Treating the Cause, Not the Symptons: A Listener’s Life-Changing Lifestyle Story

00:00:10
Speaker 1: This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories, the show where America is the star and the American people. Up next, a story by Tim Hennessy. He’s an IT professional from Texas and, like so many families in America, grappled with his own health issues, primarily pain. Here is Tim Hennessy on the story of his own health journey.

00:00:39
Speaker 2: The late nineties, I was in my late thirties, and I had all kinds of health problems. On the outside, physically, I looked pretty darn good, you know. I worked out a couple hours a day. I played racquetball for two or three hours. I lifted weights. So on the outside, I looked pretty good. But on the inside, I felt like I was dying because I had chronic pains all day long—my elbow, my knees, my back. I had a hard time sleeping. I had migraines literally a couple times a month, the kind of migraines where you got to shut the light out from your eyes. I used to put ice on my neck, laid down. I had this pulsing, almost like you hear a drum: boom, boom, boom. I had higher blood pressure; I had skin issues. I would play racquetball, and the next day I could barely walk down the stairs. And I’m in my late thirties, thinking what’s it going to be like if I make it to fifty? So I was recommended to visit a doctor in Calabasas, California, where I lived, and he was a pretty famous doctor. A lot of Hollywood people would go see him. And he took a look at me, and he basically diagnosed me with a form of autoimmune disease. When I looked at him, I said to him, “Doctor, could it be what I’m eating and drinking? Could it be my diet?” Because I knew a secret that he didn’t know: I knew my diet was horrible. He kind of gave me an out. He said, “No, Tim, it’s nothing you’re doing that caused this. It’s more likely hereditary.” So I’m like, “Oh good, I’m relieved,” and he said, “These things kind of happen to people, but the good news is we can control it. And, you know, some people get heart disease; some people get cancer. You’re lucky it isn’t cancer.” As he patted me on the shoulder. You know, with this gentle bedside manner that he had, you know, and I wanted to believe him because I wanted to continue drinking my Diet Doctor Pepper for breakfast with four milk chocolate macadamia nut Pepperidge Farm cookies. That was my typical breakfast, and I would alternate: the next day, I’d have doughnuts instead of the cookies. With my Diet Doctor Pepper. I wanted to be able to go to McDonald’s or other fast-food places at lunchtime, and I didn’t want to think about what I was eating, so I didn’t tell him that was my diet. But I thought, ‘Well, good, you can control this. I can continue eating crappy food. Great, this is awesome.’ Then he handed me a prescription. He said, “Tim, why don’t you take a look at some new drug?” And I asked him, “Well, how long do I have to take this drug?” And he said, “Most likely for the rest of your life. There is no cure for what you have.” And he said, “The best we can do is help control what you have.” And he said, “I’m pretty confident that we could help you.” So I drove home from the doctor’s office with this prescription, and I didn’t know quite what to do at first. So I talked to my wife, and I said—She said, “How’d it go?” I said, “Well, the doctor gave me a prescription for this drug, and he told me to look it up.” And I decided to look it up. And the internet in the late nineties isn’t what it is today, but each company had a website. I went to this company’s website, and I looked up this particular drug. Yeah. The funny thing is, the first thing I noticed when I looked a drug up, it said for the symptom of this, for the symptom of that. And what I was looking for, and maybe naively, I was looking for the word “cure,” but I didn’t see the word “cure.” I then saw the side effects, and the first thing I noticed was it said, “Lower your immune system.” The second one was potentially an increased risk of heart disease, and the third one was potentially an increased risk of cancer. So I turned to my wife, Deb. I said, “Wow, what could possibly go wrong? I take this drug for the rest of my life, and I had a lower immune system, a greater risk of heart disease, and a greater risk of cancer.” But I got rid of my migraines and my pain. Needless to say, I didn’t want to take this drug. I wanted to see if I could find another way. Then a woman came into my life through a friend of my wife’s, and she handed me this book. It’s called You’re Not Sick, You Are Thirsty by Doctor Bat Melanjahell and something. It’s a long Indian name. I call him Doctor Batman. I think that’s his nickname. So I decided I’m going to increase my water and get rid of my SOA, have it. And I haven’t had one since. And that was August two thousand and four. And I have to tell you, I haven’t had a migraine. I haven’t had a headache—maybe a milth headache once in a while if I don’t sleep enough. My blood pressure was back to normal, and it continues to be back to normal. All my pains went away. So I thought, ‘Well, what can I do if I change my diet?’ Here I am. I’m in my sixties now; I still have normal blood pressure. I have no more pains in my knees, back, and elbow like I did originally. I haven’t had a migraine in twenty years. I don’t. My diet is not perfect by any means, but I know if I get a little bit off track, I got to get back to the green juices and making sure I exercise, making sure I get Vitamin D and sunshine. So the proof is in the pudding. I could have been twenty-five years ago on medication for the rest of my life, as I mentioned, and who knows what my immune system would have been. Who knows if I’d still be alive today, being on medication for twenty-five years with an increased risk of cancer, an increased risk of heart disease, and a lower immune system? You know, for me personally, I have an open mind. I’ll hear both sides, but let me decide. As an American, I should have the personal freedom to choose my doctor, to ignore my doctor if I don’t agree with him, to choose an alternative health practitioner, to ignore their alternative healthcare practitioner’s advice. If I choose to. Let me decide what my health is. And I believe that’s what all Americans really want: let us choose. And…

00:06:55
Speaker 1: A special thanks to Greg Hengler on the production of this story. Special thanks to Tim for sharing his story. And so many Americans grapple with these choices: Do I just work on my diet and health? Or do I go see a doctor? And it’s not an either/or; you need doctors, and you need to eat better. The story of Tim Hennessy’s health journey, the story of so many Americans, here on Our American Stories. Lee Habib here, the host of Our American Stories. Every day on this show, we’re bringing inspiring stories from across this great country, stories from our big cities and small towns. But we truly can’t do the show without you. Our stories are free to listen to, but they’re not free to make. If you love what you hear, go to OurAmericanStories.com and click the donate button. Give a little, give a lot. Go to OurAmericanStories.com and give.