Adrenal fatigue

I came across this article today, and found this information rather interesting. I have adrenal fatigue, so this is pretty relevant to me.

So I'm not the only one who got duped...

I just came across this and wanted to share, since I also found out a previous dentist used an unknown item as a post in one of my root canals. As I was looking back at some of my posts to find that info, I was quite amazed at how much I went through and how much I've forgotten! Reading again the amount of decay under the crowns I had was enough to make me want to go back to the dentists who did them (not sure which dentist, unfortunately) and scream at them for causing most of my health problems!

Taking a break...

This morning while I was supposed to be sleeping, I thought about a lot of things, but mainly my health issues. I am in the midst of preparing for my colonoscopy next week and thought long and hard about what I need to do, not just for the colonoscopy, but about other things going on recently, too. I have decided I am going to take this time off from the cilantro/chlorella tincture as well to give my body a small break. I really think it's been working very hard these last few weeks chelating out toxins, but I'm also wanting to test my hypothesis on the funk that I'm in. A couple of things happened mentally and physically to me last night that puts me in even more of a position to really feel the importance of taking this time off from the tincture. I hit a low mentally that I have not hit in years. It scared me. I didn't like what I was thinking and it shocked me that I would even go there. Physically, I had head pain upon going to bed last night that I've never felt before, and I seriously thought I wasn't going to wake up this morning. It feels like I'm on the verge of having it return, and I'm not sure what to think of it.

If I find out during this week off that my positive attitude returns among a few symptoms either returning or new ones disappearing, I will know for certain it is the tincture and can discuss it with my doctor. Maybe we will need to take a slower route with it (rather than two times a day maybe just one, or maybe less each time), or do something completely different. I would really like to stay with it because I know it's much safer than synthetic chelators, but I'm also very concerned that it can be that strong to cause me mental and physical stress. Maybe I'm almost over the worst of it too, and things will get better as there's less metals in my body to detoxify, I don't know. This will be a good test to find out whatever the case, and we'll see how it goes.

I was able to talk with my chiropractor last night about adjusting my stomach. She said she was never trained in school, but she was willing to try if I was willing to let her. She did it, and I really think it helped. I did feel some chest pain yet overnight, but I don't feel as much pressure as I did before the adjustment. I could feel my stomach move when she adjusted me, so I know it was way up in the diaphragm where it's not supposed to be, so we'll see if it holds until I see her again in two weeks. I will be happy if I can feel relief from that. I have been trying very hard since last night to keep my abdomen elongated and sit straight (like I'm supposed to!) and see if I can help keep it where it belongs.

Still in a funk but figuring out why...

I apologize for that last post. I should have realized why I'm in a funk and that it will eventually go away, but for some reason I was so intent on letting it get the best of me. If you read back further to the post that I mention the cilantro/chlorella tincture for chelation, if you know anything about side effects from chelation, you'll understand where I'm headed with this.

Chelation side effects can be different depending on the method used. Because I've never used cilantro/chlorella before, I had no idea what to expect. That first week was mostly good because the tincture really hadn't started working yet even though I was expecting it to. The following week the 'funk' settled in that has put me in a very somber mood over the last two weeks. I just never really saw it until today when all of a sudden it clicked in my head that it's just a side effect. As the metals are chelated out I am guessing it should change and I should feel a lot better in many ways when my body can start functioning like it's supposed to. It could take awhile, however, so I am trying to somehow lift my spirits back up and try to pull myself out of this minor depression since I don't like being in this position.

Thankfully my tooth has settled down for the most part. I get twinges of pain occasionally now, but haven't had the deep achy pain in a few days. I am thankful for that. The headaches are still coming and going unfortunately, but I am happy that they have been going and not just staying like they were. That gives me a bit of hope that the tincture is helping in that aspect, and eventually they'll be gone for good if it's really working and moving the metals out.

One thing that I am noticing more now and will have to have checked out at my next doctor visit is my hiatal hernia. I was diagnosed with it about 8 years ago, and the old Dr. S used to adjust my stomach for me and that would help but since I don't see him anymore the hernia has, well....herniated, and it is causing me a lot of chest pain and the only way I can relieve pressures is by belching -- a LOT. Some days that doesn't even help, so I guess I will have to see what the new Dr. S is willing to do to help me. I know that has nothing to do with my HMT, but did want to mention that I am still feeling pretty crappy thanks to that.

That's about all I have for this post. I just wanted to clarify that I figured it all out. Still in the same spot, but I'm trying to work my way out but let the tincture do its job. I am really hoping for good results so that I don't have to use DMSA ever again.

I'm having the funk of my life...and I've never felt this way before...

Just checkin' in and to share that I am still in a funk and can't seem to pull myself out of it. I am starting to come to the conclusion that my 'falling' tooth is causing me a lot of pain, and I think I will have to have it pulled. It is the tooth on the upper left side, farthest to the back. It no longer has a tooth on the bottom to keep it up and in place, so therefore it's falling out of the socket. I am so frustrated. I just don't need another dentist bill or doctor bill, and yet it all keeps coming at me. I want to prolong getting it removed as long as possible, but the pain got pretty bad over the weekend and continues to not be very happy. Add that to the headaches I already get on a daily basis, and I am one unhappy camper, I'll tell you that.

I've always tried to be upbeat through all of this, and to think positive that I'm going to overcome all of this, but I think with getting the HM test results back last week, the headaches continuing on, the impending colonoscopy, and now this drasted tooth, I have lost all positive feelings I ever had. When is all this craziness going to end? I used to wake up each day thinking that this just might be the day I start feeling better. Now I just wake up. And the day begins in pain, and ends in pain.

Don't get me wrong. I still have hope that someday I'll be well. But right now at this exact moment I am frustrated with where I'm at. Six years and I am still fighting this battle, and it doesn't seem like it's going to end any time soon.

New doc, new tests, new protocol

I saw the new doctor this week. He seems alright. I think it will take a bit to get used to his style, but if he can help me I guess that's all that really matters.

First we discussed my new test results. To my dismay, almost all levels went back up. I know it's been over a year since I took the last test, but this just does not seem right. Apparently I am still being exposed to all the same heavy metals, including mercury. Lead came back the highest and in the toxic range, so I am very concerned that Sparky and the kids are still dealing with high levels as well (probably even higher than when they tested since we have not done any chelation for them at all). I want to get our water tested really bad, but our city is refusing to do it. We'll have to pay to have it done, and that just frustrates me.

Back to the office visit...I explained to Dr. S (yeah, he is also a Dr. S) what's been going on over the last six years. I wasn't able to explain everything, but seemed to get the most important stuff mentioned. He agreed with me that the cilantro tincture will probably do better than DMSA since the DMSA caused some side effects, and I'm very happy about that. He also prescribed some other supplements to help with my headaches and off-balance issues. He said if I don't feel any relief in a couple of weeks that he wants to do more testing.

I want to be so excited about all of this and hope that things start turning around, but I've actually felt pretty crappy this week and feeling not as optomistic as I did last week. I'm actually in quite a bit of a funk, and that's normally not like me. I think my headaches are really starting to get me down because they've moved to the back of my head now and get pretty powerful. They come on so suddenly and really wear me down.

I also shared with Dr. S. that I'm still having gut issues and he set me up with an appointment with him to do a colonoscopy. NOT HAPPY about that. But he is concerned that things aren't right and wants to get it figured out so we can get back to dealing with my other issues if needed.

Day Two through Five

I'm sorry I missed the last four days' updates. The week actually went a lot better than expected, so my mind wasn't on getting in here.

Day 2:
I started out pretty fatigued and sleepy. Throughout the day I started feeling a different kind of headache coming on, more of a 'pulling' sensation from my sinus area, and it was pretty powerful. I was also chilled most of the afternoon, and felt my normal off-balance.

Day 3:
Woke up with the 'pulling' headache, but it was eventually replaced with an overall headache. By evening my off-balance issues seemed less and I felt more in control when walking. The headache came back again in the evening.

Day 4:
I woke up with stomach pain; none like I've ever felt before. It seemed to go away within the hour and didn't return. I had some bouts of brain fogginess mixed with some mental clarity. Overall, I didn't have much in the way of off-balance for a major portion of the day. It did come back again in the evening, however.

Day 5:
I felt pretty yucky overall today. It seemed like all the symptoms from the week were a bit heightened today. By lunchtime I had a nasty headache that started at the base of my skull and felt like someone was drilling straight up through my skull on the left side of the back of my head. I put a heating pad on my neck and took a nap. When I woke up that headache was gone, but the 'pulling' headache was back. The off-balance was back to normal today, which was a bit of a bummer. I was hoping yesterday was the start of something.

Like I mentioned earlier, the week went a lot better than I expected. I really expected to be sicker than a dog and feeling horrible all week. I think my choice of nutritional foods really helped with how it went, and I actually am planning on continuing the cilantro/chlorella tincture Monday through Friday each week but only taking it once a day. It seems to be doing something, so I might as well continue and try to heal my body as naturally as possible. Next Wednesday I finally go see the new doctor and get my HMT results back, so it will be interesting to see what they are. What will be even cooler is if this doc lets me use only the tincture and retest in a few months to see if it actually did something. I'll of course know by how I feel, but it would be good to get proof, too.

Day One

Day one went rather well. In the morning I actually felt a bit of energy and used it to my advantage and made a great carrot squash soup, baked apples, and baked rice while the kids did their homeschool. In the afternoon I started feeling extremely fatigued and tired. The chills were coming on, too, so I laid down for a twenty minute catnap. That seemed to help, and when I woke up I spent a little time reading and then found another short burst of energy. It didn't last long, but was good. Then after dinner I became fatigued again and got a pretty bad headache. It felt like a normal headache though, so I wasn't attributing it to the cleanse/detox. Later in the evening to my dismay, my left foot started hurting something terrible. After closer inspection this morning I realized it was a plantar's wart, and there's another one on the foot starting, too. Yuck. My daughter also has them (got them from a community pool), so we'll be starting the apple cider vinegar treatment today.

So far today I am feeling okay. A bit fatigued yet, and I seem to be warmer than usual. We'll see what the rest of the day holds and I'll try to check back in tomorrow. I am expecting a down turn if this is working, so I actually want to feel 'bad' to tell me that the stuff is moving out of my system. Because I really haven't yet, I am not sure it's doing anything. It's only day two though, so I'm hopeful.

Preparation...

Today's the day to start my week of detox/cleanse/fast with the cilantro and chlorella tincture. I'm pretty excited. In preparation for today I put together a program for me to follow:
I don't want to forget anything, and especially if I start feeling the effects of what I'm doing negatively, I want to have this plan in place so I don't get sidetracked. It could be a bumpy ride, or I could start feeling better within twenty-four hours. I am just hoping for positive results by the end of the week, and if that happens I'll be ecstatic! If I'm up to it, I'll try to post daily to share how things are going.

Trying something new...

It's just a little over a week away to when I will be meeting with the new doctor. I am apprehensive but eager to meet him and find out what he thinks is going on and how he can help me, and also very curious as to find out my HMT test results.

I have been doing a lot of research lately on the benefits of cilantro and chlorella in detoxing heavy metals. I found a lot of information, and also found this in the process. I ordered some and have a plan in place to detox/chelate/fast next week. I am so excited! If this stuff is for real (and safe for you since they are both foods), I cannot wait to see how I feel at the end of the week. The decision to fast is not a true fast in the sense of the word, but a fast from a lot of foods that could be detrimental to the tincture working properly. I am going to be sticking with mostly fruits and vegetables all week (no sugars, dairy, or gluten-based grains). I will have some rice and some meats, but the majority of my food next week will be foods that have not been processed. Nutritionally I am hoping that doing that will bathe my body in vitamins and minerals to immediately replace the heavy metals that would be coming out. I will also be including some supplements that I know to be helpful, and will be trying to do some form of exercise daily to help move the toxins out and strengthen muscle loss.

According to what I've read, cilantro digs into deep places other chelators can't, like the brain and larger muscles. The chlorella helps move it out of the system...they pretty much work synergistically. That's why I was so happy to find them together in one bottle so I didn't have to worry about taking one without the other. I am just really hoping it works and I feel some sort of relief at all. If it works I will take one week off, go one week on and so forth until I am feeling I don't need it anymore.

Test done...

I just finished the heavy metal tox screen today. It was a 6 hour test, and I had to take 21 DMSA caplets. I really am surprised I am not feeling as icky as I expected to. In fact, I seem to have a bit less off-balance/dizziness going on than normal, and seem to have a bit of energy. I'm not exactly sure if it was the DMSA, or if it has anything to do with me adding a vitamin B12 spray today. I have so far taken 48 mcg (or 800% rda) of it today, after reading this article and seeing some similarities with my symptoms. I also called my NP and left a message for her regarding it because I couldn't remember if they ever tested my B12 levels. I should hear from her nurse this evening hopefully. If that's the case, I would happily continue to take vitamin B12 in whatever form would be best for me. I of course also looked further into seeing if a deficiency could be caused by toxic metal overload, and yep, there is a correlation. Who knows, with how 'alright' I'm feeling today maybe it's a combination of both the DMSA and adding in the B12 that's helping. I sure wouldn't mind having less off-balance and dizziness going on, that's for sure. Maybe I could actually start driving again!

Waiting...(fingertapping)...

I just saw my NP today for the follow-up after seeing the neurologist. She has decided it's time to pass me off to the naturopath/family doctor at the same clinic as she's at since she feels she's done all she can for me. The only problem is, he doesn't have an opening until March 3rd. It's going to be a long wait. In the meantime, I will be doing another heavy metal test, and those results will come back a month after I send it in, so I'll have those results available when I go and see the naturopath.

A friend of mine has given me the name of another doctor that I might consider going and seeing. This particular doctor was able to heal a friend of my friend's terminal cancer. The only problem is that this doctor is about 90 minutes away, and I would really like for my doctors to be a lot closer from now on. My original naturopathic/napropathic doctor was that far, and it was not easy to go and see him as often as I needed to sometimes. What to do, what to do...I just know I want to get well.

Well, supposedly it's not in my head...so now the doctors don't have that excuse!

I got word yesterday that my MRI is clean. It's good news since it means no tumors are causing my problems, but bad news since we still don't know what the problem is. I learned from some online research that the MRI should have been done with contrast and wasn't, so there could still be some missing information, like possible infection surrounding the brain or other problems in the head that could be a factor. I don't plan on having another MRI any time soon though, so those questions will have to be left unanswered for a while.

I decided yesterday that I was going to stop the medication...I felt it was not doing the job intended and instead causing other symptoms I wasn't ready to live with. With just two days of being on them, I could feel that I didn't want to deal with the side effects. It just wasn't worth it.

Wow, I can't believe it's been over six months since I posted here last! It's not that my health has been good by any means, but I guess life got so busy I didn't take the time to post all that I've been learning still about heavy metal toxicity. A lot has happened in the last six months, so hopefully I can remember most of it to share with you.

Well, for starters, after 7 years of trusting in my naturopath doctor to help me find healing and good health, I have chosen to move on since I was not getting what I needed from him: answers. I decided to start giving my nurse practitioner the reigns for a while and see if she could help me figure things out. Since I have done that we have worked specifically on the off-balance/dizziness I feel along with the headaches that have been occurring daily now for some time. We started with some physical therapy to try to retrain my eyes to see things properly. That didn't really do anything. Then we tried a CT of my sinuses and a visit to an ENT specialist. He found slight inflamation in the lower left sinus area, but in no way causing the pressure in my upper sinuses to give me the headaches or the vertigo feelings. He had them do several vertigo tests and a hearing test that all came back normal. He then decided I needed more testing with balance specialists. The tests came back with only a 20% difference in balance between the right and the left ear, which is in the normal range, and one technician told me she thought maybe I had vestibular migraines, in which the off-balance and dizziness were my 'aura' before the headache (or sometimes no headache at all). It seemed to sound about right, but then when I chatted with the other technician that following week, he didn't like that diagnosis, but told me he didn't know what it could be. So...I went back to the NP, and she decided to send me to a neurologist. After his initial examination (even before he read any of my paperwork from Balance Solutions) he came to the conclusion it also could be vestibular migraines. He chose to have me get an MRI to rule out anything else, and put me on propranolol er 80mg to see if it would help. The only problem with the meds is that it's also for high blood pressure. I have low blood pressure to begin with, so he was a bit leary about putting me on it. We all had a good laugh when my husband asked the doctor what the side effects are if my blood pressure drops too low, and he said 'dizziness'! Go figure!

As of this writing, I have been on the meds for two days and not liking the way it feels, plus it doesn't seem to be doing anything to my headache. I also think I may have had a negative reaction to the MRI, but I'm not sure, since I could not find any information on it online anywhere. I am also waiting for a call back from the doctor regarding the MRI. If that comes out clean, I've decided I want to ask him if I can do another heavy metal test and round of chelation before we try any other meds. It got me to thinking a little bit more that direction again when the neurologist mentioned that vestibular migraines can be a symptom of MS, and if you've been following my blog at all, you know that I believe strongly that most cases of HMT are misdiagnosed as MS.

I also had some stomach issues back in November that put me in the ER one night, and I'm still trying to figure that one out because I am having residual digestive problems from it. The NP has me taking some acidolphilus supplements to try to correct the situation, but for some reason it's just not going very well. I hope that it settles down, because I will not like the investigative work I'll need to do on that if they need to start doing testing.

I still do have adrenal fatigue, and haven't been able to catch a break on it. Just when I think I'm starting to feel better and have more energy, I'll have a day that I crash and I am so exhausted I don't want to move. I am learning more about it, however, and hope to start really nourishing it soon and get the rest I need.

Well, that's what's been going on with me. I will try to remember to post more on here in the next few days after I hear from the neurologist.