Author Archives: rawgirl

In honor of #WomensHistoryMonth and the fact that #BlackHistoryMonth should be all year long, here is another women’s health pioneer. 

Rebecca Lee Crumpler challenged the prejudice that prevented African Americans from pursuing careers in medicine. When she graduated from the New England Female Medical College in 1864, she became the first Black female physician in the United States. She was also the only African American woman to graduate from the New England Female Medical College, which closed in 1873. After graduating, she opened a medical practice in Boston. 

She wrote in her Book of Medical Discourses, published in 1883, that she “sought every opportunity to relieve the suffering of others.” The book was one of the first publications about medicine written by an African American.

Dr. Crumpler practiced in Boston for a short while before moving to Richmond, Virginia, after the Civil War ended in 1865. Richmond, she felt, would be a “proper field for real missionary work,” and one that would present ample opportunities to become acquainted with the diseases of women and children. She joined other black physicians caring for freed slaves who would otherwise have had no access to medical care, working with the Freedmen’s Bureau, and missionary and community groups, even though black physicians experienced intense racism working in the postwar South. After working in Richmond, in her book she mentions returning to Boston and caring for sick children regardless of what they could pay.

No other images survive of Dr. Crumpler. The little we know about her comes from the introduction in her book, a remarkable testament of her achievements as a physician and medical writer in a time when very few African Americans were able to gain admittance to medical college, let alone publish. I salute her as a pioneer who also embodied the spirit of service that all health practitioners should have. She saw her work as a doctor as “missions” and sought to relieve the suffering of her people.

P.S. Tomorrow at 7:00pm EST I am going live on Instagram with a past client of mine to talk about her experience working with me and her health transformation journey! Be sure to tune in, sis! -XO

Why is my nickname “Raw Girl”? 

Those of you who have followed me since my blogger days know that I was a raw foodist for 2-3 years. I came up with the name of my blog Raw Girl in a Toxic World because it captured my feeling of being overwhelmed as I started to pay closer attention to what I was eating and the food industry as a whole. 

I now eat mostly raw when is best for my body type—which is in the warmer seasons, and incorporate cooked food as I like. In an ideal world I’d move to a tropical climate to live my best raw life all year round.

So what the heck is a raw diet? 

The raw vegan diet is a lifestyle that consists of only eating fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds that are not cooked above 118 degrees. Preparation of raw food includes blending, soaking, fermenting, marinating, sprouting, mixing, dicing, and juicing.

When foods are blended it makes them easier for the body to digest. There is a wide range of blended meals that you can incorporate in a raw diet including soups, smoothies, sauces, dips, dressings, and puddings. If you are on-the-go, blended foods are essential because they take little to no time to prepare. 

Because raw greens and vegetables often have coarse leaves and can be difficult for the body to break down, marinating is key to making them more digestible. Often this is simply achieved using oil, unrefined salt like Himalayan sea salt, and some form of citrus or acidic medium like lemon, lime, or even apple cider vinegar. Using the hands to apply heat, the vegetables are broken down and all ingredients are massaged into the greens making them flavorful and easy to consume. 

Dehydration is the raw food substitution for baking. It allows us to experience some of the same textures we may miss from cooked meals but with all of the enzymes and nutrition intact. Crackers, cookies, loafs, burgers, breads, spices, dried fruits, and more can be made with a dehydrator. 

Go back to season 1, episode 7 of the Staying Ageless podcast to hear how Dr. Baxter Montgomery of @montgomerywellness has demonstrated through his clinical work and research that eating raw for 30 days can reduce inflammation in your body by 30% and help to reverse disease. -XO

Hey girl heyyy! In case you are new around here, here are 5 things you may not know about me:

1. I’m Nigerian, from the Edo tribe, first generation born in the U.S., and my name, Esosa, means a gift from God.
2. I became a nutritionist after nerding out on my own, blogging for ten years as Raw Girl (shoutout to the original readers of my blog Raw Girl in A Toxic World), and overcoming my own personal health crises: acne, mercury poisoning which led to candida overgrowth, parasites, and chronic fatigue. I call myself an acne ninja because anyone who becomes a client of mine with acne—leaves without it because I feel their pain.
3. I’m #TeamLibra (with a hint of some Scorpio spice) and my birthday is October 15th – I accept gifts, virtual hugs, and all forms of adoration 
4. Traveling is my favorite thing to-do and I don’t do short stays when I can help it. I like to visit places for  a month to three months at minimum so I can explore and understand the culture. Favorite places to date: Salvador de Bahia, Brazil… Kampala, Uganda (where this photo was taken)… Cape Town, South Africa. The pandemic has given me a serious travel itch, so don’t be surprised if your girl is posting from another continent real soon. 
5. I learned how to sew thanks to my mama at a very young age and used to make clothes. I studied fashion design in college and worked freelance as a designer before I realized I was more into designing for me, not working in the industry. I still design some of my wardrobe, and LOVE fashion.

Drop me a comment and let me know something about YOU!

P.S. I’m going live on Instagram tomorrow at 7:00pm EST with a past client of mine to talk about her experience working with me and #MSAwareness since she was diagnosed but has no symptoms under my care.

I am also going to be live on Clubhouse tomorrow at 8:30pm EST for Black Health Happy Hour! We are going to be chatting about libido, fertility, and sexual health. Don’t miss out! 

I’ll look forward to chatting with y’all tomorrow 🙂

Western medicine has yet to fully incorporate alternative therapies like yoga, pilates, acupuncture, aromatherapy etc. and the belief in treating the symptom rather than the whole human being continues to prevail, for now.

Despite this, there are research studies that affirm the viability of yoga in particular as a healing mechanism that can assist with terminal diseases, psychological issues, reducing blood pressure, arthritis, cholesterol, maintaining blood sugar levels, insomnia, and the list goes on.

Here are just a few studies that were chronicled in a Time Magazine article I stumbled upon called “The Power of Yoga”:

2009 – A study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health studied a group of adolescent girls, some with bulimia and others with anorexia. Ane group had regular treatment and the other group had treatment and yoga. The findings showed that the girls not in the yoga group were more likely to have symptoms return at the end of the treatment period.

1998 –  Dr. Ralph Schumacher at UPENN School of Medicine along with yoga instructor Marian Garfield published their findings on the study of patients with carpal tunnel syndrome in the Journal of American Medical Association basically summing up that “a yoga regimen is more effective than wrist splinting or no treatment in relieving signs and symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome.”

1990 – Patients with heart disease were prescribed a vegetarian low fat diet and yoga regimen. At the completion of the study it was found that their cholesterol levels were about the same as if they had taken cholesterol lowering drugs. A follow up report was published in 1998 in the American Journal of Cardiology showing that 80% of the patients were able to avoid bypass by maintaining their prescribed lifestyle changes.

As much as the Western medical world tends to avoid prescription of yoga, for now the testimonies of those practicing yoga regularly can’t be ignored. For more on the power of yoga, listen to season one, episode 13 of the Staying Ageless Podcast with special guest @spirituallyfly

P.S. Season 4 of the Staying Ageless Podcast returns this Saturday! Get ready 🙂 We have another long list of amazing guests! -XO

Chile, in honor of #WomensHistoryMonth and the fact that #BlackHistoryMonth should be all year long, I want to honor some women’s health pioneers. Did you know a black woman developed the sanitary pad? Mhmmmm, yes she did!

The sanitary pad was developed and invented by a black woman named Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner of Monroe, North Carolina. 

Until sanitary pads were created, women used all kinds of reusable fabrics to absorb menstrual flow. So if it wasn’t for Miss Mary ladies, all of us may still be out here gathering fabric once a month lol. 

Mary’s invention was initially rejected due to racism. The first company that showed interest found out she was black, and rejected it. But obviously the world as whole and women needed this so eventually it was accepted in 1956, thirty years later. 

She received five patents for her household and personal items creations which included the bathroom tissue holder – which was co-invented with her sister. 

So the next time you are on your cycle and purchase some pads (hopefully chlorine-free), or are in the bathroom and reach for a roll of toilet paper on your toilet paper holder,  remember a black woman is part of the reason they exist. -XO 

Tomorrow is the #FirstDayOfSpring and I want to challenge you this season to get off autopilot sis. 

Are you ignoring a diagnosis because it’s too scary to deal with it head on? Have you promised yourself yet again to start on some new healthy habits but can’t seem to find the motivation or time? 

When what we have doesn’t line up with what we want, we have to do something to shake things up. 

Here’s a few ways to do some deep spring cleaning and get closer to **living your best life**:

1. Find a coach. Whether it be for your health, your relationships, or your body, the power of the mastermind is real, and two heads are definitely more impactful than one. One of the greatest benefits of coaching: you usually get that #oprah AHA! moment and land spot on the beliefs or things you didn’t know. This is because when we are eyeballs deep in our own drama it can be hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Seeking the aid of a professional can offer ongoing motivation, and help us push through challenges.
2. Examine your limiting beliefs. We are taught that effort is KING. But is it really? We have to take action towards our goals, for sure, and no we can’t expect weight to magically disappear from our midsection (unfortunately), or our blood pressure to miraculously go down with the power of desire alone. We have to do something. However when we are applying a ton of effort and getting ZERO results, it’s a sign that we may need to take another approach or step back and work on the unconscious beliefs we are holding on to that may be hindering our success. 
3. Figure out WHO you need to become. Get in touch with your ideal, who you have to be to live that ideal, and what has to go. When you run the movie in your mind of your so-called fabulous life, what are you doing, who is with you, what habits do you have that support the dream? Sometimes instead of focusing on what we want, we need to focus instead on who we have to become to have the thing we desire. Once you have a clear picture of what you want, and you know who you need to be, start to examine what you can do now to align your daily actions with the YOU that is living your dreams. 

Happy Spring cleaning! -XO

For a long time being “healthy” to me was all about what I ate. Getting in a green smoothie or kale salad or whatever. Now I know that I can’t separate what I’m eating / great nutrition from my spiritual, social, or even emotional health. 

You can have a great diet but have issues in other areas that lead to disease. You can be “healthy” and depressed or stressed. 

Over time I’ve come to realize that the true measure of health is resilience. Things happen y’all! Sometimes out of our control. Our bodies are always changing and as we age new things come to the surface. 

The true measure of health is how quickly we can bounce back and find a new normal. That also means releasing some of the expectations we may have had on ourselves years ago. 

We build resilience through a healthy diet, building a strong support network of friends and family, and finding healthy ways to cope with stress every day. Take a moment today and think about your life. Is there something you can do to build more resilience today? -XO

Thank you @obaseemaafrica for including me in your #howiflourish series to chat about my lifestyle, personal rituals, and how I do #selfcare.

“Self-care is the ability to take care of your bodies’ baseline needs. Self-care to me means ‘Taking Your M.E.D.S.S.’ which involves daily mindfulness, exercise, diet, supplementation, and getting adequate sleep. Beyond that foundation, then it’s fun to get fancy and indulge in pampering.”

Although I gave them a glimpse of my personal daily rituals—I want to emphasize that we are all uniquely made, so make sure you find the rituals that work for you! You can check out the full interview via this link! 🙂  -XO

It’s #NationalNutritionMonth so I’m going to drop a little knowledge about another staple common to Africa that I’m sure you’re already familiar with: coconut!

The humble coconut, found all over Africa and especially in the African coastal countries, packs some serious health benefits. Coconuts contain protein, several important minerals, and a small amount of B vitamins. Interesting fact: coconuts in the botanical world are fibrous one-seeded drupes, and can be loosely defined as either a fruit, nut, or seed. 

The minerals in coconut are involved in many functions in your body. Coconuts are especially high in manganese, which is essential for bone health and the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and cholesterol.

They’re also rich in copper and iron, which help form red blood cells, as well as selenium, an important antioxidant that protects your cells from oxidative damage.

On top of all this, coconut water also makes for a great electrolyte drink that rehydrates the body at a cellular level. This is because coconut water contains potassium, magnesium, sodium, and calcium. In two separate research studies, researchers found that coconut water restored hydration after exercise better than water and equal to high-electrolyte sports beverages. -XO