It has been said many times that the AIP is not a cure for Autoimmune disease. When we first start seeing results from it though and begin to start feeling well and notice that our symptoms are reduced or even gone, we can sometime forget that. But what happens if we have a flare up even while doing the AIP?

Why do we flare up?

There are many reasons for flare up of your autoimmune disease or symptoms.

• It can be due to something you have eaten causing you to have a seemingly unrelated flare up or
• something you should not have done, like staying up all night, causing your fatigued system to crash.
• It may be caused by an infection or virus or a change in medication or supplement;
• there are a multitude of reasons for this occurring. A lot of the time however, it may even be for a completely unknown reason that we may flare up! That is the most frustrating part, of course.

Stress as a trigger for Flare Ups.

I have noticed for myself and for many other people, one of the biggest causes for a flare up, is usually STRESS. Unfortunately, stress is one of the few things that is the hardest to get a handle on. We may be really great at the diet part, in fact most people, myself included, find the diet part something we can manage and often have control over.

Dealing with stressors that are out of our control is much harder. Struggling with finances, relationships, careers or work life, children/parent issues, dealing with things from your past, worrying about your future and in fact worrying about your health even is a stressor in and of itself.

That is where the lifestyle components of the AIP come in, something I have written a lot about.

Our Reaction to the Flare up:

No matter how many things we are doing to help control our stress and yes we should try to do as much of them as we can, some things are beyond our control. If you are like me and you are a control freak, then you will find this the hardest part of not just following the AIP, let’s not kid, it’s the hardest part about life. Full Stop.

The thing that I would emphasise however and which depending in your personality, is tough to not let happen, is the associated guilt that may occur when you flare up, be it a small flare up or a major one, that knocks you for weeks. It is probably our default reaction to be overwhelmed by guilt.

I think one of the worst options, and it is definitely the one I often face, is the lack of knowledge what caused the flare in the first place. When you do everything you should be doing. You eat well, get enough sleep, do your yoga and deep breathing and then still one-day wake up feeling like you have been run over by a truck? Then what?

Well, I’m here to tell you that the most important thing is not to feel guilt, yes you will feel anguish. The “why me?” may gnaw at you constantly, but it’s important to remember two things:

What can you do about the Flare?

1. Look how far you have come:

• how many symptoms that you had constantly are diminished or gone completely compared to the ones you have now;
• how are your energy levels and stamina now?
• what is your mood or emotional state like now?
• when you have come a long way from being sick and you strive to feel your best, it’s sometimes easy to forget how far you have come.
• Feelings of gratitude are sometimes enough to get you back into a calmer state (parasympathetic nervous system activation). Also remember there might have been a time before you went on AIP, where you were permanently sick and now you just have flare ups; that’s progress even in itself.

2. Go easy on yourself.

• Be kind to yourself.
• Acknowledge that you are having a flare or a recurrence of some or all of your symptoms and just use it as a time to check in with yourself and see what am I allowing to stress me in my life,
• what can I change to help? That might mean skipping that social engagement and just having a movie day in your pyjamas; it might mean asking for some help with shopping or chores around the house and it might mean going to bed an hour earlier each night.

Importantly, just know that a lot of things are beyond your control and that you just have to wait this flare out and know that you can get back to where you were and then improve even more.

Sometimes a flare up while on the AIP is a lesson in patience and self-compassion.

Have you experienced a flare while doing the AIP and what did you do that helped you?

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