The Dangers of Steroid Therapy

Steroid Therapy

Steroid therapy is the use of steroid medications, also known as corticosteroids, to treat many types of autoimmune disease, including myasthenia gravis, lupus, and multiple sclerosis, and other disorders, such as asthma. Steroid medications include medications like prednisone and cortisone. Corticosteroids can be taken orally or in other ways, such as by inhalation.

According to Western medicine, steroid medications are medically necessary to treat many conditions and diseases. But steroid medications have major effects on the metabolism of calcium and bone, which may lead to severe bone loss, osteoporosis, and bone fractures. As a matter of fact, high dosage of steroid medications can cause rapid bone loss, up to as much as 15 percent per year. If you are on steroids, you are more than twice as likely to have a fracture on the spine or the ribs as compared to a person not taking steroids. In addition, there are even different rates of bone loss among individuals on corticosteroids. Bone loss occurs most rapidly in the first six months after starting oral steroid medications. After 12 months of chronic steroid use, there is a slower rate of bone loss. Fracture risk generally increases as the daily doses of steroid medications increase, although not all patients who take steroid medications experience bone loss.

Other adverse side effects of steroid medications are elevation of blood pressure, weight gain, decreased resistance to infection, indigestion, thinning of skin, and potential development of cataracts and glaucoma.

For example, prednisone is a medication commonly prescribed for ocular myasthenia. However, four factors should be carefully considered prior to the use of steroids, especially if your myasthenia gravis is related only to ocular muscles:

Can steroids improve or eradicate your symptoms?

Are there other safer forms of therapy to treat your myasthenia gravis?

Does the severity of the symptoms warrant the risk of steroid adverse effects?

Do steroids reduce the chance of a relapse?

It stands to reason that the high risk of taking pharmaceutical drugs to treat only the symptoms without producing a cure may not warrant the continuation of the medications over a long period.

The bottom line: Set your goal to ultimately stop all medications. It may take weeks, months, or even years, but that should be your ultimate goal in your health pursuit.

Do not stop all medications right away.

Talk to your doctor about your concern. Express your wish to reduce your medications slowly and gradually.

If your doctor does not agree to your suggestion, look for another naturopathic doctor.

No matter what, make it your ultimate objective to stop all medications eventually.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Steroid Therapy?

There are many types of autoimmune diseases. Western medicine uses pharmaceutical drugs to treat the disease symptoms, which may have devastating impact on the immune system that could even lead to to the development of other diseases and disorders.  

Steroid therapy is commonly used to treat autoimmune diseases. and they include medications like prednisone and cortisone. According to Western medicine, steroid medications are medically necessary to treat many conditions and diseases. But steroid medications have many major effects on the metabolism of calcium and bone, which may lead to severe bone loss, osteoporosis, and bone fractures. As a matter of fact, high dosage of steroid medications can cause rapid bone loss, up to as much as 15 percent per year.

Based on my own past experience, I would suggest you think twice before opting for steroid therapy

My Myasthenia Gravis

Myasthenia gravis is one of the many autoimmune diseases, which, according to contemporary Western medicine, offer no known cure, except controlling or suppressing their many disease symptoms. This book is based on the author's own experience of battling against his myasthenia gravis: how he stopped all his medications through a holistic approach to controlling and managing the disease. This book provides insight and well-researched information that he would like to share with those who are afflicted with myasthenia gravis or any other autoimmune disease.

This book covers every aspect of holistic health to cope with autoimmunity: body detox, diet, lifestyle changes, exercises for muscle weakness, and mental relaxation techniques for vision problems associated with myasthenia gravis, including the following:  

• The Potential Causes of Autoimmunity
• Why Some Are More Susceptible to Autoimmune Diseases
• The importance of Cellular Health
• The Damaging Free Radical
• How to Protect and Enhance the Immune System
• The Author’s Own Story: the Diagnosis, the Treatment, the Awakening, and the Recovery
• Healing Begins with the Mind, and Not the Body
• The Dangers of Drugs and Steroid Therapy
• The Importance of Internal Cleansing
• Using Foods as Medicine
• Lifestyle Changes
• Relaxation and Immune Diseases
• Coping with Muscle Weaknesses—the Eye Muscles

Click here to get your digital copy, and here to get your paperback edition.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Autoimmunity and Autoimmune Diseases

Your Creator has given your body an immune system that protects you from disease and infection. Sadly, your immune system may attack itself in the form of autoimmune diseases, which can affect many parts of your body, including your nerves, muscles, endocrine system (the system that controls your body’s hormones and other chemicals), and digestive system.

There are more than 80 types of autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes mellitus, rheumatoid arthritis, and myasthenia gravis, among many others.

Many of these diseases associated with autoimmunity are often chronic, requiring lifelong care and monitoring.

Most of these diseases strike women more than they do men, particularly women of working age and during their child-bearing years.

Essentially, autoimmunity can affect almost any organ or body system. The exact problem you may have with autoimmunity depends on which body tissues are targeted by your immune system. For example, if your skin is targeted, you may have skin rashes, blisters, or color changes; if your thyroid gland is affected, you may feel extremely tired, sensitive to cold, and muscle aches; if your joints are attacked, you may have severe joint pain, stiffness, and loss of function.

Risk Factors

(1) Stress is a major factor triggering the onset of an autoimmune disease, especially if you already have an over-stressed or a weakened immune system. As you age, your stress may increase with increased limitations on your life. In order to cope with daily living, you need to conquer your stress, which may lead to depression and anxiety, which are commonly associated with aging.

(2) The genes you inherit may predispose your susceptibility to developing an autoimmune disease.

(3) Viruses may also contribute to the development of an autoimmune disease.

My Myasthenia Gravis

Myasthenia gravis is one of the many autoimmune diseases, which, according to contemporary Western medicine, offer no known cure, except controlling or suppressing their many disease symptoms. This book is based on the author's own experience of battling against his myasthenia gravis: how he stopped all his medications through a holistic approach to controlling and managing the disease. This book provides insight and well-researched information that he would like to share with those who are afflicted with myasthenia gravis or any other autoimmune disease.

This book covers every aspect of holistic health to cope with autoimmunity: body detox, diet, lifestyle changes, exercises for muscle weakness, and mental relaxation techniques for vision problems associated with myasthenia gravis.

Click here to get your digital copy, and here o get your paperback edition.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Changing tthe Mindset to Heal

Holistic living may help you reduce the symptoms of myasthenia grave, which is one the many autoimmune diseases, which, according to Western medicine, is incurable..

Holistic living is living in rhythm with the body, the mind, and the soul, as well as in harmony with one another. It requires a new mindset: healing of the body, the mind, and the soul comes from within and not from without. That is, medications may suppress the symptoms, but they  do not heal over the long haul. To have this right mindset, you must have an empty mind first. Life is forever changing, and, accordingly, you must change your mindset. Change in life is challenging. Most of us don't welcome any change because of its uncertainty, especially as we have been conditioned to taking medicine and going to the doctor whenever we have a health issue.

Holistic living requires your readiness to change your mindset. Indeed, to be happy and healthy as you continue to age, you must embrace any change that comes into your life. Holistic living, which is connecting the body, the mind, and the soul to live a balanced and harmonious life, requires you to make some lifestyle changes. It takes courage to change, and to take up that courage may be difficult, but not impossible. This is where the human mind plays a pivotal role. Thinking not only makes you smarter but also energizes your brain, making it healthier and younger for longer. Right thinking can work miracles in your life: giving you courage to change for the better to live as if everything is a miracle.

Change has to do with the thinking mind. You must know how to think right. Thinking right has to do with active thinking, and thinking continually. Are you thinking all the time? Not really. You may think you are using your mind all the time, but in fact you are not. It is easy to have mental disuse, which is inadequate use of the brain. Many of us engage in mental disuse when we sit in front of the TV for hours; as a matter of fact, the average Americans spend more than 4 hours a day watching their favorite TV programs. Watching TV is mental disuse because it requires little or no brain activity, such as mental action and reaction; people just vegetate in front of the big screen. Mental disuse is an enemy of mental health. The bottom line: always keep your brain busy to activate your brain cells by engaging in brain activities that benefit the body, the mind, and the soul

Make a decision NOW to make some lifestyle changes. We are all habitual beings; we live by our habits. Therefore, it takes courage to change—courage to get out of our comfort zones. But courage is a great motivator once we embrace it enthusiastically. It not only makes you think out of the box, but also enables you to dream your dreams. Courage is no more than persistence: keep on doing what you need to do. It takes only a little courage to take your first step to go after your first goal. As you go forward, step by step, your steps will become easier and faster with greater rewards that further motivate you. The goal is not so much about obvious changes in your life, as about changes in your thinking process, about your doing and being. Changing lifestyle gradually is a no-brainer that requires, ironically, the help of your brain to provide the courage to change.

Remember, changing your lifestyle—how to live, how you think, how you act and react -- is  conducive to happy and healthy living, especially if you have an autoimmune disease.

As If Everything Is A Miracle. This 125-page book is about how to live your life as if everything is a miracle, instead of as if nothing is a miracle. To do just that, you need wisdom to "rethink" your mind, which may not be telling you the whole truth about your thoughts and life experiences; you need wisdom to "renew" your body, which lives in a toxic physical environment; you need wisdom to "reconnect" your soul, which provides your spirituality. Most importantly, you need wisdom to "realign" your whole being because the body, the mind, and the soul are all interconnected and interdependent on one another for your well-being to live your life as if everything is a miracle. Your mind is the map and your soul is the compass; without them, your body is going nowhere, and you will live your life as if nothing is a miracle.  To get your Kindle edition, click here.

Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau 

Get the Mind Wellness Recipes to have better thinking to live a better life!

Dealing with Muscle Weakness in Myasthenia Gravis

.Muscle weakness is one the major symptoms of myasthenia gravis.

Muscle weakness, which can occur in any part of the body, may lead to progressive weakness and further deterioration due to lack of muscle use. In other words, the muscle weakness may go from bad to worse. This may result in difficulty in undertaking routine movements, setting off muscle wastage and nerve deterioration further down the road. 

In myasthenia gravis, muscle strength is normal when resting. This has led many to believe that rest is the only option, but this is not true. Use soft-movement exercises, such as yoga, to overcome muscle weakness.

Yoga

Yoga health can have therapeutic effects on muscle weakness of myasthenia gravis through a series of mild and easy body movements in conjunction with deep breathing techniques to enhance muscle tone as well as to reduce physical pain. Yoga exercise practice requires neither energy nor strength. Instead, through the gentle movements, the muscles are moved, worked, and toned, with a new flow of energy into the body from the natural movements, while the enhanced blood circulation also strengthens the weakening muscles. In addition, because yoga health is holistic health, it also addresses the anxiety and fear issues of muscle weakness experienced by an individual with myasthenia gravis.

The bottom line: although the muscle groups may be weak, they still need to be exercised: “use it or lose it” still applies to muscle weakness of myasthenia gravis.

Yoga health provides the most practical approach to attaining a high level of physical fitness, as evidenced in muscle strength and flexibility attained through yoga exercises and yoga postures.

Do not let the debilitating muscle weakness overwhelm you. Overcome your muscle weakness with yoga health.

YOGA ROUTINE FOR MUSCLE STRENGTH

Begin the day with a 15-minute yoga session of yoga breathing and basic yoga exercises. This simple daily yoga routine can strengthen muscles and enhance physical strength to combat myasthenia gravis.

The first basic yoga exercise

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and heels slightly turned out.

Slowly stretch your arms in front of you, and then link them with your fingers.

Inhale slowly.

Stretch your arms up above your head, while exhaling.

Notice your breath, and feel the stretch along your arms and your legs (which have to be firmly rooted into the ground), as well as around your waist. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds.

Slowly release your arms and place them by your sides.

Slowly rotate your head sideways, and back and forth, to stretch your neck muscles.

Repeat the process.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Wisdom in Living

Wisdom in Living

This is a completely updated website on how to live your life as if everything is a miracle.

The journey of life is long and unpredictable. We all need wisdom to guide us along the way so that we will not get lost; even if we do, we may still find out way back to where it will eventually lead us to our final destination.

This new website may provide you with wisdom as your compass and roadmap on your life journey.

Wisdom in living comprises seeking God's wisdom through understanding human wisdom in order to live a meaningful and purposeful life, even in the golden years. The ancient wisdom of Tao holds the key to applying these principles of life and living in this modern world.

Stephen Lau

Just Like Watching A Suspense Movie

A Myasthenia Gravis Diagnosis Is Just Like Watching A Suspense Movie

Just like watching a suspense movie

Being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, such as myasthenia gravis, is just like watching a suspense movie, full of unpredictable twists and turns: you don’t know how it would end until maybe the very end; otherwise, it wouldn’t be worth watching. Don’t turn your head away, and don’t cover your eyes with your hands. Just keep on watching and even enjoying the movie!

Life might not have been fair to you with happenings that might have been beyond your control. No matter what, life is not meant to be a punishment for you. If you just don’t die, you will have the wisdom to live it through.

“Life begets death; one is inseparable from the other.

One is form; the other is formless.

Each gives way to the other.

One third of people focus on life, ignoring death.

One third of people focus on death, ignoring life.

One third of people think of neither, just drifting along.

They all suffer in the end.

Trusting the Creator, we have no illusion about life and death.

Holding nothing back from life, we are ready for death,

just as a man ready for sleep after a good day’s work.”

(Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 50)

“Abiding in the Creator, we do not fear death.

Following the conditioned mind, we fear everything.

Fear is a futile attempt to control things and people.

Death is a natural destination of the Way.

Unnatural fear of death does more harm than good.

It is like trying to use intricate tools of a master craftsman:

we end up hurting ourselves.”

(Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 74)

Even if you have been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, you  just have to go on living;  the wisdom in living the rest of your life is no more than . . . watching a suspense movie. Explore all the options of treatment; focus your mind, with the intent of healing, on what you should do next. Remember, the mind and the body are interconnected: which means all negative emotions will have a negative impact on the body, and thus obstacles to recovery and recuperation.

Stephen Lau     

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

A Myasthenia Gravis Diagnosis Is Just Like Watching A Suspense Movie

Just Like Watching A Suspense Movie

Being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, such as myasthenia gravis, is just like watching a suspense movie, full of unpredictable twists and turns: you don’t know how it would end until maybe the very end; otherwise, it wouldn’t be worth watching. Don’t turn your head away, and don’t cover your eyes with your hands. Just keep on watching and enjoying the movie!

Life might not have been fair to you with happenings that might have been beyond your control. No matter what, life is not meant to be a punishment for you. If you just don’t die, you will have the wisdom to live it through.

“Life begets death; one is inseparable from the other.

One is form; the other is formless.

Each gives way to the other.

One third of people focus on life, ignoring death.

One third of people focus on death, ignoring life.

One third of people think of neither, just drifting along.

They all suffer in the end.

Trusting the Creator, we have no illusion about life and death.

Holding nothing back from life, we are ready for death,

just as a man ready for sleep after a good day’s work.”

(Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 50)

“Abiding in the Creator, we do not fear death.

Following the conditioned mind, we fear everything.

Fear is a futile attempt to control things and people.

Death is a natural destination of the Way.

Unnatural fear of death does more harm than good.

It is like trying to use intricate tools of a master craftsman:

we end up hurting ourselves.”

(Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 74)

If you just don’t die, the wisdom in living the rest of your life is no more than . . .watching a suspense movie.

 Stephen Lau     

 Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Be Happy No Matter What

To be diagnosed with an autoimmune disease is a devastating experience when the doctor told you that there is no known cure, only management of the disease symptoms. But from my own experience, having an autoimmune disease is not the end of the world. Always look at the brighter side of life, and not its darkness. In fact, happiness may play a pivotal role in the prognosis of your autoimmune disease.

What is happiness? It is difficult to define because happiness is but a state of mind. It has everything to do with your perception—how you look at everything in your life, including your health and current circumstances. More specifically, it has to do with your thinking mind: how you think. Descartes, the great French philosopher, once said: “I think, therefore I am.” In other words, you are the sum of your thoughts. But your thoughts are not you; you just “think” you are who you are. Your mind may be deceiving you by telling you everything but the truth. True human wisdom means you must know your true self.

The human brain is like a computer program. Your whole being is like the computer hardware with the apparatus of a mind, body, and senses. The lens through which you see yourself, as well as others and the world around, is the software that has been programmed by your thoughts, your past and present experiences, your own expectations as well as those of others. That is to say, you may have subconsciously programmed your mind all these years with your memories, perceptions, and thoughts such that you may have become trapped in a constricted sense of self that has prevented you from knowing and being who you really are. Now, you must harness your wisdom to change that conditioned thinking. 

Tao wisdom enables you to see the wisdom in the oneness of all life—that everything exists because of its “opposite” and that everything will ultimately become its opposite, just as youth becoming old age, and life becoming death. Spontaneity, which is following the natural laws of nature, holds the key to attaining true human wisdom to live your life as if everything is a miracle, even though you may have an autoimmune disease.

Happiness holds the key to recuperation from your autoimmune disease. Remember, all autoimmune diseases have to do with stress, which is often a byproduct of unhappiness. Happiness changes the way you look at your life, the way you make your life choices and decisions that may positively or negatively impact your disease over the long haul. Be a better and happier you through Tao wisdom.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Letting Go of All Attachments

All human attachments are the raw materials with which one both consciously and subconsciously creates one’s identity through a period of confusion and uncertainty that inevitably leads to the identity crisis. Without human attachment, there will be no identity crisis, no stress, and ultimately no human suffering.

In the course of human life, diseases are as inevitable as death. You may want to attach to the good old days when you were strong and healthy, and refuse to let go of the current adversity, such as being diagnosed with myasthenia gravis. Adversity and the good-old-days attachments stem from the ego-self, which simply refuses to let go.

But letting go of all human attachments is the way to go. It begins with letting go of the ego that generates all the attachments in the first place.

Letting go is the natural surrender of the human mind to any involuntary reactivity aimed at removing anything that might threaten or undermine the ego-self. Letting go should be a natural instinct, and not a technique that one has to learn and master; it is simply a spontaneous human ability to give up all human attachments that create the unreal ego-self.

It is letting go, and not holding on, that makes us strong because it overcomes the fear of the unknown and the unpredictable. Let go of yesterday to live in today as if everything is a miracle; let go of the world to have the universe.

“People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.” Thich Nhat Hanh

An autoimmune disease diagnosis is not the end of the world; it might be a blessing in disguise—helping you change your lifestyle to live a better life in order to become a better you.

Stephen Lau     

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

The Holistic Role of the Body, Mind, and Soul

A myasthenia gravis diagnosis may adversely affect the wellness not just of the body, but also of the mind, and the soul -- in other words, the overall wellness of that individual. It all begins with the mind: how the mind perceives, and creates the reality of the disease, its symptoms, and prognosis. 

Mind wellness

Overall wellness starts with the intent of the mind to be well, to heal, and to stay well.

How well you are living your life right now is based on your past and present life experiences, as well as your projections of those experiences into the future. In other words, your thoughts of those experiences with their respective future projections become the raw materials and resources with which you are going to weave the fabric of your life.

Therefore, to live well, you have to know how to think right, and then act accordingly. That's not easy, and that's why Albert Einstein once said, "Thinking is hard; that's why so few do it."

Learn to empower your mind with knowledge and wisdom and live your life to the best you can.

Body wellness

Body wellness is more than just an absence of illness or ache and pain.

Body wellness means the body is capable of detecting signs and symptoms, as well as deciphering messages, from different organs and tissue of the body, giving warnings of any imminent disorder and disease.

The body is connected with the mind in the form of biochemical reactions in the body and nerve impulses in the brain. This invisible communication is responsible for the alignment or misalignment of the flow of energy between the body and the mind, and hence their overall wellness. The body is a product of both the mind and the soul.

There is much to know and learn about body wellness, just as Hippocrates, the father of medicine, once said: "The life so short, the craft so long to learn."

Learn the craft and get the wisdom!

Soul wellness

The mind controls the body, and the soul oversees the mind and the body.

Wellness wisdom connects the body with the mind and the soul for optimum state of being.

The soul specifically connects the mind to a greater intellect that has the infinite power to connect with everyone and everything in the world.

The body, the mind, and the soul work as a system of energy. The state of being is the overall feeling of health and wellness. This state of being is dependent on the intricate connection of the body, the mind, and the soul.

Soul wellness plays a pivotal role in guiding and directing behaviors and actions in the physical form.

Cherish and nourish your soul. The mind is the map, the soul is the compass; without both, the body goes nowhere.

To cure your myasthenia gravis, you must have body-mind-soul connection  order to live as if everything is a miracle, despite your disease symptoms.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

Stress and Myasthenia Gravis

Stress has become a serious health issue with each passing day. Nearly everyone is suffering from some kind of stress every day, whether it is the short-term stress that triggers the body to reach heightened awareness and preparation for action—what is known as the “fight-or-flight” response—or the devastating long-term chronic stress. Stress is one of the underlying causes of myasthenia gravis, an  autoimmune disease, affecting millions of people.

There are many factors that may directly or indirectly cause stress in everyday human existence, and they are as follows:

Emotional Factors

Anger, bitterness, disappointment, and envy are some of the human emotions that often lead to anxiety, distress, and even depression. 

Environmental and Eventful Factors

A dangerous environment, such as walking alone in the dark or in an unsafe neighborhood, can be stressful.

A work environment with racial discrimination or sexual harassment can be stressful too. According to the American Institute of Stress, up to one million employees’ absence per day are stress related. In addition, work environment may create stress due to feeling unproductive, inability to concentrate on work, unrealistic and unreasonable demands from employers or co-workers.

Stressful life events may also lead to elevated stress levels. Special life events—whether they are positive or negative—can be stressful, such as getting married or planning a wedding, graduation, starting a new job, buying a home, or even going on a vacation.

Financial Factors

Finance is one of the main stress factors in contemporary life and living due to rampant unemployment, not having enough money to make both ends meet, debt from credit cards or reckless over-spending, bankruptcy, and home foreclosure, among other financial problems.

Health Factors

The American Academy of Family Physicians once estimated that two-thirds of all family doctor visits are stress related.

Health problems can be triggered by alcohol, sugar, and tobacco addiction. Chronic health problems, such as autoimmune diseases, cancers and heart-related health issues, are particularly stressful after diagnoses and during treatments..

Relationship Factors

Relationships are often a source of emotional and psychological problems, such as break-up in a love relationship, separation and divorce, dealing with teenager problems, and coping with aging parents.

William Shakespeare once said: “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” John Milton, the famous English poet, also had this to say: “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.” Both spoke volumes of the perceptions of stress.

The bottom line: stress comes from your mind, or, more specifically, your ego-self. Therefore no ego, no stress.

Stephen Lau     

Copyright© by Stephen Lau