My worst day was a day where i couldn’t function at all. I was in bed, I couldn’t get up. I had to call on extended family members to actually come and look after myself and my son because i couldn’t even take care of my own basic needs. Waking up in the morning and just being totally exhausted and really uncomfortable. Lots of aching. lots of pain, having to cheerlead myself out of bed, which could take anywhere from 20 to 45 minutes to try and get up so that I could get my son to school… and after doing that I would come home and go back to bed and set my alarm in time to pick h up from school and during that time you know, I could be up for maybe half an hour 3 quarters of an hour. On a good day, I would have to go lie down for a 3 to f hour stretch before I could even contemplate getting up again and functioning or doing doing anything. So life was very much down to the absolute basic, and even that was difficult to do so some of the things that I had tried. My initial course of action was to go to the doctor when I realized, you know, something just not right. I couldn’t really explain it at the time, I was exhausted. I was having a lot of abdominal and back pain and so my doctor’s response was, “Oh you’re just stressed, go home and rest.” It didn’t help and wasn’t helpful at all and took about six months to get a diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.
Some of the other things that I tried were Chinese medicine, which did help with some of the pain but didn’t help with the fatigue; acupuncture; I went to a naturopath and was getting vitamin C boosts. I tried the kelation; I had several sessions of kelation to try and remove heavy metal, and my body actually didn’t tolerate it–it was too much given what I was already going through. So that wasn’t helpful. I did a few different forms of counseling and thinking that maybe it’s something in my mind, maybe it’s an emotional issue or a mental health issue and that root of course didn’t prove to be to bearable either.
The DNR System is different from the other things I tried in a few different ways. One of the ways is I learned the tools so that I could go away and do it myself, which was a big factor as opposed to coming back for regular treatments of having somebody try and do something to me. It was me helping to reorganize my own brain. DNR System is also different in the sense that I learned that it was a brain injury that was creating the symptoms that I was experiencing. which was important for a few reasons. One of them being that it wasn’t my fault, that I didn’t create this issue, or the other part which I think tends to be a prevalent mentality out there is that it’s all in my head… because there wasn’t something that showed up in the blood tests or the medical exams that I did. DNRS really helped me to understand that that this isn’t something in my mind that I’m just creating and can can make go away by thinking positively or doing something different. So it really gave me the practical tools to go ahead and retrain my brain to understand what was going on, first of all, and then to retrain my brain so that my symptoms could decrease and I could get on with my life.
DNRS training has allowed me to get back to a normal everyday sense of life, which of course affects my ability to parent as well. When i was really sick with Chronic Fatigue it was really difficult for me to be there for my son– physically, let alone mentally and emotionally. We were having a conversation the other day, actually, and it came out that he was really worried. He was really worried about me and he thoughtI was going to die .To be honest with you that wasn’t something that I shared with him but it affected his level of anxiety, it affected his ability uh to perform in school, it affected his ability to be away from me because he was worried about me. So, of course that added to my stress levels and my ability to function, because I had this little person by my side wondering what was going to happen. Now he is a lot more independent, he’s a lot more emotionally mature and stable than he was before. My ability to be there for him and to function as a normal parent and to do activities with him has increased and so it’s great. We have a great relationship and we can spend that quality time together and I don’t feel like I’m constantly disappointing him by saying, “well maybe, but we’ll have to see how my energy is. Maybe i can take you swimming, maybe we can go for a hike, we’ll have to see.” And then disappointing him when Saturday rolls around and I’m not functioning. That is probably one of the biggest positive factors in my life after having done the DNRS training– that I can be the kind of parent that I want to be. That is so important.
Some of the things that iI can do now that I wasn’t able to do before? Come of the simple, basic things in life: having a normal routine. Knowing that I can get up in the morning and I can function throughout the day. Having more time and energy to spend with my son; doing after school activities, making plans for the weekend, and being able to know that i’ll have the energy to support. Following through on those plans and being more physically active; spending more time outdoors, not worrying about going to a restaurant, or going to the movies, being able to do those kinds of things that I wasn’t able to do before. Depending on how I was feeling or have to change my plans at the last minute, if my energy wasn’t there to support. Ireally feel like my life is getting back to the point where I have some sense of normality. I can do things that the average person can do without thinking twice now. i’m at the point where I have gone back to work part-time, which is really exciting for me. Prior to to doing the DNRS training that that wasn’t even going to be a possibility, so i’m currently working a couple half-days a week, and looking at increasing that in the very near future. and that’s exciting for me.
It’s giving me that sense of accomplishment and pride that I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to attain again. I think that Annie’s passion about her work definitely comes across when she’s facilitating, and her authenticity and her realness about her experience makes it easy to to connect with her on that level. And to understand that this is a real person up here sharing something that has worked for her and that makes it so much more valuable. (It’s) so much more real to be able to take a training system from someone who understands where you’re at and who can relate to what you’re going through, and can provide that guidance. Here’s a pathway out– I definitely think there is a link between environmental factors and multiple chemical sensitivities, for sure, and quite possibly other limbic system injuries. I think that the amount of chemicals that are being used in pesticides and not in in natural spaces, but even being put on our food… and I think our bodies can only handle so much of an assault. When we’re being assaulted from all directions with air pollution, with you water pollution, with our food being genetically modified and chemically sprayed– that that has a huge impact on our health and our immune system.
eEven though I don’t have multiple clinical sensitivities anymore, I choose to use natural cleaning products in my house.
I choose to use unscented laundry detergent because I know that that makes a difference, going to make a difference on the environment. If somebody comes to me saying that they were suffering with any limbic system impairments, I would really encourage them to give this a try. What have you got to lose? It’s made such a profound difference in my life. I kept in touch with some of the people that i went to the group with; the difference that it made for them, as well that. It’s really worth the time and effort to go and to do this training, and to empower yourself to retrain your brain and make a difference in your life.
I would never have believed that a normal life would have been possible, and yet here I am. I would really encourage people to give it a try and to see for themselves. For those people who are doing the program online from their home, I would strongly encourage you to stick to it and to practice, and to really put in the effort. For those first few days, to retrain your brain and to get your brain working in this new neural pathway. Some people see results right away– they get that instant shift, and then there are others who take a little bit longer to shift or the shifts are not necessarily obvious right away. I think the important thing is is to keep at it– to practice, practice, practice. That hour a day, every day, for those six months. To know that even if you’re not one of those people who gets that instantaneous shift, that maybe sometimes it takes a little bit longer for our brain to make those new neural connections. Know that there are lots of people out there who don’t get that instantaneous ‘wow factor’ result, but who are diligent in their practice…in following through and in the long term, see the exact same results as those who maybe got that initial burst of of something. For those of you who might be feeling a little bit disheartened that you’re not making that progress as quickly as you might like, to to stick with it and to give it give it a fair shot because it will make a difference. It’s that practice component that ensures that it does make a difference over the long haul. Also know that as you’re doing this, there are probably thousands of other people who are walking the same path that you’re walking at this moment, and that you aren’t alone in this process, and there is support there for you. Really give it your all because it’s worth it–the results are worth it.
