Theresa Nicassio, PhD  Author | Psychologist | Host

Welcome to YUM!
Welcome to YUM, a community for anyone and everyone who loves food, life, and love. If you’ve ever longed for more joy, deliciousness and connection in your life, this site is for you! I’m Theresa Nicassio, the author of YUM: Plant-Based Recipes for a Gluten-Free Diet. It’s wonderful to have you join the tribe!

My life’s journey forever changed when my personal health crisis began in 1997. Since then, I’ve been on a mission to live more vibrantly, mindfully, and healthfully in every way possible and offer my insanely delicious recipes and health discoveries to help others.  On this site. I’m here to share what I’ve learned with you so that your quest to live a yummier and more fulfilling life can be easier and way more fun, regardless of your health conditions, food sensitivities, and dietary restrictions.

So, if you’re game to open up your world in amazing and delectable ways that you never thought imaginable, put on your seatbelt and get ready for an amazing ride. We’re going to have lots of fun and try new things together. Just be forewarned…once you start to bring more life-giving deliciousness into your world, there’s no turning back.

It’s time to enter the rabbit hole of YUM—the land of defiantly delicious living!

Welcome aboard!

Theresa

Theresa Nicassio, Author of YUM
Theresa Nicassio, Author of YUM

My Story & How YUM Came To Be…

As you may know, I’m a psychologist and a mom. The truth is, I am now also a Gourmet Raw Food Chef and Nutrition Instructor, as well as a Certified Integrative Energy Healer, and student of several other osteopathic healing modalities (e.g. Craniosacral Therapy, Lymph Drainage, Visceral Manipulation, and Neural Manipulation). However, becoming a chef was a very unexpected development.

While I’ve always been a great cook, historically I never really liked to cook! Especially growing up in a very gender-typed family, I grew up associating “cooking” with “women’s work”. As a strong and opinionated woman, it is not difficult to appreciate my lack of affection for the activity.  This all changed, though, when I became extremely ill and debilitated and didn’t know if I would live long enough to keep my daughter from becoming motherless before she graduated high school. It is pretty incredible how motivating the desire to stay alive can be and how potent the desire to be there for others can be.

It was in 1997 that the test began. It was really scary—my immune system was kaput—gone! Every pathogen possible ravaged my body and my poor respiratory system had difficulty offering me the breath of life. It was a long and winding road, filled with multi-organ inflammation and dysfunction, including my joints, skin and neurological systems, as well as my respiratory and digestive systems. I was in pain in every cell of my body, with the toxicity within me (due to natural, as well as pharmaceutical inputs) ravaging within me. It was ugly.

After over a dozen years of profound struggling, I accidentally discovered that at the root of my debilitation was my body’s disapproval of some of the food that I ate—most notably, gluten, dairy, and potatoes. Once this awareness came to the light, my health finally began to turn around. It was a long journey, but an important point along the way was when I decided to shift my perspective about my food restrictions to focus on what I “could” eat, instead of what I had to live without. I thought of it like a painter’s palette to create new art and as a creative challenge.

At first, the process seemed grim, but being the persistent solution-seeker that I am, nothing could stop me on my mission. After years of experimenting, I successfully created insanely yummy and healthy plant-based food concepts that everyone in my family could love, even without gluten, dairy, sugar, eggs, potatoes, and many other foods that can give lots of folks a tough time.

This was not my plan, but it was my Destiny—and one that I would never want to change. Because of my suffering, I now have been able to create a gift for others—the resource that I wish I could have found when I was so sick.  I want to optimally help others prevent themselves from having to go through what I did, if possible. If it is too late for that, I want to help those who are struggling find respite, ease and joy in their lives again.

Many others are like me—the symptoms are there and may have been throughout their lives. For example, I had migraines, rosacea, asthma, digestive problems and anemia since childhood, but never knew that the food I was eating was causing it. The crazy thing is that I know that I am not unique in this. Countless people have gas, skin rashes, headaches, heartburn, etc. and think that these symptoms are just a necessary part of living—when oftentimes, they actually may not be.  Knowing this, I am committed to share what I have learned so that even children can avoid this dark and lonely path and instead live vibrant and healthy lives. This is what YUM has been created to do.

Theresa

About the Author

“COOKING UP KINDNESS”

Dr. Theresa Nicassio is an “out-of-the-box” registered psychologist (#1541), radio show host, speaker, and award-winning author who uses food & other unconventional tools to promote kindness, hope, and sustainable living.

Passionate about public awareness and empowerment, Theresa contributes to social, emotional and environmental transformation through her radio program (The Dr. Theresa Nicassio Show), social media, and her blogs TheresaNicassio.com & YumFoodForLiving.com and is a media personality seen in radio, TV, online, & print media outlets.

Dr. Nicassio is the author of the internationally-acclaimed book YUM: Plant-Based Recipes for a Gluten-Free Diet (a 2016 Gourmand “Best in the World” award winner & Publishers Weekly Starred Review recipient, amongst other awards).

Professional Bio

Dr. Theresa Nicassio is a Registered Psychologist (#1541) in Vancouver, Canada. She received her PhD in Counseling Psychology from The Ohio State University in 1991, then worked at the Counseling Center at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) until she moved to Canada in 1994 to work at the University of British Columbia (UBC).

While at UBC, Theresa served in a variety of capacities as the senior psychologist at the Counselling Centre. She was the Coordinator of Clinical Services and Training and also an adjunct faculty member for the Department of Counselling Psychology in the Faculty of Education. Dr. Nicassio also enjoyed teaching and supervising at the Adler School of Professional Psychology and at Langara College.

In addition to her private practice, she is a wellness columnist for BLUSHVancouver Magazine (#Mindful Living and #BecauseYouAsked columns), Conscious Living TV, FLOURISH/Natural Facts Magazine, Conscious Living TV, HealthyNewAge.com and a Core Blogger for The Wellness Universe. She is also the host of the Dr. Theresa Nicassio Show on HealthyLife.net – All Positive Talk Radio.

Possibility Thinking, Compassion & Inclusivity

Dr. Theresa Nicassio delights in challenging outmoded and harmful ways of thinking. She embodies possibility thinking in the truest sense and embraces compassionate, choice-driven, and inclusive living as a central and ethical key for individual and societal transformation and healing. Her sensitivity to the unique and special needs of all who reside on this planet offers a new voice of hope, even (and especially) for those who are often left behind.

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”

“The Little Prince,” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

“Besides making me wish I was Italian, Theresa represents love in action. Many talk the talk, but she’s the real deal—her recipes are full of her generosity and spirit as well as deliciousness!”

– Sharon Hanna
Author of The Book of Kale and The Book of Kale & Friends

Contact Theresa

Theresa Nicassio, Author of YUM