Re: Leaky gut/candida/anxiety/adrenals; LOST, need help...

Hveragerthi, thank you for the detailed reply; sorry in getting back to you so late; the last two days were pretty rough for me.

Regarding kefir and sauerkraut: Unfortunately, I don't do well with dairy, it seems; even Kefir I remember making me feel quite blocked up in my nose and bloated. Admittedly, it was from pasteurized milk, but most dairy in quantity, excepting butter, hasn't ever made me feel great.

We have some 'kraut here at home; I've always enjoyed the taste, but haven't always felt right after eating it. (As in, it's sometimes felt as though it's worsened some of my "yeasty" feeling symptoms).

If one may have trouble tolerating fermented foods, what are your thoughts on supplementing with high potency acidophilus/bifidum probiotics instead?

I will check up on the Rice Bran and Yucca. What do you feel about Aloe Vera Juice? I started taking it yesterday as I read that it can aid in digestion and promote an environment inhospitable to Candida...

Regarding the adrenals, I definitely hear you when you say that a lot of these symptoms could be connected to them, including an increase in food reactions (on account of possible low cortisol if I understand). I will be ordering a saliva cortisol (24 hour) test quite soon, just so I know for sure what I'm dealing with.

I've read the post of your to which you linked, about an adrenal program. Your suggestions sound similar to what I've read on Dr. Wilson's and Dr. Lam's site, to which Tom also referred, if I recall correctly.

My primary concern before embarking on adaptogenic herbs, et al, is related to what Dr. Lam says, which is that, dependent upon the state of an individual's adrenals, things which you've mentioned that may help one person may be too stimulatory for another. What is your take on that?

I have tried adaptogenic herbs in the past (most extensively a couple of years ago at a very stressful time), and I recall feeling strange from them - I think they were Ashwagandha and Rhodiola...though admittedly, I was stressing myself the hell out, and being stupid by drinking entire kettles full of tea and Yerba Mate, and probably taking a lot more than the suggested dosages of the herbs...bit of a mindset from the drug-abusing years, I suppose. I guess I could, once I know what's happening, revisit the adaptogens with greater moderation.

I am trying to avoid stress as best I can, and change my emotional response to it. I'm totally caffeine/alcohol/stimulant/alcohol/simple Sugar free right now. Most of the other things you listed, I haven't tried, except for ginseng, which made me feel funny. Oh, I did try Schizandra before, but probably in excess, and mixed with who knows what - it must've been years ago. I think we have some nettle leaf tea in the cupboard...

I do have some B-5 on hand, I could try that. Actually, I took one 500 mg capsule this morning. I see you seem more fond of food sources (it appears to me, at least) for vitamins, than actual supplements. Regarding nutritional yeast for B Vitamins, I love how it tastes on salads, but may be allergic to it. Possibly.

I read your post on immune modulation, thank you. It looks like a lot of your recommendations are tied into other areas on which you've advised, which makes sense since all these bodily systems are so connected.

Do you have thoughts on plant sterols/sterolins, such as the product Moducare (and the couple or so others with similar formulas)? The Naturopath at the health food store told me about it. It's quite pricey, I've read of some good experiences of people with it. Although, I think I read on the main site of this product, where stress and adrenal fatigue were being discussed, that sterols/sterolins can lower cortisol levels, which may not be such a good thing if they're already low in the case of adrenal fatigue...which is why I want to look at my levels to be sure. But if you've got thoughts on it (Moducare), I'm interested in hearing them.

Regarding the liver, and your suggestion of herbal bitters: I've tried bitters once or twice in the past. The first time was a commercially available, alcohol-free formula. I actually found it delicious, but it was outlandishly priced: over thirty dollars for a bottle which lasted perhaps 10 or 12 doses. Maybe the local health food stores just have a weak selection...

Do you have recommendations on a particular formula - and if alcohol free ones in cases such as mine are worth the extra cost? Or should I just attempt making my own at home in larger quantity?

As for food intolerances in general, I read what you said about the adrenals again, and yes, the cortisol/histamine thing does make sense to me.

As for gluten, I wasn't diagnosed with full blown Celiac, but my antibodies were high, and since the Psoriasis on my elbows went away after stopping breads, clearly there was something likely hereditary going on there. I still wonder if I'm dealing with/healing damage from eating gluten most of my life, a few or more years after cutting it out...

Regarding possible hypoglycemia, yes, I see again that refer to pantothenic acid and Vit. C for the adrenals, which do have a lot to do with blood sugar. Their connection to everything is remarkable.

I'm glad you like the look of the Omega Alpha Liver and Kidney flushes.

Interesting point about the digestive enzymes and breaking down cellulose. I see each one contains 10 mg of "Cellulas".

Speaking of cellulose, I was reading about cleansing the bowel. I don't know if now's the time to do a full blown bowel cleanse, but I had at least considered adding supplementary fiber. I was just about to use this half container of Renew Life brand "Organic Bowel Cleanse" I found in my closet, but hesitated. Then I saw a message somewhere on CureZone where someone reprimanded another poster for suggested the usual psyllium/bran/flax style cleanser for leaky gut (which I may also be dealing with), because it contains fiber which can irritate the leaky gut.

Then I read on the Environmental Illness Resource website that soluble fiber supplements like the typical psyllium blends can actually increase gut permeability, not what I'd want I think, though they're frequently and unwittingly suggested by even a lot of Naturopaths.

This site suggested pure cellulose fiber powder as a colon cleanser/detoxifier, which will also *decrease* gut permeability...

I'm still taking the Betain HCl with protein meals, but if I get my hands on good bitters, than I will try that instead.

Regarding zinc, I have suspected for a while that it may need increasing.

About the skin-rash thing, just wondering why you think it might be "geographic dermatitis"? I can see your point about the adrenal improvement helping with it.

Yesterday, every single food I ate made my skin itch to varying degrees:

-Veggie soup (carrots, broccoli, celery, coconut oil, Sea Salt , onion, water and one egg) gave me an unusual, slightly hard, raised, itchy bump on my right arm, with a whitish center, that took hours to vanish. Perhaps it was the eggs - that was the first time I had them in four or five days. Maybe I need a rest from them, I've had four eggs/morning every day for at least a couple of years now.

-Plain pecan halves and macadamia nuts: moderate itching on arms and body, not too much, first felt good, then bloated and a bit queasy.

-Steamed broccoli with olive oil and Sea Salt : extreme itching on both forearms

-Organic Gala apples, plain: general itching all over, not as bad as with the broccoli. Felt most energized out of everything I'd eaten that day (probably the Sugar in the fruit).

None of these foods were eaten close to eachother.

I woke up at 2:30 this morning, had to go to the toilet (sorry if this is too much information). It was quite a lot, probably from having eaten fiber for the first time in nearly a week.

Right before I went, my neck was really red and very itchy, and all along the front right side of my chest and stomach it was a medium red color, and itchy. This happened once before, I got itchy when I had to have a bowel movement, though not to this extent. Makes me wonder again if, as another respondent to my original post suggested, that some of the issue is an excess of old waste matter. What do you think?

Oh - speaking of "geographic", I have had, for all or most of my life, "geographic tongue". Don't know if you consider that of significance. It can also get painful "tongue lesions" if I eat certain foods, but the results are not reproducible.

Well, thanks again for taking the time to read this. If you've got more thoughts, I'd really like to hear them.

Cheers,

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