I came across a powerful practice the other day that I wanted to share. Used by coaches associated with Landmark Education it involves a subtle but powerful shift in how we approach major goals like getting healthy.
First they have their clients envision their big goals – goals they have difficulty accomplishing: goals that involve their careers, their family and relationships, their health, quality of life, etc. Then they have them envision the goals being fulfilled – complete – accomplished.
The practice revealed some things I could be doing right now.
Then starting from that point (the goal achieved) they have their clients look back and determine how they got there. What actions did they take? How did they change what they were doing? What, in short, worked?
That shift from what we usually do – placing ourselves in the present and looking towards an uncertain future – to placing oneself in the future and looking back to the present can make a big difference. For one, big goals – like attaining one’s health – can seem insurmountable looking from the present. They certainly look uncertain. Looking from a future accomplishment, on the other hand, provides an entirely different kind of energy.
It also provides a kind of vision that we don’t usually have. Doing this practice revealed things I could be doing now which I’m not doing – things I tell myself I’m going to do, but often put off and off.
As I did the practice it became clear to me that I mostly just keep on doing what I’m doing. I’m basically adrift, moving to my goal of better health at a snail’s pace.
There are, of course, no guarantees. Achieving one’s health after decades of a chronic illness is a pretty big goal. This practice concentrated my mind, though, and gave me some energy.
After envisioning returning to health I looked back. These were the things I did that helped me get there.
Diet
- My mostly Paleo diet is already good but when I dug deeper into Paleo and other diets I found I was able to refine it, remove some things that weren’t working and add a few things that added a small but noticeable boost.
- I began making home-made kefir again. I’ve found that home-made kefir can be quite powerful but I’ve let the excuse that I’m living out of my van stop me from doing it again. Adding home-made kefir to my diet added another small boost.
- Ditto with sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented vegetables. I’ve found that Gut Shots can be really good. When I got really good at making fermented veggies, I was able to make my own gut shots and that helped. (Check out Gut Shots: It Works!)
- I ate more small and more frequent meals
- I ate hearty dinners early in the evening allowing me to do mini-fasts aka Courtney Craig overnight and give my system a rest. These were all little boosts but they did add up.
Supplements and Others
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Along the way I found one drug that boosted my health about 20%.
I visited a nutritionist (probably Courtney Craig) to get all the relevant tests done and employed the right supplements to boost my test results. See Dr. Craig on a Nutritional Approach to Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
- I mimicked the Alzheimer’s functional medicine type of program that worked so well for one group. See – Reversing Alzheimer’s: What Could it Mean for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and Fibromyalgia?
- I got access to cannabis oils and products and used them to reduce my microglial activity and pain and stress.
Doctors
- ME/CFS Specialists – I visited three different ME/CFS/FM specialists (one focused on immune, one focused on autonomic nervous system and one other) to get their input.
- Dr. Rea – I visited Dr. Rea in Dallas to get desensitized to mold, foods and chemicals.
- Gut – I visited a gut specialist to determine the state of my gut and determine the best way to improve it.
Devices
- Vagus Nerve Stimulator – I continued using the vagus nerve stimulator. It’s the most powerful thing I’ve done and is still producing significant results for me. It could be my ticket or a major part of my ticket. For the first time in years I feel I can take a deep breath at times. See Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS: A Trial of One
- Sauna – I retrofitted my old sauna with infrared and used it to relax and detoxify
Finances
- Obviously all this took more money. So along the way I found a way to increase my finances.
Stress Reduction and Pacing
- I got much more vigilant about my pacing.
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Dan Moricoli’s gentle yoga program for people with chronic illnesses got me more in touch with my body, relieved aches and pain and calmed me
I worked on lightening up! My ability to lighten up meant I experienced less stress and gave my always revved up system a rest.
- I refused to indulge thoughts about how bad things are.
- I refused to put myself under pressure about what I hadn’t done.
- I did Dan Moricoli’s yoga tapes each morning. See On the Path: Dan Moricoli’s Remarkable Chronic Fatigue Syndrome …
- I did the Dynamic Neural Retraining Program to work on my chemical sensitivities and it helped
Others
- I got focused on a higher goal than myself. (Key Landmark Insight). Doing that gave me focus, calmed me and helped get me past the petty issues that I was otherwise sidetracked by. Having it be about more than me made things easier. I kept doing Landmark programs to gain similar insights.
- I was in a great relationship that calmed and enriched me.
- I fixed up my van so that I could work in it without having problems with chemical sensitivities. I fixed the solar problems so that I didn’t have to come into town frequently, which took a lot of energy (and expense).
- I used Dragon’s Naturally to create blogs instead of typing them – that freed up energy as well.
- I got really organized. I did things one at a time. I got control of my finances and knew what I had and didn’t have. That reduced my stress levels.
- I kept an eye on potential new treatments. When I came across one I put it into One Note and examined them periodically. When something on the drug front popped up I got access to it through the doctors I was seeing. I experimented with LDN and other products.
Look back – from the future – that’s how I ((hopefully) got healthy after 30 plus years of ME/CFS. My guess is that more treatments will have to come a long – something else will have to pop up – for that to really happen but when it does I’ll be in a good position to maximize it.
It’s a lot of stuff and I will have to innovate and do some things I am reluctant to do but much of it is doable. I don’t know if it will work but it gives me a much better shot than I have now.
I invite everyone to do the exercise. I grant that even thinking about being healthy might seem too unachievable. If it is, you might try feeling better or just being a bit healthier. Step into that goal like its already happened and look back and see what you did to achieve it.
You, too might come up with things that you know to do but that you aren’t doing, and find things that you would like to do but can’t figure out how to do them right now.
It would be great to hear how it happened for you.
Great concept. Good luck to all who try. Apparently we can get fitter just ‘visualising’ exercise, therefore, perhaps to a small degree … you can get healthier by thinking about being healthier. And then…. take some steps to make it reality.
I’m not sure how to read this comment. Visualizing health will not work; visualizing being healthy is simply a way to make the steps towards health easier to do. The steps are the key. If there are no steps to take; if you’ve tried everything that you could conceivably do then I don’t see how this would be able to help.
But if there are things that could be helpful then this practice might be helpful. That is the spirit in which it is offered.
This practice of course, could be applied to any goal; health is the one I chose for this blog.
Hi Cort I hope your well. Sorry but I’m going off topic here. I’m very confused with Simmaron research and I thought you could enlighten me? As far as I understand the major issues concerning cfs/me is lack of money and recognition. It is the big issue that everyone including you as complained for and criticized the powers that be. We are all suffering some more than others. So if someone can please help me out here I would appreciate it. I have said and proposed getting celebrity recognition for financial support and recognition for further finance and understanding of what this disease is all about. We have all complained that we don’t have these type of endorsements like AIDES and other diseaseses as such. So can anyone tell me why now that I have reached out to some major celebritys like John Travolta, that no one including simmaron research has no real interest??? I’m really confused here. What exactly is going on because it seems to me that there is still a need to keep this disease in the closet by some. Is it possible that we have some major doctors here that are more interested in money and ego rather than sharing and moving this disease forward? There is also lack of information between the few specialists out there. It’s not like there are so many people in usa that are top specialists. More important are we really trying here or do we have our own little reason not to get this disease shared and out to mainstream? I would really like anyone here with any thoughts on this to please share your thoughts? I think as patients we deserve answers from those they we may praise and make sure they are really out there doing things for us and not there own interests. We must ask why there is not more going on at this point. We must start asking our doctors and research people are still not helping majority of patients and why ampligen , rituxen and other meds are not being pushed through and fast tracked. Going back does anyone think it may be a possibility that john Travolta may be of great help and maybe even have a cxhance to talk to our new president? Just a thought. I don’t know about the rest of you but I’m dying from this disease. Yes I have suffered way to long and am dying from this disease. Oh by the way Doctor Peterson has lied and will not treat patients on disability medicare because he wants patients with money or better insurance. This is our reality people. No one is going to fight for us but us so we better get in the game, I’m really open to any constructive critizism or suggestions? I would like to see us all healthy again. I probably wont make it but I would like to at least make a difference before I leave this plane of existence GOD Bless
Yes, Linda B, I think you saw that in a news article? It referred to this visualizing a possible future in the context of self-motivation to exercise. If we can visualize ourselves as more fit, then we have a greater chance of actually making it happen. Sometimes news articles distort the actual facts, like “blueberries cure cancer” rather than “blueberries are antioxidants which frees up energy to prevent disease”.
Wow Cort – what a great example of all that it can take to get well and to find our way. It’s great to hear how much is helping too – including your vagal stimulator still going strong and speech recognition software. Brilliant :-).
I have a vision of being well. Included in that is teaching medical students and residents about what I’ve learned / the research I never got in my own training etc, giving presentations and traveling etc. I hold it gently but it links to my passion for writing and finding studies.
I too keep an eye out. Changing my diet a few times (I’ve been on zerocarb for almost a year and it’s given me benefits in energy levels no other way of eating ever has).
Great to hear about your personal “travels!”
Thank you for sharing this article. I have been struggling with these thoughts a lot lately as I will be turning 50 this year. I became ill with CFS/Fibro at 24, and missed, it seems all of the major milestones along along the way.
Today was especially challenging for me in relation to this, and I was really struggling with depression over this today.
Thank you for sharing your personal challenges and for creating this blog. Sometimes it is the only thing that keeps me sane. Reading about someone else facing the same challenges is very helpful to me in terms of support. I do not know anyone who has this illness personally that has been affected at my level.
Thank you Cort, I needed to read this today. Let’s all keep moving up and forward.
Thanks Lisa for your lovely comment.
Often we forget how many people are sharing our challenges. There are so many! We are often isolated but not alone.
We just need to support each other. Health Rising is committed to finding a way for people in their local communities to meet up and support each other.
You’ve spent more time ill than healthy. I passed that mark some time ago…A rather daunting realization! That is where we are though. We are where we are.
Cort,
Thank you.
Yes, having the dreams and life goals in sight are the magnet that can make the pull to a better place more possible. I have been lost in the endless details of supplements and tests..often that lead nowhere due to taking advice from people that simply didn’t have a deep understanding.
Yes we need healing actions and strategies..experiments and huge doses of positive focus. I struggle with Fibromyalgia/ADHD and a OCD monkey on my back that loves trying to take the wheel.
It’s inspiring to read your posts and learn from someone who has “hacked” through some of the “thick of thin things” as Stephen Covey said.sounds like you have located a path. I am listening.
For me..I am still in the thicket..Trying to get to a clearing or a plateau where I can find some clearer vision and traction. Suggestions welcomed.
Thanks again.
Willow
Higher goal – A healthy and thriving ME/CFS/FM community that is energized and produces great results that lead to the eradication of ME/CFS/FM
Thank you, Cort. It is all too simple to give in on our worst days of pain and fatigue, during which it seems almost exhausting to recall that there is hope. But I do generally have great hope, and like Lisa, I depend on your bright light as part of it.
I’ve been accused of not accepting my diagnosis a few times, because it’s not something I wish to relax into. I don’t understand how to fully accept it and still keep pushing forward. So, part of the time I work on gratitude about simple yet powerful things like my (as comfortable as possible) bed, and the other part I experiment with logs and journals, different gentle exercises, etc.
I’ve always held-about other topics-that it’s important to try things one at a time in order to know what’s working or not. But you’re right to diversify-with this particular diagnosis, life doesn’t allow enough time to try everything there is! Additionally, some combination of things is likely to work best, anyway, and probably different combinations for different people.
I’m just beginning to use “Spoonk”, the acupressure mat that another member mentioned, and am using a “Zenergy Bedside Therapy Machine” for about a week. Last week I had three of my best days in TEN YEARS. I’m back to ‘my normal’ now but excited to discover if “Zenergy” has given me new superpowers that work part of the time., LOL,
I think you accept it by doing what you are doing. By creating gratitude for what’s around you rather than being upset at what you don’t have.
Another way is to choose what we have as in “I have this chronic illness with few good treatments, very few doctors, which few people understand and recognize, and which needs much more funding. That’s the card I was dealt in life.”
Practice choosing that! And asking now what do I do?
People with conditions like ours really are in a trap. Those of us who can look back positively on gains in our life condition, have not merely had “the right attitude” – we HAVE to have finally stumbled across a combination of multi-disciplinary self-helps that actually worked.
Some of us know what it is like to have had the positive attitude, believing in whatever magic bullet was the latest one offered to us (prescription drugs, guaifenesin, muscle strengthening, change of career, relaxation techniques, yoga, etc). And finding it very hard to maintain the positive attitude when there was little or nothing to show for our commitment to self-help.
I strongly believe that everyone who is talking about looking back on worse times, has made the gains they have almost by chance or luck; that is, they have included in their self-help regime, certain elements that in combination, DO work. On their own, as a magic bullet, they would not.
That is my story, it is Cort’s story, it is Ginevra’s story, it is Devin’s story. No-one has made it with a single magic-bullet treatment or by “attitude” on its own. Everyone who promotes “attitude” or some magic bullet on the basis of one or more success stories, is overlooking those success stories multi-disciplinary approach. I have yet to hear of one success story of whom this was not the case.
This is also the vital insight being missed by study after study in which some percentage of the study group showed significant improvement. I strongly argue that the researchers should re-evaluate the cases of success on the basis of discovering the combination of factors that these cases have in common. The one I think will need particular attention, that could be most easily missed, is that all of these people found “the right pace”. The difficulty for researchers is that “the right pace” will be different for everyone. Quite possibly everyone has to experiment to discover what their own correct pace is. But I believe that “fat burning intensity” monitored heart rate – 65% of theoretical maximum – which worked for me, may be the scientifically correct prescription.
That works for the sustained exercise; there is also the question of one-off exertions such as lifting a heavy object. I don’t have a scientific criteria to suggest for this, only that a muscle strengthening regime in the gym, suggested by misguided physiotherapists, greatly worsened my FM pain and stiffness over a matter of months, at which point I had a epiphany about what might be going on. New research published on Health Rising at the time, caused several pieces of a puzzle to fall into place in my mind. The rest is known to Cort and others who are regular readers.
This really hit home:
“No-one has made it with a single magic-bullet treatment or by “attitude” on its own. Everyone who promotes “attitude” or some magic bullet on the basis of one or more success stories, is overlooking those success stories multi-disciplinary approach. I have yet to hear of one success story of whom this was not the case.”
I enjoyed this blog a lot, as it links a lot of other blogs to an overall plan, and a bit of and insight into where you’re at yourself Cort.
I’m doing a similar thing right now, and the next issue is that it can seem overwhelming once you create that plan. But, what I’ve finally done is get much more realistic about it, and looking very much on next steps, but having the rest of the activity prioritised, so once I’ve worked through ‘stage 1’, I know what’s next. It’s does look like a year’s effort, which seems right judging on what those who do recover quote.
I’ve got it all written down and planned out, which took me a couple of days, but really eased off on timescales so it didn’t create pressure – something it has taken me a ridiculously long time to accept, that I can’t plan to be anywhere near as productive as a normal person.
Thanks Cort, and these kinds of posts are a really nice counter to all the great information on research.
This is still big for me. I still have this idea that I should be held to the standards and ideals of a healthy person.
In fact in a recent Landmark seminar it became clear that being tied (roped) to standards and ideals which are in any case unreachable doesn’t work for anyone, healthy or not.
“something it has taken me a ridiculously long time to accept, that I can’t plan to be anywhere near as productive as a normal person”
If I’m being responsible for my situation – that I have a chronic illness that limits what I can do each day – it becomes easier to do the pacing that works.
Hello, Steve.
Since I am still now figuring out what to do to edge closer to recovery, I’d really like to take a look at your plan as a reference. I’d like to know as much as possible my options available before I make a decision. Would you kindly post your plan? Thank you very much.
Good luck and hope that you will experience improvements soon!
I am very happy for you, Cort.
You deserve happiness, health, and wellness in every aspect of your life.
Sounds just like the BS Lightening process and amygdula training, GET and CBT that we are righting like crazy to prove is garbage. It also helps that you aren’t nearly as sick as many of us, hiking through the Sierras every year. Exactly what docs did you go to and what is the specific protocol that “cured” you. Cancer is considered cured until you’ve been cancer free for 5 years. Lets check back in 5 years and see how cured you are
Really! I wasn’t aware that LP, CBT and GET protocols recommended going to see ME/CFS experts! I am so relieved that they also now embrace seeing nutritionists, and autonomic nervous system and gut specialists. And that vagus nerve stimulation, probiotics, LDN, medical marijuana are part of their protocols. I am just so happy to hear that. (Tongue firmly embedded in cheek).
For the record I’ve tried Amygdala Retraining and other techniques like that and found them somewhat helpful. I include practices like that in my protocol but would never solely rely on them because my experience has shown me that much more is needed. I think if you read other blogs you’ll find that it embraces a diversity of approaches to ME/CFS and FM, and above all supports the idea that more research funding is needed.
I’ve had ME/CFS for over three decades and I assure you while I am better off than many my ability to exercise is just pitiful. I wouldn’t call anything that I do “exercising” actually. I used to be quite athletic actually and ran, hiked and biked frequently. Those days are gone and have been for a long time, unfortunately.
I certainly do not “hike through the Sierras every year”. (I wish I did and if I could do that this blog would be a lot more productive.) Did you feel I am hiking all over the place because I camp out? Not so. I camp in National Forests and go on very short walks. I make sure my dogs get exercise by driving the van slowly on dirt roads and running them.
I hope I can hike some day though (and that you can too) and we can meet in the Sierra’s and laugh about our differences.
I hope that clears things up.
And why are comment moderated? What are you afraid of?
I guess you haven’t participated much in blogs but all comments in most WordPress blogs typically go through moderation. Yours is no different from any others.
All sensible blogs are moderated to keep out those who want to post links to scam websites or just random abuse.
One of the first things you need to give up if you want an improvement in yor own health is resentment against those who are healthier.
The second thing you need to give up is the belief that nothing will work, even if nothing has worked so far.
I was bed bound for a few days and feared it would last forever. I have tried things that have set me back for months. I get the fear – but if you hope to improve you have to overcome the fear. I havent tried CBT but perhaps that is why it helps some people.
I am now sufficiently well to get out of bed daily, to go for walks sometimes if I monitor my heart rate. There are still days that start well but I find getting dressed exhausts my energy for the day. The crucial thing is not to give up.
I think I’d like to add one mre thing – when people talk of “accepting the diagnosis” it should just mean it is difficult to move forwards when you are looking back
I can see where using this different perspective can be very helpful. I have plenty of ‘recovery plans’ like to do lists. I even have a ‘best of’ recovery ideas folder.
I have just now jotted down ‘How I got better’ notes and it has really highlighted for me what I can do now and what I’m going to do next. Especially the ‘what I can do now’ that I know but am not doing or am half doing. It has also brought together more clearly lots of the research and reading that I have done over the last few years
Thanks for sharing this Cort.
Nice to hear Diane and congrats for being so organized. With all the different options and particularly with the brain fog it is really difficult to organize and plan. I’ve found planning for the future particularly difficult for some reason. It seems like that part of my brain got whacked a bit.
Hmm…so let’s say I’m well. Looking back, this is how it happened… The best minds in science and medicine finally took this illness ME/CFS, seriously and understood that me and others, were dying. Big pharma/doctors came up with a cure or treatment plan that gave me at least 80% of my functioning. It was NOT MY RESPONSIBILITY TO CURE MYSELF! After 27 yrs I no longer had to worry about reading research or trying unproven alternative methods of ‘healing’ …and trying to figure out what to try, what not to try…wasting my time, energy and money. Yep, I just had to take the drug!!! Like most other illnesses, it was NOT MY JOB to make myself better! Gee imagine that…just as it should be. Yes, that is how I get well…someone else will finally take the reins…
Let’s hope it happens and work towards it happening. May it be so!
Hi Cort,
Glad you have several things that are helping! I find that I go through phases where I am not moving forward, trying new things, or maintaining some of the things that have helped me. But even just little steps toward a goal can make a big difference. Yesterday I bought a nice new mat for stretching. I’m just leaving it out in the living room. Then it is easy to do a few stretches here and there during the day.
Where did you get the vagus nerve stimulator and how much did it cost? Did you have to see a specific doctor to get it?
Apparently I am low in iron based on recent bloodwork done by my primary. But she gave no instructions for what kind of supplement or how much. I will ask her but am wondering if anyone here has dealt with low iron. Maybe it is related to my low blood volume/POTS issues.
Vagus Nerve Stimulator (Nemos Cerbomed) not available in U.S – is available in Europe but $4K! An angel provided it for me to try out.
You MUST check out this blog on iron, POTS and ME/CFS – https://www.healthrising.org/blog/2016/08/23/iron-man-young-persons-pots-mecfs-recovery-story-pt/ – and keep your eyes on Health Rising for a Mayo study that is going on right now concerning iron and POTS.
Iron can be crucial. We’ll see how it all turns out but is it possible that we’ve missed iron?
I used Slow FE as per a
recommendation by a
Pharmacist. I tried
several other iron
supplements, however
they caused severe
constipation. Walmart
has Slow FE otc. Hope
that works for you.
Thanks for the tip
on the stretching
mat.
Any help on how to develop the idea if a goal bigger than yourself? I cannot seem to figure out what I’d like to do or focus on in life.
Cort
Could you provide a reference for cannabis reducing micro-glial activity? Re: the dynamic neural training program, could you say a few words about your experience? Did you use the DVD’s or the interactive training program?Regarding your Paleo diet, have you found any effective protein substitutes for meat given the arguments for animal products being pro-inflammatory http://nutritionfacts.org/video/the-exogenous-endotoxin-theory/ Finally, is there a data-base of medical “gut specialists” utilizing the latest research on the micro biome and FM/CFS
As a long-time reader of your inspiring and scientifically revealing blogs, I am thrilled that you are finding relief of your symptoms. Your optimism and empathy are salves for the bruised and exhausted souls looking for hope.
I imagine there have not been studies – given the dearth or research into cannabis but theoretically I think it could help with reducing neuroinflammation – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2919281/
I haven’t tried the dynamic neural retraining program but it’s in the plan 🙂
I’ve just been using meat. I didn’t know it was potentially inflammatory actually. I’ve probably been taking in more fats than meat actually although I do eat a good bit of meat protein. I try to stick to non-antiobiotic foods.
I don’t know of that database but it would be a great one to have and if anyone is interested in creating one I would love to put it on Health Rising.
Thanks!
Hi Cort,
Thank you for sharing your latest revelation!
I am constantly revising my self created plan, but admit after so many years I often have a hard time following through on an every day basis. It can feel like such an uphill (and blind), and only self-motivated, battle. A big part of me had been crumpling of late, just from “battle fatigue”. So I like the idea of starting at the end and looking back. Maybe then it will look more like a downhill coast, as things got progressively easier and clearer, and as I picked up speed!
Actually, for the first time in a long time that is beginning to feel more like a real possibility than an abstract goal. I recently got my doctor to run a panel for mast cell activation disorder, based on things I’d read in your blog, and though it didn’t turn up anything conclusive there, the same panel did reveal that I am dealing with an autoimmunity, most likely of the lupus variety.
It has been so helpful, just having that tiny snippet of fact based reality, after having to operate for so many years just in open possibility (with a CFS diagnosis). And I am having far more success in feeling sustainably better since shifting my focus to one of autoimmunity, and specifically following the anti-inflammatory model of healing.
(I would encourage anyone who is interested to check out integrative medicine’s approach to autoimmunity…and the inflammatory model of chronic illness, in general. This perspective appears to apply equally to anyone with CFS and FM as anyone with confirmed autoimmunity….wish I’d understood this years ago. Dr. Amy Meyers has a good book on this.)
But it has also been a strange transition to make. After fighting one battle for 16 years I now feel like I’m starting a whole new one….which is a bit daunting.
So I am going to write myself a backwards plan tonight!
Thank you Cort!
Martha
Hey Cort, what type of vagus nerve stimulator do you use? I’ve been waiting (and waiting and waiting) for the GammaCore to be FDA approved.
Nemos Cerbomed….
Nice, did you go to Europe to get it?
It looks like the PoNS may be available soon, as Helius is getting ready to start trading publicly. This is another potentially helpful neumodulation device that stimulates the cranial nerves via the tongue to increase brain plasticity.
Loved the article, Cort. It’s an interesting idea. I practice Mindfulness and it has been a life saver for me. My big problem though has been to visualize myself as a healthy person in the future. I can’t do it. So the idea of going from future to present may be a way to help. Thanks!
Glad to hear it. If visualizing oneself as healthy is too much then visualizing oneself as healthier might help as well. 🙂
I love Landmark! My lifecoach trainer worked with them.
For those who are struggling coming up with a future where you can say “I’m possible” instead of impossible – I highly recommend Marcia Martin seminars. http://marciamartin.com/ She has a few thought provoking videos on youtube. John Grey (author of Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus) also has some great inspirational videos, this particular one is about couple’s communication: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuM7ZS7nodk
I agree with Martha; I find autoimmunity seems to connect us all and also fits in with the wider narrative in the Western world of a myriad mostly new autoimmune diseases. The ANS symptoms seem to crop up in all autoimmune conditions and getting better is not a one shot pill, it’s about figuring out the toxic load our bodies are under including physical injury, bacteria, mold, medicines, food chemicals, organophosphates, viruses, infections, etc.
My possible future for all of us (as of right now):
We’re all at a medical conference. It’s 20 years from now. Cort and his dearly beloved are taking a moment to hold hands and talk. They’ve hardly had a minute to speak all day as Cort’s been in high demand. He runs a business connecting patients with doctors, treatments, etc. etc. online. Everyone gets their genes decoded these days, and vending machines and restaurants and cafes prepare food and drinks for gene types. We don’t have to think about it; part of Cort’s service is to print up cards or wearables which we swipe on the vending machine or on the menu and then the choices are tailored to our nutritional needs/aversions/favourites/intolerances. Cort has several partners, but he’s the glue that holds the business together and the face of the company for patients.
The conference is kind of like a trade show, with all the latest health information for doctors and patients. There are booths for researchers, and this is an exciting time. Quantam computers finally became commercially available 5 years ago, and all diseases were solved as researchers were finally able to sequence genes with protein folding, CRISPER info, etc. We’d figured out the autoimmunity part about 15 years before; patients had lobbied and kicked the psychiatric doctors off patient and gov’t groups and replaced them with biological researchers/clinicians and very quickly we were understood as much as MS and arthritis patients.
Veronique is giving a lecture at the conference. She’s been instrumental in teaching medical students and developing curriculum. She’s receiving an achievement award that night.
Oh, and everyone can’t believe how great and young I still look. I’ve had the time and energy to learn 4 languages fluently, take some university courses and I have two PhDs. My husband’s as handsome as ever and my son’s a leader in the field of quantam computing. Hey, it’s my possible future! 🙂
Hello, I would like to know if you follow a paleo diet or a Keto-paleo diet. For example do you eat fruit, potatoes or even a bit of white rice which is Paleo for some?