resting well is so important for those of us with chronic illness

My guest on today’s podcast, Dafne Wiswell is no stranger to chronic illness. She has dealt with depression, panic attacks, rheumatoid arthritis and Hashimoto’s. Her 3 children all have health issues too – Sensory Processing Disorder, juvenile arthritis and Type 1 Diabetes!

Auto-immune diseases do have a genetic component and even within one person, once you have 1 AID it’s not uncommon to develop more. This discussion will be helpful for someone with any auto-immune disease.

Her youngest son was diagnosed with T1D when he was only 2. Can you imagine the trauma for everyone with having to try and inject a 2 year old with insulin multiple times a day? We do talk a bit about her son and managing his TID, including how they are training a new service dog for him which is pretty cool.

Unsurprisingly, Dafne thinks stress was a trigger for her auto-immune conditions and so has dedicated a lot of time and effort in learning how to manage her stress well so she can have  the energy and capacity to, well, deal with everyday life!

Some of the keys we talk about were:

• Trusting your intuition with diet and going back to what you know works well for you when you need to (for Dafne it’s a plant based diet).
• How Dafne protects her mental and emotional space
• Boundaries with people
• Turning off notifications on her phone.
• Stop multitasking.
• Soaking prayer as meditation

1 thing I had to get really solid on was boundaries with people.

• Being really careful with her schedule and planning time for the things that make her feel grounded.

I am very protective of my schedule.

We also talk about the things that help Dafne to rest. Obviously, these will be different for us all and different at different stages of life but she talks about the importance for her of prayer and time for ‘nothingness’

Like most of us with auto-immune issues, these skills haven’t come naturally to Dafne’s personality, but she’s had to really learn them, practise them and prioritise them.

Mindset

We also talk about mindset and how important it is not to beat yourself up, it’s not about willpower.

If we change the way we think, we can change the way we speak. Then we can change the way our bodies behave and that changes the way we live!

Are you seeking health perfection?

If you are that person that is ticking off all the boxes of the ‘right’ things to do for your thyroid health, but still not feeling  great, don’t blame yourself. Take a look at stress and rest because we have to learn how to rest, stop striving and let go of what we can’t control.

What I enjoyed about this conversation with Dafne was her gentleness with herself, and I’m sure with those she works with. She has a sense of peace which I’m sure comes from her faith and having done the hard work of ‘letting go’ of so many of the uncontollables!

related podcast episodes

If you enjoyed this episode and are looking for more discussion around reducing stress, boundaries, learning to unwind and self-care, check out these episodes:

#18: Tough Love. Learning to say no.

#22: Nikki’s Thyroid Story

#35: Leanne’s Thyroid Story

#37: Hypothyroidism: Management, Minerals & Mindset with Angela Brown 

Plus pretty much every person who has shared their story on the show has talked about the impact of different degrees of stress on their thyroid health and healing.

Suspect you have a thyroid issue? PLEASE trust your instincts and get it thoroughly checked out with your health practitioner. This thyroid basics page has an overview of what tests to ask for and an affiliate link to use a private lab if your doctor won't order them.

Disclaimer: This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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