Ish Matters Rania Salah

Lora Marie has been creating (hilarious) educational content surrounding the experiences of living with an autoimmune disorder. She is an RA Warrior who has used her experiences, trials, and errors to inspire fellow autoimmune warriors with positivity, light, and connection. In this episode, we talk a little about a lot- including AIP diets, remaining hopeful and resilient through the hardships of autoimmunity, and more. Hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.

Find Lora @exploringautoimmune

Find me @_raniaasalah



Accessible Therapy (virtual):

1. BetterHelp

2. Teen Counseling

3. Brightside



If you have insurance:

1. Call your insurance to find a therapist in-network for you

2. Ask your job about benefits

3. Look up "sliding-scale therapists near me"

- PsychologyToday or other search engines can help you filter for your needs

Autoimmune disorders are on the rise: both in prevalence and in variation. Here's a little bit of background knowledge about what we know and what we don't know about autoimmunity. As promised, see links below for more information:



Instagram: @_raniaasalah




Role of Diet and Lifestyle: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11882-013-0404-6
Factors involved in the etiology of SLE: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2015.00608/full
Diet, Microbiota, and Autoimmunity: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0961203313501401?casa_token=WF5sl2ksKYkAAAAA:7AjSc7P7P_jD9V-t6a0HHrFVKu4AjSXdyuM5Fyz9vzYrc2TYaoR3VCZg6Ft9GT7JD38qArxlKO41hw
Environmental Triggers in the Development of Autoimmune Diseases ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3W9GNDYyyQ&t=2511s⁠
Hank Green: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPkwZ4vELyI

This is a heavy one! One factor contributing to racial health inequities is implicit bias- or rather the consequences of unchecked biases in healthcare settings.  Implicit or explicit negative attitudes toward patients may adversely impact quality of healthcare and perpetuate health disparities. Stigmatizing language written in a patient’s medical record contributes to attitudes and implicit bias, ergo influencing physician decision-making and treatment. Although medical records are an integral method of communicating about patients, they have been a vector for transmitting implicit bias in the healthcare profession. This episode outlines the importance of mandating that clinicians undergo supplementary training to properly, accurately, and objectively document  patient information on electronic health records (EHRs).



Want more information about one or more of my sources? Ask a question on anchor or Spotify, or DM me on instagram! 

Instagram: @_raniaasalah

Language is our portal to meaning making, and without the right language to describe and articulate our emotions, we may struggle to find healing. We may find that emotions begin to consume us, chip away at our physical and mental well-being, and manifest as destructive behaviors. When we lack the right vocabulary, connection becomes all the more difficult. When our emotional language is limited, we we feel disembodied or disconnected from ourselves and others. Language is pivotal to allowing emotions to guide our behaviors productively, help us make sense of ourselves and the world, and extend compassion to those we listen to. Part of mindfulness is awareness without judgement, and awareness is achieved by discernment. By naming our emotions, we can act as impartial observers without allowing them to overwhelm us. And in that process, we gain control. And come on, we have a cool pre-frontal cortex, we might as well use it! 



Follow the Ish Matters Instagram for episode updates and summaries: @ishmatters 

Brene Brown: Atlas of The Heart 

Gabor Mate: When The Body Says No

Emotions wheel: feelingswheel

Mindfulness is so much more than the image the word provokes: a formal meditation, silence, and deep breaths. It's everything from listening, pausing, to practicing non-judgement and acceptance. Mindfulness practices can and should be a part of your everyday life- science says so! So if you want to come along my journey of trying to live more mindfully, stay tuned for this series where we explore practices together. Let's learn how to make moments meaningful, life more joyful, and actions more purposeful. Let's learn to live with intention and lead with kindness and love. Time is too precious to waste it waiting for better moments. I recognize my privilege in having the time, resources, and capacity to think on topics such as mindfulness. I understand that the circumstances of life may be overwhelming, unfair, unjust, and too demanding to have the freedom to pause and reflect. But if and when we can, let's try to make the most out of our moments. 

Brené Brown's book: Atlas of The Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience

Sam Chase's Ted talk: Paying Attention and Mindfulness

Some Science:


Mindfulness and stress reduction
Mindfulness and cognitive flexibility 
Mindfulness and emotion regulation 

DM me for questions! Instagram: @_raniaasalah 

What keeps us happy and healthy in life? What's the secret to feeling satisfied despite changes in circumstance? How can we age whilst maintaining the best possible physical and mental health?  Well, we're going to draw upon and abundance of research that points to one answer: good relationships. This episode is endlessly important for our generation- a generation suffering from a loneliness epidemic, mental illness epidemic, and an epidemic of smartphone and materialistic 'addiction.' I hope you listen with an open-mind and open heart. As promised, the research is all below:


Johann Hari’s TedTalk https://www.ted.com/talks/johann_hari_this_could_be_why_you_re_depressed_or_anxious/transcript?language=en
Robert Waldinger: What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness https://www.ted.com/talks/robert_waldinger_what_makes_a_good_life_lessons_from_the_longest_study_on_happiness
Harvard Grant study https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2017/04/over-nearly-80-years-harvard-study-has-been-showing-how-to-live-a-healthy-and-happy-life/
Speaking of Psychology: Are we in a “loneliness pandemic”? With Louise Hawkley, PhD  https://www.apa.org/news/podcasts/speaking-of-psychology/loneliness-pandemic
Association between screen time and depression among US adults https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5574844/
Alone, Together: How Technology Separates Us | Henry Williams https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp05RuefBqM&t=513s
Health Risks of social isolation https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/05/ce-corner-isolation
A systematic review: the influence of social media on depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescent https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/02673843.2019.1590851
Over-prescriptionhttps://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/06/prescribing
Over-medicating children who are diagnosed with ADHD https://www.apa.org/monitor/dec01/medicating
The dangers of over-prescribing medication without evidence of chemical imbalance https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/mental-health/3569506-depression-is-likely-not-caused-by-a-chemical-imbalance-in-the-brain-study-says/



My instagram for updates on episode release: @_raniaasalah