Good Medicine
Holistic Health Coaching
Meditation. Do you? Meditation is reflective thinking.
When I spend time in meditation, it allows me to clear my mind so that I can more easily “hear” what God is asking of me. How often do we neglect to do this? And yet, it’s asked of us.
Psalm 46:10 – Be still, and know that I am God. Choose wisely what you allow your brain to spend time “chewing on”. …For whatever you choose will change you.
If you grew up with the Peanuts Gang, this picture of Charlie Brown and Lucy will speak volumes to you.Every. Single. Time. Lucy would trick Charlie Brown.The CDC recently announced that the definition of “fully vaccinated” is changing once again. 
Of course they are. And guess what… they will continue to do so. That’s called control of the ball. ” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently announced some changes on the definition of people who are classed as vaccinated against Covid-19.Dr Rochelle Walensky, the Director of the CDC, said that the definition of fully vaccinated will now mean people who have also received booster jabs. The US health agency will now also stop referring to these people as “fully vaccinated,” but instead will call them people who are “up to date” with their vaccinations.Walensky said: “What we are really working to do is pivot our language so that everyone is as up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines as they personally could be, should be based on when they got their last vaccine.“So, importantly right now we are pivoting our language, we really want to make sure people are up to date.”She added: “That means if you recently got your second dose, you’re not eligible for a booster. You’re up to date. If you are eligible for a booster and you haven’t gotten it, you’re not up to date and you need to get your booster in order to be up to date.”Sheesh. Don’t fall for it Charlie Brown.
Friends, PLEASE make sure you have a WELL STOCKED kit on hand. It is literally insurance. The best defense is a good offense in this case. When you feel rotten is not the time to go look for all the pieces. Much of what you need takes planning as much of what you will need has to be ordered. It might take a week or two (or three in some cases) to get your stock together. The people who are calling me don’t have that kind of time when their oxygen levels are hovering at dangerous levels. If you need a suggested prep list, please message me and I will share what I have put together for my family and friends. The hospital is NOT where you want to be, though you are worth more to “the system” if you are sick than if you are well and are able to bounce back quickly.This is a great article (with audio demo’s) of unhealthy lung sounds. Please hang on to it for reference if needed. Make sure you have a primary care doctor that believes in the things that you believe in. You want someone on your side, not someone who will simply follow hospital protocol that may not be in your best interest.
Discussing solutions is one of my favorite topics to write about, but if we didn’t first identify root causes, how would what we are doing be any different than the tendency to bandage a festering abscess? Solutions can be clues all on their own too, right? I ask that you be mindful of three things while navigating and identifying ways to improve and support healthy dopamine levels:
Would I be prone to developing an addictive tendency to something I already particularly enjoy? (Too much of a good thing makes it not necessarily a good thing.)
Am I willing to step outside of my comfort zone in the pursuit of happiness and improved dopamine balance in the body?
There is no magic “one hit wonder”. Lifestyle is where the sweet spot lies….. Just as it took every single person doing their part in rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem (read Nehemiah 3 sometime!), it takes symphonic effort to succeed in body balance! Now, on to the fun stuff!
Exercise: Exercise slows the breakdown of dopamine in the body, and helps prevent loss of dopaminergic
brain cells. You may have heard of the “runner’s high”. There are several neurotransmitters involved in this sensation of feeling great, and dopamine is one of them. The brain is literally washed with dopamine in these moments. If strenuous exercise is new to you, start with walking, yoga, pilates, or aquatic exercise. Mild exercise causes dopamine release too. Bonus points for exercise outdoors and with a group of friends!
Learn something new: Learning a new skill (language, hobby, sport, or activity) or simply learning new information causes dopamine to be released. It’s very likely happening right now as you read this information! You’ve heard of “seminar highs” or research junkies (yep, this is one area I receive a huge dopamine dump from!). When the dopamine release happens, it makes you want to learn more and repeat the experience. Bonus points…. The more you engage in learning new things, the stronger your brain gets too!
Vitamin D: Vitamin D has a role in the production of dopamine and in also protecting dopamine receptors. Evidence suggests that supporting healthy Vitamin D levels also supports healthy dopamine levels, especially if clinically deficient in Vitamin D. Make sure to ask for Vitamin D levels whenever you have the opportunity to get labwork! Young Living’s Super D is most bioavailable when it is dissolved in the cheek or under the tongue.
Phenylalanine and tyrosine are two amino acids used in the biosynthesis of dopamine. Foods high in phenylalanine and/or tyrosine include meats, beans, milk, nuts, seeds, whole grains, sweet potatoes, bananas, apples, cherries, eggs, yogurt, and NingXia Wolfberries! Supporting healthy dopamine production is just one more reason to get your ounce or two (or four!) of NingXia Red every day!
Increasing Vagal Tone: There is a direct correlation between low vagal tone and lower levels of dopamine. You’ll want to go back and review ALL the wonderful and fun ways you can improve vagal tone! (We talked about this a few months ago….use the search option in this group to find the posts.)
Uridine is a supplement. It’s also found in beer, brewer’s yeast and nutritional yeast. Nutritional yeast is not the same yeast that bakers use. If you do a little digging, you’ll find recipes incorporating nutritional yeast into tasty options.
Here’s a quick recipe for Caesar Salad Dressing:1 & ½ cups extra virgin olive oil¾ cup coconut milk½ avocadoJuice of one lemon1 tsp balsamic vinegar3 cloves of garlic2 Tablespoons nutritional yeast¾ tsp sea salt or pink saltA toothpick swirl or two of Young Living oregano vitality essential oil (1 drop might be WAY strong!)½ tsp onion powder(Use organic ingredients whenever possible). Put all ingredients (except olive oil) into a blender and blend til smooth. Slowly add in olive oil while blender is running at low speed. Stores up to one week in the fridge. Note: may also be used for a dipping sauce!
Cryotherapy: You’ve seen advertisements for it I’m sure. Be brave and consider giving it a try! Remember, simply exploring something new increases dopamine in the brain. Ice water immersion (or cryotherapy tanks) increase dopamine by an estimated 250%! Yowza! I am a fan of cryo….. I find it both terrifying and exhilarating (probably from that ginormous dopamine dump I received!)
Intermittent Fasting not only leads to higher levels of dopamine release; it also reduces age related dopamine receptor attrition. There are many additional reasons to incorporate intermittent fasting into your lifestyle if you’ve not considered it before now.
Curcumin is the yellow pigment found in turmeric. Curcumin reduces the metabolism of dopamine in the brain thereby increasing levels. YL Golden Turmeric or Spiced Turmeric Vitality Tea for the win! You might also consider adding Golden Turmeric to yogurt or smoothies!We’re about halfway through this pretty amazing dopamine support list! Next week we’ll wrap up with more simple and inexpensive ways to support this happy hormone.
xoxo, liz #caringissharing#knowbetterdobetter#dopamineisdope#balanceddopamineisgoodmedicine#goodmedicine#BecomingYourOwnHealthDetective#ThanksYL
Dopamine Deficiency Part II: The Medication Connection
When the topic of substance abuse is broached, the neurotransmitter dopamine is often brought into the conversation. Recalling our earlier discussion, dopamine contributes to feelings of pleasure and satisfaction and directly influences the way our brain achieves happiness by “guiding” our behavior to get to that feeling. Heroin, cocaine, and MDMA (ecstasy) are three of the bigger illicit guns that initially trigger a surge of dopamine in the body. Sugar also induces a massive (but short lived) dopamine surge. The body is filled with protective mechanisms (thankfully!), and if dopamine surges continue, a mechanism will kick in that reduces the number of dopamine receptors available for triggering. Consequently, it becomes harder and harder to achieve the same feelings of pleasure. As you may have already guessed, common opioid prescription medications do this too especially when used chronically. Some offenders would include:
💊Hydrocodone
💊Codeine
💊Tramadol
When you review the introduction to dopamine deficiency (see Part I), you’ll notice that neurodegenerative conditions, chronic back pain, aches and pains, and persistent constipation are symptoms of deficiency. Those are also four very common complaints in people who use these pain medications chronically. Certainly, other factors are involved as well (do some digging!), but dopamine deficiency plays a significant role.
Dopamine sabotage by way of medication💊 is also an unfortunate common side effect of drugs that block dopamine binding to receptor sites. When a medication does this, dopamine cannot “do its work” in the body.
💊Haloperidol is used to treat schizophrenia, Tourettes, and severe behavioral problems in children and adults.
💊Risperidone is used to treat schizophrenia, disinterest in life, strong or “inappropriate” emotions, or disturbed thinking.
💊Metoclopramide is used to treat GERD, nausea/ vomiting, and slowed gut motility.
💊Olanzapine, Aripiprazole, Quetiapine are used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression.
💊Buspirone is used to treat anxiety.
🧐If you were to pick up and read a package insert on each of these medications, you would find side effects listed giving evidence of dopamine deficiency (refer to Part I for symptoms).
What I write next might be the most technical and one of the most important concepts to understand in this entire book, so stay with me…. even if the slogging feels uphill! According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), an estimated 1 in 5 adults have a mood disorder in the USA. Sadly, when prowling around the NIMH website, I found very little in the way of suggesting lab work to rule out a hormonal, thyroid, or nutrient imbalance, or selfcare suggestions (clean diet, well developed exercise routines, tips on improved sleep hygiene, or connecting with a high frequency community, and most importantly, having a personal relationship with God). The website is quick to advocate for mental health medicating. Go figure.
💊Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI’s) are a class of drugs used to treat depression, anxiety, and other mood disorders. Common SSRI’s include 💊Citalopram, 💊, Fluoxetine, 💊Paroxetine, and 💊Sertraline. By definition, this class of drugs is supposed to be “selective” in their mechanism of action, and while they are marketed as products that raise serotonin in the brain, they simultaneously lower dopamine levels significantly. Additionally, there is very strong evidence that, depending on the individual and the SSRI used, there may be a significant effect on the HPA (hypothalamus, pituitary, adrenal) axis in the brain, where cortisol, hormones (including serotonin and dopamine) are regulated and long term memories are stored. The hypothalamus and the pituitary play a significant role in regulating the thyroid. You may imagine how important all of this is in balanced overall body and brain function.
I offer this information to you as clues, not as medical direction or individualized medical advice. Risk versus benefit should always be first and foremost whenever utilizing a medication, especially one that modulates “motherboard” (brain) activity. I read one doctor’s thoughts recently who described antidepressant use as a “sledgehammer to repair a fine watch.” Does the tool fit the need? That is only for you and your healthcare provider to decide.
Last week, I listened to a podcast that dovetailed into this topic. It is called “Unscientific Diagnoses Medicalize Normal Human Experience”. I’ve posted a link to this 30 minute podcast below. You won’t regret listening to it. We must get back to living in tightly knit communities where we love and care for one another well while also learning that experiencing emotions in a healthy manner is part of vibrant living. I’m so very very thankful for Young Living, because we exemplify that community, and there is plenty of room at the table for everyone who wants to #knowbetteranddobetter for themselves and their families.
We live in a broken world that is bandaged by a broken medical system. I encourage you to use your finely tuned tools for finely tuned processes in the body. Whenever possible, leave the sledgehammer in the shed.
Next week, I’ll discuss readily available inexpensive tools to help support optimal dopamine levels.
Until then~
xoxo, Liz
(If you answered #2, you’d be correct!)
