HealthBeat News

Category: Mental Health

  • The Amazing Brain Nutrient You Don’t Know About

    By Nurse Mark

     

    Citicoline: The Amazing Brain Health Nutrient You’ve Probably Never Heard Of.

    You know about vitamin C, you’ve heard about vitamin D, you know that CoQ10 is important – but it’s a good bet that you’ve never heard about citicoline. This little-known substance – a member of the vitamin B family  -may just be one of the most important supplements for brain health that we know about.

    How important? It turns out that citicoline is sold in over 70 countries as a drug for cognitive impairment (memory loss) (1) and is approved for treatment in cases of head trauma, stroke, and neurodegenerative disease in Japan and Europe – researchers have found improved clinical outcomes following ischemic strokes. (2)

    So, what else is is good for?

    Clinical and laboratory research show citicoline supports memory function and healthy cognition and there is clinical evidence suggesting that citicoline can improve memory problems associated with aging. (3, 4)

    Citicoline is being studied and found to be very useful in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease, allowing significantly reduced doses of levodopa to be used to greater effect.(5) Citicoline enhances brain and nerve cell communication by increasing the availability of neurotransmitters, including dopamine, norepinephrine, and acetylcholine.

    Our eyes can benefit from citicoline: it improves visual function in patients with glaucoma, amblyopia (lazy eye), and optic neuropathy. (6, 7)

    Given the powerful effect citicoline has on brain chemistry and health it is no surprise that scientists and researchers are exploring other uses for this supplement. Cocaine addicts found their cravings were reduced and mood improved with the use of citicoline. (8)

    Cocaine addicts aren’t the only ones to benefit however – obesity is a huge problem in America and researchers are finding that citicoline has positive effects on the parts of the brain that tell us that we are satisfied and can stop eating – the so-called satiety centers of our brain. High-tech imaging showed that subjects using high dose citicoline (2000mg per day) had much greater responses in the areas of the brain related to satiety and they further reported significant reductions in appetite and hunger. (9)

    Those suffering from depression and even schizophrenia may benefit from citicoline according to two different small but impressive studies. Both studies showed positive improvements occurring within a few weeks of beginning treatment with citicoline. (10, 11)

    And it’s not just brain function, or eye health – citicoline has been investigated and found helpful in treating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. (Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, or NAFLD is increasing in scope as Americans become more and more obese – it may soon be called an “epidemic, the way Type II diabetes is now.) (12)

    So, in summary:

    • Citicoline is essential to the synthesis of phosphatidylcholine which is a major constituent of brain tissue.
    • Citicoline helps to maintain normal levels of acetylcholine, an important brain chemical that regulates memory and cognitive function.
    • Citicoline supports and enhances brain metabolism and healthy brain activity by sustaining the health of mitochondria – the energy generators inside the brain cells.
    • Citicoline helps brain cells communicate by keeping cell membranes in good condition and protecting neural structures from free radical damage.

    Perhaps the best summary can be found in the abstract from the research paper “Citicoline: pharmacological and clinical review, 2006 update.” (13)

    Abstract

    Cytidine 5′-diphosphocholine, CDP-choline, or citicoline is an essential intermediate in the biosynthetic pathway of structural phospholipids in cell membranes, particularly phosphatidylcholine. Following administration by both the oral and parenteral routes, citicoline releases its two main components, cytidine and choline. Absorption by the oral route is virtually complete, and bioavailability by the oral route is therefore approximately the same as by the intravenous route. Once absorbed, citicoline is widely distributed throughout the body, crosses the blood-brain barrier and reaches the central nervous system (CNS), where it is incorporated into the membrane and microsomal phospholipid fraction. Citicoline activates biosynthesis of structural phospholipids of neuronal membranes, increases brain metabolism, and acts upon the levels of different neurotransmitters. Thus,citicoline has been experimentally shown to increase norepinephrine and dopamine levels in the CNS. Owing to these pharmacological mechanisms,citicoline has a neuroprotective effect in hypoxic and ischemic conditions, decreasing the volume of ischemic lesion, and also improves learning and memory performance in animal models of brain aging. In addition, citicoline has been shown to restore the activity of mitochondrial ATPase and membrane Na+/K+ATPase, to inhibit activation of certain phospholipases, and to accelerate reabsorption of cerebral edema in various experimental models. Citicoline has also been shown to be able to inhibit mechanisms of apoptosis associated to cerebral ischemia and in certain neurodegeneration models, and to potentiate neuroplasticity mechanisms. Citicoline is a safe drug, as shown by the toxicological tests conducted, that has no significant systemic cholinergic effects and is a well tolerated product. These pharmacological characteristics and the action mechanisms of citicoline suggest that this product may be indicated for treatment of cerebral vascular disease, head trauma (HT) of varying severity, and cognitive disorders of different causes. In studies conducted in the treatment of patients with HT, citicoline was able to accelerate recovery from post-traumatic coma and neurological deficits, achieving an improved final functional outcome, and to shorten hospital stay in these patients. Citicoline also improved the mnesic and cognitive disorders seen after HT of minor severity that constitute the so-called post-concussional syndrome. In the treatment of patients with acute ischemic cerebral vascular disease, citicoline accelerates recovery of consciousness and motor deficit, achieves a better final outcome, and facilitates rehabilitation of these patients. The other major indication of citicoline is for treatment of senile cognitive impairment, either secondary to degenerative diseases (e.g. Alzheimer disease) or to chronic cerebral vascular disease. In patients with chronic cerebral ischemia,citicoline improves scores in cognitive rating scales, while in patients with senile dementia of the Alzheimer type it stops the course of disease, and neuroendocrine, neuroimmunomodulatory, and neurophysiological benefits have been reported. Citicoline has also been shown to be effective in Parkinson disease, drug addictions, and alcoholism, as well as in amblyopia and glaucoma. No serious side effects have occurred in any series of patients treated with citicoline, which attests to the safety of treatment with citicoline.

    Usual doses of this supplement range from 500 mg to 2000 mg per day – it is extremely safe with no known toxicity and very minimal side effects at even the highest doses – usually mild G.I. upset that resolves with continued use.

    I predict you’ll be hearing a lot more about this important supplement – and yes, Dr. Myatt and I  are both using it!

     

    References:

    1.) Citicoline (Cognizin) in the treatment of cognitive impairment. Fioravanti M., Buckley A.E. Clin Interv Aging. Sep 2006; 1(3): 247–251. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2695184/

    2.) Warach, S; Pettigrew, LC; Dashe, JF; Pullicino, P; Lefkowitz, DM; Sabounjian, L; Harnett, K; Schwiderski, U; Gammans, R (November 2000). "Effect of citicoline on ischemic lesions as measured by diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. Citicoline 010 Investigators.". Annals of neurology 48 (5): 713–22. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11079534

    3.) Spiers PA et al. Citicoline improves verbal memory in aging. Arch Neurol. 996;53:441-48.

    4.) Alvarez XA et al. Citicoline improves memory performance in elderly subjects. Meth Find Exp Clin Pharmacol. 1997;19(3):201-10.

    5.) Citicoline in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Eberhardt R1, Birbamer G, Gerstenbrand F, Rainer E, Traegner H. Clin Ther. 1990 Nov-Dec;12(6):489-95.
    It is concluded that the levodopa-saving effect of citicoline could be used to decrease the incidence of side effects and retard the loss of efficacy of levodopa in long-term treatment. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2289218

    6.) Parisi, V; Coppola, G; Centofanti, M; Oddone, F; Angrisani, AM; Ziccardi, L; Ricci, B; Quaranta, L; Manni, G (2008). "Evidence of the neuroprotective role of citicoline in glaucoma patients.". Progress in brain research 173: 541–4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18929133

    7.) Parisi, V.; Coppola, G.; Ziccardi, L.; Gallinaro, G.; Falsini, B. (1 May 2008). "Cytidine-5′-diphosphocholine (Citicoline): a pilot study in patients with non-arteritic ischaemic optic neuropathy". European Journal of Neurology 15 (5): 465–474. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1468-1331.2008.02099.x/abstract;jsessionid=FA96263B2BE6D0726B206E970BF6AF45.f03t01

    8.) Renshaw PF1, Daniels S, Lundahl LH, Rogers V, Lukas SE.
    Psychopharmacology (Berl). 1999 Feb;142(2):132-8. Short-term treatment with citicoline (CDP-choline) attenuates some measures of craving in cocaine-dependent subjects: a preliminary report. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10102764

    9.) William D. S. Killgore, Amy J. Ross, […], and Deborah A. Yurgelun-Todd. Citicoline Affects Appetite and Cortico-Limbic Responses to Images of High Calorie Foods. Int J Eat Disord. Jan 2010; 43(1): 6–13. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3378241/#!po=4.16667

    10.) Salvadorini F, Galeone F, Nicotera M, Ombrato M, Saba P. Clinical evaluation of CDP-choline (Nicholin): efficacy As antidepressant treatment. Curr Ther Res Clin Exp. 1975 Sep;18(3):513-20.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/810312

    11.) Deutsch SI, Schwartz BL, Schooler NR, et al. First administration of cytidine diphosphocholine and galantamine in schizophrenia: a sustained alpha7 nicotinic agonist strategy. Clin Neuropharmacol. 2008;31(1):34-39.

    12.) Guerrerio AL, et al.Choline intake in a large cohort of patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 Apr;95(4):892-900. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3302364/

    13.) Secades JJ1, Lorenzo JL.. Citicoline: pharmacological and clinical review, 2006 update. Methods Find Exp Clin Pharmacol. 2006 Sep;28 Suppl B:1-56. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17171187

  • Sleeping Pills: It Just Gets Worse

    By Nurse Mark

     

    New Study Shows Doubled Risk Of Death With Sleeping Pill Use

     

    We have been preaching the dangers of sleeping pills for years – long enough now that many readers probably just “tune out” our warnings – “Oh no, it’s just Dr. Myatt or Nurse Mark ranting about sleeping pills again – won’t they ever leave it alone?”

    No, we won’t leave it alone – we feel that these drugs are some of the most dangerous, addictive, deadly poisons that have ever been pushed on people by our legalized drug pushers, the big pharmaceutical companies.

    I’m not going to bore or annoy you by repeating everything we’ve written before – those of you who want to refresh your memory can do so with our previous articles:

  • Kavinace Or The Lunesta Moth? You Decide!
  • Dying For A Good Night’s Sleep?
  • Popular Sleeping Pill Sends Thousands to Emergency Rooms
  • Got PTSD? Want To Make It Worse? Just Take This Drug!

    •  

    I will, however, share with you a very brief quote from a study published in the British Medical Journal in March 2014 regarding sleeping pills:

    In patients who were prescribed these drugs, there was an estimated overall statistically significant doubling of the hazard of death

     

    Any questions? A doubling of death risk sounds very “statistically significant” to me…

    Freebies – From Dr. Myatt ?!?

    In recent HealthBeat articles we’ve discussed using natural supplements to reduce stress and promote sleep: Kavinace, Cortisol Manager, and Lavela.

    We have free samples of both Cortisol Manager and Lavela available.

    Now there really isn’t any excuse left for you to not try something different from the dangerous sleeping pills that Big Pharma pushes.

    References:

    BMJ 2014; 348 doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmj.g1996 (Published 19 March 2014)
    Effect of anxiolytic and hypnotic drug prescriptions on mortality hazards: retrospective cohort study
    http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g1996

  • The Equal Opportunity Health-Wrecker

    By Nurse Mark

     

    It gets us all, sooner or later. No one is spared. The question is not “will it happen,” it’s when, and how hard will it hit when it does.

    It’s not a virus that we can harden our immune system against. It’s not a bacteria or microbe that we can avoid or wash away.

    In fact, it can weaken our defenses leaving us more susceptible to infections and disease of all sorts.

    It can be subtle and insidious, or it can be blunt and brutal. But the results are the same. Our health suffers.

    What is this scourge?

    Stress.

    “Meh,” you say; “of course I’ve got stress – and I deal with it. No biggie…”

    But it is a “biggie” and even though you think you are “dealing with it” it is causing a cascade of physical changes that can lead to serious health problems.

    Not only can stress be the mental or psychological stress that we all think of when someone says “stress” – like money worries, bad bosses, rush hour commuting, surly customers, overwork, family feuds, relationship problems, urban dangers – the list is endless – it can be bugs, bacteria, viruses and other nasties that infect us, causing physical stress.

    So deal with that, little miss “no biggie”!

    When we come under stress – whether mental or physical, our bodies react in a way designed to protect us. A set of glands – the pituitary, the hypothalamus, and the adrenal glands – get together to shift our hormone balance in a way that is meant to give us more energy to deal with emergency situations. The adrenal glands squirt out a whole bunch of cortisol in order to meet a danger or survive an injury – and in response to this flood of cortisol out blood glucose rises, our blood pressure increases, and our body’s resources are diverted away from less immediately important functions such as our digestion, our reproductive system, our immune system, and even bone formation.

    This is fine over the short haul – it’s necessary even – but when it goes on for too long it can be very damaging.

    Some of the long term effects of the high cortisol levels caused by chronic stress include:

    • Suppressed immunity
    • High blood pressure (hypertension)
    • High blood sugar (hyperglycemia)
    • Insomnia
    • Heart (cardiovascular) disease
    • Insulin resistance
    • Anxiety and depression
    • Carbohydrate cravings
    • Metabolic syndrome, obesity, and type 2 diabetes
    • Fat deposits on the face, neck, and abdomen (belly)
    • Reduced libido and suppressed fertility
    • Suppressed thyroid hormones
    • Impaired digestion, metabolism and mental function

     

    But Wait – There’s More!

    Not only does chronic stress and high cortisol cause those problems I just mentioned, many of those problems cause us to have increased cortisol levels!

    When we must deal with an infection caused by cortisol-suppressed immunity our bodies secrete more cortisol in order to deal with the inflammation.

    High cortisol levels result in insomnia. Lack of sleep is a stress that causes our body to respond with – you guessed it – cortisol.

    The insulin resistance, high blood sugar, and obesity caused by chronic stress and high cortisol result in increased body-wide inflammation – so what does our body do in response? Yep, that’s right – more cortisol to knock down the inflammation…

    There is also the suppression of the reproductive functions – meaning fertility or libido is impaired. This by itself might not be seen as a “stress” but when you are trying to conceive and can’t understand why nothing seems to be working it can be very stressful indeed. And then there is the stress of the parent who is badgering you with “why can’t you give me grandbabies…?” (OK – just kidding – but it does happen…)

    This effect is what is known to engineers as a “positive feedback loop” where the more something happens the more it makes that something happen – like a “runaway train” – and it is a very bad thing…

    So, what can be done?

    Let’s start with the basics:

    • If you are in a stressful situation and can possibly remove yourself from it, or it from you, then do it! Unless there is a compelling reason to continue to do so, like needing to tolerate a bad boss to keep your job, then why would you willingly expose yourself to negative stresses?
    • Make your health a priority – get proper nutrition (an Optimal Dose Multiple Vitamin is a great start), set a regular bedtime and get adequate sleep, set aside time each day for some vigorous exercise, and practice stress-reducing habits like meditation or prayer or relaxation. A sense of humor helps too!

     

    What else? Can’t we just take a pill and make all this bad cortisol go away?

    Not really – you see, we need cortisol for a number of healthy things – like maintaining our blood pressure so we don’t faint when we get out of bed…

    But there are some natural ways of supporting healthy cortisol levels, helping us to deal with stressors, and promoting relaxation and sleep.

    Here at the Wellness Club we have recently been having excellent results with two new products that are based on very old and traditional healing knowledge.

    Cortisol Manager is an herbal formulation that combines an effective dose of phosphatidylserine with stress-reducing ingredients and cortisol-lowering botanicals to help reduce stress hormones and relieve occasional sleeplessness. It is is a safe and natural formula that promotes relaxation and supports a healthy sleep cycle without the use of habit-forming ingredients. You can learn more here.

    Lavender has long been valued for it’s ability to promote relaxation and it was treasured by the ancients as a soothing, relaxing oil. Fresh lavender in the bedroom, or a few drops of lavender oil on the pillow have been traditional ways to promote rest and sleep, and up to now that has been the only way to get the beneficial effects of this wonderful oil.

    Today however you can experience the benefits of this calming, soothing essential oil in a convenient, easy to swallow coated softgel capsule – a new product, Lavela WS 1265 contains clinically studied lavender oil intended for the relief of occasional anxiety. You can learn more here.

    We have been trialing these two products with some select patients and we are very pleased with the results. But don’t take our word for it – here is what one of Dr. Myatt’s patients had to say about it in her own words:

    I’m an over achiever and was under a lot of stress from taking an online MBA class that was impossible to understand what the assignments wanted. Essentially with every passing assignment I began to feel more anxiety and stress leading to a knot of tension in the pit of my stomach and an inability to turn off my brain while trying to go to sleep at night. I had a five day break between classes to relax, but the feeling in my stomach and the tension in my body just wouldn’t dissipate. I didn’t get any relief until after Nurse Mark gave me some samples of Cortisol Manager and Lavela. I took each faithfully every day and it was around day five when the cycle of the knot in the stomach was gone. Leaving me to feel normal again. Whenever I begin to feel the least bit anxious and stressed over my online course work I turn to the Cortisol Manager and Lavela to calm my system down.

    Hope this may help other in trying out the supplements. Thanks for letting me sample the products in the first place. They have been absolute life savers for me.

    Faithful patient,

    Theresa XXXXXXXX

     

    Now, for Theresa to say she is “an over achiever” is a bit of an understatement. When Theresa first came to Dr. Myatt she already had an advanced degree – and she was, literally, a “rocket scientist” for NASA! Now Theresa is a busy single mom and a student again – no wonder she was having a little trouble – she has a lot of responsibilities to juggle and balance to keep her life working smoothly!

    We were very pleased to be able to send Theresa the samples that helped her and we can do the same for you. Please visit our Sample Products page to order these free samples. Please note that while the samples are free, we must charge for shipping – unless you include them with other items in an order.

    Why wait until your health suffers? Deal with your stress now, and let stress and chronic high cortisol be something that happens to “the other guy.”

    Visit our Sample Products Page here for your free samples of Cortisol Manager and Lavella.

  • Get a Good Night’s Sleep: Your Checklist

    By Dr. Dana Myatt

     

    Having a good night of sleep is essential for having a good day.

    Lack of sleep can cause mental fogginess and fatigue the following day. This in itself decreases mental clarity but it also decreases willpower. Perhaps this explains why lack of sleep is associated with weight gain. When a person feels fatigued, they often reach for junk food as a self-medicating “pick me up.”

    The real cure for all of this is to get back to sleeping well.

    It may take a few days and night of experimentation, but the long-term benefits of “sleep hygiene” are well worth the effort. Plus, a good night’s sleep naturally is MUCH safer than merely “doing a Mikey” (Michael Jackson) and drugging yourself to sleep. For a refresher course, you can learn about the extreme danger of sleep drugs here:

    Here is your checklist for sleeping soundly.

    First, The Basics

    1.) Daily activity/exercise. If your only daily activity is jumping to conclusions while you work at your desk, you’ll find it much more difficult to get a good night’s rest. Do something daily that uses your entire body. Walking, biking, yoga, strength training are all good. Or go wash your car. Just be sure to engage in 20-30 minutes of full-body activity most every day of the week.

    Be sure not to exercise too close to bedtime as this can have a stimulating effect. Early in the day is best for circadian rhythm setting and for rest-of-the-day motivation, but any time before dinner will work. Just not right before bedtime unless it is gentle stretching or yoga.

    2.) Watch what you eat at night. If you are waking up between midnight and 3 a.m., your diet could be the problem. A dinner or late-night snack with simple carbohydrates or alcohol often triggers “reactive hypoglycemia” in the wee hours of the morning. As a result, the body releases adrenaline and BOOM! Being wide-awake, often with mind racing, is the result.

    If you have a dinner with high simple carbs (which I don’t recommend for many other reasons), be sure to include fiber, protein and fat which will cause the carbs to be released more slowly, thus preventing a middle-of-the-night blood sugar drop.

    3.) Regular bedtimes. Preferably 10 p.m. but no later than 11 p.m. “Night owls,” you’ve been warned. Regular bedtimes are important to good sleep for many reasons. Here are two of the most important ones.

    First, the body manufactures melatonin, a sleep-inducing hormone and potent antioxidant, during darkness but specifically during the hours of 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. Being in bed with eyes closed during these times maximizes natural melatonin production.

    Second, our 24-hour “circadian rhythms,” which sets the pace for hormones released during a 24-hour cycle, is set by what time we go to bed and also what time we exposed to natural daylight in the morning. “Early to bed and early to rise” was actually very healthy advice.

    If you are used to staying up late, you can re-set your circadian rhythms by going to bed 1/2 hour earlier every night for a week. Turn back your bed time by 1/2 hour each week until you are at your target bedtime. And do get up at a regular time, usually just before or shortly after sunrise.

    It may take a few weeks to reset your natural circadian rhythms but the health benefit will be well worth your effort.

    4.) Evaluate your sleep space. You need a dark, quiet sleep space with a comfortable mattress. Noise, light or a bad mattress can all interfere with a good night’s sleep.

    5.) Manage nighttime urination. If you get up to urinate at night, try minimizing fluid intake after 6 p.m. This doesn’t mean don’t have fluids, but only drink what you need to take supplements, etc. and no extra unless you are truly thirsty. If you DO get up to urinate, go right back to bed. Don’t “spook around” the house. Don’t turn bright lights on. Don’t check email or eat a snack. You will find that you fall quickly back asleep if you minimize your “up time.”

    6.) Maintain good hormone balance. Hormone deficiencies can cause night sweats, hot flashes and lighter sleep in both women and men. If you are over the age of 40, maintaining good hormone balance should be a part of your successful aging process anyway.

    7.) Correct nutrition deficiencies. A lack of magnesium (a common dietary deficiency), protein (amino acids are needed for neurotransmitter production) or deficient digestion can all contribute to disturbed sleep.

    Next, The “Extras”

    If you have implemented all of the above and are still having trouble sleeping, then something “extra” (a sleep aid) might be in order. These should not replace the basics listed above, however.

    1.) Magnesium: These are plenty of great ways to take this to aid sleep. Try 200mg by mouth near bedtime. Or rub magnesium oil into your calves or elsewhere. Or soak your feet in hot water with epsom salts added before bedtime. Since magnesium is a relaxing mineral and also the most common mineral deficiency in the US, getting an extra dose at bedtime is often all that is needed to improve sleep.

    2.) Melatonin: 3mg at bedtime. Use either a sublingual or a timed-release formula. If you are deficient in melatonin (production declines with age), this will help, sometimes greatly. An additional health benefit is that melatonin is a potent antioxidant that crosses the blood-brain barrier, meaning that it provides good protection for the brain and nervous system.

    3.) Lavender: Long used in hospital medicine in Europe, the aroma of lavender reduces anxiety and induces sleep. Dosages of pain-relieving drugs can often be reduced just by adding lavender (scent) to the pillow. That’s powerful stuff!

    To use, put 2-3 drops of lavender essential oil on a cotton ball and slip in inside your pillow case. Or use lavendar herb in a little “pillow” under your sleeping pillow.

    Or try “Lavella,” an encapsulated form of lavender with good clinical studies showing it effective in reducing anxiety. We have free samples at Wellness Club and we’ll be happy to send a sample with your next order

    4.) Kavinace: 1-2 caps at bedtime. This is an amino acid formula that is highly effective for many. It is one of our best-selling sleep aids. Begin with only 1 cap, that may be all you need.

    Experiment with the above suggestions. If your sleep doesn’t get a lot better in short order, consider scheduling a brief consult with me. We’ll put our heads together to see what is causing the disruption.

    As you know, sleep is most important to both your daytime energy AND your clear thinking. So let’s “git ‘er fixed”!

    To your good night’s sleep,

    Dr. Myatt

  • "Life Happens"

    By Dr. Dana Myatt

     

    “Life happens.” Knowing that unexpected things happen and knowing that you can and will deal with them is all that is really important.

    At our quarterly Realty Executives meeting last week, our speaker was Jason Schechterle, a Phoenix police officer whose stopped patrol care was hit from behind by a cab doing over 100 miles per hour.

    The impact turned his patrol car into a thousand-degree fireball, trapping him as it consumed the vehicle. It should have killed him. But through a series of small miracles, he lived. His face looks like a candle that has been melted, and that is after 52 surgeries.

    He said he was speaking in Chicago a couple of weeks ago and people were staring, not knowing who he was or what the back-story was. So he told them, “I’m from Phoenix. We all look this way in the Summer.”

    “Why?” you might ask yourself, “is Dr. Myatt telling me this?” Because his message applies to me and you and every human on the planet.

    His story is incredible and this man is a blazing testimony (all puns intended) to the power and resilience of the human Spirit. His message was simple. WE ALL HAVE CHALLENGES. Some are bigger than others. But our challenges are a small part of our outcome, maybe 10%. And the other 90% is HOW WE CHOOSE TO DEAL WITH WHAT LIFE DEALS US. (that’s my phraseology, but that’s basically what he said).

    Learn More about Jason Schechterle and his amazing story at his website Beyond The Flames.