[flamesabers]

Hello Misty.

I hope you are doing alright.

Any changes going on for you in the last week or so?

[sfem]

Kind of like what you did in that last statement?

Inform yourself with the new levels of recent science and you will see that stress (negative feelings and mentalities [beliefs] condense our DNA, which is the same as worrying about cancer)...and positive attitude, feelings and mentalities expand the DNA (radiate with constructive energy). What I was mentioning has nothing to do with wishful thinking, which is the same as covering one's head and hoping the bad thing goes away...or praying.

Just because something is beyond your level of understanding or outside your own beliefs does not automatically mean it is invalid or dangerous. I have to yet to read anywhere where anyone has mentioned to ONLY self medicate as you suggest. Such extreme examples really points others in the direction of your personal beliefs and where your faith stands. That's fine, but YOU are pushing your beliefs and thoughts on others. Do as I say, not as I do?

Hardly. Sources for your new levels of scientific evidence of energy radiation and mental direction of dna modification please?
Wishful thinking means hoping something is true without evidence. My post had nothing to do with faith. Bringing faith into a discussion about evidence based thinking is never a good idea.
I commented on self medication in response to your post.

[sfem]

The other problem, is that you're jumping to a conclusion based on an N Of one on what may well be a spurious correlation.

I am not the type to jump to conclusions or believe things just because I want them to be true. I have been on Pm for several years, off and on. I have proven conclusively that when I take it, my feet suffer far more pain than when I don't. I am not saying PM is the root cause, I am saying I get pain when I take it, without fail.
I have been through 3 doctors so far, had blood tests, xrays, nerve conduction testing, and my MRI is scheduled for this spring, all in attempts to discover the root cause of my foot pain. I don't think you are properly judging my ability to observe myself.

[Demon Lord Etna]

Misty, health should certainly be your #1 concern before anything else. I know my opinion and 3 bucks will get a cup of coffee, but if you have any kind of a suspicion that your NBE journey could be causing problems, it might be best to slow down to a maintenance dosage. Just enough to not lose progress, but not enough to aggravate any issues it might be causing. Best case, it's a coincidence and you can go right back to full dosing (which could even cause a surge in progress). Worst case, PM really is causing the degeneration and changing your plans and path for NBE is better than the alternative.

[MissC]

Stress does not cause cancer

Not directly, but it is a contributing factor. Stress weakens the overall health and the immune system, which allows disease a foothold, regardless of vector.

The current science on the mechanism of cancer is that somehow apoptosis (normal cell death) becomes switched off.

But what causes that? There is not one single answer, which is the same as saying that there are a variety of insults which cause it.

For example, it's fairly well established that cigarettes, asbestos, coal dust, exhaust particulates, and certain volatile organic compounds, while they don't always cause lung cancer, absolutely contribute to it. Hormonal issues contribute to breast cancer, sunburn contributes to skin cancer, and so on.

Someone will always trot out the correlation vs. causation argument; this thread seems to be no exception. The third "C" however is "contribution" and it always gets left out of the discussion.

So, while you are correct in that we can't say "Stress = Cancer", it's a contributing factor, and not infrequently, a primary one.

It is also well established that living a healthy lifestyle, eating well, and having a strong immune system and low stress, make you a less likely cancer victim than otherwise.


Feel free to point out where I'm engaging in wishful thinking.

[elainecd]

Cancer is just evil and takes loved ones, old and young from us.
It's human nature to look for some outside cause....environment, diet or chemicals.
But it just seems to "happen"....I don't smoke but known some people to wither and die young from it (one at 42)...and some get old and never have a problem.

It's just out bodies and genetics apparently.
good news is great strides are being made almost everyday.
I hate cancer.

[sfem]

I hate cancer too. It has been devastating to people I care about. Not to mention what it has done to everyone else.

[Misty0732]

I had a follow-up exam last week (including an OCT, or Optical Coherence Tomography) to further evaluate the progression of my macular degeneration. The test verified the presence of the drusen but also verified that I am in the earliest stages of the disease. That is encouraging for a couple of reasons... first, I have the opportunity to take preventative measures to limit further damage, and second that I likely have many years of useful vision left (and there is considerable research being done on MD and the chances for real treatments to develop in time for me to benefit are very real).

I'm still undecided as to the role (if any) that PM may have played in the development of this condition. I may never know for sure. If I resume taking it and the MD progresses that still doesn't prove the PM had anything to do with it, nor does staying off PM prove that it did (should the MD progression stop).

What I do know is that the fear that the PM may be causing damage has me stopped at present. The GD has definitely returned (quite strongly) so I'm struggling with what to do.

Misty

[The First Aria]

Misty, Doctor's, in my opinion are at best well intended people. But mostly I believe Medicine in general is still one step above alchemy at present. I think that most doctor's use their best guess and truly think the individual has a better grasp of what's right for them far better than our supposed doctor's have.

I am old enough to remember the Cranberry Scare of the late 60's early 70's. You know, the one where if you eat cranberries, it was likely to cause Cancer and other maladies??? Or how about the most recent one, the Curse of Butter. For ages doctor's said margarine was far better than butter. Well, the AMS has turned that one over and now say butter is far safer and better than fake.

Like I said, one step above alchemy.

[sfem]

Hang in there Misty. Despite what some may say, real medical doctors actually do have a great deal of information available to them, and more all the time. Real researchers are discovering new effective treatments for all sorts of things, and you may well be among the lucky ones for whom a solution comes before it is irrelevant. I really hope you and many others see a genuine solution to this problem soon (pun intended). Regarding stopping PM, who knows if that will make any difference to the eyes. Maybe Lotus will be able to dig up some research that is related to it; I have never seen or heard of any. But if it contributes to a sense that you are doing everything you can to work towards a positive outcome, then I think that makes the effort worthwhile. It certainly can't hurt to pause the PM while you investigate.