Self Diagnosis is the Next Epidemic brought to you by the World Wide WebMD
Let me be the first to raise my hand and cry guilty on this. How could I not research my problems when I literally have so many of them? Until very recently I hadn’t met one (of dozens) doctor that was interested in getting to the bottom of what was wrong with me. For most of my life doctors had done me wrong, actually. They’d cut corners, not cared enough to really learn my body and health, or lack there of.
So there I was with the rest of them, reading and absorbing whatever information I could learn based on the information I had, which were my symptoms. Doctors hadn’t listened when I told them something was wrong with my gallbladder, or appendix. Both were septic they discovered almost ten months later, and promptly removed.
More often than not, I was right. More often than not because I truly studied medical journals from certified doctors in several fields, along with any other materials I could get, I admit. Sometimes you have to pick and choose which information just jives with other information you’ve read, and what sounds logical. Then there is the fact, you’re your own guinea pig.
This is such a conflicting issue for me. Even as I write this I’m about to delete it. We’ll see if it makes the cut or not in the long run. What I meant about the inner conflict goes back to not having doctors who would listen to me previously. While I certainly believe it’s a shame that most doctors go for the easy out more often than not, and prefer to put you on prescriptions than identify what your body needs nutritionally, this is not every doctor. There are great doctors out there who are all in, and when I say in they are all in for YOU. They want to get to the bottom of what is wrong with their patients, you, and what epidemics are plaguing this world. A lot of this epidemic comes from our fuel source: Food.
Three key factors come from this issue source.
- We eat the wrong things.
- We don’t eat enough of the right things.
- We don’t know precisely what fuels our bodies are lacking most.
The first step in resolving this starts at number 3 in this line up. We don’t know precisely what fuels our bodies are lacking most. When I see people complain of what most the world is complaining about, I immediately encourage them to go get a series of labs done at their doctor. Sometimes you will have to insist on this, sometimes the doctors won’t argue the logic and order up a full panel. It seems like a lot of work perhaps, and maybe you really hate needles. I understand entirely. Let me ask you if you fall into the majority 80% of people who have one of these issues…
- Muscle or Physical Fatigue
- Exhaustion
- Trouble Sleeping
- Moody or Irritable
- Anxiety
- Depression
A lot of these symptoms can be found in several different disorders or diseases, sometimes they happen on their own and become sort of a disorder on their own. Most of them can be better handled, better cared for, easier to live with, when your nutrition game is on on point Sorry to tell you, that goes beyond just eating whole foods and eating healthy ‘balanced’ meals. If you are eating great foods all the time, fantastic I am so happy for you to have the ability, willpower, and love for yourself and family to make this happen. It still may not be enough, though… Your body may not be absorbing something correctly, or perhaps it just has been overlooked. A nutrition panel workup can tell you what your body has too much of and not enough of. This could be iron, magnesium, vitamin D, or any number of the critical nutrients we need to succeed.
The concern, and reason for me writing this post, is I see a lot of people assuming that because you have these symptoms you atomically are in fact deficient in Vitamin D, (just as an example) so you go out and get supplements. But you weren’t vitamin D deficient, you were magnesium deficient which is the same symptoms.
This is an example of what happens when you over supplement the wrong thing or in the wrong way… (Brought to you by the MayoClinic)
“Vitamin D toxicity, also called hypervitaminosis D, is a rare but potentially serious condition that occurs when you have excessive amounts of vitamin D in your body.
Vitamin D toxicity is usually caused by megadoses of vitamin D supplements — not by diet or sun exposure. That’s because your body regulates the amount of vitamin D produced by sun exposure, and even fortified foods don’t contain large amounts of vitamin D.
The main consequence of vitamin D toxicity is a buildup of calcium in your blood (hypercalcemia), which can cause nausea and vomiting, weakness, and frequent urination. Symptoms might progress to bone pain and kidney problems, such as the formation of calcium stones.”
This is only one example. When I was younger I was anemic, but also contracted iron poisoning. I was anemic due to my stored iron levels being depleted, which is not the same as your iron levels. Due to not understand the type of anemia I had, I was put on supplements that caused iron poisoning and did nothing to heal the anemia.
So yes, I am a nutrition first when it comes to healing and wellness, I will take 40 vitamins a day to avoid one prescription medication. Though I am now a firm believer that we have to look deeper than the symptoms and treat the source of the problem. Taking prescriptions that are designed to stop symptoms only is like treating a broken bone with tylenol. It’s not efficient, and will not heal the bone. Taking vitamins in the wrong way without knowing what your body needs is as dangerous as treating a concussion with a pain reliever and a long nap.
So what’s the moral here? Talk to your body. Blood tests may not be fun, but think of them this way. It is your body’s voice to tell you exactly what is wrong and what it needs. Listen to your instinct when you feel something is wrong, but it’s not always best to assume our GoTo solution is the same as healing.