Testimonial: Brain Fog, Adrenal Fatigue, Inflammation, Acidity

I received this fascinating story from a reader and felt compelled to share it with you. Jason kindly agreed. Here it is in his own words:

Healing from Brain Fog - A Natural Health Journey

After just reading your Natural Health Journey I really felt the need/desire to write to you since we have been on very similar journeys, and are in fact in very similar places in those journeys at the moment. My name is Jason, I'm 46 and live in Canada. (Sadly, there are 10s of thousands like us, fumbling along trying to figure out why we don't feel right, since the Medical System is near useless in this regard. Terrible, it really is.)

Growing Up - Too Much Drinking, Tired All the Time

Age 12, I moved from one city to another, and - long story short - the first person I met at a new school became my best friend and we started down the WRONG road... and we didn't just peddle down this road but by age 14 we were fast-tracking it. Too much drinking, dope, etc. etc., you get the idea. Must have really screwed up my development I'm sure.

Aged 17 or 18 I moved out, still on a bad path, worse than ever really, terrible diet, etc. At the age 24 a light bulb went on while talking to a similar person: Yo, I'm an alcoholic. I went to a detox center for four weeks, then a treatment center for six months. This was good because at age 18 I was convinced I would not make it to 35, I was chronic.

So we may differ there somewhat, I'm sure, but then things come more into alignment as you'll see. So backpedaling just a tad, by about age 16 or 18, I started feeling tired all the time, maybe it even started sooner, not sure, as a teenager it is sometimes normal to want to sleep a lot too. At any rate though, this problem was to get worse and worse... and worse.

Ulla comments: One of the things alcohol does is to deplete you of B-vitamins. Therefore even hangovers can in most cases be helped with B-vitamin supplementation.

Negative Thinking vs. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

At age 28 or so, I started going to doctors, psychiatrists, and then even psychologists. Of course this all went nowhere, though one good thing did come out of it: I was learning about Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, as I was somewhat of a negative thinker, a little depressed (being tired being a big cause), etc. This book is an amazing book on the mind: Feeling Good, the Mood Therapy.

Ulla comments: My Chinese Doctor points out that it is important to learn to control one's mind - to not let the negative thoughts and fears proliferate. She recommends meditation to train the mind, and suggests that it is equally important as training the body. It sounds as if Cognitive Behavioral Therapy is another route to do this. More thoughts in the 'depression' link above. Note that negative thinking can - according to Brian Clement and others - be a real hindrance on a health journey, so it is worth taking notice of any recurring negative thoughts and seeking to eliminate them - there are many, many ways to do this - from drastic life changes to powerful mental 'remedies'.

Medicine Didn't Help

Of course the docs all wanted to put me on Prozac, and other garbage, which I was never ever a believer of - I always knew deep down that chemicals were the cause of cancer and disease and this would be confirmed later on sure enough. Once I tried a pill, it made me totally stoned, and I threw the rest away.

This trend of going to the doctor's and getting no-where would continue for years and years, and still happens to this day as I am still in the cusp of figuring this all out. If I go to the doctor's, you know they want their commission, pay-offs etc., so of course they want to throw pills at you.

Naturopath/ Live Blood Cell Analysis/ Acidosis/ Infections/ Weak Immune System

Fast-forward now to age 42, four years ago. From 24 to 42, I could not hold a job properly, being tired all the time was talking its toll, in many ways. I finally got sick of the doctors, and was starting to get desperate about feeling so crappy that I went to see my first naturopath (ND). She was good, but oh so greedy, $150 for 45 mins - really? One good thing that came out of it, was that I had a live blood cell test done, this is really amazing, seeing your blood under the high-powered microscope (very important: the quality of the scope). You can tell SO much about your health from this test! But that is a whole other discussion, and I see you know about this already - finding sticky blood (had/have it also) so you were too acidic, bacteria, sluggish white blood cells [weak immune system] (had/have it also)...

Ulla comments: Eating more alkaline: lemons juiced, greens, fruit and vegetables - has a huge impact on my energy levels. Sometimes I wonder whether my adrenal fatigue is in fact just acidosis, since I don't feel fatigued when I eat enough alkaline foods. During green juice fasts I got too alkaline, however, and started having a very strong metallic taste in my mouth. Balance, as always, is important here. I have noticed that just eating more alkaline is enough and has a better effect on me than going on an extreme alkaline diet.

Undigested Proteins/ Traditional Chinese Doctor

Anyway one of the important things that came up was a lot of undigested proteins floating around in the blood. When I saw the ND (she is a Chinese Healer too) just after the test she asked me what I normally drink with meals.

"Oh, usually a glass of water, and sometimes at least one glass of something else like milk or OJ".

"AHA! What do you think happens to the stomach acid when you dump a bunch of liquids in with the food", she asked?

"Hmmm, probably it dilutes it..."

"Exactly!"

Not Drinking with Meals/ Less Tiredness Afterwards

So that was a revelation, I thought I was 'helping' my digestion by diluting the food I put in, washing it down etc. But once I finally made this change I was no longer getting tired after eating - the damn turkey-effect but all the time after eating - this finally disappeared, Hallelujah!

Ulla comments: Undigested proteins are a sign of food allergy or intolerance. I tried so many diets and never felt constantly good until I discovered first some, and later more of my food intolerances. It can be quite a lot of work but the more I discover - using the free Pulse Test - the better I feel. Digestive enzymes can be used to mop up these undigested proteins and have been a huge help for me.

It's a very interesting discovery about not drinking with meals to help digestion. I also suffer from too low stomach qi (energy) which I can literally feel in my upper abdomen as a tight blockage type feeling. It gets worse if I don't eat often enough, if I'm tired or if I eat too many cold foods - and is linked to problems with digestion. Also stress and excessive mental activity weaken the stomach qi, or in other words, weaken the digestion. There's so much to say about this topic but just wanted to mention that the ability to digest food well is crucial to health and I suspect the digestive enzymes even help with this stomach qi problem - which is also linked to emotional imbalances.

Reducing Sugar Intake

Ulla comments: Sugar that cannot be utilised well-enough by the body feeds infections, parasites, increses acidity, worsens inflammation, affects moods, acts as a powerful stimulant wearing down the body, and is very dehydrating. To make sugar more easily digestible choose non-refined, natural sources and combine with plenty of fibre. Beware of fruit juices...

Researching to Overcome Brain Fog

Of course there were still so many more things wrong, as I would find out later. So four years ago the research started: hours and hours and hours at the computer. My wife was not impressed, but what good was I feeling like crap all the time, not holding jobs because I was so tired that I couldn't work properly? To this day she still doesn't 'get it', that brain fog has tormented me for 30 years, and I will do anything and everything to end it, and at any cost, which has turned out to be very a large cost - my marriage being just one part of it.

Sleep Apnea

Oh and one last stab with a doctor: sleep apnea - another possible cause of being tired. I went for a study, didn't really sleep much so not a great gauge, but determined minor apnea. I got the CPAP machine, which helped for sure some, especially during the first year. I used it for maybe three years.

Ulla Comments: It is interesting why the CPAP machine works... it uses pressurised air, would it be that you need more oxygen to sleep well? Have you considered other methods to increase oxygen like more raw foods or ozonated water? I wonder what a negative ionizer would do...

Someone I know who has sleep apnea found relief from the tennis ball method - see the sleep apnea link above.

Bacterial Infections, Sinus Infections

During the last year I started getting sick every three months, WTF? I didn't put it together until the fourth time that the machine was infecting me with bacteria! Damn! I was cleaning it, but I guess not well enough. I found out that this is very common apparently after two years of use: people getting sinus infections etc., from the machine.

Ulla comments: I highly recommend Bob Beck's blood electrification for any infections/ problems with bacteria - it is a suppressed alternative medicine treatment - non-invasive despite its dramatic name. Ozonated water and my stealth lung & sinus infection have started to clear with regular use. It is a very powerful remedy and must be used with caution - you have to avoid too strong die-off symptoms. I suspect that there are many less effective 'zappers' out there so I would recommend going with the Sota Instruments' one. Testimonials here.

Insomnia

So I decided to stop using it - it was a big adjustment but I eventually did. Then insomnia started at one point - not sure if it was before I quit the machine - I think so. The insomnia is mostly from other things, I believe, like imbalances - yet it does seem easier to sleep with the CPAP machine [it delivers pressurized air].

Ulla comments: There are so many things that can cause insomnia, but one key recommendation is to never sleep late in the morning - always wake up at the same time, gradually earlier and earlier until you can sleep at night. The key is to not sleep too much and regular hours. The solutions to insomnia are often boringly simple, but worth trying. In my case supplements and other things that give energy cause insomnia badly: i.e. C-vitamin, B12 vitamin, sugar, etc., even if taken in the morning.

Problems from Antibiotics & Fluoride

The last time I got sick I was poisoned from the doctor giving me the worst antibiotic on the market, Avelox/Cipro - this is yet another very long story... Just know that this class of antibiotics ruins people's lives, big time, and has done since the 80's, but $$$$ - you know how it works, I'm sure.

I'm pretty much fully recovered now - and luckily only took two pills - but wow! - that stuff messes you up huge (laced with fluoride too, a big part of it): chronic fatigue (CF), fibromyalgia, and other 'mystery illnesses' prevalent in today's society: I guarantee many of them are actually fluoroquinolone toxicity. I spent four solid months everyday researching this to help cure myself, on forums with others who have been suffering for years, and these pills are given out like candy in the USA, millions each year, thousands of new cases of CF & fibromyalgia, they all have the same symptoms, there is no doubt about it. If you know someone with these, they should really look into whether or not they took fluoroquinolones at some point.

Candida Symptoms

Anyway, sorry, I somewhat side-tracked there... back to hours and hours at the 'puter. So the next step I knew I needed to change was my diet, and it sure seems like candida could be a huge problem for me. I had practically all the symptoms, maybe this would finally be the answer I've been looking for, for soooo long. So like you, I went hardcore into this route.

Ulla comments: I definitely felt much better on the McCombs candida diet. This was a very low sugar diet but allowed carbohydrates in natural whole-food form like potatoes and fruit. But candida diet also stops feeding other parasites, such as bacteria, and its success could be linked to stealth infections and inflammation in general.

Very Strict Diet: Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Sugar-Free

I went gluten-free (which I found out I am definitely sensitive to. I'm not Celiac but it causes brain fog, and no wonder since it's a nasty protein that everyone should avoid from what I've read. Also, like you, it would seem that it's not all the wheat, as I have found out, sometimes I can eat it and it seemingly has little effect). I went dairy- and sugar-free also all at once, what a PITA! You can't buy anything anymore, that crap is in everything!

Ulla comments: Gluten doesn't seem to cause me immediate problems although it probably isn't a health food. I have narrowed down my problems with wheat and bread and I seem to get quite bad food intolerance symptoms most often from any long-life bread, and occasionally from (seemingly) fresh bread too. So I suspect that my problem is with a preservative of some kind, which I probably am intolerant to. A very interesting article on bread here: "Bread and Why Avoid Most of It" (by Lawrence Wilson)

I was also aggressively killing candida, using many supplements, etc. This was 2 years ago. I started by eating just mostly veggies, then slowly started adding a few more things, organic chicken, fish, etc. but I would find out later [that I wasn't adding] enough [foods].

Alkaline Diet against Inflammation & Acidic Blood

I was also trying to alkalize, as I was convinced that inflammation was also a big issue for me. I had re-occurring tendonitis, joint issues, brain fog, and again the doctors were absolutely useless for these things - it is criminal, it really is - but anyway acidic blood and inflammation go together as well.

Ulla comments: Yes, definitely. Bacteria and other parasites thrive in sugar-rich and low-oxygen environments, whereas alkaline (water and oxygen-rich) foods combat it. Some types of inflammation are straight-away visible as puffiness (water retention). The body rushes water to the site of inflammation. Note that inflammation also affects you moods, a lot.

Good Results, Energy Starting to Return

Ulla comments: Wow, amazing! Sounds like there were many things in your lifestyle those days that you were doing right! Try to pin-point what they were - note that they were probably things that you were doing constantly, for a longer time.

Diet Not Working Long-Term

This went on for about four months - good days, bad days, mediocre days. Then, things started regressing (sounding familiar yet.... :) ), and I had no idea why - was the candida really this stubborn?

Some 'veterans' were saying that it could take from six months to two-three years to fully heal and get rid of it and some had to stay on this kind of diet indefinitely, or apparently it returns.

Ulla comments: It seems that when you start feeling better, it comes sporadically - often people - me included - fall off diets when they don't constantly feel better day after day - they get disheartened. I now think that it is important to think of diets as long-term, not just month or two. Although I do know that some of your diets did last a year or longer.

Suspecting Heavy-Metal Toxicity

Was I metal toxic? Apparently candida likes to live on these metals and one wise person told me that you will never fully be rid of it unless you chelate the metals. Well, I kept up with the supplements and sometimes it seemed that they helped, but then other times they just didn't.

After one year on this strict diet I knew that there must be more going on. Reasearch by the way never stopped, to this date I must have 10,000 Word documents, a full library of health from diseases like cancer, dementia, etc., right down to vitamins, minerals, and food. Did I mention how extremely complex the human body is? Good God!

So at this one year mark of the diet the wife and I were set to go on a cruise - these are amazing btw. On our first one I was so sick (&#&%# CPAP [sleep apnea machine]) that I could not taste the food! Well let me tell you I made up for it on the second one :)

Starting to Feel Worse on the Diet than Before

So I was starting to feel quite crappy again anyway on the diet and getting frustrated with that, and oh I quit another job at this point too, I really wanted to figure this out and needed time to do it, so my plan was to screw the diet, at least for a while. And really, in some ways, I was starting to be potentially worse off than before the diet, but more on that in a bit, this is important because I see you have gone down this path also, with the same results, and I think I know why.

Ulla comments: This is what I've done a lot, after being on too strict diets, falling into a junk-food mode. It does undo many of the benefits, however, and only really goes to prove that the diet was too strict and not enjoyable enough... As you point out later.

Bingeing/ Quitting the Diet

So after my gorging on the cruise, 3 appetizers, 2 entrées, 3 desserts, oh yeah, when I fall I fall hard... I was thinking: 'Christmas is coming in a couple of months, know damn well I'll eat bad then too, might as well just keep the diet on a backburner'...

Junk Food Brought More Problems

So now we are going to pick up from Jan 2015. After the cruise, and Christmas, I was feeling like hell. Problems were coming back too: heartburn (had this for 25 years, in the end a diet got rid of it!), tired all the time (not just sometimes), blood pressure going back up, cholesterol too, and more. So, back to the diet I went, re-killing any candida that I surely gave some life too, what a roller coaster, I tell ya.

I also found out that 85% of the population who have heartburn, have it because they make too little acid, not too much! So this treatment is the opposite of what most people would need, and screwed me over as well and to this day I still have digestive issues, though it is much better than 2 or 3 years ago so it seems I am slowly producing more acid as time goes on (although age could catch up here too, as someone ages they begin to make less HCl) Of course as I mentioned as well, once I went on the strict diet which included aided digestion with HCl + enzymes my heartburn of 25 years finally disappeared, and mostly stays gone to this day (when I eat bad things, it sometimes comes back).

The end of Jan is when I got poisoned, a whole other massive research project, but possibly a blessing in disguise too, I again learned so much more about the body, really in the last seven months or so my knowledge has expanded so much, but again the costs were huge here.

Ulla comments: It seems to me for many reasons (too numerous to list here) that the body becomes more sensitive to junk foods when you stay away from them for a length of time. Either it adapts to a new way of eating or it loses tolerance to certain chemicals/substances. This doesn't seem to happen with truly healthy foods, however. Even though it's a tough road, I do like the fact that my body learns to warn me of bad foods more clearly (in quite severe ways sometimes). Apparently some raw foodists cannot hold in bread after a long time of not eating it.

Great results in elimnating heartburn and other problems! Personally, I avoid taking Hydrochloric Acid (HCl) because the body can adjust to the new levels and stop producing acid on its own. I wonder whether enzymes would be enough on their own to stop heartburn? There are other ways to strengthen stomach acid, apparently, such as: raw apple cider vinegar before/ with meals, though I haven't tried if it works myself.

Why Did the Diet Stop Working?

Now I really wanted to figure out why did the diet work, and why did it stop working? I am getting closer and closer to finally figuring out this mystery, and might even be 80% there now. I really started thinking that I must be missing something in the diet, and maybe there is something that shouldn't be there too, like the organic corn chips I ate with guacamole, which I knew were acidic but for a while at beginning I don't think they bothered me (?) ....it's one of my only snacks too!

Ulla comments: Note: Inflammatory, rancid vegetable oils in the corn chips?

Deficient in Fat and Sugar

FAT! The brain runs on fat and glucose - if you eliminate sugar (stevia is my good friend) how can your brain properly function? You need fat, then there is the whole ketones issue, egads. But I was not getting enough fat: 1 tbsp of coconut oil was not cutting it, for sure.

Ulla comments: Yes, I never believed in low-fat diets... But the quality of fat matters a lot. A long-term raw foodist (on YouTube, don't remember who, unfortunately) stated that he became very weak from eating too low fat. He said that there is a time for cleansing the body and there is a time for 'building it back up'. The idea being that we should not be cleansing for too long - which is what you found out too...

On the other hand there is the 80/10/10 theory by Douglas Graham which may only be suitable for some people who are highly-athletic and live in the tropics. I just want to point this out to say that health can be quite individual and complex and so a low-fat route may suit some people - however, it's a very extreme and specific route to take and I wouldn't recommend it.

Adrenal Fatigue, Hormone Imbalance from Lack of Fats

Here is what this looks like: vitamin B5 + fats = hormones. Your liver makes cholesterol from fats, then with B5 makes pregnenolone, which is considered the 'master hormone' as it's first in line and most of the other important ones are derived from it. This is what the simplified process looks like which shows you just how important fats + B5 are:

Fats + B5 => Chlor => Pregnenolone => DHEA => Testosterone => Estradiol => Progesterone => Cortisol

I think this differs slightly for women but anyway you see why fats are critical here, especially if you have adrenal fatigue, which I have confirmed a couple different ways: Hair test, and Dex suppression test. I really should do a saliva/cortisol/DHEA 24-hour tests, but I'm not sure I even need to anymore.

The Importance of Protein

What else is critical in diet: protein! You can't make neural transmitters without the essential amino acids, which have to come from the diet. Neural transmitters and hormones are VERY closely linked together, there is even overlap where some are considered to be both. Boy these topics are deep, too, like ocean depths. I was getting some protein, like in my morning shake, chicken, eggs (this is a dairy exception I made, as I get no reaction from them). I was probably getting enough but not entirely sure.

Ulla comments: I think enough of good-quality protein is linked to being able to relax and so may help with fighting insomnia, among other things. My live blood cell analysis showed protein deficiency. Variety of amino acids and complete proteins are important too (e.g. spirulina).

Adrenal Fatigue and Blood Sugar

Now here is the next thing, someone who has adrenal fatigue has to watch their blood sugar VERY closely. THIS was a HUGE discovery, and yet another reason why I was going backwards on the diet, or regressing, but to levels probably even worse than before due to likely starving the brain as stated before (you do get some sugar from veggies etc. but likely not enough contrary to what many 'veterans' on candida were saying, I was very strict about sugar, even avoiding things like carrots, all fruits, etc. but I believe now that it was to my detriment).

Glutamate/ GABA Imbalance vs. Brain Function

The thing was, my brain used to at least work before the diet, sometimes too fast, racing, causing sleep issues, which I now know were from a glutamate/GABA imbalance. If you don't know about this do some reading, it's very very important.

Ulla comments: I just read a little bit about this now. It seems that glutamate in excess overstimulates brain cells and causes inflammation in the brain. Interestingly, inflammatory foods have been linked to brain inflammation too - with a clear link now being established between mood disorders and brain inflammation. I have noticed that GABA supplements reduce stress and anxiety in myself so I do believe that the point you make is important.

Diet Too Low in Fat and Sugar Hinders Brain Function

At any rate, my brain used to work: I could think, be creative, do calculations... If I was really 'foggy', which was almost all the time, everything was harder but the potential to do it was there. After eight months on the diet, my brain was slowed down to a CRAWL! And no wonder with no sugar AND/OR enough fat, the two fuels it uses. And the other issue was that my adrenals were on the floor, along with my blood sugar - this is yet another problem which I wonder if you too are having.

Ulla comments: The link between too little sugar/ carbs and adrenal fatigue is very interesting. I definitely started feeling stronger, more balanced and energetic when I included more carbs into my diet. However, something was lost too: the very inspired positive thoughts and the tingly feelings I got on juice fasts, the McCombs candida diet and the raw food diets... I am still trying to find a balance here - it seems that with each experiment I win something and I lose something. I have come to the same conclusion as you, however, that too low carbs really does not suit me. There is plenty of information online about the problems of eating too little carbs - again, it may depend on your body type.

Feeling Much Better: Looser Diet

Ulla comments: That's a great achievement! Great! I feel better these days too, largely due to eating less strict (same realization as you), ensuring fibre and protein on every meal, not limiting carbs as much, staying away from foods I am intolerant to, eating/drinking lemons to stay alkaline, taking digestive enzymes every day. I also believe that regular 'blood electrification' made my sugar intolerance a little less severe (probably because it cleared some of the infection - bacteria feed on sugar and excrete powerful toxins into the body as they eat).

Going to Sleep Late Wears Down Adrenals

Oh another issue for me too: sleep schedule, my body hates going to bed before midnight, but some swear you need to get to bed hopefully between 10-11pm, at 12 midnight the latest if you have adrenal fatigue (AF), and I can see why. It also really depends on what stage your AF is in too, like right now I often get tired at 10pm where I never did before. If you fight it and stay up (on damn 'puter, like I am now writing this!) well of course you are pushing your glands, also you screw with your internal body clock, something I know is royally screwed up in me time and time again, and again cortisol is at the crux of this too (and wouldn't you know it, cortisol is one of the bodies main ways to control inflammation...).

Hot Baths Might Be Bad for You

Oh one more thing on AF that I have confirmed but don't recall seeing in a book or website anywhere, is heat & cold. Heat can drain the adrenals in my experience, like being out of a hot day for long period or something like having a hot bath. I have had a jacuzzi tub for nine years and love to use it, and used to use maybe once a week. The thing is, I usually have the water quite hot and at times I feel light-headed getting out. The doctor said: 'that shouldn't be a problem', haha yeah right. I don't think it is so good for nervous system either, and I can tell you that my adrenals are usually 'cooked' (literally?) for a day or three if I stay in too long.

Ulla comments: Yes I get very light-headed and tired from hot baths too...

Cold Showers Help Feel Better

Here is some good news: the opposite is true too! Cold showers, I HATE them, but boy they do good things for the adrenals, and an added bonus is that they shut down inflammation in a BIG way! My tendonitis and tennis elbow, bad knees/joints etc. are all so much better and pretty much gone, and I am still playing tennis on concrete too which is quite bad for all this, but every day I shower in warm water only (and mostly stand out of the way of the barrage of chemicals coming down so my largest organ, skin, doesn't absorb too much), then I always end the shower with 2 minutes of cold, and an extra minute of freezing cold I apply to problem areas. These two things, avoiding hot and doing cold, have really helped me a ton in several ways.

Ulla comments: I love cold showers and swimming in the cold sea - I feel so alive afterwards, it energises you and gets your blood flowing. So you have felt the benefits but also I think you could learn to like them: I don't think you have to stay in the cold water for as long as you do... First put the water on your feet, then legs, then both arms, and the body bit by bit from bottom to top. Only at the very end put cold water on your head and back, briefly. Doing it this way doesn't shock the body nearly as much. (For other readers: keep in mind you should not do this when your health is compromised, you are very tired, or when you are overheated.)

Hair Mineral Analysis

Okay we are now essentially to my last important discovery, minerals/metals - and the end of this crazy story, or, well, my story for now, as like you I also have a ways to go. I finally did the hair mineral test only a month ago after procrastinated on it for far too long and for no good reason, which was a mistake, since I knew that metal toxicity was one of the most probable causes of brain fog, and one I had yet to rule out. Really, it was one of the only last big ones left and I should have done it years ago when I discovered this. Besides accessibility to an affordable test, my other lame excuse was "if I had really high mercury or something I would NOT have felt good after four months on the diet I was on - as that sh*t messes you up full time.

Copper and Calcium Toxicity

Yet, I now know like you that there is SO much more to be learned from this test than just toxic metals. Long story short here, my hair mineral test looks very similar to your first ones. High copper toxicity, I also have high barium (and some other toxic ones not high but elevated), calcium WAY too high, potassium too low, manganese low, chromium very low, low lithium and low phosphorous, those are the standouts.

As you know, most of these are all congruent with adrenal fatigue, I knew I had AF months ago but now here is another reason WHY: the stupid copper can cause it, AND many many more problems including brain fog!

Mineral Supplementation to Feel Better

Now I realize yet another reason why the diet worked: molybdenum. This is taken to alleviate candida die off symptoms. What I didn't know then was that it was helping to balance copper, even chelate it. So anyway, I have my work cut out for me here now, and not just on copper the other things are soooo important too, but the last 2 weeks I have really been feeling good taking molybdenum, selenium, and zinc to chop this copper down. I have also cut down the copper intake in my diet: avocados!!! They have good fat too, are delicious, yet they sent me backwards on a diet for sure. I ate them a lot :( Nuts! Damn this sucks! Again full of Copper :(

Ulla comments: Note that it may not be necessary to cut out avocados since the hair mineral analysis nutritionist gave me copper supplements, even though I was copper toxic! Her explanation was that it's only toxic when your body cannot utilise it properly - i.e. when it is in a form alien to the body. So copper from pipes, aluminium from beer cans, heavy metals in polluted air, bad calcium, etc. are the ones accumulating in the body and causing problems.

Alright, whew. Still with me? That is it, well a lot of it. I hope you found that somewhat interesting and hopefully a little helpful. You have a great website so I wanted to give back a little by sharing and hopefully just maybe help a little with the mystery of your own healing. Adrenal fatigue is no easy thing to heal from, as you know, and boy does it suck. I'm quite sure its been one of my main problems for a long long time, but for me unfortunately, there have been so many more too, it's been hell trying to figure this out and no wonder with multiple issues.

Ulla comments: Yes very interesting and helpful, thank you for sharing your story!

Problems with Reverse-Osmosis Water

One other thing is: what kind of water do you drink? I have been drinking RO [reverse-osmosis] water for 16 years or so, NOT good. I never knew, as clean as it is, that it is also acidic! Now there is a large controversy on this, as you probably know, some say it will even strip your body of minerals because it is so empty, even "hungry". I knew that was possible, but didn't know it was so acidic until maybe a year ago and then tested it myself to confirm, damn! So now I add in minerals to it, which kills two birds, more alkaline and getting minerals.

Ulla comments: I drink filtered tap water when I have to be careful with finances and bottled home-delivered spring water (without cooler rental) when I can afford it.

Diet & Correcting Deficiencies are Key to Feeling Good

So after all this, 40+ Doctors, four naturopaths, years of research: what is one of the most important things I have learned? I'm glad you asked :) Good health comes right back down to the basics. DIET! Diet to me is close to everything when it comes to health, this is why every good naturopath you will see wants to know EXACTLY what you are eating, it's critical, and their main approach to getting back to health is through diet and supplementing naturally with things you need extra help in.

GMO's, many other chemicals in food, chemicals in water, depleted soils, amino acids/proteins, fats, sugar balance, getting enough good water, vitamins/minerals, and more, but these things are critical, absolutely vital to someone's well-being. Then the other obvious basic things: exercise, again so important, rest of course, mental health/stress, getting and staying non-toxic, these are the basics, but I really think diet is the most important thing you can 'mostly' control, and of course balance with many things is key. You really are what you eat, and I can tell you that you also become what you 'don't eat', so healthier in many cases but also deficient in others. I've just seen this quote somewhere the other day which too drives the point home: 'disease goes in through the mouth'.

Ulla comments: Diet is a huge part of the story. And it's amazing to realize how huge an effect it can have on how you feel everyday. And how quickly diet can make a difference. But stress and emotions is another big thing. Note that there may be emotional reasons too for toxic accumulation, mal-digestion and weak functioning of certain organs. I don't know if you can recognise any frustrations or stressors in your life but if you can, try to take strong measures to eliminate those too.

Hormone Supplementation: Melatonin & Pregnenolone

There was also a little experiment I did about a week ago. I stayed up a little late one night and took some melatonin before bed, which I sometimes do and sometimes with other aids also as I am going through a very long phase of insomnia, and sometimes I really need to rest. Well as is sometimes the case, I slept much better but I woke up tired and could not "shake off" the tiredness fully, I attribute this to a little too much melatonin and/or other things hanging around still in morning.

Anyway, I bought some pregnenolone about a month ago and decided this was a good time to try it. I bought it thinking that it could help me with adrenal fatigue, since my cortisol is likely too low much of the time and taking "preggy", as I nicknamed it, will help get more in the body.

So short story long: it worked! Boy did it work. If you look at reviews for "preggy" and/or DHEA people swear by this stuff, like even Susanne Summers as you likely know swears by taking bio-identical hormones, since as you age your body makes so much less, and you can somewhat alleviate the aging process and the not so pleasant things that go along with it by taking these. So I went from groggy and a little tired to, "good-bye brain fog, hello super human strength"! I went to play Tennis shortly after and boy did my opponent regret that decision! :) I was hitting the ball so hard, I felt stronger than I have for a long time, and clear-headed too.

Very interesting, and promising really. I only took 5mg, I split the 10mg cap in half as recommended by an expert on hormones, Ray S (good info on his site). He mentions that hormones are very powerful supplements and/or steroids, and should be treated with care and caution, and only taken in low doses if at all and for short periods, not long-term. This is kind of my plan, using them to help me confirm issues I have, and then using them as a bandaid until my body is functioning better on its own.

Ulla comments: Very interesting, however I am very cautious about hormones and prefer not to use them. In your later email you mentioned that the second time you didn't get the same effect and that a larger dose actually gave you a negative effect. This is interesting... I wonder why the first time the effect is so different from later times?

Stimulants Don't Work

I've tried many things in the past, most recently I tried tyrosine and L-phenylalanine, which did not give me the response I was thinking I would get. I got sort of buzzed and some energy like caffeine almost, and then crashed after too (despite most people in reviews saying the crash does not happen to them). This could be due to a methylation issue, not sure yet (have not done the gene test yet - see below - I have my suspicions), I am very sensitive to caffeine too, with caffeine I get a buzz off a small dose for only 20 - 35 mins, and then can crash for hours after. Caffeine is somewhat controversial, you see some posting about the potential benefits, but then others correctly point out it IS a drug, and one that toys with the neural transmitters and can cause havoc up there.

Ulla comments: After I quit caffeine for a longer time my body lost any tolerance to it. I used to drink a lot without too many problems and now I cannot drink any of it - I get extremely dehydrated, weak and fatigued straight away, and get a fever-like feeling and achy arms and legs. This is a typical reaction I have to both: stimulants and foods I am intolerant to.

Gene Testing/ Methylation

P.s. Have you discovered the 'relatively new' gene testing technology available to everyday people? WOW this stuff is fascinating, and another HUGE research project! As it turns out, if you have a certain gene mutation, MTHFR, you can not function properly without supplementing with a correct folate supplement, and even B12 likely too (and there is so much more to it and that has to be considered first). If you carry this mutation from your mother AND father, you are really down and out here, likely have chronic fatigue, and more issues because your methylation pathway is SO screwed up.

There is SO much more to genes, though, and luckily there is a very smart generous lady pioneering much of the research behind this, Amy Yasko. Look her up if you have not already, fascinating stuff. This gene testing can be done for $99! (If in USA, 23andme), from this you can tell your chance to get many diseases, so many other issues, and very importantly which mutations you have, and if they are hindering your methylation cycle, which is critical to your health (detox ability for one). Look up her free book on this, 'Autism Pathways to Recovery', but don't be fooled by the autism title. While she has zeroed in on autism, these principles apply to so much more, and her book is outstanding, extremely comprehensive, and goes into many details on some of these mutations, why they are bad, and how to alleviate issues with them. I'm sure you will eat it up.

Ulla comments: This could potentially open a door to future of medicine, where we become more aware of the unique needs of each human body. Have you also read about the discoveries of epigenetics, however, and Bruce Lipton's work, who point out that the environment can turn gene expressions on or off. So diet, correcting deficiencies, detoxifying and finding happiness may really be more important for health than genes, in the end.

Conlusions

Ulla comments: Thank you for sharing your fascinating story Jason! So many interesting experiments and realizations there.

I agree that our journeys are quite similar and I think the solutions might also be very similar. To me one of the biggest solutions has been to eliminate food intolerances - which I used the pulse test for - it’s free. Perhaps that would help you too.

I have come to the same conclusions about too strict diets - they made me feel worse and caused unnecessary stress. But they were interesting experiments as I learned much. (And at times I felt better, like you.) Your comments about the adrenal fatigue and fat & sugar are very interesting and bring this point home even more. I feel like I need some carbs sometimes - I can even tolerate some white flour products even if they are not good for me in general - but sometimes you just need quick energy, especially when working long days in the office. I take digestive enzymes before any meal that is slightly ‘dodgy’ which really helps a lot with reducing any intolerance symptoms. They say that those chop up the undigested proteins too - which are linked to food intolerance/ allergies and maybe gut problems too.

Dr Coca’s book on the pulse test is pretty interesting - available for free online.

Update from Jason a Week Later

As I sit here writing this, I feel completely elated, and I've shed many tears of joy, and I now feel the best I have felt since those 3 or 4 months on the diet when it was working, and also in 30 years. I am not on a completely strict diet though, and today I did not take a single supplement, yet, but they are one of the reasons I am where I am now.

I now feel that this part of my heart journey has come to fruition, as all the pieces of the "puzzle" of my malaise's finally all seem to fit together.

The causes were (summarized): candida and leaky gut, acidity, metal/copper toxicity, too little fat & protein in the diet, blood sugar imbalances, allergies, food intolerances, inflammation, adrenal fatigue, hormone imbalances, neural transmitter imbalances.

So what did I try to "fix" these issues? Well, before I knew what they all were, I tried just about every supplement under the sun, with some help but mostly no success. Then two years ago I tried the "diet" for aggressively killing candida. This leads us to the summary of why the diet worked, and why it stopped working, I think I now have this 85 - 90% figured out or so.

Dairy- and gluten-free, very low sugar diet, eggs included in the diet however. Lots of veggies, some meat, very little carbohydrates, no fruit or sugary vegetables, etc., many supplements for killing candida. This alkalizing, candida-killing diet worked for 3-4 months, with colon cleanses, green juices and enzymes + HCl for digestion, molybdenum also.

After three months a less strict diet, added spelt bread (has gluten and caused food intolerance reaction), added organic corn chips (very acidic), less alkaline diet. The diet was too low in fat and minerals from the start also so deficiencies were building up. Blood sugar imbalances from too little carbohydrates. Stopped molybdenum supplement. Brain abilities slowed down.

As for my current diet, it is still largely the same as that first year I started it, only I have relaxed on it a good bit, cheat occasionally, and added more "healthy things" like bananas, oranges, apples that are naturally high in sugar - but it is natural sugar, and there are so many other benefits to eating these. I have found out these alone do NOT activate my candida, at least not to a noticeable level when it is already "under control", I do think yeast and/or gluten in bread & refined sugar has that potential much more.

And with all that said, I feel about 90% human and back to "feeling alive" and truly "living", not just "existing" as I did for sooooo long where I literally felt like the "Walking Dead".

* * *

Note that soon after writing this, Jason experienced another crash after eating a home-made quiche. He found that taking a cold shower helped to alleviate the problems. He is now progressing on his health journey by monitoring his pulse and being careful with what he eats. If I receive further updates from Jason I will include them here.

If readers wish to contact Jason directly, use the website contact details and we can forward your emails to him.

More Healing Stories from Readers

More natural and alternative healing stories from readers:

How to Live on 40 Euros per Week as a Raw Foodist
Iranian Raw Vegan: Moein
Near Fruitarian: Brian Rossiter: A Story of Natural Healing

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