Healing Rheumatoid Arthritis Naturally: My Story

When I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, I was given the same medications so many people receive. Drugs designed to shut down the immune system and silence symptoms. Drugs that come with serious, well-documented risks. Drugs linked to cancer.

My instincts told me I needed something different. My body wasn’t attacking me. My body was overwhelmed. Inflamed. Stressed. Starved for real nourishment. Burdened by years of processed food, environmental toxins, synthetic ingredients, and chronic stress. I didn’t want to silence it, I wanted to support it. 

That choice changed my life.

Instead of suppressing my symptoms, I focused on the systems that were crying out for help. The endocannabinoid system. The nervous system. The immune system. The gut. My mitochondria. My liver. I made them my priority, and I used the same plants, herbs, and fungi that humans have relied on for thousands of years, and that modern research continues to validate.

What follows is exactly how I approached healing rheumatoid arthritis naturally, what I learned through deep study of adaptogenic medicine and the endocannabinoid system, and how this systems-based approach brought my RA into remission.

DIET WAS THE FIRST AND MOST IMPORTANT SHIFT FOR MY RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

All autoimmune disease begins in the gut. Until the gut is healed, the immune system can’t find balance. So I started there.

I transitioned to a ketogenic, mostly organic vegetarian diet. Clean fats. High-fiber vegetables. Pasture-raised eggs. Wild-caught sardines and anchovies for omega-3s. No seed oils. No refined carbs. No gluten. No processed food. No synthetic vitamins. Nothing my gut wouldn’t immediately recognize as food and nothing that my liver had to figure out what to do with. 

I added fermented foods to restore my microbiome. I cooked mushrooms several times a week. I fasted five days a week and ate one meal a day, at least three hours before bed. I drank clean, mineral-rich hydrogen water.

Within weeks my digestion improved. Within months my inflammation dropped and my joints started working again.

When the gut finds balance, the immune system follows.

MY DEEP DIVE INTO ADAPTOGENS, HERBS & THE ENDOCANNABINOID SYSTEM

After changing my diet, I began researching adaptogens and herbs, not casually, but clinically. I studied them the way a practitioner studies medicine.

I attended the University of Vermont School of Medicine, where I learned that the Endocannabinoid System is the master regulatory system of the body, the system responsible for maintaining homeostasis. If I wanted to heal, this was the system I needed to understand and support.

That realization changed everything.

Once I understood how plant compounds, especially cannabinoids, terpenes, and adaptogenic constituents, interact with the ECS, I knew that how those plants were grown, extracted, and used mattered just as much as which plants were chosen.

So I studied everything: therapeutic dosing, extraction methods, whether alcohol, glycerin, vinegar, or decoction pulled the correct constituents. Whole-plant chemistry, what’s lost when compounds are isolated or stripped away. I looked deeper too: soil quality, contamination risks, irradiation during import, fillers, additives, and testing standards.

I wanted purity.
Potency.
Traditional extraction methods.
Real medicine.

What I found on the market instead was unsettling. I learned that most products on the market didn’t meet these standards. Many products relied on isolates instead of whole-plant extracts. Many were conventionally grown, sprayed with pesticides, or extracted using harsh solvents. Powders were often oxidized, over-processed, or missing critical compounds. Preservatives and synthetic additives were common.

I realized that if I wanted truly clean, therapeutic plant medicine, medicine capable of supporting the endocannabinoid system and restoring balance, I would have to make it myself.

FULL SPECTRUM HEMP AND CANNABIS

Once I understood the role of the Endocannabinoid System, it became clear where to start, Full Spectrum Hemp Extract.

I made sure to start with Full Spectrum Hemp after learning that the endocannabinoid system doesn’t respond to single, isolated compounds, it responds to the whole plant working together. Cannabinoids don’t act alone. They rely on terpenes, flavonoids, chlorophyll, and dozens of other compounds to signal properly. That’s what “full spectrum” actually means: Not a single molecule stripped from the plant. Not isolated. Not refined into something the body barely recognizes.

Full spectrum hemp was the first plant that made a noticeable shift in my body. 

I used it consistently, morning and night. My sleep improved. My inflammation softened. My nervous system calmed. My pain became manageable. My immune system began to find balance again. In the evening, I incorporated full cannabis extract. It supported pain levels, stress response, sleep quality, and overall inflammation.

In the evening, I added a of full cannabis extract. It helped with my pain, stress, sleep quality, and overall inflammation. 

MEDICINAL MUSHROOMS WERE A TURNING POINT

Then came mushroom medicine.

I chose liquid dual-extractions of the fruiting body, because I learned that mushroom powders are usually oxidized, poorly absorbed, and missing key compounds. I wanted the complete profile: beta-glucans, triterpenes, sterols, polysaccharides, all the compounds the body actually recognizes.

I chose several mushrooms to support different systems in my body:

• Reishi helped calm my overactive stress response.
• Lion’s Mane supported my cognitive function, memory, and gut-brain communication.
• Cordyceps helped my energy levels and mitochondrial function.
• Turkey Tail supported my immune system and microbiome.
• Shiitake and Maitake supported my circulation and metabolic health.

These mushrooms act as immune modulators. They don’t stimulate or suppress the immune system, they bring it back into balance. That distinction matters, especially in autoimmune disease.

THE ADAPTOGENS THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

I added in adaptogens with intention.

• Ashwagandha to lower stress hormones.
• Rhodiola for resilience and energy.
• Astragalus root to support healthy immune function.
• Bacopa monnieri for cognition and mood.
• Wild yam to support hormonal balance.
• Ginger to help circulation and cool inflammation.
• Turmeric to support inflammatory pathways.
• Milk thistle to support the liver as I detoxed.

Each herb supported a different system. When those systems start functioning again, the whole body shifts.

WHAT HAPPENED WHEN I STOPPED SUPPRESSING AND STARTED SUPPORTING MY BODY

Healing my rheumatoid arthritis didn’t happen overnight. It happened slowly, steadily, and with intention, but the changes were undeniable

My inflammation was reduced.
My joints stopped burning.
My energy returned.
My mind felt clear again.
My eyesight stabilized.
My anxiety eased.
My sleep improved.

My body moved out of survival mode, and into healing mode. This was the result of feeding my body exactly what it needed and removing what was hurting it.

THE MOST POWERFUL PROOF: HELPING MY SOUL DOG

The most validating moment came when my soul dog, Odie, was diagnosed with degenerative myelopathy at the same time I was healing from RA. I used the same holistic, whole body approach with him.

Whole plants. Whole mushrooms. Full spectrum hemp. Clean diet. Nervous system support.

He got better too. We both healed together! This confirmed what I already knew. Our pets heal the same way we do. When we naturally support the systems that regulate healing, the body responds.

WHY I SHARE MY STORY

I share my story because out there, someone with autoimmune disease needs to hear it. You are not broken. Your body is not attacking you. Your body is overwhelmed, and it needs support, not suppression.

When you change your diet, you change your biology. When you support your endocannabinoid system, inflammation begins to shift. When you heal the gut, the immune system follows. When you use whole plants and mushrooms, at therapeutic doses, with proper extraction methods, the body responds.

This is what saved me. This is what brought my rheumatoid arthritis into remission. This is what brought me back to myself. And it’s possible for you, too. 

Because so many people have asked exactly how I did this, I created my Rheumatoid Arthritis Holistic Protocol: a step-by-step breakdown of the dietary changes, plant medicine, mushroom support, and foundational systems work that guided my healing. It’s meant to serve as a roadmap for anyone ready to take an active role in their own recovery.

You have more control over your healing than you’ve been led to believe. Nature has always been the original medicine. And your body is designed to heal, when you give it the right support and the right environment.

 

About Angela Ardolino

Angela Ardolino, a certified cannabis and fungi clinician, brings over 20 years of expertise to the field of holistic pet wellness. As a graduate of the inaugural Medical Cannabis for Therapeutic Use program at the University of Vermont School of Medicine, she is a passionate advocate for safe, natural, and ethically-grown whole plant and fungi medicine tailored for pets.

Committed to the highest standards, Angela continues to educate and inspire pet parents through her popular podcast, Your Natural Dog, where she hosts experts to discuss holistic pet care, natural remedies, nutrition, and training. Follow Angela Ardolino on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube to stay updated on her mission to educate and empower pet parents everywhere.