Sometimes it’s hard to know where to start when you’ve been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s

When I was diagnosed over a decade ago, I was told it was no big deal and that I just needed to take a medication and everything would be fine.

That was so far from the truth. My autoimmunity got so bad I almost died because I listened to my conventional doctor. Taking medication didn’t solve the problem. You can read more about my healing journey here.

Once I realized that conventional medicine didn’t have the answers, I sought out holistic approaches that healed my body, Through the many years, I have spent over $100,000.00, taken numerous classes, done hours upon hours of research and entirely changed my lifestyle to heal.

Needless to say, I have tried a lot. Some good, some bad. Which is why I wanted to narrow down my top 24 resources for you to take the overwhelm away. Would that be helpful to you?

Where to Start When Diagnosed with Hashimoto’s

The first and most important place to start is with education.

If you don’t understand what your diagnosis actually is and what your body needs to heal, you can’t be your own advocate. You are at the mercy of the doctors’ and even functional doctors can get it wrong. Education is paramount. Learn about your diagnosis. You can read this post for starters. Then, check out the list below for my top choices to help educate yourself about your Hashimoto’s and autoimmunity.

My Top 24 Resources for Healing Hashimoto’s

Education

One of the most profound ways I got educated was through online summits. They are online courses/docuseries that teach you thoroughly, via video, about what you need to heal Hashimoto’s.

There are several out there, all of which I have taken because I figured I could never know enough. However, I have narrowed it down to two that I feel are very well rounded and will teach you the specifics of what you need to know to conquer your Hashi’s,

1 | Summit One

The first one is called The Thyroid Secret where almost 200 thyroid experts share tips, trick and protocols to get rid of Hashimoto’s symptoms forever. These talks rocked my world and taught me so much. You will hear from Dr. Mark Hyman, Dr. Jay Davidson, Dr. Datis Kharrazian, Dr. Daniel Kalish, Dr. Brian Mowll, Chris Kresser, Chris Wark, Dana Trentini and over 100 more! You will come away with the practical working knowledge that will empower you to give your body what it needs to heal. +Summits always come with awesome bonuses too!

Get your copy of The Thyroid Secret by clicking the button below.

2 | Summit Two

The second summit that I love, called The Autoimmune Revolution Summit focuses on overall autoimmunity while 35 experts hone in on leaky gut, diet and lifestyle as well as breaking the cycle of medication use. You will get to listen to Dr. Amy Myers, MD, Josh Axe, DNM, DC, CNS, Dr. Alan Christansen, NMD, David Perlmutter, Md, Izabella Wentz, PharmD, FASCP, Eric Zielinski, DC, MPH(c) and many more. This awesome summit also comes with many impressive free gifts that will have you well on your way to healing.

Get Your copy of The Autoimmune Revolution by clicking the button below.

The Most Informative Books to Help Heal Your Hashimoto’s

I read A LOT of books about autoimmunity, the thyroid, and Hashimoto’s and if I had to narrow it down to 3, here are the ones I would choose to start with if I was newly diagnosed.

3 | Book About Your Thyroid

The Thyroid Connection by Dr. Amy Myers, MD., is one of the best books I have read. I love that it is written from a functional MD’s perspective and that she can empathize since she had Graves Disease and had her thyroid ablated. She has been through the gamut of symptoms and has also treated thousands of patients successfully remitting their Hashimoto’s symptoms.

Her thorough book teaches you how and why to address food, toxins, stress, infections and stress which all play a role in your chronic Hashimoto’s symptoms. Then, in the second half of the book, she walks you through her Meyers Way Plan for lifestyle.

There are also some great resources at the back of the book to further address molds, oral health, heavy metals and more. Pick up a copy of this book here to further educate yourself about your thyroid and Hashimoto’s.

4 | Book About Hashimoto’s

Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis Root Cause by Izabella Wentz, PharmD, FASCP also tops my list of best books to read to remit your Hashimoto’s. Izabella, who had Hashimoto’s, which she put into remission holistically, discusses lifestyle interventions and how to find the root cause of your disease which is drastically important for long-term, sustainable healing.

The education about how your thyroid works and what it needs to function correctly is in-depth, yet simple to understand because of the way she writes. She also addresses triggers for your Hashimoto’s, writing a medical timeline, reducing inflammation, the iodine controversy, and even adrenal gland health. I strongly recommend getting yourself a copy of this book and reading it cover to cover.

5 | Book with Lots of Science

The next book may be a bit surprising that it topped my list of must-have resources for healing your Hashimoto’s but let me tell you why it did. First, it’s The Paleo Approach by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, Ph.D. Why I recommend this book is because in order to remit your Hashimoto’s you’ll need to take a multi-faceted approach for healing holistically. The facts and scientific research she has put in this book literally amaze me because it’s so in depth.

The first part of her book is called The Cause and she helps you dig to understand and find your root cause while at the same time educating you. She writes about sleep patterns, movement, hormones, medications and the Paleo diet approach for healing.

Part two of her book is called The Cure and helps to troubleshoot areas that are problematic for you like digestion, SIBO, parasites, allergies and sensitivities, micronutrient deficiencies, blood sugar and a whole lot more. When you pick up a copy of this book, along with the other two I mentioned above and watch a summit you will be on the fast track for healing.

6 | Doctors

If you are trying to heal your Hashimoto’s using conventional medicine you are on the road to spend a lot of money, frustration that’s unbearable and potentially getting sicker. Most conventional doctors have not been trained to understand the body on a holistic level. That means they have no understanding of how nutrition plays a role in the body healing and generally their go-to is pharmaceuticals to fix mask the problem.

In order to heal your Hashimoto’s, you will absolutely need to look at your body as a whole and not parts and pieces that function with no connection to each other.

With holistic medicine, your practitioner will understand the body’s interconnectedness and be willing to dig deep to find your root cause and address it which in turn will give your body what it needs to heal.

Functional medicine doctors (FMD) are a good place to start, though, ultimately, you may need a team of practitioners helping you out. For instance, once in a while, I work with a FMD, but I have also seen (and still see) naturopaths, a biological dentist, a chiropractor and non-conventional parasite/infection specialists as well as Nutritional Therapy Practitioners (NTP).

For starters, find a good functional medicine doctor by searching here.

Food and Drinks for Healing Hashimoto’s

The number one thing that healed my body when I was on my death bed was food and drink. I had to make some significant changes in the food and drinks I did and didn’t eat in order for my gut to heal and my cells to find nourishment again.

7 | Go Organic

I used to think organic foods were just a gimmick that cost more money. However, after researching what organic foods are truly free of and seeing the drastic change in my health once I ate only organic, I changed my mind.

Conventionally grown foods are laden with pesticides and herbicides, most notable glyphosate from Round-Up which has been found to cause cancer and is known to disrupt the endocrine system, cause fertility problems and a whole lot more.

Our bodies were not meant to have to process chemicals in everything we eat. The levels of toxins we come in contact with today overburden our liver which, ultimately brings on disease and autoimmunity.

One of the best things you can do to heal your Hashimoto’s is to choose ONLY organic foods. If you can’t buy everything organic, make sure you are buying all the foods on the dirty dozen list organic.

8 | Go Grass-fed and Pastured

Two other terms I thought were just for those far-out-there crunchy mamas were grass-fed and pastured. Years ago I didn’t understand just how bad conventionally raised meat really was.

It is filled with synthetic hormones which disrupt our natural, God-given hormones (think thyroid & female hormones), antibiotics, which disrupt our gut microbiome, and conventionally raised meats have actually been found to be less nutrient-dense because, essentially, the meat is coming from sick animals who are raised inhumanely.

From day one, of my healing, we stopped buying conventional meat at the store and started buying grass-fed, pastured and wild-caught meats.

An affordable place we order from a lot is U.S. Wellness Meats because they sell high-quality meats that don’t have any synthetics in them and are raised humanely. Their meat tastes amazing! We love many of their products but their beef jerky, pemmican and beef franks are among our favorites.

Another thing we started doing was ordering a whole pastured and grass-fed cow and pig each year that we split with my parents. Honestly, that’s the most affordable way to get high-quality, meat.

To get wild-caught fish, we get ours here or at Costo though we don’t eat a lot of fish due to mercury.

9 | Go Processed Free

Yet another thing I didn’t truly understand until I began my healing journey was how many bad ingredients were in the packaged foods I thought were healthy. From preservatives to GMO’s to hidden sugar and soy, my body didn’t stand a chance in trying to heal itself.

We had to ditch all the processed foods and become avid label readers. Learning all of the inflammatory ingredients took a little while but it was well worth it to avoid them. While you’re in the learning process, stick to unprocessed foods. After you have a good grasp on the ingredients you’ll need to stay away from, you can purchase some packaged foods and thankfully there are a lot on the market today that are made with whole-foods and not filled with pseudo-man-made foods that were formed in a lab. You’re blessed because there are a lot more choices today than there were years ago when I was healing!

10 | Healing Foods at up to 50% off Retail Prices

One thing you’ll notice is that healing costs money and eating healthier food could increase the amount you pay for food and the amount of time it takes to make your food. However, my perspective is that I can either put a bit more money into the quality of the food I buy, or I can spend thousands in doctor bills, co-pays and medications each year. It’s an easy choice for me.

A place we started frequenting early on in my healing journey was Thrive Market. Not only were their prices WAY cheaper than the stores I was visiting, but they offered free shipping and I didn’t have to spend the time (and gas) driving to the store to get my groceries. It was a win-win all around.

To try this great resource, you can get a free 30-day trial by using this link. After your trial, a year of membership is $59.95 (much like Costco). Guaranteed, you will make up the cost of membership (and much more) in the amount you save on your health groceries.

11 | Refined Sugar and Healing Don’t Mix

Friends, I have to break it to you – it’s time to break up with sugar.

There was a time in my life that the thought of letting go of sugar paralyzed me. I was addicted to it.

However, due to the choice I had to make – live or die – I had to let it go. For starters, I went 365 days without any form of sugar – even fruit sugar. I could not believe how awesome my body felt when I wasn’t eating sugar and I was feeding it nourishing foods instead. The result was profound.

When you think of sugar, I want you to think of refined sugar, grains, legumes and even the amount of fruit you eat. It’s all sugar. Sugar is highly inflammatory and, to heal, there will be a time you will have to make the choice to let it go for good. Also, be aware of the hidden sugars like dextrose, glucose, brown rice syrup, fruit juice concentrates, etc.

Now, it doesn’t mean for the rest of your life that you can’t have something sweet. Instead, it means that when you bring back some sweetness to your life, the sweetener should be coming from whole food like dates, bananas, even a little bit of stevia and raw local honey.

12 | The Most Nourishing Drink

The very first place I started was with homemade bone broth and the GAPS diet. During my healing, I was drinking 21 quarts of homemade bone broth every four days. At that point, it was almost all my body could tolerate without exacerbating all my horrendous symptoms. The GAPS Book is the very first book I read when I started seeking out protocols outside of conventional medicine.

You should at least be drinking 1-3 cups of bone broth per day to help heal your gut. If you can’t make it, this is our favorite boxed brand of broth that is simmered for 24 hours and completely organic. {You can get 20% off your first order by using the code FEASTING20}

13 | Glyphosate Free Coconut

In my diet and lifestyle now, coconut is a mainstay. I use coconut oil in my food and toiletries and have even used it to fight off yeasts and other bacteria.

This is one book I read about coconut oil that opened my eyes to just how healing it is. I strongly recommend reading it.

With Hashimoto’s, there is generally, a lack of healthy fats in the diet (which nourish the brain), an overload of yeast and bad bacteria in the gut and often times itchy, flaky and inflamed skin. Organic, glyphosate free coconut oil can help with all of that,

Coconut oil has caprylic acid in it which is known to break down the barriers that yeast set up to protect themselves. It’s antifungal, antibacterial and even antiseptic and it’s soothing to the skin and a healthy fat loaded with medium chain triglycerides to nourish the brain.

Since we use a lot of coconut oil in our life (and we don’t love the strong taste of coconut) we purchase this glyphosate free coconut oil by the gallon since it has a very mild, almost undetectable coconut taste. We also love to get our shredded coconut, flaked coconut, chipped coconut and coconut butter here too.

14 | Probiotics

In the area of food and healing Hashimoto’s, something you’ll want to include in your diet are probiotics. It’s important to note that you can get a very healthy dose of good bacteria from eating probiotic foods rather than taking capsules.

Probiotic foods to choose from are:

• Kombucha
• Water Kefir
• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Black Garlic (you can read more about it here)

With probiotic foods and probiotics capsules, if you’ve never had either of them before, you’re going to want to take it slow since too much can exacerbate your symptoms.

At the beginning of my healing journey, I couldn’t eat probiotic foods or take capsules for a while. After a few months of healing, I was able to introduce them in little bits. By little bits, I mean about 1/4 tsp. of sauerkraut juice at a time so I wouldn’t go into a healing crisis. Just remember, start slow.

If you also want to supplement with capsules, there are two (therapeutic doses) that I recommend:

• Option 1
• Option 2

You can read extensively about probiotics here and check out the types I recommend.

Anti-Inflammatory Cookbooks to Help Heal Hashimoto’s

There are A LOT of cookbooks on the market today. I have always had a library of them in my home but when I started my Hashimoto’s healing journey, I had to get some new cookbooks that focused on making whole-food dishes from scratch that were grain free, gluten free, dairy free and soy free.

While there are a lot of great cookbooks to choose from, there are also some not so great ones (that I initially bought). There are a lot more, I could recommend but I wanted to narrow it down to two that I think will be really helpful as resources to help you prepare anti-inflammatory food that will heal your body. If you want more of an exhaustive list of my cookbook recommendations, then click here and scroll to the cookbook section.

15 | Cookbook Number 1

The first cookbook, I recommend for healing Hashimoto’s which will give you a tasty variety of recipes to choose from is The Healing Kitchen. It focuses on the Autoimmune Protocol diet (AIP) with mostly low starch, whole food recipes. I have made many dishes using this book and it’s become a mainstay in my kitchen.

16 | Cookbook Number 2

The second cookbook I recommend as a great resource to help you cook to heal your Hashimoto’s is Meals Made Simple. What I love about this cookbook is everything I have ever made from it comes out delicious and she calls out if the recipe is nut free, dairy free. It’s a completely grain free cookbook with minimal starch and the meals truly are simple to make.

17 | Water Quality

Everybody should be filtering their water. Furthermore, if you have Hashimoto’s it is imperative that you are drinking water without halogens and toxins in it because they directly affect how your thyroid functions. You can read an extensive post I have about choosing the right water filter for your thyroid health by clicking here.

7 Other Very Effective Hashimoto’s Resources

Outside of education, food and drinks, there are seven other important strategies you can employ to start and stay on your path to heal Hashimoto’s.

18 | Castor Oil

As I mentioned above, our liver tends to get over-burdened with all the contaminants it has to filter out in the life we live. To help support the liver and reduce the contaminants, Castor Oil Packs can be a wonderful protocol to implement. Click here and I’ll teach you everything you need to know about what they are, supplies you’ll need and how to do them.

19 | Infrared Sauna

Another way, we can help our body get rid of the excess toxins from pesticides, herbicides, heavy metals, preservatives and chemicals is by spending time in an infrared sauna. We have had one for years and it has been ultra healing for me. I wrote up a guide for you to determine if you could be a candidate to use an infrared sauna and which ones are the best. You can read it here.

20 | Meditating on God’s Word

Soul care should always be first in your healing journey. As a Christian, I find it crucial to spend time with the Lord praying, worshipping and meditating on His word every day.

One resource I love is this tool that helps me write Scripture daily. It’s so cool because can choose the topic I want to focus on for 6 weeks and write the suggested verses that pertain to it. I also love the journaling prompts to help me dive deeper into healing my soul, which in turn heals my physical body.

21 | Managing Your Stress

You can do everything I mentioned above, from food and drink changes, to education and even the various other protocols I mentioned, but if you are still living every day under chronic stress, you won’t heal. Stress wrecks our body and keeps us in a continual state of fight or flight which keeps our sympathetic nervous system active at all times and promotes inflammation.

In order for your body to heal, it must be in the parasympathetic state.

Now I know we all have stress, but when you are not allowing yourself to properly unwind and purposing to manage your stress you will always have dis-ease.

Here, I share 15 ways for you to chronically and holistically reduce and manage your chronic stress

22 | Improving Your Oral Health

My oral health was not something I tackled right away when I started my healing journey but, nevertheless, it was something that I did eventually address since my root canals were actually what triggered my Hashimoto’s.

I have a 5 part blog series that will walk you through why it’s important you ditch conventional dentistry and only use biological dentistry as well as teach you about root canals, cavitations, mercury and share with you what my husband and I did to repair our oral health. Honestly, it was life-changing!

23 | Use Essential Oils

It was only after a few months on my healing journey that I learned about essential oils. I had never heard of them before and, where I was, I was willing to try anything natural to help my healing.

We are so glad we chose to bring them into our lives. Since we did, we have not ever needed to visit the doctor for a single sickness! We use them to boost our immune system and improve health, in our homemade cleaners (because we got rid of all the toxic ones), for freshening our home and even in our toiletries.

I am now a Certified Essential Oil Coach (CEOC) and coach people all over the world to help them use oils. I also have a growing community of FeastingOnJoy Oil (FOJO) VIP’s that you can become a part of when you bring essential oils through FOJO into your home,

Click here to bring the best, high-quality, grade 1 essential oils into your life at wholesale prices and get free mentorship through me.

24 | Get Your Own Labs

Often times you’ll approach your doctor requesting lab tests that you know you need only to be met with resistance and a firm “no.” Needless to say, it can be very frustrating.

I remember going around and around with my conventional doctor saying I needed certain tests and either she couldn’t do them or she wouldn’t. I felt like pulling (what was left of) my hair out!

You don’t have to be at the mercy of the doctor. You can get your own lab tests done these days without an order from a doctor.

Here are the sites you can get them done through:

• Let’s Get Checked
• My Labs for Life
• My Med Lab
• ZRT Labs

It’s Time to Heal Your Hashimoto’s

If you read this far is this huge post, I know you are truly searching for natural healing protocols to help you get rid of your Hashimoto’s. I want to encourage you to take one or two things on this list at a time and start them. Don’t try to do it all at once. If I did it all over again knowing what I know now and I had to prioritize, the first things I would start with would be education and cleaning up my food and drinks.

Please do let me know if you have any questions by commenting down below. I do hope these prove to be great resources for you in your healing journey! There’s hope – you CAN heal.