Why diagnosis X+ treatment Y doesn’t = Z time to heal

2015 was a year of many changes for me; I graduated from college, moved to San Francisco and started my career. I launched into my first month in the city in the same way that I approach any new challenge — with a frenzied excitement that borders on maniacal. I attended every social event, visited obscure corners of the city and explored new trails to hike, bike and run. It was “yes, yes, yes” to everything.

Then everything changed.

I have suffered with chronic health problems for many years mostly relating to Crohn’s disease which I developed at the age of 13. Having been well for awhile, I had started to forget that my body was more fragile than most. This past year, I started developing odd symptoms: debilitating fatigue, ongoing fever, and unusual stomach problems. The first seizure happened out of the blue. After that came more episodes, brain fog, depression, nausea and chronic body pain. When people asked me what was wrong, the only way I could describe it was that it felt like my body was shutting down.

With my symptoms getting progressively worse, western doctors did what they do best; ordered an array of diagnostic tests and set out to put a label on my suffering. But as hard as they tried, they couldn’t solve the mystery. Isolated and determined to understand what was going on, I spent my days googling obscure tropical disease that I might have contracted during my travels across the world.

When this failed, I started to believe that I would never feel well again; I was destined for a half-baked life in which my mind and aspirations would constantly be limited by a body that wasn’t willing to cooperate.

Months later and my medical mystery has been solved — but the underlying cause might surprise you. With the support of a group of incredible functional medicine doctors and supporters to whom I’m eternally grateful, we slowly but surely uncovered what was going on. On paper, I had developed an immune-deficiency disorder which can be treated through ozone therapy and a series of infusions. My immune system was in crash mode and I was struggling to fight off any bacterial or viral infection that came my way. In reality, my body is fragile and I had pushed it too hard for too long. What I needed more than anything was to slow down, recover and reflect deeply on the way I intended to live my life.

My number one prescription was to develop compassion for myself.

Looking back on this experience, I realize that what I wanted most was to put a label on my suffering. I wanted to be able to say “yes I have disease x which is treated by medication y which will take z time to make me feel better.” This is the language of the western medical system; a language that we automatically adopt when we fall sick.

But the reasons why we develop ongoing health problems are much more complex. It is not one single factor that causes us to feel pain. It is the interaction of multiple factors such as our genetic strengths and weaknesses, our lifestyle, the surrounding environment, and most importantly our minds. The ways in which these factors interact are incredibly complicated and as a result, we can’t assume that a pill will be available to cure any chronic health problems we may develop.

This is not to say, however, that we are losing the battle against chronic disease. By contrast, we are developing a whole new approach to preventing, managing and curing modern-day sickness (and I say a ‘whole new’ with the recognition that many societies have been practicing this form of medicine for hundreds of years. It is ‘new’ in that we are empowered with technologies that can significantly advance this form of healing).

This approach starts first and foremost with respect — respect for ourselves, respect for our environment and respect for the greater community.

It requires us to develop a greater awareness of how our own mind and body are feeling in any particular moment. Are we overly stressed or anxious? Are we letting our emotions cover up any physical pain we are feeling? Is our surrounding environment toxic? We need to be constantly checking in with ourselves in order to sense when have lost physical and emotional balance.

Once we acknowledge that we are off balance, we can make the necessary adjustments. Some of these adjustments will be big such as finding a new careers (if we are lucky enough to have this option) or starting a strict elimination diet. Other adjustments will be small such as taking a deep breath when we feel stressed or making the effort to smile more often. These adjustments are not reactive because we are already sick; they are proactive and preventative, and will help us avoid physical break down.

But the power of this approach goes well beyond the prevention of chronic disease. When we gain a greater respect for ourselves and our surrounding environment, we will also gain respect for others.

I truly believe that this form of healing, that starts with the power of our own minds, will not only cure individual suffering but will start to cure the suffering of society as a whole.

Someone very wise once told me that we are all fragile in one way or another. Some people are emotionally fragile, others are physically fragile or spiritually fragile. If we don’t seek to understand our fragilities and work with them, they will cause us much suffering. But if we learn to respect them, they will provide us great opportunities for personal growth.

I have learnt this lesson the hard way and I’m sure I will continue to learn this lesson everyday as my mind, which is incredibly strong-willed, interacts with my more vulnerable body.

This is my 2016 resolution — to develop compassion for my mind and my body as only then will I have the energy to truly extend that compassion to others.

N.B. I plan on writing a lot on this topic over the coming year. I will be sharing the stories of patients, practitioners and healers, interviewing experts who are driving the science behind mind-body medicine, and exploring how technology can be used to promote this form of healing.

Wishing you all a wonderful 2016! Olivia