Introducing October Covergirl: Mikhaila Peterson

Proof that a diet can naturally heal you and improve your health, TedX speaker and podcaster Mikhaila Peterson started The Lion Diet. Mikhaila was able to successfully overcome severe autoimmune and mood disorders, becoming completely medicine and symptom free with only diet and lifestyle changes. She utilizes her podcast, “The Mikhaila Peterson Podcast” to approach topics that are not frequently discussed in popular media, including cultural phenomena, political and health issues. Mikhaila’s primary mission is “to help people become resilient, and realize how much control they have over their own life; to encourage others to take responsibility for their physical and mental health, and to help show people that they have the power to better their lives, regardless of the cards they've been dealt.”

Being a mom, CEO, Tedx speaker, podcaster and blogger is an impressive array of skill sets, and it takes a lot of dedication. When tuning in to The Mikhaila Peterson Podcast, it is apparent that plenty of time and planning goes into each and every episode. Mikhaila is often joined by guests, such as various health professionals, athletes, company owners, and even celebrities. A special type of episode that Mikhaila hosts on her podcast is called Opposing Views, wherein she interviews two guests with conflicting viewpoints to discuss their beliefs in depth. The ultimate goal of these episodes is to create a space where both sides get to express their opinions, without the pressure of an actual debate occurring. In the Opposing Views episode centered around COVID-19, Mikhaila expressed how this format is one of her favorites on the podcast, and in our interview with Peterson, she revealed that she is making this the primary focus of her podcast. The professional and civil approach to controversy provides the opportunity for the audience to receive both sides of an argument and learn something new from another perspective on a contentious issue.

At the center of it all is The Lion Diet, a carnivorous diet that consists of only ruminant meats like beef and lamb. Mikhaila has been strictly following this diet since December of 2017. After having her right hip and left ankle replaced at 17,  she described this period as an extremely low point in her life. At just 23 years old, Peterson was taking 7 prescription medications and getting sicker by the day, the final straw was a painful, blistering rash outbreak on her skin. She points to this moment as a main motivator in her search for a medication-free lifestyle and total healing. First, Mikhaila removed gluten from her diet after discovering similar skin issues are common in individuals with celiac disease. Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough but luckily, she came across a story of a woman whose lyme disease was cured by the ‘all-meat’ diet. Following this diet simply made sense for Mikhaila, as eating anything else made her very ill. She shared that she has seen the “extreme” elimination diet work for thousands of people and notes that “it sounds ridiculous but it saved my life”. The Lion Diet saved Mikhaila from the pain of severe juvenile idiopathic arthritis, major depressive disorder, dermatitis herpetiformis, and chronic fatigue. The Lion Diet has also been attributed to helping Mikhaila’s father, Jordan Peterson, overcome his depression.

Mikhaila’s social media presence and content aims to encourage others to take charge of their own lives, finding what works best for them and their health. Finding your own balance in your lifestyle and diet can be the key to changing your life. Mikhaila advocates for turning to natural healing, as this is what ultimately eliminated her need for medication while living a happier and healthier life. Mikhaila shared with us that her current self-care practice is having a peaceful morning routine where she takes a moment to do things for herself such as reading the Bible before her daughter Scarlett wakes up. As we head into the fall season, we want to empower our readers to get in touch with their mental health and self-care practices. A great way to get inspired to live a healthy lifestyle and tune-in to what your body needs is to listen to The Mikhaila Peterson Podcast.

Mikhaila’s interview-style Podcast can be watched on her Youtube channel, you can also keep up with her on instagram @mikhailapeterson and @theliondiet, or on mikhailapeterson.com.

By Samantha Blocher

Sources:

About

Mikhaila Peterson. (2021, February 6). Retrieved September 2021, from

https://mikhailapeterson.com/about/

The Interview

We love "The Mikhaila Peterson Podcast"! What inspired you to start your own podcast?

I'm very interested in learning about as many things as I can that can lead people to happiness, and success in life. I was chronically ill and put myself into remission with a strict diet that has attracted international attention so I was familiar with being on podcasts. I had someone reach out and tell me I'd be good at hosting my own so I jumped on the opportunity. I figured my experience with fixing my health could spread to a larger audience if I talked to people who weren't involved in diet. Plus, my interests are more business related than diet related.

Tell us about your new series "Opposing Views". What are your biggest takeaways from interviewing these people?

Opposing Views is what I'm focusing on now. I speak to two individuals with opposite views on contentious topics. For instance, someone pro-choice for abortion, and someone pro-life. I have a 45 min to 1 hour conversation with both people separately so that I can really listen to their views. Then I combine that into one episode and let the audience hear both sides of the story on difficult topics. I started this because our society is very split right now and people have a difficult time listening to views that they don't agree with. This is a non-aggressive way of speaking to people. I'm trying to bridge the gap. This is my main focus for the podcast at the moment.

Congratulations on writing your first book, Could Be Worse! Can you tell us about it and how you choose which stories from your life you wanted to share?

I'm in the midst of editing this book. A lot still needs to be cut. It's about my experience being chronically ill, and putting it into remission with diet, and how I came to the realization that diet was causing my symptoms. It's about my family's rise to fame (for lack of a better description), and the difficulties that arose because of that. I'm hoping the book can help people understand what it's like being chronically ill. Many sick people are unable to describe what it's like while they're stuck in it. Now that I'm out of it I hope I can describe it properly enough that it'll give a voice to those who are chronically ill.

What is the Lion Diet and how has the diet changed your life?

The Lion Diet is what I've called my all-meat diet. That's right. All meat. I just eat lamb and beef (and other ruminant animals like elk). I had severe juvenile idiopathic arthritis, major depressive disorder, and a blistering rash called dermatitis herpetiformis as well as idiopathic hypersomnia (a fancy diagnosis for chronic fatigue). I was on immune suppressants I injected myself with and had my hip and ankle replaced when I was 17 from arthritis that wasn't kept under control with the medications. I was on 7 medications by the time I was 23 and I was just getting sicker. I ended up only eating meat because everything else made me ill. I've been only eating beef, salt, lamb, and water since December 2017. I'm on no medications and I have no symptoms. No psych symptoms either. I've seen this extreme elimination diet work for thousands of people and I'm hoping the medical community can start to seriously look into it. I just did a Tedx talk on it. It sounds ridiculous but it saved my life.

Having a successful podcast, writing a book, managing your father's company, doing TEDx Talks, creating a new app with your father, and being a mother. What do you do on a daily or weekly basis for your own self-care?

I have a morning routine that keeps me sane and calm. I wake up at about 6:30 so I have some "me" time before Scarlett (my four-year-old) wakes up. I get up and make my bed and then I pray about what I'm thankful for, and what I'm concerned about for the day, and about people who I love or who I think need help. Then I read the bible for about 15 minutes. Then I get dressed and get Scarlett up. I've been desperately trying to reduce my workload because I've been doing 12-14 hour days and it's not particularly sustainable, but I'm more than thankful for the opportunities I have. At the moment my morning routine is my self-care. □

Article Credits

Mikhaila’s Instagram: @mikhailapeterson

Mikhaila’s Website: mikhailapeterson.com

Mikhaila’s YouTube: Mikhaila Peterson

Mikhaila’s TikTok: @mikhailapeterson

The Lion Diet Instagram: @theliondiet

The Lion Diet Website: liondiet.com