Photo by Pshab, Flickr

This is an intense time of year. Intensely great for some. Intensely lonely for others. However it’s showing up for you, the holiday season most definitely amplifies the challenging contours of our lives.

Despite the fact that I like to think of myself as unique, I’m actually a cliche holiday emotional mess these days (because as many of you know this year has been, for me, um, challenging, all the way up until the last few days, it seems), and so as Christmas, Hannukah, and the New Year approach, I find myself experiencing mounting pressure to understand and process the events of 2011 and consider how to make 2012 better.

A few poignant thoughts from Ann Boroch in the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp we recently presented are proving helpful in this endeavor, so I want to share them with you.

“The emotional, mental, psychological, spiritual layers of us are the key in turning around a chronic health condition, and it certainly was in my case.  I find the longer that I do my own practice, I realize that sometimes this is literally the answer that people, when they look for the magic fix – and I’m not saying this happens quickly – but this could be the angle that really unlocks and gets the body and cellular memory to start changing…

Stress and fear are the number one body breakers. By far, this will outweigh how bad your diet is, and if you’re not on a detoxification program, etc. I find that this is why when people are doing all that they need to be doing, they’re good soldiers, as I say, and they’re doing a Candida diet and they’re taking the supplements and they’re exercising,  they may not see enough shift in moving forward because they’re not tackling the stress in their life, the toxic relationships and/or the fears that are consuming them.”

Ann’s thoughts here get at the heart of what many of us (myself included) may sometimes forget as we obsess about the details of our recovery plans. Which mayo can I eat, how many milligrams of vitamin D should I take, can I get away with eating five potato chips, etc. We miss the forest for the trees, as the saying goes (I thought I could throw that in there, since I’m busy being cliche anyway) and we forget the larger, deeper scope of issues that need addressing.

Murky Waters

The emotional stuff is messy. I find it a lot more challenging to implement change in this realm than in my diet and supplements. That’s the easy stuff. But revising how my 9-year-old inner child sees the world? Those are the murky waters. That’s the sticky, grimy, ugly, messy, damn-I-don’t-really-want-to-navigate-this stuff. But alas, the tough stuff seems to always be where the magic is to be found. And I’ve heard rumors that the holiday season is all about magic. So maybe getting it right (or at least seeing some improvement) in 2012 is gonna be about spending more time with the grime.

So I’ll put the questions to you…

How has this year measured up for you?

What were your successes?

Where are you seeing progress?

Where have you experienced setbacks?

What can you do about them?

And most importantly…

What is the elephant in the room that you haven’t been willing to look at? Does it fall into the bin of “body breakers” Ann referred to in her quote? And if so, I’m gonna be so bold as to say that maybe you should in fact eat a bag of chips while you draw up the nerve to go visit that elephant, and maybe even jump on his back, take a ride, and see what he has to show you.

P.S. I love Michael Buble and his cover of All I Want for Christmas is my holiday anthem this year, so I’m including it here just because it’s beautiful and I feel like it.

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On a side note, nobody paid me for that plug I gave the iPhone in this clip. It really does do everything! But apparently I should be in the market for an old-fashioned alarm clock instead of sleeping with my iPhone resting “peacefully” by my head.

Enjoy the clip and stay tuned for deets on the release of the Bootcamp as a full 7-week pre-recorded set. It should be available next week.

UPDATE: Click here for details or to purchase the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp

Click here for more details or to purchase the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp

Now that the course is complete, I want to share some of my favorite excerpts with you. The video below is from last week’s class. While the majority of the course focused on issues such as diet, detox, and supplements, this final class was all about the emotional/pscyhological/spiritual component of healing.

This particular section is about how to get through those moments where we are just “hanging by a thread.” While Ann is specifically addressing that intense rock-bottom space that many of us have experienced at some point, what she says here is relevant and useful even if you’re feeling great and even if you don’t have an illness at all. Which is why I chose it. I hope you find it as interesting and valuable as I did.

Next week we’ll be releasing the entire 14-hour bootcamp for purchase. More on that in the next few days but for now, enjoy the video!

Update: Click here for more details or to purchase the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp

Click here for more details or to purchase the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp

Today I want to share one of the conversations I had recently with Ann Boroch in prepping for our Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp we’ll be launching on October 2nd. We talked about the pesky yeast known as candida – and why it’s the bane of many people’s existence (mine included). Ann is an expert on this matter, and recently published a book called The Candida Cure.

No matter what it is that may ail you, an alarming number of maladies can be traced back to this yeasty bugger. So check out the video and get the scoop. (You’ll need to enter your name and email to watch the video if you haven’t already entered it to watch one of the others I’ve recently shared. But it’s totally free!)

WATCH THE VIDEO NOW

By the way, there are only 4 spots left for the Bootcamp so if you think you might want to enroll, now’s the time!

CLICK HERE TO GET THE DETAILS AND SIGN UP.

I also just want to remind you that Friday Sept. 16th is the last day to register for the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp Webinar Series at the early bird rate of $325. After that it goes up to $379. So if you’re on the fence, now’s a good time to hop off onto the side of the lush green fields of health that await you (if you hop off onto the other side of the fence, those people don’t ever mow their yard so it’s all yellow and dying and full of weeds and brittle to the touch and they’re the embarrassment of the neighborhood, so why would you want to hang out in their yard anyway?)

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE VIDEO

Back in the spring, I had posted several times about the 7-Week Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp Webinar Series Ann Boroch and I were planning to launch. Unfortunately at that time it was postponed due to deaths of loved ones both in my life and hers. Since then, I’ve received tons of inquiries asking when the course would be rescheduled.

Well, today I have good news! We’re back on track and gearing up to launch the series on October 2nd!

We opened enrollment on Friday morning and have been totally stoked by how many people have signed up already. We only have 75 spots available so if you’re interested, I definitely suggest registering as soon as possible. Plus, there’s a nice early-bird discount that ends on Friday for being decisive and acting on behalf of your health now!

You can get all the details and sign up for the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp here.

But regardless of whether or not you’re interested in the Bootcamp, I want to share a video of a conversation that Ann and I had recently on Skype (I’m in Austin and she’s in LA). You see as we’ve been brainstorming about what would make the Bootcamp absolutely over-the-top amazing for you, we’ve been getting into some really interesting conversations about the issues that we think are most critical for those in the midst of their healing journey.

In fact, I’ve had a tendency to burst out in the middle of Ann saying something, exclaiming, “We should be recording this stuff!” So finally it occurred to us (we’re a little slow) that we should be. So we recorded some of our conversations and want to share them with you, because we think you’ll find them very valuable.

This first one is on why pharmaceutical drugs fall short when it comes to treating autoimmune conditions and how addressing diet, detox, supplements, and your beliefs could be the key to your recovery. So I invite you to check this one out today! And please share your thoughts about the video in the comments section below it.

(It’s completely free but you’ll need to enter your name and email to view it – no SPAM, I promise.)

Click here to watch the video

Click here to sign up for the Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp

In preparation for the course, she and I have been talking a lot on Skype, and we decided it’d be cool to record some of those conversations and make them available to you.

Today, I wanted to share a video of a conversation we had about what it was like for me when I was first diagnosed and I discovered Ann and her program and began implementing it in my life. Hope you enjoy it.

And remember, if you think you might be interested in the bootcamp, please take a moment and comment to let us know what you’d like to see in the course. We want your feedback to help make this thing as awesome as possible!

The Facebook status message you see above is a real message taken from my newsfeed two days ago. It was posted by someone in the MS community regarding an upcoming MS walk.

Please take a moment to read it now and call out (if you’re at work do it in your head so your co-workers don’t think you’re hungry) what is wrong with this picture.

Yes, you’re correct. Pancakes. And also hot dogs.

This is such a perfect example of the sad state of our MS culture and the culture of autoimmune illness in general. We are walking to cure MS, but we’re eating pancakes and hot dogs before and after. And we are tragically ignorant about the fact that these foods we are putting into our bodies are what’s helping to keep us sick.

The irony of any sort of MS event serving pancakes and hot dogs is deeply disturbing. As is the thought of people with MS who are suffering and who genuinely and intensely want to find a cure, but don’t realize that they are probably making their symptoms worse every time they eat a meal.

This is not the fault of the person who wrote this status update. This update is just a glaring symptom of a broken system called conventional medicine. Doctors are not taught about nutrition in med school. Many if not most doctors actually do not believe that the food we eat has anything to do with our diseases. I have heard that this is beginning to change – that medical schools are now teaching classes on nutrition.

However, even doctors who do believe there is some correlation are severely underestimating the depth and breadth of that connection. Most doctors just don’t get it. And therefore most patients just don’t get it.

Announcing the first Autoimmune Warrior Bootcamp: 7 Weeks to a Diet, Detox, & Nutritional Makeover for Total Recovery

Since releasing my e-book last month I have received many, many inquiries about the details of naturopath Ann Boroch’s recovery plan, which I discuss in the book. It’s obvious that those who believe they can heal their autoimmune illness at its root cause by addressing diet, supplements, detox, and beliefs are hungry for the information and guidance on how to make these major changes successfully. Because our doctors don’t know.

I have personally seen incredible results since working with Ann in 2007 when I was diagnosed. Because of my work with Ann, I have confidently moved forward without ever going on any of the MS medications. And I have been healthy and relapse-free for nearly 4 years, until my recent relapse in December. You’re probably saying to yourself right now, well, if you had a relapse on her recovery plan, then it obviously doesn’t work.

But the cool thing is that my recent relapse was actually further evidence and proof of how well her plan does work, because for several months prior to my relapse, I had essentially abandoned it. I started to allow many foods into my diet that were not supposed to be there. I had stopped taking my supplements for financial reasons. I stopped exercising. And I was under enormous emotional stress when I left my family and friends and a long relationship and moved across the country to a place where I had no support system.

So as much as it just plain sucked to experience a major flare-up, I was secretly quite satisfied by the evidence of the logic of my body, and that I had once again proven that I had chosen the correct course in 2007 to treat my illness. Because as soon as I strayed from that course, MS came and bit me in the ass. So to speak. And as soon as I got back on the diet and supplements, my flare-up subsided and I began to recover.

Which is to say that I am even more confident and even more resolved that Ann’s recovery program is a safe, effective, and fabulous way to treat your MS, or whatever autoimmune illness you have.

So when I started getting all these inquiries about her program, I approached Ann about working together to offer a live, weekly online training program. And she thought it was a great idea.

So we’re going for it!

And I’ve been hard at work over here making this happen so we can launch the program as soon as possible, which is why I haven’t posted much this past week. But the good news is that in gearing up for the course, Ann and I will be discussing via Skype some of the major issues that I know you are all dealing with, and we’ll be recording those conversations and making them available to you as online videos as early as the end of this week. So keep an eye out for the first of those.

And if you think you might be interested in the course, please comment here and tell us what you most want and need right now on your own path to recovery.

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Photo by Terry McComb, Flickr

I’ll be concluding the 5-part series on beliefs soon, but I wanted to take today to address a question I received via email. The question comes from (I’ll call her) Penelope, the wife of a patient of Ann Boroch (Ann healed herself of MS many years ago and now works as a naturopath, helping people with MS and other chronic illnesses heal using diet and supplements.)

The question was:

It’s unnerving to go the homeopathic route because we’re not sure what’s going on.  My husband’s been working with Ann for the past 4 months.  At the start he was really miserable and then seemed to improve.  Now I’m not sure what’s going on.  Is this common with the healing?  Will he have this off and on until he gets to the other side of healing?

I thought this question was deserving of its own post because I think many people feel “unnerved” by straying from the well-trodden path of Western Medicine. I think the saying goes something like “The devil you know is better than the devil you don’t?”

We take comfort in familiarity. When we take a pill, or give ourselves a shot, or receive IV steroids (no matter how uncomfortable that may be and how many side effects we may suffer) we are still doing what we’ve been raised to do and raised to believe in – when you’re sick you take medicine and it makes you better.

However, when it comes to MS, unfortunately the treatments available are not quite so straightforward or successful. The Disease Modifying Drugs currently available simply slow progression in some people and can reduce the severity of flare-ups, but in doing so they inundate the body with chemicals, create many side-effects, and in some people, are completely ineffective.

Healing not managing

What Penelope’s husband is undertaking with the help of Ann Boroch is to fundamentally heal his system. He is on a journey of healing, which is markedly different than the path of “managing”. He has stepped outside the confines of Western medicine and entered into a paradigm in which the belief is that it’s possible to heal, to restore the natural balance and wisdom of the body without the use of drugs.

This is a brave path, because it’s the path less traveled. It’s not the path for the weak or for those who seek instant gratification. It’s not the path for those who believe the majority must be correct. It took a long time for Penelope’s husband’s body to arrive at his current disease state. And it will take some time to heal it. Setbacks are expected. MS is a complex condition.

Setbacks

I experienced many setbacks along my own healing journey, but when I look back on where I was when I began the diet and supplement regimen three years ago and where I am now, I’m so grateful for my own courage to choose that route. The results are amazing.

So for Penelope and anyone else who has chosen this path, remind yourself often that you’re on a journey of healing, not managing, and allow that to empower you and give you strength to endure the setbacks.

If you haven’t yet listened to my interview with Ann Boroch, just enter your name and email in the box with the red arrow at the top right of this page for free access to it, as well as my entire interview archive, including my conversation with Dr. Bruce Lipton.

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Photo by Erix!, Flickr

I’ve had requests from several of my clients recently and from some readers to post a list of my daily supplement regimen, so today I’ve done that.

If you’re not taking supplements, you’re missing a crucial opportunity to support and strengthen your body, help it heal, and decrease your symptoms. The downside of supplements is that they’re not cheap. The upside is that this is an entire realm in which you can assert your control and make a real impact on the status of your health.

Before I proceed any further, I’ve gotta do the disclaimer thing and remind you all that I am not a doctor or naturopath, and the following list is simply what I personally take and not meant as a prescription for what you should be taking. I strongly suggest you consult a professional before beginning this regimen or anything like it.

I work with Ann Boroch, who is a supplement-wielding Goddess. She has a mastery over what supplements are quality, what they do and how to use them to manipulate the system of your body toward health and healing. All of the products listed below and the schedule for them was given to me by Ann. I highly recommend booking a session with her, as she will customize your regimen for what you specifically need. If you’d like to listen to my audio interview with Ann, just sign up in the box to your right with the red arrow and you’ll be directed to it, as well as several other interviews with experts in the healing field.

I included Amazon links whenever those items were available via Amazon. And now, without further adieu…

MORNING (On an empty stomach):

Super Daily Amino Blend by Carlson – 2 pills (Vitacost.com). Purpose: To repair and regenerate.

Mynax by Koehler USA – 3 pills (800.320.6035). Purpose: To repair and regenerate.

Methyl B12 1,000 mcg by Jarrow – 1 pill when arising (Vitacost.com). Purpose:To repair and regenerate.

Neuro 02 by Apex Energetics – 1 pill when arising (apexenergetics.com). Purpose: Increases blood supply to the brain.

Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics 12 Plus by Essential Formulas – 1 pill when arising (iherb.com or amazon.com). Purpose: kills off yeast, fungus, and parasites and aids immune system function.

I mix the following powders in a cup of unsweetened almond milk and drink it on an empty stomach with the above supplements:

Miracle Greens (Macro Greens) – take as directed on bottle when arising (iherb.com or amazon.com). Purpose: Alkalizes the body and supplies minerals

Maca Root – take as directed on bottle when arising (Vitamyr.com). Purpose: Balances male and female hormones, enhances libido, balances the endocrine system, helps with production of red blood cells, and increases energy and endurance.

Hemp Powder unsweetened (Living Harvest) – take as directed on bottle when arising (amazon.com). Purpose: Hemp seeds are one of the plant kingdom’s best sources of easily digestible, high-quality protein and with the live enzymes intact, it’s easily assimilated by the body.

MORNING (with food):

Nystatin 500,000 – (Nystatin is only available with a doctor’s prescription. I get it prescribed by my doctor at The Schacter Center, a complementary medicine center in Suffern, NY. Most mainstream doctors will not prescribe this because they don’t believe Candida – yeast overgrowth – to be a valid health problem. If you aren’t able to have it prescribed, a good option is Candida Cleanse by Rainbow Light from vitacost.com) Take 1 pill three times a day with food. Work up to it slowly – it has a detox effect in the beginning. (Be sure to take this at least a half hour apart from the probiotics.) Purpose: kill off yeast, fungus, and parasites.

Acetyl CH by Apex Energetics – 1 pill (apexenergetics.com). Purpose: Helps prevent brain-cell deterioration by acting as a powerful antioxidant that can remove toxins and boost immunity.

Iso D3 5,000 IU by Metagenics (Vitamin D) – 1 pill (iherb.com). Purpose: immune modulator.

Synergy NeuroPower by NSI – 2 pills (vitacost.com). Purpose: to repair and regenerate.

Quercitin + C by Twinlab – 1 pill (vitacost.com). Purpose: aids immune system function and reduces inflammation.

E Gems Elite 1,000 IU by Carlson – 1 pill (vitacost.com). Purpose: Reduces inflammation.

LUNCH (with food):

Quercitin + C by Twinlab – 1 pill

Evening Primrose Oil by Jarrow – 1 pill (vitacost.com). Purpose: Restores myelin, balances hormones, and reduces inflammation

Very Finest Fish Oil Liquid (lemon) by Carlson – 1 tbsp (vitacost.com). Purpose: Restores myelin, balances hormones, and reduces inflammation

Synergy NeuroPower by NSI – 2 pills

Nystatin – 1 pill

Acetyl CH by Apex Energetics – 1 pill

DINNER:

Nystatin – 1 pill

BEFORE BED:
Mynax by Koehler USA – 3 pills

Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics 12 Plus by Essential Formulas – 1 pill

Synergy NeuroPower by NSI – 2 pills

Quercitin + C by Twinlab – 1 pill

Milk Thistle Seed by Gaia Herbs – 2 pills (vitacost.com). Purpose: Supports healthy liver function.