Emotional Autoimmunity: Dealing with the emotional issues of chronic illness

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIn my 13 years of living with chronic illness, almost every single health improvement I've gained has come from fellow patients, rather than Doctors. Not everything has worked for me but collective patient wisdom and experience and people being so willing to share what's helped and brave enough to blog about it or share it in online groups has made such a world of difference. But how do you evaluate a potential treatment option? How do you find the right therapist or coach to help you deal with the often complex emotions that come with chronic illness?How do you tell the difference between 'Gold standard treatment' and Optimal treatment and know which one is going to be better for you? Find out in this episode of the Emotional Autoimmunity podcast. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOne of biggest emotional challenges of living with chronic illness is the impacts it can have on your relationships with others. So many of us living with chronic illness often feel that the people closest to us either don't understand, believe or support what we are going through and how much it has changes our lives and bodies. Friends can start to fall away, partners can struggle to adapt or know what to do and this only increases feelings of isolation and loneliness because the realities of ongoing, often progressive chronic illness is so rarely talked about or understood. Partners, friends and family can also feel helpless, lost and overwhelmed, not knowing what to do and feeling unsupported themselves. Like any major life challenge, the experience of chronic illness can bring us closer together or drive us even further apart.In this podcast, I share practical ways that you can offer help and support and gain some understanding of the issues they are facing if someone you love has chronic illness. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIf I had to name the one question that almost every person asks me when we start working together, it's this: Is what I'm feeling normal? This is because there is a complete lack of understanding about what chronic illness is and what the appropriate and normal human emotional responses to becoming chronically ill are. Often, currently healthy people mistakenly believe that their health and capability is a direct reflection of their choices, actions and thoughts, rather than something that simply happens to them.But the reality is that chronic illness and disability can happen to anyone, at any time through no fault of their own and that no one can be guaranteed health.Yet when we do screw up our courage and try to talk about how we feel and make ourselves vulnerable in doing so, others either dismiss us, blame us, disbelieve us or wrongly think that it's simply an issue of mind over matter or being more positive. All of that can leave you feeling that it must be a 'you' problem. That you are just not strong enough or trying hard enough or that everyone else living with your condition is coping so much better than you. So, lets talk about all of the normal emotional responses to living with chronic illness, what they are, why you feel that way and hopefully, this will leave you feeling a little better in knowing that you are not the only one. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textHow do you find joy again? Question: It’s been 4 years now with chronic illness and I am so sick of being sick and I know everyone around me is sick of me being sick as well.   I feel like my whole life now is based around managing my symptoms and the exhaustion and the grief of everything I have lost. How can I start to feel some joy again because right now, it feels impossible.When people first start working with me, the things they always list as goals are all of the things that they want less of.Less anxiety, less pain, less overwhelm or grief and it takes a while to start to think about what is it that you want more of or that you want back, instead of all of the things you want less of. More joy, more peace, being more present and engaged with your life. More feelings of being connected and having an expanded emotional range so that you can feel so much more than where you feel stuck at the moment. But a lot of that is going to depend on where you are right now. So, lets talk about where you can be stuck, what to do when that happens and how you can start cultivating a practice to include more of the things you want, including joy. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOf all the emotional issues that come with chronic illness, the most painful and most damaging is shame.While guilt is about something we have done, shame is about who we are and all of the ways we feel that we are bad, wrong, weak, lacking or 'less than' that make us so very different to everyone else.Especially when we compare ourselves to others who have our illness and who seem to be doing so much better than us. In this episode I go through the typical kinds of statements and beliefs that you can feel when living with chronic illness, address some of the driving factors that create these feelings and explain why they leave you feeling so full of shame. Things like: I feel ashamed because I feel like I am failing to get better.I feel ashamed because I am ruining my families lives.I feel ashamed and embarrassed because I look so different than I did before.If you live with chronic illness and struggle with feelings of shame, then this episode is for you and will help you understand why you feel the way you feel. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textI asked my email and social media communities a while back to ask me anything about the experience of chronic illness that they were struggling with to see if I could help and in this episode, I am back with part 2. I was planning to answer three questions this time but unfortunately, I was running out of energy towards the end of recording and had to leave the last one for now. I will circle back to it another time as I think that topic deserves it's own podcast and I plan on getting tips and strategies from more seasoned travellers than myself. In this episode I speak to:How do you deal with a sleepless night or nights?andI'm not doing fun things, like creative stuff because I'm always stuck in the rip tide and just trying to keep my head above water. It's exhausting and depressing. Have a listen and please share this if it can help your friends or your chronic illness communities. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textBy far, the biggest and most upsetting issue for those of us living with chronic illness is not being believed. From Doctors, family, friends and even total strangers on the internet, there are so many people full of scepticism, unsolicited advice and downright disbelief. But how do you deal with the questions and comments like:It's all in your head.Why are you still so sick?There must be some Doctor who can fix you.You just need to think more positive.But you look so well.You need to stop letting the illness define you.In this episode I take a deep dive into the basis of other peoples disbelief, how to deal with the comments and judgements and more importantly, what you can do to empower yourself. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textThe emotional and psychological impacts of becoming chronically ill so often go unrecognised, misunderstood belittled or simply ignored.Which means that when it happens to you, you have no idea if the grief, fear, overwhelm and exhaustion that you feel are normal or that maybe, it is all in your head after all. A big part of my work is to normalise and validate the often complex emotions that come with becoming chronically ill because people need to understand that all of the emotions are real, appropriate and completely understandable. In this episode, I share perhaps the most challenging emotional issue of living with chronic illness that leads so many of us feeling hopeless, powerless and completely overwhelmed. And more importantly, I give you some practical solutions for what you can do when you feel this way because you deserve to feel understood, supported and believed. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textMost of my new clients with chronic illness are starting from a place of complete overwhelm and feeling like they are sitting in the wreckage of their lives and wondering, 'where do I even start to deal with this?'So let's talk about overcoming that overwhelm and finding ways to help yourself take back some sense of direction and control. In this episode which will be a series, I start breaking down the first steps you need to take to start adapting to living your new life with chronic illness. This includes: Processing all the emotionsHow to get the information you needFirst steps to working out what you can do to help yourselfWhat your priorities need to beHow to manage the disbelief. If you are feeling totally overwhelmed and need some direction and validation, then this podcast is for you. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textChronic illness changes every aspect of your life and a large part of that is figuring out ways to best manage your symptoms and protect your energy. The biggest problem is though that other people can get in the way of that. Whether it's Doctors not supporting the treatment options you want, friends or family criticising or judging the changes you are making or having to deal with others fear, concern or disapproval, it adds another big challenge to an already overwhelming situation. When chronic illness already leaves you feeling isolated, criticised and struggling, how do you cope when others don't support how you choose to manage your illness? Find out how in this episode of the Emotional Autoimmunity podcast. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textAfter a while, most people who live with chronic illness give up trying to talk about what it's like and how it feels, because people don't seem to understand. Especially as time goes on and those around you don't see you 'getting better' and can't seem to grasp what 'chronic' actually means. Often, when you do try to explain and seek support, you end up feeling judged, shamed and disbelieved, even by the very professionals who are supposed to be there to help you. You can be told to stop being so negative, not let the illness define you or offered unsolicited advice that seems to completely ignore the complex reality of your illness.So at a time in your life when you are most in need of empathy, compassion and understanding, you can end up feeling more alone than you have ever felt before. In this episode, I go through all of the key reasons why we don't talk about chronic illness.Why it happens, where peoples beliefs and judgements come from and more importantly, what you can do to help yourself when sharing leaves you feeling guilty, judged, blamed and alone. If you have tried talking about the impacts of chronic illness on your life and no one seems to understand, then this episode is for you.Chronic illness is very real and you deserve to be believed and supported.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIn this episode I answer questions from my chronic illness community including:Can you speak to the cost of the unique stressors in chronic illness including not being able to trust the guidance of doctors, trying to resolve health problems alone and how do you cope when taking expert advice goes badly for you?How do you revise your story of self, worth and identity when illness has stripped it away?andAre your Discovery Sessions or services some kind of scam?You asked, I answered so lets get into all the complexities, challenges and potential solutions together.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textToday (June 19th, 2024) marks 4 years since my Type 1 diabetes diagnosis which makes this the perfect time to talk about how my chronic illnesses affect my everyday life. In this podcast I open up about each of my 4 different autoimmune diseases, the impact they have on me, what's changed  what ongoing issues I still have and how I deal with them.This includes how it's affected my sleep, diet, social life, friendships, relationships and the many ways in which it has changed my life. I also share a peek into my daily chronic illness management, my health goals, typical medical administration and what life is generally like for me. As always, I am not a medical doctor and the way in which I choose to manage my illness is what works best for me. There is no "one" way to manage chronic illness and we all need to find our way and what works best for us. The audio recording cut out at the end but all you are missing is my usual "bye for now."Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOne of the big, missing pieces in supporting people with chronic illness is that there is so little acknowledgment that becoming chronically ill changes peoples lives and that this creates complex emotional issues that are in fact, completely normal. The typical experience is that you get your diagnosis (or not) and leave the doctors office with no idea what to do next and how to even start to cope with how much your life and self have changed and no recognition of just how lost, confused, afraid and overwhelmed you are feeling. The one thing I see consistently with every single client is a mistaken belief that this is a 'me' thing and not an 'everybody' thing. That there is something lacking in me whether it's that I am not strong enough, determined enough or resilient enough to cope with this or that I am too weak, too needy, too confused or just too much to deal with. All of this is reinforced because most people don't understand the normal emotional reactions to becoming chronically ill and judge, criticise and blame, which leaves you feeling even worse about yourself.So if you have ever worried that this is a 'you' thing and that everyone else is coping much better with chronic illness than you, this will help you understand why you feel that way and how to change it. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOne of my main objectives both with my podcast and my work, is to educate and validate the very normal emotional experiences and issues that come with becoming chronically ill. The feelings of jealousy and envy are the ones we don't talk about because it creates so much guilt and shame to even admit them to yourself, let alone to others. Watching your friends doing all the things that you can no longer do, feeling so jealous and envious that you need to stop using social media because it makes you cry or shaming yourself because you sometimes resent your partner for how they are able to be out and about in the world. Feeling envy and jealousy of people whose lives have not been changed by chronic illness can leave  you feeling like a bad or terrible person and so very ashamed.In this episode, I share examples of envy and jealousy based on my clients and my own personal experiences, break down why it feels so wrong to have them and most importantly, how you can support yourself when experiencing these normal, natural emotions, without the guilt and shame. Let's talk about the real life emotional issues of living with chronic illness. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textAnxiety and dealing with constant 'what if' thoughts are something that every human has to deal with as our brain is  trying to interpret our environment for potential threats to try and keep us safe. But when you live with chronic illness, you will experience new levels of fear that create specific types of anxiety that non chronically ill people never need to think about. The anxiety of living in a body that is unpredictable and no longer feels safe and can make you experience pain, fatigue and disability at any time. The anxiety of not being believed, not feeling supported or experiencing blame and judgement for 'not trying hard enough to get well'. The anxiety of feeling let down or abandoned by the medical, social and community systems we thought would be there when we most needed them . The anxiety of experiencing a major flare, hospitalisation or more pain, disability and fatigue. Inevitably, all of these anxieties lead to feeling stuck in endless 'what if' scenarios about all the things that you don't want to happen which leaves you losing sleep, unable to relax and dealing with the inflammatory effects of all that stress and fear. In this episode I break down for you why these fears happen, how they have an impact on your emotions and body and most importantly, I share new skills you can use to overcome those scary 'what if' thoughts. And if you get some good from this episode, please share this podcast and leave me a five star review to help me reach more people who need this information. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you live with chronic illness, you can feel so very alone which makes getting support more important than ever. What's often shocking though is discovering just how little support is actually out there!There is so little knowledge about chronic illness in our communities, families, medical and social support systems that you can end up feel judged, blamed, isolated and left to fend for yourself. You can feel guilty for what your illness is doing to others, worry about letting others down and feel so overwhelmed and anxious because you don't know how to get doctors to help you.Also as a formerly independent, capable and competent person, you can feel very vulnerable when it comes to asking for help in case the help you need will not be given. If you want to know how to maximize your chances of getting the support you need, from online groups, doctors, family and friends, then this podcast is for you!Make sure you share this one with everyone you know who lives with chronic illness because we so deserve to be supported. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIf you live with chronic illness and autoimmune disease, then you understand just how frustrating and debilitating brain fog can be. From the embarrassment of forgetting simple words, losing your ability to concentrate and focus or reading the same lines over and over again and still not being able to take it in, brain fog can have a significant impact impact on our work, relationships, study and motivation. But what is brain fog exactly and what is its important relationship to stress and anxiety?What role does inflammation play with brain fog and how does it affect your cognition and symptoms?And more importantly, how can you manage brain fog and still work and function without creating even more stress, guilt and anxiety for yourself?In this episode I cover all of this and so much more including my top tips for managing the impact of brain fog and reducing the frustration for when it happens to you. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textThis episode is a collaboration between myself, my clients and my social media community. We all know that one of the biggest issues we face is the lack of understanding about what chronic illness is and the ongoing impact it has on those of us living with it. In this episode I share what those of us with chronic illness most want people to understand and trust me, everyone who contributed to this did not hold back!This podcast is a great one to share with your friends, family, partners and chronic illness communities so make sure you listen and share and if you want to help me reach more people who need to hear this, please leave me a review. Let's help educate and spread the word of the practical realities and emotional issues that becoming chronically ill bring from those who know it best. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textThere is no denying that when it comes to chronic illness, there is a huge gap in peoples understanding of just how much it changes your life, energy and ability. So when it comes to trying to share your feelings, doubts, fears and sadness about your experiences of living with chronic illness, you are  so often met with toxic positivity responses like 'at least it's not cancer' or 'you just need to be more positive'.Many of the normal emotional experiences that come with chronic illness are so often wrongly interpreted by others as self-pity which feels dismissive, judgmental and demeaning. In this episode I will walk you through all the ways that self-pity, self-compassion and toxic positivity relate to living with chronic illness and give you some insight into dealing with toxic positivity and learning to practice and benefit from self-compassion. If you live with chronic illness and have ever worried about getting stuck in self-pity or felt shut down by all the 'just think more positive' people, then this episode is for you!Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you become chronically ill, one of the biggest challenges you will face because of how the disease so often limits your energy and ability, is an increased need for rest.In fact, rest is an essential component of responsible chronic illness management. Yet so many of us struggle with embracing rest because of ongoing issues of feeling guilty about the amount of rest we need, anxiety about everything that is being left undone and fear of being judged as lazy or selfish. And if you are resting while still feeling guilty, ashamed or anxious, then you can't get any benefit from rest at all. In this episode I walk you through the issues with guilt about rest, why it happens and give strategies on how you can start changing your relationship with rest so you can start making the most of it. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textThe hallmark symptom of all chronic illness is without question, the fatigue. Every time I ask my community which symptom they most wish they could eliminate permanently, fatigue tops the list. It is debilitating, disabling and usually coincides with things like brain fog, pain, anxiety and depression. So it's no surprise that learning how to manage the energy you have is one of the most important challenges those of us with chronic illness face. Your level of functionality depends on which energy stage you are experiencing now and how much you can resist the temptation to "do all the things" on the days you do have energy.Because when you try and do "all the things" there is a very real risk of pushing yourself back into another lengthy flare where you are exhausted  or bed-bound again. In this episode, I walk you through what the different energy stages of chronic illness are, share my top tips on managing each stage and more importantly, know how to protect and get the best from your precious energy levels. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textHaving good boundaries in our relationships at any time are essential, but during the holiday season, they take on a much bigger importance!There are so many expectations, pressures and emotions that only happen during the Holidays and New Years Eve that are a sure fire way to ramp up your anxiety and guilt and send you crashing into a major flare that can leave you on the sidelines for days, weeks or even longer. When it comes to chronic illness, there are two key foundations that I use to not only feel good about setting boundaries, but start keeping them guilt free. In this last podcast of the year for 2023, I walk you through what those foundations are, give clear examples of why and how they work and tell you practical ways you can start thinking about what boundaries you can start setting in place to better protect your precious health and energy. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you get chronic illness, it doesn't only change your life. The impact on your family and partners can be huge, potentially damaging and be the cause of so much guilt, conflict, resentment and division. A few weeks ago, I asked my wonderful email community to ask their partners what sorts of issues or advice they most needed and they definitely delivered!In this episode I answer questions like:Why does my partner seem so negative now?How do I stop feeling so resentful?What can I do when I am worried that the unconventional diet or interventions they want to use will make them even sicker?Why am I feeling so resentful and tired of hearing about the illness all the time?All this and so much more in episode 12 and if you have any future questions for "Dear Kerry"  and you want some great free resources to help you deal with the complex emotional issues of living with chronic illness, make sure you join my email community at my website. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIrrational thoughts, otherwise known in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy circles as Cognitive Distortions are something that everyone experiences. The problem with these irrational thoughts is that they can and do influence our behaviour, emotions, beliefs and relationships and they are key contributors to high levels of stress. They are also the biggest drivers of things like guilt, anxiety, depression, overwhelm, hopelessness and relationship issues.While there are many known and common cognitive distortions that have been identified, when it comes to chronic illness, there are five that are the most globally experienced and the most damaging. In this episode of the Emotional Autoimmunity podcast, I take you through the top 5 Chronic Illness irrational thoughts, how we use them and more importantly, what you can do to challenge and overcome them. Some of them may even surprise you. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you live with chronic illness, chances are high that you have experienced many moments of fear, overwhelm and grief and for so many of us in the chronic illness community, it can lead to such despair that you give up all hope. Hope of ever feeling better, hope of ever finding someone to help you, hope of being believed and hope of ever creating a better future for yourself. In this episode of the Emotional Autoimmunity podcast, I walk you through how this process happens, why we are all vulnerable to it and most importantly, how you can help yourself find that spark of hope again.If you are feeling alone, in despair and finding it so hard to hope, this episode will help you feel less alone, more empowered and more willing to hope again. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOne of the biggest issues of living with chronic illness is that people don't "get it". They don't understand what it is, how much it impacts every part of your daily life and the complex emotions that go along with it. And because people don't get it and there's so much lack of knowledge and acceptance, you can be left feeling isolated in your experience, feeling so much grief, anxiety and overwhelm and blaming yourself for not dealing with it as well as you think you should. After working with 100's of clients around the world and my own experience living with four autoimmune diseases for over a decade now, I know that there are five key emotional issues that everyone with chronic illness feels at some point.Not only that, I know that these emotions are a completely normal response and reaction to the life changing experience of becoming chronically ill. In this episode I will walk you through the five key emotional issues of chronic illness and explain how they can affect you so if you are wondering if what you are feeling is 'normal' or not, have a listen. I promise it's not 'just you." Trigger warning: I discuss suicidal thoughts near the end of the podcast and give a verbal warning  of this in advance so you can choose to stop the podcast if this is a trigger for you. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOctober 8th was my 9th anniversary of the Hashimoto's diagnosis that left me sitting in the ruin of my life, cognitively and physically disabled with no idea if I was going to survive or ever have a chance of recovery.Because my descent into chronic illness was a year long, worsening process of what I thought at the time was terrible perimenopause symptoms, finding out I had an incurable autoimmune disease was devastating, especially once I discovered just how little actual help, support or knowledge was out there. Now 4 diagnoses in and having worked with 100's of clients around the world helping them overcome the often complex emotions that go along with chronic illness, I'm sharing with you the 10 most important things I've learned from 10 years with chronic illness. Perhaps they will help you as well. Have a listen to this podcast and find out. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWe all know that one of the biggest frustrations about living with chronic illness is the unsolicited ‘have you tried….?’ suggestions. Especially when it’s being given by someone who has no experience or knowledge about what living in your body with your illness is actually like. Even worse when it's being given by another person with chronic illness who vehemently believes that their diet, supplement or protocol is the only right way and if it didn't work for you, then you must be doing it wrong. It's something that we all experience and it very rarely ever feels helpful at all because generally, unsolicited advice always feels like criticism or judgement, especially when it comes from close friends and family. Why do people do this and how can you deal with all the "have you tried..." suggestions or the aggressive advice giving? Let's talk about it this episode of The Emotional Autoimmunity Podcast, shall we. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you live with chronic illness, one of the things you may hear quite often is a version of "not letting the illness define you" either as a caution or warning from other people or as a fear that you hold yourself as you struggle to hang on to your former life, abilities and identity.Where does this thing about "not letting the illness define you" come from though and does it have any connection to things like acceptance, denial, gaslighting, disability or ableism?In Episode 6 of Season 3, I take a deep dive into this complex and often triggering topic of "not letting the illness define you" to explore what it means for you and your experience of  living with  the reality of chronic illness.There are so many layers to this and there's a lot to go over so settle back, make yourself comfortable and let's unravel all the interwoven parts of this tangled topic together.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textChanging how you eat to manage chronic illness can be a very triggering and divisive topic for so many in our chronic illness community because how and what we eat is about so much more than simply satisfying hunger. Food is family, community, culture,  comfort, tradition, belonging and in many cases, the only sanctioned way to 'treat' or "indulge" ourselves and changing how you eat because of chronic illness can feel like yet another loss of the person that you used to be. Eating differently from others can also be a huge cause of stress, judgement and conflict with family, friends and even perfect strangers who all seem to have strong opinions about how you choose to eat.Fear of creating an eating disorder, fear of further damaging your body, fear of managing all the effort and preparation involved. It's a huge endeavour when you are already feeling sick, brain fogged and living in pain. More importantly, changing how you eat to manage chronic illness can also feel like  another pressure or  something that you have 'failed at' because either you tried it and it didn't work for you or every time you try, you keep failing and sabotaging yourself. In this episode, I will walk you through all of the complex emotional pro's and con's of changing how you eat to manage chronic illness, share my experiences and insights and  the tools I use that not only work for me, but for my clients as well.  Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textHow do you know if you are a people pleaser?If you say yes to 3 or more of these statements, you definitely have some people pleasing characteristics which could be making your chronic illness symptoms worse.You find it really hard to say no to requestsYou often find yourself overcommitting to plans, events or responsibilitiesYou rarely ever disagree with someone or voice your honest feelings or thoughts. You have a tendency to go along with things that you don't like or don't want to do to not create conflictYou feel pressured to be "nice" at all times and not complain.You often feel that people take advantage of you or don't respect your time and energy. You feel resentful, exhausted, overwhelmed and unappreciatedIt feels like no matter how much you give, others still aren't there for youSound familiar?Then this podcast is for you!Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOne of the biggest emotional issues that the people around us can't seem to understand is how becoming chronically ill feels like losing your old life and your old self. It's one of those big, intensely personal catastrophic events where you can clearly see and describe how you used to be and how you are now, the before and the after when everything changed for you. And it's not just the loss of your old self and life though that is hard enough to deal with.It's the loss of your future and the life you thought you were going to have, the things you thought you would get to do and the loss of living in a fully functioning and reliable body. It's also a loss that very few people can understand and a grief that is ongoing. In this episode, I will walk you through what this grief is, why it happens and explain why it's so difficult to have it validated or accepted by others. Let's talk about how it really feels to lose your old life and self to chronic illness and what it means for you.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWay back in 2017 when I was still in the midst of adapting to life with chronic illness, I was searching for some sort of psychological grief model to help me make sense of everything I was going through. There was nothing out there that I could find that was helpful as most of them were trying to adapt the model that Dr Elizabeth Kübler-Ross created for patients trying to come to terms with terminal illness which didn't fit my experience. So, I decided to create my own and the result is my e-book "Moving through the Grief of Chronic illness."While I have always made my e-book freely available as a gift for joining my email community, I know that not everyone has the ability to read at the moment so this episode is an audio version just for you!While listening it's important to be aware that this is NOT a linear model. Not everyone will experience every single stage and it's very normal to switch back and forth between stages as new health challenges arise. Please share this with anyone you think needs to hear it. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you become chronically ill, along with all the disbelief, medical gaslighting and accusations of "it's all in your head", you can also meet a lot of armchair psychologists.And they just love to tell you all about the deep seated issues, long hidden trauma and other weird and wonderful subconscious things that not only created your chronic illness, but will be cured it you just 'do the inner work.'Because it must be 'psychosomatic'. Given all that, it's no surprise that when you live with chronic illness , you don't consider prioritising your emotional issues or mental health because you are too busy trying to get people to believe that your illness is actually real and not 'all in your head.'In this episode, I take you through exactly why the emotions of chronic illness are not believed or supported and how your emotions really affect your body.It's going to give you some insight and strategies that will help. Have a listen. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIf you have ever experienced body hypervigilance before, then you will know how debilitating it can be. Hypervigilance is a symptom of trauma and PTSD where you are left scanning your environment constantly for any potential external threat. When you have body hypervigilance, the threat is internal and it can feel like your constant awareness and vigilance of what your body is doing right now,  is the only thing that is  keeping you alive. In this episode, I share all about hypervigilance, and body hypervigilance, my own experiences of body hypervigilance and my top skills and tools you can use  to stop it happening.  Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textDating no matter what your age or situation is absolutely guaranteed to bring out all of your insecurities and living with chronic illness adds a whole new level of difficulties. How do you deal with feeling "less than" you were before?How much do you share about your illness?How do you work around dietary issues?How and when do you disclose your illness?How can you build your self confidence to get out into the dating world?All of these questions and more will be answered in this podcast about dating with chronic illness. Listen now!Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textIf you live with chronic illness, then you have probably experienced some form of Medical Gaslighting.  In fact, having an experience of Medical Gaslighting seems to be the rule rather than the exception.Gaslighting in any setting is a form of emotional abuse, however Medical Gaslighting is not only emotionally damaging, it can result in disability, unnecessary pain and suffering and even death. At the very least, it can delay a much needed diagnosis for years or even, for decades so knowing how to identify and deal with Medical Gaslighting is the most important set of emotional skills that you need to have.Want to know all about Medical Gaslighting and how to deal with it? Then you need to listen to this podcast!Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textSo there I was, home from my second hospitalisation with Diabetic Ketoacidosis, physically frail, very underweight and emotionally traumatised. I had my diagnosis of LADA (Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults) and was left to sort out my new life as an insulin dependant person. Chronic illness isn't just the physical issues though. The emotional issues can be the biggest challenge of all, especially when your life has changed so dramatically and being a Type 1 Diabetic is my biggest challenge yet.In this episode, I share how I overcame all the fear and doubt and walk you through my process and experience at what recovery and acceptance of illness is like for me.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textAfter several months of worsening health, extreme weight loss and becoming physically unable to care for myself, I was admitted to hospital and spent 5 days in intensive care where I came close to dying.I emerged a week later with a new diagnosis of type 1.5 LADA (Latent autoimmune diabetes in adults) that I had difficulty accepting, feeling traumatised by my experience and physically and emotionally exhausted.In this episode I share about the process of becoming so ill, the trauma of experiencing medical gaslighting and my experience of needing to fight and advocate for myself while being in hospital. I also share my two experiences of DKA (Diabetic Ketoacidosis) and how I managed my very different hospitalisation experiences. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWe all know that acceptance is key to living your best life with chronic illness. But how can you accept something that has so dramatically changed your life and taken so much from you?In this episode, I share with you a very special mind shift technique that I normally only share with my clients and take you through a visualisation exercise so that you can begin to change how you see your chronic illness.It's powerful, positive and life changing. Ready to change how you feel about your chronic illness?Listen now!Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOn one level, we know that chronic illness is life changing and that it has a huge impact on us physically, emotionally and mentally. But when it comes down to actually acknowledging that fact in the choices we make or don't make, we can so often expect ourselves to go on exactly as we did before. Recently I have experienced a severe Celiac flare that raised some important realisations about acknowledging the fears that flares trigger for me and where my priorities truly need to be. Why is it so hard to stop and put yourself first? How do you deal with a serious flare when you come to that crossroad of pushing through or stopping? Find out in this episode where I share exactly what my process is and give you some important mindset shifts to think about. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textThere is a lot of research including the Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) studies, that show a strong correlation between experiencing trauma in childhood and going on to develop chronic autoimmune disease in later life. But what other types of research is there between trauma and chronic illness and what impact does having unresolved trauma have on your chronic illness and day to day health?In this podcast, I go through some of the research and break down why trauma is such a big issue for those of us with chronic illness and what impact it has on your emotional and physical health. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textAvoiding the news and fear of the Corona Virus at the moment is pretty much impossible as the whole world goes into lockdown, panic buying is everywhere and there is so much uncertainty and speculation. But there are opportunities here for those of us with chronic illness to help our friends and family who are getting just a small taste of what we have been living with and the health fears we deal with daily. You could say that we have been training for this experience for years. In this podcast I give you some practical tips on how you can avoid falling victim to the fear and panic, help those close to you and have conversations that build an empathy bridge so that when the virus has finally passed, some understanding of the fears of chronic illness will be present in our families and communities. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you become chronically ill, your first instinct is to fight for your life against this disease that feels like it has taken so much from you. The illness becomes the enemy, something that you need to battle against and beat.But when you have chronic illness, is this actually the best thing you can do for your health and happiness? And if fighting doesn't work, then what does and how can you help yourself feel better, emotionally and physically?In episode 3, I unpack what it actually means to make the illness your enemy and explain why going to war against your chronic illness can actually make it worse. Do you need to stop fighting your chronic illness? Find out here.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textWhen you become chronically ill, you really want those closest to you to understand what you have lost, why the illness feels so devastating and  how you feel about what chronic illness has done to your life. But needing people to understand how you feel can be a big emotional hook that you can get stuck on.When the people around you don't understand or don't seem to want to listen to how you feel or even worse, accuse you of constantly complaining, you can feel hurt, betrayed, rejected and abandoned. This is why you need to know why it's not important that they understand how you feel.In this episode, I break down why it's so difficult for others to understand your chronic illness and what you can focus on instead that will help you, your partner and your family adapt to your life with chronic illness in the best possible way for you.Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textOf all the emotional issues that come with chronic illness, guilt is the most damaging and the most common. In this episode Kerry breaks down the most common reasons that people with chronic illness feel guilt and why it is so damaging to you and the people you love. Stuck in toxic guilt? Then you need to  listen to this episode!Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textLisa Douthit developed her first cancer at age 25, having had no prior health issues before. She noticed that she was having trouble breathing when exercising and a few other worrying symptoms. A chest x-ray showed a baseball sized tumour on her heart that required open heart surgery to remove.All in all, Lisa has experienced four different cancers and has three autoimmune diseases that she now lives with and needs to actively manage which are: Myasthenia Gravis, Lupus and Hashimoto's.Dealing with the cancer had been difficult enough but it wasn't until she developed autoimmune disease commencing with Myasthenia Gravis, Lupus and later, Hashimoto's that it finally began to break her down, literally.After helping to heal her trauma, Lisa now manages her illness using twice yearly immunosuppressant chemotherapy drug which completely wipes her out but helps to control all of her AI conditions.This is such a wonderful story of transforming pain and suffering into strength and purpose and creating meaning through the experience. Have a listen. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textFour years ago, Jessa Lewis was pregnant with her daughter when she received a diagnosis of Hashimoto's Autoimmune Hypothyroidism Disorder. Her body was attacking her thyroid and threatening the pregnancy, as it likely had with two prior miscarriages. Hashimoto's Autoimmune has 400+ potential symptoms with some of the most common being fatigue, sensitivity to cold, dry skin, brittle nails and hair, weight gain, muscle aches, joint pain, excessive menstrual bleeding, depression, infertility and high rates of miscarriage and stillbirths.Now, she balances her thyroid hormone levels with synthetic hormone replacement medication and, is on a mission to stay the fluctuations of her disorder through changes in food, lifestyle and fitness. She juggles her disorder alongside two earth side toddlers and a thriving online business. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.

Enjoyed this episode? Send Kerry a textV Capaldi otherwise known as "The Paleo Boss Lady" is a force to be reckoned with. V was raised in a very dysfunctional family where chaos was the norm in life. At 23 years old  and 6 weeks after marrying her childhood sweetheart, V was given a death sentence diagnosis that she had an inoperable brain tumour and lived for almost 6 months believing her life was over. Then the death sentence turned to a life sentence when her diagnosis was changed to MS. As a result, her whole life blew up. The twitching and spasms in her face caused by the MS made her own Father unable to look at her. After investing all of her money and assets into conventional treatments and testing, V now manages her life and health naturally, is passionate about creating community and gives generously of her time to help as many people as she can. Warning: This podcast contains strong language. Kerry Jeffery is an award winning Coach and Counsellor who specialises in helping clients online around the world with the emotional issues of living with chronic illness and the impacts it has on their lives and relationships. She lives in Melbourne, Australia along with Hashimoto's, Celiac, Antiphospholipid Syndrome and Type 1 Diabetes. Find out more about Kerry and her Therapy programs here.Book your FREE online Discovery Session with Kerry here.Follow Kerry for daily posts on Facebook here.