Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) affects between 1-4 percent of the US population. It is certainly not a rare disease...yet it is treated as such due to the stigma attached to it. As a result, many have to suffer in silence without proper information and guidance on dealing with a chronic and painful illness. Cristina Curp is an HS warrior determined to bring the frowned-upon skin condition into the limelight.
As an author and blogger, Cristina is determined to help people, like herself, who might be vulnerable and need support yet be reluctant to seek it due to the widespread misinformation among the general public regarding HS. She got the idea for The Castaway Kitchen feeling stranded as a sick, lonely mother on Pearl Harbor (she is a military spouse). Since then, TCK has developed into a growing online community.
The community offers love, support, and guidance to people with autoimmune disease and, more specifically, auto-inflammatory skin condition Hidradenitis suppurativa; by utilizing social media platforms to support and nourish each other via educational content and anti-inflammatory healing recipes.
Her upbringing greatly influences her dedication to helping others. She is a first-generation American who saw her parents work hard to give her a life they couldn't have. Cristina's unbelievable courage becomes more believable when you know more about her background. Her grandfather sacrificed his life standing up to a dictator, and consequently, her grandmother fled Cuba and Communism during the Mariel boatlift with her children.
Besides being a wonderful mother to her children, like her mother, Cristina is also an incredibly successful entrepreneur. She credits the entrepreneurial streak to being surrounded by so many business owners in her family. She has also authored bestselling cookbooks and intends to continue writing as she is planning a third book along with HS courses.
Her business and the online community she's built over the years are thriving as she intends to reach out to more people who might benefit from her life's story. After living with a painful and chronic skin condition, Hidradenitis Suppurativa, since 13 years old, at 32, Cristina put it in remission with a healthy diet and lifestyle. As a certified functional nutrition therapy practitioner, she is motivated to help others do the same.
Cristina is a fierce advocate for more research on the impact food has on health and bases her professional endeavors on studies proving the efficacy of diet changes to improve symptoms of autoimmune disease. She is a professional chef who is also a nutritionist and life coach. But most notably, she adamantly encourages people to talk openly and seek support regarding common chronic illnesses that people often shy away from.
A firm believer in food as medicine, Cristina combines nutritional information with her impressive culinary skills to do what looks like a magic show in the kitchen. We know food can be healthy and we know food can be delicious... but Cristina proves it can be both at the same time.
