She's Had MS for 32 Years—Here's What She Knows About Recovery That Your Doctor Doesn't
I had a woman join our VFI group call this week who's had Multiple Sclerosis for 32 years.
Want to know what she said?
"I am bound and determined to heal myself."
Not "manage symptoms."
Not "live with it."
Not "accept this diagnosis."
HEAL myself.
And here's what stopped me in my tracks: after 32 years with an "incurable" diagnosis, this woman understands something that many people with far shorter health journeys haven't grasped yet.
She understands that her body isn't broken.
The Workshop That Changed Everything
I recently held a two-day Vibrant Foundations workshop, and the feedback has been... well, it's been everything I hoped for and more.
One woman almost didn't attend because she assumed it would be "the same old dribble, the same old yada yada yada."
But when she showed up? She was emotional throughout—not from sadness or overwhelm, but from hope.
She told me afterward that it finally made sense. That for the first time, she understood she's not broken, her body's not broken, and it's not hopeless.
That's what understanding terrain theory does—it gives you back hope.
And honestly? That touched me so much. Because if I can help you really know that you are not broken, that your body's not broken, that it's not hopeless—and that you CAN know what's going on in your body in a way that makes sense—everything changes.
Once we understand what's actually happening, we can address it. It doesn't have to be this big, ambiguous thing that's so far out of your reach.
"I Thought It Was Just Age"
I spoke with another workshop attendee the next morning, and she shared something that I hear all the time:
She'd assumed that some of her symptoms were just "getting older." Just age. Things she'd have to figure out how to deal with.
But after understanding the body systems we talked about in the workshop—how they affect your energy, how you feel when you get out of bed, all of it—she realized these things actually aren't inevitable.
And that's when she got serious about thinking: "Okay, what can I do to really help myself live more fully, live more vibrantly?"
This is the shift that happens when you stop accepting the mainstream narrative and start understanding terrain.
What Terrain Theory Actually Means (And Why It Matters for YOU)
Here's what conventional medicine wants you to believe:
❌ Your body is attacking itself
❌ Your symptoms are random
❌ You're just "unlucky" with genetics
❌ This is "just part of aging"
❌ You'll need medication for life
But terrain theory shows you a completely different reality:
✅ Your symptoms are data—your body is speaking
✅ Your body is responding intelligently to its environment
✅ You have agency in your recovery
✅ This IS reversible when you address the root causes
Think about it like this:
Conventional medicine is obsessed with the "weeds" (your symptoms). They pull weeds, spray weeds, give you medication to suppress the weeds.
Functional medicine looks at "the weeds and the soil" (your symptoms plus some root causes). They test for deficiencies, look for imbalances.
But terrain theory? We're looking at the entire ecosystem—the soil quality, the water supply, the air, the sunlight, everything that creates the conditions for those weeds to grow in the first place.
Your body isn't malfunctioning. It's responding intelligently to its terrain—your internal environment.
The Real Story: Maria's "Incurable" Diagnosis
Let me tell you about Maria (name changed for privacy).
She came to me after being diagnosed with an "incurable" autoimmune condition. She'd been told she would need medication for life.
Instead of accepting that diagnosis, she decided to work with me. And here's what we discovered through comprehensive testing:
Active viral infections causing inflammation in her brain tissue, affecting her central nervous system
Specific food triggers that were also affecting her central nervous system
Chronic infections in her gut that her conventional doctors never tested for
Her body wasn't "attacking itself" randomly. It was responding to very specific threats in her terrain—threats that conventional medicine wasn't looking for and functional medicine wasn't testing thoroughly enough.
Once we identified and addressed these root causes? Her "incurable" condition started resolving.
That's the power of understanding your terrain.
The Testing That Reveals What's Really Happening
In our recent workshop, I shared the testing panel that reveals what's actually happening in your body. Not the surface-level bloodwork your doctor orders. Not even the basic functional medicine panels.
We're talking about comprehensive testing that looks at:
How your immune system is reacting to foods
What's living in your gut (and what shouldn't be there)
What toxins have accumulated in your tissues
How your brain and immune system are communicating
Parasite burden (and I'll be honest—conventional parasite testing rarely comes back positive, but I've yet to have a client who doesn't improve when we do gentle parasite cleansing)
Heavy metal accumulation
Viral reactivations
This gives us your unique roadmap.
Not a one-size-fits-all protocol. Not a generic "autoimmune diet." YOUR specific terrain, YOUR specific triggers, YOUR specific path to recovery.
Another VFI Client Who Gets It
Back to that woman with 32 years of MS.
We also have another gal on the call, who's known me for 8 years and finally joined VFI. When she introduced herself, she said something simple but profound:
"I'm happy to be here and I know I'm in the right place. I know that."
After 8 years of following my work, watching from the sidelines, she KNOWS. Because when you understand terrain theory, when you see it work for others, when the methodology makes sense—you just know.
Another precious gal joined us from Northern California. She's been with other functional medicine practitioners for over 10 years, but something about the terrain-based approach finally clicked in a way nothing else had.
Our newest member has been on a mold journey for 4 years, trying to figure it out on her own. She came to the call with "great hopes"—and I have no doubt those hopes are well-placed.
This Is You Learning About You
At the end of our VFI group call, I told these women something I need you to hear too:
"This is learning your body and the things that YOUR body needs to be well. Not anybody else's body."
It's not about the noise out there—the latest supplement trend, the new diet everyone's talking about, what worked for your friend.
Just let that be noise.
This is about YOU. Learning about YOU.
Because your symptoms aren't random. They're breadcrumbs leading you to exactly what needs attention in your terrain.
What's Next: The Terrain Assessment Tool
I'm so excited to share more about the Terrain Assessment Tool with you today! This is something I've been developing to help you start understanding your own terrain—where you are right now, what systems need support, what your body is trying to tell you. You can access it here: Terrain Assessment Tool
Keep an eye out for upcoming Facebook Lives where I'll be walking through this tool and showing you exactly how to use it.
Because here's what I believe with everything in me:
You're not broken. Your body is doing exactly what it's supposed to do given its current terrain.
And when we optimize that terrain? Everything changes.
I often say: I'm no special chick. What happened for me can happen for you.
Recovery isn't about being special or lucky. It's about understanding your terrain and systematically addressing what's out of balance.
Ready to Learn YOUR Terrain?
The Vibrant Foundations Immersion program is where we go deep into understanding YOUR unique terrain, testing what's actually happening in YOUR body, and creating a systematic roadmap for YOUR recovery.
We don't just talk about terrain theory—we help you understand it, test it, and address it with precision.
Because you deserve more than symptom management. You deserve recovery.
Learn more about VFI and get on the interest list: www.sagebrushwellness.com/vfi
Melissa Rose is a Root Cause Educator & Terrain-Based Wellness Guide specializing in autoimmune recovery through the lens of terrain theory. With 15+ years of clinical experience and a 99.8% client success rate, she guides individuals through comprehensive testing and systematic recovery protocols that address the true root causes of chronic illness.
