A Re-Introduction

I accidentally ended up with a hustling functional nutrition private practice.  But, let me back up. I was a chronic dieter starting from an early age. My earliest memories of feeling uncomfortable in my body started when I was just 7 or 8 years old, thinking my thighs looked bigger than my friends’ thighs or like I needed to “suck in” in my bikini. My preoccupation with my body turned into a full-fledged eating disorder in high school. I would try to calorie-count my way into an unnatural body size, and when I got hungry enough, I’d eat everything in sight, only to purge. Rinse and repeat for years.  Naturally, I decided to major in Nutritional Sciences in college in pursuit of becoming a Registered Dietitian. This path allowed me to continue my disordered behaviors, except in a more acceptable way. The conventional dietetics training that is hyper-fixated on the calories-in, calories-out actually made things worse. I was a compulsive exerciser, which was hidden in plain sight by signing up for marathons, triathlons, and half-marathons. To the world, I was athletic and disciplined. In reality, I ran to punish myself for the food I ate. I was counting calories, running to “burn it off”, and struggling with health issues like irregular cycles, acne, mood swings, exhaustion, and migraines. I ate less and less, worked out more and more, and wondered why that equation only made me feel worse.  When what I was doing stopped “working” (quotations because I was actually feeling terribly), I took it to the next level and adopted veganism. Being vegan became my identity. I was so wrapped up in it and it was the topic of most of my conversations. It was like a religion to me. I missed out on a lot of my early 20’s because the anxiety about missing workouts gave me over-shadowed the fun times I could have had with friends. There was a month when I had a migraine every single day for 30 days straight. I had heart palpitations, my fingers were turning blue, I was freezing all the time. To “manage”, I was prescribed steroids, anti-inflammatories, birth control, anti-histamines. You name it, I tried it. I went to the doctor multiple times only to be told that “everything looks normal”. And, “You’re a Dietitian. I know you eat well”. But did I?  Two months before my wedding, I was at rock bottom. As a last ditch effort, I made an appointment with the doctor one last time, and thankfully, something was finally off! She discovered TPO antibodies, diagnosed me with Hashimoto’s, handed me a script, and said…see ya! Phew, a diagnosis! But… what do I do?! Naturally, I started Googling. I had never even heard of Hashimoto’s before. Google told me to do the Autoimmune Paleo diet, so I did. My first grocery shopping trip took hours, the diet was so unrealistic, and ultimately just didn’t work. I was stressed, exhausted, and feeling like a total failure not being able to follow it. To make it worse, I didn’t even feel better after doing it. And what was I supposed to do after 30 days?  Feeling blind-sided, unsupported, and let-down, I decided that I had to be the one to advocate for myself. My health was in my hands. In true Type A fashion, I dove into the medical literature to learn as much as I could about Hashimoto’s and thyroid dysfunction and experimented on myself. To my surprise: The restrictive one-size-fits-all diet dogma sold by the Internet wasn’t the solution. Rather, life-long management requires a realistic, sustainable, flexible, personalized way of eating. Filling nutrient gaps, optimizing the gut, managing my stress, and balancing my blood sugar were the keys to feeling like a rockstar with thyroid dysfunction.  The is how my trademarked “The BRAIN Method” was born: Blood Sugar Balance Regulating Inflammation Adrenal Resiliency Intestinal Health Nutrient Repletion  We aren’t destined to just sit idle doing nothing except wait for our medication dosing to be increased.  You have more control than you think!  I have been where you are– feeling lost and confused. That is why I created the resource I wish I would have had 10 years ago when I was newly diagnosed.  If you’ve been diagnosed, handed a script, and provided little to no guidance, you’re in the right place!   Many of us are frequent-flyers in the AIP diet world, and if you are, ask yourself these questions: – Did it actually “work” (and by “work”, I mean did you feel better AND could you stick with it? – Did it add to your stress or make you less stressed? – Would you rather be on the MOST restrictive or LEAST restrictive diet?(Pssst… there isn’t a right answer!)

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