What Adrenal Fatigue Has Taught Me About Life and the Animal Kingdom

But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. Matthew 13:16 (NIV)

You may or may not notice it, but I’ve been MIA on the blogosphere for quite some time—for a good reason.

Well, not quite so good, in fact.

I had to deal with a set of then-mysterious health challenges.

I couldn’t put a finger on what was going on with my body. I was once the picture of near-perfect health. Aside from surviving a birth trauma and having a few health scares from the wear-and-tear experience on the physical plane, I had been blessed with excellent health most of my life. The worst that had ever happened were mostly communicable childhood diseases. I was no Miss Sports Illustrated, but having dropped six dress or pant sizes and a total of forty-two pounds on a tiny frame almost made me feel like one, and others thought so, too—much to my (cha)grin. My energy was at an all-time high, and I had the best blood pressure reading by far, which didn’t happen even with regular workouts. With the best natural nutritional solutions, I didn’t think I’d ever fall ill, let alone develop a chronic condition, even in the midst of the most harrowing time of my life—the Great Recession.

Boy, was I wrong.

The health smackdown and introduction to energy healing

The what-in-Sam-Hill moments began in late 2012 with occasional nightly sniffles and minor congestion. It was puzzling to me because I didn’t normally catch full-blown cold after my weight loss, except once in 2009. I had no sore throat at all. Soon, the stuffiness became a regular occurrence. Then the frequent sneezing. My friends told me that there might be bed bugs in my room. I didn’t think that was the case, and I was right.

A few months later, the unholy trinity of runny nose, congestion, and sneezing became a daily struggle. Allergies hit me something fierce. I had no idea how all this happened. I knew all about seasonal allergies, but not 24/7/365 (or 366) allergies. Prior to this, I had no history of environmental and food allergies. I chalked it up to mold allergy. After all, there were big leaks on the roof of the house I live in. Part of the roof even collapsed in the garage and the area from the kitchen leading to the atrium.

As the roof leaked some more, the more my nose leaked. The more stressors rained down on me, the more fluid drained through my nose. My symptoms worsened after an auto accident in December 2013. A friend and member of a church where I’m employed as a part-time keyboardist asked me how I was doing, and I told her a little bit about what happened. As part of her ministry, she offered free massage therapy. Previously a professional massage therapist trained in acupressure and reflexology, she once had a clinic treating worker’s compensation cases and motor vehicle accidents. A holistic practitioner and a fellow animal lover, she lent me her copy of Diane Stein’s Natural Healing for Dogs and Cats. Her only caveat: disregard the New Age garbage there. She’s of the same persuasion—we both believe that energy healing is far from evil because it comes from God, the source of life force or life energy. After all, it was Jesus, not Satan, who has been going about the Father’s healing business.

I then rediscovered Reiki in Stein’s book. I had heard about it since my first taste of distant energy healing via phone, brought on by pressing life problems, in late winter of 2012. For some unexplainable reason, Reiki was a bit freaky-deaky to me, although I had tried the more outlandish modalities by conventional standards during the phone healing sessions.

Back in nursing school, I dismissed energy medicine as soon as I learned about TTouch. I thought, what was that booga-booga, woo-woo, hocus-pocus [expletive], anyway?

That was just the beginning of my journey in energy-based modalities. It’s amazing how one’s mind flings wide open when confronted with persistent problems. A solution must be found once and for all. Even better, a drug-free solution. As someone who has been long interested in natural, holistic health, I thought that this might just be the ticket. Despite (and simultaneously thanks to) my conservative religious upbringing with an emphasis on health, I’ve always been the adventurous maverick seeker type, so I was willing to try anything as long as I didn’t break any moral law. I also thought it would be nice to reconnect to my Eastern roots—as in the case of many energy or holistic modalities—since the Western missionaries seem to have bred them out of us Asian Christians in that regard.

The limitations of government-subsidized health care and my bank account spurred me even more into the natural health direction. There was no way in H-E-double sticks I’d put more drugs into my body, and as it turned out, I had the feeling that conventional medicine, normally pushed by government health care, was and would never be a solution. (It turned out that I was right all along.) In addition, holistic treatments aren’t generally covered under that plan. I had to find something effective that wouldn’t hurt my already-not-so-healthy bank account. Allergy testing was out of the question. I wouldn’t subject myself to expensive, painful poking and prodding that weren’t even guaranteed to work.

My allergies were at their most unrelenting point by summer of 2014. Over-the-counter pills and supplements didn’t do the trick. I could easily go through a roll of paper towels or a box of tissues in a day. I’d have violent hacking cough for up to forty-five minutes just before bedtime. It disrupted my sleeping pattern. The nonstop runny nose, major congestion on both of my nostrils, and postnasal drip made it more difficult to rest. While lying down, sometimes I had to breathe through my throat, which dried it out even more. The lack of sleep caused me to have brain fog. My phlegm and mucus production far outweighed my creative output, sadly!

I also noticed that there was hair all over the floor every day. I couldn’t figure out how that happened. I used to fry my locks by rocking almost every style and color known to (wo)man back in the day, and I started to feel the effects a few years ago. So that must have been the cause of my hair loss, but this time, it seemed different since I stopped chemically treating my hair in early 2012. I also lost a good deal of body in my hair that I could no longer find a style that would look good on me. I’d usually grow baby hairs, but for quite sometime, I didn’t see them anymore. Though I considered them a nuisance, I missed seeing them this time around. I was afraid that I’d be the next president of Hair Club for Women or give Sinéad O’Connor a run for her moolah. But even she grew her thick hair back!

I’ve never been a huge fan of coffee (except the cold varieties—blended mocha and ice cream, of course!). I’ve always been sensitive to it, but I’ve developed oversensitivity to caffeine. Coffee ice cream wouldn’t normally cause the jitters, but I could stay up for half a day by just eating a small cup of it!

To add to the inconvenience of the messiness, bloating, and occasional cramps during that time of the month, I’ve had to deal with that other time of the month—ovulation. I’d also sporadically spot for days at a time. It was almost like having my period during its light days twice in a month. My ovulation was also more uncomfortable than usual—bloating and localized stabbing pain. The worst were upset stomach for two hours and pain on the right lower abdomen accompanied by malaise and morning sickness-like symptoms.

I was a hot mess. I was one sick puppy. I hoped I didn’t have to go the doctor or the hospital for all these crazy things!

Yet people thought everything was hunky-dory with me. When I told them what was going on with me, they were downright dismissive, though well-meaning,”You? Sick? But you’re still young!” I still carry on with regular daily tasks and look well on the outside, which gives people the impression that I’m healthy. It doesn’t help that I look about almost half my age, but the aging process and the resulting decline in health have caught up with me. I never thought I’d acquire indefinite/temporary semispoonie status. Not even my family knows that I’ve been going through all this.

Some 2,300 miles away, thanks to good old Google, I found help from Suzanne “Sue” White, a retired registered nurse specializing in-person and distant allergy correction. Not long afterwards, she became my friend and my Reiki master/teacher by correspondence. She’s a fellow pet mom who regularly shares Reiki with her two miniature Schnauzers and terrier mix. So I figured that learning Reiki was a way to keep myself, my fellow humans, and my animal pals healthy and happy.

I did find relief from the allergy corrections starting on the first session. My persistent hacking cough gradually yet completely disappeared four weeks later, but there were numerous ups and downs—significant reduction in symptoms followed by runny nose and congestion flare-ups, going back and forth. The cycle continued. An increase in symptoms is normal and even expected in holistic treatments as the body’s way to detox, recalibrate, and to flush out impurities, but I wasn’t entirely sure what was going on with me. Every single time we had a session, beginning with thirty minutes of Health Kinesiology followed by thirty minutes of Reiki, Sue sensed that I needed plenty of work on my lower back. (I later learned second-degree Reiki techniques: scanning problem areas from a distance when treating a person or an animal.) I was surprised to find out that I had a problem on my back. I’d never had any pain there. No history of back injury, either. Yet Sue continued to feel it strongly on my back, aside from my head and sinus areas, my obvious trouble spots.

I occasionally shared hands-on and distant Reiki with my own pets, clients’ pets, and a friend/colleague’s black Lab in particular whose response to distant treatments was nothing less than amusingly astonishing. (That’s another story for another time!)

The allergy correction sessions didn’t work as well as I’d hoped. I’d feel better, then I’d feel worse. There was no way to tell how my body would react to each session. The unpredictability was predictable. Sue then suggested that I add homeopathic remedies by Andrea Coulter at Wholistic Health Care to support the allergy correction. I consulted Andrea via e-mail on her homeopathic kits. She mentioned that if the kits didn’t work, it might mean that a deeper imbalance was present. I tried out her allergy kit without any luck. She might be right. Probably there was something more serious going on.

Sure enough, I began experiencing extreme fatigue. I felt tired and sleepy, no matter how much I slept. I had to drag myself out of bed. I got to the point where I had to lie in bed for up to twelve hours straight or take frequent naps. I had very little energy left in my body. A few weeks later, the drowsiness then turned into a tired-but-wired feeling. I felt drained, yet the jitters made it difficult to fall and stay asleep as if I downed a good, mean amount of Starbucks doppio espresso. This proved to be worse than the previous stage where I was still able to stay asleep for a long time. On top of that, my immune system was shot. I rarely had colds, but I came down with a full-blown flu for the first time in fourteen years. Thankfully, I cleared it up within just three days with all-natural remedies. That, however, wasn’t the end of the problem. The sniffles, the congestion, the sneezing, the tired-but-wired feeling, the hair loss, and the skin breakout just kept on coming.

The turnaround

For some seemingly random reason, sometime in 2014, I decided to look up my old friend Jeffrey Mamora on Facebook to reconnect. We attended the same private school. My cousin was his classmate, and their classroom was right next to mine. He and I never talked or hung out together back then. As musicians, we once played for a mutual friend’s wedding reception in the ’90s, but that was probably the only extensive interaction we had aside from occasional bump-ins at various church functions. This time around, we were on the same wavelength, albeit different type of vibration—sympathetic vibrations. Not just on the musical level, but also on the spiritual side. (Not to mention our love of the foodie lifestyle!) I found out about his healing work on his Facebook posts. One miracle after another. No medical claims are made here (as the dark powers that shouldn’t be don’t want us to do so), but he has helped many people relieve longstanding chronic pain, emotional and mental distress, many other forms of ailments, and spiritual struggles. These folks experienced improvement within a very brief period of time—even a few seconds for chronic pain. Energy healing was an important part of his healing work. As a Reiki practitioner, I was intrigued. Curiously, he said something along the lines that his energy healing style was something that came naturally, or rather, something that came from and through God. We became closer friends ever since. Not only we bonded over common interests, but also the fact that people have regarded us as total weirdos at best and sinners at worst for subscribing to so-called woo-woo, voodoo stuff—not exactly cool in the religious ethnic subculture in which we were raised.

Jeff invited me to lunch at a popular eatery in his neck of the woods on the first week of January 2016. Over a steaming, delicious bowl of soto ayam, a plate of chewy, tangy goodness called pempek Palembang, and a tall glass of my favorite es teler as a refreshing coup de grâce on the menu, we talked about the healing modalities we’d been using in more detail. Then he told me that I should check the lower half of my back, precisely the location of the adrenal glands. I never thought they’d cause my incessant allergies and other strange symptoms I’d been experiencing!

I’d previously heard of chronic fatigue. It dawned on me that I should Google up the term adrenal fatigue. That was a light-bulb moment. All of my symptoms matched the description! I knew that back-to-back stress was the cause of my condition, but I finally had a name for it, and there was a solution for it! What a relief!

Then I remembered Sue saying that she felt a lot of imbalance on my lower back. Bingo! And Andrea was spot on about deeper imbalance in conditions that wouldn’t respond to treatments. As for my allergies, the problem wasn’t overreacting histamines. The problem was my adrenal glands (over)reacting to situations, lowering my cortisol level, consequently weakening my immune system. Everything made complete sense now! I was able to finally put the puzzle pieces together.

Getting down to the root causes

My adrenals have been in near-nonstop fight-or-flight mode for the at least the past eight years or so, which was quite the recipe for an adrenal fatigue goulash enough to give anyone a serious hunka-hunka burning indigestion. Come to think of it, my adrenals started to go into overdrive during the typical turbulent adolescent years compounded by the immigrant experience. It could possibly go even further back in time during my postmature birth trauma. For about a couple of years, the adaptogens I took as part of my weight loss protocol protected my adrenals, but I suspected that my health gradually declined after I discontinued my nutritional “insurance.”

The Great Recession unleashed a series of blows, further straining close and intimate relationships including family relationship, even a few years after the height of the economic meltdown that gave the Inland Empire a big fat knockout with a record unemployment rate of around 21 to 22 percent. Resentment, shouting matches, freak-out episodes, and anxiety attacks over finances became a way of life. Feelings of worthlessness, scarcity, inadequacy, and resignation set in. I couldn’t seem to shake them off for a long time. I lost my career and money mojo. I was defeated and confused when it came to my life direction. I’ve long felt unappreciated and misunderstood for the talents that I possess and devalued for not having skills that are prized in my local community/subculture. Add my habitual, near-obsessive rumination a.k.a. (over)analysis paralysis as an intellectual introvert—dreaming up horror scenarios for almost any situation. Add a good dose of stinkin’ thinkin’ on top, and voilà!

There have been few (if not no) boundaries in family relationship. I was expected (or pressured?) once again to conform to cultural and religious standards to regain some semblance of financial stability and consequently social acceptance. I simply could not and will not be able and willing to deny my authentic self, even if my finances needed CPR STAT. (Albeit an extreme example, read Anita Moorjani’s Dying to Be Me to get an idea of outdated, burdensome cultural expectations.)

Life became a constant war zone. Other aspects of my life got sucked into the negative energy vortex. Ignoring my intuition, I ended up making a few more grave mistakes by allowing more energy vampires into my space. Opportunistic, manipulative, and vengeful personalities appeared. First, it was my then-so-called bandmate and friend who took me for a turbulent ride of narcissistic rage and rapid-fire borderline mood swings. The roller coaster crashed after he railroaded me into buying a vehicle that I couldn’t quite afford. It was one heck of an albatross around my neck for many reasons. I put it out there to the universe that I wanted the SUV gone somehow. My wish was granted—but in the worst way possible! The holiday season of 2013 brought me a total loss. The other party involved in the auto accident tightened his grip on me energetically and legally for fourteen months. He tried to get every single thing I owned, but he couldn’t get blood from a stone, so he ended up taking nearly $100,000 in settlement from my insurance policy. Thankfully, what little I had rightly remained in my possession. It took persistent affirmative prayers to send these men away peacefully—and for good.

The week following the accident, I noticed much stranger things going on in my body. Shortly after getting up from a relaxing dip in the Jacuzzi, I became unusually weak, lightheaded, and dizzy. Before long, I realized that I had jelly legs. Accompanied by some nausea, blurry vision turned into several seconds of blindness. I grabbed hold of the bathroom sink and leaned on the wall to keep myself from falling before finally squatting on the floor. I really wanted to lie down on the couch, but I needed to get dressed first! I had to ride this all out for about five to ten minutes. I suspected that this was all stress-related, but I didn’t know what the hell was happening. Could it be MS? Heavens, I hoped not! Unfortunately, this fainting episode was only the first out of several that continued until 2015. Some of them were not as serious, although I had to lie in bed for about ten minutes after getting up from a hot Epsom salt bath. In yet another distressing situation, I had a sudden Gumby leg attack yet again. This time around, I couldn’t react quickly enough. Next thing I knew, I slipped and fell. The back of my head smashed against the tile floor. This was no joke. I could end up in the ER for concussion or worse if this were to happen again! It turned out that I had orthostatic hypotension, one of the most common symptoms of adrenal fatigue in its more advanced stages, triggered by postural change (rising after lying down), high temperatures, and of course, stress.

LifeWave and energy modalities to the rescue

Realizing the root causes of my suffering and wanting to put and end to them all, I contacted Jeff again. I was more than ready to be completely healed. He introduced me to LifeWave, a cutting-edge energy-based system.

Jeff was just the right person to help me, having suffered from severe adrenal fatigue as a result of toxic mold-induced allergies and many years of unhealthy hard-partying lifestyle, rage, and depression. He had made a dramatic 180 since then. He put me on a customized adrenal fatigue protocol using a main combination of Y-Age (a trio of Glutathione, Carnosine, and Aeon patches) to strengthen the immune system, detox, and reduce or eliminate inflammation, as well as SP 6 Complete patches to regulate and rebalance my screwed-up hormones that my smashed-up adrenals haven’t been able to produce or handle. Energy Enhancer and IceWave patches have been also occasionally used to increase the healing effect. We’ve rotated the patches on various acupoints, particularly and including but not limited to the kidney, bladder, triple burner, Four Gates, conception vessel (anterior midline of the body), and governing vessel (posterior midline). As a sleeping aid, Silent Night patches didn’t work as well as anticipated, so Jeff advised me to get 5-HTP supplements. I bought a combo with vitamin B6. They did the trick within just a week. Silent Night started to kick in. My body was so depleted from adrenal fatigue that it probably lacked the raw materials to produce melatonin. Along with the patches, I’ve been regularly taking LifeWave Corsentials to boost energy and the immune system, as well as adding Himalayan salt, good fats, and protein—both plant- and animal-based—to my diet to replenish my hormones. As much as I’d like to become a vegetarian or vegan for moral reasons, unfortunately, it’s near impossible to recover from adrenal fatigue from such a diet.

LifeWave has made my healing process simple. In contrast, while they’ve been proven to work, most other methods (listed under Resources, Further Reading, and Further Viewing) seem to be more cumbersome, more complicated, and more expensive, requiring more supplements and lab orders.

I must admit that my healing journey has been frustrating at times with fits and starts, even until now. It generally takes a long time, usually many years, to recover from adrenal fatigue. Initially, it took five weeks for LifeWave to kick in. Sometimes I wondered if it worked, but giving up wasn’t an option. So I kept going. It confirmed my guess that I had so much imbalance in my body that needed to be straightened up. I’ve had cycles of feeling better followed by worsening symptoms. More snifflefest. More clogged-up nose. A bit more sneezing. And the nighttime coughing intermittently returned after one-and-a-half years of disappearance. More alternating episodes of eczema breakouts and clearing and more cycles of hair loss and regrowth. I even had one heat-induced near-fainting episode while doing chores outside last summer and on-and-off, brief stabbing pain in different body parts throughout the months. These symptoms, however, were not as bad as they were before LifeWave. I wasn’t too alarmed by the symptoms because I knew that my body was continually readjusting, detoxing, and recalibrating. The occasional pain in different body parts served a purpose. Pain on my chest meant released emotions. The pain in my lower back had something to do with the adrenals adjusting themselves.

Under Jeff’s sage healthcare and spiritual guidance, I almost regained my health for the most part within just between seven to eight months, much faster than the average expected recovery time in adrenal fatigue, typically one to one-and-a-half years for moderate adrenal fatigue and two to three years or longer for severe adrenal fatigue. He emphasizes the importance of spirituality in healing any kind of condition—physical, emotional, mental, and situational—as everything is first conceived in the spiritual realm before it manifests in physical form. Outer (dis)harmony results in inner (dis)harmony and vice versa.

At the time of this blog post, I’m almost recovering. I suspect that my cortisol and progesterone levels aren’t quite optimal just yet, although they’re significantly better than before. I still have on-and-off sniffles, congestion, sneezing, some sleep-all-day marathons, and spotting during ovulation, though not as copious and as frequent before LifeWave. (At the time of posting, I’ve been relatively spot-free, and I intend that it continues to be that way.) Nonetheless, I’m thrilled that the hacking cough has permanently disappeared yet again and that my aldosterone level seems to have stabilized. I no longer have fainting episodes after hot baths and during stressful situations. My hair has grown back (baby hairs and all!) and stopped its random, violent shedding, although its original thickness doesn’t seem to return just yet. This is the best I’ve ever felt since the onset of the first adrenal fatigue symptom despite the occasional ups and downs, although I’m concerned that I may have to see a naturopathic doctor to get rid of the persistent remaining few symptoms, which means additional medical expenses not covered by insurance. I remain confident that I will get to 100 percent someday soon. There is no other option but to remain positive. Positive thinking remains a challenging habit to cultivate for me, but it is the only way that contributes to overall health. I still need to make adjustments in my life to achieve total recovery.

Most importantly, I’ve also reached a new level of spiritual awakening in my healing experience. I’ve come across more brutal truths of existence across time and space and current state of affairs on Planet Earth. Truth be told, it hasn’t always been a pleasant journey with the occasional dark nights of the soul, but this is the point of no return. Onwards and upwards!

Adrenal fatigue: implications for pet care professionals—and everyone

Rightly considered the silent postmodern epidemic due to global trauma (namely September 11 and the economic meltdown), pollution through chemicals and electromagnetic fields, and the hustle-and-bustle lifestyle, particularly in the US, adrenal fatigue affects about more than 66 percent of the world population, even in much younger age groups. I suspect that the ever-present unrest and fear-mongering in the current state of affairs, which threaten to retrigger my past trauma, will add to the adrenal fatigue head count.

Conventional medicine does not recognize or treat adrenal fatigue. Medical professionals are trained to look only for signs of adrenal insufficiency or failure (Addison’s disease) or adrenal hyperactivity (Cushing’s disease).

Adrenal fatigue, brought on by stress and the aging process, is a result of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction, which disrupts the production of neurotransmitters and hormones that regulate many organ systems, thus impairing everyday vital functions of the body. Abnormal blood pressure levels, depression, anxiety, and digestive issues such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) are a few of the many far-reaching symptoms connected to adrenal fatigue. Performing basic daily tasks that most of us take for granted becomes a challenge.

The demands and responsibilities of ensuring the well-being of others along with real and potential liability issues place pet sitters, animal shelter workers, veterinarians, nurses, physicians, social workers, and others in the caring professions at a higher risk for stress-related disorders. Depression, compassion fatigue (secondary traumatic stress disorder similar to PTSD), and suicide run rampant. I suspect that those of you in caring occupations may have adrenal fatigue and not even know it. The nursing community is already well aware of this.

Hormonal imbalance and pre-existing/coexisting chronic conditions

Emotional, mental, biochemical, and physical stress (illnesses, injuries, infections, and surgeries) put an extra burden on the adrenals. Based on my conversations with pet care professionals over the past few years, many of them suffer from a laundry list of serious conditions acquired before and throughout their career. It’s a wonder how they manage to do the Energizer Bunny routine for many years, even decades!

In this female-dominated industry, we can’t afford to lose more women to stress. Be attuned to your body, mind, and spirit. Your adrenals will thank you, too! We all know that stress wreaks havoc on the monthly cycle. Adrenal fatigue only exacerbates the symptoms. Even more critical are perimenopause and menopause where hormones go haywire! Keep in mind that the ovaries lessen their production of estrogen and progesterone, transferring most of the duty to the adrenals. All the more reason to reduce or manage stress and take good care of your adrenals at all costs!

Empathic personality traits

Generous, kind, big-hearted, and excellent listeners, empaths are natural nurturers drawn to the caring professions. They also have a special connection with animals. Especially prone to compassion fatigue and adrenal fatigue, empaths tend to deeply absorb the emotions and symptoms of others. As people pleasers, they bend over backwards to accommodate, often to their detriment. Their high sensitivity also makes them attractive to energy vampires.

I have many (but not all) empathic traits. Chances are you also do if you’re a pet sitter or in any other caretaking role.

Adrenal fatigue in pets

Like humans, dogs also develop stress-related adrenal exhaustion, which, if untreated, can progress into Addison’s disease. Not surprisingly, female dogs, like their human counterparts, are more prone to adrenal exhaustion, as well as certain breeds such as Great Danes, Rottweilers, and standard poodles. Spayed and neutered pets are more likely to have issues because their adrenals work overtime in absence of gonads. Cocker spaniels are susceptible to hypothyroidism, often attributed to adrenal stress. Looking back, my poor late Gonzo, bless his typical sensitive cocker soul, might have had burned-out adrenals because of his unexpected stay in the dog pound for several days. He had lifelong immunity-related health issues ever since: grass allergies, demodectic mange, eye infections, and ear infections.

Albeit rare, Addison’s disease and Cushing’s disease also occur in cats.

Recognizing adrenal exhaustion is important as endocrine disorders are on the rise in both humans and animals.

Blessings in furry and feathery disguise: LifeWave for pets

There are many blessings that I wouldn’t have otherwise received if it weren’t for adrenal fatigue. I’m extending them to more members of the animal kingdom. Jeff has also been doing a good deal of healing work for animals with a combination of his own version of energy healing and LifeWave, so I test-drove LifeWave on my pets and my clients’ pets with wonderful results.

Here are what we’ve witnessed so far.

From frozen-with-fear cat to cool cat

This is a cat with severe anxiety—for weeks after she and her owner relocated—until Jeff put an Aeon patch on her. She became calm in just a few seconds.

Patching comes home to rooster

A LifeWave distributor decided to patch her injured rooster—of all animals! One of the patches used included AcuLife, pain-relieving patches specially formulated for horses. Her experience is documented in the collage below.

The cool doods: Bella and Billy

I patched some of my favorite client pets, Bella the goldendoodle and Billy the Labradoodle. Bella was almost recovering from pancreatitis. I wanted to speed up her healing by patching her pancreas directly with a Carnosine patch on the left side and an Aeon patch on the right side. I added a Glutathione patch on her chest and a Silent Night patch on her third-eye point for a sedative effect as she needed to rest some more for complete healing. She responded rather quickly to the patching protocol. I also put Silent Night on Billy. He was much more chilled out than usual! He spent a lot of his time relaxing and sleeping instead of performing his usual around-the-clock house patrol.

Sasha’s post-op pep

After my Sasha’s emergency spay, I decided to skip the prescription medications and try out the patches. I placed the Y-Age patches (Carnosine for tissue repair, Aeon for anti-inflammation, and Glutathione for pulling out toxins from anesthetics) along with IceWave for pain relief next to her incision. She had no signs of distress, inflammation, pain, or infection. Within approximately a week, her incision healed well with minimal scarring. The scar disappeared within less than two weeks. Her old active self returned, and along with that, her poop-snacking and roughhousing habits as well, quite unfortunately! On a side note, I may just experiment with SP 6 patches to regulate her sex hormones as her adrenals assume the responsibility of producing those hormones after her ovaries were removed.

Chelsea’s serene journey to the other side

Chelsea, Sasha’s mom, showed signs that all wasn’t well with her. She became lethargic. She stopped eating and vomited for days. She still drank plenty of water, and I thought it was because of the summer heat. Sasha had what turned out to be pyometra just a few days after, prompting another animal ER visit shortly after Chelsea was taken there, but Chelsea fared much worse. I didn’t exactly know what to do before that, but I thought I’d at least make her somewhat more comfortable by patching her. She was too weak and disoriented to stand up and walk, so she had to be transported by a large trash bag as a makeshift stretcher before getting her on a gurney at the hospital.

Within just ten minutes or so, the vet gave a very guarded prognosis for Chelsea: mammary tumor, arrhythmia, pancreatitis, and advanced diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). I had no idea that Chelsea had been that ill all along. (I thought her poor toileting habits—peeing everywhere on the floor wherever and whenever she pleased—was just because she was being the usual butthead of a goober!) DKA treatment would cost over a cool four grand, and it wasn’t guaranteed to be successful. As the risks and outcome outweighed the benefits, I had to make the sad, difficult decision to euthanize her.

The photo was taken just seconds before the procedure. Chelsea was calm, receptive, and nonresistant. She was ready to go to the other side. On August 27, 2016, close to four o’clock in the morning, I escorted her to the Rainbow Bridge. I sent Reiki and prayers to the situation, and as always, I was patched up. Animals are in tune with energy as they normally can sense death or any upsetting situation in the air, but it was different this time. The exam/kennel room was in complete peace and silence. Most of the crated dogs were awake, but none of them stirred. Everyone tapped into the high vibrational grid. I’m certain that the patches helped radiate the positive energy.

Stone(d)-cool Pico

Below is a video of my Pico’s patching demo. Jeff placed an Aeon patch on the back of his neck. Watch Pico’s amazing response. The noisy environment didn’t faze him. He was in an otherworldly, blissed-out state.

Pico de gallop, LifeWave style

Pico “Piccolo” had yet another patching session. This time around, Sasha “Sashimi” got too aggressive with him, biting him on his back. He was fearful and in pain. His appetite decreased. He was less playful than usual. For days, he hid under the bed or next to the toilet to sit down or sleep most of the time. I asked Jeff for a specific protocol for Pico. I placed Carnosine on his chest, Glutathione on the middle of his lower back, tan IceWave patch on his left hip, and white IceWave patch on his right hip. Within just two days, Pico was back in his yippee-skippy mode again, even when two of the patches fell off before the second day. Now I have to deal with his usual hyper antics again!

TTouch + LifeWave = a winning combo

A household name in the nursing, holistic health, and pet care circles, Linda Tellington-Jones, creator of TTouch, sings praises for LifeWave in her own practice.

General animal patching guide

Animals have acupoints similar to those of humans. One of the main useful acupoints is Bladder 23 (BL 23), which also happens to be one of the major acupoints to treat adrenal fatigue because of the bladder’s connection to the kidneys.

Self-care: how to prevent and manage stress and stress-related conditions

Some of the points below are common-sense advice, but they bear repeating.

Good nutrition. Be mindful of what you take in. Everything is energy. We are energy. Thought is energy. Food carries energy. Be sure it’s a good one.

There are many resources on nutrition, so I won’t get into details here. My focus on this blog post is the concept of energy because it doesn’t get enough airtime.

For more information on nutrition, particularly related to adrenal fatigue, see Resources, Further Reading, and Further Viewing at the end of this blog post.

Delegate your tasks to others if/when you can afford to do so. Be selfish once in a while. Stop serving others when you’re running on empty.

Take breaks. Treat yourself. It’s up to you on how you want to do it. Go big on a tropical beach getaway or keep it small by getting some spa action or even a little dose of retail therapy. (Just be careful not to overdraft! That extra stress won’t make your adrenals happy!)

Surround yourself with positive people who share similar values and interests. Quality over quantity. Even better, go for both—if you’re an extrovert, that is. Get together with your nearest and dearest. If no one fits that description, create a new network for yourself. There are plenty of online forums and communities or local Meetups to meet like-minded people.

Protect your boundaries. Got PITA clients, employees, or bosses? Drama-queen friends and colleagues? Don’t be afraid to say “bye, Felicia!” Let go of people, things, situations, and arrangements that no longer serve you. Ditto jobs and activities that drain and bore you. Realize that some relationships and interactions have expiration dates. Sometimes people or things aren’t an energetic match to you, even from the get-go. Sometimes you can’t win ’em all.

Live your truth. Speak the truth. Don’t sugarcoat it. Be your own authentic self. Be unapologetically you. Just do you. Be assertive while not making an ass out of yourself and others. Stop being a people-pleaser or a doormat. All that negative energy builds up and gets trapped in your body. I’ve certainly learned it the hard way, and I’m still learning how to do it. It’s a work in progress. As of late, I’ve finally mustered my courage to tactfully discuss unresolved situations with certain individuals after a few months of stewing and hemming and hawing, fearing their reaction (or lack thereof). Much to my surprise, things were resolved more quickly and better than I’ve expected. That makes me feel good to have everything out of my system! My energy also returned!

I have yet dare to be direct when dealing with certain circles like family, but as the saying goes, one step at a time, one day at a time!

Have a centering practice on a regular basis. Pray. Have a daily devotional. Read, watch, or listen to inspiring materials. Do a mainstream media and social media cleanse/fast. Meditate. Repeat your favorite daily affirmations or create them. Join a faith-based, spiritual, or any type of supportive community. Go for whatever floats your boat. Even if you don’t believe in a higher power, you can still reap the benefits of meditation. Meditation or visualization is simply a practice to increase your awareness and stay in the present, free of the concerns of the past and the future. It’s a moment to unwind and reconnect with yourself, nature, and the universe at large.

Spiritual mindfulness is more than just being present. It is about being aligned and responding to life better. Alignment is true presence. More alignment means more healing, and we see this in our animal friends.

Remember that our animal friends have a lot to teach us about staying present. They bear no grudge. They bear no judgment. They have no regrets about the past. They have no concerns about the future. Their nonresistant, allowing attitude and naturally positive energy are why they respond so well and so quickly to natural healing methods. They are, in essence, our healers.

I’ve seen some disabled pets. Their bodies may be broken but not their spirit. They tail-waggingly go about their business as usual.

Get a pet. I know that I’m preaching to the choir, but this always deserves a special mention.

Forgive but not always forget. Let go of resentment and judgment, but only if there’s genuine remorse or repentance from the other party. Either way, release the matter to God, the universe, the field of potentiality, or however you call the greater force. I know that it’s easier said than that, but remind ourselves of our animal friends as our master teachers in forgiveness.

Maintain your gratefulness. Maintain your energy grid. In everything give thanks. Daily gratitude improves your mindset and emotional state. It keeps you on a high vibration to sustain your overall health. I am thankful to have LifeWave and a supportive network that comes with the package. Although I haven’t achieved optimal health just yet, I’m thankful that I’m still alive and kicking some tail. My body parts are still working well for daily activities. My weight has been stable. It could’ve been worse. Much worse. I still have daily sniffles and congestion, and as annoying and uncomfortable as they are, they’re much preferable to potentially more dangerous fainting episodes. I would’ve gotten infections that could be possibly life-threatening. I would’ve also suffered from fibromyalgia, among other serious things, as part of stage three adrenal fatigue. At that point, applying for disability, a difficult and frustrating process for many people, would be a must. I find myself returning to this blog post often to remind myself to be grateful.

What’s more, adrenal fatigue gives me a license to nosh on more delicious protein, cholesterol (egg dishes galore!), plus salty and fatty stuff—essential fatty acids, that is!

I can’t thank Jeff enough for his teachings, which I share throughout this blog post, and I can’t thank God enough for bringing us and other like-minded people together.

I am also deeply grateful for the love in my life.

Cleanse and ground. This is a form of meditation or visualization. Animals take on the emotions of their people and vice versa. (Empaths, pay attention!) Just as it is important to always take showers and to detox your body, it is equally important to cleanse yourself and your surroundings on an energetic level at least once a day or more, especially if your line of work is stressful by nature. Realize that you absorb the energy of other people and/or animals during your interaction with them. The resulting emotional and mental upset burns out the patches quickly. Also include your pets and your clients’ pets (if applicable) in your cleansing and grounding practice.

Here’s a recording of Master Jeff’s cleansing and grounding meditation to get you started.

Pro tip:  For an extra oomph, try Aeon or a combination of Aeon and Energy Enhancer for meditation or mindfulness exercises like yoga. Aeon puts you in a parasympathetic, meditative, or rest-or-digest mode, enabling you to conduct more energy and giving you a grounding, balancing, or energizing effect. It maintains alignment to generate more qi (chi) or life force energy. Alignment helps us through stressful time and teaches us how to respond to life and evolve to a better state.

Exercise. I must admit that I’m guilty of not following this advice, but gentler exercises in moderation that incorporate mindfulness such as yoga, tai chi, and qigong are preferable or beneficial, especially for conditions such as adrenal fatigue and chronic fatigue.

Use natural solutions that support your overall wellness. Adaptogens, as I’ve mentioned earlier, ward off stress, increase energy, and promote relaxation. Isagenix Ionix Supreme, an herbal tonic with a mix of adaptogens, is one of the products I recommend.

Toxic synthetic chemicals in household and beauty products only add more to the adrenal stress load, so replace them with alternatives such as Melaleuca for cleaning and Chagrin Valley for your skin and hair care needs.

Chagrin Valley’s organic herbal body and shampoo bars are the best that I’ve tried so far. The Goat Milk Honey Oatmeal soap bar and tamanu oil salve have been pretty helpful in managing my eczema. I use Ayurvedic Herb, Henna Auburn, and Herb Garden shampoo bars to grow my hair back and add sheen and softness to it. I particularly like the Neem and Tea Tree Oil bar that doubles as a body soap and shampoo—a great solution to minimize space for travel packing. Another versatile choice is Cedarwood Lavender shampoo bar, an insect repellent, for both dog and human use. For dog bathing, I personally prefer Honey & Oats shampoo bar. It gives the coat a luxurious feel and look.

LifeWave, which I will discuss below, is also instrumental in maintaining wellness.

How LifeWave can help you and everyone around you

LifeWave, the leader in regenerative medicine and East-meets-West antiaging technology, is a line of supplements and noninvasive, nontransdermal, drug-free phototherapy patches activated by forms of light, particularly body heat. The patches containing nanomolecule-sized organic crystals are placed on acupuncture or acupressure points to stimulate biomagnetic frequencies, tapping into the body’s natural ability to heal itself. No other manipulation of the body is involved, and often, the effects are better than using herbs and phytonutrients.

Thanks to the wireless nature of the patches, they can also be placed on your clothes instead of applying them on your skin. Alternatively, you can secure the patches with hairpins or stick them on hats, scarves, headbands, or beanies for head acupoints. For pets, you can put the patches on their collars, clothes, wraps, or bandages.

Now you have the tools to face typical workaday issues and challenges. As mentioned in the self-care section, Aeon is a destressor and harmonizer that gives what your body needs—hormonal balance (by increasing DHEA that comes from the steroidal precursor hormone pregnenolone, dubbed the mother hormone produced in the adrenal cortex), brain balance, and many more.

Are you a pet sitter who is allergic to certain pets? Do you have to take precautions when working with client pets or do you have to turn down certain pets as clients? Are you a future or current pet parent who can’t have certain types of pets because of allergies? One of Aeon’s major uses is allergy correction, so this is welcome news for you!

The LifeWave Corsentials kit includes Theta One, Theta Activate, and a sleeve of Aeon patches for immune system support and stress management. Theta One contains colostrum that supports the immune system through growth factors. Theta Activate, to be mixed with Theta One, increases superoxide dismutase (SOD), an antioxidant. The silica in Theta Activate helps bring luster to human and animal hair. You can also add Theta Activate to your plain drinking water and even your pet’s water bowl.

If you suffer from frequent pain, beware of pain-relieving creams that can be deadly to cats. Essential oils, despite their therapeutic benefits, are toxic to cats. This is not an issue with LifeWave! Not only you can use it to for whatever ails you, but you can also use it to keep your pets happy and healthy!

Working long hours and after hours in your pet sitting business (or any line of work, for that matter) weakens your immune system and entire body overtime. Do you catch the cold or flu often? Do you have aches and pains? LifeWave can certainly help you be more productive and well-balanced at the same time.

Many people, including pet sitters, struggle with weight loss and management. LifeWave’s WinFit is a body-shaping kit that helps reduce fat and build muscle mass by naturally increasing human growth hormone (HGH) without extreme exercise and extreme dietary restrictions—important considerations for everyone, especially crucial for sufferers of adrenal fatigue. Gym rats and avid dog walkers or dog runners can certainly take advantage of WinFit to increase stamina. WinFit also includes Carnosine, the go-to patch used by athletes and bodybuilders for recovery and strength.

Here’s an easy-breezy demonstration of WinFit by my friend Patty Espinosa (who has gained ten pounds of muscle at the time of this post):

LifeWave’s simplicity is noteworthy. No initiation practice (as in the case of Reiki and other energy healing modalities) and special programs or courses required. I must admit that I’ve been taking a break from Reiki for a while after experiencing the benefits of LifeWave, but of course, distance Reiki can’t be done by just using patches, although when those two modalities are combined, they may have a synergistic effect, as in the simultaneous use of TTouch and LifeWave mentioned earlier. I decided to experiment with distant healing and LifeWave since I seem to feel energy more quickly in my hands while being patched despite my somewhat irregular practice of self-Reiki. I finally had another opportunity to treat a friend distantly with powerful results on my end and especially hers. The energy, again, flowed more quickly and strongly, thanks to an extra kick from Energy Enhancer patches in addition to Y-Age patches.

Below is a video of David Schmidt, founder/inventor/CEO of LifeWave, taken during the LifeWave Lifestyle Christmas party/seminar on December 16, 2016. He explains the science behind WinFit, pain relief, antiaging solutions, regenerative medicine, the exciting current and upcoming technological developments in LifeWave including its medical division, and more. I regret not asking him about the use of WinFit for adrenal fatigue sufferers. I completely forgot about it. However, I assume that it can be done because WinFit allows for a moderate amount of carbohydrates and light exercise that promote recovery, and the double dose of Theta One and Theta Activate in the WinFit kit will further strengthen the immune system. [Note: I finally had the opportunity to ask David in a WinFit webinar whether the use of WinFit would be advisable. He suggested checking first with a doctor and taking 2,000 mg of vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid) twice a day and 1,000 mg of vitamin C daily along with patching BL 23 or alternatively, Kidney 1 (K 1), with Energy Enhancer. Energy Enhancer patches have been shown to increase cortisol production, which is helpful in adrenal fatigue recovery.]

LifeWave has something for everyone and every creature: testosterone-boosting Maveric for the gents and Alavida, a skin care line for the ladies. Alavida rejuvenates the skin by reducing oxidative stress and inflammation. The Alavida patch improves motor and cognitive function by stimulating the frontal lobes as shown in clinical studies. You can also use the Alavida patches on animals as alternatives to Silent Night! Both Silent Night and Alavida stimulate the pineal gland that regulates the circadian rhythm and reproductive hormones. A number of Alavida users also experience heightened spiritual sense.

As you can see, LifeWave is flexible and practical. Again, no medical claims are made, but how many products or programs out there can be used for people and pets, a multitude of conditions, and improving already-healthy body, mind, and spirit?

This new year and this Valentine’s Day going forward, give the loving gift of health and wellness to yourself, your friends, your family members (including furry, feathery, and scaly ones!), your clients, and their pets by having LifeWave in your arsenal. Don’t just set resolutions. Look for solutions and create them. Start a revolution by personal evolution in all aspects of your life. Take your life to the next level! Wouldn’t it be wonderful to add much more value to the services you offer as pet sitters, pet groomers, dog walkers, dog trainers, holistic pet health practitioners, or veterinary health professionals? When you’re ready to make that step, feel free to contact me to get your own LifeWave supply.

Let’s aim for better overall health and well-being. Let me know how I can help. Let’s support each other. Be kind to each other. Be kind to others. Love one another. Be well. Be whole. Be strong. Be blessed. Stay blessed. Stay woke awake.

Last but not least, watch this blog post for informational updates and further edits for clarity.

Your pet sitter, sister, friend, and colleague,

Nancee

References, further reading, and further viewing

Include most of the human and pet health-related links provided throughout the blog post and the following:

Adrenal fatigue

The Adrenal Fatigue Solution: A hub for all things related to adrenal fatigue. Causes, symptoms, and treatments.

Dr. Josh Axe: Natural remedies, nutrition, and fitness. Includes resources on adrenal fatigue.

Dr. John Bergman: Focus on natural, holistic health alternatives with detailed information on the causes, mechanism, and treatment of adrenal fatigue, other related endocrine disorders, and other ailments. Physiological, mental, emotional, and spiritual aspects are discussed.

Dr. Karen Kan: Integrative physician and acupuncturist. Links to resources and her radio show on holistic healing and LifeWave protocols for various conditions including allergies and adrenal fatigue. Having previously suffered from chronic conditions including severe adrenal fatigue, she speaks from experience.

Chris Kresser: Nutritionist and acupuncturist specializing in functional medicine. Here is his detailed coverage on adrenal fatigue, specifically on the HPA axis, and nutritional solutions for adrenal fatigue.

Dr. Michael Lam: The most comprehensive site on adrenal fatigue. Causes, effects, and mechanism of adrenal exhaustion, adrenal fatigue questionnaire, natural treatments through nutrition, etc.

Dr. Andrew Neville: Specialist in adrenal fatigue and former sufferer of adrenal fatigue. Educational videos and podcasts on reversal and mechanism of adrenal fatigue, plus healing protocols.

Compassion fatigue

Burnout and compassion fatigue: A discussion with my pet industry colleagues Bella Vasta and Holly Cook.

Jessica Dolce: Certified compassion fatigue educator and dog trainer.

Pet Sitter Compassion Fatigue: What Does It Mean?

Energy-based modalities

General information

Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology (ACEP): the science of energy psychology, energy medicine, and energy healing.

Donna Eden’s energy medicine: includes resources and continuing education courses for health care professionals.

Acupuncture/acupressure

Specific acupoints for various conditions and illustration/atlas of acupoints for human use:

Acupressure.com

Yin Yang House: traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) including acupuncture.

Acupoints for animals: for the most part, the acupoints of domestic animals are similar to those of humans.

LifeWave

LifeWave Corporate: The official LifeWave Facebook Page. More detailed information on LifeWave products, their uses for various conditions, tips, contests, Q and A sessions with founder/inventor/CEO David Schmidt, and LifeWave events.

LifeWave, Inc. : documented scientific studies and research.

Patching Protocol: a comprehensive membership website of LifeWave patching protocols for various conditions, guide to acupoints with charts, and animal patching.

Reiki

Animal Reiki Source: information and courses on animal Reiki and a link to Shelter Animal Reiki Association (SARA) that teaches and promotes Reiki and mindfulness practice in animal shelters, sanctuaries, and rescues worldwide.

The Holy Spirit and the Spirit of Reiki: One Source, One Spirit: Reiki from the Christian and scientific perspectives.

Reiki, Medicine, and Self-Care: the use of Reiki in conventional medicine and daily life.

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