I’ve been away from the blog for a while. Life got in the way, and truth-be-told, I’m not really good at multi-tasking more than two things at once. So, life and work won out. I’m back though; new year, new protocol.
When I did the Whole30 last year, I suspected that I might need to try the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP). I’d like to get rid of my granuloma annulare (GA). I, and all doctors apparently, have no idea what causes it, but the doctors do categorize it as an autoimmune disorder. That’s some tidbit of information anyway. Interestingly, I’ve had pretty bad allergies to so many things as an adult, and it has made me wonder if there’s a correlation.
I won’t rehash it here, but I do buy into the Paleo philosophy that our bodies process some things we put into them really well (real food), and poorly process–or don’t at all process– other things (junk). This is why I tried the Whole30 and had what I felt like were fantastic results that further solidified what I’ve been reading and internalizing about what we eat and how it affects us.
Lately I’ve been reading more from Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, who blogs at The Paleo Mom. She has a PhD in medical biophysics (yes, I give that a bit more stock than the average paleo blogger) and used the AIP to clear up her lichen planus…which sounds a whole lot like GA.
So, knowing that I already buy into the root of Paleo, and knowing that other people have found success treating similar autoimmune conditions with AIP, it’ll come as no surprise that I suspect that the GA is caused by either something I’m putting in my body or something I’m putting on my body. And that I think AIP might be helpful to me. What I’m most concerned about is the length of time I’ll need to be on AIP before I can expect any results. It took a long time for my body to start trying to notify me of issues, so I expect it to take a while for me to notice any changes. I’ve read to give AIP at least 90 days before you start reintroducing foods. That means 90 days of no coffee, no nightshades, no nuts and seeds, no alcohol, in addition to what the typical Paleo framework would exclude. It’s daunting. I’m not sure that I’ll make it the 90 days, but I’m going to start today and see how it goes. I’ll post daily food pictures to the well-nourished lives Facebook page and I’ll summarize the results I’ve noticed weekly here on the blog.
Starting Stats:
Weight: 202.8
Granuloma Annulare:
- You probably can’t really see it in the third image on my arm…that one has seemed to clear up fairly well on it’s own. My feet, though, not. at. all.
Resources:
thepaleomom.com: My Experience with the AIP to Treat Lichen Planus
well-nourished lives 
Good luck with this! I hope your success with the Whole30 can be a powerful mental building block for being able to succeed at this kind of effort.
I’m actually at the verrrrry initial stages of considering a Whole30 for some time later this year. I read through your Getting Started resources (very encouraging!), and I was wondering if you read the book as well. If so, do you think it’s necessary/helpful? If not, I guess that answers the question 🙂
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I didn’t read the book before I did the Whole30, but I am reading “It Starts with Food” right now. If you feel like you need a little extra, data-driven motivation, I think that book could be worth while.
I think a lot of the information in “The Whole30” is also on their website, and really some of “It Starts with Food” might be too, but sometimes the linear presentation in a book is nice.
If you do decide to do a Whole30, I’m happy to cheer you on and answer any questions I can! It was an interesting experience for sure!
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