Bernadette_Abraham
Forum Replies Created
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Hi @Sheena – I’m assuming you’re looking for someone in Dubai?
Unfortunately, I have yet to come across a more holistic dermatologist in Dubai. But functional medicine or naturopathy is the way to go since eczema is very often rooted in the gut and toxins (or lack of proper clearance of toxins) and needs a holistic approach. Have you seen our Symptom Dictionary handout on eczema as an initial starting point to help you dig deeper from a root cause perspective?
If you’d like to work 1-1 with a functional/naturopathic doctor, I can recommend Dr. Zain at Joint Space, Dr. Heather Eade at Novomed or Dr. Sean Penny at Bedaya Polyclinic.
If you’d like to learn more about eczema, checkout Dr. Greenberg’s course: https://rootcausedermatology.com/eczema/ (she unfortunately doesn’t do virtual consults -she’s in the US).
Finally, I can also recommend my colleague Dr. Julia Martin who specialized in eczema, and offers both private and group programs online: https://www.ex-zema.com/about
Please let me know if you have any other questions.
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@Inga-55 I’ve numbered them from 1 to 10:
1 – no, has pegs and fragrance
2 – not the best, but not bad either. I prefer to avoid maltodextrin if possible.
3 – no ingredients shown. In general, Life Extension brand is “so-so”. Not the best quality, but they tend to be more affordable.
4 & 5 – no issues with the magnesium. There are cleaner brands out there though with less additives
6 – shilajit – no ingredients shown. Please share.
7 – what seems to be soap looks clean
8 – melting body butter – no ingredients shown. Please share.
9 – the ingredients at the bottom aren’t visible. Can you please share it again.
10 – what seems to be some type of perfume is a no-go. Has pegs and fragrance.
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@toujan creatine is one of the most studied supplements out there, and is generally considered safe – even for teenagers – as long as they are hydrating properly. That’s super important because creatine pulls water into the muscles.
The dose of 5g/day is also the standard maintenance dose and is safe – no need for a loading phase.
Just make sure it’s a pure product (like Creapure) without added junk or stimulants. Check ingredients.
Hope that helps!
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Hi @Vidu – it’s always a good thing when they can’t find anything to diagnose. 🙂 But I understand how chest pain can be concerning. And I can totally relate to your daughter’s symptom as it also happened to me as a young competitive gymnast. I used to train in gymnastics 4 hours per day, 5 days per week, and suddenly developed these random chest pains exactly the way you described.
In my case, it turned out to be costochondritis – inflammation of the cartilage between the ribs and the breastbone from lots of physical activity. It wasn’t dangerous, but it was definitely uncomfortable and scary at the time. It resolved on its own with time. Looking back, I wasn’t given anything, but my diet also wasn’t the best. My mom used to drive me to McDonald’s regularly after gymnastics because I was SO famished and couldn’t wait to get home to eat dinner. So, how is your daughter’s diet? Is it rich in anti-inflammatory foods with lots of different colored vegetables, fruits, healthy fats like avocado, nuts, seeds, and good quality animal proteins?
Given that your daughter’s BP was elevated, there could be the possibility of dehydration combined with the stress of being at the hospital. “White coat syndrome” is very real and can temporarily elevate BP. So if you have a blood pressure monitor at home, you can track it at the same time daily to see if it was just a 1-off temporary increase or if it remains elevated day to day. Normal BP for a 9-year-old is usually around 90–110 systolic, so 120 is elevated but not dangerous.
Were any blood tests taken that you can share? If dehydration is present, that can cause a temporary rise in blood pressure by reducing blood volume and triggering blood vessel constriction, and it may also lead to muscle cramps or chest wall pain (like costochondritis) due to electrolyte imbalances.
Other signs of dehydration can include dry lips or mouth, headaches, fatigue, dizziness, or dark or infrequent urine. Has she shown any of these lately? Is she drinking enough water throughout the day, especially before and after gymnastics? Does she sweat a lot? You may want to consider adding in “sole” (saturated salt water) or an electrolyte to her water to help replenish lost electrolytes from training.
Hope this helps.
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@Sheena I know – I too have looked in the past and still keep waiting for an integrative dermatologist to show up on the scene in Dubai. I’ll be sure to let you know if I do find one.
In the meantime, checkout Genesis Healthcare Center. They have a dermatology clinic and offer mole mapping.
And working with a functional medicine practitioner or naturopathic doctor works too. I’ve personally helped a few clients (and kids) eliminate eczema. It’s very much gut and detox related. Stress can absolutely be a trigger, but as you said, it absolutely impacts the gut as well.
You might also want to listen to Dr. G’s session in B Better. We’ll be uploading the recording hopefully today. It touches on the emotional components to disease and cancer. He’s seen eczema disappear when the nervous system is better regulated. If it resonates with you, you can find his emotional release courses here.
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@Tatjana If you think of the North to South digestive process, digestion actually begins in the brain! So if we’re not in a parasympathetic state, digestion is already compromised. This is step #1. You’ll learn more about that in this lesson from the Gut Health Masterclass which you’ve started watching.
If that’s not an issue for you and eating hygiene is in place, then next step in the N to S chain is stomach acid. This will trigger enzymes and bile. So if stomach acid is not robust, then enzymes and bile, and the rest of digestion will be compromised too.
So if you want to skip ahead, you can watch this lesson to learn about the common root causes of low stomach acid. The most common ones are H Pylori overgrowth, hypothyroid function, and zinc deficiency – all of which can be measured. I prefer the stool test by Diagnostic Solutions (members get access to ordering functional tests). As for thyroid testing, if your lab panel doesn’t offer it, you can always pay out of pocket and order your own tests through Valeo Health. B Better members also get a discount.
And if you want to test your current stomach acid level with an easy, at-home baking soda challenge, watch this video and fast forward to 3mins for the instructions. Repeat it for a few days, and report back with your score.
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@Tatjana – if you’re seeing undigested food in your stool, then we always have to go up North to see what might be the cause. Digestion is a North to South process as I summarize in this video here from the Gut Health Masterclass.
Is it poor eating hygiene? Is it a need for more stomach acid? More digestive enzymes? Better bile flow? All of the above? If any of these 3 major digestive players are compromised, then you’ll get downstream consequences in the small and large intestine so the question to be always asking is “Why”. Why do I need more stomach acid? Why am I not producing enough digestive enzymes? Why is bile not flowing properly?
If you have the time to watch a few lessons from the Gut Health Masterclass, you’ll start to make better sense of how it all works and how easily it can dysfunction. I’d recommend the 2 modules called “Nuts & Bolts of How Digestion Works” and “How Digestion Dysfunctions” if you have the time.
I’d also recommend you take our Gut Health Quiz if you haven’t already. Let us know your score as that can help us figure out which of the digestive players show up as a priority, and what you can start to look at in terms of root cause reasons why they might be sluggish.
If you’re sure that you’re getting in enough calories, then not being able to gain weight can in fact be due to malabsorption in the small intestine, which is often the case with SIBO, but also hyperthyroid function. Have you ever had a full thyroid panel done? (TSH, T4, T3, Free T4, Free T3, reverse T3, anti-TPO, ant-TG)
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@Tatjana the d-limonene seems to have decent ingredients, and the dosage is high so definitely don’t take it together with PC from the start. And never take it after food or on an empty stomach. Kept in the freezer, and taken 3/4 way through a meal is usually how I recommend my clients to take it.
Given your strong reaction – this usually indicates a strong need to “decongest” the biliary tract. Allow it to dissipate today before introducing it again. Brewing fresh ginger tea can help with the nausea.
For my very sensitive clients, Swanson brand offers d-limonene in 250mg capsules (so 1/4 the quantity) which can help with a gradual introduction instead of a higher dosage taken every other day or every 2 days if not well tolerated initially.
Phosphatidylcholine (PC) is usually well tolerated by all. It’s a key component of bile that helps keep it fluid and less sticky, preventing bile sludge and buildup. It supports the breakdown and flow of fats, allowing bile to move more freely through the liver and gallbladder. PC also protects the bile ducts and liver cells from damage by reducing bile acid toxicity and inflammation. Together with D-limonene, it can really help with proper bile flow which is essential to prevent SIBO recurrence.
Milk thistle is a wonderful herb for overall liver health and NAC is needed in the detoxification process. However, anytime there is suspected bile flow congestion, we never want to push detoxification. The order matters. First “unplug” the drain so to speak, and then you can open the faucet to let it flow… 🙂 Then, once the “drain” is open, you can safely introduce phase 1 and phase 2 support like NAC, milk thistle, and glutathione.
Hang in there… healing is never linear and requires listening to the body and course correcting as needed. Here for you…
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Hi @Tatjana – what was the brand and dosage of d-limonene? 1000mg? And what was the brand and dosage PC?
I always recommend that my clients take their d-limonene 3/4 way through their meal (never on an empty stomach), and keep it in the freezer to delay the release of citrus oil. This helps prevent lemon-y burps.
If there’s a lot of biliary tract congestion to break up, this can definitely lead to nausea, so I always tell my clients to listen to their body and adjust the dosage and timing accordingly. The body guides the process always! For example, if breakfast is not a very big meal, then they have it with lunch or dinner instead.
Also, if it’s 250mg capsules vs. 1000mg capsules, then decrease the dose. If it’s not possible to reduce the dose, then I usually tell them to take it every other day or every 2 days until they are symptom-free again. And then they resume to gradually increase frequency and dosage until they can comfortably reach 1000mg, 1 to 2 x per day as needed.
And as a general rule of thumb, anytime adding in new supplements, always go slow and slow and introduce 1 new supplement at a time for at least 3 days before adding in anything new. This allows the body time to adjust and to also help isolate what is/isn’t working to be able to course correct when needed. Adding in PC together with D-limonene may have been too much too soon.
As for the membership upgrade, the amount should get automatically pro-rated if you’ve already paid for a month. And if you decide to go with monthly, you can cancel anytime before your next billing cycle – there’s no contract or commitment that locks you in beyond the month if that’s what you choose.
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Hope it helps him too @Inga-55 !
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I did a quick search to find self-pay clinics in Mississauga, ON. I would call them to see if you need a referral, or if you can can schedule an appt directly and self-pay.
1. Pediatric Urgent Care – Mississauga
Children’s Clinic
3885 Duke of York Blvd, Unit C107, Mississauga, ON L5B 4P2
Website: pediatricurgentcare.ca
Offers pediatric echocardiograms for newborns to 17 years old. Call to confirm availability.
2. Ontario Heart Center – Etobicoke
100 Humber College Blvd, Suite 207, Etobicoke, ON M9V 5G4
Website: ontarioheartcenter.ca
Offers pediatric echo and accepts self-pay patients.
3. Indus Heart Care Centre – Toronto
229 Yonge St, Toronto, ON M5B 1N9
Website: indusheart.com
Private cardiology clinic with pediatric echocardiogram services.
4. Toronto Centre for Medical Imaging – Downtown Toronto
150 York Street, Suite 910, Toronto, ON M5H 3S5
Website: tcfmi.com
Low wait times. Call to confirm if they accommodate pediatric patients.
5. Ontario Diagnostic Centres – Mississauga
3950 Grand Park Drive, Mississauga, ON L5B 2C4
Website: ontdc.com
Offers echocardiograms. Call to ask about self-pay and pediatric options.
6. Trillium Health Centre (Cardiology Clinic)
71 King Street West, Mississauga, ON L5B 4A2
Public/private hybrid clinic offering pediatric echos. Check for self-pay options.
Hope one of these options work!
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@Vidu how long are you staying in Canada for and where are you located? Unfortunately the health care system there has become abysmal! My mom had a mini-stroke and 11 months later is still waiting for an appointment to see a neurologist!! Even when we offered to self-pay and not go through the Canadian healthcare system, the wait time was still unforgiving.
With that said, I would call the pediatric cardiologist’s office directly and explain the symptoms. Mention the chest pain, history of fever, and pain with breathing – this may help get her in sooner (hopefully). You can also ask the referring physician to mark the referral as urgent if they haven’t already done so.
But your best bet honestly is to go private, if possible. Some provinces or cities like Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal have private diagnostic clinics where you can pay out-of-pocket for an echo. It will likely cost hundreds of dollars, but it bypasses the queue.
Given the recent fever and pain with deep breathing, yes, an echo is the proper next step to help confirm or rule out inflammation or fluid around the heart which can sometimes follow viral infections.
And yes, some basic blood work could also be helpful, even if it’s just to check for inflammation markers like:
• CRP or ESR – inflammation
• Troponin – heart muscle stress/damage
• CBC – to rule out infection
• Electrolytes – just for completeness
These can also be requested through self-pay from a walk-in lab. Depending on where you live, https://bloodtestscanada.com/ offers private blood tests to get around the system.
bloodtestscanada.com
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Private Blood Tests in Canada - Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba. Simply Order your private bloodwork online, attend a patient service centre and our Private GP will send your results electronically. Established since 2009
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@Vidu yes, it’s best to get a child or small adult cuff to ensure accurate results. Look for a cuff labeled “pediatric” or “small adult”.
It may also be a good idea to run a basic set of blood tests (like a CBC and CMP including electrolytes) with her pediatrician when you’re back if she’s not afraid of needles. If you have insurance, these basic tests are typically covered.
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@Tatjana from desktop, click on the “Home” tab in the menu. From mobile, click on the green hamburger menu, then click on “Home”. Beneath your Profile picture, you’ll see the upgrade options with green buttons. See screenshot of my Home page from desktop view:
Just click on whichever option you prefer and follow the checkout steps. Let me know if you have any questions.
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@Tatjana the Yearly all inclusive package breaks down to the same amount as the Starter which you are currently enrolled in. The Starter allows members to get a taste of what we offer if they aren’t sure they want to commit. But if you feel an all inclusive package is the way to go (either monthly or yearly), you can upgrade anytime from your Home page. Let me know if you have any questions in the meantime.
