← Kreatures Of Habit Podcast 
Kreatures Of Habit Podcast
Kim Strother on Overcoming Lyme Disease & Creating Balance: A Journey to Health, Healing, & Everyday Wellness
01:11:36
Loading summary
Transcript431 lines
- [00:00]
Kim Strother
And so also being like a child of an alcoholic and feeling so out of control growing up, there's something to me that's like, so beautiful about all of the practices that I have now because they're control in a healthy way, you know, and they. They make me feel better. They make me show up better for other people as well. I take care of myself. I'm actually honoring and loving myself.
- [00:26]
Michael Chernow
I'm Michael Chernow, and this is the Creatures of Habit podcast. Our hab will make us or break us. It's just that simple. I've lived on both sides of the tracks and have learned that the decisions we make on a consistent basis truly define who we are as human beings. On this show, I will be interviewing some of the most inspiring, motivating, and high performing humans I've encountered to share their daily habits, routines, and rituals that help them stay on top of their game and ultimately happy. So sit back, relax, and pay attention, because what you hear over the next 30 to 45 minutes could potentially change your life. Let's go. What up, y'all? Oh, my gosh. This is such a long time coming. This is. This. This meeting of the minds has been something that we've been brewing on for probably three years. Kim Strother and I are kind of kindred spirits. I literally don't know how we met. I actually have no idea. We were just trying to figure how we met, but I don't know how we met. But somehow, some way, we did meet. And we got on a phone call and I was on a ruck, and this was in the middle of the pandemic, and we. My ruck was like an hour and change, and we talked the whole time and then longer, and we just connected on so many things. The main piece of the puzzle for our connecting is Lyme disease. We both have chronic Lyme disease that's affected us in every way you can imagine. However, the two of us have also been fighting the good fight and not allowing the Lyme to absolutely destroy our lives. We take action. We work with lots of different coaches, we try lots of different things, but we are two people that have chronic Lyme disease that. That is ultimately sort of masticized into other autoimmune diseases that have shown up in our lives. And we both kind of laugh about it and, you know, it's serious, but we both, like, have really found this sort of bond on this thing that I want to share with you guys. So Kim is. She's a celebrity trainer. She's been in the world of wellness and health. And wellness for 20 years. She coaches lots of people, and she develops custom programming for people from fitness to nutrition to mindfulness and yoga. And she's also a featured coach at Melissa Wood Health, which is a, you know, a platform that's blown up over the last five years. So she also happens to be just an epic, awesome person that I, you know, I'm meeting for the first time in person now, but I feel like we've kind of been friends forever and ever, and I'm excited to introduce you to her. So, Kim, welcome.
- [03:15]
Kim Strother
Thank you for having me. That's quite the introduction. Thank you.
- [03:18]
Michael Chernow
We met over lime.
- [03:19]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [03:20]
Kim Strother
Here we are.
- [03:21]
Michael Chernow
Why don't you kind of walk us through your. Your journey with it?
- [03:24]
Kim Strother
Yeah, it's a long one, so I'll try to make it short as possible, but I can go all the way back to 8 years old. Just everybody grab a sip of water. Hold on. Here we go. Grew up in New Jersey, in South Jersey. We had a Christmas tree farm. Did really well. However, lots of ticks on the farm and growing up.
- [03:49]
Michael Chernow
So, wait, that was the family business. Christmas tree farm. That's amazing. I love Christmas tree farms, by the way.
- [03:54]
Kim Strother
Love them. I actually just went with my mom and my brother over Thanksgiving, which was the first time we.
- [04:00]
Michael Chernow
To that farm. To your farm?
- [04:01]
Kim Strother
No, because it's sadly overgrown and a disaster. But my mom was like, well, what if we bring a ladder? My brother was like, are you insane? Like, you'll die. Like, what are you talking about?
- [04:13]
Michael Chernow
Does your family still have the farm, though, and that. But not active.
- [04:16]
Kim Strother
No. My father passed and my grandmother passed in the same week, which was strange, but. And then we had to sell the farm, and that was, like, 19 years ago. So no farm anymore.
- [04:27]
Michael Chernow
We go to a Christmas tree farm every year. Cut down our Christmas tree. This year, we got the most unbelievable Christmas tree.
- [04:34]
Kim Strother
Amazing.
- [04:35]
Michael Chernow
Such a. I love Christmas farms. Anyway, all right, back to you.
- [04:37]
Kim Strother
Oh, no. But also, I love. And we did go to a farm in our hometown, and, like, they knew my father. It was. It was a whole thing. I was getting teary on the farm just because it was, you know, all the feels, but it was. It was wonderful. And the tree is in my apartment now, and it's slightly tilted because I didn't put it upright, but it's fine anyway, and my mom was like, you need someone to help you. I'm like, who's helping me with this tree? She's like, you need a man. I'm like, we need to not have this conversation.
- [05:08]
Michael Chernow
Anyway, everybody happens to be single.
- [05:11]
Kim Strother
If you're a good guy, only good ones anyway. That could be a whole nother podcast, but the Christmas tree farm. Lots of ticks. My dad had Lyme, but my dad also had a multitude of health issues. And so it's really hard to say, like, if his Lyme was ever cured, but he had the bullseye rash, took antibiotics for two weeks, and was seemingly better. I, at 8 years old, ended up in the hospital for almost two weeks with every symptom of Lyme. But no one diagnosed me with Lyme at the time. And my mom was told that they thought I had giardia, which is like a parasite ish, like gut situation, but wildly untrue. And I believe it was Lyme. I would have bouts through high school and college of extreme fatigue. Granted, I was not eating meat. I was running. I was competitive cheerleading in high school. So I was going from track practice to competitive cheerleading practice. And so we were, like, tumbling and doing all sorts of crazy things. And so often when I would have these bouts, doctors would tell my mom that I was doing too much, I was too active, or that it was because I didn't eat meat. And then they would put me on, you know, iron supplement and say, like, you know, she should really eat meat again. And kind of went through this and just would. Would deal with it when it would arise. And then by the time I was to fast forward to, like, 21 and I was living in the city, I kind of started to have a bunch of different symptoms coming up where I was having crazy GI symptoms. I was having mig. Well, I started getting migraines when I was like, 12, 13. So I was seeing a neurologist for that. I was seeing a GI for my stomach. I was kind of always getting sick, but again, I was doing triathlons. I still wasn't eating meat. I was still super active and doing all these things, but I was chasing all of my symptoms separately, seeing different doctors and having the craziest. You know, I had one GI doctor tell me that I needed to get a boyfriend and have sex and go on vacation, which, like, clearly still, my.
- [07:21]
Michael Chernow
Mom thinks the same thing when a doctor suggests that.
- [07:24]
Kim Strother
I was like, wow, thank you, sir. Wow. Yeah, that was special. But other, you know, and other doctors would basically, I started getting chronic sinus infections and then was just getting pumped with antibiotics and steroids. Then I started getting ringing in my ears and seeing another, you know, ent for that. No one could kind of figure these things out. My white blood Cell count was always low. I had a few episodes that landed me in the hospital where I was actually, like, having massive amounts of blood in my urine. Still, to this day, no one's been able to figure that out. But, like, thought one doctor thought I had bladder cancer, had to go through the bladder cancer screenings. Leukemia was tossed around at me all the time because my white blood cell count was so low. I was actually seeing a doctor in the city who shall remain nameless, who treats people for Lyme. And he never tested me for Lyme, but he was convinced I had Candida, which for sure I did, because at that point I was probably on antibiotics once a month, getting a shot of steroids and like a prednisone, six, you know, like six day dose. And so for sure I had candida overgrowth. I actually had a camera put up my nose and down my throat at one point, had yeast coating my sinus cavity. It was really wild, but it took. And so that doctor was treating me for leaky gut, but not Lyme. And then I went on a date. And I don't know why my dating life keeps coming up, but I went on a date. And my date was, I was on antibiotics. I was actually had a glass of wine to, like, be polite and. But didn't want it and was on antibiotics and knew I shouldn't have a drink anyway. And my date was like, well, I'm 40 and single because I lost my 30s to Lyme disease. And I was like, oh, like, I don't. What does that mean? And I had heard of Lyme. My father had Lyme, but I didn't know what he meant by that. So he starts to tell me his whole process. And as he's telling me this, I'm like, oh, my God, this is me. This is me. And so I end up sharing with him that I was kind of going through something similar. Of course he was, like, trying to get all my symptoms, symptoms out of me. And I'm like, I'm on a first date. Do I really tell you that? I'm like, coughing up, like, green stuff and like, I don't know. Probably not. And so eventually he was like, you have to ask your doctor to test you for Lyme. So the next day, I called my doctor's office. Of course they were like, I don't really. You don't need it. You don't need to have this test. I was like, I don't care. I'm paying for it. I will pay the fifteen hundred dollars for the Igenics. Test at this point. And by the way, I was like opening credit cards just to go to doctors because I went through my savings account. I put myself well into debt during this journey because I just knew that. I knew there was something wrong and I knew that I couldn't continue to live the way I was living, that there had to be an answer. It just took an insane amount of time to figure it out. And so I ended up doing the igenics test. And then sure enough, it came back. My Lyme was actually inconclusive, but I had Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Babesia and Bartonella, which are co infections of Lyme, which essentially cause similar and sometimes weirder symptoms. Then I started treatment for Lyme. And I also thought at that point, like, wow, I finally have an answer. I'm not crazy, because I had other doctors telling me I was crazy. And it was in my head. I went on antidepressants for six months at one point because I cried enough times in doctor's offices that were telling me I was depressed, that I was like, you know what? Maybe I am. Maybe I did create this. I don't know. And that just kind of like masked the. I mean, I was depressed. I was like, this isn't the life that I used to have. I went from doing triathlons to not being able to walk down a block in the city without getting exhausted, forgetting where I was going, like forgetting people's names when I'd run into them. So it was such a. I thought like, oh my God, I have an answer. And of course I got pumped with more antibiotics. For nine months I was on doxycycline and I would have to take breaks because my Candida would get so bad. Like my brain fog was out of control. Such bad memory loss. And then I'd get pumped with like a week or two of nystatin, which is an antifungal, and then I'd go right back on the doxy. And it was this vicious, awful cycle. And then I finally found Dr. Frank Lippman, who is a functional medicine doctor in the city. And the first thing he did was take me off of all the antibiotics. And he put me on the Candida diet, but a really strict version, which was only eating green vegetables and protein. And at that time, I told him I didn't eat meat. And he said, you'll either be really hungry just eating green vegetables or you'll start eating meat again. And so. And I was so sick at that point. And again seeing. I mean, I flew to Vancouver to see A doctor, Massachusetts, Long Island, New York, New Jersey. Like, I. I didn't care. I was going. And so I kind was like, fuck it, I'm going to eat a filet mignon. That's what I decided to start with.
- [12:32]
Michael Chernow
Hell, yeah.
- [12:33]
Kim Strother
And I never looked back. And truly just changing my diet, like, two weeks into the Candida diet, I was like, I can think again. And that was crazy.
- [12:45]
Michael Chernow
So what is the Candida diet? And by the way, Frank Lippman is. Who found my Lyme as well.
- [12:49]
Kim Strother
No way.
- [12:50]
Michael Chernow
Yeah.
- [12:51]
Kim Strother
So crazy.
- [12:52]
Michael Chernow
Frank Lippman. I sat down in Frank Lippman's office after seeing a bazillion doctors and being on antibiotic antidepressants.
- [12:58]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [12:59]
Michael Chernow
And people tell me, including my wife and my mother, that, like, something, I'm too stressed out at work and this is why this is all happening. And I was like, don't you see my hands and my feet? Like, even now, like, you know, my hands are swollen, but, you know, I was like, like, I'm not lying to you. Like, I didn't make this up. I feel absolutely terrible. I am so sick. And they're like, yeah, but you can still work out. And I'm like, working out in the morning is the only thing that actually makes me feel human. Like, I'm so fucking tired.
- [13:31]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [13:31]
Michael Chernow
And no doctor like, Lyme never came up in a Lyme test. Finally, I. Somebody introduced me to Frank Lippman. I go to his office, I sit down in front of him for two to three minutes. I tell him what's going on, and he's like, you've got Lyme disease. And I'm like, I've been tested for it. Everybody, all the doctors that I've seen have said, this is not Lyme disease. He says, I don't care what anybody says. You have Lyme disease. Yeah, Done. I'm going to send you to this lab on 30 something street. You're going to take this test 100% guaranteed it's going to come back positive.
- [14:04]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [14:04]
Michael Chernow
Sure enough, three days later, four band Lyme, two co infections, Bartonella and Babesia, whatever it is. And that's when my journey began.
- [14:16]
Kim Strother
Wow.
- [14:17]
Michael Chernow
Yeah.
- [14:17]
Kim Strother
Dr. Frank Lippman.
- [14:19]
Michael Chernow
Yeah.
- [14:19]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [14:19]
Kim Strother
I also feel like what was so special about Dr. Lipman was that he actually listened where other doctors didn't really listen. And he was the first doctor that I felt like he listened to my whole story. And I think I came in with, like a pile of tests and he listened and then was able to kind of pinpoint. And of course There was so much more happening than Lyme because I had high mercury and mold and parasites. You name it, I had it. And still. And still I'm dealing with some of it. But. But, yeah, but he listened, which was amazing. And he changed my life or gave me my life back, really.
- [14:55]
Michael Chernow
Do you still work with him?
- [14:56]
Kim Strother
No, I don't. And it's so funny because I. I tell people about him all the time, and I feel like I need to see him.
- [15:02]
Michael Chernow
Yeah, me too.
- [15:02]
Kim Strother
Yeah, we should just surprise him one day.
- [15:04]
Michael Chernow
Yeah, he.
- [15:04]
Kim Strother
I don't know, working out of.
- [15:06]
Michael Chernow
Okay, so now. Well, where are you at now?
- [15:10]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [15:11]
Michael Chernow
So this was. When was this? That this all started? This.
- [15:13]
Kim Strother
You said 2021. No, so that's when I found him, when I was 30. And I'm 42.
- [15:19]
Michael Chernow
Okay.
- [15:20]
Kim Strother
So 12 years ago.
- [15:21]
Michael Chernow
12 years ago.
- [15:22]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [15:22]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [15:22]
Kim Strother
Which was crazy. And where I am now, I mean, it's an interesting journey. It's an interesting one that I sometimes even struggle wrapping my own head around it because I have moments where I do feel really good. And let me tell you, I am so grateful for the days that I feel well. And I often pray on those days, like, please let this continue. But then I also have moments where I have these weird, unexplainable flare ups. I am currently dealing with one ish that feels like it's been, like a year long. And actually I was supposed to do your ruck with you, and I felt like such an asshole because I canceled, I think, like, day of, because I felt sorry. I felt so terrible. And I was like, hell, am I.
- [16:14]
Michael Chernow
Gonna do a ruck feeling like this?
- [16:15]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [16:16]
Michael Chernow
If anybody gets it. I do.
- [16:17]
Kim Strother
Thank you. I was like, you're an Kim. But I. And I will say at this point in my life, because in my. Certainly in my 20s and even in my early 30s, I would still push myself and do the things that I knew I shouldn't have been doing. And unfortunately, you were on the receiving end of me actually listening to myself and not going. But I. I do have to do that 100 often, which is annoying sometimes. And hard. And not everybody understands it, but. So I feel. I try to give people grace when they don't understand it because I'm always like, good for you. That you have no idea what it feels like to be chronically ill for a long time. I would get upset with people that didn't understand, but most people don't understand chronic illness unless you have it.
- [17:04]
Michael Chernow
I think you need to meet Vince Pittstick. I really. I really think you need to meet Vince. Because the thing that is so hard about this kind of thing is that it's so difficult to track.
- [17:21]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [17:21]
Michael Chernow
Right. It's so difficult to. With something like Lyme disease maybe Lyme disease is the thing that kicks off this autoimmune or this immune system malfunction that ultimately, when your immune system is suppressed, the body's ability to fight back anything that tries to attack it is, like, mitigated. Right. It's not like our immune system is there to beat back. You know, I'm sure parasites go through everybody's system all the time.
- [17:51]
Kim Strother
Totally.
- [17:51]
Michael Chernow
Right. If you don't have a strong immune system, those parasites can just get real cozy up in your body.
- [17:57]
Kim Strother
Absolutely.
- [17:58]
Michael Chernow
And if. You know. But however, if you do have a strong immune system, it just beats back those parasites, and they come right through you or they kill them, whatever it is. Someone with Lyme disease that's now sort of. It's sort of, like, manifested into other autoimmune things like arthritis for me, and, you know, I'm sure a whole candida and the H. Pylori and like, all these other things that it's built up in my system or broken down in my system just leaves me susceptible and leaves people like you susceptible to, like, the mercury and the mold and all the other fudgeing things that our body is just, like, not detoxifying.
- [18:31]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [18:31]
Michael Chernow
You know?
- [18:32]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [18:33]
Michael Chernow
It sucks. And so when you find, though, someone, a doctor or a practitioner that is like, oh, gosh, I know. Like, you don't have to try to. You don't have to qualify for me, Like, I get it. Like, it's okay. I like, you know, because not everybody's symptoms are the same. Right.
- [18:53]
Kim Strother
But at all.
- [18:54]
Michael Chernow
There are a fair amount of them where, like, I'll meet somebody that has Lyme disease, and I'm like, oh, yeah, I'm dealing with this. Like, for me, it always shows up.
- [19:03]
Kim Strother
By the way, it's crazy that you just showed me those bumps, because I get them and never knew, like, what they necessarily were and had one a couple of weeks ago on this finger that was like, it's a. It's a hotspot. It hurts so bad. And of course, I want to, like, pick it and squeeze it and don't do that.
- [19:18]
Michael Chernow
Yeah.
- [19:19]
Kim Strother
But it's crazy.
- [19:20]
Michael Chernow
Does your. Do your joints swell up?
- [19:22]
Kim Strother
They do.
- [19:23]
Michael Chernow
Yeah.
- [19:24]
Kim Strother
And weirdly, like, my. My hands will swell, but my feet and my ankles will swell. Yeah. And stomach, which is so fun. But that's. I struggle with sibo to your Age by Lori. That's fun.
- [19:38]
Michael Chernow
Yeah. We ping pong these things and you know, but let me, let me share something with you that I think is really, I have no choice. In, in from my journey in my life, I had. Bringing it back a little bit. My grandmother was a spiritual icon in my life.
- [19:58]
Vince Pittstick
Really.
- [19:58]
Michael Chernow
She was a practicing Buddhist. My grandmother would meditate for three hours every single day.
- [20:04]
Kim Strother
No way.
- [20:05]
Michael Chernow
Oh yeah. She was a crystal healer and that's how she made money. She was, she had a crystal shop in Queens.
- [20:11]
Kim Strother
Amazing.
- [20:13]
Michael Chernow
And my, and, and, and it was my father's mom and she, her name is Grandma Chicky.
- [20:20]
Kim Strother
Love it.
- [20:21]
Michael Chernow
God rest her soul. She was the best like most influential person in my life probably. And so, so spirituality was something that was introduced to me and my, my sister at like a very, very young age. We would run around my grandmother's apartment in Queens and scream. Nam yum ho ranging. Yeah. And she had a, she had like a Buddhist shrine and like it was the whole thing. Right. And she was the most unbelievably caring, comforting, warm, safe, Best grandma ever.
- [20:51]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [20:52]
Michael Chernow
French toast every morning when we would say, you know, just, just, just the best cozy, comfy, just. And, and just wonderful. And she, so she introduced spirituality into my life at a very young age. And so I've always been able to be open minded to these sort of potentially esoteric ways of kind of walking through life.
- [21:13]
Vince Pittstick
Right.
- [21:13]
Michael Chernow
And when you have something like Lyme disease or some sort of an autoimmune disease that is kind of difficult to put a finger on, having that ability to be open minded and to, to have spirituality in your life is a massive benefit.
- [21:27]
Kim Strother
Absolutely.
- [21:28]
Michael Chernow
You know.
- [21:28]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [21:29]
Michael Chernow
And so my grandmother, like I really do believe has opened up this world to me. However, one thing that I will say, and it's something that I. Interesting was introduced to me from a mentor that I speak to pretty regularly. And she said there's a lot of going on in my, in at work for me. And I was like, man, God, like, God, come on. Just like, give me a break here, you know? And she was like, oh, you can't. She's like, God isn't doing this. She's like the other. The enemy is doing this. Like, you gotta understand that there's like, God is good, Enemy's not like. And I mean she was explaining this to me as if it was like set in stone. But she was basically, and she's a very spiritual person. She was basically like the enemy, AKA the devil, finds people that are able to make that are Able to really, really, like, bring damage to his evilness. Really, like, you know, bring some heat to him. He finds those people and makes it really hard and really sort of throws things in their path constantly to make life hard. And those people, if they're aware and able to potentially even consider this kind of thing, where God shows up is in their fight. And God is the fight in this journey. God is like, really, like the grit and the grind and the heart is God. And I was like, huh, wow.
- [23:05]
Kim Strother
Yeah, no, I feel that one.
- [23:07]
Michael Chernow
And I was just like, yeah, wow. Like that for me. Just. And anybody listening to this podcast, like, believe, like, no, I'm not trying to coerce anyone into believing in anything.
- [23:21]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [23:21]
Michael Chernow
But for me, God is real in my life.
- [23:24]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [23:25]
Michael Chernow
And sometimes we will say, God, why are you doing this? And what she brought to me not long ago was not God, why are you doing this, God, I need your support because I know you're not doing this.
- [23:42]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [23:43]
Michael Chernow
You know.
- [23:44]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [23:44]
Michael Chernow
I know that this is not something that you're putting in my path, but you. But I need your support in the fight to get through this. And that was just such a different, like, perspective for me.
- [23:54]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [23:55]
Michael Chernow
Anyway, you know, I think when. When people have chronic illness and people try to make people try to analyze it and. And, you know, quantify it and make it about the science.
- [24:09]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [24:09]
Michael Chernow
You know, it's more than that because we're emotional beings. And when something like this happens and you just. There's no X, there's no, like, you know, you're you, you, you. If you get sick with something that has a cure, you take the pill, in a few days, it goes away.
- [24:30]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [24:30]
Michael Chernow
Something like this, it can come out of nowhere.
- [24:33]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [24:34]
Michael Chernow
And it could put you on your ass.
- [24:36]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [24:36]
Michael Chernow
For days, weeks, sometimes months. And if you don't have this, like, potentially optimistic, sort of almost like, far out way of comprehending it.
- [24:49]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [24:50]
Michael Chernow
That would be far out for people, other people to be like, oh, God, come on. Like, you're gonna ask God for help for this one.
- [24:56]
Kim Strother
Totally.
- [24:56]
Michael Chernow
And I'm like, yeah, I am. Yes. I, like, need that. Yeah, I need it. You know, because if without it, I'm like, I'm just cutting myself off at the knees, like, trying to make sense of it.
- [25:13]
Kim Strother
Absolutely. I think that was such a huge shift for me. And I did not have a grandmother that had a crystal shop. I mean, I loved my grandmother's, but your grandmother sounds pretty.
- [25:24]
Michael Chernow
Oh, she's a cool Mike, by the way. Also, one. One more plug for my grandma. So My grandmother was an entrepreneur and, you know, super laid back, super humble, beautiful person. But she was an entrepreneur, and she is responsible. This is crazy, but she is responsible for importing clogs from the Netherlands. Come on in. To the United States in the World's Fair. So she brought clogs from the Netherlands to the World's Fair and, like, had a whole booth set up in the World's Fair, employed all sorts of hippies. And then she opened up a shop in Queens called the Clog Shop.
- [26:02]
Kim Strother
Come on.
- [26:02]
Michael Chernow
Yes.
- [26:03]
Kim Strother
I love her.
- [26:04]
Michael Chernow
She is the best.
- [26:05]
Kim Strother
This is your mom's mom?
- [26:06]
Michael Chernow
My dad's mom. Love her little Sicilian grandma Chicky. She's so. She. And she always used to say, you know, we're Sicilian royalty. My great, great grandfather was a count in Sicily.
- [26:21]
Kim Strother
Amazing.
- [26:22]
Michael Chernow
Yeah, but so great grandma. Love grandma.
- [26:26]
Kim Strother
Amazing. Well, I did not have that kind of faith in my household growing up. I was like. I think my dad was atheist. Maybe my mom grew up Catholic. But my. Her. My grandmother was Catholic. My grandfather, I don't think he was, like, Protestant or something. So it just, like, wasn't. There wasn't a strong sense of faith. It was around, but it wasn't this kind of like, we went to church on Christmas and Easter. We were. We were that family. And sometimes we missed. And so it took me really getting sick. I think that I also was like, there's. There's got to be, like, I need some help here, and no one's really getting it. And actually, at that time, I think a few things were happening. I found Marianne Williamson. You don't know Marianne Williamson?
- [27:17]
Michael Chernow
No. Tell me.
- [27:17]
Kim Strother
Come on.
- [27:18]
Michael Chernow
She. I don't.
- [27:19]
Kim Strother
She wrote. She wrote a book called A Return to Love, but it's based off of a book that looks like the Bible called A Course in Miracles. And I used to go listen to Marianne Williamson speak at a church on. In the East Village, like, every Tuesday night. And from. So I was. I was doing. Doing that, and then I was also listening to Joel Olsteen. And then I also went to Kabbalah. I was really searching. I was like, there has to be some kind of higher power here that I can talk to. But it was really through probably Marianne Williamson that I started to kind of, like, reframe feeling, because I did feel like a victim. Like, why is this happening to me? Why is this happening? This ruined my life and feeling. And I was really depressed because I was feeling this way and then kind of switching that to two things. One, I would say, like, ask God, please save my Life because I didn't know how to. And please, like. Like asking God to see things differently. Please let me see this differently. And. And though. And I still use the please let me see things differently often, and it applies to so many things, but really to be shown what to do. And I often ask, like, show me. Show me what I need to know. Show me how to heal this. Because I don't think we are, you know, if we are at this alone, it's heavy and. And it can feel really lonely. It feels really lonely anyway when people don't understand. But I think having that connection to God, or higher power, however you want to call it is, is a game changer. And I think it helped me through so many really dark times, for sure.
- [29:14]
Michael Chernow
What? So now. So now we're here, right? We're both here. We both. And it shows up and it sucks when it does. And there are moments, you know, lots of moments where, you know, I'm not thinking about it.
- [29:27]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [29:27]
Michael Chernow
And I'm like, having. Loving my life and enjoying my life. And I would say for the most part, honestly, even when it's going down, which it's going down for me right now, I'm in it right now. I gotta flare up. Currently. Right now. Yeah. And that also is why people roll their eyes when you say that you've got this thing and you're like, yeah, and I'm going through it right now. And they're like, yeah, what this. Yeah, this person is just totally psychosomatic. Doubt, totally. And I'm like, okay. Like, you know, all right. Like, I don't know what to say. Like, I don't. I'm not complaining about it. I'm just telling you, like, it's real.
- [29:58]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [29:58]
Michael Chernow
I mean, I got tests to prove it. Right. At this point. But anyway, what practices or rituals or routines do you do? Like, do you have a morning routine that kind of helps you?
- [30:13]
Vince Pittstick
Oh, yeah.
- [30:14]
Kim Strother
I mean, my morning routine every day is meditation and prayer combined and journaling. And my journaling kind of takes a. It changes a lot. And sometimes it's just like strictly morning pages and it's just three pages of just whatever is on my mind. Or sometimes I get a little more specific and, you know, try to write in future speak. And so it kind of. It changes. But just getting it out. Sometimes when I do the morning pages and if I'm not feeling well, I'm like, wow, that was three really negative pages. And then I'm like, well, maybe that's not great.
- [30:52]
Michael Chernow
And morning pages is just like, Free. Free flow writing.
- [30:55]
Kim Strother
Yes. And that's out of a different book called the Artist's Way is morning pages. But great exercise.
- [31:02]
Michael Chernow
And is it just like, literally whatever's on your mind. Whatever's on your mind, it doesn't have to be linear. No, no, no.
- [31:08]
Kim Strother
And it's really crazy because it sounds like a lot, but when you start that practice, it's wild what comes out. And sometimes I'll write, like, six pages, and I'm like, oh, shit, I'm late. I have to get in the shower.
- [31:19]
Michael Chernow
Wow.
- [31:20]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [31:21]
Michael Chernow
So what is your meditation practice like? What does that look like?
- [31:24]
Kim Strother
It also varies. Like, sometimes I will. I. I will actually turn on guided meditation sometimes. Other times, I'll really do a breath work on my own. And then after I kind of get through a series of breath work, than just sit in silence or if I have some kind of chimy meditation sounds on. Yeah. So I kind of go through a mix of things, but I definitely take that moment. And if I. If I miss a morning, it definitely will end up in the afternoon or the evening. And I can always tell when I've missed my morning practice.
- [32:01]
Michael Chernow
So wake up right into meditation and prayer, journaling. And then what?
- [32:07]
Kim Strother
And then. Oh, there's usually. Well, there was coffee prior to all of those things, except for I was telling you, I found out I have high mold toxicity right now. So I stopped coffee three weeks ago.
- [32:21]
Michael Chernow
How you doing?
- [32:22]
Kim Strother
You know, it was not. That first week was really not fun.
- [32:25]
Michael Chernow
Not fun.
- [32:26]
Kim Strother
Not fun. I did switch to Matcha, but also I was at a point where I was also having, like, definitely two cups of coffee in the morning and one in the afternoon.
- [32:37]
Michael Chernow
Sure.
- [32:37]
Kim Strother
Which was, like, two way too much coffee. And so now I'm actually having this detox. First it was Matcha. Like, the first week was like, I was having three matchas, and then I was like, okay, psycho, that shit will get expensive too.
- [32:49]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [32:50]
Kim Strother
Matcha's like, this big, and it's like 40 bucks, and you go through it in a week.
- [32:55]
Michael Chernow
Mm.
- [32:55]
Kim Strother
It's crazy. So now I'm actually having a detox tea in the first, and then I'm having a Matcha.
- [33:05]
Michael Chernow
That's it.
- [33:06]
E
Interrupting this episode to share with you how we keep this podcast going, and that is by you supporting us through trying out or subscribing to meal1oncreaturesofhabit.com I am giving a 20% discount on your first order or your first subscription order, which is a serious discount. Meal one is a superfood meal. It is a blend of Gluten and glyphosate free oats. It is packed with 30 grams of plant based protein, omega 3 fatty acids, a probiotic, digestive enzymes, vitamin D3. It also has chia seeds, flax seeds, pumpkin seeds and a little bit of pink Himalayan Salt. There are 37 grams of healthy carbohydrates and anywhere from 7 to 10 grams of fat, depending on the flavor. You will be full for hours, people, I promise you. We developed meal one to help you perform at your absolute best to get that incredibly healthy and convenient edge on the competition. There is not a better, more convenient meal to start your day with or use as a pre or post workout meal. The macros are perfect and sourced with the cleanest ingredients in the game. Take your performance to the next level. Make your life much easier by saving time. Be able to eat healthy without sacrificing flavor and all while staying full for hours. Making your urge to snack far, far less. Hop over to creaturesofhabit.com that is creaturesofhabit.com and use promo code K O H P O d the number 20 for your first order of meal one today.
- [34:30]
Michael Chernow
Back to the pod. I just, I'm plugging these guys because I love them, but you must, you must get some Monaco or honey.
- [34:38]
Kim Strother
Okay, so we have to talk about honey you got. Because I cut it out for such a long time. Because yes, I cut out sugar, dairy and grains, but like sugar in all forms. But also I have another friend recently was like, you need some Manuka honey in your life because it's so good for immune support.
- [34:58]
Michael Chernow
I'm just telling you, you just got to check out Monocora honey. I'm gonna hook you. I'm gonna. It's. I like. It is just. It's a game changer. And especially if you're having like matcha or tea in the morning. Like it just takes it to a whole nother.
- [35:16]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [35:16]
Kim Strother
Matcha without honey is not great.
- [35:19]
Michael Chernow
No, it's not.
- [35:21]
Kim Strother
It tastes like the earth.
- [35:22]
Michael Chernow
Yeah. Not fun. Matcha with honey though.
- [35:25]
Kim Strother
Oh, yeah. Game changer.
- [35:27]
Michael Chernow
So good. Like little almond milk Matcha Blitzy blitz hot water.
- [35:33]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [35:33]
Michael Chernow
Table or teaspoon or tablespoon depending on how far you want to take it of that amazing honey.
- [35:38]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [35:39]
Michael Chernow
The honey is insane.
- [35:41]
Kim Strother
Okay. I feel like I've seen you on Instagram, like taking your honey and doing crazy workout.
- [35:46]
Michael Chernow
I'm obsessed with it.
- [35:46]
Kim Strother
Okay.
- [35:47]
Michael Chernow
I'm obsessed with it. It's so good. So you used to have coffee. Now you're into Matcha. Now you're In a detox tea.
- [35:53]
Kim Strother
Yep.
- [35:53]
Michael Chernow
And then you kind of just get your day going from there.
- [35:56]
Kim Strother
And then I get my day going. I would love to tell you that I did movement every single morning, but mornings are tough for me. I'm not gonna lie. Like. Like, I. My sleep. And this is where I think I had this battle with myself this morning. I slept for 10 hours.
- [36:12]
Michael Chernow
Amazing.
- [36:13]
Kim Strother
But you would think that. But it wasn't amazing because I'm still tired, and if the alarm didn't go off, I wouldn't have woken up. So. And I had a really busy morning, so I was like, I had to get up. I was exhausted. And I get so frustrated that I am that tired on 10 hours of sleep, 8 hours of sleep, 6 hours of sleep. It doesn't matter how many hours I'm. I'm exhausted.
- [36:40]
Michael Chernow
That's. Yeah.
- [36:41]
Kim Strother
And so it's really annoying for me. So I often. Although I. I will tell you, I. I made myself do 20 minutes of yoga this morning. I was like, you've got to change this mindset, because it was. It was a little on the negative side. I'm not gonna lie. Today was a. Today was a tough morning. So I was like, move your damn body. And. And I did my meditation and my prayer. I replaced the journaling with the movements for time. But not every morning there's movement. But there's movement somewhere in my day. But it's usually not in the morning because mornings are hard for me when I'm in a.
- [37:15]
Michael Chernow
When I'm in, like, a. Like, a real lime flare. I'm not good in the morning either. Like, I just don't want to get out of bed.
- [37:23]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [37:23]
Michael Chernow
I'm just, like, not. It's not fun.
- [37:26]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [37:26]
Michael Chernow
You know, And I can. And I force myself and I. Because I also know, like, I. And I've been also. I've been kind of like. Like, crucified a little bit for talking about powering through mental health triggers.
- [37:41]
Kim Strother
Okay.
- [37:41]
Michael Chernow
And some people will say, oh, yeah, well, you don't really know. And I'm like, okay, well, I mean, your opinion is great.
- [37:50]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [37:50]
Michael Chernow
You know, like, whatever you think. Like, the truth of the matter is, is that, like, I've struggled for years.
- [37:54]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [37:55]
Michael Chernow
Before I got sober. In sobriety with mental health issues.
- [38:00]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [38:00]
Michael Chernow
I find myself to be far more mentally healthy now that I've created awareness around this mental health stuff that I've struggled with over the years. But there are definitely moments where I am fucking depressed and I don't want to do things. However, I know I Play the tape. And I push through and. And I've had people say, oh, yeah, well, if you were really depressed or if you were really ill mentally, you wouldn't be able to. You don't know what it's really like in like. Okay, like maybe I'm not.
- [38:34]
Kim Strother
No.
- [38:34]
Michael Chernow
You know what I mean?
- [38:34]
Kim Strother
So unfair. I think first of all, not. There's not a single person that is like another person. Like, we are not the same.
- [38:41]
Michael Chernow
One of one.
- [38:42]
Kim Strother
Right. And it's like everything affects people differently and everybody copes with everything differently. And so it's so unfair for people to also try to, to discredit how you're feeling. I think that is. I think it's awful when people tried to do that. And also I'm like, are we fighting over who's more depressed people? Like, come on.
- [39:05]
Michael Chernow
Right, right. Like really, like, well, we're in a funky age.
- [39:08]
Kim Strother
I know.
- [39:09]
Michael Chernow
We're in a funky age.
- [39:10]
Kim Strother
You know, I also curse a lot because I'm from New Jersey. Although you're from Queens.
- [39:15]
Michael Chernow
No, I'm from Manhattan.
- [39:16]
Kim Strother
Okay, well, you're more civilized then. Fine.
- [39:19]
Michael Chernow
We. Yeah, like there's, you know, you and I grew up where you were. We're very close in age. A little. I'm a schmidge older than you. Yes.
- [39:28]
Kim Strother
And happy about that.
- [39:30]
Michael Chernow
But we grew up around the same time and there's a. There's just a lot in my. And I. I don't fucking care what people think about this specific thing. There's a lot of woke people that will pick a. Pick a bone with anything you say.
- [39:46]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah, absolutely.
- [39:47]
Michael Chernow
Like right now, like, you know, you've got to be so mindful of like anything that comes out of your mouth because everything that comes out of your mouth is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
- [39:58]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah, yeah.
- [39:59]
Michael Chernow
You know, and I understand, like, we're like, people are just becoming a little bit more aware, which is fine. But we're in an interesting age. You know, like when I was coming up in the work world when I was working in my teens and early 20s.
- [40:18]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [40:20]
Michael Chernow
I mean, I was abused.
- [40:23]
Kim Strother
Oh.
- [40:24]
Michael Chernow
You know, like.
- [40:25]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [40:25]
Michael Chernow
It was not.
- [40:27]
Kim Strother
No, no. The things that were said to me also when I think back to like waiting tables.
- [40:35]
Michael Chernow
Oh my God.
- [40:36]
Kim Strother
My boss would say to me, it's wild. It's wild. They would be in jail right now.
- [40:40]
Michael Chernow
Oh, 100.
- [40:41]
Kim Strother
It's crazy.
- [40:42]
Michael Chernow
My father, and by the way, my father was not no stand up guy. He was like, like definitely, you know, not a great example. But he would, you know, we would get in the Car and drive to Canal Street. And my father was a hoarder, unfortunately, but he was an electrician, okay. And he had this old car that was filled with. And he would drive me and sometimes my sister to Canal street from where we lived on 87th Street. And. And this isn't like the 80s, okay? And this is when Canal street was fucking bad. Like, you only went down to Canal street for two reasons. Three reasons. One, to get drugs, okay? Two, to get electronic shit and three, to get fireworks.
- [41:30]
Kim Strother
Stop.
- [41:31]
Michael Chernow
Swear to God.
- [41:31]
Kim Strother
That was so funny.
- [41:33]
Michael Chernow
And my father would drive down there on like a weekend, double park the car and leave my sister and I in the double parked car at like 4 and 6 years old for 2 hours and go do his shopping and just leave the car. And we were so terrified. We would sit in the front passenger side like footwell because of how scared we were.
- [41:58]
Kim Strother
Come on.
- [41:59]
Michael Chernow
And there was all sorts of crazy people, like walking up to. I mean, it was insane. Like, wow. And. And if a cop were to ever see that. Now you're going to jail.
- [42:07]
Kim Strother
Oh, yeah, you're going to jail, dude. Yeah.
- [42:10]
Michael Chernow
You know, like, like, what are you doing? You can't.
- [42:12]
Kim Strother
That's, yeah. Insane.
- [42:14]
Michael Chernow
Yeah. Oh, yeah. But, yeah. So what does once when these things come up for you when you're. When you, you know, it's not like they're. You're accustomed to them now. It's not awesome, but you understand what's happening. It's not like, oh my God, what's happening to me? You're like, even though it sucks, even though you don't know exactly what's going to happen, right? You're feeling like, okay, I kind of get that. What's happening here? What do you do?
- [42:40]
Kim Strother
Yeah, I think, you know, it's funny when it first kind of when I kind of don't feel well and it's maybe goes past a day or two, there's definitely like a PTSD feeling where I'm like, it's back. And I also panic. And I think it's because I like put myself into debt of like, oh my God, here we go again. What doctor am I going to see? And how much is it going to cost? And, you know, I can kind of go in this weird rabbit hole that will take me many places. And then I have to remind myself to breathe and that I know what's happening and I also know how to deal with it. And I deal with it better now at 42, than I was dealing with it in my 20s and 30s. And so. And I think that comes back to consistency, which is why I do the things that I do every day, which is why I meditate daily and why I pray daily and why I journal and why I move my body. Because, A, they make me feel good, and B, it's the consistency of having those practices to come back to that actually makes me feel like I have some semblance of control. And maybe like, my father was an alcoholic, which I think I've shared with you. And so also being, like, a child of an alcoholic and feeling so out of control growing up, there's something to me that's, like, so beautiful about all of the practices that I have now, because they're control in a healthy way, you know, and they. They make me feel better. They make me show up better for other people as well. I take care of myself. I'm actually honoring and loving myself. And when I can give myself the time to move my body or meditate, even if I'm waking up, like, I had a shitty morning today of, like, why did I sleep for 10 hours? Why am I still this tired? Why can't. I mean, I laid in bed for.
- [44:28]
Michael Chernow
Like, you And I are 40 minutes. And why. Yeah, like, I'm always trying to figure out why these things are happening, right?
- [44:34]
Kim Strother
And then I'm like, finally, like, get your ass out of bed. And I turned on the hot water and I made my detox tea, and I'm like, okay, I'm gonna have my tea. And then I did my meditation, did my prayer, and then I got on my mat. And I'm not gonna lie, I rolled out my mat last night. I rolled out my mat last night because I haven't been feeling well, and I'm like, bitch, you will put your mat on the floor and you will move your body. And. And that's what I did. And honestly, I felt so much better. And then I can go into the rest of my day and feel a little less, like, high strung about it. Like, there's a little more ease and ability to.
- [45:11]
Michael Chernow
A little less. Like a hostage.
- [45:12]
Kim Strother
Yeah. Yeah.
- [45:15]
Michael Chernow
I would say if there's any feeling that I get when I'm deep in it, you know? And, like, I was, again, like, I was very excited about this episode. This is, like, not a traditional creatures of habit podcast episode because we're really talking about something that's very, very specific. But I think a lot of people, and I don't think that this necessarily only has to apply to Lyme disease.
- [45:33]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah, agree.
- [45:34]
Michael Chernow
I think this is, like, there are so many People that struggle with kind of these, like, very undiagnosed.
- [45:43]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [45:43]
Michael Chernow
Sort of obscure autoimmune, potentially just weird health issues.
- [45:49]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [45:50]
Michael Chernow
And a lot of people are ashamed of it because other people don't believe them, so they kind of keep it to themselves and they carry this weight. And I know that. And I felt that way, too. Like, after a full probably 18 months of. Of complaining and trying to get support from people around me and them not, like, after a while, not, like, wanting to hear it anymore, and me being like, okay, well, then I'm just not going to talk about it anymore and I'm going to hide this.
- [46:18]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [46:18]
Michael Chernow
And that was so hard. It was so hard because I literally thought I was dying. I thought I was. I thought I had cancer because it was undiagnosed. No one could tell me what it was. I had, like, swollen lymph nodes in the back of my head that were, like, the size of a fudgeing, you know, almond. And I'd be like, oh, my God, I'm done. That's it. I need a brain scan. You know, like, the fear of, like, not knowing the shit. And there's a lot of people out there that have that and don't know what they. What's going on. And I just want to say, you know, the reason why I was so excited about this particular episode, because you and I have connected on this, and we. When I talk to you, I feel so good because I know that, hey, dude, like, you're just not alone here.
- [47:01]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [47:02]
Michael Chernow
There's other people that are dealing with it, and we have also been able to, like, live pretty damn good lives with it, even though it sucks when it comes, you know? So I think for people that are listening, just know that, like, it's no surprise that you have a very similar style of your morning than I do. It's no surprise that you've gravitated towards this world of wellness and movement and nutrition similar to the way I have. We find true solace in that.
- [47:38]
Kim Strother
Absolutely.
- [47:38]
Michael Chernow
You know.
- [47:39]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [47:39]
Michael Chernow
And I think for anybody that's listening, that is. Has experienced anything like you and I have and are trying to figure it out. I would just say. And I'm going to ask you after this, but I would just say stop trying to figure out what it is and how you can fix it necessarily, and start thinking about the things that you can do on a daily basis in a consistent way that are just going to make you feel good in general.
- [48:01]
Kim Strother
100%, you know.
- [48:03]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [48:03]
Michael Chernow
Like, what kind of advice would you give to somebody who's listening, who's like, what the fuck is going on with me?
- [48:09]
Kim Strother
Yeah, I think it is exactly what you said in, like, those daily routine practices that. That make you do something that makes you feel better. I think one thing I do always recommend to people if you are having health issues is really looking at the food you're eating. Before you go, jump to doctors, especially Western medicine doctors, because I do think there's so much power in what we're putting in our body and start to kind of get curious about what that looks like. And again, every body is different. So what works for me might not work for you and for someone else, but, you know, start to pay attention to foods that might be triggering you. Take them out for a little while, see how you're feeling without them. And if you put them back in and you feel fine, great. And if you don't feel good, then, you know, to keep that out. I think there's so much we can do for our health with the food we're putting in our body. Certainly the aggressive end of that would be an elimination diet that not everyone's ready for. I was also not ready for that when I had many doctors tell me in my 20s to pull out, like, sugar and gluten and even alcohol or. And I was like, again, living on grains. And I was like, how am I not having carbs? And I would make it a week, and I'd go back, and it took me getting really sick to finally be like, I will do anything. So I think that's kind of always one of my biggest things to recommend to people is to get curious about what you're eating and start to. Because we know inherently, you know, what's going on in your body. And again, if you go back to the meditation piece and even if it's five minutes in the morning, you start to sit with yourself. You're just getting more connected with yourself and what's going on in your body. And it's always in that quiet time alone that I think you hear the most, that we're often in the day, the daily craziness and the noise that we're not hearing what our body's trying to tell us. So that practice of sitting and getting quiet and sitting with yourself, you will know. And it sounds maybe a little out there to say it, but, like, it will come, especially if you ask, too again, like, show me. Show me what I need to know. And it doesn't come maybe the first time or the second time or whatever, a weekend, but it will show up, and when it hits you, you'll be like, wow.
- [50:25]
Michael Chernow
I've been so. I don't live in the city anymore. I live upstate. And every morning for the last three weeks, I have been hunting. I've, like, fell in love with hunting. So I go out into the woods at, like, 4:45, 5:00am like, deep out, and I've got a spot where I sit, and it's way before I can shoot my. You know, I can't even see the deer. But I go out there to do sorties.
- [50:52]
Kim Strother
Really dark at that time.
- [50:53]
Michael Chernow
Super dark.
- [50:54]
Vince Pittstick
Okay.
- [50:55]
Michael Chernow
And I'm by myself in the woods. Dark as hell, cold as hell. And I sit on this, like. I've got this, like, kind of like, log pile that I kind of nestle into, and I meditate. And it is. I can't even begin to tell you how serene.
- [51:13]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [51:14]
Michael Chernow
Like, in the woods, by myself in the pitch black, dark, quiet as a button. But I hear, like, the owls and the coyotes and the squirrels and the birds and every once in a while, like, a snort from a buck that I can't shoot because I can't see. But I'm out there, and it's just so amazing.
- [51:36]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [51:36]
Michael Chernow
It's so amazing. I wish I could do it every day. Yeah, I think. And then. And then I've had these sort of conversations with myself being out there because I sit from, like, 5 to like, 8 in the morning. And then I got to get back and start my real life. But I, like, try to see how long I can go because, you know, sitting out there, like, it's hard just to be bored. It's hard to be bored.
- [52:01]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [52:02]
Michael Chernow
You know, so my meditation will be, like, 20 minutes. And then after I meditate, I kind of sit and I'm just, like, very, like, sort of like, zenned out spot. And then I slowly watch the sun come up. And. And then I'm like, what's going on on Instagram? You know what I mean? I'm like, what? I'm kind of bored. I don't hear any fucking thing. I could just pull out my phone here. And then I'm like, dude, you're in the woods. Like, this is such a moment for you to just really just immerse into this place. Like, put your phone back.
- [52:29]
Vince Pittstick
All right?
- [52:30]
Michael Chernow
Put the phone back. See how long I can sit and just be present and not meditate, Just be.
- [52:37]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [52:38]
Michael Chernow
People used to do this.
- [52:39]
Kim Strother
I know.
- [52:39]
Michael Chernow
You know, all the time, just be.
- [52:41]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [52:42]
Michael Chernow
Like, didn't have anything to stimulate themselves with. We are Living in a crazy time.
- [52:48]
Kim Strother
Yeah, for sure. I have to put my phone on do not disturb. And it's actually really funny because my best friend left me a voicemail this morning. Like, you're so rude. Sending me to voicemail. And I called her back. I'm like, no, cat, my phone's just on do not disturb. Because if it's on, I will not. I my Instagram, singing, email, text message. And I like, I can't function. And it's so crazy how addicted to our phones we are. And even coming here, like getting emails, walking in of, like, work stuff. And I have this, like, I get overwhelmed and this panic that there's not enough time to do all of it. And then I have to take a breath, put my phone on do not disturb. And I'm like, I will get to it. But really, like, the do not disturb is a game changer because I'm not hearing it or seeing notifications pop up. Because then once my phone is in my hand, I might look at an email, but then I'm like, oh, I have a message on Instagram.
- [53:44]
Michael Chernow
It's over.
- [53:45]
Kim Strother
Yeah, it's over. And then I'm scrolling and I'm like, what?
- [53:48]
Michael Chernow
Yeah. You're just.
- [53:49]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [53:51]
Michael Chernow
What? Does your. Do you have an evening wind down routine?
- [53:54]
Kim Strother
Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah, of course I do. Well, now that it's cold, I am back on my biomat, my higher dose biomat. In the summer. I kind of take a break from it just because, I don't know, I'm.
- [54:09]
Michael Chernow
Like, is that the emf? Whatever it is, yeah. Okay.
- [54:12]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [54:13]
Michael Chernow
What is it?
- [54:13]
Kim Strother
It's a pmf.
- [54:15]
Michael Chernow
Pmf?
- [54:15]
Kim Strother
Yes.
- [54:16]
Michael Chernow
I have one of those. I don't use it. I should pull it out.
- [54:18]
Kim Strother
Oh, I love it.
- [54:19]
Michael Chernow
Really?
- [54:19]
Kim Strother
It's also, like, heated and I feel like I'm always cold, so I just love laying on that thing. And I'll do my meditation in the winter. I do my meditation laying down on that mat at night. And I also do tea, but of course I have a new tea. It's called Detox by Rebecca. Don't know her. Just started drinking it like a month ago. And she's great. She's like a lymphatic drainage massage girl in la. But I'm loving her tea. Don't know you, Rebecca.
- [54:45]
Michael Chernow
Is it good tea?
- [54:46]
Kim Strother
It's great. And it's actually cool because it's not a tea bag. It's actually this, like, little, like, I don't even know, like, rectangle. And you just put it in hot water and it Dissolves. So there's no actual tea bag. It's very cool and funky. All the herbs. Yes. It's amazing. And there's a a.m. and p.m. so thanks to Rebecca, I now.
- [55:07]
Michael Chernow
Rebecca shout out.
- [55:09]
Kim Strother
I now have a detox tea at night. But again, with the way I've been feeling and with this mold presentation, I've been really big on detoxing as much as possible, but it used to just be.
- [55:22]
Michael Chernow
Do you use glutathione?
- [55:23]
Kim Strother
We need to talk about that because. Yes. And I was trying to take it in a, like a liquid form, which was disgusting.
- [55:33]
Michael Chernow
Liposomal. Because it doesn't taste very good.
- [55:35]
Kim Strother
Yeah, it's gross. But I also don't think I'm getting. I think my doctor recommended 2000. Like, I think it's like I use of glutathione in the morning and at night. First of all, you can't do that in pill form. You would be.
- [55:48]
Michael Chernow
You got it. You got to check out Row nutrition. Row Nutrition is my go to really love row nutrition. They make a. They make a great glutathione. They also make a liposomal NAD plus, which is really important for you and I. Yeah. I cannot do the NAD drips. I've tried. My body will not my body. Like, I feel like I'm going to implode when I've done it.
- [56:07]
Kim Strother
I've been scared to do them. Actually, my doctor recommended this like, Nadia patch that you put liquid on. But guess who had an allergic reaction to the patch.
- [56:16]
Michael Chernow
Oh, wow.
- [56:17]
Kim Strother
Me.
- [56:17]
Michael Chernow
No surprise.
- [56:18]
Kim Strother
I know. I'm like, really?
- [56:19]
Michael Chernow
Yeah. This company Row Nutrition, that I love, so they make. They make a bunch of liquid supplements, but I love the fact that it's a liposomal supplement. So it's kind of like they encapsulate the actual supplement in a membrane.
- [56:30]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [56:30]
Michael Chernow
That is. That essentially mimics our cells. Membranes.
- [56:34]
Kim Strother
Okay.
- [56:35]
Michael Chernow
So the cells actually absorb far more than you would then taking like a pill or like another form factor of the supplement. Obviously the drip is going to be the most potent.
- [56:46]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [56:47]
Michael Chernow
But not everybody can handle an NAD drip.
- [56:50]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [56:50]
Michael Chernow
I certainly can't. I felt like I was going to explode when I was used when I.
- [56:54]
Kim Strother
When I was doing it.
- [56:56]
Michael Chernow
And so this, the liposomal NAD plus is the shit. I love it. They make a great glutathione. It does not taste good, it does not smell good, but it's awesome.
- [57:06]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [57:06]
Michael Chernow
And then they also make something that's very powerful that I love is they make a curcumin and resveratrol blend.
- [57:13]
Kim Strother
Amazing.
- [57:14]
Michael Chernow
And it tastes really good. And so my morning cocktail every morning is like 20 ounces of water, the curcumin and resveratrol, the NAD plus and the glutathione.
- [57:24]
Kim Strother
Okay.
- [57:24]
Michael Chernow
And it's so good. It's like a really tasty drink. I add a little electrolytes to it.
- [57:29]
Kim Strother
That sounds great.
- [57:30]
Michael Chernow
It's so good. And I'm getting the nad, which.
- [57:32]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [57:33]
Michael Chernow
You know, and, and the glutathione. I mean, like, I mean, I could. You and I probably, you know, the amount of supplements and.
- [57:42]
Kim Strother
No, it's wild. I actually did like a clean out. My, my like yearly clean out last week. It was last week. And the amount of supplements, like I have a whole. I mean, it's wild. What?
- [57:55]
Michael Chernow
So, so let's get back to your, your evening routine. So you. So you get on the PM after.
- [58:00]
Kim Strother
Lay on my mat, do my meditation. I usually do like a little stretch. It's not at all like a full out yoga stretch, but it's a good stretch. And then I have my detox tea and I always say a prayer before I go to sleep.
- [58:15]
Michael Chernow
Beautiful. And do you have like a time that you like to go to bed?
- [58:18]
Kim Strother
You know, I am a night person. I am not a morning person. And so I am. I'm lucky if I'm in bed at 10. That's kind of like the earliest. But it's usually somewhere between 10 and 12. But I also don't have children, so I think that's where like it's your time to wind.
- [58:37]
Michael Chernow
It's your time to just chill and on and, and sort of decompress.
- [58:40]
Kim Strother
Yeah. And I'm not like waking up with, with children in the morning. So, like I go to bed a little, I skew a little later.
- [58:49]
Michael Chernow
Yeah.
- [58:49]
Kim Strother
Yeah.
- [58:50]
Michael Chernow
Look, this was fun as hell. I mean, I probably can sit here and talk to you until the cows come home.
- [58:56]
Kim Strother
I know. We didn't even talk about ozone therapy, which I've also been doing lately.
- [58:59]
Michael Chernow
Oh, have you been doing that?
- [59:01]
Kim Strother
I've done two sessions of it at.
- [59:03]
Michael Chernow
Where you've been doing it next.
- [59:04]
Kim Strother
I did. Well, I was teaching an event in Ibiza, so I did one there and it was crazy for. I was at the Six Senses and they have a longevity center there called the Rose Bar, and It's created by Dr. Mark Hyman. So they had ozone there. I did it there. And I was really not feeling great. I was also teaching three hit classes three days in a row in the morning. And I was like, whoa, I need to do something.
- [59:30]
Michael Chernow
So like the full on. They put it into your blood. The dialysis kind of thing.
- [59:34]
Kim Strother
Yes, exactly. So I did it there and I felt like for three days, I felt like I had like five shots of espresso. I. Wow. It was amazing. And then I came home and I'm now going to next health here and doing it. And here we're doing. Doing a 10 pass. So 10 times they take your blood out, they spin it with ozone, which O3, and then they. In future.
- [59:56]
Michael Chernow
Is that the HBO2 thing?
- [59:58]
Kim Strother
What is HBO to.
- [59:59]
Michael Chernow
HBO2 is like that on crack. So I worked with. And I had to stop going because, like, you, I was. I. There's a. There's a guy named doctor. He is like renowned Lyme specialist. Oh, no. His name is doctor. Oh, my God. How am I spacing his name? It starts with an S. Anyway, I was seeing him for a while.
- [60:22]
Kim Strother
Okay.
- [60:23]
Michael Chernow
He's got all the. All the newest contraptions. I was doing ozone with him for a while. I was doing ozone every two weeks. And then he had this thing called HBO2, which is very similar. They run your blood.
- [60:34]
Kim Strother
And is there one machine on this side and one machine on this side of you? Like, you've got two IVs.
- [60:38]
Michael Chernow
Yes, yes.
- [60:39]
Kim Strother
I feel like I was told. I thought it was called Eboo. Maybe I'm wrong.
- [60:43]
Michael Chernow
I think it's HBO 2.
- [60:44]
Kim Strother
It's probably that.
- [60:44]
Michael Chernow
Yeah. Yeah. But it's intense. But I would walk out of there and it was like four grand. Every time I go, it was like. I mean, it was so much money, and it was money to see him. It was money to get the treatments. And no insurance wants to cover any of this.
- [60:59]
Kim Strother
No.
- [60:59]
Michael Chernow
So I was like, you know what? Like, I can't do this anymore. This is just. It's going to bleed me dry, you know? Yeah. But he. It's not Dr. Speck. It's like Dr. I don't know.
- [61:09]
Vince Pittstick
He.
- [61:09]
Michael Chernow
He's. And he's one of these docs, though, that re. That understands it gets it all. All the symptoms. He doesn't even want to hear your symptoms anymore.
- [61:16]
Vince Pittstick
Right.
- [61:17]
Michael Chernow
He's this guy. He's like, don't even talk to me about your symptoms.
- [61:20]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [61:21]
Michael Chernow
He's like, you got symptoms. We all. We know, you know?
- [61:23]
Vince Pittstick
Like. Yeah.
- [61:24]
Michael Chernow
Which I kind of don't like because I kind of want somebody to be able to be like, oh, yeah. Well, that's probably that thing that I like about Vince.
- [61:30]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [61:31]
Michael Chernow
Is that Vince is like, oh, yeah, like that on your knuckles. And you have that all the Time. Like, that's psoriatic arthritis. That is what that is.
- [61:37]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [61:38]
Michael Chernow
You know, he's like, we could test for it. But, like, that is actually what it is. It's a common thing that comes from weakened immune systems through Lyme disease, blah, blah, blah.
- [61:46]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [61:46]
Michael Chernow
And I like that. I like being able to put a label on it, you know, because, like, when I put a label on it, I feel better about it.
- [61:52]
Vince Pittstick
Oh, my gosh.
- [61:52]
Kim Strother
I. Yes. I also want to know the steps for the. For what's. For this symptom, what we're doing. I. Yeah, yeah.
- [62:01]
Michael Chernow
You're the bomb. No, thank you. Thank you for coming.
- [62:05]
Kim Strother
Thank you. And, you know, if you're not feeling well, you know, to call, because I know.
- [62:10]
Michael Chernow
I. Look, I just think. I just think that. That, you know, having an episode like this in the. In the roster is. Is. I can always just point to this to people and be like, hey, like, if you're. People reach out to me, I'm gonna get an enormous amount of DMS and people reaching out to me because of this episode.
- [62:29]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [62:29]
Michael Chernow
And I'm gonna say, hey, by the way, like, make sure you save this. You know, like, when you're going through it and you feel alone and you feel like, just know that, like, Mikey and Kim are with you.
- [62:40]
Vince Pittstick
We are.
- [62:40]
Michael Chernow
You know what I mean? Like, we're right there with you. And, like, you're gonna. It's gonna pass. You know, like, who knows what the future looks like? Who cares? But, like, just know that, like, it's gonna pass. And then when. When you're not experiencing a flare up or you don't have any symptoms, like, just be grateful.
- [62:56]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [62:57]
Michael Chernow
You know, because the fact is, is, like, it's what. Is what it is.
- [63:01]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [63:01]
Michael Chernow
You know?
- [63:02]
Kim Strother
Yeah, Absolutely. It is. And it's like, I. Yeah. The days that I feel. Well, I am beyond grateful and, like, celebrate those days. I really do. But, yeah, I know that they're not every day. And that's. I mean, that's life in general.
- [63:19]
Michael Chernow
Right.
- [63:19]
Kim Strother
Like, we can't be happy all the time. And unfortunately, we have to apply that to our health sometimes.
- [63:26]
Michael Chernow
But one last thing. I saw that you recently, like, dove headfirst into Paleo.
- [63:33]
Kim Strother
Oh, yeah.
- [63:34]
Michael Chernow
And you're launching a. Like a Paleo program.
- [63:36]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [63:37]
Michael Chernow
Just give us a quick little rundown on that.
- [63:40]
Kim Strother
Yeah. I think for me, again, it was kind of against seeing Dr. Lipman and doing the Candida diet and then being super strict on it. I obviously couldn't live like that forever, but once I felt better, and started incorporating other food. I really adopted a Paleo lifestyle. So no sugar, no dairy, no grains, even honey. But I'm going to try your honey. And so, and for me it was the biggest game changer that I also felt like that I could do. And I'm not looking outside of myself to a doctor or someone. There's so much, we have so much control over our health and we don't even realize like we're often giving it away to doctors to try to fix when we can do so much for ourselves. And so me creating this program was really that. To give people a place that a roadmap, a foundation to build to come back to. And certainly if you're having any kind of chronic illness, I just ask, try for yourself because you are going to cut out sugar, dairy and grains which are inflammatory. That can make any kind of autoimmune, certainly Lyme, certainly Candida, worse. So pulling, dialing it back, pulling those things out and kind of having this as a reset. But then I really built it also as a lifestyle. It's certainly my lifestyle, lifestyle what works for me, but also making it sustainable and kind of adding in other things. So you're not just living on like green vegetables and.
- [65:05]
Michael Chernow
Yeah, I mean, look, I, I think the Paleo protocol for me is arguably the most sustainable.
- [65:14]
Kim Strother
Right.
- [65:15]
Michael Chernow
I add in meal one because for whatever reason, like that is the one meal that I can honestly say that I've been eating every single day that just does not with my stomach at all amazing like at all. And it sucks because sweet potatoes are like one of my all time favorite things to eat, but I just simply can't eat them.
- [65:33]
Kim Strother
Damn onions, garlic, forget it.
- [65:35]
Michael Chernow
Can eat.
- [65:36]
Kim Strother
Can't eat them.
- [65:37]
Michael Chernow
It really sucks. It blows. Like I just can't do it.
- [65:39]
Kim Strother
I Swell. I had a girlfriend make a salad once and she used a garlic paste in the salad dressing.
- [65:46]
Michael Chernow
Crushed you?
- [65:47]
Kim Strother
No, no. I went to the bathroom and I looked in the mirror and I was like, this must be a fat mirror. Because I was like, it had to be. It wasn't me. I was like, what? Like my face was so swollen. And when I went to leave her house, I went to put my shoes on and I was like, oh my God, no. Looked at my hands, couldn't get my shoes on. It was I. Garlic and onions. We. We do not.
- [66:12]
Michael Chernow
Yeah, me neither. And it sucks because I used to love garlic and onions. I mean, I worked at an amazing Italian restaurant in the East Village for years and they had the best mussels marinara ever I miss mussels. Mussels and. And garlic and. Just beautiful, just delicious. And I loved eating it, and now I just can't eat it. It sucks.
- [66:29]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [66:30]
Michael Chernow
But Vince is telling me that he's going to get me back to snuff with. Be able to eat anything.
- [66:33]
Kim Strother
I need to talk to Vince.
- [66:34]
Michael Chernow
I'm going to put. I'm going to hook you up with Vince stat, as soon as we're. As soon as we're done with this when I get on the train.
- [66:39]
Kim Strother
Okay.
- [66:40]
Michael Chernow
I'm going to. I'm going to intro you to Vince. You're amazing. I've said that a bunch of times, but I really do feel. I feel like you're like. Like a sister.
- [66:47]
Kim Strother
I was going to say you feel like a brother.
- [66:49]
Michael Chernow
You know, it's just. It's special to be able to have people that you can actually connect with and believe are like, got your back on this thing. It's just nice to have that.
- [67:01]
Vince Pittstick
Yeah.
- [67:01]
Michael Chernow
You know, Absolutely. So thank you. Where can people follow your journey?
- [67:06]
Kim Strother
Oh, my gosh. Probably the most on my Instagram, which is just at Kim Strother. And my website is Kim strother.com, which has all of my offerings. So those two places.
- [67:17]
Michael Chernow
Well, not your traditional creatures of habit episode here, ladies and gents, boys and girls, and everyone in between. This was a. A real deep dive in the journeys that Kim Strother and I have had in this sort of battle against autoimmune stuff. It's a real thing. A lot of people, I think 1 in 3 people in the United States of America, or 1 in 4 people in the United States of America struggle with chronic illness. And typically it's autoimmune. And a lot of it has to do with our environment and the things that we put into our body. The water we drink, the food that we eat, the air that we breathe. It's a real thing. And I'm not a fatalist in any way, shape or form. I'm actually a complete optimist. Like, I've got this and I'm positive about it, even though it sucks. It's a. Just a. It's a. It's sort of a metaphor for life. Right. Like, I'm 1 in 400 trillion chance that you become human. That's for real. That's like a real stat, apparently. Well, Gary Vaynerchuk said it, so I believe it. But something like that, it's like a real thing, right? Like 1 in 400 million or trillion for real that you've made it here. You're alive. You get to experience this awesome thing, and it's not tiptoeing in the tulips all the time. And sometimes, you know, you're really. You're down and you're. You're trudging the mud, and that's fucking okay too, you know, it just is there. You got to be grateful for the sun. And when the sun goes down, hunker down by the fireplace because it's going to be cold and dark. I love you guys. I really. If this episode resonated with you, if you heard something here that, or you know, somebody that this would resonate with some of you, someone that you love, someone that you care about, someone that you know is struggling with some of this stuff, it might not be for you, but if you've listened this long, hell yeah. Congratulations, you've made it through. Pass this podcast along to somebody who you think would appreciate it. That is really what I ask you guys to, to pay me with is sharing the pod. And again, if you're feeling super generous and you want to hook Mikey C up, give the guy a five star rating and write a review. Do me a solid. Don't write a negative review. Shoot me a DM if you want to tell me I suck and I'm happy to respond there. Don't write a negative review. And anything less than a five star rating would be not appreciated. So don't be generous that way. Be generous in the positive way. And then I love you. And yeah, I love doing this podcast. So, you know, it helps the podcast grow. It really does. The only way the podcast grows, as a matter of fact. Uh, so if you love this one, hook a brother up. And you guys know how much I love and appreciate you. You know how much I love doing this podcast. I have not missed a week of podcasting in almost five years. Holy smokes. Yeah. 2019.
- [70:19]
E
And there you have it, folks. I hope we delivered some valuable content for you to implement into your life on a daily basis. Please remember that our habits have the power to make us or break us. Replacing bad habits with great ones is the answer to living a life of happiness, optimism, and high performance. We are capable of achieving anything. We all have what it takes to.
- [70:45]
Michael Chernow
Give it all we've got.
- [70:47]
E
Commit to one great habit each day and truly commit and watch how everything in your life starts evolving from good to. To great. If you enjoyed this podcast, please follow us. Wherever you listen to your podcast, give us a five star rating and a nice review that will help us grow this podcast. Bring on more amazing guests and continue to deliver invaluable content on a weekly basis. Lastly, please share this podcast with any friends or family that you think might appreciate it. And always remember, want plus do equals have have until the next one fam Peace.