Reverse an incurable autoimmune condition? Dr Kristin Wild has done just that

Welcome back to Between the before and after a podcast about the stories that shape us. I'm your host, Coach John mclean. Each episode, I bring you an inspiring guest with a moving story that shines a light on the power of the human spirit. I'm excited to share this story with you. So let's dive in. So imagine you're a competitive athlete. 

You've always been able to depend on your body and uh anything you ask of it, you're able to do that. And then all of a sudden in your mid-20s, you're struck with a chronic illness that you don't really fully understand. And then when you take it to medical professionals, they don't really believe you. And it takes a number of years before ever getting anything close to accurate diagnosis and then to top it off a number of years to work through and even get past what has been described as an incurable chronic illness. This is the story of Dr Kristen Wild Doctor Kristen. Welcome to the show. Hi. So glad to be here. I love it. I'm excited. Absolutely. So before we dive into your, your story, I always like to let people know kind of where you're at right now, what it is that you're, you're doing and then we're gonna paint a picture to how you got to this place. sure. Yeah. So where I am now, I, if, if like 10 years ago me was told where I am now, it would have just like shattered my reality. Like how on earth, like how would that happen? Like I always had that underlying kind of knowing, but like this is like every day blows my mind. And so uh yeah, I'm a holistic health practitioner. 

I did not choose to be this person. It was just like one thing led to an in, into another and I absolutely love it. So I work with hundreds of different people that are dealing with chronic um health issues, mostly autoimmune and uh helping them navigate that, which can be as I think a lot of us are starting to understand autoimmune can be very complicated and there's hundreds of different types and diagnosis and all these different symptoms. And um so it's like this amazing journey where I get to work with all of these people and watch people transform their lives right before my eyes. So it's just like every day is just this amazing, beautiful adventure, constantly unfolding. 

I'm so grateful to be here. And uh you know, as, as, as we do, when you go through those really deep difficult moments in life, the amount of empathy and compassion that is developed within you, the humility, it is so priceless, the gift that it brings later. Yeah, you know, when we talk about autoimmune conditions, um I think there's a general, can I call it perceived consensus that we're dealing with things that are essentially incurable that people are, are being handed a a life sentence. And from, from your story, I think your story actually challenges that narrative that, that these are necessarily incurable because in your, your story does involve reversing what is thought to be an incurable um autoimmune condition, which is quite remarkable. So I imagine the people that you, that you work with that come to you that they've probably tried a number of different avenues. And I often joke like, so I do nutrition coaching. 

Some of the, some people will know that and I, I joke like, I'm not people's first stop. Um By the time they get, by the time they get to me, they've tried like the 90 day challenges. The, the, the 30 day d do is the, the 21 day, whatever the, the laundry list of things and they go wow, none of those things worked. And like, ok, cool. 

Now, now we're ready to do the work and we're ready to work together. And so I wonder if that's been your experience as well? Like by the time people get to your doorstep, they're like, wow, I've tried this and this and this and this I went to this medical professionals and so on and I'm not finding answers and I'm, but I'm, I'm not giving up and I'm still looking for smoke. Yes. That's exactly it. I am typically not people's first choice. Um when I first really got into this work, it was like almost 100% of the people I worked with. 

They were like in the desperate hopelessness stage that's changed a bit now, just because there's a lot of, there's just so many success stories that people are kind of finding us before it gets to that point where it's, like, so bad. Um, but I would still say 80% of the people I work with. It's like, I've tried everything, I've done anything I could and there, nothing, I, nothing is working for me. I'm just not getting there. And it's like, and I still believe I can, but I'm not finding answers. Right. Right. I, I, I just made a note here. 

Um, maybe you're not their, their first choice, but we're hoping that you're their last choice. And really, that's the goal is like, when they work with you, like, they don't have to go back to this old paradigm that, that isn't working. This one that says, well, you have to be on these medications for the rest of your life and this isn't knocking medications. But, you know, I, I know how many people do you know who say like, well, I take this because I, I, I kind of need to, but I don't want to, I don't want to be dependent on a medication for the rest of my life. Is there another answer? And the work that you're doing is really sort of challenging this, this medical paradigm that's been established for many, many decades that and, and, and it's really hard to get it to turn around for, for so many reasons. And I don't wanna dive too much in the medical because I want to share your story. But just this idea of trying to turn around an industry that's built around um treating symptoms through medication primarily and surgery where necessary as opposed to treating the person as a whole being. Yeah. And then again, it's like, like you're saying, it's not vilifying it, it's a system that developed out so many amazing technologies, so much progress in health and wellness. So that's part of our evolution in learning anything, right? 

There's, you have to go through the mud. And so it's not about being like that's bad or wrong. You know, there's certain things that do so well and sometimes the medication is the answer until you can really get to that root and establish a strong foundation. And so, yeah, it's, and we can work in both fields and learn from each other. 

Yeah, I like to think about it as um like buy, buying time because so, I mean, just as a, as a very short example. It's not really a direct or exact parallel but, uh, you know, uh, about five weeks ago, I really, I slipped my s si joint out of place. Um, when I was leaning over to change my son just, it's not even a good story. Uh, but then, then I, I got hit with this crippling sciatica. 

I even said sciatica before. Like, it's, it can be like brutally painful where, like my leg doesn't want to work and I have numb spots on it and I have lightning bolts shooting down and all of this and, and uh it's not, not particularly pleasant to experience. So in that time, I, I have been using painkillers and muscle la since, you know, where necessary uh not really wanting to. Uh but doing so while I go through certain treatments that are allowing me to and, you know, we're making some progress, which, which is really fantastic. But um I, I share that just as an example of, of using something to sort of bridge a gap until we get to the place where we don't need that anymore. And I think, you know, you what you're describing, it really sounds like you are that for many people that you are a bridge between um you know, the the medical industry because there's, there's, if you think about like the illness wellness paradigm, if you will like on a spectrum, the medical model is built on the illness side of things. 

Let's get you to this place where essentially your disease is being managed and we don't need you in the hospital. But then there's a whole other half of it, which is like the wellness side of things. It's like, let's actually get you to optimal, healthy functioning, living your life vibrantly with energy again, instead of like, feeling like you're trapped in a body that you don't want to be in. Yeah. Well, and that's it too. 

It's like, let's, let's do that and then take away the fear of ever getting sick again. You know, like I, I live with zero fear of being ill again. And so many people that I work with same thing, it's like, not, yeah, exactly. It's not only taking it to that point where it, where it stays this, it's at the point even beyond that into, like, I get better every day. 

I, like, I heal every day. I get stronger every day. And so it's like, aging in reverse is like, if you saw me 10 years ago, I look younger now than I did then. 

Like, it's like, it's, Which is remarkable to think about and you're right. Uh maybe I won't disclose your age but you shared your age with me. And I'm like, you know, I, I, you're 40, but I happen to know your story and I know your educational background and I'm like, OK, you know, you've done a lot in your life. And so, But if I didn't know any of that back story and you came to me and said, Hey, I'm 30, you could convince me. And this isn't just, you know, me trying to, you know, throw rainbows in your direction or something, but really genuinely like you have a very youthful, youthful appearance and energy to you. And I, I agree if people had met you 10 years ago when you were just wrestling with, you know, the most painful of autoimmune conditions that were crippling you. I don't think they would have saw someone who looked much older than you presently are. Totally. Absolutely. And so this is the thing and I, like, I work with people In their 70s and watch the same thing happen. Like it does not matter what your age is biologically, we are moving into a whole new paradigm on the scientific point of view, this consciousness point of view, our mental health point of view, like everything is changing. So it's pretty amazing to be able to be here in this time and witness these things happening right before our eyes. 

So, you know, you said that if I was, you know, 10 years ago, you couldn't even imagine you'd be where you're at. But we go back a little bit further and I was thinking about, you know, as a kid before we started recording, you mentioned you were a competitive uh ski racer. I think it was downhill ski racer, which, which is incredibly demanding. Um, how, how does somebody kind of get into that sport? And how, how did you know, you figure out that? 

Hey, I'm actually pretty good at this. Um, it was all my, my father drove that one because it was like, I was kind of living out his childhood dream and I actually really liked it because, um, at the time I like, didn't have any of this sense of mortality and, you know, as we, when we're used to. So I, yeah, I had no fear and so it was very exhilarating and thrilling and also I loved the praise that I received for it. Right. It was, you know, like I was good at it and so the praise I received for it, I was like, oh, I want to do more of this people like it when I do this. Yeah. Yeah. Um, and I'm curious just how, how, what sort of speeds do you achieve? Um, in downhill ski racing? Oh, my gosh. I can't even tell you, I don't remember because I, I'd just be making it up. Yeah. Well, if, if anybody knows, feel free, feel free to share it in the comments. Uh If, if you see this broadcast, um, but I imagine you're going pretty fast and, and did you have any like serious white posts or things like that or any major injuries that took place when you were racing? Uh Yeah, so um there was a time this was, I think it was 11 and it was being televised. And so there was camera people like, like the different um the different gates. And so I was coming round one and the camera guy got too close to the gate. So it was for me, I, so I either had to hit the gate or hit the camera guy. So I hit the gate and hit the camera guy after target and it was just like, all you could see was like, poof. And then I was like, oh my gosh, because it got me right in the crotch. So it was like purple peach situation for quite a while. 

Oh, no, that is, that is awfully painful. Did, how did, how did the, I mean, did you have, did the camera guy, like, come over and be like, well, I'm so sorry or anything or do you remember much of that or? No? It was The 90s. 

No one apologized for anything. That is so awful. I mean, I remember I was, I was, uh, 13 when I, I learned how to downhill ski. Um, and it was on a school trip and, uh, I, I was, I was getting probably more confident than I should have and I went down, uh, there's a ski resort in Kamloops. Um, what do they call it now? It's one by Nancy Green Rain. Um. Oh, Sun Peaks. Yeah. Yeah, because I think you have big white. Is that right? Yeah. So, I, I, it was at Sun Peaks and I was, I was learning how to ski and I went on this, uh, double black diamond, which probably had no business being on. And I was like, well, let's, let's try this out because I'm 13 and I'm cocky and whatever. And I got going a little too fast and couldn't control my turning up mashing into a tree, like full on hitting a tree. 

And, but I, back then I had glasses, I hadn't had laser eye surgery yet and I had so I had glasses and I had very poor vision without them, but you hit a tree of glasses, go flying off and who knows how deep the snow is. And so here I am, like, blindly flailing around in the snow. I'm stunned because the wind's been knocked out of me, like trying to find my glasses. And so, um, I, I didn't keep skiing as a, as a, as a after that Had enough of this one. So, um, so after that, you, you end up, um, deciding not to continue to pursue downhill skiing because you had other priorities as a teenager. Yeah. Yeah. Well, it was, I was 14 and I was getting, like, really competitive. So it meant being up at the ski hill most of the time in the winter and dry land training almost every day in the summer. And I'd been doing that since I was two. So at this point in time I'd already been doing it for 12 years and my parents were like, ok, like, this is getting like, it's like you're either in on this and we're like, ok, the goal is like to be an Olympic athlete or professional athlete or do you want to be a teenager? And I was like, I want to party. 

Look, I'm, I have a teenager instead. Did you, did you maintain some sort of like competitive sports sort of activity? Because it sounds like you have a bit of a competitive athletic drive. Did you play any other sports in Liu? Uh No, you know what, I actually really got into school. Ok. You, you're super into, you took sort of that intensity that you, that you had and you've been pouring into ski racing and, and turned into, to learning. Did you, when you, when you were a teenager, did you have an idea of like, what you want? You know, we always say like, what did you want to be when you grow up a picture of like, what you might end up doing in adulthood? Yeah. So from the time I was 11 until I was about 22, I thought for sure I was going to be a surgeon. 

I was going to be a medical doctor and then I was going to either I wanted to be a reconstructive surgeon or a neurosurgeon. Fantastic. That's pretty cool, either brain surgery or uh, I mean, I had my face reconstructed by a surgeon who did a really good job. So this, this, yeah, I would never Know this great line of mind. I can, you know, I get the surgeon back in 1998 because I'd have my jaws reconstructed. So amazing. Yeah. Yeah. So you said you, you up, up to that point, you thought you're going to be a surgeon? So, what did you end up studying at school? So I was taking my Bachelor of Science when I was younger and, you know, it just, I started to change as a person becoming more into like adulthood. And so I came to this realization that I wanted to have kids at some point in time and, you know, have more of a family life at some point in time. And I knew that if I was going to go into being a medical doctor or surgeon that, that there would be a great deal of sacrifice one way or another. And so, yeah. And so I ended up dropping out of school moving to Alberta and becoming an industrial electrician. 

You know, as we do an industrial electrician. Well, that's funny. We, we have, we have many, many crossing crossing paths because I was, I was a power line. Oh, really? Yeah, I end up working for a, um, and, and so, yeah, pretty funny. You're an industrial electrician in Alberta. That's fine. Did you, did you get your red seal or did you, did you go all the way through? So I went all the way to my journeyman and then I caught the real estate bug. 

I got really into real estate. Loved it. And so I just didn't finish my journeyman. I did everything up until then. I was like, and I'm done here. I'm right. Right. Ok. So your, your life has been like the series of stages, you know, from ski racer to, you know, want to be a surgeon and medical professional to an electrician to now I'm going into to real estate and along the way, um you, you found a partner and you started a family as well. Yeah, I did. And you know, it was just like I was one of those people where it was just like I was checking the boxes of society. 

I wasn't really thinking for myself, like, what do I actually want need or like, you know, like I didn't really, I was just like, went along with things and it was like, ok, now it's time to get married, now it's time to have kids. And, you know, by the time I really got deep into it and was like in the middle of that experience, I was like, oh, I did not think this through at all. And so we, we know that uh you, you mentioned that um it was after the birth of your second child um that things changed in your body? Was it like immediately after childbirth or was it a few months after childbirth? What, what changed for you? Because you'd already been through childbirth once and you kind of had the experience of recovery from it and whatnot. And it's, it's quite a thing to recover from. 

Shout out to all the moms out there. Um You know, I nursed my wife through her, her recovery after her first one where our second one is on the way. And uh you know, but what, what was different about the second one that first indicated to you. There's something off here. Well, I, this is the thing is I had always been able to count on my body. It was very strong, you know. Um I'd always been able to count on it and yet sometimes I didn't treat it that well. Right? Because I was like, I could put whatever I wanted into it like I could, I would muscle my way through everything in life. 

That's what I was, it was just pure tenacity. Like um one of my nicknames is honey badger because I just like get it like I keep going till I get it, you know. And so the thing is, is I forgot that I existed that I had needs, you know. And so, um I just ran myself down And so, uh I, both my Children were born by C section. They were born they're born 16 months apart. And I was also didn't stop working. 

I was, at the time I was a real estate agent. That real estate bug. I was right in there. 

I was getting moving and shaking and like, and I didn't stop, I have babies and didn't stop. They, they were with me all the time. Uh I would work from home. I was like, I was on the phone doing deals, like, after I woke up from my C section, like it was like, you know, that person, right? And you know, I can think, I feel I was like kind of trained to be that way since I was very young this like you, you're putting in this kind of this rigid mindset of like hustle go train, train hard because you, you were in the world of competitive sports, especially during those formative years where a brain is really, this is how you exist in society. And like you mentioned, you know, you, you got praised from sort of being this way. And so, and you, you pair that with happening in your form, influential years and that drive is kind of hard to stop. And essentially if, if I, if I'm understanding correctly what you're describing here, you drove your body into the ground and then that created, I guess the perfect storm for these autoimmune conditions to appear, which is kind of like in, in a oversimplification inflammation running wild. Yeah. Well, and it's like there's so many factors involved with getting, like, it takes a long time to get sick. But it happens like this, there's always a trigger, there's always a trigger where it's like, suddenly you're sick but it was like coming. But you didn't, like, most people don't know what signs to look for because like we were talking about the preventative, you know, this like preventative care that we're moving into where it's like, now we can start looking for the signs to look for. 

It's just like going into an abusive relationship. If you know the signs to look for, you're not going to be in that relationship because you find out way before it never gets there. You know, most people don't go into relationships. 

I mean, like, I, I'm gonna look for science to see if this person's like abusive, you know, and, and unless you've been through it, then you're looking all the time. You're like, fair enough, you know, I was in a, I wouldn't say abusive, but I was in a, in a toxic manipulative business relationship. And so I now understand what being partnered with a pathological person looks like. I would now know what to look for. But uh, so then I think, um but because you were so hard driving, probably these little like symptoms or little signs would show up, but you would, I gather, like, just kind of brush them aside like it's no big deal. I'm tough. I can muscle through this, whatever. 

Carry on, carry on and then boom, the straw that breaks the camel's back and suddenly, suddenly in an instant you're not who you are anymore. It's bizarre. It is so bizarre because it was like, and I went through a lot of denial with it too. 

Just still trying to be like that. And it kept getting worse and worse and worse. I have a friend who says, you know, when you have lessons to learn and you're not listening, the hammer just keeps getting harder until you're cracked wide open. So that's, that's a, that's a good way of putting it. 

Um, yeah, I, I nearly drove myself to nervous breakdown in my mid thirties. Um, it was the, the power lifting, sleeping five hours a night, snorting, pre workout, uh, testosterone, fuel adrenaline and all of this until my body said you can't do this anymore. Yeah. Yeah. And that sounds like the kind of something like you had. 

What, what were the, like, physical manifestations in your body that you were, you were feeling because you, you know, you're a changed person, you know, overnight. Yes. So I was just taken out. So it started with one day I woke up and it felt like both my wrists were broken because I knew what it felt like to have broken bones and that's what it felt like my, both my wrists were broken and I went to like, open the door in my bedroom and I like, couldn't do it. I had to use like both hands and like, try and I was like, what is happening? 

You know, it was just kind of like this weird, like I'm like, man, you know, and i it's like you almost go into instant denial because your, your mind doesn't know how to compute what's happening. Right? I never had this like an experience like this or expected an experience like this. So it's almost like you're just I for three weeks, this was happening in different areas of my body before I finally was like, I need to go to see a medical professional here because what's happening like I don't get this right? 

This doesn't make sense like my body isn't doing what I thought it would do. And, and so what, what was the first medical professional? I mean, that, that you sought out and what was sort of the, the response or diagnose initial sort of diagnosis you were given? So my family doctor was really good. 

My family doctor right away was like, I think this is rheumatoid arthritis. She's like, which is very serious. So you're getting, I'm getting you into a specialist like right now. And so it was shocking to me because I was kind of like, what is that? 

You know, like I, I do have a doctorate but it's a phd in metaphysical science. So very different thing going on here. So, even though I was aiming to go to medical school when I was younger, I didn't get to the stage about learning about immune conditions and what they were and I had no idea, no clue. You know, and so when I looked it up and started googling things got scary quick. Right. Because you hear the word arthritis and you think, like, I think when my grandmother, you know, taking glucosamine and shark cartilage back in the 1990s to deal with her, I guess it would be osteoarthritis back then. So you hear that word and you think arthritis that's, that's an old people thing. And you were 27 at the time? Mhm. And you're hearing rheumatoid arthritis, which is your, essentially your joints being attacked by your immune system. Is that correct? Yeah. So it eats away at the sheet on the bone and then also the cartilage within the joint. So brutal. Yeah. And so when I first was sent to a specialist, um, because I just had a baby and was going through these things. She's just said like, uh, I think you're so you're just going through some psychosis really? 

I think you have postpartum and you're just like, this is in your head. And so I'm like, I hear that line, this is like, even if it was in your head, I think I might more try to do a little more digging before just announcing this is in your head. That sounds like very, I kinda like be judgmental and, and how, how did you receive that when you hear like this is in your head. What was your first thought? 

Well, you know, I'm, I have a lot of like, personal wherewithal in general. So I'm pretty good at when people say things I don't take it personally, you know, like, and so luckily for that, because there's a lot of people there that would be like, oh my gosh, am I going crazy? And it's like, no, I like, I know what I feel in my body. And the thing is, is I didn't really get the support or help I needed at the time. So I essentially just let myself go into denial that it was even happening for about three years until it got to the point where it was pain, like painful and it was getting so out of control that like, you know, it would take, I would wake up in the morning just like so, so stiff and exhausted. And it would take until about two or three in the afternoon for my body to what I would call thaw out where I could actually start to move. And that was three years in and then it was like, I got sent to a different specialist and it, and they did some x-rays and they're like, oh yeah. And then it went to the opposite where like, this is really bad like this is severe. 

I am like, this is a very severe case and like, as in, we're talking potential joint replacement surgery kind of thing. Well, I did get to the point when, at 10.5 years in because there's a lot between there and the 10.5 year mark. But, um, at 10.5 years in, I was told I needed four of my joints fully replaced. Oh, what's four joints if I may ask, uh, my right knee, my left hip, my left shoulder and my right elbow. And you were, how old when you got this news that, that we think You 30, how old was I? 

35, 35 years old and being told you need four joint replacements. Yet again, we hear that and we think no joint, hip, hip replacement. Like that's your seventies or maybe eighties, you have that done, you know, maybe sixties, you know. Yeah. They said, like from the age that I was, when I was told this, they just said, you let us know when you can't take it anymore. And that's when we'll start because once you start replacing the joints, they have to be redone every so often too. And I would start looking into it and I was like, hm, no, uh, interesting. 

You know, because I mean, I have this, I have this sort of belief in our bodies capacity to heal, but I also have a sense like there's probably like an eventual tipping point. I mean, actually, I mean, I guess we know that there is because at a certain point people, like, get a terminal illness and, and they, they really, they don't have the capacity and that's not a knock on the individual. It's just saying that as human beings, there is an eventual upper limit to what we can kind of come back from. But you, you're given this kind of real far though my body went probably as far as it possibly could. And I can tell you it can go a lot further than you think and come back. 

Yeah, we have this pretty incredible capacity to heal. So and, and as a quick sidebar, you know, you mentioned, you did your phd in metaphysical science. That's, that's a mouthful there because, you know, when I think metaphysical science I'm thinking this is the sort of world of the intangible. So, yeah, so metaphysics, the way I look at it is wanting to understand the basic nature of things and not for any reason other than knowing the truth. I want to know the basic nature and then being someone who is quite logical, you know, like I wanted, I was like a math mathlete, you know, and I love spreadsheets and like, you know, it's like, so for me, I always had this like, like real deep interest in consciousness. Like who is this? 

Yeah, this thing that we can't put in a jar. Yeah, this is sort of like this. Some people call it a soul, this energy like flowing through us that animates this body that has thoughts and things that are actually separate from this body because we can have self awareness that, you know, it's, it's a bit of a puzzle that we can't. And so in, in medical, physical, sorry metaphysical terms, like how is maybe consciousness and, and I don't know the soul or the inner metaphysical being defined or described. And so I've been working on that for the last two decades and I can tell you the more I find that I'm like, OK, this makes sense. Then an infinite number of new questions arise to take place. So it's really interesting, but I love this field of study coming in from the logic because then we can tangibly apply it to our day to day lives. And it's funny because the more you study it, the more spiritual you do become, which is a side effect. 

I was, I was going to be curious, I asked that question, I guess, um did by nature by virtue of the study of this, you know, this led to you kind of becoming spiritual in some degree. And, and I mean, I guess spirituality has been a part of humanity since the beginning of time, there's all manner of world religions that sort of date back to as far back as we have kind of human history. So there's maybe there's always been this kind of innate understanding that we are metaphysical beings. But as you even study the science and logic of this, because there's there, there's a lot of people out there who would like to argue that we're just like electrical impulses, firing and chemical reactions in the body. And I'm like, I, I, I'm actually not satisfied with that explanation frankly. So if it leads you down the path of spirituality, what what sort of spirituality do you find yourself going down? 

So, you know, uh when you take um the program that I did, it's really interesting because you study a lot of different religions, spiritual practices. And then, and because I went the meta metaphysical science route, I was studying quantum physics and the quantum mechanics quantum field. Yeah, and changing energy states. And yeah. And so this is I think where I became a bit of a bridge from one to the other because I can speak both languages and I like both languages and they go together. 

Yeah, I mean quantum is a buzzword these days and actually go back uh two episodes and I had a quantum healer on and we were, we were, we were um we were chatting so shout out to Joshua for, for, for being on the show. Um But, but so quantum, I think like quantum computing and I mean, of course, I, I did in, in my study like quantum mechanics. Uh because I was doing inorganic chemistry and nanotechnology research and whatnot. But the average person like quantum still sounds like a mystery term. It does. And so often the way that I um I find it, it is like so handy because we have these things called the computers now and very much it works similarly, it works similarly. So um how we operate is almost exactly like a computer where it's like the body is like, you know what's actually happening from that input, the input that you put into the computer, the programming you put into the computer, the body then gets to act out. And so it's like this body is amazing tool for us to live in this like material existence. And the computing and programming comes in through what we call our consciousness, we can call our soul, we can call our energy field, whatever you wanna call it. 

It's still, it is what it is, it is, is what matters and in a jar, but it's there somehow it is there and there's no denying that anymore. You know, the, the three quantum physicists just won the Nobel Prize for their work in this field. And so to me, I look at the quantum field this, this what we're tapped into and connected to as like the internet, right? It's like you Google in what you want and then it brings it to you, right? So and, and because we're, we're gonna get back to your story here because I think this, all of this factors but why, why I'm digging into this a little bit is because I believe this partly factors into like your healing and your journey of recovery and probably factors right into the type of um the work that you're doing as well. Um So I am curious uh because whenever I encounter someone with sort of a spiritual background, I always like to ask. Uh, so then what sort of understanding? Uh you know, and it's, I understand it's always evolving. We don't really have all of the answers, but where you're presently at, then how do you sort of explain the, the origin, I guess, of consciousness in life, you know, is there a universal life force or, or how do you kind of explain the fact that this is even a thing? Yeah. So that's, uh I ended up going back to school for this reason and taking a psychology diploma. So the diploma implied psychology now so that I could help articulate what happened because even feel like, how did you do this? And I'm like, uh because it becomes very, almost indescribable. And so that's what some people. Hm. Yeah. Well, and it's like, so, um sorry, just to like, reenter, what exactly do you want to like some tangible knowledge? Like, what is just curious about what you, what, what, what is your interpretation of? I, I don't know, like, how are, how are we alive? Because life propagates life. 

We, we know that we, you know, we can't just sort of animate a couple of cells with electricity and, and they sort of, you know, becomes self-sustaining life. So it seems that life propagates life and, and then, because I, let's say, for example, maybe we have a lot of people say, well, I put this out to the universe to see what sort of comes back. Like, well, what is, what is the universe? Is it conscious? Is it sentient? Where does this sort of life or life force come from? And so I, I guess I'm curious, what would your interpretation of that be? Yes. OK. So this is my understanding just from studying different things. I mean, none of us actually have the answer, right? 

You know, like we can, I'm not, I'm not gonna hold you to this where it's like this is the answer you said for the rest of your life, you're chained to this, you know, but it's like when you get enough information, you start connecting dots and there's some, there's some consistency across things. So it's like pretend you're God because you are and you know, everything experienced everything, everything that exists and you know, everything that exists or ever was, how do you keep creating? How do you create new, how do you have new experiences? 

Well, you can whisp yourself off and then come into this existence where you purposely forget who you are, purposely and then come in as one specific aspect and have an experience. So the whole point of life is life, that's the whole point that that's, that actually makes sense even though it's a challenge to sort of wrap our heads around. So then uh do you have any thoughts or, or an interpretation of what happens when, when a human life ends? Because we know that mortality is just, just a part of life in this human existence. Yes. So again, the from just like a whole bunch of taking information from a whole bunch of different places. 

My understanding is our souls evolve the same way a human being evolves, you know, so some of our, some souls are some so they have like kind of different personalities. So some souls are like to go like I'm going in, I'm learning all the lessons I'm going for at this time, I'm gonna evolve so fast. It's just gonna be like this rocket and another soul is like, you know what I am going on the most beautiful vacation. I'm gonna book club med, have everything taken care of and I'm just gonna enjoy the sights. I'm gonna enjoy it, the beauty of it all and have these experiences and it's gonna be so light and fluffy. And so that's why we see some people go through these extreme circumstances over and over and over and still come out the other side and roar and to go. And then other people are like la, la, la, la, la, la, la like, you know, and it's like, and so from my understanding, souls live, you can live infinite number of lives that you would like to live. And um when you've got come down to, when you come to this human stage, like this is the, this is like you're in it like this is like purgatory, you know, it's like you can learn the really tough, tough lessons. You can have these just super easy, breezy, beautiful experiences, everything can happen here, everything. And so it is like the depth of it all. And then we kind of work towards back towards source of where we came from. OK. And so, and, and I've heard this term source before and so I guess I'm curious uh is this like an or the origin source of life, soul energy, life force, that kind of thing, a creator? Um Everything that is right? Yeah. OK. That, that's really fascinating. And there's, of course, lots more we could ask about that, but now I wanna, I wanna bring it back um just for the sake of expediency because we could probably go for like three hours of talking about this topic here. 

What the meaning of life, let's, let's discuss. OK. So you, you now take this sort of interpretation of life and existence and you put this over your personal circumstances where your body is breaking down where you're being told, you know, severe rheumatoid arthritis. 

One of the worst the doctors have seen, you're being told that you need four joint replacements and you, this is incurable and you're, you're stuck in this. And at some point in time, he said, um, I don't know if I wanna accept that as true. So I didn't want to accept it as true the whole time. So, um, about three years in, when I started seeing a new rheumatologist, they put me on all these medications and it just felt, it was like, does this does not feel right? 

This doesn't feel right. And again, it's not saying that that's gonna be the same for someone else. But for me it was like, this does not feel like it's like, in alignment with me, I probably would have used different language then. But that's, and so I didn't really take the medication and I came in one day and he is like, you are not taking the medication and I was like, how do you know? And he's like, hm, you're not filling your prescription. So that's how I know. And I was like, oh, you can tell that. 

I, like, sorry, not, yeah, not a lot of deduction required there. Oh, sure. I like it anyway. So it was like, and I was like, I know I'm like, I just can't do it. 

It's like every time I'm injecting myself with this poison and I'm like, oh, like this doesn't feel right. And he's like your problem is so, again, your problem is you have a psychology problem and he was like, you are going to have this disease for the rest of your life and you don't believe it. And I was like, you're right. 

I don't believe it because I, I just listened to you describing this situation where somebody is coming to you saying this is your life except suck it up and, and I think to myself, well, what we're actually hearing is somebody else's perspective on life being applied to you through, through, through their experience. And you know what if you're a rheumatologist, maybe what you've seen over and over and over again is people don't get over this. So how could you believe anything other than, well, you're just gonna have this for the rest of your life? You're going to manage that condition because that's what I've seen time and time again. Yes. So that's exactly it. 

That's why he's not my victimizer. Mhm. Uh I could have chose, chosen to become a victim in that circumstance. So I was like, OK, no. And so I spent seven years from that third year to the 10th year doing everything I could, I literally spent over 100 and $50,000 of my own money trying to find answers, guinea pigging everything on myself. And I always did have this underlying feeling that I was doing it for a higher purpose. 

I had no idea what it was but I just knew it, that consciousness piece. Like, who is that, that underlying peace that's moving you forward no matter what. And so it was actually not until I gave up hope like where I was so hopeless that I was just hanging on by that tiny thread. So, talking about sciatica, I needed that hip replaced. So I had, had sciatica for two years straight. 

I couldn't stand for longer than five minutes. I couldn't sit for longer than five minutes and I couldn't walk for longer than five minutes. It was excruciating and right now you get it. Yeah. And so, you know, at the same time my jaw was locked. 

You'll still see that that's one of the things that is still recovering in my body. I still have some pieces that I need to, that I would like to heal. And if it doesn't, whatever, I'm lucky, dude, like, you know, I'm fortunate to be alive and I function awesome. But it does, it gets better every day. 

I get better every day. And so, um you were, you said you were hanging on by a, by a thread basically because you, maybe you've invested all this money. So all these solutions, you're not finding answers and then you got this last little thread and it was, and you, you, you're at rock bottom and somehow something turns a corner. I tell you, I can tell you the exact moment. 

So, um, at the time I was still married and was at a funeral in Alberta and we had to fly back and forth. And so I was at the airport with my family coming back to Keona and I could barely walk. I was in such excruciating pain. It was so horr, it was horrible. And so I had tears streaming down my face because we're going through the security line up and it's super long and at the time I could barely stand. And so we go through the security and this woman looks at me and she's like, what's going on here. And my then husband just kind of told her that I was living with an illness and she's like, ma'am, I'm going to have to insist that we get you a wheelchair. And it was like My worst nightmare come true. 

I've been told by so many doctors. If you don't take this medication, if you don't do this, you'll be in a wheelchair. By the time you're 35 here, I was 35 years old being told I was going to be in a wheelchair, and and so there I was sitting in this wheelchair, I see my kids looking at me so worried and I just broke down and in my mind, I just started to pray and I was like God source universe, whatever you want me to call you. 

I'm like, I give up I give up, you know, it's like I, I've tried, I've tried to be an inspiration to others. I've, I've tried to be positive, I've tried to do everything I could and it, I can't, I can't do it anymore. And I'm like, you know, either please start sending me those answers uh or just like, take me like it is, I can't do this anymore. And in that split second, this energy came up from the ground through my whole body, I felt this surge and this knowingness like this is it. And the next day I started finding answers one after another after another. And some things were coming back to answers that I kind of came across before that hadn't been effective, but they just weren't, the tools weren't being utilized in a way that would be effective at that point in time. So now all the, all of this knowledge that I had had come into my world through my education, through my experiences, all of a sudden, it all started to go click click, click, click, click and it just kept coming and still does to this day. And so so ultimately, this led you to realizing I I'm on to something here and I, I need to start sharing my knowledge and my experience with that. It wasn't even that I was running a business. I loved it. It's a zero waste supply company I was helping, you know, like I was really focused on that and um helping reduce our plastics. And uh I was really focused on that. 

I was an entrepreneur and I was just like, happy to be alive. And all of a sudden I would had like employees and I was excited like I was doing that. But what happened was people started seeing me, seeing me thriving and they had seen me so, so sick, you know, and so they start, people just started asking questions like, how did you do that? What did you do? And so I had to learn how to more articulate it because I didn't know how I did it. It just started like happening, you know, and so I had to think about it. And so then I started sharing with people and then other people started getting better. And now all of a sudden there's like a group of us talking about this and it was like, then people started saying to me you need to be doing this, this is so necessary. And I was like, OK, yes, I think, yes, OK. Yeah, you're right. I have all this knowledge. I know how to do it. I'm gonna start doing it and it was one thing led to another. 

I went back to school, gotten that diploma, then became a registered professional counselor, started working with people, one on one that filled up and now I have a program because it works. Yeah. It's amazing. That's remarkable. And so my mind. Yeah. Absolutely. And I mean, there, there's, there's so much more, I, I'd love to ask you about it but if in a nutshell, I know every case is kind of unique and individual. But are there some common threads that you see, because, you know, you yourself had three autoimmune conditions you are wrestling with, you're largely seeing people who have been maybe wrestling with autoimmune conditions. 

They've maybe felt hopeless as well. What are some common threads that, that you sort of see running through this? And I guess what I'm looking for from this potentially to share with others is maybe what's, where's a starting point for them? You know, what are these common threads? 

Yes, I will tell you the exact place you need to start and that's listening to your body. So, you know, it's like we can get, we can compartmentalize our minds, bodies, consciousness into these different sections. They all work together. So from I and I can teach you right here right in this moment, it takes no time. And if you start here, you will start seeing some progress right away. And so we learn to listen to our bodies in this way because our bodies are our intuition. 

Our bodies have all kinds of neuro sensations going on our brains. Just the thinker. It's, it's the, it's go filtering through all the information, but our bodies know way before our minds do what's, what's in alignment with us. And what's not more than five senses. 

Yeah, it's the s those sensations, it's aware of environmental factors that our brain cannot compute. So for me, when I listen to my body and this is going to be different for everyone. So like we talk about it's an individual experience, but the fundamental tools are the same. And so so for me when I am listening to my body, it's like this happens all the time now and you get really good at it. And so it's like when I, when something's a yes for me and feels good, it's like I feel at ease, I breathe easily, easily, my shoulders are dropped. I just like in the flow of the moment and when it's a no for me, it's all solar plexus. 

I feel it in my gut. My gut tells me yes and no. Like it's like um so a no is my solar plexus is on fire and everything can seem totally normal. 

You can have a normal conversation with someone. They're perfectly kind. Everything can feel totally normal and my solar plex is on fire. I'm like, ok, I'm out of here, you know, like it's like it's gonna be a no for me. And that takes some time to learn to listen to. 

The more you do, the more you realize how bang on it is. It's like, and it's like you need to believe it to see it. So it's the reverse. A lot of our old paradigm. 

What we're coming from is you need to see it to believe it. We're just gonna flip that around and life gets so much easier. And I think if, if I could, if I could sort of build on that a little bit when you see, you need, you need to believe it to see it. 

I, I, I often describe beliefs as, as a filter for our brain and our brain is deciding what to pay attention to and what not to pay attention to. So if you don't believe it's true, your brain is gonna filter that information out as irrelevant, even though that information is coming through and the signals are coming. And so because I think this term listen to your body. I, I, in, in one sense it's maybe it's, it's, it's put out there by, you know, um influencers or whatever. 

Oh, just, you know, the sort of breathy sort of pithy kind of way. Just, just listen to your body. I'm like, well, I don't know when I eat doughnuts, my body goes. 

Whoa, that feels pretty great. I like that. You know, there's nothing healthy about consuming a doughnut, for example, there's no, sometimes it's the best thing you can do in the moment that we don't. And it's like you allow for those fun. I donuts clearly. But I um but I, I, so again, I guess why, why I share that? 

Why, why bring it into the conversation. It's just this idea that maybe like listening to your body might actually take some time to learn as a skill because for most of our life, we're actually taught to ignore it. I think about, I work in the world of weight loss. For example, how many times or for how many years or decades have people been ignoring the single signal of hunger? Because they have such a distorted relationship with food. 

They're so afraid of eating and gaining weight and so on. They absolutely shut that signal down and that, that's just one example. And so um you're right, this the skill of listening to the, to the body is, is the place to start. How can we listen to our body and feel confident that we are interpreting what we're hearing correctly? Yes. So like you were talking about how the brain filters information out. 

There's actually a part of the brain that that's what it does. It's called the rear articulating system. And there is so much stimulus coming in at us all the time, especially now with technology. Uh And uh so the brain will naturally filter out things that doesn't fit within its reality. So you could literally witness miracles, things that are outside of what we would consider a reality or that could exist in reality. The brain will filter it out because it's like, oh, that doesn't match my belief system. Absolutely. So we want to switch that around the good old reticular activating system. Yes. Good old reticular activating system. Um The average person is like, I don't even know what that means. I don't care. It doesn't matter. It's part of our animal brain. 

It's part of our survival helps us decide what to pay attention to because we're receiving millions upon millions of stimuli every day that we could, there's no possible way we could, we could consciously filter through all of that. So our brain sets up these shortcuts and heuristics to help it uh essentially decide what to pay attention and what not to. Well, Kristen, there, there is like so many things we can talk about so clearly. Um We'll have to have another conversation because this is a really, really fascinating, you know, groundbreaking work that you're, that you're doing. Um If people want to know more about you, where do they start? 

They're like, wow, this is fascinating. I, I just want to know more where, where do they go to? Yeah. So um there it like, so that's the thing, it really depends on what they're interested in because we, I do a lot of discussions on quantum mechanics, quantum physics. And then I do a lot of discussions on A DH D A lot of discussions on uh autoimmune conditions where learning all the things. And so um I think probably the best thing to go to is my link tree. So it's the link tree forward slash uh doctor Kristen Wild and then you can kind of connect to what it is. 

You're, you're like, that's in alignment with you that is like, really interesting to you and something that you'd really like to discover and, and like, dig into more because it's like the more we learn, the more we're teaching each other, like, it's so amazing. The human body is fascinating and we should, and it's our only home currently. And so we should love it enough to be fascinated by it and to want to learn and, and, and nurture. So, yeah. Yeah. So even if like, and that's the thing is the beliefs, our belief systems in terms of who we are as souls. And that is aside the point, regardless of whether you live over and over and over again, or this is your one life, you'll only ever have this experience one time as this particular person. So you might as well go for it. Yeah. So, so if people are listening to this conversation and they've got to this point here and they, they've heard a lot and maybe their mind is kind of spinning just a little bit and they go whoa this is a lot to interpret from like quantum quantum mechanics and quantum physics to autoimmune condition and healing and all of this. If there was just one kind of takeaway message you would like people to have from listening to this conversation today, what would that be? 

It's really just opening yourself. And it really is that the, it's just willingness, willingness to know the truth for the sake of the truth just to know the truth. Because when we seek the truth, then we're ok being wrong, we're ok with changing directions. We're ok with having our entire reality shattered. 

That's happened to me. I can't even tell you how many times where I'm like, what I'm like, I don't even know if I'm a human anymore. Like what's happening, you know, so it's like, take it easy on yourself. It's like, it's like do everything you you do in life with reverence and awe and also don't worry about it. Everything's a cosmic joke like uh that, that's, that's probably a good note to finish on. Everything is a cosmic joke. Doctor Kristen Wild. It has truly been a pleasure. 

Thank you so much for being on the show today. So glad to be here. It's so fun. Thank you so much for tuning in to between the before and after. 

If you've enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review because that helps this podcast to reach and inspire more people. I love exploring the stories that take place between the before and after the powerful experiences that shape who we become. And I love human potential. I love the possibilities that lie within us. So whatever you may be up against, I hope these stories inspire you because if you're still here, your story is not done yet. So keep moving forward.