My frustration with the mainstream medical mindset has grown to disgust. I am overwhelmingly dissatisfied with traditional treatment methods. I have experienced such a dehumanizing side to the medical industry. It's given me more motivation to search elsewhere for treatment than before, I can't continue to carry on in this way. Something has got to give. I won't accept this as my forever reality.
The doctor changed my meds which have caused even more severe mood swings and hormonal imbalances than the other pills. When I have expressed my struggle with the emotional issues, the response has been "well yes, that's the way it's going to be. You're going to have a hard time with them." That's not good enough for me. I've taken to isolating myself. I was feeling incredibly hopeless with my situation, my feelings being that there is no one in the position to help me who understands what I'm going through or how to effectively treat this disease. I met with an iridologist who has extensive experience with nutritional and supplement treatment. I know the medical professionals would nay say the shit out of her practice but for the first time through this entire thing I felt like someone actually empathized with me and understood things better than anyone else has. That, in itself, offered me a tremendous amount of relief and comfort. Not only is she a woman but she is a woman who had stage 4 endometriosis when she was younger. Because of my multiple brain surgeries she didn't believe iridology would be accurate because the surgeries may alter what she is seeing. She believes one of my biggest issues is that I am struggling with two auto immune diseases. Endometriosis is auto immune in the way that normal cells have developed in abnormal places. The endometrium growing in my diaphragm and all over the inside of my abdomen has thrown my immune system completely out of whack. Arnold chiari is auto immune because my cerebellum is not in it's normal location and the body sees this as something it needs to protect. The other big issue is the extensive antibiotic treatment I've had, which was about 5,000 mgs for nearly four months and a few weeks of IV antibiotics which has done some serious damage to my digestive system. The digestive system is imperative to the health of your entire body. Your body needs to properly manage waste and nutrients in order to function normally. Hormone balance is also affected by a low functioning digestive system. She believes the best way to accurately see what is going on within me was to do a fecal and hair test. This will give us data on how well my organs are functioning, what foods are creating more inflammation and what nutrients and minerals I'm deficient of. She cut a few chunks of hair to send in for testing and I'll take care of playing with my poo and send it off to the lab. When the results are back she will sit down with me and we will set up a plan for what supplements I need and what kinds of foods I should be eating. She explained for every year I have been unwell it will take about three months to heal, I'm looking at about a two to three year process. This may sound silly, I am going to go there anyway. My mom brought up how heavy of a smoker I am. Her response really struck me and I felt understood to the point where I was almost in tears. (I am pretty weepy these days anyway though) She told my mom that I have been through so much up to this point that smoking was the only thing that stabilized me and offered me any kind of relief and that this was not the time to worry about smoking and it would pass when it was easier to let go of. It's a very simple thing but I have never had anyone who understood things in that way, I don't usually tell people those kinds of things but what she said was almost exactly how I feel about it. It's my only relief and helps to soothe me. I'm trying not to be overly hopeful in the success of this treatment route but I can't help but feel like I may actually be on the right track. Finally someone who may be able to help me to get my life back. We'll see what happens as things unfold. Hopefully I will finally find some relief. Although what I am going through is invisible, I seem healthy and happy enough on the outside, it is very real. Invisible illnesses affect so many people and I may be more forthcoming than others are about facing adversities, but I'm hoping that my candidness helps bring about more compassion and understanding towards people who may be suffering from illnesses and struggles that can't be seen from the outside. A plant may look healthy and vibrant from the surface but sometimes those roots may be damaged and that causes it to struggle in order to keep itself upright. The struggle may not be apparent from the surface. That's what having an invisible illness is like.
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Usage of tasteful profanity which you might not consider tasteful. Some stories are vulgar. Colorful language and descriptions included. Reading these stories may cause you to become offended, appalled and uneasy. You have been warned. Read with caution. Categories
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