What inspired us to create Fresh Start and how our journey to wellness started
Inspiration Began With A Crisis
A week before our first son Peter was born, my husband Vasili was diagnosed with whooping cough for the second time in his life. Whooping cough is a very contagious disease, and statistics showed that only one in ten the baby will survive. That was very worrying news!
“He Can’t Come Near His Newborn Baby!”
The family doctor asked Vasili to stay away from the baby, to make sure the baby wouldn’t get infected. “But Doc”I protested, “hasn’t the antibiotic Vasili been on killed off the bug and started healing the body?” Doc explained that antibiotics decrease the amount of bacteria but do not kill it entirely.
“After the quarantine, you are safe for the general public, but not for newborns. See if you can arrange a stay somewhere else for awhile. It is in your own interest to stay away from your son.” That was not an option I was happy with. I wanted to be cuddled by my husband at home, have him help care for the baby and just be around during this special time.
Vasili Undergoes a Health Retreat and Feels Better Than Ever
We had heard about the Abundant Life Therapy Center (as Fresh Start was known at the time) but thought it was more than they could afford. This time we realized we’d better do something with Vasili’s health and do it soon.
When you are up against the wall, you will do just about anything to make sure your little one is safe and secure, and that your husband is well. Little did we know what a great investment it would turn into and the pleasant changes this place would bring about in our lives.
While Vasili was at the retreat, I stayed home. Let me tell you what my health was like at that time. I was quite a bit overweight, my face and back covered with acne, and my energy levels were low after the delivery. To top it off, I was a new immigrant from Belarus and did not have my family close by to help through the first few days of a “new life.”
My picture of health was not the best before I got pregnant either: I experienced mood swings, occasional depression, painful PMS and frequent colds. So what? Everyone had that, isn’t that normal? At least that was what I thought at that time.
He Was Excited to Change!
As I was mourning over my pitiful lot, the phone rang. Vasili was on the line. My husband was so excited! I had never heard him like this before. He told me what he learned at the retreat, about why he got sick and how much better he felt after just four days. He said he would like to change his eating habits, and the eating habits of my husband were a very touchy issue (yours might be too. I had tried changing things around the house before but had had very little success.) I simply could not believe the change and doubted that it would last too long.
What a surprise! When he walked in the door I saw a different man. Health was beaming from him, he coughed only a couple of times and was loaded with energy. He could not stop sharing about everything he learned, which included the “discovery” that his sickness was caused by his love of “perogies and sour cream.”
Lifestyle Changes Better for the Whole Family: Gives New Purpose to Ania and Vasili
From the day Vasili came home we changed our lifestyle and eating habits. Our relationships have greatly improved and we have started reaping many wonderful benefits. As we began eating ample amounts of green salads, vegetables, fruits and other wholesome foods, my face started clearing up, my weight has dropped down to normal, my moodiness has disappeared, my energy levels have gone up, our sons’ health has improved and the list goes on. I had not even gone through the program yet at this time.
That Detox Cleanse: Start to A New Life Path
Those ten days Vasili attended the retreat had such an impact on my husband that we decided we wanted to help other people get well too. We wanted to see other happy families, to see those families lose such words from their vocabulary as Cancer, Diabetes, Arthritis, Surgeries, etc. Our great-grandparents did not have those words in their vocabulary, so why should we?
We took on the challenge and began planning to open a center just like the one Vasili had attended. Before we could turn around, we were running our own health retreat and deepening our understanding of health and detoxification with each new guest.
Dream of Health Retreat Comes True for Ania and Vasili
The worst turned into the best, just because we were willing to try something different, something that made sense, something that was simple and would enable us to deal with the causes of the disease, not just the symptoms, something that would not hook us up to a huge list of supplements for a lifetime.
We had entered the university called Abundant Life Wellness Centre, located in the middle of nowhere (Lavoy, Alberta) and worked on our “second degree” for five years.
It has been the best journey ever. It made us better people, helped us get in touch with real people and real life, something you cannot learn from textbooks. We did not always know the answers, but we studied with each client, and our passion and desire to help others guided us, shaped our vision and created our company culture.
What a joy it is to see somebody’s health and life transforming, and energy vibrating in every renewed cell!
Fresh Start at Ocean Resort, a Necessary Move for the Perfect Health Retreat
Eventually we realized that though the programs were a great success, the building and location were not so conducive to healing. Though we were in peaceful rural surroundings, there were no walking trails around, plus harsh winters were an obstacle for many to get out for the prescribed walks.
The building was old, and there isn’t much you can do with a 100 year-old place. We are so thankful to the guests who put up with many inconveniences. A special thank you to our repeat clients, who were able to see the deeper value we offered.
In the summer of 2009 we decided to take our two young boys to the ocean. It was a short, but wonderful holiday! We stopped by the Ocean Resort and immediately fell in love with the place. It has such a natural, creative and yet functional design. And… it felt like it was built right for a wellness retreat.
Ocean Resort is Vancouver’s Island Spiritual and Wellness Retreat Centre with several spa treatment rooms, large meeting areas, everything we needed for our operations was there. It was not simply a hotel, it was a wellness centre, our dream centre. Lucas Stiefvater, owner of the resort, who was the owner of the Resort at that time and is an amazing designer and human being, welcomed us into his space.
Fresh Start Offers Greater Variety of Programs
To make the story short: We are here now, at the Ocean Resort and offering our programs with added features: various classes, increased variety and length of programs and a wonderful caring team.
So dreams sometimes come true, in fact they almost always do. What is your dream and how much are you ready to give up for it? Every dream has a price, so you need to determine whether it is truly worth this price, and if yes, go for it.
We love our dream and gave up so much for it: our feeling of security, normal work hours, and a lot of quality family time. We wanted to make a difference in lives of those who craved the knowledge we had.
If you have read this far, you too are looking for a way to prevent major health issues, like we were. Or you might be an advanced health seeker who already knows the benefits of routine body cleansing in supportive environment and understands the importance of a specific detoxification sequence and process.
Whatever your goals are, it will be our pleasure to assist you on your health journey. Why bother carrying around trash that makes you feel “blah”? Simply let it go.
At Fresh Start We Have a Saying:
“If it is meant for you to be with us for a program session, everything will fall in place and you will be here.”
What matters most is that your heart is ready to bless you with the extraordinary experience, energy boost, spiritual renewal, information breakthrough and pampering. Get well, have some fun, treat yourself and your loved ones. Take time to listen to your heart.
If you are ready for a Fresh Start, feel free to call us at 1-888-658-3324. It may well be a call that changes your life forever.
Yours healthfully,
Ania Kastashchuk
