Christina Tidwell 10/7/19 Christina Tidwell 10/7/19

Live Well Podcast | Ep #60 Managing chronic fatigue with Fran Dargaville

Fran is a Functional Nutritionist and Yoga teacher with a passion for real food and holistic health! Her health journey started when she developed chronic fatigue and digestive issues, which sparked her determination to heal herself through food, movement and mindset. Fran supports her clients through 1:1 programs and her online detox program to get to the root cause of their symptoms, so they can lose weight, get more energy and take control of their health.

I love Fran’s real food approach to health and am so excited to speak with her today about overcoming chronic fatigue.

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Show Notes:

0:00 Intro
2:50 Fran describes her personal experience with chronic fatigue
- Developed CFS as a teenager in high school
- Difficulty getting anyone to take her symptoms seriously
4:20 Fran describes her second flare-up of chronic fatigue in her 20s
- How a toxic job contributed to symptoms
8:20 Fran’s experience having to quit her job and move back in with her parents as she recovered
- The role of her mom as an advocate and support during this time
13:00 The importance of “day to day” support when managing chronic health conditions
13:22 Fran describes the interventions that made the biggest difference for her to help her finally heal
- Nutrition and gut health
- Exercise and fresh air
- Yoga and mindfulness
- Mindset work
16:39 The limiting beliefs that kept Fran stuck from moving forward
- “I’m so exhausted”
- “I can’t go anywhere, what if I feel worse?”
- “I can’t get the perfect food today, this will derail all my progress”
18:50 How Fran managed without a diagnosis of disease
21:55 The danger of attaching too strongly to your diagnosis
25:30 Fran details the specific foods to include and avoid to support your body
- The importance of nutrient density for chronic conditions
37:50 Outro

Connect with Fran

Website | Facebook | Instagram

If you loved this episode, I'd be honored for you to give me a rating on iTunes. This helps me to get content out to others who are interested in getting control of their health through diet, lifestyle shifts and personal empowerment.

If we haven't met before, I'm Christina Tidwell and I'm so excited that you're here! I am a RN & Functional Nutrition Practitioner that helps those with autoimmune disease, hormone imbalance and gut issues heal without overwhelm so you can feel better in your body in a way that honors your unique needs and feels sustainable for the rest of your life.

If you suffer from:

Fatigue and energy crashes
Brain fog
Poor digestion
Painful periods and PMS
Symptoms of autoimmunity
Stress and overwhelm

...and aren't getting the support you need, I’m here to help guide you! My job is to clear the overwhelm, help you put the pieces of the puzzle together and co-create a sustainable path forward to help you reach your goals and feel better in your amazing body. When we work together you can’t fail.

In my health & nutrition coaching programs I support you in the quest to get back into balance by listening to your story, understanding your needs, getting to the roots of imbalance in the body and co-creating a sustainable path to healing together. These sessions weave together functional nutrition and science, lived experience, breathwork, mindset shifts, and intuitive guidance for a unique and full-spectrum approach to nutrition counseling and holistic health.

I always offer free 20-minute discovery sessions to get clear on your major health concerns and identify what’s standing in your way. Click the button below to set up your free consultation and we can create a plan of action specifically for you.

Book your free discovery session

Christina Tidwell 9/23/19 Christina Tidwell 9/23/19

Does everyone with autoimmunity need to avoid gluten and dairy?

Firstly, everyone with autoimmunity, even with the same diagnosis is very different and the reasons for immune system dysfunction are going to be very different as well.

As with anything, it’s not a black and white answer but rather, it depends! Join me as we explore the bioindividuality of including gluten or dairy into your diet.

Firstly, everyone with autoimmunity, even with the same diagnosis is very different and the reasons for immune system dysfunction are going to be very different as well. I can’t emphasize that enough.

That being said, there are common foods to look at that might be adding to an inflammatory response.

The top 3 inflammatory foods to consider first are:

Gluten

Even if you don’t have Celiac Disease, it can be a good idea to avoid gluten if you have an autoimmune disease or are working to support your gut for a number of reasons. It’s becoming increasingly clear that celiac disease is only one manifestation of gluten intolerance, and that “non-celiac gluten sensitivity” (meaning people that react to gluten, but do not have celiac disease) is a legitimate health concern. Symptoms can range from GI discomfort to fatigue and even neurological issues [1].

This is because a component of gluten found in grains known as gliadin has been shown to cause leaky gut and inflammation for those with gut issues or autoimmune disease [2]. We know that 70% of our immune system lies around the gut, so whenever there are immune issues you want to look to the gut first and foremost.

It’s also risky for those with autoimmunity because of a phenomenon called molecular mimicry. Molecular mimicry occurs when your body is exposed to an invader (in this case gluten). Your immune system memorizes its structure so that it can develop a defense against it and recognize it in the future [3]. Gluten, which is a particularly large protein, happens to be structurally similar to a number of your body’s tissues, particularly your thyroid [4].

To really know if gluten is something that affects you, the best way is to eliminate gluten from your diet (30-60 days) and then perform a gluten challenge, taking careful note of any symptoms.

Dairy

Dairy tends to be a little bit more individual in my personal experience as in some people tolerate yogurt, butter or certain cheese but don’t feel as great when they have milk or ice cream.

Here are a few reasons why dairy might not feel great in your body:

Approximately 65% of the human population has a reduced ability to digest lactose (a sugar found in milk) after infancy [5].

Dairy is often a culprit in gastrointestinal symptoms related to leaky gut and can increase mucus production which can irritate the gut lining and affect nutrient absorption. Additionally, commercially available dairy products have higher rates of hormones and toxins that aren’t great for your body.

If there is leaky gut, immune activation and inflammation, it’s best to remove certain known inflammatory foods for a period of time to “cool down the fires.”

For example, say you eat dairy in the presence of leaky gut and inflammation. The inflammatory proteins from dairy can slip through GI wall and trigger the immune system which is going to trigger the autoimmune response. Dairy can add potential xenoestrogens to an already overloaded hormonal system and is going to further tax the liver, in turn, affecting blood sugar, adrenals and ultimately the full system.

You can see how it really affects the entire body even if you don’t have overt digestive issues. I find it best to “clear the muddy waters” as my mentor Andrea Nakayama says, and give your body a break from these potentially inflammatory foods for a period of time. From there, you are better able to see what other issues persist and move forward.

So, should I remove gluten and dairy from my diet?

You may benefit from removing gluten and dairy for a period of time and then reintroducing them from a better baseline to fully understand how they are making you feel.

There are some practitioners that believe that gluten is a root cause of all chronic illness and everyone should avoid it.I’m not sure that I have enough information to be able to concur with that, but I think what we know about the gut and the immune system it’s definitely something to consider if you have chronic autoimmune issues [1].

As with anything, it’s not a black and white answer but rather, it depends! I hope this helps to shed light on the process and the bio-individuality of including gluten or dairy into your diet.

PREFER TO LISTEN? TUNE INTO THE LIVE WELL PODCAST BELOW (AND DON'T FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE SO YOU'LL NEVER MISS OUT!)

Click here to listen in iTunes

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Or if you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below:

If you suffer from:

Fatigue and energy crashes
Brain fog
Poor digestion
Painful periods and PMS
Symptoms of autoimmunity
Stress and overwhelm

Book Your Free Discovery Session Here

Christina Tidwell 9/12/19 Christina Tidwell 9/12/19

The best breathing exercise to reduce stress

We live in a world where we are constantly bombarded with information and stimuli from all angles. But, what can we do about this? Once you have identified that you are experiencing a chronic stress response, the goal is to find ways to shift yourself away from the “fight or flight” mode into the “rest and digest” mode of your nervous system. There are many ways to do this, but one of my favorite ways is using this 4-7-8 breathing exercise demonstrated in this video.

We live in a world where we are constantly bombarded with information and stimuli from all angles.

We may find ourselves constantly “on” from the moment we wake up until the moment our head hits the pillow at night. We demand so much of our bodies and minds on a daily basis to keep up with the pace around us, it’s no surprise many of us find ourselves in a constant state of stress, fatigue and exhaustion.

This constant stress may even come to feel normal to us. We become so used to the surge of adrenaline that allows us to power through our day and check off all of the tasks on our to-do list, that it becomes our normal state of being.

While many of us recognize, and even accept constant levels of stress as part of our lives, we may not fully appreciate the fact that chronic stress has serious implications for the health of our bodies.

Often times we think of “stressors” as big, negative events like deaths, divorces or demanding deadlines at work. If someone were to ask, “Are you stressed?” we might answer no because we aren’t experiencing a big trauma at the moment. What we have to understand however, is that stressors that have the ability to influence our body and nervous system, come in all forms.

Chronic, low level stressors that comes from lack of sleep, not enough rest, a packed schedule or long hours at the computer are what have the biggest impact on our overall health and wellbeing.

Stress is our body’s response to any real or imagined threat.

It is a natural response and can be advantageous when it helps protect us and get us ready to be in “flight or fight.” A stressful incident, like being chased by a tiger in the wild, can trigger physiological changes like increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, muscle tension, and rapid breathing. Ideally, these responses cease once we have found safety from the perceived threat.

Unfortunately, the body can react to stressors that are not life-threatening, such as the stressors mentioned above. Over time, this stress becomes chronic, meaning we seemingly never escape the perceived threat and our body never gets a chance to return to it’s natural state of relaxation.

This overexposure to stress can disrupt almost all our body’s processes specifically our hormones and immune response.

So, what can we do about this?

Once you have identified that you are experiencing a chronic stress response, the goal is to find ways to shift yourself away from the “fight or flight” mode into the “rest and digest” mode of your nervous system.

There are many ways to do this, but one of my favorite ways is using this 4-7-8 breathing exercise demonstrated in the video below.

This 4-7-8 breathing exercise works by activating the diaphragm which stimulates the vagus nerve to reduce the sympathetic or “fight or flight” response in the body [1].

It’s best to start slow with this exercise to see how it makes you feel. Try 5 breaths in a single sitting. Aim to bring this practice in twice a day or as many times as feels good for you.

Watch the video below for a simple demonstration of the 4-7-8 breathing exercise you can try today!

PREFER TO LISTEN? TUNE INTO THE LIVE WELL PODCAST BELOW (AND DON'T FORGET TO SUBSCRIBE SO YOU'LL NEVER MISS OUT!)

Click here to listen in iTunes

Click here to listen in Stitcher

Or if you’d like to play the episode right now in your browser, use the player below:

If you suffer from:

Fatigue and energy crashes
Brain fog
Poor digestion
Painful periods and PMS
Symptoms of autoimmunity
Stress and overwhelm

Book Your Free Discovery Session Here

Christina Tidwell 9/9/19 Christina Tidwell 9/9/19

Live Well Podcast | Ep #57 How to avoid toxins in our food and environment with Beth Chen

Today on The Live Well Podcast I’m speaking with Beth Chen about how to avoid toxins in our food and environment. Beth Chen is an AIP blogger, and self-taught cook and photographer. She finds joy in eating to heal and sharing her recipes and wellness tips, on her blog bonaippetit.com, with others. Join us as we speak about how to reduce the toxic load in your life.

Here are the resources we spoke about on the podcast:

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Show Notes:

0:00 Intro
1:39 Beth shares her personal story that lead her to the work she does today.
7:02 Why Beth is so passionate about avoiding toxins in her food, wine, beauty products and environment.
11:35 Beth discusses some of ways you can empower and educate yourself to reduce your toxic load while considering your budget, availability ect.
14:28 What to look for when buying eggs, seafood and meats; Beth recommends her top websites and apps to reference the quality of your produce while at the grocery store.
20:26 Why wine today is not made in the traditional way. Beth talks about what is in most conventional store-bought wines.
34:06 Why toxin-free living is really about an abundance mindset…and Kale Oreos.
41:11 Outro