NAET: Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Technique - A Useful Energy Medicine Technique

I prefer using the term "sensitivity" as opposed to allergy since many times standard allergy testing may fail to demonstrate a classic allergic response even when the patient clearly has a reaction to the offending substance.

This discordance suggests another mechanism underlying the reaction. It is much like the case of trying to push the same poles of a magnet together, they repell each other. This is a figurative way of thinking about energetic imbalances, which this technique evaluates and treats. Another way of thinking about it is as in the case of putting the batteries in an appliance the wrong way. The energy in the battery is there, it's just not making the proper connection. It needs adjusting in order to allow the proper energy flow to happen and allow the appliance to function.

Muscle response testing is used to determine if a given substance causes a stress response (a weakened indicator muscle) as well as which acupuncture meridians (energy channels) are affected. Treatment is then applied using acupressure (not needle acupuncture) to points aligned alongside the spine. The patient then must avoid that substance for 25 hours and is muscle tested again on the subsequent visit to insure the previous substance no longer causes a weak muscle response.

Within the NAET protocol, fifteen fundamental substances have been found to be universally weakening in most people. Clearing these fifteen substances then is the basic requirement of all new NAET patients. Thereafter, known offending substances such as particular chemicals, foods or pollens like mountain cedar or rag weed, etc. are tested and treated as necessary. If need be, standard allergy testing may also be ordered to determine other potential sources of irritation for subsequent treatment.

Severe, life threatening allergies such as to peanut, certain medications and such are managed differently as these processes are typically very deeply entrenched. Treatment is still offered using a modification of the general technique, but with the goal of reducing the severity of symptoms associated with accidental exposures and not for the ultimate ability to eat or be exposed to that substance on a routine basis.

NAET has been successfully used to help manage problems ranging from nasal allergy, asthma and hives to unusual symptoms not typically thought to be related to allergy or sensitivity.

As part of a comprehensive management plan for a variety of situations, NAET stands out as a unique and effective energy medicine technique.

Allergy Testing and Immunotherapy

All dogs scratch themselves at times, but if you find that your animal scratches himself non-stop during the springtime, then the problem might be allergies. The first thing you should do when you notice your dog scratching much more than usual is to give him a flea and tick bath. Fleas and ticks are the most common reason that dogs scratch and a simple flea and tick shampoo should do the trick. If after repeated bathing your pet is still scratching himself, then it is time to confront his allergies head on.

What are you options?

Many pet owners simply decide to subject their dogs to steroid treatments. While steroids can get rid of the problem, they have a number of side effects and are often very unpleasant for you animal. No, the best way to treat your furry friend is to find out exactly what he is allergic to. Once the veterinarian discovers this, he can have a medication made that will instantly help reduce allergies and keep you friend comfortable and happy.

In the next few paragraphs, we will be discussing the most common methods used by vets to determine what allergies your pet has.

Diet Trial

The first thing the veterinarian will do after he has checked your dog for fleas or ticks is to examine your pet's diet. Make sure you bring all his foods and snacks with you. Oftentimes an allergic food reaction comes from the introduction of a new type of food into your dog's diet.

Once the vet has determined that you pet does in fact have food allergies, he will immediate put him on a prescription diet that is often known as an elimination diet. These diets include ingredients like meat, fish, lamb, and potato. It is called the elimination because if your pet improves while he is on it, that means he has food allergies.

After that, your pet's normal diet is re-introduced one food at a time. Once the symptoms of his food allergy reoccur, the allergy is identified and you can simply stop feeding your pet that food.

Skin Testing

If it is believed that your pet's allergies are not caused by food, then skin or intradermal testing may be required. This is a test that is quite common and can be performed by any vet. It is also considered the most reliable and accurate way to identify pet allergies.

The test itself is simple and fairly painless for your pet. To start, a small section of hair is shaved bare and markings are made on the skin in a certain pattern. At each marking, an allergic substance is injected. In a day or two, the skin is checked by your vet for signs of allergy. If the skin is red or discolored, the likelihood is that you pet is allergic to one of the specific injected substances. If there is no discoloration, that means you may have missed something earlier and that something in your pet's diet is the culprit.

Blood Tests

Blood tests for pet allergies are probably the most popular method because they can be performed right there in your veterinarians office and there's a fast turnaround. The test is simple and it works by measuring a particular substance in the immune system known as IgE. If the IgE levels are higher than they should be with regard to a suspected allergen, then you pet is allergic to that substance.

Treating the Allergy

Once the allergen is identified, a treatment plan can be determined by your veterinarian. The most common treatment is a vaccine that will be injected into your animal over a period of several weeks. Gradually you will notice that your dog is scratching less and less and that his symptoms are going away.

Sleep Disorders and Indoor Air Pollution: Is There A Link?

Fortunately, the answer appears to be 'yes'. Sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, twitching, and snoring affect millions of people every day. Until now, sleep disorder causes have been primarily focused on abnormalities or malfunctions in the body, genetic causes, and obesity. However, as people are finding varying degrees of relief from sleep disorders by cleaning up the indoor air in their sleeping areas, indoor air pollution is now being seen as potentially the main culprit. And that's good news, because indoor air pollution is something that can be fixed fairly easily.

More and more, the occurrence of snoring or other sleep disorders is being found directly related to the amount of airborne particles / chemicals present in the air. As recently as March of 2012, there was a study done by American Innovative Research Corporation with people that have COPD, testing to see if reducing / eliminating indoor air pollutants had an effect on sleep. The results showed conclusively that the test subjects who had an air cleaning system in the sleeping area got relatively good or better sleep and had less breathing issues the following day. Similar results have been found with regard to snoring. By cleaning up the air pollution in the home, there is less irritation of the tissues in the airway, which reduces inflammation and allows the airway to remain more open (without these tissues touching while air goes past, which is what causes the snoring sound).

One air pollutant known to get in the way of 'good sleep' is mold. Mold produces spores and mycotoxins, both of which cause all sorts of allergy-type reactions when they enter the nose, throat, bronchial and lung areas. There are serious health issues that can result from prolonged exposure to mold, but the more obvious immediate problem is inflammation of the tissues in the airway, which is one thing that tends to cause sleep interruptions. Does mold have a link to sleep apnea? Mold in the home may not cause sleep apnea, but as Dr. Steven Park states,"if you have an underlying sleep-breathing problem such as obstructive sleep apnea, you'll be extra sensitive to molds compared with someone without sleep apnea." Wondering how to test for mold in your home? Simple mold air test kits are available to answer that question. These mold air test kits feature a test strip you rub on the wall, mail off in a postage paid envelope and in a few days you'll know for sure if your home has mold spores floating around, or not.

What else can you do to get good sleep? Well, instead of taking herbs, an easy, natural sleep aid is a quality air purifier that is 1) designed for removing mold spores / mycotoxins, and 2) quiet enough to be used in a sleeping area. One "sleep-oriented' air purifier that is we have found perfect for mold concerns and cleaning up the air in your home in general is the Blueair 450E. This air purifier features a powerful HEPA filter that removes up to 99.99% of particles, healthy negative ions to further purify the air, activated carbon to remove chemical vapors, and an available lifetime warranty. And it's very quiet. Don't forget, however, if you have mold, you may also have a leak somewhere where moisture has allowed mold to grow in your home and that's a problem that needs to be found and fixed. Let us know if you need more information on mold removal.

As always, if you have any questions, give us a call at 1-800-701-2513. The expert staff at Air Purifiers and Cleaners.com is standing by to help.

Reactions and Allergies

The word allergy comes from two Greek words: "allos" meaning other and "ergon" meaning work. Allergic reactions are abnormal over-reactions by the immune system to harmless, protein substances called allergens, which are contacted through the skin, inhaled or injected. An allergen is a substance that causes an allergy.

Common Allergens:

• Animal dander. This is material shed from the body such as feathers, dried skin, hair and feathers)


• Bee stings


• Foods, especially nuts, fish, shellfish


• Insect bites


• Medications


• Plants


• Pollen.

Causes:

Allergic reactions can be caused by two main factors: host factors or environmental factors.

Host factors:

• Hereditary; the likelihood of developing an allergy is inherited but the specific allergen to which you are allergic is not inherited.


• Sex: boys are at a higher risk of sensitivity than girls (except in the case of asthma).


• Race, although this may be as much to do with to environmental factors as race itself.


• Age: younger children are at greater risk of sensitivity.

Environmental factors:

• Exposure to infectious diseases in early childhood


• Pollution


• Allergen levels


• Dietary changes

Symptoms:

• Skin:




• Redness


• Itching


• Inflammation


• Blistering


• Weeping


• Crusting


• Rash


• Eruptions


• Hives (which are itchy bumps or welts)


• Lungs:


• Wheezing


• Tightness


• Chest discomfort


• Difficulty breathing


• Difficulty swallowing


• Coughing


• Shortness of breath




• Head:


• Swelling of face, eyelids, tongue, lips and throat


• Redness


• Headaches


• Dizziness or light-headedness


• Weakness


• Anxiety, apprehension or fear


• Nose:


• Blocked or stuffy nose


• Nasal congestion


• Runny nose


• Sneezing


• Eyes:


• Red and bloodshot


• Itchy


• Swollen


• Watery


• Stomach:


• Pain


• Cramps


• Nausea


• Vomiting


• Diarrhoea


• Bloody Diarrhoea


• Severe reactions:


• Unconsciousness


• Anaphylaxis


• Shock

In severe cases anaphylaxis can occur and this requires immediate medical attention. It is a combination of other allergic symptoms that appear rapidly and are potentially life-threatening. It can induce shock; one sign of shock is that organs don't get enough blood, and therefore oxygen and nutrients, due to very low blood pressure. The person may appear red or pale, sweaty or dry, confused, anxious or they may be unconscious. The person also has difficulty breathing. Anaphylactic shock is caused by sudden dilation or widening of many, or several large, blood vessels brought on by the action of chemical mediators. A sudden drop in blood pressure can lead to unconsciousness, cardiac arrest or death.

At the moment there is a theory called the hygiene hypothesis which has been "extensively investigated by immunologists and epidemiologists". It involves the idea that people who live in too sterile environments are not exposed to enough pathogens to keep their immune system busy so it over-reacts to normally harmless substances. There is some evidence to show that allergic diseases are more common in industrialised countries or urban areas rather than more traditional agricultural countries or rural areas. Also, using antibiotics to treat babies under 1 year old has been linked to an increase in asthma and other allergies, as has the use of antibacterial cleaning products.

The Immune Response:

In an allergic reaction the immune system recognises the particles (such as dust or pollen) as foreign and initiates a two-phase immune response. The first phase is called the acute response and occurs immediately after exposure to the allergen. T-lymphocyte cells, which are white blood cells involved in immune response, recognise the allergen as foreign and produce cytokines (these are similar to hormones and are involved in cellular communication). Cytokines stimulate another type of white blood cell, called B-lymphocytes, to produce specific antibodies (antibodies are proteins with a variable region that has a complementary shape to a specific antigen). In allergic reactions the specific antibody is called immunoglobulin E or IgE. IgE binds to special IgE receptors on mast cells and basophiles. Mast cells are found in connective tissues while basophiles circulate in the blood; both are involved in inflammatory responses. This first stage is known as sensitisation because the body is now sensitive to a particular, normally harmless, particle. Therefore when the body encounters the substance again, the allergen (substance) binds to the IgE which is on the surface of mast cells and basophiles. This activates the mast cells and basophiles to release histamine, from stores known as granules, into surrounding tissues. Histamine causes:

• Blood vessels to dilate so blood pressure drops.


• Stimulates glands in the nose and respiratory passages to produce mucous, also known as phlegm.


• Mucous membranes, which line the nose and respiratory passages, to swell because fluid leaks out of the blood vessels.


• It stimulates nerves.


• Smooth muscle contraction. (In asthma the muscles surrounding the windpipe contract narrowing the airways and increasing the resistance to air flow so breathing is difficult.)

The second phase in the immune response is called the late-phase response. This normally occurs 2-24 hours after the acute response, once the chemical mediators such as the cytokines, have subsided. The chemicals released earlier by the mast cells attract other types of inflammatory immune cells including neutrophils, lymphocytes and macrophages, to the site. These produce chemicals and other, generally toxic, substances that irritate the body. Neutrophils also release chemicals and enzymes which break down proteins causing further tissue damage.

Treatment:

For mild cases:

First aid can be administered before further medical help arrives. This includes:

- Calming and reassuring the person: anxiety can often worsen symptoms.
- Identifying the allergen and if possible removing it and avoiding further contact.
- Applying calamine lotion, a cool compress or cortisone cream to rashes.

Oral antihistamines can be taken but these have adverse side effects including making you drowsy and affecting your concentration so you aren't allowed to drive or operate machinery if you are on them. They should only be taken for a few days. For rashes anti-inflammatory steroid cream or cold wet cloths can be applied to cool the area.

For severe cases:

Emergency medical help should be sought, don't wait to see if the symptoms worsen, because they can worsen very rapidly so it is better to get medical attention as quickly as possible. Again first aid can be administered while you wait for further help to arrive:

- If they are unconscious use DR. ABC. This stands for danger, response, airways, breathing, and circulation.
- Danger: First check that you aren't endangering yourself or the other person. Remove any dangerous objects that may be around.
- Response: Call their name and introduce yourself (even if the person knows you well) watch for any response either verbal or movement.
- Airways: Check that their airway is clear, removing any objects that may be obstructing the airways (such as chewing gum), tilt the head back slightly to open the airways.
- Breathing: Check that the person is breathing by placing your head close to their mouth and nose, listening and feeling for breath or moisture. If they aren't breathing then you should begin mouth to mouth resuscitation by pinching their nose and placing you own mouth over theirs creating a seal, then breathe hard into their mouth.
- Circulation: To check that the person's heart is still beating, find the pulse in their neck which should be just to the side of the windpipe. If there is no pulse begin Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by doing chest compressions to try to pump the heart. (If they aren't breathing either include breaths as well)
- If the person is awake calm them and reassure them.
- Identify and remove the allergen where possible.
- Administer emergency medication if the person has it, for example an auto-injector with a pre-measured dose of the drug epinephrine (Epipen)
- To treat shock lie them flat (unless it causes discomfort or makes breathing difficult) and raise the person's feet, keep them warm.

Medical treatment for severe allergic reactions may include providing oxygen support or even artificial ventilation. Also fluids may be injected in to veins (intravenously-IV) to help raise the blood pressure.

For more long-term treatments antihistamines can be prescribed such as cetirizine (Zyrtec), fexofenadine (Allegra) and loratadine (Claritin). Nasal corticosteroids can be prescribed for persistent nasal symptoms; these include fluticasone (flonase), mometasone (Nasonex) and triamcinolone (Nasacort). For more severe cases Epinephrine can be injected as this acts as a bronchodilator (it widens the bronchus and bronchioles which are part of the windpipe). Epinephrine also constricts blood vessels so blood pressure increases. Inhalers can also be prescribed and antihistamines can be given intravenously or intra-muscularly to counter the histamine that the body has produced. Corticosteroids can be given intravenously for a rapid reversal of the effects of the chemical mediators produced by the body.

For people with persistent or disruptive allergy symptoms immunotherapy can be given. Immunotherapy reduces the severity of the reaction or eliminates hypersensitivity altogether. There are several different methods of immunotherapy:

1. Allergy shots. These alter the immune response which prevents future reactions. They are administered as a series of shots containing increasing amounts of the specific antigen to which the person is allergic. The person should then become desensitised.


2. Another method is to progressively distort the production of another antibody called Immunoglobulin G which blocks the excessive Immunoglobulin E production. This means that the person builds up increasing immunity to increasing amounts of the allergen.


3. Intravenous injections can be given, containing monoclonal anti-IgE antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies are antibodies against one specific antigen produced by a cloned hybridoma cell. (Hybridoma cells are B lymphocyte cells fused with myeloma cells) These monoclonal anti-IgE antibodies bind to free and B-lymphocyte-associated IgE, which signals their destruction. They don't bind to IgE that is already on mast cells as this would stimulate an allergic reaction.


4. Sublingual immunotherapy. This can be administered orally and it takes advantage of oral immune tolerance to non-pathogenic antigens such as food and bacteria. In other words the immune system doesn't attack these antigens.

Prevention:

One of the best ways to prevent allergic reactions is to identify what triggers them and then avoid or remove the triggers as much as possible.

Tests:

Skin tests: These tests are more sensitive, simpler and cheaper than blood testing. It involves exposing the skin to small amounts of various substances, or suspected allergens and assesses the presence of IgE antibodies. The substance can be injected intradermally (into the skin). If you are allergic to that substance then a visible inflammatory reaction occurs within 30 minutes. There is a scale of severity where +/- means borderline reactivity and +4 means a large reaction. These tests are usually carried out on the forearm or the back.

Blood tests:
Blood tests measure the total IgE level by estimating the amount of IgE in the serum.

Allergic Reactions due to body piercings:

People can get allergic reactions from body piercings for two reasons: they are allergic to the metal or they are allergic to a product used as part of aftercare treatment.

Metal allergy due to inferior jewellery:
Symptoms include:

• Redness


• Itchy


• Burning


• Tender


• Highly inflamed around the piercing


• Localised dermatitis


• Granulation tissue where visible


• Opening of the piercing appears significantly larger then the jewellery


• The tissue around the piercing appears to retreat from the piercing.

This can be treated by using biocompatible jewellery such as Titanium or a low-porosity plastic like Tygon or PTFE.

Often the jewellery can cause problems because it is poor quality or you are sensitive to it and have allergic reactions. If you catch an infection then you must eliminate the reservoir which is often the jewellery. Cheap nickel or brass commonly triggers allergic reactions and in some cases antibiotics may be needed. Alloys of gold, copper, silver and trace metals can also be irritating and prevent complete healing, therefore it may be better opting for more expensive but good quality jewellery such as titanium which is inert and used in internal surgery although it must be highly polished to reduce its porosity. Implant grade stainless steel is good as well because it is least likely to produce an allergic reaction or an infection. The implant grade stainless steel must be approved by ASTM and meet standard 316L and 316LM.

The American Society for Testing Materials or ASTM was originally set up 100years ago by engineers to standardise steel used in railways. Now it is used for standardising many other things as well. A standard is a document which is developed and established within consensus principles of an organisation which meets the requirements of ASTM procedures and regulations. It is usually developed by the people who have a stake in the standard's development or use. The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) is the European equivalent of ASTM. "Isos" is also the Greek word for equal which is also why it is called ISO as the actual words translate differently in different languages. Standards ensure desirable characteristics of products and services such as quality, environmental friendliness, safety, reliability and efficiency. It is recommended that titanium used in jewellery should meet ASTM standard F67, F136 or better, whereas steel should meet ASTM F138, F1537 or better and it should only be worn temporarily and only in healed piercings. 24 karat gold and platinum alloyed with Iridium or Ruthenium are biologically inert but they are heavy, soft and easily scratched and damaged. 18 Karat gold (75% gold) can be used in new piercings and 14 karat gold in healed ones, but gold-filled or plated jewellery should be avoided as the metal is thin and wears away or is chipped easily. Silver is bad as it tarnishes and can be deposited so that it permanently darkens and stains the skin. However, sterling silver is OK in most piercings but not in places where the skin is moist such as the mouth or genitals.

Product allergy:

Symptoms:

• Delayed healing


• Localised irritation


• Redness


• Localised dermatitis


• Seeping


• Expansion of piercing channel

To treat this you should stop using the aftercare or your current care regime and use a milder product with less aftercare.

Anaphylactic Shock Requires Immediate Allergy Treatment

While most forms of allergy only cause misery, an extreme reaction to an allergen can possibly result in death. Those who suffer this type of allergy reaction, commonly referred to as anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock, must receive allergy treatment immediately. It is important to recognize the symptoms of anaphylaxis so you can offer the lifesaving treatment these people need.

Anaphylaxis can occur when a person is exposed to a substance they are allergic to. There reactions come on quickly and their symptoms are often life threatening. Perhaps the most common forms of allergic reaction that results in anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock are those from bee stings.

However, patients with food allergies who ingest a food they are allergic to can also suffer an anaphylactic reaction. It should be noted there is a difference between the terms anaphylaxis and anaphylactic shock. Anaphylaxis refers simply to a severe allergy reaction while anaphylactic shock is the most extreme form of anaphylaxis. This type of shock will result in death in just a few moments if help is not sought right away.

Symptoms of anaphylaxis include trouble breathing, low blood pressure, itching, and swelling of the mouth, face, neck and throat. The allergy sufferer may also become flushed, develop hives or even become unconscious. The most dangerous symptom is the swelling around the throat which can cause the airway to become restricted. Because of this swelling, rescue breathing - which is the part of CPR where one person helps the other person breathe - may not be successful.

If you or someone you know is prone to anaphylaxis be prepared in case you suffer a reaction. Be sure those around you know what to do in the case you have a reaction and aren't able to speak. For those who suffer these reactions regularly, you doctor may prescribe an anaphylaxis kit. These kits include a shot of epinephrine which can help save a person suffering from a severe reaction.

The epinephrine is a form of adrenaline that speeds up your heart beat and helps keep your airways from constricting. If your doctor prescribes a kit for you, keep it with you at all times. Also, check it regularly to make sure the shot is still in date as an out of date shot may not be potent enough to help your reaction.

If you suspect someone is suffering anaphylaxis and they don't have an epinephrine shot, there are some things you can do to help them. First, get them to a hospital or medical facility as soon as possible. If necessary, call an ambulance, they may be able to get to you more quickly than you can drive to the hospital.

While you are waiting for the ambulance, try giving the person an antihistamine such as diphenhydramine (Benadryl). This will combat the histamines that are causing the reaction. Liquid diphenhydramine is best, but if all you have are capsules, break the capsules open and give the person the powder out of them directly. This way the medicine will immediately enter the person's bloodstream instead of having to wait for the capsule to dissolve.

Anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock are both dangerous, possibly life threatening situations. Be familiar with the symptoms of this dangerous condition so that you can recognize if someone is suffering anaphylaxis and you can get this person the allergy treatment they need.

Is There a Link Between Allergies and Autoimmune Disorders?

Amy was diagnosed with thrombocytopenia - a severe loss in blood platelets. A normal count for our blood platelets ranges from 150,000 to 450,000 per μl. Amy's level had dropped down to 3000 per μl - very dangerous. As a result, she didn't have enough platelets to prevent bleeding, so she was losing blood both internally and externally.

Because such a condition is life treating, Amy had to be given blood platelet transfusions and other medicines to try to restore her platelet count.

There are at least a dozen known causes for Thrombocytopenia. Amy's doctors theorized that her thrombocytopenia was caused by a viral or bacterial infection, and thus gave her large doses of antibiotics. After four days without improvement though, Amy's anemia was turning her complexion chalk white and her family asked for an alternative opinion.

AK (Applied Kinesiology) muscle testing did not support the theory that Amy's problem was virally or bacterially induced. It appeared more accurate that Amy's immune system was causing her thrombocytopenia by systematically destroying her blood platelets.

Autoimmune disorders have long been a puzzle to science. Although many theories have been proposed to explain autoimmune disorders, in the end most are regarded as idiopathic - meaning we don't have any concrete explanation for them.

Thrombocytopenia is one of more than 100 autoimmune disorders that can show up whenever our immune system becomes too sluggish or stops working altogether. In worse case scenarios, like Amy's, our immune system can attack us directly - as though we are no longer the host in our own body, and have instead become its enemy.

ACT, short for Applied Consciousness Therapy, offers an easy to understand yet difficult-to-research explanation as to why our autoimmune disorders exist. It begins by reminding us that "who we are" as an energetic being has a relationship with all parts of our body, including one with our immune system. It would be nice if we were compatible in each of our relationships. Unfortunately we are not. In some of them we are only neutral. In others still, we are totally and utterly incompatible.

ACT defines allergies as any adverse response we have to any relationship we are not 100% energetically compatible with. Such would be the case if we were not fully compatible in our relationship with our immune system, and as a result it was doing something very wicked in our body - like eating up our blood platelets!

OK, you might ask - BUT WHY would this so-called "core essence" of ours decide to create an incompatible relationship with one or more of our body systems?

And the most obvious answer is because HOW OUR PHYSIOLOGY OPERATES HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH HOW WE FEEL ABOUT OURSELVES. Not all of us completely love our selves. Some of us can't stand our self. And not all of us feel that we are good people either. Some of us feel that we are terrible human beings, that we have amassed an ungodly amount of bad karma, and that we deserve to be punished!

Imagine that! And yet who is it that is supposed to be doing all this punishing? Ya think there's some committee that goes door to door and ekes out our punishments? Heck no! Our punishments come from within. It is how we execute our negative self-judgments.

The idea that negative self-judgment accounts for our disorders is not new. The difficulty is that we don't have any scientific meters that can measure the degree to which we are psychically participating in any form of self-punishment. Until such meters are developed all we have are tools like AK and ACT and a hope that the AK technicians are skilled enough to help us accurately measure our emotions and self-perceptions.

Luckily though, there are no known adverse reactions in AK or in ACT, only good outcomes. Case in point - after only one treatment using the ACT protocol Amy's blood platelet level raised to 87,000. After a second ACT treatment it raised to 125,000. After a third treatment her blood platelet level normalized at 157,000 per μl.

And after three years, Amy's platelet count remains quite healthy and stable.

Is this proof positive of the efficacy of ACT? Heavens no. ACT needs many more trials before we will truly see a cause and effect relationship between its protocol and results.

In the meantime, Amy doesn't care if her recovery was a coincidence. She doesn't care if it was placebo or shamanism --- OR --- if she stumbled onto one helluva great new tool in the world of allergies. All she knows is her thrombocytopenia is gone, she's alive, and she's lovin' life again!

A Stuffed Nose Equals Possible Allergy

For years, I used to wake up every morning with a stuffed-up nose. I used to think I had the type of body constitution that was naturally susceptible to colds. But I wondered why, despite all my precautions to keep warm before bedtime, I would still wake up with a stuffed-up nose in the morning. I always asked myself, I don't feel like I have a cold but why is my nose stuffy?

I finally discovered the reason why about a year and a half ago. It was an allergy. Apparently, having a stuffed-up nose when you wake up in the morning is a sure sign of an allergy. So it wasn't an all-year-round cold after all. I was surprised. I always thought that allergies only affected the skin, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Ok, so I had an allergy. The next step was to find out the source of my allergy. A doctor can help you by administering a series of tests. The most common medical method is by scraping your skin and dabbing it with some substance in order to see the skin's reaction to it. Among the most commonly tested substances are grass and pollen. Sometimes, doctors can try one substance after another before finding out the source of your allergy.

The alternative to visiting a doctor is taking a simple allergy treatment that is probably available over the counter at your local drugstore.

It was my friend, Eric, who told me about these allergy treatments. As a kid, Eric has his share of allergies, especially during spring and summer when his nose was constantly runny and just wouldn't stop twitching all the time. He carried around a box of tissues everywhere he went and, as such, was the constant butt of what he called an endless stream of jokes.

After enduring those daily taunts and his stuffy nose for several years, Eric finally discovered that he was allergic to hay (he lived on a farm) and as soon as he started taking allergy treatments regularly, his nose problems stopped. And thankfully, so did the teasing of his neighbors and classmates.