Choosing Better Options – Part 3

Major life events tend to change your life’s course for good; if we allow them to.

Trust me, I have OFTEN thought, “God, is there a better way for me to learn this lesson? Is there a better option than cancer? Heart failure? Saying goodbye to my dad who had ALS?” In my human mind, I’d like to think I’ve got it figured out, but I should know by now, my plans are rarely God’s plans. And that is such the case with my health journey as well.

If you’ve been following along, you may have seen my posts about “Choosing Better” and our “Better Food Choices“. Notice that I use the word BETTER because in this sin-filled world, we will never reach perfection and that is EXACTLY what I want you to keep in mind as you follow along. I am NOT saying that this is what you HAVE to do. I just have felt compelled to share what God has taught us through my health journey in hopes that maybe someone else will be encouraged to make one small change in their life as well.

After sharing about different food swaps we’ve made, I had some questions about other products we have switched to. So this post has been a work in progress as I think about what else we use. Some of these items come as a result of research of my own issues, some as a result of friends caring deeply about me and sharing their expertise, and others as a result of seeing other’s tried and true experiences.

One of my biggest hangups has always been COST. I am Dutch. I am the wife of a youth pastor (we are in it for the ministry, not the money). I work part-time (for many, many reasons – that’s a whole other blog post). But in this world, we are SO RICH in the world’s standards and our riches aren’t found in wealth, but humbly in the wisdom and knowledge of Christ. We feel it’s our mission here to love others and youth well, and so we try to have our lives reflect that. And for me personally, I have felt compelled to share what I do with you, in hopes of encouraging you to live the best life YOU can live, on a budget. Ironically we don’t budget – we just don’t spend what we don’t have and evaluate everything we buy. Do we need it? Do we not? Does it benefit or hinder our mission in life?

When it comes to lower-tox living, it doesn’t mean perfection. it just means LOWER or what I like to call “better”. A better swap. A better choice. A small change. One step at a time.

So here are some products that I myself or my family use every single day that we have found to be “better” options. You may have something even betTER! That’s awesome and actually I’d love to hear about it, because I am always learning! ALWAYS! This is just a humble post of where the Sterks are at right now.

Laundry/Cleaning Supplies

Truly Free Home products! I use their…

• Laundry detergent
• Stain stick
• Oxyboost
• Odor/stain eliminator
• Bathroom cleaner
• Everyday cleaner
• Dish soap
• Dishwasher soap
• Space freshener
• Toilet bowl cleaner
• Laundry machine cleaner

They are low-tox products and CLICK HERE to learn more about why I have switched all of our cleaning, laundry, and dish soap products to Truly Free Home! Also, message me via email or social media for their latest sale! They run them ALL THE TIME, so don’t hesitate to ask!

Eye Makeup Remover

Here’s my homemade recipe that I have used every single night for the past 3 years:

DIY Makeup Remover

ARMRA Colostrum

After cancer/chemo destroyed my digestive system, I needed something to help my innards, as I like to call them. I had read about colostrum after my BMT to help with cellular health and the gut, but thought it was for the birds. So I ignored the idea, until I knew I needed to do something. Well, that’s when I saw someone post about Armra Colostrum. I was able to try a sample pack and within 24 hours, I wondered why I had waited so long! It has been a game changer for my gut, my brain, and my energy! I skipped a few days recently and I could TELL. I woke up the next morning feeling sluggish and the gut a little off because I had eaten terrible :). I didn’t realize it helped in the recovery of that too!

My favorite flavor is the blood orange, but also like the watermelon too – it’s just really sweet! They have other flavors as well, and recently brought their peach persimmon flavor back, which I would love to try!

I still laugh when I think about the fact that I take colostrum, but I’m looking forward to sharing with you the benefits of it!

Magnesium Lotion

Do you deal with restless legs at night? After chemo, my legs would twitch like crazy! My muscles were tight and I would get severe charlie horses in my calves that would leave knots by morning. I read somewhere that magnesium lotion can help with that? Who knew? I was desperate and gave it a try.

And, wouldn’t you know, it WORKED! Like worked amazingly that I didn’t even realize it was working because I slept so well! Woke up that next morning and thought huh, I never once woke up with a leg cramp! My legs felt rested and now I use it all the time, especially if I’ve been more active. There are a lot of different magnesium lotions out there. I first started with the one from Earthley (you can learn more about them below), but then found another lotion just on Amazon that works great, called Seven Minerals Magnesium Lotion for Sleep!

It is highly concentrated and can be used on your feet, legs, or any joints. It’s non-greasy, which is fantastic when you don’t stick to the sheets, and has skin-friendly AND clean ingredients! You can feel good about putting this on your body and know that your muscles and joints will thank you later!

Lumebox – Red Light Therapy

Many of you have probably seen my posts about red light therapy and how it has helped our little family in numerous ways; especially during my cancer journey. From hair loss, neuropathy, cuts, bruising, ankle pain, back pain, sinus pressure, and so much more! We even bought another to share with others who are going through their own healing journey! God is our ultimate healer as nothing happens outside of the guidance of HIS hand. And we have seen him use something as simple as a red light to improve so many ailments, take away pain, grow what was lost, and bring so much healing. I am just continuously grateful that someone chose to introduce it to us and I hope to do the same for you.

If you search “red light therapy” on my blog or follow me on social media, you’ll find many postings about our use of RLT.

With THIS LINK, you can always get 40% off! And you can use your HSA/FSA funds! Like I said, we bought a second because we have seen what it can do and hope to encourage others in their healing journey as well.

You can learn more about red light therapy by checking out MY FREE GUIDE!

Earthley

This is a company a friend introduced me to over a year ago and I can’t get enough of their products! Particularly their All-Purpose Salve!

We have used this on so many things from skin wounds, to rashes, to borderline infections, to burns, to really any skin irritation. I have seen rashes disappear in a day using this salve! I have several of their products like…

• Black drawing salve stick
• Gut health oil,
• Cough-B-gone extract
• All-purpose salve stick and jar
• Sun soothe
• Pest aside
• Sun shield
• Pain potion

Like I said, I’ve got a LOT of them, but use them ALL.

Air Filter

When I was recovering from my bone marrow transplant, I had to be incredibly careful about the air I breathed in. I had to wear a mask anywhere I went, and even in our home when someone had a cold or sickness. It may sound over the top for someone who has never really cared about germs, but that time of life, was a life and death time. If I got sick with some infection, there was always a risk of death because I had no immune system to fight whatever I got. Again, I know, sounds extreme, but it was my reality. That’s why I couldn’t have house plants, fresh flowers, had to be careful about what I ate, where I went, and really, everything I did.

After learning about what is in our air through going through my BMT education, I realized that our home alone, can carry a lot of toxins, even though I’d consider us “clean” people (at least I’d like to think we are). I had heard of some getting air filters, but the “good” ones were PRICEY. And I mean PRICEY. So where was the balance?

Once again, after doing a bunch of research, I wasn’t going to find perfect. I just needed to find something right for US. So I chose the Dayette HEPA Air Purifier. It covers up to 3,000 square feet (which is like 2x the size of our house), is double sided and removes 99.997% of particles as small as 0.1 micron, keeping out things such as dust, smoke, pollen, hair and odor.

It has this light on it that if the air has toxins in it, it runs on “high” and it amazes me how it can read that! So when we were redoing our kitchen floor and putting in new tiles, it sensed an “odor” and was running on full tilt. It was pretty incredible! And now to open up the door and see what it has all caught when it comes to dirt and small dust particles? Kind of appalling. Again, I thought we were clean people, but yikes!

We have it running basically 24/7 and again, wouldn’t ever go back, even though I am past the critical stages of my BMT!

I would say this is a great option for someone who is looking for something budget friendly and the filters are affordable to replace as well.

Water Filter

Another thing we didn’t realize could be filled was toxins was our city water. After reading the water report from our city, it was a little alarming to see what is in it. I thought water was water! But not so the case. So just recently, we bought a filtered water pitcher. My dream would be to have a whole home filtration system, but definitely not in the budget! So might as well start somewhere…with the water we drink every day. Again, there are umpteen options out there that have a large price variance. For me, it was about affordability, while still doing what I need it to do.

I saw the ZeroWater 10-Cup Water Filter Pitcher that could fit in our fridge, while still filtering out the nasties. This is a 5-stage ion exchange filter that removes solids like metals, minerals, salts, etc. It is certified to reduce PFOS, lead, chromium, and mercury as well!

When we filtered our first glass, I couldn’t believe the taste difference! Yikes. I don’t know if that was a good or bad thing, but it revealed to me how many chemicals our water might be carrying.

Now I will say, we are not perfect on this and never will be! This is where we just choose “better”. We still boil water with our tap water. We have a chlorine pool. We take showers with our city water. Again, it’s not about perfection, but one change at a time. We will never arrive at perfect, but we are just choosing “better”.

Body Wash & Shampoo

In this category, I feel like there are SO MANY options! From DIY to name brand! Awhile back, Attitude was having a gigantic sale on their products and had read that they are a great low-tox option. So that’s what I ran with and that was several months ago. When I looked back at when I ordered from them, it was last fall, and now granted it’s just myself and sometimes Mazy using the products (and I have little hair), but I am still using the first body wash bottle (I promise I do shower!) and only used half of the shampoo bottle (it’s a big one). I feel like a little goes a long ways! Needless to say, I have an extra supply still sitting in our cupboards from my first order. I LOVE LOVE LOVE their scents and the clean feel!

CLICK HERE to get 15% off your order from Attitude or check their website for their latest sale!

Toothpaste

I have wrestled with this one for awhile! I know I keep going back to my bone marrow transplant, but that was such a life-altering time that forced me to rethink about what I used. My mouth sores required a morphine pump at one point in the hospital and for weeks after returning home, I couldn’t taste food – well, let me take that back, it had a taste – it was just metal.

After reading about trying to reproduce the good bacteria and cells in the mouth, without having to take supplements, which I could not take at the time, I read about silver toothpaste. Personally I had never heard of it, but after reading about what it could do, I thought I’d give it a whirl. And wouldn’t you know, it started to make a difference!

I was leery because I had very sensitive teeth, but this probiotic hydroxyapatite toothpaste, that contained purified silver and coQ10 to support the gums, was made for sensitive teeth, supported the tooth enamel, gum health, and even whitened (which was the least of my worries at that time). It’s called the Designs for Health PerioBiotic Silver Hydroxyapatite Toothpaste – Fluoride Free Toothpaste with Oral Probiotics with Whitening Hydroxyapatite.

I know, a LOT of words! If this says anything, it’s recommended by functional medicine pros! Who knew?

These are just some of the products that we use in our home on a daily basis! I’m slowly working through our cupboards and finding what “better” options there are out there. I am trying some new sunscreens, eventually cold meds (when it gets to be that season again), and more.

Like I said, if you have any suggestions about what to use, I am all ears! I want this to be a conversation and hear your thoughts too!

If you have questions about any of this, please feel free to send me an email at Kristin.sterk@gmail.com or comment below! I look forward to hearing from you!