Unfiltered. Unmedicated. Unbreakable.

I’m Sylvia, a Family Nurse Practitioner, mother of three, Latina, writer, survivor, foodie, and fierce believer in second chances.

Born and raised in Lima, Peru, and living in Flagstaff, Arizona for over 14 years, I’ve crossed borders in geography, language, love, and loss. I’ve built a life with grit and grace, forged deep friendships across cultures, raised children on my back while chasing degrees, and healed others while quietly tending to my own wounds.

I write because I need to.

I cook because food carries memory.

I share because silence never saved anyone.

This blog is my mesa, a table where truth is served with ají, identity is dissected with humor, and healing is seasoned with real talk. No filters, no prescriptions, just raw stories about motherhood, medicine, cultural pride, loss, faith, pain, purpose, and finding joy in a messy, bilingual, Peruvian-American life.

Why “No Pills, Just Ají”?

Because sometimes healing isn’t found in a bottle,

It’s in the burn of ají amarillo warming your throat,

in the laughter that slips through grief,

in the stories that no one dares to write.

I’ve learned to survive not with meds, but with movement, meaning, and mouthfuls of spice. And when life knocked me down? I rebuilt with heart, humor, hustle… and just a splash of vinegar.

I am a Board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP-C) and have a previous MSN in Leadership. I have been bedside RN for 9.5 years. I am fluent in English & Spanish, and can understand French, Italian, ASL, but this blog isn’t a résumé. It’s a reclaiming.

Of identity. Of joy. Of voice. Of power.

Come sit at the table. There’s room for you here. Just bring your truth, an