Celebrate Green Blog

by Lynn and Corey

We’re longtime admirers of our interview subject today, Shane Shirley-Smith, whose personal battle, like that of so many people, led her to live a more environmentally aware life. You can read more about Shane and her passion to warn people about environmental toxins on her website, Environmental Booty.

1. You talk about experiencing a life-threatening health crisis due to a reaction to aspartame. Tell us a bit about that and how it set you on a journey toward living greener.

I would never have thought that something like an artificial sweetener would hurt me, but it did. A couple of summers ago, I found those little packets of diet lemonade that you put into bottled water and began drinking them constantly.  Almost immediately I started feeling like I was having trouble concentrating and I felt so very tired.  My vision became blurred and I was having trouble doing simple tasks like fixing dinner for my family.  I knew something was wrong but had no idea what.  I just kept drinking my diet lemonade thinking it would help me feel better to stay hydrated.

Then one night after I had put the kids to bed, my hands and feet began buzzing (for lack of a better word) and I was having trouble staying conscious.  I called my parents and they took me to the ER while my husband stayed with the kids.  I still remember sitting in the car holding the little bit that was left of my diet lemonade drink.  I was trying to put the bottle up to my mouth to finish it off but I couldn’t even hold the bottle.

They ran a ton of tests at the ER and then a doctor came in, sat down beside me, looked at me with great sadness and (I will never forget this) put her hand on my leg and told me that it looked like I had MS.  What followed was a trip to a neurologist who told me that there were no lesions on my brain to indicate MS.  She told me that she had lots of patients with symptoms like mine but many times they weren’t able to figure out the cause.  Then a friend asked me if I had started eating or drinking anything with aspartame.  She told me I should Google aspartame because it could be causing me all of my troubles.  I did not buy into any of that internet conspiracy hoo hah but checked the lemonade packets and sure enough they contained aspartame.  I thought I would at least take a few days off from drinking the aspartame laced lemonade and what happened amazed me.  After just three days without drinking the diet lemonade, almost all of my symptoms were gone.

I followed up with one more neurologist and that appointment changed the direction of my life.  He told me that he too had concerns about aspartame.   Then he looked straight into my eyes and gave me what I can label as nothing other than a call to action.  He asked me what I was going to do with the knowledge that aspartame had made me sick.  I knew right then and there that I had to share my story with others.  I began looking at what my family ate, drank and put on our bodies and started my blog to share all that I was learning.

2. Through your website and blog, what do you bring to your readers and followers that other green focused sites may not?

Environmental Booty is all about finding the treasure in living green through self, people and planet.  The focus is on what we can do, not on what we are not doing.  I can’t stand green guilt.  The Environmental Booty Community is a place where people can feel safe sharing all they are learning about living a life that creates a healthier world for themselves and each other.  Our future depends on our knowledge and actions and I like to get people thinking about how the choices they make today will impact and create a healthier tomorrow.

Some sites concentrate on the idea that green living is only about saving the planet.  At Environmental Booty, we believe that living green is about the health of people and planet.   None of us are perfect but  I just do not believe people can be guilted into going green.  Living green is about learning and sharing what we know to create healthy change.  A little green is better than none at all right?  Living a healthier lifestyle can be intimidating.  At EB we accept everyone no matter where they are on their path to living a greener lifestyle.

3. What is the most challenging thing for you, about working toward living a more environmentally-aware life?

In my house there is a bit of a green struggle going on.  My husband is not totally on board with all of the beliefs I have because he is a bit behind me on his walk to a greener lifestyle.  Because of this, there are parenting and household issues which come up that can create disagreements.  When it comes to things like what to feed the kids and not using pesticides, my husband and I frequently do not see eye to eye.  He is coming around though and I have to constantly remind myself that it is my job to help him get the information he needs to create a healthier life for our family.  Truly, information is the only thing that will change our tomorrows.

Visit Shane at her website, EnvironmentalBooty.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson are mother and daughter and authors of  Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations and Traditions for the Whole Family, and founders of Green Halloween®.