Rest, Nourish, Move — Supporting My Body Through Treatment
A reflection on building steady foundations — rest, nutrition and movement — during an autoimmune flare.
Happy Sunday 🤍
Once again, it’s taken me a little longer than expected to sit down and write this post — but I promise there was good reason. I’ve just finished my PGD final exam, which meant weeks of researching, assignment-writing, and full immersion in study mode.
Was it difficult? Yes.
But when has a medical exam ever been easy?
It’s all done now though — results will take a while (external auditing and all that), so for now I’m happily living in my little bubble of post-exam calm.
But enough about that. Let’s step back into the autoimmune world — because quite a bit has happened since we last spoke.
A Little Progression Update
Since my last post, the inflammation did seem to peak. As the flare had become quite widespread, I’ve now started Narrowband UVB therapy.
So what actually is that?
Narrowband UVB is a specific wavelength of ultraviolet light used to treat inflammatory skin conditions like psoriasis. In simple terms, it works by calming the overactive immune response in the skin — reducing inflammatory T-cell activity and slowing down the rapid turnover of skin cells.
Practically speaking?
You step into a light chamber a few times a week and let the light do its thing.
That said — improvement isn’t usually visible for the first 2–3 weeks. So right now, I’m in the “waiting” phase. Three sessions a week. Watching. Noticing. Trying not to obsess over every small change.
Which brings me to the bigger question:
How am I supporting my nervous system and nourishing my body while treatment does its work?
The Three Pillars: Rest, Nutrition & Movement
While UV therapy supports the skin directly, I’ve been focusing on strengthening the foundations underneath it.
Rest
Rest has been one of the hardest lessons.
With evening itch intensifying during peak flare, sleep became extremely disrupted. At one point, my doctor prescribed short-term sedating antihistamines — which helped me get some much-needed sleep, but didn’t solve the root issue.
So I had to build something more sustainable.
For me, that meant:
A consistent post-dinner wind-down (usually reading)
Short pre-sleep meditation
An earlier “sleep mode” setting on my phone to block notifications
Treating rest as non-negotiable, not optional
It sounds simple — but consistency has made a noticeable difference.
Nutrition
I went deeper into this in my previous post, but I’ve continued prioritising a food-first approach with plant-based for 90% of my meals.
Based on blood work, I’ve also introduced:
Vitamin D
Omega-3 supplementation
Nothing extreme. Nothing restrictive. Just supportive, steady adjustments.
Movement
This has probably been the most evolving piece for me.
Movement has always been my stress release, my mental reset, my processing tool. But during this flare, I realised high-intensity training wasn’t serving me.
So I’ve shifted.
Research supports moderate-intensity resistance training in autoimmune conditions — and I’ve felt that shift in my own body too.
For me, that’s looked like:
Weighted yoga (a very natural fit as a yoga teacher)
Pilates-focused sessions
Intentional resistance without pushing into exhaustion
I’ve moved away from CrossFit-style intensity for now and leaned into strength that feels controlled, mindful, and sustainable.
And interestingly?
I feel stronger — not just physically, but in how I respond to my body.
Where I Am Right Now
I’m still in treatment.
Still learning.
Still adjusting.
But I feel more grounded than I did a month ago.
In my next post, I want to dive deeper into the nervous system side of healing — how yoga, breathwork, and meditation have become less of a “nice extra” and more of a foundation during this flare.
Because when the immune system is overactive, sometimes the most powerful medicine is learning how to signal safety.
As always, this is simply my personal experience — not medical advice — just one person learning in real time how to care for her body.
Thank you for being here 🤍
Nai
