As an American, we tend to think that being overweight but not under a doctor’s care at 50 years old is being healthy. Being a vegan/vegetarian for over 20 years, I believed that I was immune to every disorder that plagued the American public. My diet, however, consisted of mostly simple carbs and very little fresh fruit and vegetables. I ate a lot of boxed soy proteins, bread, pasta, rice and cereal, soy cheese and stirfry. Chinese food was a big favorite for me and I had total disregard for the fat used to fry my favorite dishes.

I am an artist. I create art so that people would look at it and their souls would fill with admiration. Because when a soul is filled with admiration, it is not filled with anger or boredom. It is my belief that our world would become much better if the souls of all people became filled with admiration.

At 35 I had beautiful waist length hair, smooth skin and was told I looked 26. I had been a model so I was really into glamour and looking as perfect as I possibly could. Then one day I became very ill. I developed skin rashes all over my face and body so severe that I could not even wash my face because my skin burned and peeled off. I had migraine headaches with severe vomiting. Suddenly, all the glamour was gone.

Dear Tonya,