internal injury and severe pain off and on for years. One morning shortly after I got married at age 20, I was bent over in excruciating pain to the point where I could not stand up. My husband took me to the ER and I was in intensive care for a week. I ended up having a full hysterectomy—including removal of both ovaries.
Like most couples, we were looking forward to having children but, the surgery made that impossible. Our marriage ended a few years later. I went through a lot of emotional trauma and physical pain during this time, not to mention having to deal with hormonal changes brought on by the loss of my ovaries at such an early age. I remember chatting with my grandmother about menopause—which was quite odd at my age, to say the least, but who else could I go to for advice? My mom was still in her forties. And this was all before I could legally sip a glass of wine! My mom was such a great support. She helped me get through this time with a lot of humor and a lot of love. Even now, in my fifties, I wonder what it would have been like to have had a child of my own. It is a void that will never be filled, so I have put that energy into helping others. I have had the blessing of being able to be a mentor a young woman I call my “love child.” She calls me her “soul mama.” She has gifted me with a glimpse of what it feels like to love and care for someone like a daughter. I have seen her grow into a beautiful woman with a free spirit who reminds me of myself in some ways.
After dealing with the difficulties of menopause and the weight issues that went with it, I was determined to rid myself of the sixty pounds of excess weight I had begun accumulating in my teens. I committed myself to health and fitness and lost six dress sizes—but still had chronic gastrointestinal (GI) conditions that played havoc with my daily life. So, although I looked surprisingly good on the outside, I was suffering on the inside. I kept the weight off but had a lot of systemic issues. I was still missing important pieces of the puzzle for optimal health.
In my thirties, I was diagnosed with Sjogren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease. Sjogren’s syndrome often accompanies other immune system disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and lupus and can also be related to celiac disease. In Sjogren’s syndrome, the mucous membranes and moisture-secreting glands of the eyes and mouth are usually affected first, resulting in decreased production of tears and saliva. My eyes dried out so bad I almost went blind. I tried punctal plugs (tear duct plugs) and used Restasis drops—but the burning only made things worse. I was tired of relying on doctors for answers, and tired of medications that gave me side effects with no relief. It was a vicious cycle I had to stop.
Watching my father and grandfather develop cancer in his early fifties was a red flag for me—but watching my mom suffer and pass away from that dreaded disease knocked me to my knees with devastation and inspired the path I am on today. My mom suffered from GI disorders like I did. So, after struggling most of my life with chronic migraines, irritable bowel syndrome, muscle and joint pain, fatigue, brain fog, asthma, and a slew of other ailments and frustrations, I decided to take a closer look at the underlying causes rather than just the symptoms. taking things many steps further by going back to school and starting my practice. I know I have finally found my calling in life—my purpose—and with all I have been through, I can certainly relate to my patients on many levels. It is such an honor to share my experience.
Choosing a different path in my forties from 20 years in marketing to being a practitioner was quite a shift and more importantly a blessing. It saved my life!
Sandi, 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?
My defining moment got me into Holistic Medicine after dealing with many serious health issues and watching my loved ones die young from cancer.
Imagine getting to the root cause of a chronic health condition so you can focus on the things you love. As a holistic practitioner and nutritionist, I provide, a unique health assessment, comprehensive labs such as food panels, GI panel, micronutrient panel, etc., customized nutrition, lifestyle coaching and supplement protocols.
My goal is to give you personalized support so you can reach optimal health.
What makes me unique is my own journey and passion to help others with optimal health.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
Being trained in old school marketing with a BA in Communications, I did well in sales because I built trusting relationships and did a lot of educating. I got out of sales into marketing because I love the creativity and was honestly burned out with the business side of sales. I am blessed both these areas of experience help my business today. Growing clientele is truly about maintaining a good reputation and being that go to person in your field. Referrals are always a positive and can grow quickly. Educating is key in my field. I love to teach and inspire health and wellness. Educating the community around you can bring new opportunities. Local talks, articles, blogs, podcasts, workshops, online videos, email blasts are helpful tools to use as part of your strategy. I find doing these I am always improving my knowledge in my field and staying sharp in my communication skills. The most important thing to remember is constancy. Keep getting out there and do it with passion and purpose.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
One of my strong assets is resilience. I had a lot hit me early on in life including life threatening health issues starting at 16, witnessing a friend commit suicide, divorce, brothers murder, dad’s sudden death and a few other things mixed in all before I hit thirty. I could have easily given up, but I did not. I started junior college at night since I worked full time and had to put that on hold shortly after while I recovered from an illness. When I started back up again a few years later my brother was murdered. I spent months getting through that process along with two trials while I was going to school. I was in a bad care accident right after the trial as well. With all of this I was still determined to finish school and kept going. I remember being distracted quite a bit, but my resilience would not let me quit. I graduated with my AA after several years and moved onto my BA program. I learned life tends to throw distractions no matter what and seems to be nonstop at times, but we must keep moving forward and never give up. Today, I not only have my BA in Communications I earned and paid for myself, I went back to school in my early 40’s to learn nutrition and holistic medicine. That was also a challenge but I knew I was resilient and would do what it took to finish and get to the next phase in my life as a practitioner. I never looked back and have been in practice since 2008.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.sandijstar.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandijstar/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sandistarwellness
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sandijstar/
- Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/sandijstar
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCnU80N_NLAlrTsl837PKew