It's been a long time since I make a detailed post here. My routine has changed drastically since I first started RPD, and I've combined many alternative therapies/treatments. In this post I'll discuss the things I'm combing and their synergistic effect.
Diet
Each meal consists of 4 oz of meat (from beef, lamb, veal, etc.) and 2 oz of beef fat. I use Redmond's unrefined Real Salt and heavily salt all my food. This adds minerals and all sorts of good stuff. My blood pressure is always perfect despite (on average) consuming 2+ tsp of salt daily. Dr. Brownstein has lots of info on the benefits of unrefined salts. He's published books and written articles. Here's a link by Dr. Brownstein on unrefined salt -
http://www.anh-europe.org/files/David_Brownstein_article_Caduceus_issue_79_Are_you_salt_deficient.pdf - I also eat 2-3 egg yolks daily. For carbs I eat several bananas and honey daily, and occasionally berries. I don't eat seafood, just land animals. My diet is still a raw version of the Specific Carbohydrate Diet which strives to eliminate complex carbohydrates and ensure the foods consumed are easiest to digest. I also generally have some brain around and eat .5 oz most days.
Orthomolecular Medicine
Like I said, I've combined many alternative therapies. I'll start by discussing the iodine protocol.
The Iodine Protocol
This is a protocol that was made by Dr. Brownstein. Essentially the purpose of it is to displace halogens in the body, and replace them with natural chlorides (from unrefined salt) and iodine. Halogens are everywhere, especially in America. The water is fluoridated and chlorinated, bakery products are brominated, and a lot of non-organic produce uses halogens. Combined with the lack of iodine in the modern diet, it makes for a nasty situation where the body becomes iodine deficient.
I started with 2.5-10 mg of iodine from Lugol's 2% solution, and have since worked my way up to 50-60 mg daily. I have also eliminated
most sources of unwanted halogens. I use a shower filter which eliminates 95%+ chlorine and other additives and I distill my water (then add in a pinch of Real Salt and 4 drops of Blue Ocean Minerals). I consume 2+ tsp of Real Salt daily which helps eliminate bromine.
Here are some articles on the iodine protocol, and iodine in general.
http://www.hacres.com/pdf/documents/research-Advances_in_Iodine_Nutrition.pdfhttp://www.jpands.org/vol11no4/millerd.pdfSomething else I've been taking to help the process is Vitamin K2. In my research I've seen that calcium, fluoride, and various other things can lodge in places where they cause harm like the brain. New research is showing that a lack of Vitamin K2 is what causes minerals to deposit where they're unwanted. At the same time having sufficient Vitamin K2 causes calcium and other minerals to deposit where they're needed, the bones. Vitamin K2 apparently also decreases the amount of bone turn over so you keep more of the bone you build. I've been taking Calcium hydroxyaptite with the K2. It's the best form of calcium out there.
Vitamin K2 also helps build various fats that are good for the brain.
http://www.thorne.com/altmedrev/.fulltext/10/1/24.pdfhttp://naturalmedicinejournal.net/pdf/VitaminK.NMJNutraceuticalFINALwithtables.pdf - articles on Vitamin K2 and bones
http://advances.nutrition.org/content/3/2/204.full - article on Vitamin K2 and the brain
MTHFR and MethylFolate
I've recently started looking into the MTHFR gene mutation and methylfolate's roles in schizophrenia. I've find there's a lot of information suggesting there's a higher prevelance of the MTHFR gene mutation in schiozphrenics. Apparently when someone has the MTHFR genetic mutation their ability to convert folate into the form the brain/nervous system use (methylfolate) is limited. These can cause all sorts of problems.
Lack of methylfolate can decrease methylation which leads to toxin build up, low levels of neurotransmitters, and low levels of glutathione. There are a lot of bad things associated with low levels of methylfolate.
I've been taking 10 mg daily for the last 2-3 weeks. I noticed at first I was needing a little more sleep and I was overall experiencing slight detox symptoms. But at the same time I noticed I was functioning better, and could apply myself much more toward things I'm doing. After about a week the detox symptoms completely subsided and I started needing less sleep and overall had more energy.
Here's a link with a powerpoint by Dr. Benjamin Lynch (an experienced doctor on methylfolate and MTHFR) -
http://www.seekinghealth.com/media/Improving-Patient-Outcomes-short-ver.pdf - it covers some of the important functions of methylation
I've also been taking folinic acid and methylcobalamin B12 (sublingual) with my methylfolate (as well as a general b complex).
Niacin Therapy
This is perhaps the most important part of my routine. Dr. Hoffer was able to help treat schizophrenia with large doses of niacin. I can personally say it's very effective. I take 1,000 mg of niacin 3x daily (with the b complex and vitamin c recommended to go with it). Since starting that dose I've been able to live a fully functional, productive life.
http://www.doctoryourself.com/review_hoffer_B3.html - Article on schizophrenia and niacin
http://www.amazon.com/Healing-Schizophrenia-Complementary-Vitamin-Treatments/dp/1897025084 - "Healing Schizophrenia: Complementary Vitamin & Drug Treatments," by Dr. Hoffer. A must have for anyone looking to treat schizophrenia. He also has other books that are worth picking up too, but this one is a good starting place.
I take 50 mg of b complex that has the active forms of folate and b12 with each dose of niacin, as well as 1,000 mg vitamin C.
A list of the supplements I take
Niacin - 1,000 mg 3x daily
Vitamin C - 1,000 mg 3x daily
MethylFolate (Quatrefolic) - 10 mg once daily
Folinic Acid - 400 mcg 2-3x daily
B6 P5P - 25 mg 2x daily
B12 Methylcobalamin - 500 mcg sublingual 1x daily
B Complex - 50 mg 3x daily (from GI Pro Health, has active forms of b vitamins)
Vitamin K2 - 5 mg 3x daily
Calcium Hydroxyapatite - 1,400 mg daily (1,000 mg from calcium, 400 from phosphate)
Vitamin D3 - 1,000 IU 3x daily
Magnesium Glycinate - 100 mg 3x daily
Magnesium Taurate - 125 mg 2x daily
Manganese Glycinate - 8 mg 3x daily
Zinc Glycinate - 11 mg once daily
Selenium (selenomethionine) - 50-100 mcg once daily
Multivitamin - 1/6 of the recommended daily dose (from GI Pro Health, has active forms of vitamins)
Blue Ocean Minerals - 1 tsp daily
Fermented Cod Liver Oil - 1 tsp daily
I really feel like I've combined so many therapies that it's hard to pick just one and say it does just one thing. For example the Vitamin K2 helps build bones, which is good since I'm trying to resolve some dental issues. At the same time Vitamin K2 helps take calcium out from where it doesn't belong, while helping make fats the brain needs.
The iodine protocol helps eliminate halides, but at the same time many parts of the body benefit from having optimal iodine levels.
The magnesium helps build bones, but at the same time it provides a calming effect which is good for mental health. In short a lot of these alternative therapies overlap and provide lots of benefits.
I'm doing very well physically. Mentally I'm incredibly functional, more so than a lot of non schizophrenics.
I'm still waiting to get the results for the MTHFR test.
I see my psychiatrist today. I've been on the 10 mg dose of geodon since October 25th (about 8 weeks). I was on 20 mg for 6 months before that. And many years ago before any alternative therapies, I was on 120 mg (plus 1,500 mg of depakote). Since I've been on the 10 mg dose (which is half a pill) for about 2 months, I'm thinking of giving it another month or two at 10 mg then stopping it completely or possibly trying a 1/4 of a pill for a few weeks/months.
EDIT: I've also been making "sole" with my salt. Rather than put a 1/2 tsp in my water and drink, I put 1 tbls (1 tbls = 3 tsp) Real Salt into a mason jar and enough water to make a total of 6 cups, then I drink half a cup when I want a 1/2 tsp salt and follow it with regular water.