New and Suffering from Analysis Paralysis

[JulieMc]

I've been skulking around this wonderful group for a few months now and have finally decided to dive in. I am currently watching my mother deal with severe dementia as I watched in the past her mother go through the same thing. This prompted me to get genetic testing which revealed I am an ApoE 3/4, which in turn has motivated me to make some changes in my life. After reading Dr. Bredesen's book and the Sherzai's book, I feel very hopeful that I have control over many things that put me at a greater risk for developing AD myself. That being said, I just don't know which path to take to achieve the best outcome. While the Team Sherzai approach seems like a more user-friendly and doable protocol, I'm worried that the stringency and depth of Dr. Bredesen's approach is more effective and the one I should use. I suffer from analysis paralysis when making major and even minor decisions in my life (you should have seen the amount of research I did for a planner this year), so I'm looking for some straightforward answers that relate to those two protocols. I have already begun exercising regularly, that one seems obvious. But diet and what's the best one has me stymied, as does some of my current medications and need for labs and other studies. Looking forward to getting the support that this great group offers and so happy to have found you all!

[CarrieS]

I am currently watching my mother deal with severe dementia as I watched in the past her mother go through the same thing. This prompted me to get genetic testing which revealed I am an ApoE 3/4, which in turn has motivated me to make some changes in my life. After reading Dr. Bredesen's book and the Sherzai's book, I feel very hopeful that I have control over many things that put me at a greater risk for developing AD myself.

Hello and Welcome JulieMc
I too experienced both my mother and her mother's journey with AD. Genetic testing revealed that I am a 4/4 (what the heck Dad!!) so I too have been VERY motivated to make changes so that I don't put my son through the same experiences with me. Finding the right diet for you and your particular body is a bit of journey in of itself. I believe that you'll find many here have personalized their approach to what is working for them. Experiment, keep track and write down how you feel. What works for one person may not work for another. For instance, my body doesn't do well with salmon, oats (or most grains but likes spelt), or avocado. I discovered this by going back through my journal and figuring out the pattern.

You may also want to consider working with a Health Coach to help you implement dietary changes. You'll find a list of coaches here: Health Coaches. A coach may be able to help you with your questions about what to eat and how to figure out the best diet for your unique body.

Change can be very overwhelming so give yourself a big hug and know that you'll find a ton of support on this site.

[slacker]

Welcome JulieMc;

You are not alone! Many of us struggle to figure out what will be the "magic bullet" for us. Start with what you think will be most straightforward to implement. Success in one area helps us feel more confident to continue to change. If you are leaning towards the Bredesen approach, you don't have to do everything at once. And as CarrieS illustrates, what works for one person doesn't for another.

An MD member 4/4 has written a wonderful primer that may also be helpful for you (if you haven't found it already!)

[Gillyp]

Thanks for sharing with us so quickly JulieMc. I'm sorry you had to watch both your grandmother and mother go through this. It sounds like you've done so much already to put yourself in a stronger position. I think we all struggle with information overload and the choices or decisions we want to make can become overwhelming. When you think of just the different nutritional suggestions, that alone can become a case of paralysis by analysis. As slacker writes, and I agree, there isn't one magic bullet out there. Each one of us is so different as is our personal timeline and health journey. I would suggest that as far as diet goes you try starting with what resonates most with you and see how you respond. Try to break down what you want to change, or achieve, into smaller steps or goals. As CarrieS suggested, a coach can absolutely help you with this, if you feel stuck. With big decisions go with your gut, it's usually right. (I'm currently doing a course on choices and decision making and the research in this area is fascinating). I hope this is helpful.

[BradleyD]

My Apoe 3/4 grandfather is 90 years old, smoked two packs a day for 65 years, hasn’t exercised a day in his life, ate poorly, is on supplemental oxygen, and he doesn’t have memory problems. Keep living a healthy life and there is an excellent chance that you’ll be fine.

[JudyH]

I am in a similar situation. 58, accidentally found out my APOE status one month ago. No family history of AD but my mother and grandmother died at 42 of CAD. I know where my e4 came from!

I read Bredesen's book as well as this website and it is all pretty overwhelming. For me, I took a look at my current overall health and decided not to go crazy over this and just start turning the knobs, one or two at a time to improve my obvious factors which seem to be two of the big hitters anyway, insulin resistance and inflammation. About 20 lbs overweight, high triglycerides and A1C and fasting glucose just out of the normal range. So my first changes were to minimize added sugar in my diet to 10 grams or less per day, add dark chocolate and a few nuts each day and increase the length of my daily fast to 12 -14 hours everyday. After one month today, I am seeing results, down almost 6 lbs and 2 inches off my waist.

Next step I would like to do is work on small diet improvements, I am naturally lower carb since I am a Celiac but I need to increase my veggies. I am going to push towards the Mediterranean or MIND diets, not strictly, just baby steps.
I am preparing a simple list of tests I would like run for my doctor visit (not FM) in March. Again, I am going to focus more on tests that will help me understand my insulin resistance and inflammation status and how to reduce those risks. I also am going to insist on a deep dive of my thyroid status since I take thyroid medication.

I am going to slowly dig into my other questions later this year. I also take medication, I am trying to wean off my PPI with mixed results so far, I take a statin and plan to continue for now. I don't take HRT, I am undecided on this one and will discuss with my doctor later this year. I socially drink and plan to continue for now. I exercise almost daily. I think I would like to add some meditation and brain challenge work to my daily routine but am not rushing into starting those yet.

For me, small changes are the way to go. I have to force myself not to act like a puppy chasing my tail because I am tempted to immediately try everything I read - change my fish oil to Nordic Naturals, change from tap water to Fiji water! Best of luck to you in this journey. I have found this website to be a fantastic resource with a lot of common sense info that fits my way of thinking.

[JulieMc]

For me, small changes are the way to go. I have to force myself not to act like a puppy chasing my tail because I am tempted to immediately try everything I read - change my fish oil to Nordic Naturals, change from tap water to Fiji water! Best of luck to you in this journey. I have found this website to be a fantastic resource with a lot of common sense info that fits my way of thinking.

Small changes are resonating with me for sure. Part of me just wants to do the things I want to do anyway, like only drink Fiji water!! Thanks for the feedback. It helps me realize progress is progress. I don't have to do it all right now but I am doing something right now. Just keep swimming!

[JulieMc]

Experiment, keep track and write down how you feel. What works for one person may not work for another. For instance, my body doesn't do well with salmon, oats (or most grains but likes spelt), or avocado. I discovered this by going back through my journal and figuring out the pattern.

You may also want to consider working with a Health Coach to help you implement dietary changes. You'll find a list of coaches here: Health Coaches. A coach may be able to help you with your questions about what to eat and how to figure out the best diet for your unique body.

[/quote]

Keeping track and writing down is a new goal of mine. I've never wanted to accept that what I eat could be blamed for anything negative I was experiencing. Time to get off of that silly paradigm and see if I can find some correlations.

I noted the list of health coaches and didn't see any in the Southern California area listed. Did I miss something? Or are we all just so healthy here in SoCal that we don't need health coaches?

[CarrieS]

Keeping track and writing down is a new goal of mine. I've never wanted to accept that what I eat could be blamed for anything negative I was experiencing. Time to get off of that silly paradigm and see if I can find some correlations.

I noted the list of health coaches and didn't see any in the Southern California area listed. Did I miss something? Or are we all just so healthy here in SoCal that we don't need health coaches?

Telemed is becoming more and more accepted and is a great time saver. The beauty part of a "remote experience" is that you can connect electronically with anyone anywhere and in a place that is comfortable to you. I was initially very uncomfortable with the idea but have found it to be a fantastic experience.

I never thought that what I ate was causing my inflammation and pain so went into an elimination diet with full confidence that I wasn't intolerant of anything. Much to my surprise, eliminating dairy, sugar, soy, peanuts, corn, wheat (all grains) and eggs turned my life around in a short amount of time. Thankfully, eggs weren't causing problems and concentrating on healing my gut has made it so that I can tolerate small amounts of the foods that used to make me hurt. I still had to pay attention to other food intolerance symptoms but after I figured out what my symptoms were, I could then eliminate or reduce that particular food. My "food mood poop" diary was an essential tool in my journey. Good luck on your new goal!

[jgilberAZ]

The best diet is the one that keeps insulin as low as possible for as long as possible.

That can be either plant-based, or animal-based.

Basically, don't eat carbs.