Is this you?
... feeling betrayed by your body, regretful and now taking medication?
About 66% of U.S. adults take prescription drugs. Nearly 70% of Americans are on at least one prescription drug, and more than half take two. The most commonly prescribed drugs are antibiotics, antidepressants, and painkilling opioids. Recent Civic Science poll results reveal that the number of U.S. adults who report taking at least one prescription medication per day is now 70%. Nearly 7 in 10 adults aged 40–79 used at least 1 prescription drug in the past 30 days in the United States.
My guess is you’re not alone.
If you’re a health professional whether nurse, pharmacist, specialist or in complementary care … there’s a good chance you’re familiar with these statistics.
Yesterday, I heard a radio commercial for life insurance that OPENED with the statement that nearly everyone is taking medication for:
depression
anxiety
high blood pressure
cholesterol
OR are regularly vaccinated
As of May, 2024, at least 270,227,181 people or 81% of the population have received at least one dose for COVID.
Overall, 230,637,348 people or 70% of the population are considered fully vaccinated against COVID.
Based on the Civic Science poll and other statistical reports, that radio commercial claim isn’t far off. Nearly 70% of mid-life adults take at least one medication. And as Georgetown University Health Policy Institute explains, most adults are diagnosed with one of five common chronic health conditions — diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, arthritis, and cancer — and currently take a prescribed drug. For example, 89 percent of people living with arthritis and 98 percent of people with diabetes use medications.
If that doesn’t seem too farfetched, take a look at these reported numbers on children:
All Psychiatric Drugs 0-17 Years 6,155,852
0-5 Years 418,425
Age Breakdown:
0-1 Years 85,003
2-3 Years 138,822
4-5 Years 215,120
6-12 Years 2,652,554
13-17 Years 3,188,966
Question. If pharmaceutical intervention is benefitting human life, why are SO many of us managing some kind of health issue or unsuccessfully doing what we can to prevent it?
I claim unsuccessfully because according to Hopkin’s Medicine, breakthrough COVID infections after being vaccinated are being reported at 1 in 100.
And why aren’t the recommended healthy living suggestions making a dent in these facts?
What’s going on that human life is SO stinking compromised?
It’s quite simple. The human system is continually stimulated to protect itself. While environmental threats such as heavy metals, pollution, nanoparticles and other chemicals in the products you use are impacting your health … emotional reactions are AS BIG of a threat to your wellbeing!
Anytime the survival of anything in nature is threatened, changes to the epigenome occur so that the organism is able to protect and repair itself when necessary.
Necessary is an important word!
It’s not ALWAYS necessary for your system to protect and repair itself. The stress response is meant to be an ‘on again, off again’ mechanism. And even though you cannot control a majority of the environmental factors, you do have the ability to control your emotional reactions.
Look at your health like a story.
Your system is the agonist - the hero being attacked by antagonists (external chemicals and your emotions).
Now consider this.
You are host to 38 trillion and 380 trillion bacteria and viruses, respectively … plus fungi … all life forms. The agonist reaction of your system becomes the antagonist to the microbes in and on your body … because every one of ‘us’ life forms is the hero in our own survival story.
The winner is the one that adapts accordingly!
Humans are not adapting for the health of it. We’re seeking to control everything and everyone else BUT our emotional selves!
The result? Discomfort. Disorder. Disease. And the necessary technology (medication and vaccines) which pose the next threat to the microbes in and on your body.
The story becomes a never-ending battle … and the Pulitzer Prize goes to the bacteria, virus and fungi which manifests into countless health concerns depending on the individual body:
Dysbiosis
Periodontal disease
Struggles with weight
Low energy / fatigue
Food sensitivity
Allergies
Blood sugar issues including diabetes
High cholesterol
Chronic inflammation
Vaginal infections
Digestive discomfort and disorders
Athlete’s foot
Higher susceptibility to colds, flu, etc
While managing stress matters, as does addressing whatever health conditions, you’re living with, it’s important to note that taking medications whether over the counter or prescribed has side effects.
This is because the prolonged attempt to control a concern is a stressor which produces an inflammatory reaction.
The medication is viewed as the agonist. Control is the antagonist. Now the hero of your story needs backup due to the backlash.
Medication has its place. The problem we face is they activate a positive feedback loop in the body. As I’ve mentioned in a post about a client coming off anxiety medication, positive feedback is an action for the purpose of producing an outcome. The trouble with medication is the body is constantly being stimulated to ‘right a wrong’ which cannot be sustained without the medication to continually activate the actions.
Self-regulation is the secret sauce for sustaining better health which happens when a negative feedback loop is introduced to offset the stimulation being exerted.
Add emotional and environmental distress (also known as endocrine disrupting chemicals EDC’s) to the equation, and the math is easy. We live in a world of overstimulated bodies.
Here’s your reason why popular self-care suggestions intended to alleviate stress are insufficient.
Stress is a chemical reaction with many factors triggering the stimulation that affect your moods, energy levels, inflammation and thoughts. Until you get to the ROOT of your emotional reactions … like digging in to realize the wisdom meant for you … attempting to control perceived stress with yoga, meditation, physical movement, breath, diet, creative projects and whatever else you do to take a breather, it’s not enough to sustain the outcome.
Yes, it is negative feedback. However, your genes are home to the energy (some call this memory) of your lineage along with the circumstances of this life.
The miracle of Nature is why these this matters.
It’s the energy of survival. That’s it But, we don’t think of it as such. The more popular explanation is generational trauma, trauma, conditioning and programming. The latter two work when you maintain the idea that Nature programmed your system with the energy you needed for the sake of protection.
Why are we so prone to negativity? Survival | Protection
Limited thinking is a safety feature.
This means doing what it takes to discard the judgment and holding the thought that EVERYTHING about you is absolutely necessary so that you can survive this world. As long as you’re reading this … you are surviving life.
You may have a difficult wrapping your head around this, and that’s ok. Pure acceptance is a vital step that offers your system a negative feedback reset.
Pure acceptance activates ease.
However, a gap between reactions and responses remains, which is the reason common self-care strategies are temporary at best. You must assist the brain with slowing down the positive activity long enough to disrupt the chemical signaling producing emotional reactions.
Emotions are necessary. What you do with them determines everything about your life from health and relationships to career decisions and so on.
Genuine essential oils mark the difference in your life.
The common story suggests they are a natural solution for relieving certain symptoms and stress. Some people encourage their use for lowering inflammation. All accurate beliefs, yet not entirely fact-based.
Correct when your use of them aligns with an ‘as needed’ practice. There is nothing wrong with this approach. We’ve been using remedies in this manner for thousands of years. So, why fix it, if it’s not broken?
Well … it is. The system is broken. If it wasn’t, MILLIONS of U.S. adults and children would not be taking medications for long-term reasons.
What’s the missing piece? The DAILY integration of genuine essential oils as negative feedback. The chemicals within them supports various cellular reactions and the reason you have medication.
The global essential oils market is being driven by the rising production and availability of the products. In 2023, the essential oils market valued at USD 10.59 billion. It is expected to further grow at a CAGR of 9.6% between 2024 and 2032 to reach a value of USD 24.16 billion by 2032.
They find their applications in:
Flavor and Fragrance ~ which is explained in an article I wrote regarding the legal loopholes that allow for this
Industrial
Pharmaceuticals
Do they help with symptoms? Without question BUT symptoms are the last thing to consider when taking prescription meds. Adverse effects already exist with them. Duplicating the actions of the medication increases the chances of even more or worse!
And I get it. If one thing is not cutting it, then complementing it with something else makes sense. Yet, your body is a walking chemistry lab with many reactions happening all at once. Attention to this detail will become the agonist in your health story rather than the antagonist.
If the idea of combining oils with medications raises questions, consider the following statement from a peer reviewed study: Enzyme inhibition, reduction of ATP and DNA synthesis and alteration of metabolic pathways are other mechanisms by which EOs and pure volatile compounds act in synergy with conventional antibiotics against Gram-negative bacteria. It’s a simple confirmation that you don’t need to use oils to kill bacteria. Being thoughtful about your choices effectively neutralizes the problem.
As I gather the science for my reference book, essential oil constituents are being studied for both their independent and synergistic effects when paired with medications.
The excerpt may reflect an ‘as needed’ treatment, but you are host to 38 trillion bacteria which are as susceptible to your stress as you are. The intentional daily use of genuine oils is a remedy that now becomes both an adjunct to your current medical treatment and the empowerment your system needs to support better health in the future.
Bridge the gap between reactions and responses and the quality of your health is no longer determined by the past.
Integrating oils daily inspires life within your cells.