It's a new year and I always like to think of it as a new beginning. A fresh start where everything will be wonderful and will proceed as it should be, not as it has been.
Health care...hmmmm....
First, I found myself a new doctor. Maybe. He's a functional medicine doctor and I'm impressed with some of his online videos. He likes to talk and since most doctors don't talk, I think I would really like a talker. I'm always full of hope and anticipation for the first appointment and then they fail miserably...BUT I'm not going to think like that! Be positive! It's a new year!
Second, I ordered a new thyroid prescription refill. This compounding pharmacy has failed every step of the way, but I stick with them because I'm not convinced another compounding pharmacy would be any better. I've had problems with all of them.
It takes them two weeks to refill the prescription and I'm out of medication and scrapping the bottle. The new refill came today! I was relieved. I opened it up, ready to dive into fresh drug. It won't come out of the bottle. Ummmm.... I shake it, and try again. I tear the label off because it covers the bottle and I want to see through it. I see nothing, but I think maybe the drug is on the side of the bottle or solidified on the bottom. It's hard to see through these brown pharmaceutical bottles. I got a flashlight and tried to peer in. Then I got a Q-Tip , shoved it in, and swished it around.
THERE IS NOTHING IN THE FUCKING BOTTLE. SHIT. They sent me an empty bottle? I paid for an empty bottle? Nice.
What is it with health care and me? We are enemies! Am I the only one with these experiences? Every step is a constant struggle. Am I cursed? Will I be cursed with bad health care experiences for the rest of my life? How can I possibly be positive for the new year when my bad luck persists?
The pharmacist apologized profusely, snatched up a new bottle, actually infused it with drug, and sent it. And charged me AGAIN!! Really? The snafus are never ending!
First of all, if I didn't absolutely have to get a colonoscopy to find out what is wrong with my colon, I absolutely wouldn't. The opposition says this is a ploy of American doctors to make money. No other country in the world demands such an invasive, dangerous procedure to be done on patients just as a preventative measure. Unfortunately, with my non-working colon, most of the many doctors I've seen in the last four months won't treat me until I have one done for fear there is something serious lurking and treatments might complicate matters. So I don't have a choice. Well, I do have a choice, but fixing this colon is a priority right now.
My GI doctor assured me there was nothing seriously wrong with me. OK. So then WHY do I have to get this done? My naturopath said the GI doctor has no idea if there is something seriously wrong with me because she hasn't done the colonoscopy which is why she ordered it. Yes, GI doctor is a liar. What is new? It's really disconcerting to have doctors argue with each other through me.
And then there is the cost. Federal law claims with Obamacare we are allowed a free preventative, colorectal cancer screening via colonoscopy if we haven't been diagnosed with anything, but come to find out it's only free if they DO NOT find anything. If they find anything whether it's a polyp, mass or other growth, it becomes very costly. Or if it's diagnostic, then all freebies are in the toilet and it becomes twice as costly. One friend said hers was free regardless of the diagnostic purpose. So it seems every medical office, every insurance, every doctor, and every patient gets a different price and getting verifiable financial information is impossible until one makes and confirms an appointment. Mine will cost a base of $860.33 with the first polyp costing from 345.92 to 410.36 (depending on the technique used to remove it) and every polyp thereafter at half price. The required facility fee will be $570.35 for the first polyp and 285.17 for any others. Beyond that it will cost $90.00 per biopsy. GOOD GOD!
Of course, no one told me there is a choice of anesthesia vs. conscious sedation. When I called to get exact financial information the billing department told me the sedation is free, but the anesthesia is expensive. Needless to say, I called the scheduler back and selected the conscious sedation method. I was also hoping the drugs were less toxic.
And the bowel prep solution choices. One is called CoLyte (or GoLyte), mega doses (64 oz. per dose times two) of polyethylene glycol or Miralax on steroids. Since I started having problems with this laxative creating abdominal pain and burning (it causes peptic ulcers), I opted for the other. Suprep is sodium sulfate, potassium sulfate and magnesium sulfate, however, it involves drinking only 6 ounces of a horrible cherry-flavored solution mixed in 16 oz of water, washed down with two more 16 ounces of water. Online people with multiple colonoscopy experiences say Suprep is a much better experience.
But most insurance companies cover CoLyte ($29) and not Suprep which costs five times as much (about $125). One of the GI nurses offered to send me a coupon for a discount. I waited a week and it never arrived so I became proactive figuring nothing good would come from waiting for someone to do what they said they would, went into the office, and kindly demanded my coupon. I didn't get a coupon. Another nurse brought me out a FREE Suprep Bowel Prep Kit! WHOO HOO! I actually threw my arms around her for an impromptu hug. She recoiled as only a nurse would do. It pays to be proactive, but it's a lot of work to keep on top of people who don't give a shit about patients.
So, after waiting three months and not canceling which would have cost me a $200 cancellation fee, I started the low-fiber dietary prep. You can have cakes, croissants, ice cream, pudding, chocolate, and Jello, but you can't have vegetables or fruits. It's totally backward. I tried sticking to my diet, but definitely cheated with fruit juices, white rice, eggs, and sweet potatoes. The last two days were a liquid diet of juices and broths. Blah.
Suprep wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I'm not sure why all these drinks need to be flavored with toxic bad-tasting chemicals, but I drank it down with a straw and it was tolerable. At least it wasn't thick and chalky like the barium drink for the CT scan. After an hour of burping and feeling like an over-filled water balloon, it all started working. No cramping or pain. Every person reacts different to this solution: for some the diarrhea doesn't start for two or three hours, others it never starts. Some people have cramping and pain, others don't. I think since I'd been living off of laxatives for the last four months, my colon was used to working, but I was peeing every five minutes for about two hours.The second morning dose worked within fifteen minutes and it was just as if water was going through me. I was just thankful all those chemicals didn't kill me after glancing at the side effects packed in the kit. I avoided reading them. I didn't want to know.
The most stressful aspect of this colonoscopy preparation, other than pondering the fact you can die or be permanently maimed on the operating table is the driver requirement. One must have a driver. This was the reason I declined to have the colonoscopy done two years ago. Who? I don't have family and my friends aren't interested in taking a whole day off work to drive hours to my house, drive hours to the facility, sit for an hour or more, drive hours to get me home and drive hours to get home. I asked a few and they refused, but it was difficult to even ask or expect such an outrageous commitment. I checked various medical transport services but most required the passenger to be low-income, elderly, or disabled. I am none of those things so what does a relatively health-ish and young-ish person to do?
I found someone who was willing to drive me from her house, to the facility and back to her house on her day off, and then I would camp in my van in freezing weather outside her house. Not optimal. For this reason I had to choose a facility close to her house. There are none close to my house, but if there were that would not have been an option because of this transportation requirement. Everyone I know lives hours away from me. I had a feeling after being sedated and violated for an hour I would desire to go home and rest in my own bed, but what choice did I have?
I worried whether she would cancel on me at the last minute after reading about the experiences of others. No driver and I'd be denied check-in and have to pay that last minute cancellation fee. I had little confidence in her when she told me two days before the procedure about how she made another appointment during the time she should be driving me, "Is that OK?" HELL NO! WHAT THE FUCK?? was what I was thinking. I didn't scream at her. I was afraid if I started spewing stressful out-of-control exclamations she might cancel then what would I do? Finally she complied, "Oh! OK, I have it on my schedule now!" NOW? NOW? I made this appointment three months ago, selected the day according to her requirements, and confirmed it with her at least three times since. Talk about adding to my already building stress level! According to online articles and comments, this no driver issue is a common problem for people who are single or new to an area.
My appointment was at 1:30pm. I got to town at 9:00am. Yeah, I probably didn't need to be there that early but I drove the van in order to stay the night. The van has 250,000 miles on it. I had phone numbers for taxi companies in case it broke down. I just felt safer knowing I was in the vicinity and I had some errands to run so plenty to do.
My friend didn't cancel and she showed up right on time. We checked in an hour before the procedure, still too early, but I didn't care as I feel less stressed when I'm early and can settle. I asked the receptionist about the sedation procedure as I was worried about the drugs and she confirmed, "Oh yes, you'll be administered Propofol." "What? Is that the conscious sedation method?" "Hmmm...ahh...no." She shuffled my chart papers, "Oh, you are doing conscious sedation so that will be Fenatyl." Right away I had no confidence in this hospital. I've learned the hard way no one is trustworthy in health care.
The waiting room stunk of something. I have no idea what it was. At one point I looked around for an air freshener. I saw multiple bottles of hand sanitizers all over the place. Was that what smelled? I excused myself I went out to the elevator area where there were more chairs by windows with a strong air ventilation exchange overhead. My friend read her book.
The nurse called me early. I figured this might happen which is another reason I wanted to go in early so I could get out of there early. I was starving. Her name was Cheryl. Big, blonde woman who cooed condescendingly talking to me like I was a five year old. That's fine, I thought, she's just trying to make me feel comfortable. She had me sit on the hospital bed and asked questions. I asked if I could go without the sedative and she lost the baby talk and acted offended, almost hostile, explaining how that would be unconventional and I NEED the sedative. I told her I'd rather go without if possible. She ignored my request. It was very frustrating. While going over the questions and paperwork she tried to tell me I was there because I had blood in my stool. NO, I am there because my colon isn't working. Do they know who I am? Does anyone ever listen?
She had me strip down and put on a hospital gown that was folded up near the pillow. She closed the curtains. When I picked up the hospital gown I noticed there was a large wet spot near the pillow and on the pillow. When I got the hospital gown on there was a small wet spot near my waist from where the gown was soaked. I didn't think anything of it. I asked to go to the bathroom one last time and when I got up to leave she noticed the wet spot, apologized, and started changing the pillow case. She didn't change the bedding.
When I returned she had me lay down on the bed to insert the IV and that's when I smelled the wet spot. Something strong, unfamiliar that tasted metallic in my mouth. I thought to myself it was probably some kind of drug or IV solution.
And then I started crying. It came on sudden. The nurse kept asking me what was wrong and truthfully, I had no idea. I told her it must be stress. I couldn't stop. The more she jabbed me with the IV needle, the harder I cried. Another nurse came in to confirm I was there because I had blood in my stool and I became almost belligerent, "NO, I AM HERE BECAUSE MY COLON STOPPED WORKING FOUR MONTHS AGO!" My outburst shocked her and she excused herself to check with the doctor. She didn't realize how much control I still had. I kept crying.
The doctor sat next to me and asked what was wrong. I had no words. I had no idea. My cognitive function was gone. I felt confused. I finally said, "I really would rather not be sedated. I'd like to be cognitive enough to watch the monitor." She said I am getting "conscious sedation" so I will be able to watch the monitor. Great. She squeezed my arm reassuringly and left. I think they were as baffled as I was as to why I was crying. No other patient around me was crying, in fact most of them were laughing and joking with the nurses.
Another nurse came and gave me a very quick shot of Benadryl. I didn't even have time to argue, but I should have. They wheeled me into the surgical room. The doctor had me recite my name and birthday. I was baffled. Do they really not know who I am? I'm pretty sure she was testing to see how the Benadryl was working. Obviously I was way too coherent. They knocked me out totally with Fenatyl and Midazolam. I'm guessing I got double doses.
My beautiful butt...perfectly prepped,
no inflammation or infection, no wall thickening, no masses or growths
One polyp.
I woke up back in the pre-op room absolutely furious. I was out totally. No television viewing for me. Did they give me the bad drugs? Or just double dose me? Incredibly groggy, but feeling violated and betrayed. Thankfully the effects of sedation keeping me in control. I dressed and was escorted out to my friend who sat with me for the results and to be discharged. I glared at the doctor while she spoke. I think it was a good thing I was groggy or the skinny bitch would have got an earful. Or more.
I spent the night in the van, waking up constantly, enraged at everything that happened: the dismissive attitudes, the lies, feelings of betrayal. I was instructed not to drive for 24 hours but I kept sitting up to test how the drugs were affecting me. Every time my head spinned I laid back down. At five in the morning I felt fine, not great, but good enough to drive in the dark, in the pouring rain, on a winding country highway praying deer wouldn't jump out in front of me. Even when I'm fully cognitive I'm afraid to drive this highway at night in perfect weather. That's the advantage of drugs. I didn't care.
The whole next day I cycled bouncing from depressed and crying to screaming obscenities at the dishonest, betraying, insensitive doctor. This is what I call "rage cycling". In the world of bipolar illness it's called "ultradian cycling." I write about it in my post called "The Weirdness Awards: MCS Symptoms That Will Make Your Skin Crawl" you can read HERE.
I haven't had a chemical reaction like this since my Environmental Health Specialist shot me full of toxins for a very invasive allergy test sixteen years ago. I'm just not exposed to bad chemicals often. I know how to avoid them for the most part. I knew to stay in my house and ride it out. I knew to avoid the internet, the phone, and all contact with people. If you experience this side effect with strong chemicals, you know what a nightmare this is. My brain was exploding. Everything felt intensely wrong.
I read a book once on bipolar illness research and how substance abuse or other chemical exposures are part of every bipolar patient's history. I'm fairly convinced chemicals are the cause of bipolar illness but for the most part, this goes ignored. I cannot imagine living with this disease day in and day out, experiencing uncontrollable ultradian cycles continually. What a nightmare it must be! And with all the random acts of violence these days, how much of it is caused by chemical exposures?
So five days later with my brain back to normal, I went looking for the drugs that smell like metallic. Fentanyl doesn't have a smell. I couldn't find anything on the smell of Midazolam, but what I did find are some of the more unusual side effects usually experienced by children because they have been given too much. Susceptible populations like the elderly (or the chemically sensitive) are also at risk. Side effects include...wait for it...uncontrollable crying, agitation, confusion, aggression, paranoia, and violent tendencies. Patients have written of their experiences online describing screaming, combative behaviors, throwing things, pushing over carts, and ripping off their hospital gowns and attempting to run out of the hospital. I guess I was more in control than I thought! Other side effects include lingering dementia, headaches, and nausea, with some outcomes: death. Nice.
If they had allowed me to go without any sedative and if they hadn't soaked the bed, pillow, and gown with toxic chemicals that I was forced to smell for an hour, I probably would have had a relatively good experience. I didn't have any pain, no bleeding, no infection, no punctures, and I definitely didn't die. Is it any wonder people do die? And how many of them are chemically sensitive? Too bad these conventional doctors are so narrow-minded they don't understand chemical sensitivity and would rather adhere to their ignorance than make accommodations.
At one point the doctor said, "Well, this is only your first colonoscopy. The second will be much easier." Through my tears I said, "This is my LAST colonoscopy. I guarantee it."
Here's a really good video on what they do while they are digging around. I would have preferred having this guy as my doctor.
This video is what happens when you don't follow the prep directions. It's kind of funny although incredibly gross. I love the background music. Hilarious:
I found another naturopath who is closer to me so she's only a three hour trip instead of eight hours. It's a little bit of an improvement. She also offered a fifteen-minute "meet-and-greet" so I could ask questions, scope her out before spending the big bucks. I figured I could ascertain if she was capable of listening.
My "meet-and-greet" consisted of Can you treat a patient without drugs? Do you have ANYTHING in your protocol other than drugs? I went into great detail about my drug intolerance and the many years of misery due to doctors who don't get it. In detail I defined the scope of what I call a drug: prescriptions, supplements of any kind including but not limited to herbs, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids, flavonoids, weird-ass antioxidants, and any food that acts like a drug (caffeine, herb-ish plants).
She claimed she did have alternative treatments. She mentioned a more in-depth analysis of the gene mutation interpretation that might offer some answers and options. She talked about energy treatments which I think are a waste of money but as long as they aren't drugs, she was answering my questions.
So I make the $175.00 appointment. On all my intake forms I write in bold letters, "I DO NOT DO DRUGS AND WILL NOT TRY DRUGS AS AN EXPERIMENT."
I know these appointments are more about my background than her diagnosis/treatment ideas, but as we get to the end all she's talking about are drugs. She keeps saying, "I know you said you don't take drugs, but...." She even tells me she doesn't see the point in having me do the gene mutation interpretations after all because all the related treatments are drugs. Hmmmm....and why didn't she tell me this during the meet-and-greet?
Her written treatment plan with everything she wants me to do has nine items. Other than "Go to the lab for blood work" and "Call me if you have questions", everything is a drug!
Are doctors incapable of thinking beyond poisoning patients? Have they been brainwashed into a drug culture and can't think out of their tiny, narrow-minded box? Are they just all liars? Are they just trying to get me to spend money like any snake-oil salesman? Are they all brain dead and incapable of listening?
WHY DON'T THEY LISTEN TO ME?
Maybe I should lay down the law from now on: If you even mention drugs at any time for any reason, the appointment is FREE! LOL!
The first thing I noticed is eight hours after taking the 30 mg. thyroid pill, I'd get incredibly tired, crash, and feel the need to nap. I stopped crashing when I changed my diet so although low-level fatigue is what I was trying to address with these drugs, crashing was a newly returned symptom. My new health care provider agreed I should take a second 30 mg. pill in the afternoon. We assumed the drugs were wearing off. This seemed to work...for a short time. Then I started getting more tired in the afternoon, earlier in the afternoon each day, then waking early in the morning and beginning the day tired. This was not an improvement.
I was also hungry all the time which wasn't new, but I started overeating. Constant, compulsive overeating nearly to the point of vomiting. I had to pay close attention during a meal to know when to stop. I never felt real hunger and even after overeating, I'd still feel famished.
My legs and hips started hurting all the time. I read that hip pain is a hypothyroid symptom.
Then last week I started feeling borderline depressed. Just off. Like everything was not quite right. At first I thought this mild depression might have been residue from the heater chemicals offgassing. That would make sense, but it should have gone away once the heaters ceased to be a problem.
Prior to starting this Paleo with Hashimoto's Twist diet, I had severe inflammation, mostly at night. My skin would burn uncomfortably and my face was often burning red. It went away with the diet and since taking thyroid meds, it has returned. Inflammation is never good.
Unfortunately, all the muscle pain, muscle weakness and lack of muscle recovery never went away. The adrenaline rushes and hot flashes got worse. I had hoped a thyroid prescription would help with some of it. For a short time I did feel slightly more energetic and not as stress intolerant.
I worried about these new or returned symptoms and questioned whether things might get worse with a dosage increase. I made an appointment with the formerly fired Nurse Lady.
Let me clarify. Yes, I had planned to fire Nurse Lady for failing at follow-through, but then I spoke to the pharmacist who said this was unusual behavior for her. So I thought I'd give her another chance. Maybe she was having a bad week? I know she wasn't having a bad week. She went to Hawaii. Can I blame her? Would I love to drop my life and go to Hawaii? Of course! But health care providers have a certain responsibility to their patients especially ones who's prescription needs refilling before it runs out. She should have done the research and settled her accounts before leaving. Instead she left me in a panic not knowing what to do. She never did get back to me about anything. Her failure makes that first appointment a waste of time and money.
Yeah, I should fire her, but then where do I find another fragrance-free health care provider? One who has Hashimoto's, acknowledges chemical sensitivity, recognizes my sensitivity to drugs, understands compounded pharmacies, and seems to have researched ideas relevant to my issues? Other than lack of follow-through, I really liked her. I wouldn't even know where to start looking for a new doctor. So she's not fired. I just won't rely on her to do what she says she will in the future. I really hate it we have to accept substandard health care for lack of any other choice.
My second appointment with her she said, "So, it's been over a year since you've been in?" Hmmm... I was in your office two months ago. She has no clue who I am nor what year it is. That did not inspire confidence. Did she leave her brain in Hawaii? I told her about my many new symptoms. The fatigue I have now is slightly worse, inflammation has returned, hips hurt, body hurts, and I am starving. During the course of the appointment I told her three times about the feelings of starvation and each time she stared at me with an occasional grimace. She had no clue. Her response was to give me dietary counseling. She knows I'm on the Kharrazian diet-that-saved-my-life and I know my diet is better than the diets of most Americans. It was frustrating to waste my time having someone tell me how to eat. I know my diet is what has improved my health, but she's not listening to me. I resent people who treat me like I'm a moron.
I did, however, lose two pounds which was odd since I'm eating like a horse, and my temperature is lower than the last visit (96.6). I asked her about how these meds work as I'm assuming they are killing my own thyroid's function causing more hypothyroidism which then demands a higher drug dosage to compensate. She disagreed but only on my choice of vocabulary. They suppress the thyroid. She told me people who take thyroid and want to quit can be weaned slowly off it and the thyroid will bounce back. I am skeptical. The thyroid gland doesn't just bounce back or no one would need any medication. I asked about a dosage increase since I read most people need to take three times more drug than I am, and she suggested the dose should be raised to 60mg. in the morning. The goal eventually was to take one pill strong enough to carry me through the day. I smell a drug addiction coming on. I just want to see an improvement. She ordered labs.
Breakfast...Yum.
So, the next day I took a double thyroid dose (60 mg.) and within an hour I was so incredibly hungry AFTER eating a multiple-course, multiple-helping breakfast, I wanted to eat my furniture. All day I was climbing the walls feeling like I was starving. I laid in bed that night and decided this isn't right. I checked online. There are others who have reacted to thyroid in the same way. Feelings of excruciating starvation not due to hunger. Their health care providers also had no answers for them.
The following day, I stopped the drugs. It was the first time in four months I was not hungry after eating a meal, did not overeat, and did not feel like I was starving. Later that day, I felt no fatigue and it was the first time in four months I actually felt real hunger just before a meal. The next day I awoke to absolutely no depression and feeling really content and happy with everything.
Those damn drugs are poisoning me and messing with my brain.
Dessicated thyroid is real thyroid glandular from a pig, therefore, it has all the natural ratios of thyroid including T3 and T4. This natural balance is the reasoning behind taking it. Problem is it also comes with natural iodine, or iodide. Hmmm...I know people with Hashimoto's are supposed to stay away from iodine as it triggers immune attacks. Is this causing my reaction? Is this why I felt better at first and then slowly declined?
Kharrazian's book says taking thyroid medications unnecessarily will cause cells to develop a resistance to it creating pituitary hypofunction. The patient will feel fine at first, but then symptoms return. Hmmm....so the drug is killing off organs one by one? Kharrazian says your body's natural function will be permanently lost and dependency on medication will become lifelong. Great. That doesn't sound like anything will bounce back in fact quite the opposite. The whole thing is really frustrating and I get the impression most health-care providers fail to see the holistic side effects of any drug. Thyroid drugs are considered the easy answer, but everyone I know who takes them still suffers from fatigue which does not inspire confidence.
It's been a week and I actually feel much better without drugs than with them. I'm waiting for the thyroid lab results to see what has happened to my body while taking the drugs. I no longer think my low-level fatigue is related to just the thyroid, although I've been saying this for years. I was hoping this one piece of the puzzle would help a little. Not many people seem to know what to do with adrenal health problems. If I'm waking up every hour throughout the night with adrenaline rushes and hot flashes, it stands to reason I'd feel tired a lot. I read low cortisol incites the adrenaline rushes and this excessive cortisol will lower your blood sugar causing sugar cravings and digestive problems as well as muscle pain and weakness. I've known all along I should address the adrenal problems to support the thyroid and I've read if the adrenals aren't working properly, neither will any thyroid medication. Back to square one.
I'm currently trying to decide if I should go back to Nurse Lady or go to Gyno Doctor. The gynecologist has drug posters on the walls of her office and in the exam rooms. This indicates she will have little acceptance of chemical sensitivity, but she might know more about weird menopause symptoms than Nurse Lady. Also, her husband who shares the office with her is the only endocrinologist for miles. Still any treatments she will have will focus on chemical prescriptions and I already know I'm not very tolerant of drugs. What a game.
Health care sucks. It always feels like such a waste of money like I'm running in circles and getting nowhere. Just poorer.
It only took the doctor two weeks to fail miserably. I was just too excited and optimistic when I gave her that glowing review! Foolish me. She was supposed to contact the pharmacist and ask about using coconut flour as a filler for my thyroid prescription, vegetable capsules instead of gelatin, ask about adrenal glandular prescription options, ask about specially formulated B-12 sublingual drops, and let me know what she finds out. That was what she said she would do. I thought this might take a day or two.
I waited. Patiently.
It took her a week to tell me the pharmacist can use coconut flour for a filler. That's all she accomplished in a week.
Still, I waited. Patiently. And then she disappeared completely.
What about the adrenal glandular and the B-12 prescriptions? And do I need to provide the coconut flour to the pharmacy which is what I had to do for the last pharmacy? What about the different dosage we discussed? Different administration instructions? I wrote two emails asking the doctor if she asked the other questions or found out anything else. The first I sent to her personal email address. I waited a few days and sent the second email to her office. Both were ignored.
Since I was running out of medication and planning to be out of town, I started to stress. Medications make me stress anyway, but hanging by my neck in limbo makes it worse. Finally more than two weeks later, I gave up on the doctor and contacted the pharmacist myself, asked the questions, and ended up just getting a refill on my old medication using coconut flour filler instead of rice flour and vegetable capsules instead of gelatin capsules. I didn't realize I didn't need a new prescription for these minor changes. I kept the old dosage since I couldn't wait around forever for this woman to do her job.
Two days after I submitted the refill the doctor's office emails me to tell me my prescription was sent to the pharmacist. Really? WHAT FUCKING PRESCRIPTION? She didn't answer any of my questions nor did she give me any of the information she said she would check so exactly WHAT is she prescribing? I emailed the office to ask and the receptionist emailed me back with a smiley face...? That's it. What is that supposed to mean?
I called the pharmacist and asked her to ignore the second prescription from the idiotic doctor. Since she already started filling the first prescription, she was fine with that. The pharmacist was actually more helpful than the new doctor.
I really hate it that I have to pay money to incompetent people and then end up doing all the work myself. My new doctor failed miserably. She is fucking fired.
Actually, she's not a doctor. She's a nurse practitioner. What was I thinking?
This thyroid medication has some interesting and not so interesting side effects. First, biting bugs all of a sudden love me. I haven't had any bug bites for years and now it's every day. A few months ago I came across an article that explained it's hormones that mosquitoes et al. are attracted to which is why adults get bitten more than children. I always thought they were attracted to sugar. Bugs biting made berry picking this year a bit uncomfortable.
Second, I've been getting less adrenaline rushes and hot flashes at night. For a while I was getting them once an hour all night long, now it's down to two or three. Hooray! I'm not quite sure if it's connected to the higher levels of thyroid, but I think so and this is a good thing. My new and wonderful doctor is thinking I should take a pill in the late afternoon and see if it helps even more.
Third, I have found every few days the nausea starts creeping up and the headaches begin and it lasts all day until 5pm. As I mentioned before, I start getting tired around 5pm and I've been assuming this is when the drug wears off so this makes sense. It stands to reason my liver is not liking the drugs. Most holistic thyroid doctors recommend you do a liver cleanse before starting the medication to help it work efficiently. So every few days I drink a glass of freshly juiced beet juice. Blah.
Blah Juice
One way to get the beet juice down is to mix it with other fresh juices. I mix mine with a little apple juice, but the best recipe is to mix beet juice, carrot juice and apple juice. There was a raw food restaurant in San Francisco that included this drink on their menu and called it "Blood". Aptly named as it looks just like blood.
I'm also trying to eat more cilantro, another liver detox food, and drink lemon juice in water, a kidney cleanser.
Of course, nausea makes me want to revert back to by childhood comfort food: cereal and milk. It reminds me of getting the flu at my grandparents' house and my grandmother telling me cereal is what one should eat for breakfast after having the flu as it is easier to digest than eggs. I associate cereal and milk with love. Comfort food. Every time I eat it I think of her and those are good memories. I caved to temptation and bought gluten-free corn flakes, milk, and bananas, all three are NOT on my diet, but do I care? It seems to help with the nausea, or maybe it just tastes heavenly. Or maybe there is something else at work here....
So...I'm laying in bed thinking I'll probably have to be on these drugs for the rest of my life if I want to be able to function with any amount of energy, but do I really want to drink that much beet juice in my life? First, fresh juices are high in sugar and not on my diet, and second, beet juice is blah. Not gross, just blah. What can I do? There must be a simple, or, not so simple solution.
There is...WATER.
WATER??? What an epiphany! The best way to clean out your body and detox your organs is water. Everyone knows that so why have I refused to acknowledge this? I know I don't drink enough water. It's all I can do to get four cups down in a day, and believe me, I've tried. I've justified my lack of water with not everyone needs eight glasses of water a day, a comment I made eons ago when I wrote a blog post on water. Or maybe they do? If you are eating sugary, salty, junky or unhealthy foods, I'm sure you need lots of water to wash it all out. I failed to realize I might not be eating unhealthy foods, but I'm certainly ingesting weird substances in the name of health. Maybe I need to increase my water intake and see what happens? Can it be that easy? And if it is that easy, why has no doctor I've seen in the past ten years made this simple connection when I tell them I'm drug intolerant? They all ask me how much water I drink. Even that last naturopathic quack asked this, but made no comment. (She didn't really talk at all so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised.) Cereal and milk craving? Is it the milk adding to my hydration which is why it makes me feel better? Hmmm...
I love a good experiment! For the last two weeks I've been gulping down eight to ten glasses of water a day which is like drowning to me. I pour them all out in the morning so I can keep track and set goals. The first four glasses have to be gone by noon and it all needs to be done by 5pm. The first few days were not fun. The water retention was uncomfortable and I felt bloated and sluggish. The first few nights I was up and in the bathroom nearly every hour! What a pain! Literally! Driving anywhere for more than a half an hour and my bladder would feel like it was about to burst. But I persevered. Two weeks later and this improved a just a little so I have hope perhaps my body will continue to adjust. BUT the nausea and headaches went away immediately! Then by the second week, any time I did something strenuous or even got warm, sweat would drip from every pore. Profusely. Even my knees were sweating! This is a strange phenomenon as I've never perspired in my life! The nausea creeps in ever so slightly if I drink under eight glasses a day or with an empty stomach and I now start to crave water if I don't drink it. This is somewhat of a breakthrough for me.
It kind of makes me wonder if my life-long dehydration contributed to my chemical sensitivity? The premise, or so I've been told, is I don't detox fast enough or at all. If I've been constantly dehydrated, how could anything possibly be flushing out so that would make perfect sense. Why has no doctor ever made this kind of connection? That, however, is no excuse because I've always known humans are supposed to drink eight glasses of water a day. I am the person to blame. I am stubborn.
Today I (finally) received the "Universal Claim Form for a Compounded Medication" for the DHEA prescription for my pharmaceutical insurance claim. Had I received this form when I purchased the drug (which is when I should have received it), I would have been horrified. Maybe this is why is wasn't given to me? Unfortunately I didn't know to ask for it until later. Here is the recipe they used:
I thought I was receiving the first two ingredients and that's all.
What the hell?
What is it about me that makes people ignore what I'm saying? I was in the pharmacy no less than six times making sure I understood my filler options so they clearly understood what I wanted. At the last minute the pharmacist didn't fill this prescription because she knew I was so sensitive she should ask what kind of base would be best. I made it really clear only DHEA and gelatin should be in each tablet. So how in the hell did all those other ingredients get dumped into the prescription?
Stress due to lifestyle, mental or physical exhaustion, body inflammation, or disease contributes to an excessive production of cortisol which can not only deplete your reserves of cortisol, but also deplete your levels of DHEA. Low DHEA contributes to decreases in energy, fatigue, memory loss, libido loss, aching joints, bone density loss, muscle mass loss, lower immunity, and subsequent heart disease. Low cortisol and DHEA contributes to adrenal fatigue which affects thyroid function and thyroid function affects adrenal function.
I've done the Adrenal Stress Index test and the lab results confirm on a scale of 1 to 7, with one being the highest, my DHEA-cortisol correlation spectrum is at a 5, or "low reserves". Eliminating stress from your life allows the body to heal and DHEA reserves are able to increase back to normal. Unfortunately, I've done as much as I can figure out to eliminate inflammation and I have no idea how to reduce the adrenaline rushes I get with menopausal hot flashes other than hormone replacement drugs. I'm sure these oddities contribute to my low DHEA levels.
Dr. Kharazzian suggests taking DHEA to jump-start the adrenals prior to thyroid supplementation and since I'm constantly tired, I figured it couldn't hurt. He says don't take it for more than a month and other physicians have instructed no more than a 5 mg dosage. When requesting it from my new naturopath, I saw a micro-expression of surprise in her eyes and her body jumped a little. Considering she doesn't have much of a personality, I took this to be a show of horror. She very quietly said without much explanation she doesn't prescribe DHEA and it was not advisable. I have read overdosing on DHEA is common due to its accumulation in fat cells, but that's all I knew. Well, I also knew how sensitive I am to everything so the lowest dosage possible was my personal recommendation. I knew enough about the warnings to convince her I wasn't planning on abusing it so she changed her mind and prescribed exactly what I wanted: sublingual one mg. for one month.
The benefits of DHEA make it sound like some kind of miracle drug: energy, stamina and strength, increase in libido, weight loss, reduction in menopausal symptoms, increase in confidence and assertion, reverses bone loss, reverses asthma, reverses depression, and beneficial to those suffering from Crohn's Disease and lupus. According to all the propaganda, if you are going to take a drug, this sounds like the one to choose!
But what are the side effects of DHEA? Since I've now thrown all caution to the wind and have become a drug addict, I was curious what overdosing looks like. There are plenty of websites, articles, and comments online that list the side effects. Many warn others not to even start taking DHEA and some even claim it'll ruin your life. Side effects include:
hormonal imbalance
hair loss
blood pressure increase
liver damage
heart arrhythmia or palpitations
glaucoma
perspiration odor
acne
breast swelling
facial hair (women)
erectile dysfunction (men)
insomnia
restlessness
irritability
aggression
severe personality changes
It's also addictive. Don't stop taking DHEA cold turkey or you may experience withdrawal symptoms like back pain, moodiness, sleeplessness, fatigue, body pain, weakness, and hot flashes. Since all these symptoms sound like me without DHEA, I had high hopes taking it might alleviate some of my constant discomfort.
It looks as if Mr. Sahelian is promoting DHEA supplementation, but he also includes information from those who have taken DHEA and experienced the side effects. Many warn others never to start taking DHEA because the side effects don't always subside immediately after cessation and it may take months before feeling normal again. I think most of the issue is with high doses over 10 mg and taking it for long periods of time or more than a month. Some admit to taking it for up to a year which is a common prescription for those suffering from depression.
I received the sublingual form which goes under the tongue with directions to take it on an empty stomach. It is also important to wait to eat or drink anything for 30 minutes to an hour. Do not swallow at all until it's dissolved. However, if one must swallow due to a large accumulation of saliva, limit swallowing to once or twice. I always have lots of saliva so I knew this would be a problem. The tablets are large so the dissolving also creates liquid and because of this it's hard to keep them in place.
The first and second day I avoided swallowing and spit once the tablet was dissolved. The third day I thought about how much drug I might be wasting and wouldn't it be more effective if I swallowed the one time and whatever didn't dissolve under my tongue would then be digested? That's me overthinking ways to make this work, of course. That was a mistake. Five hours later I became sick to my stomach and it lasted all day. The tablets are sweet so I wasn't quite sure if it was a synthetic sweetener the pharmacist may have added to improve taste or the DHEA. Probably the DHEA. I also read for people who are digesting the pill form, to take them with high-fat food to alleviate any digestive problems. Granted, no matter what kind of drug, herb or supplement I try, the third or fourth day is when I start feeling the side effects. I've been told it's because my body doesn't detox and that's the overload or accumulation point.
So day four I felt very hopeful and I went back to dissolving under the tongue and no swallowing at all. I was convinced that this was the answer and if I could just keep taking the drugs, I would again, be on the road toward better health.
Nope. About five hours later the queasy sick feeling started again. It didn't seem to be as bad as the day before, but bad enough to make me want to curl up in bed and stay there for the rest of the day. On top of the constant fatigue, nausea is a real waste of time. I'm not sure what to do about being so susceptible to side effects as I've been liver cleansing all week which is where much anything would accumulate and I'm not sure if I'm not swallowing the DHEA, why does it affect my digestive system?
However, the purpose behind taking the DHEA was to jump-start the adrenals so the thyroid medication would be most effective. It's really all about the thyroid medication.
It's that time of the year where I get the courage to go to a new doctor and try something new for the fatigue, muscle weakness, muscle pain, and all-encompassing feeling of blah. The diet has helped a lot and I think that is the reason I'm rarely totally exhausted now, but it's not quite enough. I want to be able to function better and not feel so...blah...all the time.
I've been reading a lot on thyroid hormone prescriptions lately, but I'm definitely not an expert on this information. Here are the basics: There are two categories: natural and synthetic. The natural sources are dessicated thyroid or thyroid extract and the source is from porcine or bovine thyroid. Yep, real thyroid from pigs or cows. The brand names are Armour, Naturethroid, and Westhroid. Because they are from natural sources, they have natural levels of both T3 and T4 and seemed to be well-tolerated by many.
The other category is synthetic or derived from laboratory-produced chemicals. Levothyroxine is the most commonly used and well-tolerated by most. Brand names include Synthroid, Levoxyl, Liothyronine, and Levothroid. These are often just T3 as it is expected the patient will convert the T3 to T4, but based on my recent readings not everyone is capable of this conversion and some are even sensitive to T3 which can cause problems.
In the past I've tried Armour dessicated thyroid and various forms of levothryoxine. I've not tolerated any thyroid replacement hormone well. Armour made me nauseous for six straight weeks, sustained -released levothyroxine kept me away all night and made me nauseous all day long, and non-sustained-released levothyroxine made me so ill and in pain I almost took myself to the hospital. Through all the discomfort I continued hoping it would improve my energy level and fatigue, but nothing did. These prescriptions are very expensive so each failure is incredibly frustrating and financial discouraging.
According to Dr. Datis Kharazzian who saved my life with his dietary protocol and book Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms When My Lab Tests Are Normal, intolerance is often caused by the fillers used in these pills. I attempted to correct this by using compounded pharmaceuticals so I could control what goes into each pill. Still, adding something like a time-released feature takes an extra chemical and the pills must have some kind of filler. This came as a surprise to me. You can't just put the drug in the capsule without a filler? No. I'm learning.
Unfortunately I wasn't told this until after I received pills filled with Avicel, a filler that made me feel like I was painfully digesting shards of glass. I know it was the filler because I replace the sustained-released pill with this one and I assumed they would have the same ingredients minus the time-releasing chemical. Nope, someone thought they needed to add an unknown filler without consulting me first. When I called the pharmacy and asked why I was so sick, I found out I should have had a choice of fillers. You can't imagine how irritated I was to throw a $100 bottle of pills away. So...what is Avicel? Wood pulp. It sounds fairly harmless. Another pharmacist told me problems with Avicel are rare unless I have an allergy to pine. Well, there you have it. My whole family is allergic to pine so it stands to reason I would be as well. Also, I always hear about how rare side effects are and I can state with absolute certainty if there is a "rare" side effect of any kind, I will have it. I'm just that sensitive.
Recently I read not only should you watch for fillers, but prior to thyroid therapy, one needs to make sure their adrenals are working properly to allow the thyroid medication to be effective. I tried licorice root, but it didn't seem to make a difference. Astragalus, another herb, is also used for this but according to Dr. Kharazzian, if you are TH1 dominant, this will worsen an autoimmune condition. Based on information, I thought I was TH2 dominate which is common with chemically sensitive people. Astragalus made me crash with exhaustion.
DHEA is another method to support adrenal function. You can buy DHEA supplements over the counter, but they are often high dosages and filled with additives and fillers. My new doctor said she avoids prescribing DHEA because it stores to toxic levels very quickly. Dr. Kharazzian suggests sublingual DHEA as it is less likely to store as quickly and is more effective. He suggests not to ever take it for longer than four weeks. It's only to jump-start the adrenals and once you feel a difference, stop taking it or your adrenals will shut down and stop working on their own. I found this to be interesting since so many of my friends take it continuously as an adrenal booster. The sources for DHEA are synthetic (chemical), wild yam or soy. My new pharmacist says the company uses yam. Perfect. I don't want chemicals or soy.
In addition, it is advised to do a liver cleanse before starting these drugs and this will help avoid any side effects and assist in the effectiveness of the drug. There are many herbal remedies that will detox your liver, but I like avoiding drugs when possible especially since I react to so many. Instead I started drinking beet juice and eating beets.
The reluctant patient
My new naturopath doesn't seem to be very knowledgeable and as a friend recently said, that is the concern with naturopaths or any doctor: will they know more about my condition than I already do? Not usually. But I need them to be receptive to my requests and at least respectful to my knowledge. Even this is difficult as most doctors want to be put on a pedestal and worshipped for their expensive advice. They often treat patients as stupid subordinates who are expected to nod politely, not talk too much, and be very compliant. Too much power play which for me ends up to be a waste of money and a personality conflict. This new doctor, however, was receptive. I told her exactly what I wanted, but left it open to her advice. In the end her "plan" for me was to eat vegetables at every meal and at least one fruit a day. Really? Was she not listening to me when I went into great detail about my diet? I pretty much kindly, but assertively bullied her into some prescriptions. She also suggested astragalus tea and I decided to try it since it only cost $1.50, but it didn't go well. I know I don't do well with herbs. I should have known better.
She was hesitant about DHEA, but I think my own concerns about its toxicity and proper usage must have given her some confidence. She agreed to prescribe a very low dosage (1 mg), for a short time (30 days), sublingual form, just to jump-start the adrenals. I interrogated the pharmacist so much that when it came time to make the sublingual tablets she waited to ask me about which kind of filler to use. (THANK YOU!) My choice was gelatin (horse hooves) or ethyl alcohol. I started to laugh when she said ethyl alcohol. Really? After all the questions I asked about chemicals, fillers and toxicity why would anyone think I would choose ethyl alcohol? I'm so glad she gave me a choice. I'm not excited about gelatin, but it is gluten-free and might even strengthen my fingernails. She also said they add a flavor. Hmmm...nope. I don't want a flavor. She said she didn't know if DHEA would be bitter, but I decided to chance it. The tablets are weird:
Little squares of colorless, wiggly JELLO. Put one under your tongue on an empty stomach and no swallowing until it dissolves. I was surprised they tasted sweet so I wonder if someone added something to it or if the gelatin comes sweetened. This is the issue. They can add anything without your knowledge. I don't even want to think about what is in the over the counter form. Thirty sublingual tablets were $50.
I also received a prescription for dessicated (pig) thyroid (Thyroid USP) which is much like the old Armour Thyroid that was re-formulated a few years back. My previous experience with natural thyroid was the stuff loaded with unknown fillers which may have caused the nausea. I asked about the fillers in advance and they gave me a list of types (this is when I found out about Avicel being pine-based) and then off hand it was mentioned they could use rice flour. Rice flour!? Although the thought of raw flour stuck to my stomach like glue wasn't appealing, I know I can tolerate rice flour. I'd have to buy a bag of rice flour myself and bring it in. I'm not sure why they don't have their own supply. I forgot to ask if I could use coconut flour as rice isn't on my diet, and later I was told it would depend on the texture so I'll try that next.
I think the capsules are gelatin and I wasn't given a choice. This is another question I failed to ask and I've found only with experience does one know WHICH questions to ask. I'm learning. Previous pharmacies have used tiny capsules that are about the third of the size of normal ones, but I received normal size which seems to be an excessive amount of rice flour. There is often a vegetarian or vegetable capsule, but again, I wasn't offered a choice. I requested an extremely low dosage of thyroid (30 mg.) to avoid shocking my system and I'll work up to find a suitable level. The doctor called it into the pharmacy, unfortunately, as I really wanted to double check what they were doing before they did it. I didn't really want to pay for a 90 day supply in case after my normal four days they made me ill, but they were already formulated by the time I went in. Ninety capsules cost $95. OUCH. But this is how the compounding pharmacy works. If I only received, for instance, 14 capsules they would have cost me around $70 due to the effort it takes to create the pills individually by hand.
So...
First step: liver cleanse with beet juice
Second step: jump-start my adrenals with DHEA
Third step: thyroid replacement therapy
I am ready for another pharmaceutical adventure, or, hmmm, experiment. At this point I feel like I've done everything in my power to be successful. Wish me luck!
I've been abusing the NSAIDs. I do feel fortunately this is one drug I can tolerate at low levels. They sure help if one has a migraine or in my most recent case, a bum foot. Ibuprofen is my drug of choice, the generic rather than the more expensive and popular Advil.
In my youth I lived on ibuprofen taking massive quantities in place of the prescribed Motrin for carpal tunnel pain. I was also prescribed a drug called Tagamet to compensate for the stomach-eating side effects of ibuprofen. I can only imagine what this pain killer addiction did to my insides.
Now my strategy is to take ibuprofen only when absolutely necessary, in the middle of a very large meal, and then wash it down with a very large glass of water. This seems to work, but I still need to watch how much I take and for how long or I'll start feeling queasy.
One of the advantages of ibuprofen besides pain relief is it works as an anti-inflammatory. With any injury, it is imperative to get the inflammation and swelling under control in order for healing to begin. I started popping pills right away determined to heal quickly and survive this inconvenience.
Yesterday I made a nice breakfast of scrambled eggs which is a really good ibuprofen buffer due to the fat content. I chopped and diced the onions, peppers and garlic into colorful piles, whisked up the eggs, and set the table. I have a very methodical approach to food preparation. As the pan heated I removed one pill from its bottle and laid it on the counter. I try to take the pill in the middle of the meal and this reminds me not to forget. I scooped up and sautéed the chopped bits then added eggs.
What is that smell???? I look around to see if I left something near the burner. Maybe it's old food that was dribbled down in the burner pan, but I see nothing. It smells metallic, plastic. Toxic. Not a normal kitchen smell. Not finding anything suspicious I think nothing of it. It dissipated quickly. I serve the food and eat. Yum. Wonderful. When half of it's gone I get up to get the ibuprofen pill on the counter. It's not there. I distinctly remember getting it out of the bottle so I wouldn't forget to take it. I wonder if I'm having a senior moment. Am I old enough to have senior moments?
OH MY GOD! I scooped it up with the onions and sautéed it with the peppers! That plastic smell!
I searched the remainder of my breakfast for any large pill-like shapes. Nothing. Why didn't I taste it in the food? Why didn't the eggs crunch? The pill must have melted in the pan. I was a bit worry about the chemical reactions of heated ibuprofen, but found nothing online but overdose warnings. I threw away the rest of the food.
A half an hour later I felt incredibly queasy and nauseous. My stomach doesn't like sautéed NSAIDs.
I
believe our bodies are always in a state of healing, always moving toward
optimum health. This is what bodies do
naturally regardless of what we do to circumvent the process. I read every two
years we have a brand new body as it takes about that long to regenerate
everything. I'm fairly certain it is the belief of most doctors our bodies
aren't doing it fast enough so they need an extra push...with pills.
Pharmaceuticals or supplements, it doesn't matter. Most are chemicals. All are
drugs.
Yum! Yum! Why eat when we can take pills?
Americans
love convenience. Why do the hard work when you can just pop a
pill? I shouldn't even need to discuss the dangers of pharmaceuticals, but so
many people blindly take them without much thought to the small-print warnings
on the labels. All one needs to do is watch the news for another celebrity who
has died from a pharmaceutical overdose. Nearly all drugs have a history of
emergency room visits for overdosing, even the over-the-counter type you can
get without a prescription. Pharmaceuticals are chemicals. They will add to the
chemical overload your body is already experiencing.
Notes
on pharmaceuticals and chemical sensitivity: If one of your side effects is respiratory
dysfunction, the easy assumption most conventional doctors will make is it's asthma
and they will want to further poison you with inhalers. In addition to the
drug, most inhalers use a chemical propellant and for the MCS patient,
this will often make breathing more difficult and painful. Another common
prescription is anti-depressants. A well-known side effect of anti-depressants is
suicidal tendencies.Does that make
sense? The chemical overload is messing with our brain function. It doesn't
seem rational to me to add more chemicals that might make it all worse.
What
worries me more are the over-the-counter supplements that holistic doctors
prescribe and anyone can buy and take freely. And they do, usually without any
thought to how the particular supplement is manufactured, in what ratios and
dosages, and how it might affect the natural chemistry of the body. Doctors rarely
confess that many of the nutrients in the mix can negatively react with one
another. Maybe they don't know? Maybe they don't care?
For
instance, if you take too much vitamin C, it affects your body's ability to
absorb iron. How many people eat flavored, synthetic vitamin C like it's candy
and assume it's good for you? Synthetic vitamin E affects your ability to
utilize real vitamin E. Calcium not in proper ratios with magnesium affects the
absorption of both. The premise behind these issues is if you are giving your
body extra synthetic nutrients,it gets
lazy and starts using the synthetics instead of the natural ones, but it can't
utilize the synthetic ones as well.Then
the body shuts down its own absorption/utilization processes of natural
nutrients. I just recently read if you
are taking calcium you have a higher risk of heart attack. Detoxification
theories suggest taking all these extra synthetic supplements makes your body work twice as hard to get rid of the
excess when we should put our energy toward healing instead. These are just a
few examples of the bad chemistry of unnatural supplements.
What I want to know is how do manufacturers know the proper amounts and ratios for MY body specifically?
I can't be the same as everyone else on the planet, but this is the assumption.
Still, every doctor I've ever seen in my life wants to force a vitamin down my
throat and not one of them can tell me the side effects of taking these drugs.
They claim they are all safe. Hardly.
And
what about the additives and fillers used to make these pills? Magnesium
stearate, calcium stearate, silica, soy lecithin, cellulose, microcrystalline
cellulose, glycerin, gelatin. Isn't silica in ceramics? Synthetic forms of nutrients with industrial
strength fillers...it makes no sense. Eat some fresh fruit instead.
I
grew up working in health food stores so for years I was brainwashed into
believing because of modern agricultural processes, we MUST take supplements
because there are not enough nutrients in the soil to produce nutritious foods.
REALLY? If there weren't enough
nutrients in the soil, the plants wouldn't grow! It makes you wonder who
started that rumor and what were they trying to sell? Supplements, you think?
If you are eating a healthy diet of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables, you should be getting enough nutrients. Add some organically grass-fed, steroid-free fresh meats and you'll get more. If you aren't digesting the nutrients well, that is a whole other health issue you need to address, but as I started this post, our bodies WANT to heal themselves. Give them time, proper diets and health lifestyles, they will.
Herbs,
on the other hand, ARE drugs and have been used as drugs for centuries. Yet so
many people take herbal supplements everyday as if they are food stuffs with no
safety issues.After all, herbs are
available on the shelves for anyone to buy and the FDA hasn't restricted them
so they must be safe, right? We don't even need a prescription, just money. We
are far too trusting of the FDA to protect us from everything. Many herbal
drugs react with pharmaceuticals, too, so that has to be a common-sense warning.
I read once no one should take an herb for more than two weeks at a time, yet
manufacture advertisingpromotes eating Echinacea
non-stop during the winter to fight off colds. We need to stop being so naive
and instead start using our brains to protect ourselves instead relying on a
steady diet of pills.
MY
PERSONAL DRUG STASH:
Aside from my lofty opinions and soap-box lecture on the evils of pills, I do
understand when push comes to shove and a person is so miserable with illness
or pain they would do anything, drugs have their place. I have emergency relief
drugs I take only if absolutely necessary:
Benadryl This over-the-counter allergy medication seems to be the go-to drug to give to
anyone so I've always been against how easy it is
for everyone to trust taking it or giving to their kids. However, one day while
I was surfing the internet looking for clues I came across a woman's comment on
how she uses Benadryl when her brain swells and becomes inflamed due to a bad exposure.Whoa! She went on to explain
about the severe mood swings and neck pain, basically describing those scary
ultradian cycles I have experienced. This to me was a lifesaver, literally. So
my next bad exposure I tried it. It worked! Benadryl is an anti-histamine and controls
swelling. It also makes my ears
ring, is dehydrating, and knocks me out for hours so I can only take it at
night.
IbuprofenMigraines are a bitch. I can tolerate one for
about 24 hours before I realize it's affecting my ability to function and then
I give up. I take only one which only reduces the pain slightly, enough so I
can get out of bed. I know what this drug can do to a person's liver so I avoid
partaking as much as possible and only when desperate.
Dr. Shulze's Intestinal
Formula #1 Dr. Shulze is into herbal dextoxification
programs and through his website www.herbdoc.com and mail catalog he is
willing to sell you any remedy for any bodily affliction. He's a wheeler and
dealer, too, like an old-fashioned snake oil salesman. I
love listening to him. He believes if you keep your colon clean, then your
other detox organs (liver, gall bladder, bladder, skin) can clean your body
properly and efficiently. His theories make a lot of sense. I have done his intestinal
cleansing program and it works fine. I wouldn't make a habit out of it as I
think one needs to eat right to properly motivate the intestines, but in an
emergency situation, I use this formula to expedite the process. Any time I
have a bad exposure whether it's toxic air or something I ate, this is my first
line of defense: get it out of my body. Whoosh! He used to give out a free tape recording of
his philosophy one could order off his website. It's hilarious!
In
my part of the country we suffer from solar deficiency so I'm buying into the
fact I don't get enough sunshine on my face. My labs are showing low levels of
Vitamin D so lately I've been testing Vitamin D to see if it makes any
difference. I'm not having any side effects, which is rare with a supplement,
so we'll see what happens. Regardless, it's a temporary test. It would take a
heck of a lot of misery for me to take a pill every day for any reason and I'm
not there yet. (Update: Even if I use Vitamin D as a moisturizer my neck and spine start hurting. I think it's the glycerin, but I don't see how lanolin is good for anyone to eat and it's the source for this natural Vitamin D supplement. I also read Vitamin D can cause kidney stones which is not a selling point. I've been eating lots of eggs and getting out in the sun as often as possible and my labs have improved.)
Do
you take anything that helps alleviate your chemical sensitivity?
Do
the supplements you take really help or are they contributing to the load?
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