Episode 20 – How A Health Crisis Launched A Wellness Conference With Erin Brown

Episode 20 Transcript

Brigitte Factor 0:13 Hello and welcome to the hungry for truth podcast. I'm your host, Brigitte factor, a truth seeker, researcher, scientist, nutritionist teacher in truth teller, and awakening is coming. Get ready for it.

Welcome back to the hungry for truth podcast. I'm your host Brigitte factor. Thank you so much for listening. Today you're in store for a great episode. I have Aaron Brown as my guest. She is a mother of three kids ages 9, 7, 4 and wife to an amazing husband, a Columbia Missouri native, she attended the University of Missouri where she received a Bachelor's in Education, and then went on to get a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction. She taught math at Oakland Junior High for eight years until the birth of her son. Since her son's birth, she has been a work at home mom doing a variety of things. Currently homeschooling her three kids and tutoring for her homeschool group Classical Conversations. She has been passionate about health, wellness and root cause treatments since 2014, when she experienced her own health crisis. It was through her suffering, healing and the things she learned during this time that the Como Wellness Conference was born. She now spends a significant amount of time each year planning and executing the conference to bring knowledge, hope and encouragement to all who attend. Welcome Erin, thank you for being here.

Erin Brown 1:57 Thanks for having me.

Brigitte Factor 1:59 Yeah, absolutely. So I want to talk a little bit more about your story. I love that you're a mom doing your thing, but you're also bringing this information into the world. So if you wouldn't mind, just share a little bit about your story. And what got you to that point.

Erin Brown 2:19 Well, it all began after the birth of my second child. I had a daughter named Molly, about seven years ago, eight years ago now. And after she was born, everything went really well. But then I went home. And that night that my first night at home, I woke up in the middle of the night, feeling horrible. I was dizzy, I was shaky. My arms or legs were going numb, I was nauseous. I honestly, I felt like I was dying. And I woke my husband up and it's like something is really, really wrong with me. And so we call the hospital. And I talked to a nurse and she was like, Yeah, it sounds like you have a virus. And I was like, no, no, I don't have a virus like something is really wrong with me, you know, but they told me as long as I wasn't bleeding heavily and didn't have a fever, I was fine. And you know, just to rest. So the rest of that night, I actually sat up by myself alone in bed. And because every time I would start to drift off to sleep, I felt like I was passing out. And so I couldn't lay down. I couldn't fall asleep. I was up all night long. And then long story short there. The next morning, we contacted my OB, and she was like, Well, I think you need fluids. So I was sent to the hospital for fluids. But in the process, they ended up readmitting me. So I was readmitted to the hospital for four days. And during those four days the symptoms I just described, persisted for those four days. Sometimes they were worse. Sometimes they were better. I saw seven different doctors during my time there. They did every test they could think to do I had so much blood drawn, I had an endoscope done to check for like gallbladder issues. I talked to a specialist. Yeah, everything they could think to do. They did. They had me on IV fluids the entire time because I was not able to eat or drink for almost four full days. They put me on medication for anti nausea, hoping I could eat but I come in. And that's kind of where I was. And so at the end of four days, I talked to a doctor and he was like, you know, the good news is your test didn't show anything on paper. You're healthy. He's like so the good news is you're not dying. The bad news is we don't know what's wrong with you. So either eventually you're going to get well or eventually someone will figure it out. And he's like, we're gonna send you home because now you can keep down enough water to stay hydrated. And I was eating one saltine cracker an hour so they decided they could release me. So I go home with a seven day old baby at the time that I am trying to breastfeed however I am now weight less than I did pre pregnancy because I haven't eaten for four days and I'm nursing and it was awful. And I have a two year old at home and so I get home I feel horrendous But you know, I actually I did slowly slowly start to improve, like over the course of the next couple months, like I was able to eat a little bit more I was getting by, that all happened in April. And so throughout the summer I started thinking, maybe it's going to be okay, maybe eventually I'm going to be okay again. And then the beginning of August, I had this huge return of all my symptoms. And it was like, same thing, I was laying in bed one night, I start shaking, I was nauseous, I was dizzy, like, my arms and legs went numb. And so um, that was the beginning of a really horrible cycle of having these episodes at night. So you'll start around eight or nine o'clock at night. And I would get up because I knew I couldn't lay in bed. And I would often go sit on the couch and until two or three or 4am, when I think I would just like fall asleep out of sheer exhaustion. And I would wake up a few hours later feeling exhausted, and miserable, and try to make it through the day. And then this would happen again, like it was happening three to four nights a week. And then during the days, I never felt well, but I was not as bad as I was at night. And so this started happening. And it three to four weeks into this. I mean, I just got to the point where I thought like, I can't do this, like, I'm not sleeping, I'm completely sleep deprived. I called my OB and she was like, Well, you know, why don't you actually should? Why didn't you come in and see me. So I came in, and she understood all the surveys. And at the end of it, she said, it appears as though you're moderately depressed with moderate anxiety. And so here's some medicine. And I was like, Well, I mean, I It's true, I am depressed because I feel awful, and I can't sleep and all these things, I have all these physical symptoms.

But that was the only, you know, hope she had for me. And she said, you know, it's going to take it would take at least three weeks for this to start working. And I remember telling her like, I don't think I have three weeks like I don't think I'm going to make it that long. And so she told me to go for some walks, and get some help from family members. And I was sent home. And I was very upset. And I had this prescription that I didn't want to fill. I knew enough about the side effects of medications that I did not want to be on them, especially while I was breastfeeding my daughter. And so I went without, and I continued to try to like make it through I was doing I was trying to like Google my own stuff and try to figure it out. I didn't really have the energy or the headspace for that I was trying because I knew something was wrong, right cuz I was fine. And that I wasn't like something had happened to me. And so it was another let's see, it was almost a month later, when I started taking the Paxil, the medication she gave me honestly out of sheer desperation because I at that point, kind of felt like I don't know how much like and I don't know how much longer I'm going to make it. And I continued to get worse for three more weeks after being on the Paxil. And then one day I was sitting on my couch, I looked outside, and I saw this woman walking down the road. And all I knew about her is that she was a nurse, and that she was my neighbor, and that we went to the same church and I'd met her one time. But again, I was desperate. And so I went outside and just started talking to her. And I was like, hey, like I'm not doing very well. And she's asking me all these questions. And it was the first time I spoke to someone, you know, not my OB not people in the hospital. The first time I spoke to someone who I felt like, didn't think I was crazy, believed everything I was saying and believe there was a reason that I wasn't feeling well, you know. And so she after listening to me, she said, You know what, I know this other woman with some really similar symptoms. She had the same stuff going on after a baby. And she saw this doctor, and he changed her diet. And he told her take some supplements and she got a lot better. And that's her like, tell me like I will do anything. And so she tells me that's Dr. Dr. Trumbower. And so I go in my house, I immediately called Dr. Trumbower. They told me it's me like three months to get into him. I lie I came up with this lie is like well, he's my mom's doctor and he said he would see me and they're like, Okay, come tomorrow. And so I go in the next day, and I sat with Dr. Trumbower in his office for an hour. And during that time, he wrote down everything I was saying. And he listened to me and again, he didn't think I was crazy. And he thought I was going to be okay, he told me you know there's I have a really good idea what's going on with you. He's like, then you're gonna be okay. And so he's like it right away. I want to change your diet and he's like, I want you to start paleo diet right now like absolutely no grains, no dairy, no sugar, nothing processed. And he's like, I want you to start taking these supplements but we're gonna do you know, some other blood work. We're gonna test for some nutritional deficiencies, and some close other thyroid stuff. And so I left his office that day, I changed start teaching my diet and immediately I went got the supplements on the way home and within three days I was 80% better. Yeah, and I was just three days after changing my diet and from there I just continued to get better and better. I went back to him after I bloodwork was in and sure enough I was deficient in multiple nutrients and my thyroid contrary to what they told me the hospital was not doing what it needed to be doing. And so we made some changes there and it was like a six month process of like, again, just getting better and better and better. And I was so excited, like, I was so excited because I was like, Oh, my goodness, like food and some supplements did this. And then we changed. We did the whole 30. My whole family did it in January. And when we did that, my husband's headaches got better. And my husband, my son's eczema went away, and he starts sleeping better at night. And again, I was just so amazed and so excited. And reading everything I could get my hands on about how food affects the body, and you know, nutrition and supplements, all these things. But then the more I read, then the angrier I became, because I was thinking, gosh, like I suffered for so long, and nobody had any answers for me. And they made me feel like I was crazy. And I felt like I was gonna be this way for the rest of my life. And, and I started thinking about all the other people that suffer because during that time, I was also having some pretty intense times, depression and anxiety. And I was reading about that. And I mean, all that went away with the diet change of supplements. And about like the one in three women that are in antidepressants, or anti anxiety medications, I started thinking, oh my gosh, so many people are suffering and they don't know that there is another way all the all the hope they're offered, cuz I know that's what I was offered as here's the prescription should start working in three weeks, you know, and so yeah, that was a lot. But that was kind of like the beginning of my health journey.

Brigitte Factor 11:19 Yeah, I absolutely love your story and your story, my story, have some similarities. where, you know, going through a health crisis. What was prescribed wasn't working. And trying to figure it out on my own, and then coming to that realization and getting angry that people need to know this, right? Yes. So how you know what was going through your mind when you were, you know, seeing these doctors and they weren't really giving you answers? And then to actually sit down and talk with somebody that was listening to you, and was helping you actually get some relief?

Erin Brown 11:59 Yeah. You know, it is hard, actually, still, I get teary eyed when I think about my appointments after Trumbower. Because it was like so many months of feeling like, gosh, am I crazy? Like they think I'm crazy. Or they're actually saying that, but I feel like what's that's what they think. And they have no hope to offer me they have no idea what's wrong with me. No one's telling me they think I'm going to get better. There's just kind of like, no, the test don't show anything, you know. And so it was a very, very hopeless time. Because I felt like well, I'd been hospitalized. Like, what more could I do like, and even when I was feeling worse and worse, I remember thinking like, Well, why would I go to the hospital? Like, they can't help me like, I already tried that. And so when I saw Dr. Trumbower, and he, like, listened to me, I mean, he put his hand on my hand, and he told me, You're gonna be okay. And he put his arm around me when I walked out and I cried. Because it was the first time I had a doctor say like, I think I know what's wrong with you, like, I can help you. And you're gonna be okay. And it was just, I mean, that alone was such encouragement and hope. And then when I started seeing changes so quickly after what he recommended. Yeah, it was amazing.

Brigitte Factor 13:03 Yeah, that's awesome. And I am so glad that, that this integrative and functional field is coming. Becoming people are becoming more and more aware of it. So that hope is out there. And I love how your story transitioned in to you wanting to get this message out there. So tell us a little bit more about that.

Erin Brown 13:26 Yeah, so my, the nurse that I went and talked to in the street name was Lila, and she actually ended up becoming a very good friend. And she really walked through the healing process with me, we ended up again, we were practical strangers at the beginning, but we were texting multiple times a day, she would check on me, how are you feeling? She was helping me figure out how to tweak my diet, because honestly, she had had her own family's kind of health crisis a year prior, and was kind of still kind of new to it. But she was changing their food. And she was seeing the changes. And so her and I started walking together in the evenings. And you know, we're talking one night into saying like, you know, we have to do something like we have to like help people, but we couldn't really figure out how to help people. And then we went to hear a speaker in Kansas City, her and myself and two other friends. And this will help them on the speakers. And on the way home. She's said, I think it was her she said, we should really bring a speaker to Colombia. And I was like, oh, yeah, we should. And then I was thinking about it. And I was like, no, yes, we really should. Like that's what we can do. Like that's how we can help people because it doesn't seem like enough to just like, tell my friends and family Hey, guys, change your food, you know, because I couldn't we could bring in like these amazing speakers, and then all these people could hear them. And then all these people could understand that, you know, they can change their, you know, their life and their health and their kids health. And so it was hearing them and then her suggestion of it was really just kind of the catalyst and then from there when we were going on our walks, we'd start brainstorming like who would be some awesome doctors to bring in who could speak on this and that's kind of how we got going.

Brigitte Factor 14:55 Yeah, so how so you came up with this idea of bringing your speaker in is that when a CoMo Wellness was born? And would you say?

Erin Brown 15:07 Yeah, it really was, I think I came back from my walk one night with her and told my husband like, hey, we want to have conference. My husband has a lot of experience and budgeting and event planning and stuff. And he was like, oh, okay, so he, like gets open says computer. I was like, let's make a budget. I was like, seriously, he's like, Yeah, and so he just starts like making a budget. He's like, where do you want to have it? How much stickers bigger? What costs? And so we're doing all this. I was like, see think we could do it? He's like, Yeah, you could totally do it. And so honestly, if it wasn't for his, like encouragement, like in the beginning, I don't think I would have, I'm not sure it would have gone anywhere. You know, so back to Lila was like, Jerry thinks we can do it. Like, let's do it. And so that's kind of when it began. And then we came up with this idea of having Terry Wahls, Dr. Terry Wahls come we knew she was an Iowa so she wasn't too far away. And if you're not familiar with her she, Terry, you helps people, you know, like reverse their multiple sclerosis like through diet changes and supplements. So she has her own amazing story of healing, you know, going from a wheelchair to riding her bike to work. And so I knew about her story. I knew a little bit about her. I listened to her speak before. And so I thought, well, I'll just email her. So I'm, like, Googling her. I find her email address online. And so I emailed her, and I got an email back from her the next day saying, Sure, I'd love to do that. And I was like, Oh, my gosh, she said, Yes. And so it's like, well, we need a venue and a website and a bank account. And so, so it's pretty quick after that, or like, we have a speaker, but that's all we have. And that's when we really got the ball rolling on the couple wellness conference.

Brigitte Factor 16:33 Yeah, that's amazing. Yeah, I'm familiar with Terry Wahls. I went to her Wahls seminar before I used to work in a neurology clinic. And so we use the Wahls protocol quite a bit with with the patients there. So that's really awesome that she was your first speaker, what an incredible start to was to a conference now what year was that, that you first started?

Erin Brown 16:57 Five years ago

Brigitte Factor 16:58 Five years ago? Wow. Yeah. That's really awesome. And so so you get her as a speaker, and maybe you can give us some behind the scenes of you know, what it takes to put that stuff together? And, and how did did you just have a speaker the first year or did you have other things like, how did you put that together?

Erin Brown 17:20 Yeah, so it was kind of it changed and evolved as we went to that was the first time we were doing it. But we knew we had Terry Wahls. And so we thought, okay, like, she's all we really need, but like, what else do we want? And so we decided it'd be really great to have some other local speakers that year. And so we had Dr. Chris Link from Jeff City, and integrative doctor come and talk. And we had some from the KU integrative medicine, come and talk. And so we had a nutritionist come and talk, to me, and of having like five different speakers throughout the day. And so we decided to have it at The Crossing, the church, since I went there, they were super accommodating, and let us use like all their tech stuff, which was like a huge blessing. And so yes, we had our speakers, and then my husband suggests he's like, you know, you really need like some sponsors. And I was like, Oh, okay. Like, who wants to be a sponsor. And so I think the first person we talked to is actually Range Free, here in Colombia. He's just like, they're a bakery and a restaurant who do like all allergen friendly foods. And we talked to the owner there, and she's like, Yeah, that sounds really great. I'm in, I was like, oh really, like, these people are just gonna give me money. And so to do this, and to be part of it, because they really believe in the mission, you know, and so the first year, we probably had like five sponsors, and so they probably be closer to 10. So they've contributed financially to help support the conference, and then they got a variety of benefits, but then they're all there that day, you know, to talk with the attendees to offer their products, you know, offer services to inform people. And I think I didn't realize that that was actually going to be one of the best parts of the conference like that, I thought the speaker was gonna be like, the greatest part, and the speaker is amazing. But actually, the thing that's, like, just as amazing is watching the attendees connect with all of our sponsors, because we're really, we're a little particular about who we have there. Like we really want to bring in businesses who have a similar mindset, maybe not exact same, but similar, like on health and wellness, and we want them to be people who are good resources for our attendees. So people come and they hear these great speakers, but then it's kinda like you have all this information. But what do you do with it? Well, so hopefully, you're getting connected with these different businesses that we have there throughout the day, you know, you're going and actually talking to them, you're getting to sample what they do. You're getting, you know, watching videos, all these different things. So when you leave that day, not only do you have like this new information, but you also like have connected with people in the community that can help you begin to take steps like on the next steps, whatever they are like in your wellness journey. And so yeah, the first year it was small in terms of that we only had a handful of businesses. But that part has really like just exploded over the years and it's been easier and easier to get businesses to to join in, I think because once you've been there, like, you know how amazing it is, and just like the the encouragement and the camaraderie, and yeah, and so we just have we have people reaching out to us that want to be a part of it. And most of our sponsors come back from year to year. So it's just been a, it's been really great to watch that part of all, but it's been really exciting. And I mean, I've gotten to know a lot of the sponsors and businesses that I didn't know, you know, prior to this, which have been helpful to me as well. So

Brigitte Factor 20:27 yeah, that's, you know, I love that part of it. Like, it's not just a conference where you're going to hear speakers, it's, you're also connecting with people in the community that are either going on the same journey, or people that can help you along that same journey, right, with the different providers and businesses that can help support you along the way. I think that's amazing and awesome. To have that resource. I first went to como in 2019. And I think that's the year that I'm Sara Gottfreid spoke.

Erin Brown 20:58 That's right. Yeah,

Brigitte Factor 20:59 the she wrote the Hormone Cure and the Brain Body Diet, I believe that I thought that was amazing. It was like, yeah, it was just really cool to get to hear her speak and see some of the other local speakers as well, I love that you're providing a platform for those that are actually local, to give them a voice to, to tell the community how they can help them and what they can do. I think that's really cool as well. So, so then then the pandemic hit, and I know you didn't have the conference the following year, but then we then we came back together in 2021. And I was there as well. And so that that was really cool to finally be back together with like minded people. Right?

Erin Brown 21:49 It was wonderful. Yeah.

Brigitte Factor 21:51 So, um, so at the same time, you know, you're doing your mom thing, and you have this idea that you want to bring this message to the world. I think that's really cool. So tell me a little bit more like you also had this transition. During the past couple years, where you transition to homeschooling, right? I did about that, like, what prompted you, how's it going?

Erin Brown 22:22 Mm hmm. Well, you know, there was the shutdown in spring of 2020. And so I was home with my kids, then I was kind of doing whatever having him read each day and do some variety that I got some workbooks that we did together, my kids are younger, you know, they're nine, seven, and four and a half since they were a couple years younger then. But I was enjoying, like being there with them more than I thought I would, all day long. And then, honestly, by June, as I was kind of watching how things were unfolding around me in the world, and in our community. And as I was hearing, kind of what the schools were thinking about things like summer school that year, and even talking about the next school year, I started feeling pretty uncomfortable with the direction things were going. I knew that I didn't want my kids in front of a screen all day. I knew that I'd sit and let my kids in a mask all day, I knew I didn't want to have to be constantly worried about like, were they going to be quarantined? Or was school going to shut down or like I didn't want that volatility in my life, or my kids is life. I wanted something stable, where I knew what to expect each day. You know, I know not everybody has doesn't have the option, you know, that I had at the time. But my husband had also just transitioned to a different job. And I felt like you know, I think I've been trained on schooling, I had like one good friend and neighbor who was homeschooling already. And so she was giving me lots of thoughts and tips and stuff. And so in the fall of 2020 I decided we were gonna homeschool and I decided in June and I spent the summer kind of like mentally getting ready and gathering some stuff and but in my mind, it was just for the year because I wanted to avoid what I was seeing going on around me. And it was really, really hard. The first few months were really really hard and I kind of hated it. It really wasn't until after Halloween that we kind of got into a groove I started enjoying it more I started enjoying my kids more. And then by Christmas time I started not just like enjoying it more of it started realizing like seeing some of the other benefits of homeschooling that I hadn't really thought about before or maybe I thought about but I hadn't seen you know, play out the way my kids like we're really bonding with each other and the the time I was having with them was such just better time than the time I had with them when they would get home from school. I mean my kids were young but when they would come home from school like they loved school, like we loved Fairview school but they were so crabby. They were so tired and done that they would just come home crabby and they would like pick fights with each other and I just felt like the time I picked them up to school to the time I put them in bed was just was like miserable. Like, unpack your backpack and let me give you a snack and now I have to make dinners Why don't you watch TV and like back and forth. Okay that time you know, and we'll do it all again tomorrow. And so, the homeschooling life actually felt more relaxing. You know, it felt like we weren't caught stantly rushing to get somewhere I wasn't, they weren't constantly tired when I saw them, you know. And so, so I was really enjoyed it and 2020 I started thinking, I think I want to keep doing this, you know, I'm not just avoiding things in the world, I'm actually really, really enjoyed what I've seen happen, like within my, within my home. And so I started looking into like homeschool groups and stuff, I had a friend who did this other homeschool group called Classical Conversations. And so I started looking into that in the winter. And so yeah, so by by spring, I had decided that we're, for sure, continue going to homeschool, we're gonna enjoy this classical conversations group. And that's what we're doing this school year. And it's been, it's been so great, because we have this community of homeschoolers that we spend Monday with. And then we get the other four days to kind of have the flexibility of homeschooling, and we get some choice in our curriculum. And, yeah, it's just been really, really great for our family, it's been a lot less stressful that I mean, of course, it's stressful times, because you know, you're home with three young kids and training them to do their schoolwork, and they're having their issues. And but overall, it's been a really great thing for me, and for my family. For my husband, he's still working at home from all this. And so there are times that's a challenge. He's like, in the basement working, and he's like, the kids are being loud. I'm like, yes, they are. I'm sorry, like, I'm trying. Um, so we've added some noise cancelling headphones to help that out. But now, so it's been really good. It's been at something that now I don't see it as, like, I'm doing it to avoid the things of the world, although, I'm kind of happy about avoiding some of it. But it's more like, I'm loving what we're doing so much that I can't really imagine going back to life. Yeah

Brigitte Factor 26:40 That's really cool. I was in that same kind of what do I do with my kids at that in that summer, and on the fence about how to move forward and talking to them, now they are older, so they're in middle school and junior high, so that transition was going to be a lot harder for them. And fortunately, our school district was a little, you know, their, their policies were better than a lot of the other school districts. So I felt somewhat comfortable continuing to send them there, and plus, the, you know, I knew it was going to be a hard transition for them. And you, you kind of talk about the transition it was for you in the beginning, until you finally found that groove. But then you found that groove, and now you're experiencing the benefit of that, and how much better it is for you and your family and the better fit that it is. So I love that you're sharing that and just raising awareness about that that possibility exists. In the Classical Conversations is, is a home Co Op. Can you tell us a little bit more about what that is? For people that don't know?

Erin Brown 27:49 Yeah, you bet. It's been around for quite a few years. So the classical model is kind of this idea that like kids and their younger ages like that, they're just like sponges, they soak things up, and they memorize really easily. So it's nice to have like front loading, like all this information when they're young. And then as their brains develop, like then they work on more like logic, and like thinking through information, like more like the junior high age, and then more like being able to, you know, argue and converse and think through opinions and articulate those like as they get older. And so for us, it's so it's Christian based. And but we go one day, a week on Mondays. And so the kids on Mondays, they're in classes about eight kids. And they have a teacher who kind of goes through their memory work for the week and kind of teaches them like different things, help them memorize them, whether it's like hand motions, or a song or whatever. And they have like history and Latin and math and timeline and science what they learned, like, memorize every week, which is I mean, I have learned so much doing this things that I feel like I never knew this, this is so cool. And so we they told their memory work. And then we go to science, and we do some sort of experiment, or demonstration that relates to our science memory work of the week. And we have art where we do like, you know, artists, famous artists, or we have a six weeks late Lorene had played a tin whistle and reading music, and we have six weeks of composers. And so we're learning different things during Fine Arts. And then they have a time. This is cool, too. Like every week, our kids are working on presentation skills and speaking. And so every week, they have to get them for their class. And they have a different topic that they're presenting on. And they answer questions. And so our mornings like that, and then in the afternoon, my older son does like a grammar and writing class. When they get to fourth grade. They have they have a full day instead just a half day. So yes, we do that on Mondays and the other four days. We have our own math curriculum that we do. We work on our memory work that we learned on Monday. For my older son, he's got his grammar and writing that he learned on Monday that he's practicing and doing stuff with throughout the week. And then for my younger kids, like I have reading stuff that they're doing for me and writing stuff and so we just kind of have the freedom to like, you know, we learned about rocks on Monday. So like I may show them like let's watch the magic school without rocks today. And then let's go go outside and Gather some rocks and see what we can notice about them. And again, like I, I've just learned so much, and I, I love learning with them. Like, I love that. Watching them get excited about stuff. And then honestly, I get excited about it, like, let's go get some books from the library. And then. So yeah, it's just been, it's been really enjoyable.

Brigitte Factor 30:19 That's awesome. That's really cool. I love that you're doing that and that it's working well for you, and your family and in the passion and excitement that you're bringing to that. And at the same time, you're putting together this amazing conference, and and to bring this information out into the world for people to know that there are other options for them, for their families in health and healing and nutrition and that kind of thing. So you have some pretty awesome speakers for this year. Tell us a little bit more about how you chose those speakers who's coming. And what's going on for this year.

Erin Brown 30:58 I'm pretty excited about this year, you know, back in 2020, when we had to cancel we already had at that time, Dr. Larry Palevsky scheduled so he was supposed to be coming back in May of 2020. Before the shutdown in Colombia, and so And way back then, you know, myself, people that work on the conference with me, we said like we really need someone to come and talk about kids health. Like it's such a need. It's such a concern. And so we found you know, Larry Palevsky, who's just amazing. And he's the holistic doctor, holistic pediatrician out of New York. And I'd heard him talk, you know, I'd heard multiple recordings of him talking and just thought he was amazing. I'm so so excited when he agreed to come so bummed when we had to cancel. And then in 2021, it was kind of a last minute throw together conference last year, because we didn't know it was going to happen. And so anyway, it didn't work out for Larry to come last year. But this fall, I emailed him and was like, Hey, would you come you know, this year? And he was like, Yes, I'll come and so. So Larry, Dr. Larry plus, who's gonna be there this year. And like I said, he's a holistic pediatrician out of New York. And he's just amazing. One of the things I love about Larry is just when he talks like, he's so intelligent, and he does such a good job delivering information and delivering hard information in a way that's easy to hear in a way that doesn't like doesn't create a need of controversy. It invites conversation and invites questions, and invites critical thinking. And so I was already really excited about having him and then he was speaking in Kansas City.

Brigitte Factor 32:26 Yeah, I saw him in Kansas City too. And I was like, taking pictures of all the slides and sending them to my husband. I'm like, This is so cool. He's just so amazing.

Erin Brown 32:36 So obviously, I wouldn't have been in Kansas City when I was there. I've met him after one of the talk says like, Hey, my name is Erin Brown, you're going to come to the CoMo wellness conference. He's like, Oh, of course. Erin, I know who you are. And I was like, oh, you know who I am? Anyway, um, yeah. So he's coming. And yeah, like you said, he's just amazing. And the talk that he gave in Kansas City, he's actually going to give again, to our audience at Columbia, cuz I thought it was so fabulous. Yeah. So it's, yeah, didn't you just think it was?

Brigitte Factor 33:05 Yeah, yeah. Yeah, that's amazing.

Erin Brown 33:09 He did such a good job.

Brigitte Factor 33:10 I mean, this is really the perfect time to bring that information forward, especially in Missouri, with everything that's happening. I am so passionate about kids health, that's when the primary focus of my work is working with kids, and helping them because they respond so quickly to nutritional therapy. It's amazing how just making a few little changes and seeing how how they can blossom and feel better and not have to struggle so much. So that's really cool that he's coming in. So everybody, you need to come see him. He's amazing.

Erin Brown 33:50 He will, oh, my goodness. And he's naturally going to get that one talk. So we decided we learned early on, like when we have an amazing speaker, we should have them speak for more than an hour because people want to hear some for more than an hour. And so Larry's going to talk for an hour like he did in Kansas City, and reframing the medical paradigm. And then we asked him to give another hour long talk specifically on like kids and when they're sick, and what do you do? And like, when should you medicate them? Or why should you not medicate them? And when do you need to see a doctor? And what can you do at home? And so that's his talk is called kids need to be sick in order to be well. And so he's going to talk about like, what's actually happening in your kid's body when they're sick? Like, what are the symptoms mean? Like, should we be worried about the symptoms? Like, do we need to be worried about the fever? Like, do they need medicine? Like, what do they actually need? And how do we support their bodies through sickness instead of just trying to cover up whatever symptoms you know, they're having? And so he's going to give me those two talks. And then we actually asked him to do a q&a. Also kind of people have so many questions, and we want to give them the platform to really ask those questions. And so we're going to wrap up the day with a q&a with him and Dr. Jim Meehan one of our other speakers.

Brigitte Factor 35:01 Oh, that's awesome. That sounds amazing. Yeah. So I love Dr. Jim Meehan too. He has such a passion, like it's infectious, his passion for what he does. So tell us a little bit about what he's going to talk about.

Erin Brown 35:17 Yes, so the title of Jim's talk is follow the science. And, you know, I had heard his name prior to this year, but I had never really listened to him speak before and hadn't looked into him too carefully. But similarly to when I heard Larry speak, you know, Jim was speaking at the conference in Kansas City as well. And like, after he was on the stage, five minutes, I thought, oh, my gosh, I love this man. Like the way he's delivered this information, like you said, the passion he has for it. I love how he balances being able to speak truth, and to talk about the seriousness of things going on, while also offering hope, and redemption through that. And to me, I just feel like that's such a great balance like that we shouldn't, we don't need to be, we can't be hiding from these things, or ignoring these things, or just thinking that they're all going to go away, you know, and some of these things that we're seeing happen around us, like are really, really serious. But at the same time, like, there is hope, right, and there are things that you can do for yourself, for your family, for your community, you know, the community at large and, and just hearing him talk about kind of where he thinks like, we'll be like, in a year or two years. And so, yeah, so his talk is called Follow the science, and he is going to talk about current issues without holding back. But again, one thing I love about him, it's kind of like when Larry speaks like, you know, he's speaking with certainty, and conviction, but he's not speaking in a way to, like demean others or criticize like, he's, he's trying to bring people together, trying to help people critical thing, trying to help walk people through through the science and kind of like, where are we at? What do we need to really think about? What should we be considering? And what do we do now?

Brigitte Factor 36:57 Yeah, that's amazing. I'm so excited for these speakers in this conference, it's going to be so cool. So if you're listening, you need to register for como wellness conference. What's the link that they can register at?

Erin Brown 37:13 It's just www dot COMO wellness conference dot com

Brigitte Factor 37:17 Yeah, yeah, we'll put that in the show notes as well. So you can link to it. Who else is going to be speaking? I know you have some local speakers as well.

Erin Brown 37:26 Yeah, we're gonna have some local speakers. So we have a slightly stronger like kids emphasis this year. So chiropractor, Dr Aminta Phelps is going to talk about raising healthy kids unhealthy world, and just everything that entails everything from like thinking about like, outside time and screen time. And they're the stress of like, their mental stress and their physical stress, and, you know, their food, like anything, all the things that matter, like the add up to the health or the sickness, you know, of our children, we have a carry ball, who is going to be talking about eating for life. So kind of this idea of like, it's not just about like, you shouldn't eat certain things. It's more about like, you get to choose every time you eat, to choose things that are going to nourish your body, that are going to support yourself that are going to make you healthy, and kind of give us some thoughts about like, so what should you eat? You know, what do you need to be thinking about? What little changes can you make that make a huge difference, you know, down the road. We also have Adam Saunders from the Columbia Community of Urban Agriculture. And he is really wonderful. And he is going to come and he's going to talk about Well, first, I'll give some really practical tips about growing your own food in your backyard, like, what do you need? Like what are the basics what to get to consider how do you have healthy soil, and also just talking about some of the benefits of growing your own food, not just the nutritional ones, which of course, those are many. But also just like the being outside and the community and showing your kids like, this is where food comes from, you know, and we get to eat it out of the ground and working together and working in the soil and all the all the benefits that that brings. So we have both of those locally. And then we have Erin Blank, who's an herbalist. And she's gonna be talking about how we can use herbs to support our bodies, both during times of health, but also during times of illness, just kind of a basic herbology you want to want and you know what to know about herbs. And then finally, we have Jennifer Ann Barker of informed Health Choice Missouri. I'm really excited about this one I'm excited to all in this year actually play through I feel like it's me like one of the best years ever. But Jennifer Ann is going to be talking about, you know, vaccines, the laws, the mandates, and what you need to know like i i get a ton of questions from friends and family members about like, I mean about those things about like their employer, you know, mandating something and isn't the law and can they file an exemption and what kind of exemption can they file and we'll Missouri to support that and, and while I'm by no means an expert on those things, I have a basic understanding of them. But Jennifer Ann is an expert. And that's exactly what she's gonna be talking about, specific to Missouri specific to whatever's going on at the time, like what people need to know, like, what the law actually says, you know, what are they doing in Jeff City now to kind of try to uphold our medical freedom? And what you can do to work on that as well. But also like, what do you need to know for you, for your spouse, for your kids? Yeah, about making choices and what what freedoms you have there.

Brigitte Factor 40:29 That's awesome. And I completely agree, I think this is going to be one of the best conferences ever, and it is so timely, this information needs to get out there, it's being suppressed on the you know, the more popular channels. So this is a great opportunity to come together in person and hear these speakers and learn this information. It I think it's just going to be powerful. And the other thing I want to say is I want to honor your courage to bring this forth. Because, I mean, it is in the in with the dynamic that we're experiencing today with society, it takes courage to be willing to bring this forth. So I just want to honor that. So I'm really excited about it. Um, so tell us what, when it is where it is, and then remind everybody how they can register again.

Erin Brown 41:24 Yeah, you bet. So it is Saturday, April 23. It is a full day like it is from morning until night. registration starts early around 7:30. And we have speakers throughout the day. And I have said Nourish provides lunch for all 400 of our attendees. And it'll actually be provided in your ticket cost this year. And so yet Nourish Cafe and Market will be gluten free, dairy free organic lunches for everybody. We're holding out at Cooper's Ridge event venue, which we had last year for the first time. And honestly, we received so much great feedback about it. And we just really enjoyed like the smaller community feel of it that we decided we're going to go back there again this year. So it's in Boonville. So it's like a 20 minute drive from Columbia. It's beautiful. It's out like in the country a little bit. There's like a pond and the Clydesdale horses, you know, are across the street. It's just a really lovely, lovely setup. And so we'll be out there. We have to register for a ticket to be there. I fully expect to sell out this year. Absolutely. 100. Yeah, 400 is our absolute max. You know, back in 2019, when Sara Gottfried was there, we had over 500 people attend. And so I thinking we're gonna get to 400 fairly quickly this year. And now that we're starting promotion, and so if you want to come, definitely get your tickets soon. And we've added something extra this year, which I'm pretty pumped about, we're having a happy hour after the conference. So the conference ends at 5:30. And for anybody who wants to you can buy an added ticket, we're calling it s'more wellness, because we're going to do some more wellness stuff from 5:30 to 7, there's gonna be a firepit with healthier s'mores provided by natural grocers. So you can make us more if you want, we're going to have drinks provided by some local vendors, some appetizers from nourish and some other places, some music, and then it will be a time a much smaller group of people we're gonna you know, max out at 150, we may keep it closer to 100 We're gonna kind of see as we go, but it will be a time like you've heard all this amazing information during the day, you're excited, you don't want to go home yet. And so you get to stay for the happy hour, you get to have the food, the drinks, the pizza, the visiting with, you know, people that you came with busy with other people, because it was some sponsors, and then also the speaker so all of our speakers will be there for people to you know, have time to mingle with them and to talk with them and meet with them to ask other questions of them and just time of community and encouragement before the day ends.

Brigitte Factor 43:49 Yeah, I love that. You're I think that's perfect, perfect way to end the conference to to mingle and to share your inspirations about what you gathered through the day. I think that's awesome. Well, that's really great. And so one more time people can register at WWW dot como wellness conference dot com correct.

Erin Brown 44:11 Yeah, that's it. Yep.

Brigitte Factor 44:13 Okay, and we'll put that link in the show notes. Well, Erin, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy homeschooling day and sharing this information. And so we can get this message out there and let people know about it. And if you're in Missouri or within driving distance and want to come to this, absolutely do it will be worth it. I promise and you'll get to see Erin and you'll get to see myself and it will be a great time. So is there any parting words that you have Erin that you'd like to share?

Erin Brown 44:46 You know, I think you kind of just said them Brigitte like, this is something I really do feel like it's going to be our best year ever. And I really feel like now more than ever, people need encouragement. They need hope they need like solid information and just to be with a community have people who are hearing along with them. So I feel like this is the year to come. If you've ever wanted a come before, like, come this year. Don't miss it. These speakers are kind of a once in a lifetime. So I really hope to see everybody there.

Brigitte Factor 45:12 Yeah, yeah, that's great. Well, thank you for being on the podcast and

Erin Brown 45:18 Thanks for having me.

Brigitte Factor 45:19 Yeah, absolutely. And I like to end by saying until next time grace and peace to you.