On Instagram Stories, someone asked: How long did it take you to heal from Hashimoto’s? I didn’t answer right away because a) it’s not so black and white and b) it’s a long response. I know so many of you are struggling with Hashimoto’s or similar health issues, so thought I’d answer in full here today. Let’s start with when I hit rock bottom + what I told the doctor my 5 major health concerns were. Plus the podcast that saved my life…

How Long It Took To Heal From Hashimoto’s + The Podcast That Saved My Life

First, a brief timeline:

Diagnosed with hypothyroidism: Age 15
Diagnosed with Hashimoto’s: Age 27

THREE YEARS AGO

About three years ago, my health completely fell apart. While I had terrible stomach problems daily for 15+ years, I also started having vertigo, extreme mood shifts and couldn’t eat anything without feeling like I’d gotten hit by a truck (the exhaustion/fatigue would have me in bed for days). In addition, my knees and hips felt inflamed and brittle. I felt like an 80-year-old with a frail body and an even frailer mind. It was scary.

ROCK BOTTOM

Whereas I was able to fake my way through feeling okay for a few hours here and there when I was out in public, by this point I had no energy left to fake it. I was below empty. My body was rebelling and I was at a loss. I wrote more about that here, if you’d like to read it.

THE AHA MOMENT

Fred Baby stumbled across this podcast, in which Dr. Datis Kharrazian mentioned that you can’t eat gluten if you have Hashimoto’s. It was a HUGE light bulb moment and something I had NEVER heard before. It lead us down a path to finding a functional medicine doctor + turning my health around. I feel like this podcast ultimately saved my life.

Sometimes it’s hard to comprehend just how much has changed, and how far I’ve come on this health journey. So I looked back at the paperwork I submitted to my doctor back in May 2015 at our first appointment.

May 2015

Please list your 5 major health concerns in order of importance:

1. Digestive Issues:

Stomach pressure, frequent bowel movements, trouble retaining nutrients. I am becoming more sensitive to other foods that never bothered me before like avocados and mangos (after consuming, I get flu-type symptoms like extreme fatigue and low-grade fevers that knock me out for several days, where I am unable to care for myself). I also now only weigh 95 pounds, even though it seems like I eat all day long and the weight loss worries me.

2. Brain fog/confusion/memory loss/hormonal/emotional:

I would be wrapping a gift and be fine, only to move on to wrap the next gift and get totally confused about how to do it, which led to frustration and crying (like Alzheimer’s or being pregnant). My personality is typically sunny, optimistic and cheerful so randomly crying is not the norm for me. Or, crying when dropping off a FedEx package if I was told I couldn’t do something. Overall it feels like I am dying and losing my mind.

3. Fatigue & Weakness:

I will feel completely fine one day, and then the next not be able to get out of bed. I am walking hunched over like an 80-year-old because I don’t have
the strength to stand up straight. Along with that, I have muscle and joint pain. It often feels like my bones are breaking (when I carry one grocery bag, my wrists feels like it will
snap). I’m starting to have pain throughout my hips now too (for the last few months). Often have neck pain, particularly on the right side. I have a hard time washing my hair or brushing it because raising my hands above my head is exhausting. I get random pains all the time, from my shoulder blades to my side. I also get random roving pains and tingling and numbness in my face.

4. Anxiety:

Not feeling well and not knowing how a food will impact me is leading to anxiety about eating and traveling because I don’t know if it will make me sick.

5. Vertigo/Dizziness:

This past year I started having vertigo, which also occurred a few
times while driving which was super scary. That lead to me not driving. Now I have anxiety around driving. I also often feel like things are moving too fast for my brain to
keep up with, which leads to feeling carsick and me being a jumpy, nervous passenger. But I also feel this way walking into a store, like I need to stand still to get my bearings
and take it all in. It’s like it’s too much stimuli for my brain. I’m sensitive to flashing lights
and flickering candles – both make me feel panicky. Even scrolling through my iPhone at night often makes me feel nauseated.

I was a HOT MESS.

When I think back to this appointment, I remember looking at least 10 years older than I am. My skin was super pale and crepey looking, so dry and lifeless. The light coming in from the windows was bothering me and it was hard to process the stimuli.

The doctor did some eye movement and balance tests, where you close your eyes and stand in one spot and I was swerving ALL over the place without even realizing it. On the eye test, where I just followed the doctor’s finger with my eyes, my eyes would jerk back and forth. Fred Baby has video somewhere. Maybe I’ll track it down + be brave enough to show it. But essentially, my body was attacking my brain.

That was scary to learn + a huge wake-up call!

But my #1 most pressing issue was my stomach and inability to retain any nutrients. Sorry for the TMI, but I was going to the bathroom like 5 times a day. Which is super inconvenient and, frankly, embarrassing (pardon the pun). More importantly, it’s exhausting, as I wasn’t retaining any nutrients. I derived no energy from anything I ate.

To solve problems 1-5, I needed to heal my gut.

Your gut and brain are so connected (something like 80% of serotonin resides in your gut!). If you have leaky gut, you probably have leaky brain too, meaning depression and anxiety are likely joining the party.

I’d read + heard that it could take anywhere from a few months to a few years to heal leaky gut. Always the turtle in life, I was in the few years camp. But not for lack of trying. I’d simply done so much damage since this went on for so long that it was going to take awhile to heal.

So how long did it take to heal Hashimoto’s?

A TIMELINE OF FEELING BETTER

3 months: STOMACH PROBLEMS WENT AWAY + CONSTANT COLDS STOPPED after being on the AIP Diet & cutting out gluten + inflammatory foods (corn + dairy, among others).

3 months-3 years (now): During this period, it was a major roller coaster of learning which foods I could reintroduce and which ones I couldn’t. Some medicines I was taking were literally poisoning me. Some foods, medicines and lifestyle choices resulted in a major breakdown.

But I am happy to report that I am now finally feeling normal and GREAT again. VIBRANT, even. I hate to put that in writing because I’ve done so in the past and felt like I’ve jinxed myself. But I’ve now been at this long enough to know that certain things might make me feel bad again and can make that choice accordingly if I think it’s worth ut (spoiler alert: it’s NEVER worth it).

It took this long to heal my gut fully. I finally have DESIRE and CLARITY back. A desire to be out in the world, traveling and exploring and having fun. And I have a clarity of mind I haven’t had in a long time too. It feels GOOD+ has me excited for fall!

As you can see, this is why it’s a hard question to answer.

But it’s AMAZING to look back and see that ALL 5 SYMPTOMS ARE GONE!

Sure, things pop up here + there, but I can always point to a reason why. It’s no longer a mystery.

It’s an ongoing learning process, but these 10 things are vital to feeling better.

And this is the ONE THING that finally made the biggest difference.

While I will always have Hashimoto’s, I’ve learned how to live with it and not let it ruin my life.

THE BIG TAKEAWAY

I want you to know that YOU CAN TURN YOUR HEALTH AROUND. For me, it took a complete diet & lifestyle overhaul, but it was worth it to feel healthy again. How empowering is it to know YOU can turn it all around?

I know it’s not black and white, there will be hiccups along the way and things aren’t perfect (hormones are still trying to ruin my life + my skin), but I feel in control, whereas before Hashimoto’s controlled me.

I know this can be a lot of info, so feel free to ask any Qs.

I’ve been pondering doing video Q&A, if you think that might be helpful/easier to digest. 😉

Would you like that? LMK!

Thanks, as always, for reading.

Wishing you so much good health xo.

More health posts:

What I Felt Like I Was Dying…And What I’m Doing to Fix It
My Hashimoto’s Update + Does AIP Work?
Why You May Feel Like You’re Losing Your Mind — And Your Hair
I’m a  Real MTHRF…How About You?
How I Overcame A Breakdown
Ever Had a Brain Orgasm? ASMR Could Cure Your Anxiety + Insomnia
The #1 Thing That’s Helped Me To Finally Feel Better
10 Things That Got Me Back To My Happy Place
Finding Rainbows