Systemic Lupus

There have been TONS of posts on the forum about Fibro and other autoimmune d/o. I would email Bryan Walsh to see if he can send you some from the Forum files. This is one I posted about 1 yr ago.What is lupus?Lupus is a chronic (long-lasting) autoimmune disease in which the Immune system, for unknown reasons (so they say), becomes hyperactive and attacks normal tissue. This attack results in inflammation and brings about symptoms.What does autoimmune mean?Literally it means immune activity directed against the self. The Immune system fights the body itself (Auto==self). In autoimmune diseases, the immune system makes a mistake and reacts to the body’s own tissues.

What is inflammation?Literally it means setting on fire. It is a protective process our body uses when tissues are injured. Inflammation helps to eliminate a foreign body or organism (virus, bacteria) and prevent further injury. Signs of inflammation include; swelling, redness, pain and warmth. If the signs of inflammation are long lasting, as they can be in lupus, then damage to the tissues can occur and normal function is impaired. This is why the treatment of lupus is aimed at reducing the inflammation. I would have to say as well most of what we do is geared towards reducing inflammation, which can be physical, mental, emotional and spiritually manifested and related.

What happens in autoimmune diseases like lupus? The immune system is designed to protect and defend the body from foreign intruders (bacteria, viruses). You can think of it like a security system for your body. It contains several different types of cells, some of which function like “security guards” and are constantly on patrol looking for any foreign invaders. When they spot one, they take action, and eliminate the intruder. In lupus, for some reason and we don’t know why, the immune system loses its ability to tell the difference between a foreign intruder and a person’s own normal tissues and cells. So, in essence, the “Security Guards” make a mistake, and they mistakenly identify the person’s own normal cells as foreign (antigens), and then take action to eliminate them. Part of their response is to bring antibodies to the site that then attach to antigens (anything that the immune system recognizes as non-self or foreign) and form immune complexes. These immune complexes help to set in motion a series of events that result in inflammation at the site. These immune complexes may travel through the circulation (blood) and lodge in distant tissues and cause inflammation there. You see this in Lupus, other autoimmune diseases, and leaky gut syndrome.

From reading, research and learning to understand the body, I feel we have a big part in creating Lupus. It is an autoimmune disease where one starts fighting one self from an overload of sympathetic stress. Now stress can come from anywhere:

 1. Physical

2. Mental

3. Emotional

4. Chemical

5. EMF

6. Environmental

When treating/coaching a client with Lupus, doing comprehensive musculoskeletal, nutritional, and lifestyle assessments are a must. If you are not familiar with these, I would refer her out to a CHEK Practitioner who is. You could tag along and learn a bunch. “When in doubt, refer out!” With patients like this, a good place to start is educating them that “less is more.” Most people with Lupus have been so overloaded with stress for so long, that their body cannot handle it anymore. They have been plugging energy into anything and everyone, but themselves. Exercise is not the answer and can actually make symptoms worse, in certain cases.Tai Chi, Qi  Gong and other Meditative type exercises is all she will need at this point, depending on her overall physiological load. After the assessments are done, you will have a better idea of where all the stressors are coming from. From that point on the goal is to educate so she can start eliminating those stressors, increasing her nutrition and lifestyle habits, leading to a life of health and vitality.

As well, here is one of my last responses on the forum about another autoimmune disease. I have attached it, so I hope it helps as well.Obviously your client has an autoimmune dysfunction and I would fully analyze and assess that in the many ways you know how. These anti-inflammatory meds with help of course, but at the same time they could be even more of a stress to the body. This is why in the first place your client has this disease.In Digestive Wellness by Elizabeth Lipski she discusses the many various types of dysbiosis, what causes them, their effects and how to treat them. There are four types, but I will discuss one to give you some options. “Sensitization Dysbiosis occurs when the immune system reacts with abnormal or aggravated responses to the digestive process. Microbes in the gut and foods produce exotoxins that irritate the gut lining. Our bodies recognize these toxins as foreign substances and produce antibodies that signal the immune system to get rid of them. Unfortunately, this local reaction might be the cause of some autoimmune diseases. RA, ankylosing spondylitis, and perhaps skin disease such as eczema and psoriasis are often the result.”Lipski. 67. Fabulous book and a great read on the digestive system.  Most people with this type of dysbiosis usually have leaky gut, increased sensitivity to foods and the environment. Some of the other symptoms that she lists are acne, bowel or skin problems, connective tissue disease, and psoriasis. This type as well can be associated with another type of dysbiosis called Fermentation Dysbiosis which is characterized by bloating, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, and gas. Most people with this type over indulge on sugar, wine, beer, fruit, grains and fiber. It is the fermentation of all those carbs that provides the environment for the multiplication of all the bad bacteria in the gut. As well, all of this is associated of course with Candida-FUNGUS!

So not only do you have an autoimmune disease, your client most likely as well has dysbiosis, leaky gut and/or Candida infestation. I would do some testing from BioHealth to be conclusive with your recommendations. As well, following all the basic NLC principles will help alleviate some of the digestive stress he/she is having. Add Cod Liver oil to her diet (natural anti-inflammatory), salt to her water, coconut oil to her diet (anti-fungal and bacterial qualities), and get him/her on a probiotics to restore natural gut flora to normal ratios. If you do the test from BioHealth (www.biodia.com), I am pretty sure it is #238, but check to be 110% accurate. If your client does have a fungal infection, the NLC principles will help, as well as the rec above. I would though have him/her follow the Fungal Diet by Kaufman and/or see Dr. Kalish or Dr. Oliver for some supplement recommendations to assist in fighting the Candida. I am not going to go on much further, but there are other things you want to look at as well and might want to test: hormonal levels, adrenals, and for parasites.

According to Carolyn Myss, “the 1st chakra is primarily associated with the immune system.” The 1st chakra is related to the adrenals, safety/security and tribal association. It is somewhat like have a strong mote around a castle.From this standpoint, I would begin analyzing to see if they have 1st chakra dysfunction. I would have to say that most people do secondary to having no “I”dentity. The 3rd chakra is the daughter (symptoms) of the 1st.So this all makes sense if your client does have dysbiosis, candida or any other GI disorder. Work on the 1st chakra on a physical lever or more energetic/spiritual level and I am sure you will get results.

Joshua Rubin

www.eastwesthealing.com