Saturday, December 24, 2011

The Awakening



“The Awakening”- 
Cathy Harris Health Testimony

Many people ask me how did I get started as a "Natural and Holistic Health Healer" and "National Non-GMO Health and Wellness Expert". My response is read my health testimony below, which is also the preface of my first health book, "How To Take Control of Your Own Life: A Self-Help Guide To Becoming Healthier Over the Next 30 Days" (Series 3)

In the movie, “The Wizard of Oz,” Dorothy had the power to go back home the entire time. Just like Dorothy, you have the power to heal your body and save your own life. I could have named my health testimony “The Eleventh Hour,” “Second Chances,” “How To Save Your Ownself,” “The Power Within,” however, I chose to name it "The Awakening." 

After reading this testimony you must understand that doctors in this country are in bed with the pharmaceutical industry and their only goal is to keep people sick because it is “Big Business.” When you go into a doctor’s office, in the 2 to 5 minutes that they spend with you, their only goal is to write you a prescription and that’s it. Then they will tell you to come back in one to two weeks and chances are they will try to give you more medications.

But by then you will probably experience some type of allergic reaction or side effect from the first medication and before you know it – it’s 30 days later and you have been on 3 or 4 different medications….and the cycle continues…

I never dreamed that one day I would write a health book but when you have a testimony as important as mine -- it needs to be told.  The book is entitled “How To Take Control of Your Own Life: ASelf-Help Guide to Becoming Healthier Over the Next 30 Days” (Series 3). If you have been feeling sick, sluggish and run-down or suffering from some debilitating illness, chances are “YOU” are the cause and “YOU” will have to be the cure.

The book will educate you on successful steps to Eliminate Genetically Modified/Engineered/Altered foods from your diet; How to rejuvenate and re-energize your body through regular detoxification programs; How to clean up your environment and recover the energy and vitality you had from 10 to 15 years ago; How to bring down your numbers in 6 months (weight, cholesterol, blood pressure, blood glucose, triglycerides, etc.); How to build a strong immune system and reach your maximum level of health and enhance your quality of life.

After reading my health testimony, there are three steps you must do ASAP to save yourself and the ones that you truly love: 1) Gain more information by reading the entire book as soon as possible; 2) Surround yourself with the natural and holistic community, and 3) for many choose careers in natural and holistic healing.  

I don’t care where you are at in your life at this time and what you are trying to accomplish -- “You Can’t Be Wealthy if You are Not Healthy” so always put your health first.

My Health Testimony:

We all have significant times in our lives that we will never forget. For me it was 2007, when both my daughters graduated with Master’s Degrees. This had to be the most proudest moment of my life, next to giving birth to both of them.

However, it was the same year that I had to say good-bye to two of my dearest friends. A few months after I lost two of my best friends to cancer, I set out on a journey to educate myself about the disease and how to stop it from taking other people that I deeply cared about. 

I eventually discovered that most people had no idea what was going on when it came to their health. Many of us push our own health problems to the background and we engage in overwhelming activities in order to help and assist others. But you can’t help others, unless you help your ownself, so your motto should be “Self, Family and Community.”

During the time when my friends died, I had no idea that my life too would become a struggle to survive. When I turned 50 years old, it should have been the best time of my life but my body gave out on me. It totally shut down and I eventually became housebound and then bed-ridden. 

My mom had lived until the ripe old age of 82 and so had her mom. But why had I met such a different fate? I thought about all the things I still wanted to do with my life – the places I wanted to go, the people I wanted to see, and the legacies I still wanted to leave to my grandkids and their kids. It was all now too late for me, “I thought.” 

The thought of it all being over was very agonizing. I literally thought I was dying. I knew that people had come back from illnesses and diseases and went on to do great things with their lives but because the pain was so excruciating, I knew it would not be my story.

My book is not just about cancer but it’s about every disease and illness in America and how diseases and illnesses are formed in the first place. After my friend’s death, I soon learned that cancer deaths and many other diseases are not only preventable but they are also curable.

After my second friend died, I too fell ill. For weeks I had noticed a feeling of sluggishness as my energy slowly drained from my body. I soon noticed I had stopped going out of the house and was eventually becoming housebound.

At first I thought my energy decrease and feeling of sluggishness was about my friends. I thought I was grieving!  But after the New Year rolled around, I knew it was much more than just grieving for my friends. I was convinced that I was heading on some type of collision course with some type of illness or disease, which would eventually take my life like my friends.

The pain started off as a small uncomfortable pain that went from my lower back to my stomach area down to my knees. Simple things such as going for my daily power walks and mopping the floor became hard to do because of the back pain. Over time, it had become an excruciating pain, which lasted for up to 5 to 6 hours a day -- everyday.

Being a person with a low tolerance for pain, I quickly sought out help from 6 doctors including 2 specialists. For weeks, I pulled myself out of my home and went to these doctors and specialists waiting to hear the bad news that it was too late for me. 

The daily pain was so bad, it did not matter if I stood up or laid down, there was no stopping this excruciating pain. I could have easily called an ambulance to be taken to the hospital but what good would that do?  I was already seeing all these health professionals, who were telling me over and over that I was fine – that there was nothing wrong with me.

Everyday when I got out of bed, my only goal was to get back in bed so during this time, I almost became bed-ridden. Not only was I too dizzy to go for my daily walks but getting in and out of the bathtub also proved to be a challenge. As the pain continued to grow, the health professionals relayed to me that all my tests – still proved negative for any type of illness or disease. 

When the last health professional, an OB GYN Specialist, stated that I was fine with no signs of cancer or anything to be concerned about, I could have literally jumped out of the chair because the pain was so terrible. I could not believe it! I just wanted an answer to what was happening to me and my body. 

After the last doctor’s visit, I went home and really reevaluated what was happening to me. I decided right then and there -- that if I was going to stop this pain inside of me and save my life, then it would strictly be up to me. The medical profession had failed me. Doctors with degrees and a lifetime of cures for others could not figure out what was wrong with me. They could not stop the excruciating pain! All I wanted was for the suffering to stop!

Next, I sat down at the computer and went on Amazon.com, where I usually ordered books to conduct research on certain topics that I wanted to know more about. Had I not been such a good researcher, I know for a fact that I probably would not be here today.

I then ordered over 100 books at one sitting. I wanted answers! And I wanted them fast – before it was too late. I wanted to save my life but I was not sure I could do it. I ordered books on “How the Body Works; Exercising; Nutrition; Raw Foods, Organic Foods, Processed Foods; Cancer; Diseases; Parasites, Heavy Metals; Toxic Body, etc.” I also bought books from local bookstores and checked out tons of health books from the health and fitness section in several local community libraries. 

I was on a race against time and if I did not act as soon as possible, it would be too late for me. With the last bit of energy draining from my body, I knew I was at the “eleventh hour” of my situation. So I shut down and read the books. If the books could not tell me what to do, then I needed to prepare myself and my family because my life would be over at the age of 50.  

As I read the books, I took breaks and went through all my personal belongings, got my will in order and organized everything – in case these were the last days of my life. I did not want to leave a mess for my daughters who lived up north, just in case they had to come back to claim my body. At the time I ran a business, which I had to close down until I recuperated. 

While reading the books the information was all the same. The first step the books told me to do was to take myself off all processed foods (anything in boxes, cans, packages, jars, etc.- any foods that have been altered) and eat only fresh, raw, organic foods in as natural forms as possible – juiced, blended, or steamed, especially green foods, which builds your body.

So I went out and bought a juicer, blender and steamer. Then I learned how important it is to eat antioxidants, which helps regenerate your cells, and decreases your chances of coming down with cancer and other diseases. These are the blue, purple, red, orange and yellow foods, which should also be eaten in as natural forms as possible.

For a person who had eaten cooked foods her whole life, it was a hard transition but I knew I had to do it to save my life. I found a neighborhood farmer’s market and went “cold turkey” off all processed foods. I juiced, blended or steamed at least 80% of what I ate daily. 

The next step after taking myself off processed foods was to start having at least 2 to 3 easy bowel movements everyday because “Your Health Begins in Your Colon.” I quickly found out that if you have a toxic bowel, it could cause pain to show up in any area of your body. 

As I looked in the mirror daily, I saw how dull my face looked – with no glow or shine in it like it had in the past. My body had changed right before my eyes. My gums and fingernails had turned totally black and a nurse, who I met in a store, not a medical doctor, had commented by looking at them -- that I had heavy metals in my body. As I read more about heavy metals in the body, it just all made sense that that was one of the things that was happening to my body.

I also read that pH balance meant that my body was really toxic and the only way to get rid of the toxicity was to clean out my organs starting with your colon, liver and kidneys, which are the detoxification organs of the entire body. 

I realized that the body products (soaps, lotions, perfumes, etc.) and cleaning products that I was using in my home was extremely toxic and the way that toxins enters your body was through the air you breathe, the water you drink and the food you eat.

I then realized that walking everyday and breathing in toxic car fumes, which are also toxins that contains heavy metals, had also contributed to my body shutting down so I found a park to walk in. To give me more workout options, I joined a fitness gym again and realized when I sat in the sauna in the past, I had always felt better afterwards. At that time I did not realize I was actually releasing toxins from my body.  

I learned that I had been drinking the wrong type of water all these years and thought back about the summer the doctor diagnosed me on 5 different occasions with being dehydrated. Even though he told me I was dehydrated and that I was drinking the wrong type of water, the doctor never told me what type to drink because he did not know the answer. 

I had to self-diagnose my ownself and save my own life and eventually came to the conclusion that I had "heavy metal poisoning", which also caused me to have daily nose bleeds, chronic dehydration, chronic yeast overgrowth, and toxins, which was mostly caused by eating Genetically Modified Organisms or GMOs in processed foods, living in a toxic environment and putting toxic products on my body.

When I cleaned up my diet and bought natural products to clean with and to use on my body, the pain started subsiding and disappearing. I began to get more energy to conduct even more research and I even started back walking again. I felt I was on to something. It was like some type of “Awakening” and I was actually healing my own body. 

I realized right then and there that my life would be forever changed because I realized something that most people in this country will never realize, that doctors did not know everything and had very little training or knowledge on health and nutrition.

After taking the steps mentioned in the books that I read, which are also mentioned in my health book, after 30 days the pain was down to a few minutes instead of a few hours and the glow to my skin and fingernails returned slowly along with my energy. Then I found a health food store with a good colon, liver, kidney and heavy metal detox and took each detox 'back-to-back' for an entire year and the rest is history.

Remember a symptom can never disappear if you don’t remove the original cause. So I had to get to the root of the pain. It just all made sense why my body shut down on me at the age of 50. No one can get away with eating and drinking anything they want just because it tastes good – even if they are young. Just like no one can get away with using toxic cleaning or toxic body products in their homes. Eventually there will be repercussions for your choices.   

At some point we have to take responsibility for our health and well-being. But you have to do it before your body shut down on you. You have to do it before it is too late! Eventually it will all catch up to you and that is what happened to me. I remembered how I had partied in my 20s, lived and worked in toxic environments in my 30s and 40s, which all had contributed to my body shutting down when I turned 50.

The newfound information was a godsend to me. I was already exercising, but my new way of eating has completely transformed my life, physically, mentally and spiritually. For those of you who have totally put yourself in the hands of your doctors or if you want to rejuvenate or renew your life – before it’s too late, then you need to read my story, my health testimony, and take the 12 steps in the 12 chapters of my book.

The name again of my health book is "How To TakeControl of Your Own Life: A Self-Help Guide to Becoming Healthier Over the Next 30 Days" (Series 3), which is my living testimony about how you can heal your ownself and save your own life and I am living proof of that.

Cathy Harris is an Empowerment and Motivational Speaker, Non-GMO Health and Wellness Expert, Self-Publishing and Business Coach, and the author of over 26 non-fiction books, including 6 books on health. Her books covers topics on family and community empowerment, health, youth and adult entrepreneurship, writing/publishing, workplace discrimination (sexism, sexual harassment, sex and race discrimination), whistleblowing, law enforcement, government, domestic and international traveling, politics, media, beauty/self-esteem, car buying and selling for women, aging/retirement - just to name a few. Her books and articles are full of ‘content-rich’ material to help anyone get back into the driver’s seat and are available at http://www.AngelsPress.com. She is available for seminars, workshops, webinars and coaching at http://www.CathyHarrisInternational.com

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

The 2nd Act: How To Create the Life That You Love

Welcome to “The 2nd Act” in my life.  As the curtains roll down on “The 2nd Act,” this is the time for me to create the type of life that I love and appreciate.  Not that I have not had a good life so far – it is simply time to do the things that I truly love and enjoy.

To me life is like a play with 3 acts.  The 3rd Act which I have yet to reach is about fully preparing for my "Golden Years." The 1st Act was long - it was hard but I made it. 

I had to work through many difficulties and issues but I count my blessings every day to see my family, especially my daughters bloom into the type of ethical and strong women that I can be proud of.

As I said in my last blog post, if I was still in the workplace, I would have been retiring this year. So now more than ever, I am creating the life that I love as I go into “The 2nd Act” of my life.

In “The 2nd Act” -- it’s about doing the things that I love foremost to me.  It’s time to appreciate the little things in life such as the wind blowing against my face; being able to get on a plane and fly across the country to say hello to a friend I haven’t seen in a couple of years; or getting in my car and driving down to Florida just to smell the ocean. 

The 2nd Act means setting very few alarm clocks.  Some days it means rising at the break of dawn and going to bed when the sun goes down – it just means “calling the shots” in a well-deserved life.

It means getting back to basics and living a natural and holistic lifestyle while I cut out all the toxic things in my life.  For me it wasn’t such a hard reach especially after seeing several friends and acquaintances succumb to a toxic world of illnesses and diseases that could have been prevented.

My 2nd Act means getting back to my first love which is “writing.” However, for years photography was my passion and hobby.  I grew up in a household where my family often took pictures of everyone and how I longed to be the one looking through the lens of a camera.

Photography was a way of looking back on my life and recording it.  It kept me focused on all my dreams and desires.  Even though I took mostly pictures of people over the years and have tons of memories – I thought seriously at one time about becoming a “landscape photographer.”

Even after loving photography for many years, I still had another love and that was for “greeting cards.”  My co-workers even had a nickname for me “Ms. Hallmark.” No matter the occasion – birthday, goodbye, marriage, sickness, death…I always had a stack of greeting cards to share with everyone in the office.

Even though I loved photography and even after taking a couple of classes, I eventually realized that I could change the world by writing a series of non-fiction empowerment books.  In 2001, I wrote my first book “Flying While Black: A Whistleblower’s Story” and that is when I realized I was destined to be a “writer.”

The 2nd Act means seeing myself in the mirror and being true to myself --while I am true to others. This is why I created a line of action-oriented self-help and reference books that solves many of the problems in the community.  The books are located at www.AngelsPress.com.

What does your 1st and 2nd Act mean to you?  Everyone should look at what is happening in the world -- all the turmoil today and count their blessings and realize they still have a chance to create the type of life they love.  If you are still breathing then it’s not too late.  Despite what other people tell you –it’s never too late!
  • When you are 30 years old you have 80% of your productive life left ahead of you.
  • When you are 40 years old you have 60% of your productive life left ahead of you.
  • When you are 50 years old you have 40% of your productive life left ahead of you.
What you need to realize is the reason the world is turned upside down right now is so you can figure out your place in it.   What can make you happy at this point in your life? 

Are you in the right relationship - living in the right city - working in the right career?  What career would you have been in if you weren't in your current career?

At some time in our lives, we are going to have a desire to change careers.  Many people change careers for reasons such as more money, more time with family, because of the failing economy.  No matter what the reason, it’s possible to create the type of life that you love.

Creating the type of life that you love can simply mean getting back to basics and starting from scratch again. The goal is to be true to “yourself” – don’t waste your time – or your life. 

If everyone got back to their first love and did the things that they really enjoyed doing with their life -- it would be such a better world.  People would be more happy and healthy which brings a greater sense of well-being.  Are you up for the challenge?




Saturday, October 22, 2011

“Team Cathy” aka “Project Me”


Don't you just love this time of the year when it cools off and the leaves turn brown and falls off the trees...October was a beautiful month for me.  On the 6th –it was my birthday.  It was also the “13th Year Anniversary” of my empowerment e-newsletter and I am preparing to re-release my story in not --one -- but two books. 

Since I had so much to celebrate, I also took some time out to meditate and think about my life and the direction that I was headed in.

One of my new goals will be to build a new audience who will enjoy reading my line of empowerment books.

I named this blog “Team Cathy” and “Project Me”…because I clearly realize for the first time in my life…it’s time for me… 

As I watched Oprah's interview on Facebook.com a few weeks ago, after ending her 25 year show on T.V., she said she was torn between "Relaxing" or "Starting Her Own Network -- Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN)."

I guess you can say I felt the same way.  After spending a majority of my time running an empowerment company (6 years) with a large weekly --then bi-weekly national and international e-newsletter for over 13 years, I opted to close it down –the e-newsletter not my business.

I am announcing that I am no longer in the news business but instead I will continue in the empowerment business...It’s been extremely hard not to pick up the articles  or stories on worldwide events and send them throughout the internet.  But that’s where “self-discipline” and “will power” comes in.

To help you live even a more purposeful life, I ask each of you who followed me for years in my e-newsletter to follow me on my new journey (Team Cathy) by continuing to sign up your family members, friends, neighbors and colleagues to my blog at http://CathyHudson-Harris.blogspot.com and my company’s mailing list at www.AngelsPress.com while you support all the new releases of my books and articles.

Like Oprah I was torn between "Relaxing" and "Continuing to Build My Business."   Some people might say I just needed a vacation…or rest…maybe…but when you know things are not working in your life…it’s time to move into another direction. 

I initially created the e-newsletter to expose the U.S. Customs Service which led to me becoming a nationally recognized federal whistleblower in Oct. 1999 (www.TheCathyHarrisStory.com).  Other reasons I started the e-newsletter was to bring people together with like causes and passions.  After starting my business 6 years ago the e-newsletter helped me market my business.  Because I achieved those things, I felt it was just time to move on.

As I take some time away from my business, I realized the natural sync of things should be SELF, FAMILY, and COMMUNITY.  But did I lose myself by trying to help others by publishing this free e-newsletter for so long…maybe…maybe not… But one thing I know for sure, I have lost too many friends to illnesses and diseases simply because they put the community before themselves and their families.  I “won't” and “can't” make that same mistake!


If I had stayed in the workplace in 2005 and not retired at the age of 48 after winning my workplace lawsuit, I would have been retiring this year, 2011, which made it extremely important for me to sit back and reevaluate my life this year.  

I will never forget the day after I retired.  A year earlier I had started to read books on how to build my business and because of my passion for the community, I jumped knee deep into my empowerment business, Angels Press (www.AngelsPress.com). 

I could have easily published my books “The Cathy Harris Story: A Whistleblower’s Victorious Journey to Justice” (www.TheCathyHarrisStory.com) and “The Failure of Homeland In-Security: Dirty Little Secrets from An Insider” -- through my own company but since I had recently left the workplace, the books were still too painful to complete.  

Because of my love for the community I presented to them "How To Take Control of Your Own Life” (www.AngelsPress.com) a 3-part empowerment book series to help everyone take control of their own lives.   So no one should ever doubt my love for the community!

I grew up loving to read.  Back then I read mostly magazines -- Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Shape, Prevention, Ebony, Jet, etc.  Somehow I knew I also had what it took to write these content-rich articles that appeared in these magazines.  I did not get started reading non-fiction books until about 15 years ago.  Because non-fiction books have the power to save you time, money and improve your life, I knew I too wanted to write these types of books.  

My first non-fiction book came out in 2001, “Flying While Black: A Whistleblower’s Story” through another publishing company.   It was so therapeutic for me to write that book because of the issues I was facing in the workplace.  My two upcoming books “The Cathy Harris Story” and “The Failure of Homeland In-Security” which tell my story are actually revised and updated versions of “Flying While Black.” 

I will never forget how being able to articulate myself in writing literally helped me challenge my managers and supervisors in the workplace when I went through 10 years of workplace abuse.  The fact that I was able to document my entire 10 EEO complaints including a Sexual Harassment and Whistleblower case is what made me successful.

Everyone has a book inside of them but for me…it was always about moving into the universe and helping others through my writings.  When I get to the end of my life I want to be remembered for my writings…my books and articles which has the power to educate, inform and empower many on how to take control of their own lives --because after all “The Pen is Mightier Than the Sword!”

As I continue to run my company, Angels Press, (www.AngelsPress.com), you can still find me posting on my empowerment blogs -- “Health Blog” http://nongmohealthmovement.blogspot.com  “Business Blog” http://theethicalblackbusinesscoach.blogspot.com and “Workplace Blog” at http://cathyharris-workplace.blogspot.com

You can also find me on twitter.com, facebook.com, linkedin.com, yahoogroups.com, ning.com or email info@angelspress.com or info@cathyharrisspeaks.com.

Most of all don’t forget to look for and read my line of empowerment books at www.AngelsPress.com and seminars and workshops at www.CathyHarrisSpeaks.com.

As I have had time to think about the next journey of my life, I do want to thank everyone for wishing me well in my future endeavors...

As I watch Oprah’s new shows and plan the next phase of my life, I am so glad she decided to move forward with her network.  It is absolutely awesome!  Hopefully, my next endeavors will be just as empowering as hers.  Stay tuned!