New Year, New Tools: 5 Integrative Health Resources to Explore in 2018

A new year has arrived yet again. Resolutions are set (and underway), intentions are made (and in progress) and you're waiting to see what the rest of this year has in store for you.

Going into a new year, there is a lot of chatter about trying new things. In terms of your disease, maybe you've found a treatment plan that works for you or maybe you're searching for something new to compliment what you are already doing to further improve your health and well-being.

While sticking to our treatment protocols is key for us to live well with our illnesses, there are a lot of things we can do to complement our current regimen.

I only know this firsthand because I've been there. I've spent years trying to find information on books, blogs, podcasts, practitioners, doctors, eating styles and supplementation that could complement the treatment that I was doing for my Crohn's Disease and still am forever learning new things along this chronically ill journey.

Since I know how frustrating and time consuming it can be to do all of the research for yourself, here are 5 resources that you can explore (and utilize if you choose to) that may help you feel your best in 2018:

Integrative Medicine Physicians:

Physicians who practice a form of medicine that takes into account the whole person and includes all aspects of their lifestyle. It builds its foundation on the therapeutic relationship between the practitioner and the patient, is evidence-based and uses both traditional and complementary therapies to create an effective treatment protocol.

Dr. Robynne Chutkan:

An integrative gastroenterologist and best selling author. She is also the owner/founder of the Digestive Center for Wellness, an integrative GI practice where she and her team help patients who live with digestive disease/distress get to the root cause of their symptoms, heal their gut and go on to live their best lives in harmony with their diseases. From helping patients face to face in her practice, creating online courses or writing books to help her readers, there are many ways that patients near and far can work with her knowledge to help themselves feel better. (For more information on Dr. Chutkan and her practice: www.gutbliss.com).

Other Complementary Medicine/Nutrition/Wellness Professionals:

Even though you are working closely with a gastroenterologist (as we all should), that doesn't mean that you can't invite other practitioners (Holistic Health Coaches, Nutritional Therapy Practitioners, Holistic Nutritionists, Energy Healers etc) to join your team and bring their expertise to the table to help you along your journey. Living well with our diseases is more than just physical; it encompasses our mental and emotional health as well, so why not have someone on your team who can help you address all of those different aspects of you?

Alexa Federico (Nutritional Therapy Practitioner/AIP Coach):

A passionate NTP and Crohn's Disease patient who geeks out over anything related to digestion and loves to be in the kitchen cooking up new recipes for her blog: Girl In Healing. She helps clients restore balance to their bodies using real, whole foods and gives them actionable steps to take to start bettering their health right away. (For more information on Alexa and her services: www.girlinhealing.com).

Courtney and Christina Maiorino (Holistic Health Coach + Human Nutrition/Functional Medicine Candidate):

Twin sisters who navigate the ups and downs of living with chronic illnesses together. Courtney lives with Crohn's Disease, while Christina lives with mold toxicity/biotoxin illness. While their illnesses (and ways that they manage them are different), they both agree that people should eat more veggies (in the forms that work for them) and that utilizing a mind, body, soul approach to health is the blueprint for future patient care. They use this mind, body, soul approach with their chronically ill clients (addressing things such as eating styles, cultivating a loving mindset, and digging deep into soul work) to look at all parts of a person and make sure that the various aspects of their clients lives are healthy and thriving. (For more information on Christina and Courtney and what they do: www.thrive-effect.com).

Sarah Small:

A Health and Lifestyle Coach with contagiously positive energy mixed with a whole lot of authenticity who guides women who live with an autoimmune disease on a journey to true and deep healing. She combines her health and wellness knowledge with her passion and love for all things energy healing to give her clients a unique health transformation from the inside out. (For more information on how to work with Sarah: www.autoimmunetribe.com)

Books:

Thankfully, there are tons of health and wellness books out there to help you dive into any aspect of health and healing that you may be interested in pursuing yourself. Two of the ones that have made a huge impact on readers' lives are:

Living with Crohns and Colitis:

A Comprehensive Naturopathic Guide to Digestive Wellness by Dr. Jessica Black and Dede Cummings. This book not only talks about how inflammation and the immune system affect gut health but also touches on beneficial complementary medicine modalities and weaves in actual patient experiences with different modalities.

The Loving Diet:

Going Beyond Paleo into the Heart of What Ails You by Jessica Flanigan. While the first book suggestion talks more about the physical aspects of IBD and how to physically help yourself, this book creates space to talk about the mental, emotional and spiritual ways that living with a chronic illness can affect our lives (and what we may be able to do to help ourselves).

Podcasts:

While books are a fantastic resource, a lot of us are very busy and are on the go most of the time. When I am too busy to read, I turn to listen to podcasts for learning new things about health and wellness. There are so many out there that are helpful, but here are two that are popular:

The Autoimmune Wellness Podcast:

Co-hosted by Mickey Trescott (NTP) and Angie Alt (Certified Health Coach), this podcast dives into crucial topics for autoimmune disease patients, such as optimal sleep and stress management mixed with tons of information about the Autoimmune Paleo Protocol.

Autoimmune Adventures Podcast:

Hosted by Certified Health Coach and Theta Healing Practitioner Julie Stiles, this podcast goes deep into topics such as healing as a transformative journey, the importance of self-love and self-care and how our emotions + attitude affect our well-being.

Online Groups:

While books, podcasts, coaches and physicians are great resources for health and healing, nothing replaces the sense of community with other people who get what you're going through and who are on similar paths as you. Finding an online community that is likeminded and supportive can be another amazing resource to share your story and get your questions answered.

Empowered Autoimmune Facebook Group:

This Facebook group, created and hosted by Ali LeVere (M.S. Human Nutrition/Functional Medicine Candidate) provides members with evidence-based knowledge around complementary medicine modalities, therapies, and nutrition for various autoimmune diseases and chronic illnesses.

While these resources can be amazing tools to complement your current treatment, what works for one person doesn't necessarily work for another. While the game of Trial and Error that is living with a chronic illness is still very relevant, I hope these resources open your mind, expose you to new information and maybe even help you get closer to true health and healing in 2018.