Take Control of Your Fight Against Cancer… Discover the powerful benefits of food as medicine with evidence-based nutrition without confusion, overwhelm, and most of all discouragement!
If you’re on a cancer journey, in remission, a caretaker, or someone looking to reduce your chances of developing cancer, then you already KNOW the path is not easy. It’s an emotional and physical one that takes a lot of hard work and growth.
You’ve probably heard a healthy lifestyle can play a role in reducing treatment side effects, improve outcomes, and decrease the risk of recurrence. Since you know that, you know the importance of taking control of your nutrition.
After all, research suggests 1 in 3 cancers are a result of diet.
HERE’S WHAT YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW Even if you are lucky enough to have an excellent cancer care team and supportive family and friends, understanding how nutrition impacts cancer is most likely not part of the journey.
~Food Can Be Fuel~ Depending on what you put in your mouth, you’re either causing disease or fighting it. We’ll dive into the difference between disease-causing and disease-fighting foods, which can dramatically change your body’s ability to fight and can impact your loved ones’ health too!
~A Long, Healthy Life, Feeling Strong~ A long, independent life filled with plenty of birthday parties and watching your children (and even grandchildren) getting married is possible. Implementing a healthy lifestyle can increase your chances of being there for the best things in life.
~You Can Gain Control of Your Destiny~ You don’t have to leave it all up to chance. You can take some of that control back. One day at a time, one meal at a time. And fight back.
~Controlling Inflammation~ Research shows inflammation is the root cause of several diseases, including cancer. Learning how to reduce inflammation gives you the best chance of preventing disease in the first place and managing it early.
Even though the motivation to overcome cancer (or prevent it) is clear, the path to actually doing it is anything but.
BEAT CANCER? Let’s Do It! But where do I start?
We All Know It Won’t Be Easy It’s not easy when all your energy has gone into your cancer treatments… dozens of doctor appointments…not to mention all of your other life responsibilities.
You’ve done some nutrition research, but you find so many different resources sharing differing opinions. Don’t eat soy. Eat soy. Don’t eat sugar. Don’t eat legumes… Wait, I thought beans were healthy? Who can keep up?
Maybe you even reached out to your doctors, inquiring how nutrition could complement your treatments. But they’re at a loss, or you didn’t feel confident in his or her answer.
Once you complete your treatment, you wonder, “What’s next?” Cancer took control of your life, but you’re finally ready to make sure it never, ever takes over again.
Most importantly, you don’t want your loved ones, your husband or wife or your children, ever to have to hear the words “you have cancer” like you had to.
You Can’t Afford to Have Cancer to Come Back – So How Do You Take the Next Step? You feel a lack of clarity around what foods cause disease. You feel as though you will always be a cancer victim (or that you’re doomed to be one).
You hear all the health gurus say, “Just don’t do this” or “Do that.” But it’s not that easy, is it? Years of habits can’t change overnight.
The moment you feel like you “messed up” or ate the wrong thing, you feel like it’s impossible to go back. You have never pictured yourself as someone who can successfully live a healthy lifestyle.
You feel as though you have to be PERFECT.
But that is precisely why you need someone to share the WHY, WHAT, and HOW.
The ‘I Can Fight’ Mindset You Need to March On (and reduce your risk of developing cancer and/or recurrence) Let’s pretend you already completed your radiation and/or chemotherapy treatments. Your surgery is over. You walk out of the cancer center wondering what’s next.
When you implement a healthy lifestyle, you have the opportunity to take control of something that has the power to take you to new and exciting places!
WHY NOTHING HAS WORKED IN THE PAST Even though there are hundreds of thousands of health professionals claiming they can help you gain a healthy lifestyle, they simply tell you WHAT to eat: “Eat x cups of broccoli a day. Don’t eat deli meat”.
But you ask, “Why broccoli? How do I cook it so it tastes good? And what does deli meat have to do with my cancer?”
While well intentioned, their approach doesn’t actually give you the tools to make a sustainable shift in your lifestyle. In the end, it can make you feel more lost. What you need is someone to teach you about evidence-based research in an easy-to-understand manner, someone who can provide access to healthy meal planning, recipes, healthy substitutions, tips, tricks, and sustainable changes to put you on the path back to wellness.
The key to marching on is education around the what, the why, and how, to implement a plant-based (or plant-focused) lifestyle.
A comprehensive digital program that teaches evidence-based information about nutrition and cancer AND how to implement a plant-based lifestyle while meeting nutrition needs to support your health once you’ve been diagnosed with cancer, or to help prevent it in the first place.
Meet Alison Tierney – Oncology Dietitian I have spent many years training to become an oncology dietitian, achieving my master of science, becoming a certified specialist in oncology nutrition, and teaching other registered dietitians working towards their master’s degrees.
My passion and dedication have allowed me to teach hundreds of patients how to make positive changes in their life. Most of them now have no evidence of disease and are living healthy lives.
ALISON’S CREDENTIALS MS – Master of Science – Nutrition & Fitness Concentration RD – Registered Dietitian CD – Certified Dietitian, State of Wisconsin CSO – Certified Specialist in Oncology Adjunct Graduate Professor – Evidence Based Practice, Oncology
~Teaches Evidence-Based Research~ Teaches the currently available research that demonstrates which foods are disease-causing and which are disease-fighting.
~Is an All-in-One Resource for Cancer Nutrition~ Since oncology nutrition is a specialty practice, it is rare for a medical professional to receive in-depth education on the topic. We believe this course fills that gap and is also perfect for the average person.
~Gives You the Tools to Implement Sustainable Changes~ t doesn’t only share what to do, but why and how to confidently implement it in your own way, at your own pace.
Other References: ON this episode of Health, Hope & Inspiration, psychologist Dr. David Wakefield talks about the importance of finding someone you can trust to talk to when you’ve received a cancer diagnosis, and how that can help you to cope with what the future holds. Processing a Cancer Diagnosis ON This episode of Health, Hope & Inspiration is entitled “Overcoming Insecurities.” Mind-body therapist Corliss Ivy explores how emotions can affect physical well-being. Overcoming Insecurities In this episode of Health, Hope & Inspiration the hosts talk with cancer survivor Robbie Robinson, who shares how his experience with cancer has inspired him to commit his life to serving others and made him an advocate for those starting their own journey. I’m Not Done Yet Mind-body therapist Steve White talks to the hosts of Health, Hope & Inspiration about three thought processes most patients go through and why they should give their worries to God. Taking the Worry Out of Cancer Dr. Lynn Bornfriend, a psychiatrist at Cancer Treatment Centers of America, talks on this week’s Health, Hope & Inspiration about the power of a proper mental attitude of focusing on the present in order to help combat the effects of illness in our bodies. Exchanging Anxiety for Peace Clinical Psychiatrist Dr. Laura Sunn joins the hosts of Health, Hope & Inspiration to talk about dealing with mental health issues during cancer care, including anxiety and depression. Caring for Emotional Health
Let’s look at this man for one damn second and STOP Blaming HIM!
“I share the same birth date as this 74 year old man coming back home from work at 2AM. While most men his age are retired in their vacation homes. President Trump comes back after a long day that probably started before the sun rose and gets back home exhausted with his tie open and hat in his hand feeling that an accomplished day is finally over.
This amazing man is in the age of many people’s grandfathers, great grandfathers or my grandfather when he passed away, but this man just came back home from work, for me, for you. This man left his massive gold covered mansion where he could retire happily and play golf all day long.
But this man put his wealth aside and went to work for free, for $1 a year, for me, for you, for us, for AMERICA. While other presidents became rich from the presidency, this man LOST over 2 billion dollars of his wealth during this short 4 years of his life. He put aside his amazing retirement lifestyle for getting ambushed every single day by the media and the Radical Left.
Democrats through political gain have trash this man who works for them until 1AM for free! He doesn’t do it for money or power, he already had it. He is doing it so their houses will be safe, so their schools will get better, so they will be able to find jobs or start a new business easier, so they will be able to keep few dollars in their pockets at the end of the month while other presidents before him (the last One) made sure to keep digging in your pocket to free load of the system. Look at this picture again, that man is at the age of your fathers, grandfathers or maybe YOU! Where is your respect? Honor? Appreciation? Are you THAT BLIND? THAT BLIND to not see a thing this man is doing for you and for your family? It’s blind to keep calling him a racist? Are you THAT BLIND to not see how much this country developed in the last 4 years?
I would hate to see where this country would be right now if Hillary would have won 4 years ago.
President Donald J. Trump, I want to thank you with all my heart. I am so sorry for blind hatred you have been made to endure. And the witch hunt Impeachment I witnessed earlier this year. You are a good and generous man. I KNOW THIS. What I don’t know and think about often is what kind of pitiful people that can be so hateful in their hearts to spew such hate, not just at you but at your wife and young son? Or people mocking and making jokes of you because you’re not a professional politician ” Deceiver,” groomed in speech making from a prompt and straight faced lying. WHAT KIND OF PEOPLE ARE THESE?? People not realizing they have been manipulated and brainwashed by such a deep rooted EVILNESS MOTIVATED BY A Hateful Agenda, MEDIA AND DEMOCRAT PARTY.” The American People are in a bad place right now….in their hearts and souls. God help us….Trump is not the problem. It’s we the people without (values, morals or principles) like those that came before us and an immature government that doesn’t have a clue how to fix what is wrong. It’s a government that thinks Obamacare is the answer and refuses to address the root cause of the problem.
If not for President Trump, I am sure Hillary Clinton would have allowed an additional 10 million illegals into this country in her first four years in office. Which we would not have afforded to allow to happen to this country for the sake of the Democrat gain. Many Americans in the United States don’t realize that Trump is very effective at finding Groups like—Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), and the 18th Street Gang. Their activities have helped make the Northern Triangle — Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras — the most violent place in the world that is not at war. In October 2012, the US Department of the Treasury labeled the group a “transnational criminal organization,” the first such designation for a US street gang, These international gangs are involved in drug and human smuggling, prostitution, murder, and extortion, among other illegal activities was founded in Los Angeles in the 1980s by immigrants from El Salvador and later spread throughout the United States, Central America, and Canada, gaining a reputation for extreme violence or — and sending them back home to Central America ensuring our safety.
God bless President Trump…As He’s Trying to Keep America great. The Committee of Five refers to the group of men charged by the Second Continental Congress with drafting the Declaration of Independence. The Committee of Five consisted of: John Adams; Benjamin Franklin; Thomas Jefferson; Robert Livingston; Roger Sherman; It operated between June 11, 1776, and July 5, 1776, when the Declaration was published.
SO The Fourth of July—also known as Independence Day or July 4th—has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution. On July 2nd, 1776, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later delegates from the 13 colonies adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 to the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues. This Fourth of July 2020 is on Saturday, July 4, 2020.
When the initial battles in the Revolutionary War broke out in April 1775, few colonists desired complete independence from Great Britain, and those who did were considered radical. By the middle of the following year, however, many more colonists had come to favor independence, thanks to growing hostility against Britain and the spread of revolutionary sentiments such as those expressed in the bestselling pamphlet “Common Sense,” published by Thomas Paine in early 1776.
Did you know? John Adams believed that July 2nd was the correct date on which to celebrate the birth of American independence, and would reportedly turn down invitations to appear at July 4th events in protest. Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died on July 4, 1826— the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.
This Saturday marks the 244th birthday of America’s Independence and a turning point in our country’s history. If we the people decide in November to elect the demented one into office and pass on Trump. In 2024 don’t say I didn’t tell you that Joe Biden would be a bigger mistake than Obama at dividing this once great United States. For as many blacks that I talk to that are making it in this country will tell you Black Lives Matter if you decide to get out there and make it happen for yourself!!!
The Most Beautiful “Amazing Grace” I’ve ever heard!!! 🙂 Amazing Grace was written by a former slave trader John Newton.. Once sailing a ship full of slaves from Africa his ship was hit by a fierce storm… Newton feared for his life and got down on his knees and begged the good Lord to spare his life.. He promised the Lord that if he would only spare his life he would change his ways and stop trading slaves.. The storm calmed down and Newton wrote the song Amazing Grace, full of sorrow and love and hope that he would be forgiving of his sins. One of the most powerful songs ever written and this is one of the most beautiful versions ever recorded by Judy Collins.
Thanks to my friend, for writing this, Is it all starting to add up to you yet…. talking of getting rid of the police?
Smells like the New World Order are in the works. Here’s the TRUTH of what’s happening in the world!!!! Create a VIRUS to scare people. Place them in quarantine. Count the number of deaths every second of every day in every news headline. Close all businesses. 40,000,000 out of jobs. Peak unemployment. Remove entertainment: parks, gyms, bars, restaurants, sports. No dating. No touching. Mask people. Dehumanize them. Close temples and churches. Create a vacuum. Let depression and anxiety and desperation set in.
THEN… ignite hatred and civil war. Civil unrest. Empty the prisons because of the virus and fill the streets with criminals. Send in Antifa to vandalize property as if they are freedom fighters. Undermine the law. Loot. Attack law enforcement, but tell the government to order a stand-down. We are all being baited by adversarial governments who want to destroy America – China, Iran, Russia.
They Can’t take America in war, so destroy it from within. We are being conditioned, manipulated, and programmed by multiple agendas as never before….. its time to DO OUR OWN RESEARCH and MAKE UP OUR OWN MINDS rather than eating everything being spoon-fed to us by The MEDIA that is going to kill us! SO Pull your heads out of the sand. Dust yourself off. It is times to take our FREEDOM and our GREAT NATION BACK‼‼
According to a Reuters tally, marking a major milestone in the spread of the respiratory disease that has so far killed almost half a million people in seven months. The figure is roughly double the number of severe influenza illnesses recorded annually, according to the World Health Organization The milestone comes as many hard-hit countries are easing lockdowns while making extensive alterations to work and social life that could last for a year or more until a vaccine is available. Some countries are experiencing a resurgence in infections, leading authorities to partially reinstate lockdowns, in what experts say could be a recurring pattern in the coming months and into 2021. North America, Latin America and Europe each account for around 25% of cases, while Asia and the Middle East have around 11% and 9% respectively, according to the Reuters tally, which uses government reports. There have been more than 497,000 fatalities linked to the disease so far, roughly the same as the number of influenza deaths reported annually. The first cases of the new coronavirus were confirmed on Jan. 10 in Wuhan in China, before infections and fatalities surged in Europe, then the United States, and later Russia. The pandemic has now entered a new phase, with India and Brazil battling outbreaks of over 10,000 cases a day, putting a major strain on resources. The two countries accounted for over a third of all new cases in the past week. Brazil reported a record 54,700 new cases on June 19. Some researchers said the death toll in Latin America could rise to over 380,000 by October, from around 100,000 this week. The total number of cases continued to increase at a rate of between 1-2% a day in the past week, down from rates above 10% in March. Countries including China, New Zealand and Australia have seen new outbreaks in the past month, despite largely quashing local transmission. In Beijing, where hundreds of new cases were linked to an agricultural market, testing capacity has been ramped up to 300,000 a day. The United States, which has reported the most cases of any country at more than 2.5 million, managed to slow the spread of the virus in May, only to see it expand in recent weeks to rural areas and other places that were previously unaffected. In some countries with limited testing capabilities, case numbers reflect a small proportion of total infections. Roughly half of reported infections are known to have recovered. Coronavirus cases in the U.S. topped 2.5 million Saturday as new states saw record spikes this week in their daily coronavirus infection rate. According to John Hopkins University data Saturday, the U.S. reached 2,507,874 cases — accounting for a quarter of the world’s almost 10 million cases.
Several states around the U.S. — including Florida, Texas and Arizona — saw alarming new records in their daily coronavirus infection rates, with Florida reporting 20 percent of the country’s 45,000 daily increase on Saturday.
Florida The state’s Department of Health reported more than 9,600 new cases of COVID-19, surpassing Friday’s record high of nearly 9,000 cases and marking the third time this week the Sunshine State topped the previous daily infection rate. FLORIDA SEES THIRD DAY OF RECORD-HIGH CORONAVIRUS CASES IN ONE WEEK Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez announced that all beaches in his county will be closed July 3 through July 7, and potentially longer. “The closure may be extended if conditions do not improve and people do not follow New Normal rules requiring masks to be worn always inside commercial establishments and outdoors when social distancing of at least 6 feet is not possible,” Gimenez told Floridians in a statement Friday. The state’s alcohol regulatory board also announced a statewide ban on in-person alcohol consumption in bars. State officials believe the spike in cases is attributed to young demographics meeting in social settings without practicing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines of keeping a 6-foot distance and wearing a mask, as the guidelines are not enforced statewide. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a press briefing Friday that he does not believe instituting a statewide regulation on masks is the right decision to make. PENCE POSTPONES FLORIDA, ARIZONA CAMPAIGN EVENTS AMID INCREASE IN CORONAVIRUS CASES THERE “We’ve advised that’s something that could make an impact,” DeSantis said. “At the same time, to do police and put criminal penalties on that is something that probably would backfire.”
Texas Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced this week that the state is pausing all reopening plans at this time, in an attempt to stunt the rapid increase in coronavirus cases seen recently. The governor on Friday signed an executive order suspending rafting and tubing businesses. Bars and similar establishments that receive more than 51 percent of their gross business from the sale of alcoholic beverages were also forced to close, to the dismay of many business owners. And dine-in restaurants will be required to seat only 50 percent capacity by June 29, down from the current 75 percent capacity that had been implemented.
Arizona Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, who lifted the state’s stay-at-home orders in May, is now asking residents to again stay home to prevent a larger increase in cases. Arizona reported 3,600 new cases Saturday and is ramping up the state’s hospital preparedness. Vice President Mike Pence, the leader of the White House Task Force, was asked this week if he saw a correlation between the states that reopened early and the states now seeing spikes in coronavirus cases. “I think there will be a temptation for people to look at these Sunbelt states that have been reopening and putting people back to work and suggest that the reopening has to do with what we’re seeing in the last week or so,” Pence said. Pence announced that he was postponing his campaign tour in Florida and Arizona on Saturday, due to the rising COVID-19 numbers in those states.
However, a spokesperson for Pence told Fox News that he will still be traveling to Florida, Texas and Arizona next week to meet with governors and assess the situation on the ground. Only two US states are reporting a decline in new coronavirus cases compared to last week — Connecticut and Rhode Island. A staggering rise was reported in 36 states, including Florida, which some experts have cautioned could be the next epicenter.
Florida reported 9,585 new coronavirus cases Saturday, a single-day record high since the start of the pandemic. The number rivals that of New York’s peak in daily cases in early April. While Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state’s surge in cases in the past week was the result of a “test dump,” officials there and across the US have also warned of an increase in cases among younger groups. That’s all as the US broke another record, reporting the highest number of new cases in a single day Friday with at least 40,173 new infections. But the daunting numbers could just be the tip of the iceberg: A new survey by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests the total number of coronavirus infections across the US could actually be six to 24 times greater than reported. As cases spike, US travelers are “unlikely” to be allowed into the European Union as the bloc begins opening up to international travel, several EU diplomats told CNN. Officials in parts of the US are now trying to reel in the spread of the virus — which many experts have said is spiraling out of control — by making pleas to the country’s young population to keep their distance, urging the use of face masks and halting reopening plans. The US has now hit more than 2.5 million infections and at least 125,539 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
Your coronavirus questioned, answered here Where new cases are on the rise The 36 states seeing a rise in cases include: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Washington State, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Cases are trekking steady in Delaware, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New Hampshire New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota and Virginia.
At least 12 states halted or rolled back their reopening plans in hopes of curbing the spread of the virus. Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee announced Saturday he’s hitting the pause button on the state’s reopening plan due to rising cases. Some counties were preparing to enter the fourth phase of reopening, “which would essentially mean no restrictions,” the governor’s office said in a statement. “Phase 4 would mean a return to normal activity and we can’t do that now,” the statement said. “This is an evolving situation and we will continue to make decisions based on the data.”
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced last week he’d pause any further phases to reopen the state. “I ask all Texans to do their part to slow the spread of Covid-19 by wearing a mask, washing their hands regularly, and socially distancing from others. The more that we all follow these guidelines, the safer our state will be and the more we can open up Texas for business.” A day later, Abbott also said he was closing bars and limiting restaurant capacity. Arizona’s governor has also announced the state’s reopening is on pause as a result of a major spike in cases. “We expect that our numbers will be worse next week and the week following,” the governor said.
Pleas to young groups In recent days, officials across the US have reported a rise in cases among younger groups. In Mississippi, officials pointed to fraternity parties as one of the drivers behind the state’s cases. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said last week there’s been an increase in younger groups testing positive for the virus. “There is a sense that a lot of young people, well you’re young so you feel a little bit more invincible but, respectfully, often that can be a selfish mindset,” Newsom said. In Florida, DeSantis said while the median age for those infected with the virus in March was in the 60s, in the past two to three weeks it’s dropped to people in their early 30s. The governor urged younger groups to be vigilant, saying while they may not be at risk for serious complications, they can pass the virus on to someone who is. The state’s community transmission, he said, is “being driven by that 18 to 35-year-old group.” “You have a responsibility to be careful if you’re in contact with somebody who is more vulnerable,” he said. “We’ve been stressing avoiding the three Cs which are: 1. closed spaces with poor ventilation, 2. crowded places with many people nearby and 3. close-contact settings, such as close-range conversations.”
To prevent infection and to slow transmission of COVID-19, do the following: 1. Wash your hands regularly with soap and water, or clean them with alcohol-based hand rub. 2. Maintain at least six feet distance between you and people coughing or sneezing. 3. Avoid touching your face. 4. Cover your mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. 5. Stay home if you feel unwell. 6. Refrain from smoking and other activities that weaken the lungs. 7. Practice physical distancing by avoiding unnecessary travel and staying away from large groups of people. Bonus: Get Plenty of exercise and sunshine (11am and 3 pm.)
A main reason Tim Tebow — despite all the good he’s done in the world — is so polarizing is… because he’s so outspoken in sharing his Christian faith that some of his detractors classify it as too shove-it-down-your-throat. Shoot, even a minor league baseball mascot mocked him for this. Never was that more evident than in the 2009 BCS National Championship game between Florida and Oklahoma. Tebow wrote a Bible verse, John 3:16, in eye black beneath his eyes for the game — a practice that was banned by the NCAA in 2010. Then, 90 million people googled the verse that reads, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Here’s where it gets weird, though. Exactly three years after Tebow shared his message with the world, he inadvertently did it again during his first NFL playoff game with the Denver Broncos against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2012. Besides leading Denver to an overtime win — thanks to a game-winning 80-yard pass to Demaryius Thomas — he invoked some pretty surreal numbers relating to the biblical line he repped in ‘09. Before making his way to the postgame press conference of that game, Tebow explained he was stopped by a public relations person, who began explaining to him what just occurred. “‘I don’t think you realize what happened. During the game you threw for 316 yards, your yards per rush were 3.16, your yards per completion were 31.6, the ratings for the game were 31.6, the time of possession was 31:06.’ During the game, 90 million people had already Googled John 3:16 and it was the number one thing trending on Facebook and Twitter. A lot of people will say it’s coincidence. I say big God.” — Tim Tebow https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WVnAbdHZao
Why are the simple things in life so hard?
The reason the simple things in life are difficult is because people have preconceived notions. Like you think you know what love is, and then BAM life throws you for a loop and now you cant even make heads of tails of anything. Why is life so much harder for some people than others?
Some people’s lives are harder than others simply due to the fact that they are capable of more in respect to other people. painful times in life, are the times that help you grow and become more wise through the years. Life is so hard because you didn’t prepare for it especially financially). Your mind always thinks life is hard. It will become easy if you have a positive mindset. But be careful not to deny the fact that “life is difficult”. Life is hard because you play life easy. It will become easy if you play it hard. https://lanegoodwin.com/why-is-life-so-hard/
Question: “Why is life so hard?”
Answer: Life IS hard. It is harder for some than for others, but we all must cope with being imperfect people in an imperfect world. Accidents, disasters, illness, heartache, loss—the ways that the human heart can suffer are myriad. Even Jesus agreed that life is hard, but He didn’t stop there. He said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Life was never supposed to be hard. When God created the world and placed the first man and woman in it, life was perfect (Genesis 1–2). Bodies were perfect. The temperature was perfect. The first couple’s relationship was perfect, and they had everything they needed or wanted. They even had the presence of God with them. They lived in paradise.
Enter sin (Genesis 3). When Adam and Eve chose their own way over God’s, everything changed. Perfection was marred, and life became hard. As a result of humanity’s disobedience, God cursed the perfect world He had made so that it turned on the man and woman. Thistles sprouted where flower beds had been. Food was no longer available everywhere they looked. They must now forage, plant, struggle, and reap in order to survive. Sin ruined everything. Now “the whole creation groans” (Romans 8:22, NAS), and we groan with it. Sin still affects our world, and life is still hard. Sin has a ripple effect that carries its destruction to others. Consider this example: a man gets drunk. That’s one sin (Proverbs 20:1). He comes home and beats his wife and children: more sin. His wife suffers a broken nose that will cause her difficulties for the rest of her life. The children are so traumatized that they run away, eventually getting involved in drugs and prostitution. More sin. One son gets in his car and, under the influence of drugs, ignores a stop sign and slams into a bus, killing six people. Their families will now grieve the loss for the rest of their lives, and others will be affected by their pain in various ways. The fallout from one sin continues to spread, impacting countless other people who then impact other people, and the legacy goes on. That’s only one sin. Multiply that by tens of millions, and we start to understand why the world is so messed up and life is so hard.
Another reason life is so hard is that this is not our final home. Those who belong to Jesus are here on visitor’s passes. We became citizens of another kingdom the moment God adopted us into His family (John 1:12). We are ambassadors, here on assignment for our Father, the King of kings (2 Corinthians 5:20). We’re not supposed to feel at home in this world. We don’t belong here, so it’s only natural that we often feel like aliens and strangers (Hebrews 11:13). Life is hard many times because those who’ve been redeemed and transformed by Jesus Christ live with a deep yearning to go home (2 Corinthians 5:17). But as obedient children we remain faithful to our assignments until our Father calls for us.
When life is hard, it is a reminder that this world is not our final destination. As difficult as circumstances may be, Paul called them “light and momentary troubles” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Paul and many of the first-century Christians knew how hard life was in ways that most of us never will (2 Corinthians 11:23–29). Some of their struggles are showcased in Hebrews 11, a chapter that reminds us that, as hard as our lives are, many have it worse.
As we grow through troubles, we develop the character of Christ—who also struggled much during His time on earth (Isaiah 53:3). His example of selflessness, endurance, and trust in God is an example to us: “Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:3).
Life is hard, but Christ is our advocate (1 John 2:1), our intercessor who pleads our case to the Father. He knows what it feels like to struggle through difficulty, depression, fear, heartache, and the host of human situations that make life so hard (Hebrews 4:15). Life is hard, but the Holy Spirit is our comforter who helps us and stays with us forever (John 14:16).
Life is hard, but it is brief. Compared to eternity, our earthly lives are like a mist that vanishes with the morning sun (James 4:14). What we do during this time on earth affects the rest of eternity. We can grow bitter, hard, and waste our struggles. Or we can endure (James 1:2–4), grow, learn faith, develop compassion for others who are struggling, and wait for our final reward. At that time, we will hear our Savior say, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord!” (Matthew 25:21)
4 reasons why life is so hard and 40 ways to live a better one. I am Lachlan Brown, the founder, and editor of Hack Spirit. I love writing practical articles that help others live a mindful and better life. I have a graduate degree in Psychology and I’ve spent the last 6 years reading and studying all I can about human psychology and practical ways to hack our mindsets. If you want to get in touch with me, hit me up on Twitter or Facebook.
There’s no doubt about it: life is hard. It’s a given. Life is so hard we don’t even realize how often we walk around complaining about how hard life is anymore. It’s kind of trending, in fact. But there’s no doubt that life is also amazing and wondering, and with the bad stuff always comes some form of goodness, even if it doesn’t feel that way at the time. If you’ve ever found yourself crying into your hands wondering why life is so hard, you are definitely not alone. But humanity is slowly, albeit painfully slowly, starting to realize that a lot of the bad things that happen to us do not actually happen to us, they are just things that happen. It’s our negative attitude or disposition that turns neutral circumstances into something full of despair and anger, confusion and frustration. You got it: emotions, thoughts, and feelings. They are what make life so damn hard. But there are other things too. Here are four reasons why life continues to be so hard for you.
1) You are Selfish. Yikes, way to hit the ground running, right? If you are an overly selfish person, you might find that life is a lot harder than people who tend to give of themselves to others. We don’t mean you have to save a small country from famine or give someone the shirt off your back, but it is nice to consider others from time to time to take the focus off you. When you take the focus off you, say to those poor, hungry people in the small country mentioned above, it makes you realize how good your own life is and it helps you to be grateful for what you have in life. When we practice gratitude we are not only saying thank you to the universe for all that we have, but we are thankful for life in general. That makes life suck a whole lot less, trust us.
2) You are a Hypocrite. If you are someone who tends to think she lives and dies by her word but then goes back on her word, either to yourself or someone you know, then you’ll find that life is not as fun as it could be. The major reason people go back on their word is because of discomfort. We say we’ll lose 10 pounds in the new year, but it’s really hard. In fact, it’s not hard at all. What’s hard are the thoughts we have about losing 10 pounds. Losing 10 pounds is neutral. You say you’ll do something and then you don’t. That’s what makes life harder than it needs to be. If you do the things you said you would do, you’d live a much easier life, even if it means being uncomfortable from time to time. (The only way to overcome adversity and conquer any challenge is through mental toughness. Check out my no-nonsense guide to developing mental toughness here).
3) We are Not as Free as We Think. While humans like to hang on to the idea of free will, the truth is that many factors play into our decision making and choices in life. Many of which we are not even aware of. Take, for instance, stories your parents tell about your hometown: do you also believe that there is nothing for a teenager to do in that small town on a Friday night besides break into cars? Is that the story you believe or is that the story you grew up hearing and never bothered to question? We carry with us a tremendous amount of information that is not of our own minds, yet we’ve adopted it as truth in our lives. These thoughts often dictate how we make decisions and how we live our lives. “I can’t find another job.” Well, not with that attitude. When you examine how you think and feel, you might find that your free will has been compromised by a lifetime of information coming from all directions. Perhaps it’s time to consider another viewpoint?
4) People Suck. At the end of the day, no matter how hard you work on yourself, there will be another person waiting in the wings to burst your bubble. The great burden of being alive is that we cannot control other people. We can only control how we feel and how we react to the neutral circumstances that come our way. Circumstance remains neutral until we assign a value to them and blow them way out of proportion. Consider that the next time you find yourself face to face with someone you don’t like: It might help you see them in a different way and tolerate them for the time being. Remember though, that your frustration with other people, which only causes you discomfort, is about you and not them. Dig a little deeper to find out why someone is driving you bonkers before you write them off completely. Once we accept that life is hard, we uncover some brutal lessons that will help us live better lives. Here are 40 brutal lessons that I’ve encountered from living a tough life:
40 Brutal Lessons About Life !!! One of the most painful experiences I’ve ever had to live through was the passing of a close friend. She had been diagnosed with terminal cancer just two years before her death, and had dedicated her life towards serving others with purpose and passion in the time she had left. On the day of her passing she had told me her greatest regret: that she didn’t start sooner. That she had spent so much of her life caring about distractions and drama. Since that day, I’ve tried to live my life to the fullest, never wasting a day in the way she had regretted. I’ve let her words guide me, living by them as my constant reminder.
Here are 40 hard truths that are captured from her advice, some which we may not want to hear, but have to.
1) Change is uncomfortable. Change will always be strange, weird, and discomforting, but that’s just the way it is. Be patient, and wait for change to become the norm. 2) How you respond to a situation is more important than the situation itself. You are kidding yourself if you believe life should be simple and uncomplicated. There will always be difficult choices and tough situations, and playing your cards right is the best way to move forward in life. 3) You are your own worst critic. You never give yourself the credit that you deserve, and you need to acknowledge that. You can be too hard on yourself, and you need to feel good about your own strength. 4) You neglect yourself too much. This is something we all do. Take care of yourself, your needs and your wants, and your life will be much better in every aspect. 5) Don’t waste time and energy on people who don’t respect you and things you don’t care about. It can be easy to exhaust ourselves on pointless endeavors. But life is too short doing things that have no intrinsic value to you. 6) Distractions can take over your life if you don’t pay attention. Take a look at yourself: is your life filled with distractions? Could you do without them? Master your focus to master your life. 7) Anxiety is a part of life. You will never feel truly confident, so stop waiting for that elusive imaginary level of confidence, because you are using it as an excuse. 8) Waiting for the right circumstances is wasting your life. We often don’t want to move forward until all the stars have aligned. But guess what? The stars will never align unless you move them yourself. 9) Daydreaming is dangerous. Reminiscing about the past or fantasizing about the future can make you miss out on the only part of your life that matters—the present. 10) You don’t listen to things you don’t want to hear. Many of us surround ourselves in a bubble of opinions and truths that make us feel comfortable. We fail to grow because we never take in what we don’t want to hear. 11) The toughest walls will help you grow the most. Every tense and hard situation will help you grow a little bit higher and a little bit stronger. Embrace challenges for what they are. 12) Even the best chess grandmasters know when to move back. Like chess, life is a game where you have to know when to step forward and step back. It’s all about stepping into the winning position, regardless of where it might be. 13) Pay attention—everyone has something to teach. Don’t take the world for granted. Every obstacle and every interaction can become your teacher. 14) You don’t always get what you want. Deal with it, accept it. Learn to play with what you’ve got, instead of refusing to play at all.
15) Acting like the victim will have you treated like one. Stop complaining; life isn’t fair. Move on from your tragedies, and let you define your life, not the other way around. 16) Sometimes you don’t need closure. There are times where we have to move on from certain people or parts of our lives. We don’t always need to know “what could have been”; just know what could be. 17) Habits are the hardest things in the world to break. Be conscious of your daily habits, especially the negative ones. Don’t constantly fall back into toxic patterns, which will always try to come back into your life. 18) Don’t underestimate your mental strength. Your mind can do whatever you focus on. Use your mental strength to its greatest potential. 19) You can’t create positive habits overnight. Change takes a while. If you find yourself struggling to better yourself, remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day. 20) Patience and waiting are different things. Don’t wait for things to happen; patience is about taking yourself forward one step at a time and staying positive about it. 21) People won’t always be honest about their feelings towards you. Their actions are more important than their words, so pay attention. 22) Don’t let shallow factors define the way you judge others. Don’t value titles, money, and accomplishments; instead, value humility, kindness, and integrity. 23) Popularity doesn’t matter. Live your life without giving a damn about popularity. Do what you want to do, not for the applause, but for the purpose. 24) Evaluate your sources of validation. Don’t live your life searching desperately for the validation of others. True validation can only come from within. 25) Listen to yourself. Don’t forget what you really feel and what you really want; it can be easy to lose track of your true values in all the noise. 26) “I’m busy” is the worst excuse. We are always “too busy”. But finding the time to do something is showing that you value it. 27) You cling onto things that are keeping you down. Evaluate the people and things you have in your life: if they aren’t helping you move forward, then they are keeping you down. 28) Your greatest superpower is staying calm. Don’t overreact, and don’t take things personally. Learn to be bigger than that; learn to stay calm. 29) Negative thoughts are a part of life. Letting your momentum go to waste simply because you had a bad day will forever keep you from reaching your dreams. Don’t let negativity define who you become. 30) Stress comes from within. No matter how tough or difficult a situation may be, the way you respond to it comes from within. Stop yourself from stressing out over everything. 31) Life will give and take, always. When life takes away something important from you, remember that it gives you new things to appreciate and love. Life is in a constant state of flux. 32) Find peace through forgiveness. Holding grudges over others doesn’t hurt them as much as it hurts you. Solve your inner turmoil by forgiving those that have wronged you. 33) No one stays bad forever. We are always changing. Judging someone by their history no matter how much they have changed is unfair. Give others the chance to grow. 34) Don’t let disagreements turn into hatred. We have a tendency to dehumanize people that we don’t share opinions with. Be cautious, and watch yourself when you argue. 35) Learn to be more human. The modern world has taken some of our humanity from us; learn to embrace what it means to be human again. Smile, look people in the eye, and don’t stare at your screens all day. Talk and listen. 36) We don’t have the time to fight. There are only so many years before we say goodbye to everything, so why waste your time arguing and fighting? 37) Placing expectations on others will only leave you brokenhearted. Don’t expect; just appreciate. 38) Not everyone will respond and act the way you do. You are only setting yourself up for disappointment if you think that people will treat you the way you treat them. 39) Positive people find positive people. The way you think and act determines the type of people who stick to you. If you want good people around you, then you must be good, too. 40) Life will turn on you … Nothing lasts forever. Look around you and say thanks. Appreciate what you have—love, life, and happiness.
SO Ask Yourself:
Which of the points above make the most sense to you? How can you change yourself for the better?
“THE WORK I’M MOST PROUD OF IS WHEN I’M DOING THE LEAST TALKING… AND I’M SHAPING THE CONVERSATION AROUND [OTHERS’] EXPERIENCES. I’M LEARNING FROM OTHER PEOPLE’S STRENGTHS AND JOURNEYS” – ALLIE CASHEL
Allie Cashel is the author of Suffering the Silence: Chronic Lyme disease in an Age of Denial(North Atlantic Books) and is the co-founder and president of The Suffering the Silence Community, a nonprofit organization dedicated to breaking the stigma surrounding chronic illness and disability. Since starting work with STS, Allie has been invited to facilitate work shops and to speak about disability, inclusion, and storytelling at events around the country. She has appeared in a number of global media outlets, including Good Day NY (Fox5) and NowThis Live News, and has presented her work at a United States Congressional Forum.
Alongside her advocacy work in the illness and disability community, Allie works as a marketing and content development consultant for nonprofit and mission driven companies in the United States and Europe. Highlights from her current consulting work include managing the 2018 Our World is Kind Photography contest with Envision Kindness, empowering youth activism with The Service Learning Project, and bringing community voices into the marketing strategy and brand development at the social impact startup, https://blog.mighty-well.com/ Harnessing the power of storytelling, she gives voice to individuals and organizations working to create positive change in the world. Allie graduated from Bard College in 2013 with a BA in Written Arts and lives in Burlington, VT. Lyme disease is one of the fastest growing vector-borne diseases in the world and urban residents in cities with regularly travelling populations should be considered high risk yet there is a little awareness of the issue amongst either patients or doctors. Lyme Disease: medical myopia and the hidden epidemic 1st Edition, Kindle Edition… Based on years of diagnosing and treating this growing problem in NY City, Dr Raxlen, together with ‘expert patient’ Allie Cashel and a team of international contributors, provides a road map for individuals who suspect they have been infected and are lost in the ‘medical maze’ of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases, searching for a diagnosis and appropriate treatment. By highlighting the difficulties sufferers face, Raxlen et al aim to increase understanding of the Lyme epidemic worldwide and how sufferers can obtain reliable and effective diagnosis and treatment.
From the Beginning…. Born in London, U.K., Allie Cashel moved with her family to Westchester, NewYork. A 2013 graduate of Bard College’s Written Arts Department, Allie is a first-time author, Suffering the Silence began as her senior thesis project at Bard College and has since developed into a full-length memoir which details her own experience, and shares the stories of a number of other Chronic Lyme patients from around the world, acting as a living portrait of the disease and its patients’ struggles for recognition and treatment. Suffering the Silence was published on September 8, 2015 by North Atlantic Books, a health and wellness publisher based out of Berkeley, CA, distributed by Random House. When I was first diagnosed with Lyme disease when I was seven years old. I had all the classic signs of infection — a tick bite, a fever and the infamous Bull’s-eye rash, which appeared like a red target on my thigh. I lived in Irvington, N.Y. at the time, where awareness of the disease, and its infection through tick bites, is high. So that summer in 1998, I quickly tested positive for Lyme, and joined the estimated 300,000 other people who are diagnosed with Lyme disease every year in the U.S. I took the traditional three weeks of the antibiotic Doxycycline, and everyone assumed I was cured. Unfortunately, my Lyme story was far from over. Is This What Hell is Like | Cancer Quick Facts www.solitarius.org/2017/10/28/hell/
As I went through puberty, I started to experience extreme fatigue and lasting muscle and joint pain. My persistent symptoms prompted new blood work, and in high school I was diagnosed with Lyme again. In the fall of my senior year, I struggled to read, speak, drive, and even to hold my fork at dinnertime. My tests also revealed three other infections that had yet to be treated: Babesia, Bartonella, and Erichilia, diseases that can all be transmitted in the bite of one tick. Doctors were unsure if this new diagnosis was related to my original bite. After all, I was outside all the time, living in one of the most endemic areas of the world, and it was entirely possible I had been infected again.
And so I spent the next three years on a constant stream of IV antibiotic therapy, an effort to keep my worsening symptoms at bay. Spending my adolescence in IV clinics felt as emotionally demanding as it was physically. When the treatment became too difficult, I worked instead to fight my disease with diet changes and high-dose vitamin therapies. Though I didn’t know its name at the time, the Autoimmune Paleo Diet was personally one of the most successful treatment experiences I’ve had to date. I was healthy for almost a year.
But when I turned 17, I experienced my first neurological symptoms of Lyme disease. In the fall of my senior year, I struggled to read, speak, drive, and even to hold my fork at dinnertime. Throughout most of my life, living with Lyme had meant dealing with fatigue, joint and muscle pain. Now years later, difficulty speaking and feeling lost in my school hallways became the new normal. I thought I had learned what it was like to live with Lyme, but now this felt like a whole new disease.
Why I’m Opening Up About Life With Lyme? It’s hard to describe daily life with Lyme disease, because it’s always changing. When I meet other patients who suffer from chronic Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses, I’m always surprised by how different their experiences are from my own. Diagnosis stories, treatment stories, and even symptoms can vary greatly between patient narratives. As a culture, we tend to think of illness as something that’s easily defined by medical textbooks, or solved by a single prescription. Our expectation is for patients to get sick, and then get better. But chronic illness is more complicated than that. And as a result, when we talk about Lyme, patient experiences are often dismissed, simplified, or even ignored. And so I’ve recently started opening up and telling my story. It hasn’t been easy, but finding my voice has been an incredibly powerful tool in the healing process. Every time I share my experience, I’m encouraged to accept the peaks and valleys of this disease, and not to judge differences in individual experiences. I know how difficult the inconsistency of chronic illness can be, but the simple act of owning that inconstancy is helping me to move forward and heal.
For almost two full years now, I’ve been very lucky to feel healthy, thanks to a combination of high-dose vitamin therapy and managing flares of symptoms with the Autoimmune Paleo Diet. I’m 27 years old now, and though I’m scared that one day I’ll fall back into the pain and fog of Lyme, I’m optimistic that I’ve left the worst of Lyme disease behind me. There is a lot that still needs to be done to reform the patient experience and cultural perception of tick-borne disease. Better diagnostic tests need to be developed, stronger data needs to be collected, and patients need more support. But perhaps the first thing we need to do in order to see real progress is to speak out about the complexity of our experiences and push for a more flexible understanding about what it means to live with Lyme disease. What do you do if you contracted Lyme at age 7 and you are now 24? If you’re Allie Cashel, you interview sixteen people with Lyme and write a book, called Suffering the Silence: Chronic Lyme Disease in an Age of Denial. Due out September, 7, 2015, the book shares stories of Lyme patients from around the world, as well as perspectives from prominent Lyme physicians Dr. Bernard Raxlen and Dr. Richard Horowitz and Lyme research scientists Dr. Richard Ostfeld , Dr. Felicia Keesing and Nicola McFadzean Ducharme, ND is the founder and Medical Director of RestorMedicine. She practices holistic medicine specializing in Lyme disease, hormone balancing, autistic-spectrum disorders, preconception health care and digestive disorders. While At Envita they have a unique understanding of Chronic Lyme disease and have been treating patients for nearly 20 years; have developed proprietary techniques and have the experience to treat the neurological symptoms associated with chronic Lyme helping to facilitate recovery and the return of quality of life to patients.
Allie was diagnosed in 1998, fortunate to have a bulls-eye rash and clear-cut diagnosis from standard blood tests. Asymptomatic as a child, after treating with antibiotics, Allie thought she was cured. Then adolescence hit, and a host of symptoms too, including joint and muscle pain, and fatigue. Tests revealed that she was co-infected with Babesia, Bartonella and Erlichia. After more treatment she was feeling well, but in her last year of high school the pain returned, with new symptoms including a stammer, spotty vision, memory problems, getting lost at school, and frequent car accidents (6 in 6 weeks). Her family had moved to a new city, so she went to a new doctor. Without even examining her, this physician told Allie’s mother that, “It was impossible that I was suffering from any sort of biological infection – that instead I was having a mental breakdown in response to my parents’ move and was regressing to infancy because I wanted to be closer to them, so that’s why I couldn’t do things that a normal adult could do like read or talk or drive a car.” Allie says, “I knew that there was something else going on…but I was in a place where I was really struggling to communicate at all, so I didn’t necessarily have the tools or presence of mind to communicate that.” Allie’s family was supportive, and she went back to her previous physicians who better understood the disease, receiving treatment that got her well again. Returning to school, Allie recalls, “The experience was so traumatic for me that I didn’t want to deal with it at all. I didn’t want to talk about it. I didn’t want people to know about it. I lied to friends when they asked me where I had been for the first 3 months of school. I was embarrassed and totally terrified that if I told them my story, people wouldn’t believe me.” It wasn’t until her senior year of college when she began interviewing other people with Lyme that she began to “sort of own all the weird complexities and ups and downs and confusion that came along with my experience of this disease and found that many other people were in that same boat with me.” The experience was transformative, setting her on the path of Lyme advocacy. Cashel created a Suffering the Silence online community, where young people with Lyme and other chronic diseases share their experience in positive and proactive voices. She envisions in the future that the site will have content organized by themes, and her goal is to reach many more people. She will embark on a multi-city book tour in September, and hopes to hold meet-up groups in each location along the way. Lyme patients or caregivers of all ages are welcome to contact Allie directly to arrange a meet-up.
Questions & Answers!!! LN: What stood out for you in interviewing people with Lyme? AC: One of the things that struck me the most was how isolated people felt…many of them were in situations that were quite supported, (in terms of people taking care of them), and yet they still felt incredibly isolated…The language that they used to describe sensations was incredibly consistent across the board…their muscles crawling or their skin being on fire. LN: When you look back, what did you struggle with? AC: I didn’t know what to say about it. There wasn’t a language that existed for me to explain things to people or explain things to my family or friends, so I didn’t. It just turns out that you have to invent that language, to help figure out what the narrative is, and we haven’t totally done that yet. LN: What is it like going through Lyme as a teenager/young adult? AC: As a teenager, that’s a time in your life when you are supposed to be making big declarations of what you like or don’t like, what band you think is cool or not cool. I was in this place where I didn’t even know if I could trust my own experience of what was happening in my body, so I struggled to say “I like these things; I don’t like these things,” because I was struggling so much to own my own physical and emotional experience…I pushed back so much against this idea of my experience being psychological, but in looking back on it, of course it was psychological. It wasn’t purely psychological…but our physical experience of the world, whether it’s disease, whether it’s complete health, …whatever it is, informs our psychological experience of the world…In reality I needed to find a way to fuse those two ideas together and I think that would have helped me to have a stronger sense of even what it was that I was going through. It wasn’t until I started to reflect on it and started to process it years after, that I was able to understand that. LN: What could we create to help young people with Lyme? AC: I spoke to a girl recently who suffered from Leukemia as a kid. Now in her twenties she is dealing with Lyme. She said that having cancer was a significantly easier experience for her than having Lyme has been…when she had cancer, the community rallied behind her. Her family rallied behind her. Everyone was there to support her, and to support those that were supporting her. And in this case (Lyme), she feels that is completely at a loss. If we were able to provide resources to caregivers, even just the acknowledgment that they are going through something serious, I think that would help to provide a sense of stability for young people who are going through this. Also, I think we need to create some kind of space where they can talk about things they don’t want to talk about with their doctor or their Mom – questions like sex questions or relationship questions, or what does it mean if you’re 17 and all your friends are getting drunk and you’re not sure if you can drink because of your antibiotics. You might not want to say, “Hey, Mom, is it cool if I drink?” That’s not a conversation you necessarily want to have with an adult, so to create some sense of community with younger people. Those sort of day to day life questions, we don’t have answers for young people. When you feel like you don’t know the answers to tiny questions, then the bigger questions – the identity questions, the pain questions – feel impossible to answer because we can’t even answer the smaller ones. LN: What helps people get through Lyme? AC: It may be optimistic of me or naivety of me, but I think positivity helps. And positivity helps people get better. And even if it doesn’t help them get better, it helps them feel better. LN: If you could say anything to a young person with Lyme, what would it be? AC: I would say that it will get better. It’s okay to feel sad and angry and frustrated, but it’s also really important to remember that you’re still really young and you have a long life to lead. Things you hoped you might accomplish by the time you were a certain age, even if you have to push that back by six months, you’re going to get to do all that if you work to make yourself healthy. And I would say that I’m sorry that there aren’t more resources and there isn’t more medical support for you to go through this. But if you empower yourself and advocate for yourself, there is definitely a light at the end of this tunnel and it is just a matter of working to get there.”
Health care providers reported at least 2,150 confirmed and probable Lyme disease cases to Maine CDC in 2019. For more information on Lyme disease and to view the 2020 winning posters and past poster submissions visit www.maine.gov/lyme/month. Maine Lyme disease data, including town-level and near real-time data, are available through the Maine Tracking Network. Visit www.maine.gov/lyme and click on “Maine Tracking Network: Tickborne Diseases” in the menu on the left. Check out videos on Maine CDC’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/MainePublicHealth. GETTING RID OF MY LYME AFTER 5 YEARS (LymeStop) YouTube · 680 views · 8/13/2019 · by CARLIE ANN
Lyme Disease – Ben Erlandson www.erlandsonclinic.com › lyme-disease.html Dr. Erlandson recovered from chronic lyme disease through a natural technique called LymeStop developed by Dr. Tony Smith. Dr. Erlandson is a licensed LymeStop practitioner serving Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa. For more information go to www.lymestop.com. Dr. Erlandson also has written an article about his journey and the LymeStop technique. LymeStop – Natural Treatment for Lyme Disease lymestop.com Dietrich Klinghardt, MD, PhD Based on an Idaho doctor’s important discovery, this revolutionary therapy has been a Godsend for many who have suffered with this debilitating disease. Whether you’ve just been diagnosed — or have already “tried everything” — we urge you to experience the extraordinary healing power of LymeStop.
LYMESTOP My Personal Story-Dr. Ben Erlandson nebula.wsimg.com › d321cd4dfc88caaa4fdbf9c9da04e121?… LYMESTOP My Personal Story-Dr. Ben Erlandson Up until I was 29 years old I had never experienced any true health problems. I had never taken any prescription medicine and always exercised and lived a fairly healthy lifestyle. As I got out of bed one day, I began noticing that my feet were sore in the morning.
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Ty Bollinger is a happily married husband, the father of four wonderful children, devoted Christian, best-selling author, medical researcher, talk radio host, health freedom advocate, former competitive bodybuilder and also a certified public accountant. After losing several family members to cancer (including his mother and father), Ty refused to accept the notion that chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery were the most effective treatments available for cancer patients. He began a quest to learn all he possibly could about alternative cancer treatments and the medical industry. Ty has now made it his life mission to share the most remarkable discovery he made on his quest: the vast majority of all diseases (including cancer) can be easily prevented and even cured without drugs or surgery. Ty speaks frequently to health groups, at seminars, expos, conferences, churches, and is a regular guest on multiple radio shows and writes for numerous magazines and websites. Speaking from personal experience and extensive research, Ty has touched the hearts and changed the lives of thousands of people around the world. How CBD and THC in Marijuana Work Together to Stop Cancer?
Cannabis and Cancer: How “Marijuana” Helps the Body Heal!!! By Ty Bollinger — Posted: June 17, 2020 The cannabis plant (also known as the hemp plant) has been used in just about every culture for centuries. In fact, cannabis is included in the 50 fundamental herbs within the cornucopia of Traditional Chinese Medicine.Chinese herbology (simplified Chinese: 中药学; traditional Chinese: 中藥學; pinyin: zhōngyào xué) is the theory of traditional Chinese herbal therapy, which accounts for the majority of treatments in traditional Chinese medicine … It has been cited in ancient texts as having a healing effect on over 100 ailments. In recent years in the United States, the collective mood is changing in regards to cannabis/hemp (aka “marijuana”).
Personally, I prefer to use the term “hemp” or “cannabis” since those are proper names for the plant, and the truth is that the term “marijuana” (derived from the Mexican slang “marihuana”) was popularized in the early 1930s by the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (which later became the DEA) in order to make this amazing plant sound sinister and to elude the public’s existing familiarity and comfort level with the plant and the medical application of cannabis/hemp tinctures. “Marijuana” was not a commonly smoked recreational drug at the time. Currently there are over 3 dozen states where it is legal for patients to use “marijuana” for medical purposes. Pending federal legislation may open up opportunities for federally-funded medical research, including human clinical trials. This will further prove cannabis’ track-record when it comes to healing a number of disease conditions − including cancer. Remember, that Israel Is a World Leader in Medicine.
Cannabis and The Endocannabinoid System… In the mid-1990s, renowned Israeli researcher Dr. Ralph Mechaoulam, professor of Medicinal Chemistry at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, made an exciting discovery that would forever change how we look at our biological relationship to plant medicine. Dr. Mechaoulam discovered a subtle system within the body that seemed to have a balancing effect on every other system. He called it the Endocannabinoid (EC) System and it can be found in all mammals, including humans. The EC system consists of a series of molecular receptors that are designed to receive cannabinoids. In particular this includes cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) as well as other related substances such as cannabigerol (CBG) and cannabinol (CBN).
Prior research in the 1980s led Mechaoulam and others to pinpoint two main receptors for cannabinoids − cannabinoid 1 (CB1) and cannabinoid 2 (CB2). Researchers at the time also defined the natural substances called endocannabinoids, which our body produces on its own in a similar way it produces endorphins. Phytocannabinoids (namely THC, CBD, and their variants), on the other hand, comes directly from the cannabis plant. Cannabinoid receptors CB1 and CB2 are designed by the body to be specific targets for THC, while our natural endocannabinoids help to synthesize it. The process of THC-cannabinoid receptor binding and what this does for the body is what researchers have been studying for over two decades. They are doing this in order to find out exactly how cannabis works in healing cancer. Microbiologist Dr. Christine Sanchez of Compultense Univeristy in Madrid, Spain has been studying cannabinoids and cancer since the early 2000’s. She was the first to discover the antitumor effects of cannabinoids. “We now know that the endocannabinoid system regulates a lot of biological functions such as appetite, food intake, motor function, reproduction and many others and that is why the plant has such a wide therapeutic potential,” says Dr. Sanchez in a video interview for the web-based cable channel Cannabis Planet.
Cannabis and Cancer Tumor Growth “We observed that when we treated [astrocytoma, a type of brain tumor] cells with cannabinoids, the THC…was killing the cells in our Petri dishes,” Dr. Sanchez says. “We…decided to analyze these components in animal models of breast and brain tumors. The results we are obtaining are telling us that cannabinoids may be useful for the treatment of Breast Cancer.” Sanchez and other researchers have confirmed that the most potent effects against tumor growth occur when THC and CBD are combined. Cannabidiol, or CBD, which does not have a psychoactive effect, has long been known as a potent anti-cancer agent. This is because of its ability to interfere with cellular communication in tumors as well as in its ability to instigate apoptosis, or programmed cancer cell death. Some research studies, including in vitro and animal-based trials conducted by San Francisco-based researchers at the California Pacific Medical Center, have also shown that CBD may affect genes involved in aggressive metastasis.
It does this by helping to shut down cellular growth receptors. Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (i.e. THC), the psychoactive counterpart to CBD, has been shown to reduce tumor growth as well. It has also shown to have an effect on the rate of metastasis, including for non-small cell lung cancer − the leading cause of cancer deaths globally. A 2007 study on THC and highly-aggressive epidermal growth factor receptor-overexpressing (EGF-expressing) lung cancer conducted by Harvard Medical School found that certain EGF lung cancer cells express CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors. They found that the presence of THC effected metastasis of these cells by reducing the “focal adhesion complex,” which plays a vital role in cancer migration. Studies have also been conducted on the combined effect of CBD and THC on lung, prostate, colon, pancreatic, liver, bladder, cervical, blood-based, brain, and other forms of cancer. These studies lend increasing evidence to the fact that cannabinoids are not only antioxidant phytonutrients but powerful “herbal chemo” agents. Says Dr. Sanchez: “One of the advantages of cannabinoid-based medicines would be that they target specifically tumor cells. They don’t have any toxic effect on normal non-tumoral cells. This is an advantage with respect to standard chemotherapy that targets basically everything.”
If You Use Cannabis for Cancer, Do it Right…. Because cannabinoid therapy is relatively new in the mainstream, a current challenge for patients regarding its use is lack of regulation. This may change, however, with the possible passing of the Compassionate Access, Research Expansion, and Respect States (CARERS) Act, which has the support of 37 members of Congress. CARERS would remove “marijuana” from the Controlled Substances Act Schedule I drug category, where it has been since 1970 − on par with heroin and cocaine. This classification is ridiculous since, by definition, Schedule I drugs have “no currently accepted medical uses” and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) holds a patent (U.S. Patent 6630507) on cannabis oil for medical use! Think about it. How can HHS hold a medical use patent for cannabis oil if there are no medical uses for cannabis? OK, enough of the logic lesson. Let’s just say that there are some serious logic deficiencies in these laws. If “marijuana” is rightfully removed from a Schedule I drug, this would open the door for more targeted, federally-funded research as well as increased patient access to this amazing healing plant.
1. Do your own research. The best way to learn about the power of cannabis in healing cancer is to start digging. There are approximately 500 articles on Pubmed alone relating to cannabis and cancer. Learn about strains, qualified targeted research studies, what method of administration may be right for you, and the importance of balancing the Endocannabinoid System. 2. Know your source. Unfortunately, because the medical cannabis industry is largely unregulated, charlatans selling bogus products definitely exist. You should not have to pay exorbitant amounts of money for any cannabis product that you buy from regulated pharmacies or online. Also, make quality a priority for you. Be sure that your product comes from an organic source and that you know that the plant has not been grown or processed using pesticides. 3. Stick with natural cannabis products. Synthetically-produced cannabinoids such as Marinol are commercially available. However, anecdotal evidence has found that these do not work as efficiently as natural substances do. 4. Work with a professional healthcare provider trained in cannabinoid therapy. These professionals are out there in increasing numbers, especially in states where the medical cannabis industry is well established or growing, such as California and Colorado. Reach out to a patient advocate group online if no qualified professionals are in your area. 5. Make cannabis therapy an important part of your overall cancer-healing toolbox. A well-rounded naturally-based cancer healing protocol involves working with the body’s own healing mechanisms through a variety of means. For you, this may mean changes to your diet and lifestyle, reducing stress, getting quality sleep, moving your body, intense detoxing protocols, and using other supplements and proven natural methods in addition to the powerful healing power of cannabis.
Sometimes we have ups and downs, but we’re all in this life together … the thing with Joe’s Decision it gave him one year longer to live then expected? Joe was first diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1985 and had two surgeries and four rounds of chemo. In 1987 he had a recurrence, fortunately after addressing the cancer in 1987 he went into remission. In 2007 Joe began studyingBrazilian Jiu Jitsu, and in his own words fell in love with it. “When I kept getting my ass kicked and went back for more it made me mentally stronger.” In the 6th year of Joe’s study he was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. “I have never been a smoker and there was no obvious cause…” In spite of there being no obvious cause Joe was far more mentally prepared for his situation than most people would be “I had faced death when I was young, The surgery in 86 left me with one kidney, the 8 rounds of chemo left me with nerve damage. I have no feeling from my knees and elbows down. So I have always felt I am on borrowed time and thought I might not make it to old age. So I was pretty calm through it all.
My wife Cindy and my kids took it hard. With all that being said I felt like if anyone could survive for five years, I would be that 1 in 100.” Apart from Joe’s lifestyle, he also has a spiritual component which he is tapping into to help manage. “I am not aligned with any religious group, however, I am spiritual and believe that there is more out there. I did meet a lady named Sister Dulce out of Baton Rouge LA, she is known around the world for helping and praying for people. Sister Dulce is a very sweet and kind nun in Baton Rouge who has been considered by some as a healer. She says she is not “a healer,” but she is used as an instrument of God for His healing. I try to talk to her weekly and she prays for me.” I was a little skeptical about visiting her and did it for my wife. I am now a believer and feel she is the real deal and a great person.
Joe’s Jiu Jitsu training is evolving along with his lifestyle “I have been training 4-5 times a week, the only injury I have had was my elbow popping. I feel really good on the conditioning side and considering only full capacity in one lung and still rusty I am doing pretty well. I am about 40lbs lighter than before the diagnosis, with some loss of strength. “My doctor is baffled that I am still around, I have not seen an oncologist since August of 2013… My last 3 x-rays show no change. I see my doctor every 4 months… Doctors won’t comment on alternative medicine. Diet, exercise, spirituality, and the mind play key roles in radical remissions.” The reality is that Joe’s case is a rare one. In the terms of submission fighting, Joe is using a low percentage escape to deal with a high percentage submission, but it is working, which is what takes the situation from tragic to remarkable. How does the cancer affect Joe? “Not at all, I believe I am that 1 % that beats a terminal diagnosis.
I think it is a problem that I can manage, a day at a time.” In Brazilian Jiu Jitsu so many positions are only escapable using paths that most people never realize, paths that may be uncomfortable. Many very strong people will try to fight out of submissions only to be caught in subsequent positions. Similarly, so often the methods modern medicine has to address cancer drastically inhibit the quality of life in patients and ultimately may speed up their demise. Unfortunately, these methods are in fact the cure, but in Joe’s case there is no cure that has been accepted by the medical community. Doctors are essentially powerless to really help him. But Joe has found a path of escape. This path has already proven successful at stymieing a devastating situation and if the trend continues Joe will be part of that 1%. For anyone who doesn’t know, Joe Mancaruso was one of the strongest Jiujiteiro that ever lived. This is not because of his physical prowess but his heart. Joe used jiu jitsu and a Ketogenic diet to deal with his terminal lung cancer, and as a result lived far beyond the initial prognosis given to him by doctors.
“He went out strong and a true warrior to the end. The strongest guy I have ever met!”- Cindy Mancaruso, Joe’s wife states, “Brave people, like Joe here, are ready to take on that challenge and attack it with full force.” Nature wanted it to be like that and Joe was diagnosed with cancer in May 2013. Like any other person on this planet, he started chemotherapy right away.
The suffering was even bigger. In February 2014, Joe had enough of the chemo and decided to treat it with a low-carb, high-fat ketogenic diet. Every month, Joe was paying $10,000 for a dose of chemo. The results of the chemo were the seizures and a weakened immune system. What I missed before is to tell you that Joe has fought off testicular cancer in 1985. He needed only 4 rounds of chemo to do that. “After 3 rounds of Alimta, I decided to quit chemo. I tried several diets and ended up following the Keto diet. I combined supplements, sunshine, exercise, and heat therapy.” – Joe Mancaruso.
This fitness guru said that the Keto diet therapy isn’t flushing away his retirement savings or destroying his life. The chemo is a personal choice. It should be like that. That’s why he is relying on a Ketogenic diet and rigorous exercise to starve the cancer to death. Joe realizes that opting out of chemotherapy is a personal choice, but he likes that diet therapy won’t deplete his retirement savings or destroy his quality of life — which chemo definitely does. “This will not be the right choice for everyone, Instead of being weak and poor, but it allows me to train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu four to five times a week, do my kettlebell training and travel,” said Mancaruso. The cells in our body can survive on fat and glucose. Cancer is different. It only relies on glucose. Can’t live on ketones. So, if you limit the carbohydrates that turn into glucose you can prevent the cancer cells from growing. According to the author of “Cancer as a Metabolic Disease” Dr. Thomas Seyfried: Also Elaine Cantin discussed how she used the ketogenic diet to manage her son’s type 1 diabetes and her own aggressive breast cancer in her book, The Cantin Ketogenic Diet. Maybe Joe Mancaruso would have had a better chance if he went Keto – earlier in his battle and not allow the chemotherapy to ravage his immune system from the start 🙁
When I was talking to my cousin Carla today Autism & Gap Diet was her main interest. Autism has never been reported in history, unlike other diseases which have been well documented. In the 1940s autism was first described, shortly after vaccines were introduced. Since then, rates have gone up-as vaccines have increased. In nature all immunity occurs by exposure to mucous membranes not via intramuscular injection (as with vaccines). Physicians dropped the ball by not requiring safety and efficacy trials for vaccines before liberally injecting them into our children.
Caesarean Section cause of Autism? Soon it will be a fact that vaccines cause autism and this will be one of the darkest days for medicine and mankind. Vaccinations have been around longer than the recent rash of autistic children. We must study recently adopted practices: plastic bottles, the lack of nutrients from dieting mothers trying to keep slim; toxins thought tolerable but actually subtly changing metabolism; irradiated dairy products; electronic fields….pesticides and the toxins that causing enlarged craniums make it essential that we adopt Cesarean sections more frequently…
Common Everyday Toxins To Avoid When you’re cleaning your family home or bathing your child, the last thing you are probably thinking about is exposing your family to toxic chemicals. However, that’s the reality if you have not researched the products you are using and chosen ones without toxins. While many companies are responding to the nationwide push to “clean up” their products, most are not quite there yet and still contain numerous everyday toxins. If you’re ready to reduce the toxin load in your home and want to protect the ones you love and yourself, check your products and do your best to avoid these five everyday toxins that are in many household cleaning and hygiene products.
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate A filler ingredient that is often added to personal hygiene products to make them foam, sodium lauryl sulfate is one of the big offenders. The Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep Cosmetic Safety Database rates SLS as a “moderate hazard” based on the fact that research proves it is linked to cancer, neurotoxicity, organ toxicity, skin irritation, and endocrine disruption. Furthermore, studies show that undiluted sodium lauryl sulfate can cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea if ingested as well as it has adverse effects on the kidneys, liver, and central nervous system. Although it is derived from coconuts, SLS is contaminated with a toxic byproduct as a result of the manufacturing product. It is present in most mainstream body washes, soaps, shampoos, toothpastes, and laundry detergents. The toxin may also be listed as sodium dodecyl sulfate, sulfuric acid, monododecyl ester, sodium salt, sodium salt sulfuric acid, sodium dodecyl sulfate, aquarex me, or aquarex methyl. To avoid the product, look for products that are marked as “SLS free” as well as shampoos and other products that are made with essential oils.
Bisphenol-A Bisphenol-A or BPA is an industrial chemical that has been a component of plastics and resins for decades. The biggest concern with this chemical is its ability to seep into food and beverages from containers made with BPA. Some research has indicated that the toxin may have possible side effects on the brain, behavior, and prostate glands, particularly in fetuses, infants, and children. Further studies show that the chemical may also be linked to an increase in blood pressure. BPA is most commonly found in polycarbonate plastics that are used to create food and beverage containers. However, it may also be found in other consumer products. Some epoxy resins containing the toxin are also used to coat the insides of metal products, including food cans, bottle tops, and water supply lines. To avoid this toxin, look for products that are marked “BPA free” and cut back on canned goods. Likewise, avoid heating plastics in the microwave or placing them in the dishwasher, as this may cause them to break down. Also, look for alternatives, such as glass, porcelain, or stainless steel containers, particularly for hot foods and liquids.
Artificial Food Coloring & Dye The most common culprits are Yellow 5 and Red 40; however, other common dyes include Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Orange B, Red 3, and Yellow 6. Artificial colors are most common in candies and baked goods, but some companies also put them in beverages, pet food, and even some meat products. To avoid the effects of artificial food coloring and dye, look for foods without any additives and try your hand at naturally coloring foods at home with things like fruits and vegetables.
Ammonia While most people know to avoid direct exposure to high concentrations of ammonia, few people realize how common the chemical is in household cleaning products. The chemical is found in everything from plastics to fabrics, dyes, and household cleaning solutions. While some individuals are more sensitive to the chemical than others, anyone can experience negative side effects from the toxin. The most common form of exposure is inhalation that can cause eye, nose, skin, throat and respiratory irritation. Over time, the chemical can even contribute to bronchial and alveolar edema as well as respiratory disorders. The chemical is most commonly found in polishing agents, such as those used to clean windows, bathroom fixtures, sinks, and jewelry. The chemical evaporates cleanly without leaving any streaks behind, which is why it’s often chosen for such cleaning products. Vodka is an effective alternative to ammonia if you’re cleaning a metal or mirrored surface. Likewise, toothpaste can be used as a safe silver polish.
Sodium Hydroxide A highly versatile substance, sodium hydroxide or lye is often found in powerful household cleaning products. The chemical is extremely corrosive, so if it touches your skin or enters your eyes, it can cause extreme burns. Not only that but if you inhale sodium hydroxide fumes, it can damage the lining of your esophagus and cause a sore throat that lasts for days or cause further damage. Not surprisingly, the chemical is often found in oven cleaners and drain openers. However, it can also be found in cosmetic and personal care products, such as foot powders, hair dyes, makeup, nail products, shampoos, and more. Instead of using cleaning products laced with lye, try baking soda and vinegar instead. Likewise, look for personal care products and cosmetics that are free of the irritant to limit your exposure. Now that you’re aware of the various toxins that could be affecting your health, do yourself a favor and read the labels of a variety of household cleaners, makeup, and hygiene products to ensure that you stay safe and healthy.
Health, Home, and Happiness, is a blog by Cara Comini and she believes that a healthy body and mind starts with a healthy gut. Cara believes that natural, organic sustainable produce and traditionally prepared food is designed by God to be best for the earth and people alike and enjoys learning more about this all the time. Her whole family eats primarily grain free at home. Cara blogs is about incorporating traditional food, natural remedies, and healthy habits into real life. The goal of her writing is to encourage the average family that eating real wholesome foods is something that is a priority and can realistically be done. Cara lives in Montana with her three young children. They enjoy the sunshine, swimming, fun day trips (with Healthy food packed to bring along!) and hanging out with friends and family. https://www.amazon. com.au/Health-Happiness- Favorite-Simple-Recipes-ebook/dp/B0089CLMJ4
She uses background in the medical industry to help decipher what is nutritional propaganda and what are ‘statistically significant’ studies. She believes that natural, sustainably produced and traditionally prepared food is best for the earth and people alike and enjoys learning more about this all the time.
Cara started researching dietary intervention for her daughter 8 years ago, as she was on the autism spectrum at that time and conventional treatments were not helping. The family used the Gut and Psychology Syndrome protocol for 3 years, and still primarily eats a grain-free diet now, though not as strict. Most of the recipes on Health Home and Happiness are GAPS friendly and simple enough to prepare with children underfoot. You can see the recipe index here. As more and more of her friends started having babies and asking Cara about recommendations, she wrote The Empowered Mother– a mother-to-mother guide from a holistic perspective to help prospective parents understand the pros and cons of conventional and natural treatment and preventative tools in pregnancy, childbirth, and the baby’s first few months. Lately, she has been helping families stock their freezer with delicious pre-made main dishes that are Paleo and GAPS-friendly. Click here to learn more about grain-free freezer cooking. You can follow her on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and Instagram. The goal of Health, Home, and Happiness is to encourage the average family that eating real wholesome foods is something that is a priority in our lives and can realistically be done in any family. https://healthhomeandhappiness.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch? time_continue=3&v=BQyOMpbXbfI&feature=emb_title
I knew my daughter Hannah had autism when she was only 12 months old although she wasn’t professionally diagnosed until age 4. Today, Hannah no longer carries an autism diagnosis and the progress she has made has been nothing short of life changing. There’s more, Hannah has successfully transitioned off of GAPS and is now eating a normal traditional diet which includes grains and starches – with no regression or recurrence of symptoms! For those of you new to GAPS, it stands for Gut and Psychology Syndrome. GAPS is a temporary diet that was designed by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride MD to reverse autism in her own son. GAPS works to heal the gut lining, rebalance intestinal flora, and help with nutrient absorption. In a nutshell, the GAPS Diet cuts out grains, sugar, and starch, and adds in foods rich in probiotics, healthy fats, and amino acids needed to heal and seal the gut wall. Once the gut lining is healed, many chronic health problems magically go away- things from autoimmune diseases to behavior problems to eczema.
Hannah’s Story of Reversing Autism To understand Hannah’s case, it is important to understand mitochondria, which act like batteries in our cells to produce energy critical for normal function…. Emerging evidence suggests that mitochondrial dysfunction may not be rare at all among children with autism. In the only population-based study of its kind, Portuguese researchers confirmed that at least 7.2 percent, and perhaps as many as 20 percent, of autistic children exhibit mitochondrial dysfunction. While we do not yet know a precise U.S. rate, 7.2 percent to 20 percent of children do not qualify as “rare.” In fact, mitochondrial dysfunction may be the most common medical condition associated with autism.
National public health leaders, including those at CDC, must now recognize the paradigm shift caused by this biological marker with regard to their current position of dispelling a vaccine-autism link. Science must determine more precisely how large the mitochondrial autism subpopulation is: 1 percent, 7.2 percent, 20 percent?
I had been keeping an eye on Hannah’s development from 4 months old when she wasn’t making eye contact, rolling over, or interested in anything other than nursing, I knew something was up, but it was right near her 1st birthday that I looked up the diagnostic criteria for autism, and realized that yes, she most likely did qualify as autistic, though most professionals won’t diagnose it until 3 years. It wasn’t until she was 4 that she received a formal diagnosis from a professional, but I knew I needed to start intervention as soon as possible in order to give her the greatest chance for a full recovery. I started by keeping her on a Weston A. Price Traditional Diet of all organic, nutrient dense foods as she was weaning, but when I didn’t see improvement with that we tried the gluten free casein free diet, which helped her ability to learn temporarily. After a while, however, she lapsed back into ‘autism land’. As a desperate young mom with an autistic toddler, and now her infant baby brother, I continued to search for ways to help my child. Googling ‘what to do when the gluten free casein free diet stops working autism’ brought up the GAPS Diet – this was 2009 when GAPS was just beginning to be known across the internet.
It took me a few months to work up the motivation to place my small child on such a restrictive diet, but the waking up every 2 hours all night every night, her not making progress in speech or occupational therapy because she was unable to learn, and wanting so desperately to improve her quality of life pushed me to give GAPS a try. Just after Hannah’s 3rd birthday I said we would only try GAPS for 30 days. And I tried it with her, to make sure I felt okay on such a different diet than typical Americans eat.
Starting GAPS We started GAPS with the intro diet in November 2009. I saw such great progress with her (and myself- GAPS cleared up a dairy allergy that I’d had since childhood, in just 6 weeks of the intro diet!) that I committed to keep going. She was able to learn again, and seemed to be starved for GAPS food; she was actually eating more than I was as a lactating mother!
Continuing GAPS as it was needed We continued GAPS for 2-1/2 years, working to heal the gut lining. Hannah’s digestion improved, and she started eating less after having been on the diet for a few weeks- her body was so starved for nutrients at first that she would eat everything in sight, but slowed back down to a typical toddler amount after a few weeks on GAPS. The most exciting part of Hannah’s improvement on GAPS was that she was once again able to learn. She started making progress in speech, occupational, and physical therapies. She took an interest in other children, was sleeping well at night, and was happier during the day.
GAPS gave her quality of life so much improvement, that there was no question that we had to continue the diet as long as it helped her.
As we continued, I got better at cooking GAPS food. In the beginning we ate vegetable soup, cooked chicken, hamburgers, and scrambled eggs nearly every day. GAPS forced me to be more creative with the allowed GAPS food, and I was able to expand to very enjoyable meals! Hannah knew her diet was different, but she was content with her food. Other parents would look on at me jealousy as she gobbled up eggs, meat, fruit, and veggies. The diet took effort to continue with, but once we had been on it about 6 months it just became routine.
Transitioning off the GAPS diet after 2 years GAPS is intended to be a temporary diet, so after Hannah had been on it and doing well for 2 years, I started trying some foods that weren’t GAPS legal about once a month. We started with potatoes, popcorn, and whole raw milk and she did well. We continued introducing new non-GAPS foods and watched carefully for any reactions (wheat was the last thing we introduced). If her gut wasn’t healed enough to tolerate a food I saw reactions in the form of skin rashes, night terrors, or loss of eye contact- every person’s reactions would be different though. In June we traveled to California for my little brother’s wedding. She had been transitioning off GAPS for 6 months by then, so I decided to just let go and see if she could eat what everyone else was eating. She did great! No reactions to the food at all. We were officially and successfully done with our GAPS and food allergy journey!
No longer Autistic! Though Hannah still has some learning disabilities (I believe this is from the long time that her brain was bombarded with toxins pre-GAPS, and we’re trying other therapies to continue to help with this), she just was tested this fall and no longer meets the criteria needed for an autism diagnosis. She has benefited so much from the GAPS diet, and has come so far from the 12 month old who would just fuss or stare off into space all day. She is toilet trained, loves interacting with peers, talks, learns new things, makes great eye contact, and is getting much better at accepting changes to her routine. We still eat mostly GAPS at home, since it is such a nutrient dense diet that our whole family thrives on. But being off GAPS means that I don’t have to stress when we’re out and we can just eat what everyone else is eating. The GAPS diet has been amazing for our family, I am so thankful that Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride wrote the GAPS book in time to help Hannah. I’m also thankful it’s not a diet we have to be on for life, but it was so worth it to stick with it for the couple years we needed to be on it.
The pain in her leg was excruciating — She never imagined it could be a deadly cancer.
A Born Spirited Championis a mighty warriorwho embraces their spirit, to assist them in their battles. They strengthen their spiritual connection until they can feel the spirits flowing within their body and thoughts, strengthening and quickening their mindset. Whispered fragments impart insight into battle: The spirit champion ceases to fight for their own reasons. They do so faithfully, trusting in the spirit to point them in the right direction.
Spirit Science – Healing Your Body With Food: The Movie A spirit champion is a deadly melee combatant. The spiritual nature strengthens their minds in ways most warriors ignore. Insight grants them speed and accuracy, they’re contemplative warriors, likely to meditate through darkness to dawn knowing every dark cloud has a silver lining while performing calmly within the battle. Spirit champions rely on the spirits to protect them, through insight and wisdom as well as direct intervention. They focus on the mind, and with their focus they can transcend physical limitations. Nature protects the spirit, providing instinctual insight and the whispers that bypass the normal means of understanding that bleed into the spirit champion’s subconscious mind. Spirit champions meditate as they prefer quiet places, however, they can meditate anywhere as long as they are undisturbed. They use this time to renew their focus within themselves on the tasks that lie ahead. The spirited champion mind is at peace and is difficult to disturb. A skilled champion spirit usually answers, but often does so in cryptic ways meant to improve the spirit champion or reveal to himself something about themselves. A highly skilled spirit champion has such an understanding of their own spirit, and has established such a strong relationship with themself. They have both the ability to perform at the next level and rise to the challenge.
Attitude Determines How Well You Do It! – Motivational Video Jamie Whitmore was born on May 4th 1976 in Mount Aukum, California. Personal: Whitmore has always been an athlete. When she was 5 years old, she started swimming, then it was softball and volleyball before she found her niche in track and field in eighth grade. She quickly found success as a distance runner and earned a scholarship to California State University, Northridge where she ran cross country and track. After graduating in 1998, she decided she wanted to be a professional triathlete. By 2001, she was racing mountain bikes professionally, and one year later she won her first Xterra off-road triathlon. Whitmore went on to become the most successful female athlete in XTERRA history with 37 wins, six national titles and one world title. In March of 2008, Whitmore learned that the source of the lingering pain in her leg was cancer – a spindle cell sarcoma that had wrapped around her sciatic nerve. The next year, Whitmore was in and out of the hospital with surgeries, radiation, chemotherapy and infections that left her fighting for her life. After relearning to walk and giving birth to twin boys in 2010, Whitmore won a gold and silver medal at the Paralympic Games Rio 2016. …Daughter of Clyde and Christine Whitmore… Has twin sons, Christian and Ryder, who were born in January of 2010…Was pregnant with the twins before being a year cancer free…She coaches over 30 athletes for off-road and road triathlons… Hobbies include mountain biking and riding dirt jumps with her boys!! Paralympic Experience Paralympian (2016); Two-time medalist (1 gold, 1 silver) Rio 2016 Paralympic Games, gold (road race), silver (track pursuit) World Championship Experience Most recent: 2019 – Road – 5th (time trial), 7th (road race); Track – 4th (scratch), 6th (time trial), 7th (pursuit) Years of Participation: Road – 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019; Track – 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 Medals: 20 (11 golds, 3 silver, 6 bronze) Gold – 2017 (track time trial, track scratch), 2015 (track time trial, road time trial, road race), 2014 (road race, road time trial, pursuit, track time trial), 2013 (road time trial, road race) Silver – 2016 (track scratch), 2015 (track scratch, track pursuit) Bronze – 2018 (track time trial, track pursuit, track scratch, road race, road time trial), (track time trial.)
As an athlete, Whitmore went to California State University, Northridge on a scholarship and completed a criminology degree in 1998. The professional triathlete turned Paralympic gold medalist has never met a challenge she couldn’t overcome and never slowed or backed down from anything. Whether it was an XTERRA mountain bike race—or cancer. In 2007, Whitmore was considered one of the most successful athletes in America. She was a six-time USA champion for XTERRA racing, a two-time European tour champion, and held a world title. Everything changed during a triathlon that seemed like so many others she had conquered. Whitmore—31 at the time—had just finished the swimming portion of the competition when she got on her bike and felt “something off” in her left leg. She rode through it, but when she started the running portion of the race, she told Reader’s Digest, “I was shuffling. It was hard to pick my legs up. I knew something wasn’t right. ”Whitmore cut back on running for a while following the race, but she kept swimming and biking, assuming the leg pain was the result of a muscle that she’d worked too hard. But the pain kept getting worse, culminating into the moment when she got on her bike and immediately experienced pain that was so intense, she started bawling. I knew something wasn’t right.” She avoided running for a while, focusing on her other two passions, swimming and biking. “I didn’t have any symptoms as long as I wasn’t running. I took a break from it, but every time I tried again the muscles were super tight and I had a lot of pain in my hamstring.” Assuming she’d simply pushed herself too hard in the last race, Whitmore shrugged off the pain. It wasn’t until a sleepless night at a sports camp in Arizona that Whitmore said she knew something was seriously wrong. “I couldn’t sleep, and I was having a ton of sciatic nerve pain. I usually had it when I drove a long time or sat too long—it was more annoying than anything.”
The next morning she decided to try to go for a jog, and the pain immediately became excruciating. She opted instead to ride her bike, hoping that would ease the pain. “Once I got on my bike I was in so much pain I was bawling. I flew back home to go to a nearby hospital. I knew whatever was going on was bad if I couldn’t ride my bike.” Whitmore never thought her leg pain could be cancer—she thought she had pulled a muscle. As her pain continued to increase, so did other symptoms. “I wasn’t able to use the restroom without pain; I was bed-ridden, unable to walk. No one could tell me exactly what was wrong.”
Here are 10 surprising symptoms that turned out to be cancer. After a friend recommended she go to the University of California, San Francisco, Whitmore took his advice and was quickly admitted. “I met with an oncologist, and he said they would do a needle biopsy.” When the obstetrician tried to take a sample of the tumor with an exploratory laparoscopic (small-incision) procedure, they found that the tumor was essentially encompassing all her major organs, as well as her sciatic nerve.
When she heard the diagnosis for the first time, Whitmore says time stood still. “I couldn’t breathe. They were talking about treatment and I just started crying and saying ‘I don’t want to die which made me more determined.” What doctors found during surgery shocked them all: Whitmore had spindle cell sarcoma, a soft tissue tumor that can start in the bone, The cancer was extremely rare, making up only two-to-five percent of all bone cancers. “They couldn’t cut it out for fear of bursting the tumor. It was near every organ I needed to live.”
Spindle cell sarcoma is extremely rare, comprising only 2 to 5 percent of all primary bone cancers. Chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation are typical treatments for the disease. There are several types of cancer that have minor symptoms like Whitmore’s or none at all. Doctors enlisted the help of several specialists to remove the tumor. “It was pressing against my rectum and bladder and had choked the blood supply to my sciatic nerve. I had no idea that when I woke up I wouldn’t have the use of my leg anymore from the knee down. When they told me I would need to bandage my foot to walk, I thought, this can’t be happening. I’m a professional athlete.” Whitmore now had drop foot and had to learn to walk again with the help of a physical therapist. She started radiation therapy, but four days in, doctors had more bad news: A scan had shown the cancer was back. “This time it was even more aggressive. They went in and took the rest of my sciatic nerve, a sacral nerve, and removed some cancer from my tailbone.”
Whitmore developed sepsis from the surgery and endured a grueling two-month recovery. “My scans were coming back clear of cancer, however, now I had all of these other complications.” When she began to feel sick again, Whitmore was certain her cancer was back. Instead, doctors gave her more unexpected news: She was pregnant—with twins. “That was a whole other freak-out,” Whitmore recalls. Today, Whitmore is a mother of two sons and cancer-free. She’s competing again, and has won a gold medal in the Paralympics, nine world titles, and has set two world records. She travels as a motivational speaker when she’s not spending time with her sons. Whitmore has some words of advice for others with limitations: “Never let anyone tell you what you can and cannot do. You have to find out for yourself. Some doctors told me I would never ride anything more than a stationary bike. And yet I rode my mountain bike 104 miles climbing from 9,000 feet to 14,000 feet. People with two good legs have fallen short of that task! You just can’t give up.”
Bottomline: Whitmore’s multiple surgeries were complicated; all-in-all, her doctors had to remove all of her sciatic nerve, sacral nerve, and part of her tail bone. When she woke up from her first surgery, she couldn’t use her leg from the knee down. She had complete drop foot, meaning an inability to lift the front part of the foot due to nerve damage.
Here are 30 cancer signs you don’t want to ignore. “Doctors told me I’d never run again, my pro career was over, and I’d probably never ride anything again. Other than a stationary bike,” Whitmore told Self.com. How wrong they were. After multiple surgeries, radiation, her cancer returning once, and a bad sepsis infection, Whitmore finally beat her sarcoma. She defied her odds, taught herself to walk again, gave birth to twin boys, and was back on her bike competing within three years, gold medals and setting world records once again. “Never let anyone tell you what you can and cannot do,” Whitmore advises others facing limitations. “You have to find out for yourself.” Whitmore’s positive attitude, determination, and appreciation is what helped her get to where she is today: 10 years cancer free, and accomplishing more than her doctors ever thought possible. When it comes to living with cancer, there’s expert-backed proof that attitude makes all the difference. Zig Ziglar teaches people all over the world the fundamentals of sales and success. Here he tells a story of a woman with a negative attitude who hated her job, shifted her attitude and changed her life. https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=QA4gwXauNEU
• Strives to find out how great he or she can be • Talks soft, plays big • Loves the battle more than the victory • Hates to lose, but is not afraid to lose • Goes through the fire to reach their goals • Always competes with purpose and passion • Learns lessons from losses • Lives in the present moment • Focuses on continuous daily improvement • Does not base his or her self worth on the scoreboard
Just One Of Those Days – Gabrielle Aplin (Official Audio) One of the most powerful ways to educate yourself, to open your mind to alternative ways of experiencing the world, and thus to counteract the influence of social conditioning and the mass media, is to read backwards—to read books printed about what happen 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 50 years ago, 100 years ago, 200 years ago, 500 years ago, 1,000 years ago, even 2,000 years ago and more.
When you do so, you can step outside the presuppositions and ideologies of the present day and develop an informed world perspective. When you read only in the present, no matter how extensively, you are apt to absorb widely shared misconceptions taught and believed today as the truth. The following is a sampling of authors whose writings will enable you to rethink the present, to reshape and expand your worldview.
Stress and Cancer 101:Why Stress Reduction Is Essential There are epidemiological studies conducted to date, that are inconclusive about the effects of stress on the development and progression of cancer, evidence emerging from the science of psychoneuroimmunology, The study of the interaction among behavior, the brain and the body’s immune system–shows that psychological and social stressors can interfere with the working of the body’s organ systems, In particular the neuo-endrocine and immune system. The effects are thought to mediate the influence of psychosocial stressors on health in general and could potentially play a role in the progression of cancer. Psychobiology of social support: The social dimension of stress buffering!! See: German New Medicine… The body’s sympathetic-adrenal medullary (SAM) system and the hypothalamic-pituitary- adrenocortical (HPA) axis are two neuro-endrocrine systems that are highly responsive to psychological stress. The SAM system reacts to stress in part by increasing the production of certain hormones called catecholamines. In HPA stimulation, the pituitary secretes a hormone that activates the adrenal gland to secrete additional hormones that is called glucocorticoids (primary cortisol in humans.)
Although the release of these hormones is a healthy response to an environmental stressor. Their progressive and prolonged production under ongoing stressful stressful–conditions is associated with impaired functioning or dysregulation of various organs and organ systems (McEwens, 1998; Anton and Langendorf, 2007).These effects can have a cascading effect on the immune system(Kielcolt-Glaser et al., 2002.)
Immune system processes play a central role in protecting against infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases, coronary artery disease and at least various cancer by identifying organisms and cells that are atypical, attacking them, and preventing their replication. Under chronic stress, however, key immune system can be disrupted. Chronic Stress in depression, inadequate social support and other psychosocial stressors can create disequilibrium in immune system functioning by either overstimulating some immune system functions or suppressing others. (Miller et al., 2007.)For example, the unbalanced of certain proteins (cytokines) help regulate the body’s immune system can create a pathological state of inflammation that have been linked to certain cancers, as well as a number of chronic conditions, such as CVD, arthritis, Type 2 Diabetes and frailty and functional decline in older adults. Prolonged exposure to cortisol and catecholamines under chronic stress also can adversely affect cellular replication and several regulators of cell growth. Some of the observed effects on cancer cells–such as accelerating tumor growth, enhancing tumor metabolism, assisting tumor cells in migrating and adhering to distant sites, increasing blood vessel growth in tumors and helping tumors evade the immune system’s natural killer (NK) cells. Which could help cancer cells to progress (Antoni and Lutgendorf, 2007; Thaker et al., 2007.) Multiple studies have shown that positive social support, in particular the provision of emotional support, is related to better immune system function and resistance to disease (Uchino et al., 1996; IOM, 2001; Uchino 2006.)In women with ovarian cancer, higher levels of social support predicted higher levels of NK cell activity, while patients with greater distress had impaired NK cells (Lutgendorf et al., 2005.) Findings from two randomized controlled trials of psychosocial interventions in breast cancer patients all had found improvements in immune system functioning using a variety of measures of immune system competency (Andersen et al., 2004; McGregor et al., 2004.)
Impact of stress on cancer metastasis!!! Studies with animals also have found increased stress to be associated with higher levels of stress hormones (catecholamines) and increased tumor mass and metastases (Thaker et al., 2007.) For example, mice with mammary tumors randomly assigned to more stressful housing conditions showed greater tumor growth as well as shorter survival following chemotherapy (Kerr et al., 1997; Strange et al., 2000.) Higher levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin) also have been found in people living high-stress situations, for example, female caregivers of relatives with Alzheimer’s disease. Although more research is needed to understand the extent to which, and how, these stress-induced physiological changes can influence cancer, it is clear that stress can induce pathology in several aspects of body function that affect health. Research findings also indicate that stress, mood, coping, social support, and psychological interventions affect neuro-endocrine and immune system activity and can influence the underlying cellular and molecular processes that facilitate the progression of cancer. For all these reasons, psychosocial stressors should not be ignored in the delivery of high-quality health care for people living with cancer.
What is empathy? Empathy entered English a few centuries after sympathy—in the late 1800s—with a somewhat technical and now obsolete meaning from the field of psychology. Psychologists began using empathy as a translation for the German term Einfühlung and the concept that a person could project their own feelings onto a viewed object. Unlike sympathy, empathy has come to be used in a broader way than it was when it was first introduced; the term is now most often used to refer to the capacity or ability to imagine oneself in the situation of another, experiencing the emotions, ideas, or opinions of that person.
Consider the following examples: “As you get older you have more respect and empathy for your parents. Now I have a great relationship with both of them.” – Hugh Jackman “I’ve always thought of acting as more of an exercise in empathy, which is not to be confused with sympathy. You’re trying to get inside a certain emotional reality or motivational reality and try to figure out what that’s about so you can represent it.” – Edward Norton To sum it all up … The difference between the most commonly used meanings of these two terms is: Sympathy is feeling compassion, sorrow, or pity for the hardships that another person encounters. Empathy is putting yourself in the shoes of another, which is why actors often talk about it. Transcript of “Does money make you mean?” TED · by Paul Piff
How Economic Inequality Harms Society https://www.ted.com/talks/richard_wilkinson/transcript Public health expert Richard Wilkinson surveyed social and economic data from across the globe and discovered a startling pattern: Countries with the largest income inequality experience more severe social and health problems than nations with a narrow inequality gap. Wilkinson presents plentiful examples, hammering his message home. Wilkinson explains the many ways that a widening gap between the rich and poor can have harmful effects on health, lifespan, and basic human values. He proves through ample research that societies with more equality socially and economically are healthier and happier. He proves that inequality is a detriment to all levels of society, ranging from mental health, infant mortality, homicide, and life expectancy.
More importantly, to answer the key question of how economic inequalities harm societies, it is important to note the relationship between factors that were earlier assumed to be independent. For example, poor countries with unequal distribution of income face greater political instability, lower investment in human development, higher taxation, less secure property rights and negative impacts on growth. Economic inequality is bad, even for the rich. The TED talk “ How economic inequality harms societies ” by Richard Wilkinson explains an interesting fact: Beyond certain basic wealth, the well-being of a society depends much more on income differences being small than on incomes being high on average. The difference in average income between countries has no influence on life expectancy. Determining whether chronic stress is related to cancer in some way, let alone how that relationship plays out in the body, continues to challenge researchers. “It’s hard to show causality because there are many factors that go into the development of cancer — environmental (stress included), but also genetic factors and unknown factors,” says Allyson Ocean, MD, oncologist at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine in New York City. Ditto for the range of issues that may influence the course of cancer once it has occurred. That said, experts in the field of psycho-oncology, which concerns itself with the psychological, behavioral, and social factors that may affect cancer, say that a growing body of literature suggests that stress does play a role in cancer causation and recovery.
The Link Among Stress, Your Immune System, and Cancer Cancer occurs when a cell acquires a number of mutations in genes involved in the regulation of cell division, proliferation, and programmed cell death (a phenomenon in which a cell, recognizing that it’s damaged, self-destructs). It’s a “multi-hit” phenomenon, meaning that many genes need to be affected before a cell turns cancerous. When enough genes controlling these functions are disabled, a cancer cell is free to divide relentlessly and endlessly. The “hits” take various forms. Some people may inherit a gene that predisposes them to cancer, such as the BRCA1 gene, which has been linked to many cancers, including breast cancer. But a cell requires more genetic hits to trigger cancer. “If, on top of that, someone has a very stressful lifestyle, or they smoke, or are very overweight; over time, those might all be additional hits to the system,” says Dr. Ocean. Under normal circumstances, the body is exquisitely primed to prevent those multiple hits from leading to cancer. “Cells are constantly mutating, but many biological processes exist to keep those mutating cells from turning into tumors,” says Lorenzo Cohen, PhD, director of the Integrative Medicine Program at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. One of those processes is performed by the immune system. “Typically, the immune system is constantly surveying the body, on alert to kill invading or mutating cells, a process known as ‘cell-mediated immunity,” Dr. Cohen says. When the body is under chronic stress, that safeguarding process may become less dependable. “It’s pretty clear that chronic stress disrupts the immune system, making us vulnerable to everything from a cold or flu to the uncontrolled growth of mutated cells,” says Cohen, who with his wife, Allison Jeffries, master of education, coauthored the book Anti Cancer Living: Transform Your Life and Health With the Mix of Six.
More Studies Suggest a Chronic Stress–Cancer Connection It’s easier to see this chronic stress–cancer connection in animals than it is in human beings, mainly because scientists are able to induce both stress and cancer in their animal subjects (something they can’t ethically do in people). “We’ve shown that stress can cause cancer to metastasize in animals,” says Cohen. “For instance, a study published in December 2017 in the journal Cancer Cell found that if you put mice genetically predisposed to develop pancreatic cancer in an isolated, deprived environment separate from other mice, their tumors grow faster than in the same breed of mouse raised in normal housing.” Conversely, the researchers found that mice with pancreatic cancer that were given beta-blockers — drugs that block the release of the stress response and hormones, including adrenaline — in addition to chemotherapy survived longer than mice given only chemotherapy. “When you block the stress hormones with a drug, you can short-circuit their tumor-enhancing effects,” says Cohen. Indeed, when researchers who conducted the pancreatic mouse study looked at 631 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer who had surgery to treat their condition between 2002 and 2013, they found that those who were on a form of beta-blockers that interact with a large number of targets in the body lived about two thirds longer than those who weren’t taking beta-blockers or were taking a form that affects only a limited number of targets. One small human study, published in May 2018 in the journal Cancer, also appears to bear out the theory that stress may worsen disease. The study, which followed 96 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), found that those who felt more stress and anxiety about about their condition also had a higher volume of cancer cells in their blood and higher blood levels of markers for advanced disease. The results held true even after the researchers controlled for other factors, such as gender, prior treatment, and carrying a genetic marker for the disease. “The current results indicate that stress is related to immune and inflammatory processes that contribute to cancer cell proliferation and survival,” wrote lead author Barbara L. Anderson, PhD, professor of psychology at The Ohio State University in Columbus, along with her coauthors. “It’s more evidence of the importance of managing stress in cancer patients,” said Dr. Anderson, in a release issued by her institution. RELATED:Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Stress — Including How to Manage It
Stress Hormones Trigger Inflammation Linked to Cancer When you’re experiencing acute or chronic stress, the body is flooded with what’s known as the stress-response hormones — epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol, which can suppress the immune system’s response to mutated cells. The trouble occurs when you’re under chronic stress — that is, prolonged, unremitting — or when you experience acute stress several times a day over a period of time. Your body is then constantly being flooded with these stress hormones. Some research seems to buttress the stress-inflammation-cancer connection. A Canadian study published in November 2017 in the journal Frontiers in Oncology, for example, included work history interviews with nearly 2,000 men, age 75 or younger, who were newly diagnosed with prostate cancer, and approximately the same number of matched controls. They found that those men who reported having had at least one stressful job over the course of their lifetime were more likely to develop prostate cancer before age 65. The average age of diagnosis is about 66, according to The American Cancer Society. (Other studies attempting to link work stress and cancer risk have yielded conflicting results.) There’s another way in which the stress hormones might promote cancer: Norepinephrine may bind with beta receptors that live on the surface of some tumor cells, causing them to proliferate. “Norepinephrine can fuel a tumor’s ability to form new blood vessels,” Cohen says. “New data shows that stress hormones might also increase nerve growth and density at the tumor site, which are associated with worse outcomes in people.” RELATED: How Stress Affects Your Body, From Your Brain to Your Digestive System
More Stress Means Unhealthful Habits That Contribute to Cancer Mutations In a kind of double whammy, people who are stressed-out are less likely to exercise and eat healthfully. In fact, unhealthful eating (think sugar and fat) may be triggered by stress-induced hormones and other chemicals flooding the body. Being overweight or obese is responsible for approximately 8 percent of all cancers, according to the American Cancer Society. Chronic stress is also likely to induce us to take up cancer promoting habits, such as smoking and excessive drinking. “It leads to lifestyle changes that are pro-inflammatory and pro-carcinogenic,” says Ocean. “Keep these habits up for a long time and your risk of developing cancer goes up, too.”
The Stress and Cancer: What Can You Do About It? “At the end of the day, all you can do is to try and create as inhospitable a terrain for cancer as possible, so that regardless of the triggers, the cancer cells don’t grow,” says Cohen. It makes sense, for instance, to handle high-stress times with healthful habits that not only reduce your agita, but also lower your risk of a host of diseases besides cancer, including diabetes, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s. Healthful habits, Ocean says, “means exercising instead of pigging out, or doing yoga rather than throwing down a few shots over the weekend.” Also crucial: “A good support network, and prioritizing what’s important and meaningful in your life,” says Cohen. “If you can figure out what you care about, you can use those core values to guide your decision-making, which makes for a less stressful, higher quality of life in anyone, with or without cancer.” Experts also recommend engaging in some kind of mind-body practice, including deep, diaphragmatic breathing for a few minutes a day. “Studies have shown this kind of breathing actually stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system,” which tends to calm the body, says Cohen. (You can tell you are doing diaphragmatic breathing correctly by putting your hand on your belly: You should feel it rise and fall as you inhale and exhale.) Ten minutes of daily meditation with a free app, such as Calm or Headspace, can be very useful, as can any practice that involves breathing and stretching (think tai chi or yoga). Finally, consciously sitting less; getting regular exercise (30 to 40 minutes five or six times a week) and sleeping for at least seven or eight hours a night are also great stress reducers, and may even have a dramatic effect on cancer and mortality. A meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Cancer looked at the link between exercise and colon cancer risk and found that the most physically active people had a 24 percent lower risk of colon cancer than those who were the least active. Studies focusing on the occurrence of breast cancer have shown similar benefits of exercise. Even patients who already have advanced cancer may benefit from stress- and inflammation-reducing activities, such as moderate exercise and yoga. One meta-analysis published in January 2018 in the International Journal of Yoga, for instance, included more than 10,000 cancer patients from 20 different countries, and found that those who practiced yoga reported fewer symptoms from treatment, such as postoperative breathing issues for lung cancer patients; better quality of life; reduced anxiety; improved sleep; and better physical and emotional health. They also showed stronger markers of immunity, such as lower markers of inflammation. “The key, really, is finding activities that you like, that you’ll be willing to do on a daily basis,” says Cohen. There are multiple ways that stress might play a role in cancer. https://www.bing.com/videos/ search?q=stress+and+cancer+connection&FORM=HDRSC3
Aryn Burton is a bookkeeping accountant and the mother of two children. When she was a young mom, Aryn’s son was diagnosed with autism at 15 months old. On Eat Real to Heal podcast Aryn shares her journey that started twenty years ago with finding out the diagnoses (without google), what is was like parenting a child that is non commutative, to what she did to turn that around so that he is a now a young man thriving at university with lots of friends and a community. She accomplished this through her own self-discovery and journey into the world of food as medicine. It is a story of courage, power, commitment, dedication and not giving up until you get the solution you want. Eat Real To Heal Podcast Ep. 46 Aryn Burton
I repeat: One of the most powerful ways to educate yourself, to open your mind to alternative ways of experiencing the world, and thus to counteract the influence of social conditioning and the mass media, is to read backwards—to read books printed about what happen 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 50 years ago, 100 years ago, 200 years ago, 500 years ago, 1,000 years ago, even 2,000 years ago and more. When you do so, you can step outside the presuppositions and ideologies of the present day and develop an informed world perspective. When you read only in the present, no matter how extensively, you are apt to absorb widely shared misconceptions taught and believed today as the truth. The following is a sampling of authors whose writings will enable you to rethink the present, to reshape and expand your worldview. Max Gerson was born to a Jewish family in Wongrowitz, German Empire (Wągrowiec, now in Poland), on October 18, 1881. In 1909, he graduated from the Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg. He also began practicing medicine at age 28 in Breslau (Wrocław, now in Poland), later specializing in internal medicine and nerve diseases in Bielefeld. By 1927, he was specializing in the treatment of tuberculosis, developing the Gerson-Sauerbruch-Hermannsdorfer diet, claiming it was a major advancement in the treatment of tuberculosis. Initially, he used his therapy as a supposed treatment for migraine headaches and tuberculosis. In 1928, he began to use it as a claimed treatment for cancer. When the Nazis came to power in 1933 Gerson left Germany, emigrating to Vienna, where he worked in the West End Sanatorium. Gerson spent two years in Vienna, before moving to France in 1935, associating with a clinic near Paris before moving to London in 1936. Shortly thereafter, he moved to the United States, settling in New York City.
