The Autoimmune Healing Intensive

When it comes to autoimmune disease there is no one size fits all approach, medication, dietary protocol, or even lifestyle change that will provide healing benefits to every single person. We all have unique histories, genetics, environments and patterns of responding and that is why standardized approaches to complex health challenges like autoimmune disease only have limited success. We can't be certain of anything until we actually try and implement changes in our own lives. I know this deeply from my personal experience of living with Adult Onset Still's Disease for the past 12 years, as well as from my training and experience as a Registered Nurse and Autoimmune Protocol Certified Health Coach, and you probably do too.

Many of us have visited the doctor knowing something is wrong and have been told to "come back when symptoms get worse" when our blood work or complaints don't fit into a neat and tidy disease category.  This leaves many people high and dry, still suffering in a broken system without any help. In my opinion, that's not good enough.  We need a more comprehensive, collaborative approach.

The good news is that you do have options and it is possible to feel healthy and energized again.  If you are sick and tired of feeling sick and tired, this program is for you. Instead of waiting for your doctor to catch up and do it for you, you should take matters into your own hands and start your own self experiments, organized in a systematic manner popularly known as “biohacking.”

Biohacking for autoimmune disease?

Biohacking is simply a fancy name for taking ownership of your health and running low risk "experiments" on yourself. Is that a good idea? Is it safe? Will my doctor approve? Where should I begin? How do I know it is working? How do I do it? How long do I do it for? These are just some of the questions I have had throughout my healing journey, and you probably have some of them right now too.

January 2018 is a great time begin, continue, or refine personal biohacking experiments for autoimmune diseases, because over 30 autoimmune disease specialists have joined forces to support you through a program we are calling the Autoimmune Healing Intensive. We want to support you every step of the way. 

The Autoimmune Healing Intensive

The Autoimmune Healing Intensive is a comprehensive healing program delivered by 30+ of the leading autoimmune specialists including Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, Dr. Terry Wahls and Sally Fallon Morell, founder of the Weston A. Price Foundation (all bundled up in one place).  It will be available for a limited time from January 1st - 31st 2018.

The Autoimmune Healing Intensive is all about self-experimentation which allows you to figure out what strategies, diets, lifestyle changes make sense and work for you specifically. It walks you through this self-experimentation process step-by-step and connects you with a global community of support which is totally revolutionary. 

The program brings together lessons, self-experiment “run sheets” created by leading experts in autoimmunity (including myself), worksheets, resources, videos, an exclusive website and Facebook group, and daily on-demand support.

All for an incredible package price of just $64. (Click here to learn more now) 

Yes, just $64. For that small one time investment, you get the expertise of more than 30 specialists, including medical doctors like Terry Wahls, leading researchers like Sarah Ballantyne, nutritionists, nurses, health coaches, and therapists. It's a steal of a deal because we are so excited to grow this community and change the way we view and manage chronic autoimmune disease. Isn't your health worth this investment? 

Making It Easy to Eat Healthy

I have contributed an exclusive Autoimmune Paleo Batch Cooking Meal Plan which includes a 7-day AIP compliant meal plan, step by step instructions for how to cook an entire week’s worth of food in just two 2-hour sessions (life changing), grocery lists and twelve of my favorite, easy, AIP compliant recipes! Diet is one of the most fundamental pieces of the self-experimentation program, and this guide gives you all the tools you need without any confusion or overwhelm. The only way to access this batch cooking guide is through this program. 

Other experts have contributed resources on stress reduction, emotional aspects, involving family, coping with grief, traveling, hormones, supplements, nutrition, and exercise, in a variety of formats including ebooks, videos, meal plans, challenges, and exclusive discussion groups. Even if you only use a couple of these tools, I am sure you will consider your $64 very well spent.

Need more details?

The folks at Biohack U have coordinated this revolutionary project and you can watch the informational video below or read more about the program over at their website here >>

Support for learning how to experiment will only be available each day throughout the month of January 2018 so sign up now to get the most out of it!

Trust yourself, and what your body is telling you because you know it better than anyone else, and know that it is possible to live well with chronic disease. It is possible to wake up and feel energized and excited about the day ahead of you. To be able to care for your kids and be there for your family. To have the stamina to enjoy a productive career you love.  To feel great in your body.  Sometimes you just need the right guidance and support to get started.  Click here to learn more and join the program >>  

Why We Shouldn’t Be So Black and White About Our Food Choices

I just spent three and a half glorious weeks working and traveling around London, Paris and Amsterdam (I’m actually writing this on the plane back to Seattle hoping my battery doesn’t die before I get out all of my burning thoughts!) This trip was a very momentous occasion for me because it was the first time, ever, that I’ve been able to work remotely and take my business on the road. I haven’t been away from nursing in the hospital setting for this amount of time in almost 6 years. Having the freedom and flexibility to travel and do work I love is something I’ve always dreamed of, something I always felt was possible for other people but not for me.  It felt really good to make it a reality because it was something I designed and created.

Traveling, exploring and immersing myself in new cultures is what I love and something I value deeply.  If I’m in your hometown I want to eat and drink everything you do and fully embrace what it means to be from that corner of the world. It feels important to me. If I’m in Paris I want to drink wine and eat fromage, pâté and baguettes and be all fabulous strolling along the Seine, ok?!  (I may or may not have purchased a beret…ok I bought two.)

I also want to feel good in my body, eat to fuel myself and keep my stomach, skin and immune system happy. These things are also important to me.

So where do I strike a balance? How do I navigate between these two desires in a way that isn’t totally stressful?

This trip brought up something really powerfully me to me that I’ve been thinking about a lot and exploring with literally all of my clients. That is the “black and white” mindset of being healthy.

I work with so many clients who say they do really well with black and white guidelines, when they have clear restrictions on what they “can” and “can’t” eat. They may avoid dairy, gluten and sugar for periods of time during healing diets and although it’s challenging at first, they feel good with these strict boundaries because there is no ambiguity. When they begin to add in foods and things like travel, work events, holiday parties, and dinners at friend’s houses come up, however, they have a really hard time navigating this grey area.

It’s this gray area that I’ve been thinking so much about. This grey area is so important because really, it’s life.

It’s easy to hand someone a list and say avoid these “bad for you” foods and eat these “good for you” foods.  We know we should eat vegetables and avoid excessive doughnut consumption. But what prevents us from doing so on a regular basis? Where the real transformation happens and the real work gets done is in navigating the gray area with intention.

Five tips for navigating the gray

1. Get clear on your "why"

It is so crucially important to get clear about why you want to eat healthy or feel a certain way and what your real motivations are. For me, the reason why I don’t just go for it and eat chocolate croissants and macaroons every day (just some days) is because I have a genetic predisposition to autoimmune disease. I know how eating those foods makes me feel and affects me at a cellular level, and I do not want to feel that way.

Excess sugar, grains and dairy affect my gut, which affects my immune system and symptoms of autoimmunity, makes my skin break out, alters my mood, sleep and overall sense of well being. I choose to eat whole, nutrient dense foods 90% of the time because they keep me feeling great and not getting sick. That’s a very powerful “why” for me and makes it pretty simple to stick to my guns when choosing how to eat (note: his has been a lifelong journey to be sure). My why is different to yours though and it’s important to get clear on what’s true for you.

What is your why? Do you want to feel good in your body? Reduce symptoms of disease? Improve frustrating bloating? Maintain energy to run around? Look good naked? Take a minute to think about it and write it down.  If you first come up with “feel healthy” go deeper and keep asking “why” to get to the powerful core (there is always one).

2. Start with a good foundation

To be able to make good choices you need to know what works for you and what doesn’t.  We are all so different and thrive with different foods in our bodies. In general it is advised to avoid overly processed foods and refined sugars and eat a diet with lots of nutrient-dense vegetables. From there however, we must take into account our own unique bodies and needs. This involves tuning into your body and experimenting with what works and what does not.  

Once you really know how certain foods make you feel and you consistently incorporate foods that make you feel good while taking out foods that make you feel bad, you create a great foundation and your body responds accordingly. Once you have a solid foundation of health, it’s easier to veer off and come back to your baseline. You become more easily able to tune into how you feel and you know exactly how to bring yourself back. I work with people to uncover sensitivities and move towards a healthy, whole foods diet that works specifically for them in order to create this solid foundation. It can be really helpful to have a guide through this process so message me if you want some assistance!

3. Follow the 90/10 Rule

If you focus on putting good, nutrient dense foods in your body 90% of the time and do whatever the heck you want 10% of the time you are doing great. So great. This rule helps you to maintain a good foundation without restricting yourself on a daily basis. Perfection is not the goal, sustainability is.

5. Cook for yourself

When you are traveling, going to dinner parties, and living daily life, cooking food for yourself is the best tool you have. Nothing fancy, and yes you can do it. I swear. When we prepare food for ourselves we know exactly what ingredients we are eating, and we can make simple, affordable meals and snacks that help give us a good solid foundation. Eating out every single meal and snack while traveling makes it tough to strike a good balance. Also, it makes it less special or enjoyable once you do go out to a lovely place.

If you have access to a kitchen you can easily whip up an omelette, have rotisserie chicken and greens, microwave a sweet potato, boil some eggs, make avocado toast, etc. If you are going to a dinner party and you have no idea what food will be there, bring a nutritious dish you know makes you feel good to share. That way you can load up your plate with 90% of the good stuff and go from there. Cooking is the ultimate act of empowerment. It gives you control over what you put in your body and therefore how you feel.

6.  Everything in moderation even moderation

Sometimes you just gotta do bad things. Even when you know they’re bad (I’m talking about food here not felonies people). Constantly being “good” and vigilant has it’s benefits for sure but it can be exhausting. And boring. What usually happens is that thing we were building up for so long in our heads turns out to not be that great after all, and we learn about what we really want for next time. Sometimes it’s really good though, and in that case you should enjoy the shit out of that bacon-maple doughnut without feeling once little ounce of guilt. Oh and once you enjoy whatever it was you were pining after, move on. No feeling bad and guilty and vowing to do a juice cleanse when you get home or run 20 more minutes on the treadmill. Move. On.

That’s how you live in the gray.

If you are always “black and white” about food and health and feel like you are constantly “on the wagon or off the wagon” without any in between, I've got your back. 

I always offer free 30-minute discovery sessions for you to get crystal clear on your main health goals and the blocks that are holding you back.  There is no one-size-fits-all approach, and together we can create a plan that works for you and your unique body. Book your free session with me by clicking the link below! I can't wait to hear your story :) 

Why Our Current Healthcare System Isn't Enough

I am a holistic health and nutrition coach. I believe that all areas of our lives work together to influence our health and manifestations of disease.  I believe tangibly reducing stress levels and eating nutrient-dense foods to be just as prescriptive as pharmaceutical medications at times.  I believe in the power of food as medicine.  I’ve experienced healing through acupuncture, therapy, meditation, reiki, and herbs and witnessed these effects on countless others.

I am also a critical care trained registered nurse. I believe that conventional medicine is awe-inspiring and important. I have seen people who were terminally ill get new hearts transplanted from another human being that died.  I have cared for these people and have seen how these miraculous surgical interventions conducted by supremely skilled doctors gave them new life. Personally, I owe my life to pharmaceuticals that worked to quiet my immune system when it was on overdrive during my first flare up of autoimmune disease. And should I suffer a stroke or break a bone, you better believe I wouldn’t be reaching for herbs or meditating on it.

One might think that these two beliefs and occupations of mine go hand in hand and complement each other nicely. But in reality, it’s almost as if I work within two different worlds.

When I am working as an RN at the hospital, I help identify if there are blockages in the coronary arteries through stress testing and interpretation of electrocardiograms. If there are, patients are sent to get stents or bypass surgery to open up the blockages and preserve their heart function. I don’t talk to anyone about why they actually have blockages in their hearts in the first place or what they can do in addition to surgery and pharmaceutical medications to help heal themselves. Some doctors do have these conversations almost as an afterthought about the effects of diet and lifestyle, but most of the time patients don’t even know there are alternatives to consider.

It’s easier to just prescribe a pill than to spend time investigating underlying causes of disease which can be complex and multifaceted. And often times it’s what patients want or are used to -  the quick fix

When I work as a holistic health coach, I look at all areas of clients lives to see where things are out of balance and together we explore ways to get back to health, mainly through diet and lifestyle modifications. 

Sometimes, moving towards a whole foods diet to feel better in our bodies can be considered an alternative or complementary approach. 

Alternative. That’s the loaded word I really wanted to talk about.

Our Western medical establishment typically defines alternative medicine as any practice that doesn’t come from evidence gathered using the scientific method.  And while I believe standards and regulations to be crucially important when creating guidelines to treat human beings, (do you want your surgeon doing anything other than the gold standard?) I do believe this labeling creates a very limited viewpoint.

In our Western medical model it is currently considered an “alternative” notion that the food we put into our bodies has a direct effect on manifestation of disease states and, generally, how we feel. Honestly, it really is. I see it every day. When treating someone with an autoimmune thyroid condition the current recommendation from a conventional standpoint is a replacement of thyroid hormones. Rarely is there any further investigation into underlying cause (a thyroid problem is not simply a deficiency of thyroid medication) or the very real and detrimental effects of stress on the adrenals and thyroid, or the possibility of a poor, sugar-laden diet contributing to inflammation and the disease state.

What I’ve come to know over time is that the best solution lies in the middle. Complex illness requires a mix of conventional, pharmaceutical or surgical treatments as well as attention to diet, digestive health, stress, relationships and our environment.  We are doing ourselves a huge disservice to limit ourselves one or the other. It requires a team approach to be able to address all of these underlying factors, each bringing their own unique knowledge.

As Danielle Laporte, self-help guru says, “There is a time and place for everything.  Knowing the right time and right place is how you become your own healer.”

In terms of healing and treating disease in a real and effective way, truer words have never been spoken.

A branch of medicine called Functional medicine is emerging to better address the health care needs of our current world. Functional medicine works to tie together conventional and alternative healing modalities to add as many tools as we can to our toolkit.  It works to find the underlying causes of disease rather than simply masking symptoms using a systems-oriented approach and engaging both the patient and practitioner in a therapeutic partnership.

This is the approach that is needed for true healing to occur. The current model we are working in is not enough.  If we’re being honest with ourselves we know this to be true. We need both advanced technology and ancient wisdom.  We need open minds and a broader acceptance for what is considered “alternative.”  If we are in the alternative or natural healing world we need not shame those who require pharmaceuticals and conventional interventions to heal.  There is a time and a place for each and we need to call on both for true healing to occur.

If you want some more information about Functional Medicine or about how you can get connected to a pracititonor, feel free to email me . If you want to chat more about how to incorporate healthy whole foods into your diet successfully and how you might benefit from one-on-one health coaching, click the button below to book in a free 30 minute discovery session to chat. I'd love to hear from you!

With Love, 

Christina Tidwell, MN, RN, CHC

Being Your Own Health Advocate

Have you ever gone to a doctor’s appointment with questions, concerns, and data you’ve gathered and left without being able to get a word in before the doctor had to whizz off to her next patient?  Or have you voiced concerns about your current treatment plan and asked for alternative options only to be met with a statement such as “this is how things are done.” Or maybe you feel like you don’t even know what questions you would ask your health care providers if given the chance.

As patients, we put trust in our health care providers and believe that they hold the answers to all of our problems, the antidotes to our ailments.  In the model of health care practiced today we expect to go to our doctors with problems and leave with a magic pill to cure us.  Sounds like an easy fix right? In some cases this model definitely works. But as humans we are complex beings and rarely does a quick fix pill actually work to resolve our underlying issues especially in relation to chronic disease.

We are all so unique and our health is impacted by many factors such as our genetics, personal history, diet and lifestyle, stress levels, and overall satisfaction with life.  No doctor is going to have the vast amount of knowledge that we have of our own bodies.  You are the only one that possesses that wealth. This is why it’s so vitally important that we learn to work in conjunction with our health care providers and add our own expertise to theirs. 

For example, say there are two people with a diagnosis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).  One might be caused by an underlying bacterial overgrowth from antibiotic overuse while the other is caused by stress from an abusive relationship.  Their treatment courses for IBS will be completely different and they will not benefit from a one-size-fits-all treatment without consideration of their unique personal experiences.  These patients need to work in conjunction with health care providers to create effective treatment plans and require ongoing support to find ways to get back to health.  We must become our own advocates and enter into a relationship with our health care providers where we are playing as part of the team rather than standing on the sidelines.

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As Andrea Nakayama, Functional Nutritionist says,

“No more patients, sitting in the mystery of their health, feeling like their own bodies have become impossible riddles to solve”

Sometimes in the midst of dealing with illness or pain we feel like our health is one big mystery and we act as if what’s going on in our bodies is none of our business.  But it’s the only body you’ve got and you better believe it’s your business!  I want you to feel empowered to learn about your illness or imbalance, to ask informed questions, to work with your providers to find alternatives, and to ensure that your voice is heard.  You can do this by:

• Researching your illness to get informed

• Writing down questions you want to get answered as they come up

• Beginning the process of tuning into your body (through meditation, journaling, food diary analysis, mindful breathing) so you can accurately convey symptoms and feel more connected to what’s going on in your body

• Assembling a care team that wants to work with you and foster your empowerment. Don’t be afraid to make changes if you don’t feel supported by your health care providers, it’s meant to be a two-way relationship.

You may have heard of people having health advocates that accompany them to doctor’s visits, or a family member who acts as an advocate. It’s always great to have another pair of ears during appointments to ensure that nothing is missed when going through the health care system and I highly recommend having your own form of advocate if you don’t yet feel comfortable on your own.  Read more about what advocates can do for you here >> 

Here is a link to the Washington State Health Advocacy Association for more information about what health advocates do and how to go about hiring one in Washington Sate.  

So let’s do this you guys! It’s time to reclaim our health and enter into partnerships with our health care providers in order to obtain vibrant, beautiful health. If you want to learn more about how you can empower yourself this year to be your own advocate send me an email, I’d love to hear from you!

With Love, 

Christina Tidwell, MN, RN, CHC