Mae Revis, a herbal and nutritional consultant and owner of Healthy By Design in Five Points, consults with clients about natural ways to feel better and stay healthy. Photo by Amanda Taylor

It’s that time of year again when many people are making New Year’s resolutions. And soon enough, many people will be breaking those New Year’s resolutions. Some will be successful, but only if they are truly committed to making a change.

Someone who knows a thing or two about keeping a resolution any time of the year is Mae Revis. Several years ago, Revis was plagued by many health issues, including a weight problem and severe depression that conventional medicine could not cure. She said, “I felt like I was doing better, but I wasn’t. I was overweight, and basically not happy. I was not well.”

After trying several anti–depressants with little success, a friend suggested she try natural health. “I had the option to take prescriptions for the rest of my life or try natural health.” With the help of Terry Hall, a natural health specialist in Green-ville, SC, Revis took the plunge into a different lifestyle.

After about a year, Revis was completely off prescription medicine, including anti–depressants, and had lost 50 pounds. Since then (May 1999) Revis has been doctor and drug free, only seing physicians for yearly checkups.

Revis claims her success was due to the plan Hall helped her create. Revis changed her diet, what she ate, the combinations of foods she ate, started exercising, and read voraciously. She stopped eating pro-cessed foods with preservatives, ate more green vegetables, and found a way to live a balanced, more spiritual life.

After experiencing such personal success with her new lifestyle, Revis said, “I decided I wanted to do the same thing for other people. I wanted to offer an alternative, though I don’t consider it alternative medicine.”

She then went to Trinity College of Natural Health in Warsaw, IN, where she received a master herbalist degree and became a certified nutritional consultant.

Her next step came in September of 2005, when she opened a new business called Healthy By Design with her sister, Pat Itter. The business, located in Five Points, offers individualized nutritional and herbal health plans designed to help people achieve all of their wellness goals.

Editor’s Note: It is important to consult with your physician before starting any new diet or health plan.