Today we venture into part deux of my journey to restoring good health. Since I last updated you, I’ve received the results of two things:
- the blood work that my medical doctor requested to investigate my level of fatigue i.e. I have had significant anemia in the past and he queried my thyroid function.
- the results of my fecal test – my urinalysis results should be back next week.
I met with Dr. Binning earlier this week and I’ll update you on that in a moment.
First, what I want to acknowledge first and foremost is that I genuinely believe that medical doctors all enter the profession with good intentions (to help people) and end up battling a system that doesn’t set them up for success. It’s not their fault that the system only allows for 11 minute appointments or that they only get paid for one concern so they only want to treat one concern per visit – which prevents a wholistic medicine approach. 1 issue per appointment isn’t conducive to treating someones HEALTH (in my humble, non medical opinion).
I’m not against conventional forms of medicine – at all – I feel that there are things we absolutely need medical doctors – like acute/trauma care – that naturopathic or functional medicine cannot begin to address. In this instance I’m addressing my non-acute, non trauma CHRONIC conditions.
Ok, so now that I’ve addressed that, let’s delve into the results of my stool test shall we? It feels rather personal sharing these results with you – and in doing so what I accomplishing is sharing not only the results – but also the information – because what I learned from these results essentially presents us with an opportunity – when we have information that we didn’t have previously we can create change – everything that I learn here is actually a positive (even if the results aren’t great) because that’s an opportunity for better health.
Results Of GI-MAP DNA Stool Analysis
Pathogens = none (yay!)
8 virulence factors for H Pylori = none (yay!)
Bacterial Flora:
Most are low, one is high – indicating dysbiosis = so, there’s an imbalance in my gut. So we want to look at can be driving that imbalance – which could be as simple as poor dietary diversity (vegetable fibre – which is odd because until last week I was vegetarian) or not enough or something can be suppressing the growth of healthy bacteria – these bugs all all live off these fibres and if they’re not getting them they can’t grow.
Overview: insufficient levels of good bacteria and poor mucosal health – these bacteria are all there to protect us, they all serve a purpose, so important that these levels are improved — all of this leads to a healthy gut and healthy immune system. My AKK MUCI (abbr) is just above the acceptable range. Phyla Microbiota essentially again saying “Hello! Not bacterial enough growth!” Is something suppressing that growth? Is another bug coming in and screwing everything up and taking all the resources or are there really no resources to begin with?
Opportunistic Bacteria:
Streptococcus – remember that HUGE rash on my face that my MD diagnosed as peri-oral dermatitis and gave me an antibacterial cream and antibiotics for? If you missed it – you can check out part 1 of this series here. This makes a lot of sense! This is something generally on skin and mouth – if there’s an overgrowth we need to start balancing this out.
** I’ve left out some of the other results – which are within the normal range **
Intestinal Health:
These levels are look normal – and nothing can be further from the truth. That’s where the benefit of knowing your patient inside and out, and basing it solely on them and not a “range” comes into play. This I find interesting.
By way of background until last week, I ate a 95% vegetarian diet. So my steatocrit is at a 7 – the limit <15% – if someone is eating a lower fat diet – that number is high then – why would this be so elevated? If they’re on a high fat diet that number might be ok – ideally we don’t want to see a number here – we want it as close to 0 as possible. So what this is saying is that fat is leaking out of my digestive system, I’m not absorbing it and it’s showing up in my stool.
Elastase-1 – is at 261 – results show “normal” however it should be in the 400-500 range – even higher. What this is telling us is that my pancreas isn’t making the things it should and releasing them well (insulin and digestive enzymes).
B-gluconatodase level is at a 2042 – which indicates normal here – and this can’t be further from the truth. When your body is exposed to toxins, even the waste of the bacteria that live within you or event the waste of the byproducts of my own metabolism (of every cell) creates waste – my body has to detoxify these things through the liver – not going to lie here – I need to revisit that Dr. Binning sent me on this — something about binding, neutralizing and that that enzyme cutting those two things from each other and frees that toxin to go back into circulation and cause more havoc. We’ll talk more about this at my follow up appt once I get the results back from my urine test.
Results Of Anemia and Thyroid Testing
I have an follow up appointment scheduled with my interim GP to go over the results – he’ll likely recommend that I recommence iron tabs. As an aside, have you ever taken iron pills? When I was severely anemic a couple of years ago, I had to take 4 at a time and it wreaks havoc on your GI tract, if you know what I mean 😉
As an aside, I had a brief conversation with a medical doctor I know, last week about these results, and his response was “you’re barely anemic!”. This is what frustrates me about the medical profession at times. That statement hit me in the gut. I’m barely anemic? That may well be based on these results – however, why am I dragging my arse? Why can I hardly function? Why can I hardly make it though a day without napping? I know my body, I know what normal for me, I know how I’m feeling and I know where I’m struggling – I wish MDs would put more emphasis on their patients words (I know this is not true of all MDs, I’m just pointing out that this is a common theme I hear regularly throughout the course of my job as a disability claims specialist).
Conclusion
If you’re interested in reading my first blog in this series you
can find it here:
https://mybetterlifeca.com/2019/12/01/on-health-the-world-of-functional-medicine-pt-1/
For the last post in the series, you can click here —>
https://mybetterlifeca.com/2020/01/11/my-journey-through-the-world-of-functional-medicine-pt-3/
You know when you’re stuck and it feels like your life is a disconnect that a good self help/discovery book is where it’s at. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert was the beginning of my transformation. I followed Elizabeth through her pleasures in Italy, her devotion in India and love in Bali. Although tempted, I skipped the mounds of pasta meals but started to meditate and get acquainted with Hindi mantras, heck I wanted to do the whole Ashram thing myself. I listened to Alanis Morrissette’s “Thank You India” on repeat. The book touched me so, to the point that I got Om Namah Shivaya tattooed on my left hip as a constant reminder to myself to honour The Divinity That Lives Within Me, to Bow to Shiva My True Identity.
Next, I was going to tackle getting out of my comfort zone – life begins at the end of it don’t ya know! Most people live their lives in their comfort zones, afraid to change, afraid to step out of the comforts of their norms, their regular routines – that are safe, where they know all of the rules of the game. I realized that we set these limits ourselves and that we keep ourselves locked in because we typically dread what lies in what we don’t already know. I admired folks who shook the status quo, who took chances, who weren’t afraid – I admired the people who jumped! I didn’t need to stand on the sidelines and admire … I could jump too!
