I have to be honest and say that in the last few weeks I have seriously doubted my decision to have my amalgams removed. I latched onto the positive, and chose to ignore the possible negative side effects that I might experience once they were removed.
I do feel total confidence in the dentist I chose, that he was qualified to do the job correctly, and that he protected me to the full extent that is possible. I had the materials sensitivity testing done; my dentist used materials to which I was least reactive. I knew that even though I was protected and did everything the right way, my body might react to the removal.
Even though I knew my body might react negatively, I chose to focus on what I’d read in Dr. Hal Huggins’ book (*Amazon affiliate link) It’s All in Your Head: The Link Between Mercury Amalgams and Illness where he said that some people feel great after they have their amalgams removed. Some people’s thyroids start to work properly and their temperatures rise to normal 98.6°F. I chose to be optimistic. I chose to push away fears of the unknown as well as the possibility of what might happen get in my way. It was hard enough to make the appointments and keep the appointments!
It helped tremendously that I felt better after helped that I felt better after the first removal. Unfortunately, I began to feel worse after the second removal as I wrote in my last update post: My Latest Cherry on my GAPS Cake – Thyroid Support.
Things were going along just fine since starting on GAPS. Lots of little aches and pains subsided or went away entirely. My feet stopped hurting and I could wear pretty feminine shoes. My back stopped hurting… prior to GAPS when I was in bed too long (7 hours was the “limit”) my back would seize up, but now I can stay in bed for 10 hours or longer if I want. For someone who loves to read in bed at night before sleeping you don’t know how much I missed being able to do that. I was functioning well in my daily life.
Although I don’t know that I’ve ever had “normal” or shall I say “optimal” levels of energy, I was feeling much better after being on GAPS for a few months. Looking back on my life, I believe my energy levels were lower than normal. I remember when I was in grade school in the fourth grade hating to run and hating P.E. When we played softball I would volunteer to be the one that went way, way, way out in the field because no one ever hit balls that far and I could just sit down in the grass and look for four leafed clovers. I read many, many books in my childhood as that was my past time of choice – laying down and reading.
In the last three decades as an adult I experienced bouts of energy, and came to the realization they were hormonally connected. While tracking my fertility I discovered that these bursts of energy coincided with the few days prior to my cycle beginning. It’s hard to keep your house clean when you only have good energy two or three days a month. In my 40s those urges started to come less and less, maybe once every three or four months. That makes it even harder!! Now that I’ve entered menopause I rarely feel those bursts of energy…
My point in saying all that is to relate that I have never had much energy. Still – I felt TONS better while on the GAPS Diet.
Then I had amalgams removed, began this chelating protocol and my energy levels dropped to the point that I began to lose entire days. I managed to continue working at my regular job, but thankfully I work at a computer, so am seated most of the time. What alarmed me was my energy levels dropped to the point where I was having to spend one to two days each weekend in bed.
This caused me to question my decision.
Obviously there’s no going back!!
I must press onward and do the best that I can. Thankfully I think I am past the worst and have figured out how to tweak the protocol so that it is manageable for me.
The Andrew Cutler Chelation Protocol in a Mustard Seed
The days that one uses the chelation medication is referred to as a round. It is recommended to do 3 days on and then give your body a 4 day break to recuperate. Andrew Cutler’s book recommends beginning with a higher dose, but some people have found that most do best beginning at the lower dosage of 12.5mg. DMSA (Dimercaptosuccinic acid) chelates mercury from the body. There is another medication called ALA (alpha lipoic acid) which is not taken until three months after amalgam removal and this removes mercury from the brain as this medication is said to be able to cross the blood brain barrier. My understanding is that you should do DMSA first, then ALA. I have not yet studied up on the ALA part but I think these are taken together. It is recommended to chelate from at least six months to two years or longer, and one is supposed to continue chelating for some time after they feel well to be certain they have moved the mercury out.
Follow me to the 2nd post in this series by clicking here: My Experience with the Cutler Chelation Protocol Part 2. I’m going to share my experience on my first four rounds of the protocol. Eventually I learn what my body needs in order to raise my energy levels.
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