Ask the Doctor

Q: My brother has appendiceal cancer and is starting chemotherapy including a drug called 5-FU or Fluorouracil. What are the side effects and what can do to prevent them?

A: great question and yet hard to answer only because your brother is as special, unique and individual as a snowflake or a fingerprint so what we do depends on who he is as a WHOLE person and not just on the drug itself.

That being said, when we are getting chemotherapy, the doctor will often give us a huge packet that lists every terrible thing known to man. These things don’t happen but the government mandates that the doctor let you know everything that has happened in human history with the drug regardless of how rare.

We do not recommend reading this packet. Staying positive and in a place of love and hope is actually a more powerful therapeutic than most medicines. In fact the most powerful evidenced based  tool you have to begin to reduce side effects in response to all chemotherapy drugs is guided visualization. We like Healthjourneys.com “Fight Cancer”

Start with having your brother listen to this guided meditation every night, 6 nights a week.

Secondly, the most common side effects that do happen with a 5 FU are mouth sores and diarrhea. Unless your brother is seeing these. We prevent mouth sores by using an alkaline mouthwash that we design and tailor for our pts. This simple solution with baking soda as a base, if used every day, completely prevents mouth sores in our population.

If a patient has poor dental hygiene, a risk of herpes simplex I, or taste issues, that may change what we do and we may add essential oils, zinc and lysine.

Regardless, our patients receiving 5FU do not experience mouth sores. This is a gift because mouth sores can prevent a person from eating and result in weight loss. Weight loss is never good with cancer treatment as it makes a person tolerate the drugs less.

For gut support, which we are also wholly successful in, it’s much more individualized. We use things like nutrition, OTC anti diarrheals and laxatives, GI supportive care like therapeutic grade probiotics, slippery elm, glutamine (in low doses), aloe, enzymes, calendula, other botanicals and magnesium…it really depends as most of the immune system lives in the gut and we are supporting as well as treating.

Either way, it's important that your brother see someone like us, with the initials FABNO after their name to be sure that they are not taking natural therapies that can CONFLICT with their current meds. 

5-FU is in a class of drugs that was originally discovered by a young enterprising woman, Lucy Wills, who defied custom and wanted an education in science. She travelled to India in the early 1900s and did her dissertation on an observation that women who ate green leafy vegetables had children with less birth defects.

Sydney Farber, a young scientist working in pediatric leukemia here in the States saw her paper and thought, if there is a powerful vitamin in green leafy veggies that causes cells to grow, what if we could develop an ANTI vitamin that would stop cancer cells from growing. 

He called this vitamin "Folate" for foliage, and so the Folate Antagonists were developed. 

It's very important therefore, if we are taking a drug like 5-FU, to give it the best chance to work by avoiding certain vitamins while preserving our immune system and normal organ health. Any board certified integrative oncologist can do this in a skilled and individualized way. Call us at 248 798 2942 to find out more.

Botanical Magic

Botanical Magic

Associates of Integrative Medicine

One of the things I have been working on is using wildcrafted, sustainably harvested dried plants to formulate teas that can change our patient’s lives.

Can a tea be that powerful? 

Oh yes.

For years we have been designing them to help protect your kidneys from chemotherapy. And they work.

We design them to stabilize heavy and irregular periods. And they work.

We design them to calm the spirit and the mind before bed. And they work.

Why do they work? Over the counter teas are questionably sourced and of poor quality, may have contaminants like pesticides and are in micro doses that are not steeped for long enough.

Even if you are using a quality brand like Traditional Medicinals, which has a nice formula for breast feeding, you would need to steep a minimum five bags in somewhat hot water for 20 min and then overnight in the fridge to get a THERAPEUTIC benefit.

In the medical world, a “therapeutic benefit” means to “get it to work”

And just like every person is different, every formula is different. We create individualized formulas for teas for each of our patients. Formulas carefully designed and prepared for them and them alone.

We package them in glass containers to avoid leaching BPAs into these formulas and each jar is then given to a Reiki healer or prayer warrior, depending on the patient’s faith, who packages the blend, with my directions and with healing intention.

The instructions are written to optimize results. We have not yet seen them not work.

Given our success, we decided to curate and design beautiful, effective, stock formulas for common medical complaints:

• Anxiety

• Stress

• Insomnia

• Constipation

• Hormonal imbalances

• High blood pressure and high cholesterol

• Weight loss

• Low libido 

These teas will be made available for your friends, family, neighbors. You are welcome to purchase them for your church, to resell them for your bake sales and we ask that you promote them on your social media.

We debuted them on September 23rd at an awareness event for The Pink Fund and a fundraiser for Impact 100 Oakland County, in the hopes of supporting a local charity. 

If you invite us to your event we will bring them out for you.

Each jar is only $40 and contains enough herb to last 3-4 months of 2 cups a day, daily. That is an extraordinary price for an extraordinary healing product.

But we want it that way. We want it to be accessible, personal and we want you well.

Meet Our Partners & Friends in the Fight Against Cancer ft. Biju Poulose, MD

Featuring:
Biju Poulose, MD
Michigan Behavioral Medicine
2525 Crooks Road, Suite 100
Troy, MI 48084
https://www.michigantms.com
248-731-7305

Dr. Biju Poulose began his medical training in India and completed his residency in psychiatry at St. Mary Mercy Hospital in Michigan. He is boarded with the American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology and practices with Michigan Behavioral Medicine. He fell in love with psychiatry in medical school. Drawn to its holistic approach and the opportunity to practice empathy, he sees a diverse group of patients including cancer patients and their caregivers.

“Cancer can hold so much meaning for patients depending on their unique circumstances. Not only can challenges like anxiety, depression, or panic arise, but cancer can also have physiological impacts on brain chemistry, mood, and sleep. Both patients and their families can benefit from mental health support,” states Dr. Poulose.

Here at Associates of Integrative Medicine, we have masters level counselors who are specialists in anxiety, grief, and depression associated with cancer. But patients may wonder, when should I seek out psychiatric help.

Usually, it’s when we need pharmacological support, but Dr. Poulose cautions that there is a difference between a normal reaction to an abnormal situation, and something more complex and unmanageable. He adds, “Panic, anxiety, and fearfulness are all normal emotions. Providers should be comfortable accepting those normal emotions rather than labeling them as depression. However, chronic changes in sleep, appetite, or sense of pleasure may be indicative of something deeper.”

Sometimes when we are in the middle of the fight, or even after, recovering and concerned about the risk of recurrence, we forget about the role stress can play in creating an environment in which disease flourishes. Dr. Poulose agrees, “Any and every means of de-stressing is a good one—whether it’s friends, exercise, good food, indulging in hobbies, sleep, music, or arts. Even stealing 15 minutes of quiet time, where your brain and body are not in constant chatter, can be very beneficial. Oftentimes, our minds can be compared to a car that is braked, but whose engine is constantly engaged. Mindfulness techniques are a great way to put the “car” of our mind in neutral. One of my favorite mindfulness experts is Dr. Ajahn Brahm, an Australian Buddhist monk, whose guided meditation you can check out here at the Buddhist Society of Western Australia:
https://bswa.org/”

Dr. Poulose shares our concerns about how problematic unmanaged stress can be. “Chronic stress is the real villain - whether it’s psychological, physical, or financial problems. These changes in the brain can lead to changes within the nervous system.” This underlies our emphasis on a holistic approach to survivorship. Staying open to the many ways we approach stress management can be a powerful tool in not just surviving, but thriving.

Interview taken by Raveena Mata, Medical Intern.

Ask the Doctor: Xanax Vs. Natural Alternatives

Q: I’ve been thinking about Xanax for anxiety, are there natural options?

A: Anxiety is a global issue in the cancer community. Not just for patients but for caregivers as well. And understandably so.

As natural medicine doctors, we look at problems holistically. This means we are looking at the root not the symptoms.

Anxiety is a SYMPTOM. And it works on two levels: the mind and the body.

On the mental end, anxiety is the product of thinking about the Past or the Future.

Mindfulness techniques are to keep our minds from ruminating about the past or projecting into the future. In other words, techniques to train our minds to stay present in the moment we are in, and then as that moment passes, to stay present in the next moment we are in, and so on.

It gets easier with practice.

There are spiritual disciplines that focus ONLY on mindfulness, every moment of every day for that disciple’s entire life!

It’s not worth taking drugs or supplements for anxiety without looking at mindfulness first. Respond to us with your favorite resources. Here are some of ours:

—Mindfulness Meditations; websites: SimpleHabit.com; Mindful.org; Headspace.org
—Create a place for meditation, reflection, and prayer, perhaps using an altar, a shawl, a blanket, a mat, incense, crystals, a tasbih or rosary
—Use musical tracks that help you to create this level of presence: Album: Mother Divine; Youtube: Biaural beats; Healthjourneys.com
—Exercise for 30 minutes daily and try to do it (safely), to the point of being breathless
—Yoga: Hatha, Heated, Yin

On the body level, we have 12 big cranial nerves that run from the brain through the body and manage all executive function.

The 10th is called the vagus nerve. It manages the heart, lungs, stomach, small and large intestine, and rectum. It also manages anxiety. This is why anxiety causes an upset stomach, diarrhea, constipation, breathlessness, hiccups, and chest pain.

It’s also why stomach issues, heart problems, and respiratory issues cause anxiety.

It’s important to work on bowel, heart, and lung function, AND we can redirect nerve stimuli from the anxiety pathway by doing things like focusing on Breathing.

In fact, a review of all the clinical data conclusively shows that a twice-daily, 10-minute practice of mindfulness meditation, breath work, and yoga reduces anxiety.

Breathwork can be something as simple as square breathing.
1. Inhale through the nose for a count of 6
2. Hold for a count of 6
3. Exhale through the mouth for a count of 6
4. Hold for a count of 6

After trying these approaches, if we aren’t seeing anxiety completely remit, it’s a good idea to add in natural therapies. Natural medicine doctors follow a therapeutic order with prescription from least invasive/impactful towards most, so often, unless anxiety is acute, we will start here.

The great thing about natural therapies for anxiety is that they are gentle, rarely interact with any other medications and supplements, and have little to no side effects. All of the therapies listed below are available through BewellwithAIM.com. Please remember, natural therapies are not necessarily safe over the counter. They can be contaminated, have source issues, can be contraindicated with a lot of medications, or can even contain carcinogens. If they are safe to get over the counter, or from alternative brands, then I will place a little “s” next to them for “safe to purchase” over the counter.

—Lavender (as an essential oil, capsule, or tea)
—Theanine (as a gummy, capsule, or tablet) (s)
—GABA (as a capsule)
—Passionflower (as a tea) (s)
—Hops (as a tea) (s)
—CBD (as a capsule, tincture, capsule)
—Chamomile (tea) (s)
—Skullcap (capsule)
—Ashwagandha (capsule, tea)
—Magnolia (capsule)
—Magnesium Glycinate (as a powder, capsule, liquid) (s)
—Melatonin (LOW DOSE only, capsule, gummy) (s)
—Lemon Balm (tea, tincture)

It’s not always so simple as just taking one of these things over the counter. We use combinations based on a holistic, individualized approach. As examples:

—If a patient is tired and wired, we may use a formula like Calm Restore from Gaia for 6 months to correct adrenal issues
—If the anxiety is manifests as difficulty sleeping, a lack of energy, cognitive fog and weepiness, we may use a combination called R.E.M. from Priority One.
—If a patient is waking up between 2 and 4 am, crashes in the afternoon, and is feeling burnt out or exhausted, we may try Cortisol Manager from Integrative Therapeutics.
—For sleep initiation, we may combine a formula with 100-400 mg of L-theanine and Lavender essential oil or Chamomile Tea.

Xanax, starting with a 0.25 mg dose, can be quick and effective for anxiety that comes on suddenly and based on a new situation. As in, “I’m having surgery the next day and can’t stop my mind from running.” It’s also a good conversation to begin with a psychiatrist or internist.

But Xanax is not a great drug to take for chronic anxiety (feelings that persist for more than 2 weeks), because we can become dependent, what looks like anxiety may be something else, and most IMPORTANTLY, if we START with Xanax, we don’t learn what mindfulness has the opportunity to teach us:

We only really have this moment.

It may be a surprising thing to realize, but this simple statement is perhaps, the only absolute truth that exists. 

If we can get current with this moment, and experience it, fully, we can face life in a far more meaningful way than we can imagine. 

Regretting the past and obsessing about the future, means we don’t live at all.

Go to BewellwithAIM to purchase supplements for anxiety but make sure to talk to Jessica (covered by your insurance) about mindfulness training and talk to Dr. Roy or Dr. March for personalized, individual strategies to manage anxiety.

Have a question for the doctor? Email us at Dr.Roy@aimnatural.com. We will publish the answer on Facebook, and our website.