The Kids Are Alright: How My Children Went Gluten-Free
10 Aug 2010 4 Comments
in Gluten Free Living, Living With RA, Parenting With Rheumatoid Arthritis
This week I will be focusing on gluten as it marks the four year anniversary since I went gluten-free.
When my children came in and saw me uploading pictures of Dick’s Drive-In onto my last post (see “Glutton to Gluten-Free”) they all simultaneously began audibly salivating at the image of the logo. Amazing how old habits die hard, even when we are young. My children and husband are all gluten-free with me by choice. They very kindly made the switch as an act of support and solidarity. Besides, when I first went gluten-free I, much like a new-vampire, had a very one-track mind and would become frenzied at the aroma and sight of tasty, gluten-ous vittles. There was just no way that I was going to be successful if any gluten was to come into the house. Yeah, yeah, I am weak and my story with gluten could be Homer Simpson’s story with gluten, but unlike Homer, I am no longer fat and sick.
My kids were 8, 5, and 3 when I made the switch to go gluten-free. Up to that point they ate how I ate. Our family meals rotated between pizza, hamburgers and fries, cheesy macaroni and beef, fried chicken, and extra cheesy macaroni and cheese…..and those were just the meals that I made myself at home! This did not include all the restaurant and fast food my family and I were also consuming.
The kids made a relatively smooth transition to eating gluten-free mainly for two reasons. First, I was very open and honest about what gluten was and what it did to my body. Second, I allowed them to make their own choices about the foods they ate. I never forbade them from eating gluten and I still don’t.
What They Don’t Tell You About Going Gluten-Free
When my family went gluten-free it wasn’t easy. There was a learning curve that we all had to overcome. It is mind-boggling how many foods actually contain gluten. I mean, ice cream? French fries? Soy sauce? C’mon! After a little time reading labels it is easy to begin to ask yourself, “What DOESN’T have gluten in it?” When you first stop eating gluten, you begin to feel better right away, but it is typically short lived. Hidden gluten disguised by long-unpronounceable ingredients will come out of nowhere and undo all your hard earned progress. Any symptoms you had before going gluten-free will come back with a vengeance. When this happens is when most people quit, or get really paranoid about the food they eat. Of course, I was one of the paranoid. I didn’t trust anything that I myself didn’t cook. The benefits of going gluten-free far outweighed the life that was waiting for me if I didn’t, so I didn’t give up. Rheumatoid arthritis was not going to take me.
Gluten 101
Gluten was a hot topic in our house for several months while we learned to navigate the gluten mine-field. My children and I discussed food a lot. I wanted them to understand that their mama needed their support; that they were integral in this transition. To help them understand why I wasn’t going to buy or eat gluten-y food any longer, I explained what gluten did to me on a level that they could comprehend. In addition to reading several books on anatomy, and giving the simplified scientific explanation of gluten being a large protein that damages the villi of the small intestine and disrupts the absorption of nutrients, I broke it down even further by telling them that gluten was like a large jagged rock that would bang, scrape, and injure their small intestine. I described the small intestine as having little arms like a sea anemone that would suck up vitamins from food. When the “gluten rocks” would hurt the villi, they made it so your body couldn’t absorb enough vitamins and you would get sick. I think it is pretty safe to say that my kids “got” it after all my effort.
Gluten is also very sticky, and easily adheres to the foods and surfaces it touches. That is why gluten-free folks have to be particularly diligent when eating out. To illustrate how gluten could contaminate other foods and cooking surfaces, I used the analogy of the half-eaten lollipop that sticks to everything it touches and leaves behind a sticky mess.
Forbidden fruit is always the sweetest
I do not forbid my children from eating anything that I have deemed unhealthy for myself because I don’t ever want them to feel as if they are missing out or are powerless in the choices that they make. So, from the beginning, when the opportunity presented itself, like at a party or at Costco, I would always remind them that they were free to indulge . At first, the kids were conflicted. A part of them felt that if they were to eat , they were somehow being disloyal to me, but another, much louder part of them just couldn’t pass up the offer of cookies and cake. I couldn’t blame them, I could hardly pass those foods up myself! Something very interesting happened when the children switched back and forth between gluten and gluten-free diets. They noticed that gluten made them feel bad. My son had the first and most pronounced reaction. He had always been a sickly child. He had asthma and ADHD-like behavior that made him high-maintenance to parent. He noticed that when he was gluten-free, his asthma disappeared. His dad and I noticed the behavior differences. He wasn’t bouncing off the walls any longer; he could actually focus and stay on task as long as he was eating gluten-free.
My middle daughter suffered with joint pain, canker sores, and severe mood swings that would always end in crying jags when she would go back to eating gluten. My youngest would get diarrhea and eczema. Even when they only ate a little bit, the effects would be severe and they’d last for days.
Despite knowing the physical consequences of eating gluten, I still allowed the children to decide whether the food was worth it. At first they could not resist and would justify themselves to me by saying that a little would not hurt them; but gluten is highly addictive, so “eating a little” is always a slippery slope. Inevitably, they would end up sick and very uncomfortable. Needless to say, it did not take long before the children joined me as one of the food paranoid. To this day, they all avoid gluten like the plague – not because I forced them, but because they were given a choice and allowed to feel the consequences.
Dealing with my own health problems while trying to be a good mom is difficult enough, I never want to add a power struggle over food to the mix.
Kids Aren’t as Stupid as They Look
Our children are capable of understanding and enduring a lot more than we give them credit for. My children were very young when I began this journey to health and healing, but I have included them in every step of the way. It hasn’t been easy on them – they have been my hands and feet when I have been too crippled to get out of bed. They have been shoulders to cry on when the pain was too great, and my comic relief when death would have been a welcome release. They have witnessed all that the human experience has to offer in their short lives and more. The experience has made them compassionate and wise beyond their years.
Childhood is not impervious to the injustices of reality and children should not be sheltered from the adversity of the family. We can’t really hide anything from them anyway, so why insult them? Through respectful age-appropriate communication children are able to comprehend a lot. Moreover, when they are an active participant in the family, they will rise to the to the occasion when they are called upon. Adversity isn’t always harmful, in fact, it presents many learning opportunities if the right approach is taken. Yes, rheumatoid arthritis sucks for everyone in my house, but it is the challenge that life has presented us. How we choose to deal with it is within our power. My children are well adjusted, happy, self-sufficient kids who can cook, clean, shop for groceries, care for pets, and make a plan and execute it as a team. Their success didn’t come from a parenting book or class, but is simply a response to their mother’s rheumatoid arthritis.
Your kids are not your joints. They need not be permanently damaged by rheumatoid arthritis. In fact, they have a lot to gain if allowed to walk with you and keep you company through this journey.
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From Glutton to Gluten-Free
09 Aug 2010 1 Comment
in Functional Medicine, Gluten Free Living, Living With RA
Dick’s Drive-In is a local drive-in burger joint in Seattle, Washington. It has been around since 1954 and has become a sort of tradition. The restaurant’s large bright-orange logo that is emblazoned on every sign, bag, and employee can be counted among the city’s numerous icons. At any time of day or night, you can find the place hopping with lines of eager patrons waiting to fill their bellies with the deliciously simple burgers, fries, and shakes that the drive-in is famous for. While growing up, I would sometimes go there four or five times a week to get my fix; and when I became a mother, I was thrilled to make the trip with my children, past at least a half a dozen McDonalds’ for burgers and fries at Dick’s Drive-In. Little did I know that August 11, 2006 would be the very last time that I would eat at my beloved fast-food joint….
On that day, my life changed forever. That was the day that my doctor told me that I was gluten sensitive…..
What is Gluten?
Very simply, gluten is a large, sticky protein found in many grains including wheat, barley, rye, and oats*. When consumed, some people will experience adverse reactions that can include but aren’t limited to, gastrointestinal problems, asthma, eczema, depression, anxiety, and joint pain. Some medical organizations specializing in celiac disease and gluten sensitivity estimate that up to 60% of Americans may actually be sensitive to gluten, but most are unaware. It is often only when symptoms manifest themselves in the form of a disease like celiac, rheumatoid arthritis, or gastritis that people become aware of gluten. That is what happened in my case; I had been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis so my doctor ordered that I be tested for gluten sensitivity. Until then, I really didn’t understand what gluten was.
*Oats do not contain gluten naturally, however most crops grown in the US is contaminated with gluten because it is usually grown and processed among wheat and other glutenous grains. Always eat oats that are certified gluten free.
Testing
There are blood tests that your doctor can administer to determine the presence of celiac disease. While these are fairly accurate at finding celiac, they don’t tend to pick up on gluten sensitivity. You can defininately be gluten sensitive and NOT celiac. That does not mean that symptoms of aren’t as severe if you have a sensitivity rather than celiac; with either condition, your body treats gluten like a foreign invader marked for death. There is one and only cure for celiac disease and gluten sensitivity: a gluten-free diet.
Obtaining a diagnosis of either celiac or sensitivity can be tricky. Testing is designed to detect severe cases of celiac disease… I could go on all day about the pleasantries of the intestinal biopsy test for diagnosis, but I think I will skip that in favor for a less intrusive and much more accurate way to determine gluten sensitivity….
I personally had a blood test to determine gluten sensitivity and it came back negative. So when my doctor ordered a second test, I protested. I didn’t understand why I should need to undergo another blood draw for a test that had already determined gluten was not a problem. My doc explained that his test did not collect blood, it collected feces….<blush>….yes, as in poop.
I am not going to go into the details of the test, but Enterolab is pioneering a method that uses poop to test for gluten sensitivity. My doctor and his team were trying the lab out for themselves, except they were going to use me (and my pooh) as one of their guinea pigs. Enterolab contends that testing through the digestive system, where gluten is actively processed, is a much more effective and logical means of determining whether the body is reacting to gluten. Yes, that makes perfect sense to me and anybody else who reads their website. However, Enterolab’s credibility is hotly debated on the web. And why not? Anything new or unconventional is always scary. Doctors can pooh-pooh (no pun intended) the lab in favor of gold standard blood and biopsy methods all they want, but the fact is, they are largely ineffective at identifying gluten sensitivity. It cannot be argued that Enterolab shows great promise with their research and testing methods.
As a patient and the mother of an Enterolab patient, I can honestly say that Entorlab delivers on its claims. My results from Enterolab came back positive for gluten sensitivity (as they usually do from Enterolab. You don’t tend to require such a test if you aren’t showing signs of needing it). When my doctor was finished explaining the results to me, I decided then and there to commit myself and my family to a gluten-free lifestyle and we have not looked back.
Going Gluten-Free
Before going gluten-free I was addicted to food, particularly foods with gluten in them. I was overweight and my body was swollen with inflammation. My skin was always broken out in ugly red sores, which consequently, were a direct reaction of the gluten. I was depressed, quick to anger, and forever in a brain fog. I could never organize anything and worst of all my body was succumbing to the RA rapidly. My hands and feet were developing nodules and I was living in a constant flare. So, in summary, I was an ugly, evil, cripple who could eat like a farm animal….. That life just wasn’t worth it. 
Transitioning to a gluten-free lifestyle was challenging. There weren’t nearly as many options as there are now. The few breads and cookies that were available were inedible. Thankfully, gluten awareness has gone mainstream since my conversion and the product market has exploded with palatable foods (I will be writing about some of the better items, as well as recipes). You can now find gluten-free selections at large grocery chains and restaurants in metropolitan areas. Those who are just making the switch to gluten-free have it a lot easier when it comes to food options. However, breaking the psychological and physiological addiction to gluten is a very personal journey.
Don’t Let Anyone Tell You Gluten Isn’t Addictive
I was a mess for the first few months of gluten-free life. I would find myself bawling for hours, for no reason. It was difficult to think about anything else but food, and I was constantly trying to justify in my head ways of “accidentally” getting a fix. I know it sounds crazy. I sound as if I was trying to kick a drug habit or at least, something more serious than food, but what I describe is absolutely true and my account is only a taste of what I experienced. I was profoundly addicted and when I came through that battle, I learned that I had no coping skills at all. I used food to comfort and subdue my emotions, but that is another blog post entirely…. Anyway, I know I should write that anyone can overcome gluten and that it is easy, but that just was not true for me and to lie and say it was would undermine my struggle. It was hard, but again, I would do it over again a million times to get to the level of health I am today.
Gluten Freedom
Today, my rheumatoid arthritis is under control. I have no nodules on my joints, in fact, you would not be able to see that I have rheumatoid arthritis by looking at my hands. I have lost weight, my skin is clear for the first time ever, and I can finally think clearly. I am not depressed, in fact, I have learned to be a much happier and patient person. All this has happened as a result of simply removing a single protein from my diet. The best part is that my RA symptoms improved within a week of going gluten-free. If there was just one thing I could recommend to help someone with rheumatoid arthritis, (or any autoimmune disease for that matter) it would be to go gluten-free. It makes a world of difference.
Related Articles and Resources:
“How Accurate Art Blood-Antibody Tests?”
http://www.celiac.com/articles/32/1/How-accurate-are-blood-antibody-tests/Page1.html
“Challenges of Gluten-Free Living: The Addictive Nature of Wheat”
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/1038974/challenges_of_glutenfree_living_the.html?cat=5
Entrolab Website (lots of info!)
One Last Thing…..
The gluten-free diet has become popular in the last few years. As a result, there is a ton of conflicting and mis-information on the web. For more, reliable information on gluten, and for a list of gluten and gluten-free foods, I highly recommend:
Celiac.com
Gluten Intolerance Group of North America
http://www.gluten.net/index.php
Monthly Visitors: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Hormones, and a Cow
07 Aug 2010 9 Comments
in Functional Medicine, Living With RA, More About Me
Do you tend to get flares around the time of your period? I do, and I find it particularly frustrating because for the most part, my RA is pretty well under control. However,
every month around the same time, a flare will come like clockwork and undo my life, as only flares can, and always do. You would think by now I would be used to a flare at the same time each month, but to be quite honest, I only recently picked up on the correlation between the two. In fact, my doctor clued me in when he gave me a product called EstroFactors to try and help clear my monthly bouts of acne. The bottle says it is for menopausal women and upon reading this, I quickly and emphatically questioned why on earth was he giving ME, a young woman of 32, pills for menopause! He told me that many women with RA tend to hold on to estrogen in their bodies and that the pills would actually help my body detoxify excess hormone.
So what does this have to do with RA? Well, science has found there to be a correlation between estrogen and rheumatoid arthritis. Apparently, too much estrogen, and hormone imbalances in general, can actually make rheumatoid arthritis symptoms worse.
There is so much conflicting information about this topic on the web, so I will just share my own experience with hormones and RA. I have always been hormonally imbalanced. My periods have always been irregular and heavy, I have always had really bad cramps and PMS (I think anyone who has known me through the years would agree). However there have been several things that I have done within the last year that I have noticed a marked improvement in not only my menstrual symptoms, but my rheumatoid arthritis severity.
The biggest change came when I eliminated animal protein from my diet. No, I am not a political vegan, just someone who has found that I feel SO much better when I significantly reduce or eliminate all meat, fish, dairy, and eggs from my diet. All animal protein is highly inflammatory and really difficult to digest. For my own health, I want to avoid inflammation like the plague! It is what causes the pain we feel in our joints! Don’t get me wrong, I love barbeque ribs and fried chicken, cheese burgers and turkey sandwiches, but not even the best baby back ribs (my mom’s) are worth the pain and disability I feel when I flare. I feel like every day that I am trapped by RA is a day wasted that I will never get back. It just isn’t worth it. Since going vegan, I have lost 30 pounds without effort, I feel better, have more energy, I look younger, and best of all, I don’t have half as many flares as I used to.
Going vegan has also helped to regulate my period. For the first time in my life, it comes and goes on time; usually lasting about 5-6 days, down from 8. There is no more PMS or heavy flow, and only minor cramps (Sorry, I know that’s too much information, but I am trying to illustrate a point). This dramatic improvement is largely attributed to my significant reduction of fat consumption, and subsequent weight loss.
Even the leanest cuts of meat still have a relatively high amount of fat. So even when you try and eat a low-fat diet, it is still pretty fattening when you compare it to a healthy,
balanced, vegan diet (yes, there is such a thing!) Moreover, most environmental toxins (including xenoestrogens*) are fat solulable. That means, they are stored in our body fat! Oh, did I mention that hormones are stored in fat as well? Well they are, and cows have a ton of hormonally loaded fat. And no, when we eat meat, those hormones don’t just go away. They get stored in our fat right along with all the other toxins that cow has stored in its fat. This is true for any animal or egg, organic or not, that is consumed. Beef has a higher concentration of hormones simply because of a cow’s large size.
If you remember from earlier in this article, I mentioned that my doctor had said that some people with rheumatoid arthritis have a tendency to hold on to excess estrogen. I have always been hormonally imbalanced and ate animal protein for 31 years. That is a long time for my body to store quite a surplus of excess hormone. So it will likely take some time before I can detoxify and come into hormonal balance. Taking EstroFactors should help this process. In the meantime, I cannot complain. I am down to having only have one “major” flare at about the same time each month. As long as I don’t suddenly get invited to judge a BBQ Pitmaster competition that is sponsored by Ziploc plastic bags, I know there will be a day not too far into the future when I will have conquered this as well.
* Xenoestrogen: Any of the by-products of industrial or chemical processing that have estrogen-like effects [including plastics]. www.medilexicon.com/medicaldictionary.php?t=100174
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Nine Steps to Treating Autoimmune Disease by Dr. Mark Hyman, MD
05 Aug 2010 Leave a Comment
in Functional Medicine, Living With RA
This list is a part of an excellent article written by Dr. Mark Hyman MD called How to Stop Attacking Yourself: 9 Steps to Heal Autoimmune Disease that was recently published on The Huffington Post site. I highly encourage reading the entire article, but in the meantime, enjoy this very straight forward, and helpful list of things you can start doing today to begin to feel better. Enjoy!
“1. Check for hidden infections — yeast, viruses, bacteria, Lyme, etc. — with the help of a doctor, and treat them.
2. Check for hidden food allergens with IgG food testing or just try The UltraSimple Diet, which is designed to eliminate most food allergens.
3. Get tested for celiac disease, which is a blood test that any doctor can do.
4. Get checked for heavy metal toxicity. Mercury and other metals can cause autoimmunity.
5. Fix your gut. For details, see my blog on irritable bowel syndrome.
6. Use nutrients such as fish oil, vitamin C, vitamin D, and probiotics to help calm your immune response naturally.
7. Exercise regularly — it’s a natural anti-inflammatory.
8. Practice deep relaxation like yoga, deep breathing, biofeedback, or massage, because stress worsens the immune response.
9. Tell your doctor about Functional medicine and encourage him or her to get trained — go to http://www.functionalmedicine.org/ for more information and to get a copy of the Textbook for Functional Medicine.
Give these steps a try — and see if you don’t start feeling less inflamed. As I said earlier, the answers are right in front of you. Treat the underlying causes of your illness and you will begin to experience vibrant health once more.”
Dr. Mark Hyman, MD
How to Stop Attacking Yourself: 9 Steps to Heal Autoimmune Disease
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Challenging Standard Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatments: Lessons From Grandma
05 Aug 2010 1 Comment
in Conventional Treatments, Living With RA
My grandmother had multiple sclerosis (MS) before medicine recognized it as a disease. Way back then, just some 40 years ago, MS was viewed by medicine as a psychological impairment, not the autoimmune disease that it has come to be accepted as today. Prior to its recognition by medicine, patients had two choices: accept that their condition was all in their head, or heal themselves.
My grandmother, bless her heart, would not accept this cruel dismissal of her doctors and instead, chose to take her health into her own hands. It was, in my opinion, the most important and perhaps most courageous thing she ever did. It saved her life. Through her own research and sheer determination, she was able to avoid the worst the disease had to offer. She learned that she could manage her symptoms effectively just through the choices she made every day. Choices in the foods she ate, the activities she participated in, the manner in which she felt and responded to stress, and the supplements she took. She kept her faculties and mobility until her passing last Winter.
MS still remains to be a great medical “mystery” in many respects, but I contend that, from a patient’s perspective, there are several aspects that MS and rheumatoid arthritis share.
Allow me to illustrate….
- Both are autoimmune diseases, meaning that the immune system attacks the body it was designed to protect. As a result, patients will experience “flares,” or periods where there is an onset of symptoms when before, there were none; or when there is an increase in the intensity of symptoms that were already present.
- There is no cure for either disease
- The cause is unknown or at best, a wild guess
- Both are largely “invisible” – You may have RA or MS, but not look “sick” or appear to be “disabled.”
- Treatment resembles a Whack-A-Mole-Game, where drugs are the mallet, and the moles are individual symptoms. Symptoms are masked or delayed temporarily, until they reemerge at which time, more drugs are thrown at them.
In all fairness, this list could be referring to almost any pair of autoimmune diseases because medicine still does not understand what my grandmother did: the immune system functions best when it is properly cared for, not when it is being artificially suppressed from performing its job of preserving us.
In almost all non-life-threatening instances, we as patients have great power over our own health. Too often, those in a position to help us, strip us of the confidence to listen to what our bodies are telling us, or challenge medical “authority.” We are lead to believe that we are incapable of determining whether we are sick or not. A battery of tests and a medical degree are the only credible evidence of physical dis-ease. As a result, we never discover that our immune system is sending us messages and warnings all the time, lest we just listen. Fatigue, acne, allergies, aches and pains are just a few of the minor inflammatory distress calls that often go ignored, or are treated symptomatically, without regard to the underlying cause of stress in the body.
From the time we are able to experience the physiological effects of stress in the womb, our immune system is engaged in doing its job to protect us. If it is never given a chance to rest or recover, it is much more likely to malfunction. Often, the malfunction is in the form of autoimmune dis-ease. Rather than rehabilitating the immune system (and the other systems that have been weakened in the process), medicine will seek to will it into submission through drugs designed to impair or even kill it. And to add insult to injury, without a functioning defense, the already weak systems will have no way of protecting themselves from infection and disease. Drugs may offer a temporary relief to the patient, but over the long run, they often just create more problems: additional health issues and diseases, dependence, and no hope for any real healing.
My grandmother spent her life listening to her body. She knew what foods to eat to help nourish her body, especially her immune system. She knew to stop when she was beginning to over-do life, and she knew of a variety of ways to reduce her body’s burden of stress. She wasn’t perfect and she had her share of flares, but she never succumbed to the medically accepted idea that the MS was in her head, nor did she to the disease.
Rheumatoid arthritis is not usually a death sentence. We may not be able to do everything we were once able to do, but we never have to relinquish our control over our bodies or health. We can empower ourselves with the knowledge and the courage to demand that our medical system do more than just throw pills at us for the rest of our lives. Yes, we may have a disability, but that does not mean our lives are over. Rheumatoid arthritis can be treated much in the same way that my grandmother treated her MS, it just takes some courage and determination. Unlike my grandmother, we are not alone. We are very lucky that today, there are doctors and organizations that support patients who opt for a different treatment path. There is hope for us who wish to feel better once and for all.
Stay tuned! More tomorrow!
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Dreams of Things To Come: Just Not Ready to Hand My Life Over to Rheumatoid Arthritis
03 Aug 2010 Leave a Comment
I love martial arts. Not the slow quiet kind. No, I love the fast, explosive stuff….it sort of matches my personality. Anyway, with rheumatoid arthritis, there is definitely a sense of loss and sadness for what could have been had I not been selected for this less desireable journey. I went through a period of mourning when I finally accepted that who I was before (the disease got bad, I suppose) isn’t who I am now. And to be quite honest, I a part of me still yearns for the days when I believed that I was, and would be forever, unencumbered by physical limitation. It is that yearning that keeps me clinging tenaciously to the idea that maybe someday, if I stay committed to this plan that my doctor has set forth, I will be able to be a skilled (wushu) martial artist. So yeah, maybe today and for now, it is tai chi and yoga for me. But I have already come so far, why not strive for what I really want to do?
On a Side Note: Even for non-martial arts fans, this video is awesome! Definitely worth checking out. It is my favorite. I am such a wannabe.
…yes…ok….I may be a little over ambitious……maybe a little bit crazy…just a tad…..I can still dream though =)
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Functioning Well With Functional Medicine: The Low-Down on RA Treatment
02 Aug 2010 Leave a Comment
in Conventional Treatments, Functional Medicine, Living With RA
The functional medicine approach is different from conventional medicine in that it seeks to find the cause of the problem rather than just addressing symptoms. That is not to say there is no value in conventional medicine; I am very grateful for it when it comes to emergency care. As for chronic illness, however, I contend that a functional approach (even when combined with conventional) is superior. For me, I want to know what is causing my illness so that I can take the necessary steps to feel better, once and for all. I want the power and control over my health and my body. The functional approach places me in the driver’s seat of my own health. I can’t stand feeling helpless, and being crippled is a torturous prison cell. I will do whatever it takes to remain free of those shackles.
While I am afraid that my rheumatoid arthritis will never go away entirely, the functional approach has empowered me with knowledge and tools to manage it effectively without the use of pharmaceutical drugs. Perhaps not everyone can do what I have done, but I would be willing to bet that most of us could….
My Treatment: An Overview
- My doctor took all the standard auto-immune and inflammation related blood tests (and then some) to begin constructing the most complete and accurate picture of my health as possible.
- I was given a psychiatric examination to ascertain what my mental and emotional state was and how it may be contributing to my disease.
- My diet was analyzed and modified repeatedly to ensure that the foods I ate weren’t exacerbating my symptoms.
- My genes were analyzed to determine if they could be a factor. And they were, but not so much the typical “RA genes” as genes that were responsible for reacting to stress. (I apologize for not being as scientifically articulate as I should be here).
- I have been prescribed a combination of nutraceuticals that not only effectively relieve pain safely and without side effects, but reduce inflammation, and contribute to my overall health. (More on nutraceuticals coming soon)
- I have been counseled in fitness, work-life balance, stress reduction, anger management, and so much more – and was even given the support to practice it all.
- I received 30 – 60 minutes (depending on the nature of the visit) with my doctor and his undivided attention at each visit.
The best part is, all of it was designed around me. It was completely individualized for me. And that is how medicine should be.
This disease is bad enough without having to deal with some of the horrible side effects related to many of the drugs commonly prescribed for RA. My heart goes out to all who suffer. I am not here to judge, condemn, or brag. I just want to help as many people as I can to feel better. Spreading awareness about the benefits of functional medicine is something I personnally can do to try and help.
On a side note….Good news! Many conventional doctors are adapting a functional approach to the way they practice medicine. Ask around, you may be surprised to find these doctors are in your area!
Welcome to My Blog!
02 Aug 2010 4 Comments
in Functional Medicine, Living With RA, More About Me
I have started this blog in hopes of spreading awareness about the effectiveness of the functional medicine approach to treating and managing rheumatoid arthritis and other similar autoimmune diseases.
I have had rheumatoid arthritis since I was a child and have had the fortune of working with a functional medicine research center where I have been receiving state of the art treatment and guidance for the last four years. I feel that it is now time to share what I have learned with the rest of the world, in hopes that I might help others who desperately want to feel better.
I am not a doctor. I am simply a patient who has been blessed with a doctor and dietician who have shared their knowledge with me. My intent is to simply share my experience and what I have learned. With the current state of health care and the scary side effects of prescription drugs, it seems to me that there is a need for other viable options. This blog is meant to illustrate that viable options do exist and a life dependent on pharmaceuticals is not inevitable.
