Doing less, to Heal More.
Why are Autoimmune and chronic pain flares so triggering?
If you have followed along on my social media recently, then know you I have had quite the harsh reality-check lately with my own health. While, I may not be dealing with Endometriosis, I am dealing with some new autoimmune related flare.
Originally, I panicked. Rightfully so I think. Then I spent time looking for more functional support, only to be medically gaslit once again. You can imagine that sent me into a frenzy.
There is just something about dealing with chronic pain, and having someone genuinely not hear you that is ridiculously triggering. So, I spent some time over the weekend crying. Letting the version of myself that feels so dismissed the ability to feel that way. And I asked myself, what was the most triggering about all of this?
Over and over, I found myself saying, “I feel so frustrated. I feel so frustrated.”
And if you know me, then you know that I believe triggers do have the ability to teach us things, when we are in the space to sit with the feelings.
Not ignore or suppress, but genuinely acknowledge the underlying feeling of the trigger.
The more we try to do, the less control we have
Now, I am sure that if you are reading this and deal with any sort of chronic issue from anxiety, to not sleeping, to dealing with chronic pain, then you know the desire of wanting to feel in control of your body.
But the harsh reality is that the more we try to control, the more we have none. The more that we harp on controlling things in our lives, the worse the physical pain will be. I do not make the rules ya’ll, it just is what it is. The mind and body really cannot be separated.
Bio-Individuality with treatment, pain, and moving through an autoimmune flare
One of the reasons that I chose to return to school and study to become a Nutritional Therapist, was that I know deep down autoimmune healing, pain healing, and even nutrition is not a one size fits all approach. Last week I wrote a paper for school on why including a routine and ritual while using foods to heal is extremely important. Not just from a nutritional standpoint, but also from a mental/emotional standpoint.
Something that Nutritional Therapist’s practice is called bio-individuality. It is essentially a big fancy term, for what I would describe as meeting a client where they are at whether that be, demographically, emotionally, physically, and yes even supporting your economic status. What works for one person with the same conditions, may not work for others. That is important when you are dealing with an autoimmune flare or chronic diseases like Endometriosis, Lupus, and even MS.
So, what can you control when you are dealing with chronic pain?
First, I want to highlight routine. Routine quite literally can change your life. Something that I noticed when I returned to therapy in 2019, was that I was lacking any form of routine. Specifically, one that would positively impact the years of insomnia that I had been dealing with. When I created the ritual, it became less about what I was doing, and more about that I was doing it regularly. Over time, I noticed that these small ritualistic things that I was doing, was training my body to prepare for sleep before I even went to bed. If you suffer with chronic pain, or as I like to call it, “painsomnia,” then you know exactly what I am talking about. As of late, I have noticed when my new symptoms arrived, that I had not been sticking at any sort of routine. And even more so, they are significantly worse at night
Routine and rituals work in a few ways.
I find the biggest thing that they do as I mentioned above, is work to soothe the nervous system. So, think your fight, flight, or freeze response. And I am not the first person to say that people dealing with chronic pain issues, suffer from a dysregulated nervous system. Below I am going to break down the tools I use, and WHY I have been using them to help move through this pain, and work to really promote a deep sleep.
Preparing the inflamed body to rest:
Before I go to bed, I try to choose an activity that requires I do NOTHING.
Hear me out. I try to choose something, like gua sha or breathwork. My newest endeavor will be this acupuncture mat (a fancy Amazon Dupe) to really program my mind to stop. I’ve been researching this tool for a while, but could not bring myself to spend over $150 dollars, plus internationally shipping, on a well-known brand. So instead, I spent time researching and reading these reviews. I will settle for the under $30 dollar swap to add to my routine! So many benefits come from acupuncture for pain.
Another ritual that I find extremely helpful is warmth. So, while I live where it is always warm, there is something comforting to me about heat. I warm up a nice cup of broth, my recipe can be found here, or if you are looking for something more simple, snag this organic powdered version for more convenient solution.
Slap on a nice playlist, (find one of mine here) and grab a journal. I have always been a big fan of “brain dumping,” meaning writing whatever just comes to mind, because it is better out, than in. But, if you are looking for more structure, which I have been craving lately too, I have to say that TikTok stars sucked me in on this one. But to be honest, it is a great approach, especially if you are looking for a mindfulness and gratitude practice while dealing with chronic pain. Snag the “Five Minute Journal,” and yes, I hate to say it, but join the trend.
Do less, to heal more…
So, as you can see, creating rituals, and creating routine, is less about what you are doing and more about just doing it. So many people, like myself, find themselves in a frenzy of “I must not be doing enough for my autoimmune issues";” I would beg to argue you are doing too much.
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