Gonzalez Visit II Plus & Atlas Chiropractic

July 31, 2008

Gonzalez Visit II
Last month, I had my second in person visit with my physician Nicholas Gonzalez, MD in New York City. He answered my questions, performed a physical exam, and shared my most recent diagnostic results. Dr. Gonzalez is very pleased with how I’m responding to the protocol.

I very much enjoyed sitting down with Dr. Gonzalez and hearing his responses to my list of detailed questions that I had accumulated over several months. Dr. Gonzalez is always available to answer questions by telephone, and I had spoken with him several times monthly since I saw him in November 2007. I saved the more comprehensive questions about mechanisms for my in person appointment. And some of our conversation served as reminders to me. I am challenged to retain all of the details related to my protocol.

Dr. Gonzalez reminded me that in cancer patients it takes 2 to 4 years for the body to fully repair and restore through his protocol. The constant process of attack through the pancreatic enzymes, restoration through the supplements, detoxification and parasympathetic stimulation through the coffee enemas, as well as the cycling off the pills (for me every 20 days for 5 days) for detoxification routines such as liver and intestinal cleanses is designed to provide the body with the tools to repair and restore over time.

Dr. Gonzalez again noted that my diagnostics (that he performs through hair analysis) from November 2007 before I began his protocol were unusually high for a new cancer patient. I also had plenty of scores in need of significant improvement. His diagnostic “scores” indicate status of organs and their functions, minerals, hormones, heavy metals, and other aspects of health.

As I’ve mentioned before, Dr. Gonzalez measures a cancer marker in his diagnostics. My cancer marker was 24 in November 2007, 21 in March 2008, and 20- in June 2008. Dr. Gonzalez explained that while the cancer marker usually drops 1 point every 6-8 weeks, it also varies. He indicated that a cancer marker below 20 is a wonderful milestone in his program (10 or below is normal, and most of his patients begin at 36).

My June diagnostics improved in many categories, and in some cases by several points, which Dr. Gonzalez noted as unusual (most patients might have scores jump 1 point). And I look and feel good!

The take home message… I am doing well! Dr. Gonzalez is pleased, and encouraged me to continue with the program.

I left Dr. Gonzalez’s mid-town Manhattan office reflecting how all of the parts of his program create the whole. Pancreatic enzymes, supplements, coffee enemas, liver flushes, intestinal cleanses, green juices, a specialized diet via metabolic type, and reverse osmosis water are the pillars of his protocol. Compromising on any component can tip the balance of the entire program.

Atlas Chiropractic
When I first met Dr. Gonzalez last fall, he encouraged me to have an adjustment with an atlas chiropractor. Atlas chiropractic is a special chiropractic technique adjusting the top of the spine, or C1, which is also referred to as the atlas. According to atlas practitioners, the atlas controls the spine's alignment and plays a key role in regulating the nervous system.

Donald Kelly, the practitioner through which Dr. Gonzalez developed his protocol, considered head trauma (as well as trauma to the nervous system) as a major contributing cause of cancer. Kelly even said that brain cancer is often associated with multiple head traumas.

I’ve had neck pain my entire life, including severe misalignment with my neck always tipped to the right side. I’ve also had basic chiropractic care since I was a child that has not alleviated my problem. Why not try something new? In concert with the fact that I respect Dr. Gonzalez and trust that he would not suggest I have this work done if he did not see value in it, I decided to try atlas chiropractic.

After speaking with Dr. Gonzalez and Dr. Roy Sweat of Atlanta, Georgia, founder of atlas chiropractic, I decided to meet with Dr. Angelo Colavita in New Jersey.

I met with Dr. Colavita twice in June. The first visit was more extensive than the second. He examined my neck, body alignment, including the position of my feet, captured x-rays, and performed the atlas adjustment. The actual atlas adjustment only took one second on a special table with a mechanism developed by Dr. Sweat. The real work involved calibrating the equipment to adjust my atlas focused on my particular misalignment.

Dr. Colavita informed me that I had an atypical atlas imbalance. Most of his patients’ atlases are higher on the spine than they should be. My atlas was positioned lower, which he said is indicative of multiple head traumas.

I left his office with a neck brace and instructions not to move my neck to the left or right for 48 hours. I was told to ice my neck three times daily for 30 minutes for 3 weeks and wear the neck brace for several hours daily. Dr. Colavita talked to me about changes I might consider to maintain the adjustment focused on how I hold and move my head and entire body moment to moment and day to day. Dr. Colavita also gave me a special pillow filled with water that is calibrated for my neck.

There are no guarantees about how long the adjustment will hold. I returned to Dr. Colavita’s office two days later for an exam that indicated I was maintaining the adjustment successfully. I’m scheduled to meet with Dr. Colavita again in December.

Here is some information about altas chiropractic.

Many years of clinical research points to the fact that much of the problem associated with spinal misalignment and its consequences can be associated with the atlas vertebra, the top cervical bone in the neck. This one bone can effect the alignment of the entire spine. The spine is like a chain—when the first link is twisted and turned, each link down to the last turns—thereby disrupting the rest of the chain. Consider the atlas the first and therefore the most important link in that chain. The human body is balanced when the head is positioned in the center of the feet. When the atlas is misaligned it causes the head to tilt. The spine then shifts to support the weight of the head, thereby creating biomechanical and postural stresses and strains. When the atlas bone is properly aligned, that is in the orthogonal—or neutral—position, the rest of the spinal vertebra come into better alignment allowing the body to heal itself. The delicate and complex connections of the nervous system allow communication between the systems of the body.

Trauma in one form or another is the primary cause of misalignment. When the atlas vertebra is subjected to stresses and strains, it may be pushed out of proper alignment. Trauma may include car accidents (no matter how minor and regardless of immediate symptoms), slips and falls, blows to the head, or sports related injuries. Repetitive micro traumas, such as bad sleeping habits, poor posture, incorrect lifting and carrying can also cause misalignment.

Once the atlas is moved out of its orthogonal position the body tries to compensate to maintain its center of gravity. It does this by keeping the head directly over the center of the feet. However to maintain the level position of the head the rest of the spine adapts and is thrown out of alignment. The body alters its structure in such a way that the muscles contract to cause one leg to appear shorter. In most cases one leg is not actually shorter than the other, but is drawn short due to the body’s compensation for the displaced atlas.

The resulting misalignment may cause nerve pressure and inflammation causing a disruption of the normal functioning of the nervous system. This one dysfunction may play a role in a multitude of symptoms and pain in different areas of the body. Besides directly impacting the neck, we can see other effects such as decreased curves in the neck, scoliosis, and changes in the alignment in the shoulders and pelvis. These changes in the alignment affect the structural integrity of the skeletal system.  This in turn can result in a host of other symptoms and problems, especially headaches, neck, and facial pain.

I am Healthy

July 17, 2008

I realized more clearly from writing my last blog that I do not perceive myself as healthy. From thoughts to words, words to keyboard, keyboard to computer document, computer document to Dreamweaver, and Dreamweaver to an audience, I saw myself with greater clarity. And what I see is that I continue to have an acute awareness for being sick and broken.

There is more work to do, and I am also completely whole as I write this. In each and every moment, I am whole. Whether or not I feel my wholeness, and manifest that from the inside out, is determined by my mindset. My thoughts need to shift. My beliefs will evolve. Fear will diminish. Hope and optimism will be my bedrock. I pray.

On Tuesday, I heard words expressed by friends reflecting their lens.

“I see you moving toward healing,” Joyce said.

“I see you moving toward health,” Jenna said.

I heard their words as invitations for my self-emancipation. How many times will I be invited to the same party and not go?

And so, my current goal is to move into a greater light of being with the world and myself. What does this mean? Dropping fear. Clearing my thoughts. Programming higher frequency beliefs and patterns. Dwelling in hope. Embracing joy. And dare I say have more fun. Damnit, I feel like I’ve been trying and trying. Do it. Just do it. Don’t try. Do it.

My friend Gail asked me today if I have studied Buddhism. We had already had that conversation. Ah, yes, I have, I’ve studied Buddhism and many other healing topics over the last 10 plus years. What sticks though when you are a moving target? I need to choose my path, maintain it, and believe.

Now is the time to stay away from worry. Worry, I cannot bear your fruits. I will carry you no longer. I’ve been around worry my entire life. Farewell.

I stood before Dr. Gonzalez at the end of my appointment last month. We peered into one another’s eyes in a silent exchange between doctor and patient.

“Just continue what you are doing. Everything looks great. I think you will be fine,” Gonzalez said.

“Great,” I smiled with reserve.

“You don’t seem convinced,” he reflected.

“I believe in your protocol. I would not make the investment of time and energy if I didn’t. I’m just afraid,” I responded.

Can effective medicine work in the presence of fear?

I think I do not want to find that out. It is time for me to believe.

I believed in Robert Gorter and treatments at the Medical Center of Cologne. His hype, lack of truth, and integrity let me down. I believed in the Paracelsus Clinic. I ultimately felt let down there too. There have been many practitioners that left much to be desired. Have I been betrayed over and over? No. I see how these detours are great teachers offering hard lessons in my journey. And yet, how can I believe when I’ve felt let down so many times over?

Now the invitation is to focus more on what I need to learn from each experience, said Charlie on Monday.

Yes, healing comes from the inside out. I am my own healer. My circumstances are my teachers. I’m a soul on a journey. I am learning exactly what I need to learn. There is divine wisdom in the chaos. Through the so-called chaos resides the most opportunity for change. In the uncertainty we are most alive. Chaos and uncertainty breed major metamorphosis.

Turn the adversity into opportunity. (If you want to read more about this concept in relation to cancer, please check out my CURE magazine article “Growing Through Cancer” available on my Published Writing webpage.) Yes, I’ve been thinking, writing, and conspiring along the lines of crisis equals opportunity for many years.

Now is the time to embody it. Now is the time to transform concept into practice. Now is the time to believe.

I am healthy.

Gonzalez Visit II & Summer Awakenings

July 14, 2008

Last month, I visited with my physician Nicholas Gonzalez, MD, an immunologist and practitioner for people with varied health challenges, including cancer. I first met with Dr. Gonzalez last November and have been self-administering his protocol for over seven months. I continue to feel much better on my new program. And I received a great report from Dr. Gonzalez last month. I’ll share more details about it in my next blog.

Today my mind and being are more focused on the mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects of the cancer journey, and of the life journey. We all have challenges. Mine arrived in the package of the brain tumor, and throughout the last ten years I’ve engaged my healing journey beyond the tumor to my physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual being.

In my opinion, curing and healing cannot be compartmentalized to the disease in isolation. Curing and healing might be better addressed through the entire physical body and being. After all, I am not a brain tumor. Someone with breast cancer is not the breast cancer. Someone with multiple sclerosis is not the multiple sclerosis. Disease occurs within the context of the whole. And in order to heal we need to return to our wholeness. There are many strategies in that direction, including diet, exercise, adequate sleep, stress reduction, emotional and mental balance, as well as an understanding of one’s spirituality and connection with their concept of source.

Last weekend, I attended a workshop with a practitioner I respected to further engage my healing. Even though I have a deep sense of inner knowing that I am healing, I feel urgency about acquiring a more profound understanding about my disease state and creating more strength around my wellness.

And I live with such a paradox. I appear completely healthy. Strangers often remark that I look incredibly well, and they sometimes then ask me for advice about their health. Last week, I was at a restaurant and the waitress asked me if I drank coffee. I looked at her with some confusion and perhaps annoyance wondering the reason for her inquiry. She told me I looked incredibly healthy and she could tell I took really good care of myself (okay, maybe my meal consisting of salad with olive oil and lemon and steamed spinach also gave her a clue). Part of me became defensive. And then I snidely told the waitress that I consumed coffee, but not how she thought of it (I do coffee enemas).

I recognize part of the message is an invitation for me to truly believe I am healthy! I have tremendous gratitude for my current state of wellness and health. And I can feel misunderstood and alone when I am reminded that most people, if not all people, cannot know the dance I engage to balance my "normal" life with time and energy required to address my health, as well as negotiate the associated emotional terrain.

This dynamic (and many others) emerged at the workshop. Without going into details, the workshop did not end well in that I completely lost any trust I had for the facilitator. This is hurtful and disappointing. More importantly, I am empowered to finally see someone for what they are. I also see myself more clearly. In my vulnerability, I have encountered and perhaps attracted many practitioners with a messiah complex. Practitioners with a messiah complex perceive themselves as amazing healers with key answers to the intricately coded problems of people’s lives. Wrong. Here is the truth. Nobody else has the answers for me. Nobody else has the answers for you. We all have the answers inside of ourselves. I’ve spent a tremendous amount of time and energy waiting for somebody else to fix me. The reality is that no fixing is necessary. When will I finally learn this lesson? I am not broken. I am whole. I simply need to find my way to fully embrace that truth.

This weekend I dumped more garbage, and in an unexpected way. Through this, I am also reminded that what we want is not always what we need. Help comes in forms we may not expect.

And in my vulnerability, I opened my heart more with a friend. In my moments of vulnerability, I often feel more alive. Rawness is primal, and precious.

When we expose the depths of our being, we truly connect heart to heart, soul to soul.

By honoring truth, we are authentic.

And in our authenticity, we embrace the true essence of power, knowledge, and strength from the inside out.