First off, let me say that it was very difficult to convince a
doctor to let me try medications described in some of the medical
journal entries I discovered. It was even difficult to convince
them that I needed the blood test to determine if I had been exposed
to the bacteria Chlamydia pneumoniae.
Step 1. I had to find
a doctor with an open mind. My family doctor at the time
was one of those closed minded individuals who even when confronted
with research and facts wouldn't accept the fact that there was
anything more than an inhaler to help my condition. He at
least wrote me a prescription for the blood test but I had to
find a lab (I found one in California) that would process the
test. When the results came back, I received a call from
one of the nurses in his office who said "Good news Mr. Quinlan",
your blood test came back ok and there's nothing wrong with you.
Step 2. I had to hold
my doctor accountable for his decisions. I then requested
a copy of my blood test. After all, I paid for it, and I
wanted to see for myself that the test came back negative.
After getting the test back, I was very surprised to see that
the doctors office was incompetent in reading the results and
I indeed was way off the scale in being exposed to
Chlamydia pneumoniae. If I had trusted my doctor completely,
I would still be wheezing and miserable today. I then contacted
the doctor who was involved with the Chlamydia Pneumoniae research
to confirm my interpretation of the blood test results.
Step 3. I needed to
start a plan of treatment. After politely telling my doctor
that he was wrong in reading the blood test, I pointed out the
instructions that came with the blood test but he just shrugged
it off. I had also provided him approximately 20 pages of
documentation of the medical journal studies by Dr. David Hahn
detailing how patients were treated. I then asked
him to prescribe the medications that were recommended in the
studies.
His reply was "I haven't heard about this research in my
circles and can't prescribe anything for you other than normal
asthma medications that I usually prescribe".
This was devastating to me as I had spent a lot of time and energy
working up to this point. Now I had to start over and find
another doctor with a more open mind. At least I had the
blood test with supporting documentation about my exposure to
that bacteria.
Step 4. Start over
and find a doctor with an open mind. I started networking
with people I knew and a friend of a friend had a daughter who
worked for a good doctor not far from us. She said he would
be open to the research I had. Now, I finally was
working with a flexible doctor who could think for himself and
examine the research to make a fair determination about my plan
of treatment. Click here to see a letter
I sent to Dr. David Hahn asking about his research and my situation.
Step 5. Determine the
correct medications to take. I was able to contact the doctor
who was involved in the Chlamydia pneumoniae
research and received recommendations as to the types of medications
to take. Click here to see the medications
I used.
Step 6. I obtained
a prescription and began my treatment plan.
The first treatment lasted 9 weeks. After the treatment,
I still had asthma and didn't seem to be much better. I
was very disappointed so I once again contacted a doctor involved
in the research and asked if it was reasonable to take the medication
more than once. He said that it sometimes takes more than
the medications I took and I received information that I passed
along to my doctor as to what second round of medications I would
need. I then took the second round of medications which
lasted about another 5 weeks.
Step 7. I waited and
wondered. This was a difficult time because I hoped to be
instantaneously cured. It didn't happen overnight.
Here's my non medical assessment of what happened. The antibiotic
attacked the Chlamydia pneumoniae and just
about eliminated it from my system. It took a few months
for my body to get strong enough to fight off the rest of it in
my system. Within six months, I went from being a wheeze-a-holic
totally dependant on my inhalers to not even needing my inhaler.
It actually took almost a year before I felt like I did before
I had asthma and feel totally back to normal.
Step 8. Be Thankful
and try to help others with asthma. That is why I created
this web site. I felt guilty keeping this information to
myself while so many others are living their lives barely able
to breathe. Do what you can to pass the word on this method
of cure to others. It may not help all asthmatics but studies
show that a high percentage could be helped.
