When I first dipped my toe into an anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle, I wasn’t chasing optimal health. I was a tired mama of three, trying to lose the baby weight and get through the day without turning into Momzilla.

My husband traveled constantly for work, so I’d bounce between solo-parent mode and wife mode. Hormones were all over the place, my blood sugar was up and down, and my energy? Nonexistent.

Like so many women, I thought the answer was low-carb or keto—because that’s what was trendy and what “everyone” said worked. But here’s the truth: that way of eating made me feel worse.

My cycles were irregular, my energy crashed, I couldn’t focus, and the inflammation in my body was screaming at me through allergies, brain fog, and joint pain.

I had just barely started my nutrition journey (formal education-wise.) But even in that capacity, there are a ton of differing opinions on how we should eat. 

So I decided to start with trying to lose the baby weight and keep my blood sugar in check, and to do that I would go low-carb and just sort of put that on autopilot in the back of my head because I had so much going on in my life right then, as we all do.

And I knew that it really wasn’t working out in my favor because my hormones were super up and down, my cycles were not regular, (I’d had endometriosis when we were trying to get pregnant the first time) and my energy levels were the same: up and down all day long.

I also couldn’t even concentrate for really long amounts of time. I also had allergic symptoms that were getting worse–I’ve always had environmental allergies. 

It was really frustrating because I thought that I had figured out that this diet was the most important thing and that I knew doing low carb or keto would be the best thing for me because of my family’s blood sugar history. I have family members who’ve been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, and also with prediabetes, and so I’m very conscientious of it because I also had gestational diabetes with two of my pregnancies, which puts me at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes down the road.

But the thing was, I literally did not have time to do tons of research on what would be the best for me, or spend thousands of dollars on a specialist or even the wellness centers you go into that do all the testing for you and then sell you a bazillion supplements.

I didn’t have the time or money to do any of that so I really was just at a loss and just completely frustrated because I did not know what to do.

Then one day, sitting in a pharmacy drive-thru, I ran my hand over my leg and felt it covered in welts. No history of food allergies, no detergent changes … just my body waving a giant red flag that something had to change.

That was my wake-up call. And it’s when I began piecing together the real connection between food, lifestyle, and inflammation.

If you’re at that same “something’s gotta give” point, CLICK HERE to start with my free Anti-Inflammatory Diet Quick-Start Guide. It’ll give you a clear food list, simple swaps, and a starting point without the overwhelm.

The wake-up call

So the really big wake-up call was that I called the doctor’s office got in as soon as possible. And they checked everything out and said, “Hey… you don’t really have any discernible symptoms that would give us answers to what’s happening here. You don’t have a history of food allergies and you haven’t changed anything else like shampoo, body wash, or laundry detergent…” 

So the best answer that they could give me is to talk about lifestyle and being stressed and that maybe I had too much on my plate. And that’s when I kind of had to take a step back and thought, “I know that is a good part of it but that’s not the only thing.”

A new plan

So when I decided to really start honing in on what was going on I had three major shifts that make me really understand that did putting in the effort and time into an anti-inflammatory diet and lifestyle–first and foremost–would be the thing that would help me out the most.

Major breakthrough #1: Blood sugar and inflammation are linked

So the first thing is that I noticed that when my blood sugar was on that roller coaster situation with the super highs and then the crashes, I could always tell immediately because of my energy levels and mood.

And what I put together is that when those things would happen the inflammation always felt worse.

💎Lesson 1: Blood sugar is a big deal even if you aren’t diabetic

👉 This is why the first step in my Quick-Start Guide is identifying foods that stabilize blood sugar. When you fix that rollercoaster, your whole body breathes a sigh of relief. (Click HERE to get it free!)

Major breakthrough #2: Food intolerance is real (even without allergies)

So the second thing is that I started seeing patterns in specific foods that I ate.

I already have asthma and I have always had environmental allergies, but when I would eat certain foods I would get a bit of a runny nose, throat congestion, brain fog, and then just this severe drop in energy. 

And again–I’ve never had food allergies, but I did notice that I was having these specific reactions to certain foods.

👉 If you suspect foods are sneaking in under the radar, I’ll walk you through how to spot your personal triggers in my free Anti-Inflammatory Foundations Workshop.

💎Lesson 2: Even without food allergies, food intolerance is real

Major breakthrough #3: Lifestyle choices can heal … or hurt

And in the third shift was really taking a step back and understanding that lifestyle factors were making things exponentially worse.

Late nights binge-watching Netflix while my husband was away, stress stacked on stress, no real movement, zero stress management … I was unknowingly fueling the fire.

The aha moment? Your diet is powerful, but your lifestyle multiplies its effects. Sleep, stress, and movement can either amplify healing or make inflammation worse.

I had filled my day so full that I rationalized to myself that I had no time to even think about stress management, practices, or working out, or getting in any type of daily movement.

And what I realized is that every single lifestyle choice was adding up and then either working for me or against me…and at this point in time they were all working against me.

💎Lesson 3: Lifestyle factors stack up to either work for you or against you

I thought I knew what was best for me and doing low carb or the keto just kind of whenever it suited me, but the truth was that I never stuck to one way of eating and then just totally disregarded all of the other factors that were playing into me feeling like garbage everyday.

That’s the foundation of my CORE 4 approach: Calm (stress), Oscillate (movement), Rest (sleep), Eat (nutrition).

Putting the new plan into action

I didn’t overhaul everything at once. Here’s exactly what I did:

1. Got honest about my diet. I realized I was basically eating meat + cheese with barely any vegetables. So I shifted toward colorful produce, fiber, and anti-inflammatory staples.
2. Changed one meal at a time. I started with breakfast—rotating 4 bulk-prep recipes that were quick, delicious, and actually kept my blood sugar stable.
3. Simplified lunches. Instead of stressing over “Pinterest-perfect” mason jar salads, I doubled dinner and ate leftovers. Stress gone.
4. Stacked lifestyle habits. More sleep, a little more movement, and daily stress check-ins. One step at a time.

And little by little, everything changed—energy, mood, hormones, digestion, weight. I finally felt like myself again.

💎Takeaways for you

• Get real about what you’re eating and how it makes you feel.
• Change one daily meal at a time to keep it sustainable.
• Layer in lifestyle changes slowly so they stick.

By far the best thing that I started with was getting in tune with myself in an anti-inflammatory diet + lifestyle.

🌟 Ready for Your Breakthroughs?

You don’t need to spend years piecing this together like I did.

👉 Start now with the free Anti-Inflammatory Diet Quick-Start Guide (CLICK HERE). It’ll give you clarity on what to eat, what to skip, and how to start lowering inflammation today.

👉 Then take the free Anti-Inflammatory Foundations Workshop where I’ll walk you through my step-by-step framework for building an anti-inflammatory lifestyle that lasts.

Because friend, this isn’t just about food … it’s about giving yourself your energy, focus, and joy back. And that’s exactly what’s waiting on the other side. 💛

And this is why TRUEWELL is devoted to helping others just like you get real information about what an anti-inflammatory diet is, and then refine exactly what foods you should cut out to help pull your inflammation down. 

And the first place to start is your food.

I can’t wait for an AI Diet to make you feel just as amazing as I do now so you can take on the world.

If you’re ready to get real with yourself and make that change as well, grab the free Anti-Inflammatory Quick-Start Guide. 👇