Carolinians For Health Care Access

Testimonies

Description of the Difference between Standard and Integrative by a husband of a patient.

This is based on my observations while trying to find treatments for my wife to show what a Doctor would do if he were an auto mechanic. Unfortunately, as funny as this sounds, it is a true story.

Scenario
You decide to go on vacation. You take your car to the dealer once every six months so they keep it maintained and alert you to any thing that seems wrong or out of place. Because of this you know that overall your vehicle is in good shape even though it has 75,000 miles. You fill your gas tank and head out for your trip. Later on as you are driving the engine cuts off and strands you on the side of the road.

Standard Doctor's Diagnosis
You tell the Doctor that you think you may have run out of gas. The Doctor spends 15 minutes looking at the gas gauge, the one accepted method of telling gas level, and says your gas tank is full so that isn't the problem. He then collects his fee and sends you to a Doctor who specializes in transmissions. That Doctor spends 15 minutes looking at your transmission and says your transmission is fine and collects his fee. You tell him that your gas gauge shows full but you think you are out of gas. He replies "That shouldn't happen", hooks you up to a horse, collects his fee and sends you to a Doctor who specializes in On Board Computers. This Doctor actually spends 30 minutes talking to you. Again you mention that you think you may be out of gas and he replies that he doesn't think that is your problem since the gauge shows full. Just to make sure your computer is functioning he pulls out test equipment and starts jabbing probes deep into your cars wiring and On Board Computer but all of the tests show the computer is good. Since your problem is 'not moving', he attaches a horse to the front of your vehicle, collects his fee and sends you on your way. You are now moving but still not as fast as you ought to be and you just don't feel like this is the right fix. After you complain on your next visit, which by the way only lasts 15 minutes, he again reassures you that your gauge is right and you are not out of gas. He then sends you to an auto detail shop. You don't understand why and when you ask about it he tells you that the problem isn't your car but is instead the fact that you think the car is bad. He feels that with a little 'cleaning up' your car will look better to you and everything will be ok.

Integrative Medicine Doctor
After getting fed up from the above you decide, on your friend’s advice, to visit a different Doctor. This doctor spends two hours asking questions about everything that has ever happened to your car and listens to exactly what situation led up to the engine cutting off. He then explains all the possible things that may have happened and theorizes that since you had driven 500 miles after filling up that maybe your gauge is broken. He assures you that the car looks fine and that you are not just thinking it looks bad when it doesn't. He then decides that a quick test is to add gas so he gasses up the car and it starts. He then replaces your gas gauge and everything now works fine. You drive home and submit all your bills to the company that handles your extended warranty. They pay the bills for the Doctors who didn't fix anything and then deny the bills from the Doctor who fixed your problem because he used an unapproved screwdriver to fix the gauge.

- Robert Allton

Doctors have told me, “You are a walking textbook.” I have had serious health problems starting at the age of two. Meningitis, at one point, not supposed to live through the night. Polio, paralyzed all over, never supposed to walk again. Hepatitis, Endometriosis and prolapsed uterus which warranted a hysterectomy at the age of 30, gall bladder removal, tumored parathyroid removal, Subclavian Steal Syndrome and probably undiagnosed hormonal problems all of my life.

A doctor once said to me, “Sandee you are hard to diagnose because you act better when you are sick than most patients act when they are well.” When I moved to Asheville in 1999 I did not feel very well. A walk would make me feel like I was getting reoccurring Polio. Holding my newly born grandchildren would cause my arms to ache in just a few minutes. I couldn’t sleep. Thanks to our daughter in law Jeannette, Dr. James Biddle came into our lives. Actually, Milt, my husband allowed me to make an appointment for him. Milt seemed extra tired and I did not like what I saw in his movements. Dr. Biddle’s appointment for both of us was life changing in a huge way. Jim Biddle saved Milt’s life. He immediately sent Milt to have a biopsy for a mole he did not like the looks of, and painfully it was diagnosed as Melanoma. Milt had already lost two younger sisters and a cousin to cancer, so this diagnosis was very scary. Milt also had kidney stones in both urethras and both kidneys.

Dr. Biddle immediately administered intravenously 50,000 milligrams of Vitamin C four days a week for three weeks before Milt’s Melanoma surgery. We will never really know whether it killed off additional Cancer cells or not. While Milt was taking treatment he was given research to read from Dr. Biddle stating there had been proof for years that Vitamin C is a safe killer of Cancer cells without huge side effects. After Milt’s surgery we found out the cancer had not metastasized.

Dr. Biddle also informed us about his research stating, “Sugar may feed cancer.” He began teaching us his philosophy of diet. We listened intently to his lecture tapes. They taught us that pesticides, antibiotics and growth hormones used in animals might be what is making everyone sick. Jim Biddle wanted us to eat our sugars in bright colored vegetables. He advised us to eat adequate protein as protein builds cells. “You need to build cells when you have cancer.” We cut out all processed foods, pasta, rice and pretty much everything white, except for fish. However, we do not eat big fish due to the Mercury that Dr. Biddle found in us. We started eating strictly organic food. Wow! It was a big change. I also had had acid reflux for 20 years, trying every imaginable drug and after 6 weeks of changing my diet that was gone. Six years later it has not returned.

We went through chelation therapy to rid ourselves of Mercury and Arsenic that was detected in Dr. Biddle’s tests. I have always been young at heart, but now, after this change of food intake, bio-identical hormones, chelation therapy, an individual vitamin regimen from Dr. Biddle, I have a young feeling body to match my “young” heart. I have more energy and feel better than I have felt in 30 years. In 6 weeks my tests scores plummeted to levels I had never seen. I am 62 years old and a grandmother of 4. I am now, 6 years later, able to hike up and down the mountains in our area with little effort, play, and swim with for hours, all four grandchildren at once. I feel as if I am on fire and everyone wants whatever it is I am taking.

When I was in the office a couple of years ago one of Jim’s nurses and I noticed a huge difference in blood pressure from one arm to the other. She took the information to Dr. Biddle and he called me that day and wanted me to go for an ultrasound. He thought I had Subclavian Steal Syndrome. Well after an ultra sound and an MRI, what do you think? One of my arteries was completely closed. Jim Biddle was right again. It is so comforting knowing this doctor thinks outside the box and has this remarkable gift of understanding the body. Why had no other doctors found this? Jim Biddle immediately sent me to a vascular doctor.

I have never known a more gifted diagnostician as Dr. Biddle. He listens to you, wants to know what you eat, your state of mind, if you exercise, looks you over and then tells you what he thinks, hands over written research for you to learn by and you are off for tests that will back up what he has suspected. I call him a teaching doctor. James Biddle wants you to know what he knows. Have you ever known a doctor like that? And get this; he changes his mind with updated research. So he is always current. He’s not afraid to tell you he has changed his mind either. He cures 50% of his patients through diet. That is the way it has been for Milt and myself. I have done exactly what Dr. Biddle wanted me to do, exactly!!!! That way I get the big payoff everyday by feeling so good. Isn’t that what we are all looking for, to feel great everyday?

Jim Biddle, I will always be your cheerleader. Thank you for coming into my life.

Sandee Butterworth

November 3, 2008

To Whom It May Concern:

My husband and I are writing to encourage and urge you to support the Carolinians for Health Care Access initiative. Our own experience has shown us the immense benefits of Integrative medicine.

We have one son, Sebastian, who is three years old. Two years ago, Sebastian was diagnosed with Autism. The cause is unknown, and there is no standard treatment. Many in the medical community firmly believe that recovery is not possible. Sebastian’s pediatrician gave us no medical alternatives, and referred us to the state early intervention program. Although we found the early behavioral intervention program somewhat beneficial, it was only a start. At that time, Sebastian did not respond to his own name. He was not able to sit in a chair or by a table. He could not focus on any activity for an extended period of time. With these limitations, it was very difficult for Sebastian to benefit from such a program.

One look at Sebastian’s diet could give some insight that there may be an underlying medical problem that needed to be addressed. Sebastian craved carbohydrates – crackers, Cheerios, pizza, chicken nuggets. His diet was also very limited. He was unwilling to try new foods. He was underweight. His sleep patterns were irregular. He also had a high threshold for pain. At first, we thought he was such a strong boy until we realized that he couldn’t feel the pain.

At that same time, Sebastian appeared to be deaf because he would not respond to his name nor react to loud noise, such as a door bell ringing. A hearing test revealed that his hearing is fine. In fact, Sebastian is actually very sensitive to sound. It looked like he wasn’t responding because he was tuning the sound out because it caused him too much pain. These symptoms are typical among children with Autism. Maybe Sebastian could not sit still because he has a persistent headache? Maybe Sebastian is not able to sleep if his stomach is upset? Maybe Sebastian does not eat well because the food doesn’t taste good? Maybe Sebastian can’t learn because his body doesn’t have the nutrition it needs to fuel the brain? All these questions made us explore an alternate diet regimen. We started to believe that the leaky gut to mind connection may be the cause for many of Sebastian’s behavioral symptoms.

We began the Gluten Free Casein Free Diet on Sebastian’s two year old birthday. Immediately, we saw the negative behaviors recede. After extensive research, we added digestive enzymes as supplements to his diet six months later. We began to see small but continual gains – little less hyperactivity, a little more focus, and his first “Mama.” We knew there was an underlying medical issue to the behavioral symptoms that are common to Autism.

About a year ago, we realized we couldn’t do this alone and sought out Dr. Pittman in Raleigh, NC. We found him through an Internet search of local Defeat Autism Now! (DAN) doctors. We are so grateful to have found this incredible resource who could understand our issues, and provide counsel and treatment alternatives to help Sebastian. After an extensive evaluation, we found that Sebastian had unusually high amounts of yeast in his body. Our first effort was to reduce his yeast levels so that his digestive health would improve. We experimented by giving Sebastian anti-fungal medicine. At first he saw some but not major gains. When we switched him over to a more potent anti-fungal – Sporanox – we began to significant gains. We also complemented the anti-fungal treatment with bacterial treatment. This also involved killing bad bacteria, and replacing bad bacteria with good bacteria to heal the stomach.

Our second effort was targeted towards determining which vitamins and supplements his body lacked, and were needed for him to function normally. At the same time we also began Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (a treatment developed to help stroke victims regain functionally they had lost) to help activate neurons in his brain.

Most recently, we have started Sebastian on an antiviral medication – Valtrex. New research has pointed to the benefits of anti-viral treatment for individuals with Autism. The multi-treatment approach (anti-fungal, anti-viral, physiological rehabilitation, metabolic enzyme supplement, behavioral intervention) have led to Sebastian showing rapid daily improvements over the last three months.

Everything we have done, through the help of Dr. Pittman, has lead to amazing gains. Today, Sebastian knows his name, and the name of everyone with whom he comes into contact on a daily basis. He has a huge vocabulary and can speak in full sentences. His ability to recite the alphabet, identify letters, and put letters together is that of a first grader. He can count to 40. Sebastian can sing songs and play games like Hide-and-Seek. He is very social and interactive. He has friends at school. And now his teachers say he cannot stop talking. It is clear that Sebastian is feeling better and now he has the ability to learn.

The change has been remarkable. If we did not see it happen before our own eyes, we would not have believed it to be possible. Recovery from Autism is possible. And we are grateful that we were able to choose a physician for Sebastian who was able to understand his unique needs and use his immense medical knowledge to treat Sebastian in a way most Pediatricians would not have been able to. Without Dr. Pittman’s help, we would not be where we are today. In the beginning, teaching Sebastian was like driving down a dead end street. Today, we are cruising along a highway with interaction in both directions.

Thank you for your support for the Carolinians for Health Care Access,

Dr. Claudia Kubowicz Malhotra, Dr. Arvind Malhotra