Get The RIGHT Diagnosis!

Interesting observation with a patient…

We use a device in our office much like the hospital, called a tuffsat pulse oximeter.  It reads two measures of oxygen…availability and delivery.  Oxygen concentration…as I say…are the boxes on the truck…which can be affected by asthma, anemia, COPD, etc.  Oxygen perfusion…as I say…are the trucks on the street…which is affected by adrenaline, noradrenaline, cAMP…these are all stress factors.

This patient arrives with an oxygen perfusion at 20% of the lowest level of normal.  Actual numbers…1-3 is normal…she measured at 0.18.  I even put it on my finger to see if it was working properly…yup, shot right up to 2 something.

My first goal with everyone is to reduce physiological stressors…the stuff going on inside the body…inflammation, hormones, etc.  Often, when patients come in low, after we treat them, the numbers are fine.  In her case, it still measured at 0.18.

Now, I could question my treatment…and I do.  I double checked some reflexes…retested the weak muscles…all were strong.  Next, I mentioned that these numbers were affected by stress factors, and asked if there was anything going on in her life.  She paused, thought, and replied a fairly certain no.

I went on to tell her of my years of practice, under the guidance of therapist Gary Rollins, of noticing the negative.  I told her how we instinctively, and perhaps through some learned behaviors, look away from yucky things…our yucky things.  This doesn’t apply to our love of watching others pain!

If you smash your thumb with a hammer, your first instinct is to look away.  You don’t want to see the blood…your blood.  But, realizing that ignoring it will be more painful than dealing with it, you look back, clean it up, and bandage the wounds.

I went on that life is just like that.  We instinctively look away from our wounds…which, in the emotional realm I call triggers.  In simple terms, triggers are upsets.  I told her about several things that triggered me, from Amory breaking the parking lot rules, to Sonya not taking care of herself the way she “should” in my opinion.

I explained that it was pretty obvious when my 2 year old was missing…I clamped down on the parking lot rule.  The issue with Sonya more followed the look away rule.  I didn’t see my upset building…or rather I turned away…because I didn’t know what to do about it.  And the end result was a blow up type argument that could have so easily been prevented.

The point…it will keep slapping you in the face until you acknowledge it…as we say to the twins at teeth brushing time…you will do this…the easy way…or the hard way.

After this short explanation, I gave her a moment to reconsider…and now, after enjoying my pain (I gave 5 or 6 examples)…she found something irritating.  And she got in to it…telling me how irritating and why irritating…and all the details of what was irritating.

And you know what…even as she described her “trigger,” her oxygen perfusion went up.  Sure enough…just talking about the irritation brought her up to 0.3.  Yes, that’s only a third alive, but much better than one fifth.

Then we examined the charge.  Her stress originally was in the large intestine meridian, which, when you expand your understanding beyond western medicine and pooping…means criticism.  We tapped on the criticism she felt in this irritation…the real reason it was irritating…and, sure enough…she nearly came back to life (up to nearly 1.0).

The wonderful thing for me…as I see this all the time…and with past approaches have been less than successful in helping people achieve calm (and sometimes lead to increased “triggering” and yelling at me!!)…was that she was able to do just what I am here to do for people…notice…calm…and heal.

In this case, it was merely the noticing how personal she was taking it.  Sometimes you have to hold a boundary…face a conflict.  She just had to laugh at herself.  And she did.  More nourished than when I greeted her!    And that translates perfectly into healing…

PS. She has already been featured in our amazing healing videos, and plans on an even more amazing video…!

With all the options to struggle in this world, I think this might be one of the most miserable.  Imagine an allergy to happiness.  You have a wonderful day, and the result is something like the flu.  You receive an award from work and your body feels sick.  I wish this were just a joke, but there is such a condition!

Your body’s immune system can make antibodies to serotonin, which most people have heard of from drugs like Prozac.  Serotonin is like an internal birthday party.  It is the feel good, happy chemical in our brain.

If your body mounts an attack against serotonin, every happy moment is followed by inflammation.  What a kick in the pants that is!!

Researchers have found a “high prevalence of Serotonin antibodies” in patients with fibromyalgia.

Think about this for yourself.  Do you feel awful when trying to accomplish something?  That could be serotonin antibodies.  If you have a good day…are you consistently punished with a bad day?  That could be serotonin antibodies.

I have a patient you have heard about…she shared something very interesting with us in this post (LinK)

Yes, she is doing much better, but she is still on a very restricted diet to maintain her improvement.  And I mean strict…she can eat any protein, about 3 veggies, and most nuts and seeds.  Any fruit and she starts losing hair…any bread and the hair falls out…anything off this crazy diet, and she gets a kick in the pants.

If you look at the diet, you might assume she is sugar sensitive.  And she gets a serious butt whoopin’ if she were crazy enough to actually eat sugar.  But many things happen when we eat carbs…in fact, the reason for sugar addictions and some cravings is the surge of serotonin from sweets.  Most people love the feelings they get with sweet treats.  Serotonin feels incredible (the birthday party feeling!)… unless your immune system attacks your happiness like a bad virus!

This is actually a new revelation for me.  I just put this piece of the puzzle together recently.  And in doing so, we are responding to the reaction by soothing her immune system. (which can only be done with natural medicine.)  As wonderful as the hair staying in her head has been (along with better energy, mood, etc.), she has since reported that she was able to eat half an apple without a reaction!

I have a new appreciation for the struggle this person has endured.  Allergic to happy!?!  Trying to explain her extreme diet to friends and family!  She felt the reactions…and nobody understood.  Now, she has validated her experience even more…she’s not crazy, and she can tell you why!

What a wonderful and interesting passion I have chosen!

Yours in Health,

Dr. Todd Stone

PS.  We are extending our special invitation to experience our process through March…at 45 for the initial exam (normally 195), and 85 for our full system lab testing (normally 170)!  Learn why you feel lousy, and create a plan to feel incredible again…using safe, natural methods, and scientific lab testing to guide the process.  Call right away to reserve your slot!

PSS.  For the science minded folks…and for those who just wonder “how the heck can your body become allergic to happy?” …Autoimmune conditions have increased 500% in the past 20 years (and this is diagnosed, so the number is probably much higher).  There are growing numbers of stressors to our immune system, including stress, but more so our overuse of antibiotics resulting in damaged immune systems and super-bugs, chemical manufacturing and genetic modification of our foods…plastics…chemicals for pests of many sorts (herbicides, pesticides), chemicals in our water supply, added purposely and incidentally, chemicals in our hair and skin products…you get the idea.

In our “allergic to happy” patient, she had lived with an intestinal infection for who knows how long.  She thought she had figured out her troubles when she realized she had yeast problems.  By the time she saw me, she had resolved the yeast problem (no yeast on testing but significantly high antibodies to yeast, so she was right, and successful, but the damage had been done).  Throw all that into the mix of a toxic environment which we are all challenged with…and you have the recipe for allergic to happy…or allergic to energy (thyroid antibodies)…or all the other allergic to myself diseases…MS, Fibromyalgia, Crohns/Ulcerative colitis, psoriasis, pernicious and hemolytic anemia, Parkinsons, type 1 diabetes, ITP, etc., etc.

There are a growing number of names of suffering labeled as autoimmune, but not a single advancement in the treatment of autoimmune diseases.  Chemicals (pharmaceuticals) simply cannot treat this kind of condition as they are part of the problem.  But rest assured, we do have answers…there is research validation…there are case studies, including many of my own patients…of overcoming this destructive and frustrating process!

Stress that is…!

How it will get you will depend on your parents.  Stress accumulation through a lifetime triggers your weaknesses found in genetic coding.  We all have them…weaknesses…and parents for that matter.  So what do you do when they grab your attention through severe and disabling symptoms?  (Your weaknesses, not your parents)

Respond to them!  Nature provides support for all our genetic weaknesses…if you know how to listen and respond with nature’s medicine!  The following is a perfect example of how stress overwhelm causes DIS-STRESS in the form of symptoms…symptoms affecting your “weakest link” and how you can respond to your Distress signals (symptoms) through natures medicine.

Rhonda had heart palpitations that were driving her crazy (and scaring the heck out of her)!  Her family history revealed that her parents had heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and mom had 2 strokes.  So surely her stress overwhelm would cause symptoms related to her blood pumper.

Of course, she went to her doctor and a cardiologist to get checked.  (Natural is the alternative as I often point out!)  The doctors spent six million tax dollars (medicare) on testing to inform her that she is fine.  DR: “Nothing is wrong with you.”  Rhonda:  “But why is this happening?”  DR:  It’s probably stress…would you like to try an antidepressant?”  (The six million was a joke, but this is sadly true).

Step 2:  Consult with the supplement store owner.  Result:  Progesterone cream.  The supplement store owner, in fact, improved Rhonda’s life more than the six million dollar doctors.  She felt better!

But, as is the case when you don’t hit the top priority, it doesn’t fully resolve, and it comes back.  Still, not bad for NO diagnostics (versus the six million)…to hit at least a top five priority and help her feel better!

The symptoms came back, and felt overwhelming…almost disabling!

When we finally got to serious diagnostics…she had overdosed on progesterone.  That complicated things a bit, but we dug deeper for a priority.  Without any diagnostics other than a pulse oximeter, we found low oxygen, which Is often caused by high adrenaline.  Well, that would cause heart palpitations, but why was her adrenaline pumping out so much?  Gotta keep asking why!!

We put her on the miracles of nature called Skullcap and Gingko.  These plants help your body to decrease adrenaline and histamine (allergies), and improve circulation.  In fact, there is a study published in the National Library of Medicine comparing Skullcap to the top selling OTC drug in the US for allergies…and kicked the drugs butt.

More tests come back…we find an immune reaction to gluten (wheat).  We provide an enzyme that gobbles up the inflammation associated with Intestinal gluten reactions, along with Vitamin D, which acts much like an adaptogen for the immune system.  That means it helps the immune system respond to whatever stress is occurring.  Like all things, Vitamin D only works when you need it though (she did).

Then we added a Black Radish supplement.  This works to clear the intestines of the effects of an immune battle…pus, dead cells…that sort of gunk.  (Come on…is that not cool to cure a problem with a radish!?)

Next up is a plant called Shepherds purse.  This plant changes the pituitary gland hormones to “request” more progesterone production (no hormones required, plants make it happen!)  And, it will not overdose her…it will produce normal amounts.

On her last visit, about four months after starting care, she reported just a couple episodes of heart palpitations (no instant cures here, it’s a process of creating balance, but each week and each month will feel better if we are on target, hitting top priorities).

Unfortunately, there are side effects to natural medicine.  She was diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the left knee about 10 years ago.  This incurable condition often results in knee replacement, and the pain worsens over time.  It had caused her to be verrrry careful…the pain was in fact worsening (those doctors sure are smart)…  The side effect she noticed…. was almost NO pain in that incurable osteoarthritic knee (one short flash of pain since last visit).

I don’t do genetic testing…in fact, I only test for things that we can change and improve.  To date, I have not found a way to improve your parents, but, I have found ways…natural ways…to support the weaknesses that we all have from imperfect parents that we all have (and are)!

As a generalist medical specialist (think about that one for a moment), I think in terms of whole system, so I picked my three top recommendations for each of what is called the “triad of health.”  That includes our minds and stress (which we might call mental or emotional), our physical self, and the chemical goings on inside of us.

Now, here’s some solid advice for everyone…

Chemical:

ONE: To pick one top thing, of all the possibilities…wow…there are so many possibilities.  I will have to go with fish oils!  For vegans, use flax plus a DHA from algae.  When I started fish oils several years ago, I was taking 10 caps per day, and in under a year, my mental recall was amazing!!  Fish oils have been the subject of research in BiPolar Disorder, and beat every drug available in side by side tests.  They support immune function, inflammation, ALL hormones but most studied with insulin.  And, they are the reason (at least in part) for my being the “smarty pants” that I am (in my field…complete idiot in many others)!

TWO: Greens First.  It is my multivitamin.  It is my chosen greens drink after tasting (and gagging on) dozens of greens drinks.  It is the only supplement I have noticed a “feeling” difference with on an immediate basis.  Any and all supplements I take because I believe that they are meeting my needs.  But, the only one I ever took and felt an immediate boost of energy was the Greens First.

THREE:  Manage stress chemicals…adrenaline, cortisol, noradrenaline, cAMP (overstimulation), and dopamine (overwhelm)…with natures stress protectors.  I’m certainly not too proud to say that stress is getting to me…and I don’t let it get too far.  I have treated acute heartburn/reflux…and a pretty bad case, with passion flower.  I have treated dry goopy eyes with lemon balm.  I used a blend of 6 adaptogens preventively when we had twins.  (It wasn’t very stressful at all, but I was ready).  I routinely use Reishi or a blend of mushrooms when stress beats up my immune system.  Join me in admitting that stress is part of your life, and soothe it appropriately.  Or, if you don’t want to admit stress, use them for improving endurance and recovery!

PLEASE NOTE:  First is ALWAYS eating lots of colors, lots of veggies, and adequate protein.  I am assuming that this is being assumed…no supplement will work on top of a poor diet.

Physical:

ONE:  “Baby Patterns”  This is a series of exercises I modified from Paul Chek’s primal patterns.  These are simple, full body movements that use the large muscle patterns learned as a baby.  Using them, I stay in pretty good shape with minutes of exercise a week!  They can be modified for any fitness level, from super easy to very challenging.  They can be done at work (so quick you don’t sweat), or anywhere you have a few feet of floor, a wall, or chair. I have a one page summary that I am happy to share if you email a request.

TWO: FUN!  My “other” exercise is playing with my kids.  They ride on my back, I toss them around, chase them…we have fun!  And this is where I work up my “sweat” these days versus pounding the pavement, road work, or the painstaking repetition of “cardio machines.”  Play so hard you sweat…and if you don’t have kids, or they are grown, play something else that is fun.  Plus, have you ever seen a playful person look “old” or unhealthy…have you ever seen an “old” person who was playful?!

THREE: Yoga!  I am a novice at yoga, at best, but I have one simple program that takes about 5 minutes using basic yoga movements.  If you love it, certainly go for more.  Yoga gently stretches your body, includes some body weight resistance work, and is perhaps the only time of day I calm my mind!  Great for focus, flexibility, even strength!  And calming!!

Mental:

ONE: Make at least 80% of your actions (your to-do list), things you want to do…that make you feel good, happy, satisfied, pleased, passionate, etc.  I call this “self responsibility.” You will exhaust yourself, and be limited from that exhaustion to serve yourself and others, if you continuously have a to do list of should, need to’s and painful obligations.  AND, don’t beat yourself up because you spend too much time in “obligation” right now…it is a process to learn to serve yourself AND others.  Being kind and giving to yourself is part of meeting your needs…pick the one (most painful) thing…and get rid of it.

TWO: As I say in my book… “If it’s worth feeling, it’s worth saying!”  The art of expressing your feelings, needs, and desires without blaming and inciting defensiveness is a worthy endeavor.  It’s a work in progress for me, but the value of getting good at this is immeasurable! I recommend a book called “Non-Violent Communication.”  The summary is this…you can have your cake and eat it too!  You can get the basics from their website, more from their book, and even more from local trainers in NVC (no referral here, just keep an eye out).

THREE:  Boundaries!  And being nice in forming them!  It is stressful to allow others to cross your boundaries, and both you and the crosser suffer (maybe some passive aggressive attitude!?), so don’t do it!  The trick is to notice and pay attention to when you are resenting what you are doing or allowing someone else to do.  You will also notice that you are exhausted, as there is no work more tiring than letting people step on your boundaries.  Non-Violent Communication is a great step by step system for kindly asking for what you want…particularly needed for us conflict avoiders!

And for the number one health tip, to make an even 10 total:  Ignorant curiosity!  While I am no master of ignorant curiosity…and it is not something we are taught very well (the message in this culture is “don’t be stupid!”), this may remove more stress from your life than anything I can offer!  I practice ignorant curiosity in my clinic pretty well.  It has vastly improved my skills and results.  The opposite of ignorant curiosity is absolute certainty.  Many of my patients are told that they are wrong that they feel unwell, or it’s in their head…because their doctor is certain that this one lab test is normal.  Ignorant curiosity might say, hmmm… “that doesn’t explain your symptom, let’s keep looking.”  Ignorant curiosity might even cause you to learn something you don’t know…which is completely impossible from a perspective of “knowing.”

Ignorant curiosity also eases the pressure of expectations.  How stressful is it to know that something should turn out in one way, and it doesn’t?  Ignorant curiosity wonders, almost playfully, what the outcome might be.

I highly recommend beating the drum of ignorant curiosity as often as possible.  Our central nervous system learns whatever we practice.  The saying should be… “Fake it until you learn it.”

That’s my best (general) advice after 40 years of life.  Love to hear what you think.  AND, I would love to hear your advice…what you have learned in your life…that could benefit others.  I just might learn something if you choose to share!

Best,

Dr. Stone

Raven came in with a number of problems.  The first priority was her thyroid.  She had thyroid problems for 35 years, and her symptoms included hair loss, intestinal bloating, constipation, low body temperature, insomnia, and daily exhaustion.   And this was just her first issue!  You really have to see (or experience it!) this misery first hand to really understand it.  Imagine never being able to sleep for more than a few hours WHILE feeling completely exhausted.  Your body is always cold, nothing you eat digests well and your belly is always bloated from whatever you eat…then your hair starts falling out to top it all off.  Then you go to your doctor for help, and he gives you the magic pill for thyroid problems…you don’t feel any better (in fact, I’ve seen many that it makes worse)…but your doctor is out of options.  There is no other treatment for thyroid problems!  (Until now)

She also had chronic pain for the past 15 years.  This is very common with autoimmune type thyroid conditions, because it is inflammatory, and of course, inflammation amplifies pain.  She had been in a car accident, and now had headaches, neck pain, both arms were numb.  And this wasn’t a sore neck you pop an advil for…advil or not, it was there with her every morning…day after day for 15 years.

She wasn’t a quitter though…she had been to so many doctors, chiropractors, physical therapists, alternative practitioners.  And she was still battling to find that answer when she met me.  The typical physical treatments she had with chiropractors and physical therapists does not combat inflammation, does not get to the source of the problem, and as she relates, sometimes made her pain worse.

Somehow, she knew there was an answer to be found somewhere out there.

Just to fill in the whole picture, she also suffered from severe brain fog, weight gain, sensitivity to sunlight, blurry vision, allergies, sharp pains in her hip and knee, and feet pain.  Can you get an idea of the misery her life has been!?!

So what do we do different for someone who has been “everywhere” and tried “everything?”

Full system analysis.  Nothing can get well if the immune system is off…inflammation trumps everything else.  Start at the top and work down.  If we meet her greatest need, which is what I call the “right diagnosis,”  her health and life will begin to change for the better.

Everyone she had been to was a specialist of some sort.  Specialist in thyroid, specialist in bones and joints, muscles…none of them evaluated or addressed the immune system.

The immune system uses oxidation to defend…so oxygen was Raven’s first step.  We used a supplement with Gingko in it, along with Reishi to rebuild the immune system.  We took her off dairy, gluten, and MSG (which is found in sooo many foods).  We used a transdermal glutathione cream to rub right over her thyroid to decrease inflammation and balance her immune system.  We detoxified her lymphatic system with powdered vitamin c, and her liver with a pretty standard liver formula.  We added some B6 to help detox estrogens.  We had her brew up some ginger tea and drink that for a week.

We reset her muscles and chronic injuries, and used a simple exercise for the discs in her neck.

We added fish oils at a pretty high dose to work on inflammation.  We added selenium which is critical for thyroid function and immune function.  Then passion flower to slow down her body (a very soothing plant that actually changes adrenaline levels).  Then an adrenal exhaustion formula plus a couple bottles of magnesium to soothe her tight muscles.

Nothing too earth shattering, is it?  The key is the timing of it all.  First things first, and next things next.  And, every visit we used acupressure to balance her energetic systems.  (Even Mayo Clinic is now using acupuncture and acupressure for pain!)

The results are fairly earth shattering however.  Her energy is up 75%, and her pain is nearly resolved, the only bad days being when some MSG slips into her diet.  (It’s challenging to avoid as I mentioned!)  Now, when she takes her thyroid medication, she gets a headache…so of course she is listening and dropped it completely.  And that is what I would expect…if you take drugs when you are healthy, it makes you feel bad…and that is what she experienced.  She is sleeping again, which allows her body to heal.  It also means her body is no longer in survival mode…we have met her needs!

Listen to Raven as she describes the changes she has experienced…!!

This classic parenting comment is called invalidation.  “Your sadness or upset is not appropriate,” it says to the little one.  Meanwhile, the child feels certain their upset is very real, and very important!

What does this have to do with you and your health?  I see it every day.  Grown adults being told their symptoms are not real…that there is “nothing wrong.”

Your doctor is “Dad.”  You are the child…Dad reports that your upsets (symptoms) are not valid.  “Look at this test… I can prove your symptoms are not real.  You are supposed to be feeling just fine.”

It has the same authoritarian feel too!  Does it feel like two adults talking about solving a problem?  No!  There is one “superior being” invalidating another person’s experience.  Meanwhile, you are certain your symptoms are very real, and very important!

Here’s the good news…you are an adult.  You can choose a different “Dad.”  Maybe you choose someone who is not a dad at all, but an equal human who will get involved in solving a problem with you and for you.

Not to make light of the pain of your experience, but I find it hilarious that people come to me after “experts” find nothing wrong with them…and I easily find sooo many things wrong with them.  So many things that are easily measured and evaluated.  But not measured if you are evaluating “by the book.”  (What insurance protocols allow)

Maybe ridiculous is a better word than hilarious!

How about an actual example…I had a patient recently suffering with IBS symptoms, chronic headaches, and severe fatigue.  Full medical work up (15 years worth!) revealed nothing wrong.  Let’s look at the list of measurable and verifiable “wrongs” we came up with…

Thyroid problems…they never checked because she was an “IBS” patient and not a thyroid patient.  And it was the basic thyroid problem that they would have picked up on, but GI specialists don’t check for endocrine problems.  It would take another 3 month wait to another specialist to check that box on a lab test.

Intestinal parasites.  Yes, the GI specialist missed checking for intestinal parasites in a GI patient.  Hmmm?

Very low cortisol production from the adrenal glands.  Cortisol is one of the stress hormones, but it functions in healthy people to balance blood sugar (chronic fatigue and headaches??), and has a powerful effect on regulating Intestinal motility (yes, that’s moving the bowels).

High adrenaline.  Think about the adrenaline rush of a close call or “almost” accident.  If you had to go to the bathroom prior to the close call, it either goes away altogether (constipation) or you soil yourself right there in the car (urgency).  That is IBS by definition!!

Those were the biggies.  And there were several more imbalances we noted.  I got a kick out of her reaction to the parasites…she was relieved, almost excited, almost happy!!  Was she thrilled to have a parasite?  No…she was thrilled to finally, after 15 years (next stop was the psychiatrist…seriously), BE VALIDATED!  It was real…it was important.  She could PROVE it!

If you have a symptom…and I mean ONE little symptom…that is your body trying to tell you something…something important!  DO NOT let anybody tell you it is nonsense.  If someone tells you there is nothing wrong, and you CLEARLY feel something wrong…there IS something wrong, and you need someone who will listen to that message(symptom)…listen to you…be willing to dig deeper and ask MORE questions and test MORE systems and organs!

IF you ever want to feel validated!  And…if you ever want to put this health problem behind you!

A while back, I asked for responses to:  What are your emotional needs?

It was very interesting to hear back from so many people.  I have the results listed below (I put similar answers in the same category):

1T. To be needed, appreciated, valued  16%
1T. To be loved, cared for, desired:  16%
3. To be heard, respected:  11%
4T. To feel safe, secure  9%
4T. Bonding, touching, affection  9%
6. To give love  7%
7. Acceptance  7%
8. To be understood  4%
9. To feel connected to people  4%
10. Honesty, Trust, open communication  4%

And then with one vote each:  Process loss, grief….peace and solitude….Support, encouragement…. Passion…and, there are no emotional needs, only wants.

I’d say this is a pretty good list, although I will put in my vote and suggest Growth, which I might describe as an improving ability to be authentic in the good times and bad.  My opinion is that passion was under-represented…but it is difficult to feel and give passion if you don’t feel appreciated, understood, safe, cared for, etc.

The Five Element Chinese philosophy would say our needs are:

1. Structure and Security
2. Acceptance and Inclusion
3. Nurturing and Support
4. Validation and Value
5. Reassurance and Responsiveness

Structure is what we teach our kids.  Boundaries.  Adults have boundaries too!  When you find yourself stepping on your boundaries, (or someone else is), it is stressful and exhausting.  People lacking structure tend to have issues with thyroid and reproductive hormones…and without solid structure, find themselves being frustrated with their progress.  Good boundaries and structure are a must for good health.

Acceptance is feeling part of a whole.  Children who are left or abandoned have trouble with allergies and body pain, and giving and receiving love.  To feel included in something bigger than yourself is a human need.  (And this is where passion is birthed…as you feel wanted, needed, and desired…you feel safe to share your passions, which are, of course, not all sexual)

Nurturing is momma energy.  Children whose mother was less than nurturing tend to have problems with energy (our internal harvest) and issues with giving and receiving support, either through not asking or pushing people away.  Support is a must for good health.

Validation is being ok.  This is a Dad energy, and people who had an absent father often struggle with self criticism, and autoimmune problems (talk about picking on yourself.  Being ok with who you are and really experiencing your value are basic human needs.

Reassurance leads to knowing you can “do it.”  The child whose fears are invalidated rather than reassured tends to have blood sugar problems and problems taking action when things are tough.  Being able to respond to our lives is a growth process, and a must for good health.

Surely there is no way to know with such clarity and certainty as our need for oxygen, water, and food.  But, we might get clues…when you feel nourished emotionally…energized…you are probably hitting on a need.  And, as the one person suggested, we can certainly get confused with wants…I might want a giant bowl of ice cream…and it is food…but do I feel energized and nourished after??

These are also all considerations when I take on a client to create good health.  I validate their problems…I nurture them/care for them (thanks to my dad being absent I have a strong feminine energy…oops did I say that aloud!?).  I give them structure, and make sure they can do it (reassurance), and try to let them know that I am also just a bumbling person (with a useful gift), trying to make my way in life…using the wisdom of the five elements.  And we laugh at how silly we both are…it’s kinda fun!

PS.  More votes and comments below!!

I have looked over hundreds of the worst possible health conditions.  You name it, these were people suffering and really freaked out.  I might say hopeless, but there was still a glimmer and a fight, or they wouldn’t have crossed my path.

What is the “common denominator” in seriously crappy health?

Diminished production of ATP…OK, more straight forward…your energy sucks.

ATP is cellular energy.  You are just a bunch of cells…when those cells can’t make energy, you suffer…you suffer whatever grandma or grandpa had.  That’s the genetic effect.

But, if you don’t have a problem making energy…you “miss out” on the lousy diseases your family endures.

Ok, so without further delay…the 3 ways to eliminate becoming your grandma or grandpa.

1. Blood sugar regulation:  Nothing screws up energy production more than your blood sugar swinging up…then down…then up…   In fact, when we study people over 100 years old, the ONE factor that was consistent in these folks…still showing energy at 100…was tightly regulated blood sugar.  And, these people are active participants in life…one lady still looking good and writing for her paper at 103.  Another still playing rounds of golf with his great grand kids at 104.  Our expectations for longevity are severely limited because we don’t follow these three simple rules!
2. CRP:  This is a marker for inflammation, and per research, can simply be lowered by B vitamins, fish oils, magnesium, and zinc.  If you aren’t willing to take such a simple test, and take such simple precautions, you have undeniably EARNED your future…which, with a high CRP includes dementia, pain, cancer, heart disease and diabetes.  Wow, what a lovely thought.
3. Homocysteine:  Another blood marker for inflammation.  Another simple solution…also treated by B Vitamins.  This is like anemia…if you walk around anemic, and low energy because you lack the basic ability to provide oxygen to your cells…you are nutrient deficient.  Nutrient deficiency causes the same cellular damage as radiation overdose…proven via research by Ames, UCal Berkley…look it up.  SIMPLE WAYS TO ELIMINATE ENERGY DEPLETION!!

I know that most doctors don’t talk this way, or about these things.  So, your defense is ignorance…up until now.  Now that you know, whatchu gonna do bout it!?

Now, go take charge of your health!

Best,

DrStone

was recently preparing for a lecture, and came across an oldie, but goodie…research study.

I wondered how many people even know this bit of information, that has the potential to turn our belief systems about a certain, and very common, disease upside down.

The study was published in 1984, and changed the way natural medicine was practiced.  Of course, it didn’t make the slightest impact in the protocols of pharmaceutical medicine.  (by the way, I think I will refer to the two fields as natural medicine and pharmaceutical medicine…that sounds more accurate and descriptive, and…if you know the name of my book, you know who I think is “alternative.”)

Now, I know that the discussion of “research” might not get you too excited.  But, listen up…if you haven’t heard this one…it’s pretty cool, and truly might make you wonder what the heck pharmaceutical medicine is doing with this all too common disease.

So what is this all about?

The study was from the American Diabetes Association’s medical journal, entitled, simply…Diabetes.  Or “The Diabetes Journal.”

In this study, the researchers partially destroyed the pancreases of a group of rats.  (sorry to the animal lovers…I like the results, not the methods), causing a metabolic state similar to type 1 diabetes in humans.  Talk to any insulin dependent diabetic, Type 1 or 2, and get a feel for the misery they endure if you don’t know what that is like.

They then split the group into 2, and treated one group with niacinamide, and the other group with saline (salt water).  I honestly didn’t think the placebo effect was too common in animals, but I guess the researchers didn’t want the rats knowing if they were getting treated or not.

They followed the rats for many weeks, and at the end of the trial the niacinamide fed rats had much more stable blood sugar…AND the pancreas tissue had regenerated.  It grew back. The pancreas was dead, and it returned to life.  It did not in the saline fed rats.

The heart cells then named the pancreas cells a messiah and savior, the liver cells built a temple for these resurrected pancreas cells, and the skin cells claimed it was the cells of the intestines that raised the dead, and a small war broke out.   (KIDDING!!)

Seriously, I wish this potential was more widely known.  As I was reading this study over again, it occurred to me that almost nobody knows this.  And that’s too bad…really.

My disclaimer on this study is that these rats arrived in a diabetic state via a scalpel…and the scalpel was removed after the damage was done…so…the cause of the damage in either type of diabetes must be resolved prior to this miracle resurrection becoming possible.  But that can be done…change in lifestyle, treat the immune system, stress hormones…etc.  Then bring on the miracle.

I wonder how many insulin dependent diabetics would be interested in this now 25 year old study??  I wonder how many people with hypoglycemia…I wonder how many people with any chronic condition that is affected by blood sugar regulation??  (Cancer, PCOS, Neuropathy, Thyroid Disorders, etc., etc.)

Yours in Health,

Dr. Todd Stone

Apparently I am getting old…my old college buddies are dying.

I just got the news of a college friend dying of “old age.”  He was 39.  He died of a heart attack, leaving his wife and two pre-teen daughters.  

I haven’t seen him in years, and heard of this from a mutual friend I still stay in touch with.  Along with the grief for his family and for him, I feel a “wake up call.”

As you probably know, this type of death is virtually 100% preventable.  All he had to do was watch a few lab markers and this may never have happened.  The lab markers may have told him to change his lifestyle, well probably, as he was greatly overweight…but it also would have told him what he could have done nutritionally to support his “less  than perfect” lifestyle.

And, let’s face it, I don’t know anyone with the perfect lifestyle, eating the perfect diet, relaxing daily, vacationing away from stress, exercising daily, detoxing regularly from our toxic environment.  Heck, I detox regularly from my lifestyle choices!

Most of us are out of shape, eat convenience foods way too often, medicate ourselves with sugar, caffeine, and/or alcohol, and what? Relax?…I’m too busy to relax.  I can say that all these items are on my list…eat my veggies, relax and vacation, exercise, and detox…and stay on my list as needed improvements…but they are at least on my list. 

The wake up call for me is the people suffering from pretending, faking, ignoring, or otherwise not facing reality.  Part of that looking away is that the mainstream alternative is taking drugs and a talking to about your diet.  Many people are becoming aware of the dangers of taking drugs to manipulate your symptoms…and, yes, high cholesterol is a symptom, inflammation and oxidation are symptoms.  So if the treatment makes you worry, and the reality makes you worry…well I might ignore the whole situation too. 

My brand of medicine offers solutions to the less than perfect people (all of us) that are safe, effective, and will shift dangerous lab markers.  The worse your lifestyle, the more supplements you need to take, and there are never enough supplements if you don’t follow a couple simple rules for diet.  But, they are supplements…nutrition, plants, proteins…and they are safe.

This is what I would have done for my friend, if I had the chance…

Test him: 

Blood sugar and cholesterol.  The combo of fasting blood sugar, along with the ratio of triglycerides to HDL (good cholesterol) provides an accurate assessment of how up and down his blood sugar swings.  Big swings are highly predictable of heart attack as well as other diseases. 

Inflammation:  Cardiac C-Reactive Protein, SED Rate, and Fibrinogen provide a complete look at how inflamed your body, blood, and arteries are.  Inflammation is directly correlated to incidence of heart attack. 

Oxidation:  This is commonly known as the “rusting” process, but for heart, it is the oxidation of fats that really do you in.  You virtually eliminate atherosclerosis, or fatty build ups in the arteries, if you don’t oxidize your fats, called lipid peroxidation.  This process was featured on one of the evening news shows a couple years back, using a measurement called T-Bars, which is the lab equivalent of fat oxidation, and a supplement that contained several botanical antioxidants designed to slow the aging process.  And, true, the less you oxidize, the slower your tissues age, but as long as you breath oxygen you will age (and not breathing oxygen leads to decomposition, so that’s not a good strategy). 

Hormones:  Along with the blood sugar evaluation mentioned above, perhaps the other lab everyone should have done is the Adrenal Hormone Panel.  It is virtually never done in medicine, as there is no treatment for any abnormal finding.  It is a measure of how stress is affecting your hormones, and the primary stress hormone, cortisol, is directly linked to high blood pressure, a direct correlation to heart attack. 

Treat him…

If his blood sugar readings showed signs of significant swings, there are many options to help.  Lifestyle and diet are very important, but a few simple strategies could allow him to be less than perfect.  For instance, simply focusing on adding more protein or fat with each meal and snack slows the blood sugar spike.  Eating acidic foods slows the spike.  Adding certain nutrients and botanicals, such as chromium, vanadium, zinc, magnesium, gymnema, fenugreek, cinnamon, and others, slows the spike.  Exercise slows the spike.  He would have to make some changes, but he would have a goal and a focus, rather than pretending it ain’t so.

If he was inflamed, we would definitely add fish oils, which would also help the blood sugar, being a fat, and a really healthy one at that.  We could consider adding ginger or turmeric to his diet.  Taking sesame seed oil with carbs reduces inflammation.  Reducing grain consumption in favor of potatoes and rice decreases inflammation. 

If he was oxidized, we could help clear his vessels with some of the botanical antioxidants suggested on the program I mentioned, or make some strategic food choices such as blueberries and spinach. 

If he was stressed out to the point of hormone changes, we could have used adaptogens (ginseng, ashwagandha, holy basil, etc.) to help restore hormone balance at least.  Doesn’t change his life, but it makes him more resilient to whatever he is experiencing.  

He could have been proactive and taken some steps.  I am sure his goal was not a heart attack.  He simply didn’t have the information needed to become proactive.  With options, actions, and some change, with a goal and focus, he may still be here watching his little girls grow up. 

My job is to reach more of you, especially you pretenders, with a message that you don’t have to be perfect, you don’t have to take drugs, and you can, even you… you can save your life.