My Symptoms Now...

Just a few weeks ago, I had experienced year-long pain throughout my body.  Weakness.  Couldn't do normal activities without throbbing muscle pain, shooting nerve pain, fatigue, low-energy, etc...

Today, I feel better, yes.  But I am not 100%.  I'm not sure what % I am.  I'm so grateful not to be in that pain every day I want to sing about it from a mountain top!  But I still suffer.  Today, I...

• still have shooting pain sometimes in my left thigh and less often in my arms or other places I used to feel it daily...all day long
• have hands cramp after writing, typing or extensive use like cake-making
• have daily inflammation in my hands and arms when I wake each morning so mornings worse and much more noticeable than others
• my mind has gotten clearer and I can remember things I learned more recently but things just weeks ago or especially months ago, I struggle with greatly.  In fact, I don't remember much of the last year unless I took a photo, wrote about it or regularly recall it like the birth of my daughter or this blasted illness and its journey!
• I am still very sensitive to light, almost any noise near me that isn't what I want to focus on is too loud, very sensitive to fragrances especially those hellbent on wearing daily bottles of perfume and cologne (yuck!), the laundry detergents, too!!, I'm still quite sensitive to cats.  I hate cats.  Sorry, but they make my life miserable so I don't want to even see your cat's picture!
• I feel a level of weakness that is hard to describe.  I can easily feel faint when i get up from sitting or lounging.  I get very lightheaded.  I need a minute.  When I sleep, I sleep hard and deep.  And when my body needs sleep (even that daytime nap), it takes it with or without my permission!  I have to call people to get safely to my destination or sleep in parking lots to avoid excessive driving. 
• When I eat even though I strive for a low sugar diet and to balance my meal with proteins and carbs of all kinds, I still want to fall into a deep coma.  Not normal folks.  And eating 5-6 meals a day, that crashing gets old quick!

I'm  glad I have more energy than the sloth I felt like for so long.  And I've gotten a ton done in the month of September that I'm quite proud of.  I have a lot more to go.  A lot more to get caught up with and words cannot express how thankful I am to those who help me.  Babysit so I can go to appointments to get well and learn answers, help with the kids when I need a break if even for 2-5 minutes, surprise soup-making, and I'm sure other things my short term memory won't allow me to recall as I write this post.

I'm still struggling.  I worry most now about my children because I'm well enough finally to do so.  I also worry about my in utero baby.  Only time will tell if this exposure has affected my little growing bean.  I know what the worst can be and I pray for normality, health and LIFE.

Pray for us as we go through this journey back to wellness.  Full wellness.  I'll accept nothing less.

Some Blood Tests are IN!! Good and Bad...

My test results are incomplete.  :(  One, they take weeks to come in, and two, the doctor I'm no longer with actually canceled my tests before they were finished so only partial results came in.  What does this mean?  Well, when my chronic illness brain fog self gets it in gear and gets an appointment with the new doctor, he'll have to redo most of these tests and I'll have to pay out the nose for them I'm sure as he uses a specific lab.  This could be more weeks of waiting, waiting, waiting...

Good news:  Lymes Tests - Dr. Burrascano (the Mold Doctor Exper) who recommends testing for Chronic Lymes using a bunch of IgG B.Burgdorferi test were all NEGATIVE!  This finally lays to rest that it is not Lymes or even Chronic Lymes which can go undetected with regular Lymes testing.  Woot!!

Bad news:  My VEGF result is low outside of the normal range.  

What is VEGF?  

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor - Wiki it here.

Definition:  VEGF is a signal protein produced by cells that stimulates vasculogenesis and angiogenesis. It is part of the system that restores the oxygen supply to tissues when blood circulation is inadequate.  It's normal function creates new blood vessels during embryonic development, after injury, in muscles following exercise, and to create new vessels to bypass blocked vessels.  

Low VEGF causes muscle pain, fatigue and shortness of breath.  (I suffer from all of these off and on.)

Dr. Shoemaker, the expert in mold illness, states that a low VEGF inidicates inadequate oxygen delivery in the capillary beds.  In other words, there is a reduction of blood flow in the small blood vessels (called capillaries) throughout my body.  Having low VEGF like I do is one of the most common abnormalities he sees in chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS) caused by exposure to water-damaged buildings.

This capillary hypoperfusion means that there is reduced blood flow in the smallest, most abundant blood vessels (and the tissues in the body they serve), which means a lack of normal oxygen delivery.  Restore normal perfusion and then watch as the devestating fatigue and all of its associated symptoms fade away. 

Normal blood flow in the tiniest of blood vessels is essential.  It is important to understand how our cells burn sugar.  The abnormal, inadequate delivery of oxygen leads to wasteful burning of limited cellular resources, including make-up energy sources like fat and protein - especially protein.  If there isn't enough oxygen in the cell, it only gets about 5% of the total available energy from sugar that it should while the other 95% is wasted with rising lactic acid which is a good measure of how little oxygen is being delivered.

My good days and bad days...remember those?

Well, I'll have a good day and get stuff done and then I'll have to rest for about 2 days to make up for the "good" day that I had energy and overdid it.  What constitute overdoing it?  Normal activities you do every day - showering, taking care of kids, cleaning around house, driving to places, working on a project, shopping, running errands, little things or big things with the big things draining me more for sure.  Well, when I burn up the small supply of glycogen I have, that's why I need two days to rest - my body is replenishing the glycogen used up.

Bad advice:  "Exercise more, Eat less"

For chronically ill patients like me, this is bad advice.  The more physical activity I do the more I hurt and the harder my body has to work to deliver oxygen to my starved tissues.  Eating less - well, I'm on a Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Egg-free, low-sugar diet as it is.  But my body needs more protein in order to have more back up for the sugar I deplete with just a few hours of an activity.

There's so much more to learn and so much more testing to be done.  I hope we have a treatment protocol soon.  I'm growing impatient, admittedly, but more than ever I really need these answers.

(Parts of this post are adapted from Dr. Shoemaker's book, Surviving Mold downloaded to my iPhone on iBooks.)

Mold... What??!!

Where do I begin?  In the last few weeks, everything has changed, evolved and is making more sense than ever!  One night lying awake in the bed, I got an email from a doctor of osteopathy that I subscribe to, Dr. Mercola.  He spotlighted Dr. Shoemaker, the expert on Mold Exposure as a Biotoxin and Treatment.  He's written books like "Suriving Mold" and "Mold Warriors".  I've downloaded the former on my iBooks app and read through some here and there.  As I laid there, a thought came to my mind.  A memory.  A realization.  Could this be my underlying cause of all my health issues and what appears to be fibromyalgia and neurological conditions like Carpal Tunnel and Meralgia Paresthetica.  People don't just suddenly have a litany of diagnoses come up.  What is causing these health issues??  MOLD?

The memory was of last summer over Labor Day weekend 2011.  Austin and I cleaned out our basement and organized it and donated items, etc...  We threw out a lot of stuff too.  When done, I remember he was making trips to the landfill and Good Will as I swept up what I thought was only brown construction dirt left by the builders 8 years ago.  I remember seeing spots on items and cleaning them off with just a damp cloth and water.  I remember sweeping the blackish color on the floor from towels that were used to dry up a leak we've had issues with off and on for the last few years but could never find the source despite calling out a basement expert to try to figure it out.  I remember my nose dripping profusely while down there sweeping that last day.  I was 25 weeks pregnant at the time with Sara Beth.  I definitely remember feeling this water in my lungs feeling that night and for the next 12 hours.  I felt like I was drowning when I laid down flat in bed and had to sleep sitting up.  Eventually, it subsided.

Whoa!!  What if the spots, the leak for years, the respiratory difficulty was from mold?  When did my weird symptoms begin?  In my prenatal history at my 28 week midwife appointment on September 27th, I reported to my hospital midwife that I felt pain in my arms when typing or using the remote, I felt old and elderly like I was near death, I felt pressure in my eyes a lot, I felt general malaise, weakness and fatigue.  I had been having these symptoms for about 3 weeks.  Wait, 3 weeks?  The day I swept in the basement and had difficulty breathing was Sept 5th.  Oh, my Goodness!!!!!

I immediately contacted a local mold specialist (The Mold Doctor) and met the wonderful Tony who came and did an immediate mold test of our basement and upstairs where we sleep and our bathroom which about 2 years ago we knew had mold and when we had it painted had the mold removed and painted with mold resistant paint.  Tony took me around the basement.  He was wearing a respirator.  I was just breathing it all in.  He showed me mold on the duct tape on the duct system, mold around the A/C unit, mold in the carpet at the base of the stairs, mold on the drywall at the base of the stairs, mold growing on the basement ceiling underneath our Dining Room that is upstairs above the basement, mold on the insulation lining our walls which he refered to as "mold food", mold in our master bath on the door frame that wasn't painted with the mold-resistent paint, mold on our bathroom blinds, and I showed him the toys the kids used to play with that had black growing inside and he said throw them out!

What we thought were just water stains turned out to be mold from a leaky basement.

He also walked around the house and found mold growing on the side.  He did a mold test that Friday and the results came back on Monday. 

Types of mold found in the Basement:  Basidiospores, Cladosporium, Penicillium/Aspergillus, Smuts/Periconia/Myxomy, Pithomyces, Stachybotrys (the Black Toxic Mold!!)

Types of mold found in the Master Bedroom:  Alternaria, Ascospores, Basidiospores, Bipolaris/Drechslera, Cladosporium, Epicoccum, Penicillium/Aspergillus, Smuts/Periconia/Myxomy, Pithomyces

Elevated mold condition exists:  Yes.

Source:  Southeast Environmental Microbiology Laboratories, Inc.
506-A Laurens Rd
Greenville, SC 29607
Phone: (864) 233-3770 

We spent the next week working out the logistics of getting contractors in to do mold remediation and living somewhere else for 4 days.  The entire basement had all insulation removed, all drywall and carpet at the base of the stairs (other parts of basement were unfinished) removed, all pieces of any wood that was effected removed.  Then, they painted the entire basement with a mold resistant paint so now it is all white, all ceilings, walls, and even most of the floor.  They also discovered the source of the leak!  Perhaps, we never would have if the mold didn't exist.  When the removed parts of the plywood from the basement ceiling under our front door, they could literally put their fingers through a large crack that went outside underneath the brick front of our home.  It was never sealed.  We also had a leak in the front foyer window that was never sealed properly.  We sealed it some years ago but it too caused damage and the entire foyer window area had to be remediated and painted, too.  Mold, mold, mold and lots of damage done but now it is all fixed.

You can see where the contractor had to pull back the plywood once covering this surface completely.  The sunlight is under the brick front leading out to the front of the house under our front door.  This is where the leak came from.  :(

This process was mentally exhausting and hard to digest.  How did we not know?  Well, for starters the basement isn't used but for storage so we didn't go down there much throughout the year and then there is our very busy life with the kids and work that kept us from focusing on it more seriously when we should have believing what we did see were just water stains from the leak.

Tony also said our humidity in the basement was 57%.  This is high because that was on a dry day.  All it would take is rain falling to cause it to go above 60% and that's when mold starts to grow.  So when the big rainfalls caused the basement to leak, it was well above 60% and mold grew rampantly.

We had to remove all of our belongings from the basement and check them for mold.  Any mold growth on fabric was discarded in plastic bags, any mold growth on a cleanable surface was cleaned with a mold surface cleaner we picked up from Home Depot.  We bought the respirators, suits, gloves, goggles.  Austin looked like a typical contractor suited up to remove a serious toxin.  It took us all weekend to do it.  We have what is safe to still use in our garage now.  We'll have to bring it back to the basement now and reorganize everything.

We also hired duct cleaners to clean out all of the ducts in the house.  This gives us more peace of mind and is recommended when doing mold remediation. 

We had the outside siding powerwashed to remove the mold growing on the siding and the contractor sealed the crack under the brick front.  We just had a nasty storm a few days ago and no leak.  We hope that will continue to be the case.  Until we know for sure it is the source, we aren't going to finish the basement anytime soon. 

We still can't believe this.  I think of few times I exercised down in the basement (and while pregnant!! and worse took the baby down there to sit in her bouncy chair!!!!).  We never really let the kids go down in the basement so that is good and no visitors to our home were in the basement for long periods of time because it wasn't finished except the carpeted stairs going down to the basement, so that made me feel a lot better, too.  But the fact it was in parts of the house, too, is very disturbing.  I started doing research on children exposed to mold and what the side effects could be and had to stop.  First, I've got to take care of me and figure out if that is indeed what my "biotoxin" is.

I saw a doctor who specializes in this area and trained with Dr. Shoemaker above but I won't be returning to their practice.  They are not professional or nice.  But when I did see her, she did the VCS Aptitude Test which tests for neurotoxins doing a visual test.  I failed it.  She ordered the 14 vials of bloodwork and some might be back now but I'm in the process of finding a better fit doctor for me who is like all of my other doctors - caring, sensitive, professional and wonderful to work with.  I have a consultation with a doctor today who also specializes in this area and who has been a victim of mold exposure and its effects herself.

A well depicted summary of my last year only leaving out the pain/fatigue/brain fog, etc...

I will update when I have blood test results back.  But please know this, everyone....  mold is toxic and harmful.  Especially, black toxic mold - stachybotrys.  Take leaks seriously.  You can have a beautiful new home like we do and be a victim to it.  You can have it hiding for years behind your walls.  If you sense a water problem or see stains, please have them checked out sooner rather than later.


Introducing Dr. Shoemaker...

YouTube video - Biotoxin 101:  Part 1 (Mold, CFIDS, and Fibro Treatments)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULJLAExjEDk

Questions, Questions, Questions...Answers Cannot Come Fast Enough!

OK let's start by laying out what we already know...

1) I'm not well.  My litany of symptoms makes this all very frustrating and confusing.
2) Inflammation is very much present in my body in multiple systems
3) I was found to be Vitamin D deficient in March 2012
4) I've been diagnosed with food allergies in late May 2012 - dairy/egg
5) I was recently diagnosed with two neurological conditions (both caused by inflammation in the body irritating nerves) although I am confident this neurologist is missing the mark - neither of the conditions he believes are my issue lead to either pain in the lower extremities past the thigh or memory/focus issues, so although he may be correct those nerves he diagnosed are affected, they are not the only problems. 

Now where to go from here...

1) I'm very well read on Fibromyalgia.  To-date it is the one condition I've extensively researched that seems to match all of my symptoms I suffer with daily.  But what is next if FM is my true diagnosis?

• I need to find a practitioner to do the body mapping to confirm FM and have a starting point.
• I would go on Dr. St. Amand's guafenisen protocol to reverse the symptoms of FM

 2) My naturopath is testing for candida at my next appointment end of July to see if this is a major factor.  I do have regular issues with yeast.

3) I'm going to make an appointment with an LLDM (Lymes Literate Medical Doctor) who can definitively rule this out.  So far, I've tested negative for Lymes in the April 2012 including the Western Blot test.  When I got an email from someone who was in my Guai Support Group that had undetected Lymes not FM, I decided to follow-up on my negative tests because they could have been wrong.  Dr. Burrascano's list of Lymes symptoms is extensive and also match my litany of symptoms. 

Visit www.LymeNet.org  and  www.ChronicLymeDisease.com for more info.

4) Neurological:  I will do the nerve conduction studies with my neurologist.  I'll also find a neurologist at Hopkins or surgeon if needed at Union Memorial for further evaluation, testing and possible surgical fixes if time will not heal these issues.  I still believe if I find the underlying cause of my inflammation taking over multiple systems, then the inflammation causing these nerve pains will disappear, hopefully.

My goals...

I hope to get better within the next 12 months.  No matter the ending diagnoses, I want to find the best, healthiest and most long-term healing and treatment plans possible.  I'm in pain every single day.  All day long.  I live with it.  I type now through the pain radiating in my hands.  I try to make sense in these blog posts despite my sharp mind fading in focus, concentration and memory.  My house is suffering because I have a hard time doing any physical work.  I want to exercise but I hurt my back severely whenever I attempt it.  I want to have energy not fatigue.  I have four kids to raise and want to have more.  I have a life to live.  I can't live it like this.  This is taking over my life.  It's slowing down my success as a mother, wife, household manager, childbirth educator, doula, midwifery student, etc...  I will not allow this to go on.
I will find MY cure. 

Closer to My Inflammation/Pain Cure! What's Fibromyalgia Got to Do With It?

A week ago this time, I was reading up and researching inflammation.  I wanted to know everything I could about it and how to minimize it or even cure it!  Friday, June 22nd, God put a thought into my head to see what was on the Health/Auto-Immune bookshelf at Greetings & Readings in Hunt Valley.  I stumbled across what is the best kept secret in medicine today.  How to REVERSE Fibromyalgia!!

Fibromyalgia - the "Catch-All" Diagnosis or Is It?

After I picked up Dr. R. Paul St. Amand's book, and read through a few pages in the store, I was WOWed!  I immediately purchased it, and as of 4AM today, finished reading all 300+ pages of it!  Fibromyalgia is more than what you think it is and more than what I thought it was.  Most doctors, pharmaceutical companies and Fibromyalgia sufferers and their families believe this just causes painful muscles and joints. Dr. St. Amand explains that it is so much more!

Fibromyalgia (FM) symptoms include fatigue (especially chronic and severe fatigue), irritability, nervousness, depression, insomnia, impaired concentration/focus "FibroFog", impaired memory, anxiety, hunger tremors, palpitations, panic attacks, frontal headaches, occipital headaches, general headaches, dizziness, vertigo, eye irritation, nasal congestion, abnormal tastes (bad, metallic), ringing ears, numbness, restless legs, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, dysuria, pungent urine, bladder infections, vulvodynia, weight changes, itching, rashes, sensitivities (chemical, light, odor, sounds), and allergies.  FM sufferers also have chronic infections, skin rashes, itchiness, digestive upset, some have been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome, some lose their hair, and the list goes on...  As you can see, the name Fibromyalgia isn't a good name. It means pain in the muscles/fibers.  It is so much more than that!

You may be treated right now for these conditions separately by more than one doctor.  This is how so many millions of sufferers go without treatment.  They don't realize they really have one condition causing all of these things!  Especially because your body goes through cycling - good days and bad days with flares then a period of remission or at least days that are better than your worst days.

FM is genetic.  Parents, siblings, grandparents, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles - someone in your family suffers from FM whether properly diagnosed or not if you are a FM suffer.

FM can start in young children.  Children today diagnosed with arthritis or ADD might simply suffer from FM.  Most doctors wouldn't think of FM because it is such a confusing condition to many. (There's a whole book on this if you want to know if your child might be suffering - What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Pediatric Fibromyalgia by Dr. St. Amand.)

FM has no diagnostic blood test (yet!!) but Dr. St. Amand and his team are very close to making that happen!  When that happens, finally, family doctors and rheumatologists can test patients blood and know right away what the problem is - Fibromyalgia. They have already proven with research that proteins in our blood are increased for FM sufferers.  This diagnostic tool will make lives change forever once it is finally fully developed and in use!

Another way to confirm FM today is to do "mapping" of the body to find the lumps and bumps in your muscles that show you do indeed have FM.  This can be done by a chiropractor or massage therapist or someone trained in how do perform mapping.  (Your provider, if willing, can even learn more about FM and mapping by purchasing Dr. St. Amand's CD on how to do perform mapping.)

How Many of the Below 18 Points are Tender on Your Body?

What is the Reversal Treatment Plan by Dr. St. Amand?  More Prescription Drugs?

No, not prescription.  Not drugs with dangerous or frustrating side effects.  Dr. St. Amand discovered that Guaifenisen, an over-the-counter medication in doses of 300mg or 600mg or 900mg or 1200mg twice a day will reverse your symptoms of FM!  The dosage depends on how your body reacts to the lowest does and if in time, that isn't producing the reversal effects desired (more pain before less pain), then the dosage is increased until your body begins to respond - you feel worse.  After so much time feeling worse, you'll finally feel amazing!  You'll have good days like you haven't known in years.

After all, you cannot forget that every drug you take for the above listed symptoms only mask the pain like putting on a band-aid and does not prevent the symptoms or reverse the symptoms like Dr. St. Amand's protocol will.


Why Should Anyone Trust This Doctor's Protocol Over a Rheumatologist Prescribing Anti-Depressants, Sleep Disorder Medications, Pain Medications, Anti-Convulsants, etc...?

Dr. St. Amand has been studying this condition and its symptoms for 50 years and he himself suffers from it.  His entire family suffered too.  He has devoted his career to doing a study in 1995 that failed but was also successful (more on that soon), writing recently published scientific articles, and treating 10,000+ patients suffering from FM.  That's a lot of experience!

The 1995 study was unsuccessful because it seemingly showed his reversal treatment didn't work.  However, it was a success because he learne two new things that patients must do in order for "the guai protocol" to work for them - 1) stop using all salicylates and 2) if you are also hypoglycemic (HGs) adhere to his diet for HGs.

Thousands have benefits from his findings and have felt completely or partially cured by the guai protocol.  There is a web site, support group and list or providers who guide patients through this protocol and do the mapping to test to see if the bumps and lumps are going away as you take guafenisen each day without using salicylates.


Why do FM have to Avoid Salicylates?

Salicylates block guafenisen from working properly.  Dr. St. Amand describes how guai works by having us imagine there are little parking garages inside of receptors in our kidneys tubules that the guai must park in to remove the excess phosphate that is in our body.  But if we are using salicylates topically or taking them in concentrated form orally, we can block the guai and the salicylate will take the space in the garages first preventing phosphate from leaving the body.

What is the Cause of Fibromyalgia?

It is genetic, as I said, and it is triggered by life events, stressors, age, hormonal changes, injury, trama, etc...  Essentially, your body systems are suffering because your kidneys are not properly ridding your body of phosphate which is in so much we consume and are exposed to.  This surplus of phosphate then leaks out into the cells of our body;s tissues, muscles, organs and that is why the list of symptoms above is so long - this can (and usually will after years left untreated) affect the entire body and all its systems.

What is My Plan?

Well, I'm being the good patient and am waiting for my neurologist appt mid-July 2012 to rule out neurologic conditions.  Once that is done, I'm sent back to my rheumatologist who already says she suspects Fibromyalgia.  My first rheumatologist suspected Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  Dr. St. Amand believes both conditions are one and the same and that there are millions of suffers in the U.S.

I also have to set up an appt with someone who can do "mapping" on my body and mark on a chart where all of the lumps/bumps are on my body.  This will also confirm a diagnosis of FM and give me a starting point to work from.  Once I've done this, I can go on the guai protocol at 300mg twice a day and if my symptoms get worse, I'll know that it is working.  If they don't do anything after awhile, my dosage will be bumped up until it does get worse.  Getting worse is what I have to do to get better.  I long for the good days I know are ahead of me!

In the meantime, I'll start replacing products with salicylates in them.  It isn't easy but I've been practicing already on how to read the labels using the great resources in Dr. St. Amand's book and his web site.  I'll also begin a journal of my symptoms so that I can know what my bad days are like now to compare them to the worse days coming when the body is ridding my tissues of phosphate and then compare that to the days I long to see - the good days when I'm symptom free!


My Hope

One day, I hope to report to you that I am free and clear of all symptoms (as long as no permanent damage has been done but I'm hoping considering how young I am that has not happened).  I hope to take what I've learned and help others.  I hope that all I know with symptoms like the ones above will understand each person suffers differently with FM and no two suffers are exactly alike but very similar to one another and that they will take this information and apply it to their lives and live normal again.

Many FMs stop living, live in their home, don't work, can't work, withdraw socially, have guilty feelings because of all they cannot do, don't pay bills on time, have depression from all of this, cannot stop sleeping in cars, feeling too tired to even begin their list of to-do's, can't take care of their kids/family well so their relationships suffer, have strained relationships because no one around them understands mostly because most FM don't even understand their own condition.

I don't want to be this way forever.  I don't want to get worse.  I want to be pain-free, live without digestive upset, have my memory back, my ability to focus and concentrate returned, my energy to be awake all day long, etc...

I will find my cure!


Resources:



The Fibromyalgia Treatment Center - operated by Dr. St. Amand and Claudia Marek, his medical assistant

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Fibromyalgia
 by Dr. St. Amand and Claudia Marek

Mapping Chart

Research behind the Guafenisen Protocol by Dr. St. Amand

Salicylate-Free Products Guide


Find a Doctor Near You that Knows of Dr. St. Amand's Treatment


Hypoglycemic or Think You Might Be?

The Medical System is Broken but You Can Find Answers!

"THE medical world has built an infinite literature without any (except erroneous and vacillating) ideas of cause.  Medicine is rich in science, but now, as well as in all past time, it suffers from a death of practical ideas. The average doctor is often educated out of all the common-sense he was born with. This, however, is not his fault. It is the fault of the system. He is an educated automaton. He has facts—scientific facts galore—without ideas. Ford has mechanical and philosophy facts—not more, perhaps, than thousands of other mechanics, but he joined them to an idea which made him a multimillionaire. Millions have facts, but no ideas. Thousands of doctors have all the scientific data needed, but they have not harnessed their science to common-sense."  ~ J. H. Tilden, M.D. from Toxemia Explained: The true interpretation of the cause of disease. 

How the System is Broken

Wow, what powerful words of truth and insight into the crux of the problem with healing disease today.  Medical technology and advancement is quite amazing and we are all thankful for it.  But a big problem exists when the medical system does not create more room for stepping outside the medical norm in diagnosing and treating a specific condition.  We have experts in natural remedies, out-of-the-box testing, nutrition, exercise, alternative health care modalities, changes in lifestyle, etc...  These experts are naturopaths.

However, naturopaths are not licensed but in 16 states so how a naturopath can care for you like in Maryland where naturopathic physicians are not licensed yet is greatly limited.  For instance, if you present to a naturopath with complaints of symptoms that require blood testing with a blood draw, they cannot perform this test without violating the law.  They can only educate you about what might be going on and recommend you get testing, etc... from other providers who are licensed.  Naturopaths cannot even diagnose you.  This is truly an insult to these professionals and a huge problem for consumers needing this unique testing, care and advice on nutrition, exercise and lifestyle.

(Get involved in licensing Maryland Naturopathic Physicians - www.MDANP.org) 

 How are YOU affected?

As a consumer of healthcare looking for your diagnosis like I am or at least the underlying cause or causes so you can "fix" your medical issues once and for all, you are negatively impacted by the broken medical system and how it is set up.  We must go to our Primary Care Provider (PCP) and get assessed.  From there, we are shipped out to an "expert" in certain types of medical conditions like if arthritis is suspected, you are sent to a Rheumatologist.  If digestive problems are plaguing you, you are sent to a Gastroenterologist.  If your gums hurt, you are sent to a Periodontist.

Our medical system today contains doctors who are not specialists in nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle changes.  Certainly, that does not mean you won't get such advice from a physician, but most medical doctors would submit that they do not consider themselves experts in such advice.  Especially when it comes to use of homeopathic remedies, herbs, supplements, vitamins and which alternative health care practitioner can best take care of the patient's needs.


Do We Really Need Care by This Many Specialists?

The simple answer is probably not.  If all ailing consumers were receiving care, diagnostic testing and treatment from a naturopath first and foremost, most consumers wouldn't need to have highly specialized testing and medications prescribed by a medical specialist like a neurologist, a psychiatrist or a dermatologist.  Amazingly, just altering diet, exercise, habits, lifestyle, reducing stress, getting more rest, taking supplements or vitamins, etc... are all most people need to correct their ailments.

Some consumers might need testing outside of the normal CBC, metabolic panels, lipid panels, etc... not offered or sometimes just not thought of by PCPs or specialists.  Some digestive or arthritic or auto-immune conditions would never prompt the typical medical doctor to refer you for further testing like to look for allergens, toxic metals, etc...  A licensed naturopath can do all of these things and help you avoid going through the frustration of weeks of waiting to see a specialist, highly technological and even invasive testing, receiving a diagnosis and then medication to relieve the symptoms.  However, none of this will get rid of the underlying CAUSE of your newly diagnosed condition and most medications come with side effects that cause other health issues to occur.

Understanding the Root of ALL Problems within Our Bodies

Let's start with what is inflammation and why it should matter to you.

"The most powerful concept in disease prevention and treatment today is inflammation...  Inflammation touches every aspect of our health.  In a series of medical breakthroughs, scientists have discovered that inflammation is a common thread linking heart disease, some forms of cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis, asthma, migraine, headaches, Alzheimer's disease, fibromyalgia, periodontal disease, sinusitis, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and chronic fatigue syndrome...What they thought was a relatively simple body function turned out to be massively complex,  involving many different types of body cells and occurring in multiple stages...Until recently, most inflammation research has been disease-specific, mainly because research scientists tend to specialize in particular areas of medicine".    ~ William Joel Meggs, MD, PhD from The Inflammation Cure

Dr. Meggs believes all conditions go back to inflammation in our bodies.  He also believes there is a cause for all types of inflammation whether you have diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, muscle pain, memory issues, digestive complaints, etc...

 Many of us think our conditions of the body are isolated and are not connected.  Research is showing scientists and doctors who will listen that all of our body's conditions are related to one or more causes that when removed, the condition would be cured providing the body has not experienced irreparable harm in the time since becoming inflamed.  Dr. Meggs wants us to set aside compartmentalization of medical conditions we've all been trained to do, and instead to think outside the box...

"When the artificial boundaries of specialization are ignored, a pattern emerges: inflammation is not disease-specific.  It affects the entire body, not just individual body parts.  And research has shown that disease we thought were unrelated are actually intimately linked...This inflammation connection tells us that caring for our health means more than just caring for individual body parts...When we treat inflammation in one part of the body, other parts of the body also become healthier."  ~ Dr. Meggs

Using My Medical History as an Example

Over the years, I've been diagnosed with or experienced the following symptoms with no diagosis:  anemia, irritable bowel syndrome, anovulation, amenorrhea, anxiety, heart palpatations, chronic bronchitis, low-back pain (pre-pregnancy), extreme fatigue, unusual systemic body itch lasting months with no relief from any type of treatment nor any diagnosis after three bags of IV antibiotics, muscle pain, joint pain, nerve pain, inflammation of nerves in my neck and back, hot flashes, freezing cold in arms/legs, memory issues, focus problems, cat dander allergy, food allergy (dairy/eggs), sensitivity to all kinds of fragrances/detergents/odors, vitamin D deficiency, yeast infections vaginally/breast, mastitis, and in my last pregnancy, proteinuria, high blood pressure for me although under 140/90, hyperuricemia and nearly pre-eclamptic (liver enzymes were elevated but still inside the normal range just days before delivery). 

Today, I primarily suffer from pain in my back, arms, legs, feet, hands, toes, fingers off and on.  I also suffer from mental focus issues, memory issues and chronic yeast infections, colds (recently pneumonia), extreme fatigue (dangerous while driving and experiencing this), nausea, digestive upset, low energy for hours or days, and all over weakness which leads to irritability.

My most recent cause of immune system issues came after my naturopath gave me a home finger prick blood test kit so I could test myself for IgG and IgA food allergies.  That's when I learned I have a high immune reaction to eggs and a moderate to moderately high immune reaction to all dairy from bovines including milk, cheese, yogurt, etc...


How I'm Doing Today


I have experienced a drastic reduction in pain, an increase in energy and strength since going dairy/egg free in the last few weeks.  But my symptoms are not completely resolved.  Dr. Meggs said we may have more than one cause.  I think mine is certainly multi-faceted.  I have my theories and will explore them later on this blog.

Why I Don't Just Pump My Body Full of  Medications to Relieve Symptoms and Neither Should You

A couple of weeks ago I had a very inflammed nerve in my back that was so painful it felt like I was being constantly stabbed.  I went to the chiropractor and then another one who uses physical therapy.  It helped but didn't take the pain away that prevented me from moving, holding my children, breastfeeding my daughter, sitting and standing or any other normal function of a mother of four.  I simultaneously had a horrible cough that was worsening with unusual noises.  With my history of bronchitis, I knew it wasn't that.

I went in on a Saturday to see my PCP.  She gave me an antibiotic for my pneumonia (yikes!) and a steroid to relieve my back pain.  For days, I had been living with ice affixed to my back most of the day.  Within a very short period of time after taking the steroid, my back pain was gone.  The steroid took away that inflammation but also took away inflammation I felt in other areas - I had more energy and less pain all over.

This was a welcomed relief!  However, with every anti-inflammatory drug there is also the down side - it can lower our immune function.  Getting over the pneumonia and cough was now even harder for me.  It was also only safe for the short 3 days I took it for my daughter who is exclusively breastfed and is only 6 months old.  This remedy was a nice quick fix and a great "break" from the chronic inflammation I experience daily but it was only that, a quick fix.  It didn't remove the cause and it wasn't "the cure".

There is so much more to explore from here.  For now, I'll end with Dr. Megg's words...

"Inflammation is influenced by what we eat, how much exercise we get, the level of pollutants in the air we breathe, the toxins in the cleaning products we use, the insectisides we spray, the amount of sleep we get, how much stress we experience, the intensity of our emotions, and the quality of our social relationships.  In short, everything we eat, breathe, think, feel and do has an effect on inflammation." 

Coming soon... "My Inflammation Story"  -- a post about my journey to-date and what daily life has been like for me and my family.  


More about inflammation:  William Joel Meggs, MD, PhD is a professor and chief of toxicology division of Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University and is board certified in Medical Toxicology, Internal Medicine, Emergency Medicine, and Allergy & Immunology.  You can buy his book, The Inflammation Cure.

Inflammation: The first of many posts on this topic...

Do you suffer from an "-itis"?  Do you have a disease condition?  Are you undiagnosed but in daily misery with symptoms you aren't sure what they are? And maybe or maybe you didn't see a physician or other provider for more insight?

Welcome to The Inflammation Club.

(Note:  There is no exclammation point because this isn't an exciting moment.  It's a rather depressing and frustrating one.)

In addition to my other passions, I will explore inflammatory processes and treatments, as well as let you follow my own personal journey through this unexpected and ever-draining ordeal.  I welcome your comments and hope any info I provide helps you along your path.

I am a student midwife, a health researcher especially on topics relating to women's health, pregnancy and birth, a doula (labor assistant), a childbirth educator, a mother of four and a wife.  I am not your healthcare provider so everything I share is to be read with interest and discussed with your healthcare team of professionals guiding you on your own journey.

Join me until we find our own unique cures and become inflammation-free!