Progress With My Disease!

I wrote on my birthday about my disease, bronchiectasis, and how it has been challenging me. I discussed how I was diagnosed with it in 2017 by my doctor, Tara Barto.

This week, I went to see Dr. Barto again, and the visit went very well. We discussed some ideas, and she signed off on me pursuing acupuncture (again) and looking into herbal supplements. Unfortunately, she was unable to refer me to anyone. I took a blood test, which alerted me to having high IgE (immunoglobulin E) and high eosinophils. Both of these suggest that I may have a problem with allergies.

I brought up the acupuncture and supplements due to a book that I read recently (March 7th, after that first article). Beating Bronchiectasis, by Daniel Pecaut, was a fantastic book that he wrote about his experience in 2013.

I liked that he was discussing his positive experience and not trying to push "the cure" on readers. He was diagnosed at the Mayo Clinic and decided to put everything into finding a way to survive. He adapted a program he called BRAINNSS. 8 months after starting the program and a year after his diagnosis, he returned to Mayo, which was astounded. The "A" was acupuncture, and one "S" was supplements.

I had gone to acupuncture from 2019 until 2020 to a place near me, Phoenix Rising. I really liked and respected the person running it, Dr. Lori Earley. What I really liked about her was that she transitioned from being a pharmaceutical sales rep to being a practitioner of Eastern Medicine. I enjoyed the acupuncture and really appreciated her introduction to the work of Dr. Steven Gundry. She asked me to read his book, The Plant Paradox, which I did. His concept is that people with inflammatory conditions should avoid lectins. When she instructed me to follow it for a short period of time, I did. Wow did it work wonders! My cholesterol came down, my bone density improved, I was able to stop taking Prilosec for GERD, and I lost weight. My breathing, allergies and sinus infections all got better too.

I went back today, and had a nice meeting with someone I had seen before, Stephen. The main takeaways for me are to quit eating donuts, eat more meat (to gain weight) and to follow Gundry closely again. He thought certain herbs might help too, and they will work with me to get them.

Phoenix Rising moved in 2020, and it is further from my house, but I walked the 2.6 miles home. My lungs felt so much better! I am a big fan of Lori and her practice, and I am hopeful that my return to her will help me avoid the challenges with bronchiectasis.