Our immune system is always on guard to make sure that we are well and thriving. It’s constantly on the lookout for possible invaders as well as cleaning up any debris or cells that are no longer functioning as they should. Think of your immune system as your own personal army. Sometimes it’s just patrolling the streets keeping things ordered and calm, sometimes it’s called upon during a ‘rescue effort’ and other times, it will go bravely into battle with all guns blazing!
When things go wrong
When things go wrong with our immune systems, it will generally be from one of these two perspectives:
You have an invader
There is an invader that starts taking over and makes our immune system work to fight it off.
There is internal fighting
There is internal fighting within the ranks of our inner army causing our defence systems to turn on each other so we no longer have the peace and calm we once had (auto-immunity).
What happens when we are always getting sick?
One of the most common stories our naturopaths hear in clinic is the ‘I just don’t know why I keep getting sick’ story. For many people, they have lived their lives being generally quite well and then all of a sudden, they seem to get one sickness after another. So what is happening here? How does someone’s army go from perfectly functional to seemingly useless?
Let us explain!
- The right number of troops on the ground, with our army reserve on standby if we need back up.
- Well trained troops, with specialised forces on that are ready to go and can be called upon should you come into contact with something that needs additional reinforcement.
- All members of your army have enough energy to do their job for the required period of time.
- All members of your army working as a team, towards the common goal of good health!
- A good support system in place to take care of your injured army members as well as a good HR department that can recruit more members so you’re never understaffed.
When we get sick, it’s usually because one of these key areas gets thrown out of balance.
In normal circumstances and when the immune system is in tip-top shape, our body works to restore this balance relatively quickly and our troops are back on the ground, doing what they do best! But if this balance isn’t fully restored, then it leaves us vulnerable to future attacks. This is where the vicious cycle typically begins…
There is a vulnerability that means our army doesn’t defend as well as it should, so we become more prone to attacks. These attacks then hit us two-fold: they take out more troops and they do more damage.
Our body then is left to try and recoup our troops and repair the damage that has been caused. This takes a great amount of time, nutrients and other resources for this to happen and again, if not restored fully, that vulnerability widens.
At the same time, the nutrients that are being used to fuel our army are usually also the ones being used to repair the damaged tissue, but because there is an increased need, we normally end up in a state of deficiency and so our cells don’t have the energy they need to get back on the ground, which means they don’t defend as well as they should…..and so the cycle continues!
Auto-immunity is when the body can no longer adequately identify self from non-self. Our army can either no longer recognise the good guys from the bad guys or the leader of our army has been overthrown and the peace and calm that was once there is now chaotic and turbulent. The drivers behind auto-immunity are varied, and sometimes complex, but may include:
- Post-infective: where you have contracted a sickness or infection that has upset the immune balance and you’ve never really recovered.
- Genetic
- Environmental triggers: things like chemical exposure, heavy metals, mould and other allergens can trigger auto-immune diseases
- Stress
- Inflammation
Do you have an auto-immune condition?
If you have an autoimmune condition, there are several key objectives our naturopaths will work on with you. Ideally our main goal is to help you get into remission, but if this isn’t possible, we aim to teach you the skills so that you can manage your condition in the most appropriate way, so you have as few symptoms as possible. Far too often we see people ‘becoming their disease’ as opposed to focusing on their health. Common auto-immune diseases we assist people with include:
- Gut auto-immune diseases: Coeliac disease, Crohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis.
- Connective tissue auto-immune disease: Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis, psoriasis
- Nervous system auto-immune disorders: multiple sclerosis,
- Hormonal or metabolic auto-immune diseases: type 1 diabetes, Hashimotos disease, Graves disease.
If your immune system needs some TLC, our naturopaths will work with you to figure out which part of your army has gone out of balance so we can work out a plan to give your immune system a boost! This may include:
- Assessing possible nutritional deficiencies and the best ways to restore them
- Working on your gut health – after all, 75% of your immune system lives within your gut!
- Looking at lifestyle strategies to help you maintain strong immune function moving forward
- Teach you the tips and tricks to get on top of infections fast so you don’t end up in this position again!
