What is Chronic Illness?
Disabling fatigue. Inflammation. Digestive problems. Insomnia. Nervous system disruption.
This Isn’t “Normal Sickness”
Normally, being sick is a healthy adaptive response to facilitate recovery from injury or infection — which includes conserving energy to fight pathogens. Energy is conserved to focus on immune function.
This Is Chronic
Chronic illness is when the system lacks the energy to recover from one — or multiple — ailments.
Energy in the body is deeply and continually depleted. The lack of system energy allows disease to spread.
Explore this article:
JUMP TO:
1 — Four Stressors Of Illness
2 — Stressors Cause Each Other
3 — Is Inflammation A Cause Of Illness?
4 — Inflammation Is A Response
5 — Mold
6 — EMF
7 — How Do We Improve?
8 — The Big Picture
“[Normal] sickness is a beneficial behavioral response that serves to enhance recovery, conserves energy and plays a role in the resolution of inflammation.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3751187/
“[By contrast], ME/CFS is a chronic disease underpinned by a state of energy depletion.”
Chronic illness usually begins with one or more health challenges, including:
Usually, it’s not one events — rather, multiple events — that trigger chronic illness.
Examples of challenges that lead to chronic illness:
- Severe family or relationship stress
- A prolonged illness
- Moldy homes or buildings
- Work or school stress
One Challenge Becomes Multiple
These causes stack up as a cascade of events.
The combination of:
A) Stress/trauma and B) Poor environmental health
…often leads to:
C) Immune system suppression and D) Weakened/infected bodily microbiomes.
This accumulation of multiple harmful factors is nearly ubiquitous in chronic illness. The body can handle acute stress and challenges, but it struggles greatly with chronic, compounding issues.
Thus, an initial health challenge can branch into multiple problems over time — and become much more difficult to diagnose and overcome.
As challenges add up, symptoms of chronic illness begin to emerge:
The mysterious, system-wide nature of these symptoms makes it difficult to scout a recovery path — with or without the help of medical professionals.
The Beginnings of Illness?
Our health in adulthood often reflects our health in earlier years.
A newborn baby’s first months of life are critical for developing the immune system.
Humans have virtually zero gut microbiome at birth and thus depend on the mother’s milk (colostrum & breast milk) for days and months to provide potent immunoprotection and seed a healthy gut microbiome.
Babies are especially susceptible to infection and must, therefore, be protected from excessive exposure to pathogens. Children, too, are growing their immune system and are prone to illness.
Newborns inherit the genes of both parents, the gut microbiome of the mother, and within days, even the microbiomes of the hospital and the home around them. Thus, a mother’s immune system and building health in the first years of life directly affect the health of offspring.
Chronic health problems in adulthood are more likely when developmental years include traumatic experiences.
Some folks with chronic illness are able to perform adequately at work and home.
Others are unable to function at a high level — forced to rest for extended periods at home.
A staple of chronic illness is that the inflammatory state persists almost indefinitely.
These persistent, high levels of inflammation cause debilitating fatigue, but also prevent the body from being able to build the energy required to heal and recover.
Inflammation doesn’t occur in the body without a cause, and it’s almost always linked to an immune response — a response to the presence of pathogenic activity.
(ME/CFS)
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Details
A multi-system disease that causes dysfunction of the neurological, immune, endocrine and energy metabolism systems.
[ME/CFS] often follows an infection and leaves 75% of those affected unable to work and 25% homebound are bedridden. An estimated 15-30 million people worldwide have ME.”
https://www.meaction.net/about/what-is-me/
- Debilitating fatigue
- Poor sleep
- Poor appetite
- Unstable mood
Symptoms of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) may appear similar to many other illnesses and there is no test to confirm ME/CFS. This makes ME/CFS difficult to diagnose. The illness can be unpredictable. Symptoms may come and go, or there may be changes in how bad they are over time.
https://www.cdc.gov/me-cfs/symptoms-diagnosis/index.html
[ME/CFS] often follows an infection.
https://www.meaction.net/about/what-is-me/
Hypothyroidism
Details
Thyroid hormone production slows to conserve energy and nutrients.
Hypothyroidism is present in nearly every chronic illness.
- Mild to extreme fatigue
- Cold bodily temperature
- Poor sleep
- Hair loss
- Unstable mood
- Sluggish digestion
- Chronic inflammation
The common approach of speeding the metabolism by taking thyroid hormones — or other substances, hormones, or restrictive diets — sometimes fail to fully address the root cause of this illness.
(MCS)
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
Details
MCS is classified as a physical illness by the World Health Organization.
This illness presents as a strong immune, allergic, or nuerological reaction to most strong chemicals, even low levels of exposure.
SYMPTOMS:
- difficulty breathing
- pains in the throat, chest, or abdominal region
- skin irritation
- headaches
- neurological symptoms
- tendonitis
- seizures
- visual disturbances (blurring, halo effect, inability to focus)
- anxiety
- panic
- anger
- sleep disturbance
- digestive difficulties
- suppression of immune system
- nausea, indigestion/heartburn
- vomiting, diarrhea
- joint pains
- vertigo/dizziness
- abnormally acute sense of smell (hyperosmia)
- sensitivity to natural plant fragrance or natural pine terpenes
- overactive bladder
- dry mouth and eyes
Environmental exposure to chemicals appears to directly harm the thyroid.
Folks with MCS almost certainly have symptoms of hypothyroidism, and vice versa.
(CIRS)
Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome
Details
CIRS is almost entirely based on exposure to mold toxicity in water-damaged buildings, as well as toxic algae blooms.
Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker has pioneered the movement in understanding what’s happening in CIRS – giving hope and attention to folks who were previously uncared for and hopeless in the conventional medical system.
Symptoms
Diagnosis is based on 13 “Clusters” of symptoms.
- If a patient has symptoms present in 6 or more clusters, biotoxin illness is possible and “further testing and evaluation must be done.”
- Symptoms in 8 or more clusters denotes likely biotoxin illness
Gut Dysbiosis
Details
Gut dysbiosis occurs when the normal, healthy microbes in the gut microbiome become weaker — and are replaced by unhealthy, pathogenic microbes.
Because gut health controls the health of the entire body — including immunity, digestion, nutritional balance, detoxification, sleep, hormonal balance, metabolism, and more — symptoms of gut dysbiosis can be vast and far-reaching.
In fact, tracing health problems back to the gut can be a challenge without proper education.
Causes of gut dysbiosis include:
- Heavy antibiotic use
- Sick buildings (especially mold exposure)
- Chronic stress
- Poor diet
- Chronic constipation or diarrhea
- Substance abuse
- Chronic insomnia
- Coinfections (Lyme, bartonella, etc)
Symptoms of gut dysbiosis include:
- Fatigue
- Hormonal problems
- Low thyroid function
- Chronic inflammation
- Digestive disorders (Crohn’s, IBS, diverticulitis, ulcers, and more)
- Insomnia
- Poor wound healing & scarring
- Unhealthy skin
- Poor blood sugar regulation
- Low immunity
- Poor detoxification
- Brain fog & cognitive issues
- Mood disorders
- Joint aches
- Nutritional imbalance
Lyme disease is often called “the great imitator” for its ability to mimic other diseases.
Gut dysbiosis is similar — with its vast implications for the entire body.
“All health — and disease — begins in the gut.”
Chronic Illness Research is in its Infancy
The further these various illnesses are studied, the more overlap becomes evident between the various diseases — in both symptoms and their causes.
Each of these illnesses is linked to:
Keep in mind: The liver and kidneys are almost always affected by poor gut health — and by the resultant ongoing inflammation, toxicity, and poor nutrient absorption.
Let’s look at the striking similarities between most of these chronic illnesses.
These symptoms can range from mild to severe — and vary in severity from day to day.
The major organs are certainly stressed by ongoing inflammation, toxicity, and nutrient depletion during chronic illness.
To recover from chronic illness, it can be important to take steps to address challenges to various organs — especially the gut and thyroid.
Stress
& The Gut
Show Study
“This study showed that chronic stress disturbed gut microbiota, thereby triggering immune system response and facilitating… colitis.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5879702/
Mycotoxins
& The Thyroid
Show Study
Exposure to volatile organic compounds present in water-damaged buildings including metabolic products of toxigenic fungi and mold-derived inflammatory agents can lead to a deficiency or imbalance of many hormones, such as active T3 hormone.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5545575/
Note: Most of the thyroid hormone T3 used by organs is converted in the organs themselves (from T4 produced in the thyroid.
Mold
& The Brain
Show Study
“Toxic spores cause anxiety and memory problems in mice.”
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/mold-may-mean-bad-news-brain
Mold Toxins
& The Gut
Show Study
“In addition, mycotoxins disrupt the gut microbiota balance, and thereby dysregulate intestinal functions and impair local immune response, which may eventually result in systemic toxicity that leads to chronic mycotoxicosis, HCC. The severity of HCC condition can be positively governed by restoration of gut microbiota balance and gut health via probiotics administration.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5834427/
Mycotoxins
& The Liver
Show Study
The aflatoxins are toxic, immunosuppressive, mutogenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic, and their main target is the liver. Most have been classified as type 1 carcinogens (172). AFB1 is probably the most potent liver carcinogen for a variety of species, including humans
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC145304/
Environmental Toxins
& The Kidneys
Show Study
“Environmental exposure to these chemicals during everyday life could have adverse consequences on renal function and might contribute to progressive cumulative renal injury over a lifetime. Regulatory efforts should be made to limit individual exposure to environmental chemicals in an attempt to reduce the incidence of cardiorenal disease.”
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/279309259_The_effects_of_environmental_chemicals_on_renal_function
“Even in stage 2 classification we found 88% of CFS/ME patients were close to Chronic Kidney Disease.”
https://forums.phoenixrising.me/threads/chronic-kidney-disease-and-me-cfs.9200/
In chronic illness, multiple major organs are usually overburdened.
Nutritional deficiency is virtually universal in chronic illness.
It appears that most sufferers chronic illnesses are somewhat deficient in nearly every nutrient.
Low Food Quality
Low-quality food results in low nutrient supply.
Imbalanced, restrictive diets fail to supply adequate nutrition, as well.
Poor Soil Quality
…results in poor nutrient content in all foods.
Poor Gut Health
…results in poor nutrient uptake (by the body), as well as endotoxicity.
Staying Indoors
…results in Vitamin D deficiency and harms digestive function.
Lack of sunlight also directly harms the gut microbiome, independant of Vitamin D status.
Spending time indoors may also expose you to harmful mold and bad air quality.
Bodily Toxicity
High toxicity — from environmental exposure or endotoxin in poor gut health — leads to an increased usage of nutrients.
This is a dastardly component of chronic illness, made much worse because an inflamed gut is not able to absorb nutrients adequately to keep up with excessive nutritional demands. It’s clear how chronic illness becomes a disease of energy depletion.
Getting small, manageable doses of broad-spectrum nutrients is critical in chronic illness. So is taking powerful steps to restore gut function so nutrients can be properly absorbed again.
Read more.
Toxic VOC’s
VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) are reactive chemicals found throughout nature and in industrial, home, and beauty products.
Sources of VOC’s:
These compounds are inhaled and absorbed into the body. These toxins can overburden the liver, and become stored in bodily tissues.
Burning fat can become a risky process: When fat stores are burned, their contents (toxins) spill into the bloodstream.
When toxins begin to overwhelm the body’s detoxification abilities, toxins become sequestered in fat cells.
Elevated Detoxification Requires Extra Nutrients
Accelerated levels of detoxification can rapidly deplete the body’s nutrients.
Minerals and B-vitamins are especially used up in heavy detoxification.
As gut health begins to suffer, the endogenous production of B-vitamins by microbes will wane — and nutrients in food will be poorly absorbed.
“You Don’t Need to Worry about Detox Because You Have a Liver”
While it’s true that many “detox protocols” are more marketing than science, the popular notion that “you don’t need to worry about toxins because you have a liver” is hardly an informed one.
In chronic illness, compromised gut health leads to copious endotoxin — which is readily absorbed into the body via a “leaky gut.”
Chronic inflammation is a staple of ongoing illness, and directly impairs liver function.
All of this leaves the sufferer less able to cope with excessive environmental toxic exposure, even as levels of toxins in the indoor and outdoor environments rise each year.
Wasting nutrients + poor nutrient absorption
= Chronic deficiencies
Chronic toxicity — with elevated detoxification requirements — causes the gut flora to become less and less healthy.
Instead of good microbes digesting food and releasing nutrients, bad microbes digest food and release what’s known as endotoxin into the bloodstream.
This only increases the body’s toxic load.
Inflammation is higher in chronic illness.
Inflammation especially rises after eating — due to endotoxin — as well as after exposure to environmental irritants. The body’s immune response kicks in — and stays on 24/7.
High inflammation & toxicity tend to cause blood sugar to plummet. Unstable blood sugar destroys sleep.
Inflammation keeps blood glucose and nutrients from entering cells — so the body is perpetually starved for energy and nutrition.
Each passing day with worsening sleep leaves one further and further from healing and recovery.
“Independent of the cause and location, inflammation – even when minimal – has clear effects on gastrointestinal morphology and function. These result in altered digestion, absorption and barrier function.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2835780/
Brain fog and poor memory are staples of chronic illness.
There are several reasons for this: Inflammation destabilizes blood sugar and impairs cognition. Inconsistent sleep results in long-term mood instability.
Irritability is common when chronically ill. Frustration about feeling poorly, and feeling stuck is the norm.
The trauma of feeling awful, undergoing medical procedures, feeling helpless and the reality that friends and family don’t understand or believe how severe the illness is — all this adds up to powerful storms of emotions that may go unresolved for years, if ever.
Perhaps the biggest factor is this: Brain function will suffer until consistent sleep is restored.
Extended periods of nonrestorative nights and poor gut health leave the brain unable to calm down. The effects of a single night of poor sleep pale when compared to dozens and dozens — or hundreds — in a row.
Nutrient and caloric deficiency from poor digestion also lead to chronically elevated stress hormones.
What happens after months (or years) of elevated stress hormones, falling blood sugar, poor sleep, and nutrient deficiency?
Your brain on chronic illness feels fried.
One of the major signs of chronic illness is the collapse of restorative sleep.
Quality sleep depends on hormone production, stable blood sugar, and low inflammation.
Gut health directly impacts sleep, too, by controlling all the aforementioned variables, as well as removing toxins and supplying the nutrients.
“Non-restorative sleep despite sufficient or extended total sleep time is one of the major clinical diagnostic criteria [of CFS/ME].”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3501671/
Each night of poor sleep is another day the body can’t make progress.
When sleep begins to improve, it can take weeks or, sometimes, months of solid sleep to recover from long-term disrupted sleep cycles.
Each night of poor sleep is another day the body can’t make progress. To recover, the circadian rhythm must be a primary focus.
If symptoms progress, a chronic illness sufferer may not be able to eat, sleep, exercise, concentrate, socialize, or even find enjoyment in life-long favorite activities.
Even the smallest tasks can become daunting, difficult and exhausting.
Onlookers might suspect depression, or that it’s “all in the head.”
Social Isolation
Negative interactions from others can increase stress, feelings of rejection, isolation, and helplessness.
These experiences can even become a new source of trauma for the chronically ill.
They often see few solutions and dwindling support among skeptical friends and family.
Relying on Social Media
Many turn to social media health groups, looking for advice from others with similar experiences — and find new, more-supportive communities there.
Unfortunately, many social media groups focus on only a few problems and narrow solutions.
Bouncing around from group to group, looking for “the fix” is very much the norm. Wild careening from one approach to the next is many folks’ experience.
This is logical — health seems complicated, and putting all the pieces together can be a challenge. Narrow paradigms do not put all the pieces together.
Without the confidence that meals will digest, or that sleep will come at night, tomorrow probably won’t be much better — unless we get to the bottom of things and take action.
Maybe there is an easy fix.
Maybe there’s one pill, or natural compound, or drug — or even a single diet — that fixes everything in the body and mind.
On the other hand, what evidence is showing is that recovery of our health usually requires a larger shift in the way we live. A way that nourishes each aspect of our biology and mind, while limiting legitimate threats.
Perhaps we need to build ourselves up, restore the metabolism and gut health, reduce toxic load and exposure, boost our immunity, and find our peace.
Maybe it all — everything — matters.
You might need the help of doctors and specialists. You might not. In either situation, finding what you can do yourself is the key to maximizing recovery.
I recovered from chronic illness after nearly a decade where I was a shell of my true self.
The 5 Paths — as a way of thinking — allowed me to heal, fully recovered.
You can, too.
This completes ‘Intro to Illness.’
To continue, select ‘High Energy.’
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Every time I would find some new information — or some kind of answers — I would get excited, and I would try to apply the information! But I would also try to make sense of it in the context of all of the other information that I had gathered from the past
One day, while searching through message boards and forums, Travis’s website popped up. The guy seemed to have a handle on all of the information. I was highly impressed and decided to book a free call so I could basically spew all of the information that I had read for the past two years onto him.
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I wanted to keep Travis a secret out of fear that his prices would go up a thousand fold, because he is worth that much. But I know what it’s like to suffer alone trying to find answers in an endless sea of information. I believe that he can help many people. Thank you Travis! You have really been a God-send.”
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In the first few months of working with Travis, my issues started to reverse almost instantly! Within 6-12 months, I felt like I had healed 80-90% of my issues. It was remarkable. And with so much day-to-day support. He’s also very open-minded and non-dogmatic, so he’ll work with you however you want to explore things. Not to mention, he’s also just an incredibly caring and awesome human being. Navigating my health journey has been infinitely more manageable and less overwhelming with Travis by my side.
Travis has given me my life back and I can’t thank him enough for it! And his ideas and perspectives on health feel absolutely foundational to me. Your mileage will vary with any health coach or protocol, as everybody and situation is different, but I’m convinced that Travis’ coaching would be helpful to pretty much everybody. His protocols feel absolutely fundamental to me for better health.”
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California, USA
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I can personally attest that Travis Burch is the real deal. I’m forever grateful to have crossed paths with him at a very crucial time during which the collective health of my family had fallen apart as a result of living in a moldy house.
His in-depth understanding of nutrition, lifestyle (and their interactions) and the way in which the environment influences our health (good and bad) is astounding.
But, the best part is that he’s big-hearted and has a faculty for tuning in and listening that effectively sets him apart from others in the field. Thank you, Travis!”
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Travis himself is different from anyone I’ve spoken to in the health world, I’m constantly blown away every time I speak with him. He will look at every angle of my questions and always give me the light at the end of the tunnel with my problems (Even my more silly questions!)
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“I’ve been working with Travis for over a year. I can’t over-emphasize the influence he has had on my life, on my health, and my happiness. I started working with Travis just as I came down with a chronic health condition called gastroparesis (“GP”). I was convinced by the medical community, scientific literature, and the general consensus of anyone who has this condition that I would have it for life, and at the very best be able to manage my symptoms with medication and drastic, permanent dietary changes.
Over the past year, Travis helped me recover from an all time low with my health. Working with Travis gave me the gift of no longer believing I’ll suffer from a chronic health condition the rest of my life. It allowed me to be able to eat foods I wasn’t sure I could safely eat again, be able to feel energy I wasn’t sure would return, be able to have substantial periods of time where I’m healthy & feeling great and to experience my health continuously (but not linearly) improving.
I can’t recommend working with him enough. Travis is so methodical, thorough, practical, and an incredible person – which makes him a life-changing practitioner to work with. Thank you for everything Travis, endless appreciation for all that you do!“
Erica Mulford
USA
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What is Chronic Illness?
Disabling fatigue. Inflammation. Digestive problems. Insomnia. Nervous system disruption.
This Isn’t “Normal Sickness”
Normally, being sick is a healthy adaptive response to facilitate recovery from injury or infection — which includes conserving energy to fight pathogens. Energy is conserved to focus on immune function.
This Is Chronic
Chronic illness is when the system lacks the energy to recover from one — or multiple — ailments.
Energy in the body is deeply and continually depleted. The lack of system energy allows disease to spread.
Explore this article:
JUMP TO:
1 — Four Stressors Of Illness
2 — Stressors Cause Each Other
3 — Is Inflammation A Cause Of Illness?
4 — Inflammation Is A Response
5 — Mold
6 — EMF
7 — How Do We Improve?
8 — The Big Picture
“[Normal] sickness is a beneficial behavioral response that serves to enhance recovery, conserves energy and plays a role in the resolution of inflammation.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3751187/
“[By contrast], ME/CFS is a chronic disease underpinned by a state of energy depletion.”
Chronic illness usually begins with one or more health challenges, including:
Usually, it’s not one events — rather, multiple events — that trigger chronic illness.
Examples of challenges that lead to chronic illness:
- Severe family or relationship stress
- A prolonged illness
- Moldy homes or buildings
- Work or school stress
One Challenge Becomes Multiple
These causes stack up as a cascade of events.
The combination of:
A) Stress/trauma and B) Poor environmental health
…often leads to:
C) Immune system suppression and D) Weakened/infected bodily microbiomes.
This accumulation of multiple harmful factors is nearly ubiquitous in chronic illness. The body can handle acute stress and challenges, but it struggles greatly with chronic, compounding issues.
Thus, an initial health challenge can branch into multiple problems over time — and become much more difficult to diagnose and overcome.
As challenges add up, symptoms of chronic illness begin to emerge:
The mysterious, system-wide nature of these symptoms makes it difficult to scout a recovery path — with or without the help of medical professionals.
The Beginnings of Illness?
Our health in adulthood often reflects our health in earlier years.
A newborn baby’s first months of life are critical for developing the immune system.
Humans have virtually zero gut microbiome at birth and thus depend on the mother’s milk (colostrum & breast milk) for days and months to provide potent immunoprotection and seed a healthy gut microbiome.
Babies are especially susceptible to infection and must, therefore, be protected from excessive exposure to pathogens. Children, too, are growing their immune system and are prone to illness.
Newborns inherit the genes of both parents, the gut microbiome of the mother, and within days, even the microbiomes of the hospital and the home around them. Thus, a mother’s immune system and building health in the first years of life directly affect the health of offspring.
Chronic health problems in adulthood are more likely when developmental years include traumatic experiences.
Some folks with chronic illness are able to perform adequately at work and home.
Others are unable to function at a high level — forced to rest for extended periods at home.
A staple of chronic illness is that the inflammatory state persists almost indefinitely.
These persistent, high levels of inflammation cause debilitating fatigue, but also prevent the body from being able to build the energy required to heal and recover.
Inflammation doesn’t occur in the body without a cause, and it’s almost always linked to an immune response — a response to the presence of pathogenic activity.
(ME/CFS)
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis / Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Details
A multi-system disease that causes dysfunction of the neurological, immune, endocrine and energy metabolism systems.
[ME/CFS] often follows an infection and leaves 75% of those affected unable to work and 25% homebound are bedridden. An estimated 15-30 million people worldwide have ME.”
https://www.meaction.net/about/what-is-me/
- Debilitating fatigue
- Poor sleep
- Poor appetite
- Unstable mood
Symptoms of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) may appear similar to many other illnesses and there is no test to confirm ME/CFS. This makes ME/CFS difficult to diagnose. The illness can be unpredictable. Symptoms may come and go, or there may be changes in how bad they are over time.
https://www.cdc.gov/me-cfs/symptoms-diagnosis/index.html
[ME/CFS] often follows an infection.
https://www.meaction.net/about/what-is-me/
Hypothyroidism
Details
Thyroid hormone production slows to conserve energy and nutrients.
Hypothyroidism is present in nearly every chronic illness.
- Mild to extreme fatigue
- Cold bodily temperature
- Poor sleep
- Hair loss
- Unstable mood
- Sluggish digestion
- Chronic inflammation
The common approach of speeding the metabolism by taking thyroid hormones — or other substances, hormones, or restrictive diets — sometimes fail to fully address the root cause of this illness.
(MCS)
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
Details
MCS is classified as a physical illness by the World Health Organization.
This illness presents as a strong immune, allergic, or nuerological reaction to most strong chemicals, even low levels of exposure.
SYMPTOMS:
- difficulty breathing
- pains in the throat, chest, or abdominal region
- skin irritation
- headaches
- neurological symptoms
- tendonitis
- seizures
- visual disturbances (blurring, halo effect, inability to focus)
- anxiety
- panic
- anger
- sleep disturbance
- digestive difficulties
- suppression of immune system
- nausea, indigestion/heartburn
- vomiting, diarrhea
- joint pains
- vertigo/dizziness
- abnormally acute sense of smell (hyperosmia)
- sensitivity to natural plant fragrance or natural pine terpenes
- overactive bladder
- dry mouth and eyes
Environmental exposure to chemicals appears to directly harm the thyroid.
Folks with MCS almost certainly have symptoms of hypothyroidism, and vice versa.
(CIRS)
Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome
Details
CIRS is almost entirely based on exposure to mold toxicity in water-damaged buildings, as well as toxic algae blooms.
Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker has pioneered the movement in understanding what’s happening in CIRS – giving hope and attention to folks who were previously uncared for and hopeless in the conventional medical system.
Symptoms
Diagnosis is based on 13 “Clusters” of symptoms.
- If a patient has symptoms present in 6 or more clusters, biotoxin illness is possible and “further testing and evaluation must be done.”
- Symptoms in 8 or more clusters denotes likely biotoxin illness
Gut Dysbiosis
Details
Gut dysbiosis occurs when the normal, healthy microbes in the gut microbiome become weaker — and are replaced by unhealthy, pathogenic microbes.
Because gut health controls the health of the entire body — including immunity, digestion, nutritional balance, detoxification, sleep, hormonal balance, metabolism, and more — symptoms of gut dysbiosis can be vast and far-reaching.
In fact, tracing health problems back to the gut can be a challenge without proper education.
Causes of gut dysbiosis include:
- Heavy antibiotic use
- Sick buildings (especially mold exposure)
- Chronic stress
- Poor diet
- Chronic constipation or diarrhea
- Substance abuse
- Chronic insomnia
- Coinfections (Lyme, bartonella, etc)
Symptoms of gut dysbiosis include:
- Fatigue
- Hormonal problems
- Low thyroid function
- Chronic inflammation
- Digestive disorders (Crohn’s, IBS, diverticulitis, ulcers, and more)
- Insomnia
- Poor wound healing & scarring
- Unhealthy skin
- Poor blood sugar regulation
- Low immunity
- Poor detoxification
- Brain fog & cognitive issues
- Mood disorders
- Joint aches
- Nutritional imbalance
Lyme disease is often called “the great imitator” for its ability to mimic other diseases.
Gut dysbiosis is similar — with its vast implications for the entire body.
“All health — and disease — begins in the gut.”
Chronic Illness Research is in its Infancy
The further these various illnesses are studied, the more overlap becomes evident between the various diseases — in both symptoms and their causes.
Each of these illnesses is linked to:
Keep in mind: The liver and kidneys are almost always affected by poor gut health — and by the resultant ongoing inflammation, toxicity, and poor nutrient absorption.
Let’s look at the striking similarities between most of these chronic illnesses.
These symptoms can range from mild to severe — and vary in severity from day to day.
Chronic illness can impair any biological function, but the major organs are certainly stressed by ongoing inflammation, toxicity, and nutrient depletion.
To recover from chronic illness, it can be important to take steps to address challenges to various organs — especially the gut and thyroid.
Stress
& The Gut
Show Study
“This study showed that chronic stress disturbed gut microbiota, thereby triggering immune system response and facilitating… colitis.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5879702/
Mycotoxins
& The Thyroid
Show Study
Exposure to volatile organic compounds present in water-damaged buildings including metabolic products of toxigenic fungi and mold-derived inflammatory agents can lead to a deficiency or imbalance of many hormones, such as active T3 hormone.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5545575/
Note: Most of the thyroid hormone T3 used by organs is converted in the organs themselves (from T4 produced in the thyroid.
Mold
& The Brain
Show Study
“Toxic spores cause anxiety and memory problems in mice.”
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/mold-may-mean-bad-news-brain
Mold Toxins
& The Gut
Show Study
“In addition, mycotoxins disrupt the gut microbiota balance, and thereby dysregulate intestinal functions and impair local immune response, which may eventually result in systemic toxicity that leads to chronic mycotoxicosis, HCC. The severity of HCC condition can be positively governed by restoration of gut microbiota balance and gut health via probiotics administration.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5834427/
Mycotoxins
& The Liver
Show Study
The aflatoxins are toxic, immunosuppressive, mutogenic, teratogenic, and carcinogenic, and their main target is the liver. Most have been classified as type 1 carcinogens (172). AFB1 is probably the most potent liver carcinogen for a variety of species, including humans
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC145304/
Environmental Toxins
& The Kidneys
Show Study
“Environmental exposure to these chemicals during everyday life could have adverse consequences on renal function and might contribute to progressive cumulative renal injury over a lifetime. Regulatory efforts should be made to limit individual exposure to environmental chemicals in an attempt to reduce the incidence of cardiorenal disease.”
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/279309259_The_effects_of_environmental_chemicals_on_renal_function
“Even in stage 2 classification we found 88% of CFS/ME patients were close to Chronic Kidney Disease.”
https://forums.phoenixrising.me/threads/chronic-kidney-disease-and-me-cfs.9200/
In chronic illness, multiple major organs are usually suffering.
5
Nutrient Deficiency
Nutritional deficiency is common in chronic illness.
It appears that most sufferers chronic illnesses are somewhat deficient in nearly every nutrient.
Low Food Quality
Low-quality food results in low nutrient supply.
Imbalanced, restrictive diets fail to supply adequate nutrition, as well.
Poor Soil Quality
…results in poor nutrient content in all foods.
Poor Gut Health
…results in poor nutrient uptake (by the body), as well as endotoxicity.
Staying Indoors
…results in Vitamin D deficiency and harms digestive function.
Lack of sunlight also directly harms the gut microbiome, independant of Vitamin D status.
Spending time indoors may also expose you to harmful mold and bad air quality.
Bodily Toxicity
High toxicity — from environmental exposure or endotoxin in poor gut health — leads to an increased usage of nutrients.
This is a dastardly component of chronic illness, made much worse because an inflamed gut is not able to absorb nutrients adequately to keep up with excessive nutritional demands. It’s clear how chronic illness becomes a disease of energy depletion.
Getting small, manageable doses of broad-spectrum nutrients is critical in chronic illness. So is taking powerful steps to restore gut function so nutrients can be properly absorbed again.
Read more.
Toxic VOC’s
VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) are reactive chemicals found throughout nature and in industrial, home, and beauty products.
Sources of VOC’s:
These compounds are inhaled and absorbed into the body. These toxins can overburden the liver, and become stored in bodily tissues.
Burning fat can become a risky process: When fat stores are burned, their contents (toxins) spill into the bloodstream.
When toxins begin to overwhelm the body’s detoxification abilities, toxins become sequestered in fat cells.
Elevated Detoxification Requires Extra Nutrients
Accelerated levels of detoxification can rapidly deplete the body’s nutrients.
Minerals and B-vitamins are especially used up in heavy detoxification.
As gut health begins to suffer, the endogenous production of B-vitamins by microbes will wane — and nutrients in food will be poorly absorbed.
“You Don’t Need to Worry about Detox Because You Have a Liver”
While it’s true that many “detox protocols” are more marketing than science, the popular notion that “you don’t need to worry about toxins because you have a liver” is hardly an informed one.
In chronic illness, compromised gut health leads to copious endotoxin — which is readily absorbed into the body via a “leaky gut.”
Chronic inflammation is a staple of ongoing illness, and directly impairs liver function.
All of this leaves the sufferer less able to cope with excessive environmental toxic exposure, even as levels of toxins in the indoor and outdoor environments rise each year.
Wasting nutrients + poor nutrient absorption
= Chronic deficiencies
Chronic toxicity — with elevated detoxification requirements — causes the gut flora to become less and less healthy.
Instead of good microbes digesting food and releasing nutrients, bad microbes digest food and release what’s known as endotoxin into the bloodstream.
This only increases the body’s toxic load.
Inflammation is higher in chronic illness.
Inflammation especially rises after eating — due to endotoxin — as well as after exposure to environmental irritants. The body’s immune response kicks in — and stays on 24/7.
High inflammation & toxicity tend to cause blood sugar to plummet. Unstable blood sugar destroys sleep.
Inflammation keeps blood glucose and nutrients from entering cells — so the body is perpetually starved for energy and nutrition.
Each passing day with worsening sleep leaves one further and further from healing and recovery.
“Independent of the cause and location, inflammation – even when minimal – has clear effects on gastrointestinal morphology and function. These result in altered digestion, absorption and barrier function.”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2835780/
Brain fog and poor memory are staples of chronic illness.
There are several reasons for this: Inflammation destabilizes blood sugar and impairs cognition. Inconsistent sleep results in long-term mood instability.
Irritability is common when chronically ill. Frustration about feeling poorly, and feeling stuck is the norm.
The trauma of feeling awful, undergoing medical procedures, feeling helpless and the reality that friends and family don’t understand or believe how severe the illness is — all this adds up to powerful storms of emotions that may go unresolved for years, if ever.
Perhaps the biggest factor is this: Brain function will suffer until consistent sleep is restored.
Extended periods of nonrestorative nights and poor gut health leave the brain unable to calm down. The effects of a single night of poor sleep pale when compared to dozens and dozens — or hundreds — in a row.
Nutrient and caloric deficiency from poor digestion also lead to chronically elevated stress hormones.
What happens after months (or years) of elevated stress hormones, falling blood sugar, poor sleep, and nutrient deficiency?
Your brain on chronic illness feels fried.
One of the major signs of chronic illness is the collapse of restorative sleep.
Quality sleep depends on hormone production, stable blood sugar, and low inflammation.
Gut health directly impacts sleep, too, by controlling all the aforementioned variables, as well as removing toxins and supplying the nutrients.
“Non-restorative sleep despite sufficient or extended total sleep time is one of the major clinical diagnostic criteria [of CFS/ME].”
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3501671/
Each night of poor sleep is another day the body can’t make progress.
When sleep begins to improve, it can take weeks or, sometimes, months of solid sleep to recover from long-term disrupted sleep cycles.
Each night of poor sleep is another day the body can’t make progress. To recover, the circadian rhythm must be a primary focus.
If symptoms progress, a chronic illness sufferer may not be able to eat, sleep, exercise, concentrate, socialize, or even find enjoyment in life-long favorite activities.
Even the smallest tasks can become daunting, difficult and exhausting.
Onlookers might suspect depression, or that it’s “all in the head.”
Social Isolation
Negative interactions from others can increase stress, feelings of rejection, isolation, and helplessness.
These experiences can even become a new source of trauma for the chronically ill.
They often see few solutions and dwindling support among skeptical friends and family.
Relying on Social Media
Many turn to social media health groups, looking for advice from others with similar experiences — and find new, more-supportive communities there.
Unfortunately, many social media groups focus on only a few problems and narrow solutions.
Bouncing around from group to group, looking for “the fix” is very much the norm. Wild careening from one approach to the next is many folks’ experience.
This is logical — health seems complicated, and putting all the pieces together can be a challenge. Narrow paradigms do not put all the pieces together.
Without the confidence that meals will digest, or that sleep will come at night, tomorrow probably won’t be much better — unless we get to the bottom of things and take action.
Maybe there is an easy fix.
Maybe there’s one pill, or natural compound, or drug — or even a single diet — that fixes everything in the body and mind.
On the other hand, what evidence is showing is that recovery of our health usually requires a larger shift in the way we live. A way that nourishes each aspect of our biology and mind, while limiting legitimate threats.
Perhaps we need to build ourselves up, restore the metabolism and gut health, reduce toxic load and exposure, boost our immunity, and find our peace.
Maybe it all — everything — matters.
You might need the help of doctors and specialists. You might not. In either situation, finding what you can do yourself is the key to maximizing recovery.
I recovered from chronic illness after nearly a decade where I was a shell of my true self.
The 5 Paths — as a way of thinking — allowed me to heal, fully recovered.
You can, too.
This completes ‘Why Think Big?.’
To continue, select ‘Energy Metabolism.’
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Coming from so many different dietary influences, I feel as though Travis has shown me the balance that I needed.
If I could have gone back in time 4 years ago, when I started searching into health, and had access to the knowledge on this website and Travis’ direct support I would have sorted a lot of issues I had out a long time ago and saved my self a lot of tim.
The material on this website is extremely clear cut, organised and actually very enjoyable and easy to read. Never have I been so interested and excited when looking into health. Everything is actionable and there are a million things I’ve taken from the website to improve so many issues I had (sleep improved greatly, circadian rhythm, energy levels, skin issues have improved, strength in the gym are just a few of many others, oh and also balance, so key). Everything you need to heal is here on this website.
Also working with Travis directly he has been able to troubleshoot a lot of issues and I am always so grateful for the time he takes to help me. He really does put thought and effort into every single response I have from him and honestly just cannot thank him enough.”
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United Kingdom
Luna: “I wanted to keep Travis a secret out of fear that his prices would go up a thousand fold, because he is worth that much.”
“I have been searching the internet for years trying to find solutions for the various health conditions my family and I have been suffering from. Because of that, I would go into various rabbit holes of I formation which would promise ultimate healing by following certain diets and or protocols. I had information and books about GAPS, the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, Paleo, Keto, Medical Medium, Jack Kruse, Ray Peat, prometabolic eating so on.
Every time I would find some new information — or some kind of answers — I would get excited, and I would try to apply the information! But I would also try to make sense of it in the context of all of the other information that I had gathered from the past
One day, while searching through message boards and forums, Travis’s website popped up. The guy seemed to have a handle on all of the information. I was highly impressed and decided to book a free call so I could basically spew all of the information that I had read for the past two years onto him.
From the beginning I was so moved by his kindness and vast knowledge. He was not only familiar with all of the things that I asked him, he was able to explain how that information fit into my particular situation. I had tried to reach out to various people in the past and they all demanded money for the slightest interaction or were incredibly pompous and rude to be asked even a simple question. I had SO many questions to ask him before deciding whether to work with him. I wanted to make sure that he know at least as much as I did about all the things. He was so patient and answered all of my questions without ever sounding annoyed or in a rush to “get” me as a paying client.
More than the actual knowledge that he has (which is vast) about various health theories and perspectives, it was his presence that was most healing. Just having someone whom I could bounce ideas off of and who would knew where I was coming from was so reassuring. I felt like I was literally juggling the whole internet’s worth of information by myself with no way to figure out which way to go or what to take as truth and what to discard and his amazing amount of understanding really helped me traverse it all.
Travis helped me to feel that I wasn’t completely alone trying to heal me and my family’s health. And that feeling was the most healing of all. I am hoping to start working with him again soon. In the meantime he is always willing to answer random questions that pop into my mind.
I wanted to keep Travis a secret out of fear that his prices would go up a thousand fold, because he is worth that much. But I know what it’s like to suffer alone trying to find answers in an endless sea of information. I believe that he can help many people. Thank you Travis! You have really been a God-send.”
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USA
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“I’ve been on an 8-year long journey of struggling with hypothyroidism and a ton of health issues stemming from that (i.e. chronic fatigue, depression, weak immune system, insomnia, constant sore throats, digestive issues, etc.) I’ve seen tons of different doctors, naturopaths, healers (and spent thousands of dollars) with little to no results.
In the first few months of working with Travis, my issues started to reverse almost instantly! Within 6-12 months, I felt like I had healed 80-90% of my issues. It was remarkable. And with so much day-to-day support. He’s also very open-minded and non-dogmatic, so he’ll work with you however you want to explore things. Not to mention, he’s also just an incredibly caring and awesome human being. Navigating my health journey has been infinitely more manageable and less overwhelming with Travis by my side.
Travis has given me my life back and I can’t thank him enough for it! And his ideas and perspectives on health feel absolutely foundational to me. Your mileage will vary with any health coach or protocol, as everybody and situation is different, but I’m convinced that Travis’ coaching would be helpful to pretty much everybody. His protocols feel absolutely fundamental to me for better health.”
Jaemin Yi
California, USA
Diane — “I can personally attest that Travis Burch is the real deal.”
“There are seemingly endless numbers of health and nutrition gurus selling protocols, but very very few of them actually possess the qualities needed to heal for a person struggling from ill health or disease.
I can personally attest that Travis Burch is the real deal. I’m forever grateful to have crossed paths with him at a very crucial time during which the collective health of my family had fallen apart as a result of living in a moldy house.
His in-depth understanding of nutrition, lifestyle (and their interactions) and the way in which the environment influences our health (good and bad) is astounding.
But, the best part is that he’s big-hearted and has a faculty for tuning in and listening that effectively sets him apart from others in the field. Thank you, Travis!”
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California, USA
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Australia
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“I have suffered from chronic digestive issues for decades. I tried so many things and was feeling so lost, just getting worse, never better. Never knew what I should be eating-my health was getting worse and it was taking a toll on my work, my relationships. Working with Travis over the past year has helped me tremendously. He understands what it feels like to feel anxious and confused and so sick of being sick. He is a helping hand in a sea of confusing health information. He has such a level head and takes a reasonable approach to healing (starting with foundations). He really listens. He sends quick, thoughtful replies everytime I write him. He has been there for me when I was really scared or unsure how to proceed. I always feel better after our zooms. He is patient and answers all my questions and never makes me feel dumb no matter how many questions I have. He has saved me a lot of money with his many hacks and product recommendations! If you hire Travis as your health coach he will help you heal, and this may not be overnight, it takes time to undo years of being sick, but he will be there and stick with you as you figure things out, and teach you a lot!”
SM, R.D.
Massachussetts, USA
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USA
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“With his website and coaching Travis gives a very clear picture about what constitutes health, which he describes perfectly through his pillars of health. As a coach he is highly engaged and responds quickly to all your questions. He has helped me tremendously in dealing with illness and navigating the maze of online self help recommendations and I can’t thank him enough.”
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Netherlands
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He has helped me recently discover some major issues with my regimen and I’m forever grateful!”
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Alberta, Canada
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“Without Travis my health wouldn’t be where it is today. The Pillars of health show EVERYTHING you need to know about health.
I honestly can’t put into words how helpful they have been to me. They flipped everything for me — it was the balance I needed in my life.
I find myself going back to this pretty often when needed now! Oh, would it have saved me time having access to this years ago!
Travis himself is different from anyone I’ve spoken to in the health world, I’m constantly blown away every time I speak with him. He will look at every angle of my questions and always give me the light at the end of the tunnel with my problems (Even my more silly questions!)
Travis you are a kind, amazing person: you listen, you are patient, & you want to help. Your understanding of health is essentially on a different planet. From every moving part, you’ve let me explore my issues in my own time and way, with no pressure that might make me feel overwhelmed. You put enormous amounts of effort into every single thing you do. I’m forever grateful for the help you have given me over the years.
There’s no agenda or bias with Travis, only what works, he is the real deal.”
Brooke Collins
U.K.
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Thank you for this wonderful gift!“
Krystie Kyes
USA
Erica: “A life-changing practitioner to work with. “
“I’ve been working with Travis for over a year. I can’t over-emphasize the influence he has had on my life, on my health, and my happiness. I started working with Travis just as I came down with a chronic health condition called gastroparesis (“GP”). I was convinced by the medical community, scientific literature, and the general consensus of anyone who has this condition that I would have it for life, and at the very best be able to manage my symptoms with medication and drastic, permanent dietary changes.
Over the past year, Travis helped me recover from an all time low with my health. Working with Travis gave me the gift of no longer believing I’ll suffer from a chronic health condition the rest of my life. It allowed me to be able to eat foods I wasn’t sure I could safely eat again, be able to feel energy I wasn’t sure would return, be able to have substantial periods of time where I’m healthy & feeling great and to experience my health continuously (but not linearly) improving.
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Erica Mulford
USA
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