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Archives for June 2019

Stunning lavender labyrinth in Michigan: meditative benefits for anxiety

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lavender labyrinth

There is a stunning lavender labyrinth in Michigan – Lavender Labyrinth at Cherry Point Farm and Market, and just seeing the image with all the beautiful purple lavender makes me feel relaxed and smiling. Imagine being there and smelling all that lavender too!

We now know labyrinths have meditative benefits when it comes to anxiety and stress. They share this on their site:

The labyrinth is an ancient spiral pattern which, when walked, is thought to be a spiritual journey, and symbolic of one’s path in life.  In recent years, labyrinths have undergone a dramatic revival as a meditation, relaxation, and spiritual tool.  Unlike a maze, a labyrinth is a continuous circuit and you cannot get lost.

I recently shared a Facebook post of the above superb image. The post was so popular I want to share it here too for you to enjoy too.

Christine Fothergill shared this: “I’ve been there! It’s on cherry country near our house!!!! Tons of medicinal herbs in that garden too!”

Diane Lalomia, who lives nearby shared that “it is quite a magical place to get lost in.” She also offered these tips for visiting:

  • The lavender is usually in full bloom around the first week of July. The last week of June through the middle of July is the best time to visit.
  • It’s a very serene place
  • The lavender is usually in flower and has the strongest scent.
  • The nearest big city (for flying into the area) would be Grand Rapids. The lavender maze is in Shelby, MI which is just a little over an hour from Grand Rapids.
  • Nearby is also Silver Lake and if you plan on staying a day or two, Sleeping Bear Dunes is one of the 7 wonders of the world

She also shared these additional photos that she took and kindly gave me permission to post on this blog.

cherry point

cherry point

cherry point

There are papers on the meditative benefits of labyrinth walking. This paper, Effects of Reflective Labyrinth Walking Assessed Using a Questionnaire, reports this background information:

Meditation as it is currently known is an ancient practice, which can be traced back to Asian traditions. With the proper technique, a state of physical relaxation and respiratory balance can be reached naturally and spontaneously. This paper considers meditative labyrinth walking to be a unique expression of Dr. Lauren Artress’ work, who studied and applied the image of the labyrinth on the floor of the Chartres Cathedral in France.

The conclusion of this cross-sectional non-randomized study with 30 participants is as follows:

This study showed that the practice of labyrinth walking is a physical, emotional, and sensory experience. On the clinical level, correlating this experience to the planning of care seems to be particularly relevant.

With all that lavender you also get the calming benefits from that too. In one study, Essential oil inhalation on blood pressure and salivary cortisol levels in prehypertensive and hypertensive subjects, 83 participants who were hypertensive (high blood pressure) or prehypertensive were asked to inhale an essential oil blend of lavender, ylang-ylang, marjoram, and neroli with the following ratio (20 : 15 : 10 : 2).

The study group experienced the relaxation effects of this particular blend of essential oils leading to:

  • significant decreases in the concentration of salivary cortisol
  • reduced blood pressure
  • and stress reduction.

You can read more about this study here.

Be sure to check out Cherry Point Farm and Market for more information and other lovely images. With appreciation to them for permission to share the image on my blog and to Diane for her images and tips. Here’s a link to her new photography website.

Have you experienced the meditative benefits of labyrinth walking? Have you been to this this lavender labyrinth? And did you find it calming?

We’d love to hear about your experiences.

Additional Anxiety Resources
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GABA for Anxiety, ADHD, Autism, Insomnia, and Addictions at IMMH 2019 conference

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immh trudy scott

I’m proud to be presenting on “GABA for Anxiety, ADHD, Autism, Insomnia, and Addictions: Research and Practical Applications” at this year’s Integrative Medicine for Mental Health (IMMH) conference (a practitioner-only event)

I’ll be sharing the newest research on GABA and practical ways to use GABA with your clients/patients, as well as how to trouble-shoot when you’re not getting expected results.

Here is one of the many new studies I’ll be discussing (plus how to translate the animal study dosages for a human population): GABA and l-theanine mixture decreases sleep latency and improves NREM sleep

The use of GABA/l-theanine mixture rather than GABA or l-theanine alone restored to normal levels sleep time and quality in the arousal animal model.

The 10th Annual IMMH Conference will be held in San Diego, at the beautiful Hilton San Diego Bayfront! This four-day international conference gives practitioners a holistic approach to successfully diagnose and treat underlying issues contributing to the manifestations of neurological, behavioral, and psychiatric disorders.

Research has revealed that many disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, OCD, eating disorders, and autism spectrum disorders often have biomedical causes that contribute to symptoms, from nutritional deficiencies to chronic infections. Patients have better outcomes when these causes are addressed and treated through a combination of specialized testing and nutritional therapies, even in combination with traditional approaches.

CME, CE, and CEU credits available!

It’s my favorite integrative mental health conference and this year the speaker line-up and topics being addressed are excellent!

 

2019 CONFERENCE SPEAKERS
  • BRIDGET BRIGGS, MD
  • SURUCHI CHANDRA, MD
  • KABRAN CHAPEK, ND
  • BILL CODE, MD
  • MARK FILIDEI, DO
  • FELICE GERSH, MD
  • JAMES GREENBLATT, MD
  • ANN HATHAWAY, MD
  • GRACE JACKSON, MD
  • HEATHER KING, PhD
  • LESLIE KORN, PhD
  • JULIE MATTHEWS, CNC
  • NEIL NATHAN, MD
  • JAMES NEUENSCHWANDER, MD
  • SANFORD NEWMARK, MD
  • JOSEPH PIZZORNO, ND
  • MATTHEW PRATT-HYATT, PhD
  • SCOTT SHANNON, MD
  • KENNETH SHARLIN, MD
  • WILLIAM SHAW, PhD
  • RICK SPONAUGLE, MD
  • ELISA SONG, MD
  • KURT WOELLER, DO

A few of the conference topics include:

  • Solving the Brain Puzzle: Recovery Potential for Neurodegenerative Disorders
  • It’s Not All in Their Heads: Treating the Gut-Brain-Immune Triad
  • Brains on Fire: An Integrative Approach to Healing Childhood PANS/PANDAS
  • Integrative Therapies for Suicide Prevention
  • Reversal of Cognitive Decline: The Science, The Tools, and the Transformation
  • Concussion Rescue: A Comprehensive Approach to Traumatic Brain Injury
  • Neuropsychiatric Aspects of Lyme Disease and Associated Co-Infections
  • Non-Pharmacological Treatments for Chronic Pain
  • The Integrative Treatment of ADHD
  • Bioidentical Hormone Replacement for Mood and Cognition
  • New Frontiers in Mental Health: CBD and Beyond

IMMH CLINICIAN REGISTRY

Attendance at this conference qualifies you to join the Integrative Medicine for Mental Health (IMMH) Clinician Registry, making you accessible to potential patients. Each entry searchable by zip code in the U.S. and provides the medical professional’s specialty and contact information. In keeping with the integrative approach, the registry includes all professionals who have attended an IMMH conference and completed the IMMH registry application.

Details and registration here (Use promo code TRUDY50 to save an additional $50 on your registration). Early bird rates expire after June 30th.

If you are coming, please comment below and let me know! And be sure to come and say hi after my presentation and at my booth! If there is enough interest, I’ll be arranging a gathering/dinner one evening so let me know.

This is a practitioner-only event so if this doesn’t apply to you please consider sharing it with your practitioner. I’ll also be bringing back information to share with you via blog posts after the event so stay tuned. In the meanwhile, feel free to post questions in the comments below.

Can food and nutrients really help me if I have very severe anxiety and/or panic attacks and I’m using medications?

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food, nutrients and med

As I prepare for “The Anxiety Summit 5: Gut-Brain Axis” (airing in November 2019) I have been going through interviews from the first Anxiety Summit in 2014 and would like to share something that I addressed in my opening interview as a good recap for you as you are on your healing journey with anxiety (or in case this comes up again in the future) – you truly can eliminate anxiety entirely!

This is a question I am often asked: “Can I really eliminate anxiety using food, nutrients (and a functional medicine approach) if I have very severe anxiety and/or panic attacks and I’m using medications?”

Way too many folks don’t believe it’s possible but yes, you can! You can completely eliminate full blown anxiety, panic attacks, social anxiety (where you cannot go out to social event or go and feel so anxious), phobias like fear of spiders or agoraphobia (where you cannot get out of the house), and even obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

Many folks believe their anxiety is much too severe and that food and nutrients couldn’t possibly help. I’m here to tell you this is just not true.

It’s not uncommon for well-known thought leaders to perpetuate this myth, implying anxiety and fears never go away.

Ali Brown, entrepreneurial guru for women, and one of my amazing business mentors, created a program to help businesswomen overcome their fears. She shared this in the program information: “Let’s not forget women’s darkest best friends: anxiety and worry” and admitted “I still have to fight it. I come from a long line of worriers.”

I say no, you don’t have to fight it. Just because you come from a long line of worriers doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to put up with it and live with it. There is something you can do to eliminate the anxiety, worries and fears.

Seth Godin, author and thought leader, says this: “When fear shows up, understand that it never goes away. Dance with it instead.”

While I really enjoy the dance suggestion – it’s fun and the joy of dancing and the exercise may help – however I really do disagree with the fact that he says fear never goes away.

In season 1 interviewed Julia Ross, MA, my mentor and author of The Mood Cure (my Amazon link), on using amino acids for anxiety and she summed it up perfectly:

On a scale from zero to 10, zero is not an unrealistic goal when it comes to anxiety. It’s really the human potential and GABA and tryptophan give us access to it.

I’m going to repeat this because I think it’s really worth repeating. Zero is not an unrealistic goal when it comes to anxiety. Bravo Julia – I totally agree with this and I want you to know this!

It starts with doing trials of GABA and tryptophan, and using food and nutrients, and finding all the root causes and addressing them.

I really want you to know this, remember this, and don’t stop looking for the answer and the root causes. It may be food changes that you need to make. It may be breakfast that you need to eat. It may be low serotonin or low GABA. It may be foods that are problems for you like gluten or dairy. It may be additives in the foods that you’re eating. It may be toxins in your environment. There are many possible root causes, and you may have one or many root causes that are causing your anxiety.

Addressing these root causes with food and nutrients (and a functional medicine approach you can completely eliminate your anxiety even if you have very severe anxiety and/or panic attacks and you’re using medications.

Resources for you

Do you believe your anxiety is much too severe for food and nutrients to be of help?

Or did you believe this and started looking at nutritional and biochemical root causes anyway and found solutions and anxiety resolution?

Additional Anxiety Resources
Click on each image to learn more

Pectus excavatum and pyroluria: is there a connection?

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Pectus excavatum and pyroluria

I recently received a question about the possible connection between pectus excavatum and pyroluria, a social anxiety condition. In layman’s terms, pectus excavatum is a depression or indentation in the chest wall and is related to problems with connective tissue. This Medscape article describes it as follows:

Pectus excavatum, also known as sunken or funnel chest, is a congenital chest wall deformity in which several ribs and the sternum grow abnormally, producing a concave, or caved-in, appearance in the anterior chest wall.

It’s not something I’m familiar with other than seeing someone with this condition at the beach once (I share some pictures below) and when doing the research for this blog.

The question was posed in relation to a blog on Joint hypermobility / Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, a connective tissue disorder that does seem to be common in those with pyroluria.

In case you’re new to pyroluria, it is a genetic condition that is frequently associated with a type of anxiety characterized by social anxiety, avoidance of crowds, a feeling of inner tension, and bouts of depression. People with this problem experience varying degrees of anxiety or fear, often starting in childhood, but they usually manage to cover it up and push through. They tend to build their life around one person, become more of a loner over time, have difficulty handling stress or change, and have heightened anxiety symptoms when under more stress. You can read more about it here.

There are also connective tissue symptoms with pyroluria with the following commonly a factor: joints popping, cracking, or aching; pain or discomfort between the shoulder blades; and/or cartilage problems. This is often due to low levels of zinc. Here is the entire pyroluria questionnaire.

Addressing low levels of the mineral zinc and vitamin B6, together with some other nutrients and stress management, are key to addressing pyroluria symptoms. The social anxiety can typically be lifted in a week and the joint and pain problems often ease in 1 to 2 months.

So now that I’ve set things up with an overview of pyroluria and EDS and the connective tissue problems, let me share what I uncovered about pectus excavatum and why I feel there is very likely a connection with pyroluria.

Pectus excavatum and low zinc – impacting connective tissue and psychological impairment

According to this 2012 paper, Pectus excavatum: history, hypotheses and treatment options

Pectus excavatum (PE) … is the most common chest wall deformity, representing 90% of all cases. Depending on the severity of PE, deviations of thoracic organs and spine deformities are known. Although PE in most instances has little or no influence on the function of the inner organs, the cosmetic appearance of the patients leads to psychological impairment which requires therapy.

In the above paper, they write about one of the hypotheses: weak cartilage through metabolism dysfunction. They report decreased levels of zinc in the pectus excavatum patients, suggesting “the lack of zinc in the diet results in a lower metabolic activity of chondrocytes.” Chondrocytes are cells found in cartilage connective tissue. In summary, one hypothesis is that low dietary zinc affects cartilage connective tissue in some individuals with pectus excavatum.

Observe the mention of psychological impairment. Could the low zinc be playing a role in this too? I address this below.

Pectus excavatum and Ehlers-Danlos, plus dental crowding

This paper, Pectus Excavatum and Heritable Disorders of the Connective Tissue, make the connective tissue and Ehlers-Danlos connection:

It seems clear that several patients affected by pectus excavatum display a typical association with connective tissue disorders, which may span from mild form like simple laxity without morbidity associated, to more severe forms such as MFS and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

This paper also mentions “Highly arched palate with dental crowding” which is common in pyroluria and seems to be related to low levels of zinc.

The image below illustrates a moderate/severe form of pectus excavatum.

pectus excavatum
Figure 1. from Pectus Excavatum and Heritable Disorders of the Connective Tissue

Chest picture of an adolescent affected by a moderate/severe form of pectus excavatum. Written consent was obtained from the patient and the patient’s parents for publication of this image.

Vitamin B6 and high homocysteine

With regards to vitamin B6, one of the other key nutrients needed for pyroluria, one paper, Pectus carinatum repair in an adolescent with hyperhomocysteinaemia: Anaesthetic implications reports a case of a 14-year-old boy with high homocysteine. his level was 18.5 μmol/l (normal levels are within 7–10 μmol/l). He was treated with folic acid, Vitamin B6 and B12 supplements. Is this common in all cases of chest wall deformities? I don’t know but it would interesting to find out.

Pectus excavatum: social anxiety and depression

There are some older studies that report mental health symptoms, including social anxiety are common. In this 1999 paper, Funnel chest. Psychological and psychosomatic aspects in children, youngsters, and young adults, they report these reactions in children older than 11:

embarassment reactions, social anxiety, feelings of stigma, limited capacity for work, orientation towards failure, reduced tolerance of frustration and temptation, limited capacity for communication and even markedly depressive reactions are observed.

It’s understandable that the physical manifestations of this condition would lead to some of these feelings but I have to question how much of this could also be related to low zinc and low vitamin B6. Both nutrients are needed for easing pyroluria/social anxiety symptoms and making neurotransmitters such as serotonin.

Other than trying to make some connections with the research, when this question was asked on facebook, a number of people said they (or a family member) has both pyroluria and pectus excavatum.

If you do have pectus excavatum and pyroluria, getting on the pyroluria protocol will:

  • ease some of the social anxiety and depressive symptoms
  • very likely lead to less pain and discomfort
  • very possibly prevent further connective tissue issues
  • feasibly prevent pectus excavatum in future children or perhaps reduce the severity in the instance where zinc is a factor (this one is a long shot that I feel is worth further research)

I’d love to gather more information and am looking for feedback so please do share your symptoms and experiences in the comments. Let us know if you or your child or other family member has pectus excavatum and any of the following:

  • A score 15 or more on the pyroluria questionnaire and/or suffer from social anxiety
  • Have low zinc
  • Have low B6 (poor dream recall or nightmares is a clue)
  • Have high homocysteine i.e. above 10 μmol/l
  • Ehlers-Danlos syndrome or joint hypermobility
  • Dental crowding

Resources for you

Additional Anxiety Resources
Click on each image to learn more

Remedy: Ancient Medicines for Modern Illness

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remedy

Producer, director and author Nick Pollizi and his team brought you the groundbreaking documentary The Sacred Science.

They are now bringing you Remedy: Ancient Medicines for Modern Illness, a new, nine-part online docuseries exploring the world’s most promising medicinal herbs and how they are being used to treat today’s most life-threatening illnesses, including cancer, heart disease, Parkinson’s, Lyme disease, physical pain, depression, stress and anxiety, dementia, chronic fatigue, migraine headaches, insomnia and many others.

It features some of the biggest names in herbalism and natural health, as well as some amazing healing stories from real people who have recovered from serious conditions and illnesses using plants. It’s compelling, timely and better than anything they’ve done in the past.

Here are some snippets from Tieraona Low Dog, a physician and a teacher and a herbalist, in Episode 6 – Healthy Hearts and Happy Minds: Solving Cardiovascular Disease and Depression. She is talking about “The INTERHEART Study.”

It was twenty-seven countries, fifty-thousand people, or so. It was a huge study. And they found that, in women, that being, feeling socially isolated—feeling lonely, was more predictive of having a heart attack than being obese, smoking, being diabetic, or having hypertension.

When I would have med students, I’d say, “Did you ask them how many friends they have, about their relationship with their families? Do they feel lonely?” The med students were all like, “Dr. Low Dog, how are you supposed to ask that?” Because nobody wants to ask it because they don’t know what to do if somebody says, “Yes, I’m lonely,” because physicians feel like they have to fix everything, and you don’t have to fix everything. You just have to come alongside people, and, sometimes, it’s just the asking of the question, “Are you lonely,” that can open up somebody’s heart to be able to talk about how they’re feeling—especially if they are.

So heart disease is a complex mixture of genetics and environment and diet and activity and not managing our stress and loneliness because, why do you say, “It broke my heart,” instead of like, “It broke my liver.” True. It broke my heart. There’s this deep sense that we’ve known for a long time, that’s reflected in our language, that our heart is the seat of our emotional health and our emotional wellbeing, and when we’re “heartbroken,” it breaks the heart. It’s true.

She goes on to share some herbal heart information too… Hawthorn is a classic example of a tonic for the heart:

The old monks in the old days used to take hawthorn, and they’d make them into syrups and liquors and things and give them to old people to strengthen their heart. Today, we know through a tremendous amount of science on hawthorn. Yes, it actually does help the aging heart. It helps it beat more efficiently, use its blood and oxygen more efficiently, makes it less likely to have arrhythmias. It’s a tonifying herb for the heart.

The Remedy docuseries airs June 4th – June 12th

You can register here.

Digital Dementia: Addiction, brain chemical imbalances, suicide and low-level lasers for healing

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digital dementia

“Digital dementia” is very real – overconsumption of screen time can lead to a breakdown of cognitive abilities and deteriorated posture, developmental delays, degraded short-term memory, seclusion and lack of motivation… especially for our children!

In my interview, Food and Mood Support to Prevent Digital Dementia, I talk about anxiety, depression and even a higher risk for suicide in overuse of screen time and how using diet and amino acids can help with the addiction and related mood issues.

krista and trudy

One of the questions Krista asks is this: “What do you think will happen to children/teens if we don’t make changes as a society?” and I share some scary stats about suicide.

In a 2018 article in Newsweek, “iPhones Pose Suicide Risk to Teenagers, Apple Investors Warn”, they share

A 2017 study by Jean Twenge, a professor of psychology at San Diego State University, who found that U.S. teenagers who spend more than three hours a day using electronic devices are 35 percent more likely to have a risk factor for suicide than those who spend less than an hour.

Teenagers who spend more than five hours on their phones are 71 percent more likely to have a risk factor for suicide.

And these are very real and sobering stats about the average American teenager – they first receive a smartphone at the age of 10 and spend over 4.5 hours a day using it!

Of course, we have to consider how much is it the biological effects of the smartphone itself (DNA damage, immune system effects, depletion of zinc and melatonin etc.) and how much is it the poor nutrient status and brain chemical imbalances that are driving this high use of smartphones (i.e. a need to self-medicate by going online) and the increased anxiety, depression and suicide risk?

It’s likely a combination of both…and a vicious cycle that can be broken with education AND addressing brain chemical imbalances. Low GABA, low serotonin, low dopamine and even low endorphins drive teens (and us adults too) to “self-medicate” with social media and iPhone use in order to feel calm, happier, stimulated and/or comforted.

We do this just like we do with sugar, street drugs, prescription pain meds, and alcohol. Just like with drugs and carbs, we can break this very serious digital addiction with individual amino acids such as GABA, tryptophan, DPA and tyrosine, and prevent digital dementia AND improve the mood and reduce the anxiety of those experiencing this. It’s imperative we use this approach in addition to dietary changes, parenting tips and education about this harm we’re doing to ourselves.

The good news is, that in addition to improving diet and nutrient status, we can also use tools to help with healing.

Kirk Gair, DC, in his interview, Lasers – Secret Weapon Against Digital Dementia, covers benefits of low-level lasers (also called photobiomodulation) for brain support and it’s fascinating. Here are a few snippets from his interview:

  • The main target area is going to be in what’s called the powerhouse or the mitochondria. They’re going to absorb the energy from the laser, and they’re going to make more ATP, which is an energy molecule that helps basically every process in the body; whether it’s your brain firing, whether it’s sports performance, or whether it’s healing tissue, you’re going to see that increased.
  • You’re also going to make something called “nitric oxide,” which dilates the blood vessels. Especially when we look at the brain, that’s really important. We dilate these blood vessels. You’re going to improve blood flow throughout the brain.
  • You’re also going to stimulate glutathione, which is a powerful antioxidant that helps to neutralize damaging free radicals, which we know can affect the aging process, can turn on different kinds of genes in our DNA, etc.
  • Numerous studies have shown the lasers being able to actually calm down autoimmunity, especially with thyroid antibodies. It’s been shown to be able to decrease those TPO antibodies, which then protects the cerebellum.
  • If we’re looking at an athlete who’s been concussed, or just a regular patient who’s had a car accident or a fall or something, the laser has been shown to be able to modulate the immune system so it knows which cells to clean up.

Learn all this and more on The Digital Dementia Summit

digital dementia summit

Host, Dr. Krista Burns, is an author and speaker who has been educating practitioners about the dangers of digital dementia for over 5 years. With this summit she believes it’s now time to reach parents directly for their health and that of their children.