Several months ago, a young man emailed me completely flustered. He was in love. But Nana, his girlfriend, was pushing him away because she had Vitiligo. And it was killing him to be shut out. In fact, she thought she was doing him a favor. She did not want to relegate him a life of shame, living with someone whom all of society would shun. She loved him back, but she wanted to protect him.
As I read his email, I realized that he did not care whether or not Nana had Vitiligo. He didn’t care about society or what anyone would say about her. He just wanted to be with her.
He asked that I make a video filled with helpful advice, made just for her. So that she would not lock herself in her house all day. So that maybe someday she could hope for a happy life again.
How could I say no to that?
This is the video I made for Nana.
Here’s a friendly reminder to jump for joy EVERY day! Your skin, your physical appearance, does not define who you are, what you’re capable of, and frankly – how freaking amazing you are. Radiate positivity, and everyone around you will barely even notice the things you used to tell yourself were “imperfections”.
Nothing gets under my skin like people taking advantage of others. Unfortunately there are many fake vitiligo cures out there that, over time, have caught my eye. At first I’m always intrigued, but after doing some research it looks like there’s almost always something off about those “cures.” Even websites that claim to sell a natural treatment for vitiligo are often preying on the vulnerability of those who are eager to get rid of their white spots. Many natural remedies included in those systems are available for better prices elsewhere on the internet. So I decided to make a video giving 4 tips to help you figure out whether the vitiligo treatment you’re looking into is just a hoax:
Recap:
1. Does the vitiligo treatment sound too good to be true? It probably is. Keep in mind that this is one red flag of many, so if there are other red flags in addition to this one, you’ll want to steer clear!
2. Are the glowing testimonials about that treatment fake? It may not be immediately obvious, but if you review testimonials more than once you’ll start to see inconsistencies, or a lack of genuine tone, or something that just seems off. Testimonials can come in the form of comments, videos, blog posts, or even what seem to be reputable websites.
3. Does the vitiligo treatment cost an arm and a leg? More than $50? If you’re not speaking with a trusted source, like a doctor, in person – it’s a scam. I say that with 99.9% confidence. Of the things I’ve read and experienced, there is no one “cure” out there that is 100% guaranteed to cure ANY vitiligo on any person’s body. There are so many different types of vitiligo and everyone has different body chemistry. So it’s a guessing game. If you’re searching for the right treatment for you, expect to explore more than one option. This means, unless you have the resources, you probably don’t want to spend $500 per treatment. At least, I know I don’t!
4. Does the treatment or system consist only of herbal supplements? There has been a recent surge of websites that promote herbal systems to treat vitiligo. I’d be cautious about these. Do your research and see if you can get a higher quality herb elsewhere. Or perhaps they are charging you exorbitant amounts of money for an enticing vitiligo system that would cost much less if purchased elsewhere, sans the label slapped on.
The eBook I mentioned in the video is not a “cure” … just like my “vitiligo cure” video wasn’t a cure. But it definitely reveals interesting information about vitiligo, great healthy eating tips, and methods and resources for de-stressing.
As always, please don’t hesitate to be in touch! You can comment here, or tweet me @arunagee 🙂
This week has been tough. Sleep-wise. Luckily I scheduled a massage for today at Pyara Spa and Salon in Harvard Square. I look forward to my massages with an amazing lady name Randy Sue all month. I have a membership with them for 30 minute elements massages once or twice a month, and I receive a discount. (Who doesn’t love discounts?)
Massages help me sleep better (time permitting – sigh!) and good sleep helps to keep my vitiligo from spreading. My body is frustratingly sensitive and over the course of even one week knots start to form in my back and neck area. By the time I make it to my appointment with Randy Sue, some of the knots grow to a substantial size. It’s a bit scary really.
Randy Sue and I asked someone to snap a photo of us. I have to apologize for the horrible image quality though. The lighting was unforgiving, and my iPhone does not take the best photos (as I learned at the Boston Wine Expo the weekend before last).
I have been going to Randy Sue for over 8 months. She has an intuitive technique. Her massages adapt to my needs, which can change from massage to massage.
Here’s her bio:
Education
Polarity Realization Institute in Ipswich, MA and have been practicing since 1999
Inspiration
Polarity is a hands on approach to the body’s energetic anatomy and seeks to bridge body, mind, and spirit. Polarity supports strong connections to my other healing and holistic health systems, making a great fit with Aveda. I work intuitively and with great respect towards the human body, creating a safe and healing space for each of my guests that I have the honor of working with.
If you’re ever in the Cambridge area and are wondering where to get a massage, I highly recommend Randy Sue! If you have vitiligo, or a sensitive body, get massages!!! Do it!
I am becoming something of an herbal supplement junkie. Rest assured, I eat well, drink plenty of water, ingest the allotted amount of roughage and so on. Huge smoothie for breakfast, tea all day long, at least one salad daily …Â I just happen to enjoy supplements as well. For example, I take Melatonin and Valerian root extract about an hour before the sleepy times. When I ran out of my Valerian extract this week, I rushed to GNC and went a bit overboard thanks to their buy one get one 50% off deal. In addition to Melatonin and Valerian, I decided to try Ginkgo Biloba and Green Tea Complex.
I have heard Ginkgo Biloba can be beneficial for vitiligo repigmentation, which is why it caught my eye on the store shelf. When I read the bottle I learned that it ,”may support mental sharpness.” (Double checked on WebMD.) Well – I’m sold.
That’s not entirely true. I’m not *completely* sold. I am looking forward to trying it over the course of 100 days to test its effects, and if there is a noticeable difference I’ll repurchase.
The green tea complex (in liquid form) is horrible though. I’m calling it the Devil’s Spit from now on.
I’m sure it’s healthy and all that; it has EGCG which, “supports metabolism.” But the stuff tastes horrible! If you’re considering buying this, don’t just try it in a bit of water. Add it to something strong to mask the disgusting taste. Honestly, I had such a jarring and unpleasant first experience that I will be returning this little package of delight to GNC today. I drink at least one glass of green tea every single day, so I don’t feel I’ll be missing out.
Haha! Sometimes I feel I’m turning into weird pill-lady. Any other health-goobers out there?
Yours,
Aruna
Song: Forgive Them Father by Lauren Hill
I need to start keeping track of the songs I’ve posted. I have a feeling I’m going to start repeating soon if I don’t 😛
The practice of homeopathy was pioneered by the Germans, but the Indians just eat it up. Homeopathy, which was invented by Samuel Hahnemann, is one of India’s national systems of medicine. It’s a thing. In fact, my Indian father took me to an Indian homeopathic doctor (we’ll call him “h-doctor”) in my not-so-Indian hometown. Don’t get me wrong, I fancy myself a fairly open-minded person. At first I was happy to give homeopathy a go:
I have vitiligo and struggled with sleep eating for a while. My father was determined to help me make both of them go away. He introduced me to h-doctor, who told me that if he were able to diagnose me correctly his medication would ‘restore the flow of my life force.’ Alright … That definitely sounded like flowery phrasing to me, but if the meds work then I’ve got no issues! I had some vague idea that the little sugary pebbles h-doctor gave me were saturated with leaf juices and good vibes or something. As it turns out, my assumption that homeopathic medication was akin to that of Ayurveda (a relatively reputable plant-based, Indian system of medicine) was wrong.
Basically, homeopaths take a substance and dilute it with water or alcohol. Then they perform something called succussion, where they beat it. You know, paddle + bum? That kind of beating. They repeat this process a lot: dilute then beat, dilute then beat … until it is pretty much impossible that any of the original substance is left. The claim is that dilution and succussion make the medicine even more potent. That the water has a “water memory” for the essence of the original substance. And that the water-memorized essence, of something no longer there, will restore the flow of your life force and cure all of your problems (physical, mental, psychological). Well, such lofty promises. Cover up those red flags with fool’s gold why don’t ya!
Still, many people swear by homeopathy. And that made me think that the placebo effect must be something significant.
I became a closeted skeptic. I figured, if I can ignore my criticisms and harness the power of placebo, maybe it’ll work anyway! And that’s just it – being fully aware of the possibility of placebo kind of makes no sense. And if I think a placebo could have a real effect on me, then why can I not just use my own mind to make those changes, instead of tricking it?
The following are, in my opinion, the two redeeming qualities of homeopathy:
1) The placebo.
2) The “therapist” aspect.
At times homeopathic doctors really sound like therapists. “Do you have a tendency to have a short temper?” “How do you feel in crowds?” “Are you very sensitive?” “When you were a child did you feel that someone important in your life was controlling?” … H-doctor asked me all sorts of questions. He always looked over his glasses at me with neutral eyes, waiting for the answer so that he could simply acknowledge what I’d said and write it on a piece of paper. Sounds a lot like accidental therapy to me.
I don’t have a dog, but someday … : )
I’d like to think that the conclusion I’ve come to is the right one (fingers crossed), that I’m not just being dismissive of things the scientific community (and I) don’t yet understand, that by acknowledging my skepticism and realizing the power of my own mind I’ll be able to help myself in the ways homeopathy claims to.
Have you ever tried homeopathic medicine? What did/do you think?
Eudaimonia 