Heidi Farina, a full-time artist and passionate plant-based advocate, shares her inspiring journey from biotech manager to creative powerhouse. After enduring personal loss and burnout, she embraced a whole food plant-based lifestyle that reignited her energy and creativity. Heidi discusses the importance of prioritizing mental health, setting boundaries, and the significance of family health history on her wellness journey. She offers insights on rebuilding identity after hardship and boldly pursuing what truly brings joy.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Family Health Tragedies Spark Change
Heidi experienced deep trauma from losing her grandpa to a heart attack before birth and her mother to a hemorrhagic stroke at 54.
These losses spurred her to research her family's health history and recognize a genetic predisposition to diabetes and heart disease.
insights INSIGHT
Genetics vs Epigenetics Control
Genetics give you a baseline risk, but epigenetics show how lifestyle can turn genes on or off.
This means people have significant control over their disease risks regardless of inherited genetics.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Burnout After Baby and Job
Post-baby, Heidi was drowning in exhaustion managing work, motherhood, and passion projects with only 6 hours of sleep.
Work stress and lack of self-care led to physical symptoms and loss of fitness motivation.
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Dean Ornish's "Reversing Heart Disease" is a seminal work in the field of preventive cardiology. It presents a comprehensive program that combines lifestyle changes, including a whole-food, plant-based diet, with stress management techniques and moderate exercise to reverse heart disease. The book details the scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness of this approach, showcasing remarkable results in patients with advanced heart disease. Ornish's program emphasizes the power of lifestyle interventions to improve cardiovascular health, offering a holistic and effective alternative to traditional medical treatments. The book has been instrumental in promoting the adoption of plant-based diets for heart health and has inspired countless individuals to take control of their health.
In this inspiring episode, Rip sits down with Heidi Farina to hear how she went from college athlete and biotech manager, to full-time artist and plant-based advocate.
After experiencing deep personal loss and burnout during the pandemic, Heidi realized something had to give. What followed was a powerful transformation rooted in health, healing, and rediscovery.
Heidi opens up about her decision to embrace a whole food plant-based lifestyle, how it helped her reclaim her energy and creativity, and what it really took to step away from a life that no longer aligned with her values.
She shares the emotional journey of balancing motherhood, grief, and self-care—and how she now prioritizes mental health and boundaries while pursuing a life that truly feels like her own.
She discusses:
The impact of family’s health history on her wellness journey
The moment she knew she needed to make a major life change
How switching to a whole food plant-based diet jump-started her healing
Finding the courage to go “all in,” regardless of criticism and opinions of others
What it takes to rebuild your identity after burnout and loss
Tips for setting boundaries and creating a life of balance
Why it’s never too late to start over and pursue what lights you up
PLANTSTRONG Podcast