Why Autoimmune is a Good Thing

“You have an autoimmune disease called Celiac disease.”

These are the strange words I heard from my doctor and I had no idea what in the world she was talking about. Autoimmune? Celiac? What is heaven’s name is that? Well, at least that was MY question.

Diagnosis

In 2006, I went in for a routine physical and after a few questions from my doctor and some blood work, those were the words I heard from her. I was completely ignorant at that time and went home and looked up “Sickle Cell Disease”…umm, not the same thing. And since I am not African-American, or from a Mediterranean descent, or Hispanic, I would not fit into the category of risk factors for the Sickle Cell trait. Bless my heart and my naivety.

Well, fast-forward 14 years later and a smidge more research in my noggin’ I can tell you that Sickle Cell and Celiac have NOTHING to do with one another AND being given this diagnosis has been one of the most liberating and wonderful “pronouncements” in my life. That may sound like a bit of an exaggeration, but I promise it is not. It has changed my life in every way and I am truly grateful for it.

You may be asking why I would be so adamantly grateful for a “disease.” Well let me count the ways…FIVE to be exact, (there are many more, but let’s start with these.)

• I FEEL BETTER…
  • That may seem like an oxymoron. How can you feel better when given this type of diagnosis? Don’t you feel worse when you have an autoimmune disease. Well, when you change the way you eat and your lifestyle, because if you don’t the long term outcome would be grim. These changes over time will help you feel better.
    • A couple of ways I feel better is that the brain fog is significantly less. As a matter of fact, I went back to school to finish my degree in 2016 and graduated in May 2019 with a Bachelor of Science Psychology: Life Coaching Summa Cum Laude. I also have tons more energy that I did in my 30’s (’bout to hit the big 5-0 soon) and I ran my first EVER 1/2 marathon when I was 46! It was so empowering when I crossed that finish line.
• I BECAME A MINIMALIST…
  • Seriously, your choices are limited and for some reason when you don’t have to think about all the food options out there, it is just simpler. This frees up mind space! For real, y’all! My pantry and frig are simplistic. When I need to make a meal, I can literally do it in less than 30 minutes, start to finish.
• I SAVE MONEY…
  • Wait…What? How? I am sure you have heard, “It costs more to eat healthy.” Well, that depends, actually. Now listen, if you are heading out to the grocery store and your intent is to buy every BOXED item that says gluten free (GF), then yes, you may need to get a second job to pay for your GF habit (not really). Think…SIMPLE. You need meat, veggies, and fruit. It is really that easy.
• I AM HEALTHIER…
  • We all know that when you eat “real food” you will be healthier. Real food as in, live food, as in if God made it, eat that. Now there are some exceptions, like nightshades, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, etc. I don’t eat those but I still haven’t quite determined if my issue with those foods are due to my autoimmune or a food allergy, either way, I steer clear of those little suckers. I digress, our bodies were designed to eat for that are/were alive. We assimilate nutrients better and easier when it has not been processed and manufactured in some facility. Side note: DO NOT BUY JUST BECAUSE IT SAYS GF! Just because it is a GF cookie doesn’t mean it is good for you. That being said, Southern Sqweeze in Chattanooga, TN has the best GF cookie I have EVER eaten, and it IS actually good for you. They use plant-based foods..ahem, alive y’all!
• I LOOK YOUNGER…
  • Come on’ ladies, who doesn’t want this? No brainer. Let’s face it, when we cut out foods that are inflammatory (aka gluten is just one of those), puffiness goes away, redness goes away, dull looking skin…bye-bye! Enter youthful appearance. Skins rejuvenates, cells become plumper, and BAM, you have your glowing complexion back! Now we all have our days when we just don’t look our best but looking back at pictures before I was gluten free blows my mind! I will never go back to eating gluten again even if they discovered a cure!

So, what’s to complain about here? You will look better, be healthier, save money, free up mind space, and FEEL BETTER! Winner winner chicken dinner! If you have been given the “label” of autoimmune disease (I have a whole post about labels here) and you have to make drastic changes in your diet and lifestyle, then celebrate! Bring in the clowns, strike up the band, throw a party (with GF snacks and cookies of course) and see it as the best thing! ‘Cause it is, for real!