Morning everyone!
Welcome to another edition of the Doctor’s Note where we talk about what’s on our minds when it comes to your health. This Note is my “State Of The Union Address” on Covid-19.
Of course, these are only my opinions. Why should you listen to me? You’re going to hear from the media and your friends and you have to make up your mind about who you choose to listen to.
I’ve done continuous deep dives on the research. I’ve experienced the tragedies of Covid with both friends and family. I’ve been treating Covid everyday for the last two years ( a few thousand cases), and I communicate routinely with Emergency Room doctors and ICU physicians on what they’re seeing in the hospital.
It’s time now to bring you my “State Of The Union Address” on what I believe about Covid.
Covid-19 Statistics
Covid-19 is real. It’s contagious and it can be lethal (like a lot of other diseases).
It’s not like any Flu we’ve ever seen before. It’s hit our country harder than any other country in the world, which is mostly due to obesity and poorly functioning immune systems.
There’s going to be over a million people who will die of Covid in our country. They may not die directly from Covid, but with Covid and other diseases. It’s tragic. People have died that you wouldn’t think would die from Covid. There are outliers. I’ve seen it all. But the worst thing you can do is fear it.
If you’re healthy you don’t have to fear Covid-19, but you need to be prepared for it. I’ve talked about how to do that in one of my recent Notes. Healthy people are at very low risk of dying from Covid. Generally speaking, people under 50 and healthy have almost no risk. Children have very little risk of dying from Covid, almost nil.
Most of the people I know have already had Covid. Some twice! Those who have died from Covid have had premorbid conditions: the elderly, morbidly obese, and nursing home residents. Those that are unhealthy that seem healthy. Those that had “other conditions” that they didn’t know about. Pre-existing conditions such as heart disease, lung disease, history of low Vitamin D, autoimmune diseases, and perhaps genetic mutations.
People who work at hospitals and nursing homes are at risk. A lot of the risk has to do with how much exposure you’ve had. Those are people who should think about taking the vaccine and extra precautions.
The Vaccines
Covid-19 is everywhere.
The vaccines aren’t working so well. It’s not preventing you from getting it, and it’s not preventing transmission. It is possible that it may prevent hospitalizations for those at risk.
So if you are at risk, I’m certainly not against you getting the vaccine. I’ve seen people on both ends of the spectrum in regards to the vaccine. You have to use some common sense here and make your own decision. Sadly, this is lacking.
There can be some serious side effects from the vaccines. No one should be pressured to take a vaccine they don’t want. I’ve seen mild to severe reactions. They should not be mandated. Natural immunity from having Covid-19 is better than vaccinated immunity. Vaccinated immunity may work for a few months, then that immunity goes down very quickly.
Almost everyone has had Covid or is going to have it. Luckily, Omicron seems less virulent than previous variants. In treating this new variant, what’s interesting is that it’s not making people lose taste or smell as much. It also doesn’t move into the lungs as badly as the other ones did. I think of this as nature’s booster, and it is our best hope for generating the herd immunity that the vaccines have not done.
I still treat Omicron aggressively. Viruses mutate. This is always going to be around. Again, the good news is that it’s becoming less harmful.
Early Treatment
Why focus on early treatment? Because it works! I’ve seen it thousands of times.
The approved treatment for Covid in hospitals is Remdesivir. This doesn’t seem to be working too well and can be dangerous. If I was in the hospital, I wouldn’t want to get Remdesivir.
Repurposed drugs like Ivermectin and Hydroxychloroquine are working really well for Covid-19. These two in particular are mislabeled too much. They are very safe. We’ve used them for decades for other conditions. I’m also using Fluvoxamine for a lot of my patients.
Nebulized budesonide can be a game changer in preventing the cytokine storm. This is a disease of the lungs that can cause blood clotting which can kill you. I’m also using high dose vitamins, steroids, and antihistamines (H1 and H2 Blockers). Monoclonal antibodies also help. With the new variant only one monoclonal antibody works, and that’s very difficult to get a hold of.
Masks
I don’t think they work too well unless you are sick. If you’re sick and around people, then wear a mask so you’re less likely to transmit to them. It’s also helpful to wear a mask if you’re around a lot of Covid patients. If you are going to wear a mask then you really should wear some eye gear too, as it’s bound to get into your eyes if you’re around it.
Good hand washing and common sense work as well. If you are sick, stay home. If you are at high risk, be careful and take precautions.
More harm has been done from the mandates, social distancing, and shut downs than the virus itself. Think about it. All the missed doctor’s appointments and cancer treatments. People who have had heart attacks but didn’t want to go to the hospital because of possible Covid exposure. This has exposed our healthcare system.
People don’t trust doctors and the healthcare system. Can you blame them?
Why is this? The system is over focused on pushing vaccines and not focused enough on early treatment. It seems like Big Pharma is focused more on developing new drugs and profits than prevention and in general keeping you healthy. Healthcare leaders are tied up in politics and profits.
What Should Happen Next?
Number 1: We need to publicly declare that this pandemic is over.
Number 2: Stop mandates of all kinds and open the country up, especially for children. Kids need to be exposed to germs. This is what our immune system is for.
Number 3: We need to accept Dr. Fauci’s resignation, and get healthcare leaders IN who actually see patients.
Number 4: We need accessible monoclonal antibodies. We are focused more on vaccines than the treatment.
Number 5: Most importantly we need to take care of our own body. God gave you an incredible body. It is not to be abused. Your immune system should work.
Number 6: Take your vitamins (yes, you need vitamins!). If you want to age well and protect your health you need vitamins. You need to get your body in shape.
Number 7: Take care of your gut. Long hauler covid patients usually have autoimmune issues stemming from poor gut health. The gut is the start of everything.
Number 8: Think about prevention. Things like screening blood work so you know what you’re prone to get.
Next time, and there will be a next time, we will be better prepared. In our country we have two major healthcare problems: Obesity and drug use (both prescription and illicit). I don’t think anyone would argue this. We need to fix this!
Note: If they developed a vaccine that worked I might be the first in line. We will see if this happens.
A Message To Healthcare Providers
I’m disappointed in healthcare providers and the hospital systems. I’m also disappointed in the government response. They have failed us.
The reason I’ve been able to treat Covid-19 is because I’m not tied down to a system. Some doctors have lost their jobs because they treated patients with these safe repurposed drugs.
Now doctors are afraid, and it’s not their fault. They’re being told what to do and what not to do. They haven’t been able to treat patients the way they would normally treat them.
If you have Covid, they send you home and tell you to come back if you can’t breathe. This really ticks me off. I hear it everyday from patients. As a healthcare provider you should set an example for your patients.
Take care of your own health. If you don’t, why would anyone listen to you?
Listen to your patients. If you learn to listen to your patients you will be better able to treat them more effectively.
Do your research daily. Do the reading. I treat people completely differently now than I did when I first started practicing. I have to research daily and read. This is mandatory for healthcare providers.
Use your common sense! This is our most important gift. If you’re not sure what to do, do something!
Talk to other doctors. Seek help. We need better communication in our community of providers.
Focus on the patient.
Huge thank you to all the frontline workers for what they have done and are still doing to help Covid patients. You are life savers.
Thank you for reading. Most importantly, thank you for your trust. We will get through this.