For three years now I’ve been running this occasional series of posts geared at making anyone with autoimmune disease feel less like a freak. It’s been extraordinary… I’d say more than half of all readers here came to this blog for the AI information. Even more extraordinarily, a huge chunk of the rest of you have later developed an AI or found out a loved one had. Add to this, so many of the like-minded bloggers who I’ve got to know around the world have AI’s. I’m talking Cannelle Vanille, Glutenfreegirl, Gabby Bernstein, Clare Bowditch, DeliciouslyElla, Louniverse and many more.
As I say often, we’re a “type”. We’re earnest, ambitious, solo operators and with a drive to communicate and help. It should come as no surprise to us that our thyroids, the site of communication, presents us with challenges!
Recently, Mickey Trescott came into my orbit and we hooked up for a Paleo breakfast – and an impromptu hike! – in Seattle. She began following my blog a few years back… and now has her own site where she shares incredible, dedicated information about how to heal AI. She’s also just self-published her own cookbook, The Autoimmune Paleo Cookbook.
I figure you all might find her personal story and her tricks for dealing with thyroid crappiness helpful. She knows her stuff. Over to you Mickey…
I’m Mickey Trescott and I write about nutrition and autoimmune disease. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s and Celiac disease when I turned 26 and have spent the last three years digging myself out of the deep, dark hole that was my epic autoimmune crash. I started my journey having been vegan for a decade, and ended up on the Paleo end of the spectrum after I figured out that grains, sugar, and a lot of other elements of my diet were doing me no good. I like to take a multifaceted approach to managing autoimmunity—one that takes into account not just diet, but stress management, movement, and living a more balanced life. Here are a few of my tricks to staying healthy and happy, despite autoimmunity!
Six ways I keep my autoimmunity at bay:
1. Mini rebounding trampoline.
Those of us with Hashimoto’s know how awful it feels to have lymphatic congestion—I get it mostly in my face and neck (which is quite unattractive!). Since the lymphatic system does not have a pump, it is dependent on the movement of our bodies for circulation. Mini rebounding trampolines are great because they vigorously circulate lymph with just tenminutes of gentle bouncing. I bought one from Rebound Air and keep it in my office for “bounce breaks”. Even on days where I am not feeling up to exercising, I can manage a little bounce to get everything moving, reducing puffiness and congestion.
2. Soil-based probiotics.
Since we now know that gut issues are at the root of autoimmune disease, I do everything I can to keep my flora balanced and happy. Our digestive tracts are home to thousands of different species of bacteria, not just the few strains found in regular probiotics these days (like lactobacillus). While I eat fermented foods and have taken traditional probiotics in