Archive for category Alternative Medicine

The Last Best Cure

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine on April 3, 2013

I just finished The Last Best Cure by Donna Jackson Nakazawa, author of The Autoimmune Epidemic.

A sufferer from autoimmune diseases herself, in this book she takes a year long journey into the world of alternative medicine. Her quest is to find joy and see if she can improve her health even more than her drug therapy has accomplished.

I was a little wary of this book because it screamed self-help esoteric hippies, but I was such a fan of her previous book, I thought I’d give it a try.

This book really resonated with me. It isn’t over the top, she’s as skeptical as I was at the start of her journey. And since she’s a science writer, there’s an emphasis on how these alternative therapies may be working. This is a good read for anyone feeling like they’re at the end of their rope with Western medicine, or just curious about how yoga, talk therapy, acupuncture, acupressure and tai chi could help them.

The start of her quest leads her to therapy to discuss childhood trauma (ACEs). She, like me, is pretty skeptical. She’s a grown woman who doesn’t resent her childhood and, though she may have had some trauma (father’s death, distant mother), she knows other kids had it way worse. But there actually is some science behind journeying back into your past. A study showed that every trauma (ACE score) you have before age 18 increases a woman’s likeliness of being ill or hospitalized with an autoimmune disease by 20%. That’s huge. It basically works like this, as a kid, you develop responses to stressful and traumatic situations that serve you in the moment. As you move into adulthood, you carry those learned stress responses with you, but they may not be the healthiest coping mechanisms and may not be serving you anymore. Luckily, according to recent science, the plasticity of our brain allows us to re-train our stress responses.

As Donna sets out to re-train her stress responses and find joy, she tries out various forms of meditation, yoga, acupuncture and moving qi. Each of these were well worth the read. In fact, the book may have finally pushed me to try out meditation. (I’ll let you know how it goes…)

In a nutshell:

But something else happens as we look through that quiet window into our own experience. “When we put down the mantle of stress that we carry every moment, we become keen observers of what those stresses are,” Janet says. “I watch, over time, as the women I treat finally start to see the blocks and behaviors that have been holding them back. The grief they can’t let go of, the patterns they’ve been repeating that are keeping them stuck.” … “Becoming that calmer, wiser observer unleashes something in them – their own healing qi. Their back pain gets better, their fatigue lifts, their hormonal imbalances balance out. Their physical symptoms subside. And at the same time, they feel a new energy – that allows them to become who they are meant to be.”

Check out more here: http://donnajacksonnakazawa.com/last-best-cure/

, , ,

1 Comment

When To Get a Second Opinion

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dairy/Casein Free, Dealing, Diet, Doctors, Drugs, Gluten Free, RA/RAD, Relationships on February 10, 2013

Wise words from Thomas Edison. You can get this poster @ behappy.me

I’ve been a bit concerned about the relationship between Interstitial Lung Disease and Methotrexate over the last couple weeks (yet trying not to worry, because worrying leads to flares which leads to more of a chance of RA complications…ha! FML!).

I will still talk to my primary rheumatologist about this on Tuesday, but in the meantime, I’ve decided to seek a second opinion. This wasn’t as easy a choice as it may sound. It felt like I was choosing to cheat on my rheumatologist and giving up on my treatment plan. As I told my friend, my relationship with my rheumatologist is something I want to be sensitive too – he might be in my life for many years to come!

I started by going to my allergist, who also happens to be a respected immunology expert. Up until 2008, I was seeing him once a year for checkups on my recovery from Interstitial Lung Disease. In many ways, he knows my medical history better than I do.

He told me that there is indeed a link between Methotrexate and ILD, and recommended I get a second opinion at a research hospital that specializes in lung disease. They also happen to have rheumatologists who specialize in both ILD and autoimmune diseases. Cool.

Turns out these docs are also in more demand than my current rheumy. I need a referral to even have a chance of seeing one. This left me with the choice of getting that referral from my rheumatologist or from my primary doctor (who I haven’t seen in years because I have another OB/GYN). I chose my primary doc so as not to shake the boat on my relationship with my rheumy. This choice, of course, requires yet another doctor’s appointment (yippee! – where is that sarcasm font when you need it?).

A couple other things of interest came up at my appointment as well.

My doctor said that, given my medical history, he doesn’t think it is likely that I have gluten or dairy allergies or sensitivities. He recommended just eating healthfully and focusing on eating for my marathon training.

I don’t think this means that I will run out and eat gluten again (I’ve already eased up a bit on the dairy), but maybe I’ll think about being more flexible. I also still believe that eating to lower inflammation in my body is a very positive thing I can do to help control my symptoms. My doc is very science-based (as he should be), so until a trustworthy study comes out showing how diet can ease/cure/whatever RA, I think he will be giving this advice.

I ate lunch with my family yesterday and mentioned this, as well as the idea that perhaps GMOs, pesticides and all the other industrial crap that’s made its way into our food supply was more responsible for the rise in gluten intolerance and autoimmune diseases than gluten itself. My brother-in-law and sister’s reaction made me feel like a social pariah. I plan on doing more research on this and posting it here, but I’m certainly not the first person to state this theory, so I don’t believe it’s totally off target… Does anyone have thoughts on this? Or good articles I can forward to my sister??

My doctor provided me with a list of websites that he likes to use for research because they are entirely science-based:

I hope this list helps everyone as you do your own research and become your own advocate for your health.

, , , , , , , , ,

4 Comments

Crazy Sexy Advice

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dealing, Diet, Fitness, RA/RAD on January 22, 2013

The lovely Kris Carr

I happened upon Kris Carr’s blog through a recipe. I loved her recipes and her attitude, so I decided to check out her book, Crazy Sexy Cancer Survivor (apparently there’s a documentary too, which I haven’t watched yet).

I felt a little dramatic reading it because everything she was saying really hit home for me. I have Rheumatoid Arthritis, not cancer. I’m not going to die of RA. My life’s not at stake. But many days, it feels exactly that way. I have the least sexy form of cancer possible. The kind that doesn’t get a book or sympathy. It’s an invisible disease with a name that diminishes its magnitude on sufferers’ lives. A disease that eats you from the inside out and can take everything away from you if you let it. Your joints, your freedom, your hope. So, in that way, I identified with Kris. As I was reading her book, I replaced the word “cancer” with disease, and it became a book about the power of survival.

One of the most important things I got from the book, which I totally wasn’t ready for, was the concept of healing versus curing. She writes that many of the healthiest people she knows are living with disease. This really hit home because I think I’m the healthiest I’ve ever been in my life, minus the RA. I watch what I eat, I workout, I don’t drink, I try not to sweat the small stuff, and I take care of myself. She talks about how people always say they want to be “cured” and get their lives back, but with healing, you can’t go back to that life. You will change your life after a diagnosis. Hopefully many of those changes will be for the better.

She writes about how important it can be to re-align your expectations of a cure and to be OK with healing over clinical remission. All you have to do is look at my “About Me” page to know that this is NOT my current approach. I want to kick this thing in the butt! I want it to be out of my life completely! But it made me think, could I be OK with healing to the point of this disease being manageable with minimal drugs? It’s sure not as much fun as not having it at all, but it is worth a thought. Sometimes the goals of “cure” and “remission” can just be added stressors because they may not be in the cards and they certainly may not be in your control. What is in your control is an attitude of healing. Constantly improving, learning, living, hoping. Not giving up. And maybe that’s enough.

I recommend you give it a read or browse through her blog. There are powerful nuggets there on changing your attitude, diet and lifestyle to promote healing. Here are my favorite quotes:

“During the time of darkest night, act as if the morning has already come.”
-The Talmud

Kris Carr quotables:

  • On making intimidating life/diet changes & just living:
    “You don’t have to be good at what you choose. In fact, go ahead and embrace rotten. You already have cancer (RA, a disease), why would bongos intimidate you?”
  • “Success is six degrees of separation.”
    (i.e. take small steps on big goals)
  • “The secret to happiness is the decision to be happy.”

, , ,

5 Comments

The Science Behind Acupuncture

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dealing, RA/RAD on November 30, 2012

The Science Behind Acupuncture

I’m sure we’ve all been told to get acupuncture for some sort of ailment, but should you expect results? This article looks at studies of acupuncture’s affect on fighting pain in osteoarthritis, and other chronic pains. It then looks at whether those results translate to rheumatic diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis. Like all thing rheumatic, the answers are a bit ambiguous…

, ,

1 Comment

Emotions and Other Sharp Things

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dealing, Doctors, Drugs, RA/RAD, Running/Marathon, Symptoms on November 15, 2012

No, it has nothing to do with this post, but this baby hedgehog is waaaay cuter than any of the sharp things in my life. Give me a baby hedgehog over acupuncture, blood tests and Enbrel any day!

I went for my second acupuncture appointment a couple of nights ago.

I would love to say that it was an enjoyable, healing, relaxing experience. But, in truth, my heart was racing and blood pressure was high before the needles even came out. I’m not sure why – it wasn’t so bad last time.

So my heart was racing, and I was sweating, and my acupuncturist and an observing student (who I had recently met at a party and who now knows way too much about me – awkward!) were sticking me with needles, and I was talking myself down from a panic attack.

Weirdly, the needles hurt more this time than the first time. I felt each one going in, and some of them felt uncomfortable as they were in my skin.

After the acupuncture, they gave me earnest tips on how to improve my circulation – ginger foot soaks, chi generating hand exercises…

They were well-meaning and those things might actually work, but in that moment I was so overwhelmed. How many things can I try? What other ridiculous suggestions is the world going to throw at me?

So leaving the acupuncturist, I just felt depleted. Every part of me felt heavy and I felt overwhelmed with emotion.No matter how much you do, how many new things you try, how much sleep you get, how kind you are to your joints, how much effort you put into positivity, there’s always one more – one hundred more – things you should be trying.

It was enough to make me want to curl up in a ball under my covers and cry.

The following morning I saw my rheumy. The report was more of the same – I’m improving, I’ll improve more. Things will get better.

I’m due to get X-rays in February and am very curious to see how those will go.

He did say that he’s doesn’t think going down on meds before my marathon (March 17th) is a good idea, which is disappointing, but I understand the reasoning. I don’t want to not be able to do the race, and I don’t want the race to do more damage than good.

I told him about the problems I’ve been having with the Enbrel pen (button not depressing correctly, bruises and welts, etc.) and my wonderful, amazing, patient, kind, God-send of a nurse gifted me four Enbrel syringes to try out. I am about to do my first one (post for tomorrow!) and am so nervous, I’m procrastinating by writing this.

The beauty of the syringe is that you have complete control of when the medication enters you and how fast. The downfall is that you have complete control and you get to see the whole thing. AHHHHHH!!!!!

I’ll let you know how my injection goes…

, ,

Leave a comment

Needles

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dealing, RA/RAD, Symptoms on November 7, 2012

This isn’t me. I wasn’t nearly this calm.

I’m way overdue for a post, and realized I never told you about my acupuncture experience. So, here goes…

Acupuncture has always really freaked me out. The needles! Ack! But in my determination to let myself try anything to feel/get better, I felt like I couldn’t ignore this option any longer.

A friend of mine is actually training to be an acupuncturist, so she suggested I go to her school’s clinic on a day when their “auto-immune expert” was working. Going to a school clinic keeps the costs really low, and having a teacher there ensures that I’m getting someone who’s really knowledgeable.

So, I went. You can’t really feel the needles, but it is a kind of scary process. I found it impossible to relax and when I accidentally looked down at my legs, I got a bit freaked. The needles don’t hurt being taken out either.

I did have one needle, placed in the front of my left shin (supposedly on the autoimmune line or something), that felt really uncomfortable. A dull, throbbing sort of uncomfortable, not a sharp pain. The acupuncturist took the needle out based on my reaction before I even had to ask.

Afterward, I felt really dazed and emotional. Driving back to work, I realized my thoughts were drifting to a friend’s death I hadn’t thought about for quite awhile. I looked this up later and some sites do say that it’s common to have acupuncture stir up old traumas.

Another thing was that my left wrist hurt, which was where I was hurting the most before the acupuncture. But now it was hurting in a slightly different, burny way for about a day after. A couple days after that, my wrist felt fine, I felt lifted – like emotionally lighter – and a little bit better physically. Weird.

I’m going for my second appointment in a couple of weeks, so maybe I’ll be able to better see and articulate the benefits more clearly then.

2 Comments

Celebrate the Small Things

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dealing, RA/RAD on October 11, 2012

I think one of the secrets to feeling good is allowing yourself to celebrate the small things.

So here’s my list of three marvelous little victories that are making me feel good today:

  1. EASY INJECTIONS. My shot last night went swimmingly. I was in a rush because I was having company over and wanted to get it over with, so I didn’t over-think it and it went great.
  2. CUPCAKES. Specifically, a really yummy, well-made gluten-free, vegan cupcake that lives up to its “normal” cupcake counterparts.
  3. FIREPLACE SEASON. One of the perks of cold weather is curling up in front of a wood-burning fireplace. And I just so happen to have one at my new place, lucky me.
  4. (BONUS CELEBRATION!!) ZOMBIELAND. Because that movie never gets old and never ceases to make me smile. Gotta love rule #32.

Leave a comment

True Grit

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dairy/Casein Free, Dealing, Diet, Doctors, Drugs, Fitness, Gluten Free, RA/RAD, Running/Marathon on October 9, 2012


GRIT: noun – firmness of character, determination or strength of character

I think some people are born with a natural abundance of grit. I think my grit, the will to persevere and the optimism to keep going is learned, practiced and fickle.

I’m still trying to figure out why sometimes I’m so strong and determined, and why other times I want to pull covers over my head and never leave my bed.

I think something about the beginning of October triggered the ostrich response in me. Suddenly I bounced from I can do anything to I don’t want to do anything anymore.

When I was diagnosed with my RAD new disease back in March, my doctor marked autumn as the time when I could possibly be in remission and we’d be looking at getting off the methotrexate, and later the Enbrel. My September doctor’s appointment was instead met with an increased dosage of methotrexate and the news that the MTX may not even be working yet. Doc’s new goal for remission: spring 2013.

That’s actually kind of good news because it means when it starts working, I’ll feel a lot better. But also, really?!?!

I left the doctor’s appointment feeling fine about it, but then October came and all optimism drained out of me. I was suddenly so, so, so done with MTX day and freaking injections. All things gluten appeared appetizing, dairy seemed impossible to avoid, my vitamins made me nauseous, and I felt like if I even had to look at fish oil again, I’d vomit.

What’s the point? What if it doesn’t go into remission? Am I really going to do all of this forever? I don’t want to have this life. I didn’t ask for this. F#@! RAD and all the stupid S**! that goes with it.

I stopped taking the vitamins and I laxed up on the fish oil. I cheated on my diet. But I kept going on the drugs.

My negativity quickly started to annoy the hell out of me. So there I was, standing over my morning folic acid and fish oil supplements, a wave of nausea overwhelming me, and I snapped. Out of it that is.

My grit was back.

What’s the point? The point couldn’t be more obvious or important – it’s my health. Is it worth trading because I’m a wuss about injections, I hate swallowing pills, and the smell of fish oil is gross? Obviously not.

So I’m staying the course. I’m back on track. (Although I am being a bit more relaxed about supplements for my sanity’s sake.)

I’m thinking March is gonna be a great month for me. I’ll be running my first marathon and hopefully I’ll officially be declared in remission and will be breaking up with methotrexate. Maybe Enbrel and I will even get to say goodbye. Here’s hoping.

In the meantime, I’m happy to report that I think the higher dose of methotrexate is starting to work. My compromised immune system and the changing season has led to a cold, but otherwise I feel great. No joint pain, no feet pain, less fatigue, less trouble sleeping. I even went on a 12 mile run a couple weekends ago.

Now I just have to figure out how to keep my grit from disappearing on me again.

, , , , , , ,

3 Comments

Omega 3s

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Dealing, Diet, RA/RAD on July 25, 2012

Omega 3s

Fish Oil

I assume many of you already are taking Omega 3s. As far as I’ve figured out so far, you want to look for an omega 3 with a high EPA to DHA ratio (about 3:1). It’s not that DHA is bad, it’s just that it benefits things other than RA, like brain trauma for example.

,

2 Comments

Omega-3 Rich Smoothie

Posted by My RAD Life in Alternative Medicine, Diet, Recipes on June 1, 2012

My Naturopath recommended I make smoothies daily have probiotics, fish oil and protein added.

I’ve done some recipe experimenting, and this one’s pretty good:

  • 1 Apple
  • Kale
  • Fresh Ginger
  • 2 Tablespoons Brown Rice Protein
  • 3 Tablespoons Cold-Pressed Cod Liver Oil
  • 1 Serving Daily Probiotic (I open the capsules and put the powder in the smoothie)
  • Almond Milk
  • 3-4 Ice Cubes

Enjoy!

3 Comments