If you’ve ever started AIP and thought your meals taste a little flat or repetitive, you’re not alone.

One of the biggest challenges—especially early on—is learning how to create satisfying, flavorful meals with a more limited ingredient list. And when food isn’t enjoyable, it becomes much harder to stay consistent.

In this Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott breaks down five simple, practical ways to build flavor in your AIP kitchen—without complicated recipes or extra effort.

These foundational techniques can be layered into meals you’re already making, helping your food feel more balanced, interesting, and deeply satisfying.

You’ll hear about:

1. Why flavor matters for long-term AIP sustainability
2. How acid brightens and balances rich or heavy meals
3. Why fresh herbs are one of the most powerful (and overlooked) tools
4. How fermented foods add both tang and depth
5. The role of aromatics in building a strong flavor foundation
6. What umami is and how to incorporate it on AIP
7. Simple ways to upgrade everyday meals without extra complexity
8. Why small changes can dramatically improve how your food tastes

Flavorful cooking on AIP doesn’t require more effort—it just requires the right building blocks.

Resources

1. The New Autoimmune Protocol – Pre-Order
2. AIP Foundation Series (Free Email Course)
3. The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen

Episode Timeline

00:00 – Why AIP meals can feel repetitive

01:54 – Flavor Booster #1: Acid

04:18 – Flavor Booster #2: Fresh herbs

07:36 – Flavor Booster #3: Fermented foods & brine

10:30 – Flavor Booster #4: Aromatics

12:39 – Flavor Booster #5: Umami

14:15 – Recap & practical next steps

If you’ve spent any time learning about the Autoimmune Protocol, you’ve probably heard the phrase nutrient density come up again and again. But knowing that nutrient density matters—and actually putting it into practice—are two very different things.

Because when you’re in your kitchen, planning meals or staring into your fridge, the real question isn’t what is nutrient density? It’s: What does a nutrient-dense plate actually look like?

In this episode of the AIP Deep Dive series, Mickey breaks down how to build meals that consistently support healing, energy, and long-term health—without overcomplicating the process. She walks through both the science and the practical application, helping you move from theory into everyday implementation.

Mickey explores how macronutrients and micronutrients work together, highlights the most nutrient-dense food categories, and shares her own simple framework for planning meals that are nourishing, varied, and sustainable.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why nutrient density is foundational to healing diets
2. How macronutrients (protein, carbs, fat) support energy, metabolism, and immune function
3. Why protein is the anchor of a nutrient-dense plate
4. The role of carbohydrates in thyroid health, energy, and recovery
5. Why fat is essential for hormones, absorption, and satiety
6. What micronutrients are and why they drive healing at the cellular level
7. How phytonutrients and “eating the rainbow” support the microbiome and inflammation balance
8. Why fiber is critical for gut health and immune regulation
9. The role of fermented foods in increasing microbial diversity
10. How omega-3 rich seafood supports an anti-inflammatory gut environment
11. The truth about organ meats and other nutrient-dense traditional foods
12. How to think about nutrient density across a week (instead of perfecting every meal)
13. A simple 5-step framework for building nutrient-dense meals in real life
14. Why sustainability matters more than perfection when it comes to healing

Resources:

1. Episode 65: Nutrient Density Research Breakdown
2. The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – A practical guide to building nutrient-dense, flexible AIP meals for real life. Includes recipes, meal templates, and strategies for sustainable healing.
3. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with beginner tools, food lists, and meal planning support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why nutrient density matters in practice

02:17 – Macronutrients overview: protein, carbs, fat

03:02 – Protein: needs, function, and why it anchors your plate

05:55 – Carbohydrates: energy, thyroid, and common misconceptions

07:48 – Fat: hormone support, absorption, and satiety

09:23 – Micronutrients: where healing really happens

11:20 – Phytonutrients and eating the rainbow

13:05 – Fiber and microbiome support

15:08 – Microbiome-supporting foods overview

15:36 – Fermented foods and microbial diversity

17:37 – Omega-3 seafood and inflammation balance

19:43 – Organ meats and nutrient density myths

22:00 – Bone broth and traditional foods

24:30 – How to apply this in real life

25:09 – Step 1: Start with protein

26:02 – Step 2: Plan vegetables and fruits

26:48 – Step 3: Add fermented foods

27:43 – Step 4: High-polyphenol smoothies

28:56 – Step 5: Simple meal templates

30:49 – Optional nutrient boosters

31:18 – Key takeaways and sustainability focus

Eating differently can feel like a much bigger deal than it actually is.

Not because of the food itself—but because of the social dynamics around it. Dinner parties. Work lunches. Family holidays. First dates. Travel. The subtle pressure to explain. The awkwardness of declining. The internal negotiation about how much to share and how much to keep private.

In Episode 76 of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott begins a new Small Bite series called AIP in Real Life—conversations about what it actually looks like to live this way long-term. Not just the food lists or the science, but the social navigation, mindset shifts, and emotional maturity that develop over time.

Drawing on 15 years of personal experience living with AIP, Mickey shares practical strategies for eating differently without turning every gathering into a conversation about your health. This episode is about learning how to communicate clearly, hold boundaries calmly, and participate fully—without overexplaining, apologizing, or making your food choices the headline of the room. AIP in Real Life_ Eating Differ…

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why eating differently feels relational—not just logistical
2. How to reduce social stress by deciding before you arrive
3. Practical strategies for restaurants, dinner parties, holidays, and travel
4. Why short explanations build more confidence than long ones
5. The difference between gratitude and apology
6. How to participate socially without compromising your health
7. What to say when someone pressures you to “just have a little”
8. Why consistency speaks louder than debate
9. How identity shifts over time when living with AIP
10. How to integrate dietary boundaries without making them your identity

Resources

1. The New Autoimmune Protocol – Pre-Order

Episode Timeline

00:00 – Why eating differently feels bigger than it is

02:34 – Why this feels so hard (belonging & communication)

04:01 – Decide before you arrive

08:57 – Keep explanations short

11:04 – Gratitude is not the same as apology

12:36 – Participation over perfection

15:25 – Accept that not everyone will understand

17:19 – Identity shifts & long-term integration

18:57 – Wrap-up & book mention

What does life actually look like after you complete the Autoimmune Protocol?

Once you’ve moved through Transition, Elimination, and Reintroduction, it’s natural to ask: Now what? Are you supposed to eat this way forever? What happens if your health shifts? And how do you apply what you’ve learned to real-life situations like stress, travel, celebrations, or aging?

In this Deep Dive episode, Mickey explains what it really means to “finish” AIP and how to build a long-term maintenance plan that is flexible, sustainable, and personalized. Rather than viewing AIP as something you complete and leave behind, this episode reframes it as a framework you carry forward—one that helps you move up and down the spectrum of structure and flexibility as your health evolves.

Mickey shares how to think about post-AIP eating, what a return to AIP can look like during a flare, how to use AIP principles beyond food, and why combining medical care with dietary strategy is essential for long-term autoimmune management.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What it really means to “finish” AIP
2. How to transition from rules to a personalized dietary philosophy
3. Why post-AIP eating is hyper-personalized—not a single universal diet
4. How to think about returning to AIP without all-or-nothing thinking
5. The “batten down the hatches vs. unfurl the sails” framework
6. How to apply AIP principles beyond food
7. Why medical care and AIP should always work together
8. How to build a long-term approach that fits your real life
9. What life after AIP can look like 15 years into an autoimmune journey

Resources:

Referenced Episodes:

1. Episode 51: The Autoimmune Protocol in 2026 (Full Overview)
2. Episode 52: Transition Phase | Deep Dive
3. Episode 53: Elimination Phase | Deep Dive
4. Episode 54: Reintroduction Phase | Deep Dive
5. Episode 55: Nutrient Density & Lifestyle Foundations
6. Episode 56: Healing Update

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, reintroduction charts, and beginner tools.

The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – The updated, flexible, and realistic guide to implementing AIP in real life.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – What does life after AIP look like?

03:18 – What does it mean to “finish” AIP?

06:58 – A post-AIP dietary philosophy (personalized eating)

10:33 – What a return to AIP can look like

13:11 – Batten down the hatches vs. unfurl the sails

17:41 – Using AIP principles beyond food

20:11 – Combining medical care with AIP (both-and approach)

22:36 – Building a sustainable long-term life

24:23 – Life after AIP, 15 years in

26:18 – Wrap-up & encouragement

If you’ve ever thought starting AIP meant saying goodbye to your favorite comfort foods forever, this episode is for you.

In this Beyond the Recipe Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott continues the mini-series exploring how AIP recipes actually work in real life—not just on paper. These conversations go deeper than ingredients and instructions to unpack why certain recipes succeed, how to adapt them, and what makes them sustainable long-term.

Mickey is joined by Marie-Noelle Marquis, Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, AIP Certified Coach, and founder of Urban AIP, to talk through one of the most surprising comfort food wins in the AIP world: Magic Chili.

This isn’t just a tomato-free chili. It’s a deeply savory, rich, red, nightshade-free meal that delivers comfort without beans, paprika, chili powder, or tomatoes—and somehow no one misses them.

Together, they explore how this recipe works from both a home kitchen perspective and at production scale through Urban AIP’s therapeutic meal delivery service, and why this chili has become a customer favorite.

This episode is about abundance over restriction: how to recreate nostalgic flavors, build depth without nightshades, and turn a single recipe into a flexible template for real-life healing.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why comfort foods don’t have to disappear on AIP
2. How grated beet creates rich color and depth without tasting “beet-y”
3. The flavor architecture behind a nightshade-free chili
4. How caramelized onions, bone broth, oregano, and cinnamon build complexity
5. Why visual cues (like deep red color) matter in satisfaction
6. What changes when scaling a recipe from 6 servings to 100
7. How Urban AIP maintains quality and flavor at production level
8. Why chili is such a powerful comfort food during elimination
9. Easy protein swaps (turkey, bison, venison, lamb)
10. How to use the chili base as a template for other nightshade-free meals
11. What makes Urban AIP’s therapeutic meal delivery unique

Resources:

Magic Chili Recipe – Full recipe from The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen

The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen Cookbook by Mickey Trescott

Urban AIP Meal Delivery by Marie-Noelle Marquis

Urban AIP on Instagram

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Rethinking chili without tomatoes, beans, or nightshades

01:19 – Introducing Marie-Noelle Marquis of Urban AIP

02:13 – Why Magic Chili belongs on the Urban AIP menu

05:02 – The beet base and building depth without tomatoes

07:36 – Scaling from home kitchen to commercial production

10:51 – Protein swaps and recipe versatility

11:49 – Urban AIP’s therapeutic meal delivery approach

17:42 – Final reflections on abundance and creativity in AIP cooking

If Mickey were starting the Autoimmune Protocol today—not in 2011 during the middle of a health crisis, but now with more than a decade of lived experience, research, and clinical insight—there are several things she would approach differently.

Not because AIP doesn’t work, and not because she regrets the path she took. In fact, AIP was the turning point that helped her regain her health after being diagnosed with Hashimoto’s and celiac disease. But over the years, her understanding of healing has evolved. The science around AIP has matured, the community has grown, and the tools available to people starting today are far more structured and supportive than they were in the early days.

In this reflective episode, Mickey shares the biggest shifts she would make if she were beginning AIP today—from how she would track symptoms and approach nutrient density to how she would think about fatigue, identity, community, and the long timeline of healing.

Rather than focusing only on food elimination, this episode reframes AIP as a broader process of rebuilding health—one that includes nourishment, medical partnership, emotional adaptation, and long-term sustainability.

Mickey also shares how these lessons informed her upcoming book, The New Autoimmune Protocol, and explains the new community experience she’s launching to guide people through the transition phase before beginning elimination together as a group.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why Mickey would start tracking symptoms from day one
2. Why focusing on nutrient repletion can be more important than restriction
3. The key nutrient-dense foods that made the biggest difference in her healing
4. Why continuing to advocate for proper medical care matters alongside diet
5. How medication and lifestyle changes can work together in autoimmune recovery
6. The emotional identity shift that often comes with chronic illness
7. How AIP can remain a tool without becoming your identity
8. Why community support can dramatically improve the healing process
9. How to set realistic expectations for recovery timelines
10. Why progress is best measured in months and years—not weeks

Resources:

Episode 52: How to Track Symptoms on AIP

Episode 56: Mickey’s Healing Update

The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – A modern guide to implementing AIP today, including transition strategies, personalization, and sustainable long-term healing. Available for pre-order wherever books are sold.

Pre-Order Community – When you pre-order the book and submit your receipt at theautoimmuneprotocol.com/preorder, you’ll gain access to a private community, exclusive recipes, live Q&A sessions, and a guided Transition Phase in May leading up to a coordinated AIP start on June 1.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why Mickey would approach AIP differently today

01:08 – Introduction and context for this reflection

03:22 – Why journaling from day one matters

06:16 – Nutrient repletion before restriction

08:31 – Advocating medically and personalizing care sooner

10:36 – Grieving the identity shift of chronic illness

12:41 – Respecting fatigue instead of pushing through

14:05 – Why AIP shouldn’t become your identity

16:06 – The importance of finding community support

18:11 – Measuring progress in months and years

20:07 – The bigger mindset shift around long-term healing

22:00 – The New Autoimmune Protocol pre-order community announcement

24:59 – Closing reflections and invitation to join the community

Meditation is one of those practices that almost everyone recommends—especially in the autoimmune world. We know nervous system regulation matters. We know stress impacts inflammation. We know slowing down is important.

And yet, actually sitting down to meditate can feel surprisingly difficult. Instead of calm, you might feel restless. Instead of clarity, your thoughts get louder. Instead of relaxation, your body feels uncomfortable.

For many women living with autoimmune disease, this makes perfect sense. When your nervous system has been on high alert for a long time—monitoring symptoms, managing flares, juggling responsibilities—stillness can feel unfamiliar, even unsafe.

In this Mind-Body Minute, Mickey is joined by AIP Certified Coach, Qigong and yoga teacher Michele Spring to talk about why meditation feels hard, what’s actually happening in the nervous system when we try to slow down, and how to begin in a way that feels supportive instead of frustrating.

This conversation reframes meditation as a practice of building safety and awareness—rather than clearing your mind or doing it “perfectly.”

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

1. Why meditation can trigger anxiety instead of calm
2. How nervous system dysregulation makes stillness feel unsafe
3. What meditation actually is (and what it isn’t)
4. Why you don’t need to clear your mind to meditate
5. How moving meditation (like Qigong) can be more accessible than sitting still
6. A simple way to start with just 30 seconds
7. How to structure a meditation habit so it actually sticks

Resources:

1. Free Guided Meditation – Michele’s calming nervous system meditation
2. Michele on Instagram – @ThrivingAutoimmune
3. Michele on YouTube – Michele Spring (Thriving Autoimmune)

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why meditation feels so hard

01:26 – Meet Michele Spring

02:34 – Nervous system dysregulation and stillness

06:27 – What meditation really is (and common misconceptions)

10:13 – How to get started if meditation hasn’t stuck

11:57 – Structuring a sustainable practice

13:34 – Free guided meditation invitation

14:39 – Where to connect with Michele

What if IBS isn’t a true diagnosis—but a placeholder? What if bloating, cramping, urgency, constipation, diarrhea, and food reactions aren’t signs that your body is “too sensitive,” but clues that something specific and treatable is being missed?

In this episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, I’m joined by Dr. Izabella Wentz, integrative pharmacist, bestselling author, and longtime leader in the root-cause approach to chronic illness. Many of you know her work in the Hashimoto’s community—but her newest book turns that same investigative lens toward digestive health.

Izabella’s latest book, Finding and Treating the Root Cause of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, challenges the idea that IBS is a final answer. Instead, she reframes it as the beginning of a deeper investigation—one that considers bacterial overgrowth, enzyme deficiencies, nutrient depletion, intestinal permeability, medication side effects, food intolerances, thyroid dysfunction, and more.

This conversation is especially relevant for the autoimmune community. Many people who go on to develop autoimmune disease report years—sometimes even a decade—of digestive symptoms before receiving a diagnosis. We explore why that overlap exists, what IBS may be masking, and how improving gut health may shift the trajectory of long-term immune health.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why IBS is often a “label,” not a root cause
2. The research showing most IBS cases have identifiable, treatable drivers
3. How IBS can precede autoimmune disease by 5–10+ years
4. The role of intestinal permeability in autoimmunity
5. When IBS may actually be SIBO, celiac disease, IBD, enzyme dysfunction, or something else
6. The difference between IBS and IBD—and red flags you shouldn’t ignore
7. How nutrient deficiencies like zinc, glutamine, thiamine, carnitine, and magnesium impact digestion
8. Why fiber works for some people—and makes others worse
9. How polyphenols, fermented foods, and microbiome balance fit into healing
10. Medications that can contribute to constipation, diarrhea, or gut lining damage
11. Foundational gut practices that support digestion for everyone

Resources:

Izabella Wentz, PharmD

1. Website: https://thyroidpharmacist.com
2. Instagram: @izabellawentzpharmd
3. Facebook: Thyroid Lifestyle
4. Podcast: Thyroid Pharmacist Healing Conversations

Book: Finding and Treating the Root Cause of Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Is IBS a diagnosis—or a placeholder?

01:34 – Introducing Izabella Wentz

03:38 – Why IBS is often a label, not a root cause

11:07 – When IBS is actually something else

14:01 – Food reactions: IBS vs autoimmune sensitivities

18:35 – Why IBS and autoimmunity overlap

20:10 – IBS vs IBD: knowing the difference

23:09 – Nutrient deficiencies and digestive dysfunction

28:40 – Fiber, fermented foods & polyphenols

32:56 – Medications that contribute to IBS

35:08 – Gut health foundations for everyone

38:12 – Wrap-up and closing

When you’re navigating autoimmune disease and IBS at the same time, it can feel confusing fast.

You clean up your diet. You follow AIP carefully. And yet you’re still bloated, constipated, dealing with urgency, or wondering whether what you’re experiencing is an autoimmune flare, a gut flare, or something else entirely.

In this Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott is joined by Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and AIP Certified Coach Mariu Cabral for a grounded conversation about what’s actually happening in real-life practice with clients who have both autoimmune disease and gut issues.

This is the first in a Practitioner Perspectives series focused on IBS — highlighting what’s showing up right now in the autoimmune community, what’s working, and where nuance matters most.

Together, they explore how autoimmune flares and gut flares often overlap, why mealtime habits can be just as important as food choices, and how to navigate AIP when common “healthy” foods don’t feel good in your body.

You’ll hear about:

1. Why autoimmune flares and gut flares often happen together
2. How eating in a stressed or distracted state can trigger symptoms
3. Why chewing thoroughly can dramatically improve digestion
4. The difference between autoimmune trigger foods and IBS trigger foods
5. Why IBS triggers are often about quantity, preparation, and context
6. How cooking methods (like steaming vs. roasting) affect digestibility
7. How to personalize AIP when fibrous vegetables and ferments cause symptoms
8. Why the elimination phase can ultimately support gut healing
9. How to honor cultural foods while managing IBS and autoimmune disease
10. Why healing must include safety, identity, and joy around food

This episode is a reminder that struggling with digestion on AIP doesn’t mean you’re failing. It means your body needs personalization, not perfection.

Resources

Mariu Cabral Website: https://mariucabral.com

Follow Mariu on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mariucabral

Follow Mariu on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariucabral.ntp

Mariu Cabral on Substack: https://mariucabral.substack.com/

Episode Timeline

00:00 – When autoimmune and gut symptoms collide

01:22 – Introducing Mariu Cabral

02:22 – What’s showing up in practice right now

04:18 – Why mealtime stress triggers gut flares

05:49 – IBS vs. autoimmune trigger foods

07:51 – Why fibrous vegetables can be tricky on AIP

09:43 – Cooking methods and digestibility

10:22 – Why AIP can ultimately support digestion

12:32 – Two simple digestion habits that change everything

14:26 – When Modified AIP may help

15:02 – Honoring cultural foods during healing

17:01 – Final reflections and where to connect

If you’re learning about the Autoimmune Protocol for the first time—or revisiting it after trying it years ago—one question almost always comes up during the Elimination Phase:

Should I start with Core AIP or Modified AIP?

It sounds like a simple choice, but for many people it feels loaded. Some wonder which version will “work better.” Others worry about sustainability, cost, cultural fit, or whether they can realistically maintain the structure long enough to see results.

In this episode of the AIP Deep Dive series, Mickey breaks down the key differences between Core and Modified AIP, explains why both versions exist, and walks you through how to decide which one is the best fit for you right now. Rather than framing the choice as a matter of willpower or commitment, this episode reframes it as a question of context, sustainability, and nutrient density.

Mickey also discusses who each version tends to work best for, what the research currently says (and doesn’t say), how Modified AIP evolved from real-world use, and how to transition between versions if needed.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why the Core vs. Modified question exists today
2. What is removed on Core AIP and how it differs from Modified
3. Which foods are included in Modified AIP and why
4. Who Core AIP tends to work best for
5. Why Modified AIP is now the recommended starting point for most people
6. How accessibility, affordability, and cultural relevance factor into your decision
7. The research reality behind both versions
8. Why nutrient density matters regardless of which version you choose
9. How to transition from Modified to Core if needed
10. Why fit and sustainability matter more than perfection

Resources:

Referenced Episodes:

1. Episode 53: The Elimination Phase Explained (Deep Dive)
2. Episode 55: Nutrient Density & Lifestyle Changes – Essential to All Phases of AIP

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists for both Core and Modified AIP, reintroduction charts, meal plans, and beginner tools.

The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – The first AIP resource built to reflect the updated Modified AIP framework while prioritizing nutrient density and therapeutic principles. Available for pre-order wherever books are sold.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Core vs. Modified: why this question matters

02:16 – Elimination Phase overview at a glance

03:21 – What is removed on Core AIP

04:07 – What’s included on Modified AIP

05:09 – Timeline reminder & Foundation Series reference

06:21 – Why Modified AIP was created

08:30 – Who Core AIP tends to work best for

10:36 – Why Modified AIP is recommended for most people

11:38 – Accessibility & affordability considerations

12:27 – Modified AIP for vegetarians, active individuals & weight restoration

14:28 – The research reality: what we know and what’s next

16:22 – The biggest tradeoff: nutrient density

18:39 – What happens to existing Core AIP resources

20:47 – A note on known sensitivities

21:54 – Cultural relevance and making AIP your own

23:40 – Transitioning from Modified to Core

25:33 – Closing recap & book pre-order

If you’ve ever looked at a nourishing AIP-friendly recipe and thought, this sounds great, but I don’t have the energy for multiple pans and a sink full of dishes, this episode is for you.

In this Kitchen Confidence Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott continues the Beyond the Recipe mini-series—conversations that go beyond instructions to explore why certain recipes work so well in real life, especially on low-energy days, and how they help reduce friction around feeding yourself well.

Mickey is joined by her longtime friend Mary to talk through a comforting, one-pot favorite: Creamy Cilantro Chicken and Rice. Adapted from a New York Times Cooking recipe and reworked for Modified AIP, this Dutch oven meal is designed to be both deeply nourishing and genuinely doable. Together, they unpack why one-pot meals matter so much for people managing autoimmune disease, how rice fits into Modified AIP, and why simplicity often makes the biggest difference in consistency.

This episode is about more than a recipe—it’s about lowering the barrier to eating well, building confidence in the kitchen, and choosing methods that support real life, not perfection.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why one-pot meals are a powerful tool for reducing decision fatigue
2. What makes Creamy Cilantro Chicken and Rice so supportive for Modified AIP
3. How rice can increase satiety and comfort without adding complexity
4. Why Dutch oven cooking builds confidence and flexibility in the kitchen
5. Tips for stovetop-to-oven meals with minimal cleanup
6. How to safely and confidently use cast iron and enameled Dutch ovens
7. Ideas for leftovers, reheating, and stretching meals across multiple days
8. How simple cooking methods support long-term consistency with AIP

Resources:

1. The Recipe: Cilantro Coconut Chicken and Rice
2. Lodge Enameled Cast Iron
3. Staub Cast Iron
4. Le Creuset Cast Iron
5. The New Autoimmune Protocol – Pre-Order

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why low-energy cooking matters more than knowing what to eat

01:13 – Introducing the Beyond the Recipe series and today’s dish

01:58 – Guest introduction: Mary and a long-standing Hashimoto’s friendship

02:44 – Visual walkthrough of Creamy Cilantro Chicken and Rice

03:38 – Why this recipe works in real life

05:10 – The role of rice in Modified AIP and satisfaction

06:52 – Dutch oven cooking: stovetop to oven confidence

08:45 – Cast iron brands, sizes, and accessibility

09:57 – Safety tips when cooking with Dutch ovens

11:20 – Cleaning as you go and reducing kitchen overwhelm

13:12 – Leftovers, reheating, and multi-meal planning

13:56 – Final takeaways on simplicity, confidence, and sustainability

Movement can feel complicated when you’re living with autoimmune disease—especially if your body no longer tolerates exercise the way it once did. Questions like how much is enough, what’s too much, and how to start safely can leave many people stuck between doing nothing and overdoing it.

In this episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, I’m joined by Beth Trimark-Connor, a licensed physical therapist, certified personal trainer, and lifelong athlete who specializes in helping people rebuild strength safely after illness, injury, and major life transitions.

Beth holds a degree in human physiology from Michigan State University and a master’s degree in physical therapy from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. She has completed extensive additional training in strength and conditioning, endurance coaching, nutrition, and evidence-based menopause coaching. Her work bridges the gap between rehabilitation and real-life strength, with a special focus on people navigating autoimmune disease, menopause, injury recovery, and fluctuating capacity.

Beth also brings lived experience to her work, managing her own celiac disease and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. That perspective deeply informs her compassionate, practical approach to movement—one rooted in safety, realism, and long-term sustainability rather than pushing through symptoms.

In our conversation, we focus on how to start a movement routine from scratch in a way that feels supportive and adaptable to real life. Instead of prescribing workouts, Beth shares a framework for reconnecting with movement through curiosity, capacity awareness, and gradual habit-building.

Download the worksheets mentioned in this episode!

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How to begin a movement routine when exercise feels intimidating or unsafe
2. Why starting with your personal “why” matters more than specific exercises
3. How to assess real-life capacity, energy, and constraints
4. Why starting smaller than you think leads to better long-term outcomes
5. How to use perceived exertion to guide safe intensity
6. Why tracking data—not judgment—supports consistency
7. How autoimmune disease and menopause can overlap in the body
8. How to adapt movement on low-energy or high-stress days
9. Why movement should feel like a relationship, not a rulebook

Resources:

1. Beth Trimark-Connor, PT: Website: https://gotrainingwithbeth.com, Instagram & Facebook
2. Autoimmune Wellness Movement Resources: Download Beth’s movement self-assessment, tracker, and companion worksheets.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why movement feels hard with autoimmune disease

01:43 – Introducing Beth Trimark-Connor

05:50 – Step 1: Start with your “why”

09:54 – Step 2: Assess real-life capacity and constraints

12:27 – Step 3: Start smaller than you think

19:25 – Building a daily check-in routine

20:48 – Tracking data without judgment

26:30 – Pre-solving problems so life doesn’t derail you

30:55 – Recap, key takeaways, and next steps

If you’re starting AIP — or refining your approach — it’s easy to assume you need to buy new ingredients, new tools, or completely overhaul your kitchen before you begin.

But sustainable success on AIP doesn’t start with buying more. It starts with clarity.

In this Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott walks you through how to set up your kitchen in a way that supports you through Transition, Elimination, Reintroduction, and long-term maintenance.

From clearing out visual clutter to stocking foundational pantry items and choosing tools that truly matter, this episode focuses on building an environment that reduces friction, protects your energy, and makes cooking feel more manageable.

You’ll hear about:

1. Why kitchen setup directly impacts AIP sustainability
2. Why clearing and organizing comes before buying anything new
3. How to handle “not-right-now” foods during elimination
4. The core pantry staples that make simple meals possible
5. Cooking fats that are foundational for both Core and Modified AIP
6. Flavor builders that prevent boredom and increase adherence
7. Why shelf-stable proteins are essential for low-capacity days
8. What tools actually matter (and what you don’t need)
9. How to create a prep zone that reduces decision fatigue
10. Why maintenance and organization protect your energy

Kitchen confidence isn’t about culinary skill — it’s about preparation.

Resources

1. The AIP Foundation Series (Free Email Course)
2. The New Autoimmune Protocol – Pre-Order
3. AIP Kitchen Tour Series

Episode Timeline

00:00 – Why kitchen setup impacts AIP success

02:28 – Clear before you add

05:49 – Removing “not-right-now” foods

07:51 – Boxing up “maybe later” foods

09:43 – Building a simplified AIP pantry

11:13 – Cooking fats (non-negotiable)

12:32 – Acids and umami flavor builders

13:18 – Shelf-stable proteins that save the day

14:11 – Spices and simple flavor foundations

15:02 – What you don’t need to prioritize

16:43 – Essential kitchen tools

19:27 – Helpful (but optional) upgrades

21:06 – Setting up your space for success

23:28 – AIP Kitchen Tour inspiration

24:10 – Recap & wrap-up

What happens when researchers outside the AIP community independently decide to study the Autoimmune Protocol in an academic setting? In this episode, Mickey breaks down a 2023 research trial from Poland that evaluated AIP for people with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis who were euthyroid on paper—but still highly symptomatic.

As part of the AIP Medical Research Review Series, this episode explores the second published clinical study on AIP for Hashimoto’s. The Polish research team examined not only symptoms and thyroid labs, but also nutrient intake, body composition, and thyroid ultrasound findings—adding new layers of insight beyond earlier research.

This episode walks through how the study was designed, what changed after 12 weeks on AIP, and how the results compare to the Abbott pilot trial. The findings offer compelling evidence that nutrient density, inflammation reduction, and symptom improvement can occur even when thyroid labs remain within normal ranges.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why Polish researchers decided to study AIP after the Abbott trial
2. Who participated in the study and how the AIP intervention was structured
3. How nutrient density changed without calorie restriction
4. What happened to thyroid hormones, antibodies, and thyroid gland volume
5. How body weight and body fat shifted over 12 weeks
6. Which Hashimoto’s symptoms improved most significantly
7. Why symptom relief often matters more than antibody changes
8. What this study adds to the growing body of AIP research

References

Abbott, R. D., Sadowski, A., & Alt, A. G. (2019). Efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet as Part of a Multidisciplinary, Supported Lifestyle Intervention for Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. Cureus, 11(4), e4556.

Krysiak, R., Kowalcze, K., Okopień, B., & Gdula-Dymek, A. (2023). Effects of an Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) Diet on Changes in Thyroid Parameters in Hashimoto’s Disease. Nutrients, 15(9), 2101.

Resources:

1. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, beginner resources, and updates on new AIP research
2. The New Autoimmune Protocol (Preorder) – Mickey Trescott’s upcoming book translating the latest AIP science into a practical, modern guide

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introduction & why this Polish study matters

02:16 – Study overview and research goals

03:54 – Hashimoto’s refresher: euthyroid but symptomatic

05:05 – Key questions the researchers wanted to answer

06:23 – Participant profile and exclusion criteria

07:23 – AIP intervention design and duration

10:15 – Clinical measures and nutritional analysis

13:11 – Nutrient density results

15:54 – Thyroid hormones, antibodies & ultrasound findings

18:15 – Body weight and body composition changes

20:11 – Symptom improvement results

22:13 – Nutrient–thyroid marker relationships

23:23 – Interpreting hormone and antibody shifts

25:53 – Comparing results to the Abbott study

29:54 – Practical takeaways for listeners

33:06 – Recap, resources & wrap-up

Healing stories are often told after everything makes sense—but autoimmune life is usually lived in the middle of uncertainty.

In this episode, Mickey talks with AIP Certified Coach Lynn Rester about navigating an active flare while balancing work, health, and daily life. Lynn shares what it’s been like to move through recurring infections, deep fatigue, and disrupted sleep—and how she’s staying grounded while healing unfolds in real time.

This conversation offers reassurance for anyone who’s doing the work but still waiting for things to shift.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What it’s like to navigate an autoimmune flare in real time
2. How recurring infections can impact autoimmune health
3. Why sleep and stress became Lynn’s main focus
4. How to stay grounded when symptoms don’t resolve quickly
5. Why healing often happens slowly and quietly

Resources:

1. Healthy Eating and Life Plans: Lynn's Website
2. Follow Lynn on Facebook and Instagram.
3. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Professional training and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introducing real-time healing conversations

01:20 – Meet Lynn Rester

01:57 – Balance, fatigue, and recurring infections

03:20 – When healing doesn’t happen quickly

05:54 – Staying mentally grounded during a flare

07:25 – Lifestyle shifts supporting this season

09:15 – Advice for feeling stuck in the middle

10:17 – Reflections and takeaways

11:03 – Share your Flare to Flow story

11:29 – Where to connect with Lynn

What happens inside the body when someone follows the Autoimmune Protocol—and how does AIP actually feel to people using it in real life?

In this episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott reviews two important follow-up studies from the Scripps research team, led by Dr. Gauree Konijeti, that expand our understanding of AIP for inflammatory bowel disease beyond symptom improvement alone.

The first study examined gene expression changes in intestinal tissue after an AIP intervention in ulcerative colitis. The second explored real-world patient experiences using AIP for Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis through a large survey. Together, these studies shed light on both the biological shifts and the lived experience of AIP for IBD.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why researchers examined gene expression changes after AIP
2. What the RNA substudy revealed about immune and healing pathways
3. Why these findings matter despite a small sample size
4. How people with IBD experience AIP outside of clinical trials
5. Common patterns in symptom improvement and medication use
6. How personalization and reintroduction typically unfold in real life
7. What these studies add to the growing AIP research landscape

Resources:

Scripps RNA Gene Expression Study (2019): An Integrative Clinical Pilot Study to Evaluate RNA Expression Changes in Inflammatory Bowel Disease Following the Autoimmune Protocol Diet

AIP IBD Patient Experience Survey (2021): Experience Using the Autoimmune Protocol Diet in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Patient Survey

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable guides, meal plans, and beginner resources.

The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – Updated research, Core and Modified AIP guidance, and step-by-step meal plans (available for pre-order).

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introduction: looking beyond symptoms

02:23 – Overview of the RNA and patient experience studies

03:42 – RNA substudy participant profile

06:51 – The AIP intervention used in the RNA analysis

07:41 – Clinical outcomes observed in the RNA subgroup

10:32 – How RNA gene expression was analyzed

13:07 – Results: gene expression and immune pathways

16:47 – Introducing the IBD patient experience survey

20:21 – Survey results: symptom changes and medication use

24:00 – Survey results: food reintroductions

28:08 – Recap: what these studies add to AIP research

Many people start the Autoimmune Protocol with a clear understanding of the rules—what foods to include, what to avoid, and which phase they’re in. But knowing the rules and feeling well on AIP are not always the same thing.

In this Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott introduces a new practical series called Meal Plan Makeover, where she walks through real-life AIP meal plans to explore what’s working, what might be getting in the way, and how small, strategic changes can dramatically improve energy, satisfaction, and sustainability.

Using a real (anonymized) three-day diet journal from a former client living with Hashimoto’s and rheumatoid arthritis, Mickey demonstrates how AIP can sometimes be applied too minimally—leading to under-eating, low energy, constant hunger, and meals that look “right” on paper but don’t feel supportive in the body.

This episode is not about perfection or criticism. It’s about learning how to apply AIP more strategically by focusing on protein balance, nutrient density, carbohydrates, flavor, and realistic capacity—so the protocol actually supports healing instead of creating new challenges.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why following the AIP rules isn’t always enough to feel your best
2. How under-eating and low variety can sneak in during Elimination
3. Why fatigue and constant hunger are common signs of undernourishment
4. How to build more balanced breakfasts and snacks on AIP
5. Why starchy vegetables are essential for energy and sleep
6. How smoothies can work—and where they often fall short
7. Simple ways to improve satiety without cooking more
8. Why seafood and protein variety matter for autoimmune health
9. How sauces and flavor boosters improve both enjoyment and nourishment
10. Why calorie restriction can backfire during the Elimination phase
11. Small, realistic changes that can make AIP feel easier and more sustainable

Resources:

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and beginner guides.

The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – Updated research, practical tools, and meal plans for Core and Modified AIP (available for pre-order).

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introduction: why AIP implementation matters

02:18 – Introducing the Meal Plan Makeover series

04:10 – Debbie’s background and context

05:36 – Reviewing the three-day meal plan

06:43 – Where strategy (not effort) is missing

07:04 – Smoothies: strengths and protein gaps

08:31 – A protein-forward breakfast that works

09:10 – Why snacks need balance

09:55 – The missing piece: starchy vegetables

11:12 – Bringing in more seafood

11:54 – Flavor matters: sauces and satisfaction

12:55 – Protein variety and fullness

13:21 – Calories, weight loss, and Elimination

14:59 – The big-picture meal plan takeaway

15:43 – Simple experiments to try this week

16:57 – Submitting your own meal plan & wrap-up

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is the most common autoimmune disease in the world—and yet many people continue to struggle with fatigue, brain fog, pain, and mood symptoms even when their thyroid labs look “normal.”

In this episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott continues the AIP Medical Research Review series with a deep dive into the very first clinical study ever conducted on the Autoimmune Protocol for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. This community-supported pilot study, led by Dr. Rob Abbott and published in 2019, examined whether a structured AIP diet and lifestyle intervention could improve quality of life, inflammation, and symptom burden in adults with Hashimoto’s who were already medically stable.

Mickey walks through the full story behind the study—from the chance meeting that sparked the research, to the grassroots crowdfunding effort that made it possible. She breaks down the study design, participant profile, intervention structure, clinical measures, and results, including detailed case reports that offer rare insight into individual experiences.

This episode highlights a critical and often overlooked reality in Hashimoto’s care: meaningful improvements in how people feel and function can occur even when thyroid hormones and antibodies remain largely unchanged.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How the first AIP study for Hashimoto’s thyroiditis came to be
2. Why Hashimoto’s patients often struggle despite “normal” thyroid labs
3. Who participated in the Abbott pilot study and why that matters
4. What the AIP intervention looked like in a clinical research setting
5. How diet, nutrient density, and lifestyle practices were integrated
6. Which clinical measures were used to assess symptoms, inflammation, and quality of life
7. What the study revealed about fatigue, pain, mood, and daily functioning
8. Why improvements occurred even though thyroid hormones stayed stable
9. What happened with thyroid antibodies and systemic inflammation
10. Why some participants required lower doses of thyroid medication
11. What the individual case reports reveal beyond group averages
12. Why this study remains a milestone for Hashimoto’s research today
13. Practical takeaways for using AIP to support Hashimoto’s now

Resources:

Abbott Pilot Study (2019): Efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet as a Part of a Multidisciplinary Supported Lifestyle Intervention for Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and beginner guides.

AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Advanced training for practitioners and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Pre-Order The New Autoimmune Protocol – Mickey's forthcoming complete guide to the updated Autoimmune Protocol, including both Core and Modified AIP.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – The meeting that sparked the Hashimoto’s study

02:51 – Overview of the Abbott AIP Hashimoto’s study

04:01 – Understanding Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and standard treatment

06:27 – Why study AIP for Hashimoto’s

08:37 – Study participant profile

10:09 – The AIP study intervention

13:17 – Clinical measures and assessments

16:20 – Results: quality of life improvements

18:02 – Results: inflammation (hs-CRP)

19:03 – Results: thyroid hormones and antibodies

21:09 – Results: thyroid medication use

22:36 – Adherence and safety

23:29 – Case reports and individual outcomes

26:02 – Why this study still matters

28:25 – Practical takeaways for listeners

32:16 – Recap, resources, and what’s coming next

If you’ve ever stood in your kitchen thinking, I know what I should eat, but I just don’t know what to make, this episode is for you.

In this Kitchen Confidence Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott kicks off a new mini-series called Behind the Recipe—conversations that go beyond instructions to explore why certain recipes work so well for healing, how to adapt them, and what they teach us about cooking in a sustainable, real-life way.

Mickey is joined by Ginny Mahar, creator of Hypothyroid Chef and author of the newly released Thyroid30 Cookbook, to talk through one of those quietly powerful, repeat-worthy recipes: Veggie-Packed Meatloaf Muffins. Together, they discuss what makes this recipe so supportive for people navigating autoimmune and thyroid conditions—from batch cooking and freezing to substitutions, flavor boosters, and family-friendly design.

This episode is less about perfection and more about practicality: how to build meals that are nourishing, flexible, and realistic on both good days and hard ones.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why some recipes become long-term staples during healing
2. What makes the Veggie-Packed Meatloaf Muffins so supportive for AIP and thyroid health
3. How veggie-forward, protein-rich meals support energy and consistency
4. Tips for batch cooking, freezing, and reheating with minimal stress
5. Smart substitutions for meat, vegetables, and flavor boosters
6. How to adapt AIP recipes for families and mixed dietary needs
7. Why accessibility and simplicity matter when cooking with chronic illness
8. How flavor, texture, and portioning impact real-life sustainability
9. What inspired the Thyroid30 Cookbook and who it’s designed for

Resources:

Veggie-Packed Meatloaf Muffins Recipe – Full recipe from the Thyroid30 Cookbook

The Thyroid30 Cookbook by Ginny Mahar

Hypothyroid Chef Website

Ginny Mahar on Instagram

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why some recipes truly stick

01:18 – Introducing the Behind the Recipe mini-series

01:18 – Guest introduction: Ginny Mahar, Hypothyroid Chef

03:31 – Why this meatloaf muffin recipe works so well

04:04 – Visual description & real-life use

04:52 – Ingredients, binders, and flavor strategy

07:04 – Portioning, batch cooking, and meal pairing

09:05 – Freezing, storage, and reheating tips

10:57 – Substitutions and variations

15:14 – Serving ideas, sauces, and flavor upgrades

17:06 – Veggie-forward cooking and accessibility

19:28 – The Thyroid30 Cookbook overview

21:21 – Wrap-up and where to find the recipe

For years, people living with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis have asked whether diet can meaningfully impact inflammatory bowel disease. Until recently, there was very little clinical research to help answer that question.

In this episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott kicks off a new AIP Medical Research Review series by walking through the very first clinical studies ever conducted on the Autoimmune Protocol. These groundbreaking studies—led by gastroenterologist Dr. Gauree Konijeti and her team at Scripps—examined the effects of AIP in adults with longstanding, active inflammatory bowel disease.

This episode reviews two landmark papers: the 2017 Scripps pilot study on AIP for IBD and the 2019 follow-up study examining patient-reported quality of life. Mickey explains how the studies were designed, who participated, what the AIP intervention looked like in a clinical setting, and what the results actually showed—both in symptoms and in day-to-day functioning.

Along the way, this episode clarifies why these studies still matter nearly a decade later, how they helped shape today’s Core and Modified AIP approaches, and what they reveal about the role of diet and lifestyle in autoimmune care.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. How the first AIP research study began with a single ulcerative colitis patient
2. Why Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis fall under the IBD umbrella
3. Who participated in the Scripps pilot study and why the results were so striking
4. What the AIP intervention looked like in a clinical research setting
5. Which foods were eliminated and which nutrient-dense foods were emphasized
6. How lifestyle support and coaching were integrated into the study
7. What clinical remission meant in the context of these trials
8. How AIP affected inflammatory markers and gut-specific biomarkers
9. What the quality of life study revealed beyond symptom improvement
10. Why these findings helped pave the way for Modified AIP
11. Key safety considerations for people with IBD, including strictures
12. Practical takeaways for applying AIP to IBD today

Resources:

Scripps Pilot Study (2017): Efficacy of the Autoimmune Protocol Diet for Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Scripps Quality of Life Study (2019): An Autoimmune Protocol Diet Improves Patient-Reported Quality of Life in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable guides and beginner resources

AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Professional training and global support directory

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – The patient story that sparked AIP research

02:35 – Overview of the IBD and quality of life studies

03:46 – Understanding IBD and standard treatments

05:10 – Why study AIP for inflammatory bowel disease

06:13 – Study participant profile

08:19 – The AIP study intervention

11:41 – Clinical endpoints and biomarkers

13:58 – Results: clinical outcomes

17:19 – Medication changes during the study

19:05 – Safety considerations

20:54 – Quality of life study results

23:53 – Why these studies still matter

27:15 – Practical takeaways for listeners

31:03 – Recap and wrap-up

When most people struggle with AIP, it’s not because they don’t care or don’t know what to eat. It’s because their food plan only works on “good” days—when energy is high, stress is low, and life is predictable.

In this Kitchen Confidence Small Bite episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey introduces a simple, flexible framework designed for real life: the AIP 3-Meal Safety Net. This approach helps you stay nourished through fluctuating energy, stress, flares, and changing capacity—across every phase of AIP.

Rather than focusing on recipes, perfection, or willpower, this episode reframes kitchen confidence as having reliable options that work on your worst days, not just your best ones. Mickey explains how planning for different capacity levels reduces decision fatigue, lowers stress, and makes consistency possible over time.

This episode breaks meals into three practical categories—low capacity, medium capacity, and higher or supported capacity—and offers concrete examples of what each looks like in real life. The goal is not cooking more, but building a system that supports you when cooking feels hard.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why most AIP plans break down on low-energy or high-stress days
2. What “kitchen confidence” really means (and what it doesn’t)
3. Why AIP needs to be built for real life—not ideal conditions
4. How the AIP 3-Meal Safety Net supports fluctuating capacity
5. What low-capacity meals look like when cooking feels impossible
6. How to approach simple, repeatable meals on busy or tired days
7. Why medium-capacity meals carry most people through the week
8. How higher or supported cooking helps future you
9. Why freezer meals and leftovers reduce stress and decision fatigue
10. How to let go of guilt and build a sustainable AIP approach

Resources:

The New Autoimmune Protocol (Book) – Updated research, practical tools, recipes, and real-life strategies for sustainable AIP (available for pre-order).

AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Professional training and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Kitchen confidence & building AIP for real life

02:17 – Why AIP plans fail on “bad” days

04:51 – Introducing the AIP 3-Meal Safety Net

05:42 – Type 1 meals: low-capacity, no-cook options

09:03 – Type 2 meals: medium capacity, light cooking

12:17 – Type 3 meals: higher or supported capacity

16:08 – Recap: building a flexible, sustainable system

17:20 – Book announcement & closing reflections

Living with autoimmune disease is deeply personal—but the forces that shape diagnosis, care, and long-term outcomes extend far beyond any one individual. Research priorities, advocacy efforts, and community education all influence who gets seen, supported, and served within the autoimmune landscape.

In this first Quarterly Community Update episode of the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast, Mickey Trescott steps back to look at what’s happening across the broader autoimmune community right now. These quarterly episodes are designed to help listeners stay informed and oriented—without overwhelm, fear, or chasing headlines.

This episode introduces a new recurring structure focused on three areas that directly shape autoimmune care: advocacy, research, and community education. Mickey is joined by three regular contributors who bring both professional expertise and lived experience to these conversations.

First, Jamie-Nicole Martin, chronic illness advocate and founder of the AIP BIPOC Network, joins Mickey to discuss autoimmune awareness, systems-level advocacy, and community-based initiatives designed to improve equity, access, and representation in autoimmune care.

Next, Sybil Cooper, PhD, immunologist and AIP Certified Coach, breaks down recent research shaping the autoimmune landscape, including a major Mayo Clinic study on autoimmune disease prevalence and the significance of the 2025 Nobel Prize recognition of regulatory T cells (Tregs).

Finally, Jaime Hartman, National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach, host of the AIP Summit, and co-teacher of the AIP Certified Coach Program, shares updates from across the AIP community, including emerging education trends, Summit highlights, and professional training opportunities.

Together, these conversations highlight why systemic change matters, what the latest science is actually telling us, and how community-centered education continues to evolve to support people living with autoimmune disease.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why autoimmune care is shaped by advocacy, research, and education—not just individual choices
2. How Jamie-Nicole Martin and the AIP BIPOC Network support both personal healing and systems-level change
3. Upcoming advocacy events, including the ROCK Summit and ROCK Community Expo
4. How monthly AIP BIPOC Roundtables create safer spaces for dialogue and collective insight
5. Key findings from a large Mayo Clinic study explained by Sybil Cooper, PhD
6. The difference between prevalence and incidence—and why that distinction matters
7. Which autoimmune conditions are most common and how patterns differ by sex
8. Why having multiple autoimmune diagnoses is more common than most people realize
9. What the Nobel Prize recognition of regulatory T cells (Tregs) signals for the future of autoimmune research
10. How Jaime Hartman sees AIP education expanding beyond food into lifestyle, hormones, athletics, and life-stage support
11. How to access ongoing AIP education, community connection, and trained practitioner support

Resources:

1. AIP BIPOC Network – Advocacy initiatives, community events, and monthly roundtables
2. ROCK Wellness Weekend – ROCK Summit & ROCK Community Expo (Houston, TX)
3. AIP BIPOC Network Donation Link - Help fund their programs for the autoimmune community
4. Mayo Clinic Autoimmune Disease Prevalence Study
5. Nobel Prize 2025 Press Release - Team discovering T-regulatory cells
6. AIP Summit – Annual event, replays, and ongoing community access
7. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Professional training and global directory of AIP-trained support

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introduction to the Quarterly Community Update series

01:21 – Overview of advocacy, research, and community education

02:29 – Autoimmune awareness & advocacy with Jamie-Nicole Martin

04:41 – ROCK Summit & ROCK Community Expo

06:32 – AIP BIPOC Roundtables and global community support

08:45 – How to support advocacy work

11:15 – Research update with Sybil Cooper, PhD

15:48 – Most common autoimmune conditions and diagnostic patterns

17:45 – Sex differences and multiple autoimmune diagnoses

20:20 – Nobel Prize recognition of regulatory T cells (Tregs)

23:32 – AIP community updates with Jaime Hartman

24:31 – AIP Summit recap and emerging trends

26:35 – Lifestyle, hormones, and life-stage support in AIP

31:23 – AIP Certified Coach Program overview

35:13 – Wrap-up and closing reflections

Healing with autoimmune disease is rarely a straight line. Even after long periods of stability, new symptoms, diagnoses, or life transitions can ask us to slow down, reassess, and adapt. In this deeply personal episode, Mickey shares an honest update on her health after more than a decade of relative stability—including a new autoimmune diagnosis she never expected.

This episode reflects on what it looks like to live well with autoimmune disease through different seasons of life. Mickey walks through how her health has evolved over the past year, what she’s learned about stress, hormones, and perimenopause, and how she’s adapting her wellness routine now—not from a place of perfection, but from lived experience.

In the second half of the episode, Mickey shares a long-held announcement: the official reveal of her new book, The New Autoimmune Protocol. She explains why she felt called to write it now, how AIP has evolved over the years, and what makes this resource different from anything she’s created before.

This episode is for anyone navigating change in their health, feeling blindsided after years of doing “everything right,” or wondering what sustainable healing really looks like over the long term.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why healing with autoimmune disease is rarely linear
2. What led to Mickey’s recent health changes and new diagnosis
3. How stress, workload, and hormonal shifts can influence autoimmune flares
4. The connection between uveitis, psoriasis, and psoriatic arthritis
5. How Mickey approaches wellness and self-care in her current season of life
6. What her personalized diet, movement, and supplement routine looks like now
7. Why foundational habits matter more than wellness trends or “hacks”
8. Why The New Autoimmune Protocol was written—and what makes it different
9. How AIP has evolved into a more flexible, research-backed framework
10. How to support the book through pre-orders and upcoming events

Resources:

1. The New Autoimmune Protocol – Available for pre-order wherever books are sold
2. Live Cover Reveal Event – January 31st at 11:00 AM PT on YouTube

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why healing isn’t linear & what this episode covers

02:28 – Mickey’s original autoimmune story and early AIP journey

08:38 – Building strength, stability, and resilience over time

10:53 – A reminder that ongoing support still matters

13:06 – A year of integration, reflection, and new ideas

15:53 – Book production, overexertion, and the first uveitis flare

20:50 – A second flare and the search for answers

24:13 – A new diagnosis and reframing the past

27:05 – Stress, hormones, perimenopause, and autoimmune disease

32:17 – Mickey’s current wellness routine

32:45 – How she eats now

36:32 – Medications and supplements

37:34 – Movement, strength training, and recovery

39:43 – A foundational approach to long-term health

42:09 – Introducing The New Autoimmune Protocol

46:15 – Live cover reveal event & giveaways

47:14 – Closing reflections and gratitude

When most people think about the Autoimmune Protocol, they focus on food elimination—but lasting healing requires much more than dietary change alone. In this episode, Mickey explains the two essential pillars that support every phase of AIP: nutrient density and lifestyle practices.

As part of the AIP Deep Dive series, this episode expands beyond the three formal phases of the Autoimmune Protocol to explore how deeply nourishing foods and supportive daily habits work together to promote repair, resilience, and long-term healing. Mickey breaks down what nutrient density really means, why deficiencies are common in autoimmune disease, and how strategic food choices help regulate the immune system and reduce inflammation.

This episode also explores the four lifestyle foundations that influence autoimmune health just as powerfully as food—sleep, stress management, movement, and connection—and how to apply them consistently in every phase of AIP without striving for perfection.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why AIP requires more than food elimination to support lasting healing
2. What nutrient density really means and why it matters for autoimmune health
3. Which nutrient-dense foods support repair in every phase of AIP
4. Practical ways to include nutrient-dense foods without overcomplicating meals
5. Why sleep is a foundational healing tool for immune regulation
6. How stress affects inflammation and how to manage it sustainably
7. How to approach movement safely with autoimmune disease
8. Why connection and community are essential for long-term healing
9. How to integrate food and lifestyle changes without burnout

Resources:

1. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and beginner resources.
2. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Advanced training for licensed healthcare providers and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Nutrient density & lifestyle as pillars of AIP

02:25 – What nutrient density actually means

05:07 – Nutrient-dense foods to include in all phases of AIP

08:29 – Practical ways to use nutrient-dense foods

12:48 – Lifestyle foundations that support healing

13:20 – Sleep and immune regulation

15:57 – Stress management and nervous system balance

18:50 – Movement and autoimmune recovery

22:39 – Connection and community support

25:09 – Integrating food and lifestyle changes

27:35 – Wrap-up & AIP Foundation Series

Reintroduction is often the most misunderstood—and most powerful—phase of the Autoimmune Protocol. While elimination helps calm inflammation, reintroductions are what allow you to build a personalized, sustainable way of eating that supports your long-term health. In this episode, Mickey explains why reintroduction is not optional, how it’s changed with recent AIP updates, and why staying in elimination too long can actually work against healing.

As part of the AIP Deep Dive series, this episode focuses on Phase 3 of the updated Autoimmune Protocol: the Reintroduction Phase. Mickey walks through how to know when you’re ready to begin, how to reintroduce foods safely, and how to interpret your body’s feedback so you can expand your diet with confidence.

This episode provides a clear, step-by-step framework for navigating reintroductions without fear or confusion—helping you move from a structured healing phase into a flexible, personalized approach to eating that works for your body and your life.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What the AIP Reintroduction Phase is and why it matters
2. Why elimination is never meant to be permanent
3. How to know when you’re ready to begin reintroductions
4. The updated, evidence-based food reintroduction procedure
5. How to track and interpret immediate and delayed food reactions
6. The Core AIP reintroduction stages and food order
7. How Modified AIP reintroductions differ from Core AIP
8. What “gray area foods” are and how to handle them
9. How to build your personalized, long-term AIP template

Resources:

1. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and beginner resources.
2. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Advanced training for licensed healthcare providers and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why reintroductions are the most powerful phase of AIP

02:34 – What the Reintroduction Phase is—and why it matters

04:27 – When to begin reintroductions

08:34 – The updated food reintroduction procedure

13:18 – Core AIP reintroduction stages

16:46 – Modified AIP reintroduction stages

19:29 – Tracking and interpreting food reactions

22:21 – Navigating “gray area foods”

24:27 – Immediate vs. delayed food reactions

27:12 – Life after reintroductions & your personalized AIP template

29:36 – Wrap-up & AIP Foundation Series

For many people, the Elimination Phase is what comes to mind when they think about the Autoimmune Protocol—but it’s also the most misunderstood part. Conflicting food lists, outdated advice, and fear of restriction have left many people unsure how to approach elimination in a way that’s effective and sustainable. In this episode, Mickey clarifies what the Elimination Phase actually looks like today, following the 2024 update to the Autoimmune Protocol.

As part of the AIP Deep Dive series, this episode focuses on Phase 2 of the updated framework: the Elimination Phase. Mickey explains why elimination is meant to be temporary, how it fits into the larger AIP process, and how the introduction of Core AIP and Modified AIP makes the protocol more accessible without compromising its effectiveness.

This episode provides a clear, practical roadmap for navigating elimination with confidence—covering what to remove, what to include, how long to stay in this phase, and how to troubleshoot common challenges—so you can move forward without overwhelm or guesswork.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What the AIP Elimination Phase is—and what it isn’t
2. Why elimination is a temporary learning phase, not a lifelong diet
3. How Core AIP and Modified AIP differ and why both exist
4. Which foods are avoided on Core AIP
5. Which foods are included on Modified AIP and why
6. What foods to focus on adding for nutrient density and healing
7. How long the Elimination Phase typically lasts
8. How to troubleshoot fatigue, cravings, digestive changes, and overwhelm
9. Practical meal planning and batch cooking strategies to make elimination easier

Resources:

1. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and beginner resources.
2. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Advanced training for licensed healthcare providers and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introduction to the Elimination Phase and AIP updates

02:38 – What the Elimination Phase is—and isn’t

04:18 – Core AIP vs. Modified AIP explained

06:20 – Foods to avoid on Core AIP

11:05 – Foods included on Modified AIP

15:29 – Foods to include on both Core and Modified AIP

20:17 – How long to stay in the Elimination Phase

23:32 – Troubleshooting symptoms during elimination

27:57 – Meal planning and batch cooking strategies

32:18 – Wrap-up & AIP Foundation Series

In the early days of the Autoimmune Protocol, there was no Transition Phase—you simply jumped straight into elimination. For many people, that approach was overwhelming and unsustainable. In this episode, Mickey explains why preparation, not willpower, is the biggest predictor of success with AIP.

As part of the AIP Deep Dive series, this episode focuses on Phase 1 of the updated Autoimmune Protocol: the Transition Phase. Mickey walks through why this phase was added, what’s changed in the updated framework, and how thoughtful preparation can reduce burnout, increase confidence, and make AIP work in real life.

This episode lays the groundwork for the Elimination Phase by helping you slow down, build supportive systems, and approach AIP as a sustainable learning process—not an all-or-nothing challenge.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why the original “jump straight into elimination” approach often led to burnout
2. What the AIP Transition Phase is and why it’s now considered essential
3. How preparation—not discipline—determines long-term success
4. The five steps of the AIP Transition Phase
5. How to track baseline symptoms and why it matters
6. How to create a personal health vision that supports motivation
7. What a confidence assessment is and how it helps you plan realistically
8. How to choose the right start date for elimination
9. Common Transition Phase pitfalls and how to avoid them

Resources:

1. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and beginner resources.
2. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Advanced training for licensed healthcare providers and a worldwide directory to find AIP-trained support.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Why the Transition Phase was created

02:33 – The Transition Phase explained in five steps

04:14 – Step 1: Track your baseline symptoms

07:47 – Step 2: Create your personal health vision

10:09 – Step 3: Perform a confidence assessment

14:58 – Step 4: Choose your start date

18:32 – Step 5: Take action on preparation tasks

24:04 – Common Transition Phase pitfalls

26:42 – Wrap-up & AIP Foundation Series

There’s a lot of confusion about the Autoimmune Protocol—what it is, what it isn’t, and whether it actually works. In this episode, Mickey cuts through the noise to share the real story behind AIP and how it’s evolved in 2026.

As someone who’s been part of the AIP movement since the very beginning, Mickey explains how AIP grew from a grassroots experiment into a research-backed framework used worldwide to support people living with autoimmune disease. She also breaks down the major 2024 update to AIP, including the introduction of Core AIP and Modified AIP, and how to decide which approach is right for you.

This episode kicks off the AIP Deep Dive series and lays the foundation for using AIP as a temporary, educational process—not a lifelong restrictive diet.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What the Autoimmune Protocol really is (and what it’s not)
2. How AIP evolved from patient experimentation to published research
3. The three phases of AIP: Transition, Elimination, and Reintroduction
4. The difference between Core AIP and Modified AIP
5. How AIP supports gut health, immune regulation, and inflammation
6. What the science says about AIP and autoimmune disease
7. Common myths and misconceptions about AIP
8. How to know if AIP is the right tool for you

Resources:

AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with printable food lists, meal plans, and reintroduction guides.

AIP Certified Coach Program – Advanced training for licensed healthcare providers who want to use AIP safely and effectively in clinical practice, or find a coach in the worldwide directory.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Introduction: Why AIP is misunderstood

02:45 – Autoimmune disease overview & Mickey’s story

05:06 – The origins of the Autoimmune Protocol

07:06 – What AIP is and how it works

08:01 – Phase 1: The Transition Phase

10:32 – Phase 2: Elimination (Core AIP vs. Modified AIP)

16:45 – Phase 3: Reintroduction

19:49 – How AIP supports gut health, immunity, and inflammation

22:29 – Recovery stories & medical research

25:10 – The 2024 update: Core vs. Modified AIP

27:32 – Myths and controversies about AIP

29:51 – Is AIP right for you?

30:15 – Wrap-up & what’s coming next

After a pause, the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is back—and this episode marks the beginning of a new chapter. In Episode 50, Mickey officially relaunches the podcast and shares a clear, compassionate update on the current state of the Autoimmune Protocol as we head into 2026.

Mickey reflects on how AIP has evolved from a grassroots, patient-led experiment into a mature, research-informed framework used by patients and practitioners around the world. She also explains why this moment matters, what’s changed in recent years, and how the podcast will support the autoimmune community moving forward.

This episode sets the stage for the AIP Deep Dive series and offers grounding, context, and direction for anyone navigating autoimmune disease—whether you’re brand new to AIP or have been part of this community for years.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. Why the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is being relaunched now
2. How AIP has entered a new “maturity” stage
3. What’s changed in the AIP landscape since 2022
4. Why Modified AIP has been a game-changer for sustainability and access
5. The current state of AIP research and what’s coming next
6. How the AIP Certified Coach community has grown globally
7. What the AIP community looks like today
8. What to expect from upcoming podcast episodes and series

Resources:

1. AIP Foundation Series – Free 5-day email course with over 60 pages of resources, food lists, and beginner guides.
2. AIP Certified Coach Program & Practitioner Directory – Learn more about becoming certified or find an AIP-trained provider.

Subscribe to the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast to stay up to date with the AIP Deep Dive series, research-focused episodes, and community conversations.

Episode Timeline:

00:00 – Welcome back & podcast relaunch

01:48 – About Mickey & the Autoimmune Wellness Podcast

04:37 – The State of AIP in 2026

05:30 – AIP enters its “maturity” stage

08:48 – Why Modified AIP has been a game-changer

10:23 – Research momentum and what’s ahead

11:21 – Growth of the AIP Certified Coach community

12:41 – The AIP community today

13:54 – What’s coming on the podcast

14:13 – January: AIP Deep Dive Month

15:59 – Personal health update preview

17:02 – February: Science Month

17:56 – Introducing “Small Bites”

18:48 – Looking ahead: mixed formats & community input

20:09 – AIP Foundation Series & wrap-up

History of the AIP Movement), medical research into its efficacy began around 2015, with results of the first pilot study published in 2017. Since then, studies have been conducted using AIP as an intervention for inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis), Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, eczema, and psoriasis. If you’d like to learn more about previous studies, including what interventions were used and the results, check out the AIP Medical Research Review.

Today I’ll be highlighting the newest AIP medical study, Effects of Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) diet on changes in thyroid parameters in Hashimoto’s disease by a research team from Poland, Paulina Ihnatowicz, Jerzy Gębski, and Małgorzata Ewa Drywień [1]. This is the second study that has been conducted so far using AIP as an intervention to manage Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and certainly adds to our knowledge base of how to use the protocol for managing it [2]. Hashimoto’s is not only the most common autoimmune disease, but conventional treatment is rarely successful as many patients find that they continue to have symptoms even though their hormone levels have been “treated to target” [3].

Intervention details

For this study, 28 patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis were enrolled, with 20 of them completing the study. The average age was 35, with patients between 23-55 years old. Patients underwent initial testing, surveys, and dietary analysis, and then were prescribed individualized, 12-week dietary plans compliant with Core AIP Elimination. It should be noted that in contrast to prior studies using AIP, there was no use of a transition phase–participants made immediate transitions to the elimination diet [2].

In terms of testing completed at baseline and completion of the study, patients had their height and weight measured in a clinic, had lab draws for thyroid hormones (TSH, total and free hormones) and thyroid antibodies, an ultrasound of the thyroid, and they also completed surveys to capture symptom burden. Prior dietary intake was captured using a survey for analysis and comparison of prescribed AIP meal plans.

After initial testing, each participant was prescribed an individualized, 12-week Core AIP meal plan based on their anthropometrics (height and weight). They were instructed to continue all prescribed medications and supplements as before, and no adjustments were made to doses. Support was offered via monthly group coaching calls.

Results

Energy and macronutrient intake

A comparison of prior diet and prescribed AIP diet showed that energy intake (calories) was roughly the same before and after the study (2,067 to 1,997 calories). In terms of macronutrient intake, protein increased from 16.77% to 24.9% of total calories, which is an increase of roughly 85 to 125 grams per day (based on a 2,000 calorie intake). The increase in protein came primarily from decreased fat intake.

Micronutrient intake

Analysis of nutrient intake via prescribed AIP diet showed there was a broad increase in nutrient density during the intervention. Specific nutrient intake increases included Beta-carotene (550%), fiber (162%), folates (198%), long-chain fatty acids (262%), potassium (196%), vitamin A (341%), vitamin C (886%), with other nutrients like B vitamins, iron, zinc, and magnesium with considerable increases. The authors noted that analysis of some nutrients was complicated by supplementation, specifically magnesium, vitamin C, and potassium.

Biochemical thyroid changes

Blood test analysis showed Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) significantly decreased from a mean of 3.72 to 2.69. Free T3 and T4 significantly decreased, although both stayed within reference ranges (3.31 to 2.88; 1.36 to 1.20). Mean anti-TPO antibodies increased (210 to 293) and anti-Tg decreased (317 to 300), although these results did not meet statistical significance.

Physical thyroid changes

A comparison of thyroid ultrasounds before and after intervention showed the right lobe volume decreased by 5% and the left lobe volume decreased by 6%.

Weight and body composition changes

Anthropometric measurements taken before and after intervention showed that mean weight decreased from 69 kg to 65.5 kg (152 lbs to 144 lbs). Mean body fat percentage decreased from 33% to 29.5%, indicating that twice as much weight was lost from fat than muscle.

Symptom burden

Analysis of questionnaires showed a broad improvement of symptoms commonly reported by Hashimoto’s thyroiditis patients. The largest decreases were seen in the following areas:

1. 
   
2. Digestive function
3. 
   
4. Constipation – 36% to 11% (25% difference)
5. 
   
6. 
   
7. Gas – 61% to 21% (35% difference)
8. 
   
9. 
   
10. Flatulence – 61% to 29% (32% difference)
11. 
    
12. 
    
13. Diarrhea – 29% to 7% (22% difference)
14. 
    
15. 
    
16. Abdominal pain – 29% to 14% (15% difference)
17. 
    
18. 
    
19. 
    
20. Energy
21. 
    
22. Tiredness – 82% to 29% (53% difference)
23. 
    
24. 
    
25. Drowsiness – 64% to 21% (43% difference)
26. 
    
27. 
    
28. Fatigue – 50% to 11% (39% difference)
29. 
    
30. 
    
31. 
    
32. Mental
33. 
    
34. Impaired concentration – 71% to 18% (53% difference)
35. 
    
36. 
    
37. Headaches – 39% to 11% (28% difference)
38. 
    
39. 
    
40. Depression – 29% to 4% (25% difference)
41. 
    
42. 
    
43. 
    
44. Pain
45. 
    
46. Muscle cramps]]>Good news! The Autoimmune Protocol (AIP), an elimination and reintroduction protocol aimed at helping those with autoimmune disease identify food sensitivities and increase nutrient-density, continues to be the focus of medical research investigating its efficacy for specific autoimmune conditions. While AIP has been widely used in the autoimmune community since 2011 (see the

    History of the AIP Movement), medical research into its efficacy began around 2015, with results of the first pilot study published in 2017. Since then, studies have been conducted using AIP as an intervention for inflammatory bowel disease (Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis), Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, eczema, and psoriasis. If you’d like to learn more about previous studies, including what interventions were used and the results, check out the AIP Medical Research Review.

    Today I’ll be highlighting the newest AIP medical study, Effects of Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) diet on changes in thyroid parameters in Hashimoto’s disease by a research team from Poland, Paulina Ihnatowicz, Jerzy Gębski, and Małgorzata Ewa Drywień [1]. This is the second study that has been conducted so far using AIP as an intervention to manage Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and certainly adds to our knowledge base of how to use the protocol for managing it [2]. Hashimoto’s is not only the most common autoimmune disease, but conventional treatment is rarely successful as many patients find that they continue to have symptoms even though their hormone levels have been “treated to target” [3].

    
    

    Intervention details

    For this study, 28 patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis were enrolled, with 20 of them completing the study. The average age was 35, with patients between 23-55 years old. Patients underwent initial testing, surveys, and dietary analysis, and then were prescribed individualized, 12-week dietary plans compliant with Core AIP Elimination. It should be noted that in contrast to prior studies using AIP, there was no use of a transition phase–participants made immediate transitions to the elimination diet [2].

    
    

    In terms of testing completed at baseline and completion of the study, patients had their height and weight measured in a clinic, had lab draws for thyroid hormones (TSH, total and free hormones) and thyroid antibodies, an ultrasound of the thyroid, and they also completed surveys to capture symptom burden. Prior dietary intake was captured using a survey for analysis and comparison of prescribed AIP meal plans.

    
    

    After initial testing, each participant was prescribed an individualized, 12-week Core AIP meal plan based on their anthropometrics (height and weight). They were instructed to continue all prescribed medications and supplements as before, and no adjustments were made to doses. Support was offered via monthly group coaching calls.

    
    

    Results

    Energy and macronutrient intake

    
    

    A comparison of prior diet and prescribed AIP diet showed that energy intake (calories) was roughly the same before and after the study (2,067 to 1,997 calories). In terms of macronutrient intake, protein increased from 16.77% to 24.9% of total calories, which is an increase of roughly 85 to 125 grams per day (based on a 2,000 calorie intake). The increase in protein came primarily from decreased fat intake.

    
    

    Micronutrient intake

    
    

    Analysis of nutrient intake via prescribed AIP diet showed there was a broad increase in nutrient density during the intervention. Specific nutrient intake increases included Beta-carotene (550%), fiber (162%), folates (198%), long-chain fatty acids (262%), potassium (196%), vitamin A (341%), vitamin C (886%), with other nutrients like B vitamins, iron, zinc, and magnesium with considerable increases. The authors noted that analysis of some nutrients was complicated by supplementation, specifically magnesium, vitamin C, and potassium.

    
    

    Biochemical thyroid changes

    
    

    Blood test analysis showed Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) significantly decreased from a mean of 3.72 to 2.69. Free T3 and T4 significantly decreased, although both stayed within reference ranges (3.31 to 2.88; 1.36 to 1.20). Mean anti-TPO antibodies increased (210 to 293) and anti-Tg decreased (317 to 300), although these results did not meet statistical significance.

    
    

    Physical thyroid changes

    
    

    A comparison of thyroid ultrasounds before and after intervention showed the right lobe volume decreased by 5% and the left lobe volume decreased by 6%.

    
    

    Weight and body composition changes

    
    

    Anthropometric measurements taken before and after intervention showed that mean weight decreased from 69 kg to 65.5 kg (152 lbs to 144 lbs). Mean body fat percentage decreased from 33% to 29.5%, indicating that twice as much weight was lost from fat than muscle.

    
    

    Symptom burden

    
    

    Analysis of questionnaires showed a broad improvement of symptoms commonly reported by Hashimoto’s thyroiditis patients. The largest decreases were seen in the following areas:

    
    

    1. 
       
    2. Digestive function
    3. 
       
    4. Constipation – 36% to 11% (25% difference)
    5. 
       
    6. 
       
    7. Gas – 61% to 21% (35% difference)
    8. 
       
    9. 
       
    10. Flatulence – 61% to 29% (32% difference)
    11. 
        
    12. 
        
    13. Diarrhea – 29% to 7% (22% difference)
    14. 
        
    15. 
        
    16. Abdominal pain – 29% to 14% (15% difference)
    17. 
        
    18. 
        
    19. 
        
    20. Energy
    21. 
        
    22. Tiredness – 82% to 29% (53% difference)
    23. 
        
    24. 
        
    25. Drowsiness – 64% to 21% (43% difference)
    26. 
        
    27. 
        
    28. Fatigue – 50% to 11% (39% difference)
    29. 
        
    30. 
        
    31. 
        
    32. Mental
    33. 
        
    34. Impaired concentration – 71% to 18% (53% difference)
    35. 
        
    36. 
        
    37. Headaches – 39% to 11% (28% difference)
    38. 
        
    39. 
        
    40. Depression – 29% to 4% (25% difference)
    41. 
        
    42. 
        
    43. 
        
    44. Pain
    45. 
        
    46. Muscle cramps – 43% to 7% (36% difference)
    47. 
        
    48. 
        
    49. Joint pain – 57% to 21% (36% difference)
    50. 
        
    51. 
        
    52. 
        
    53. Skin
    54. 
        
    55. Hair loss – 64% to 32% (32% difference)
    56. 
        
    57. 
        
    58. Skin problems – 57% to 7% (50% difference)
    59. 
        
    60. 
        
    61. Dry skin – 71% to 32% (39% difference)
    62. 
        
    63. 
        
    64. 
        
    
    

    
    

    
    

    In addition to the above results, the authors provided an analysis of specific nutrient intake associations with all of the measures in the study.

    
    

    Discussion and takeaways

    AIP is an incredibly nutrient-dense diet

    
    

    This is the first study to provide a detailed analysis of the nutrient-density of Core AIP compared to a standard diet. The analysis showed that Core AIP is especially rich in beta-carotene, retinol, fiber, long-chain fatty acids, B vitamins, and minerals (like iron, magnesium, and potassium). It is important to note that the authors prescribed nutrient-dense foods like fermented foods, cold-water fatty fish, broth, and colorful fruits and vegetables in their meal plans, according to AIP guidelines. We know that these nutrients are essential to a healthy body and immune system, and it is possible that many of the anti-inflammatory and restorative benefits of AIP likely come from this increase in nutrient density. Takeaway: Don’t forget to apply nutrient density in your approach to AIP!

    
    

    Do we focus on thyroid hormones or symptoms to track progress with Hashimoto’s?

    
    

    The results of this study were a bit paradoxical in terms of thyroid hormones. It is important to note that patients coming into this study were considered euthyroid, or being within normal thyroid hormone reference ranges. As a functional medicine-trained nutritionist, my view is that this group actually could have been considered subclinical hypothyroid with a mean TSH of 3.72, as functional medicine uses a narrower reference range for TSH (.5 to 3 mU/L, compared to the 0.27 to 4.2 used in the study). By that standard, AIP did an excellent job of bringing TSH down under 3, with a decrease of the mean to 2.62.

    
    

    The part that is paradoxical are the thyroid hormone results. Free T4 and free T3 saw small but significant changes downward. Usually this would indicate that there is less thyroid hormone available to be used in the tissues and according to the conventional model of thyroid treatment, perhaps cause symptoms. But when we take a look at other indicators of thyroid health used in this study, this doesn’t seem to be a bad thing:

    
    

    1. 
       
    2. Thyroid ultrasound showed a decrease in thyroid volume. This is important because thyroid volume is linked to higher autoimmune activity, inflammation, and symptoms in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
    3. 
       
    4. 
       
    5. Body composition changes indicate positive metabolic changes despite a diet identical in energy density. The mean weight loss was 8 pounds in 12 weeks, with a 4% decrease in body fat percentage.
    6. 
       
    7. 
       
    8. Surveys indicate a decrease in Hashimoto’s symptoms.
    9. 
       
    
    

    When we take all of these results together, they seem to suggest an improvement in some of the core areas of concern for patients with Hashimoto’s (thyroid swelling, weight gain, and high symptom burden). The reduction in TSH, which is a signal from the brain indicating it needs the thyroid to produce more hormones, points to the body finding balance and having enough thyroid hormone for metabolic needs. In their own discussion, the study authors theorized that the paradoxical result could be due to an improved nutritional status increasing sensitivity to thyroid hormone in the tissues.

    
    

    Before we get back to the question on what to focus on when gauging progress with Hashimoto’s, I want to share a couple of features of the disease. First, the only conventional treatment for Hashimoto’s is optimizing hormones with thyroid hormone replacement medication. Second, medical research shows that Hashimoto’s patients often continue to have symptoms even after their hormones are corrected to reference ranges [3].

    
    

    As a Hashimoto’s patient myself, I find the results of this study incredibly validating that someone with this condition can see a drastic improvement in their symptoms without it being reflected in their hormone levels. While hormone levels are important for tracking and treatment, I’ve always been a proponent of equally valuing symptom burden as a major indicator for progress in managing this disease. Takeaway: Results in decreased thyroid volume, weight loss, and symptom management indicate improved thyroid status, despite paradoxical results in thyroid hormone parameters.

    
    

    How do these results compare to the results of the first AIP Hashimoto’s pilot study?

    
    

    There are two major differences between the interventions used in these studies. First, the original AIP Hashimoto’s study used a 6-week transition phase and a 4-week elimination phase [2]. This study did not use a transition phase and had a much longer elimination phase of 12-weeks. Second, the original AIP Hashimoto’s study implemented small changes in lifestyle areas like sleep, stress-management, movement, and connection. This study focused only on the dietary side of AIP.

    
    

    Both studies saw similar results in terms of symptom burden and improvement of quality of life for patients with Hashimoto’s. In the original AIP Hashimoto’s study, medications were titrated based on thyroid hormone levels and they did not see any changes in hormone or antibody levels, although they did see a trend for reduced medication need by the end of the study [2].

    
    

    Measures tested between the two studies differed a little. The original AIP Hashimoto’s study did not test anthropometric changes, thyroid volume, or the nutrient comparison of the diets, but they did measure a marker of inflammation, hs-CRP (which decreased by 29%) [2]. This was not included in the Polish study. Takeaway: This new AIP Hashimoto’s study adds to our knowledge about AIP’s efficacy in terms of nutrient density, possibility to decrease thyroid volume, and weight loss.

    
    

    What about the changes in thyroid antibodies?

    
    

    Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune disease for which two antibodies are known. This study found an increase in anti-TPO and a decrease in anti-Tg, although these results did not meet statistical significance (meaning the result could not be differentiated from chance 1 out of 20 times).

    
    

    I want to share my personal view on antibodies based on review of research on this topic and my clinical experience working with Hashimoto’s patients. First, there is research associating antibodies with a higher symptom burden and lower quality of life for Hashimoto’s patients; there is also research showing that antibody levels are not correlated with symptoms. My observation as a clinician is that antibodies are helpful for diagnosis and in the early stages of healing, but do not always line up with symptom burden reported by the patient. I’m an advocate for having them tested and tracked, but not using them to gauge progress outside of other indicators of thyroid optimization (like symptoms or hormone levels). Takeaway: Antibodies should not be a primary marker of disease burden for patients with Hashimoto’s.

    
    

    Conclusion

    This is the second quality study showing AIP is effective as a dietary intervention for managing symptoms that come with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. I’m really impressed with the work of the Polish team that put this together, especially their attention to nutrient-density...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=15400Fri, 18 Oct 2024 22:59:00 -070032:18falsefullGood news! The Autoimmune Protocol (AIP), an elimination and reintroduction protocol aimed at helping those with autoimmune disease identify food sensitivities and increase nutrient-density, continues to be the focus of medical research investigating its efficacy for specific autoimmune conditions. While AIP has been widely used in the autoimmune community since 2011 (see the History of the AIP Movement), medical research into its efficacy began around ...Core & Modified AIP Eliminations: Updated Resource Library!In January, a new option for the elimination phase of the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) was announced:

    Modified AIP Elimination. If you are looking for the exact details of which foods are included and avoided in both Core and Modified AIP, don’t miss What is AIP: The Definitive Guide which has been completely updated.

    
    

    A quick summary of the reasons why Modified AIP was added as an elimination option:

    
    

    • 
      
    • Many patients in the AIP medical studies saw results before reaching a full elimination
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Certified Coaches reported seeing good results without a full elimination using a modified protocol in their practices
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Recent elimination diet research indicates that stricter does not always produce better results
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Increasing accessibility, affordability, and sustainability can widen the reach and application of AIP
    • 
      
    
    

    If you’d like to read more about why AIP was updated, the research process behind making the update, be sure to read Announcing Modified AIP: A 2024 Update to the Autoimmune Protocol.

    
    

    Introducing: An updated Autoimmune Wellness Resource Library

    The founding mission here at Autoimmune Wellness has been to provide free resources for anyone who wants to embark on AIP. Since 2012, we’ve been delivering a resource library with food lists, meal plans, and other materials as a part of our AIP Quick Start Guide email series. Since inception, over 200,000 of you have downloaded these materials!

    
    

    With the 2024 update to the Autoimmune Protocol, it was a prime opportunity to take a look at this resource library and give it a comprehensive update. Not only have all of the prior resources been edited and redesigned, but new materials have been added for the new Modified AIP elimination (including dedicated food lists, a meal plan, and reintroduction materials).

    
    

    Here is a list of what is included in the updated Autoimmune Wellness Resource Library:

    
    

    • 
      
    • AIP Quick-Start Guide
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Foods to Include
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Foods to Avoid
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Foods to Include (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Foods to Avoid (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Meal Plan & Shopping List
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Meal Plan & Shopping List (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Reintroduction Guide
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Reintroduction Stages
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Reintroduction Stages (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Food Reaction Checklist
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Medical Research Review (NEW!)
    • 
      
    
    

    All of these materials are presented as beautifully-designed .pdf files that you can read on your computer, e-reader, or other digital device. They can also be printed at home.

    
    

    How can you download these materials?

    1. If you are a subscriber to the Autoimmune Wellness newsletter, you should have an email in your inbox with download links to each resource in the library.

    
    

    2. If you are not yet a subscriber, you can sign up here and receive the AIP Quick Start email series, in which you will be sent the resources in a series of emails over the course of 6 days.

    
    

    3. If you only want specific resources, you can sign up to receive them individually by opting in using the following links:

    
    

    • 
      
    • AIP Quick-Start Guide, Core and Modified AIP Food Lists
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Meal Plan and Shopping List
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Meal Plan and Shopping List
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Reintroduction Guide, Core and Modified AIP Reintroduction Stages, and Food Reaction Checklist
    • 
      
    
    

    
    

    Are you a practitioner that uses AIP in your practice and would like an extended library of AIP resources to use with your patients or clients? Be sure to consider taking the AIP Certified Coach Practitioner Training Program, where you can learn best practices for implementing and personalizing AIP for the population you serve. Graduates are granted a license to use a collection of 50+ handouts directly with their clients, including assessments, journals, troubleshooting materials, and more.

    
    

    
    

    If you’d like to hear me talk through these materials, listen to the podcast below:

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Thank you for being a member of the Autoimmune Wellness community, and I sincerely hope these resources help you, your friends, or your loved ones embark on AIP easily and successfully!

    
    

    The post Core & Modified AIP: An Updated AIP Resource Library! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>In January, a new option for the elimination phase of the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) was announced:

    Modified AIP Elimination. If you are looking for the exact details of which foods are included and avoided in both Core and Modified AIP, don’t miss What is AIP: The Definitive Guide which has been completely updated.

    
    

    A quick summary of the reasons why Modified AIP was added as an elimination option:

    
    

    • 
      
    • Many patients in the AIP medical studies saw results before reaching a full elimination
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Certified Coaches reported seeing good results without a full elimination using a modified protocol in their practices
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Recent elimination diet research indicates that stricter does not always produce better results
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Increasing accessibility, affordability, and sustainability can widen the reach and application of AIP
    • 
      
    
    

    If you’d like to read more about why AIP was updated, the research process behind making the update, be sure to read Announcing Modified AIP: A 2024 Update to the Autoimmune Protocol.

    
    

    Introducing: An updated Autoimmune Wellness Resource Library

    The founding mission here at Autoimmune Wellness has been to provide free resources for anyone who wants to embark on AIP. Since 2012, we’ve been delivering a resource library with food lists, meal plans, and other materials as a part of our AIP Quick Start Guide email series. Since inception, over 200,000 of you have downloaded these materials!

    
    

    With the 2024 update to the Autoimmune Protocol, it was a prime opportunity to take a look at this resource library and give it a comprehensive update. Not only have all of the prior resources been edited and redesigned, but new materials have been added for the new Modified AIP elimination (including dedicated food lists, a meal plan, and reintroduction materials).

    
    

    Here is a list of what is included in the updated Autoimmune Wellness Resource Library:

    
    

    • 
      
    • AIP Quick-Start Guide
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Foods to Include
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Foods to Avoid
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Foods to Include (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Foods to Avoid (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Meal Plan & Shopping List
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Meal Plan & Shopping List (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Reintroduction Guide
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Reintroduction Stages
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Reintroduction Stages (NEW!)
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Food Reaction Checklist
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Medical Research Review (NEW!)
    • 
      
    
    

    All of these materials are presented as beautifully-designed .pdf files that you can read on your computer, e-reader, or other digital device. They can also be printed at home.

    
    

    How can you download these materials?

    1. If you are a subscriber to the Autoimmune Wellness newsletter, you should have an email in your inbox with download links to each resource in the library.

    
    

    2. If you are not yet a subscriber, you can sign up here and receive the AIP Quick Start email series, in which you will be sent the resources in a series of emails over the course of 6 days.

    
    

    3. If you only want specific resources, you can sign up to receive them individually by opting in using the following links:

    
    

    • 
      
    • AIP Quick-Start Guide, Core and Modified AIP Food Lists
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Core AIP Meal Plan and Shopping List
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Modified AIP Meal Plan and Shopping List
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • AIP Reintroduction Guide, Core and Modified AIP Reintroduction Stages, and Food Reaction Checklist
    • 
      
    
    

    
    

    Are you a practitioner that uses AIP in your practice and would like an extended library of AIP resources to use with your patients or clients? Be sure to consider taking the AIP Certified Coach Practitioner Training Program, where you can learn best practices for implementing and personalizing AIP for the population you serve. Graduates are granted a license to use a collection of 50+ handouts directly with their clients, including assessments, journals, troubleshooting materials, and more.

    
    

    
    

    If you’d like to hear me talk through these materials, listen to the podcast below:

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Thank you for being a member of the Autoimmune Wellness community, and I sincerely hope these resources help you, your friends, or your loved ones embark on AIP easily and successfully!

    
    

    The post Core & Modified AIP: An Updated AIP Resource Library! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=15340Wed, 10 Apr 2024 21:22:00 -070014:43falsefullIn January, a new option for the elimination phase of the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) was announced: Modified AIP Elimination. If you are looking for the exact details of which foods are included and avoided in both Core and Modified AIP, don’t miss What is AIP: The Definitive Guide which has been completely updated. A quick summary of the reasons why Modified AIP was added as ...Meals You Deserve: An Interview with Kris King

    I wanted to introduce you to the newest AIP cookbook on the scene, Meals You Deserve by Kris King!

    Many of you likely recognize Kris as one of the recipe contributors for Autoimmune Wellness (you can view her impressive AIP library of recipes on the site here!). Since the blog has become an archive, Kris has put her talent to good use in creating an ebook of recipes for the AIP community to continue to enjoy.

    What are my favorite things about Meals You Deserve? 
    • Recipes that are full of flavor and fun to make!
    • The recipes are all compliant with AIP Core Elimination (yes, including that chicken and dumplings on the cover!)
    • It contains extras such as meal planner sheets and budget planner sheets, for keeping you organized and within your financial limits.
    • Quick tips to make cooking for AIP seamless in your own kitchen!
    
    

    I sat down with Kris to record a podcast to talk about her story of healing using AIP, the process of writing an ebook, her favorite AIP cooking hacks, and more! You can tune in by using the podcast player at the bottom of this post.

    Meals You Deserve is perfect for anyone looking to embark on Core AIP and looking for simple recipes with fun flavors that also won’t break the bank. I can’t recommend it enough!

    The post Introducing Meals You Deserve by Kris King appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>

    I wanted to introduce you to the newest AIP cookbook on the scene, Meals You Deserve by Kris King!

    Many of you likely recognize Kris as one of the recipe contributors for Autoimmune Wellness (you can view her impressive AIP library of recipes on the site here!). Since the blog has become an archive, Kris has put her talent to good use in creating an ebook of recipes for the AIP community to continue to enjoy.

    What are my favorite things about Meals You Deserve? 
    • Recipes that are full of flavor and fun to make!
    • The recipes are all compliant with AIP Core Elimination (yes, including that chicken and dumplings on the cover!)
    • It contains extras such as meal planner sheets and budget planner sheets, for keeping you organized and within your financial limits.
    • Quick tips to make cooking for AIP seamless in your own kitchen!
    
    

    I sat down with Kris to record a podcast to talk about her story of healing using AIP, the process of writing an ebook, her favorite AIP cooking hacks, and more! You can tune in by using the podcast player at the bottom of this post.

    Meals You Deserve is perfect for anyone looking to embark on Core AIP and looking for simple recipes with fun flavors that also won’t break the bank. I can’t recommend it enough!

    The post Introducing Meals You Deserve by Kris King appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=15330Sun, 24 Mar 2024 02:05:41 -070031:17falsefullI wanted to introduce you to the newest AIP cookbook on the scene, Meals You Deserve by Kris King! Many of you likely recognize Kris as one of the recipe contributors for Autoimmune Wellness (you can view her impressive AIP library of recipes on the site here!). Since the blog has become an archive, Kris has put her talent to good use in creating an ...Announcing Modified AIP: A 2024 Update to the Autoimmune ProtocolSince inception in 2011, the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) has not undergone any major updates or changes and has existed as originally conceived by experts and used by the autoimmune community.

    Today, that is changing with the announcement of a new option: Modified AIP Elimination. This post serves to provide the rationale behind this change as well as provide links for learning more about the new protocol.

    
    

    Reasons to update AIP

    First, let’s discuss some AIP history and what led to these changes. Originally, Sarah Ballantyne, PhD. wrote extensively about and refined the protocol on her blog and in her books, which formed the foundations of the AIP protocol and movement. These foundations led to collaboration between leaders in the AIP community in the creation of the AIP Certified Coach Practitioner Training, serving to educate healthcare providers in best practices for using AIP with their clients and patients.

    
    

    Additionally, Sarah’s research and writing sparked interest from the medical community to formally study the efficacy of AIP for various autoimmune conditions, including Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriasis. While medical research into the efficacy of AIP is still in its infancy, early results have shown promise at helping those with autoimmune disease achieve a higher quality of life, less symptom burden, and need less medication (you can read a review of all the results here).

    
    

    Now that there is an emerging body of research into the efficacy of AIP, as well as a large group of practitioners with many collective years of expertise in AIP implementation and customization, it is time for analysis to see what is working and what could be made better for the next wave of individuals looking to embark on the protocol. Here are the major reasons why the Autoimmune Protocol is being updated now:

    
    

    #1 Many patients in the AIP medical studies saw results before reaching a full elimination

    In each of the AIP medical studies, a 6-week, gradual transition was used to ease patients into the elimination phase, which was then maintained for 4 more weeks. In the AIP IBD Study, 73% of patients achieved clinical remission at week 5, which was 1 week before the full elimination was complete. In this study, all of these patients then maintained clinical remission throughout the duration of the study and no additional patients reached clinical remission after this point. What this tells us is that it is likely the earliest eliminations, specifically, that were most responsible for the favorable results and that the full elimination phase may not have been necessary for all of them.

    
    

    #2 AIP Certified Coaches are reporting good results without a full elimination

    The Autoimmune Protocol has now been in widespread use in the practitioner community for many years through AIP Certified Coach. Nearly 1,000 healthcare providers from all types of backgrounds and specialties have been trained and certified to implement AIP in their work. In surveying the graduate community, AIP Certified Coaches have told us that they often find the original protocol is more restrictive than necessary and they are often modifying the list of eliminations to suit their clients’ and patients’ needs. They also report that they continue to see good results using a modified or less restricted elimination protocol.

    
    

    #3 Other elimination diet research indicates that stricter is not always better

    When AIP was conceived there was very little research into the efficacy of elimination diets to help manage autoimmune disease, especially conducted directly with humans. In the last decade, this has changed and many studies have been published using different elimination protocols for specific autoimmune conditions, especially gluten-free and dairy-free diets. The promising results from studies using fewer eliminations shows that for some patients and conditions, progress can be made with a simpler approach.

    
    

    #4 Increasing accessibility, affordability, and sustainability can widen the reach of AIP

    Food access and budget have always been major barriers to individuals implementing the Autoimmune Protocol, both on their own or in working with a coach. Some patients are simply not able to source or afford the ingredients needed to implement a full elimination, and others don’t have the time to prepare the entirety of their meals from scratch. In this case, we’ve long recommended modifying the protocol to accommodate those facing these barriers, but providing an official version of the protocol that is more budget-friendly and accessible will allow even more people to find healing through AIP.

    
    

    The process of updating AIP

    Updating AIP in 2024 has come out of consultation with many key players in the AIP community over the course of a few months. We interviewed researchers who performed the AIP medical studies and research in other similar areas, as well as experts and writers in the area of autoimmune health. We also surveyed and interviewed key members of the AIP Certified Coach community who predominantly work with autoimmune patients or clients. Lastly, we considered recent scientific evidence for elimination diets, food allergies/sensitivities, and reintroduction protocols in the new approach.

    
    

    What we learned from this exploration was two-fold: first, that the original protocol still had high value and efficacy in both research and practice. And second, that many researchers and AIP Certified Coaches were confident that some patients would be best served by a less-restrictive option. This led to the creation of two separate options for the elimination phase which are detailed below.

    
    

    Introducing: Core AIP and Modified AIP

    Going forward, there are now two versions of the Elimination Phase, to be known as AIP Core Elimination and AIP Modified Elimination.

    
    

    The original protocol, as used in the AIP medical studies and original AIP literature is not changing and will now be known as AIP Core Elimination. The intention is to preserve the original protocol for research comparison and to use with patients or clients who either need a stricter approach or can implement it easily (due to support, finances, or time).

    
    

    The new protocol, a less-strict and more accessible version will be known as AIP Modified Elimination. This new protocol incorporates what we’ve learned about foods that are well-tolerated in the autoimmune community, and is simplified for ease of implementation, budget, and accessibility.

    
    

    You can read more about which foods are included and avoided in both Core AIP and Modified AIP Elimination protocols at the updated Definitive Guide to AIP.

    
    

    Which protocol to start with?

    This then leads to the question of which protocol a person should choose when they embark on the Autoimmune Protocol. That depends!

    
    

    The goal of AIP has always been to discover the least-restrictive dietary approach that produces the best health for each person. With this in mind, Modified AIP is an ideal starting point for most people as it is more affordable, accessible, takes less time to implement, and still removes the most potentially-problematic foods. Ideally, modified AIP produces the desired result and then a person can move on to the reintroduction phase, sparing them a drawn-out elimination and reintroduction process.

    
    

    There are a few reasons why a person would choose Core AIP to begin with. They may have a condition, like IBD, where research indicates that the elimination phase has a good chance of producing results quickly. Or they may have another condition that is potentially serious and are highly motivated to transition and implement to find relief. Lastly, they may not experience some of the barriers that make Core AIP difficult to implement – like a lack of cooking skill, financial flexibility, or support at home.

    
    

    If you are looking for resources to start Core or Modified AIP, click here or on the image below to get our AIP Quicklstart Guide sent to your inbox, including food lists, meal plans, and more!

    
    

    
    

    FAQ:

    Is anything changing about the original AIP protocol?

    
    

    No, the original protocol is now simply known as “Core AIP” for differentiation. All of the foods eliminated, included, timeline, and reintroduction procedure remain the same. See the updated]]>Since inception in 2011, the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) has not undergone any major updates or changes and has existed as originally conceived by experts and used by the autoimmune community.

    Today, that is changing with the announcement of a new option: Modified AIP Elimination. This post serves to provide the rationale behind this change as well as provide links for learning more about the new protocol.

    
    

    Reasons to update AIP

    First, let’s discuss some AIP history and what led to these changes. Originally, Sarah Ballantyne, PhD. wrote extensively about and refined the protocol on her blog and in her books, which formed the foundations of the AIP protocol and movement. These foundations led to collaboration between leaders in the AIP community in the creation of the AIP Certified Coach Practitioner Training, serving to educate healthcare providers in best practices for using AIP with their clients and patients.

    
    

    Additionally, Sarah’s research and writing sparked interest from the medical community to formally study the efficacy of AIP for various autoimmune conditions, including Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriasis. While medical research into the efficacy of AIP is still in its infancy, early results have shown promise at helping those with autoimmune disease achieve a higher quality of life, less symptom burden, and need less medication (you can read a review of all the results here).

    
    

    Now that there is an emerging body of research into the efficacy of AIP, as well as a large group of practitioners with many collective years of expertise in AIP implementation and customization, it is time for analysis to see what is working and what could be made better for the next wave of individuals looking to embark on the protocol. Here are the major reasons why the Autoimmune Protocol is being updated now:

    
    

    #1 Many patients in the AIP medical studies saw results before reaching a full elimination

    In each of the AIP medical studies, a 6-week, gradual transition was used to ease patients into the elimination phase, which was then maintained for 4 more weeks. In the AIP IBD Study, 73% of patients achieved clinical remission at week 5, which was 1 week before the full elimination was complete. In this study, all of these patients then maintained clinical remission throughout the duration of the study and no additional patients reached clinical remission after this point. What this tells us is that it is likely the earliest eliminations, specifically, that were most responsible for the favorable results and that the full elimination phase may not have been necessary for all of them.

    
    

    #2 AIP Certified Coaches are reporting good results without a full elimination

    The Autoimmune Protocol has now been in widespread use in the practitioner community for many years through AIP Certified Coach. Nearly 1,000 healthcare providers from all types of backgrounds and specialties have been trained and certified to implement AIP in their work. In surveying the graduate community, AIP Certified Coaches have told us that they often find the original protocol is more restrictive than necessary and they are often modifying the list of eliminations to suit their clients’ and patients’ needs. They also report that they continue to see good results using a modified or less restricted elimination protocol.

    
    

    #3 Other elimination diet research indicates that stricter is not always better

    When AIP was conceived there was very little research into the efficacy of elimination diets to help manage autoimmune disease, especially conducted directly with humans. In the last decade, this has changed and many studies have been published using different elimination protocols for specific autoimmune conditions, especially gluten-free and dairy-free diets. The promising results from studies using fewer eliminations shows that for some patients and conditions, progress can be made with a simpler approach.

    
    

    #4 Increasing accessibility, affordability, and sustainability can widen the reach of AIP

    Food access and budget have always been major barriers to individuals implementing the Autoimmune Protocol, both on their own or in working with a coach. Some patients are simply not able to source or afford the ingredients needed to implement a full elimination, and others don’t have the time to prepare the entirety of their meals from scratch. In this case, we’ve long recommended modifying the protocol to accommodate those facing these barriers, but providing an official version of the protocol that is more budget-friendly and accessible will allow even more people to find healing through AIP.

    
    

    The process of updating AIP

    Updating AIP in 2024 has come out of consultation with many key players in the AIP community over the course of a few months. We interviewed researchers who performed the AIP medical studies and research in other similar areas, as well as experts and writers in the area of autoimmune health. We also surveyed and interviewed key members of the AIP Certified Coach community who predominantly work with autoimmune patients or clients. Lastly, we considered recent scientific evidence for elimination diets, food allergies/sensitivities, and reintroduction protocols in the new approach.

    
    

    What we learned from this exploration was two-fold: first, that the original protocol still had high value and efficacy in both research and practice. And second, that many researchers and AIP Certified Coaches were confident that some patients would be best served by a less-restrictive option. This led to the creation of two separate options for the elimination phase which are detailed below.

    
    

    Introducing: Core AIP and Modified AIP

    Going forward, there are now two versions of the Elimination Phase, to be known as AIP Core Elimination and AIP Modified Elimination.

    
    

    The original protocol, as used in the AIP medical studies and original AIP literature is not changing and will now be known as AIP Core Elimination. The intention is to preserve the original protocol for research comparison and to use with patients or clients who either need a stricter approach or can implement it easily (due to support, finances, or time).

    
    

    The new protocol, a less-strict and more accessible version will be known as AIP Modified Elimination. This new protocol incorporates what we’ve learned about foods that are well-tolerated in the autoimmune community, and is simplified for ease of implementation, budget, and accessibility.

    
    

    You can read more about which foods are included and avoided in both Core AIP and Modified AIP Elimination protocols at the updated Definitive Guide to AIP.

    
    

    Which protocol to start with?

    This then leads to the question of which protocol a person should choose when they embark on the Autoimmune Protocol. That depends!

    
    

    The goal of AIP has always been to discover the least-restrictive dietary approach that produces the best health for each person. With this in mind, Modified AIP is an ideal starting point for most people as it is more affordable, accessible, takes less time to implement, and still removes the most potentially-problematic foods. Ideally, modified AIP produces the desired result and then a person can move on to the reintroduction phase, sparing them a drawn-out elimination and reintroduction process.

    
    

    There are a few reasons why a person would choose Core AIP to begin with. They may have a condition, like IBD, where research indicates that the elimination phase has a good chance of producing results quickly. Or they may have another condition that is potentially serious and are highly motivated to transition and implement to find relief. Lastly, they may not experience some of the barriers that make Core AIP difficult to implement – like a lack of cooking skill, financial flexibility, or support at home.

    
    

    If you are looking for resources to start Core or Modified AIP, click here or on the image below to get our AIP Quicklstart Guide sent to your inbox, including food lists, meal plans, and more!

    
    

    
    

    FAQ:

    Is anything changing about the original AIP protocol?

    
    

    No, the original protocol is now simply known as “Core AIP” for differentiation. All of the foods eliminated, included, timeline, and reintroduction procedure remain the same. See the updated Definitive Guide to AIP for food lists and more information.

    
    

    Who has the right to update AIP?

    
    

    There is no one expert that owns the rights to determine what the AIP protocol entails, and Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, whose work formed the foundation of the AIP movement, has moved on from researching and working with the autoimmune community. This is why this update is coming by consensus from the leaders of the AIP Certified Coach community as well as researchers who have studied the protocol in medical studies.

    
    

    What happens to all of the recipes and resources labeled AIP?

    
    

    All of the recipes, meal plans, and other resources created for Core AIP also apply to Modified AIP, since Core AIP simply has more eliminations than Modified AIP. As more resources for Modified AIP are created, a distinction will emerge and each person navigating either protocol should be careful to check recipes for compliant ingredients. Be sure to bookmark the updated Definitive Guide to AIP for reference as it will always contain the most current protocol information and food lists.

    
    

    How does this change the reintroduction protocol?

    
    

    The reintroduction protocol following Core AIP is the same as it was originally, and the reintroduction protocol following Modified AIP simply starts further along in the process since many foods in various reintroduction stages are already included during the elimination phase. You can learn more at the updated Reintroduction Guide.

    
    

    This is a big update, and one that is bound to increase the amount of people who are positively affected by embarking on the Autoimmune Protocol. If you have any questions that aren’t addressed here, feel free to post them in the comments!

    
    

    
    

    Downloadable resources

    If you are looking to get started with AIP, you will want to sign up to get the AIP Quick Start Guide. Just pop your email in the box below and we will send you the following resources over the course of a week:

    
    

    • 
      
    • Complete, printable lists of the foods to avoid and include during AIP
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • A 2-week AIP meal plan and shopping list
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • A 90-minute batch cooking video from Mickey
    • 
      
    • 
      
    • Printable guides on food reintroductions and reactions
    • 
      
    
    

    You will then be subscribed to our occasional newsletter, where we deliver free, exclusive content in the form of tips, articles, recipes, news, and more. By signing up, you will be the first to know about what is happening in the autoimmune community!

    
    

    
    

    
    

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    The post Announcing Modified AIP: A 2024 Update to the Autoimmune Protocol appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=15305Mon, 01 Jan 2024 12:00:00 -070020:07falsefullSince inception in 2011, the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) has not undergone any major updates or changes and has existed as originally conceived by experts and used by the autoimmune community. Today, that is changing with the announcement of a new option: Modified AIP Elimination. This post serves to provide the rationale behind this change as well as provide links for learning more about the new ...An Announcement & An Invitation!Hi Everyone! 

    Mickey here… I hope this post finds you enjoying a peaceful and healthy New Year holiday! I wanted to take a moment to give you a heads up about an event coming up that is relevant to the AIP community as well as make an announcement about AIP Certified Coach.

    First… The 2023 AIP Summit is scheduled for January 9-15! 

    If you are looking to learn more about healing with the Autoimmune Protocol, directly from AIP Certified Coaches, the AIP Summit is for you! 

    Each day starts at 10AM EST with a live welcome and then attendees can watch the day’s prepared presentations in any order and at whatever time works in their schedule for the following 24 hours. Each of the presentations features at least one AIP Certified Coach and the topic aligns with that coach’s expertise. 

    So what types of presentations will you find at the AIP Summit? There are cooking demonstrations, deep dives into science or specific conditions, discussions about the impact of lifestyle factors, best practices for integrating AIP into life in the real world, and more. Additionally, attendees can submit questions after watching the presentations to be answered live during a Q&A panel the following day.

    Since 2020, the AIP Summit has served over 15,000 people looking to learn more about AIP. Whether you are new to the protocol, or a seasoned traveler on the autoimmune journey, you are sure to learn some tips to help support your best health, straight from the experts! 

    >> Sign up here to attend the AIP Summit! 

    Second… a big announcement regarding AIP Certified Coach! 

    I am honored to announce that Jaime Hartman, FNTP will be taking over as co-teacher and collaborator for AIP Certified Coach, the practitioner training program we founded in 2017 to help all types of healthcare providers integrate AIP into the work they do. 

    This partnership should come as no surprise, since Jaime has been a pillar of the AIP community since the very beginning, was a part of the first cohort of AIP Certified Coach, and brings her rich clinical experience and educational background to the program. 

    Together, Jaime and I are engaged in a ground-up remodel of the AIP Certified Coach, to be launched in time for the usual Spring enrollment in 2023. While the Autoimmune Protocol itself has not changed meaningfully since the program was created, we are re-writing and delivering all lectures to incorporate new information (like medical study results!) and additional perspectives we’ve gained. 

    If you are a healthcare practitioner of any kind (we train health coaches, nutritional therapists, nutritionists, dietitians, physical therapists, fitness professionals, bodyworkers, nurses, physician’s assistants, medical doctors, naturopathic doctors, and more!), we would love to have you join us in the 2023 class, enrolling February 15 for a March 6 start date. 

    >> Sign up to be notified of the details and enrollment opening for AIP Certified Coach here! 

    In health, 

    Mickey

    The post AIP in 2023: An Announcement & an Invitation! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>Hi Everyone! 

    Mickey here… I hope this post finds you enjoying a peaceful and healthy New Year holiday! I wanted to take a moment to give you a heads up about an event coming up that is relevant to the AIP community as well as make an announcement about AIP Certified Coach.

    First… The 2023 AIP Summit is scheduled for January 9-15! 

    If you are looking to learn more about healing with the Autoimmune Protocol, directly from AIP Certified Coaches, the AIP Summit is for you! 

    Each day starts at 10AM EST with a live welcome and then attendees can watch the day’s prepared presentations in any order and at whatever time works in their schedule for the following 24 hours. Each of the presentations features at least one AIP Certified Coach and the topic aligns with that coach’s expertise. 

    So what types of presentations will you find at the AIP Summit? There are cooking demonstrations, deep dives into science or specific conditions, discussions about the impact of lifestyle factors, best practices for integrating AIP into life in the real world, and more. Additionally, attendees can submit questions after watching the presentations to be answered live during a Q&A panel the following day.

    Since 2020, the AIP Summit has served over 15,000 people looking to learn more about AIP. Whether you are new to the protocol, or a seasoned traveler on the autoimmune journey, you are sure to learn some tips to help support your best health, straight from the experts! 

    >> Sign up here to attend the AIP Summit! 

    Second… a big announcement regarding AIP Certified Coach! 

    I am honored to announce that Jaime Hartman, FNTP will be taking over as co-teacher and collaborator for AIP Certified Coach, the practitioner training program we founded in 2017 to help all types of healthcare providers integrate AIP into the work they do. 

    This partnership should come as no surprise, since Jaime has been a pillar of the AIP community since the very beginning, was a part of the first cohort of AIP Certified Coach, and brings her rich clinical experience and educational background to the program. 

    Together, Jaime and I are engaged in a ground-up remodel of the AIP Certified Coach, to be launched in time for the usual Spring enrollment in 2023. While the Autoimmune Protocol itself has not changed meaningfully since the program was created, we are re-writing and delivering all lectures to incorporate new information (like medical study results!) and additional perspectives we’ve gained. 

    If you are a healthcare practitioner of any kind (we train health coaches, nutritional therapists, nutritionists, dietitians, physical therapists, fitness professionals, bodyworkers, nurses, physician’s assistants, medical doctors, naturopathic doctors, and more!), we would love to have you join us in the 2023 class, enrolling February 15 for a March 6 start date. 

    >> Sign up to be notified of the details and enrollment opening for AIP Certified Coach here! 

    In health, 

    Mickey

    The post AIP in 2023: An Announcement & an Invitation! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=15251Sun, 01 Jan 2023 12:00:15 -070008:49falsefullHappy New Year everyone! Tune in to hear a quick announcement, as well as an invitation to a special event serving the AIP community in a couple of weeks.An important update from Mickey and Angie about the future of Autoimmune Wellness

    Today I’m sharing that after 10 years helping build and lead this movement and seven years at Autoimmune Welln­­­ess and AIP Certified Coach with Mickey, I have decided to step away from my work in the AIP space.

    In a general sense, I am making this decision because I believe that slowing down and practicing community care are the next right things for me. I am so proud of everything Mickey and I have built and all the ways we’ve been able to serve the AIP community, but I don’t believe that my leadership in this space is the most valuable way I can contribute at this point.

    To clarify, I still believe AIP is an incredibly powerful tool in the autoimmune management toolbox. I think that the future of AIP is bright and has already changed the standard of healthcare for autoimmune patients. After a decade of this work, I’d love to contribute to different conversations about health and wellness and support new voices ready to lead with fresh approaches to the AIP movement and new takes on the autoimmune healing journey.

    My personal vision for the work I did in the AIP community was always to empower others so they could courageously contribute their voices to a revolutionary shift in the standard of autoimmune healthcare. And it’s right in our tagline here at Autoimmune Wellness that together, Mickey and I had a vision to build community. There are many, many voices now and the community is thriving. I think those visions are realized and now I’m making space for new visions.

    I’m not entirely certain about all the details of my next steps, but if you’d like to follow my writing or learn a little more about the personal aspects of the decision to step away, you can find me here on Substack.

    So, what does this mean for Autoimmune Wellness?

    After I shared my decision with Mickey this past summer, we started to consider the best way forward for Autoimmune Wellness. We decided that turning it into an archive was the right path.

    As an archive, all the current Autoimmune Wellness content, from groundbreaking research to definitive guides on the AIP basics, from practical how-to articles to hopeful stories of recovery, from the podcast to the hundreds of recipes, will continue to exist as a kind of dependable digital library to serve the autoimmune community. The resources on the site itself and the email auto-responder which offers free downloadable tools will be available to anyone looking for support in their healing journey.

    New content will be limited and focused on opportunities to leverage the site and subscriber list to amplify the work of others in the Autoimmune Protocol space or share new and relevant events or research for those utilizing nutrition and lifestyle approaches in their autoimmune disease management.

    Autoimmune Wellness social media accounts will also continue but will be used to amplify information and events important to the AIP community, share the work of other AIP recipe creators, spotlight AIP Certified Coach alumni, or to occasionally broadcast live interviews with autoimmune experts.

    In particular, Mickey is looking forward to ramping up on the AIP research front and will serve as curator and steward of the Autoimmune Wellness archive and social media presence going forward.

    What does this mean for AIP Certified Coach?

    Mickey will continue to teach AIP Certified Coach and train new AIP coaches from across the health and wellness spectrum. Angie will be stepping away, but a dynamic new partnership is in the works and will be announced soon. If you are an AIP Certified Coach alum, look for emails with more details from Mickey soon.

    If you are a provider interested in training, join the interest list here. If you are looking for AIP coaching support, find a coach at the directory here.

    Thank you!

    We had no idea what would happen when we started, but our intuition said to go for it. Thank you for also believing there was something here worth growing. We are deeply, sincerely grateful to all of you for being our readers and cheerleaders. For literally supporting us by clicking on this blog, buying our books, enrolling in our programs, and helping spread AIP.

    We also want to acknowledge, with the deepest sense of gratitude, the team who helped grow and sustain Autoimmune Wellness over the years: Grace Heerman, Alicia Green, and Jordan Taylor.

    We have also had an amazing core recipe and article team over the years who took the site to new levels with their contributions: Dr. Rob Abbott, Sarah Kolman, Sophie Van Tiggelen, Christina Feindel, Kate Jay, Alaena Haber, Kelsey McReynolds, Wendi Washington-Hunt, Beth Chen, Indira Pullidath, Kris King, and Erin Shearer.

    It’s a privilege to have come this far and have a platform that now has long-term value for our fellow autoimmune patients. We know the legacy of our work represented in this archive, only possible because of your support and the work of our team, will continue to benefit and sustain the AIP movement well into the future.

    If you’d like to listen to us discuss this decision, we uploaded a short episode of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast that you can listen to below: 

    If this work has been meaningful in your healing journeys, please share your stories in the comments. We’d love to hear from you!

    The post A Special Message From Angie appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>

    Today I’m sharing that after 10 years helping build and lead this movement and seven years at Autoimmune Welln­­­ess and AIP Certified Coach with Mickey, I have decided to step away from my work in the AIP space.

    In a general sense, I am making this decision because I believe that slowing down and practicing community care are the next right things for me. I am so proud of everything Mickey and I have built and all the ways we’ve been able to serve the AIP community, but I don’t believe that my leadership in this space is the most valuable way I can contribute at this point.

    To clarify, I still believe AIP is an incredibly powerful tool in the autoimmune management toolbox. I think that the future of AIP is bright and has already changed the standard of healthcare for autoimmune patients. After a decade of this work, I’d love to contribute to different conversations about health and wellness and support new voices ready to lead with fresh approaches to the AIP movement and new takes on the autoimmune healing journey.

    My personal vision for the work I did in the AIP community was always to empower others so they could courageously contribute their voices to a revolutionary shift in the standard of autoimmune healthcare. And it’s right in our tagline here at Autoimmune Wellness that together, Mickey and I had a vision to build community. There are many, many voices now and the community is thriving. I think those visions are realized and now I’m making space for new visions.

    I’m not entirely certain about all the details of my next steps, but if you’d like to follow my writing or learn a little more about the personal aspects of the decision to step away, you can find me here on Substack.

    So, what does this mean for Autoimmune Wellness?

    After I shared my decision with Mickey this past summer, we started to consider the best way forward for Autoimmune Wellness. We decided that turning it into an archive was the right path.

    As an archive, all the current Autoimmune Wellness content, from groundbreaking research to definitive guides on the AIP basics, from practical how-to articles to hopeful stories of recovery, from the podcast to the hundreds of recipes, will continue to exist as a kind of dependable digital library to serve the autoimmune community. The resources on the site itself and the email auto-responder which offers free downloadable tools will be available to anyone looking for support in their healing journey.

    New content will be limited and focused on opportunities to leverage the site and subscriber list to amplify the work of others in the Autoimmune Protocol space or share new and relevant events or research for those utilizing nutrition and lifestyle approaches in their autoimmune disease management.

    Autoimmune Wellness social media accounts will also continue but will be used to amplify information and events important to the AIP community, share the work of other AIP recipe creators, spotlight AIP Certified Coach alumni, or to occasionally broadcast live interviews with autoimmune experts.

    In particular, Mickey is looking forward to ramping up on the AIP research front and will serve as curator and steward of the Autoimmune Wellness archive and social media presence going forward.

    What does this mean for AIP Certified Coach?

    Mickey will continue to teach AIP Certified Coach and train new AIP coaches from across the health and wellness spectrum. Angie will be stepping away, but a dynamic new partnership is in the works and will be announced soon. If you are an AIP Certified Coach alum, look for emails with more details from Mickey soon.

    If you are a provider interested in training, join the interest list here. If you are looking for AIP coaching support, find a coach at the directory here.

    Thank you!

    We had no idea what would happen when we started, but our intuition said to go for it. Thank you for also believing there was something here worth growing. We are deeply, sincerely grateful to all of you for being our readers and cheerleaders. For literally supporting us by clicking on this blog, buying our books, enrolling in our programs, and helping spread AIP.

    We also want to acknowledge, with the deepest sense of gratitude, the team who helped grow and sustain Autoimmune Wellness over the years: Grace Heerman, Alicia Green, and Jordan Taylor.

    We have also had an amazing core recipe and article team over the years who took the site to new levels with their contributions: Dr. Rob Abbott, Sarah Kolman, Sophie Van Tiggelen, Christina Feindel, Kate Jay, Alaena Haber, Kelsey McReynolds, Wendi Washington-Hunt, Beth Chen, Indira Pullidath, Kris King, and Erin Shearer.

    It’s a privilege to have come this far and have a platform that now has long-term value for our fellow autoimmune patients. We know the legacy of our work represented in this archive, only possible because of your support and the work of our team, will continue to benefit and sustain the AIP movement well into the future.

    If you’d like to listen to us discuss this decision, we uploaded a short episode of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast that you can listen to below: 

    If this work has been meaningful in your healing journeys, please share your stories in the comments. We’d love to hear from you!

    The post A Special Message From Angie appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=15218Mon, 14 Nov 2022 10:00:00 -070012:25falsefullToday I’m sharing that after 10 years helping build and lead this movement and seven years at Autoimmune Welln­­­ess and AIP Certified Coach with Mickey, I have decided to step away from my work in the AIP space. In a general sense, I am making this decision because I believe that slowing down and practicing community care are the next right things for me. I ...Announcing The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen by Mickey Trescott!

    This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

    In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog. 
    

    I have HUGE news today–I’m coming out with a brand-new AIP cookbook!

    It’s called The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen and it releases March 2019 (details below on how you can order a signed, pre-release copy!).

    Angie and I both know from personal experience that being successful on AIP is much more than simply eliminating foods. Healing is both quickened and deepened when you ensure that in addition to avoiding your food triggers, your make an effort to maximize nutrient density in the diet.

    But what exactly is nutrient density? Simply put, it is the amount of micronutrients a food contains relative to the energy it provides. Not only does my new book teach you about getting good nutrition in an approachable way, but I have developed all of the recipes so you’ll be maximizing nutrient density with every bite.

    

    Inside The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen, you’ll find:

    • 125 Autoimmune Protocol compliant recipes (free from gluten, grains, dairy, eggs, nuts, seeds, and nightshades)
    • Recipes that satisfy low-FODMAP, low-carb, or coconut-free diets
    • Recipes that take 45 minutes (or less) to prepare, can be made in one pot, or can be made in an Instant Pot
    • 5 meal plan and shopping list combinations, including budget and two-person options
    
    
    

    In order to create a book I believe in and maintain complete control over the content, I am self-publishing The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen. By pre-ordering your copy directly from me, you get some awesome perks!

    Your pre-order bonuses include:

    • A signed copy of the first hardcover printing
    • Early delivery of the book (up to a month before traditional release)
    • Membership to a private insider FB group (Dec-Feb)
    • Access to pre-release recipes from the book
    
    

    Be one of the first to get your hands on The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen! Only a limited number of books are available for pre-order so reserve your copy now!

    Click here to learn more and pre-order! >>

    The post Announcing The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen by Mickey Trescott! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>

    This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

    In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog. 
    

    I have HUGE news today–I’m coming out with a brand-new AIP cookbook!

    It’s called The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen and it releases March 2019 (details below on how you can order a signed, pre-release copy!).

    Angie and I both know from personal experience that being successful on AIP is much more than simply eliminating foods. Healing is both quickened and deepened when you ensure that in addition to avoiding your food triggers, your make an effort to maximize nutrient density in the diet.

    But what exactly is nutrient density? Simply put, it is the amount of micronutrients a food contains relative to the energy it provides. Not only does my new book teach you about getting good nutrition in an approachable way, but I have developed all of the recipes so you’ll be maximizing nutrient density with every bite.

    

    Inside The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen, you’ll find:

    • 125 Autoimmune Protocol compliant recipes (free from gluten, grains, dairy, eggs, nuts, seeds, and nightshades)
    • Recipes that satisfy low-FODMAP, low-carb, or coconut-free diets
    • Recipes that take 45 minutes (or less) to prepare, can be made in one pot, or can be made in an Instant Pot
    • 5 meal plan and shopping list combinations, including budget and two-person options
    
    
    

    In order to create a book I believe in and maintain complete control over the content, I am self-publishing The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen. By pre-ordering your copy directly from me, you get some awesome perks!

    Your pre-order bonuses include:

    • A signed copy of the first hardcover printing
    • Early delivery of the book (up to a month before traditional release)
    • Membership to a private insider FB group (Dec-Feb)
    • Access to pre-release recipes from the book
    
    

    Be one of the first to get your hands on The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen! Only a limited number of books are available for pre-order so reserve your copy now!

    Click here to learn more and pre-order! >>

    The post Announcing The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen by Mickey Trescott! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

    ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=12361Fri, 09 Nov 2018 19:43:32 -070014:34falsefullI have HUGE news today–I’m coming out with a brand-new AIP cookbook! It’s called The Nutrient-Dense Kitchen and it releases March 2019 (details below on how you can order a signed, pre-release copy!). Angie and I both know from personal experience that being successful on AIP is much more than simply eliminating foods. Healing is both quickened and deepened when you ensure that in addition ...S3 E8 – Money-Saving Tips From The AIP CommunityWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 8 is our final episode of the season! In this episode, we’re giving the floor to five members of the autoimmune community to hear their number one piece of advice when it comes to saving money on the AIP.

    
    

    Since these recommendations can be so individual, we wanted to see what was getting the AIP community actual mileage when they put it into practice. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Mitch Hankins, Instinctual Wellbeing [3:46]

    
    

    2. Sophie Van Tiggelen of A Squirrel in the Kitchen [8:43]

    
    

    3. Anne Marie Garland from Grass-fed Salsa [15:51]

    
    

    4. Samantha Jo Teague of the Unskilled Cavewoman [20:56]

    
    

    5. Kerry Jeffery of Emotional Autoimmunity [24:27]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m feeling a little bit sad because we’re almost done with this podcast series, and it’s been really fun.

    
    

    Angie Alt: I know. This was a really new topic for us to explore so in-depth. And it’s been pretty rewarding to talk to all these folks.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I agree.

    
    

    Angie Alt: So today we have a really fun episode for you guys. As you know, with this season of the podcast we’ve been on a mission to dig into the nitty gritty of how to make eating a nourishing, real foods diet both affordable and sustainable.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. If you guys haven’t been following along, we covered the following topics in our previous episodes. We talked about sourcing affordable, highest quality meats, vegetables, and fats. Tips and tricks for effective meal planning, batch cooking, and minimizing food waste. Creative food sourcing options, like buying clubs and online shopping. How to minimize waste and reimagine leftovers. Creating a food budget and prioritizing your food spending. And also how to do AIP on an extremely low budget, like fixed income or food stamps.

    
    

    I think we’ve done a really good job covering these bases. If you guys haven’t heard any of the episodes in this series, make sure to go back and listen to them. There’s a ton of really great info there. Info that I think is new territory for our movement our community. It’s been really fun.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. We hope there’s something there for everybody. So, if there has been one recurring message this season, it has been that not every one of these recommendations is going to work for everyone, obviously. We’re all at different places with our health, our finances, our support systems and even our access based on the areas where we live. We thought it would be a good idea to round out this season of the podcast by devoting a whole episode to chatting with some of the members of the AIP blogging community about their number one money saving tip.

    
    

    Since these recommendations can be so individual, we wanted to see what was getting the AIP community actual mileage when they put it into practice.

    
    

    1. Mitch Hankins, Instinctual Wellbeing [3:46]

    Mickey Trescott: Alright. So let’s move on and talk to our first guest.

    
    

    So you guys; the first community member that we’re going to chat with today is Mitch Hankins from the blog Instinctual Wellbeing. Mitch, what is your number one tip for saving money on AIP?

    
    

    Mitch Hankins: There are so many good ones. When my wife and I were kind of going through financial stuff a few years ago, we definitely had to get creative with sticking to an AIP and whole foods diet on a very limited budget. And very quickly, I think the thing we realized that was most helpful was not being afraid to grocery shop hop; or grocery store hop.

    
    

    Basically, what we ended up doing is just taking note of maybe two or even three grocery stores in our area, and what products did we regularly use from each of those, and finding which store had the best prices for that particular item. Maybe we’d get a certain percentage of things from Whole Foods. And then for us, we’d drive down the road and hit up Trader Joe’s for 30 minutes and grab some things there. Sometimes we’d go to the Asian mart to pick up a few items there, like coconut milk and even some sweet potato noodles and things of that nature.

    
    

    So, really just learning where we could get the best deals. And then taking advantage of that. One thing I would say; we did live in a pretty large metropolitan area, and I know some people don’t. So one thing you could do if you live in a more rural or smaller town, could be to do that same thing, but online.

    
    

    I know there’s lots of great shops nowadays online where you can buy AIP products, and even meats....]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 8 is our final episode of the season! In this episode, we’re giving the floor to five members of the autoimmune community to hear their number one piece of advice when it comes to saving money on the AIP.

    
    

    Since these recommendations can be so individual, we wanted to see what was getting the AIP community actual mileage when they put it into practice. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Mitch Hankins, Instinctual Wellbeing [3:46]

    
    

    2. Sophie Van Tiggelen of A Squirrel in the Kitchen [8:43]

    
    

    3. Anne Marie Garland from Grass-fed Salsa [15:51]

    
    

    4. Samantha Jo Teague of the Unskilled Cavewoman [20:56]

    
    

    5. Kerry Jeffery of Emotional Autoimmunity [24:27]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m feeling a little bit sad because we’re almost done with this podcast series, and it’s been really fun.

    
    

    Angie Alt: I know. This was a really new topic for us to explore so in-depth. And it’s been pretty rewarding to talk to all these folks.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I agree.

    
    

    Angie Alt: So today we have a really fun episode for you guys. As you know, with this season of the podcast we’ve been on a mission to dig into the nitty gritty of how to make eating a nourishing, real foods diet both affordable and sustainable.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. If you guys haven’t been following along, we covered the following topics in our previous episodes. We talked about sourcing affordable, highest quality meats, vegetables, and fats. Tips and tricks for effective meal planning, batch cooking, and minimizing food waste. Creative food sourcing options, like buying clubs and online shopping. How to minimize waste and reimagine leftovers. Creating a food budget and prioritizing your food spending. And also how to do AIP on an extremely low budget, like fixed income or food stamps.

    
    

    I think we’ve done a really good job covering these bases. If you guys haven’t heard any of the episodes in this series, make sure to go back and listen to them. There’s a ton of really great info there. Info that I think is new territory for our movement our community. It’s been really fun.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. We hope there’s something there for everybody. So, if there has been one recurring message this season, it has been that not every one of these recommendations is going to work for everyone, obviously. We’re all at different places with our health, our finances, our support systems and even our access based on the areas where we live. We thought it would be a good idea to round out this season of the podcast by devoting a whole episode to chatting with some of the members of the AIP blogging community about their number one money saving tip.

    
    

    Since these recommendations can be so individual, we wanted to see what was getting the AIP community actual mileage when they put it into practice.

    
    

    1. Mitch Hankins, Instinctual Wellbeing [3:46]

    Mickey Trescott: Alright. So let’s move on and talk to our first guest.

    
    

    So you guys; the first community member that we’re going to chat with today is Mitch Hankins from the blog Instinctual Wellbeing. Mitch, what is your number one tip for saving money on AIP?

    
    

    Mitch Hankins: There are so many good ones. When my wife and I were kind of going through financial stuff a few years ago, we definitely had to get creative with sticking to an AIP and whole foods diet on a very limited budget. And very quickly, I think the thing we realized that was most helpful was not being afraid to grocery shop hop; or grocery store hop.

    
    

    Basically, what we ended up doing is just taking note of maybe two or even three grocery stores in our area, and what products did we regularly use from each of those, and finding which store had the best prices for that particular item. Maybe we’d get a certain percentage of things from Whole Foods. And then for us, we’d drive down the road and hit up Trader Joe’s for 30 minutes and grab some things there. Sometimes we’d go to the Asian mart to pick up a few items there, like coconut milk and even some sweet potato noodles and things of that nature.

    
    

    So, really just learning where we could get the best deals. And then taking advantage of that. One thing I would say; we did live in a pretty large metropolitan area, and I know some people don’t. So one thing you could do if you live in a more rural or smaller town, could be to do that same thing, but online.

    
    

    I know there’s lots of great shops nowadays online where you can buy AIP products, and even meats. You could meet your local farmers in your area. But again, it all comes back to this putting pieces together of a puzzle, instead of just trying to get everything at one store, and fit that into your budget when it might not work as well.

    
    

    Angie Alt: I love this tip, Mitch. Because actually my husband and I do it, too. And again, you know, we’re lucky to live in a kind of urban/suburban area. So we have Whole Foods and we have Trader Joe’s and we have all the places. So we can kind of hop around. But it really allows us to take advantage of the lowest price on an item in whatever store. So I totally agree that this is a smart one.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: And a lot of stores have rotating sales, too. So by going to multiple stores, you can actually see; you have a greater chance of being able to pick up some of the things they have on sale that are maybe time sensitive. And another thing, is that actually grocery stores make their money by putting certain things on sale, and then keeping other staples at a high price to basically round it out. It’s almost like; it’s not really cheating, but you’re paying for that convenience of getting every single thing at the same store. You’ll notice that certain things are marked down to kind of lure you to shop there, and then other staples are right at the highest price. That’s how they make their money. Great tip, Mitch.

    
    

    Mitch Hankins: Absolutely. And just one other note on that; I’m glad you brought up the sales thing. Because some grocery stores will have regular, like weekly sales. For instance, during that period of our lives, we would go to our Whole Foods and have rotisserie chicken Wednesday. Because every Wednesday at our particular Whole Foods, rotisserie chickens were $2 off normal.

    
    

    And then they had a lot of other things. I think for a while they were doing fresh salmon on Tuesdays was like $2 or $3 off per filet. So looking for those recurring deals as well. And maybe scheduling your meal plan, or scheduling your dinners around that can be helpful.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. So smart. I did this even before AIP. I really would use; and Mickey and I talked about this in an earlier episode. But I would really use those flyers with the sales to plan my meals. Proactively around what stores were offering what discounts.

    
    

    Mitch Hankins: Absolutely. That’s a great point.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Mitch, will you let our listeners know where people can find you?

    
    

    Mitch Hankins: Absolutely. My blog is InstinctualWellbeing.com. and similarly, uncreatively, my Instagram is also @InstinctualWellbeing. And Facebook is Instinctual Wellbeing. So you can find me and connect with me there. You can also shoot me an email if you really wanted to chat more about budget friendly tips, or anything, at mitch@instinctualwellbeing.com. That’s where you can connect with me.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Awesome. Thank you so much for chatting with us today, Mitch.

    
    

    Mitch Hankins: Absolutely. Thank you!

    
    

    2. Sophie Van Tiggelen of A Squirrel in the Kitchen [8:43]

    Mickey Trescott: Next up, we’re going to chat with Sophie Van Tiggelen of A Squirrel in the Kitchen. Sophie, what is your number one tip for saving money on AIP?

    
    

    Sophie Van Tiggelen: My very first tip I think that eating vegetables and fruit is very important. You need to eat as much vegetables and fruit as you can. Like, try to fill up your plate with at least three-quarters of vegetables. They are a great source of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. And the fiber content of vegetables is really important for healthy gut microflora.

    
    

    So I’m always trying to eat a maximum of vegetables and fruit to have the full spectrum of nutrients. But then the problem is; how can you eat good quality vegetables and fruit on a budget without breaking the bank? So my first tip would be to eat seasonal. For example, there is no point wanting to eat delicious raspberries in the middle of winter. They are super expensive. I would advise you to try to eat fall and winter produce. Like apples, oranges, and pears. So that really helps to reduce your grocery bill.

    
    

    Then I would say try to take advantage of promotions that you see in stores. And this is great, because it’s going to push you to expand your veggie repertoire, and try new things that you might now have thought about before.

    
    

    I would also try to avoid fancy or exotic produce. I know that when I’m grocery shopping, I’m always attracted by those exotic and tropical fruits, because they’re all colorful and they look so good. But usually they are very expensive.

    
    

    Also, I try to avoid special vegetables or unusual vegetables that come from far away. So I would advise here to eat local. It’s less expensive. They come from your neighborhood; the farmers around you. And it’s cheaper to produce them.

    
    

    You can usually find local produce at your health food store. Here in Colorado, I like either Whole Foods or Vitamin Cottage. Or you can also try to find a farmer’s market in your area. That’s a very good way to eat local produce.

    
    

    To keep your budget low, I would also advise to think about the food return you’re going to get when you buy something. Try to stretch your dollars, and stretch your meals. For example, I love to buy spaghetti squash because I know they will go a long way. And I will be able to use them for several meals. It’s the same for cabbage, collard greens, carrots, broccoli, or sweet potatoes. They are easy to prepare. They reheat well. And you can stretch them for several meals.

    
    

    Another big one for me is to be smart and to avoid waste. I try to never, ever throw food away. And before I buy something new or start on a new vegetable, I will make sure that I eat everything I have prepared. All these little pieces that are left over in your fridge; every two to three days I will put everything together and reheat the plate and just eat it. Because we can lose a lot of money, also, in the long run by just throwing food away.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, these are great tips, Sophie!

    
    

    Sophie Van Tiggelen: And I have one last point about the quality of the food that you buy. Do you have to buy organic? Let’s face it; it’s not always possible to buy organic. We know it’s better for you because you want to avoid pesticides because they have a negative impact on your health and immune system. But it’s not always possible. So I would advise people to refer to the famous Dirty Dozen/Clean 15 lists, and try to do the best you can. And if you have to buy conventional, that’s just fine. It’s alright. It’s better to eat conventional vegetables than just go to fast food. So yeah, these are my tips.

    
    

    Angie Alt: This is a lady after our own heart, Mickey.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know. I love it.

    
    

    Angie Alt: They’re all so good, and I love the focus on budgeting around the veggies. You know, we tend to think of the meats in this diet as being the big hefty expenditure on the budget, and that’s true. But, you can really get out of control with the veggies, too. Like you were talking about, Sophie. Buying berries out of season. You could practically need a credit card for it!

    
    

    Sophie Van Tiggelen: Yes, definitely.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Sophie, will you let our listeners know where people can find you?

    
    

    Sophie Van Tiggelen: Oh, yes, certainly. Everyone can find me first on my blog, which is A Squirrel in the Kitchen. I’m also very active on Instagram and Facebook. You can find me there. And I would like to mention that I’m very excited about my upcoming second cookbook, which is coming out June 12th. It’s called The Autoimmune Protocol Made Simple. And it’s a whole new set of fresh and appealing recipes for the autoimmune protocol.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: We’re so excited about it, Sophie. Thanks so much for talking with us today.

    
    

    Sophie Van Tiggelen: Thank you.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: A final word from our title sponsor this season, the Nutritional Therapy Association. We wanted to take a moment to publicly thank NTA for graciously sponsoring this podcast season; real food on a budget. Producing, editing, and transcribing this podcast is a big job for both us and our team, and their support means we can offer all of this to you guys at no cost.

    
    

    Angie Alt: We also want to thank them for the quality of both the NTP and the NTC programs that Mickey and I have...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11823Mon, 21 May 2018 12:00:00 -070033:07falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E7 – Food Budgeting + Prioritizing w/ Jenny HarrisWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 7 is focused on how to both prioritize your food choices, and make a budget for eating this way that is sustainable longterm. Angie and Mickey share their personal stories of budgeting and managing medical expenses and debt. They also chat with guest Jenny Harris about how to modify AIP for lower budgets, and how to find local assistance for food budgeting concerns.

    
    

    This is a bit of a tricky topic but we hope sharing our experiences and ideas will help you feel supported wherever you find yourself in your journey. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Different levels of budget concerns [2:19]

    
    

    2. Budgeting benefits on AIP [7:13]

    
    

    3. Personal budgeting stories [9:41]

    
    

    4. Benefit of minimalism [15:58]

    
    

    5. An investment in your future health [18:53]

    
    

    6. Introducing our guest, Jenny Harris [23:41]

    
    

    7. Roadblocks and challenges [29:05]

    
    

    8. Finding local assistance [31:05]

    
    

    9. AIP modifications on low-budget [35:44]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey guys! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing today, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. Hopefully there won’t be any puppy noise in the background. My puppy is being very naughty today, you guys.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Sometimes it happens. You know, those animals.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Mm-hmm.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: So today we are continuing our discussion related to the topic this season. Real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to both prioritize your food choices, and make a budget for eating this way. Today we’re tackling a little bit of a tricky topic, but we hope that sharing some of our experiences and ideas will help you guys feel supported wherever you find yourself in your journey.

    
    

    1. Different levels of budget concerns [2:19]

    Mickey Trescott: So first, let’s talk about the three main categories that people find themselves in when we talk about budgeting concerns. The first, of course, are people who are wealthy. They can afford anything. There really aren’t any barriers to getting what they want, because they can go to Whole Foods and get whatever they want. Or they can afford the functional medicine practitioner. Most of us, sadly, don’t find ourselves in this situation.

    
    

    The middle is actually where most of us are probably at. That’s where people have resources to allocate towards maybe eating better or better medical care, but it means almost always you’re going to have to make some strategic planning. There is flexibility. So there’s a lot of choices sometimes. And maybe going without something so that you can get something else. There are those options to kind of move things around a little bit, and prioritize.

    
    

    And then lastly there are people who are low income. So those are people who face significant challenges and stress around budgeting for food. And it involves fixed resources without flexibility. So that’s an important distinguishing characteristic between those who truly are low-income. I would say that a lot of people in the middle maybe think they’re a little more low-income than they really are. But the truth is, a lot of us have some flexibility. And that is where a lot of the difficulties come up.

    
    

    Angie Alt: So in the second segment of the podcast, we’ll be talking a lot more about those in the lowest income group, and some strategies that they can use. We really believe everyone should have access to healing foods. And we want to talk about the ways to make that reality for those in that challenging circumstance.

    
    

    But in this first segment, we want to focus on the middle category of folks. Because probably most of you guys listening to this podcast find yourselves here. It’s where Mickey and I ourselves land. So we just want to kind of take a stab at the topic that is probably most of us are facing.

    
    

    We also want to acknowledge that having a chronic illness alone can be limiting to the budget. It’s expensive to be sick. And we totally get that.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. The different ways even just having an autoimmune disease before you get into some of the diet and lifestyle stuff that you might want to do. I mean, medical bills and medications are expensive. So a lot of that, if you’re someone who has just gone through a diagnosis, you know how front loaded those costs can be. So all at once, you might be going to see different doctors and specialists. Burning through maybe a high deductible, or something. Which is sadly very common these days. Getting through all of that testing, and some of those initial...]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 7 is focused on how to both prioritize your food choices, and make a budget for eating this way that is sustainable longterm. Angie and Mickey share their personal stories of budgeting and managing medical expenses and debt. They also chat with guest Jenny Harris about how to modify AIP for lower budgets, and how to find local assistance for food budgeting concerns.

    
    

    This is a bit of a tricky topic but we hope sharing our experiences and ideas will help you feel supported wherever you find yourself in your journey. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Different levels of budget concerns [2:19]

    
    

    2. Budgeting benefits on AIP [7:13]

    
    

    3. Personal budgeting stories [9:41]

    
    

    4. Benefit of minimalism [15:58]

    
    

    5. An investment in your future health [18:53]

    
    

    6. Introducing our guest, Jenny Harris [23:41]

    
    

    7. Roadblocks and challenges [29:05]

    
    

    8. Finding local assistance [31:05]

    
    

    9. AIP modifications on low-budget [35:44]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey guys! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing today, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. Hopefully there won’t be any puppy noise in the background. My puppy is being very naughty today, you guys.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Sometimes it happens. You know, those animals.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Mm-hmm.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: So today we are continuing our discussion related to the topic this season. Real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to both prioritize your food choices, and make a budget for eating this way. Today we’re tackling a little bit of a tricky topic, but we hope that sharing some of our experiences and ideas will help you guys feel supported wherever you find yourself in your journey.

    
    

    1. Different levels of budget concerns [2:19]

    Mickey Trescott: So first, let’s talk about the three main categories that people find themselves in when we talk about budgeting concerns. The first, of course, are people who are wealthy. They can afford anything. There really aren’t any barriers to getting what they want, because they can go to Whole Foods and get whatever they want. Or they can afford the functional medicine practitioner. Most of us, sadly, don’t find ourselves in this situation.

    
    

    The middle is actually where most of us are probably at. That’s where people have resources to allocate towards maybe eating better or better medical care, but it means almost always you’re going to have to make some strategic planning. There is flexibility. So there’s a lot of choices sometimes. And maybe going without something so that you can get something else. There are those options to kind of move things around a little bit, and prioritize.

    
    

    And then lastly there are people who are low income. So those are people who face significant challenges and stress around budgeting for food. And it involves fixed resources without flexibility. So that’s an important distinguishing characteristic between those who truly are low-income. I would say that a lot of people in the middle maybe think they’re a little more low-income than they really are. But the truth is, a lot of us have some flexibility. And that is where a lot of the difficulties come up.

    
    

    Angie Alt: So in the second segment of the podcast, we’ll be talking a lot more about those in the lowest income group, and some strategies that they can use. We really believe everyone should have access to healing foods. And we want to talk about the ways to make that reality for those in that challenging circumstance.

    
    

    But in this first segment, we want to focus on the middle category of folks. Because probably most of you guys listening to this podcast find yourselves here. It’s where Mickey and I ourselves land. So we just want to kind of take a stab at the topic that is probably most of us are facing.

    
    

    We also want to acknowledge that having a chronic illness alone can be limiting to the budget. It’s expensive to be sick. And we totally get that.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. The different ways even just having an autoimmune disease before you get into some of the diet and lifestyle stuff that you might want to do. I mean, medical bills and medications are expensive. So a lot of that, if you’re someone who has just gone through a diagnosis, you know how front loaded those costs can be. So all at once, you might be going to see different doctors and specialists. Burning through maybe a high deductible, or something. Which is sadly very common these days. Getting through all of that testing, and some of those initial treatments.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. And then there’s also the higher cost of insurance. Even though we have laws that guard against things like preexisting conditions with coinsurance and high deductibles, it means that usually folks with chronic illness do end up paying more.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yep. There’s also an income loss due to lack of ability to work. A lot of people don’t really realize this lack of opportunity cost. But really, sometimes it can involve the work of your partner or your spouse. Sometimes it can affect your ability to do childcare or household duties. Most autoimmune diseases come with some level of disability, and that can come through in either a lack of ability to actually hold a job at a certain amount of hours per week. It can also mean that you have to pay others or get help from other people in your family to do work around the house, which can be expensive. Both emotionally and financially.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. And then there’s the cost of natural or alternative treatments. Which, unfortunately, means usually paying out of pocket. We don’t have good systems in place that allow proper reimbursement through our insurance system for most of those kinds of treatments. And the fact is that combining the best of those natural and alternative treatments with conventional and do-it-yourself methods means that this can be really; a no-brainer. Something you definitely want to take on so you can heal. But it can be really expensive. This includes things like paying for supplements, and paying for different kinds of therapies. Maybe massage, acupuncture, things of that nature.

    
    

    2. Budgeting benefits on AIP [7:13]

    Mickey Trescott: All these things considered, why those of us with autoimmune disease have a little more of a tricky time making a budget. Why should we do it in the first place? We have some reasons for you guys.

    
    

    Budgeting really stops overspending and prevents debt. So when you know exactly how much money you have coming in, and you’ve planned to use that money in a variety of categories and predictably. Of course, you can’t control the future, and you never really know exactly what’s going to happen. But that act of actually planning helps you not to spend too much of your money, and prevents you from needing to go into debt.

    
    

    How many of us have not made a plan and then unexpectedly, but then actually kind of expectedly being like; oh, this expense came up. And I kind of knew it was coming but I didn’t really plan for it. You might end up in a situation where you have to go into debt for that.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. Also budgeting can help us reach our goals. For instance, proactively saving. Having that budgetary line item in place helps us kind of get there and reach those goals in reasonable timelines instead of haphazardly putting $10 in the savings account every couple of months.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. It also helps you stop worrying. So, I don’t know about you, but I’ve had a lot of anxiety since my diagnosis and initial path with autoimmune disease. Just because, financially it was really difficult for me back then. And even though I’m healthy now, sometimes I worry that if I got sick again, I wouldn’t have the money to kind of figure it out. And I’m anticipating that stress.

    
    

    So, being able to move towards and reach some of those savings goals might help you stop worrying and relieve some of that anxiety related to it.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. And kind of along those same lines, it helps you have more flexibility. I think when you kind of have planned your expenses, and you have allocated pots of money that are there for certain kind of expenses, it just allows you to be a lot more flexible. And should something really large and unexpected come up, you have more leeway between those different budget line items to kind of move things around, if necessary.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And lastly, it gives you more control over your money. You know exactly where it’s going, instead of feeling kind of like a passenger every month, paying all your bills and kind of not understanding where everything goes. You understand, actually, now that I have a budget, I know exactly where everything is going. And you can make changes and be informed in that way.

    
    

    3. Personal budgeting stories [9:41]

    Angie Alt: Right. So, Mickey, maybe we can share a little bit about our personal approaches to budgeting and especially how things looked when we first started on this path.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So I talked a little bit about my diagnosis, and how that financially impacted us. It was very stressful, understandably. Just the diagnosis in and of itself is really stressful. But at the time, my husband and I were both working minimum wage plus tips jobs in a major city. Living paycheck to paycheck. By all means, we were not poor. We were able to pay the bills that we had. We were able to have a great lifestyle that we were happy with.

    
    

    But when I started to get sick and I wasn’t able to bring in that income, I lost my job. And then we added in all the medical stuff. Which, when I got diagnosed, I didn’t have insurance. So I was paying everything out of pocket. I ended up going into a lot of debt because I didn’t really have any savings, and I didn’t really have a budget, and I didn’t really plan. That kind of threw me for a loop, that six months of my life.

    
    

    But coming out of it, I learned that I needed to make some big decisions. Like that flexibility piece we were talking about. My husband and I made some decisions that were able to help us pay back that debt just by choosing to go without certain things. For instance, we didn’t have a car. At one point we relied on just using the bus or riding our bike.

    
    

    Another thing we did was we had roommates in a house that we rented instead of having the house to ourselves. Another thing we did was not go out to eat ever. And we didn’t go on any vacations. So I consider even making so little money in that phase of my life, I realized the position of privilege that I was in being able to be flexible in that way. And yes it was stressful. My husband was then the sole provider. We were taking on debt. We didn’t know how long I would be sick. And then the food budget was just increasing, increasing, increasing. Which is really what we’re going to be talking about today.

    
    

    But in the end, it all worked out. We were able to pay off that debt. I was able to go back to work. And me feeling better was a really important part of that process; to realize that I was one day going to be able to recover enough to then go back to work and kind of get the cycle working out. So I kind of didn’t have a plan. And got caught in a little bit of a hard place. But that flexibility was really how we got unstuck. What about you, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: So, for me, the flexibility piece didn’t exist as much. When I started to get sick, we had already come into our marriage with pretty significant education debt. And we had good jobs. Especially my husband, had a great job. And we had really great insurance. We were very, very lucky to have such good insurance coverage. But it meant that I was really limited to pursue anything kind of outside of what was covered within our insurance situation, because we had a lot of debt already to deal with.

    
    

    So it meant that I had to be really creative within the insurance; what was covered within the insurance. And I had to get really high mileage, basically, out of all of my appointments with my doctors, and be really, really well prepared, and be a really strong advocate for myself. I had to spend a lot of time working with the insurance company, trying to navigate that process. Which can be really frustrating and really difficult, especially when you’re sick. But I was limited in terms of the flexibility.

    
    

    And later, when we decided that we would choose to take on some more debt for some of those treatments and some of that help that was outside of the insurance system, we really had to buckle down in other areas in order to be able to meet all of our responsibilities with that debt.

    
    

    Over time, that has eased a lot. We’re not in quite the same situation as we were before. Especially because I was able to go back to work and make a better living than I did previously, when I wasn’t so sick anymore. That made a really big difference for us. But it was not a simple process.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: And a lot of these transitions, and during the diagnosis and kind of what followed. We’ve gone without a lot of things and made a lot of choices so that we could afford good food. Would you say that applies to you, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, for sure. For instance, until only about three years ago, we only had one car. We drove an early 2000 Honda Civic, and that’s all we had. My husband commuted back and forth to his work in the city using the commuter buses, or the train. We were really just relying on that. We didn’t really take any significant vacations. Anything that was more than a weekend drive or something away. We also really kind of cut certain line items from our budget. Things like new clothes and those kinds of extras. We just made do the best we could with what was in front of us.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, something that really shifted for us, as far as that flexibility pieces. Before I got sick, I wouldn’t say we...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11825Mon, 14 May 2018 12:00:00 -070048:46falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E6 – Minimizing Waste w/ Rachael BryantWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 6 is not just about a clever way to maximize your food budget, but one of the biggest struggles our culture faces when it comes to sustainable food production: reducing food waste.

    
    

    We are discussing how to make the most of all the ingredients we’ve talked about sourcing in the previous episodes so you can best minimize waste and reuse leftovers. Our guest is Rachael Bryant from the blog Meatified, who shares some excellent advice and personal experience around creating a low-waste kitchen. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Ways to reduce waste [4:23]

    
    

    2. Food storage methods [12:52]

    
    

    3. Our guest, Rachael Bryant from Meatified [22:44]

    
    

    4. Reimagining leftovers [29:30]

    
    

    5. Using food “scraps” [39:23]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing today, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m doing great. Cozied up here on kind of a cool day. Ready for some warmer weather in the Pacific Northwest.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Oh, gosh. Me too. I feel like it’s the longest winter. Which is ridiculous, because it really hasn’t been that bad. But I’m really ready for the sun.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Me too.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Ok. Today we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic this season; real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to make the most out of all of the ingredients we’ve talked about sourcing in the previous episodes. It’s all about minimizing waste, and reusing leftovers.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So after we figured out how to get our hands on all of these really well-sourced, healthy, nutrient dense, and sometimes a little bit expensive ingredients, depending on kind of how we’ve sourced. We have to figure out how we’re going to maximize them, and use every last bit.

    
    

    So, you guys. We as a culture have a really massive problem with food waste. I looked up a couple of stats, and globally we waste 1.3 trillion tons of food per year. Which, that is just insane. And it’s estimated that up to 50% of food that’s produced; that’s either meat that’s raised or produce that’s grown, or processed food that’s made, is not even eaten. So, I don’t know how that makes you guys feel, but I feel kind of disgusted by that.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, it makes mew ant to cry, to be honest. Especially; my experience living in developing countries and everything and seeing this problem. In the United States we have a particularly bad problem with food waste. So much so that our government even has an initiative to try to reduce it by the year 2020, I believe. I have to check in on that and read that again.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, I think it’s 30% by 2030.

    
    

    Angie Alt: 30% by 2030. Ok. Yeah, when I reflect on all of that, it’s literally heart breaking for me. And I kind of have a little bit of a problem about it.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Part of it is within the food system. Part of that food isn’t even being purchased. So a lot of it is wasted in the field. Maybe because of the timing of harvesting, or the market, or in the factory where they process food, or whatever. But we have a lot of angles to tackle this. And the on that we are most poised to handle is actually in our own homes, and our kitchens, and how we waste food through the course of planning and cooking our meals every day.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. We could make a big impact. If we each did that, it would be huge!

    
    

    1. Ways to reduce waste [4:23]

    Mickey Trescott: Today we’re going to talk in this first segment of this episode about some ways that we can reduce waste. And so the first one; we’re going to sound like a broken record, guys. But planning. Planning is really key. Right Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yep. Meal planning all the way. I know we’ve talked about it like 800 times this season, you guys. But it’s absolutely key.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: You know, meal planning; Angie’s a little more of a meal planner than I am. But I do know that when I make a meal plan, what I tend to do is take inventory of what I have and when it expires. How I can use it up before it goes bad. And then also making a list of what to buy. I’m not just wandering around the grocery store being like; oh, these Brussel sprouts look good. I have a list, and I know exactly the quantities that I need. And that first act of meal planning; it organizes all of...]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 6 is not just about a clever way to maximize your food budget, but one of the biggest struggles our culture faces when it comes to sustainable food production: reducing food waste.

    
    

    We are discussing how to make the most of all the ingredients we’ve talked about sourcing in the previous episodes so you can best minimize waste and reuse leftovers. Our guest is Rachael Bryant from the blog Meatified, who shares some excellent advice and personal experience around creating a low-waste kitchen. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Ways to reduce waste [4:23]

    
    

    2. Food storage methods [12:52]

    
    

    3. Our guest, Rachael Bryant from Meatified [22:44]

    
    

    4. Reimagining leftovers [29:30]

    
    

    5. Using food “scraps” [39:23]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing today, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m doing great. Cozied up here on kind of a cool day. Ready for some warmer weather in the Pacific Northwest.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Oh, gosh. Me too. I feel like it’s the longest winter. Which is ridiculous, because it really hasn’t been that bad. But I’m really ready for the sun.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Me too.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Ok. Today we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic this season; real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to make the most out of all of the ingredients we’ve talked about sourcing in the previous episodes. It’s all about minimizing waste, and reusing leftovers.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So after we figured out how to get our hands on all of these really well-sourced, healthy, nutrient dense, and sometimes a little bit expensive ingredients, depending on kind of how we’ve sourced. We have to figure out how we’re going to maximize them, and use every last bit.

    
    

    So, you guys. We as a culture have a really massive problem with food waste. I looked up a couple of stats, and globally we waste 1.3 trillion tons of food per year. Which, that is just insane. And it’s estimated that up to 50% of food that’s produced; that’s either meat that’s raised or produce that’s grown, or processed food that’s made, is not even eaten. So, I don’t know how that makes you guys feel, but I feel kind of disgusted by that.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, it makes mew ant to cry, to be honest. Especially; my experience living in developing countries and everything and seeing this problem. In the United States we have a particularly bad problem with food waste. So much so that our government even has an initiative to try to reduce it by the year 2020, I believe. I have to check in on that and read that again.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, I think it’s 30% by 2030.

    
    

    Angie Alt: 30% by 2030. Ok. Yeah, when I reflect on all of that, it’s literally heart breaking for me. And I kind of have a little bit of a problem about it.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Part of it is within the food system. Part of that food isn’t even being purchased. So a lot of it is wasted in the field. Maybe because of the timing of harvesting, or the market, or in the factory where they process food, or whatever. But we have a lot of angles to tackle this. And the on that we are most poised to handle is actually in our own homes, and our kitchens, and how we waste food through the course of planning and cooking our meals every day.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. We could make a big impact. If we each did that, it would be huge!

    
    

    1. Ways to reduce waste [4:23]

    Mickey Trescott: Today we’re going to talk in this first segment of this episode about some ways that we can reduce waste. And so the first one; we’re going to sound like a broken record, guys. But planning. Planning is really key. Right Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yep. Meal planning all the way. I know we’ve talked about it like 800 times this season, you guys. But it’s absolutely key.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: You know, meal planning; Angie’s a little more of a meal planner than I am. But I do know that when I make a meal plan, what I tend to do is take inventory of what I have and when it expires. How I can use it up before it goes bad. And then also making a list of what to buy. I’m not just wandering around the grocery store being like; oh, these Brussel sprouts look good. I have a list, and I know exactly the quantities that I need. And that first act of meal planning; it organizes all of that into a plan that I can follow. And I’m much less likely to have waste at the end of it.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yep. Really the smart way to go. And you can pay attention to what’s in your deep freeze, and what’s in your pantry before you go so that you don’t end up with doubles of things and then some of it going bad because you forgot what you had available. It’s just really the smart way to go in terms of planning.

    
    

    The next step that kind of goes along with meal planning is batch cooking. Which we’ve talked about before. Mickey does a little more batch cooking than I do. We’re kind of opposite in that way. I do a little more meal planning and a little less batch cooking; she does more batch cooking and less meal planning. But this is kind of the next important step in trying to reduce waste at home.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. When you batch cook, you’re using a larger quantity of ingredients. So I find if I make a batch of chili I might use one or two whole yellow onions, for example. Where if I’m making like a one-off meal, that’s not a big batch, I might use a quarter or half of an onion. And then that onion is sitting in my fridge.

    
    

    Or, if I have a bag of carrots, I might use the whole bag of carrots in a batch cook versus a couple of carrots and then having the rest of them potentially go bad. So, through batch cooking you can make a bunch of food. And then whatever you’re not going to eat in the next few days, you can just freeze immediately. So you can really visually see; ok, all of those ingredients that I bought have been turned into meals. Which are perfectly portioned. I can visualize them in the fridge. And then whatever I’m not going to use, I can freeze either immediately or if I get a couple of days in, maybe I unexpectedly eat out and I don’t need one of those meals. Guess what? Pop it in the freezer. You know? It’s a really easy way to kind of get a handle on that whole meal situation.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. The next topic in terms of reducing waste is how you shop, right?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And if you meal plan, or batch cook, or both, I think that can really inform your shopping in a way that, like I said before, avoids impulse buys. When I’m doing more meal planning, I’m definitely going right for the things I’m looking for. And I’m buying exactly what I need. So like I was talking about with the carrots; if I only need a couple of carrots for a recipe and I have all my meals planned for the week, I know that that bag of carrots, unless I’m maybe going to want to be eating carrots as a snack with some pate or something, I’m not really going to need that whole bag. So I might just go for the bulk carrots and get a couple.

    
    

    Same thing with beets. I might get one beet for a chili instead of getting a whole bunch of beets. So I don’t know if you have any experiences like that, but getting exactly what you need is definitely the way to prevent waste from happening.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, for sure. In fact; my husband and I always have a little bit of a disagreement here. Because if I send him out to shop, he’s the guy going out to get the bounty for the family, right, and he buys whatever. If I say, buy apples. I’ll say 4, and he’ll buy 8. {laughs}

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Just in case.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, just getting the most in case. So I really pay close attention to the numbers we need, and what we can go through realistically in a week so that there’s no waste.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Or even if there’s a trip coming up. Something that happens a lot in our household. We’ll go out of town for a few days. Which is, you know, not really long enough to have to completely clear your fridge. But it is long enough to where a lot of things don’t last for a few days. And if we do a shop a couple of days before we go out of town, I have to tell my husband; hey. We need to not buy a huge thing of bananas. {laughs} Those are not going to last. So just thinking ahead a little bit with that shopping is really important.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. I think you had some tips, too, Mickey about fridge organization when you’re bringing home all of those groceries. How do you arrange?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so it can be really tempting to put all of that new, fresh stuff kind of throw it right in the front and throw it on top of what’s there. But that’s kind of how things get buried. So, even the way that you organize your fridge and the way that you put your ingredients away can affect how you use them.

    
    

    Something that I do; I have a very small fridge, so I have to really maximize the way that I use the space. But I only have one drawer, and that’s where I keep all my produce. So what I’ll do is I’ll pull out the drawer, and I’ll put out anything that’s aged in there. And then I’ll put all of the brand new stuff right in the bottom, and I’ll put the stuff that’s older on top so that when I go into the fridge, I see it. And I remember; ok, I need to use those greens up. Or those mushrooms are ready to go. So everything at the top is kind of the priority. And those oldest items are kind of the most visible.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. Super smart.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you guys have done some reintros, and you’re eating a little bit more of some of the packaged perishables. These might be things like eggs, or yogurt, or things that you’re going to be going through more frequently. There aren’t a lot of those things on the elimination phase. But when you reintroduce foods, that might become an option for you. A good thing is just to make sure that you rotate those.

    
    

    So like when I buy eggs, I don’t want to put the new eggs on the top. Because then the eggs that are below it might not get eaten in time. So that’s another way to think about it.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, I totally do that too. How about using up all the fresh ingredients before you go shopping again? How do you make sure you do this? I know how we approach it in our house. How do you do it in your house, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: You know, we do kind of a fridge dump soup. And something actually going back to batch cooking; I always have batch cooked meals in the freezer available. So when we end up on that last meal, sometimes it’s not literally the last meal. Sometimes I can do a fridge dump soup, which is basically every vegetable or meat that’s in the fridge. I just figure out how to make a soup with that with some broth and some spices. That’s a way to use up all the perishables. And if we’re not literally going to the store that day, I can get us by one more meal with what I have in the freezer. That’s kind of how we do it, making sure all those perishables are totally eaten through.

    
    

    And sometimes, it’s like a game. Sometimes it’s really fun to kind of figure out; “What can I make with a sweet potato, some broth, and some leftover chicken.” You know?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. I actually kind of like that feeling. And it makes my daughter kind of crazy, but we definitely use everything, right down to the very last. My fridge is literally empty. My pantry, other than bulk stuff like maybe some cassava flour is literally empty. We use everything before we go and shop again. And if I have those weird odds and ends, yeah I love the challenge of kind of coming up with that last meal before you shop that’s all the weird stuff. That’s a good feeling to use it up.

    
    

    I usually will try to make a little bit of a baked something. A little bit of a casserole type thing. Or some kind of a hash with those last bits.

    
    

    2. Food storage methods [12:52].

    Angie Alt: Another important part of reducing waste is storing food correctly, and I think a lot of people might not know about some of these options. And I think, especially in the US. We probably tend to throw stuff out too soon thinking that it’s gone bad. And really, if we would have taken just a little care with storing the food, it would have lasted for a long time.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, there are lots of resources online for you guys, if you’re really curious about storing food. I think Angie and I tend to be on the less conservative side. As far as meat and leftovers and stuff, I would totally agree with Angie. I definitely let my leftovers go sometimes up to a week and it’s fine. Sometimes it needs a little refresh with maybe some new spices and add some different flavors, a sauce or something. But I have no problem eating leftovers. Which I know we’ll talk about in a little bit.

    
    

    But some things that you guys can do to kind of make the food that you buy last longer; a trick that I learned with herbs. Like fresh cilantro, fresh parsley, fresh basil. The best way to keep those is actually to put them in a little glass or jar of water, kind of like you would a flower arrangement. And then cover them with a plastic bag and kind of tie it tight so they both have that water and a little humidity. It will kind of keep them alive. Because you know how quickly those herbs can go wilty and slimy. They’re so flavorful, and so important in AIP cooking, that I just like to snip a little bit to use in a recipe, and then kind of keep the rest of them alive.

    
    

    Some things that you might not be aware of actually last a lot longer in the refrigerator. So, while avocados you’re going to want to keep on the counter if you’re ripening them, once they’re close to...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11747Mon, 07 May 2018 12:00:00 -070054:27falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E5 – Buying Clubs + Online MarketsWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 5 is all about buying clubs and online markets that will help you strategically stretch your budget and adopt the AIP sustainably for the long term. We discuss the pros and cons of local buying clubs, co-ops, membership programs, and bulk meat sources, as well as our favorite online shopping portals.

    
    

    Our hope is that this episode will help you best leverage all of these resources so you can stretch your budget as far as it will go. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Local buying clubs and food co-ops [2:45]

    
    

    2. A hybrid option [7:04]

    
    

    3. Bulk membership stores [11:39]

    
    

    4. Online buying options [16:34]

    
    

    5. Buying meat online [31:32]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey, everybody! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How’s it going over there in DC, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: It’s going pretty well. I’m sad to report that it’s still winter. But we seem to be getting closer to spring, so that is making me a little bit happier.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yay for sunshine coming!

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yay for sunshine! Vitamin D please.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know. Today we are continuing our discussion related to the topic this season. If you guys haven’t been paying attention, we are talking about real food on a budget. Which is really an important concept to a lot of us, if we want to be able to be eating this way long-term, right?

    
    

    This episode is going to be about buying clubs and online markets. And how we can best leverage these resources to strategically help out with our sourcing needs and stretching our budgets. It can be super easy to overdo it with either of these options; I mean, hello. Amazon Prime, we’re looking at you!

    
    

    But we hope that this episode will give you guys some great ideas about how you can use online shopping to your advantage.

    
    

    1. Local buying clubs and food co-ops [2:45]

    Angie Alt: So, maybe we can start with buying clubs. Mick, do you want to talk about that first?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: So a buying club is just any time you band together with either community members, or a company, and you get bulk pricing on foods and home goods. So when you go to a grocery store and you buy one unit of something. Like one apple, or one little six-ounce applesauce or something. You’re getting actually the highest price for that, because you’re buying it in the smallest quantity.

    
    

    So the grocery store, obviously they have a wholesale account. They’re able to buy food from distributors or farmers at a really good price. And their service is that they’re bringing it in, sorting it, putting it out for you, and you’re able to buy it in a really small quantity.

    
    

    If you kind of reverse that, and you figure out how to band with other people in order to buy the biggest quantity of something, you can get a really good deal. So this might take the form of, say, a local Facebook group. So I’m the member of a local real food buying club on Facebook in my local area. It has over a couple of thousand members. And there are certain people in the community that will coordinate with local farmers to engage in bulk buys. So this might look like, you know, maybe they’re buying a cow and they want to split it with a few families. That would be kind of like a small share.

    
    

    Sometimes they’ll even go to a honey vender, and they’ll get 100 jars of honey and everyone will split it. They do charge $20 a year to be a member. I know there are some groups out there that are nonprofits or free. Sometimes it’s just collections of neighbors. But this is definitely something to look into, especially if you live somewhere like I do. Where there’s a lot of food production locally. It’s hard for me to actually get that high-quality food in the store.

    
    

    I think some of you guys in rural area will understand that disconnect. You think that living in an area where all the food is produced, you have great access to it. But it’s actually the other way around. My local grocery store is the equivalent of a Walmart. So these local food buying clubs can really help get that high-quality food at a better cost.

    
    

    Angie Alt: I don’t belong to a formal group like Mickey does, through Facebook. But I have informally joined groups in the past where, for instance, I got maple syrup that was bought in bulk from the producer. And sometimes I do this with fish. I’ve done it to get salmon from Alaska.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. Banding together, guys, can definitely save you some money. And honestly it doesn’t have to be a formal Facebook group. It can even be your family. So, something that I do because I live on property...]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 5 is all about buying clubs and online markets that will help you strategically stretch your budget and adopt the AIP sustainably for the long term. We discuss the pros and cons of local buying clubs, co-ops, membership programs, and bulk meat sources, as well as our favorite online shopping portals.

    
    

    Our hope is that this episode will help you best leverage all of these resources so you can stretch your budget as far as it will go. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Local buying clubs and food co-ops [2:45]

    
    

    2. A hybrid option [7:04]

    
    

    3. Bulk membership stores [11:39]

    
    

    4. Online buying options [16:34]

    
    

    5. Buying meat online [31:32]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey, everybody! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How’s it going over there in DC, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: It’s going pretty well. I’m sad to report that it’s still winter. But we seem to be getting closer to spring, so that is making me a little bit happier.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yay for sunshine coming!

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yay for sunshine! Vitamin D please.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know. Today we are continuing our discussion related to the topic this season. If you guys haven’t been paying attention, we are talking about real food on a budget. Which is really an important concept to a lot of us, if we want to be able to be eating this way long-term, right?

    
    

    This episode is going to be about buying clubs and online markets. And how we can best leverage these resources to strategically help out with our sourcing needs and stretching our budgets. It can be super easy to overdo it with either of these options; I mean, hello. Amazon Prime, we’re looking at you!

    
    

    But we hope that this episode will give you guys some great ideas about how you can use online shopping to your advantage.

    
    

    1. Local buying clubs and food co-ops [2:45]

    Angie Alt: So, maybe we can start with buying clubs. Mick, do you want to talk about that first?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: So a buying club is just any time you band together with either community members, or a company, and you get bulk pricing on foods and home goods. So when you go to a grocery store and you buy one unit of something. Like one apple, or one little six-ounce applesauce or something. You’re getting actually the highest price for that, because you’re buying it in the smallest quantity.

    
    

    So the grocery store, obviously they have a wholesale account. They’re able to buy food from distributors or farmers at a really good price. And their service is that they’re bringing it in, sorting it, putting it out for you, and you’re able to buy it in a really small quantity.

    
    

    If you kind of reverse that, and you figure out how to band with other people in order to buy the biggest quantity of something, you can get a really good deal. So this might take the form of, say, a local Facebook group. So I’m the member of a local real food buying club on Facebook in my local area. It has over a couple of thousand members. And there are certain people in the community that will coordinate with local farmers to engage in bulk buys. So this might look like, you know, maybe they’re buying a cow and they want to split it with a few families. That would be kind of like a small share.

    
    

    Sometimes they’ll even go to a honey vender, and they’ll get 100 jars of honey and everyone will split it. They do charge $20 a year to be a member. I know there are some groups out there that are nonprofits or free. Sometimes it’s just collections of neighbors. But this is definitely something to look into, especially if you live somewhere like I do. Where there’s a lot of food production locally. It’s hard for me to actually get that high-quality food in the store.

    
    

    I think some of you guys in rural area will understand that disconnect. You think that living in an area where all the food is produced, you have great access to it. But it’s actually the other way around. My local grocery store is the equivalent of a Walmart. So these local food buying clubs can really help get that high-quality food at a better cost.

    
    

    Angie Alt: I don’t belong to a formal group like Mickey does, through Facebook. But I have informally joined groups in the past where, for instance, I got maple syrup that was bought in bulk from the producer. And sometimes I do this with fish. I’ve done it to get salmon from Alaska.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. Banding together, guys, can definitely save you some money. And honestly it doesn’t have to be a formal Facebook group. It can even be your family. So, something that I do because I live on property with my mom, her sister and her partner. We all actually band together to buy meat. And my brother actually lives a few hours away in Seattle. So between the four different families, we’ll buy a whole cow every year, and then split it into quarters. If we were just buying a quarter of a cow, the price is higher than if you buy the whole thing. So even your family can work like a buying club.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. What about co-ops? Let’s explain and talk about co-ops.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, co-ops are an awesome business model for like a grocery store. There can also be more informal co-ops that don’t have a storefront. But basically, they function differently from a corporation because they are member or employee owned. So this means if you have a local food co-op, they might ask you to pay a member fee. It might be a one-time fee up front.

    
    

    I think when I lived in California, I paid $75 once to be a member, and that gets you a share. So you can actually vote on leadership, and then you get discounts on all the food they buy. Sometimes they have you pay per year. Sometimes you don’t even have to pay, but it just means that the store is actually owned by the employees and the people that run it.

    
    

    So there’s a few different models. But really, the point of a co-op is to get the highest quality food at a price that is lower than normal. So by paying into the co-op system, you know that that money, that profit that the store is making, isn’t actually going to some shareholder’s pockets. It’s actually going to reinvest in the business and keep the price down for the people that shop there. So co-ops can be a really fun option, also.

    
    

    2. A hybrid option [7:04]

    Angie Alt: Yeah. It’s a great way to really get engaged with your community and good quality food providers. Here’s an interesting set up. And I actually don’t do this as an adult. But when I was a kid, my mom and aunt and grandmother belonged to Azure Standard. Can you tell us about Azure Standard?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah; actually, I didn’t know that about your family, Angie, but I actually used them a lot about 5 or 6 years ago when I first started getting into real food. Especially with the online buying. So they’re a little bit of a hybrid.

    
    

    They are a major real food distributor in the United States. They have an online store. But instead of shipping directly to you; which I think they do now. But they didn’t in the past, 5 or 6 years ago. What you had to do, was it was a buying club. They had no fee to join. You sign up, you join what’s called a drop.

    
    

    Which is, basically someone in your community who has arranged an area where a semi can come drop off some orders. So everyone that is a member of that drop; they order all their food online. I think each drop has like a $500 minimum from the company. And then a truck shows up at, usually a church parking lot or some area that’s easily accessible to a lot of people.

    
    

    Our drop in Seattle had about 20 or 30 families that would then show up, meet the truck. It would be the same time every couple of weeks or every month. And they would just get their order that literally came straight off a palate. And you can get some amazing bulk goods for crazy, crazy low prices.

    
    

    So I would get things like gallons of coconut oil, apple cider vinegar, some of the flours. And actually, Azure standard has an organic farm here in Oregon, and they grow a lot of herbs, and spices. And they even have pastured meat and lamb. So I was ordering a lot of frozen meat from them.

    
    

    Angie Alt: You know, Azure Standard has been around for a really long time. I mean, way back when my family was doing when I was a kid, they didn’t even offer non-GMO products, because there wasn’t GMO yet.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

    
    

    Angie Alt: They were always kind of the number one place to go if you wanted really high quality, organic food that was really inexpensive. And you know, my aunt and my mom and my grandma would band together and get these big orders. My family and my aunt and uncle’s family both had four kids, so they were trying to feed 8 kids on really good quality food. We would use the food we got there to supplement the hunting and fishing that my dad and uncle were doing. And the garden that we grew.

    
    

    My grandma was really into herbal and medicinal teas, and she could get big bulk orders of that from Azure Standard. It was really great.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, it’s like Christmas. Meeting the truck, and having all your bulk groceries.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah!

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: And they actually have a lot of stuff that, if anyone lives rurally, maybe you’re on a farm or you have some animals. They have a lot of goods that are really good for animals. So back when I lived in Seattle and had chickens, they had the only non-GMO soy-free chicken feed at a price that I could afford. So I ordered our chicken feed from them, and all that kind of stuff.

    
    

    They even sold like root vegetables, and pantry storage foods. So I would get a lot of onions. Things that we’ve talked about this before; not really worrying too much if there’s a blemish on your veggies. It’s totally normal, and especially with those root veggies. It does not matter. So you can get an amazing price on that stuff from them.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. And it’s a really good chance to meet your kind of local real food advocate community. I remember when we would go to the semi to pick up the foods. There would be all these other people that were kind of into that same health conscious lifestyle.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: You’re kind of like; “What did you get?” {laughs}

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Like swapping stories of what they’re getting and what they’re doing with it. It’s really fun.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. I remember I used to love; even when I was a kid, I used to love to browse their catalog. Which I don’t even know if they put out a catalog, anymore. Maybe you just order everything on their online site. But yeah; great resource, you guys.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: And it’s pretty cool that it’s been around so long. So www.AzureStandard.com is their website if you guys want to check it out. And they have some videos online. Trust us; it’s not scary to join a drop. I remember the first time I did it, I was like; who are these people, and how does this work? They explain everything on the website. And the prices are probably in line with the cheapest you can get for some of these high-quality foods. So they do a really great service for our community.

    
    

    3. Bulk membership stores [11:39]

    Angie Alt: Ok, so another possibility, which is kind of the opposite of Azure Standards in terms of everybody knowing about it, is Costco. Costco is a members-only, big box, discount retailer. You have to pay a membership fee every year. But there is quite a bit of benefit to having that Costco membership.

    
    

    The standard membership is just $60 per year. It let’s you purchase products for your home and family at Costco locations and on their website. And the prices are greatly reduced, because again they’re buying these such huge bulk quantities. And then you can get an executive membership for $120 per year. And that membership gives you a 2% reward, up to $1000. So you can kind of earn money a little bit, as your spending money.

    
    

    The Paleo Mom has a guide on her website to AIP Costco shopping that is a very helpful resource.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah; are you a Costco shopper, Angie? What’s been your experience with them?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Well, so this is interesting. We used to be Costco members, but my husband is kind of a Costco fanatic. {laughs}

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

    
    

    Angie Alt: So, it didn’t really work that well for us. Because he’d be like; “Oh, look at this, a 2-gallon jar of pickled eggs!”

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Oh my gosh.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I would be like; “We do not need this.” So we have a small family, and we don’t live close to our extended family. So sharing all of that with other people didn’t really make sense for us in the long-term. But I know that for families that are a little bit bigger, or have an extended family around them, Costco can be an enormous win. How about you?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, we don’t have a Costco membership. But both my mom and my dad have Costco memberships, and I will kind of tag along with them when they go. Maybe once or twice a year just to pick up a few things.

    
    

    I’ve actually been really impressed, as the years have gone on, at their selection of more real food options. So things that I see really frequently are some high-quality cooking oil. So things like gallons of coconut oil, avocado oil. Sometimes they have good olive oil, but you know, you’ve got to kind of do your research on the supplier there.

    
    

    As far as meat, I’ve heard that they have a lot more grass-fed meat. It’s pretty reliable to find there....]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11703Mon, 30 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -070040:37falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E4 – Sourcing Vegetables w/ Tyler BoggsWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 4 is all about the best ways to source produce — veggies and fruit — with budget in mind. This is a deep dive into all things produce sourcing! We cover our personal sourcing tips and how we personally save money, and we chat with our guest, Tyler Boggs of Heart2Heart Farms, about the benefits of CSAs and how to source your fruits and veggies if you can’t afford organic. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Budget friendly sourcing of produce [2:14]

    
    

    2. Personal sourcing tips from Mickey and Angie [8:40]

    
    

    3. Guest interview with Tyler Boggs of Heart2Heart Farms [14:22]

    
    

    4. Personal approach to budgeting for produce [18:54]

    
    

    5. Produce scoring stories [24:24]

    
    

    6. Sourcing when you can’t afford organic [29:45]

    
    

    7. Benefits of a CSA [34:01]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast season 3. How are you doing, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m doing great, how about you Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. I’ve been flying around to the West Coast a bunch, but I am home today and ready to chat about our next topic.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know, Angie’s been like a little ping-pong ball, back and forth.

    
    

    Angie Alt: It’s been kind of crazy. I just traveled out to the West three times in three weeks, you guys. But I’m ready to do it. Anything for the cause. {laughs}

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

    
    

    1. Budget friendly sourcing of produce [2:14]

    Angie Alt: Ok, so today we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic this season, real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to source produce. From veggies to fruit with a budget in mind.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so we really wanted to take a deep dive into all things produce sourcing. Because there’s kind of a lot of nuance here. So if you guys have the Autoimmune Wellness Handbook, you will be familiar with the concept of good, better, and best that we talk about when it comes to food sourcing in general. But we kind of wanted to go over it in terms of produce.

    
    

    So what this means is that you have a few different layers of quality that you can choose to buy your produce. So instead of saying everybody needs to buy the highest level, and this is the only way to heal. We’re kind of presenting a variety of ways that you guys can plan your sourcing. So that you can make the most use of the resources that you have.

    
    

    So first category is good. This is for those of you who can’t get all organic fruits and vegetables. What we recommend doing is to start with the Environmental Working Groups list of dirtiest and cleanest produce. If you guys do a quick Google, type in EWG dirty dozen, and clean 15, you’ll come up with a cute little chart where the Environmental Working Group has tested all the fruits and vegetables in production in the US, and they’ve identified the ones that have the highest chemical residue of pesticides and stuff.

    
    

    So, this is a really great way to kind of prioritize your fruit and veggie choices, right Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. Well, this is a way for you to kind of get the max out of the foods that you can afford to buy organic, and kind of be really strategic about those purchases, so you’re not having to spend so much money on totally organic and utilizing the research to do that.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So the 2017 dirty dozen list; I have it pulled up here. They don’t have the 2018 list out yet. I think it’s coming out soon. But the dirty dozen. These are the fruits and vegetables with the highest amount of pesticides. Strawberries, apples, nectarines, peaches, celery, grapes, cherries, spinach, tomatoes, sweet bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. We know you guys are probably not eating tomatoes and sweet bell peppers, if you’re on AIP. But those are going to be foods that have the highest pesticides. And you know, some of those are pretty surprising to me. Like cucumbers, I maybe wouldn’t have thought. But you know, those are the ones that were tested.

    
    

    The clean 15 list has avocados, sweet corn, pineapple, cabbage, sweet peas, onions, mangos, asparagus, papaya, kiwi, eggplant, honeydew, grapefruit, cantaloupe, and cauliflower. So these were the vegetables that were shown to have the least amount of pesticides. So they might be ok for you to get conventional.

    
    

    So some things like cauliflower, or cabbage, or onions. These are vegetables that are AIP friendly. Avocado. I buy conventional avocados a lot just because they’re on the top of the clean 15 list, they don’t have a lot of pesticides, and also...]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 4 is all about the best ways to source produce — veggies and fruit — with budget in mind. This is a deep dive into all things produce sourcing! We cover our personal sourcing tips and how we personally save money, and we chat with our guest, Tyler Boggs of Heart2Heart Farms, about the benefits of CSAs and how to source your fruits and veggies if you can’t afford organic. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Budget friendly sourcing of produce [2:14]

    
    

    2. Personal sourcing tips from Mickey and Angie [8:40]

    
    

    3. Guest interview with Tyler Boggs of Heart2Heart Farms [14:22]

    
    

    4. Personal approach to budgeting for produce [18:54]

    
    

    5. Produce scoring stories [24:24]

    
    

    6. Sourcing when you can’t afford organic [29:45]

    
    

    7. Benefits of a CSA [34:01]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast season 3. How are you doing, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m doing great, how about you Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. I’ve been flying around to the West Coast a bunch, but I am home today and ready to chat about our next topic.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know, Angie’s been like a little ping-pong ball, back and forth.

    
    

    Angie Alt: It’s been kind of crazy. I just traveled out to the West three times in three weeks, you guys. But I’m ready to do it. Anything for the cause. {laughs}

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

    
    

    1. Budget friendly sourcing of produce [2:14]

    Angie Alt: Ok, so today we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic this season, real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to source produce. From veggies to fruit with a budget in mind.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so we really wanted to take a deep dive into all things produce sourcing. Because there’s kind of a lot of nuance here. So if you guys have the Autoimmune Wellness Handbook, you will be familiar with the concept of good, better, and best that we talk about when it comes to food sourcing in general. But we kind of wanted to go over it in terms of produce.

    
    

    So what this means is that you have a few different layers of quality that you can choose to buy your produce. So instead of saying everybody needs to buy the highest level, and this is the only way to heal. We’re kind of presenting a variety of ways that you guys can plan your sourcing. So that you can make the most use of the resources that you have.

    
    

    So first category is good. This is for those of you who can’t get all organic fruits and vegetables. What we recommend doing is to start with the Environmental Working Groups list of dirtiest and cleanest produce. If you guys do a quick Google, type in EWG dirty dozen, and clean 15, you’ll come up with a cute little chart where the Environmental Working Group has tested all the fruits and vegetables in production in the US, and they’ve identified the ones that have the highest chemical residue of pesticides and stuff.

    
    

    So, this is a really great way to kind of prioritize your fruit and veggie choices, right Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. Well, this is a way for you to kind of get the max out of the foods that you can afford to buy organic, and kind of be really strategic about those purchases, so you’re not having to spend so much money on totally organic and utilizing the research to do that.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So the 2017 dirty dozen list; I have it pulled up here. They don’t have the 2018 list out yet. I think it’s coming out soon. But the dirty dozen. These are the fruits and vegetables with the highest amount of pesticides. Strawberries, apples, nectarines, peaches, celery, grapes, cherries, spinach, tomatoes, sweet bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. We know you guys are probably not eating tomatoes and sweet bell peppers, if you’re on AIP. But those are going to be foods that have the highest pesticides. And you know, some of those are pretty surprising to me. Like cucumbers, I maybe wouldn’t have thought. But you know, those are the ones that were tested.

    
    

    The clean 15 list has avocados, sweet corn, pineapple, cabbage, sweet peas, onions, mangos, asparagus, papaya, kiwi, eggplant, honeydew, grapefruit, cantaloupe, and cauliflower. So these were the vegetables that were shown to have the least amount of pesticides. So they might be ok for you to get conventional.

    
    

    So some things like cauliflower, or cabbage, or onions. These are vegetables that are AIP friendly. Avocado. I buy conventional avocados a lot just because they’re on the top of the clean 15 list, they don’t have a lot of pesticides, and also they have a nice thick skin. And organic avocados; super expensive.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Super expensive. Yeah, I do totally the same thing. One thing I didn’t realize, though. I hadn’t realized that cauliflower was on the clean 15 list, and I’ve been buying organic. So I’ll probably switch up. Because I like to use a lot of different cauliflower in my cooking.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yep. Yeah, so in addition to the dirty dozen and the clean 15 and kind of being able to prioritize there; something else you can do is watch for some sales on organic local in-season produce. So it’s usually way more economical to buy this way and checking out frozen vegetables. A lot of times freezing preserves nutrients, and is also lower cost. So if you guys are just getting started with upping the quality of your food, some of those recommendations might work for you.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. So moving onto the better category. So this is the next step up in terms of budgeting and sourcing. If you can avoid some organic produce, you can focus on organic versions of those on the dirty dozen list. And round out a variety with the non-organic fruits and vegetables from that clean 15 list that we talked about. And you can shop at your local farmer’s market, and look for great deals on organic local produce.

    
    

    If you focus on the local produce, the idea here is that you might find that your budget actually accommodates more of the organic. Because you won’t have the shipping cost as part of the premium you’re paying at the store.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: And then the best. So if you’re going to go all out and get the best produce you possibly can, which we recommend over the long term the more you can shift that budget to kind of up the food quality all across the board, you would be getting all, or as much of your produce as possible, organic, local, and in season. A great way to do this is by joining a CSA, which stands for community supported agriculture. This is when you pay the share of a farmer’s produce at the beginning of the season, and then the farmer has that money to invest and creating that harvest. And then you pick it up weekly. Sometimes they’ll deliver it to you. And then filling in whatever you’re not getting there with a variety at the farmer’s market co-op, natural food store.

    
    

    I would also add her that the very, very best is actually growing your own. Right? So if you have complete control over all aspects of producing your food, that’s the most sustainable and it’s going to be the freshest. It’s going to be, obviously, the most in-season because you don’t have all the tricks that all the industrial even organic food growers have up their sleeves. And it’s going to be really convenient; it’s going to be right at home.

    
    

    2. Personal sourcing tips from Mickey and Angie [8:30]

    Angie Alt: Right. So great option if you can do that. So maybe we should talk about how we source our produce, Mickey.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So I live in Willamette Valley in Oregon. I live in an area where I can grow a lot. And actually something that I am striving to do better every single year is to become more self-reliant and grow my own food. So, we have a big herb garden that we use year-round. I grow lots of greens like kale, chard, lettuces, and zucchini.

    
    

    Something that I learned, even when I lived in Seattle in the city when I really didn’t have a lot of food budget for good produce, was I actually found a chart online that said the most expensive produce per ounce from high to low. And actually, the highest cost that we pay in the store is actually herbs and greens. So things like cilantro, rosemary, thyme. And then the greens like the baby lettuces, spinach, kale, chard. And those are actually the easiest things to grow and they take the smallest amount of room. They don’t need a super deep bed. A lot of them can be grown in pots. So those are things that I prioritize growing just because of cost.

    
    

    Another thing that I do is I pick my own in the summer. In the summer, there’s a crazy bounty of things like berries. My husband and I will go to the farm and we’ll pick pounds and pounds of blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and then we’ll freeze them. And like right now, it’s the middle of winter, and we still have a bunch of frozen berries from the summer. Something else we do is we harvest persimmons from a persimmon tree in the winter, and so kind of the flip side.

    
    

    And then I have different produce sourcing depending on if it’s summer or if it’s winter. Because even though we live somewhere that food grows, it’s not totally year-round. So in the summer, that’s when it’s amazing bounty all the time. I like to go to the farmer’s market. I haven’t been doing a CSA the last couple of years because I’ve been traveling so much that it’s a little complicated trying to figure out what to do with that food. I’m considering it this year because I’m not traveling as much.

    
    

    In the winter, I fill in the gaps with like a Fred Myers, which for those of you who don’t live in the Northwest, it’s kind of like a Walmart. I don’t actually have a great specialty grocer where I live. I don’t have a Whole Foods, or even a Sprouts or Trader Joe’s. So actually surprisingly, they have a pretty good selection of organic produce in the winter. It’s the same industrial organic stuff that you find at Whole Foods. Honestly, it’s a lot cheaper because it’s not in a fancy store. But that’s where I kind of round out my produce when I have to.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Awesome. So, I also have a mix, depending on the season. In the summertime, I get 100% organic CSA from my local farmer. The same farmer that I get most of my meat from. And she grows a bunch of different herbs, greens, onions, some fruits. Honestly, there’s a lot of nightshades in that CSA, but my husband and daughter can enjoy some of that. or we share it with neighbors or friends.

    
    

    Even when I travel, I like having the weekly CSA. I usually arrange with a friend of mine who also enjoys this quality of food and have her pick up my CSA, and basically share it with her family. Like a little gift to her when I’m traveling.

    
    

    And then in the winter, I mostly use Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods, and I get a combination of organic and non-organic fruits and vegetables. Usually based on that Environmental Working Groups guide. I don’t grow a lot of my own, because I live in a pretty urban/suburban area and I don’t really have a space for that. I have done a little bit of pot gardening in the past. Growing some greens in pots and stuff on our balcony. Mostly I stick to purchasing from my local farms, or the Trader Joe’s/Whole Foods combo. So that’s it. That’s my produce sourcing.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Awesome. I think it’s good to just share with people the different ways that we get our hands on this stuff. I am blessed to live kind of in farm country, but I also don’t have a good grocery store right by me. So by necessity, I’m forced to be a little more self-reliant. And Angie, I know you have a lot of options as far as stores around you, and you can actually leverage that and shop around. It’s more convenient for you to kind of see where you can get for the best price.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. Right. Ok, so that’s it for the first half of this episode, you guys. We’ll be back after the break with a guest who is going to help us expand these ideas. He’s kind of amazing. We can’t wait to share.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: A quick word from our title sponsor this season, the Nutritional Therapy Association. The NTA empowers it’s graduates to source, prepare, and integrate a variety of well-sourced plant foods as part of a nutrient dense diet. For example, did you know that the betaine in beets aids digestion? Chromium in romaine lettuce can help regulate blood sugar? And that brussels sprouts have been found to boost beneficial gut bacteria? Through their nutritional therapy practitioner training program, which I took in 2012, and the nutritional therapy consultant program, which Angie took in 2015, the NTA teaches students to use foods therapeutically and focuses on building foundational health by integrating customized diets based on everybody’s unique needs.

    
    

    For more information on the NTA’s nutritional therapy programs, and to access their free 7-day 101 course, check out their website at www.NutritionalTherapy.com.

    
    

    3. Guest interview with Tyler Boggs of Heart2Heart Farms [14:22]

    Mickey Trescott: Alright guys, onto our interview for today. It’s just Mickey for this segment. Today we are speaking with Tyler Boggs, one half of the duo behind the incredible Heart2Heart Farms here in Oregon, with his wife, Elizabeth. Tyler and Elizabeth started raising animals and growing food after they converted to a real food lifestyle, but found that it was difficult to afford it. Not only did they start their farm to produce food for themselves, but they passionately developed a barter and work-trade systems to allow those in need to feed those they love.

    
    

    A few short years later, Tyler has never been happier, sharing what he has and providing a sanctuary where people can nourish their bodies, minds, hearts, and souls. Other than being a good husband and father, there is no higher caller in the world to him than that. Thank you so much, Tyler, for joining...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11700Mon, 23 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -070044:17falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E3 – Sourcing Meat w/ Diana RodgersWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 3 is all about options for sourcing high-quality meat. We start by discussing the concept of “good, better, and best” when it comes to meat quality, and share how we source our meat.

    
    

    Then, we interview Diana Rodgers, the creator of the new documentary Kale vs. Cow, about how to best source protein other than beef, and what we can all do to become more sustainable. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Quality of meat on a scale [3:29]

    
    

    2. How Mickey and Angie source their meat [8:22]

    
    

    3. Interview with Diana Rodgers [20:45]

    
    

    4. Sourcing protein other than beef [26:23]

    
    

    5. Joining the sustainability movement [29:07]

    
    

    6. Kale Versus Cow documentary [36:57]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How’s it going today, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: It’s going well. I’m excited to talk about this topic. I know it’s kind of weird, but I’m sort of into it.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: So, today, we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic of the season; real food on a budget. Today’s episode is going to be about options for sourcing high-quality meat. So this is one of the important parts of the autoimmune protocol diet, whether or not you’re on the elimination diet or you’ve done some reintroductions. Making sure that you have some high-quality meat on your plate is definitely important.

    
    

    So first, let’s have a chat about this concept of good, better, and best. Angie, do you want to kind of give a little overview of what we mean by that?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. It’s basically a scale that we like to use when we’re comparing food quality. I think we first developed it when we wrote our book. Is that right, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

    
    

    Angie Alt: When we wrote The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook, we kind of developed this scale. Because we really wanted folks to understand that just going for it in terms of making a dietary change for healing is worthwhile. Even if it can’t be perfect. We wanted to kind of dispel this perfectionism myth, and help folks understand that there’s a scale here. And how to best use that scale for whatever your budget and your sourcing abilities are.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yep. And I think that’s really important that you highlighted two reasons why it might be different. So, budget and accessibility. Sometimes people have barriers in both those areas. Sometimes one and not the other. So just because you can afford something doesn’t mean you can always find it, and vice versa.

    
    

    1. Quality of meat on a scale [3:29]

    Angie Alt: Yeah. So let’s start at the far end of the scale. Let’s start with good. When we say good, in terms of meat quality, we’re talking about if you can’t afford or source grass-fed, or pastured meats, or wild-caught seafood. You can focus on buying leaner cuts of conventionally raised meats. You can still try to make sure they’re at least hormone free. They should be. There are regulations around this stuff. But you can work on adding more organ meats and fish to your diet.

    
    

    Conventionally raised organ meat is inexpensive, and it’s still very nutrient dense. And farmed fish is better for you than no fish at all. I know there’s a lot of folks that there that are going to balk at that, but you can even check in with the Paleo Mom. She’s done the research here. It’s better to get some fish in, no matter what.

    
    

    You can also consider wild-caught canned salmon, tuna, or sardines. Which are relatively cheap, but they’re still packed with nutritional value. Be sure to look for canned fish that’s free of soy and spices, though, if you’re following the autoimmune protocol.

    
    

    And then, you can limit how much conventionally raised poultry you eat, since it does have the lowest value in terms of nutrition. What we mean by buying leaner cuts of other kinds of meat is; looking for less fat. The toxins that kind of accumulate in an animal that’s been fed a less than healthy diet tends to be in the fat. So if you bought conventionally raised pork, you’d trim off the fat on those pork chops. If you had to buy conventionally raised beef, you’d trim off the fat there. That’s what we mean by leaner.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And that kind of goes a little bit against what we normally recommend with AIP. Which is to eat the fat. And that’s]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 3 is all about options for sourcing high-quality meat. We start by discussing the concept of “good, better, and best” when it comes to meat quality, and share how we source our meat.

    
    

    Then, we interview Diana Rodgers, the creator of the new documentary Kale vs. Cow, about how to best source protein other than beef, and what we can all do to become more sustainable. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Quality of meat on a scale [3:29]

    
    

    2. How Mickey and Angie source their meat [8:22]

    
    

    3. Interview with Diana Rodgers [20:45]

    
    

    4. Sourcing protein other than beef [26:23]

    
    

    5. Joining the sustainability movement [29:07]

    
    

    6. Kale Versus Cow documentary [36:57]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How’s it going today, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: It’s going well. I’m excited to talk about this topic. I know it’s kind of weird, but I’m sort of into it.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: So, today, we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic of the season; real food on a budget. Today’s episode is going to be about options for sourcing high-quality meat. So this is one of the important parts of the autoimmune protocol diet, whether or not you’re on the elimination diet or you’ve done some reintroductions. Making sure that you have some high-quality meat on your plate is definitely important.

    
    

    So first, let’s have a chat about this concept of good, better, and best. Angie, do you want to kind of give a little overview of what we mean by that?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. It’s basically a scale that we like to use when we’re comparing food quality. I think we first developed it when we wrote our book. Is that right, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

    
    

    Angie Alt: When we wrote The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook, we kind of developed this scale. Because we really wanted folks to understand that just going for it in terms of making a dietary change for healing is worthwhile. Even if it can’t be perfect. We wanted to kind of dispel this perfectionism myth, and help folks understand that there’s a scale here. And how to best use that scale for whatever your budget and your sourcing abilities are.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yep. And I think that’s really important that you highlighted two reasons why it might be different. So, budget and accessibility. Sometimes people have barriers in both those areas. Sometimes one and not the other. So just because you can afford something doesn’t mean you can always find it, and vice versa.

    
    

    1. Quality of meat on a scale [3:29]

    Angie Alt: Yeah. So let’s start at the far end of the scale. Let’s start with good. When we say good, in terms of meat quality, we’re talking about if you can’t afford or source grass-fed, or pastured meats, or wild-caught seafood. You can focus on buying leaner cuts of conventionally raised meats. You can still try to make sure they’re at least hormone free. They should be. There are regulations around this stuff. But you can work on adding more organ meats and fish to your diet.

    
    

    Conventionally raised organ meat is inexpensive, and it’s still very nutrient dense. And farmed fish is better for you than no fish at all. I know there’s a lot of folks that there that are going to balk at that, but you can even check in with the Paleo Mom. She’s done the research here. It’s better to get some fish in, no matter what.

    
    

    You can also consider wild-caught canned salmon, tuna, or sardines. Which are relatively cheap, but they’re still packed with nutritional value. Be sure to look for canned fish that’s free of soy and spices, though, if you’re following the autoimmune protocol.

    
    

    And then, you can limit how much conventionally raised poultry you eat, since it does have the lowest value in terms of nutrition. What we mean by buying leaner cuts of other kinds of meat is; looking for less fat. The toxins that kind of accumulate in an animal that’s been fed a less than healthy diet tends to be in the fat. So if you bought conventionally raised pork, you’d trim off the fat on those pork chops. If you had to buy conventionally raised beef, you’d trim off the fat there. That’s what we mean by leaner.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And that kind of goes a little bit against what we normally recommend with AIP. Which is to eat the fat. And that’s because we are advocating for eating higher quality meat. But it’s totally ok, and there is no shame, if you can only afford conventionally raised meat. Just be cautious with that fat content.

    
    

    And a lot of people actually ask about the organ meats. They think that maybe because it’s conventionally raised, that those are a no-go. But actually organ meats are very lean, and conventionally raised organ meats are still ok. And they’re very, very affordable.

    
    

    The next level up is what we call better. So kind of one step above good is if you can afford or source some organic grass-fed or pastured meats. Or even that wild-caught seafood. Focus on buying those fatty cuts. So this is where you can kind of play with the boundary between the different food qualities that you have available to you.

    
    

    Like we said, that fat is really good for you. It’s also where a lot of the toxins are stored. So if you can afford a little bit of that higher quality stuff, think those fatty roasts. Maybe some salmon filets. You might even be able to find some high-quality ground meat on sale from time to time. So you can stock up and freeze that. So that’s kind of how you can use both of those categories to your advantage if you have a little bit in your budget for a little bit higher quality meat.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. And then the next step up. This is other far end of the scale. This is what we call best; we refer to as best. That’s getting all your meat and seafood organic grass-fed or pastured, and wild caught. That’s the ideal that we hope we’re all aiming for. Our budget and our sourcing is able to meet both of these.

    
    

    This is like finding farmers or fishmongers from whom you can buy directly in bulk in order to save the most money while still getting the highest quality. You can ask the farmers about buying beef, pork, or lamb in wholes, halves, or quarters. This is buying the whole animal, half the animal, quarter of the animal, to save money.

    
    

    You might be able to share meat with a group of friends if you don’t have enough freezer space or you don’t need to have such large quantities of meat. Buying in bulk keeps the cost down, but you may not have a need for all of that. So sharing is one way to deal with it. It gives you the advantage of the lower bulk price and the higher quality meat.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And I really think at this best level, we’re not really saying that this is food sourced from a grocery store. But actually at the highest level, ideally you’re working directly with a farmer that is local to you. So for some people, they don’t have local farms around them. You might be ordering meat online from different sources that maybe ship you frozen meat or something.

    
    

    But ideally, everyone should have; in a perfect world, we all have local farms that are raising sustainable and healthy meat that we can actually work directly. And then you can actually go kind of see what the animals are eating. How they’re being treated. And all of that is kind of another add-on to that.

    
    

    2. How Mickey and Angie source their meat [8:22]

    Angie Alt: So maybe, Mickey, we could talk about how each of us sources our own protein. Because we have different approaches.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, for sure. We live on opposite sides of the country. Our local food systems are a little bit different. And kind of our life stages and living situations are a little different, too. So, I live on a farm. Although we don’t raise a lot of animals for meat here, but I live in a farming community. So access to quality meat is actually pretty easy for me.

    
    

    One of my neighbors raises a few cattle every year just for the neighborhood on grass. So I buy a cow from my neighbor, and we have it frozen. We buy half and my mom and my sister buy the other half. So we split it. And I keep it in the deep freezer. And that lasts us about a year.

    
    

    For salmon, we have a CSA. Because I live in the Pacific Northwest, so there are a lot of salmon CSAs where a company will go up to Alaska in the summer and they will fish for salmon and then freeze everything on the boat and then bring it back and you buy it in 10/20-pound boxes. So we get a couple of boxes in the summer, and that lasts us for the whole year.

    
    

    And then chicken is actually hardest for me to source, just because it’s very seasonal in my area. So I do have some great farms that raise chicken. But not only is it very expensive, but they’ll raise a group of chickens, and they will harvest all of them. And then when you buy them, I’ll usually buy maybe 12 to 15 chickens. It takes up a lot of room. And that’s the one I have a harder time planning with.

    
    

    So ideally I get them in whole chickens, bulk from a local farm. But I do supplement that with some of the maybe better quality Whole Foods chicken. And then pork, I have got sourced pork locally from different farms by the half. But this year we’re actually raising our own pigs for the first time. So that’s kind of exciting.

    
    

    In the past, though. Now I’ve kind of maybe got it pretty figured out, because I lived on a farm and it’s a lot easier for me than a lot of other people to source meat. But I will say I have lived in the city before I lived out here in the country, and I have had to have some pretty creative sourcing ideas to get really good meat on the table.

    
    

    So some things that I did when I lived in Seattle, first off I had a deep freezer when I had a living situation that wasn’t really ideal for a deep freezer. So I really prioritized that. I bought a little one. It wasn’t giant by any means. But I realized early on that being able to store meat long-term in a freezer was going to help me get more affordable meat. So that was great.

    
    

    I did a CSA for a while in Seattle, where they would deliver me monthly. So I think it was something like 10 or 15 pounds of meat they would deliver in a cooler to the neighborhood. Then you’d go to the house and kind of pick up your order. And that was really handy, because that was before I had the deep freezer.

    
    

    Another thing that I did, just as far as affordability. There was a local farm that I liked to buy organ meat at the farmer’s market. Because their prices, I couldn’t afford for the muscle meat. But I was buying organ meat from them because it was like $3-4 a pound for a heart, liver, or kidney.

    
    

    And I asked them one day; “Do you guys ever end up with a bunch of leftover, freezer burned meat at the end of the season?” And they were like, “Yeah, we have a freezer full of that.” I was like, “What if I bought a quarter of a cow, but just in freezer burned meat. Would you give me a deal?” And they were like; “Actually, we’ll charge you for a quarter of a cow, but we’ll give you half a cow. But we’ll just give you all of the old stuff.” And I was like, heck yeah. That’s amazing.

    
    

    So, all I had to do was slice off that little freezer burned piece, and it really wasn’t that big of a deal. And I got really high-quality meat. And it was really cheap. I actually shared it with my brother, who was trying to eat healthier. So that was one thing I did.

    
    

    Another thing that we did when we lived in Seattle was we had a friend who had some lambs that they offered to sell us one. And my husband wanted to learn how to harvest them. So they were like; if you come out to the farm for a day and help us harvest some of the lambs, then we’ll give you one. So we did that.

    
    

    My husband has kind of been into hunting and fishing throughout the year, so that’s been another kind of alternative way of getting some, obviously, wild meat.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Awesome options there. I love hunting and fishing!

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know. It’s not always a guarantee.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, not always a guarantee.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: It’s a little more fun than useful. But it’s nice when it works out.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, right. So I grew up with a lot of hunting and fishing, but that’s not really a good option for me anymore. I live halfway between DC and Baltimore, basically, in a very, very urban/suburban area. And that’s not really a reality of my life right now.

    
    

    What I do in terms of beef, pork, and lamb is get through a local farmer and my friend through a quarterly CSA. So we pay every 3 months for 20-22 pounds of meat for the following three months. And we just pick it up from the farm monthly. And it’s just kind of a selection of the three. It’s all 100% grass-fed, pasture raised, non-GMO. She kind of goes out of her way to adopt all the best practices for raising meat of this kind. So it’s really high quality.

    
    

    In terms of fish, salmon especially, occasionally I get that through bulk shares with friends who are connected to Alaskan fishermen. So they have connections with them. And we buy a whole bunch at once. And then it gets shipped her after it’s been frozen on the boat. And we split it up and all share it.

    
    

    But more often, I have to do it through the grocery store. Sometimes I can get really high quality, wild caught, on sale. And sometimes I use farmed salmon, you guys. Like we were talking about earlier. Eating seafood is better for me than eating none. So sometimes that’s what I do. I also, of course, use canned salmon, canned tuna, those kinds of things so I can get the best quality for a little cheaper.

    
    

    And then, like Mickey said, chicken is very hard to source, even here. So...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11699Mon, 16 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -070044:49falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E2 – Meal Planning + Batch Cooking w/ Alaena HaberWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 2 is all about how to implement some kitchen hacks to help you save money on food. We discuss our personal best practices when it comes to getting food on the table affordably, the first of which is meal planning. Some of you have heard us chat about these topics before, but just stick with us, because you may not have looked at the benefits from this angle before.

    
    

    Then, we chat with Alaena Haber of Grazed and Enthused about her favorite AIP kitchen tools and how she sets herself up for success in an AIP kitchen. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. The benefits of meal planning [1:40]

    
    

    2. All about batch cooking [14:59]

    
    

    3. How Mickey and Angie implement meal planning and batch cooking [26:20]

    
    

    4. Guest interview, Alaena Haber: AIP kitchen tools [33:14]

    
    

    5. Setting up your AIP kitchen [40:15]

    
    

    6. Alaena’s favorite batch cooked AIP recipes [43:10]

    
    

    7. Myth busting about an AIP blogger’s pantry [45:37]

    
    

    8. How cooking changed with a baby [50:15]

    1. The benefits of meal planning [1:40]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing today, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m doing great. How about you, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. I’m excited to talk about this topic. Today we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic this season, which is real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to implement some kitchen hacks to help you save money on food.

    
    

    Before we even get into sourcing food, we wanted to take a little detour and discuss about some of the best practices that, when used effectively, will really help you in the kitchen. Some of you have heard us chat about these topics before, but just stick with us, because you may not have looked at the benefits from this angle before.

    
    

    Mickey, there’s a couple of topics here. Let’s start with a biggie; what is meal planning?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So meal planning is something that we talk about a lot, but it’s because it really solves a lot of problems. But meal planning is really the act of just sitting down with a pen and paper, or with some software, which we’ll maybe talk about later. Maybe an app on your phone, maybe calendar. And just writing down what you’re going to eat and when.

    
    

    It maybe for some people seems a little bit obsessive, and a little bit like too much. But honestly, meal planning is something that is going to help you a lot. And we’ll talk about all the benefits to it. But some different ways that you can meal plan are, like I said, you could just sit down with a sheet of paper and you could say; ok, for Monday dinner I’m going to make a roast chicken. For Tuesday dinner, I’m going to make a roast beef. For Wednesday, maybe I’ll try to work in some seafood.

    
    

    So it can be something really simple, like just planning the major protein and then kind of letting the vegetables fill in as you find certain deals at the farmer’s market, or the grocery store. Or you can actually literally plan every single breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack through your meal planning exercise.

    
    

    So you can use different apps to do this. We are really big fans of a service called Real Plans. Which is an online software-based solution that actually has all of our AIP recipes in our books and on our blog as part of their membership plan. And it’s really affordable. And what they do, you plug in kind of all the things that you’re avoiding, or that you’re eating. And then it will kind of randomly generate you a bunch of recipes that you can then plug into different slots. So that’s the most high-tech version of meal planning.

    
    

    And then the most low tech, which is actually more along the lines of what I do, is just using a pen and paper. Maybe on a calendar. I actually do it often on my calendar on my computer that I use for all my work and my personal things. And then I’ll just have, at the end of the day, roast that chicken. Just so I know; ok, later today, this is what I’m going to do. So logistically, that’s how someone would meal plan. Do you have anything to add about that, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Not too much. You kind of covered all the bases. I’m like you at this point. I’ve been meal planning for a really, really long time. Even before I got into the AIP lifestyle. And I just do it super low tech. Pen and paper, kind of boring.

    
    

    Sometimes I use Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    
    

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    
    

    Season 3 Episode 2 is all about how to implement some kitchen hacks to help you save money on food. We discuss our personal best practices when it comes to getting food on the table affordably, the first of which is meal planning. Some of you have heard us chat about these topics before, but just stick with us, because you may not have looked at the benefits from this angle before.

    
    

    Then, we chat with Alaena Haber of Grazed and Enthused about her favorite AIP kitchen tools and how she sets herself up for success in an AIP kitchen. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    
    

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. The benefits of meal planning [1:40]

    
    

    2. All about batch cooking [14:59]

    
    

    3. How Mickey and Angie implement meal planning and batch cooking [26:20]

    
    

    4. Guest interview, Alaena Haber: AIP kitchen tools [33:14]

    
    

    5. Setting up your AIP kitchen [40:15]

    
    

    6. Alaena’s favorite batch cooked AIP recipes [43:10]

    
    

    7. Myth busting about an AIP blogger’s pantry [45:37]

    
    

    8. How cooking changed with a baby [50:15]

    1. The benefits of meal planning [1:40]

    Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Angie here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 3. How are you doing today, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I’m doing great. How about you, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. I’m excited to talk about this topic. Today we’re continuing our discussion related to the topic this season, which is real food on a budget. This episode is going to be about how to implement some kitchen hacks to help you save money on food.

    
    

    Before we even get into sourcing food, we wanted to take a little detour and discuss about some of the best practices that, when used effectively, will really help you in the kitchen. Some of you have heard us chat about these topics before, but just stick with us, because you may not have looked at the benefits from this angle before.

    
    

    Mickey, there’s a couple of topics here. Let’s start with a biggie; what is meal planning?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So meal planning is something that we talk about a lot, but it’s because it really solves a lot of problems. But meal planning is really the act of just sitting down with a pen and paper, or with some software, which we’ll maybe talk about later. Maybe an app on your phone, maybe calendar. And just writing down what you’re going to eat and when.

    
    

    It maybe for some people seems a little bit obsessive, and a little bit like too much. But honestly, meal planning is something that is going to help you a lot. And we’ll talk about all the benefits to it. But some different ways that you can meal plan are, like I said, you could just sit down with a sheet of paper and you could say; ok, for Monday dinner I’m going to make a roast chicken. For Tuesday dinner, I’m going to make a roast beef. For Wednesday, maybe I’ll try to work in some seafood.

    
    

    So it can be something really simple, like just planning the major protein and then kind of letting the vegetables fill in as you find certain deals at the farmer’s market, or the grocery store. Or you can actually literally plan every single breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack through your meal planning exercise.

    
    

    So you can use different apps to do this. We are really big fans of a service called Real Plans. Which is an online software-based solution that actually has all of our AIP recipes in our books and on our blog as part of their membership plan. And it’s really affordable. And what they do, you plug in kind of all the things that you’re avoiding, or that you’re eating. And then it will kind of randomly generate you a bunch of recipes that you can then plug into different slots. So that’s the most high-tech version of meal planning.

    
    

    And then the most low tech, which is actually more along the lines of what I do, is just using a pen and paper. Maybe on a calendar. I actually do it often on my calendar on my computer that I use for all my work and my personal things. And then I’ll just have, at the end of the day, roast that chicken. Just so I know; ok, later today, this is what I’m going to do. So logistically, that’s how someone would meal plan. Do you have anything to add about that, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Not too much. You kind of covered all the bases. I’m like you at this point. I’ve been meal planning for a really, really long time. Even before I got into the AIP lifestyle. And I just do it super low tech. Pen and paper, kind of boring.

    
    

    Sometimes I use Real Plans, because it’s a cool tool and I like playing around with it from time to time. But I usually keep it pretty simple.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: When I was first getting started, I was doing more of that meal planning every single meal, every single snack. Just making sure I had all my bases covered. Because of course when something is new, it’s a lot harder to trouble shoot and make decisions in the moment. When you have everything planned out, you just know what you’re going to eat and you know when to cook and it just works out. I would have loved to have Real Plans in the beginning. Because I definitely was meal planning to that level back then.

    
    

    Angie, let’s talk a little bit about how meal planning helps people save money.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Mickey just touched on a biggie, and I do the same thing that she does. You plan meals around that main protein, and select that based on your budget and sourcing. You’ll know that you have the protein that you need for the day. And we all know that protein is the most expensive item on the menu, so kind of starting there is really smart. I do exactly what Mickey does. I start with whatever is going to be the main protein for my meal.

    
    

    And by doing the whole meal plan at once, I also help make sure that we rotate our proteins and get the different vitamins and minerals and nutrition that comes from those different sources. And not overeat one kind of protein over another. Especially poultry, with those omega-6 fats. So this way, I make sure that my family gets a little bit of grass-fed beef. A little bit of pastured pork. A little bit of chicken, but not too much. And a couple of servings of seafood a week.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, you can also pick whatever protein is most affordable to you, and put it on your menu more often. I mean, if you leave it up to whim, and kind of what you feel like you want to eat in terms of flavor, you might be finding; “I want to make those scallops! Or I want to make that tri-tip!” or something that’s a little bit more expensive. You might be able to just be like; no, actually we’re going to have a lot of meat balls and meat loaf, and chicken thighs. That kind of thing.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Mickey, there’s another biggie. Maybe you can dive into this one a little bit. Meal planning reduces waste.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So by planning out your meals, one of the best things is actually that you avoid having too much food. So when you make a meal plan, then you make a shopping list from your meal plan. And then you make what you intend to. You’re not going to end up with a bunch of extra food that you just bought on a whim, thinking, “How much do I need to buy for a weeks’ worth of groceries?”

    
    

    How many of us have gone to the grocery store without a plan, put whatever looked good into our cart, and then maybe 5 or 6 days later realized half of our vegetables are kind of wilty and looking sad in the back of the fridge because we didn’t have a plan to eat them? And that is, for me at least, the biggest way to reduce waste in my kitchen. Is actually to have a plan for using all the produce, especially if I buy.

    
    

    If I don’t have a plan, then I find that even when I am really excited about something, I’m notorious with salad greens for this. Especially if I ever buy boxed salad greens, which I only do rarely. Because I have this problem. What ends up happening is they go bad so fast that I just kind of forgot about them, and that’s not good. We want to save money by using everything we buy.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right, exactly. I have to say that even back before my AIP days, when I was still a menu planner even then. This was the biggest reason I did it. Because I was really trying to reduce waste in our family. So making a plan helped me stick with it.

    
    

    I also find, and you kind of just touched on this Mickey, it reduces impulse buying. If you’re just kind of not sure what’s going to be on the table every night, and you just run out to the store and buy whatever is kind of convenient at that time, you’re going to end up having a very expensive grocery bill.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah! For sure. When I’m meal planning, I’m finding that I spend most of my time in the produce aisle, getting all those fresh fruits and vegetables. Which we all know a lot, depending on the variety, fruits and vegetables, especially organic, can be pretty expensive. But let me tell you, when you’re walking down the gluten free snack aisle, {laughs} that’s even more per ounce.

    
    

    It’s tricky, because a lot of those products are in little bags. And it’s $3 or $4; and you kind of go; “Oh, 3-4 bucks isn’t really that much.” But when you think how many carrots can you get for $3 or $4, it really becomes obvious when you look at things that way. And when you fill your cart with things you actually have a plan for. And you know that you’re going to have enough food, you’re not going to be like; “I need those snacky things!” You’re going to be like; “Oh, I’m going to have leftover of this stew, or whatever I’m making.” So you’re going to be fine.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Mm-hmm.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Another benefit to meal planning is simply that it reduces eating out. Most of us know that eating outside the home; at a restaurant or even a fast food, fast-ish food. There’s even more clean fast food type places. Those places are going to be more expensive every single time the way that we eat on AIP and even with reintros than when compared to cooking and eating your food at home.

    
    

    So having a plan for home cooked meals is definitely going to reduce how much you eat out. Which can get super expensive. Especially when you think of things like lunches at work, even. Brown-bagging it. I know a lot of people go out to lunch at their work, or near their work. And just simply bringing your own food, while that food, a lot of the cost that went into getting those ingredients, and sourcing them high quality might be higher than what you expect. That savings that you’re getting from actually not going to the restaurant around the corner or something is a big deal.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. This is a really big deal. We noticed it a lot recently. A new restaurant opened up near us that’s sort of like a Mediterranean version of Chipotle. And it has some pretty clean options. And with a few reintroductions, I can eat there safely. And we kind of over did it over the Christmas holiday, eating out a few too many times. Going as a family and getting some Mediterranean bowls at this restaurant.

    
    

    And it was delicious, but it was costing us between $50 and $60 for the whole family every time we went. And it’s like a Chipotle level restaurant. So it should be kind of inexpensive in comparison. But with $50 or $60, I can feed my family full meals for at least two dinners. And those dinners translate into leftovers that feed me and my husband during our work day. And it’s like; oh my gosh, I can’t believe I’m spending this much on one meal.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. That planning is really, really important. And a lot of times, that perceived convenience doesn’t really outweigh some of the other benefits.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. The other thing about meal planning is that if you do it in this really super savvy way, you can use your weekly sales ads. Or pay attention to what’s on sale in the store, and be really strategic and save actually a lot of money.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, is this something that you’ve done in the past, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yes, it is. This is why I brought up this point. Even before I went AIP, when I would meal plan, what I would do was sit down with my local grocery stores weekly sales ad. I would look at the different vegetables and fruits that were going to be on sale that week. And the different meats. And I would plan my meals to incorporate those sale items. And it made a big difference in our grocery budget.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, I bet. I, in all honesty, have not gone here. But I see the ads, and actually how I use them is I’ll stock up on bulk things. Because I’m way more of a bulk opportunist. So if I see, for instance, whole chickens on sale at Whole Foods, I will go home with 10 or 15 of them and throw them in the freezer. {laughs}

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. That’s another way you can use those sales ads really smartly. If you’ve got the freezer space to do this. Or a larger family that might go through those bulk items. That’s really smart.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, and I’d say, too, for people that maybe don’t have a deep freezer that this strategy of going week by week, and seeing what the store has on sale is actually more useful to you. Maybe you live in an apartment in New York City, and you don’t have a deep freezer. That’s kind of part of why we’re giving you guys all these options, because we realize that everyone’s lives are a lot different. And what’s going to work for you is maybe not going to work for someone else.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Ok, so a final point about meal planning and how it can save you. It reduced the amount of trips you have to make to the store, which equals fuel savings, which is money. And also time savings,...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11698Mon, 09 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -070058:13falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...S3 E1 – Real Food on a Budget w/ Terry WahlsWelcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    Season 3 Episode 1 features an interview with our friend and role model, Dr. Terry Wahls, who is a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa. Dr. Wahls successfully recovered from multiple sclerosis using diet and lifestyle strategies, and currently studies the interplay between diet, lifestyle, functional medicine, and autoimmune disease.

    As a medical doctor, Terry has a lot to share in regards to the high cost of medical testing, lower cost approaches, and whether a “real food” approach is elitist. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Welcome back to season 3 [1:40]

    
    

    2. A little bit about the upcoming season [8:49]

    
    

    3. Conversation with Dr. Wahls about food on a budget [15:06]

    1. Welcome back to season 3 [1:40]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. We are in our third season. How are you doing today, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. I’m kind of in shock that we have been doing this for three seasons now.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know. It’s been a lot of fun putting everything together. And I think we would go through these long breaks where we’re like; we’d forget about the podcast. We’re like; yeah, we don’t have a podcast. And then we’d start thinking about doing it again, and we’re like; oh yeah, that’s a lot of work.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Oh yeah, I do a podcast.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: We’ve been getting fired up, and we’re really excited to introduce our topic for this season. It’s one that we have been thinking about for probably years now, huh Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, we’ve been talking about this a long time.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: We’ve been talking about it for a while. And it is Real Food on a Budget. {dun-dun-dun!} We really want to dig in how to make nutrient dense, healing foods accessible for everyone. So Angie, you want to talk a little bit about how we came up with this topic?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. I mean, we’ve long been hearing kind of the rumblings from the autoimmune community, the AIP community, that finding a way to make these dietary changes affordable is this big barrier to adopting the protocol over the long term. And those rumblings were pretty much confirmed at the beginning of this year when we ran our giant reader survey. Seriously; thank you to everyone who participated and gave us your feedback. That was very valuable to us.

    
    

    But no big surprise; you guys pinpointed affordability and accessibility to high quality, healing foods as one of your biggest challenges. So we kind of knew that that was something that was out there all along.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yep. And some of the specific challenges that we’ve both personally been through at different points in our journey, and things we’ve heard from you guys in comments on the blog and in social media, and in the survey, are things like people that can’t get started just because they literally can’t afford it. They don’t have the current budget for it. Right?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. I mean, it’s hard. It’s a big budgetary move. We definitely felt that in the beginning of our journeys when we kind of shifted our families’ budgets to focus on that. My husband and I sit down and do kind of a big overview of our spending at the beginning of every year from the previous year, and we saw it again this year. Whoa; that food budget. It’s a biggie. It’s hard to adjust all those other areas of your life to focus on that priority.

    
    

    We also hear a lot about people not being able to find high quality food in their area.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, not being able to afford them, so people don’t have access to a quality grocery store that sells high quality food. Or, if they do, maybe those foods are exorbitantly expensive. Because as we’ve seen a rise in organic and grass-fed and even the convenience foods that weren’t around when we started AIP; a lot of these things now are infiltrating into maybe even more rural and more food desert-y areas. But the price tag goes way up because those retailers know that they have something nobody else does, and they want their customers to pay for it. So that’s really frustrating.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. Another area is people saying that affording the high-quality food and the medical care that they might need at the same time together is a challenge.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: This is a huge one.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, it is. It really is. It’s a hard one to get around, right? You just have to kind of believe that focusing on diet and lifestyle is eventually going to help you bring those medical care costs down. I’ve definitely seen that over...]]>Welcome to

    The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities.

    This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association (NTA), a holistic nutrition school that trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition. Learn more about them by visiting NutritionalTherapy.com, or read about our experiences going through their NTP and NTC programs in our comparison article.

    Season 3 Episode 1 features an interview with our friend and role model, Dr. Terry Wahls, who is a clinical professor of medicine at the University of Iowa. Dr. Wahls successfully recovered from multiple sclerosis using diet and lifestyle strategies, and currently studies the interplay between diet, lifestyle, functional medicine, and autoimmune disease.

    As a medical doctor, Terry has a lot to share in regards to the high cost of medical testing, lower cost approaches, and whether a “real food” approach is elitist. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

    How to listen:

    If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

    
    

    If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

    
    

    If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

    
    

    
    

    
    

    Full Transcript:

    Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a resource for those seeking to live well with chronic illness. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’m the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

    
    

    Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt. I’m a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I’m the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, and I’m using diet and lifestyle to best manage my endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease.

    
    

    After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.AutoimmuneWellness.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

    
    

    We also wrote a book called The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook together that serves as a do-it-yourself guidebook to living well with chronic illness.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: If you’re looking for more information about the autoimmune protocol, make sure to sign up for our newsletter at autoimmunewellness.com, so we can send you our free quick start guide. It contains printable AIP food lists, a 2-week food plan, a 90-minute batch cooking video, a mindset video, and food reintroduction guides.

    
    

    This season of the podcast, real food on a budget is brought to you by our title sponsor, The Nutritional Therapy Association.

    Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

    
    

    Topics:

    
    

    1. Welcome back to season 3 [1:40]

    
    

    2. A little bit about the upcoming season [8:49]

    
    

    3. Conversation with Dr. Wahls about food on a budget [15:06]

    1. Welcome back to season 3 [1:40]

    Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Mickey here. Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. We are in our third season. How are you doing today, Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: I’m good. I’m kind of in shock that we have been doing this for three seasons now.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I know. It’s been a lot of fun putting everything together. And I think we would go through these long breaks where we’re like; we’d forget about the podcast. We’re like; yeah, we don’t have a podcast. And then we’d start thinking about doing it again, and we’re like; oh yeah, that’s a lot of work.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Oh yeah, I do a podcast.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: We’ve been getting fired up, and we’re really excited to introduce our topic for this season. It’s one that we have been thinking about for probably years now, huh Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, we’ve been talking about this a long time.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: We’ve been talking about it for a while. And it is Real Food on a Budget. {dun-dun-dun!} We really want to dig in how to make nutrient dense, healing foods accessible for everyone. So Angie, you want to talk a little bit about how we came up with this topic?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. I mean, we’ve long been hearing kind of the rumblings from the autoimmune community, the AIP community, that finding a way to make these dietary changes affordable is this big barrier to adopting the protocol over the long term. And those rumblings were pretty much confirmed at the beginning of this year when we ran our giant reader survey. Seriously; thank you to everyone who participated and gave us your feedback. That was very valuable to us.

    
    

    But no big surprise; you guys pinpointed affordability and accessibility to high quality, healing foods as one of your biggest challenges. So we kind of knew that that was something that was out there all along.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yep. And some of the specific challenges that we’ve both personally been through at different points in our journey, and things we’ve heard from you guys in comments on the blog and in social media, and in the survey, are things like people that can’t get started just because they literally can’t afford it. They don’t have the current budget for it. Right?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Right. I mean, it’s hard. It’s a big budgetary move. We definitely felt that in the beginning of our journeys when we kind of shifted our families’ budgets to focus on that. My husband and I sit down and do kind of a big overview of our spending at the beginning of every year from the previous year, and we saw it again this year. Whoa; that food budget. It’s a biggie. It’s hard to adjust all those other areas of your life to focus on that priority.

    
    

    We also hear a lot about people not being able to find high quality food in their area.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah, not being able to afford them, so people don’t have access to a quality grocery store that sells high quality food. Or, if they do, maybe those foods are exorbitantly expensive. Because as we’ve seen a rise in organic and grass-fed and even the convenience foods that weren’t around when we started AIP; a lot of these things now are infiltrating into maybe even more rural and more food desert-y areas. But the price tag goes way up because those retailers know that they have something nobody else does, and they want their customers to pay for it. So that’s really frustrating.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah. Another area is people saying that affording the high-quality food and the medical care that they might need at the same time together is a challenge.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: This is a huge one.

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yeah, it is. It really is. It’s a hard one to get around, right? You just have to kind of believe that focusing on diet and lifestyle is eventually going to help you bring those medical care costs down. I’ve definitely seen that over the long-term for myself. But in the beginning, it’s really tough to walk that line.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. If some people are going through some really important medical procedures or medical treatments or seeing certain doctors that they really need to see, they literally might not be able to start with the food to the extent. We have some ideas for you guys later, but they might not be able to do it at the current time.

    
    

    Another issue that people have is that, maybe they try AIP for a short period of time. Which is what we advocate. You guys know at this point, AIP is not forever. But maybe they experience some success in the very beginning, but then they find it too expensive to maintain. Right Angie?

    
    

    Angie Alt: Yep. I see this a lot. I get a special view of this because of my group programs. I see people at the very beginning giving this a big shot and really dedicating a lot of their financial resources to it. And then maybe the financial resources kind of burn out at some point, and they go; how do I maintain this? I’m not quite there where I need to be, in terms of my healing, but I don’t know if I can stretch my budget further. So we’re going to dive into that some, too, over the next few episodes.

    
    

    What about a really tough on, Mickey. Integrating a healing diet while needing to be on social welfare programs, like food stamps. That can be really challenging, because there are limitations on what you can buy with some of those programs.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Yeah. This is something that we haven’t had an onslaught of people writing to us. But through the years, I have had some especially thoughtful blog comments and emails from people that say; this is my issue. I’m on this government program. I have a fixed income, and I really want to try AIP. How can I make it work for me?

    
    

    We’ve got some ideas for you guys. We’re actually going to be interviewing a social worker later on in this podcast series. And hopefully give you guys some ideas about prioritizing. Because that’s actually something that I don’t think anyone in our community has started talking about yet.

    
    

    Angie Alt: No, and we’re excited to talk. I have a lot of personal feeling about this, and I’m really excited to help figure out ways to make this successful for everybody. Even those on the lowest incomes.

    
    

    Ok. And finally, another big one. Confusion about how to make smart compromises in food quality or budget priority. I think it feels like there’s only one way to do AIP, and I need to go buy everything at Whole Foods. And people aren’t quite sure about doing that.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm. If people don’t know that this is a struggle for them, it will become apparent. There may be a misconception for a lot of you guys that you need to be drinking a $5 bottle of kombucha every day. Or buying that organic grass-fed meat at Whole Foods, or whatever. And not really understanding how to make those compromises to kind of sustain this long-term. So hopefully we’re going to clear some of that up for you guys.

    
    

    There may be some other things that you guys are feeling. Hopefully in 8 episodes dedicated completely to this, we’ll cover it for you guys. So, Angie, you want to dive into why this topic is personally important to us?

    
    

    2. A little bit about the upcoming season [8:49]

    Angie Alt: Yeah. You know, we wanted you guys to understand that this isn’t just motivated by what we’ve learned from all of you and what the community has been asking for. Mickey and I are not independently wealthy, either. And we recognize that the process of shifting your budget to focus on high quality foods that fuel healing is by no means an easy undertaking. When we first began AIP ourselves, it was difficult to figure out where the money to eat like this was going to come from, or how to source the best foods at the lowest prices.

    
    

    Not only that, but we have personal experience living very low income. Mickey lived paycheck to paycheck when she was first diagnosed. And when I first got ill, I was a single parent, and I was on welfare at that time. I was working a job, and going to school, and needing some additional support. And it was really tough. Those experiences left really powerful impressions on us, and they played a really big role in our efforts to address this issue with this podcast season.

    
    

    We don’t believe that healing food only belongs to the rich. And we want to figure out ways to make this successful for everybody. So what can they expect this podcast series, Mickey?

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: First, we’re going to do an episode on every facet of food sourcing and kind of break that down for you guys. All your options. Everything from purchasing meat and fat to vegetables and pantry items. There are so many options. There’s just this huge spectrum of everything from going to the farmer’s market, to buying things online, to buying clubs that we’re really going to dive in and give you guys some really creative ideas. I’m sure a lot of them you’ve never even heard or considered before. That might help you guys solve some problems.

    
    

    Some of these things are going to be great ah-ha moments for some of you. And some of them might not be applicable. But our hope is that there is going to be something here for everybody.

    
    

    We’ll also be talking about some tricks that help you stretch your food budget. So things like meal planning and batch cooking, and minimizing waste. So, you guys are probably sick of hearing us talk about meal planning and batch cooking. But there are more benefits to it than just saving you some time. And it’s not just about what you buy and where. So how you’re using these ingredients. How you’re stretching them. Especially that waste piece, we haven’t talked about a lot in our community. But just to maximize that, and get the most value and healing out of it.

    
    

    And then we’ll also be addressing how to create and prioritize your food budget. As well as have a conversation like Angie said about even those on the lowest incomes. So things like food stamps, WIC, using food pantries, and some creative ways that if that’s you, how you can still make healing changes in your diet. There are definitely options for you.

    
    

    Along the way, we’ll be interviewing some people who have a specific expertise on the topic of the episode, which will help us go much deeper than our own experiences, into the range of options. And we’re going to be learning along with you guys. There are some areas that I feel like Angie and I are very strong in, and then there are some areas where especially we’re bringing in a few experts that we have some great questions for them, and I think we personally stand to learn a lot from them. So we’re excited about that.

    
    

    And then lastly, we will be interviewing members of our AIP community to share their number one money saving tip, and how they’ve hacked eating this way over the long-term. So this way, we can get a broader perspective of what’s working for a variety of people living in different areas on different budgets. For instance, someone living in San Francisco. They might have a different tip on what saves them money than someone living in rural Oklahoma. Sourcing might vary really widely from New York City to St. Louis.

    
    

    So, the good news is that we know people hacking AIP literally all over the world. So wherever you find yourself, know that there are options for you. It might take a little thinking outside the box. And through sharing some of these experiences of our community, we can really hone in on kind of taking stock of that landscape and seeing what’s out there.

    
    

    Angie Alt: This is going to be a good season, guys. That’s it for our first half of this episode. We’ll be back after the break with a guest who will help us take stock of exactly what we are up against in tackling this problem. We’ll be right back.

    
    

    Angie Alt: We wanted to introduce you guys to our title sponsor this season of the podcast, The Nutritional Therapy Association. The NTA is a holistic nutrition school that reconnects people to healing foods and vibrant health. They provide practical and affordable nutrition education through their courses, empowering individuals to launch new careers, and heal themselves, their communities, and the world.

    
    

    The NTA trains and certified nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants with an emphasis on bioindividual nutrition.

    
    

    Mickey Trescott: I personally discovered the NTP program in 2012 when I was in the middle of my own healing journey with AIP. I was actually sitting on my kitchen counter, looking at the local community college class list that I got in the mail, and I saw the program. When I looked it up online, and found that it was based on real food and ancestral perspectives, I knew that it would be a perfect fit to my personal chef work, and a major piece to shifting my career. And while I was going through the program, I actually wrote the first iteration of the Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook as my community project. And the rest is history.

    
    

    Angie Alt: After becoming a certified health coach in 2014, I was excited but knew that I wanted to dive much, much deeper into nutrition. And Mickey, obviously, had glowing things to say about NTA. After I looked over the program offerings, I knew that the NTC course was...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11689Mon, 02 Apr 2018 12:00:00 -070038:05falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 3: Real Food on a Budget. We’re dedicating this season to discussing an aspect of natural healing that often gets left out of the conversation: affordability. We’ll be chatting with experts and peers from the AIP community about how to best balance money with your health priorities. This season is brought to you by our title sponsor, The ...The State of AIP 2018

    The AIP community has changed… a lot! Since our humble beginnings in approximately 2011, our movement has grown exponentially. This growth has been overwhelmingly positive, but there have been some downsides to it as well. Considering all the growth and change, we’ve decided to start 2018 with a “State of AIP Address” here at Autoimmune Wellness.

    We’d like to have a discussion about the roots of AIP, where we are at now, and where we think things are heading. Most importantly, with that longview in mind, we want you, our community, to help us focus our energy.

    We believe in the concept of servant leadership and want to find out how we can continue to strengthen and refine the AIP movement from your perspectives. We are poised to see AIP move into the mainstream and we want to make sure it arrives there with your needs out front.

    Before we begin…

    This is a long post! If you’d rather listen to the content in podcast form, you can do so below. But don’t forget to fill out our survey when you’re done.

    ---

    First, a brief history of the AIP movement (2011-2016):

    2011

    • The earliest threads of AIP began to take form in 2011 when some early-adopters (us!) were introduced to the idea of eating an autoimmune-specific elimination diet through the work of Robb Wolf, Chris Kresser, Loren Cordain, and Datis Kharrazian.
    
    

    2012

    • In 2012, Sarah Ballantyne started blogging about her experience with Paleo and began to research and refine the elimination diet, providing the first comprehensive guidance on elimination and reintroduction of foods.
    • Later in 2012, a few early-adopters started blogging about their personal experiences on the elimination diet and connected to form the beginnings of the AIP community. The first year or so, there were six of us: Mickey (Autoimmune Paleo), Angie (Alt-Ternative Autoimmune), Eileen (Phoenix Helix), Sarah (The Paleo Mom), Whitney (Nutrisclerosis), and Christina (A Clean Plate). At the time we were all very much in the middle of our healing journeys with diverse autoimmune diseases, but we connected on the idea that diet was key.
    
    

    2013

    • 2013 was a time of grassroots growth for AIP. In April, Mickey released the first ebook about AIP, The Autoimmune Paleo E-Cookbook. This was the year Sarah Ballantyne was heavily researching the protocol and publishing more in-depth articles about the “why’s,” nutrient density, and reintroductions. It was also the year that we started to consider the lifestyle piece in managing our conditions. Our group was still small, but this year another dozen or so bloggers started sharing their stories and recipes with the burgeoning community.
    
    

    2014

    • 2014 was the breakout year for AIP. In January, Sarah Ballantyne’s complete guide to AIP was released, The Paleo Approach, and went on to become a New York Times Bestseller later that summer. In March, the print version of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook came out. And later on in the year we got The Paleo Approach Cookbook, a second offering from Sarah Ballantyne, and Angie Alt’s The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, along with a few other fantastic AIP ebooks. SAD to AIP in SIX had its first enrollment guiding 25 members through a phased transition to AIP. In these early days, the community was looking for recipes and support, and the offerings this year definitely answered that call! At the end of 2014, the very first AIP restaurant, Mission: Heirloom opened its doors in Berkeley, California, and the first AIP podcast, The Phoenix Helix Podcast joined the airwaves!
    
    

    2015

    • January 2015, Angie and Mickey announced that they would be joining forces and blogging together, along with community voices, at autoimmune-paleo.com. At this point, the community had grown to tens of thousands of people, as evidenced by the movement’s exponential growth, engagement, and connection on our site and across all social media platforms (especially Instagram!). The movement was now large enough to support big in-person gatherings, with many meetup groups springing up, authors holding book tours, classes being given, and speaking at conferences about the protocol. This was the year that we started overhearing folks in the grocery store talking about AIP, and we had a large enough base of people who had experience with the protocol to start featuring success stories other than our own on our site. By the end of 2015, there were over 15 books and programs for people following AIP!
    
    

    2016

    • 2016 AIP started infiltrating progressive doctors’ offices and went global. In the early days, people found out about AIP from reading online or picking up a copy of our books. This year, the functional and alternative medicine communities started hearing about AIP and we heard more and more from both our followers and clients that their doctors were recommending this approach. A GI doctor reached out to us about the positive results one of her IBD patients had with AIP, and that discussion turned into a full-blown medical study using AIP, later that year.
    • Also in 2016, it became clear to us that our movement was no longer US-based, as both international readership and membership in the blogging community grew exponentially. The AIP movement began to grow in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South America, Europe, and even the Middle East. Our discussions also shifted to encompass the lifestyle changes, implementation, and patient advocacy. We released our co-authored book,

      The AIP community has changed… a lot! Since our humble beginnings in approximately 2011, our movement has grown exponentially. This growth has been overwhelmingly positive, but there have been some downsides to it as well. Considering all the growth and change, we’ve decided to start 2018 with a “State of AIP Address” here at Autoimmune Wellness.

      We’d like to have a discussion about the roots of AIP, where we are at now, and where we think things are heading. Most importantly, with that longview in mind, we want you, our community, to help us focus our energy.

      We believe in the concept of servant leadership and want to find out how we can continue to strengthen and refine the AIP movement from your perspectives. We are poised to see AIP move into the mainstream and we want to make sure it arrives there with your needs out front.

      Before we begin…

      This is a long post! If you’d rather listen to the content in podcast form, you can do so below. But don’t forget to fill out our survey when you’re done.

      ---

      First, a brief history of the AIP movement (2011-2016):

      2011

      • The earliest threads of AIP began to take form in 2011 when some early-adopters (us!) were introduced to the idea of eating an autoimmune-specific elimination diet through the work of Robb Wolf, Chris Kresser, Loren Cordain, and Datis Kharrazian.
      
      

      2012

      • In 2012, Sarah Ballantyne started blogging about her experience with Paleo and began to research and refine the elimination diet, providing the first comprehensive guidance on elimination and reintroduction of foods.
      • Later in 2012, a few early-adopters started blogging about their personal experiences on the elimination diet and connected to form the beginnings of the AIP community. The first year or so, there were six of us: Mickey (Autoimmune Paleo), Angie (Alt-Ternative Autoimmune), Eileen (Phoenix Helix), Sarah (The Paleo Mom), Whitney (Nutrisclerosis), and Christina (A Clean Plate). At the time we were all very much in the middle of our healing journeys with diverse autoimmune diseases, but we connected on the idea that diet was key.
      
      

      2013

      • 2013 was a time of grassroots growth for AIP. In April, Mickey released the first ebook about AIP, The Autoimmune Paleo E-Cookbook. This was the year Sarah Ballantyne was heavily researching the protocol and publishing more in-depth articles about the “why’s,” nutrient density, and reintroductions. It was also the year that we started to consider the lifestyle piece in managing our conditions. Our group was still small, but this year another dozen or so bloggers started sharing their stories and recipes with the burgeoning community.
      
      

      2014

      • 2014 was the breakout year for AIP. In January, Sarah Ballantyne’s complete guide to AIP was released, The Paleo Approach, and went on to become a New York Times Bestseller later that summer. In March, the print version of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook came out. And later on in the year we got The Paleo Approach Cookbook, a second offering from Sarah Ballantyne, and Angie Alt’s The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook, along with a few other fantastic AIP ebooks. SAD to AIP in SIX had its first enrollment guiding 25 members through a phased transition to AIP. In these early days, the community was looking for recipes and support, and the offerings this year definitely answered that call! At the end of 2014, the very first AIP restaurant, Mission: Heirloom opened its doors in Berkeley, California, and the first AIP podcast, The Phoenix Helix Podcast joined the airwaves!
      
      

      2015

      • January 2015, Angie and Mickey announced that they would be joining forces and blogging together, along with community voices, at autoimmune-paleo.com. At this point, the community had grown to tens of thousands of people, as evidenced by the movement’s exponential growth, engagement, and connection on our site and across all social media platforms (especially Instagram!). The movement was now large enough to support big in-person gatherings, with many meetup groups springing up, authors holding book tours, classes being given, and speaking at conferences about the protocol. This was the year that we started overhearing folks in the grocery store talking about AIP, and we had a large enough base of people who had experience with the protocol to start featuring success stories other than our own on our site. By the end of 2015, there were over 15 books and programs for people following AIP!
      
      

      2016

      • 2016 AIP started infiltrating progressive doctors’ offices and went global. In the early days, people found out about AIP from reading online or picking up a copy of our books. This year, the functional and alternative medicine communities started hearing about AIP and we heard more and more from both our followers and clients that their doctors were recommending this approach. A GI doctor reached out to us about the positive results one of her IBD patients had with AIP, and that discussion turned into a full-blown medical study using AIP, later that year.
      • Also in 2016, it became clear to us that our movement was no longer US-based, as both international readership and membership in the blogging community grew exponentially. The AIP movement began to grow in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South America, Europe, and even the Middle East. Our discussions also shifted to encompass the lifestyle changes, implementation, and patient advocacy. We released our co-authored book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook and started The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast as guides to those who were not only looking for dietary information, but a well-rounded guide to all of the areas important to living well with autoimmune disease.
      
      

      

      So, what happened to the AIP movement in 2017?

      Let’s take a look at some numbers. We know the AIP movement is large and continues to grow, but this becomes more clear as we look at the stats. Here is some information we’ve gleaned from our website and social media channels that helps depict the size of our movement:

      • Autoimmune Wellness has reached 4 million unique users with 13 million pageviews
      • Over 130,000 people have signed up for our free AIP quick-start guide
      • The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast has been downloaded over 400,000 times
      • 86% of our readers on the site are female (compared to 93% on Facebook)
      • 30% of our readers are 35-44, 25% are between 25-34, 20% are between 45-54, and 12% are between 55-64
      • We have readers from 234 countries, including places like Antarctica, Nepal, South Sudan, and Turkmenistan (yes, really!). Our highest represented international communities are Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Germany, and South Africa
      • We have 42 US-based AIP meetup groups spanning the entire country (almost one for every state!)
      • We have 23 international AIP meetup groups (including Egypt, Croatia, and Finland!)
      • On Instagram, #autoimmunepaleo and #autoimmuneprotocol have been used over 100,000 times each
      • There are over 50 recipe bloggers writing about AIP, over 30 AIP-friendly cookbooks, and literally thousands of recipes available for the elimination phase
      • We think it is safe to say the AIP movement is massive, engaged, continuing to grow, and thriving!
      
      

      This year, the AIP community got a huge piece of validating news in the results of the first-ever medical study of the diet for those with IBD (inflammatory bowel disease). While tens of thousands of us already knew that the protocol works, having the data legitimize the efforts we’d been putting in for years and helped us open new conversations with healthcare teams. Even though the study was restricted to those with IBD, our anecdotal experience as a community says that we are likely to find similar results with other autoimmune disease types if we are lucky enough to see future studies. Here is a summary of the study results:

      • There were 15 participants, nine with Crohn’s and six with ulcerative colitis.
      • Angie’s group coaching program, SAD to AIP in SIX, was used to transition participants to AIP for the study.
      • By Week 6 (that was full AIP elimination), 11 of the 15 participants were in clinical remission (six with Crohn’s, five with ulcerative). A 73% success rate!
      • All eleven participants maintained clinical remission through the maintenance phase.
      • Seven of the 15 participants were on active biologic therapies but not in clinical remission at baseline, and this suggests that diet can be an important component of successful treatment.
      • The researchers concluded, “We did not hypothesize, a priori, that clinical remission would be achieved so early (week 6). Indeed, this proportion of participants with active IBD achieving clinical remission by week 6 rivals that of most drug therapies for IBD . . . (Konijeti, et al. 2017)” In other words, it works!!
      
      

      The AIP community showed their collective creative and fundraising capacity through a successful launch of The Complete AIP Resource Library in August and November.

      • Over 40 recipe authors and contributors collaborated to bring a high-value, low-cost resource to the community.
      • Together, we were able to raise over $30,000 for charities that support the autoimmune community through research, advocacy, education, and real-food access.
      
      

      This year Mickey, Angie and Sarah graduated the first 100 AIP Certified Coaches. In 2016, the three of us recognized the need to train others in this approach and started developing a certification program for those in both the natural and conventional health care systems. This year we enrolled, taught, and graduated our very first class!

      • The first class of AIP Certified Coaches included MDs, NDs, Pharmacists, DCs, RDs, PTs, RNs, PAs, fitness coaches, mental health professionals, NTP/Cs, CHCs, Herbalists, LaCs, and other types of practitioners.
      • We are happy to announce that AIP Certified Coaches are incorporating AIP into their practices around the globe, with many international coaches and others who work virtually over skype. (Looking for a coach? Check out the AIP Certified Coach Directory!
      • These practitioners are now part of an “army” of AIP-trained professionals, able to make an enormous impact on the chronic illness epidemic around the globe.
      
      

      This year the SAD to AIP in SIX program graduates neared the 2,000-member mark. In addition to being successfully used in the first medical study to evaluate the effectiveness of AIP, it has become recognized as the most affordable, gentle, and sustainable way to transition to the protocol and achieve wellness.

      Phew! No wonder we are a little tired this season ;).

      

      How has the AIP community changed over the years?

      If you are just joining our movement now, it might not be readily apparent how much has changed. Here are some of the biggest things we notice:

      • More resources. We’ve gone from a few blogs to countless print and digital resources to help folks cook, meal plan, and navigate their health journeys.
      • Doctor recommendations. We never used to hear “my...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11342Mon, 01 Jan 2018 12:00:00 -070041:12falsefullThe AIP community has changed… a lot! Since our humble beginnings in approximately 2011, our movement has grown exponentially. This growth has been overwhelmingly positive, but there have been some downsides to it as well. Considering all the growth and change, we’ve decided to start 2018 with a “State of AIP Address” here at Autoimmune Wellness. We’d like to have a discussion about the roots ...Bonus Episode #2: Deep Dive w/ MickeyThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!
        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        This is a special bonus series of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast where we are sharing in long, conversational format our personal healing stories. In each of these episodes, we are joined by our Content Manager, Grace Heerman, who interviews us individually about our experiences with illness.

        If you are new to our podcast, we recommend starting at the very beginning of Season 1, where we take a deep look into the seven steps to living well with autoimmune disease, as outlined in our co-authored book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. In season 2 we expanded the format to include Q and A episodes as well as interviews with those who have used AIP to successfully heal from chronic illness.

        Mickey’s Interview

        Welcome back to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast! We are in the middle of producing a third season for you all to enjoy, and we believe it will be our most actionable and best season yet. In the meantime, we are sharing long-format interviews on our personal healing journeys, lead by our amazing content director Grace.

        Today you’ll hear Grace interview Mickey in-depth about her healing story, including what it was like to experience a healing crisis in her twenties having been newly married, without health insurance, and with a very limited understanding from her friends and family.

        We’ll be back around the New Year with an update about what we have in store for you guys both on the blog and for the podcast.

        Thank you Grace, for facilitating these interviews for us! Enjoy everyone!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        The post Bonus Episode #2: Deep Dive w/ Mickey appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!
        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        This is a special bonus series of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast where we are sharing in long, conversational format our personal healing stories. In each of these episodes, we are joined by our Content Manager, Grace Heerman, who interviews us individually about our experiences with illness.

        If you are new to our podcast, we recommend starting at the very beginning of Season 1, where we take a deep look into the seven steps to living well with autoimmune disease, as outlined in our co-authored book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. In season 2 we expanded the format to include Q and A episodes as well as interviews with those who have used AIP to successfully heal from chronic illness.

        Mickey’s Interview

        Welcome back to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast! We are in the middle of producing a third season for you all to enjoy, and we believe it will be our most actionable and best season yet. In the meantime, we are sharing long-format interviews on our personal healing journeys, lead by our amazing content director Grace.

        Today you’ll hear Grace interview Mickey in-depth about her healing story, including what it was like to experience a healing crisis in her twenties having been newly married, without health insurance, and with a very limited understanding from her friends and family.

        We’ll be back around the New Year with an update about what we have in store for you guys both on the blog and for the podcast.

        Thank you Grace, for facilitating these interviews for us! Enjoy everyone!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        The post Bonus Episode #2: Deep Dive w/ Mickey appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11354Thu, 14 Dec 2017 23:14:02 -070002:05:12falsefullThis is a special bonus series of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast where we are sharing in long, conversational format our personal healing stories. In each of these episodes, we are joined by our Content Manager, Grace Heerman, who interviews us individually about our experiences with illness. If you are new to our podcast, we recommend starting at the very beginning of Season 1, where we ...Bonus Episode #1: Deep-Dive w/ AngieThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!
        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        This is a special bonus series of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast where we are sharing in long, conversational format our personal healing stories. In each of these episodes, we are joined by our Content Manager, Grace Heerman, who interviews us individually about our experiences with illness.

        If you are new to our podcast, we recommend starting at the very beginning of Season 1, where we take a deep look into the seven steps to living well with autoimmune disease, as outlined in our co-authored book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. In season 2 we expanded the format to include Q and A episodes as well as interviews with those who have used AIP to successfully heal from chronic illness.

        Angie’s Interview

        Welcome back to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast! We’re sorry that it has been so long since we’ve released any episodes; the truth is that we have spent a good part of this year working on training our AIP Certified Coaches, and now that our first class has graduated, we’re back to focusing on developing some new podcast content for you guys to enjoy. We can’t wait to share with you what we’ve been up to!

        In the meantime, we do have a couple of special bonus episodes to share with you guys. We’re going to give you a little backstory about how this came about, because it was definitely not something we’ve been planning. Our content director, Grace, interviewed Angie for some writing she was doing on the site.

        Now, at the time, neither Angie or Grace knew how deep and personal the interview would be, and they recorded it so that Grace could revisit some of the events Angie spoke about. None of us knew how moving and powerful this long, conversational interview would be, and when we all gave it a listen, we thought that we needed to share it in some way, and that some of you might find it helpful to hear our personal healing stories in this format. This conversation includes the full details of Angie’s 11-year struggle with obtaining her autoimmune diagnosis, much of which took place while living overseas in Africa.

        Thank you Grace, for facilitating these interviews for us! Enjoy everyone!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        The post Bonus Episode #1: Deep-Dive w/ Angie appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!
        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        This is a special bonus series of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast where we are sharing in long, conversational format our personal healing stories. In each of these episodes, we are joined by our Content Manager, Grace Heerman, who interviews us individually about our experiences with illness.

        If you are new to our podcast, we recommend starting at the very beginning of Season 1, where we take a deep look into the seven steps to living well with autoimmune disease, as outlined in our co-authored book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. In season 2 we expanded the format to include Q and A episodes as well as interviews with those who have used AIP to successfully heal from chronic illness.

        Angie’s Interview

        Welcome back to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast! We’re sorry that it has been so long since we’ve released any episodes; the truth is that we have spent a good part of this year working on training our AIP Certified Coaches, and now that our first class has graduated, we’re back to focusing on developing some new podcast content for you guys to enjoy. We can’t wait to share with you what we’ve been up to!

        In the meantime, we do have a couple of special bonus episodes to share with you guys. We’re going to give you a little backstory about how this came about, because it was definitely not something we’ve been planning. Our content director, Grace, interviewed Angie for some writing she was doing on the site.

        Now, at the time, neither Angie or Grace knew how deep and personal the interview would be, and they recorded it so that Grace could revisit some of the events Angie spoke about. None of us knew how moving and powerful this long, conversational interview would be, and when we all gave it a listen, we thought that we needed to share it in some way, and that some of you might find it helpful to hear our personal healing stories in this format. This conversation includes the full details of Angie’s 11-year struggle with obtaining her autoimmune diagnosis, much of which took place while living overseas in Africa.

        Thank you Grace, for facilitating these interviews for us! Enjoy everyone!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        The post Bonus Episode #1: Deep-Dive w/ Angie appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=11352Thu, 14 Dec 2017 22:58:29 -070002:04:38falsefullThis is a special bonus series of The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast where we are sharing in long, conversational format our personal healing stories. In each of these episodes, we are joined by our Content Manager, Grace Heerman, who interviews us individually about our experiences with illness. If you are new to our podcast, we recommend starting at the very beginning of Season 1, where we ...S2 E8 Angie interviews Ryan Monahan, who is recovering from Hashimoto’s thyroiditisThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!
        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 8 is our final episode of the season! And what an episode to end on. We don’t often hear stories from men in the Hashimoto’s community but today, Angie is interviewing our friend Ryan Monahan who has managed his Hashi’s symptoms in one of the most challenging professional environments: a tour bus.

        As a traveling musician, Ryan had to become an expert at thinking ahead and being proactive about his healing. No matter your career, you will definitely find takeaways here. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients just like you to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. On to the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Ryan, and his diagnosis story [2:30]
        2. Learning about holistic treatment [13:17]
        3. Treatment with the greatest impact [19:53]
        4. AIP on the road and touring [24:54]
        5. Biggest dietary impact on symptoms [33:06]
        6. Stand-out supporters [36:17]
        7. Highest point of the journey [40:11]
        8. Final takeaways from Ryan [44:29]

        Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 2. This is Angie, and today I’m interviewing Ryan. He is a Hashi’s warrior, and also a functional diagnostic nutrition practitioner. And additionally, with all of that going on, he’s also a passionate musician who has been in the music industry for 15 years, and member of a regular touring band, Easter Island. We are going to dig into that, you guys; touring and AIP. It can be done.

        We’ve gotten a lot of feedback that you guys find it helpful to hear from folks who have taken on the healing journey in real life. So today we will be sharing a little bit of Ryan’s story. Thank you, Ryan, for joining us from Georgia. Are you ready to get started?

        Ryan: Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me on the show. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.

        1. Introducing our guest, Ryan, and his diagnosis story [2:30]

        Angie Alt: Yeah. We’re really excited to share a lot of different stories this season. So let’s just dive in with some questions. You know, one of the areas we love to explore with people is diagnosis, and folks’ diagnosis story. Because as you probably know, in the autoimmune community, that can be kind of a harrowing journey. What was the first symptom you noticed of your autoimmune disease?

        Ryan: Yeah. So I had really struggled with allergies and asthma my entire life. And just generally symptoms of related to ear, nose, and throat. I was one of those just kind of sick all the time kids. Like, oh he’s on antibiotics; oh, he’s had bronchitis, the croup. You name it. Strep throat, just constantly. And that kind of persisted into my adult life. And then it started getting worse when I was in college. And it was really when I noticed that things were getting really bad was when I was sleeping for 10, 12 hours at a time, and was having trouble waking. So I would set three alarms, and that still wouldn’t wake me up. And I would set an alarm on my stereo system, and it would be shaking the entire room.

        Angie Alt: Oh boy! {laughs}

        Ryan: Yeah, and I would still just sleep through it and miss classes. It took me a few years to really piece it together. Because at that time, I had just assumed I’m burning the candle at both ends, I’m a busy guy, I’m just exhausted. I’m just kind of burnt out. And you know, that was kind of the narrative I told myself for a while.

        Angie Alt: Ok. So it was probably since childhood that you were kind of dealing with some of this stuff, and it sounds like it kind of came into full being in probably your early 20s, in college. I think that happens to a lot of us, actually, in this autoimmune world. And it can be hard to separate it, right? From, is this just regular, like you said, burning the candle at both ends, or not?

        Ryan: Absolutely. I think as a society, we’re just kind of accustomed to accepting a really low baseline for health. And when everybody is more or less sick around us, I don’t think. It’s kind of like that quote, “The last thing a fish would ever notice is water.”

        Angie Alt: Right.

        Ryan: And so I think, yeah, we just kind of assume that because symptoms are common that they’re normal. And we just try to cope with it, and maybe try things here and there. I’ll try some vitamin C, and kind of self-medicate a little bit. But as you know, that only lasts for so long until your symptoms are sort of screaming at you for help.

        Angie Alt: Right. So how long did it take you, then, to actually get an official diagnosis from that point when you were kind of like; “Oh, this is not normal. I can’t even get up to my stereo system screaming at me. What’s going on here?”

        Ryan: Well. You know, it’s really hard to say. Because I had been dealing with these things most of my life. It was just really in college that they kind of reached a peak. But I would say it’s at least 10 years. I wasn’t...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 8 is our final episode of the season! And what an episode to end on. We don’t often hear stories from men in the Hashimoto’s community but today, Angie is interviewing our friend Ryan Monahan who has managed his Hashi’s symptoms in one of the most challenging professional environments: a tour bus.

        As a traveling musician, Ryan had to become an expert at thinking ahead and being proactive about his healing. No matter your career, you will definitely find takeaways here. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients just like you to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. On to the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Ryan, and his diagnosis story [2:30]
        2. Learning about holistic treatment [13:17]
        3. Treatment with the greatest impact [19:53]
        4. AIP on the road and touring [24:54]
        5. Biggest dietary impact on symptoms [33:06]
        6. Stand-out supporters [36:17]
        7. Highest point of the journey [40:11]
        8. Final takeaways from Ryan [44:29]

        Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season 2. This is Angie, and today I’m interviewing Ryan. He is a Hashi’s warrior, and also a functional diagnostic nutrition practitioner. And additionally, with all of that going on, he’s also a passionate musician who has been in the music industry for 15 years, and member of a regular touring band, Easter Island. We are going to dig into that, you guys; touring and AIP. It can be done.

        We’ve gotten a lot of feedback that you guys find it helpful to hear from folks who have taken on the healing journey in real life. So today we will be sharing a little bit of Ryan’s story. Thank you, Ryan, for joining us from Georgia. Are you ready to get started?

        Ryan: Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me on the show. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.

        1. Introducing our guest, Ryan, and his diagnosis story [2:30]

        Angie Alt: Yeah. We’re really excited to share a lot of different stories this season. So let’s just dive in with some questions. You know, one of the areas we love to explore with people is diagnosis, and folks’ diagnosis story. Because as you probably know, in the autoimmune community, that can be kind of a harrowing journey. What was the first symptom you noticed of your autoimmune disease?

        Ryan: Yeah. So I had really struggled with allergies and asthma my entire life. And just generally symptoms of related to ear, nose, and throat. I was one of those just kind of sick all the time kids. Like, oh he’s on antibiotics; oh, he’s had bronchitis, the croup. You name it. Strep throat, just constantly. And that kind of persisted into my adult life. And then it started getting worse when I was in college. And it was really when I noticed that things were getting really bad was when I was sleeping for 10, 12 hours at a time, and was having trouble waking. So I would set three alarms, and that still wouldn’t wake me up. And I would set an alarm on my stereo system, and it would be shaking the entire room.

        Angie Alt: Oh boy! {laughs}

        Ryan: Yeah, and I would still just sleep through it and miss classes. It took me a few years to really piece it together. Because at that time, I had just assumed I’m burning the candle at both ends, I’m a busy guy, I’m just exhausted. I’m just kind of burnt out. And you know, that was kind of the narrative I told myself for a while.

        Angie Alt: Ok. So it was probably since childhood that you were kind of dealing with some of this stuff, and it sounds like it kind of came into full being in probably your early 20s, in college. I think that happens to a lot of us, actually, in this autoimmune world. And it can be hard to separate it, right? From, is this just regular, like you said, burning the candle at both ends, or not?

        Ryan: Absolutely. I think as a society, we’re just kind of accustomed to accepting a really low baseline for health. And when everybody is more or less sick around us, I don’t think. It’s kind of like that quote, “The last thing a fish would ever notice is water.”

        Angie Alt: Right.

        Ryan: And so I think, yeah, we just kind of assume that because symptoms are common that they’re normal. And we just try to cope with it, and maybe try things here and there. I’ll try some vitamin C, and kind of self-medicate a little bit. But as you know, that only lasts for so long until your symptoms are sort of screaming at you for help.

        Angie Alt: Right. So how long did it take you, then, to actually get an official diagnosis from that point when you were kind of like; “Oh, this is not normal. I can’t even get up to my stereo system screaming at me. What’s going on here?”

        Ryan: Well. You know, it’s really hard to say. Because I had been dealing with these things most of my life. It was just really in college that they kind of reached a peak. But I would say it’s at least 10 years. I wasn’t diagnosed with Hashimoto’s until I was 28. And this is kind of insane, but I actually had visited over 40 doctors before I received a diagnosis.

        Angie Alt: I actually don’t think that’s insane. I totally hear you brother! {laughs} I’ve been there too.

        Ryan: Yeah.

        Angie Alt: But yeah, it feels insane in comparison to a lot of other people. But you’re just searching and searching. Do you think that in part being a male was a barrier to getting a Hashi’s diagnosis, because it’s so commonly women?

        Ryan: Absolutely. I think doctors just didn’t think to check with the sort of constellation of symptoms that I was experiencing. Although, those are more commonly associated with women, I think I got overlooked by the traditional medical system. And no one had ever thought to look for those kinds of markers for the thyroid. Because it’s, what, 8 times, is that correct? About 8 times more likely in women than in men?

        Angie Alt: Boy, I don’t know the exact percentages. But yes, it’s much, much more common in women. But it does happen. I know of a lot of other men actually out there in our community, too, dealing with Hashi’s. It’s too bad that it’s not on more doctor’s radars.

        Ryan: it also makes me wonder how many men are just not seeking the kind of medical help or advice. I suspect that maybe they wouldn’t be as inclined to visit the doctor if they were experiencing the same symptoms that a woman would be.

        Angie Alt: Right. Yeah.

        Ryan: So there might be; in other words, there might be a little bit of male pride kind of issue going on there.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, maybe some male pride. And then the combination of the doctor’s kind of overlooking it. And it makes it tough for somebody like you to get a diagnosis. When you got the diagnosis, how did you handle it?

        Ryan: When I got the diagnosis, I was sort of a combination of scared and confused. And also really thrilled.

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Ryan: Like, this weight had been lifted off of my shoulders. Like, I didn’t even really know what the thyroid was or what it’s function was. But I was also just really extremely excited to have a diagnosis, and to know that I wasn’t crazy and that this wasn’t all in my head. I now had something concrete to work on.

        Angie Alt: Mm-hmm. Yeah, I totally relate to that feeling. For me, I kind of relate it; it was sort of like naming my enemy. And now I could actually fight effectively. Before that, I had no idea. It was kind of like being in the dark and sort of hoping that I could figure it out. So I really relate to that. How did your friends and family handle your diagnosis?

        Ryan: Well, I think everyone was just relieved to see me get better. I remember a good friend of mine seeing me only a week after I had been on Synthroid. And he said, “What did you do with Ryan?”

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Ryan: Because I just had this pep in my step all of a sudden. And my face physically looked different. I lost this sort of puffiness in my face. And my voice changed. It was kind of freaky. So people kind of looked at me funny at first. But I think everyone was relieved. Everyone kind of knew something was up, but nobody really knew what it was.

        Angie Alt: Mm-hmm. Yeah. I can totally understand that. Do you think that; this is a pretty common experience, but not everyone shares it in the community. Do you think that some of your friends and family kind of doubted that there was something really there? Did you ever feel like you were kind of desperately trying to make people believe that something really was wrong?

        Ryan: Yeah, 100%. And I won’t name names.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, I get it. {laughs}

        Ryan: But I think a lot of my friends and family thought I was a little bit of a hypochondriac, that it was in my head. Or some of the things that I had expressed to them that I was going through, I think they maybe overlooked, or had just kind of passed off as, oh that’s normal. You’re getting older. And it’s like, but wait a minute! I’m in my early or mid-20s. I shouldn’t be sleeping 12 hours a day, I shouldn’t be this depressed. I shouldn’t be this fatigued all the time. So it was really hard for that reason. I feel like I had to sort of internalize it. And kind of internalize the suffering, to an extent. In the sort of darkest hour, I remember feeling like I thought I was dying, and had no idea what was going on. And then I would beat myself up. Like, “Oh, you’re being so dramatic. You’re not dying.” And you know, I maybe wasn’t that far from it. Because when I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s, my TSH was above 150.

        Angie Alt: Wow.

        Ryan: And for those of you who don’t know, optimal thyroid range is maybe between 0.5 and 1.5. So my TSH was actually above the detectible lab limit. So it was somewhere above 150; the lab couldn’t even detect it that high.

        Angie Alt: Wow.

        Ryan: But I remember my doctor saying, “I don’t even know how you were able to get up in the morning,” for years, potentially, that I was dealing with this without having any diagnosis.

        Angie Alt: Right. So you’re at the extreme end of experiencing, to that point, this undiagnosed autoimmune disease. And you’re unable to find answers. You’re seeing upwards of 40 doctors at this point trying to get those answers. And the people around you are beginning to doubt the validity of the problem. And yeah, you’re right. Of course you’re going to internalize all that. So then getting a diagnosis, in some ways, I think sometimes, maybe outside of our autoimmune community it can sound like we’re a little kooky, being a little thrilled or relieved to be given a diagnosis of having a chronic illness. {laughs}

        Ryan: Yeah.

        Angie Alt: But it’s actually really validating when you’re in that terrible spot for so many years.

        Ryan: Yeah. It’s incredibly validating. Because you realize that you didn’t have to beat yourself up so much over your diagnosis, you know. And I think sometimes even people get into the more psychospiritual aspect of their condition. And think, maybe it’s karma. Maybe I deserve this for some reason. I think you can get kind of deep into blaming yourself for your illness. And once you realize that it has a physiological root to it, I think that’s incredibly relieving. Because you can kind off cast aside that narrative that it’s your fault.

        2. Learning about holistic treatment [13:17]

        Angie Alt: Mm-hmm. Right. So, how long after receiving the Hashi’s diagnosis did you start to dive in and learn about autoimmune disease itself, and start to kind of understand that process? Were you somebody who really wanted to kind of gather as much knowledge as you could, or did you feel a little fearful or tentative about getting some of that information?

        Ryan: It was a pretty gradual process. I would say the first 9 months I really didn’t understand much about what was going on, and I just sort of trusted the advice of my endocrinologist at the time. Which was just to take the Synthroid, there’s nothing you can do about it. And I kind of left it at that.

        Then, like many people experienced, the Synthroid only had a positive effect for so long. And a lot of my symptoms started popping up again. And that’s really when I started taking things into my own hands. Because I started to question. Ok, so my thyroid is malfunctioning. I get that. I get that my immune system is attacking my thyroid. But I wanted to know why, you know? I’ve never been the type of person to just kind of lie over and accept something. And that’s when I started to really kind of try to reverse engineer what was going on, and to do my own research and become my own health advocate. And at that point, I had started to do some internet research, and I came across Izabella Wentz’ book, which for many people is the thyroid/Hashimoto’s bible.

        Angie Alt: Right.

        Ryan: And you know, that was the first thing I had read that had opened me up to what functional medicine is, and what it could offer. And this whole concept of looking for root causes, and looking for nutrient deficiencies, and hormone imbalances, and gut infections, and even things like metal toxicity. All these things were just not on my radar until I had discovered her book. So that was really a game-changer for me. Because it provided a road map to how to manage the condition. And in some cases, people are even able to successfully put it into remission through implementing some of these strategies.

        So shortly after discovering her book, I came across Mickey’s website. Which, at the time, had her Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook, which was just an eBook at the time. So this was kind of really at the beginning stages of things.

        Angie Alt: That was back in the way back. {laughs}

        Ryan: Way back, yeah. And I can’t even say I remember how I found her website. But I did somehow. And I really resonated with her story, because I felt like we had a lot in common in the sense that we both had Hashimoto’s, we were both former vegans, we both had gluten intolerance, we both had an MTHFR mutation, all these different things. And just through that kind of connection, even though I hadn’t met her yet, it had really led me to want to find out more about, what’s the whole autoimmune paleo thing? That’s when I kind of dipped my toes into making dietary and lifestyle changes.

        Angie Alt: Ok. So it sounds like kind of your first initial reaction was to kind of go with the conventional approach, and you gave yourself a little bit of time to, at least let the hormone replacement...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10665Mon, 05 Jun 2017 11:00:00 -070051:30falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 8 is our final episode of the season! And what an episode to end on. We don’t often hear stories from men in the Hashimoto’s community but today, Angie is ...S2 E7 Q + A #4 – Friends and family, Epstein-Barr virus, white rice, and additional sensitivitiesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 7 is our final Q + A episode of the season! This week, Mickey and Angie are focusing on questions about food sensitivities beyond the AIP, and how to tweak the protocol to address unusual symptoms such as protein cravings. They also touch on how to handle discussions about AIP with coworkers, friends and family.

        Plus, they start by chatting about how they’ve been managing stress recently, and their personal batch cooking neuroses. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. On to the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Mickey and Angie: Question of the week [2:39]
        2. Suggesting AIP to friends and family [5:31]
        3. Comments about diet and illness from coworkers [10:07]
        4. Intolerance to foods on AIP [16:32]
        5. Additional food sensitivities on AIP [20:30]
        6. White rice after reintroduction [24:44]
        7. Epstein-Barr and Hashimoto’s [27:05]
        8. Intense protein cravings [34:46]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast season 2. Today is our last round of question and answer for this season. Dun, dun, dunnn! How are you doing this week, Angie?

        Angie Alt: I’m doing good. It’s been a little crazy. We’ve both been busy with conferences and other work travel and stuff. But it’s good. What about you? How are you doing?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. Just trying to get control over the schedule and the cooking and the sleeping and the stress managing, and the texting. {laughs}

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Yeah. So appropriate.

        Mickey Trescott: It’s a lot. It’s a lot.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, it’s been a lot. Yesterday; excuse me. Two days ago I cooked all the things. I was like, “oh my god, I have to get on top of the cooking!” and I cooked so much food and now I have too much food. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Well that’s not a big problem. Because you can always freeze it!

        Angie Alt: Yeah, that’s true.

        Mickey Trescott: That’s what I do. But yeah, the first thing I do when things start to get a little crazy is I start batch cooking. It’s like obsessive.

        Angie Alt: Mm-hmm. I hear you.

        1. Mickey and Angie: Question of the week [2:39]

        Mickey Trescott: So, before we get onto our regular scheduled listener questions, we’re going to ask each other a question like we’ve been doing this whole series. I know Angie is ready to be done with this format, because she doesn’t like the random questions.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: But Angie, my question for you this week, is what aspect of personal healing are you working your hardest on right now?

        Angie Alt: Oh boy. Mickey. You and the can of worms all the time. I would have to say honestly that I am probably in a period where I’m trying to be ok with things being the way they are. I’m trying to kind of let go of focusing a lot on healing, and just let things be kind of crazy, kind of hairy, kind of up and down. And just allow myself to kind of go with the flow. And sometimes the flow isn’t the direction you would hope for. But I’m just trying to be a little Zen about it at the moment. I think that’s where I’m really working, if I’m honest. What about you, Mick. What you do you have going on?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. You know, the meditation thing. It’s a little in the same vein; just kind of trying to accept the situation that I’m in. The stressors and the physical stuff. I feel like there are a lot of things I don’t have control over right now, so meditation has been very helpful. And I made a goal to meditate every day, and I was on a 68-day streak using the Calm app. Which, you know, you shared that with me and I got super into it. Of course, I’m an Upholder.

        Angie Alt: Calm is awesome. Calm is my spirit animal.

        Mickey Trescott: It’s the best. And I got really hooked in because I like having a perfect record, and so when it reminded me every day, it’s time to meditate, I would do a little meditation every day. And this week, it just fell off the rails, and I forgot one day. And I kid you not, I woke up at 3 in the morning, and the first thing I thought was, “Oh my gosh, I forgot to meditate yesterday!” And I was so sad I almost cried.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: I was like, “I was on a streak!” And you know what I wanted to do was to do it for a whole year. But I’ll get back on the wagon and keep going.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, you’re doing great. You know what. You guys, this is a reason why you know Calm is really, really awesome. Mickey has the Upholder tendency. If you don’t know what we’re talking about, check out Gretchen Rubin and the Four Tendencies. So Mickey has the Upholder tendency, and she feels like she is going to do that internally and externally. She wants the reward of doing that. I am not the Upholder...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 7 is our final Q + A episode of the season! This week, Mickey and Angie are focusing on questions about food sensitivities beyond the AIP, and how to tweak the protocol to address unusual symptoms such as protein cravings. They also touch on how to handle discussions about AIP with coworkers, friends and family.

        Plus, they start by chatting about how they’ve been managing stress recently, and their personal batch cooking neuroses. Scroll down for the full episode transcript!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. On to the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Mickey and Angie: Question of the week [2:39]
        2. Suggesting AIP to friends and family [5:31]
        3. Comments about diet and illness from coworkers [10:07]
        4. Intolerance to foods on AIP [16:32]
        5. Additional food sensitivities on AIP [20:30]
        6. White rice after reintroduction [24:44]
        7. Epstein-Barr and Hashimoto’s [27:05]
        8. Intense protein cravings [34:46]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast season 2. Today is our last round of question and answer for this season. Dun, dun, dunnn! How are you doing this week, Angie?

        Angie Alt: I’m doing good. It’s been a little crazy. We’ve both been busy with conferences and other work travel and stuff. But it’s good. What about you? How are you doing?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. Just trying to get control over the schedule and the cooking and the sleeping and the stress managing, and the texting. {laughs}

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Yeah. So appropriate.

        Mickey Trescott: It’s a lot. It’s a lot.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, it’s been a lot. Yesterday; excuse me. Two days ago I cooked all the things. I was like, “oh my god, I have to get on top of the cooking!” and I cooked so much food and now I have too much food. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Well that’s not a big problem. Because you can always freeze it!

        Angie Alt: Yeah, that’s true.

        Mickey Trescott: That’s what I do. But yeah, the first thing I do when things start to get a little crazy is I start batch cooking. It’s like obsessive.

        Angie Alt: Mm-hmm. I hear you.

        1. Mickey and Angie: Question of the week [2:39]

        Mickey Trescott: So, before we get onto our regular scheduled listener questions, we’re going to ask each other a question like we’ve been doing this whole series. I know Angie is ready to be done with this format, because she doesn’t like the random questions.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: But Angie, my question for you this week, is what aspect of personal healing are you working your hardest on right now?

        Angie Alt: Oh boy. Mickey. You and the can of worms all the time. I would have to say honestly that I am probably in a period where I’m trying to be ok with things being the way they are. I’m trying to kind of let go of focusing a lot on healing, and just let things be kind of crazy, kind of hairy, kind of up and down. And just allow myself to kind of go with the flow. And sometimes the flow isn’t the direction you would hope for. But I’m just trying to be a little Zen about it at the moment. I think that’s where I’m really working, if I’m honest. What about you, Mick. What you do you have going on?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. You know, the meditation thing. It’s a little in the same vein; just kind of trying to accept the situation that I’m in. The stressors and the physical stuff. I feel like there are a lot of things I don’t have control over right now, so meditation has been very helpful. And I made a goal to meditate every day, and I was on a 68-day streak using the Calm app. Which, you know, you shared that with me and I got super into it. Of course, I’m an Upholder.

        Angie Alt: Calm is awesome. Calm is my spirit animal.

        Mickey Trescott: It’s the best. And I got really hooked in because I like having a perfect record, and so when it reminded me every day, it’s time to meditate, I would do a little meditation every day. And this week, it just fell off the rails, and I forgot one day. And I kid you not, I woke up at 3 in the morning, and the first thing I thought was, “Oh my gosh, I forgot to meditate yesterday!” And I was so sad I almost cried.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: I was like, “I was on a streak!” And you know what I wanted to do was to do it for a whole year. But I’ll get back on the wagon and keep going.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, you’re doing great. You know what. You guys, this is a reason why you know Calm is really, really awesome. Mickey has the Upholder tendency. If you don’t know what we’re talking about, check out Gretchen Rubin and the Four Tendencies. So Mickey has the Upholder tendency, and she feels like she is going to do that internally and externally. She wants the reward of doing that. I am not the Upholder personality, but I still have had a similar experience where I woke up in the middle of the night and was like, “Oh no! I messed up my Calm streak!” That’s how great Calm is.

        Mickey Trescott: It gets into your subconscious, and it’s just like, “Meditate. Meditate. Meditate.”

        Angie Alt: It works for all tendencies.

        2. Suggesting AIP to friends and family [5:31]

        Mickey Trescott: It’s great. So that was fun. So let’s get onto tackling some of our specific questions. I did another call out on Instagram. We always get so many questions; way more than we could answer in a series, or in a podcast. But today we actually had some people asking some pretty similar questions, and actually upvoting other people’s questions. So we’ve got some topics that I think will apply to a lot of you guys today.

        The first question, actually the first two questions are about friends, family, and the workplace. And HS; yeah I don’t know how to say that. Hutsau says, “How to approach friends and family who have autoimmune disorders, and think high power prescription drugs is the only reasonable treatment, or should you even go there?”

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Wow. This is, I think probably for those of us who know that there are other approaches, or that combinations of approaches can really be the most effective and maintain the highest quality of life, it can be so disheartening and frustrating, and even maybe a little sad or scary to see friends and family choose this other route. And you feel like you have this information that could benefit them so much, and you’re so worried about the impact of the choice they’ve made. It can be hard to know what to do.

        But, here’s the honest to goodness truth; you’re better off to not go there. You’re better off to just be a powerful example. People are changed not by your words, but by your actions. So just be a really strong example in your own life of healing, and how you’re able to either choose the completely natural route, which is awesome if you can do that. Or, combine, which a lot of us have to do. If you can just sort of give that example to your friends and family, that’s probably the best way to go. In time, when they are ready for that message, they’ll come to you.

        I think in my life it started out like, “This is kind of crazy. Angie’s doing this fringe whatever thing.” And now, honestly, I almost have to beg my friends and family not to ask me questions about it, and ask for my help on it. Because they see, powerfully, that I followed through and I’m a lot healthier than I was before. So that would probably be my best advice. What would you say, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. I would just add that the biggest reason for that is because it’s almost, you can’t force them to change. What we’re asking people to do; changing their diet, and changing their lifestyle, and advocating for themselves is a lot of work. And it’s pretty intense. And if you’re doing this yourself, and then you tell someone else; “Oh, you need to do this too.” And maybe they don’t; I think there’s a lot of judgement that could come with that. People in your family could avoid you, or not want to talk to you about it. And that’s not what you want in that situation. You don’t want to see, “Ha. I know all of this and you don’t. And you don’t have the time to do it. And it’s too overwhelming.” You maybe leading by example sets you up as the person to comes to when they’re ready. And then it kind of takes out all of that judgement that people could perceive there. So I think that’s why it’s really important not to go there. And let people come to you when they’re ready.

        Like you said Angie; I’ve had so many people in my life. Like, really surprising, surprising people that I never would have thought would be asking me for help, and reach out. And I think it’s because I haven’t been pushy about telling everyone what they should do. You know?

        Angie Alt: Right. Right. Exactly. Considering the level of commitment that healing through diet and lifestyle takes, it’s best that each person arrives there themselves.

        Mickey Trescott: Well, it’s almost, to an addiction analogy. I have a lot of addiction history in my family. And there have been times where it would have been really easy to just force someone to go to rehab, or force them to confront their problem. But those are never the times when that person is able to make a sustainable change that actually changes their life. It’s painful for the people that know better, around them, and that’s the only thing I can maybe liken it to. That feeling of being someone that could help, but not being able to because the person isn’t ready yet. And that’s not in your control.

        3. Comments about diet and illness from coworkers [10:07]

        Angie Alt: Yep. Exactly. Ok, let’s see. Moving on to another kind of friends, family, workplace question. Pick Perfect Love says, “How to deal with working when you have an autoimmune disease? I’m a teacher, and my peers and principal tends to make comments about my diet, which is AIP, and I’m ‘always’ sick or not feeling well. I have to give 110% as a teacher, but there are some days when I am just not feeling well.” Mickey, what would you say to her?

        Mickey Trescott: You know, this is definitely a situation where I would say these people are definitely not being supportive of your journey. And I think you might need to have a conversation about how what you’re doing is something that’s really difficult. You’re doing it for yourself, and these comments will not be tolerated in a work situation.

        I would say that this kind of discussion might come up in families, because families are so much more complicated, and you’re related by blood. But I really don’t think that your coworkers and your boss have any right to comment on the food that you’re eating, and if you’re always sick or not feeling well.

        Now, as it relates to your work, they have some say there. And that’s where it becomes tricky. Being an autoimmune patient and having a full-time career is no easy task. And I was confronted with this when I got really sick and had to go back to work. I wasn’t able to do my previous career. I got fired because I kept going into work sick, and tired, and I wasn’t able to keep up. And that’s how I got fired. And you know, that’s a dramatic situation, and it was very unpleasant and unhappy in the situation. But it actually made me realize that I needed to seek out a situation that was compatible with my illness.

        So, not saying that you can’t be a teacher. Obviously, it sounds like you love your job and you really want to make it work. And I think trying to bridge that gap between your coworkers and your boss’ perception about your illness without maybe oversharing and trying to make them feel bad for you. But also being very strong and saying, “This is what I’m doing for my body, and it’s working. I shouldn’t be getting any judgement from you.” Because that’s not really their place. Wouldn’t you say, Angie?

        Angie Alt: Yeah. One thing that I might kind of bring into your own awareness that sometimes folks; especially folks that want to comment on your food or what they see you bringing in to work to eat each day. Sometimes they’re doing that out of a place of feeling maybe a little insecure about their own food choices. They might feel like maybe your plate is a little bit of a judgement on their plate. Which it’s obviously not. You know you’re doing it just because you want to heal, but sometimes, oddly enough, we in this situation have to do the job of reaffirming the other people who are making the comments. I know this sounds backwards, but it might help if you say, “Whatever you’re eating, cool. This is what I’m eating today because it makes me feel better. No big deal.” Sometimes saying that one little sentence changes the whole dynamic and people feel a little more calm and less worried.

        Mickey Trescott: And Angie, you have a great thing that you say about this, “Don’t be weird.” And you know, if you’re kind of treating yourself as special, and you have this special food, and you make a big deal about it when people ask you about it. You’re like, “Oh my god, it’s really complicated, and it’s because I’m really sick.” You’re kind of weird about it, people are going to pick that up, and they’re going to be like, “Oh. That’s weird.” But if you’re just like; “Oh, this is what I eat because this is what makes me feel good,” and that’s all; no story to it. People might be like, “Oh, ok. She knows what she’s doing and I’ll move on to something else.” You know?

        Angie Alt: Right. If you act with a lot of confidence; this is where my little phrase, “Don’t be weird” comes from. If you act out of a lot of confidence, and just like, “This is my day to day, no commentary necessary.” The people around you will come to respect it.

        Mickey Trescott: Yep. Do you have any advice maybe, Angie, about how to work; I know a lot of people have had this question. How to find an autoimmune friendly career? Do you think it’s specifically a career; or do you think it’s the people you work with?

        Angie Alt: Yeah. You know, it could probably be either or. I think there are careers out there that are probably more autoimmune friendly than others. And if you have an aptitude for those areas, then it might be a good idea to go for them if there’s a fit there to be had. For instance, you and I kind of forged these careers that allow us to take down time if we need to. That said, we’re always working like crazy people {laughing} because we’re too passionate for our own good, probably. But you know, we have the understanding of each other and there’s room there. If they can find similar...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10591Mon, 29 May 2017 11:00:00 -070041:02falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 7 is our final Q + A episode of the season! This week, Mickey and Angie are focusing on questions about food sensitivities beyond the AIP, and how to tweak the ...S2 E6 Mickey interviews Jolaine Weins, who is recovering from ankylosing spondylitisThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 6‘s interview features one of the most captivating stories of AI recovery we’ve ever heard. Jolaine Weins is recovering from a rare, arthritis-related autoimmune condition called ankylosing spondylitis. Following her initial symptom discovery, Jolaine waited 22 years to receive a diagnosis, all the while visiting countless practitioners and living in debilitating pain and lethargy.

        Shockingly, it wasn’t a practitioner but a social media post that finally pointed Jolaine in the right direction. Her story is one of the most powerful testaments to the importance of self-advocacy we’ve ever heard. You’ll want to listen to every fascinating detail! Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Jolaine’s diagnostic journey [2:33]
        2. Reaction of friends and family to the diagnosis [16:31]
        3. Low points on the journey [21:20]
        4. First action step towards health [24:08]
        5. Results on AIP [28:42]
        6. Lifestyle changes [34:43]
        7. Standout supporters [40:04]
        8. Takeaway points [43:42]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast season two. This is Mickey with you guys today, and I’m interviewing a very special friend of mine. We go way back in the autoimmune wellness journey. I first became aware of her almost, gosh, 6 years ago, through Sarah Ballantyne’s blog and Facebook. She was a very early member of the AIP community. Her name is Jolaine, and she has ankylosing spondylitis.

        So, we’ve heard from you guys that you find it really helpful to hear from these people who have taken on this healing journey in real life. I couldn’t think of a better example than someone like Jolaine. She’s been so kind to agree to interview with me to share with you guys a little bit about her story. So thank you so much, Jolaine, for joining us from your home country of Canada. Are you ready to get started?

        Jolaine: Thank you Mickey. I am.

        1. Jolaine’s diagnostic journey [2:33]

        Mickey Trescott: Awesome. So, first thing’s first. We know that you have ankylosing spondylitis. But really; what was the first symptom, first thing that you noticed that something was wrong?

        Jolaine: I think I first noticed; I was about 21 years old, and I was just at work and I had all of a sudden a really sharp shooting pain at my leg into my pelvis area, and my sacrum joint, which is where the disease kind of starts. And that sort of just continued off and on. I just thought it was something wrong with my back. I used to walk to work, and I remember one day, I couldn’t walk the last block. I had to take the bus for one block. And that was, “Ok, something’s really wrong.”

        Mickey Trescott: Whoa. Yeah, that’s pretty debilitating when you can’t walk a block. In that moment, how did you feel having to wait for the bus? Were you like, “I need to call my doctor.” Or what was going through your mind?

        Jolaine: You know, I honestly just thought maybe I’m out of shape. {laughs} I don’t know. I really didn’t think that it was something that serious.

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Jolaine: You know, I thought maybe I needed a trip to the chiropractor, or maybe I should exercise some more. Probably the normal thoughts that would go through anyone’s head. It never occurred to me it was a disease of any kind.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, especially when you’re young and you really haven’t had anything happen to you like that. I think our tendency is definitely to just be like; “Well, if I can just get through this, it will go away.” Or something.

        Jolaine: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: So from that first noticing those sharp pains, how long did it take until you actually got your diagnosis in? What was that process like?

        Jolaine: It took 22 years.

        Mickey Trescott: Oh my gosh!

        Jolaine: And that was; yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: That’s a long time. That’s probably one of the longer time frames I’ve ever heard.

        Jolaine: Yeah. So, that was a good chunk of my life, and it was horrible. It was a horrible 22 years. And oddly enough, the first year after my diagnosis was even worse. So, it was really difficult. I mean, like a lot of people with autoimmune, your doctors, your family, your circle of friends, your coworkers, they just think you’re a hypochondriac. Because, I mean the list of symptoms is so long. And even to hear myself say to somebody, “Well this hurts, and this happens, and this happens.” To myself, I sounded like a little excessive, you know?

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Jolaine: It didn’t seem like it was a...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 6‘s interview features one of the most captivating stories of AI recovery we’ve ever heard. Jolaine Weins is recovering from a rare, arthritis-related autoimmune condition called ankylosing spondylitis. Following her initial symptom discovery, Jolaine waited 22 years to receive a diagnosis, all the while visiting countless practitioners and living in debilitating pain and lethargy.

        Shockingly, it wasn’t a practitioner but a social media post that finally pointed Jolaine in the right direction. Her story is one of the most powerful testaments to the importance of self-advocacy we’ve ever heard. You’ll want to listen to every fascinating detail! Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Jolaine’s diagnostic journey [2:33]
        2. Reaction of friends and family to the diagnosis [16:31]
        3. Low points on the journey [21:20]
        4. First action step towards health [24:08]
        5. Results on AIP [28:42]
        6. Lifestyle changes [34:43]
        7. Standout supporters [40:04]
        8. Takeaway points [43:42]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast season two. This is Mickey with you guys today, and I’m interviewing a very special friend of mine. We go way back in the autoimmune wellness journey. I first became aware of her almost, gosh, 6 years ago, through Sarah Ballantyne’s blog and Facebook. She was a very early member of the AIP community. Her name is Jolaine, and she has ankylosing spondylitis.

        So, we’ve heard from you guys that you find it really helpful to hear from these people who have taken on this healing journey in real life. I couldn’t think of a better example than someone like Jolaine. She’s been so kind to agree to interview with me to share with you guys a little bit about her story. So thank you so much, Jolaine, for joining us from your home country of Canada. Are you ready to get started?

        Jolaine: Thank you Mickey. I am.

        1. Jolaine’s diagnostic journey [2:33]

        Mickey Trescott: Awesome. So, first thing’s first. We know that you have ankylosing spondylitis. But really; what was the first symptom, first thing that you noticed that something was wrong?

        Jolaine: I think I first noticed; I was about 21 years old, and I was just at work and I had all of a sudden a really sharp shooting pain at my leg into my pelvis area, and my sacrum joint, which is where the disease kind of starts. And that sort of just continued off and on. I just thought it was something wrong with my back. I used to walk to work, and I remember one day, I couldn’t walk the last block. I had to take the bus for one block. And that was, “Ok, something’s really wrong.”

        Mickey Trescott: Whoa. Yeah, that’s pretty debilitating when you can’t walk a block. In that moment, how did you feel having to wait for the bus? Were you like, “I need to call my doctor.” Or what was going through your mind?

        Jolaine: You know, I honestly just thought maybe I’m out of shape. {laughs} I don’t know. I really didn’t think that it was something that serious.

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Jolaine: You know, I thought maybe I needed a trip to the chiropractor, or maybe I should exercise some more. Probably the normal thoughts that would go through anyone’s head. It never occurred to me it was a disease of any kind.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, especially when you’re young and you really haven’t had anything happen to you like that. I think our tendency is definitely to just be like; “Well, if I can just get through this, it will go away.” Or something.

        Jolaine: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: So from that first noticing those sharp pains, how long did it take until you actually got your diagnosis in? What was that process like?

        Jolaine: It took 22 years.

        Mickey Trescott: Oh my gosh!

        Jolaine: And that was; yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: That’s a long time. That’s probably one of the longer time frames I’ve ever heard.

        Jolaine: Yeah. So, that was a good chunk of my life, and it was horrible. It was a horrible 22 years. And oddly enough, the first year after my diagnosis was even worse. So, it was really difficult. I mean, like a lot of people with autoimmune, your doctors, your family, your circle of friends, your coworkers, they just think you’re a hypochondriac. Because, I mean the list of symptoms is so long. And even to hear myself say to somebody, “Well this hurts, and this happens, and this happens.” To myself, I sounded like a little excessive, you know?

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Jolaine: It didn’t seem like it was a real thing. So I went to; I couldn’t even count the doctors and specialists and different diagnoses I was given in the meantime in that 22 years. I had a lot of disability; probably years of my life in bed in horrible pain, with no help whatsoever.

        Mickey Trescott: What were you told when you went in? Did you get misdiagnosed? Was that part of the reason? Why do you think it took so long?

        Jolaine: I think it’s a typical story. I had skeletal pain, so I was sent to a rheumatologist. I had digestive issues, so I also saw a gastroenterologist. I also had hormone issues, so I was also seeing an endocrinologist. It seems that every specialist I went to, I had their disease, or their issue. So you’re told you have IBS, and arthritis, and you’re too skinny, that’s why you don’t have your period. All these different diagnoses. But in my gut, I always knew these are connected. I’m one person, I’m one body. I need one doctor that will look at the whole picture; not just that it hurts here, or this isn’t working. You know?

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm. So what was the final doctor that made the connection. How did that come about?

        Jolaine: It actually wasn’t a doctor that figured it out in the end. There were a few tests along the way that kind of led me towards the diagnosis; but the final sort of conclusion or thing that sort of propelled me to find out what it was was Facebook. The pain that I had shooting up my leg, the original one, that sort of kept coming back over the years; I thought it was something with my foot. At the time, I wore high heels to work, and I thought it was something wrong with my food and wearing high heels. So I was at a podiatrist, and he was asking me a bunch of questions to determine if I would heal well after a surgery. Because as it turns out, I’m missing a small little bone in my foot, and he thought if we did this surgery, it would get better.

        So after a series of questions, he said to me, “I don’t think by your answers that you’d be a good candidate for surgery. I don’t think you’d heal really well and it’s not going to benefit you. But I’m curious to know what your rheumatoid markers are like, and if you happen to carry this particular gene; HLAB27.” Which meant nothing to me, whatsoever. So I’m like, sure whatever. Let’s do a blood test.

        So it came back positive. I have this gene. And my rheumatoid markers were slightly elevated. And he said, “This isn’t a big deal. You might want to check this again in 5 or 10 years and see if its’ changed any.” And at the time, I was very sick. And I look back, and I think, it’s not my personality to go straight home and start Googling that, and figure out what is this gene, and what does that mean? But I think because I was just so overwhelmed with how I felt, I just kind of filed that in my head and never did anything with it.

        So then one day on Facebook, a friend of mine just wrote the strangest Facebook status. It said, “I am HLAB27 negative.” Which, probably, to most people meant nothing. So as soon as I read that, I was like, “Hey, that’s that gene that I had.” So I private messaged her. I was like, “I’m curious; why did you write that?” And she said, “3 of my sisters have AS.” I wrote back, and said, “I don’t know what that is. What is AS?” She answered, “Ankylosing spondylitis.” So I Googled it, and I had the entire list of symptoms. And I just knew, when I read that. “That’s it! That’s got to be it.”

        So all of the health care professionals I had in my life at that time; chiropractor, physiotherapist, rheumatologist, my GP, my naturopath; all of them said, “No, you don’t have that. You don’t fit the description.” But I still felt like, “Yeah I do.” I know that I’m still flexible, and I’m still mobile, and I can do all these things. But I feel what it says there. So I asked my GP for a referral to a specialist, and that took 9 months to get in.

        Mickey Trescott: Whoa.

        Jolaine: So I went to that specialist finally, after 9 months, and I said, “I have this gene. These are my symptoms. I think I have AS. What can we test me for this?” So he did some really, really simple tests. “Bend this way, bend forward, do this, do that. Tell me how you feel.” And he also said, “I really don’t think by looking at you and doing all of these hands-on exams that you have it. I really don’t.” And for the first time in 22 years, a doctor said, “But, I hear what you’re saying, I see this blood test. It’s just going to be a simple x-ray. Let’s do it.” And I felt like that was the first time someone actually heard what I said.

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Jolaine: And that was really pivotal. So he took the x-ray, and it came back. And he goes, “Yeah. Sure enough, you have it, and it looks like you’ve had it for about 20 years.” And I said, “Yep. Yep, that’s about right.”

        Mickey Trescott: Wow.

        Jolaine: And that was it. Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: Wow. That is just incredible. You know, incredible just because it’s so common for us to really feel intuitively that there is something wrong, and to be told; especially as a young woman. I think we’re a little bit; we’ve experienced this personally. I experienced my illness in my 20s. But when you go into the doctor’s office, and you’re a normal weight, and you’re kind of a cute young girl; they kind of go, “Oh, maybe you’re depressed. Maybe it’s in your head.”

        Jolaine: Yeah!

        Mickey Trescott: I cannot even imagine. I was told that for a year, and I was going out of my mind. I can’t imagine 22 years.

        Jolaine: Yeah, so many people were like, “Here, you need antidepressants.” So many things like that. And I was always, genetically, on the low end of the weight scale. So automatically that was a thing, too. It was, “Oh, you just need to gain weight. You’re deficient in nutrients. You’re not eating enough.” Things like that. But even he said; “You are not typical at all of any patient that I have.” And I think that’s probably because all of those 22 years, I still tried to do what I thought was the best thing with food, exercise, and sleep. So that probably really helped me. And I also knew that I had a really low bone density in my 20s. So I was trying to eat, and live, for that as well. So that probably all cumulatively really helped me. But I told him in that appointment, “Whatever your textbook says about AS and my future, you can throw it away when it comes to me. I’m not typical in anything, and I don’t intent to end up where your textbook says I will.”

        Mickey Trescott: I love that. You are on fire. But you know, you figured it out. And how empowering is that to just; that sequence of events. Finding out from a podiatrist that you have a genetic marker, and then a friend posting on Facebook, and then basically researching online, figuring out, “I probably have this disease.” All the things that had to happen to make you get there. Of course you told him that he couldn’t count on you just being a textbook case. {laughs} That’s a pretty incredible story.

        Jolaine: And you go through so many different doctors, and so much vulnerability, and so much; almost, I don’t know, maybe abuse is a strong word, but sometimes it feels like it the way that you’re treated. That you get to the point where you understand 100%; if I don’t speak for myself, nobody will.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

        Jolaine: You have to be your own advocate. You have to say, “This is what I want, and this is what I know.”

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And you have a unique experience as the person who is feeling those symptoms, and whose body is physically expressing itself in that way. You deeply come to that understanding that it’s all you. All these people, they can give you information; they can try to help, but I think a lot of the way that people view the medical profession and in turn the same way that they treat us; especially chronically ill patients. Yeah, abuse is not too strong of a word {laughs}. It’s almost; you have to heal from that. I don’t know what your experience was like, but I knew that it took me a little while to gain my respect back for the medical profession after.

        I had a similar experience where I found out about Hashimoto’s, I read about it, I knew I had it, and I had to go through 6 doctors who told me, “No, no, no, no, no,” until I found the one, “Yes, actually, I did the test, you have it.” I was pretty pissed at the whole conventional medical system. And it probably took me a year or two to get back to the place where I was like; you know, there are good doctors out there. They get into this because they want to help, and I just have to figure out how to find the right one and how to communicate and how to advocate for myself properly.

        Jolaine: And I don’t think that ends. I’m still experiencing that at times, where a doctor doesn’t believe you. That just happened to me over Thanksgiving last year, and I ended up writing a 4-page letter to the emergency doctor at my local hospital just for the way they treated me, for the misunderstanding. And not in a hope of getting out my own anger, but to give her perspective on, “The next time you come across somebody like me, this is what you need to know. After we leave the hospital, this is what happens that you don’t see.” That kind of thing.

        I think to my disadvantage, as well. I’ve been told I don’t express pain outwardly very visibly, and that was to my disadvantage. Because I’d sit there and say, well I’m in a 9/10 pain right now. But I say it calmly, and I’m not crying, and I don’t display it well. So that was to my disadvantage. But then on the flip side of that, if you go into a doctor’s office displaying it, and you’re crying, and you’re...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10590Mon, 22 May 2017 11:00:00 -070051:14falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 6‘s interview features one of the most captivating stories of AI recovery we’ve ever heard. Jolaine Weins is recovering from a rare, arthritis-related autoimmune condition called ankylosing spondylitis. ...S2 E5 Q + A #3 – Weight loss, pregnancy, macronutrient ratios, and coffee replacement options while on AIPThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 5 takes us back to our Q+A style, where Mickey and Angie answer questions from listeners like you. In this episode, the ladies dig into how to address too much weight loss on AIP, how to navigate pregnancy while on AIP, good carb-y snacks for type 1 diabetics, and coffee replacements.

        Plus, they start by chatting about common (and confounding) misconceptions about AIP, and the questions they wish they’d get asked more often. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. On to the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Mickey and Angie ask each other a question [2:53]
        2. Losing too much weight on AIP [8:10]
        3. Over-restriction, losing too much weight [13:31]
        4. Pregnancy and AIP [17:43]
        5. Macronutrients: Cutting down on meat [25:00]
        6. Carby snacks for type 1 diabetic [29:07]
        7. Replacement for coffee [31:16]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. If you’re here, you know that we are right in the middle of our second season; sharing with you guys a series of Q&A and interview today, because we’ve got both Angie and I on the line. We are doing a Q&A episode. We’re going to answer some of you guys’ questions. But first, I’d love to hear from Angie, how she’s doing this week.

        Angie Alt: Hey everybody. I am doing good. I just got done having a little timeout week. I put myself in timeout, and had to do a bunch of regrouping, so that I could keep my head on my shoulders, and figure out how to do all the things that I do. I’m actually feeling a lot better this week, for taking that time. How are you Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: I’m feeling a lot better now that you {laughs} had a timeout.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, heads up everybody.

        Mickey Trescott: Because I got a timeout, too. It was a really nice reminder that we both needed to slow down. And I wasn’t thinking about slowing down until you were like; I can’t this week. I was like, “You know what? I can’t either.” {laughs}

        Angie Alt: Yeah. If you work in partnership; if one of you is losing it, the other one will be impacted. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Totally. Totally. So, yeah, I’m feeling pretty good after the weekend.

        Angie Alt: Nice.

        1. Mickey and Angie ask each other a question [2:53]

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so. Before we get to these listener questions, going on our theme that we started last time we did one of these, we’re going to ask each other a question. So Angie, my question for you this week, is what is one thing that we get asked all the time that sometimes you just can’t wrap your head around where all of the confusion comes from? {laughs}

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Ok. Well, there’s probably a couple of areas to explore here. One that comes to the top of my mind right away is kind of the misconception that AIP is a no-sugar protocol. That comes up pretty often. I see it especially in my group program, because there’s high volume of people going through there. I get to be exposed to this really often. And you know, its’ a very low-sugar protocol, for sure. It’s nowhere near what a Standard American Diet has; not even in the same ballpark. Not even on the same continent in terms of sugar intake.

        You know, people will say, “I thought I couldn’t eat any fruit, because there’s sugar.” You know. If they see a paleo treat recipe, they’re like, “I thought we couldn’t eat maple syrup!” Of course, we’re not encouraging everybody to go out and drink a gallon of it or anything, but a very small amount of sugar is totally within bounds for the protocol.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And don’t you think sometimes when people ask this, they’re angry.

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: Like, they have; there are these anti-sugar people. Which, you know, sugar; especially if you’re someone who has a history of the blood sugar thing. We’re not saying sugar is the best thing ever. But sometimes when people write in, they’ll be like, “I am so disappointed. I thought this was sugar free. You should know better!” {laughs}

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: And it’s just like; uh, I mean, you know a little treat in moderation after dinner in the context of a balanced meal usually brings a lot of people happiness.

        Angie Alt: Right. You know, the point. As always, I think we’ve said this many, many times now. But the point of this protocol is not to burden our hearts and minds; it’s to heal. And if you feel like you can never enjoy a small treat, and have a celebration with your family, or have something special over a holiday. If there is no option for that, it’s not going to be sustainable in real life. And you won’t be able to heal.

        Mickey Trescott: Agreed.

        Angie Alt: So, a little bit of balance there. Ok, so I have a question for you,...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 5 takes us back to our Q+A style, where Mickey and Angie answer questions from listeners like you. In this episode, the ladies dig into how to address too much weight loss on AIP, how to navigate pregnancy while on AIP, good carb-y snacks for type 1 diabetics, and coffee replacements.

        Plus, they start by chatting about common (and confounding) misconceptions about AIP, and the questions they wish they’d get asked more often. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. On to the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Mickey and Angie ask each other a question [2:53]
        2. Losing too much weight on AIP [8:10]
        3. Over-restriction, losing too much weight [13:31]
        4. Pregnancy and AIP [17:43]
        5. Macronutrients: Cutting down on meat [25:00]
        6. Carby snacks for type 1 diabetic [29:07]
        7. Replacement for coffee [31:16]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. If you’re here, you know that we are right in the middle of our second season; sharing with you guys a series of Q&A and interview today, because we’ve got both Angie and I on the line. We are doing a Q&A episode. We’re going to answer some of you guys’ questions. But first, I’d love to hear from Angie, how she’s doing this week.

        Angie Alt: Hey everybody. I am doing good. I just got done having a little timeout week. I put myself in timeout, and had to do a bunch of regrouping, so that I could keep my head on my shoulders, and figure out how to do all the things that I do. I’m actually feeling a lot better this week, for taking that time. How are you Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: I’m feeling a lot better now that you {laughs} had a timeout.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, heads up everybody.

        Mickey Trescott: Because I got a timeout, too. It was a really nice reminder that we both needed to slow down. And I wasn’t thinking about slowing down until you were like; I can’t this week. I was like, “You know what? I can’t either.” {laughs}

        Angie Alt: Yeah. If you work in partnership; if one of you is losing it, the other one will be impacted. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Totally. Totally. So, yeah, I’m feeling pretty good after the weekend.

        Angie Alt: Nice.

        1. Mickey and Angie ask each other a question [2:53]

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so. Before we get to these listener questions, going on our theme that we started last time we did one of these, we’re going to ask each other a question. So Angie, my question for you this week, is what is one thing that we get asked all the time that sometimes you just can’t wrap your head around where all of the confusion comes from? {laughs}

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Ok. Well, there’s probably a couple of areas to explore here. One that comes to the top of my mind right away is kind of the misconception that AIP is a no-sugar protocol. That comes up pretty often. I see it especially in my group program, because there’s high volume of people going through there. I get to be exposed to this really often. And you know, its’ a very low-sugar protocol, for sure. It’s nowhere near what a Standard American Diet has; not even in the same ballpark. Not even on the same continent in terms of sugar intake.

        You know, people will say, “I thought I couldn’t eat any fruit, because there’s sugar.” You know. If they see a paleo treat recipe, they’re like, “I thought we couldn’t eat maple syrup!” Of course, we’re not encouraging everybody to go out and drink a gallon of it or anything, but a very small amount of sugar is totally within bounds for the protocol.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. And don’t you think sometimes when people ask this, they’re angry.

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: Like, they have; there are these anti-sugar people. Which, you know, sugar; especially if you’re someone who has a history of the blood sugar thing. We’re not saying sugar is the best thing ever. But sometimes when people write in, they’ll be like, “I am so disappointed. I thought this was sugar free. You should know better!” {laughs}

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: And it’s just like; uh, I mean, you know a little treat in moderation after dinner in the context of a balanced meal usually brings a lot of people happiness.

        Angie Alt: Right. You know, the point. As always, I think we’ve said this many, many times now. But the point of this protocol is not to burden our hearts and minds; it’s to heal. And if you feel like you can never enjoy a small treat, and have a celebration with your family, or have something special over a holiday. If there is no option for that, it’s not going to be sustainable in real life. And you won’t be able to heal.

        Mickey Trescott: Agreed.

        Angie Alt: So, a little bit of balance there. Ok, so I have a question for you, Mickey. If there was one question that you wish we would be asked more often, what would it be? Do you think there are some under-explored facets of AIP?

        Mickey Trescott: You know, one thing I haven’t really been asked very often that I actually think is a really interesting thing about my experience is just how my relationships with my friends and with my family, and even my relationship to the world; my career, what I do, how that has all changed as I undertook the autoimmune protocol. I mean, it’s kind of one of those things; defining moments in your life. I think when you have a health crisis and you decide to embark on something that is going to help you feel better, and empowered, and in control; I think that those changes kind of ripple out. And you know, people don’t really talk about it. There is bad; or hard parts about that.

        When I was diagnosed, I had been vegan for a very long time. I had a lot of friends who were in the vegan/vegetarian community, and I had a lot of friends who weren’t vegan that I worked with. When I started eating different, and was sick all the time, and was kind of not that fun to be around because, you know, I needed a lot of support, a lot of these people just kind of disappeared out of my life. And it sounds kind of sad, but what ended up happening was I connected with a lot of incredible people, and made almost a whole new group of friends that I feel get me on a level, and we are close. Like, you and I, Angie, are close in a way that I don’t get that with a lot of people. So I don’t know. A lot of that has changed, and I think that’s something that I haven’t really been asked about.

        Then changing your whole life, you just have a different outlook on life when you have one of those kind of lifechanging moments. It’s almost like going to college, or getting married. A big event in your life, but it’s unexpected, you know?

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Mm-hmm. It’s a little bit of a come to Jesus moment.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, totally.

        Angie Alt: In my world.

        Mickey Trescott: And in that moment, you have the opportunity to change anything you want. And some things have to change, and some things that you never would have changed. Like, I probably would not have changed my career. But I was there, and there was the opportunity, and I went for it. And for a lot of people, that happens, you know.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Exactly. Good answer, Mickey.

        2. Losing too much weight on AIP [8:10]

        Mickey Trescott: Sweet. So that was fun. Now, let’s get on to tackling some questions from our audience. We have a few different topics today. We’re going to talk a little bit about weight loss on the autoimmune protocol. Pregnancy, some macronutrients, and a question about coffee.

        So, Tina asks, “I have been strict full AIP for 8 months. I have alopecia, and have been trying to heal this. The good news is my hair is growing back.”

        Angie Alt: Woot, woot!

        Mickey Trescott: Yay. Side note; Tina, that’s awesome to hear. “Bad news is I’m losing too much weight. Instead of white potatoes I eat sweet potatoes, swede, squash, plantains, and parsnips. But I’m still losing weight. I additionally eat one avocado each morning with my breakfast. I eat 3 large meals a day; and I mean large, but I’m still dropping weight. What do you think could be the cause, and how could I put some weight on?”

        Angie Alt: It sounds to me like Tina is doing a lot of the things that we would probably recommend, right? She’s trying to get in some carbs, and she’s working on getting in more fat when she can. She’s having pretty big servings of food. I would be wondering if she could add in even still a little more fat? So that’s kind of the first step. Make sure you’re eating more fat. Ways to do this beyond the avocados are roasting your vegetables in coconut oil, maybe trying to drizzle a little olive oil on just about everything you’re eating. I drizzle olive oil on just about everything you can imagine. Maybe trying to work in some fat bombs or some full-fat coconut milk into things.

        Then, of course, maybe going a little bit further with the carbs. Even getting into some of the high glucose fruits; because you need a little bit of insulin response to store fat in the body. So maybe bananas, pineapples, apricots, plums, prunes, grapes, raisins, figs, dates. These really sugary kinds of starchy carb sources. And she’s kind of already working on the starchy vegetables, it sounds like.

        And then probably last is not to forget the protein. I would wonder how much protein she’s eating per day. If it’s not enough, maybe bumping that up a little bit. In terms of lifestyle, making sure she’s getting enough rest, and managing her stress. Unmanaged stress can be a problem here with weight.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, another thing that I would think of too; this is kind of the opposite that we tell anyone who is having trouble losing weight on AIP, or even general AIP advice. So for any of you who don’t want to gain weight or are a healthy weight, ignore this. But this is a case where smoothies may be helpful.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. That’s where I was going with the full-fat coconut milk.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. Especially between meals, trying to get in some snacks. She says she’s eating 3 large meals a day. There have been periods where I really needed to gain weight, and I just couldn’t do it without a snack that had a lot of calories in it. And smoothies can actually trick your brain pretty well into getting some calories into your stomach without actually feeling like you’re too full; which is why a lot of people gain weight with them. But you can make smoothies with some of those higher glycemic fruits, and some coconut milk with some fat. And some collagen, and maybe throw some greens in there. That would be great.

        The other thing I might thing is digestion. If her digestion isn’t great, things could be moving through too quick, and she might not actually be accessing those nutrients. So troubleshooting, maybe a reason for digestive issues.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Maybe even starting as simple as food hygiene. Like sitting down and having a very restful environment while you eat; chewing very, very thoroughly. Taking time to kind of concentrate on your food. The textures, the tastes, the smells. Just starting as simple as that, and seeing if it causes any changes. I’ve even recently experimented with this with my husband. And even after 5 years of having me live in his house, he has been shocked at how much it’s making a difference to take time for that.

        Mickey Trescott: And it sounds like, too, if her hair is growing back, she might start thinking about reintroduction soon. Like, if she’s ready and she wants to start reintroducing food, something like white rice might be something to move up the stages, and maybe try that first. Because that’s a pretty good starchy carb that you can cook in some bone broth, and really cover it in some fat. And that might help it be another vehicle for getting some fat into her body.

        Angie Alt: Right, she could even maybe try some butter pretty soon, and have another fat option in there.

        Mickey Trescott: And the nuts and seeds.

        Angie Alt: Yep. Yep. Congratulations Tina, on the hair regrowth! We’re happy for you.

        3. Over-restriction, losing too much weight [13:31]

        Angie Alt: Alright, let’s see. So we have another question about weight loss, Mickey. Jules asks, “I have been doing AIP for 2 months now and have lost too much weight. I know that adding more starchy veggies will help, but I’m not sure if SIBO is a factor or not. Also, I have some yeast/bacteria that I am dealing with, so I’m trying to limit starches and sugars. Any advice on this would be great. Thank you.”

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah. So, Jules, I think that what’s going on is you’re restricting too many categories of food in addition to the autoimmune protocol. So it sounds like you’re limiting starches and sugars; and those are actually really needed to create energy in your body when you’re eating on such a restricted diet.

        So, it sounds like you’re not sure if it’s SIBO, and you maybe know about some yeast and bacteria. The best course of action for someone like you is actually to find a practitioner and get tested for all of these issues that are potentially there. Going online and looking at Candida symptoms, or SIBO symptoms, is not good enough. A lot of these things kind of manifest differently in different people. And you really need to get treated. So restricting these starches and sugars, in addition to AIP, in a lot of cases is not going to make these issues go away. You’re just going to end up really frustrated with like 5 foods to eat, and I’m not surprised that you’re losing too much weight.

        So if SIBO is something that you’re suspecting. For those of you guys that SIBO is maybe a new word, that stands for small intestine bacterial overgrowth. It’s very common in people with autoimmune disease, but not everyone has it. If you suffer from bloating, gas, diarrhea, and/or constipation, and/or alternating both, you could have SIBO. So a low FODMAP; this is fermentable fibers in the diet. Low-FODMAP diet can help a lot of people with their symptoms with SIBO, because these fibers are what the bacteria actually eat. So that’s why you get the bloating and the gas. These are the byproducts of the fermentation in your gut.

        You really need to be tested using a breath test. It’s a lactulose breath test. That’s the only way you can tell if you have SIBO, and it needs to be ordered by a licensed practitioner. I actually think a urine organic acids test also can...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10589Mon, 15 May 2017 11:00:00 -070039:12falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 5 takes us back to our Q+A style, where Mickey and Angie answer questions from listeners like you. In this episode, the ladies dig into how to address too ...S2 E4 Angie interviews Stacy Smith, who is recovering from a suspected autoimmune conditionThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 4 is all about how to start the work and begin healing, even without a diagnosis. It’s our second interview episode of the season and in it, Angie sits down with her friend Stacy Smith to discuss how Stacy has managed an unidentified autoimmune condition for nearly 20 years.

        Angie and Stacy dig into how Stacy came to terms with her condition, how she went from vegan fitness competitor to AIPer, how to find your “best fit” doctor, steps toward self-empowerment, and much more. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Stacy’s diagnosis story [2:35]
        2. Coming to terms with the diagnosis [7:30]
        3. Support of friends and family [10:38]
        4. First discovering it’s autoimmune [12:34]
        5. Finding your best fit doctor [15:58]
        6. First steps towards self-empowerment [21:36]
        7. Greatest dietary and lifestyle impact of AIP [27:52]
        8. Lowest and highest points of Stacy’s journey [34:50]
        9. Stacy’s present health situation [37:29]
        10. Tips for beginning the journey [41:29]

        Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Welcome back to Autoimmune Wellness podcast season 2. This is Angie, and today I’m interviewing Stacy Smith of Viridis Wellness, LLC. She is a fellow nutritional therapy consultant, and an Instagrammer extraordinaire. If you are not following her at Viridis Wellness on Instagram; you should definitely pop in there. She shares beautiful, very informative posts on the daily. She’s a much better Instagrammer than I am.

        We have gotten a lot of feedback that you guys find it helpful to hear from folks who have taken on the healing journey in real life. So today, we’re going to be sharing a little bit of Stacy’s story. Thank you, Stacy, for joining us from the Midwest. Are you ready to get started?

        Stacy Smith: I am. Hey Angie, how’s it going to day?

        Angie Alt: It is going pretty good. There’s always way too much to do in life.

        Stacy Smith: So true.

        Angie Alt: But I am managing it somehow. {laughs}

        Stacy Smith: So true.

        1. Stacy’s diagnosis story [2:35]

        Angie Alt: So, let’s just jump right in. I think it’s always good for folks to kind of tell their diagnosis story, and to kind of share what that part of the journey was like. One of our first questions that we always ask people is, what was the first symptom you noticed of your autoimmune disease? What was the first thing that popped up that made you go; “Hmm. I better investigate this?”

        Stacy Smith: Something’s not right?

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Stacy Smith: Yeah. In my case, that would be harkening all the way back to 1998, when I moved to the Midwest from California. My first symptom was definitely severe fatigue, and that’s the one that I’m still working on today, many years later.

        Angie Alt: Ok. Ok. Yeah, there should be a total different word to describe fatigue when it’s autoimmune fatigue. It’s on a whole other level.

        Stacy Smith: Absolutely. So that should be the word that we make up this year.

        Angie Alt: Right. {laughs}

        Stacy Smith: {laughs}

        Angie Alt: The word of 2017.

        Stacy Smith: That’s right. That’s right. So yes; I went from being very healthy, very active at age 20, to completely debilitated, couldn’t get out of bed, and that was definitely tough at the time.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Ok. How long did it take, from noticing that first system, that really extreme fatigue, until you got an actual diagnosis?

        Stacy Smith: You know, I still don’t have a diagnosis to this day. So I would say that that level of fatigue waxed and waned between 1998 and 2013. I would call that my silent autoimmunity period, which was quite long. And in 2013, I had this constellation of events happen in my life all at the same time. I switched jobs, I was working 80 hours a week at a very fast paced finance firm. I had someone in my family with whom I was close pass away. I had some issues in my relationship. I was training to compete in fitness; so I would say I really kind of pulled the trigger on the autoimmunity at that time; became very ill. I saw three different rheumatologists at the time. One told me, “You definitely have lupus.” One said, “You absolutely do not have lupus.” And another said, “You have undifferentiated connective tissue disease, which will probably turn into lupus.”

        So with lupus, as with many autoimmune diseases, it’s obviously very common to take an extraordinarily long time to reach a diagnosis, and to receive conflicting information along the way. So, just the past month, I have been seeking out additional information. Decided I was going to find a new rheumatologist; interviewed several, and was told again, by...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 4 is all about how to start the work and begin healing, even without a diagnosis. It’s our second interview episode of the season and in it, Angie sits down with her friend Stacy Smith to discuss how Stacy has managed an unidentified autoimmune condition for nearly 20 years.

        Angie and Stacy dig into how Stacy came to terms with her condition, how she went from vegan fitness competitor to AIPer, how to find your “best fit” doctor, steps toward self-empowerment, and much more. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Stacy’s diagnosis story [2:35]
        2. Coming to terms with the diagnosis [7:30]
        3. Support of friends and family [10:38]
        4. First discovering it’s autoimmune [12:34]
        5. Finding your best fit doctor [15:58]
        6. First steps towards self-empowerment [21:36]
        7. Greatest dietary and lifestyle impact of AIP [27:52]
        8. Lowest and highest points of Stacy’s journey [34:50]
        9. Stacy’s present health situation [37:29]
        10. Tips for beginning the journey [41:29]

        Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Welcome back to Autoimmune Wellness podcast season 2. This is Angie, and today I’m interviewing Stacy Smith of Viridis Wellness, LLC. She is a fellow nutritional therapy consultant, and an Instagrammer extraordinaire. If you are not following her at Viridis Wellness on Instagram; you should definitely pop in there. She shares beautiful, very informative posts on the daily. She’s a much better Instagrammer than I am.

        We have gotten a lot of feedback that you guys find it helpful to hear from folks who have taken on the healing journey in real life. So today, we’re going to be sharing a little bit of Stacy’s story. Thank you, Stacy, for joining us from the Midwest. Are you ready to get started?

        Stacy Smith: I am. Hey Angie, how’s it going to day?

        Angie Alt: It is going pretty good. There’s always way too much to do in life.

        Stacy Smith: So true.

        Angie Alt: But I am managing it somehow. {laughs}

        Stacy Smith: So true.

        1. Stacy’s diagnosis story [2:35]

        Angie Alt: So, let’s just jump right in. I think it’s always good for folks to kind of tell their diagnosis story, and to kind of share what that part of the journey was like. One of our first questions that we always ask people is, what was the first symptom you noticed of your autoimmune disease? What was the first thing that popped up that made you go; “Hmm. I better investigate this?”

        Stacy Smith: Something’s not right?

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Stacy Smith: Yeah. In my case, that would be harkening all the way back to 1998, when I moved to the Midwest from California. My first symptom was definitely severe fatigue, and that’s the one that I’m still working on today, many years later.

        Angie Alt: Ok. Ok. Yeah, there should be a total different word to describe fatigue when it’s autoimmune fatigue. It’s on a whole other level.

        Stacy Smith: Absolutely. So that should be the word that we make up this year.

        Angie Alt: Right. {laughs}

        Stacy Smith: {laughs}

        Angie Alt: The word of 2017.

        Stacy Smith: That’s right. That’s right. So yes; I went from being very healthy, very active at age 20, to completely debilitated, couldn’t get out of bed, and that was definitely tough at the time.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Ok. How long did it take, from noticing that first system, that really extreme fatigue, until you got an actual diagnosis?

        Stacy Smith: You know, I still don’t have a diagnosis to this day. So I would say that that level of fatigue waxed and waned between 1998 and 2013. I would call that my silent autoimmunity period, which was quite long. And in 2013, I had this constellation of events happen in my life all at the same time. I switched jobs, I was working 80 hours a week at a very fast paced finance firm. I had someone in my family with whom I was close pass away. I had some issues in my relationship. I was training to compete in fitness; so I would say I really kind of pulled the trigger on the autoimmunity at that time; became very ill. I saw three different rheumatologists at the time. One told me, “You definitely have lupus.” One said, “You absolutely do not have lupus.” And another said, “You have undifferentiated connective tissue disease, which will probably turn into lupus.”

        So with lupus, as with many autoimmune diseases, it’s obviously very common to take an extraordinarily long time to reach a diagnosis, and to receive conflicting information along the way. So, just the past month, I have been seeking out additional information. Decided I was going to find a new rheumatologist; interviewed several, and was told again, by one, “You definitely have lupus.” By the second one, “You definitely do not have lupus.” By the third one, “You may or may not have lupus, but you may have an unusual presentation of some other thing, such as ankylosing spondylitis or psoriasis, or psoriatic arthritis; a couple of other possibilities.”

        So, long story short, a couple of decades in, still no diagnosis.

        Angie Alt: Yeah; this is a really hard one for us. And part of the reason that I chose to interview you today, because I really wanted to share with the audience; which I know there are many of them out there just like you, that sometimes getting a diagnosis is a very long journey, a very protracted journey for a lot of us. And sometimes we’re starting the work of healing before we’re even 100% sure what we’re dealing with. For some of us, that may never come. And you’re a really great example of somebody who is persevering despite not having that information yet.

        Stacy Smith: Right. One of the; I would almost say it’s a benefit of the autoimmune situation, is that there are certain things. Even if you don’t have a diagnosis, there are certain commonalities; quite a few of them, that can yield improvement for almost everyone. And diet, specifically AIP in this case, has been extraordinarily helpful for me. So even though I don’t have a diagnosis, I have a suspected diagnosis of lupus, which may or may not be the case. There are still things I can do to improve my situation, and that’s what I’ve been focusing on, while also trying to figure out exactly what it is that’s going on with me.

        2. Coming to terms with the diagnosis [7:30]

        Angie Alt: So, one of the questions that we often ask folks is about their experience coping with the disease, and how they felt when they were diagnosed. Obviously, you don’t have that piece of the story, but how do you feel not having that diagnosis?

        Stacy Smith: Well, you know, I felt like I had that diagnosis, honestly. I spent several years identifying as part of the lupus community. And I still do, to a large point. That first doctor that I saw is the one that I stuck with, and to quote him, he said that my presentation was very likely to develop into the type of lupus where your kidneys are involved, and that I should expect to pass away from kidney disease. That was very clear-cut to me, regardless of what the others said. That was going from being a very healthy person with having no; I certainly hadn’t accepted that whatever was going on with me would possibly be life-threatening, because it had been going on for 15 years. Honestly, my thought was, “Whatever is going on with me is not life-threatening, or I wouldn’t still be here 15 years later.”

        So for him to tell me that was honestly devastating. I would say that at the time I did not cope very well with my diagnosis. And it was one of those things that really took hitting rock bottom, and starting to pull yourself out over an extended period of time.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Yeah. You know, not every autoimmune disease that’s out there is quite so aggressive, or necessarily life-threatening. Certainly, it diminishes quality of life, but there are some that are really aggressive, and it’s scary to face a diagnosis like that. I can certainly understand that initially trying to cope with being told that this might be what’s happening must have been really tough.

        Stacy Smith: Yes, and he didn’t have any doubt in his mind, and the way that he portrayed it. And my doubt has come since then with the more information that I gather, and the more educated I become, and the more that I advocate for myself. I question whether or not that’s really what’s going on, or if it isn’t something more unusual. So, regardless, it certainly has impacted my quality of life. But at this point, the wondering what is going on is driving me a little bit crazy.

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Yeah.

        Stacy Smith: {laughs} So. I’m putting a lot of energy into trying to get that answer, while at the same time trying to cultivate an acceptance that I may never actually achieve that.

        3. Support of friends and family [10:38]

        Angie Alt: Right. Right. Tell us about how your friends and family have handled your walk with chronic illness. Whatever we’re working with here. Have they been a source of support and strength for you?

        Stacy Smith: You know, I found honestly that most of my friends did not understand what was happening at all. And I found that the most useful thing I could do was actually create new friendships with a different kind of people who got it. So I would encourage anyone who is finding that they don’t have the level of support that they need to be successful in their journey, in their life as it sits now, to consider releasing some of those relationships and building new and better ones.

        Angie Alt: That’s such good advice {laughs}.

        Stacy Smith: Go ahead?

        Angie Alt: That’s such good advice.

        Stacy Smith: You know, it’s hard. You want people to accept you as you are, but at some point, if they don’t, then you know what, that’s on them. And just let it go, and create a new community of people who are supportive. Because I think; as you know very well; connection is a critical piece of being able to manage your autoimmunity. Luckily, I did have someone in my life who was very understanding and supportive, and is to this day, and that is my boyfriend. He has been with me from the beginning, and really unshakeable in his support. I was a very different person when we met, with very different capabilities than I am now, and he just won’t quit. And on the days that I feel like quitting, he won’t let me quit. So I’m very thankful for him. He’s been a blessing.

        4. First discovering it’s autoimmune [12:34]

        Angie Alt: Aww. That’s great. That’s great to have that one rock-solid supporter. That’s my husband, too. So, let’s backtrack a little bit. When you first learned that what you could possibly be dealing with, and we realize this is an ongoing investigation for you.

        Stacy Smith: Right.

        Angie Alt: But when you first learned that what you could be dealing with was an autoimmune disease, what did you think about autoimmune disease? Was that something that you knew about prior, or was it like; “Oh my gosh, I didn’t even know that these existed?”

        Stacy Smith: Well, during the period from when I first, let’s say got sick, to when I had a “diagnosis” in 2013, I had been to what felt like every doctor on the planet. Every specialty trying to get to the bottom of this. And I had been told that based on my very vague symptoms of fatigue, and my family history, that it was probably some form of autoimmune disease. Which was not rearing its ugly head to the point where it was observable with typical labs yet. So I was somewhat prepared. I thought at the time; my mother has a wide variety of autoimmune diseases, unfortunately, and so do many of the women in my family. So, I knew that it was possible. But what I didn’t do, unfortunately, that I would like to encourage anyone who maybe doesn’t have a diagnosis yet, and has this really precious window in which to do something, is to educate yourself now and take preemptive steps before something happens.

        So, I had an early tip. And I didn’t utilize it. Which is spilled milk now, but I wish that I had known now what I did then, or I wish that I had known then what I do now. Excuse me. As many of us do. Because I did have sort of a wasted opportunity there to do something about it. So, I kind of knew it was coming, but didn’t really understand how it worked. My family had only ever used conventional medical treatment, and had more of a conventional thought process as to what autoimmune disease was.

        Angie Alt: Mm-hmm. So it was making that leap. Maybe it was too early in your journey to know you should have made it. But I think all of us who chose other routes initially wish we could go back and put some of this diet and lifestyle stuff in place sooner.

        Stacy Smith: Right, right. Exactly. Because traditional medicine is so much more focused on, “We’re going to wait until you are severely ill before we try and put a Band-Aid on it.” I really didn’t receive a message of, “Hey, this is what you can do now.” So that’s something that I like to try to educate others on today, hoping that maybe someone out there will hear the message and take the opportunity if it’s presented to them.

        Angie Alt: Right. Right. So in that initial health care experience, it sounds like at first maybe you didn’t really react one way or the other. But then you may have started out trying to follow some conventional routes to dealing with the problem.

        Stacy Smith: Yeah.

        5. Finding your best fit doctor [15:58]

        Angie Alt: So, there were obviously some doctors along the way. And folks you’re still probably working with. How did you find your best and most helpful doctor? This is such a tough one for those of us in the autoimmune community to find doctors that are really great people to have on our team. So how did you find your best and most helpful doctor?

        Stacy Smith: You know; I would say that I’m still doing that now. I have had a difficult relationship with most of the physicians who are on my team. I am just; my goal for Q1 of this year has been to find a new rheumatology relationship, and I think I’ve found her. I spent a lot of time interviewing, and I found someone with whom I’m really comfortable. But it took a lot of advocacy on my part, and going in with the attitude of, “I’m interviewing you. I’m looking for the right partner for me,” and being willing to walk...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10588Mon, 08 May 2017 11:00:00 -070048:55falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 4 is all about how to start the work and begin healing, even without a diagnosis. It’s our second interview episode of the season and in it, Angie sits down with her friend ...S2 E3 Q + A #2 – Undiagnosed, reintroduction issues, and how to make greens interestingThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 3 is our second Q + A episode where we answer questions submitted by AIPers just like you! Angie and Mickey answer eight reader-submitted questions and, as usual, they pack in a lot of information.

        Topics discussed include what to do if you don’t receive a diagnosis, how long to wait before beginning reintroductions, determining what a “bad reaction” looks like, how to keep leafy greens interesting, and how to find a natural doctor. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Mickey and Angie answer non-AIP related question [2:48]
        2. No diagnosis despite blood work [6:38]
        3. Continuing AIP without an exact diagnosis [12:00]
        4. How long before reintroductions? [14:14]
        5. Determining a detrimental reaction after reintroduction [17:31]
        6. Mickey and Angie’s personal experience with elimination and reintroduction [20:44]
        7. Adding more greens, keeping them interesting [26:49]
        8. Getting in calcium [29:56]
        9. Resource for finding natural doctors [32:09]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. We’re in the middle of our season two. Today we’ve got a great question and answer episode for you, and we realize that some of you guys might be new to the podcast, or even to AIP in general. So if some of the questions on these podcasts sound a little bit above your head; kind of gibberish to you, we recommend going way back to the beginning of season one where we take you through every step of living well with autoimmune disease, starting with informing yourself. There is a ton of information there; we don’t want you guys to miss it. Right Angie?

        Angie Alt: Yeah, we did a podcast episode for every chapter of our book; both one sharing our personal stories on that particular topic; as well as in-depth interviews with various experts for each of the topics. Trust us, there is a ton of information. What was there; like 18 episodes or something, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, it was a very comprehensive and well-produced season. So if you guys are new, don’t be afraid to go back there and start. We cover a lot of information that we’re actually getting questions about that are in those episodes, so we wanted to send you guys a little reminder. Say, hey, start there if you’re kind of new to this. If you guys have been on the road for a while, then you’re in the right place.

        1. Mickey and Angie answer non-AIP related question [2:48]

        So before we get started with today’s episode, I actually kind of had a little idea. And I think it would be fun, Angie, to ask each other an AIP related question before our reader questions. What do you think?

        Angie Alt: Um; well, thanks for springing this on me. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Angie Alt: And yeah, I’m into it. Let’s do it.

        Mickey Trescott: Ok, cool. So, I want to ask you; what was the most non-AIP you ate or did this week?

        Angie Alt: Non-AIP thing I ate or did this week. Well, so my birthday was on Saturday.

        Mickey Trescott: Woot, woot!

        Angie Alt: Yeah. {laughs} So I went out and had a glass of wine, that was very yummy.

        Mickey Trescott: Oh my gosh.

        Angie Alt: Yep. And then, yesterday I actually made the fish pie recipe from Russ Crandall’s first cookbook; The Ancestral Table. Russ Crandall goes by The Domestic Man on his blog and social media accounts. And that recipe includes heavy cream, butter, and white potatoes. So I super went into some reintro mode there with that delicious meal.

        Mickey Trescott: How did you feel after eating it?

        Angie Alt: Pretty good. You know, I’ve been pretty lucky in the dairy department in terms of reintroductions, and I seem to do pretty ok. I don’t eat dairy every single day, by any means. Not even every single week. But if I have it in small amounts; like, the last time I had any dairy was at Christmas time; I seem to do ok.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, that would probably take it over the edge for me.

        Angie Alt: I know; don’t worry, I won’t make it when you’re here. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Actually, thinking about it right now is maybe producing a reaction, so let’s move on.

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Ok. Don’t start wheezing. Ok, so my question for you; you know, I think folks have the impression that we work a lot; and we do. But we also take breaks, and I’m wondering what kind of vacation plans you have this year.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so you know what kind of vacation plans I have this year.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Because; when we were on book tour in November…

        ...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!
        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 3 is our second Q + A episode where we answer questions submitted by AIPers just like you! Angie and Mickey answer eight reader-submitted questions and, as usual, they pack in a lot of information.

        Topics discussed include what to do if you don’t receive a diagnosis, how long to wait before beginning reintroductions, determining what a “bad reaction” looks like, how to keep leafy greens interesting, and how to find a natural doctor. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Mickey and Angie answer non-AIP related question [2:48]
        2. No diagnosis despite blood work [6:38]
        3. Continuing AIP without an exact diagnosis [12:00]
        4. How long before reintroductions? [14:14]
        5. Determining a detrimental reaction after reintroduction [17:31]
        6. Mickey and Angie’s personal experience with elimination and reintroduction [20:44]
        7. Adding more greens, keeping them interesting [26:49]
        8. Getting in calcium [29:56]
        9. Resource for finding natural doctors [32:09]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. We’re in the middle of our season two. Today we’ve got a great question and answer episode for you, and we realize that some of you guys might be new to the podcast, or even to AIP in general. So if some of the questions on these podcasts sound a little bit above your head; kind of gibberish to you, we recommend going way back to the beginning of season one where we take you through every step of living well with autoimmune disease, starting with informing yourself. There is a ton of information there; we don’t want you guys to miss it. Right Angie?

        Angie Alt: Yeah, we did a podcast episode for every chapter of our book; both one sharing our personal stories on that particular topic; as well as in-depth interviews with various experts for each of the topics. Trust us, there is a ton of information. What was there; like 18 episodes or something, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, it was a very comprehensive and well-produced season. So if you guys are new, don’t be afraid to go back there and start. We cover a lot of information that we’re actually getting questions about that are in those episodes, so we wanted to send you guys a little reminder. Say, hey, start there if you’re kind of new to this. If you guys have been on the road for a while, then you’re in the right place.

        1. Mickey and Angie answer non-AIP related question [2:48]

        So before we get started with today’s episode, I actually kind of had a little idea. And I think it would be fun, Angie, to ask each other an AIP related question before our reader questions. What do you think?

        Angie Alt: Um; well, thanks for springing this on me. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Angie Alt: And yeah, I’m into it. Let’s do it.

        Mickey Trescott: Ok, cool. So, I want to ask you; what was the most non-AIP you ate or did this week?

        Angie Alt: Non-AIP thing I ate or did this week. Well, so my birthday was on Saturday.

        Mickey Trescott: Woot, woot!

        Angie Alt: Yeah. {laughs} So I went out and had a glass of wine, that was very yummy.

        Mickey Trescott: Oh my gosh.

        Angie Alt: Yep. And then, yesterday I actually made the fish pie recipe from Russ Crandall’s first cookbook; The Ancestral Table. Russ Crandall goes by The Domestic Man on his blog and social media accounts. And that recipe includes heavy cream, butter, and white potatoes. So I super went into some reintro mode there with that delicious meal.

        Mickey Trescott: How did you feel after eating it?

        Angie Alt: Pretty good. You know, I’ve been pretty lucky in the dairy department in terms of reintroductions, and I seem to do pretty ok. I don’t eat dairy every single day, by any means. Not even every single week. But if I have it in small amounts; like, the last time I had any dairy was at Christmas time; I seem to do ok.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, that would probably take it over the edge for me.

        Angie Alt: I know; don’t worry, I won’t make it when you’re here. {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Actually, thinking about it right now is maybe producing a reaction, so let’s move on.

        Angie Alt: {laughs} Ok. Don’t start wheezing. Ok, so my question for you; you know, I think folks have the impression that we work a lot; and we do. But we also take breaks, and I’m wondering what kind of vacation plans you have this year.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so you know what kind of vacation plans I have this year.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Because; when we were on book tour in November…

        Angie Alt: Oh my god.

        Mickey Trescott: I stayed up; well I didn’t stay up. I set my alarm for 1:30 in the morning so that I could get up and buy Radiohead tickets in Europe. Because my husband and I have been trying to see them since I saw them 10 years ago without him, and he’s been kind of hurt and sad {laughs} ever since then that we haven’t been able to get tickets, which are kind of hard to come by. And they were going on a European tour, and I was like; well, if I can get tickets anywhere in Europe, I guess we’ll go there. {laughs}

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: So Sweden won; I won tickets in Sweden, so we’re going to go there in June. And I have nothing planned, except for a plane ticket and a Radiohead ticket. So if you guys know any cool things going on in Sweden, send me a message on Instagram or something.

        Angie Alt: And I’m like a really cool partner, because even though this craziness was happening at 1:30 in the morning, while we were supposed to be on book tour; I was like, “Yeah, dude, I’m down with live music. Do what you gotta do!” {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: I’m like, I was in the bathroom because I didn’t want my computer screen to wake you up. And then I was trying to type in my credit card number, and the website was all in Swedish. I actually accidentally bought the Norwegian tickets; which I really. The date was wrong; anyways, I’m in the bathroom with my computer, in the dark, and the bright light is blinding me; and I’ve got Google Translate, and my credit card, and I’m like, “Angie is probably thinking I’m a crazy person right now!” {laughs}

        Angie Alt: No. No. I was totally behind you.

        2. No diagnosis despite blood work [6:38]

        Mickey Trescott: Yep. That happened. So that was fun. So, now let’s get onto tackling some of your specific questions about AIP, because we know you guys have got a lot; you always send in a lot when we ask. So let’s start with some questions about diagnosis. Sound good Angie?

        Angie Alt: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: Alright. So, Good Eats Gal has a question about those who are undiagnosed despite heaps of blood work. She says she has a definite positive ANA, and symptoms but no confirmed diagnosis. She is worried about people like her who are put on a “wait and see” track, and that it would be great to hear in-depth about another way of how to find hope without those answers.

        Angie Alt: So, the first thing I would say to Good Eats Gal is we actually are going to have an interviewee during this season who doesn’t have a diagnosis, and has been following the AIP for a long time despite that. She’s still working towards her answers, and it’s been a decade’s long process for her. So don’t give up hope, and definitely stay tuned to this series, because there are other folks out there just like you that don’t have confirmed diagnoses. Mickey, what else would you say to her?

        Mickey Trescott: I would say a positive ANA; so for those of you who don’t know what that is, that’s anti-nuclear antibodies, and that’s an antibody that by itself is not indicative of an autoimmune disease. So when they test the healthy population, a certain percentage of people have a positive ANA without any symptoms or other autoimmune disease. So that by itself; this is probably why your symptoms might not fall into the category of diseases that go with ANA. Which doesn’t mean you don’t have an autoimmune disease, but it’s part of the reason why it’s unclear. Because ANA isn’t really one of those things that’s very obvious.

        Usually, there are more of the mixed connective tissue types of diseases, so things like lupus or Sjogren’s or rheumatoid arthritis, which affect kind of the way connective tissue affects the body. So maybe the joint, and some of the organs, and that kind of thing. So those are usually the diseases that a good rheumatologist will kind of look into.

        If you’re one of these people that’s been searching for a long time, you really do feel like you’ve been seeing high level doctors and they’ve been testing you thoroughly and they’re still not coming up with anything, it really is ok to try to work on your own stuff before you get answers; and maybe in the absence of any answers ever.

        A lot of people have that experience; I know I had this experience when I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s and Celiac; I went through a period after my diagnosis where I started developing more symptoms. So I started to develop neurological symptoms; I started to develop some of these connective tissue symptoms. I did not have positive ANA; but I actually had a lot of markers for illnesses like lupus, and I was actually told that I very well could have that, but I needed to wait for 6 more months before I got a formal diagnosis, and in that period of time I discovered the autoimmune protocol, and slowly some of those symptoms started to peel away, so that diagnosis was no longer obvious.

        I think for the people who are kind of waiting in that; you know, their body is just starting to kind of express those symptoms, and that’s why we have, in our book, we present autoimmunity as a spectrum and not just black or white. A lot of the people that are kind of in the middle of that spectrum, not really ready for diagnosis yet but experiencing autoimmune symptoms, those are the best people to try and work on your own. Work with diet; maybe see a functional medicine practitioner to try to root out some underlying issues, and then prevent going down that road of being diagnosed with a clear illness because of your symptoms, if that makes sense.

        Angie Alt: Right. Yeah, I mean it’s definitely ok to start doing what you can on your own. Many of the principles that are part of the autoimmune protocol are just great principles for living a fuller, healthier life anyway; so even if autoimmune disease doesn’t turn out to be an underlier for you, some of the principles of the process could be positive.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, they could. You never really know until you try what level of success you’re going to see. So some people have been in that murky; like, how can I get diagnosed, I can’t really figure this out, and then they try the lifestyle and the diet changes, and they’re able to completely reverse whatever they’re symptoms were; and then that’s great. They know exactly what they put in, in order to get healthy, and they know how to avoid it for the future. And for some people, that’s best-case scenario, because then they never really have to deal with that mental part of getting a diagnosis and having to go through all that testing. It’s a lot.

        3. Continuing AIP without an exact diagnosis [12:00]

        Angie Alt: Right. So, the next question is kind of in this same category; it looks like Sue asked us. “Is it best, or do most people, continue on the autoimmune protocol diet for a long time, even without an exact diagnosis?”

        Mickey Trescott: So, I think for people that don’t have a diagnosis, it’s the same. It doesn’t matter if you have a diagnosis or if you don’t. When you go onto the autoimmune protocol, the elimination diet; really the standard recommendation is 30 to 90 days. And that is to see if your body is responding; or basically to really see if there are any underlying issues. So you try the elimination diet for one to three months; and then if you have positive changes, it means that there were some food triggers in your diet that are affecting you. If you don’t have positive changes, then that’s time to go start working with a functional medicine practitioner, or a nutritional therapy practitioner, or someone who can really guide you on looking into those root causes. It doesn’t really matter if you have a diagnosis or not.

        Of course, having a diagnosis might give you more information to be looking for clues about improvement. So, for instance. If you have Hashimoto’s disease, over time you might see your thyroid lab markers change. Or if you have Celiac disease, over time you might see your antibodies change. That’s where having a diagnosis, I think, helps you track; but it doesn’t really matter if you have a diagnosis or not when you go into the process, because the protocol is basically about feeling your own body and seeing how food affects you.

        And this woman is talking about, “do most people continue it for a long time.” You know, we’ve reiterated this a lot. The autoimmune protocol; the elimination diet is not something that you do for a very long time without guidance. If you’re doing it for a very long time, expecting results and not getting results, that’s really a clear indicator that you need to bring in some outside support and trouble shoot a little bit.

        Angie Alt: Right.

        4. How long before reintroductions? [14:14]

        Mickey Trescott: Alright. So Misha Cooks AIP; or it might be Misha, probably. Misha.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, Misha.

        Mickey Trescott: So she said she loved podcast season one.

        Angie Alt: Thank you!

        Mickey Trescott: “How long is it recommended to continue the strict phase of AIP before starting reintroductions after healing the gut. She says she has a program she’ll be starting from her functional medicine doctor.

        Angie Alt: Well; there’s a couple of things here. First of all, the basic kind of guidance for everyone is that you need to stay for at least 30 days in the elimination phase of the autoimmune protocol. So, this is just to kind of give you a clean slate from which to be able to gauge reactions as you begin to reintroduce foods. And everybody does a minimum of 30 days there.

        The reality is that for most of us with autoimmune diseases or other chronic...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10587Mon, 01 May 2017 11:00:00 -070039:50falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 3 is our second Q + A episode where we answer questions submitted by AIPers just like you! Angie and Mickey answer eight reader-submitted questions and, as usual, they pack ...S2 E2 Mickey interviews Susan McCauley, who is recovering from ulcerative proctitisThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 2 is the first of our interview episodes this season! This week, Mickey sits down with her friend Susan McCauley to discuss Susan’s experience managing an unidentified autoimmune condition for many years. Susan was eventually diagnosed with ulcerative proctitis, but her healing approach has been all about addressing the root causes from the beginning.

        Susan and Mickey dig into what it was like for Susan to finally receive a diagnosis, they myriad treatments and tests she underwent, low-dose naltrexone, stress management, and the importance of a support system. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Susan, and her autoimmune wellness story [3:19]
        2. Officially a diagnosis [8:14]
        3. Varying treatments and testing [18:07]
        4. Low-dose naltrexone [24:24]
        5. Stress management and sleep [28:31]
        6. Having a support system [35:48]
        7. Tips for the beginning of your autoimmune journey [40:21]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. We are in season 2 of the podcast. This is Mickey if you guys haven’t figured out the differences between Angie and mine voice yet. Today I am doing a personal interview with my friend Susan; hey Susan.

        Susan: Hey Mickey! How’s it going?

        Mickey Trescott: Awesome. Susan is one of my AIP and paleo BFFs. We met at PaleoFx; gosh, 3 years ago?

        Susan: It was actually AHS.

        Mickey Trescott: Oh! AHS, yep. So there we go.

        Susan: And it was longer than that.

        Mickey Trescott: Four!

        Susan: I think it was 4 years ago.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

        Susan: Yeah, 4 years ago.

        Mickey Trescott: I was looking for a ride home from the airport, and Susan had a rental car, and she was also picking up Ben Greenfield, so I got to meet him. So Susan was one of my first paleo friends.

        Susan: And Mickey was one of mine. And we had the same shoes on, and it was like; BFFs at first site.

        Mickey Trescott: Yep! {laughs}

        Susan: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Basically. We couldn’t not be friends.

        Susan: Yes, exactly. It was meant to be.

        Mickey Trescott: So I’m really excited to share a little bit of Susan’s story today because Susan is one of these people who hasn’t had a clear autoimmune diagnosis from the outset, but she has done a really great job at kind of tirelessly working out some of these root causes and kind of still working on some of that; we’ll talk about that. And I think she just has such a great attitude about the healing journey. She’s also a coach, so she has a lot of experience about this stuff. But Susan, thank you so much for being here; joining us from California. You ready to get started?

        Susan: Sure; shoot. Go ahead.

        1. Introducing our guest, Susan, and her autoimmune wellness story [3:19]

        Mickey Trescott: Alright. So, I know that this question is a little bit more complicated for you; but tell me a little bit about your autoimmune disease, and what you first noticed when you first realized maybe that’s something you were struggling with.

        Susan: Well, I first had symptoms a long time ago. I kind of am the example of what not to do, or how to go about everything backwards. I didn’t come to paleo because I was sick; I came to paleo because I wanted to lose weight, and because I had kind of developed a binge eating disorder from all the yo-yo dieting, so I was trying to change my relationship with food. But my first autoimmune symptoms; I have ulcerative proctitis, which is like the cousin of ulcerative colitis. It’s just less severe, and in the lower part; the distal part of the colon. I had symptoms as early as probably 10 years ago; which I don’t know how much TMI about symptoms is on your podcast {laughs}.

        Mickey Trescott: Anything goes. We talk about poop all the time.

        Susan: So basically, bleeding; rectal bleeding, bleeding when you have your bowel movements, and it started when I was doing the yo-yo dieting and the Weight Watchers; and paid attention to conventional wisdom on things like fiber. And I remember one time I ate four Fiber One bars; and I don’t know if you’ve ever had one of those, but they have like; I don’t know how much fiber in them, but they’re like a cookie, you know? And I had a binge eating problem. So one is delicious; four even more delicious. And that’s when the gut problems started.

        I went to Kaiser, and they did a sigmoidoscopy; I think that’s what you call it, it’s been so long. And then they gave me some medication and told me not to eat too many vegetables; that was it. You know; it was basically, “take some medication; you have to take it, and you might have ulcerative colitis, right now we’re just going to call it undetermined.”

        Mickey Trescott: And you got this]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 2 is the first of our interview episodes this season! This week, Mickey sits down with her friend Susan McCauley to discuss Susan’s experience managing an unidentified autoimmune condition for many years. Susan was eventually diagnosed with ulcerative proctitis, but her healing approach has been all about addressing the root causes from the beginning.

        Susan and Mickey dig into what it was like for Susan to finally receive a diagnosis, they myriad treatments and tests she underwent, low-dose naltrexone, stress management, and the importance of a support system. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Susan, and her autoimmune wellness story [3:19]
        2. Officially a diagnosis [8:14]
        3. Varying treatments and testing [18:07]
        4. Low-dose naltrexone [24:24]
        5. Stress management and sleep [28:31]
        6. Having a support system [35:48]
        7. Tips for the beginning of your autoimmune journey [40:21]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. We are in season 2 of the podcast. This is Mickey if you guys haven’t figured out the differences between Angie and mine voice yet. Today I am doing a personal interview with my friend Susan; hey Susan.

        Susan: Hey Mickey! How’s it going?

        Mickey Trescott: Awesome. Susan is one of my AIP and paleo BFFs. We met at PaleoFx; gosh, 3 years ago?

        Susan: It was actually AHS.

        Mickey Trescott: Oh! AHS, yep. So there we go.

        Susan: And it was longer than that.

        Mickey Trescott: Four!

        Susan: I think it was 4 years ago.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

        Susan: Yeah, 4 years ago.

        Mickey Trescott: I was looking for a ride home from the airport, and Susan had a rental car, and she was also picking up Ben Greenfield, so I got to meet him. So Susan was one of my first paleo friends.

        Susan: And Mickey was one of mine. And we had the same shoes on, and it was like; BFFs at first site.

        Mickey Trescott: Yep! {laughs}

        Susan: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Basically. We couldn’t not be friends.

        Susan: Yes, exactly. It was meant to be.

        Mickey Trescott: So I’m really excited to share a little bit of Susan’s story today because Susan is one of these people who hasn’t had a clear autoimmune diagnosis from the outset, but she has done a really great job at kind of tirelessly working out some of these root causes and kind of still working on some of that; we’ll talk about that. And I think she just has such a great attitude about the healing journey. She’s also a coach, so she has a lot of experience about this stuff. But Susan, thank you so much for being here; joining us from California. You ready to get started?

        Susan: Sure; shoot. Go ahead.

        1. Introducing our guest, Susan, and her autoimmune wellness story [3:19]

        Mickey Trescott: Alright. So, I know that this question is a little bit more complicated for you; but tell me a little bit about your autoimmune disease, and what you first noticed when you first realized maybe that’s something you were struggling with.

        Susan: Well, I first had symptoms a long time ago. I kind of am the example of what not to do, or how to go about everything backwards. I didn’t come to paleo because I was sick; I came to paleo because I wanted to lose weight, and because I had kind of developed a binge eating disorder from all the yo-yo dieting, so I was trying to change my relationship with food. But my first autoimmune symptoms; I have ulcerative proctitis, which is like the cousin of ulcerative colitis. It’s just less severe, and in the lower part; the distal part of the colon. I had symptoms as early as probably 10 years ago; which I don’t know how much TMI about symptoms is on your podcast {laughs}.

        Mickey Trescott: Anything goes. We talk about poop all the time.

        Susan: So basically, bleeding; rectal bleeding, bleeding when you have your bowel movements, and it started when I was doing the yo-yo dieting and the Weight Watchers; and paid attention to conventional wisdom on things like fiber. And I remember one time I ate four Fiber One bars; and I don’t know if you’ve ever had one of those, but they have like; I don’t know how much fiber in them, but they’re like a cookie, you know? And I had a binge eating problem. So one is delicious; four even more delicious. And that’s when the gut problems started.

        I went to Kaiser, and they did a sigmoidoscopy; I think that’s what you call it, it’s been so long. And then they gave me some medication and told me not to eat too many vegetables; that was it. You know; it was basically, “take some medication; you have to take it, and you might have ulcerative colitis, right now we’re just going to call it undetermined.”

        Mickey Trescott: And you got this diagnosis once you had been paleo for a little while, too, right?

        Susan: I didn’t get the official diagnosis until much later. This was way before paleo, when I was doing the yo-yo dieting. I didn’t know it was autoimmune; it didn’t have a name. It said, you might have ulcerative colitis, but you’re too old to get ulcerative colitis. Most people get it in their 20s.

        Mickey Trescott: Isn’t that funny how you need to be a picture of a disease when you walk into a doctor’s office; otherwise you get kind of thrown out, door slammed behind you?

        Susan: Yeah. So they just gave me the suppositories and told me I had to take them every day, so I took them for a little bit and of course it worked. And then I kind of forgot about it; and it would come and go over the years. Enter paleo, and I think in a way, paleo prevented me from getting my diagnosis as soon as I probably would have gotten it if I would have kept eating the Standard American Diet. Because I took gluten out; and I had some other health issues, inflammatory issues, pain related, so I decided that I was not; even though when I ate gluten I didn’t immediately feel bad, but once I took it out, a lot of things got better including my UP symptoms. And so I would go for 3, 4, 5, 6 months without any symptoms; and then they would come, and then they would go.

        But I was a bandwagon jumper in early paleo days; whatever the newest thing that came down the road; Susan was like, potato starch; if you have ulcerative proctitis, potato starch is probably one of the last things that you {laughs} should do. And of course I would be doubled over in pain.

        Mickey Trescott: You didn’t jump on the AIP bandwagon back then, though.

        Susan: I did though.

        Mickey Trescott: Eventually. {laughs}

        Susan: I didn’t jump on the bandwagon, but of course I was one of those people; and this is what I totally tried to make sure people understand about AIP now; AIP is not more perfect paleo.

        Mickey Trescott: Amen, sister.

        Susan: You know? So when I wasn’t losing weight, and I’m using my little air quotes, well I just needed to eat less foods. So I did do 30 days of AIP, but never the full Sarah Ballantyne AIP where you take out all seed spices. I took out the bases; the Robb Wolf, Whole30 AIP list, you know what I mean.

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

        Susan: And I never planned my reintroductions correctly, because I always had; like, I did AIP 30 days before Thanksgiving. And then of course, you can’t just do one thing at a time, so I never really got the full impact of what I think AIP could have been for me. And I still didn’t have an AIP diagnosis.

        2. Officially a diagnosis [8:14]

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, I was going to say, that was at a point where you still didn’t even really know that you had an autoimmune disease. Tell me about how you got the official diagnosis, and what that felt like when you made the connection that it was actually an autoimmune disease.

        Susan: So, my chief symptoms, the reason I came to paleo; I talk about the binge eating disorder. I also suffer from severe fatigue. So my digestive symptoms always made it lower on the symptom list, whenever I talked to any kind of functional medicine person. So they were never really; and I think that’s my fault, and that’s part of the communication and collaboration; sometimes we don’t know that those symptoms are part of something bigger. And to me, losing weight was really important, and my fatigue was really important, so I was always trying to focus. That’s where that bandwagon jumping comes on. Adrenals, thyroid; what could it be? Going through all that whole list.

        It wasn’t until, I think it was Mickey; it was Mickey. It was at AHS in Berkeley, which was how many years ago? 2014.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, 2.5 years, yeah.

        Susan: It was 2014, and that was right around when I decided that the pain was back, the blood; the bleeding was really quite severe. And I knew I was getting older, and I knew the implications. The colon isn’t a thing to mess with; when you’re pushing towards; I’m going to be 50 this year.

        Mickey Trescott: Well and with some of those diseases, they take it away when it’s really inflamed. They remove it.

        Susan: And Mickey said something to me; because she saw how many tomatoes I was actually eating back then, and she said; “Maybe you might want to think about cutting out nightshades.” And of all the things on the autoimmune protocol that I don’t want to give up; and sometimes it’s that thing that you don’t want to give up, is the thing that you need to give up; was nightshades, because I love Mexican food; I love tomatoes. We used to grow 3 tomato plants every year, my husband and I; and I would fill up big huge Tupperware full of cherry tomatoes and just eat on them all day. That was August 2014; and then I decided to talk to my doctor; my regular old, MD. And he referred me to a GI doctor who said I needed a colonoscopy. Because I thought I had SIBO, because that was the bandwagon I was jumping on then, you know what I mean? {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Susan: And he’s like; no, see that’s not where; even though, to me still, where he said I was bloated. To me still, that is still part of my small intestine, as well, so it could have been. So he did the colonoscopy, and then he said, “You don’t have cancer” which I think is what every doctor, after they do a colonoscopy, tells people. “Don’t worry, you don’t have cancer, but you have ulcerative proctitis.” And he was Indian, with a very heavy accent, and I said; I knew about ulcerative colitis, but I’d never heard of ulcerative proctitis, and I said, “Is that an autoimmune disease?” And he said yes; and then he said, “Here’s your prescription, you need to take this medicine every day for the rest of your life; and here’s a low-residue, low-fiber diet protocol.” And handed it to me.

        Luckily; I had known Mickey {laughs}, and luckily all the places we’d gone to; all the seminars, and conventions, and conferences, is that I kind of, through Mickey, surrounded myself with AIP people. So I did cut the nightshades out, and I don’t eat a lot of nuts still to this day. I know that I don’t digest them well so I don’t really eat them often. I’ve learned, though; I just can’t eat anything every day. I can’t eat eggs every day; I can eat eggs occasionally. But the nightshades were the magic bullet, you know. And it was hard; and I didn’t eat a tomato for 2 years, and I didn’t eat a pepper or anything; and at home I still don’t.

        But I did some more research; and I didn’t go back to that doctor because I didn’t understand the whole collaboration thing until Autoimmune Wellness Handbook, and I just thought I could do it on my own, you know.

        Mickey Trescott: Well part of it; part of it is guiding that process. But I think, too, when you’re presented with only conventional options and no input from a doctor as far as, “Hey I’m trying this thing for myself, and it’s kind of working, can you keep monitoring?” A lot of doctors don’t really care to follow-up with a patient who is working like that, you know, so it’s hard.

        Susan: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: And I think too; Susan, you and I are pretty similar in the sense that we went off, and we studied nutrition, and we go to conferences, and we do a lot of reading; like, self-knowledge is really important to us, so it’s tempted to just be like, “I got this. I got this.” You know?

        Susan: Yeah.

        Mickey Trescott: And I do it too; still.

        Susan: And I did, and the nightshades were huge, but I would still have periods; like I had a flare last, right before NTA conference last year. I had a really bad flare; and I don’t know if I had gotten glutened or what had happened. So when I had that flare, it was kind of a wakeup call that I needed to find a new GI doc, and I needed to find one that specialized in my autoimmune; that recognized autoimmune for what it was, and just, “Here’s a medication to take every day for the rest of your life.”

        So my husband actually did the research, and found me a doc at Stanford, which I live in the Silicon Valley/San Francisco Bay area, so Stanford is like the gold standard. We had a great talk about my autoimmune disease. He said how far along; further along I was than any of his patients, because I had gotten the diet down. He recognized that certain foods weren’t good for people with ulcerative proctitis; although he also wanted me to get a flu shot and make sure to wear SPF 80 on my face.

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Susan: Because {laughs} people with autoimmune disease can get sick more often. {laughing}

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Susan: But he does have me on a regimen now, where we’re going to; he brought to my attention the fact that just because I don’t have symptoms, doesn’t mean that the tissue in my colon is healthy.

        Mickey Trescott: Mm-hmm.

        Susan: It’s a sign that it could be; but it still could not. It could be just that it’s not unhealthy enough to bleed, it could still be inflamed. So he said what we needed to do, is he has me on a regimen where I took my medication every day for 30 days; then it was every other day for 30 days; and now I’m on every; he didn’t recommend going to every 3 days, but I’m on every 3 days {laughs}.

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Susan: And I have to say that it’s been the time that it’s been, at the same time keeping my diet super clean; is that I’ve been, my digestion has probably been better than it ever...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10540Mon, 24 Apr 2017 11:00:00 -070049:57falsefull    Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 2 is the first of our interview episodes this season! This week, Mickey sits down with her friend Susan McCauley to discuss Susan’s experience managing an unidentified autoimmune condition for ...S2 E1 Q + A #1 – Thyroid medication, Hashimoto’s remission, and finding balance with AIPThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 1 Q + A #1 is the first installment of our new Q + A format. In these episodes, we’re answering questions you submitted to us via social media! This season, the podcast will alternate between Q + A episodes like this and interview episodes featuring the voices of real AIPers just like you.

        We cover a lot of ground in this first Q + A episode! Topics discussed include thyroid hormone replacement, AIP dogma, our personal reintroduction journeys, balance over perfection, adrenal support, and diet modifications for neurological disorders. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Thyroid hormone replacement [6:29]
        2. Dogmatic AIP; elimination and reintroduction [11:54]
        3. Weaning off thyroid hormone replacement [17:21]
        4. Mickey and Angie’s personal reintroduction journey [21:37]
        5. Iodine supplementation for thyroid [28:13]
        6. Balance over perfection [29:32]
        7. Non-AIP fillers in medications [33.10]
        8. Adrenal support [35:23]
        9. AIP and autoimmune neurological disorders [43:11]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season two. We had some really awesome feedback from you guys; it was really overwhelming on our blog posts, our Instagram accounts, and also the reviews in iTunes. So thank you guys so much for sharing. And we decided to bring things back for another round, since you guys told us that it was so helpful. So we’ve got a little bit of a program ready for you. Angie; should we tell everyone what we’ve been up to since the last season of our podcast ended?

        Angie Alt: Yeah, sure. We’re trying not to get too chatty on you guys for this podcast. We’ve had a pretty fun few months, and we wanted to update you. The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook came out in November; woot, woot! And we had a great time on our 5-city book tour. We’re so grateful for everyone’s support; it was a great experience getting to meet so many of you, and hearing your stories, and watching your local communities kind of take shape and seeing you meet each other and sharing stories together at those book signings. Mickey, what was your favorite part of the tour?

        Mickey Trescott: I loved the events with the food. So of course, I liked all the events; but enjoying AIP food with an AIP community is such a rare thing, that it was just really fun, those bookend events. So our first event was at Mission Heirloom and they just made this delicious meal for us, which is so fun to hang out with a bunch of other AIP people. I actually think that those two events; so then we did Hu Kitchen in New York City; both of them had almost 100 people, which I’ve never had the experience to hang out with 100 of my friends that eat like me, so that was really powerful.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: And really fun. What about you, Angie?

        Angie Alt: Yeah. A big, big thank you to Mission Heirloom and Hu Kitchen; that was amazing. We really appreciated that support for our peeps. I don’t know what my favorite part was. I think getting to hear everybody’s stories, and see the way our work is impacting real live people out there; that’s really exciting. Getting stranded on train tracks was pretty fun; do you remember that, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, we almost didn’t make it to D. C., but we made it happen.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Let’s see; what else have we been up to since the book tour?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so you know, the first thing we did was take a chill period. You know, we spent some time resting and relaxing, taking care of ourselves; because we spent the better part of two years writing that book, and it was a big labor of love, but I think we needed to have a little season of kind of coming down off of that epic workload situation.

        Angie Alt: Right. But, we did put in a little bit of work. One of our big projects that we worked on for the beginning of 2017 was relaunching our website under the brand Autoimmune Wellness. Hopefully, you guys are seeing that out there. We just think that the name really suits our mission, and will help us take our message to a more mainstream audience; viva la revolution, people.

        Mickey Trescott: Woot, woot!

        Angie Alt: We’re really focused on eventually making AIP this mainstream option for folks with autoimmune disease, and we feel like Autoimmune Wellness will help us get there. Let’s see; what else have we been up to, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: So, we have recently been working on a special project that those of you that are health coaches; so...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Season 2 Episode 1 Q + A #1 is the first installment of our new Q + A format. In these episodes, we’re answering questions you submitted to us via social media! This season, the podcast will alternate between Q + A episodes like this and interview episodes featuring the voices of real AIPers just like you.

        We cover a lot of ground in this first Q + A episode! Topics discussed include thyroid hormone replacement, AIP dogma, our personal reintroduction journeys, balance over perfection, adrenal support, and diet modifications for neurological disorders. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Thyroid hormone replacement [6:29]
        2. Dogmatic AIP; elimination and reintroduction [11:54]
        3. Weaning off thyroid hormone replacement [17:21]
        4. Mickey and Angie’s personal reintroduction journey [21:37]
        5. Iodine supplementation for thyroid [28:13]
        6. Balance over perfection [29:32]
        7. Non-AIP fillers in medications [33.10]
        8. Adrenal support [35:23]
        9. AIP and autoimmune neurological disorders [43:11]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everybody! Mickey here, and welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, season two. We had some really awesome feedback from you guys; it was really overwhelming on our blog posts, our Instagram accounts, and also the reviews in iTunes. So thank you guys so much for sharing. And we decided to bring things back for another round, since you guys told us that it was so helpful. So we’ve got a little bit of a program ready for you. Angie; should we tell everyone what we’ve been up to since the last season of our podcast ended?

        Angie Alt: Yeah, sure. We’re trying not to get too chatty on you guys for this podcast. We’ve had a pretty fun few months, and we wanted to update you. The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook came out in November; woot, woot! And we had a great time on our 5-city book tour. We’re so grateful for everyone’s support; it was a great experience getting to meet so many of you, and hearing your stories, and watching your local communities kind of take shape and seeing you meet each other and sharing stories together at those book signings. Mickey, what was your favorite part of the tour?

        Mickey Trescott: I loved the events with the food. So of course, I liked all the events; but enjoying AIP food with an AIP community is such a rare thing, that it was just really fun, those bookend events. So our first event was at Mission Heirloom and they just made this delicious meal for us, which is so fun to hang out with a bunch of other AIP people. I actually think that those two events; so then we did Hu Kitchen in New York City; both of them had almost 100 people, which I’ve never had the experience to hang out with 100 of my friends that eat like me, so that was really powerful.

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: And really fun. What about you, Angie?

        Angie Alt: Yeah. A big, big thank you to Mission Heirloom and Hu Kitchen; that was amazing. We really appreciated that support for our peeps. I don’t know what my favorite part was. I think getting to hear everybody’s stories, and see the way our work is impacting real live people out there; that’s really exciting. Getting stranded on train tracks was pretty fun; do you remember that, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Angie Alt: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, we almost didn’t make it to D. C., but we made it happen.

        Angie Alt: Yeah. Let’s see; what else have we been up to since the book tour?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so you know, the first thing we did was take a chill period. You know, we spent some time resting and relaxing, taking care of ourselves; because we spent the better part of two years writing that book, and it was a big labor of love, but I think we needed to have a little season of kind of coming down off of that epic workload situation.

        Angie Alt: Right. But, we did put in a little bit of work. One of our big projects that we worked on for the beginning of 2017 was relaunching our website under the brand Autoimmune Wellness. Hopefully, you guys are seeing that out there. We just think that the name really suits our mission, and will help us take our message to a more mainstream audience; viva la revolution, people.

        Mickey Trescott: Woot, woot!

        Angie Alt: We’re really focused on eventually making AIP this mainstream option for folks with autoimmune disease, and we feel like Autoimmune Wellness will help us get there. Let’s see; what else have we been up to, Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: So, we have recently been working on a special project that those of you that are health coaches; so nutritional therapy practitioners, or other kind of practitioners in the natural health scene, will be really interested in. so make sure that you guys are on our email list to be the first to hear about it. You can sign up at our website; www.autoimmunewellness.com, or the old website, www.autoimmune-paleo.com, will redirect there, and you can opt in and you’ll be the first to hear about it. And I’m sorry we can’t share any more details, but it’s going to be really fun.

        Angie Alt: Super secret squirrel.

        Mickey Trescott: Secret squirrel; that’s one of Angie’s favorite phrases. So back to the podcast; we want to tell you guys a little bit about what to expect this season, because our format is going to be a little different this time around.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, so this season we’re going to be alternating between Q&A episodes, where Mickey and I are just going to take as many of your questions as we can and answer them for you guys. and then we’re going to be doing interview with real people who are going to share their journeys to autoimmune wellness, and what it’s actually been like for them. Just regular people out in the community who are using this method of working toward healing.

        Today is our first Q&A episode, and we asked you guys to submit your questions; I think we took these mostly on Instagram, right Mickey?

        Mickey Trescott: Yep.

        Angie Alt: And boy; you guys gave us a lot of questions.

        Mickey Trescott: A lot of questions. {laughs}

        1. Thyroid hormone replacement [6:29]

        Angie Alt: We’re going to do our very best to get through as many as we can, so let’s get started. Let’s see; so we have some thyroid questions. Mickey, let me ask you this first one. It looks like Hannah asked, “At what point should you ask to start taking thyroid hormone; especially if you feel good about 25% of the time and your labs are within normal range, and you’ve followed the protocol for a while. And once you start taking it, do you have to continue for a while? “

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, so this is a really good question for anyone with thyroid issues or Hashimoto’s, listen up. The autoimmune protocol does a really great job for most people taking out that inflammatory process, and taking out all those foods that are irritating to the gut. It does not reverse the damage that has been done to your thyroid, and it is not a replacement for thyroid hormone therapy if you need it.

        So, a lot of us; if you have thyroid disease, it’s possible that you have Hashimoto’s, which is an autoimmune thyroid disease. And Hashimoto’s is actually the cause of 80% of hypothyroidism. So if you’ve been diagnosed at any time in the past with hypothyroidism, and you haven’t really been told about the cause, but you’ve been told to take thyroid hormone, it’s very likely that you have Hashimoto’s. and you haven’t ever had your antibodies tested, it’s a good idea to get those checked.

        So what happens in Hashimoto’s is your immune system starts to destroy your thyroid slowly, over time. For a lot of people, it can take decades before they even start to get symptoms. But by the time people get diagnosed, and they notice the symptoms, and they get their labs done and their thyroid is suboptimal, they usually get on thyroid medication. And this medication is to replace the thyroid hormone that their thyroid would normally be making. So a part of the casualty of Hashimoto’s; there are some other reasons for thyroid dysfunction, but a lot of the time, it just means that your thyroid is not making enough hormone. And that thyroid hormone is needed by every cell in your body. So it’s really important if you need it to get a prescription and take it.

        So, I would encourage anyone who is on the autoimmune protocol, who knows that they have Hashimoto’s disease or thyroid dysfunction, if they’ve tried the elimination diet for a little while; like it sounds like Hannah, she’s been on the protocol for a while, and she is only feeling well 25% of the time. The catch here is she says her labs are within the normal range. Now, a lot of people are told their labs are within the normal range, when they aren’t.

        so this is probably a situation where Hannah, you should find a more open minded doctor that is willing to do thorough testing. So for thyroid disease, you really want to be testing free hormone levels; so free T3, free T4, in addition to the usually ordered TSH, sometimes reverse T3 can be helpful; and then again those antibodies to kind of tell how the autoimmune process is going. And then, you want to find a doctor who doesn’t believe in the conventional ranges, but who treats based on a little bit more of a narrow, functional range. And this can be hard to find; it doesn’t have to be a functional medicine doctor. It can be a savvy regular medical doctor; it could be a naturopath.

        But I’ll tell you; I went to 6 doctors who told me my levels were normal before I found the one who said; “You know what, they’re not.” And that thyroid hormone replacement, that medication, was the difference between me feeling 60-70% better and 90-95% better. So it can make a really big effect, even if you’re doing the diet and everything.

        So, I don’t think that people should be denying themselves thyroid medication. Like I said, it is something that every cell in your body needs, and if you need that and you need to eat a certain way to feel well; that’s what I do personally, there is no harm in that. And you should continue as long as your doctor, and your labs, and your symptoms indicate that you should. So, I know that’s kind of a long answer, but the thyroid stuff can get kind of complicated. And a lot of times, it’s not either/or; a lot times, that’s just another tool that we have in our tool box to live well with thyroid conditions.

        Angie Alt: Yeah, right. We’re fans of the both/and, right?

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, totally. I mean, if you know that there is something you can do that’s going to help you feel better, why would you not use it? A lot of medications have side effects, but thyroid medication is actually a lot of times bioidentical to what your body would actually be producing. And so it doesn’t have the same mechanism. Most medications work by inhibiting something, or stopping something. But thyroid medication, it’s almost like a nutrient in that way. Your body needs a certain amount, and if you’re not getting enough, you’re just going to have symptoms. So I’m very pro- working that out.

        And you know, some people might not need thyroid medication. But if you think you might need it, it’s really worthy of investigation. So, let’s move on to a question for you, Angie.

        Angie Alt: Sure.

        2. Dogmatic AIP; elimination and reintroduction [11:54]

        Mickey Trescott: So we have a question from Jay, and it’s about balance, which is one of your awesome expertise. “I’d love to hear the benefits and problems with staying on AIP with no reintroductions. I’m hoping AIP is a bridge to healing, and that I can add back a lot of the foods I’ve eliminated. Eggs, nightshades, and occasional grains. But the AIP community at large seems so dogmatic about this being a lifestyle, and a forever thing. What’s the point of forever elimination?”

        Angie Alt: Oh boy.

        Mickey Trescott: Who are you talking about, Jay? {laughs} Hopefully not us.

        Angie Alt: Jay, you need to give us their name and number, and we’re going to go tell them what we think about that. No, I’m just kidding. I’m really sorry that you’ve encountered this feeling in the AIP community that it’s dogmatic, and that we believe that you should be in the elimination phase forever. That’s definitely not what we’re hoping to promote in the community, and it’s definitely not how the protocol is laid out. So the protocol is an elimination AND reintroduction protocol; so that’s really important to understand that part of the healing process is reintroducing foods.

        I think it could be maybe a little bit of a misunderstanding of the idea “lifestyle”, of making AIP a lifestyle. By that, it’s more talking about healing in general, and incorporating more than just diet into your autoimmune wellness journey. So hopefully it’s just a misunderstanding and you’re not, hopefully, running into too many people that are being super dogmatic about staying in elimination forever.

        So, you know you wanted to hear about the benefits and problems of staying in AIP with no reintroductions. I honestly don’t think that there are benefits to staying on the elimination phase of AIP forever. I think, actually, you’re really limiting diversity in your diet, and it’s also psychologically really hard. Not to mention, in our modern world, it’s not the most convenient thing to have to be in that kind of restricted zone that long.

        Generally, you’re looking to stay on the protocol; the elimination part of the protocol, for at least 30 days. That’s enough time to kind of clean your slate, and make it so that you can understand foods that are a problem for you as you begin to reintroduce, versus foods that really work for your body. Ideally, it would probably be better if you shot for more like 60 to 90 days. Most folks need a little more time than 30 days, so it’s not unusual to stay in that zone for another month to two months past the 30-day process.

        If you get to 90 days, and you’re not having the kind of progress you would have expected with AIP, it’s a good time to get some people on your team who you can collaborate with. Doctors or other kinds of practitioners that can help you dig a little bit deeper, and see if there are some root issues that are kind of preventing progress with the protocol. You know, for instance, a really common example]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10537Mon, 17 Apr 2017 11:00:00 -070053:37falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Season 2 Episode 1 Q + A #1 is the first installment of our new Q + A format. In these episodes, we’re answering questions you submitted to us via social media! This season, ...Bonus Ep: Cooking For Life, Multiple Sclerosis, and a research update w/ Dr. Terry WahlsThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2!

        Bonus Ep: Cooking For Life, Multiple Sclerosis, and a research update w/ Dr. Terry Wahls is our second bonus episode, and an introduction to Season 2 of the podcast. In this episode, we interview our personal inspiration, Dr. Terry Wahls, the creator of The Wahls Protocol and the author of the new book, The Wahls Protocol Cooking For Life.

        In addition to discussing Dr. Wahls’ new book, topics we cover include how to embrace a healing diet on a budget, approaching your doctor about utilizing nutrition for health, why we believe in templates over recipes, Dr. Wahls’ go-to meal, and much more. This is a juicy and informative episode with one of the most inspirational voices in the chronic illness community. It’s perfect for folks looking for some practical advice on how to sustain a healing lifestyle. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Terry Wahls [2:20]
        2. Utilizing a healing diet on a budget [6:56]
        3. The importance of diet shift in the medical community [11:01]
        4. Approaching your doctor about utilizing nutrition for health [16:32]
        5. Dr. Wahls’ newest book [19:55]
        6. Templates, not recipes [23:26]
        7. Dr. Wahls’ go-to meal [27:15]
        8. Success stories from the Lifestyle Clinic [31:42]
        9. Response to the naysayers [34:08]
        10. What’s coming up for Dr. Wahls [38:12]

        Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. Angie here; today we are bringing you the second of our pre-season bonus interview episodes, so you guys are super lucky, these are going to be great. Mickey, how are you doing today?

        Mickey Trescott: Super awesome, especially because I am so excited about chatting our guest today. She’s one of our favorite people in the autoimmune world. And we got feedback from you guys last season that you really value these expert interviews, and we didn’t really have any in the can for you guys for season 2; but then we decided we had this incredible opportunity to interview a couple of really awesome people; one of them today. And we got her on the line for you. So, Angie, do you want to tell our listeners about who this super special, amazing person is, who happens to be a total rockstar in our world?

        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Terry Wahls [2:20]

        Angie Alt: Yeah, sure I would love to. Our guest today is the amazing Dr. Terry Wahls, a fellow autoimmune warrior, who went from secondary progressive multiple sclerosis that had left her in a wheelchair in 2003, to the vibrant, dancing; more on that in a minute; and world-changing lady we are honored to speak with today. Terry is the author of several books, including The Wahls Protocol, and her latest, The Wahls Protocol Cooking for Life. In addition to over 60 peer-reviewed abstracts, papers, and posters. She also runs a groundbreaking lifestyle clinic in Iowa, and conducts clinical research that is changing how we treat MS and other autoimmune diseases. Additionally, she is behind the Wahls Foundation, a nonprofit created in 2011 whose mission is to replace the epidemic of chronic disease with an epidemic of health; I love that. To say Terry is purpose driven is basically an understatement, you guys. Thanks so much for being on the show today, Terry!

        Dr. Terry Wahls: Hey, thank you so much for having me.

        Mickey Trescott: Awesome. So Terry, most of our readers are familiar with your story at this point, and your TED Talk. And if anyone listening goes; “Wait a minute; I haven’t heard about that.” You guys should definitely check it out. Just Google Terry Wahls TED Talk and start there; it’s awesome.

        So we know; your healing has progressed considerably over time. When I actually met you at the Ancestral Health Symposium a few years ago, you showed the audience that you weren’t able to raise your arms over your head. And last month, Angie and I were hanging out with you at the NTA conference, and you were pulling some dance moves where your hands were definitely over your head.

        Dr. Terry Wahls: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: So, you know, your healing has increased a lot even since you’ve been on this journey. I am always shocked at how you look younger and more vibrant as time goes on. Can you give...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2!

        Bonus Ep: Cooking For Life, Multiple Sclerosis, and a research update w/ Dr. Terry Wahls is our second bonus episode, and an introduction to Season 2 of the podcast. In this episode, we interview our personal inspiration, Dr. Terry Wahls, the creator of The Wahls Protocol and the author of the new book, The Wahls Protocol Cooking For Life.

        In addition to discussing Dr. Wahls’ new book, topics we cover include how to embrace a healing diet on a budget, approaching your doctor about utilizing nutrition for health, why we believe in templates over recipes, Dr. Wahls’ go-to meal, and much more. This is a juicy and informative episode with one of the most inspirational voices in the chronic illness community. It’s perfect for folks looking for some practical advice on how to sustain a healing lifestyle. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Terry Wahls [2:20]
        2. Utilizing a healing diet on a budget [6:56]
        3. The importance of diet shift in the medical community [11:01]
        4. Approaching your doctor about utilizing nutrition for health [16:32]
        5. Dr. Wahls’ newest book [19:55]
        6. Templates, not recipes [23:26]
        7. Dr. Wahls’ go-to meal [27:15]
        8. Success stories from the Lifestyle Clinic [31:42]
        9. Response to the naysayers [34:08]
        10. What’s coming up for Dr. Wahls [38:12]

        Angie Alt: Hi everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. Angie here; today we are bringing you the second of our pre-season bonus interview episodes, so you guys are super lucky, these are going to be great. Mickey, how are you doing today?

        Mickey Trescott: Super awesome, especially because I am so excited about chatting our guest today. She’s one of our favorite people in the autoimmune world. And we got feedback from you guys last season that you really value these expert interviews, and we didn’t really have any in the can for you guys for season 2; but then we decided we had this incredible opportunity to interview a couple of really awesome people; one of them today. And we got her on the line for you. So, Angie, do you want to tell our listeners about who this super special, amazing person is, who happens to be a total rockstar in our world?

        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Terry Wahls [2:20]

        Angie Alt: Yeah, sure I would love to. Our guest today is the amazing Dr. Terry Wahls, a fellow autoimmune warrior, who went from secondary progressive multiple sclerosis that had left her in a wheelchair in 2003, to the vibrant, dancing; more on that in a minute; and world-changing lady we are honored to speak with today. Terry is the author of several books, including The Wahls Protocol, and her latest, The Wahls Protocol Cooking for Life. In addition to over 60 peer-reviewed abstracts, papers, and posters. She also runs a groundbreaking lifestyle clinic in Iowa, and conducts clinical research that is changing how we treat MS and other autoimmune diseases. Additionally, she is behind the Wahls Foundation, a nonprofit created in 2011 whose mission is to replace the epidemic of chronic disease with an epidemic of health; I love that. To say Terry is purpose driven is basically an understatement, you guys. Thanks so much for being on the show today, Terry!

        Dr. Terry Wahls: Hey, thank you so much for having me.

        Mickey Trescott: Awesome. So Terry, most of our readers are familiar with your story at this point, and your TED Talk. And if anyone listening goes; “Wait a minute; I haven’t heard about that.” You guys should definitely check it out. Just Google Terry Wahls TED Talk and start there; it’s awesome.

        So we know; your healing has progressed considerably over time. When I actually met you at the Ancestral Health Symposium a few years ago, you showed the audience that you weren’t able to raise your arms over your head. And last month, Angie and I were hanging out with you at the NTA conference, and you were pulling some dance moves where your hands were definitely over your head.

        Dr. Terry Wahls: {laughs}

        Mickey Trescott: So, you know, your healing has increased a lot even since you’ve been on this journey. I am always shocked at how you look younger and more vibrant as time goes on. Can you give everyone a little bit of an update about those changes that you’ve noticed in your long-term healing; especially since you gave your TED Talk.

        Dr. Terry Wahls: Sure. So, I’ll sort of give a quick high-level synopsis. I do this wonderful thing with biological age; and there are several online calculators that you can use, it’s pretty fun. I did mine based on what my answer would have been at 52, which was at my worst, and my biological age at that point was 69. Which is probably pretty accurate; I couldn’t sit up, I couldn’t do a pushup; I was struggling to walk 10 feet, I had all these markers. So, I have since calculated that biologic age using that marker, and I’m down to the age of 39.

        Mickey Trescott: Wow!

        Dr. Terry Wahls: And that’s pretty cool. When I was 39, I was developing my MS symptoms. I was still skiing, still jogging, still biking, but I certainly could not bike as far as I can now. So already I was beginning to have problems with the MS, that had not yet come to diagnosis. And if we line up photos of me, you see that rapid aging, that aggressive decline; and then you see what literally looks like this stunning recovery from 2007 to 2008; the wheelchair, looking pretty sickly, to being on my bike. But people noticed that if you line up photos from 2008, and keep going; I just keep looking younger and younger.

        Now, my hair is still graying, so we have to take the hair out. But the quality of my skin looks younger and younger; I can walk further, I can get my arms up over my head. I’m doing pushups; and I’m up to 10, so that’s pretty exciting for me. And you know, I keep working closely with physical therapy, and they can keep advancing the exercises that I do.

        I did get sidelined last year, because I ended up having surgery for some severe back pain. So since I was 60 when I had that, that has taken a little bit longer to recover from than I expected, but still, I’m out on the floor dancing; I’m walking, hiking, and biking once again.

        Mickey Trescott: That’s so amazing. I better stay on my game, Terry; because your biological age is only a year older than me. You’re going to be younger than me soon! {laughs}

        Dr. Terry Wahls: You know, my kids are laughing. They’re like, “Oh my god, mom. Are you like Merlin? You keep getting younger and younger.” So.

        Mickey Trescott: Right.

        Dr. Terry Wahls: We have a lot of laughter with that.

        2. Utilizing a healing diet on a limited budget [6:56]

        Angie Alt: So Terry; at the Nutritional Therapy Conference, one of the talks I attended was the panel discussion you were on about serving diverse and working class groups. That conversation is one that is just really extra close to my heart, because I don’t think healing has to be limited to certain groups, or those with upper class incomes. What are your kind of top 3 pointers on how to make a healing diet and lifestyle work, even on limited budgets, or in challenging settings; maybe geographic locations with limited access.

        Dr. Terry Wahls: Oh sure. For years I worked at the VA, and in both my Traumatic Brain Injury Clinic and in my Therapeutic Lifestyle Clinic at the VA. Most of my patients did not have money; they were on fixed incomes. What they did have, was they had access to me, so they could come see me; Traumatic Brain Injury Clinic I would see them once every 6 months. The Lifestyle Clinic we could see them monthly for a year. And we could give cooking classes in my lifestyle clinic.

        So in the cooking class, we taught people how to cook at home. I helped them understand that the food budget is everything you put in your mouth. It’s your alcohol, tobacco, fancy drinks, fancy coffees, lattes, fast food, restaurant meals; plus your grocery bill. And we total all of that up to get a food budget. Then I let people know what we have to do is begin cooking at home with vegetables and your source of meat. We had a different plan if you were a meat eater, or if you were vegetarian or vegan. We certainly still had people, even in the VA, who were vegetarian and vegan.

        But really, the very most important thing is, most people had forgotten how to cook. Or their lives are too pressed for time, or for money. So they aren’t cooking. So we spent a lot of time teaching cooking skills, and we spent time teaching menu planning, prioritizing, and most importantly, how to eliminate food waste. Because most Americans are throwing away 40% of our food; whether we’re buying it in the grocery store, or at the restaurant. So learning how to better plan, so we actually consume all the food we buy, saves a considerable amount of money.

        We were quite successful. We had many of our patients tell us; in the group classes the more senior folks would tell the newbies that you can do this and save money, but you’re going to have to plan. You’re going to have to pay attention in our cooking classes.

        Angie Alt: Right. Those are such great tips, just kind of going back to; basically home economics 101 right there.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah, I can definitely also resonate with taking all of the restaurant meals and all of the stuff that people think of as an additional budget expense and really looping that into the entire food budget; and a lot of people on low incomes think that the grocery budget and maybe that other budget is separate. But when you put that all together, and you prepare all your food at home, and you brown-bag it for lunch, and you don’t do those extras that are also not helping your situation when you have health problems, like cigarettes and alcohol and coffees, and that kind of stuff; people find that they have a little more wiggle room there to actually afford that real food.

        Dr. Terry Wahls: It’s really important to have that conversation of, “What is your food budget?” Because if you don’t, people will see the grocery bill doubling, and feel very uncomfortable with that. So, we learned that it was very important to have that big conversation about what’s in your food budget first. And then, we talk about planning, menus, and how we’re going to make this change in an affordable way.

        3. The importance of diet shift in the medical community [11:01]

        Mickey Trescott: That’s great. So Terry; one of the things that really impresses me about you is your willingness to work within disastrously broken system with both creativity and perseverance. I don’t know anyone like you who is just like willing to dig in and get this work done. At the NTA conference, you told the story about how you figured out how to recommend dietary and lifestyle modifications while working with veterans; it was a little unconventional and kind of; it was hard to do within that system. And I think a lot of practitioners get discouraged or lose hope when they run up against the system.

        So you recently received a $1 million grant from the National MS Society to further your research on dietary and lifestyle interventions with MS. That is so fantastic; we’re so excited for you. Can you tell us how you think things are shifting in the medical community to accommodate more of this research and recommendations for diet and lifestyle changes?

        Dr. Terry Wahls: I think it’s very helpful to have the public awareness; of course, the medical community, the scientific community. I think it’s also incredibly helpful that our awareness of how the environment is speaking to our genes through epigenetics, and creating either an inflamed, sickly, disease prone-body, or a resilient disease resistant body. So the epigenetic insights are helpful. The microbiome insights are helpful, and understanding how food changes the microbiome; and you change the microbiome, of course changes the risk for autoimmune disease and the severity of the autoimmune disease, as well as many other complicated, chronic health problems.

        So, as my scientific colleagues could now measure the mechanisms by which diet and lifestyle works, they began to realize that we are not so crazy in our approaches. The public pressure goes to their various non-profit organizations, insisting that you need to support these researchers.

        And another thing I think is very telling; and I heard from people who are big donors with some of these nonprofits, that these major donors went to the organizations to say, “If you want to continue receiving our support, you’re going to have to fund diet and lifestyle research.”

        So I became aware of that; I wrote my protocol when they put out their call for research in the dietary realm, and I was funded. And I should be, because I’m one of the few people who have actually studied it in the last few years. So it’s no surprise that our research lab is very competitive.

        Mickey Trescott: That’s so great. Terry, what do you think is the key to having the public be so well-informed and push?

        Dr. Terry Wahls: Well, I think the key is having people who develop untreatable, incurable, devastating diseases, get hopelessly disabled, recover, have the extraordinary good fortune to do a TED Talk that has 3 million views.

        Mickey Trescott: {laughs}

        Dr. Terry Wahls: That created; that experience, difficult as it was at the time, has been this incredible gift to me, and probably to humanity, because it put me in a position to learn all this stuff, experience all this stuff, recover, and because I happen to be well connected and I speak well. I told this story that’s deeply resonating; and then the public spread it in this pretty amazing way. I think this led then, I’m sure, to millions of conversations in doctors’ offices around the globe, saying, “What about diet?” And physician had to see that some of their patients would ignore the...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10517Mon, 10 Apr 2017 11:00:00 -070043:37falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! Bonus Ep: Cooking For Life, Multiple Sclerosis, and a research update w/ Dr. Terry Wahls is our second bonus episode, and an introduction to Season 2 of the podcast. In this episode, we interview our personal inspiration, Dr. Terry Wahls, the creator of The Wahls Protocol and the author of the new book, The Wahls Protocol Cooking For Life. In addition ...Bonus Ep: Hashimoto’s Protocol and Thyroid Wellness w/ Dr. Izabella WentzThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2!

        Bonus Ep: Hashimoto’s Protocol and Thyroid Wellness w/ Dr. Izabella Wentz is our first episode in nearly 6 months (!) and we’re treating it as a little surprise introduction to Season 2. In this episode, we interview our close friend Izabella Wentz, also known as the thyroid pharmacist. We dig into her experience hacking her own thyroid disease, as well as the ways in which she is now giving thyroid disease patients the power to take back their health.

        Topics we discuss include the uniqueness of Hashimoto’s in the chronic illness world, the importance of self-care, and most importantly, the multiple root causes of Hashimoto’s (Izabella’s specialty). This is a powerful episode with one of the foremost voices in the Hashimoto’s community, perfect for folks with thyroid disease who are looking for answers. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Izabella Wentz [2:36]
        2. Hashimoto’s Protocol book release [9:58]
        3. The uniqueness of Hashimoto’s [16:41]
        4. The liver support protocol [19:36]
        5. Self-care: You cannot pour from an empty cup [26:20]
        6. The multiple root causes of Hashimoto’s [31:09]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. Mickey here, and Angie and I are super excited to be back with you guys. We’ve taken 6 months off from our podcasting adventure. Can you believe it’s been that long, Angie?

        Angie Alt: No, it feels like it was just a few weeks ago that we were releasing everything.

        Mickey Trescott: Seriously.

        Angie Alt: I mean, honestly we don’t really know how podcasters who have regular shows do it; putting all of this content, editing, and all the details. It’s kind of a lot of work, you guys! {laughs} We do much better producing and releasing our podcasts in batches and seasons. And we hope you guys are enjoying the seasonal format, too.

        We’ve actually already recorded our entire second season, which we can’t wait to share with you guys. Because the format is going to be a little bit different this time around, we wanted to bring you two pre-season bonus episodes featuring interviews with two incredible women doing great work in our community as a way to whet your appetite for what’s to come. Mickey, do you want to tell your listeners about our first incredible woman?

        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Izabella Wentz [2:36]

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah; so, our guest today is none other than Dr. Izabella Wentz, also known as the thyroid pharmacist and leader of the root cause rebels. Lest you guys think that is a clever band name; it actually stands for community of people who have successfully hacked their thyroid disease. Izabella has made quite a splash in the thyroid community in the last few years since the release of her bestselling book; Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, Finding and Treating the Root Cause. And the release of The Thyroid Secret documentary series, which you guys, probably, if you’ve been following on our email list or have been on the internet at all in the last 3 months have heard about; hopefully you guys participated in. It was a really incredible experience for everyone. So informative.

        And Izabella’s newest book that came out this week; Hashimoto’s Protocol. Izabella is definitely a lady on a mission to spread the word far and wide about healing from thyroid disease, and we feel absolutely blessed to call her a friend and have her in our community. Welcome, Izabella!

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: Angie, Mickey, I’m so excited to be here with you ladies today. How are you?

        Mickey Trescott: We are awesome.

        Angie Alt: We’re great!

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

        Angie Alt: Even better with you on the show. So maybe we’ll just kind of get started. Izabella, you are fresh off the launch of your Thyroid Secret documentary; woot, woot! We promoted it and heard from our followers that it was one of the most thorough and informative resources on thyroid disease they had ever seen. You interviewed literally hundreds of experts as well as patients all over the world; it was really incredible. Can you tell us what inspired you to do a project on such a massive scale?

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: Of course, and thank you for being a part of The Thyroid...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2!

        Bonus Ep: Hashimoto’s Protocol and Thyroid Wellness w/ Dr. Izabella Wentz is our first episode in nearly 6 months (!) and we’re treating it as a little surprise introduction to Season 2. In this episode, we interview our close friend Izabella Wentz, also known as the thyroid pharmacist. We dig into her experience hacking her own thyroid disease, as well as the ways in which she is now giving thyroid disease patients the power to take back their health.

        Topics we discuss include the uniqueness of Hashimoto’s in the chronic illness world, the importance of self-care, and most importantly, the multiple root causes of Hashimoto’s (Izabella’s specialty). This is a powerful episode with one of the foremost voices in the Hashimoto’s community, perfect for folks with thyroid disease who are looking for answers. Scroll down for the full episode transcript.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Full Transcript:

        Mickey Trescott: Welcome to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast, a complimentary resource for those on the road to recovery. I’m Mickey Trescott, a nutritional therapy practitioner living well with autoimmune disease in Oregon. I’ve got both Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease.

        Angie Alt: And I’m Angie Alt, a certified health coach and nutritional therapy consultant, also living well with autoimmune disease in Maryland. I have endometriosis, lichen sclerosis, and Celiac disease. After recovering our health by combining the best of conventional medicine with effective and natural dietary and lifestyle interventions, Mickey and I started blogging at www.Autimmune-Paleo.com, where our collective mission is seeking wellness and building community.

        Mickey Trescott: This podcast is sponsored by The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook; our co-authored guide to living well with chronic illness. We saw the need for a comprehensive resource that goes beyond nutrition to connect savvy patients, just like you, to the resources they need to achieve vibrant health. Through the use of self assessments, checklists, handy guides and templates, you get to experience the joy of discovery; finding out which areas to prioritize on your healing journey. Pick up a copy wherever books are sold.

        Angie Alt: A quick disclaimer: The content in this podcast is intended as general information only, and is not to be substituted for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Onto the podcast!

        Topics:
        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Izabella Wentz [2:36]
        2. Hashimoto’s Protocol book release [9:58]
        3. The uniqueness of Hashimoto’s [16:41]
        4. The liver support protocol [19:36]
        5. Self-care: You cannot pour from an empty cup [26:20]
        6. The multiple root causes of Hashimoto’s [31:09]

        Mickey Trescott: Hey everyone! Welcome back to the Autoimmune Wellness podcast. Mickey here, and Angie and I are super excited to be back with you guys. We’ve taken 6 months off from our podcasting adventure. Can you believe it’s been that long, Angie?

        Angie Alt: No, it feels like it was just a few weeks ago that we were releasing everything.

        Mickey Trescott: Seriously.

        Angie Alt: I mean, honestly we don’t really know how podcasters who have regular shows do it; putting all of this content, editing, and all the details. It’s kind of a lot of work, you guys! {laughs} We do much better producing and releasing our podcasts in batches and seasons. And we hope you guys are enjoying the seasonal format, too.

        We’ve actually already recorded our entire second season, which we can’t wait to share with you guys. Because the format is going to be a little bit different this time around, we wanted to bring you two pre-season bonus episodes featuring interviews with two incredible women doing great work in our community as a way to whet your appetite for what’s to come. Mickey, do you want to tell your listeners about our first incredible woman?

        1. Introducing our guest, Dr. Izabella Wentz [2:36]

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah; so, our guest today is none other than Dr. Izabella Wentz, also known as the thyroid pharmacist and leader of the root cause rebels. Lest you guys think that is a clever band name; it actually stands for community of people who have successfully hacked their thyroid disease. Izabella has made quite a splash in the thyroid community in the last few years since the release of her bestselling book; Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, Finding and Treating the Root Cause. And the release of The Thyroid Secret documentary series, which you guys, probably, if you’ve been following on our email list or have been on the internet at all in the last 3 months have heard about; hopefully you guys participated in. It was a really incredible experience for everyone. So informative.

        And Izabella’s newest book that came out this week; Hashimoto’s Protocol. Izabella is definitely a lady on a mission to spread the word far and wide about healing from thyroid disease, and we feel absolutely blessed to call her a friend and have her in our community. Welcome, Izabella!

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: Angie, Mickey, I’m so excited to be here with you ladies today. How are you?

        Mickey Trescott: We are awesome.

        Angie Alt: We’re great!

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah.

        Angie Alt: Even better with you on the show. So maybe we’ll just kind of get started. Izabella, you are fresh off the launch of your Thyroid Secret documentary; woot, woot! We promoted it and heard from our followers that it was one of the most thorough and informative resources on thyroid disease they had ever seen. You interviewed literally hundreds of experts as well as patients all over the world; it was really incredible. Can you tell us what inspired you to do a project on such a massive scale?

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: Of course, and thank you for being a part of The Thyroid Secret, as well. We, of course, interviewed Mickey as part of that, and it was fantastic to have her share with people how effective the autoimmune paleo diet can be, and how important it can be as part of a healing protocol for people with thyroid disease.

        Really, my big passion is ever since I got my health back; I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s in 2009 after almost a decade of some pretty debilitating symptoms, and kind of mystery symptoms, and I was told they were all in my head and all that good stuff. Until I actually took charge of my own health and was able to recover my health. From that point on, I wanted to spread the message to the world that recovering from autoimmune disease is possible, and that you can feel like yourself again, even if you’ve been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s or Graves’ disease. And really just trying everything that I could do to get this message out there.

        The documentary series; I’ve written a book about Hashimoto’s; Hashimoto’s, the Root Cause was my first book, and I have Hashimoto’s Protocol which just came out this week, which is a protocol based book. But I wanted to get together with a group of like-minded individuals; so health care professionals and experts like you ladies, as well as patients who have taken back and recovered their health to create this community and create sort of a movement to share the best practices, to share our stories; to share our research, and inspire and really get the world moving and excited about health recovery, and giving them; raising that awareness and giving people and opportunity to understand and see that people are recovering from thyroid disease every day.

        That was really my big motivation behind it; I wanted to get this message out into the broader world; and I know some people with thyroid disease, the brain fog prevents them from reading wonderful books such as ours, and even reading blogs, but sometimes just watching something on a screen can be really helpful in helping people absorb the information.

        Mickey Trescott: Yeah; Izabella, I think that the documentary format is just genius because it’s really visual. A lot of people are really visual learners, and seeing you interview and ask these questions, and seeing all these experts and hearing from all these patients; it’s so much more moving to a certain type of person; a certain type of learner that I think that connection is a lot deeper. And then it spurs action, not only in people’s own lives, but then the conversations that they’re having with their friends and family; maybe that’s even sharing the documentary and getting some validation in what they’re going through. And then going into their doctor’s offices and being informed; and saying, you know, “you’re not the only doctor on the planet that doesn’t believe in this. Look; there’s a whole movement of people out here that are fighting for our care,” and it just really empowers them. So it’s really, really awesome; they loved it.

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: Yeah, my goal is to create 10,000 success stories with The Thyroid Secret documentary and with my Hashimoto’s Protocol book, and it’s been really, really exciting to see the ripple effect of this. As your listeners know, nutrition is a really, really important part of recovering your health. I was really excited about one story; it was a woman who watched The Thyroid Secret; in episode 5, we focused on nutrition. Right after that episode, she changed over to the autoimmune paleo diet, and by episode 9, she said shew as feeling completely transformed. She had gotten her energy back, and joint pains, and all these symptoms started shedding away from her. And it’s like; the more we can spread awareness about all of these interventions that can change a person’s life, change how they feel, and prevent the progression of autoimmunity; then let’s get this out in a big way, right?

        Angie Alt: Yeah, I love that. Those kind of stories; they don’t get old for me. It still gives me goosebumps to hear it, it still makes me; you know, I’m a crier, but it still makes me on the edge of tears. It’s dramatically changing people’s quality of life is such an awesome way to spend your life work, you know? You’re doing a great job on that massive scale. I love it.

        Mickey Trescott: And you know, the social media, and implementing this kind of online business stuff; you and your husband have been really, really good at leveraging that tool that I think a lot of us get really burnt out and exhausted trying to get the word out through the online environment. It can be a little bit toxic at times; so you guys really figured out how to kind of hit that where you got people’s attention, you got a lot of building this massive community and people really excited about it, because this is what we need to change the symptoms. You know, we need a large movement of people that are ready to kind of go to battle and get that awareness out there. So it’s awesome.

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: Mm-hmm. Yeah, absolutely. We’ve reached 500,000 people with the documentary series; and it’s all a collaboration of our work together, and we’re all sharing our best practices with that.

        2. Hashimoto’s Protocol book release [9:58]

        Mickey Trescott: That’s just incredible. So, right on the heels of this massive launch, you also have a new book out. You sound like the same kind of crazy person cut from the same cloth that Angie and I are; called Hashimoto’s Protocol: A 90-day plan for reversing thyroid symptoms and getting your life back. So for any of you guys who are listening who may have read Izabella’s first book; you will know that she is very detailed, and there is a ton of information there. I remember when I first got my hands on that book, I was like; holy cow. This is a lot. So what inspired you to write the second book, and how are they different from each other?

        Dr. Izabella Wentz: {laughs} So it was a reader, a Pilates teacher, and a discovery of liver support; plus all of my experience with working with over 1,000 people with Hashimoto’s.

        To make kind of a long story short; my first book, Hashimoto’s, the Root Cause; it was me recovering my health, and the book was about my story and all the research that I did to help myself. And I just wanted to put it out there for people and say; “Hey, I don’t know every single root cause, and I don’t know what triggered your condition. Here are some things that worked for me, and these are some additional things that may work for you. These are all of the different things that I researched that could potentially help with autoimmune thyroid disease. Some of them work for me; others did not.”

        So that was my first book. And I started speaking about Hashimoto’s after that point, and I started working exclusively with people with Hashimoto’s, and just really made it my life’s work, and my focus, and of course, my passion. And I was speaking at an event in Chicago; this was in 2014, early 2014. And I met this wonderful woman named Teresa, and she said, “You know, I really love digging for my health.” My first book talked about the dig at it approach, where you figure out what your individual triggers were, and you kind of dig for these triggers. I try to create a funky acronym, right? {laughs} For it, where it was digestion, infections, gut, adrenals, toxins, inflammation, so on and so forth.

        And she said, “I really enjoy digging for my health; but I really wish you would just give me done for me protocols where you tell me exactly what to do. Tell me what I need to eat; tell me what I need to change. Can you give me a plan?” And at first I was like; yeah, I could give you a plan, but I don’t want people to think I’m biased, or I have all these competing interests or whatnot. And I’m like, I think maybe it’s best for people to learn as much as they can, and then pick out what works for them, right?

        Then, a little bit after that I had a Pilates session with a pretty intense Pilates instructor who kept telling me which muscles I was using; she gave me Pilates homework, she tried to quiz me in anatomy. And at that point I was like, “oh. Well I don’t want to be a Pilates expert, I sort of just want to be in good shape.” Right? And then I realized that maybe not everybody wanted to necessarily be a Hashimoto’s expert, which my first book sort of taught people to be their own experts. The second book focuses on giving people protocols; so this is exactly the steps you need to take to recover your health.

        And the steps I developed came from my work with clients, and these are the protocols that have worked for about 80% of people; we saw very positive significant results. One of these protocols is actually the very first of my fundamental protocols in Hashimoto’s protocol called the liver support protocol. This focuses on helping people support their liver through removing the low-hanging toxic fruit, adding specific nutrients to help themselves detoxify better, and removing specific foods, as well as adding other types of foods into their regimen, and what I’ve found is within 2 weeks of doing the liver support protocol, people see significant difference in their symptoms.

        I first discovered this when I was working with a client that was really just reactive to everything; so I would recommend a B-vitamin to her, and she would say, “oh, I had a negative reaction.” Or a probiotic, and she had a negative reaction to that. And she had multiple chemical sensitivities; a lot of joint pains, very high thyroid antibodies and brain...]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=10516Mon, 03 Apr 2017 11:00:00 -070046:09falsefullWelcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 2! Bonus Ep: Hashimoto’s Protocol and Thyroid Wellness w/ Dr. Izabella Wentz is our first episode in nearly 6 months (!) and we’re treating it as a little surprise introduction to Season 2. In this episode, we interview our close friend Izabella Wentz, also known as the thyroid pharmacist. We dig into her experience hacking her own thyroid disease, as well as the ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #18: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part IIThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        We are so grateful for all your positive feedback and interest in our very first podcast season! We created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our new book,The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #18: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part II is another fun chat with our AIP blogging community friends from all over the globe. We take a few minutes to chat with ten different bloggers on one point each from our AIP Evolved Manifesto. They share with us how they have lived out that particular tenant in their own healing journeys. Once again, this encore episode is for you if you like “real life” perspectives on AIP and/or you want to virtually be introduced to some of your favorite bloggers.

        If you’d like to share how you have lived out a tenant of the manifesto, please share in the comments here. Obviously, we are big fans of learning how folks everywhere are restoring their health using AIP.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:29 Welcome to the encore episode — Part II
          • AIP Evolved Manifesto
          
          
        • 3:26 Emma shares on Point #11: Seek help.  
          • Diagnosis: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Chronic Lyme Disease, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
          • Website: The Bacon Mum
          
          
        • 8:04 Maria shares on Point #12: Test, don’t guess.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
          • Website: Zesty Paleo
          
          
        • 12:48 Sarah shares on Point #13: Be skeptical.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, Fibromyalgia, Lichen Planus, Psoriasis
          • Website: The Paleo Mom
          • Podcast: The Paleo View
          • Books: The Paleo Approach, The Paleo Approach Cookbook, The Healing Kitchen
          
          
        • 15:36 Sophie shares on Point #14: Strive for balance.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
          • Website: A Squirrel In The Kitchen
          • Book: Simple French Paleo
          
          
        • 19:08 Bre’anna shares on Point #15: Support is crucial.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and Celiac
          • Website: He Won’t Know It’s Paleo
          • Books: He Won’t Know It’s Paleo, Holiday On The Autoimmune Protocol  
          
          
        • 23:10 Kerry shares on Point #16: Reframe the negatives.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and Celiac
          • Website: Emotional Autoimmunity 
          
          
        • 27:34 Jaime shares on Point #17: Practice gratitude.
          • Diagnosis: Crohn’s Disease
          • Website: Gutsy By Nature
          
          
        • 31:29 Martine shares on Point #18: Eyes on your own journey.
          • Diagnosis: Crohn’s Disease
          • Website: Eat Heal Thrive
          
          
        • 36:30 Alexandra shares on Point #19: Health before image.
          • Diagnosis: Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
          • Website: Don’t Eat the Spatula
          
          
        • 39:45 Rory shares on Point #20: Vibrant health is a lifelong journey.
          • Diagnosis: Rosacea, Occular Rosacea, Small Intestine Bacteria Overgrowth (SIBO)
          • Website: The Paleo PI
          
          
        • 44:29 Outro
        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our new book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by ordering your copy today!

        Order your...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        We are so grateful for all your positive feedback and interest in our very first podcast season! We created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our new book,The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #18: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part II is another fun chat with our AIP blogging community friends from all over the globe. We take a few minutes to chat with ten different bloggers on one point each from our AIP Evolved Manifesto. They share with us how they have lived out that particular tenant in their own healing journeys. Once again, this encore episode is for you if you like “real life” perspectives on AIP and/or you want to virtually be introduced to some of your favorite bloggers.

        If you’d like to share how you have lived out a tenant of the manifesto, please share in the comments here. Obviously, we are big fans of learning how folks everywhere are restoring their health using AIP.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:29 Welcome to the encore episode — Part II
          • AIP Evolved Manifesto
          
          
        • 3:26 Emma shares on Point #11: Seek help.  
          • Diagnosis: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Chronic Lyme Disease, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
          • Website: The Bacon Mum
          
          
        • 8:04 Maria shares on Point #12: Test, don’t guess.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
          • Website: Zesty Paleo
          
          
        • 12:48 Sarah shares on Point #13: Be skeptical.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, Fibromyalgia, Lichen Planus, Psoriasis
          • Website: The Paleo Mom
          • Podcast: The Paleo View
          • Books: The Paleo Approach, The Paleo Approach Cookbook, The Healing Kitchen
          
          
        • 15:36 Sophie shares on Point #14: Strive for balance.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
          • Website: A Squirrel In The Kitchen
          • Book: Simple French Paleo
          
          
        • 19:08 Bre’anna shares on Point #15: Support is crucial.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and Celiac
          • Website: He Won’t Know It’s Paleo
          • Books: He Won’t Know It’s Paleo, Holiday On The Autoimmune Protocol  
          
          
        • 23:10 Kerry shares on Point #16: Reframe the negatives.
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis and Celiac
          • Website: Emotional Autoimmunity 
          
          
        • 27:34 Jaime shares on Point #17: Practice gratitude.
          • Diagnosis: Crohn’s Disease
          • Website: Gutsy By Nature
          
          
        • 31:29 Martine shares on Point #18: Eyes on your own journey.
          • Diagnosis: Crohn’s Disease
          • Website: Eat Heal Thrive
          
          
        • 36:30 Alexandra shares on Point #19: Health before image.
          • Diagnosis: Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
          • Website: Don’t Eat the Spatula
          
          
        • 39:45 Rory shares on Point #20: Vibrant health is a lifelong journey.
          • Diagnosis: Rosacea, Occular Rosacea, Small Intestine Bacteria Overgrowth (SIBO)
          • Website: The Paleo PI
          
          
        • 44:29 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our new book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by ordering your copy today!

        Order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #17: Encore — The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part I. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #18: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part II appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9758Mon, 14 Nov 2016 12:00:00 -070048:53falsefull  We are so grateful for all your positive feedback and interest in our very first podcast season! We created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our new book,The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #18: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part II is another fun chat with our AIP blogging community friends from all ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #17: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part IThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        We are so grateful for all your positive feedback and interest in our very first podcast season! We created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our new book,The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #17: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part I is a fun chat with our AIP blogging community friends from all over the globe. We take a few minutes to chat with ten different bloggers on one point each from our AIP Evolved Manifesto. They share with us how they have lived out that particular tenant in their own healing journeys. This encore episode is for you if you like “real life” perspectives on AIP and/or you want to virtually be introduced to some of your favorite bloggers.

        If you’d like to share how you have lived out a tenant of the manifesto, please share in the comments here. Obviously, we are big fans of learning how folks everywhere are restoring their health using AIP.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:20 Welcome to the encore episode-Part I
          • AIP Evolved Manifesto
          
          
        • 5:09 Alaena shares on Point #1: Trust your intuition.  
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
          • Website: Grazed and Enthused
          • Book: The Healing Kitchen
          
          
        • 9:03 Joanna shares on Point #2: Embrace the template.
          • Diagnosis: Hidradenitus Suppurativa
          • Website: Joanna Frankham
          
          
        • 15:03 Eileen shares on Point #3: Information is power.
          • Diagnosis: Rheumatoid Arthritis
          • Website: Phoenix Helix
          • Podcast: Phoenix Helix Podcast
          • Book: A Simple Guide to the Paleo Autoimmune Protocol
          
          
        • 19:16 Erin shares on Point #4: Start simple.
          • Diagnosis: Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis and Raynaud’s Disease
          • Website: Enjoying This Journey
          
          
        • 23:55 Astrid shares on Point #5: Take it slow.
          • Diagnosis: Ulcerative Colitis
          • Website: Heal Me In The Kitchen
          
          
        • 27:30 Dora shares on Point #6: Food is your friend.
          • Diagnosis: Grave’s Disease
          • Website: Provincial Paleo
          • Ebook: The Little Cookbook of Gluten-Free Waffles
          
          
        • 30:49 Bethany shares on Point #7: Set yourself up for success.
          • Diagnosis: Uveitis, Spondyloarthritis, Endometriosis
          • Website: Adventures in Partaking
          • Ebook: AIP Safari
          
          
        • 33:23 Kate shares on Point #8: Be a nutrient-seeker.
          • Diagnosis: Hypothyroidism and Raynaud’s Disease
          • Website: Healing Family Eats
          
          
        • 36:54 Jo shares on Point #9: Food over supplements.
          • Diagnosis: Psoriasis
          • Website: Comfort Bites
          • Ebooks: Simple Autoimmune Paleo Comfort Food and Spice
          
          
        • 40:04 Kat shares on Point #10: Don’t diet “harder.”
          • Diagnosis: Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis, and Endometriosis
          • Website: The Primordial Table
          
          
        • 43:20 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our new book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by ordering your copy today!

        Order your copy:

        This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        We are so grateful for all your positive feedback and interest in our very first podcast season! We created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our new book,The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #17: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part I is a fun chat with our AIP blogging community friends from all over the globe. We take a few minutes to chat with ten different bloggers on one point each from our AIP Evolved Manifesto. They share with us how they have lived out that particular tenant in their own healing journeys. This encore episode is for you if you like “real life” perspectives on AIP and/or you want to virtually be introduced to some of your favorite bloggers.

        If you’d like to share how you have lived out a tenant of the manifesto, please share in the comments here. Obviously, we are big fans of learning how folks everywhere are restoring their health using AIP.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:20 Welcome to the encore episode-Part I
          • AIP Evolved Manifesto
          
          
        • 5:09 Alaena shares on Point #1: Trust your intuition.  
          • Diagnosis: Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
          • Website: Grazed and Enthused
          • Book: The Healing Kitchen
          
          
        • 9:03 Joanna shares on Point #2: Embrace the template.
          • Diagnosis: Hidradenitus Suppurativa
          • Website: Joanna Frankham
          
          
        • 15:03 Eileen shares on Point #3: Information is power.
          • Diagnosis: Rheumatoid Arthritis
          • Website: Phoenix Helix
          • Podcast: Phoenix Helix Podcast
          • Book: A Simple Guide to the Paleo Autoimmune Protocol
          
          
        • 19:16 Erin shares on Point #4: Start simple.
          • Diagnosis: Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis and Raynaud’s Disease
          • Website: Enjoying This Journey
          
          
        • 23:55 Astrid shares on Point #5: Take it slow.
          • Diagnosis: Ulcerative Colitis
          • Website: Heal Me In The Kitchen
          
          
        • 27:30 Dora shares on Point #6: Food is your friend.
          • Diagnosis: Grave’s Disease
          • Website: Provincial Paleo
          • Ebook: The Little Cookbook of Gluten-Free Waffles
          
          
        • 30:49 Bethany shares on Point #7: Set yourself up for success.
          • Diagnosis: Uveitis, Spondyloarthritis, Endometriosis
          • Website: Adventures in Partaking
          • Ebook: AIP Safari
          
          
        • 33:23 Kate shares on Point #8: Be a nutrient-seeker.
          • Diagnosis: Hypothyroidism and Raynaud’s Disease
          • Website: Healing Family Eats
          
          
        • 36:54 Jo shares on Point #9: Food over supplements.
          • Diagnosis: Psoriasis
          • Website: Comfort Bites
          • Ebooks: Simple Autoimmune Paleo Comfort Food and Spice
          
          
        • 40:04 Kat shares on Point #10: Don’t diet “harder.”
          • Diagnosis: Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis, and Endometriosis
          • Website: The Primordial Table
          
          
        • 43:20 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our new book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by ordering your copy today!

        Order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #16: Putting Together All the Steps of The Autoimmune Wellness Journey, and the next episode, Episode #18: Encore — The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part II. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #17: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part I appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9756Mon, 07 Nov 2016 15:00:00 -070047:22falsefull  We are so grateful for all your positive feedback and interest in our very first podcast season! We created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our new book,The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #17: Encore – The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part I is a fun chat with our AIP blogging community friends from all ...The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook Launches!This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook launches!

        That’s right folks… our book baby makes her entrance, and we couldn’t be more excited!

        Today, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook is available everywhere books are sold. If you pre-ordered online, it might even be in your mailbox right now… If you hit your local bookstore, it will probably be on the shelves. We are over here pinching ourselves!

        We know many of you aren’t able to make it out to the book tour we are embarking on this week, so we wanted to celebrate by holding a virtual launch party and Q + A session on Facebook Live! Click here to see the replay!

        All you need to do is navigate over to our Facebook page at 1PM PST and click on the live video of us. You can then leave comments and ask questions. We can’t wait to hang out with you guys!

        For those of you that live in the Bay Area, Seattle, Denver, NYC or DC, we look forward to seeing you this week at our book signing events!

        Want some more details about the book?

        The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook was written on the foundation that the way we view and treat autoimmune disease is undergoing a revolution. Our purpose with this book is to help fuel that major shift.

        We are hoping that this book helps you live out the seven key steps to living well with autoimmune disease — inform, collaborate, nourish, rest, breathe, and connect. This is an empowered, actionable book!

        Just to recap, here is what you’ll find inside:

        • A chapter on each of the seven key steps to wellness; Inform, Collaborate, Nourish, Rest, Breathe, Move, and Connect.
        • Information on how to be a proactive patient, from receiving a diagnosis to partnering with a doctor who can help you achieve wellness.
        • Self-assessments, checklists, and infographics for every chapter to help you define where you are and decide where to apply your energy. Everyone’s journey is different!
        • 30 exclusive recipes, compliant with the Autoimmune Protocol. We want you to heal and enjoy your life!
        • A 4-week meal plan and shopping list for the elimination diet. The mantra is “set yourself up for success!”.
        • A 90-day lifestyle plan to ease you into better rest, stress management, exercise, and connection, without making you feel burnt out! We know that making small, incremental changes will make this doable!

        
        

        We believe that in order to live well with chronic illness, you need to become a new kind of patient, one who is savvy enough to know that a whole-body and whole-life approach is necessary. The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook helps you achieve that with information-rich resources, self-assessments, checklists, and guides.

        If you’d like to pick up a copy today, order from these retailers or pick one up wherever books are sold!

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        We recorded a short little podcast episode about launch day, as well as to make a call for questions for a season 2 of the podcast. Listen below:

        Lastly, thank you to everyone who has supported us by pre-ordering the book, listening to the podcast, and sharing your stories and feedback about the autoimmune wellness journey. We are thrilled to share this with you and hope it helps your healing reach new heights.

        Have you received your copy of the handbook yet? Tell us what you think in the comments, and if you have a chance, consider leaving us a review on Amazon!

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook Launches! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook launches!

        That’s right folks… our book baby makes her entrance, and we couldn’t be more excited!

        Today, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook is available everywhere books are sold. If you pre-ordered online, it might even be in your mailbox right now… If you hit your local bookstore, it will probably be on the shelves. We are over here pinching ourselves!

        We know many of you aren’t able to make it out to the book tour we are embarking on this week, so we wanted to celebrate by holding a virtual launch party and Q + A session on Facebook Live! Click here to see the replay!

        All you need to do is navigate over to our Facebook page at 1PM PST and click on the live video of us. You can then leave comments and ask questions. We can’t wait to hang out with you guys!

        For those of you that live in the Bay Area, Seattle, Denver, NYC or DC, we look forward to seeing you this week at our book signing events!

        Want some more details about the book?

        The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook was written on the foundation that the way we view and treat autoimmune disease is undergoing a revolution. Our purpose with this book is to help fuel that major shift.

        We are hoping that this book helps you live out the seven key steps to living well with autoimmune disease — inform, collaborate, nourish, rest, breathe, and connect. This is an empowered, actionable book!

        Just to recap, here is what you’ll find inside:

        • A chapter on each of the seven key steps to wellness; Inform, Collaborate, Nourish, Rest, Breathe, Move, and Connect.
        • Information on how to be a proactive patient, from receiving a diagnosis to partnering with a doctor who can help you achieve wellness.
        • Self-assessments, checklists, and infographics for every chapter to help you define where you are and decide where to apply your energy. Everyone’s journey is different!
        • 30 exclusive recipes, compliant with the Autoimmune Protocol. We want you to heal and enjoy your life!
        • A 4-week meal plan and shopping list for the elimination diet. The mantra is “set yourself up for success!”.
        • A 90-day lifestyle plan to ease you into better rest, stress management, exercise, and connection, without making you feel burnt out! We know that making small, incremental changes will make this doable!

        
        

        We believe that in order to live well with chronic illness, you need to become a new kind of patient, one who is savvy enough to know that a whole-body and whole-life approach is necessary. The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook helps you achieve that with information-rich resources, self-assessments, checklists, and guides.

        If you’d like to pick up a copy today, order from these retailers or pick one up wherever books are sold!

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        We recorded a short little podcast episode about launch day, as well as to make a call for questions for a season 2 of the podcast. Listen below:

        Lastly, thank you to everyone who has supported us by pre-ordering the book, listening to the podcast, and sharing your stories and feedback about the autoimmune wellness journey. We are thrilled to share this with you and hope it helps your healing reach new heights.

        Have you received your copy of the handbook yet? Tell us what you think in the comments, and if you have a chance, consider leaving us a review on Amazon!

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook Launches! appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9844Tue, 01 Nov 2016 12:00:00 -070003:06falsefull  The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook launches! That’s right folks… our book baby makes her entrance, and we couldn’t be more excited! Today, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook is available everywhere books are sold. If you pre-ordered online, it might even be in your mailbox right now… If you hit your local bookstore, it will probably be on the shelves. We are over here pinching ourselves! We ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #16: Putting Together The Steps of the Autoimmune Wellness JourneyThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #16: Putting Together the Steps of The Autoimmune Wellness Journey starts with a look at how our personal healing timelines unfolded. We discuss how long each of the seven steps; inform, collaborate, nourish, rest, breathe, move, and connect, took us to implement as we sought wellness. The second half of this episode is about the “big idea” we are hoping to convey with the book and podcast series, the ebb and flow nature of a healing with autoimmune disease, ditching perfectionism, and shifting what we see as “normal” in order to focus on health. The very best part of this episode comes in the last 15 minutes where we share loads of inspiration on joining the community.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth, check out the “Conclusion” section at the end of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. It will help solidify this exciting, renewing process for you and add depth to our chat during this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:30 Welcome to the final episode
        • 2:57 We talk about “healing timelines”
        • 3:29 Mickey shares how long the Inform step took her
          • One year
          
          
        • 5:14 Angie shares how long the Inform step took her
          • 11 years (She had a complex situation.)
          
          
        • 6:36 Angie shares how long the Collaborate step took her
          • One-two years
          
          
        • 7:44 Mickey shares how long the Collaborate step took her
          • She’s still working this step
          
          
        • 10:22 Mickey shares how long the Nourish step took her
          • Three-six months
          
          
        • 11:28 Angie shares how long the Nourish step took her
          • Overnight
          
          
        • 12:32 Angie shares how long the Rest step took her
          • Roughly one year, but there were big improvements immediately with dietary changes
          
          
        • 13:37 Mickey shares how long the Rest step took her
          • Roughly a couple months with a breakthrough following some neurotransmitter testing and supplementation
          • Has required continual maintenance
          
          
        • 15:31 Mickey shares how long the Breathe step took her
          • She’s still working this step
          
          
        • 16:13 Angie shares how long the Breathe step took her
          • She’s still working this step, but there were big improvements immediately with diagnosis, because unexplained illness was a major source of stress
          
          
        • 17:50 Mickey shares how long the Move step took her
          • She had a routine within one month, but it took longer for her to transition the way she thought of it
          
          
        • 19:21 Angie shares how long the Move step took her
          • She’s still working on this step
          
          
        • 20:33 Angie shares how long the Connect step took her
          • She was able to dial in this step immediately
          
          
        • 21:44 Mickey shares how long the Connect step took her
          • She had some initial stumbles with her friends around socializing
          
          
        • 23:40 The big idea of this episode is that the process takes time and looks different for every individual
        • 24:30 The Autoimmune Wellness Journey is a journey of ebbing and flowing
        • 25:05 Mickey shares personal examples of ebb and flow
        • 26:33 Angie shares personal examples of ebb and flow
          • Over time we can learn to proactively use the protocol to support ourselves through things we recognize as likely health challenges
          
          
        • 29:29 Learning to spot “engine trouble”
        • 30:20 Perfectionism has no place in the Autoimmune Wellness Journey
        • 32:20 Being open to shifting what we see as “normal”
        • 34:08 Joining the Autoimmune Wellness community
          • Community groups
          • Online groups
          • Social media (hashtags: #autoimmunepaleo #autoimmunewellness #totesaip #bonebrothheals and specific disease tags, like #celiac)
          • Consider starting a blog or social media account to share your story and inspire the next person to change their life
          • Talk to your doctor about your diet and lifestyle
          
          
        • 45:10 Our hopes for your healing journey
          • Empowerment
          • Action
          • Wellness
          • Vitality
          
          
        • 47:15 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #16: Putting Together the Steps of The Autoimmune Wellness Journey starts with a look at how our personal healing timelines unfolded. We discuss how long each of the seven steps; inform, collaborate, nourish, rest, breathe, move, and connect, took us to implement as we sought wellness. The second half of this episode is about the “big idea” we are hoping to convey with the book and podcast series, the ebb and flow nature of a healing with autoimmune disease, ditching perfectionism, and shifting what we see as “normal” in order to focus on health. The very best part of this episode comes in the last 15 minutes where we share loads of inspiration on joining the community.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth, check out the “Conclusion” section at the end of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. It will help solidify this exciting, renewing process for you and add depth to our chat during this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:30 Welcome to the final episode
        • 2:57 We talk about “healing timelines”
        • 3:29 Mickey shares how long the Inform step took her
          • One year
          
          
        • 5:14 Angie shares how long the Inform step took her
          • 11 years (She had a complex situation.)
          
          
        • 6:36 Angie shares how long the Collaborate step took her
          • One-two years
          
          
        • 7:44 Mickey shares how long the Collaborate step took her
          • She’s still working this step
          
          
        • 10:22 Mickey shares how long the Nourish step took her
          • Three-six months
          
          
        • 11:28 Angie shares how long the Nourish step took her
          • Overnight
          
          
        • 12:32 Angie shares how long the Rest step took her
          • Roughly one year, but there were big improvements immediately with dietary changes
          
          
        • 13:37 Mickey shares how long the Rest step took her
          • Roughly a couple months with a breakthrough following some neurotransmitter testing and supplementation
          • Has required continual maintenance
          
          
        • 15:31 Mickey shares how long the Breathe step took her
          • She’s still working this step
          
          
        • 16:13 Angie shares how long the Breathe step took her
          • She’s still working this step, but there were big improvements immediately with diagnosis, because unexplained illness was a major source of stress
          
          
        • 17:50 Mickey shares how long the Move step took her
          • She had a routine within one month, but it took longer for her to transition the way she thought of it
          
          
        • 19:21 Angie shares how long the Move step took her
          • She’s still working on this step
          
          
        • 20:33 Angie shares how long the Connect step took her
          • She was able to dial in this step immediately
          
          
        • 21:44 Mickey shares how long the Connect step took her
          • She had some initial stumbles with her friends around socializing
          
          
        • 23:40 The big idea of this episode is that the process takes time and looks different for every individual
        • 24:30 The Autoimmune Wellness Journey is a journey of ebbing and flowing
        • 25:05 Mickey shares personal examples of ebb and flow
        • 26:33 Angie shares personal examples of ebb and flow
          • Over time we can learn to proactively use the protocol to support ourselves through things we recognize as likely health challenges
          
          
        • 29:29 Learning to spot “engine trouble”
        • 30:20 Perfectionism has no place in the Autoimmune Wellness Journey
        • 32:20 Being open to shifting what we see as “normal”
        • 34:08 Joining the Autoimmune Wellness community
          • Community groups
          • Online groups
          • Social media (hashtags: #autoimmunepaleo #autoimmunewellness #totesaip #bonebrothheals and specific disease tags, like #celiac)
          • Consider starting a blog or social media account to share your story and inspire the next person to change their life
          • Talk to your doctor about your diet and lifestyle
          
          
        • 45:10 Our hopes for your healing journey
          • Empowerment
          • Action
          • Wellness
          • Vitality
          
          
        • 47:15 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #15: Angelo Coppola on Connecting with Humans and Nature, and the next episode, Episode #17: Encore — The AIP Evolved Manifesto Part I. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #16: Putting Together The Steps of the Autoimmune Wellness Journey appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9754Mon, 17 Oct 2016 12:00:00 -070051:32falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #16: Putting Together the Steps of The Autoimmune Wellness Journey starts with a look at how our personal healing timelines unfolded. We discuss how long each of the seven ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #15: Step 7: In-Depth with Angelo CoppolaThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #15: Step 7: In-Depth with Angelo Coppola is an episode with a popular, and very unique voice, in the wider Paleo community about how connection with others and nature deeply impacts not just our wellness, but our whole lives. Angelo discusses leaving his high-powered career to focus on family and his place in the natural world, his philosophy of “humans are not broken,” and exploring how removing some things from his life actually expanded it greatly. He also talks with us about a really refreshing view he has about not seeing our bodies, especially those with autoimmune disease, as broken, but seeing disease as warning signs of environmental inputs that need to change. Angelo also explores with us the relationship humans have to the natural world (his take is that we are nature) and his ideas about “ambient anxiety.” This is a great episode for anyone who wants to think about connection in a whole new light.

        If you want to explore some of our conversation more, take a look at the “How to Start Connecting with Nature” section in Chapter 7. This section provides ideas on getting started with simple connection to nature.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 2:00 Introducing Angelo
          • Angelo’s Bio
          • Angelo’s Website
          • Latest In Paleo Podcast
          
          
        • 2:30 Angelo shares about how his connections changed after he left his high-powered career
          • He feels those connections actually helped him connect more to himself
          
          
        • 6:09 What it felt like when Angelo made the decision to shift his lifestyle
          • He is always focused on “tweaking in the right direction,” rather than perfectionism in his life
          
          
        • 10:00 What is Angelo’s philosophy “humans are not broken?”
          • Be careful of the often used marketing idea that you are inadequate
          • Explore the idea that you may need to reduce, rather than increase in life
          
          
        • 14:30 Angelo discusses how we can reject the idea that our bodies are broken, but instead consider environmental inputs that may be negative
        • 16:00 Angelo shares his view that humans and nature are not in relationship
          • He believes we are the same as nature
          • He shares his great quote, “Our modern lives are a dumbing down of nature.”
          
          
        • 22:20 The key components that Angelo sees as contributing to autoimmune disease
          • Diet
          • Lack of “baked right in” natural experiences
          
          
        • 28:08 “Ambient Anxiety” and whether or not we should look for an anxiety to it?
          • Angelo suggests seeing stress/anxiety as a pain response pointing to a root cause
          
          
        • 36:00 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #16: Putting Together All the Steps of The Autoimmune Wellness Journey. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #15: Step 7: In-Depth with Angelo Coppola appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #15: Step 7: In-Depth with Angelo Coppola is an episode with a popular, and very unique voice, in the wider Paleo community about how connection with others and nature deeply impacts not just our wellness, but our whole lives. Angelo discusses leaving his high-powered career to focus on family and his place in the natural world, his philosophy of “humans are not broken,” and exploring how removing some things from his life actually expanded it greatly. He also talks with us about a really refreshing view he has about not seeing our bodies, especially those with autoimmune disease, as broken, but seeing disease as warning signs of environmental inputs that need to change. Angelo also explores with us the relationship humans have to the natural world (his take is that we are nature) and his ideas about “ambient anxiety.” This is a great episode for anyone who wants to think about connection in a whole new light.

        If you want to explore some of our conversation more, take a look at the “How to Start Connecting with Nature” section in Chapter 7. This section provides ideas on getting started with simple connection to nature.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 2:00 Introducing Angelo
          • Angelo’s Bio
          • Angelo’s Website
          • Latest In Paleo Podcast
          
          
        • 2:30 Angelo shares about how his connections changed after he left his high-powered career
          • He feels those connections actually helped him connect more to himself
          
          
        • 6:09 What it felt like when Angelo made the decision to shift his lifestyle
          • He is always focused on “tweaking in the right direction,” rather than perfectionism in his life
          
          
        • 10:00 What is Angelo’s philosophy “humans are not broken?”
          • Be careful of the often used marketing idea that you are inadequate
          • Explore the idea that you may need to reduce, rather than increase in life
          
          
        • 14:30 Angelo discusses how we can reject the idea that our bodies are broken, but instead consider environmental inputs that may be negative
        • 16:00 Angelo shares his view that humans and nature are not in relationship
          • He believes we are the same as nature
          • He shares his great quote, “Our modern lives are a dumbing down of nature.”
          
          
        • 22:20 The key components that Angelo sees as contributing to autoimmune disease
          • Diet
          • Lack of “baked right in” natural experiences
          
          
        • 28:08 “Ambient Anxiety” and whether or not we should look for an anxiety to it?
          • Angelo suggests seeing stress/anxiety as a pain response pointing to a root cause
          
          
        • 36:00 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #16: Putting Together All the Steps of The Autoimmune Wellness Journey. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #15: Step 7: In-Depth with Angelo Coppola appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9752Thu, 13 Oct 2016 12:00:00 -070039:39falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #15: Step 7: In-Depth with Angelo Coppola is an episode with a popular, and very unique voice, in the wider Paleo community about how connection with others and nature ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories is an episode all about an often unexplored, but vitally important, piece of the healing process, connection. In this episode we talk not only about connection with other people and its role in healing, but connection with the natural world. We start with a chat about how our illnesses initially impacted our support networks, how things changed after diagnosis and when realization that this was chronic set-in. We address the awkward, depressing, and often stressful truth behind trying to articulate the experience of autoimmune disease to those close to us, plus how the experience can expose weaknesses in our connections with others. We also talk about transitioning our social lives to support healing, finding new connections through online support, and avoiding the trap of adopting illness as an identity. Next we move on to exploring the role connection with nature had in our recoveries and wrap up with ways to experience the benefits of that connection even when you can’t get out in the woods regularly. This episode is a great match for listeners that are wondering if the strain illness has taken on their “people” connections is normal or what they can do to enhance their nature connections.

        If you want to dig in check-out the ideas in the “Building a Support Network” section in Chapter 7. This is a good place to help you get the gears turning about forming or strengthening relationships, if it feels like this area could use some attention for you.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:31 Introducing the Connect topic
          • How Healthy Relationships Make Us Healthy
          
          
        • 2:26 Angie shares about what her support network was like early in her journey
          • Strong, but confused
          
          
        • 5:26 Mickey shares about what her support network was like early in her journey
          • Strong, but tense
          
          
        • 7:50 Mickey talks about key relationships that were under stress due to her illness
        • 9:17 We don’t have rituals for acknowledging chronic illness in our society
        • 10:18 The awkward and depressing side of discussing your autoimmune disease
        • 11:18 The importance of adding people who “get it” on a personal level to your support network
        • 12:29 Mickey’s social life now
        • 13:26 Angie shares about transitioning her social life to support healing
          • Working to inspire others to support her choices by projecting confidence about her journey
          
          
        • 15:54 Mickey shares about avoiding long explanations with all but the most important people
        • 17:48 Mickey shares about connections she found online
          • She was looking for empowered people
          
          
        • 19:30 Angie shares about connections she found online
          • Her virtual relationships turned into real world connections
          
          
        • 21:25 How to avoid adopting illness as our identities
          • Consider ways autoimmune disease has expanded your life
          • Consider how it could actually shut you off from connection with others
          • Consider meeting new people and letting your illness take a backseat in how you define yourself to them
          
          
        • 25:00 The powerful role connection with nature can play in healing
          • Three Reasons You Need More Time in the Forest
          
          
        • 25:38 Angie shares about her experience with nature and healing
          • It gave her a renewed energy
          
          
        • 27:00 Mickey shares about her experience with nature and healing
          • She had a similar sense of drawing energy
          
          
        • 28:20 The inescapable connection we have to the natural world
        • 28:52 How Angie connects with nature now
          • Walking
          
          
        • 30:05 How Mickey connects with nature now
          • She moved to a farm
          
          
        • 31:30 Experiencing the elements of nature when we can’t get out
          • House plants
          • Nature sounds recordings
          • Diffusing essential oils
          • Bright light exposure
          
          
        • 34:14 Your homework for Step 7, Connect!
          • Try out the “Support Network Evaluation” tool in Chapter 7 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to assess the strength of your connections with others.
          
          
        • 34:34 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories is an episode all about an often unexplored, but vitally important, piece of the healing process, connection. In this episode we talk not only about connection with other people and its role in healing, but connection with the natural world. We start with a chat about how our illnesses initially impacted our support networks, how things changed after diagnosis and when realization that this was chronic set-in. We address the awkward, depressing, and often stressful truth behind trying to articulate the experience of autoimmune disease to those close to us, plus how the experience can expose weaknesses in our connections with others. We also talk about transitioning our social lives to support healing, finding new connections through online support, and avoiding the trap of adopting illness as an identity. Next we move on to exploring the role connection with nature had in our recoveries and wrap up with ways to experience the benefits of that connection even when you can’t get out in the woods regularly. This episode is a great match for listeners that are wondering if the strain illness has taken on their “people” connections is normal or what they can do to enhance their nature connections.

        If you want to dig in check-out the ideas in the “Building a Support Network” section in Chapter 7. This is a good place to help you get the gears turning about forming or strengthening relationships, if it feels like this area could use some attention for you.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:31 Introducing the Connect topic
          • How Healthy Relationships Make Us Healthy
          
          
        • 2:26 Angie shares about what her support network was like early in her journey
          • Strong, but confused
          
          
        • 5:26 Mickey shares about what her support network was like early in her journey
          • Strong, but tense
          
          
        • 7:50 Mickey talks about key relationships that were under stress due to her illness
        • 9:17 We don’t have rituals for acknowledging chronic illness in our society
        • 10:18 The awkward and depressing side of discussing your autoimmune disease
        • 11:18 The importance of adding people who “get it” on a personal level to your support network
        • 12:29 Mickey’s social life now
        • 13:26 Angie shares about transitioning her social life to support healing
          • Working to inspire others to support her choices by projecting confidence about her journey
          
          
        • 15:54 Mickey shares about avoiding long explanations with all but the most important people
        • 17:48 Mickey shares about connections she found online
          • She was looking for empowered people
          
          
        • 19:30 Angie shares about connections she found online
          • Her virtual relationships turned into real world connections
          
          
        • 21:25 How to avoid adopting illness as our identities
          • Consider ways autoimmune disease has expanded your life
          • Consider how it could actually shut you off from connection with others
          • Consider meeting new people and letting your illness take a backseat in how you define yourself to them
          
          
        • 25:00 The powerful role connection with nature can play in healing
          • Three Reasons You Need More Time in the Forest
          
          
        • 25:38 Angie shares about her experience with nature and healing
          • It gave her a renewed energy
          
          
        • 27:00 Mickey shares about her experience with nature and healing
          • She had a similar sense of drawing energy
          
          
        • 28:20 The inescapable connection we have to the natural world
        • 28:52 How Angie connects with nature now
          • Walking
          
          
        • 30:05 How Mickey connects with nature now
          • She moved to a farm
          
          
        • 31:30 Experiencing the elements of nature when we can’t get out
          • House plants
          • Nature sounds recordings
          • Diffusing essential oils
          • Bright light exposure
          
          
        • 34:14 Your homework for Step 7, Connect!
          • Try out the “Support Network Evaluation” tool in Chapter 7 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to assess the strength of your connections with others.
          
          
        • 34:34 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #13: Noelle Tarr, NTP on Autoimmune-Friendly Movement, and the next episode, Episode #15: Angelo Coppola on Connecting with Humans and Nature. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9749Mon, 10 Oct 2016 12:00:00 -070038:38falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories is an episode all about an often unexplored, but vitally important, piece of the healing process, connection. In this episode we talk ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #13: Step 6: In-Depth with Noelle Tarr, NTP, Certified Personal TrainerThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #13: Step 6: In-Depth with Noelle Tarr, NTP, Certified Personal Trainer is an episode about fitness and wellness recovery with a personal trainer who has dedicated her work to approaching movement with a balanced perspective. Noelle discusses what inspired her to combine a career in both fitness and nutrition. She also chats with us about how both under- and overdoing it with movement can be a problem and ways to tackle “too much” and “too little” struggles. Noelle takes time to chat with us about getting away from “fitspo” and finding realistic sources of fitness inspiration. We also get into the best place to restart a fitness routine while dealing with autoimmune disease and how to assess how much recovery time is necessary. This is an episode for those that love to move and those that are struggling with it after years of illness. Noelle’s professional experience shines as she helps us navigate what can be a tricky area of recovery for those on the autoimmune wellness journey.

        If you want to explore some our conversation more, take a look at the “Fitspo and Shame” section in Chapter 6. This section digs into the highlight of our conversation with Noelle on the harmful side of the fitness world and the emotional toll it can take.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 2:04 Introducing Noelle
          • Noelle’s Bio
          • Noelle’s Website
          • The Paleo Women Podcast
          
          
        • 2:40 Noelle shares what inspired her combined career of fitness and nutrition
        • 4:55 Where does Noelle see the fine line with exercise and autoimmune disease?
        • Too Much Movement
          • Don’t push through pain
          • Remember your worth is not related to your ability to workout
          • Practice “intuitive fitness”
          • Feeling sore or fatigued after working out and in the presence of chronic illness is a sign to rest (When Exercise Recovery Becomes Harder to Handle)
          
          
        • Too Little Movement
          • This may be a struggle with motivation
          • Create an environment and system that make it easy
          • Add accountability
          
          
        • 14:11 Noelle discusses how we can find more realistic fitness inspiration
          • The problems with “fitspo” culture
          • Don’t expose yourself to social media personalities that make you feel bad about yourself
          • Engage with body positive messages
          
          
        • 20:48 Noelle talks about the best place to start a fitness routine for those with autoimmune disease
          • The Benefits of a Regular Walking Routine
          • Consider adding resistance bands to your workout  
          • Noelle’s free home workout guide
          
          
        • 26:47 Assessing recovery time needs with autoimmune disease
          • Tracking via a workout calendar
          • Taking time to listen to your body
          • Three days/week is enough
          
          
        • 37:07 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #13: Step 6: In-Depth with Noelle Tarr, NTP, Certified Personal Trainer is an episode about fitness and wellness recovery with a personal trainer who has dedicated her work to approaching movement with a balanced perspective. Noelle discusses what inspired her to combine a career in both fitness and nutrition. She also chats with us about how both under- and overdoing it with movement can be a problem and ways to tackle “too much” and “too little” struggles. Noelle takes time to chat with us about getting away from “fitspo” and finding realistic sources of fitness inspiration. We also get into the best place to restart a fitness routine while dealing with autoimmune disease and how to assess how much recovery time is necessary. This is an episode for those that love to move and those that are struggling with it after years of illness. Noelle’s professional experience shines as she helps us navigate what can be a tricky area of recovery for those on the autoimmune wellness journey.

        If you want to explore some our conversation more, take a look at the “Fitspo and Shame” section in Chapter 6. This section digs into the highlight of our conversation with Noelle on the harmful side of the fitness world and the emotional toll it can take.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 2:04 Introducing Noelle
          • Noelle’s Bio
          • Noelle’s Website
          • The Paleo Women Podcast
          
          
        • 2:40 Noelle shares what inspired her combined career of fitness and nutrition
        • 4:55 Where does Noelle see the fine line with exercise and autoimmune disease?
        • Too Much Movement
          • Don’t push through pain
          • Remember your worth is not related to your ability to workout
          • Practice “intuitive fitness”
          • Feeling sore or fatigued after working out and in the presence of chronic illness is a sign to rest (When Exercise Recovery Becomes Harder to Handle)
          
          
        • Too Little Movement
          • This may be a struggle with motivation
          • Create an environment and system that make it easy
          • Add accountability
          
          
        • 14:11 Noelle discusses how we can find more realistic fitness inspiration
          • The problems with “fitspo” culture
          • Don’t expose yourself to social media personalities that make you feel bad about yourself
          • Engage with body positive messages
          
          
        • 20:48 Noelle talks about the best place to start a fitness routine for those with autoimmune disease
          • The Benefits of a Regular Walking Routine
          • Consider adding resistance bands to your workout  
          • Noelle’s free home workout guide
          
          
        • 26:47 Assessing recovery time needs with autoimmune disease
          • Tracking via a workout calendar
          • Taking time to listen to your body
          • Three days/week is enough
          
          
        • 37:07 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #14: Step 7: Connect – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #13: Step 6: In-Depth with Noelle Tarr, NTP, Certified Personal Trainer appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9747Thu, 06 Oct 2016 12:00:00 -070040:41falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #13: Step 6: In-Depth with Noelle Tarr, NTP, Certified Personal Trainer is an episode about fitness and wellness recovery with a personal trainer who has dedicated her work to ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories is an episode dedicated to talking about our histories with exercise, as well as, where we are today in this area of our lives. We start with discussion of what it was like when we first realized we were losing physical ability as our autoimmune struggles deepened. Next we move on to exploring the two ends of the movement spectrum, too little and too much, and where each of were pre-diagnosis versus where we are today. We also chat about our movement routines before we got sick and our routines now. We wrap up with a look at why we believe walking is ideal for those with autoimmune disease and how we gauge if we are under or overdoing it with movement. This episode is a chance for listeners to understand totally opposite sides of the movement conundrum that those with autoimmune disease face.

        If you want to know more about why exactly the balance with exercise and autoimmune disease is such a fine one, check out the section, “Why Is Exercise Difficult for Those with Autoimmune Disease” in Chapter 6. This section adds a little science background to this issue.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:29 Opening the Move topic
        • 2:25 Angie shares what it was like to realize she was losing physical ability due to illness
          • She recognized her body no longer had additional energy reserves for workout routines.
          • Experienced a lot of shame with not being able to keep up with others.
          
          
        • 4:58 Mickey shares what it was like to realize she was losing physical ability due to illness
          • She noticed herself becoming weaker, rather than stronger, despite training hard.
          • More of Mickey’s struggle and recovery.
          
          
        • 6:58 Both Mickey and Angie describe the fear that came with muscle wasting
        • 8:08 Mickey talks about exercise obsession pre-diagnosis
          • This was the result of her lacking other more appropriate stress management tools.
          
          
        • 10:30 Angie’s struggle with moving too little
        • There are complex barriers for those who move too little with autoimmune disease:
          • Fears/Shame
          • Incorrect intensity level
          • Fatigue
          • Injury
          • Pain
          • Overwhelm
          
          
        • 13:30 Mickey’s exercise routine pre-diagnosis
          • Biking over 100 miles/week
          • Running/gym/yoga 3x/week
          • Multiple routines per day
          • Cardio-obsession
          • She feels she used this to “numb” herself.
          
          
        • 15:58 Angie’s exercise routine pre-diagnosis
          • Hiking
          • Backpacking
          
          
        • 16:42 Angie’s exercise routine now
          • Walking
          
          
        • 17:18 Mickey’s exercise routine now
          • Walking
          • Horseback riding
          • Yoga
          • Touching on the negative cultural messages about how intense exercise needs to be
          
          
        • 19:24 Why walking is so great for those with autoimmune disease?
          • The benefits of walking
          
          
        • 27:23 How we assess where the “line” is for physical activity
          • Troubleshooting routines
          
          
        • 30:20 Your homework for Step 6, Move!
          • Try out the “Where Are You on the Movement Spectrum” self-test in Chapter 6 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to assess how much attention this area of your healing journey needs.
          
          
        • 31:15 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #11: Jason Handler, Lac. on Stress Management, and the next episode, Episode #13: Noelle Tarr, NTP on Autoimmune-Friendly Movement. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories is an episode dedicated to talking about our histories with exercise, as well as, where we are today in this area of our lives. We start with discussion of what it was like when we first realized we were losing physical ability as our autoimmune struggles deepened. Next we move on to exploring the two ends of the movement spectrum, too little and too much, and where each of were pre-diagnosis versus where we are today. We also chat about our movement routines before we got sick and our routines now. We wrap up with a look at why we believe walking is ideal for those with autoimmune disease and how we gauge if we are under or overdoing it with movement. This episode is a chance for listeners to understand totally opposite sides of the movement conundrum that those with autoimmune disease face.

        If you want to know more about why exactly the balance with exercise and autoimmune disease is such a fine one, check out the section, “Why Is Exercise Difficult for Those with Autoimmune Disease” in Chapter 6. This section adds a little science background to this issue.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:29 Opening the Move topic
        • 2:25 Angie shares what it was like to realize she was losing physical ability due to illness
          • She recognized her body no longer had additional energy reserves for workout routines.
          • Experienced a lot of shame with not being able to keep up with others.
          
          
        • 4:58 Mickey shares what it was like to realize she was losing physical ability due to illness
          • She noticed herself becoming weaker, rather than stronger, despite training hard.
          • More of Mickey’s struggle and recovery.
          
          
        • 6:58 Both Mickey and Angie describe the fear that came with muscle wasting
        • 8:08 Mickey talks about exercise obsession pre-diagnosis
          • This was the result of her lacking other more appropriate stress management tools.
          
          
        • 10:30 Angie’s struggle with moving too little
        • There are complex barriers for those who move too little with autoimmune disease:
          • Fears/Shame
          • Incorrect intensity level
          • Fatigue
          • Injury
          • Pain
          • Overwhelm
          
          
        • 13:30 Mickey’s exercise routine pre-diagnosis
          • Biking over 100 miles/week
          • Running/gym/yoga 3x/week
          • Multiple routines per day
          • Cardio-obsession
          • She feels she used this to “numb” herself.
          
          
        • 15:58 Angie’s exercise routine pre-diagnosis
          • Hiking
          • Backpacking
          
          
        • 16:42 Angie’s exercise routine now
          • Walking
          
          
        • 17:18 Mickey’s exercise routine now
          • Walking
          • Horseback riding
          • Yoga
          • Touching on the negative cultural messages about how intense exercise needs to be
          
          
        • 19:24 Why walking is so great for those with autoimmune disease?
          • The benefits of walking
          
          
        • 27:23 How we assess where the “line” is for physical activity
          • Troubleshooting routines
          
          
        • 30:20 Your homework for Step 6, Move!
          • Try out the “Where Are You on the Movement Spectrum” self-test in Chapter 6 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to assess how much attention this area of your healing journey needs.
          
          
        • 31:15 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #11: Jason Handler, Lac. on Stress Management, and the next episode, Episode #13: Noelle Tarr, NTP on Autoimmune-Friendly Movement. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9745Mon, 03 Oct 2016 12:00:00 -070034:43falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories is an episode dedicated to talking about our histories with exercise, as well as, where we are today in this area of ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #11: Step 5: In-Depth with Jason Handler, L.AcThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #11: Step 5: In-Depth with Jason Handler, L.Ac is an episode about managing stress with a board-certified Acupuncturist and Chinese Medicinal Herbalist. Jason discusses his approach to managing stress with a very unique approach of seeing it as simply the raw material for a journey towards reaching our greatest potential. Jason chats with us about his philosophy of “cultivating a daily practice,” approaching wellness as an investigation, and how mindset affects biology. We also get into a surprising discussion about where Jason starts when teaching his patients to manage stress, as well as his tips for managing the stress of chronic illness itself. This is a deep episode with a deep guy!

        If you want to go deeper, take a look at the “What Can You Do to Manage Your Stress” section in Chapter 5. This section touches on many of the approaches raised by Jason during our discussion, specifically the steps of “practice” and “reframe.”

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:59 Introducing Jason
          • Jason’s Bio 
          • Jason’s website
          
          
        • 2:54 Jason’s experience with chronic illness
          • Collapse of his health first year after college
          • Eventually met a healer, who became his teacher, and told him, “Patients transform into students. Students transform into teachers,” which lead to his career.
          
          
        • 6:40 The unique perspective illness at a young age imparts
          • Jason sees it as humbling and an opportunity to understand your relationship to suffering.
          
          
        • 8:26 Jason explains his philosophy of “cultivating a daily practice”
          • Qigong
          • Importance of repetition
          
          
        • 12:10 Jason discusses keeping things simple and focusing on just starting
        • 12:42 Jason’s definition of self-care and why it’s important
          • He approaches it as an investigation
          
          
        • 14:16 Approaching wellness without a sense of desperation
        • 15:30 How our mindsets affect our biology
        • 16:53 Jason talks about the Nanjing (a classical Chinese medical text) and it’s steps toward treating illness
          • Intention
          • Cultivation
          • Technique
          • Diagnosis
          
          
        • 17:40 Jason’s unique approach to teaching beginner’s to manage stress
          • Define the stress
          • “Mindcare” (Jason’s term for focusing on the ideal frame of mind and physical feelings)
          • Awareness of breath
          
          
        • 20:38 Importance of placing parameters on our mind
          • Talking back to our thoughts with “yes” or “no”
          • Thought training
          
          
        • 24:02 Mickey shares the tips Jason gave to her at her sickest point
          • Concentrate on lymph flow
          • Qigong standing meditation
          
          
        • 24:48 Jason shares his transformative experience with “stance training”
          • Stillness in the body helps create stillness in the mind.
          
          
        • 26:47 Tips for managing the stress of chronic illness itself
          • Seek support from inspiring people
          • Eat nutrient-dense foods
          • Focus on gratitude
          • Frame the experience as an opportunity for growth
          
          
        • 30:00 Angie shares how the depths of illness turned out to be one of the most incredible periods of personal growth she’s experienced
        • 31:00 Jason discusses commitment to small steps
        • 32:15 Staying in touch with Jason
        • 33:08 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #11: Step 5: In-Depth with Jason Handler, L.Ac is an episode about managing stress with a board-certified Acupuncturist and Chinese Medicinal Herbalist. Jason discusses his approach to managing stress with a very unique approach of seeing it as simply the raw material for a journey towards reaching our greatest potential. Jason chats with us about his philosophy of “cultivating a daily practice,” approaching wellness as an investigation, and how mindset affects biology. We also get into a surprising discussion about where Jason starts when teaching his patients to manage stress, as well as his tips for managing the stress of chronic illness itself. This is a deep episode with a deep guy!

        If you want to go deeper, take a look at the “What Can You Do to Manage Your Stress” section in Chapter 5. This section touches on many of the approaches raised by Jason during our discussion, specifically the steps of “practice” and “reframe.”

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:59 Introducing Jason
          • Jason’s Bio 
          • Jason’s website
          
          
        • 2:54 Jason’s experience with chronic illness
          • Collapse of his health first year after college
          • Eventually met a healer, who became his teacher, and told him, “Patients transform into students. Students transform into teachers,” which lead to his career.
          
          
        • 6:40 The unique perspective illness at a young age imparts
          • Jason sees it as humbling and an opportunity to understand your relationship to suffering.
          
          
        • 8:26 Jason explains his philosophy of “cultivating a daily practice”
          • Qigong
          • Importance of repetition
          
          
        • 12:10 Jason discusses keeping things simple and focusing on just starting
        • 12:42 Jason’s definition of self-care and why it’s important
          • He approaches it as an investigation
          
          
        • 14:16 Approaching wellness without a sense of desperation
        • 15:30 How our mindsets affect our biology
        • 16:53 Jason talks about the Nanjing (a classical Chinese medical text) and it’s steps toward treating illness
          • Intention
          • Cultivation
          • Technique
          • Diagnosis
          
          
        • 17:40 Jason’s unique approach to teaching beginner’s to manage stress
          • Define the stress
          • “Mindcare” (Jason’s term for focusing on the ideal frame of mind and physical feelings)
          • Awareness of breath
          
          
        • 20:38 Importance of placing parameters on our mind
          • Talking back to our thoughts with “yes” or “no”
          • Thought training
          
          
        • 24:02 Mickey shares the tips Jason gave to her at her sickest point
          • Concentrate on lymph flow
          • Qigong standing meditation
          
          
        • 24:48 Jason shares his transformative experience with “stance training”
          • Stillness in the body helps create stillness in the mind.
          
          
        • 26:47 Tips for managing the stress of chronic illness itself
          • Seek support from inspiring people
          • Eat nutrient-dense foods
          • Focus on gratitude
          • Frame the experience as an opportunity for growth
          
          
        • 30:00 Angie shares how the depths of illness turned out to be one of the most incredible periods of personal growth she’s experienced
        • 31:00 Jason discusses commitment to small steps
        • 32:15 Staying in touch with Jason
        • 33:08 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #12: Step 6: Move – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #11: Step 5: In-Depth with Jason Handler, L.Ac appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9586Thu, 29 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070036:48falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #11: Step 5: In-Depth with Jason Handler, L.Ac is an episode about managing stress with a board-certified Acupuncturist and Chinese Medicinal Herbalist. Jason discusses his approach to managing stress ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories is an episode all about our real experiences with stress, from how things look when stress is seriously mismanaged to the impact of our ideal routines. We talk about how autoimmune disease itself is a source of stress that cannot be changed and how we’ve approached that, as well as “good” stress like parenting or running a successful business. We both share the things we do that are most effective in our efforts to control stress and give tips for you to try out in your own stress management process. This episode is a great match for listeners who want to know if we are zen masters or real human beings!

        If you aren’t sure if Step 5: Breathe, needs your attention, check out the “Where Are You on the Stress-Management Spectrum” self-test in Chapter 5. This test will help you identify if this is a low, moderate, or high-priority area. Moderate and high-priority scores means this area needs your action.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:51 The importance of Breathe
        • 2:23 Angie shares what happens when she mismanages stress
        • 4:03 Mickey shares what happens when she mismanages stress
        • 5:30 Physical illness as the result of run-away stress
          • Angie shares about coming down with Mono
          
          
        • 9:13 Parenting and other sources of “good” stress
        • 11:23 Mickey’s stress management routine
          • Prioritization
          • Choices
          • Calendaring
          
          
        • 14:51 Angie’s stress management routine
          • Prioritization
          • Scheduling
          • Connecting
          • Practicing Gratitude (public expressions of appreciation)
          • Praying/Meditating
          
          
        • 17:23 Angie talks about finding ways to disconnect even as a business owner
          • Taking personal breaks results in professional rewards
          
          
        • 19:06 Mickey talks about finding great joy in work with boundaries
        • 20:04 “The Friday Feeling” (you guys know what we’re talking about!)
        • 21:41 Specific stress management steps mentioned in The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook that have meant to most for us
          • Identify
          • Eliminate
          • Reframe (and the positive impact on dealing with autoimmune disease)
          
          
        • 24:56 The power of reframing for managing stress that cannot be changed
        • 25:24 Self-care is not selfish (specifically for mothers)
          • Angie discusses “The Plane Crash” scenario
          
          
        • 27:40 Daily/Weekly/Monthly/Yearly habits to cultivate for stress management
        • 32:00 The importance of vacations, both short and longer breaks
        • 35:00 Your homework for Step 5, Breathe!
          • Try out the “Mindfulness Tips” in Chapter 5 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to try out ways to bring your mind into greater awareness of your present experiences.
          
          
        • 35:21 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #9: Dan Pardi on Sleeping Optimally, and the next episode, Episode #11: Jason Handler, Lac. on Stress Management. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories is an episode all about our real experiences with stress, from how things look when stress is seriously mismanaged to the impact of our ideal routines. We talk about how autoimmune disease itself is a source of stress that cannot be changed and how we’ve approached that, as well as “good” stress like parenting or running a successful business. We both share the things we do that are most effective in our efforts to control stress and give tips for you to try out in your own stress management process. This episode is a great match for listeners who want to know if we are zen masters or real human beings!

        If you aren’t sure if Step 5: Breathe, needs your attention, check out the “Where Are You on the Stress-Management Spectrum” self-test in Chapter 5. This test will help you identify if this is a low, moderate, or high-priority area. Moderate and high-priority scores means this area needs your action.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:51 The importance of Breathe
        • 2:23 Angie shares what happens when she mismanages stress
        • 4:03 Mickey shares what happens when she mismanages stress
        • 5:30 Physical illness as the result of run-away stress
          • Angie shares about coming down with Mono
          
          
        • 9:13 Parenting and other sources of “good” stress
        • 11:23 Mickey’s stress management routine
          • Prioritization
          • Choices
          • Calendaring
          
          
        • 14:51 Angie’s stress management routine
          • Prioritization
          • Scheduling
          • Connecting
          • Practicing Gratitude (public expressions of appreciation)
          • Praying/Meditating
          
          
        • 17:23 Angie talks about finding ways to disconnect even as a business owner
          • Taking personal breaks results in professional rewards
          
          
        • 19:06 Mickey talks about finding great joy in work with boundaries
        • 20:04 “The Friday Feeling” (you guys know what we’re talking about!)
        • 21:41 Specific stress management steps mentioned in The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook that have meant to most for us
          • Identify
          • Eliminate
          • Reframe (and the positive impact on dealing with autoimmune disease)
          
          
        • 24:56 The power of reframing for managing stress that cannot be changed
        • 25:24 Self-care is not selfish (specifically for mothers)
          • Angie discusses “The Plane Crash” scenario
          
          
        • 27:40 Daily/Weekly/Monthly/Yearly habits to cultivate for stress management
        • 32:00 The importance of vacations, both short and longer breaks
        • 35:00 Your homework for Step 5, Breathe!
          • Try out the “Mindfulness Tips” in Chapter 5 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to try out ways to bring your mind into greater awareness of your present experiences.
          
          
        • 35:21 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #9: Dan Pardi on Sleeping Optimally, and the next episode, Episode #11: Jason Handler, Lac. on Stress Management. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9588Mon, 26 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070040:31falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories is an episode all about our real experiences with stress, from how things look when stress is seriously mismanaged to the impact ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #9: Step 4: In-Depth with Dan Pardi, MSThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #9: Step 4: In-Depth with Dan Pardi, M.S. is an episode with some truly mind-blowing information about sleep from a well-known sleep researcher in the Ancestral Health community. We’ve been following Dan for a long time and were lucky enough to have him as a guest to chat all things sleep. Dan discusses how he found himself steeped in sleep research, his basic recommendations for good sleep, and then he gets into some fascinating detail on everything from our internal “master clocks” to how sleep hormones directly impact the bacteria in our gut. This episode is for those who want to learn new and very interesting things when it comes to sleep!

        If you want to understand more of what Dan talks about in this episode, but in “non-scientist speak,” check out the “How Does Sleep Work?” section in Chapter 4. It offers a simple, but thorough explanation of cycles and biological processes that work to produce sleep.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:53 Introducing Dan
          • Dan’s Bio
          • Dan’s Plan (soon-to-be Human OS)
          
          
        • 2:45 Dan’s personal experience with sleep disturbance
          • Narcolepsy (an autoimmune disorder)
          • Circadian Rhythm 
          
          
        • 6:15 Dan’s path into sleep research
          • Dan mentions the term “social jet lag,” which is a syndrome that occurs when our internal clocks and our sleep schedules are not aligned.
          
          
        • 7:29 Dan describes how he recognized his research could help others
          • Dan uses the term “orphan disorder,” which is a term describing very rare diseases (and sometimes more common, but ignored diseases) that aren’t well researched due to lack of financial incentive for drug development.
          
          
        • 10:57 The power of going from a bystander to a participant in your health
        • 14:03 Why tracking helps improve health outcomes
        • 16:15 Dan’s basic recommendations for good sleep
          • Start with an aspiration (“I want to wake refreshed.”)
          • Timing (this is about consistency)
          • Intensity
          • Duration
          
          
        • 20:50 What is the maximum variation we can shift our sleep schedules with the minimal effects?
          • Dan’s Answer? Three hours.
          
          
        • 24:51 Sleep consistency vs. other concerns with other areas of sleep and/or social concerns
          • There is a time to say “yes” to special occasions, despite the sleep schedule disruption.
          
          
        • 27:50 Dan shares an interesting tidbit about the consequences to siesta cultures as they lose the daytime nap in the competitive modern economy, but continue the nighttime socializing.
        • 28:35 Light and sleep
          • Dan uses the word, “suprachiasmatic nucleus,” which is our body’s master clock.
          • Loss of sleep eventually effects the immune system, leading to inflammation, and in time can lead to autoimmune disease.
          • We need light to act as an anchor to our circadian rhythm.
          • Melatonin directly impacts our gut health.
          • Blue light exposure 
          • Amber glasses 
          
          
        • 38:47 Wrapping up with Dan (including some interesting research he shares on drinking champagne . . . we recommend going slow in the AIP community!)
        • 40:26 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories, and the next episode, This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #9: Step 4: In-Depth with Dan Pardi, M.S. is an episode with some truly mind-blowing information about sleep from a well-known sleep researcher in the Ancestral Health community. We’ve been following Dan for a long time and were lucky enough to have him as a guest to chat all things sleep. Dan discusses how he found himself steeped in sleep research, his basic recommendations for good sleep, and then he gets into some fascinating detail on everything from our internal “master clocks” to how sleep hormones directly impact the bacteria in our gut. This episode is for those who want to learn new and very interesting things when it comes to sleep!

        If you want to understand more of what Dan talks about in this episode, but in “non-scientist speak,” check out the “How Does Sleep Work?” section in Chapter 4. It offers a simple, but thorough explanation of cycles and biological processes that work to produce sleep.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:53 Introducing Dan
          • Dan’s Bio
          • Dan’s Plan (soon-to-be Human OS)
          
          
        • 2:45 Dan’s personal experience with sleep disturbance
          • Narcolepsy (an autoimmune disorder)
          • Circadian Rhythm 
          
          
        • 6:15 Dan’s path into sleep research
          • Dan mentions the term “social jet lag,” which is a syndrome that occurs when our internal clocks and our sleep schedules are not aligned.
          
          
        • 7:29 Dan describes how he recognized his research could help others
          • Dan uses the term “orphan disorder,” which is a term describing very rare diseases (and sometimes more common, but ignored diseases) that aren’t well researched due to lack of financial incentive for drug development.
          
          
        • 10:57 The power of going from a bystander to a participant in your health
        • 14:03 Why tracking helps improve health outcomes
        • 16:15 Dan’s basic recommendations for good sleep
          • Start with an aspiration (“I want to wake refreshed.”)
          • Timing (this is about consistency)
          • Intensity
          • Duration
          
          
        • 20:50 What is the maximum variation we can shift our sleep schedules with the minimal effects?
          • Dan’s Answer? Three hours.
          
          
        • 24:51 Sleep consistency vs. other concerns with other areas of sleep and/or social concerns
          • There is a time to say “yes” to special occasions, despite the sleep schedule disruption.
          
          
        • 27:50 Dan shares an interesting tidbit about the consequences to siesta cultures as they lose the daytime nap in the competitive modern economy, but continue the nighttime socializing.
        • 28:35 Light and sleep
          • Dan uses the word, “suprachiasmatic nucleus,” which is our body’s master clock.
          • Loss of sleep eventually effects the immune system, leading to inflammation, and in time can lead to autoimmune disease.
          • We need light to act as an anchor to our circadian rhythm.
          • Melatonin directly impacts our gut health.
          • Blue light exposure 
          • Amber glasses 
          
          
        • 38:47 Wrapping up with Dan (including some interesting research he shares on drinking champagne . . . we recommend going slow in the AIP community!)
        • 40:26 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #10: Step 5: Breathe – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #9: Step 4: In-Depth with Dan Pardi, MS appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9584Thu, 22 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070044:06falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #9: Step 4: In-Depth with Dan Pardi, M.S. is an episode with some truly mind-blowing information about sleep from a well-known sleep researcher in the Ancestral Health community. We’ve ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories is an episode focused on our early sleep struggles, breakthroughs that helped us sleep more and speed healing, and what our sleep routines are like now. We also talk about autoimmune disease symptoms and the intimate role they can play in disrupting much needed sleep and how we tackle prioritizing sleep in a culture that seriously undervalues it. This episode is for you if you’d like insider deets on troubleshooting steps that paid big dividends for us when we were first working to improve our sleep or if you are looking for tips on staying on track with your sleep routine once it’s in place.

        If you aren’t sure how much energy you need to put into Step 4: Rest, check out the “Where Are You on the Sleep-Quality Spectrum” self-test in Chapter 4. This test will help you identify if this is a low, moderate, or high-priority area. If you score low-priority, high-five! You’ve already got this area dialed in!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:51 The importance of Rest
        • 2:42 Mickey’s early sleep struggles
          • She worked as a barista for years and had to be up by 3:15 AM!
          
          
        • 4:42 Angie’s early sleep struggles
          • Panic attacks and anxiety plagued her sleep
          
          
        • 6:54 When autoimmune symptoms create sleep disturbances
          • Peripheral neuropathy
          • Blood pressure irregularity
          • Pain
          
          
        • 8:44 Mickey’s first sleep troubleshooting steps and breakthroughs
          • Neurotransmitter testing
          • Lifestyle adjustments  
          
          
        • 11:26 Angie’s first sleep troubleshooting steps and breakthroughs
          • Blood sugar regulation (This blog post has great tips on blood sugar balance)
          
          
        • 13:00 Angie’s sleep now and struggles
          • Blue light exposure 
          • Amber glasses
          • Snuggling (and the positive effects of oxytocin on sleep!)
          • How long did the elimination phase last for Angie?
          
          
        • 15:30 Sleep schedule with a family
        • 17:30 Mickey’s sleep now and struggles
          • Stress-driven insomnia
          • Meditation
          
          
        • 23:27 Dealing with the cultural message of “sleep can wait”
          • Mickey on social pressures
          • Angie on professional pressures
          
          
        • 27:33 Tips for staying on track with sleep routines
          • Phone zone
          • End of work day boundaries
          • Beginning of work day boundaries
          
          
        • 29:44 Your homework for Step 4, Rest!
          • Take a look at the “Sleep Troubleshooting Checklist” in Chapter 4 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to help you evaluate if you are taking all the traditional steps for improving sleep and if there are any remaining areas to explore.
          
          
        • 30:49 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #7: Aglaee Jacob, RD on Nourishing Diets, and the next episode, Episode #9: Dan Pardi on Sleeping Optimally. For the full podcast archive, This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories is an episode focused on our early sleep struggles, breakthroughs that helped us sleep more and speed healing, and what our sleep routines are like now. We also talk about autoimmune disease symptoms and the intimate role they can play in disrupting much needed sleep and how we tackle prioritizing sleep in a culture that seriously undervalues it. This episode is for you if you’d like insider deets on troubleshooting steps that paid big dividends for us when we were first working to improve our sleep or if you are looking for tips on staying on track with your sleep routine once it’s in place.

        If you aren’t sure how much energy you need to put into Step 4: Rest, check out the “Where Are You on the Sleep-Quality Spectrum” self-test in Chapter 4. This test will help you identify if this is a low, moderate, or high-priority area. If you score low-priority, high-five! You’ve already got this area dialed in!

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:51 The importance of Rest
        • 2:42 Mickey’s early sleep struggles
          • She worked as a barista for years and had to be up by 3:15 AM!
          
          
        • 4:42 Angie’s early sleep struggles
          • Panic attacks and anxiety plagued her sleep
          
          
        • 6:54 When autoimmune symptoms create sleep disturbances
          • Peripheral neuropathy
          • Blood pressure irregularity
          • Pain
          
          
        • 8:44 Mickey’s first sleep troubleshooting steps and breakthroughs
          • Neurotransmitter testing
          • Lifestyle adjustments  
          
          
        • 11:26 Angie’s first sleep troubleshooting steps and breakthroughs
          • Blood sugar regulation (This blog post has great tips on blood sugar balance)
          
          
        • 13:00 Angie’s sleep now and struggles
          • Blue light exposure 
          • Amber glasses
          • Snuggling (and the positive effects of oxytocin on sleep!)
          • How long did the elimination phase last for Angie?
          
          
        • 15:30 Sleep schedule with a family
        • 17:30 Mickey’s sleep now and struggles
          • Stress-driven insomnia
          • Meditation
          
          
        • 23:27 Dealing with the cultural message of “sleep can wait”
          • Mickey on social pressures
          • Angie on professional pressures
          
          
        • 27:33 Tips for staying on track with sleep routines
          • Phone zone
          • End of work day boundaries
          • Beginning of work day boundaries
          
          
        • 29:44 Your homework for Step 4, Rest!
          • Take a look at the “Sleep Troubleshooting Checklist” in Chapter 4 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to help you evaluate if you are taking all the traditional steps for improving sleep and if there are any remaining areas to explore.
          
          
        • 30:49 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #7: Aglaee Jacob, RD on Nourishing Diets, and the next episode, Episode #9: Dan Pardi on Sleeping Optimally. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9582Mon, 19 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070034:19falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories is an episode focused on our early sleep struggles, breakthroughs that helped us sleep more and speed healing, and what our sleep ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #7: Step 3: In-Depth with Aglaée Jacob, MS, RDThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #7: Step 3: In-Depth with Aglaée Jacob, MS, RD is an episode dedicated to chatting with a well-known registered dietician in the “Real Foods” community. We greatly respect Aglaée’s work and asked her to join us in a conversation covering the deeper details of dietary healing, especially how to further modify AIP if healing is not as expected. Aglaée talks about FODMAP intolerance, starch intolerance, and histamine intolerance, all issues that can be uncovered while on AIP and may require specific modifications to help control uncomfortable symptoms. She also explores adding nutrient density with us and outlines new nutrition research she’s most interested in right now. One of the best parts of this episode is in the beginning, where Aglaée tells us about the powerful process she went through on the road to becoming a “Real Food” RD and the shift she sees happening years later in her profession. This episode is excellent if suspect that gut trouble is hindering your healing progress and need concrete details about tackling it.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 3: Nourish, check out the “Nutrient Density” section in Chapter 3. This section gives even more detail on the nutrient density guidance that Aglaée shares in this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:58 Introducing Aglaeée
          • Aglaée’s Bio
          • Aglaée’s practice: Radicata Nutrition
          • Aglaee’s podcast: Real Food Mamas
          • Aglaée’s books: Digestive Health with Real Food and Digestive Health with Real Food Cookbook
          
          
        • 2:35 Aglaée shares about her experience with illness and how it inspired her work
          • A South American parasite helped her develop a new compassion for her patient’s struggles!
          
          
        • 5:40 How Aglaée discovered “Real Food” as an RD
          • The lack of results she saw following conventional guidelines with her patients made her start questioning the approach she’d been taught.
          
          
        • 9:38 Aglaée discusses the shift she sees other RDs making toward “Real Food”
          • Paleo RDs Network
          
          
        • 10:45 Aglaée talks AIP
        • 13:20 What are some specific modifications for gut dysbiosis?
          • Aglaée shares her positive mindset approach to elimination diets, “The goal of an elimination diet is not about the food, but to eliminate symptoms!”
          • FODMAP stands for Fermentable, Oligo-, Di-, Mono-saccharides And Polyols
          
          
        • 17:33 Should people remove additional foods if they suspect a FODMAP intolerance?
          • Aglaée’s advice is that it is best to work with a practitioner.
          
          
        • 19:40 What causes FODMAP intolerance?
          • Just eliminating foods is not a long-term solution to FODMAP intolerance, as it indicates an underlying imbalance.
          • SIBO stands for Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth
          
          
        • 21:10 Angie gives a special thanks to Aglaée for her awesome FODMAP guide
        • 21:45 What are some other dietary modifications to help with uncomfortable symptoms?
          • Low Starch
          • Low Histamine
          
          
        • 26:02 Tips for focusing on nutrient density
          • Homemade Bone Broth 
          • Organ Meats 
          • Cold-water Fatty Fish (like salmon) 
          
          
        • 29:44 Aglaée shares new nutrition research she is exploring right now
          • Why Eating a Low-FODMAP Diet (for too long) is not Good for Your Gut 
          
          
        • 34:20 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #7: Step 3: In-Depth with Aglaée Jacob, MS, RD is an episode dedicated to chatting with a well-known registered dietician in the “Real Foods” community. We greatly respect Aglaée’s work and asked her to join us in a conversation covering the deeper details of dietary healing, especially how to further modify AIP if healing is not as expected. Aglaée talks about FODMAP intolerance, starch intolerance, and histamine intolerance, all issues that can be uncovered while on AIP and may require specific modifications to help control uncomfortable symptoms. She also explores adding nutrient density with us and outlines new nutrition research she’s most interested in right now. One of the best parts of this episode is in the beginning, where Aglaée tells us about the powerful process she went through on the road to becoming a “Real Food” RD and the shift she sees happening years later in her profession. This episode is excellent if suspect that gut trouble is hindering your healing progress and need concrete details about tackling it.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 3: Nourish, check out the “Nutrient Density” section in Chapter 3. This section gives even more detail on the nutrient density guidance that Aglaée shares in this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:58 Introducing Aglaeée
          • Aglaée’s Bio
          • Aglaée’s practice: Radicata Nutrition
          • Aglaee’s podcast: Real Food Mamas
          • Aglaée’s books: Digestive Health with Real Food and Digestive Health with Real Food Cookbook
          
          
        • 2:35 Aglaée shares about her experience with illness and how it inspired her work
          • A South American parasite helped her develop a new compassion for her patient’s struggles!
          
          
        • 5:40 How Aglaée discovered “Real Food” as an RD
          • The lack of results she saw following conventional guidelines with her patients made her start questioning the approach she’d been taught.
          
          
        • 9:38 Aglaée discusses the shift she sees other RDs making toward “Real Food”
          • Paleo RDs Network
          
          
        • 10:45 Aglaée talks AIP
        • 13:20 What are some specific modifications for gut dysbiosis?
          • Aglaée shares her positive mindset approach to elimination diets, “The goal of an elimination diet is not about the food, but to eliminate symptoms!”
          • FODMAP stands for Fermentable, Oligo-, Di-, Mono-saccharides And Polyols
          
          
        • 17:33 Should people remove additional foods if they suspect a FODMAP intolerance?
          • Aglaée’s advice is that it is best to work with a practitioner.
          
          
        • 19:40 What causes FODMAP intolerance?
          • Just eliminating foods is not a long-term solution to FODMAP intolerance, as it indicates an underlying imbalance.
          • SIBO stands for Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth
          
          
        • 21:10 Angie gives a special thanks to Aglaée for her awesome FODMAP guide
        • 21:45 What are some other dietary modifications to help with uncomfortable symptoms?
          • Low Starch
          • Low Histamine
          
          
        • 26:02 Tips for focusing on nutrient density
          • Homemade Bone Broth 
          • Organ Meats 
          • Cold-water Fatty Fish (like salmon) 
          
          
        • 29:44 Aglaée shares new nutrition research she is exploring right now
          • Why Eating a Low-FODMAP Diet (for too long) is not Good for Your Gut 
          
          
        • 34:20 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #8: Step 4: Rest – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #7: Step 3: In-Depth with Aglaée Jacob, MS, RD appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9580Thu, 15 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070037:57falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #7: Step 3: In-Depth with Aglaée Jacob, MS, RD is an episode dedicated to chatting with a well-known registered dietician in the “Real Foods” community. We greatly respect Aglaée’s ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories is all about what the real-life process of using the elimination and reintroduction format of the Autoimmune Protocol has looked like for us. Although we started the journey close to five years ago, the actual process, beginning with those first steps, is still very fresh in our minds. We share how we found AIP (at a time when the abundant resources and large support community did not exist), what we really ate before adopting AIP (one of us was a junk-food junky!), and what transitioning was like. We also discuss how we approached the reintroduction process, what has and has not worked, and how we were able to discern reactions that can seem confusing to spot. If you’ve ever wondered what we honestly eat and whether or not this was ever tough for us too, this episode is for you!

        If you’ve already tried AIP and would like to go more in-depth on Step 3: Nourish, check out the “Troubleshooting” section in Chapter 3 for ideas on underlying issues that could be preventing progress. This section is packed with valuable details, including food guidance to help ease symptoms of common roadblocks.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:51 The first concrete step toward wellness, Nourish
        • 2:48 How did Mickey find AIP?
          • Chris Kresser
          • Dr. Datis Kharrazian
          • Robb Wolf
          
          
        • 4:56 How did Angie find AIP?
          • What are lectins?
          • The Paleo Solution
          
          
        • 7:55 Mickey’s diet pre-AIP
          • Vegan background
          • The challenge of reintroducing meat
          • AIP as a template
          
          
        • 10:55 Angie’s diet pre-AIP
        • 13:41 Angie’s transition to AIP
          • The cold-turkey approach
          
          
        • 14:46 How long did the elimination phase last for Angie?
        • 15:15 Mickey’s transition and elimination phase length
          • The slow and steady approach
          
          
        • 17:36 A note of being aware of positive progress
        • 18:10 What changes made the biggest differences for Mickey?
          • The argument for nutrient density
          
          
        • 19:44 What changes made the biggest differences for Angie?
        • 20:32 Angie’s reintroduction experience and foods that produced reactions
          • Egg
          • White potato
          • Cumin
          
          
        • 23:18 Mickey’s reintroduction experience and foods that produced reactions
          • Nightshades
          • Eggs
          • Sesame Seed
          • Soy
          
          
        • 27:00 Balance with the AIP process
          • AIP Is Not A Religion
          
          
        • 28:14 Angie’s diet now
        • 29:40 Mickey’s diet now
        • 31:33 Noting the issue of “thresholds” with reintroduced foods overtime
        • 31:49 Bio-individuality in reintroduction (despite shared diagnosis)
        • 34:13 Your homework for Step 3, Nourish!
          • Take a look at the “Which Way Will Work for You” quiz in Chapter 3 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to help you identify the transitioning style that is best for you if you want to take the plunge with AIP and use the handy guides after the quiz to show you how to get the ball rolling in a way best matched to your style.
          
          
        • 35:24 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        ...]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories is all about what the real-life process of using the elimination and reintroduction format of the Autoimmune Protocol has looked like for us. Although we started the journey close to five years ago, the actual process, beginning with those first steps, is still very fresh in our minds. We share how we found AIP (at a time when the abundant resources and large support community did not exist), what we really ate before adopting AIP (one of us was a junk-food junky!), and what transitioning was like. We also discuss how we approached the reintroduction process, what has and has not worked, and how we were able to discern reactions that can seem confusing to spot. If you’ve ever wondered what we honestly eat and whether or not this was ever tough for us too, this episode is for you!

        If you’ve already tried AIP and would like to go more in-depth on Step 3: Nourish, check out the “Troubleshooting” section in Chapter 3 for ideas on underlying issues that could be preventing progress. This section is packed with valuable details, including food guidance to help ease symptoms of common roadblocks.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:51 The first concrete step toward wellness, Nourish
        • 2:48 How did Mickey find AIP?
          • Chris Kresser
          • Dr. Datis Kharrazian
          • Robb Wolf
          
          
        • 4:56 How did Angie find AIP?
          • What are lectins?
          • The Paleo Solution
          
          
        • 7:55 Mickey’s diet pre-AIP
          • Vegan background
          • The challenge of reintroducing meat
          • AIP as a template
          
          
        • 10:55 Angie’s diet pre-AIP
        • 13:41 Angie’s transition to AIP
          • The cold-turkey approach
          
          
        • 14:46 How long did the elimination phase last for Angie?
        • 15:15 Mickey’s transition and elimination phase length
          • The slow and steady approach
          
          
        • 17:36 A note of being aware of positive progress
        • 18:10 What changes made the biggest differences for Mickey?
          • The argument for nutrient density
          
          
        • 19:44 What changes made the biggest differences for Angie?
        • 20:32 Angie’s reintroduction experience and foods that produced reactions
          • Egg
          • White potato
          • Cumin
          
          
        • 23:18 Mickey’s reintroduction experience and foods that produced reactions
          • Nightshades
          • Eggs
          • Sesame Seed
          • Soy
          
          
        • 27:00 Balance with the AIP process
          • AIP Is Not A Religion
          
          
        • 28:14 Angie’s diet now
        • 29:40 Mickey’s diet now
        • 31:33 Noting the issue of “thresholds” with reintroduced foods overtime
        • 31:49 Bio-individuality in reintroduction (despite shared diagnosis)
        • 34:13 Your homework for Step 3, Nourish!
          • Take a look at the “Which Way Will Work for You” quiz in Chapter 3 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to help you identify the transitioning style that is best for you if you want to take the plunge with AIP and use the handy guides after the quiz to show you how to get the ball rolling in a way best matched to your style.
          
          
        • 35:24 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #5: Titus Chiu, DC on Practitioner Collaboration, and the next episode, Episode #7: Aglaee Jacob, RD on Nourishing Diets. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9578Mon, 12 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070038:52falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories is all about what the real-life process of using the elimination and reintroduction format of the Autoimmune Protocol has looked like for ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #5: Step 2: In-Depth with Dr. Titus ChiuThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #5: Step 2: In-Depth with Dr. Titus Chiu is a conversation with award-winning professor, chiropractic neurologist, and functional medicine expert on practical collaboration and the overall collaborative spirit when it comes to healthcare. Titus talks with us about the specifics of collaboration between conventional and natural practitioners, including why the breakdowns in communication often occur. He also shares why he believes there is a new and positive future for a more collaborative healthcare environment. The best part of this episode comes at the end, when Titus talks about the deep root of meaningful collaboration (we wish every doctor approached communication like this!). This episode is awesome for insight into the healthcare experience from the “other side” of the exam table.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 2: Collaborate, check out the “How Do You Build A Collaborative Team” section in Chapter 2. This section is very relevant to the guidance Titus shares in this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:50 Introducing Titus
          • Titus’s Bio
          • Titus and Dr. Fallahi’s Practice: KOBA Family Wellness Center
          
          
        • 3:20 Titus shares about his experience with illness and injury bringing him to healthcare
          • He was hit by a car in Japan and that changed everything!
          
          
        • 5:50 Titus tells us what an ideal patient looks like to a physician
          • Educated
          • Motivated
          • Enthusiastic
          
          
        • 9:23 Achieving deeper healing by facing our “demons” on the wellness journey
        • 10:03 What does collaboration with doctors in the conventional system look like?
          • Titus shares that this most often just looks like referrals
          
          
        • 11:38 How does practical communication occur between conventional and natural practitioners?
          • Titus reveals that it is a combination of sending reports on a patient’s progress and relaying information through the patient (this reinforces that we need to be the leaders of our healthcare teams!).
          
          
        • 14:53 Why is there a breakdown in communication between the two systems according to Titus?
          • Language
          • Goals
          • Approach
          
          
        • 16:20 Titus talks about why he believes there is a positive future for collaborative healthcare based on three points:
          • More open doctors
          • More open patients
          • Technology advances
          
          
        • 20:23 How should a patient handle a non-collaborative doctor?
        • 22:30 How can you effectively communicate your own knowledge when initiating a collaborative relationship with your doctor?
          • Titus talks about his very special, caring approach to patients who are overwhelming in their personal health research
          
          
        • 31:20 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #5: Step 2: In-Depth with Dr. Titus Chiu appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #5: Step 2: In-Depth with Dr. Titus Chiu is a conversation with award-winning professor, chiropractic neurologist, and functional medicine expert on practical collaboration and the overall collaborative spirit when it comes to healthcare. Titus talks with us about the specifics of collaboration between conventional and natural practitioners, including why the breakdowns in communication often occur. He also shares why he believes there is a new and positive future for a more collaborative healthcare environment. The best part of this episode comes at the end, when Titus talks about the deep root of meaningful collaboration (we wish every doctor approached communication like this!). This episode is awesome for insight into the healthcare experience from the “other side” of the exam table.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 2: Collaborate, check out the “How Do You Build A Collaborative Team” section in Chapter 2. This section is very relevant to the guidance Titus shares in this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 1:50 Introducing Titus
          • Titus’s Bio
          • Titus and Dr. Fallahi’s Practice: KOBA Family Wellness Center
          
          
        • 3:20 Titus shares about his experience with illness and injury bringing him to healthcare
          • He was hit by a car in Japan and that changed everything!
          
          
        • 5:50 Titus tells us what an ideal patient looks like to a physician
          • Educated
          • Motivated
          • Enthusiastic
          
          
        • 9:23 Achieving deeper healing by facing our “demons” on the wellness journey
        • 10:03 What does collaboration with doctors in the conventional system look like?
          • Titus shares that this most often just looks like referrals
          
          
        • 11:38 How does practical communication occur between conventional and natural practitioners?
          • Titus reveals that it is a combination of sending reports on a patient’s progress and relaying information through the patient (this reinforces that we need to be the leaders of our healthcare teams!).
          
          
        • 14:53 Why is there a breakdown in communication between the two systems according to Titus?
          • Language
          • Goals
          • Approach
          
          
        • 16:20 Titus talks about why he believes there is a positive future for collaborative healthcare based on three points:
          • More open doctors
          • More open patients
          • Technology advances
          
          
        • 20:23 How should a patient handle a non-collaborative doctor?
        • 22:30 How can you effectively communicate your own knowledge when initiating a collaborative relationship with your doctor?
          • Titus talks about his very special, caring approach to patients who are overwhelming in their personal health research
          
          
        • 31:20 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #6: Step 3: Nourish – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #5: Step 2: In-Depth with Dr. Titus Chiu appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9576Thu, 08 Sep 2016 14:00:00 -070034:53falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #5: Step 2: In-Depth with Dr. Titus Chiu is a conversation with award-winning professor, chiropractic neurologist, and functional medicine expert on practical collaboration and the overall collaborative spirit when ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories is centered on what collaboration with your healthcare team should look like and how that has realistically played out for us in our own journeys (hint: it was messy!). We discuss the types of healthcare practitioners out there and what it means to take responsibility for leading the collaborative effort in your own care. We even chat about nitty-gritty topics that aren’t often touch-on, like firing a provider, recognizing the need for medications or surgery, and the toll that medical debt can take on a person with chronic illness. Again, this is a personal episode, but meant to help our listeners be able to see this step on the wellness journey through an honest lens.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 2: Collaborate, check out the “Evaluating Potential Providers Checklist” or the “Prioritizing Action Infographic,” both in Chapter 2. The checklist can help you ask the right questions as you seek to build a collaborative healthcare team, while the infographic helps you look at all the suggestions from Chapters 1 and 2 and then logically move forward on only those areas that are high priority for you.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 3:00 What is Collaborate?
        • 3:56 Mickey shares when she recognized collaborative care was necessary
          • The term “key player” is mentioned here, for more detail see the “How Do You Build A Collaborative Team” section of Chapter 2.
          
          
        • 6:30 Taking responsibility for leading collaboration in your care
        • 8:10 Describing the types of practitioners (understanding this allows you to choose the right people for the job, more detail can be found in Chapter 2)
          • Licensed Conventional Medical
          • Licensed Natural Medical
          • Licensed Complementary-Care
          • Non-medical, Non-Licensed
          
          
        • 10:00 Angie talks about her experience integrating care
        • 11:50 Patient lead open communication with providers
        • 13:50 Mickey talks about firing practitioners
        • 17:55 The need for medication and/or surgery and our experiences
          • Where Medication Fits on a Healing Diet
          
          
        • 21:40 How to navigate healthcare spending
        • 25:15 Mickey shares about the toll medical debt took on her and her family
        • 29:00 Angie explains how medical debt stirred her to action in her journey
        • 31:20 Realistic look at transitioning a budget to focus on food/self-care
        • 34:13 Your homework for Step 2, Collaborate!
          • Take a look at the “Prioritizing Action Infographic” in Chapter 2 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to prioritize areas explored in Chapter 1 and 2, before moving on to the next steps in the wellness journey.
          
          
        • 35:34 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #3: Sarah Ballantyne, PhD on Getting Informed, and the next episode, Episode #5: Titus Chiu, DC on Practitioner Collaboration. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories is centered on what collaboration with your healthcare team should look like and how that has realistically played out for us in our own journeys (hint: it was messy!). We discuss the types of healthcare practitioners out there and what it means to take responsibility for leading the collaborative effort in your own care. We even chat about nitty-gritty topics that aren’t often touch-on, like firing a provider, recognizing the need for medications or surgery, and the toll that medical debt can take on a person with chronic illness. Again, this is a personal episode, but meant to help our listeners be able to see this step on the wellness journey through an honest lens.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 2: Collaborate, check out the “Evaluating Potential Providers Checklist” or the “Prioritizing Action Infographic,” both in Chapter 2. The checklist can help you ask the right questions as you seek to build a collaborative healthcare team, while the infographic helps you look at all the suggestions from Chapters 1 and 2 and then logically move forward on only those areas that are high priority for you.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Intro
        • 3:00 What is Collaborate?
        • 3:56 Mickey shares when she recognized collaborative care was necessary
          • The term “key player” is mentioned here, for more detail see the “How Do You Build A Collaborative Team” section of Chapter 2.
          
          
        • 6:30 Taking responsibility for leading collaboration in your care
        • 8:10 Describing the types of practitioners (understanding this allows you to choose the right people for the job, more detail can be found in Chapter 2)
          • Licensed Conventional Medical
          • Licensed Natural Medical
          • Licensed Complementary-Care
          • Non-medical, Non-Licensed
          
          
        • 10:00 Angie talks about her experience integrating care
        • 11:50 Patient lead open communication with providers
        • 13:50 Mickey talks about firing practitioners
        • 17:55 The need for medication and/or surgery and our experiences
          • Where Medication Fits on a Healing Diet
          
          
        • 21:40 How to navigate healthcare spending
        • 25:15 Mickey shares about the toll medical debt took on her and her family
        • 29:00 Angie explains how medical debt stirred her to action in her journey
        • 31:20 Realistic look at transitioning a budget to focus on food/self-care
        • 34:13 Your homework for Step 2, Collaborate!
          • Take a look at the “Prioritizing Action Infographic” in Chapter 2 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to prioritize areas explored in Chapter 1 and 2, before moving on to the next steps in the wellness journey.
          
          
        • 35:34 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #3: Sarah Ballantyne, PhD on Getting Informed, and the next episode, Episode #5: Titus Chiu, DC on Practitioner Collaboration. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9574Mon, 05 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070039:02falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories is centered on what collaboration with your healthcare team should look like and how that has realistically played out for us in ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #3: Step 1: In-Depth with Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D.This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. 

        Episode #3: Step 1: In-Depth with Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D. is a conversation with the AIP expert covering everything from the basics of immune system function to prevention, testing, and treatment for autoimmune disease. In this great discussion, Sarah talks specifics about who is at risk for developing autoimmune disease, including the “accidents” of antibody formation. Very interestingly, she spoke with us about how our immune systems are “nutrient hogs” and how that applies to the healing approach of AIP. And yes, we all shared a little emotional moment to reflect on the ripple effect of Sarah’s work. This is a great episode for taking those first steps in truly informing yourself about autoimmune disease.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 1: Inform, check out the “Confirmed, Suspected, and Related-Autoimmune Diseases” list or the “Learn About Your Disease” section, both in Chapter 1. These sections add detail to the information shared by Sarah in this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Introduction
        • 1:50 Introducing Sarah
          • Sarah’s bio
          • Sarah’s books – The Paleo Approach, The Paleo Approach Cookbook, The Healing Kitchen
          
          
        • 3:00 How the immune system works and autoimmune disease develops
        • 6:20 How many autoimmune diseases are there?
        • 7:50 Sarah’s experience with informing herself about her autoimmune diagnoses
        • 9:42 Who is at risk for autoimmune disease?
        • 10:55 The risk for developing multiple autoimmune diseases and the role of antibody formation
        • 14:09 Common primary autoimmune diseases
        • 14:30 The role of nutrient deficiency in autoimmune disease
        • 15:50 Prevention of autoimmune disease
          • Diet
          • Sleep
          • Stress Management
          • Movement
          
          
        • 23:25 Testing and treatment for autoimmune disease in the conventional and alternative system
        • 28:00 Sarah talks about how to have a conversation with your doctor
        • 30:30 Sarah’s unique research background and how she used it to create AIP as it stands today
        • 34:12 Our gratitude for Sarah’s work and sharing a few heartfelt tears
        • 36:54 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today, using the links provided below!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #3: Step 1: In-Depth with Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D. appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. 

        Episode #3: Step 1: In-Depth with Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D. is a conversation with the AIP expert covering everything from the basics of immune system function to prevention, testing, and treatment for autoimmune disease. In this great discussion, Sarah talks specifics about who is at risk for developing autoimmune disease, including the “accidents” of antibody formation. Very interestingly, she spoke with us about how our immune systems are “nutrient hogs” and how that applies to the healing approach of AIP. And yes, we all shared a little emotional moment to reflect on the ripple effect of Sarah’s work. This is a great episode for taking those first steps in truly informing yourself about autoimmune disease.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 1: Inform, check out the “Confirmed, Suspected, and Related-Autoimmune Diseases” list or the “Learn About Your Disease” section, both in Chapter 1. These sections add detail to the information shared by Sarah in this episode.

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Introduction
        • 1:50 Introducing Sarah
          • Sarah’s bio
          • Sarah’s books – The Paleo Approach, The Paleo Approach Cookbook, The Healing Kitchen
          
          
        • 3:00 How the immune system works and autoimmune disease develops
        • 6:20 How many autoimmune diseases are there?
        • 7:50 Sarah’s experience with informing herself about her autoimmune diagnoses
        • 9:42 Who is at risk for autoimmune disease?
        • 10:55 The risk for developing multiple autoimmune diseases and the role of antibody formation
        • 14:09 Common primary autoimmune diseases
        • 14:30 The role of nutrient deficiency in autoimmune disease
        • 15:50 Prevention of autoimmune disease
          • Diet
          • Sleep
          • Stress Management
          • Movement
          
          
        • 23:25 Testing and treatment for autoimmune disease in the conventional and alternative system
        • 28:00 Sarah talks about how to have a conversation with your doctor
        • 30:30 Sarah’s unique research background and how she used it to create AIP as it stands today
        • 34:12 Our gratitude for Sarah’s work and sharing a few heartfelt tears
        • 36:54 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today, using the links provided below!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories, and the next episode, Episode #4: Step 2: Collaborate – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #3: Step 1: In-Depth with Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D. appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9572Thu, 01 Sep 2016 12:00:00 -070040:21falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.  Episode #3: Step 1: In-Depth with Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D. is a conversation with the AIP expert covering everything from the basics of immune system function to prevention, testing, and treatment ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #2: Step 1 – Inform, Our StoriesThis post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories is focused on the process we went through in getting diagnosis and then educating ourselves about testing, treatment, and prognosis. This episode is very personal, but we felt that revealing to our listeners what our early struggles were like was a valuable way to demonstrate that you can “figure it all out” and achieve wellness. We explain how informing ourselves, though daunting, was crucial to facing autoimmune disease with far less fear.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 1: Inform, check out the “Where Are You On The Spectrum – Autoimmune Status Self-Test” or the “Practicing Resilience” section in Chapter 1 of our book. The self-test can help inform you on the next logical steps to take with chronic illness you might be facing and the resilience guide offers positive ways to cope with diagnosis (something that can be a low point emotionally).

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Introduction
        • 1:45 What is Inform?
        • 3:34 How information results in less fear
        • 3:30 Taking responsibility for getting informed
        • 4:18 When Angie knew it was time to “get informed”
        • 5:06 When Mickey knew it was time to “get informed”
        • 6:14 Mickey’s diagnosis story
          • Hashimoto’s and celiac disease
          • Also see her blog series on the topic here.
          
          
        • 10:24 Angie’s diagnosis story
          • Lichen sclerosis, endometriosis, and celiac disease
          
          
        • 14:00 Misdiagnosis setbacks
        • 16:10 The power in the correct “label”
        • 17:26 How Mickey coped with her diagnosis
        • 21:40 How Angie coped with her diagnosis
        • 23:40 The value of having a diagnosis vs. not being able to get one
        • 24:50 Angie’s experience with testing and treatment for her autoimmune diseases
        • 27:30 Mickey’s method of gathering and storing medical information
        • 30:00 Angie’s method of gathering and storing medical information
        • 31:40 Your homework for step 1, Inform!
          • Take a look at the “Autoimmune Status Self-Test” on p. 9 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to inform you about where to move next in terms of diagnosis, treatment, and lifestyle changes to manage your autoimmune disease.
          
          
        • 33:55 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today, using the links provided below!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        

        Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories is focused on the process we went through in getting diagnosis and then educating ourselves about testing, treatment, and prognosis. This episode is very personal, but we felt that revealing to our listeners what our early struggles were like was a valuable way to demonstrate that you can “figure it all out” and achieve wellness. We explain how informing ourselves, though daunting, was crucial to facing autoimmune disease with far less fear.

        If you’d like to go more in-depth on Step 1: Inform, check out the “Where Are You On The Spectrum – Autoimmune Status Self-Test” or the “Practicing Resilience” section in Chapter 1 of our book. The self-test can help inform you on the next logical steps to take with chronic illness you might be facing and the resilience guide offers positive ways to cope with diagnosis (something that can be a low point emotionally).

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        Show Notes:

        • 0:00 Introduction
        • 1:45 What is Inform?
        • 3:34 How information results in less fear
        • 3:30 Taking responsibility for getting informed
        • 4:18 When Angie knew it was time to “get informed”
        • 5:06 When Mickey knew it was time to “get informed”
        • 6:14 Mickey’s diagnosis story
          • Hashimoto’s and celiac disease
          • Also see her blog series on the topic here.
          
          
        • 10:24 Angie’s diagnosis story
          • Lichen sclerosis, endometriosis, and celiac disease
          
          
        • 14:00 Misdiagnosis setbacks
        • 16:10 The power in the correct “label”
        • 17:26 How Mickey coped with her diagnosis
        • 21:40 How Angie coped with her diagnosis
        • 23:40 The value of having a diagnosis vs. not being able to get one
        • 24:50 Angie’s experience with testing and treatment for her autoimmune diseases
        • 27:30 Mickey’s method of gathering and storing medical information
        • 30:00 Angie’s method of gathering and storing medical information
        • 31:40 Your homework for step 1, Inform!
          • Take a look at the “Autoimmune Status Self-Test” on p. 9 of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook to inform you about where to move next in terms of diagnosis, treatment, and lifestyle changes to manage your autoimmune disease.
          
          
        • 33:55 Outro

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today, using the links provided below!

        Pre-order your copy:

        

        // Amazon
        // Barnes & Noble
        // iBooks
        // Books-a-Million
        // Indiebound
        // Powell’s

        Check out the previous episode, Episode #1: What is the Autoimmune Wellness Journey?, and the next episode, Episode #3: Sarah Ballantyne, PhD on Getting Informed. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #2: Step 1 – Inform, Our Stories appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9387Mon, 29 Aug 2016 12:00:00 -070037:22falsefull  Welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories is focused on the process we went through in getting diagnosis and then educating ourselves about testing, treatment, and prognosis. This episode ...The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #1: What is The Autoimmune Wellness Journey?This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        We are so excited to introduce our audience to our very first podcast… welcome to

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        
        

        Episode #1: What is the Autoimmune Wellness Journey? is all about our mission with the book and podcast series to spark a major shift in how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated all over the globe. We chat about our goals and give a series overview, briefly detailing each of the seven steps on the autoimmune wellness journey. This first episode will give you an idea about the format of the series and a significant dose of empowerment.

        
        

        If you’d like to go more in-depth, check out the “Introduction,” “Why We Wrote This Book,” and “The Manifesto” sections at the beginning of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. We know that most people skim or even completely skip the introductory material in books like ours, but we assure these three short sections are overflowing with inspiration. You can get a little insight on just what lights our fires!

        
        

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        
        

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        
        

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        
        

        
        

        
        

        Show Notes:

        • 
          
        • 0:00 Introduction
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 1:53 Angie introduces herself
        • 
          
        • Angie is the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook and creator of the group coaching program SAD to AIP in SIX.
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 3:34 Mickey introduces herself
        • 
          
        • Mickey is the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook and creator of the online cooking program AIP Batch Cook.
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 5:30 Our goal with The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 7:09 An overview of the seven steps on the Autoimmune Wellness Journey
        • 
          
        • Inform
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Collaborate
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Nourish
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Rest
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Breathe
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Move
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Connect
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 16:50 Empowerment for a personalized journey
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 18:49 What to expect in future episodes
        • 
          
        • One episode on every “step” covered in the handbook dedicated to Mickey and Angie’s personal experiences
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • One episode on every “step” covered in the handbook dedicated to interviewing an expert or thinker to delve a little deeper on the topic
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 20:16 All about The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 20:31 Call to action — your homework!
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 21:55 Pioneering a new era in the management of autoimmune disease
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 22:35 Outro
        • 
          

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        
        

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today, using the links provided below!

        
        

        Pre-order your copy:

        
        

        
        

        // Amazon

        
        

        // Barnes & Noble

        
        

        // iBooks

        
        

        // Books-a-Million

        
        

        // Indiebound

        
        

        // Powell’s

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        Check out the next episode, Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        
        

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #1: What is The Autoimmune Wellness Journey? appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>This post contains affiliate links. Click here to see what that means!

        In order to support our blogging activities, we may receive monetary compensation or other types or remuneration for our endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this blog.

        That being said, we only promote authors, products, and services that we wholeheartedly stand by!

        We are so excited to introduce our audience to our very first podcast… welcome to

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness.

        
        

        Episode #1: What is the Autoimmune Wellness Journey? is all about our mission with the book and podcast series to spark a major shift in how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated all over the globe. We chat about our goals and give a series overview, briefly detailing each of the seven steps on the autoimmune wellness journey. This first episode will give you an idea about the format of the series and a significant dose of empowerment.

        
        

        If you’d like to go more in-depth, check out the “Introduction,” “Why We Wrote This Book,” and “The Manifesto” sections at the beginning of The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook. We know that most people skim or even completely skip the introductory material in books like ours, but we assure these three short sections are overflowing with inspiration. You can get a little insight on just what lights our fires!

        
        

        How to listen:

        If you’d like to have our podcasts sent directly to your device, subscribe in iTunes or Stitcher!

        
        

        If you’d like to download the .mp3, you can do so by following this link.

        
        

        If you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below!

        
        

        
        

        
        

        Show Notes:

        • 
          
        • 0:00 Introduction
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 1:53 Angie introduces herself
        • 
          
        • Angie is the author of The Alternative Autoimmune Cookbook and creator of the group coaching program SAD to AIP in SIX.
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 3:34 Mickey introduces herself
        • 
          
        • Mickey is the author of The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook and creator of the online cooking program AIP Batch Cook.
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 5:30 Our goal with The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 7:09 An overview of the seven steps on the Autoimmune Wellness Journey
        • 
          
        • Inform
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Collaborate
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Nourish
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Rest
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Breathe
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Move
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • Connect
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 16:50 Empowerment for a personalized journey
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 18:49 What to expect in future episodes
        • 
          
        • One episode on every “step” covered in the handbook dedicated to Mickey and Angie’s personal experiences
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • One episode on every “step” covered in the handbook dedicated to interviewing an expert or thinker to delve a little deeper on the topic
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 20:16 All about The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 20:31 Call to action — your homework!
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 21:55 Pioneering a new era in the management of autoimmune disease
        • 
          
        • 
          
        • 22:35 Outro
        • 
          

        
        

        Wait–before you go!

        If you enjoyed the podcast, would you mind leaving us a review in iTunes? This helps introduce our work to a new audience as we climb the ranks in their system.

        
        

        The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast is a complimentary resource to our forthcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Support us in our mission to revolutionize how autoimmune disease is viewed and treated by pre-ordering your copy today, using the links provided below!

        
        

        Pre-order your copy:

        
        

        
        

        // Amazon

        
        

        // Barnes & Noble

        
        

        // iBooks

        
        

        // Books-a-Million

        
        

        // Indiebound

        
        

        // Powell’s

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        
        

        Check out the next episode, Episode #2: Step 1: Inform – Our Stories. For the full podcast archive, click here.

        
        

        The post The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Episode #1: What is The Autoimmune Wellness Journey? appeared first on Autoimmune Wellness.

        ]]>https://autoimmunewellness.com/?p=9361Wed, 24 Aug 2016 18:25:00 -070025:57falsefullWe are so excited to introduce our audience to our very first podcast… welcome to The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast Season 1! We’ve created this podcast as a free resource to accompany our upcoming book, The Autoimmune Wellness Handbook: A DIY Guide to Living Well with Chronic Illness. Episode #1: What is the Autoimmune Wellness Journey? is all about our mission with the book and ...