We posted a request recently on our Cambrooke Facebook page asking for stories from people about what, exactly, “feeling better” means to them. We got one post that stopped us in our tracks.

We just had to share.

“Ash N John Bricker” (Facebook name) posted the following in response:

“It means my son will be able to go through a lunch line just like any other kid (Cambrooke’s lunch program), he can have a large variety of low protein (low leucine), high calorie food and is not just limited to fruits and veggies, it means he can be picky about what he wants to eat just like any other toddler because I have a cabinet full of Cambrooke foods he can choose from, it means more to me as a mom to know he will feel included, than many will ever know.”

This response made the rounds at Cambrooke. We were all thrilled (and sincerely motivated) by this heart-felt response. And it’s worth picking apart exactly why it struck a chord with us.

While our nutritionists and scientists are working diligently on low protein foods and formulas with the goal of achieving metabolic balance for those living with PKU, this post reminded us that there’s another side to feeling better than just feeling better.

For Ash’s son, feeling better meant feeling included at school. He could get in the same lunch line because of the sensitivity built into Cambrooke’s lunch program. Implicit in her post, feeling better also meant that her son would actually eat the foods and drink the formula in the first place, which speaks to their good taste. On top of all that he was allowed to be picky!

How wonderful it is that by simply offering a variety of choices within the PKU diet we could help enable this boy to just, well, be a boy.

Lastly, what this note said to us is that by helping her son “feel better” in these ways, we were able to help her feel better. Ash says “…it means more to me as a mom to know he will feel included, than many will ever know.”

Well, let’s hope this blog post will let many, many more people know, Ash.

If you have your own stories about what feeling better means to you, please let us know in the comments below. We seriously love and live for these stories.

Now, go ahead and…

Feel Balanced. Feel Better.