Symptom Tracking & AIP Meal Planning for Hypothyroidism with Jordan Candido : Podcast Season 2, Episode 1

Meet Jordan Candido.

NOTE: Jordan has made the decision to close her blog. While this episode mentions resources on her blog, please note that they are no longer available. Thank you!

Jordan discovered by chance a mass on her thyroid as a teenager, which explained the hypothyroid symptoms she had been struggling with.

With half of her thyroid gland removed, Jordan now uses the Paleo AIP diet and lifestyle, combined with symptom tracking and meal planning, to manage her thyroid disease and thrive through her chronic illness diagnosis.

I know you’ll just adore her as much as I do!

You can use the audio player below to listen.

Please scroll down for the show notes.

SHOW NOTES

0:01 Introduction: This podcast is brought to you by the new community cookbook, AIP by Season: 101 Paleo autoimmune protocol recipes for healing through the seasons.

1:49 Meet Jordan Candido, the blogger behind the former blog, Healthy Fat & Fit. Jordan uses the Paleo AIP diet and lifestyle to manage her hypothyroidism.

3:35 As a teenager, Jordan discovered by chance a mass on her thyroid during an x-ray after a basketball injury. This suddenly explained her years of unexplained thyroid symptoms.

5:15 A biopsy in 2006 led to her doctor recommending half of her thyroid being removed, and since then she has suffered from hypothyroidism due to her remaining half of her organ not being able to keep up with the hormone production.

5:55 Over the course of about a decade, Jordan suffered with the all-encompassing symptoms of thyroid disease, including: energy levels, weight gain, low libido, and emotional distress.

7:22 Emotional traumas from her childhood combined with hypothyroid symptoms also contributed to her state of mental health. This nearly led to a divorce from her husband while she was pregnant, and caused further stress.

8:21 Now Jordan is using the AIP to manage her symptoms, her relationships with her husband and family are doing great. She is in a better place now, and has a new outlook on life with a chronic illness. She started her blog as a resource to help others who are struggling.

10:30 The AIP community helps us to support one another, and no one has to suffer or celebrate alone.

11:43 Journaling is so important to healing so that you can look back at your symptoms and emotions. Jordan uses an AIP Meal Plan & Habit Tracker on to keep track of her milestones, which shows her how she’s come on her healing journey.

13:29 Driving confusion used to be one of the hormonal side effects of the hypothyroid symptoms that Jordan dealt with, but now no longer suffers from thanks to dietary and lifestyle aspects of the AIP.

14:19 Mood swings from the chronic pain and hormone imbalances that thyroid disease causes have been more manageable amongst both Jordan and myself by following the protocol.

16:53 My therapist, Kerry Jeffery of Emotional Autoimmunity taught me that it was ok to privately punch pillows as a method of releasing anger. 😉

17:08 The protocol has helped us both with nighttime anxiety and dramatically improved the quality our sleep.

20:08 Depression has been much more manageable for Jordan through balancing her health via nutrition, and even her husband has noticed the big change she has undergone.

22:29 The dietary detox period of the AIP causing brain and memory issues, and how tracking your foods, emotions and symptoms can be a huge help to yourself. Writing out what you’re feeling can really aid in showing you what you put up with every day that you don’t have to put up with it anymore thanks to nutrition.

23:32 Jordan journaled about about all the symptoms correlated with thyroid disease that she suffered from, and when she saw it in black and white she was amazed at how much she actually dealt with.

25:49 Jordan encourages others to take their health seriously, meal plan, and keep track of their progress, because they will be amazed at how far they’ve come when they read through their journal.

26:32 The anti-inflammatory effects of the AIP eliminated my eczema and reduced my fibromyalgia and arthritic symptoms within the first 30 days. Jordan’s plantar fascitis, which is related to hypothyroidism, was significantly improved by the AIP (almost completely gone). Though now if she consumes one of her trigger foods she notices a flare up.

31:19 Staying in a meal-planning routine can help to avoid the temptation to eat convenience foods that are harmful to our health and cause symptom pitfalls.

32:51 The thyroid hormone secretes collagen, so lacking in thyroid hormone causes a deficiency of collagen.

35:39 Having people around you that support your lifestyle choice is definitely a healing bonus. Though some people may not always be on board with your decision to embark on the autoimmune protocol, do it for you and the things in life you would love to see benefit from your choice to heal.

39:14 How Jordan’s family has benefited from her wellness journey and improved heath. “When Momma’s healthy that goes along way with home life.” Self-care with chronic illness is the right kind of selfish.