Psoriasis and arthritis success story: Male 55 years of age.
The steroid therapy only worked for awhile to reduce the skin flare ups and joint pain. The skin rashes occurred first about 20 years ago. The joint pain began about 5 years ago and was getting worse.
The next step of his medical therapy was to begin a new ‘Biologic’ which was the new class of medications to help patients like him deal with the suffering of Psoriasis as well as Psoriatic Arthritis. (Biologics are a class of medications produced by a living organism through the production of genetically engineered proteins.) These proteins are designed to interfere with certain processes in the immune system that control inflammation. “They are new and they are expensive”, he said.
The list of side effects for the new Biologic was daunting so he decided to get some answers. “What was causing my psoriasis and joint pain in the first place?” He said that, “They never really addressed the cause.”
When he came to me he was having lots of knee and ankle pain. He was also having some flareups of the skin, particularly on his legs and forearms. He was frustrated and said that he just couldn’t endure the cost, both financially and physically of these drugs anymore.
We began with the normal workup and questions. He was a bit embarrassed when he began to tear up during the consultation, but I understood his situation and I just wanted him to ‘air-it-out’.
He indicated that he had a feeling of what was going on within him and what was causing the symptoms. He was searching for an alternative that was proven and affordable. He knew that the stress at work definitely had something to do with it and that he had flareups whenever he ate poorly. He just wanted some answers and someone to coach him in a solution.
His questionnaire and consultation pointed to digestive issues and stress issues. We decided together to test those areas first.
His blood analysis showed high inflammatory markers as well as liver and gall bladder dysfunction. A simple urine test found that he had high levels of toxicity and indications of candida/yeast overgrowth.
We did a food sensitivity analysis and were not surprised by the outcome. He said that he had tried to eliminate some of these foods before, but couldn’t be disciplined.
The black and white reports would provide the proof that he needed to stick with any kind of program. He looked relieved as I went over the results because he said that it just confirmed what he felt he already knew deep inside.
He worked in a stressful job that had many toxic lubricants, he also had his gall bladder removed years ago when it had caused him some trouble. Apparently, it was still causing him trouble even though it was successfully removed. This can happen as the liver starts to, ‘back up’.
We started him on a diet where he would begin to limit certain foods and we decided to give him some help with his digestion since the liver and gall bladder are major outlets for toxins and are critical for digestion.
Since he had his gall bladder removed we assisted the body to overcome the lack of an important body part. A natural anti-inflammatory and supplement with nutrients to assist his body in eliminating the toxins was also added.
He decided to do a detoxification type diet using medical foods along with elimination of all probable irritating foods. With the discipline of the 10 day detox he decided to go for 30 days and establish a healthy eating habit. I believe the extra 20 days really helped his liver deal with the back up of toxins.
Remember, the skin which is the largest organ of the body is usually where we first see indications of liver and intestinal toxicity.
He felt empowered and ready to attack this long standing problem. Within 3 short weeks he already noticed a difference. His joint pain began to decrease within a week and then his skin started to heal within week three.
The new way of eating was of no problem since he noticed the success so soon. Knowing what foods he had a sensitivity to gave him the information to use like a tool and help him move on.
Help with his digestion was all that was needed to reduce the yeast overgrowth that was poisoning his system. Know that bile flow from the liver is a powerful anti-fungal.
He still works with the toxic substances at work, but takes even extra care to avoid direct contact and the liver support has helped his body deal with their removal.
It had been a year and his skin is completely cleared up aside from the occasional slip in his diet and his joint pain has not returned. Since we are a team for his health and wellbeing, we work through this together and offer new ideas to help him.
He has never gone on the biological medication and has stopped all of his anti-inflammatory (psoriasis) medicine as well.
He said that his food is his new medicine and now that he has discovered what was in the way of his health (toxins and food sensitivities) he can better manage his health. Knowing what he needs to do to protect his health has given him a strategy that he can follow.
Incidentally, he has also said that this knowledge has led to his whole family to becoming transformed, more healthy and aware of things that can interfere with health. Knowledge is power . . . . . only if you use it.
I love sharing stories like this so that the power of investigation into the causes and then finding solutions for a particular health issue can be celebrated. After all, we deserve good health.