(Breather) I’ve been seeing a lot of content and sitting back; since I’m not a health expert, I felt I had nothing urgent to contribute. But lately, I’ve been thinking about the way life has changed, and so suddenly.

Earlier this month, we were barnstorming Las Vegas for basketball games and checking out a magic show, attended a concert in Nashville, went to Graceland in Memphis, and were cruising Bourbon Street in New Orleans with a bunch of revelers. I have to confess to a flawed mindset about the early news of the virus and the suggestion of social distancing. I was taking Dr. Bruce Lipton’s Biology of Belief message to heart (more on that later); refusing to live in panic and fear of contracting the virus.

If you’ve listened to my shows highlighting Dr. Lipton’s work about how thoughts affect cell function (part 1 here and part 2 here), you’re familiar with the scientifically validated concept that stored negativity, fears, and anxiety elevate stress hormones, suppress immune function, and can cause illness… such as cancer and stress-related heart attacks. Healing with the power of the mind is profound, so check out books like Mind over Medicine by Lissa Rankin if you’re interested in learning more.

That’s all find and dandy for me and my positive mindset, but I didn’t fully appreciate the concept of contributing to the exposure and transmission to those who are weak and vulnerable. The Spring Break partiers in Miami might want to take heed. We are now being forced out of our self-absorbed dispositions to think about how our behavior impacts others globally. This is a huge positive takeaway and hopefully shift in consciousness for the future of humanity. Maybe more tolerance and acceptance will arise out of this, who knows?

Also, something to keep in mind: not all youth are degenerate, insensitive partiers. There was a great LA Times article from UCLA women’s basketball star Natalie Chou about how she’s been getting dismissive looks on the airplane and out in her community because of her Chinese-American heritage, which she says has given her a slight sense of how her black teammates might feel every day. Chou also points out how inappropriate it is to call it the Chinese virus, especially certain leaders, considering it’s a global virus.

Today, our reality is quite different than it was only weeks ago, and we’re all in this together. It’s important right now to do the best we can to move away from complaining and focus on the positive. Anytime the slightest thought of ‘hassle” (“Oh man, this is totally messing with my spring break!”) arises, I jump right to gratitude. Things could always be worse. Yes, the economy is taking a major hit, but people are resilient and will do their best to recover. We have survived worse as a society. My mother tells stories of growing up on the Oregon coast during WWII and following orders to turn off all lights after dark so enemy planes would not know where the coastline was! Here are some positive aspects of this major global life disruption I try to focus on:

1. Outdoors: viruses thrive and transmit in colder temperatures (that’s why this occurred during winter and cold/flu season) and because people gather more indoors. I’ve noticed more people out on my usual trail runs and hikes, including kids. At least for some, there seems to be more impetus to get out of the house and get some fresh air.
2. A simpler life:  Life is a lot less stressful when you’re not running around doing errands and attending public events. Of course, this is not going to go on forever, but find things to be grateful for, instead of complaining about what you can’t control.
3. Heightened productivity: I’ve had more time than ever to work on book writing and other content since life is simpler and more focused.
4. Watching more digital entertainment than ever before (Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 10!).
5. Greater appreciation for social connection in the experience of social distancing.
6. More awareness of how illnesses are transmitted. I try not to be a germ freak, but I can sometimes err on the other side of being oblivious or in denial. I’d also suggest that we were all in denial, every step of the way. The President did “an abrupt turn” (NY Times article quote) from saying it was business as usual to sayin’, ‘We gotta shut down.’ Maybe everyone was dragging their feet one step behind optimum due to economic fears?
7. Incredible gratitude for public servants on the front line, including Dr. Steve at Urgent Care, nurse practitioner Marie at Urgent Care, nurse Frances taking care of high risk populations near the epicenter of the disease outbreak in Seattle, and Dr. Katie dealing with administrative aspects as a medical executive… Back to early comments about going from personal to global, how about staying away to put less burden on first responders? Gratitude extends to people at grocery stores, restaurants, and other essential business staying open.

Bruce Lipton’s newsletters have offered up some interesting details about the virus I summarize here:

Viruses thrive in the respiratory tract in the winter, due to the breathing-in of colder air. Flu season is annual and generally the differences among the viruses each new season represent mutations (variations) of previous flu viruses. Human immune systems have dealt with variations of common flu viruses over centuries. The cross-reactivity of antigen sites (the parts of the virus that induces an immune response) on older and newer versions of the flu have pre-primed the human immune systems to suppress the aggressiveness of newer flu mutations.

But once one of these animal viruses mutates, and starts to transfer from animals to humans, then it’s a problem. Why? Because we have no natural or acquired immunity…the RNA sequencing of the genes inside the virus isn’t human, and the human immune system doesn’t recognize it so, we can’t fight it off.

Now…. sometimes, the mutation only allows transference from animal to human, for years its only transmission is from an infected animal to a human before it finally mutates, so that it can now transfer human to human…once that happens…we have a new contagion phase.

Fast forward. Now, here comes this Coronavirus… it existed in animals only, and nobody knows for how long…but one day, at an animal market, in Wuhan China, in December 2019, it mutated and made the jump from animal to humans. At first, only animals could give it to a person… But here is the scary part…. in just TWO WEEKS it mutated again and gained the ability to jump from human to human. Scientists call this quick ability: “slippery.”

This Coronavirus, not being in any form a “human” virus (whereas we would all have some natural or acquired immunity) took off like a rocket. And this was because humans have no known immunity… doctors have no known medicines for it. And it just so happens that this particular mutated animal virus changed itself in such a way that it causes great damage to human lungs..

And this is why the COVID-19 is problematic: This novel version of coronavirus-19 has antigenic characters that have not been previously experienced by human immune systems. Consequently, without any previous infections, almost all humans are susceptible to experience COVID-19. The biological novelty of this virus makes it quite infectious, and for some, a serious illness.

Still, try to remember that the COVID-19 mortality data is biased and massively stress-producing! The percent of victims dying from the COVID-19 flu is based upon the total number of patients dying divided by the total number of cases that have been tested by a doctor or a medical center. The problem with the math is that symptoms of tens of thousands of COVID-19 patients either did not warrant going to a doctor, or they simply didn’t even show up at the doctor’s! Unfortunately, the media’s emphasis on the COVID-19 death statistics is a mathematical bias whose stressful forecast is itself responsible for weakening the public’s immune systems and aggravating the spread of disease. The biggest problem facing the public in this epidemic is not the rate of mortality, it is the overwhelming stress on doctors, nurses and the medical system which is not prepared to deal with a massive epidemic.

The truth is, the majority of COVID-19 deaths have occurred among adults aged 60 years and up, and among persons with serious underlying health conditions. The data is simple: COVID-19 deaths are primarily associated with the elderly and infirmed. If you are not part of that population, the vast majority of COVID-19 infected people will most likely not have serious symptoms.

The government is also significantly responsible for the failure of our medical system to manage infected patients. Between dismissing the country’s governmental committee dealing with epidemics and reducing the budgets of the NIH and other health-related agencies, the medical community has been undermined and left profoundly short-handed by the current administration. To deal with this major COVID-19 threat, it is vitally important to reduce the load on the healthcare system. This is the intention implied in, “flattening the curve,” which simply means reducing the rate of infections through practices, such as those suggested by Dr. Bruce Lipton below.

It should also be noted that it is a scientific fact that positive and negative thinking have a profound effect on the function of the immune system. One of the leading fronts in immunologic research is the field of Psychoneuroimmunology. Psychoneuroimmunology research clearly reveals that consciousness controls the function of the immune system. Positive consciousness is responsible for the Placebo Effect, wherein the mind can heal almost any disease, while stress and negative thinking create the Nocebo Effect, which can cause almost any disease. The fear of COVID-19, coupled with the resulting threats to survival, profoundly inhibits the population’s immune system and further exacerbates the epidemic.

So, is the COVID-19 epidemic to go on and on? The answer is clear: NO! As is evidenced by the almost complete cessation of new COVID-19 cases in China and South Korea, the epidemic will come to an end. But while we wait for that time to come, check out what Dr. Lipton suggests below. His advice is geared towards anyone wanting to stay healthy by using a few practices that will empower your immune system and lessen any COVID-19 symptoms:

1. Maintain a healthy lifestyle: Eat nutritious natural, organic food; take vitamins and supplements, especially large doses of Vitamin C; wash more frequently than normal, back away from the computer and move about (something I have to learn to do as well!).
2. Recognize that the vast majority of healthy people, below 65 years of age, are likely to have only mild COVID-19 symptoms. Those whose health is already compromised and those who are elderly and receiving care are the most susceptible to severe illness. These individuals should take ALL prescribed cautions offered by the CDC.
3. Make every effort to de-stress! Sports, play, nature walks, meditation exercises, be in love, read a book, watch a movie. Basically, RELAX, for this will significantly enhance the function of your immune system and reduce the severity of any COVID-19 symptom.
4. You can help in “flattening the curve” to prevent overwhelming the medical system by taking care of yourself and supporting those in need in your community.  Following the present governmental guidelines to stay home and physically distance from others will also help to not overwhelm the medical system. These are health-enhancing practices that will empower your immune system while helping others overcome their fears and infection.

In conclusion, many people who fall ill with the new COVID-19 disease will most likely experience mild, flu-like symptoms, fever, coughing and a sore throat, with over 80% of infected people having a mild to moderate illness that lasts about two weeks. The remaining 20% will have more severe symptoms that may need medical attention, but these symptoms can be relieved with proper treatment.

TIMESTAMPS:

If you are harboring negativity, fear, anxiety, you are going to have these feelings manifest in your physical health.  [04:01]

Maybe a positive takeaway from this pandemic is that it is forcing us to get out of that self-absorbed disposition and think about how our behavior impacts others around the globe. [08:51]

Escape the mindset of complaining and focus on something positive instead. [11:03]

There is a noticeable increase in the number of people enjoying the outside. [12:34]

We are leading a simpler and more focused life these days. [13:25]

Brad has gained appreciation and awareness of how illnesses are transmitted. [15:34]

We need to have incredible gratitude for the folks on the front lines. [17:18]

In the beginning, the virus jumped from animals to humans but then in two weeks, it was able to transmit human to human. This is called Slippery in Scientific terms. [20:06]

The medical community has been undermined and left profoundly shorthanded. [23:29]

Consciousness controls the function of the immune system. [24:42]

The media’s emphasis on death statistics is responsible for weakening the public’s immune system. [25:58]

Stay healthy. Eat good healthy food. Wash your hands more frequently. Take more time outdoors. [26:57]

LINKS:

• Keto Answers
• Perfect Keto.com
• Dr. Anthony Gustin
• Biology of Belief
• Primal Prescription
• Mind Over Medicine
• Natalie Chou Article
• Dr. Bruce Lipton
• Wim Hof

LISTEN:

Get Over Yourself Podcast

Brad (00:00):
Welcome to the get over yourself podcast. This is author, and athlete, Brad Kearns, discovering ways to be healthy, fit and happy in hectic, high-stress, modern life. So let’s slow down and take a deep breath. Take a cold plunge and expertly balance that competitive intensity with an appreciation of the journey. That’s the theme of the show. Here we go.

Brad (04:01):
Hey everybody. I thought it’d be time to discuss the issue at hand here in March of 2020 the massive global disruption to our lifestyles, our economy, our health. Yeah, the virus. I’ve received some suggestions from listeners, friends, Hey, you should do a show on boosting your immune system because it’s so important. What a great way to capitalize on the popularity. Uh, come on. Uh, I’m not a health expert so I don’t really have anything urgent to contribute. Um, but I have been thinking about the way life has changed.

Brad (04:45):
So suddenly in recent times, I mean this is late March recording. Earlier this month we were barnstorming Las Vegas for basketball games, magic show, then off to Nashville for a giant crowded concert for real estate professionals. Then we went to Memphis and checked out Elvis’s crib, Graceland. That was awesome with a bunch of other people. Then we are in New Orleans walking around Bourbon Street trying to dodge all the drunks. Uh, of course reading the news accounts, but not having that personal connection to what was going on yet. Soon after we left the aforementioned locations, everything shut down. Vegas completely shut down. The following week, uh, we were in town in Nashville and they were getting ready for the SEC basketball tournament and building these outdoor courts and putting up the banners and boom, that thing was canceled. Yeah. And I also have to confess that I was harboring a, I guess you would call it a flawed mindset in the early days with the early news of this crazy virus.

Brad (05:53):
You’ve heard my show, hopefully about the great book Biology of Belief by Dr. Bruce Lipton. And I was taking Dr Lipton’s message to heart. Uh, we’ll cover that later in this show. Uh, but refusing to live in panic and fear of contracting the virus, forming those positive beliefs, which as his life’s work discusses your thoughts affect your cellular function at all times. So you, so if you are harboring negativity, fear, anxiety, you are going to have these feelings manifest in your physical health. You’re going to elevate stress hormone production, which suppresses immune function, causes all manner of illness and over a lifetime driving forces behind cancer heart disease. We know that stress causes heart attacks and this is all scientifically validated. How your thoughts affect your cellular function all times. Uh, Dr Doug McGuff, I’ve talked about him on the show and his book, Primal Prescription talking about the, uh, the physical physiological effects of a false positive breast cancer diagnosis, which are very common unfortunately.

Brad (07:05):
And it shows that these, uh, subjects when they’re given that false positive and then told a week later that they are okay, it’s still adversely affects their health for up to six months due to the fear and the panic reaction of getting that cancer diagnosis. Another great book I’d been listening to recently, uh, is Mind Over Medicine by dr Lissa Rankin. She was a traditional physician and went off onto the deep end and into the world. The realm of natural healing, uh, supported by all kinds of scientific research. That mind is powerful over medicine. We know about the amazing, uh, success rate of the placebo effect. It’s something like 38% of all healing. So just as a negative mindset will take you down. So can a positive mindset help you heal or help protect you. So isn’t that great about my positive mindset? But what I didn’t appreciate in hindsight was the concept of contributing to the exposure and transmission of those who might not have that positive mindset or might be elderly, weak, vulnerable, frail, right? Uh, the spring breakers, partying in Miami right now might want to take heed of this message. I don’t know if they’re going to listen to this show, uh, but we’re going to listen to them with the little fancy clip here. Check this guy out.

Brad (08:26):
But I get Corona. I get Corona at the end of the day. I’m not going to let it stop me for partying. I’ve been waiting. We’ve been waiting for Miami spring break for a while, about two months. I just trip planned for two or three months. Where’s that going to happen to get time? Whatever happens, happens. The second, uh, subject said it’s really messing up my spring break.

Brad (08:51):
All right people. Um, so one thing that maybe will be a positive takeaway from this whole global ordeal is that it’s forcing us to get out of that self absorbed disposition and think about how our behavior impacts others around the globe. Maybe this will kind of prompt a shift in consciousness for the future of humanity. Maybe more tolerance, more acceptance. Who knows? And I should mention at this time, not all youth are degenerate, insensitive partiers. There’s a great LA times article from my friend UCLA basketball player, Natalie Cho, and she talks about how she feels some discrimination, prejudice, getting dismissive looks flying on an airplane back home from UCLA because they canceled the season and canceled classes picking up these dismissive looks due to her Chinese American heritage appearance. Wow. Great. Of her to speak out like the other trendsetters from UCLA, Jackie Robinson, Arthur Ashe.

Brad (10:09):
And she also added an interesting thought that, uh, her experience currently, uh, gives her a slight sense of how her black teammates feel might feel every single day walking around. It’s still out there people and you can’t really relate until you can relate until you’re, uh, subjected to it. Right. Uh, Chou also pointed out in the article that it could be inappropriate and insensitive to call it the Chinese virus. Hopefully not too many people are still doing that. I know certain prominent leaders of the planet, uh, started it perhaps with that dismissive comment. Uh, but guess what? It’s a global virus, isn’t it? Okay. So that is hopefully a positive takeaway that we’re going to have more sensitivity, more tolerance, more acceptance due to the globalization of this problem.

Brad (11:03):
And that opens up some content for a show talking about some positive aspects of dealing with this massive global life disruption. Uh, the first one, well, the second one since I already mentioned one, uh, is to challenge you to escape the mindset of complaining and focus on something positive, something to be grateful for. It could be worse if you’re listening to this show. Let me tell you, it could be worse. So anytime the slightest thought of hassle or complaint, uh, drifts into my mind how this is messing with my spring break, I redirect myself right over to a state of gratitude. Yes, indeed, it could be worse. Uh, of course, the economy is taking a major hit. People’s health, lives are at stake, people are dying, but humanity is resilient. We’ll do our very best we can do to recover, to protect ourselves. Hopefully we’re dragging our feet every week. We’re a week behind it seems like, but it seems like we’re making progress and shutting things down and doing our social distancing. And remember, we’ve survived worse as a society. My mother tells stories of growing up on the Oregon coast during world war II and following the orders to turn off all the lights in the home after dark so that enemy planes would not be able to distinguish where the coastline, where the settlements started. Wow. How’s that for some restrictions to your freewheeling lifestyle like we’re dealing with now?

Brad (12:34):
Another positive aspect is the great outdoors. I have noticed on my usual trail runs and hikes and incredible increase in the number of people that are out there enjoying nature with me. Usually I’m by myself on a cold, windy morning out on the trails with my dogs or something and now everywhere you look there’s more and more people all times a day and it seems like not only are there more people, but they’re generally more baseline friendly, so there’s more smiling, waving a pantomime fist, bumps from 20 feet away, that kind of thing. We’re all in this together and I don’t know where the people are usually or what’s the impetus for getting outdoors? I guess when you feeling cooped up and there’s nothing else to do, you’ve got to get outdoors. But it’s so cool to see more people enjoying exercise outdoors.

Brad (13:25):
Another thing that’s kind of related is we’re living a simpler life these days and I feel like it’s a less stressful existence that I’m not running around doing errands. Uh, getting over to those awesome public events that I enjoy watching a basketball game or go into the movies, going to parties, whatever. Uh, but a brief respite from this, hopefully brief, right after four months, maybe we’ll do a new recording saying I can’t wait to do another party. Let’s do a zoom gathering. Everybody’s signed in anyway. It’s a simpler life for awhile and it ain’t a bad thing to take a break from the go, go, go mode. Uh, again, related to that one is I feel more productive than ever because I’m trapped here in my hall closet/office/recording studio and without those diversions for entertainment options of a group nature, other gatherings, meetings, running errands, I’m home getting more work done than ever before. So a simpler, more focused life could be a benefit. And that includes, for me anyway, I’m watching more digital entertainment than I ever have before. And that means Curb Your Enthusiasm. Season 10, how fantastic. Let’s do some more sound effects shall we for the show

Brad (14:51):
So I’m a catching up, if you will. For some reason, regular everyday life. Uh, kind of keeps me away from the screen usually cause I’m too tired by nighttime cause it comes up too late and I’m like, ah, forget it. I’m going to go to bed instead. Then I can talk about it on my podcast. All right. Uh, so the missing things that I just mentioned, the gatherings, I feel like we’re going to have a greater appreciation for those in the future and also can reminisce about how nice it is to, uh, go over and, uh, meet up with friends, family, have these impromptu gatherings, have these formal gatherings since are now not able to.

Brad (15:34):
Yeah. Uh, I also feel like I’ve gained an appreciation, uh, have a greater awareness for how illnesses are transmitted. I try not to be a germ freak in real life. Just let it go. Don’t worry about it. Don’t obsess about it, but I possibly, and maybe, listener, you too, uh, can air at times on the other side of being oblivious, being in denial, being careless. Uh, and I’m going to challenge everyone here because I feel like we’ve been in denial every single step of the way. Uh, I was reading an article where they use the quote, um, the, the president did an abrupt turn; up turn, uh, from saying this, this everything should be business as usual saying irresponsible things like this is a Democratic hoax and all that kind of nonsense. I believe, uh, another resource suggested that, uh, only a week ago. So after things were getting real everywhere, uh, Fox News was still, uh, communicating that this was a, a hoax put forth for manipulative political reasons. Wow. Uh, that living in denial is definitely a pattern. It’s a lot easier to put the blinders on than deal with the reality, but we’re now being dragged into it, uh, one week at a time, a little more and a little more embracement of reality every single week. And I’m counting myself on the list cause I was out there walking on bourbon street only a couple of weeks ago. And I don’t think a lot of those people had heightened immune function, if you know what I mean. Okay.

Brad (17:18):
So next on the list, uh, incredible gratitude for the people on the front lines, the public servants that are out there caring for the uh, the sick, dealing with the crisis in a real way every single day. Uh, people in my family to my nurse practitioner, Marie and Dr Katie, Nurse Francis working with homeless low immune function population near the epicenter up in Seattle. And my friend Dr Steven who uttered a profound quote recently, he said he was almost positive that he’s going to get the virus due to his position as a physician at Urgent Care. And that’s the first place you go, possibly even more lit up than the emergency room. Right? You’re going to go to urgent care if you think you might be getting sick. Ah. So to be almost sure that you’re going to get it in the course of your employment. Wow. We have to have a lot of gratitude and appreciation for what those people are facing.

Brad (18:13):
And then back to my earlier comments about my personal mindset that I’m strong. I’m healthy.I’m not going to get it. It’s not about you anymore, man. It’s about respecting those people that are out there saying that they’re positive, they’re going to get it because of the amount of exposure they’re dealing with. And some of that is due to carelessness, irresponsibility, and the globe dragging ass dragging their feet possibly due to those economic consequences. Right. We don’t want to shut down the economy. We don’t want to shut down spring break, man, for no good reason.

Brad (18:46):
Right? Yeah. Here’s an interesting quote on the subject from Governor Cuomo of New York. Uh, thanks Robbie Bobby for sharing this. Um, he’s come up with something that he calls Matilda’s Law named after his mother. He asks why we’re shutting down the economy for 1% of the population that’s old and sick. He says that that 1% is his mom, your mom, my mom. So we don’t want to give up on this 1% of the population in order to reboot the economy. That’s not the American way. So back to those earlier comments about going from personal, self-absorbed mindset to global mindset. The reason that we are doing social distancing and disrupting the economy is to unburden the medical system and protect the most weak and vulnerable. So much gratitude to those people who are out there, uh, remaining open and keeping the grocery stores and the takeout restaurants putting themselves into exposure realm, uh, for the, uh, convenience of those of us who want to stop by and pick up some PolloLoco or what have you. So there you go with a gratitude for people that are on the line working hard every day.

Brad (20:06):
Okay. I want to share some commentary from a recent newsletter from Dr. Bruce Lipton. Uh, we mentioned him a little bit earlier and he gives some background, some explanation about the virus and then also why this, uh, panic reaction is something that we have to guard against and how some of the news coverage, uh, is distorting and possibly driving us into a panic. So he wants to kind of get real here and explain what’s going on. I think it’ll be really helpful as an understanding. There’s plenty of other resources that have done the same thing. Uh, so not to prolong this too much, but, uh, he’s talking about how virus is thrive in the winter time, uh, because they do better in cold air. That’s why it’s cold and flu season in the wintertime.

Brad (20:55):
And, uh, as we are exposed to these year after year, we start to, uh, build up immunities. Dr Lipton writes that human immune systems have dealt with various forms of the common flu over centuries. The cross-reactivity of the antigen sites. That’s the parts of the virus that induces an immune response on older and newer versions of the flu pre prime, the human immune system to suppress the aggressiveness of newer flu mutations. The problem with the Coronavirus is that it’s new, novel. It came from animals and mutated to be able to transfer to humans. Dr Lipton says the antigenic characters have not been previously experienced by human immune systems. Here’s another resource I’m jumping in with a, the Coronavirus existed in animals only for nobody knows how long, but one day at an animal market in Wuhan China in December, 2019 and mutated made the jump from animal to people. So at first it could only be transmitted from an animal to a person, but then in just two weeks it mutated again and gained the ability to jump from human to human. This is called slippery in scientific terminology, a slippery virus. So, uh, because we had no natural immunity to it, it took off like a rocket. Doctors have no known medicines for it, and this particular virus happens to cause great damage to the human lungs. All humans are susceptible to experience COVID-19 the novelty makes it quite infectious and for some a serious illness. Now, here’s where Dr Lipton jumps in and wants to set things straight, uh, by claiming that the mortality data about COVID-19 is biased and massively stress producing the percent of victims dying is based upon the total number of patients dying divided by the total number of cases that have been tested by a doctor or medical center. The problem with the math is that tens of thousands of COVID-19 patients either did not warrant going to the doctor or didn’t come in. So the majority of these deaths have actually occurred among adults aged over 60 years and having serious underlying health conditions. The data is simple. The deaths are associated primarily with the elderly and the infirm. If you’re not part of that population, the vast majority of COVID-19 infected people will most likely not have serious symptoms.

Brad (23:29):
So we got two things at play here. If you’re healthy, don’t worry, don’t stress. And at the same time protect that precious 1% that is extremely vulnerable and makes this a deadly virus more from Lipton talking. Why this has become such a big problem. The government is significantly responsible for the failure of our medical system to manage infected patients. Between dismissing the country’s governmental committee, dealing with epidemics. I believe that happened in 2018 according to Dr Steven was disbanded the epidemic disease unit. Between that and reducing the budgets of the NIH, that’s the national institutes of health and other health related agencies. Hey, save on taxes. Not such a good idea right now, huh? We wish we had that infectious disease unit up and running when the virus hit. Anyway, we’re scrambling right now is what Lipton’s talking about. The medical community has been undermined and left profoundly shorthanded by the current administration. To deal with the threat. It’s vitally important to reduce the load on the healthcare system. This is the intention applied by flattening the curve and it means reducing the rate of infections.

Brad (24:42):
Okay. We have our social distancing and washing our hands and all that stuff. Here’s more from Dr. Bruce. Psycho Neuro immunology research clearly reveals that consciousness controls the function of the immune system. Are you familiar with Wim Hof? And his amazing feats of cold exposure and, uh, actually going into the laboratory in Denmark and being injected with a virus and, uh, overriding the immune response. So he’s sitting there being monitored by scientists who can’t believe their eyes, uh, due to his, uh, strong breathing and mindset practices that can control what’s previously believed to be, uh, automatic nervous system function, amazing stuff. So that’s basically what Wim Hof’s doing with his breathing practices and then he’s jumping in the cold water and staying in there forever. Uh, it’s overriding the natural immune response. So this is supporting, uh, the claim that, uh, consciousness controls the function of the immune system. Positive consciousness is responsible for the placebo effect where the mind can heal almost any disease while stress and negative thinking create the noceboeffect, which can cause almost any disease.

Brad (25:58):
The fear of COVID-19 coupled with the resulting threats to survival profoundly inhibits the population’s immune system and further exacerbates the epidemic. So conclusive comments by Lipton, uh, many people who fall ill will most likely experience mild flu like symptoms, fever, coughing, sore throat. 80% of those people will have a mild to moderate illness lasting a couple of weeks. The remaining 20% may have more severe symptoms that might need medical attention, but they can be relieved with proper treatment. The media’s emphasis on the death statistics is a mathematical bias whose stressful forecast itself as responsible for weakening the public’s immune system and aggravating the spread of the disease. Ah, it’s overwhelming stress on doctors, nurses, and medical system, which is not prepared to deal with the epidemic. Is the thing going to go on and on? The answer is clearly no. As evidenced by the almost complete cessation of new cases in China and South Korea, the epidemic will come to an end.

Brad (26:57):
Meanwhile, here’s some suggested best practices from Dr. Bruce. Stay healthy. Eat that good healthy food. Wash your hands more frequently. Uh, take more time outdoors getting some fresh air. Realize the vast majority of people who get it, who are under 65 and healthy are going to have a mild issue, not a life-threatening issue. Try to de-stress in any way possible. Meditation, nature walks, be in love. Read a book. Watch a movie, relax and then help to flatten this curve by taking care of yourself and taking care of those in need in the community.

Brad (27:37):
All right. Thanks for listening. Everybody. Enjoy this change of life. Try to look on the bright side, be grateful, protect yourself, protect others. I’ll talk to you soon about other things..

Brad (27:49):
Thank you for listening to the show. We would love your feedback at getoveryourselfpodcast@gmail.com and we would also love it if you could leave a rating and a review on iTunes or wherever you listen to podcasts. I know it’s a hassle. You have to go to desktop, iTunes, click on the tab that says ratings and reviews and then click to rate the show anywhere from five to five stars. And it really helps spread the word so more people can find the show and get over themselves cause they need to. Thanks for doing it!