A 2 part series on how I discovered and started to treat my autoimmune disease of antiphosfolipid antibodies
I’d like to start by briefly outlining my background.
I am 41 years old and didn’t have any serious illnesses or problems when I was a child, but I did experience repeated throat infections for a number of years in a row that required antibiotics to get better. It took a few years for a doctor to realize that the fever and recurrent pharyngitis I was experiencing were symptoms of a streptococcus beta haemolytic infection. It appears that the bacteria was in my tonsils and that every so often, it started to cause problems. I had my tonsils removed after we identified the problem and underwent some painful injection therapy before I recovered.
Then, at the end of my high school years and the start of my university career, I developed severe acne that drove me insane. At the time, doctors only knew how to treat it by using oral contraceptives, certain vaccines (the contents of which I have no idea), or antibiotics. So, I tried everything, and I took antibiotics for months on end. Eventually, my acne started to clear up, but I can’t remember when or for what reason. Whatever the case, I overused antibiotics, and now that I know what I know, it is obvious that period ruined my gut microbiome.
Many years later, I learned I had Hashimoto’s, an autoimmune thyroid condition. The doctor then informed me that once I have it, there is no treatment for it, and it won’t be long before my thyroid stops functioning. The only thing I can do is wait until it becomes a problem (have modified TSH or T3/Y4) in order to determine what treatment to take (if to take for hypo or hyper-thyroidism). She also informed me that repeat blood tests are not even necessary because anti-thyroid antibodies (anti-TPO) never return to their pre-existing levels. Only my anti-TPO was abnormally high (>200), the rest of the blood tests were normal. She gave me a prescription for selenium, which is not bad because it helps the thyroid’s function to be normalized. (btw, brazil nuts are a natural source of selenium, and only two per day are required for the thyroid to function normally). My brother began researching and studying vegetarianism at that time, and he encouraged me to give it a shot because it might benefit me. I did exactly that; I stopped eating meat altogether and began limiting my diet to dairy products like milk, cheese, and eggs from animals. My antibodies returned to normal after about a year and were negative; ever since then, my thyroid blood tests have been normal (with the sole exception of this year, when I had the blood test and it came back modified due to a covid infection). So, my thyroid has been functioning normally without any issues for more than ten years. At that point, I realized how crucial our diets are and how we can heal with or without food.
In 2021, I learned that I have some of the phospholipid syndrome antibodies activated (it was cardiolipin antibodies, anti-phosphatidyl-antiprothrombin), but since I’ve undergone a few fertility treatments, I assume that these other antibodies have appeared because I had to take a lot of hormones. Leyden V and MTHFR mutations in my genetic makeup also predispose me to coagulation problems. I visited an immunologist who diagnosed me with phospholipid syndrome and a mild case of thrombosis and prescribed me hydroxychloroquine as treatment to balance my immune system. I considered the side effects before deciding against taking it in favor of trying a natural remedy. I did some research online and came across some interesting podcasts and articles about eating well to treat autoimmune diseases, as well as the AIP (Autoimmune Paleo Protocol).
