The Emotional Root of Chronic Symptoms in Hashimoto’s with Lizzy Swick

The Case:

Emily is dealing with lots of inflammation, pain, weight gain, and fatigue due to Hashimoto’s.
She’s tried countless diets, supplements, cleanses, and resets—with no lasting results.
She feels like she’s at the end of her rope and truly believes she has already done everything possible.

I suspected that the real solution wasn’t in another diet or supplement, but in a deeper, often-overlooked layer of healing. Emily is just like so many of my clients who come to me after trying every diet, every supplement, and working with every practitioner they could find… and they still don’t feel better. And, it’s not just my clients, it’s also my colleagues, which is why I knew just the person to discuss this case with.

Lizzy Swick is a clinical registered dietitian, a sought-after medical content writer for some of the biggest names in health and wellness, and someone who has walked through years of personal healing, including a 12-year journey with chronic migraine and pain.

Her story is one I wanted to share with you because it beautifully illustrates what might be the most overlooked piece of the healing puzzle, especially when you’ve already done all the “right” things.

When You’ve Tried Everything and Still Don’t Feel Better

Like so many people with Hashimoto’s, Lizzy tried every approach under the sun: going gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free… paleo, AIP, low-carb, even carnivore and 100% plant-based. She ran every test, treated mold, tried countless supplements, and even renovated her home to eliminate possible triggers. Some of it helped for a while, but her symptoms always returned.

At one point, she says it felt like she’d hit rock bottom. And it wasn’t just impacting her. As a mom, her daughter really needed her to be at her best, especially after a life-changing diagnosis. Lizzy shares that that moment shifted everything.

A Nervous System Approach: From Doing More to Being More

Lizzy began working with a practice she calls “rage on the page”, an uncensored journaling technique that allowed her to release long-held emotions. She combined that with a new form of meditation focused not on relaxation, but on embodiment. She describes this as placing her hand on her heart, tuning into her breath and sensations, and sitting with her feelings rather than trying to fix or analyze them.

This was a huge shift from everything she’d done before. She stopped trying to ‘supplement harder’ just to say ahead of her symptoms. Instead, she started exploring what her emotions were trying to tell her. Through this, she reconnected with her own body wisdom (something we often lose when we’re chasing solutions from the outside in).

The Crucial (Often Ignored) Nervous System Role in Healing Hashimoto’s

What Lizzy discovered (and what I’ve seen in so many clients) is that our nervous system plays a massive role in healing. If your nervous system is stuck in a stress response, even the best diets, supplements, or protocols can fall flat.

When we slow down, support our emotional processing, and signal safety to the brain, everything else can start to work better. Hormones regulate. Inflammation decreases. Energy returns. And in Lizzy’s case, chronic migraines that used to happen multiple times a week now only show up once every several weeks, and with much less intensity.

Why Nervous System Regulations Matter in Autoimmune Healing

So many people with Hashimoto’s and other autoimmune conditions are highly sensitive. They feel things deeply and often carry unprocessed emotions from past experiences. And yet, we’re told to fix our healing by doing more: another diet, another test, another exercise program.

But what if the next step wasn’t another plan?

What if the next step was learning how to create internal safety?

That’s what this conversation is really about. It’s a reminder that healing isn’t just about protocols. It’s about you—your body, your emotions, your nervous system, and your lived experience.

What To Do If You’re Doing Everything But Still Not Healing…

In our culture of productivity and perfectionism, slowing down to “just be” can feel counterintuitive. But if you find yourself resonating with the following, Lizzy suggests it may be time to explore your emotional world:

You feel like the work is never done.
You prioritize others’ needs over your own.
You struggle with boundaries.
You tie your productivity to your worthiness.

These patterns often point to emotional wounds or stress responses that need to be acknowledged and gently released.

Best Internal Practices for Shifting Toward Healing Autoimmune Disease

Lizzy shares exactly how she began this shift, what practices made the biggest difference, and how you can start exploring this in your own healing journey, without guilt or pressure:

Rage on the page journaling: a free-writing method that allows you to process and release suppressed emotions without judgment
Embodiment meditation: gently tuning into your body with hand-to-heart breathing to build self-compassion and calm the nervous system
Reflective journaling: writing down moments your body has healed in the past to build trust in your innate resilience
Letting go of perfectionism: releasing the need to do it all perfectly and giving yourself space to just be
Starting small and being consistent: trusting the process without urgency or tight timelines

The Connection Between Emotional Repression and Physical Symptoms

One of the most powerful insights Lizzy shared was that health isn’t just a result of what we do. It’s shaped by how we feel (and how safe we feel being with ourselves).

Our nervous system responds not only to food, supplements, and lifestyle, but to thoughts and emotions. If your body doesn’t feel safe, if you’re constantly striving, suppressing emotions, or ignoring internal signals, then healing becomes much harder.

She also reminds us that it’s not about being perfect. You don’t need to meditate or journal every day to benefit. You just need to start. And, trust that even a small shift in how you relate to yourself can have profound effects.

How Emily Finally Found Relief from Inflammation, Fatigue, and Frustration

As powerful as Lizzy’s insights were, I also want to share how this applied to Emily.

Emily was exhausted, inflamed, and frustrated after trying every diet, detox, and supplement. Nothing worked long-term. But instead of doing more, we tried something different.

We started by creating a sense of safety in her environment. We adjusted her sleep pattern by introducing calming breathwork and visualization. Then came inner child work through journaling, non-dominant handwriting, and even simple walks where she “talked” with her younger self. These practices helped her access deep emotional layers of shame, fear, and abandonment that were driving inflammation.

Alongside this, we supported her specific thyroid type (you can uncover yours through my program Thyroid Mystery Solved). She began taking ThyroLove and Thrive SPM, which replaced several other supplements and supported her TSH, antibodies, and conversion. We added Calm PS to lower cortisol, a super high-quality omega, and a targeted probiotic.

Within weeks, her energy lifted, inflammation calmed, and she lost six pounds (after months of no movement). More importantly, she felt hopeful and inspired again.

If you’re still stuck despite doing all the right things, there is always another way in. Emotional healing might just be the piece you’ve been missing.

A New Perspective on Healing with Hashimoto’s

So many people with thyroid issues (myself included) go through the journey of being dismissed, misunderstood, and told that nothing is wrong. But healing goes beyond fixing symptoms. It’s about learning to sit with yourself, trust your body, and embrace who you’re becoming through the process.

Again, you don’t have to be perfect to heal. You just have to be willing to be honest, present, and open to what your body is telling you.

If this resonates, please share this episode with someone who needs to hear it. And if you’re navigating Hashimoto’s or any chronic condition, remember: your emotions matter. Your nervous system matters. And your healing is possible.

Eliminating Health Mysteries

For Emily (and Lizzy), we were able to find and reset that missing piece of their health puzzle, and as a result, they both regained their health. Could this be the missing clue for you or someone in your life?

Links:

Resources mentioned

Thanks to my guest Lizzy Swick. You can connect with her on Instagram and through her website, lizzyswicknutrition.com. As she mentioned, she’d love to hear your story. You can email her directly at lizzy@lizzyswicknutrition.com

Related Podcast Episodes:

What Is Your Thyroid Type? (and How to Manage It) How to Support the Nervous System for Hashimoto’s and Hypothyroidism with Dr. Cathleen King Is Self-Sabotage Causing Your Weight Gain and Fatigue? How to Get Over It with Elyssa Smith From Overwhelmed to Energized: Hashimoto’s Transformation with Beth Mosher How to Manage Health and Thyroid Issues When You’re Pressed for Time with Megan Sumrell 5 Pivotal Hashimoto’s Hacks: The Empowered Approach to Thyroid Health

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