MY STORY

Hey, Maggie here...

On Nov. 24, 2007, I survived a near-fatal car wreck.
And over a period of 7 years, I slowly researched and worked to heal myself, determined to get to a place that left me better than before I was injured. I did this because after the medical system saved my life, it gave little to go on in terms of actually healing my body.

The night of my accident, I flew home to Nova Scotia, Canada, to see my dad, but I never made it to my house. I was driving home from the airport when a drunk driver crossed into my lane and hit me head-on.

In the years that followed, I learned that it takes more than a good doctor or pharmaceutical drugs to fully recover and feel completely well again.

I know what it's like to feel broken, like a part of me was lost, to feel like my body, and perhaps my spirit, would never be whole again. I know how it feels to hate my scars and like the grief and tears would never end. I didn't know what to do to make anything better or how to stop my heart from breaking, let alone actually "get better." One of my doctors even looked me in the eye and told me that I would never get 100% better.

But by discovering the right wellness tools, I did get better.

My accident almost killed me. I had to be resuscitated in the ambulance. I had suffered a severe traumatic brain injury that put me in a coma with a score of 3 on the Glasgow Coma Scale , which is least responsive you can be without being dead.
I broke 14 bones all at once.  

When I was finally discharged from the hospital after 3 months, my injuries were still glaring. Scars covered my body, my speech and comprehension were slow, I was perpetually tired... 
But despite the brain injury, I knew that I wasn't myself and this wasn't how I wanted to live.
I was desperate to feel like myself again and being merely "functional" or settling for “good enough” felt unacceptable.

I believe that we can "always find a way" no matter the challenges we face, so I found my way to heal. Movement helped my neuro-pathways reconnect. Mindfulness helped me tune in to what my body truly needed.

Nutrition was key to supporting my body as it devoted every internal resource to my healing.

The three pillars of my Whole Healthy healing journey (movement, mindfulness, and nutrition), and my first pregnancy along with the birth of my son, healed the remaining symptoms from my brain injury, and those experiences led me to my passion of helping you.

After my accident, healing myself was like a mission.  I had a laser focus on getting 110% better because I was determined to end up better than before I got hurt. But I was still told that if I ever had kids, it would likely be a high-risk pregnancy, and I should probably opt for a C-section.
This was NOT the birth experience I wanted.
I was so SICK of surgeries.
But having healthy babies was all that mattered to me when I was considering my options.

Then I got pregnant and I had to face this as a very real possibility.
When my husband and I finally felt ready to try for a baby, I happily got pregnant easily and I started my search for an OB (I knew I wanted a doctor instead of a midwife JUST IN CASE I had complications from my multitude of injuries).
After researching many doctors who seemed “fine,” I found a very supportive, holistic, skilled OB/GYN who believes in the power of birth, and helping moms have the birth that they want. Knowing how vital mind-body wellness had been to my recovery, seeing this doctor’s approach and support of birth made my choice a no-brainer.
Then I sought out all the prenatal care, education, and support I could afford to help me have the pregnancy and birth experience I so desperately wanted.

I started prenatal yoga, chiropractic, massage, hired a doula, and took as many birth classes as I had time for, covering what to expect with a hospital birth, how to breastfeed, newborn care, and Hypnobirthing.

As a result, I learned to trust my body and my baby. I had a pregnancy with some mild aches and pain, but no complications and with the help of the incredible team of birth educators and holistic care at Cap Wellness Center in Encinitas, CA and the Birth Education Center in San Diego, I had a completely unmedicated hospital birth. It wasn’t perfect, but it was really good and exactly the healing experience I needed.

I wasn’t broken, I was powerful.

Now that I'm a mom, making sure my health is at its best is a necessity, and after everything I went through, I also need it to be simple. I'm guessing you do too!

Whole Healthy Mama is for you. I am passionate about supporting you in your pregnancy, and throughout your life as a mom.

LET’S WORK TOGETHER!

Read my PROFESSIONAL BIO here.