A Business Built on Burnout
My journey into the world of plant-based food started on an empty tank. I had just hit my burnout after 25 years in teaching during which I had been so busy supporting everyone else’s wellbeing that I completely lost sight of my own. I had reached that state of complete mental, physical and emotional exhaustion which characterises burnout and for those of you who’ve been there, you’ll understand what I mean when I say it's a dark and lonely place. It marked the end of my teaching career and, although I didn’t know it at the time, initiated a chain of events which would take me from burnout to business.
As I started down the long road to recovery (and make no mistake, it’s a long, hard road) I realised that I had to focus on the things which were within my control and that meant making choices and taking action to prioritise my wellbeing. I have always, when anything has been off balance in my body, looked to my diet first because what we eat is just so intrinsically linked to how we feel and so that became my starting point. What I needed was simple: to focus on the foods which would nourish me from within and support my journey to wellness.
I was no stranger to researching food and nutrition having been passionate about both all my life but this time the stakes were higher. It was no longer all about pleasure or the best diet to drop a dress size; this time it was all about health. I was using food as medicine. The more I read up about it the more I found myself being pointed back to the world of plants: nature’s healers. Wholefood plant-based diets were universally identified as the forerunner in the world of nutrition for disease prevention, disease reversal, longevity, optimum nutrition and optimum performance. The research was compelling and I became obsessed.
Thanks to my Mum who was ahead of her time when it came to slow food over fast food and natural over processed, I had a strong grounding in wholefood-based cooking and the joy of plants on my plate. She had drummed into us the benefits of eating all our fruit and vegetables to get the vitamins, minerals and nutrients we needed to keep us strong and well. We helped her carry pail after pail of water up and down the stairs in the days before we had a hose pipe to feed her veggie garden, thrilled to see each small crop find its way from patch to plate. It was magic. Plants were magic. As I found myself knee deep in books about plant-based nutrition post-burnout, I realised I was merging new-found knowledge with that long-lost sense of wonder. It grounded me and thrilled me all at once.
In the pursuit of wellness I soon became my own living experiment. My diet became completely wholefood-based, plant-based and nutrient dense which meant it was high in antioxidants, anti-inflammatories and immune boosting vitamins and minerals. I knew I was nourishing my body with the good stuff and protecting my brain from the oxidative stress and free radicals found in so many processed foods which would have played havoc with my cognition and mental clarity at a time when I was fighting to improve both. I felt the benefits almost immediately with better sleep, more energy and less brain fog and I started to get a sense of control back which in itself was such an important part of the recovery process. Unbeknown to me at the time, I had also just planted the seed of a new business, even if the details hadn’t fully taken shape in my mind.
My research around the benefits of plant-based food for personal and planetary wellbeing began to inspire and motivate my creativity. I used my passion for cooking to develop new recipes, experimenting with different ingredients based on their nutritional value and exploring what I later came to call my four pillars of creative plant-based cooking: colour, flavour, texture and fragrance. Learning about food photography was next as I delved into ways to illustrate the joys of this new way of eating and thinking about food. I became passionate about changing perceptions around vegan food, sharing ways we could all include more plant-based food in our diets, regardless of our starting point. I was determined to prove that plant-based food could be nutritious and delicious and that we didn’t have to take an all or nothing approach to enjoy the benefits.
The biggest surprise in all of this however, was how my relationship with food changed. I started to feel good about food in a whole new way. I was eating for health, I was eating for happiness and I was eating for the environment. It was a win-win. I knew if I could feel that way and reap the countless benefits of bringing more plants into my life then so could others. ‘Feel Good About Food’ went on to become the motivation and the mission behind Barefaced Food.
When I started on the road to recovery I had no idea that my burnout would lead to a business; sometimes difficult paths can take us to beautiful places. At that time (2019) there was very little talk of burnout, in fact it had only just been defined by the World Health Organisation, so there was scarce support if any. What I very quickly realised was that I had to take my recovery into my own hands and control what it was within my power to control, diet being just one of those things. I couldn’t change the external factors which had contributed to my burnout - the people, the systems, the pressures and so on – but I could control how I moved on from that point and I could share what I’d learned to support other people experiencing burnout.
So for anyone in that position right now and looking to take control of their diet to support recovery, my top tips for getting more plants on your plate are as follows:
Slow and steady wins the race here – find your balance one meal at a time
Start to eat with purpose – make health your goal (this is not the time to worry about dress size)
Think in terms of whole foods – the benefits come not only from reducing meat and dairy and increasing plants but from ditching sugars, unhealthy carbs and refined products too
Experiment with colour, flavour, texture, fragrance – start to engage your senses again and see food in a whole new way
Build in some prep time to help you stay on track - it’s self-care time which pays big dividends
You can find some of my recipes here to help you get started on your plant-based journey or simply to inspire new meal ideas. Whether you eat plant-based once a week or all the time every step counts on the journey to wellbeing. Small efforts over time can have a big impact and hopefully with every step you take you can start to feel good about food again too.
