HI, I’M ANGELA MAGILL.

I struggled with an eating disorder for 18 years, coupled with anxiety and depression. I successfully graduated high school and university and went on to have a very successful career in advertising for over almost 15 years. I was the poster child of success while living in illness.

After a very long road, I accepted that I needed help, but having a busy career was not conducive to allowing one the dedicated time

required to focus on my health, needs, interests and overall mental well-being. So, there had to be a breaking point — my health was suffering, my work was suffering, and I didn’t know where to start or where to get help. I took a three-month sabbatical from work to begin my recovery. The first month was actually spent researching programs, consulting doctors, speaking to family and friends in order to even begin to find the right approach for my recovery. This is something I had not been able to do while working full-time. Everything the professionals advised never seemed right for me. 1:1 counselling left me feeling isolated. Medication intuitively didn’t feel right for me — using a drug to suppress or enhance my feelings that, and being accompanied by a three-page disclaimer on the side effects made me say “no, thank you!”.

Frustrated, I decided to take my health into my own hands and educate myself on ways to support my body, so I enrolled at the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition to become a Registered Holistic Nutritionist in 2019. You’d think someone with an eating disorder would have this mentality that “food is bad”, but I knew there was nothing “bad” about food, in fact I loved food. And, it was my love of food and using my applied education that helped me heal from mental illness. At the same time, I also worked with a naturopath on the right supplementation to balance my mood and support my mental health. My journey wasn’t linear, nor perfect, but intuitively I knew I was doing what was right for me. Looking towards the root cause of my symptoms and learning to manage stress has put me on the path to healing my body and my mind. I still consider myself to be a work in progress and I am grateful to have the tools and knowledge that will support me in optimizing my overall health. I am honoured to be able to share this information with my clients, guide and educate them in nutrition, and help them with their own journey.