[ephextom]

I've probably gone as far down the rabbit hole researching this topic as any lay person can, after running into some pretty major "not living up to my potential" issues in my 20s (I was assessed as not diagnosable as ADHD or ASD by a psychiatrist, but I still seemed to be affected by at least some of the symptoms related to those conditions).

I've been as willing as anybody to believe theories (long commonplace among alt-med communities) like "it's antibiotics", "it's candida yeast" (or insert any other bacterial/fungus/parasite/virus species you can point to), "it's the effect of vaccines on the microbiome", "it's due to microbial dysbiosis in utero".

And after nearly 20 years of researching/contemplating/experimenting, I just find myself thinking "there's no singular, simple explanation or solution". And really, nor should there be; the body is a highly complex system.

Microbiome matters – but there's plenty of stuff you can do to improve it. Metals (mercury, lead, etc) and other environmental toxins (PFAS and other endocrine disruptors [1]) matter – but they can be detoxified over time via some fairly safe and non-invasive techniques. Inflammation matters a lot – and all kinds of things to do with diet, allergens, microbiome influence that. Genetics matter – but probably less than we presume, once all the other factors are considered and addressed (and it's probably more a case of genetic expression in response to stressors, rather than anything hard-coded/deterministic).

A big perspective-shift for me was finding that emotions and trauma matter a huge amount. This is the least-researched and discussed, both in mainstream and the alt-med circles, but in my own experience, nothing has made a bigger difference to my life outcomes (including physiological symptoms like inflammation) than regularly practicing techniques that identify and release deeply-held emotional complexes.

It can seem like an implausible, fringe theory until you think about it this way: if a person is perpetually traumatised, they can be in a "fight/flight/freeze" state, which takes up much of the body's energy and resources, instead of that being directed to healthy immunity (dealing with harmful microbes and allergens), digestion, metabolism, detoxification, tissue repair/growth etc.

And just to confound things even further, having to deal with an unhealthy microbiome in utero or early life can be a cause of trauma (just as it can be in later life when an infection like Epstein Barr can lead to CFS/ME).

I know this all seems very nebulous and speculative; it's taken me a long time to get my head around, but my takeaway after all this time is that to correct these kinds of conditions, these factors all need to be addressed in parallel: emotions, microbiome, toxicity, diet/nutrition.

I'm quite sure there will be no complete understanding and remedy for conditions like ASD and ADHD that doesn't incorporate all these factors.

[1] https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/2022/07/what-are-endo...

[eterps]

> and other environmental toxins (PFAS and other endocrine disruptors [1]) matter – but they can be detoxified over time via some fairly safe and non-invasive techniques.

What techniques are you referring to?

[ephextom]

The safest I know of are infrared saunas (red bulb/near infrared is best), and breathing exercises, as well as overall good nutrition and emotional healing to support the body's natural detox pathways.

Clinical practices like intravenous chelation (ETDA etc) or supplements like spirulina, ALA, NAC, vitamin C, cilantro etc are popular and seem appealing from the promises made in their marketing, but they are often ineffective at removing the most deeply-stored toxins, and can do more harm than good by moving some toxins around the body to places where they can do more damage.

[hgomersall]

Not sure if it counts as non invasive, but I've read research suggesting donating blood lowers pfas levels reliably (not too mention other potential benefits that are not particularly well validated).

[red-iron-pine]

is that really a solution? you're just giving someone else the PFAS. fixes you temporarily, fucks up someone else

[ancientworldnow]

If someone needs blood transfusions they have larger concerns than PFAS (that's likely at a similar baseline anyway).

[ffsm8]

> nothing has made a bigger difference (...) than regularly practicing techniques that identify and release deeply-held emotional complexes

Are you talking about meditation? And if so, on your own or with a teacher?

[ephextom]

Meditation has only been a very small part of my practice. I've worked with a whole lot of different practitioners since about 2012. I can't really distil a decade plus of healing work into a comment that skeptical readers will find persuasive, but for those wanting to look into it for themselves, books by Gabor Maté and Bruce Lipton are a good start, and practices like Internal Family Systems, Family Constellations, EFT tapping, biofeedback/neurofeedback and Neuro-Emotional Technique are a worth trying.

In principle, emotional healing techniques are effective if they involve "letting go" of the physiological reaction (i.e., "trigger") that is activated when experiencing (or remembering) a traumatic event. Once the physiological reaction ceases to occur, the emotion is "processed", and is just a benign memory like any other. But that can take a huge amount of work over a long time for some complexes, if they are very, erm, complex, and deeply ingrained.

[ephextom]

A further thought:

Whilhelm Reich’s concept of “armoring” is relevant and worth exploring for those interested.

Here’s the first article I could find about it (no idea if it’s the best):

https://www.somatopia.com/blog/the-art-of-letting-go-why-rei...

One of my practitioners, who I see every 2-3 months, specializes in releasing “armor” from the body with a specific massage technique.

I can easily believe that in many cases where someone is considered to be moderately-ASD, that it’s a case of this kind of armoring.

This is not to say there is no physiological or genetic component, but that the trauma and armoring is a significant factor in the expression of the condition.

[pcdoodle]

Thanks for sharing your journey and insightful thought procs on the matter. Refreshing to find comments like these in the noise that is HN.

[biellls]

My experience is quite similar, except my issue was recurring severe unexplained pain with scarring of the joints. I've come to believe the same conclusion that chronic fight or flight is the biggest factor and have healed myself within a year.

The difference is that I've come at it from a different approach, where this fight or flight is a neural pathway or habit of the unconscious mind that you can train yourself out of. Although trauma can probably be a significant factor on how people get to this state, "the way out" (title of the book by Alan Gordon that explained these ideas) is probable the same and I believe not all people with these issues have significant trauma, although in some it may be necessary to address as an underlying cause.

As for how you can train yourself, it's explained in the book mentioned above as well as the free podcast "Tell me about your pain". Since the podcast is free so the techniques are public knowledge, I believe I'm allowed to summarize my take:

1. Constant "problem solving" and overthinking about your health can put you in a state of stress that heightens your perception of your own body which in turn convinces you that something is seriously wrong (eg: you may hear your own heart beating very loudly even though it's beating normally, or you may feel pain even though the nerves are transmitting normal signals to your brain). If you've been to many doctors and they can't find an explanation, there's a chance they all missed a serious problem, but there's probably a bigger chance that there's nothing physically wrong with your body but your nervous system is causing the altered perception and over reaction. It can be freeing to realize you don't need to try a new diet, or spend all your free time on pubmed, or go see an expensive doctor that prescribes expensive supplements. If you have a "neuroplastic" issue these things will not only not help, but actually hinder your recovery.

2. Catching the "what if" thoughts. You can't stop yourself from going to a worst case scenario, but you can stop yourself from buying into it. Every time you think something like "what if I actually have an injury that the MRI and X-Ray missed"? You can reply to yourself how unlikely that is. The nervous system is part of the subconscious so making yourself feel calm will probably, over time, calm it down.

3. Somatic tracking, which is the action of paying attention to a painful, strange or otherwise uncomfortable sensation in your body through a lens of safety. Eg: wow, it's incredible that my brain can usually filter the sound of my heartbeat but now I'm able to hear it at full volume. If you understand that the sensation is safe and you have nothing to fear, paying attention to that sensation will slowly make it go away over time (not necessarily in one session, which although it can happen is not the goal). Your nervous system highlights pain or sensations because it believes they're dangerous and wants you to feel them to avoid further injury. When you pay attention to them in a lens of safety it understands that there's no danger so they get deactivated.

4.Paying attention to things that feel good and being mindful in the moment about them. Whether it's feeling your breath in mindfulness meditation or taking a walk in the park and consciously being present and enjoying the experience.

5. Filtering what you consume. Media and content nowadays tries to appeal to our most basic instincts, especially fear. Reading news can put you in a state of alert. Watching shorts or tiktok can overstimulate you. Try to be comfortable with stillness and doing nothing. You don't need to fill every free moment of time with your phone.

6. Have you ever though: if I was better I would do X, or when I get better I'll do Y? Being sick can bring apathy that can stop you from doing things you enjoy even after being physically capable. Actually doing them and learning to enjoy them again isn't just a possibility, it's a necessary part of recovery.

I'm sure there's more, but this is what worked for me to go from bed-bound with full body pain (with 3 surgeries to remove internal joint scarring without any injury) to being 98% recovered in less than one year. If any of this resonates with someone reading this I'd recommend listening to the podcast, it's free and got me 70% of the way there even without the book.