Many years ago, I was afflicted with myasthenia gravis. I was undergoing a most stressful episode in my life. I was in my fifties—call it midlife crisis if you would. One day I felt intense pressure on my eyes. My first concern was glaucoma (a condition of increased fluid pressure inside the eye).
Immediately, I went to see an ophthalmologist, who
subsequently referred me to a neurologist, who was. at that time the head of
the neurology department in a well-known healthcare system in
My Conditions
I
had developed ocular symptoms: ptosis (drooping of eyelids) and diplopia
(double vision) in my myasthenia gravis.
My neck and limb muscles were also weak. I had to
use a neck-rest to prop up my head when I drove; I could hardly use my fingers
to control the mouse when I used my computer; and I could not raise my left hand
without using my right hand to help prop it up.
Fortunately, I did not experience any weakness of
the muscles of my pharynx, which could cause difficulty in chewing and
swallowing, as well as slurred speech, in many cases of myasthenia gravis.
Naturally, I was devastated at the diagnosis and
the conditions of my myasthenia gravis,
which all happened within a matter of days. Worst of all, the neurologist told
me that there was no known cure, although he reassured me that he could improve
my disease symptoms.
Deep down, I knew it was stress that triggered the
onset of my myasthenia gravis, but it
was by no means the only cause. I also knew that if I did not have it then, I
would probably have it further down the road. It was just a matter of time—only
at that time I was not aware that I had been having the problem all along. I
was carrying a ticking time-bomb too ready to explode on me.
Initially, I was confused and befuddled: Why
did I get sick? For the past several decades, my health had been good, if not
excellent—or so I thought. All those years prior to my myasthenia gravis, I had been quite health conscious in matters of
foods and drinks; I had never been hospitalized all my life, and before the
onset of my myasthenia gravis,
I seldom paid a visit to the doctor. I had been having a clean bill of health
up until then.
So, what was wrong with me?
I began to do some soul-searching and looked into
my past.
Unlike most other kids, I did not have chicken pox until
I was a teenager. That was a tale-telling sign that my immune system was different
from that of others, or at least not as good as I thought it was. There was
something amiss, but I did not know exactly what it was and I could not put a
finger on it.
Then I recalled that when I was a child, I had been
constantly bed-ridden with fever and coughing—my mother always worried that I
could get infections from other kids, or worse, I would not live long.
I remember I never liked green vegetables and
fish—which I would gobble up, stuff them in my mouth, and then spit them out as
soon as I got out of the house. That was how bad I was!
As I stepped into my teens, my health conditions
suddenly and significantly improved. In fact, all my symptoms of ill health disappeared
soon after I had my chicken pox at the age of thirteen or fourteen. The
experience of my chicken pox was excruciating, but it seemed to have changed my
health conditions completely for the better.
Ever since then, I had not had any major physical ailment,
except that I was still susceptible to the common cold—which I often overdosed
myself with over-the-counter cold medications. I did not know that all those
years I had been shuffling chemical toxins into my body!
There was another episode during my young
adulthood. I was frequently involved in some artwork, which required me to make
some fiberglass from newspapers by pouring some chemical solution over them. On
one occasion, I accidentally mixed some toxic chemicals, giving out some toxic
fume. After inhaling it, I passed out for some minutes, and I felt sick for
several days.
My regular exposure to toxic chemicals in my
artwork through inhalation must have damaged my immune system. Maybe the damage
done was long-term and irreparable.
Nevertheless, for many decades, I had enjoyed
relatively good health—or so I thought.
In my late forties, I had shingles—which was
another red flag that there was something wrong with my immune system. However,
I did not pay much attention to that episode that lasted several days.
In my early fifties, the stress in my life
eventually triggered the onset of my myasthenia
gravis, which was the outcome of my over-stressed immune system.
My Treatment
At first, I was
prescribed pyridostigmine (mestinon) as the usual first-line
treatment for my myasthenia gravis.
After several months,
my conditions did not improve much. I was given another prescription, prednisone,
a synthetic hormone commonly referred to as a “steroid,” for my myasthenia
gravis. Prednisone acts as long-term immunosuppressant to suppress the
production of antibodies. Essentially, it serves to stabilize my so-called
“overactive” immune system.
The adverse side effects of prednisone for
my myasthenia gravis included my decreased resistance to infection, indigestion,
hypertension, weight gain, swelling of the face, thinning of skin,
predisposition to osteoporosis, and potential development of cataracts and
glaucoma.
The long list was not only depressing but also
frightening. I was worried that I would have to take all my medications for the
rest of my life not just for my myasthenia
gravis but also for the
many side effects of those medications for myasthenia
graves, such as bone loss, weight gain, and high blood pressure, among
others.
In the beginning, there was some improvement in the
symptoms, but overall most of the symptoms were still there, and I was never
lucky enough to experience some remission from the disease symptoms.
After
almost two years on prednisone, my neurologist, seeing that there was
little improvement in my myasthenia
gravis, switched me to azathioprine, supposedly with fewer side
effects. That medication did not seem to have any significant effect on my
symptoms.
My Rude Awakening
I was in a dilemma: on the one hand, I needed
improvement in my neuromuscular transmission to increase my muscle strength and
eliminate my double vision; on the other hand, I knew that if myasthenia gravis did not kill me, the
many side effects of the medications eventually would.
Then I made a decision to change drastically my
diet in an attempt to discontinue my medications ultimately. The initial
results were quite encouraging: I began to experience some improvement in my
symptoms. Instead of gaining weight, I lost a few pounds; instead of jacking up
my blood pressure, I made it plummet. I had won my first battle against the
initial adverse side effects of medications of myasthenia gravis.
I knew that I had to do more—much more than that. I
was in for my rude awakening: there was no miracle cure for my myasthenia gravis; only my holistic wellness would bring about recovery and
natural healing.
The Road to Self-Healing
For me, the road to recovery had been a long and
winding one.
I
recognized that my immune system is not only an integrated network of cells
that would protect me in times of an infection, but also a system with its many
regulatory mechanisms that, if uncontrolled, would become my enemy instead of
my friend.
I also realized that my immune system has to be
protected by being fed the correct foods, as well as being given the optimum
environment free from physical, emotional, and psychological stress, which may
affect my immune system negatively.
Most important of all, I understood that my
wholesome well-being, unlike my medications that “switched” off my immuno-response
when it was overactive, may hold the key to my ultimate recovery and
recuperation.
My parents might not have given me an excellent
immune system. I could not have chosen my parents, but I can certainly choose my
lifestyle, and I can control what I put into my body and even what comes out of
my body.
I
was determined to take matters into my own hands. I had to control my own health
destiny.
I cherished the strong conviction that whatever my
mind can conceive and believe I can achieve.
Meanwhile, I was also fully aware of the
overpowering forces of Nature. To combat Nature is futile, but I can command
Nature by obeying it, instead of going against it.
“Like
water, soft and yielding,
yet
it overcomes the hard and the rigid.
Stiffness
and stubbornness cause much suffering.
We
all intuitively know
that
flexibility and tenderness are the way to go.
Yet
our conditioned minds
tell us to go the other way.”
(Lao
Tzu, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 78)
To obey Nature involves the recognition of the
natural self-healing power of my physical body—if given the right
environment.
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