do you like your doctor?

How did you select your doctor? When I ask people this question, many say, "She's in network" or "He's local." The physician you hired could be giving significant, potentially life and death medical care to the people you love more than anyone else in the world. And you allowed your insurance coverage or geographic proximity to make the decision? Does this make sense?

Do you like your doctor? Does she inspire confidence? Do you agree with his recommendations? Or does she make you feel nervous and insecure when you express your concerns?

What is your personal philosophy about health and wellness? Do you have one? When you or your child gets sick, what do you do? Do you run to the doctor? Do you take the drugs that are prescribed? Do you wait it out? Do you know why your doctor makes the recommendations she does? If you don't have a way to think about and understand illness, you'll always be uncomfortable. Because what you end up doing will quite possibly rely upon someone whom you may not trust, understand or like very much.

cold & flu symptoms don't always need drugs

We've heard it more than once. Resist that antibiotic for an infection because it will destroy your gut flora. Wiping out the good bacteria sets you up for yeast infections and worse. Don't automatically take Tylenol for a fever! Let your body do its job the way Mother Nature intended. Artificially short-circuiting your immune system allows the pathogen to set up shop, creating long-term persistent infection that can cause other, more serious problems. Prescription and over-the-counter drugs are synthetic chemicals with unknown or inadequately studied cumulative toxicity and side effects. Drugs may be effective in targeting a particular, troublesome symptom. But there's no free lunch. And we often don't know of the inadvertent tradeoffs we've made until it's too late.

sounds good... until the fever starts climbing

And so the blue Rx script and even trusty stand-by Tylenol are to be regarded warily, we're told. We nod our heads, firm in our resolve to resist the whining tugs to the ear, steadfast in our promise to give tepid water baths when the forehead turns warm. 100F. We're bolstered by tales about how our grandmothers saw our parents through measles and worse. 101F. It can be done. 102F. Let's dip that washcloth in ice water again.

But sometimes the fever continues to climb. Our precious child is writhing in misery. And our imagination begins to run wild. High fever can cause brain damage, right? Seizures! Hearing loss! Her neck seems stiff. Is it meningitis? You're feeling desperately inadequate. Your heart begins to pound. And you find yourself reaching for the Motrin. Just this once. There's nothing like fear to challenge your solid commitment to a drug-free cold.

I like to use a swimming pool analogy. You're hanging onto the Tylenol and Z-Pak side of the pool. You don't like it. But there you are. You can see the drug-free side of the pool. It looks good. You want to get there. But you have to cross no-man's land. Sometimes you even make it halfway there... but you always swim back. When your mind is racing during those long, dark nights, the truth is exposed. You don't quite believe in the promise of the other side. You're afraid to drown.

germs are bad, right?

Let's admit it. We're freaked out by germs. All of them. Microscopic bugs, bacteria, viruses, worms, parasites, fungi, mold. We might even think that germs cause all the things that ail us. You know those TV commercials where the green squirming pathogens are crawling all over the garbage can or baby's high chair? It sure feels good watching them instantaneously disappear when we spray the chemicalized cleaning product du jour. With this world view, there is a solid place for Purell, antibacterial soap, antibiotics, vaccines, Clorox and twice daily showers in our lives. When the germs are gone, all is right and well.

Maybe not...

Lesson #1. We are crawling with germs.

There are more bugs in us and on us than there are cells in our bodies. By a factor of ten or more. I'm sure you're not happy to hear this. But here's an insight that should comfort you: something must be working. If you're like most people, you're rarely sick. This is good, right? So what gives? If germs are so bad and if we're filled with them, then why aren't we all an oozy, diseased mess?

Lesson #2. Our bodies are smart.

Human beings are highly evolved creatures. We've been alive and adapting for hundreds of thousands of years. Humans aren't alive despite germs. We're alive because of germs. Heretical? Let's think about this for a moment. We originated from bacterial soup. We're infested with germs, head to toe, inside and out. Man has not only survived over the centuries, we've thrived. There must be a positive role for germs. After all, human homeostasis represents balance. Something, or some things, are helping to regulate homeostasis and promote health.

Lesson #3. A little information can be a bad thing.

Let's return to the assumption that germs are bad. We've become a bit more savvy and sophisticated over the years, so we can now name the bad germs. S. pneumoniae are among the bugs that we've learned can cause otitis media, the ear infection. S. pneumoniae also causes pneumococcal disease. Horrible! Let's kill them! Maybe we do so with antibiotics. Or vaccines. And depending on the blunt tool we use, we wipe out a strain or two or thirteen. That's a good thing, right? Maybe not. We assume the S. pneumoniae had one role and that was to wreak havoc and create disease. But what if it had another role? S. pneumoniae can be a normal flora microbe. It exists in the respiratory tracts of healthy people. What is it doing there? What is the effect on overall health when we wipe it out?

Lesson #4. The food chain.

It's a concept that describes the complex and interconnected relationships of various species inside an ecosystem... a rainforest, a pond, an ocean... any location that sustains life. Plants absorb sunshine and grow. Small creatures eat the plants. Medium-sized animals eat the small. Large creatures eat the medium. Each member of the food chain helps to keep another group in check. If something happens to one member of the chain, it can have disastrous consequences for the entire ecosystem. Kill the bats and you are likely to be overrun by mosquitoes. One brown bat can eat up to 3,000 mosquitoes in one night. Still hate bats?

This concept applies to the human body, too. A healthy body has a balanced ecosystem. If you selectively and deliberately wipe out one member of the system, stand back and watch. Because you've just done something that will have consequences. The bugs don't just sit back and say, "ho hum." You created a void. The void will be filled.

it's about the host, not the germ

So here's the alternate model, courtesy of a French scientist named Antoine Bechamp. Monsieur Bechamp said there's a reason why, faced with the same pathogenic organism, some people will get sick and others will not. It has to do with the host or the biological terrain. In other words, focus on the strength and integrity of the body, not on the germ. A strong body, in homeostasis, will fight off infection. A weakened body will succumb to disease. I borrowed this chart from the video: The Rise of A Scientific Genius.

If you believe that germs are static and cause disease, then it's all about the germ and getting rid of it. The focus is on the outside environment because germs are everywhere.

If you believe that microorganisms are pleomorphic and can change based on the terrain or status of the body, then it's all about creating an environment that does not cause germs to mutate into pathogenic forms. The focus is on the internal environment because that's the gating factor. Our bodies are smart, remember? We have an immune system. Fortunately, it knows what it's doing because it's working all the time. We are a walking, talking, active cascade of immune system reactions. Just doing the things we do every single day... breathing, drinking, eating... our immune systems are hard at work. It's a beautiful thing.

Our job is a simple one. Do everything you can to allow the immune system to do its job effectively. Here's where common sense kicks in. Eat well. Exercise. Avoid stress. And reduce the toxic exposures which clog and congest your immune system... pesticides, chemicals, heavy metals, tobacco, drugs, processed and artificial foods. You don't need me to tell you what's on the list.

ok, but what do i do when we get another fever?

What did mankind do before Tylenol was invented? Humans have been getting symptoms of illness for a long, long time. It should not surprise you to know that there are alternate therapeutic models which have an impressive track record of success. These modalities are not accepted in our modern world of allopathic medicine. Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine have been around for many thousands of years. Homeopathy was invented over two hundred years ago. People persist in spending billions of dollars on complementary and alternative medicine for one reason alone. They work. Lots of parents have found safe, drug-free ways to support their children through many a fever and infection.

The difficulty always lies in the first step. Here's my advice:

Don't wait until you or your child gets sick to investigate options. It takes time to learn something new and it's doubly difficult to make quick decisions under stress.
It's going to take some effort on your part. How do you like to learn? Will you read a book? Surf the internet? Watch a movie? Attend a class? Make it a priority to learn more, in the way that works best for you.
Reach out and find a community of people who know more than you do. Find the parents who are doing it. Ask them what they do and which practitioners they use. You'll be happy to discover how willing people are to share information and resources with you.
Interview some practitioners. Ask them about the protocols they recommend for fever or infection. And be fair. Chemistry matters, whether you're selecting a financial planner, a hair dresser or a homeopath. You may not hit it off with the first person you meet. But that doesn't t mean you have to write off the entire therapeutic model. Don't expect instant success the very first time.
Create a support network of knowledgeable friends and practitioners. Don't rely on just one person. she might not be available when you need her. And keep in mind that we're all different. Certain modalities may work more effectively than others, depending on the ailment or disorder. You might call your homeopath for a fever, your cranial sacral therapist for a migraine, and your ayurvedic doctor for eczema. You might want an integrative medical doctor with privileges at your preferred hospital who can also sign your children's back-to-school forms. Set yourself up for success.

You may be surprised how much stress is removed from your life when you tackle these important decisions. Childhood illnesses are a rite of passage. Children are meant to get sick. As a parent, you are meant to shepherd them through the process. Their successful recovery from illness helps to prime and mature their immune systems. Many a grandmother will share stories about your parents' contemporaries who, as young children, came down with measles or chicken pox, recovered from the disease and emerged more robust than before, at a higher level of health. Some doctors believe that denying children the opportunity to contract childhood infectious diseases during the appropriate time window sets them up for serious chronic, degenerative diseases later in life. Helping to healthfully guide your children through illness is one of the major responsibilities of parenthood. The therapeutic models you adopt for your children today can provide a legacy of wellness they will take with them into adulthood.