The root cause of disease

Two aspects of this sequence determine the expression of symptoms. One is the magnitude and duration of your stresses (input), and the other is the reactivity of your nervous system. There are three possible outcomes (output) – safe, neutral, or threat. Living creatures are in the neutral zone most of the time and gravitate to safety whenever possible to rest and regenerate.

The perception of danger (threat) causes the nervous system to send signals to prepare for battle and wage it if necessary. The common term is, “fight or flight,” and your body’s response (activated) is intended to feel unpleasant enough (anxiety) to compel you to take action to resolve the situation. The goal is to remain in this agitated state for as short a time as possible. But what if you cannot solve the problem and you’re chronically fired up? Your body stimulates even more of a response to regain control, and you are hyperactivated (angry).  Unpleasant sensory input progressively impacts your body at three levels.

• Response
• Symptoms
• Illness/ Diseases

When the threat is short-lived your response will be appropriate to the situation and quickly disappears when it has passed or resolved. Almost every internal and external action of your body is automatically directing you in a manner, so you don’t feel many unpleasant sensations. It is called the nociceptive system. If you do sense danger, you are programmed to resolve it immediately. Examples are looking away from the sun, spitting out rancid food, pulling your bare foot back from hot pavement, frequently shifting in your chair to avoid skin breakdown, and avoiding predators.

When threats are prolonged, you will experience symptoms such as back pain, tension headaches, anxiety, poor appetite, nausea, urge to urinate, sexual dysfunction, burning sensations, skin rashes, dizziness, ringing in your ears, and insomnia. There are over 30 different physical and mental symptoms that can occur.²

When threats are sustained, you have a significant chance of becoming seriously ill or developing a disease. It is well-documented that chronic stress kills people and unfortunately the symptoms of an illness or disease also add to the threat load. This is particularly true in chronic pain.³

Dynamic Healing Overview

The nature of your body’s physiology under threat

Environmental cues of threat set off a defensive response. Immediately, before you are even aware, your immune system girds for the possibility of injury by initiating inflammation (to protect cells against invaders (bacteria, viruses, cancer cells), elevates metabolism to provide fuel for defense, increases the speed of nerve conduction–which increases your alertness but also your pain sensitivity, and elevates the levels stress hormones (cortisol, adrenaline, noradrenaline, histamines). Much of this defensive state is modulated by small signaling proteins called inflammatory cytokines.

So how do you think you feel when you are in this physiological state? Your heart is racing, you are sweaty, tired, anxious, overwhelmed, nervous, stomach feels tight, blood pressure is elevated, pain is worse, and your breathing is rapid. The bottom line is that you don’t feel great when your body is in this heightened neurochemical state. Are these symptoms imaginary? Not a chance. None of them.

Defining threat

Examples of physical threats include viruses, bacteria, being attacked by a predator – human or animal, hunger, lack of shelter, poverty, lack of opportunity, being bullied at work or school, racism, authoritarianism, trapped in a difficult living or family situation, and physical maladies.

Mental threats are processed in a similar manner as physical ones with the same physiological response.⁴ They are more problematic in that humans have consciousness, many of our thoughts and emotions are unpleasant, and unlike visible threats like tigers or a severe storm, we cannot escape our thoughts. Repressed thoughts and emotions are even more impactable on your body’s neurochemical state. Many of our unpleasant thoughts are based on cognitive distortions or “stories” about our lives. Unfortunately, whether the threat is real or perceived it has the same deleterious effect.⁵

Systematically addressing the root cause – circumstances versus coping capacity

First, it is always important to undergo a medical workup to make sure there is not a structural issue such as vascular disease, pinched nerve, tumor, or an infection.

Second, regardless of the findings of the workup, maintaining your body’s metabolic, immune, and nervous system balance is important. If you require a procedure, your odds of a good outcome will be maximized.

Third, all three aspects of chronic illness must be addressed. Here are some examples of interventions for each one.

Input (what are you uploading into it and what are you holding onto?)

• Forgiveness
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Expressive writing
• Never discussing your pain or medical care

State of the nervous system (calm or hypervigilant)

• Exercise
• Sleep
• ACT (Acceptance Commitment Therapy)
• Processing prior trauma

Output (physiological profile – safe, neutral, threat)

• Breath work
• Mindfulness/ meditation
• Humming
• Vagal stimulation
• Certain pitches of music

Finally, you must take charge of your own body and health. Chronic diseases are complex, and you are unique. You are the only one who can figure out a solution. The first step is understanding the nature of chronic disease. The solutions lie In implementing strategies that address the root cause of disease and lower inflammation,⁶ which destroys tissues throughout your body. It is more doable than you think. Not taking charge may have severe consequences.

Modern medicine is continuing down the wrong road

Modern medicine is mainly addressing symptoms. This approach works well when there is an identifiable structural problem that can be fixed. But the vast majority chronic illnesses/ diseases result from being in a prolonged fight of flight state and structural approaches cannot and do not work. The burden of chronic disease continues to rise without an end in sight.¹ Why do we continue to travel down the same road?

The tragedy is that It is an eminently solvable problem at a fraction of the risk and cost. There is  deep data revealing the common neurophysiological nature of chronic mental and physical diseases. Most of modern medicine is ignoring it.⁷ A significant percent of interventions have no supporting data. Integrative medicine and similar approaches are much better at systematically addressing the dynamic interaction between a person and his or her circumstances. Treating symptoms is necessary but won’t definitively heal you. The more accurate term for current “mainstream medicine” is “disintegrative medicine.”

Dynamic Healing Medicine

Dynamic healing medicine requires listening and knowing you. Feeling safe positively affects your neurochemical profile.⁶  It is important to understand both your circumstances (input) and your coping skills (nervous system resilience) to develop a healing relationship with your provider.

My book, Back in Control: A Surgeon’s Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain,⁷ provides a foundation and framework to understand and implement your own solution to chronic illness.

The DOC Journey course and app are frameworks that reflect updated neuroscience research. They include a guided course, videos tutorials, webinars, and access to supportive group sessions. We have been delighted that we have been able to provide clearer explanations for chronic mental and physical pain and allow patients to more quickly find their way out of The Abyss.

Join us in bringing Dynamic Healing into mainstream awareness.

References:

1. O’Neill Hayes, Tara, and Serena Gillian. Chronic disease in the United State: A worsening health and economic crisis. Americaactionforium.org; September 10^th, 2020.
2. Schubiner H and M Betzold. Unlearn Your Pain, 3^rdMind Body Publishing, Pleasant Ridge, MI, 2016.
3. Smyth J, et al. Stress and disease: A structural and functional analysis. Social and Personality Psychology Compass (2013);7/4:217-227. 10.1111/spc3.12020
4. Eisenberger NI, et al. An experimental study of shared sensitivity to physical pain and social rejection. Pain (2006);126:132-138.
5. Burns, David. Feeling Good. Harper Collins, New York, NY, 1980.
6. Porges, Stephen. The Pocket Guide to the Polyvagal Theory: The Transformative Power of Feeling Safe. Norton and Co, New York, NY, 2017.
7. Hanscom, David. Back in Control: A Surgeon’s Roadmap Out of Chronic Pain. Vertus Press, Seattle, WA. 2016.

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The post Dynamic Healing first appeared on Back in Control.

The post Dynamic Healing appeared first on Back in Control.

Safety

With cues of safety from your environment, your response will consist of hormones such as serotonin (anti-depressant), dopamine (rewards), oxytocin (bonding), growth hormone (regeneration), and GABA chemicals (calming, anti-anxiety). The immune response stimulates anti-inflammatory cytokines. Metabolism will be lower and the whole scenario allows the body to rest and regenerate.

Physically, the result is feeling relaxed, slower heart rate and breathing, muscle relaxation, and reduced speed of nerve conduction, which decreases pain. The more time that can be spent in this regenerative state the better.

Most of the time, your body’s goal is to maintain equilibrium (homeostasis) and keep your range of behaviors and chemistry in a stable zone. For example, the nociceptive (pain) system unconsciously guides you to avoid actions that would cause harm. When you experience an uncomfortable or unpleasant sensation from any source, it is simply signaling danger and then you are compelled to take action to remain safe.

Threat

Environmental cues of threat are met with mobilization of all of your body’s resources in order to defend yourself. It includes your immune system with elevations of inflammatory cytokines, elevated metabolism to provide fuel, and the secretion of stress hormones such as cortisol, adrenaline, noradrenaline, histamines, and endorphins.

Physically and mentally, you are on “high alert” with numerous bodily responses. The basic ones include an increased heart rate, rapid breathing, increased speed of nerve conduction (increases pain), elevated blood pressure, sweating, muscle tension, and a sense of danger that we call anxiety. There also numerous symptoms created by this physiological state. They include tension and migraine headaches, neck and low back pain, skin rashes, stomach cramps, depression, bipolar, burning sensations in various parts of your body, and over 30 additional responses. Although the chemical environment encompasses your whole body, each organ and organ system will manifest its unique response.

Symptoms, illness, and disease

Balance is needed between your stresses and your capacity to deal with them. When you processing your circumstances well, you’ll feel connected to what you are doing and often will feel contented and safe. When your coping mechanisms are overwhelmed, your whole body will rise to the occasion to defend you, and every cell in your body goes into different levels of high alert. You will experience the above-mentioned threat symptoms.

When the threat is transient or resolvable, the symptoms will quickly abate. When it is more prolonged, you may develop an illness(es) that are reversible with appropriate treatments or when the stress has been resolved. When threat is sustained, people will eventually develop serious illness and diseases that cause permanent tissue damage and create mental havoc. Diseases don’t “just happen.” What would happen to your car if you were driving a long distance down the freeway at 70 mph in second gear. The engine would be running at a very high speed and will break down quickly.

There are two aspects of the situation that affect the quality of your life.

• The state of your nervous system:
  • Your inherent coping skills
  • Your current degree of neurological reactivity
• Your circumstances including:
  • The magnitude and duration of mental and/or physical threat
    • Note the human inability to escape from unpleasant thoughts and emotions.

Solving/ Preventing chronic disease

The core principles in solving/preventing chronic diseases with chronic pain being just one of many, are centered around the following 1) developing and nurturing a more resilient nervous system (processing center) 2) learning methods to process your stressors so they have less of an impact on your nervous system.

Examples of approaches to increase your nervous system’s coping capacity:

• Restful sleep
• Exercise
• Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT)
  • Learning to feel threatening mental or physical sensations and training yourself “to be with them.”
• Education – understanding the nature of chronic pain allows you to choose your own way of escape.
• Addressing childhood trauma
• Meditation practices

Some methods that lessen the impact of your threat:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (changing thought patterns)
• Not discussing your pain
• Mindfulness/ active meditation – changes sensory input
• Forgiveness
• Awareness – can be used as its own tool
• Getting organized
• Expressive writing – separates you from your thoughts

Safety vs. threat

Modern medicine has nullified these aspects of care in that we are not given the time nor are we encouraged to talk to our patients. From the beginning, we are not providing cues of safety. Consequently, we don’t know our patients and their coping capacity and really don’t know much about their circumstances. We are given only the time to treat symptoms. We are ignoring the root cause of the problem. It is similar to trying to put out an oil well fire with a garden hose. It can’t and doesn’t work. Indeed, there is an ongoing and growing epidemic of chronic disease – both mental and physical.

A general overview of the mechanisms of how you will effectively be approaching chronic disease involves:

• Lowering inflammation (output) – calming techniques
• Increasing the resiliency of the nervous system – neuroplasticity
• Input – choosing what data to download

There is a marked amount of overlap and these three categories are artificial designations. They are intended to create a framework for discussion around developing and applying various interventions. You will learn tools to stimulate your brain to change and also calm down your nervous system. There will be a major shift in your body’s neurochemical profile. You can program your brain around most anything. Remember, this is not, “mind over matter.” You will lose that battle. Think of it more like a sculpting process and you have the power to create whatever reality you choose. The DOC Journey will guide you through this healing process at whatever pace you are comfortable with.

In summary, the root cause of chronic disease states is unrelenting exposure to threat and the solution is learning methods to create safety.

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