February 10, 2022

From podcast: https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/podcast/monica-hershaft-podcast/

[00:00:00] Introduction

[00:01:39] Podcast Sponsors

[00:05:42] Guest Introduction

[00:09:02] How a debilitating chronic “mystery” illness led to Monica's unique practice

[00:24:03] A breakdown of Ben's evaluation and treatment

[00:46:31] Podcast Sponsors

[00:50:30] Phase One Of Treatment: Muscle Testing

[00:59:22] Phase Two: The Body Scan

[01:10:12] The Results Of The Two-Part Exam

[01:32:24] How to work with Monica, even if you don't live in Phoenix

[01:37:31] Legal Disclaimer

Ben:  On this episode of the Ben Greenfield Fitness Podcast.

Monica:  I literally had no choice. I tried everything as a vegan. And, at this point, I was going on almost 10 years. My 30s were wiped out. So, phase one is when your body bags up the trash. Phase two is when it throws the trash out. If you do phase one and you're getting those toxins ready and you can't dump them out, where do you think they go? Really. Oh, we're learning more about Ben Greenfield.

Ben:  Health, performance, nutrition, longevity, ancestral living, biohacking, and much more. My name is Ben Greenfield. Welcome to the show.

Hey, what's up, you guys. Sorry for the slightly echoey audio quality, but I'm on the road and I wanted to give you a quick introduction to what you're about to hear on this podcast. I was able to connect with a best-selling author, motivational speaker, and holistic health practitioner who's also a nutritional consultant with a very unique flavor of nutritional consulting. Her name is Monica Hershaft. Her story is amazing. She's one of the top holistic nutrition experts in the nation. And, there is a video that accompanies this show that you might also find useful because she demonstrates a lot of the so-called kinesiology-type muscle testing that she does during this show. So basically, I went down to Phoenix, I saw her. We had a great interview and that is what you are about to experience.

Hey, I want to tell you something. I am actually going to be in San Diego in May of 2022 speaking at the Personal Peak Performance Summit, the PP Summit, the PPP Summit. Anyways, you can get a VIP pass to attend. It's going to be super cool. It is a summit at Pacific College all around, you guessed it, peak performance. Paul Chek is going to be there. My podcast sidekick, Dr. Jay Wiles is going to be there. Endurance author, Alex Hutchinson, is going to be there. Should be pretty cool. There's an exhibit hall that's open to everybody. You can also get a VIP pass to get in on all of the goodness.

I will put the URL in the shownotes. You can also find it at BenGreenfieldFitness.com/Calendar where everywhere I'm speaking is listed. But this one's in San Diego in May, so check it out. It's called the Personal Peak Performance Summit at Pacific College in San Diego, May 20th through the 22nd.

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Monica:  Hey.

Ben:  Hello.

Monica:  Nice to meet you officially.

Ben:  It's always good to meet you. At least face-to-face. I love the hug.

Monica:  Alright, come on back.

Ben:  Alright, cool. Oh, geez. We're on camera already.

Monica:  Official.

Ben:  I love these entrances that aren't actually fabricated where we didn't have to do that three times and then try to pretend we had just met for the first time. Those ones are always awkward.

Monica:  It is. That is awkward.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah.

Monica:  Although you're still doing that [00:06:17] _____

Ben:  It's good to meet you, Monica.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  I've heard so much about you from —

Monica:  Trina.

Ben:  From our friend, Trina.

Monica:  Yeah. I dropped her at the mall.

Ben:  Yes, perfect. And, you know what before I even explain what Trina said about you which made me want to get you on the podcast, can I take a leak?

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Keep that in the video. But, cut it when I'm in the bathroom.

Alright, here we go. Well, I've taken my leak. I'm back and I was explaining to Monica who I've just met as you now know if you're watching or listening to this podcast. I was at a dinner at a health event with my friend Trina, Primal Life nutrition, I think —

Monica:  Primal Life Organics.

Ben:  Yeah, Primal Life Organic. She has a lot with detoxification and tooth health and oral health and —

Monica:  Skin care.

Ben:  And, skin care. Yes, exactly. I'm glad you're here to remind me everything. And so, Trina always knows these interesting people and the so-called unicorns in the health industry and people who are behind the scenes doing cool things. And, that's what I love on my podcast to find the interesting and enchanting, and unique people and delve into what they do. And, she said, “Oh, this lady, Monica, she was able to read me a book up and down in terms of laser dialing in my nutrition and my supplements, and things that were wrong with my body that I was trying to figure out for years and years. And Ben, how do you not know about this Monica Hershaft gal?” And, I said, “I've never heard of her. I mean, I could look into her, I suppose.” And, I went to your website and dug around a little bit. It was a little bit murky for me. And, Trina kept saying, “She's amazing, she's amazing. You get on the podcast.” So, I actually don't know that much about what you do aside from the fact that you help people figure out how to customize their nutrition or their supplementation program to their unique needs. I know you can find some crazy health issues that are going on with people which I think almost everybody has. And so, that's what led me here to be knocking on your door during this trip to Phoenix where your office is located. And so, that's the back story.

And, by the way, for everybody listening or watching, what I'm going to do is I'm going to create shownotes so you can dig into Monica and everything she does, and everything we talk about. Just go to BenGreenfieldFitness.com/MonicandBen. BenGreenfieldFitness.com/MonicaandBen, and I'll just link to everything in the shownotes for you if you want to geek out and take a deeper dive.

So, that being said, I'll shut my yapper and turn things over to you and hear a little bit more about what you do and what we're about to do.

Monica:  Yeah. So, basically, everything that we do is very weird and different than what you've ever done before. And, not just because we do muscle testing, which is also known as applied kinesiology. And, a lot of people use applied kinesiology because it's a good way to determine what's interfering with the body's normal function and it's been used with chiropractors for many years since I think even back in the '60s. But, this specific —

Ben:  Well, we recently did a podcast with Teri Cochrane.

Monica:  Yes.

Ben:  We did some applied kinesiology and muscle testing only.

Monica:  And, a lot of people use muscle testing, a lot of chiropractors use it. It's really commonly used in a lot of the healing arts. So, it's kind like if a doctor uses a stethoscope, this is a tool the way a stethoscope is and a lot of people use it in very different ways to determine whatever it is that their specialty is. So, in what I do here is my specialty is what we call “chronic mystery illness.” So, it's really people who have —

Ben:  Alright, mystery illness. I like that.

Monica:  Yeah, yeah. It's people who have chronic symptoms that are interfering with their daily life but they go to the doctors and they're told nothing's wrong with them, it's in their head or they're given a blanket diagnosis like fibromyalgia, or chronic fatigue syndrome, or even depression. A lot of times you try to get them to take antidepressants or some type of a psychiatric med because they said, “Well, there's nothing in the lab so it must be in your head,” which is not true. If you're feeling it, something's off.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah. Wow.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Amazing.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Okay. How did you learn all this? What's your background?

Monica:  So, it's a combo platter. And, I'm going to get a little woo-woo here.

Ben:  That's fine.

Monica:  So, yeah. So, the technique is actually called NRT, Nutrition Response Testing. And, that's what the training is at.

Ben:  That's the woo-woo. Shut up. No, I'm just kidding.

Monica:  That's not even yet.

Ben:  Oh, we're not even there yet? Okay.

Monica:  No, we're not even at the woo-woo.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  But basically, as I went, and in my personal health story, as you mentioned before, I used to be an actress and I was doing a very popular trendy detox program in LA that everyone was doing, and I got violently sick on it and nobody could figure out what was wrong with me. And so, even–

Ben:  Is it that cayenne pepper?

Monica:  No. It was really intense because we would take high levels of niacin and a lot of other synthetic supplements. And, synthetic supplements are bad, we'll talk about that too. But, in doing it, we had to also do–

Ben:  [00:11:15] _____ but keep going.

Monica:  Oh, good. Thank you. We also had to do saunas and go running and really try to trigger these toxins to dump. And, the more we did it, the worse I kept getting. So finally, after a couple of months, I stopped. And look, I'm not going to lie, I definitely had fun in the '80s. so, I had some things to detox. I'm not going to lie. But, it was weird the way my body was reacting. And so, I stirred it and I've never been sick before. I used to be a dancer. I've always been super athletic. So, it was really weird that this was happening.

And, a lot of people who have followed me know my story which is that my father is a very well-known animal rights activist. And, he started the Animal Rights Movement back in the '70s.

Ben:  Who's your father?

Monica:  His name's Alex Hershaft.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  He started Great American Meatout. He's been doing conferences, huge international conferences since the '80s.

Ben:  Oh, wow.

Monica:  And, they just did a documentary on his life last year–actually this past year. And, that's coming out next year in film festivals.

Ben:  No kidding. I'll have to look into him.

Monica:  Yeah, yeah. It's really interesting. And so, I grew up in that environment. So, I was one of the few people born in the '60s who was raised as a vegan.

Ben:  Oh, wow.

Monica:  So, this is where I'm going with this. And so, my whole life was based on soy and wheat. And, we also have birth controls pills in the '80s. We're not what they are today.

Ben:  Yeah, tofurkys.

Monica:  Yeah. My dad is friends with the guy who started tofurky. Yeah. And, it was right around the time him and PETA started at the same time. And so, I used to watch them on the talk shows together like Phil Donahue, Dinah Shore, all those old shows. And so, it never occurred to me to not be vegan because it's just all I ever knew.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And so, what happened was and when I was around 34, 33 is when I did this detox program and I started getting these really severe heart palpitations, the skin under my eyes was coming off and my face was bleeding for no reason which made it really hard to do acting jobs because I looked horrible.

Ben:  Vampire movies or zombie–

Monica:  True. True. But, I mostly did commercials and comedy. So, it wasn't really working for me. And, yeah. And so, in my father's background, he's a holocaust survivor. So, he got into this whole thing because of the factory farming conditions reminding him of the holocaust growing up. And so, he was bringing out all. And, I agree with him. The conditions on factory farms are horrible, but that's not what paleo is and that's not what we do. It's not factory farming–

Ben:  Right. That stopped regenerative agriculture with ethical treatment of animals.

Monica:  Exactly.

Ben:  Animal eating a diet. They're supposed to eat.

Monica:  Exactly. And, not being abused throughout their life the way the factory farms do and never seeing the sun and all the other horrible things.

So anyway, I literally spent the next 10 years going from doctor to doctor as I continued to worsen for no apparent reason, getting every lab work done you can imagine, being told nothing was wrong with me. They tried to get me to take antidepressants. Meanwhile, I kept getting worse and worse. My friends started to give up on me. I couldn't work at all. I couldn't even drive a car because I was having so much trouble gauging my distance between–I was getting into little accidents.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  I even remember pulling out forgetting which side of the road to go on. And, I was gone.

Ben:  Geez.

Monica:  It was bad. And then, I couldn't eat solid food. I had so much pain in my gut. Anytime I eat anything solid, it felt like I was getting stabbed.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, I stopped eating solid food and I was losing so much weight that I couldn't even wear a size zero. And, no one could figure it out. They all kept telling me it was all in my head.

Ben:  You can gain weight on liquid food though because I saw a YouTube video of the Ukrainian bodybuilder just 21 years old–

Monica:  Maybe you can, but–

Ben:  Drinks, chicken shakes for breakfast. I'm not kidding. He put his chicken breast in the blender–

Monica:  But, when this happened in '99 and 2000, people won't do that. So, yeah. But also, I was a vegan.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah. But, [00:15:01] _____

Monica:  Right. And so, the problem was the vegan diet.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And so, I did go to many, many different medical doctors. I've never even heard of holistic. So, I've never been to a holistic person but then someone suggested that. And, I tried anything and everything they told me to do and literally nothing worked. And so, eventually, without getting into too long of a story, I ended up finding someone who did this and they said, “Well, you can't heal as a vegan, so I'm not going to work with you.” And, that was the first time anyone said anything.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Meanwhile, my dad had flown out because I couldn't take care of myself anymore. I couldn't even do laundry, nothing. And so, he was driving me to appointments and we were trying to get it figured out. And, I also, at that point, couldn't support myself. And, you get so demoralized when you have a chronic illness that no one can figure out for that long.

Ben:  Draining on your energy levels.

Monica:  Draining on your energy levels. Also wondering maybe this is Lou Gehrig's where they don't have a name for this disease and they'll probably name it after me when I die.

Ben:  So, that's something going in the back of your mind?

Monica:  Yeah. Wondering if I'm dying, wondering if I'm going to wake up the next day, wondering if I should just kill myself. Really, really intense.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  And, losing friends, people giving up on you. They don't believe you. They think you're being dramatic.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  And, trying to hide it, trying to come up with lies so people don't judge you or reject you.

Ben:  And, I imagine it's also pretty tricky because it sounds like you were trying to be healthy, so it's not like your friends could say, “Oh, quit eating at McDonald's,” it's like, “No, I'm super healthy.” Or, trying to be super healthy while this is happening.

Monica:  Yeah. I was an athlete. I ate properly. I worked out all the time. It was really weird. And so, anyway, basically that's because my dad was with me, I couldn't say anything to her with him in the room. And so, we drive home, car ride home is very quiet. We get home. He goes into do his thing. I go into the bathroom. I get into the shower. I close the shower curtain. I'm on my phone. “Hi, this is Monica. I'll eat the meat. What do I do?” I'm secretly plotting.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah.

Monica:  And, I just started sneaking it.

Ben:  Obviously, this is before text messaging.

Monica:  Yes.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And also, your doctor doesn't give you their cell phone number.

Ben:  That's true.

Monica:  So, yeah. So basically, at that point, I told my dad that she agreed to work with me as a vegan. I lied to him. And, I said, look, if I try and it doesn't work, what have I got to lose, he'll never know. And, if I try it and it does work, I'll do it without them. And so, it really started working. And, it was really hard because I was going through all the images that were in my head from over the years of watching my dad going to protest with him when I was a kid, and demonstrations, and everything, and being on the news. And, I literally had no choice. I tried everything as a vegan and at this point, I was going on almost 10 years. My 30s were wiped out.

And so, I basically started with eggs and fish. And then, I started moving into chicken, and I was crying and eating and crying. And, I really started feeling better.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  And so, yeah. And so, then little by little, the journey continued and I got into someone who did this technique, NRT, but they only got me halfway there. And so, little by little, I actually found something online where I could buy the test kits and I started just practicing on my own and trying to figure it out. And then eventually, someone reached out and they were like, “Hey, do you want training?”

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And then, little by little, it all fell into place and I went out there and it turned out I had a really severe choline deficiency.

Ben:  That's what I was going to ask you like what it was that they found out because obviously–

Monica:  It was choline.

Ben:  Well, just vegan diets and especially poorly comprised vegan diet.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Cholines, creatines, carnitines, taurines, B12, all these–

Monica:  So, the biggest issue–

Ben:  –deficiencies that add up.

Monica:  Yes. And, the biggest issue I've found when it comes to vegetarian and vegan diets is the zinc-copper imbalance, which breeds fungus and heavy metal toxicity.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And so, that's one of the biggest issues because then that candida ends up creating a breeding ground for also overgrowth of bacteria and SIBO and all the other things. And then, you've got leaky gut and then you've got food allergies. And then, it just continues to evolve. And, a lot of big people in the animal rights and vegan industry hide their health issues because they don't want people to know.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  Because I know a lot of things.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And so, basically–

Ben:  Although in fairness a lot of health influencers, in general, hide their health issues.

Monica:  That's true.

Ben:  Because it's the same–

Monica:  But, the animal rights people are in it for the health. They're in it for the animals, but they don't want the bad press of the health because then it makes them look bad.

Ben:  Yeah, totally. We've seen the stories about the other vegans who are sneaking fish. And, there's all those stories out there about the vegan guys who have a fish and start talking about the nighttime erections that they never used to get. And, you can Google that stuff.

Monica:  Well, yeah. When it comes to an erection, a man will do almost anything.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah. Just give me some salmon already.

Monica:  So true. But, yeah. So, in my case, the biggest issue was the choline deficiency. And, the reason for that in my case was born and raised, so my organs developed on a vegan diet which is different than becoming a vegan as an adult.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  My body was growing and developing as a vegan, which is 100% different and then the detox program is stimulating detox. Choline is used for phase two liver function, breaking down fats. So, phase one is when your body bags up the trash. Phase two is when it throws the trash out. If you do phase one and you're getting those toxins ready and you can't dump them out, where do you think they go? Right back into the body. So basically, they were giving me high levels of niacin. All I had to do was google niacin and choline to find out that niacin causes choline deficiency. So, if you're taking 5,000 milligrams of niacin on a vegan body, that's already choline-deficient, you're screwed.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  For three months straight.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  That's how long it takes for tissue change to happen in the body, people.

Ben:  Sure, you had very pinkish-red skin though. I think all that nice–

Monica:  Very pinkish-red skin, that is true.

Ben:  Yeah, that's–

Monica:  But, I couldn't digest anything fats.

Ben:  A little hot for skin beauties, but the niacin sauna with a nice and hyperbaric protocol. Few people do that.

Monica:  Yeah. And, infrared saunas weren't really happening back then. They were just kind of starting.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  It was kind of a new thing at that time. I remember getting one of those infrared lamps that you would hang up in your bathroom.

Ben:  Yeah. I think my dad had one of those. Yeah, exactly.

Monica:  Yeah. So anyways, so eventually then. And, the thing is is that, and we're going to talk about this when we do your exam today, and this is what happened with Trina and she's given me permission to talk about this. So, Trina was a lot sicker than you may know.

Ben:  I don't want to get sued by Trina.

Monica:  Yeah. And, I mean God forbid.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  But, Trina was a lot sicker than a lot of people knew. And, in fact, I was friends with her and didn't even know how sick she was. And, she couldn't function, she couldn't really even run her company. She was so sick.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  Yeah. And, it was really difficult for her. And, it kept getting worse and worse and worse. And, she was in pain all the time. She couldn't eat solid food either. And, she was really in trouble. And, it turned out in her case so you can be blocked or switched. And, we'll talk about what that means. And, if your nervous system is blocked or switched, then you're not going to respond to any treatment, you're not going to respond properly to any supplementation you're doing.

So, in my case when they were trying to give me supplements for bacteria or fungus or parasites, my body would reject it and have a very bad reaction because I was blocked to the choline deficiency. In Trina's case, she had two very severe injuries that were close together from a long time ago that were acting up that she had recently reinjured. One of them was when she gave birth, she had her babies in her 40s. And, because she was numbed out, they were pushing on her really hard and they did damage to her pelvic area because she was giving birth to twins in her 40s.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And so, that never really properly healed. So, she had all this internal scar tissue, and then she also had broken her tailbone.

Ben:  I believe that first part because I watched my wife labor for 16 hours with twins.

Monica:  Yeah. You had twins, I heard, too.

Ben:  Yeah, I had twins. Yeah. And then, the second part was she did what to her tailbone?

Monica:  She had broken tailbone.

Ben:  Broken tailbone.

Monica:  Yeah, which is the midline in the body.

Ben:  Did she know she had a broken tailbone?

Monica:  Yeah. But, that had been from before and she had re-injured it. And so, the combination of all those things in the pelvic area, in the midline of the body was interfering with the nervous system responding properly. So, it didn't matter what she ate, didn't matter what she took. Everything got affected, exactly.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  Yeah. So, because no one had spotted that, I was able to get her on a supplement that addressed which was literally a bone and joint supplement called Ostrophin. We use a standard process which uses animal glandulars for repair of tissue. And, because I put her in high doses of the Ostrophin, then her body was able to respond to everything else.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Wow. That's amazing.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  So, I know that we're going to show people what you do. And, this being the first time I've ever experienced what you do and I know anything about what you do, I'm going to let you kind of lead the way. And, I imagine you'll be explaining as we go as you do what you do.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  So, you tell me. Where do we start and what are the next steps?

Monica:  So, there's a couple of elements. And first, what I usually do is I review the evaluation form and I get more information as well, things you may not have thought of to tell me that you may have forgotten about.

Ben:  Yup.

Monica:  And then, we do the exam and then I sit down and go over the findings.

Ben:  Cool.

Monica:  And, as we do the exam, I can explain what we're doing as we do it as well and how the muscle testing works and all of that.

Ben:  Yeah, perfect.

Monica:  Okay?

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Alright. So first, I know that there's some supplements that you stayed on.

Ben:  Yes.  I brought them in a bag here.

Monica:  Good.

Ben:  And, the reason I stayed on some of my supplements is because I'm obviously traveling right now. I don't live in Phoenix. I'm doing a bunch of podcasts and stuff. And, a lot of times, that means I'm way off my schedule. So, I continue to take some of the supplements that I use for energy and some of the supplements that I use for relaxation.

Monica: And, I do know that you are a biohacker. I know that about you. Because so is Trina's husband.

Ben:  Basically, I've been chewing a couple of pieces of nicotine gum each day,

Monica:  I know it's a biohacking thing.

Ben:  This is Lucy nicotine gum. That's like the energy component. I've been drinking one bottle of this. We should probably have them all sponsor this episode now that I'm advertising–

Monica:  Although, I may not say nice things about them.

Ben:  I've been drinking one bottle of this Feel Free mid-morning, which is kind of an energy tonic with primarily kratom and kava in it. And then, because I'll do some of my calls while I'm walking outside in the sunshine, I have these little methylene blue troches.

Monica:  Yes.

Ben:  And, I dissolve them under my tongue. I've been doing one or two of these while I'm outside taking calls and stuff in the afternoon. I like to dissolve this under my tongue when I'm out in the sunlight. So, I've been taking those three things for energy. And then, before bed at night, I've been taking magnesium. So, this is called Mag SRT. It's a time-release magnesium supplement. I've been doing about eight squirts of this Quicksilver melatonin. And then, about four to five dropper fulls of this full-spectrum CBD oil from Element Health. These are the things that are kind of still in my system if that's helpful for you.

Monica:  Yes, it is helpful for me.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Okay. And basically, I'm going to just treat you the way I would treat anybody because the normally–

Ben:  Oh, yeah, absolutely.

Monica:  –it's challenging with biohackers because you guys are experts at biohacking. But sometimes, all the biohacking is preventing your body from being able to do that without needing the support.

Ben:  Totally.

Monica:  So, the goal and what I do is getting your body to a place where you can achieve the memory, the energy, the sleep, and everything without having the biohack.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  That's the goal there.

Ben:  Yeah. I love it.

Monica:  It's like the ultimate biohack because when you're done, you don't need anything.

Ben:  No, it's bad for the sponsors but good for the body.

Monica:  Exactly.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah.

Monica:  So, that's what I'm going to be checking. I'm going to actually muscle test these on you once I get what your balancing program would be. And then, we'll find out if there's any hidden stuff going on.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Because you shouldn't be having trouble with sleep, you should be getting enough sleep, you should have energy when you wake up and all that kind of stuff. Now, obviously nicotine and caffeine and things like that, obviously, those are drugs. So, those are going to have long-term effects on the way your body works and things like that. And, things do change as we get older also. I mean, I myself went through menopause and that was a journey. But, because I was on my program, I didn't go through all the crazy symptoms that most women go through.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  I didn't have to worry about my sex drive. I didn't have to worry about not sleeping. I didn't have to worry about fatigue and weight gain or any of that. I just breezed through.

Ben:  All those pre-menopausal women who are on the cusp just pricked up their ears.

Monica:  Yeah. Yay. Alright. So, I'm going to go through and just treat you like a regular patient.

Ben:  Cool, let's do it.

Monica:  Alright. So, I'm going to go over some of the symptoms that you mentioned but I'm going to ask you about some stuff that you didn't mention just in case.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Alright. The other thing too I wanted to mention is, and I used to when I was sick, coffee enemas were my best friend. I did them daily.

Ben:  Yup.

Monica:  So, I was really good at it. I was really good at holding them in for a really long time. So, I know that you are doing them weekly and so that also is a good thing but also prevents your body from taking care of that stuff on its own.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, in terms of long term. The nice thing about it is it does prevent any pathogens from hanging out too long in that area where the enema can reach. So, that's a good thing.

Ben:  Pretty amazing. Usually, it's on Wednesday.

Monica:  I always felt amazing when I did them too.

Ben:  I'm like flying high hours, yeah.

Monica:  I know.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Yeah. It is amazing. But, it's not coming from your body doing it on its own. That's all. But, it's not a negative, it's just informational. So, when did you do it last?

Ben:  Well, what day is it today? It's Wednesday today, so a week ago.

Monica:  That's actually good. I was really hoping you didn't do it recently because it's easier for me to find stuff the longer from the end I can go.

Ben:  Yeah, okay.

Monica:  Yay. Okay. Alright. Okay. Now, tell me about the SIBO and the MRSA. I need a little more info on that.

Ben:  Years ago, I got MRSA pretty bad like eating away my legs bad. And, that was from an infection that I got while racing in a triathlon where I had cuts all over my legs and then I was traveling. There was a flight delay, I had to go sleep in this nasty hotel where I went. Then, eventually, I got this. I know it was for a while, so I was just putting lotion on it and then it kind of blew up in a full-blown MRSA.

Monica:  Wow.

Ben:  MRSA and stuff. So, that was significant.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Battled with several bouts of SIBO over the past decade or so.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Which led to not like the bloating and gas from SIBO, led to constipation.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Constipation has led to occasional bouts of gastric discomfort and prolapse.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Which obviously as people age anyways and those pelvic muscles become a little bit more lax, it's something that's bugged me a few times. And so–

Monica:  I have an opinion on that [00:30:07] _____ as well.

Ben:  So, the whole gut, pelvis, digestion thing, I would say–even since I was a kid, that's been a pain in my side. I didn't know it was lactose intolerant. And, I used to walk around literally with a gallon of that 2% milk from Albertsons in my hand and drink that all day long. Sometimes two of them. I'd go to bed probably about five or six days of the week for most of my childhood with the tummy ache. And, my parents would always tell me I had a stomach flu or a stomach problem.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  And, they put me on antibiotics and just watch and repeat. And so, basically, I was on antibiotics and drinking milk and doing a bunch of damage to my gut for the first 20 years of my life.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  And then, after I cleaned up my gut, it just never felt great.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Well, yeah. And, there's some stuff there that needs to be addressed. And, that's why I was asking about that. So, what you're telling me makes complete sense because when you're in a situation like that, you've got more fungus that's happening. And then, as a result, that causes food allergies and more food intolerances. And, it also causes more issue with the overall gut. Because like it's a little tree roots that grow in and cause little perforations.

Ben:  Right, right.

Monica:  So–

Ben:  And, even still with the [00:31:16]_____ very careful.

Monica:  Yeah. Well, I noticed.

Ben:  Like tons of foods will cause bloating gas. Similar to what you were saying like solid food and it gets worse from year to year in terms of seeds, nuts, hard foods, corn-like cereal. Anything that's crunchy, sharp, anything like that causing this gastric discomfort.

Monica:  Yeah. And, did that you know that you can get to a place where that's not the case and you can actually fix that? It's not even like a Band-Aid–

Ben:  Oh, yeah. I mean, the most amazing I felt was when I did a strict carnivore diet.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  But, I don't want to eat a strict carnivore diet the rest of my life.

Monica:  Well, you don't have to eat a strict carnivore diet the rest of your life. If we fix what's causing that, then it won't be there anymore.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  The goal with the program we do here, and I know you don't live here and you're not going to do the ongoing program, but in general when people do this program, every single person gets rid of their food allergies no matter how severe. Even anaphylactic food allergy is gone.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  Yeah. Like gone. Even I had a patient who had three cats and was allergic to cats, gone.

Ben:  Anaphylactic meaning don't hand out the peanuts on the airplane or I'm going to die.

Monica:  Meaning, your throat's going to close up and it's over like EpiPen. Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

So, allergies are an inflamed immune response. And, we address what's causing the inflamed immune response. Then, the body stops having that response and then there's no more allergy. And, one of the ways we check for allergies is through putting pressure on the vagus nerve which is right here.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  It's the biggest nerve. And so, that's why when we develop a customized program for each person, we check everything against the vagus nerve but we also checked everything against if it's going to block or switch the nervous system.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  So, that's what we're going to be talking about later during your exam as well. And, that's how we actually get rid of food allergies and we get rid of all allergies.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Wow, that's amazing.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  It's going to be so cool for people to know about you.

Monica:  Oh, thank you. Yeah.

So, I think that's all connected to what you wrote about the occasional IBD and also the rectal prolapse that connects to muscle integrity. And, because you're an athlete and you work out so intensely, most athletes–

Ben:  It's actually vaginal prolapse. I'm just kidding. Go ahead.

Monica:  Really? Oh, so we're learning more about Ben Greenfield. The secret is out. But, yeah. So basically, what happens in those and I see this a lot with athletes, and even firefighters I've worked with and I've worked in the NFL pro. I see this commonly. And so, we usually put them on a supplement that's called Cardio Plus. And, that really helps with the integrity of the muscle tissue and then any type of prolapse gets addressed as a result of that.

Ben:  And, what's Cardio Plus?

Monica:  That's a supplement from standard process that has a mix of different food-based concentrated supplements in it with some bovine glandulars. It helps actually with the integrity of the muscle tissue. And, just from what I've researched about you and read about your evaluation form and more information we'll find out today, and I started following you when we got in touch on Instagram and I was like, “Okay, he's very athletic.” And so–

Ben:  You're already following me on Instagram? What's wrong with you?

Monica:  Sorry. But, yeah. So basically, what happens, in that case, is that the muscles are getting overworked. And, then if you're doing nicotine, you're doing caffeine, you're doing this, I looked this up too, all of that connects to blood pressure and constriction and heart muscle tissue as well.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, you're getting stressed on–your heart's a muscle. That affects your whole muscular system. So, when you're doing things with your whole entire muscular system, that also impacts your heart. You're the same family.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, that's what we're going to be looking at today as well.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Tell me more information about the knee surgery.

Ben:  I've had some–

Monica:  Can you pull up your leg? Can I see?

Ben:  –left knee cartilage degeneration on that left side because I had 20 years of hardcore endurance.

Monica:  Oh, I can imagine that.

Ben:  I wore down that cartilage, almost an arthritic level.

Monica:  And, where did they enter?

Ben:  So, Dr. Cook went in, just tiny little news, you can't even see anymore.

Monica:  Yeah, [00:35:10] _____.

Ben:  And, very minimally invasive surgery is called intraosseous needling. They go in and they drill a bunch of holes, on this case on the back side of the patella and on the side of the femur, and then they take bone marrow and they patch those holes kind of airway in the lung–

Monica:  That was regenerative.

Ben:  They patch it with bone marrow, regrow the surgical.

Monica:  That's amazing.

Ben:  And, I've got post-surgical MRI. I'm like, “Dude, you redrew the cartilage.”

Monica:  Unbelievable.

Ben:  Of course, the only problem now is because I use my knee so differently after that surgery, it's kind of when you squeeze something with your fist and the putty comes out, one knuckle after you stopped going the other knuckle. Now, the medial side, some stuff in it, so I'm probably going to have to get it cleaned up with a scope at some point. But, that's kind of what's going on with the knee.

Monica:  Okay. And, I'm actually going to take a look at that during the exam and I'm going to use your knee as part of the exam as well.

Ben:  Cool, cool. I'm just going to lay all the cards out on the table for you because I might be crazy. When my gut seems to flare, my knee seems to flare.

Monica:  That's not weird to me at all.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah. I just think most orthopedic surgeons, whatever. But, yeah–

Monica:  No, I totally get that.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Very good. Now, tell me about how often you've been doing the stem cell protocols and/or if you're still doing that.

Ben:  Yeah. I've done the full body stem cell procedure with Dr. Harry Adelson in Park City.

Monica:  Wow.

Ben:  Which is pretty amazing. I'm actually going to do it again in March because it was really cool.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Like Superman afterwards. And then, aside from that, I've done occasional stem cell infusions like IV infusions. And, I've done a few stem cell injections in that knee. So, yeah.

Monica:  Okay. And so, the last time–

Ben:  Typically, my exosomes, by the way, which are cell signaling molecules to help the stem cells to signal to each other.

Monica:  Oh, that's interesting. And so, the last time you did anything with that was a while ago?

Ben:  Stem cells? Probably two and a half months ago. I had some in my knee.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Good. It doesn't look like there's anything that's going to interfere too much with what we need to find today, so that's good. Now, did you stop the testosterone cream?

Ben:  I take that in the morning and the evening. It's a very small micro dose.

Monica:  Okay. So, you're still doing that. Did you bring it with you or no?

Ben:  No. But, the last time was yesterday that I took that.

Monica:  Okay, yeah.

Ben:  I skip it sometimes.

Monica:  Yeah. Because sometimes I have people that are taking different types of hormones, so it's good to have it for the testing–

Ben:  Yeah, this one's like a compounded cream. Dr. Craig Koniver makes it for me. It's like an injection, a big bolus injection. He uses this small–I forget the amount, but it's a pretty small amount and you just put a little bit on squirrelly in the morning, a little bit on in the evening.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And then, what is it that made you start doing that?

Ben:  A, curiosity about what it feels like to be on testosterone [00:38:05] _____ off of it. And, be kind of my whole immersive journalist kick and desire to just try out all the biohacks, you've already astutely noted, bite in the butt.  And, when I started using it, obviously I felt really good. And so, I just kept using it.

Monica:  Okay, I got you. That's why I started doing drugs in the '80s. Alright. And, it looks like you're getting about six and a half hours of sleep.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And–

Ben:  Well, six and a half hours of sleep, going take a nap every day.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Yeah. For example, early morning I had 6:00 am breakfast, so I was up at 3:30 just doing meditation and journaling, and all my morning work. If I get up that early, I'll typically crash out around 12:30 or so, throw down a quick nap, a 40 to 50-minute nap.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  In most days, I do pretty well. But getting up early to get things, I'd rather sleep in but I find I'm way more productive and impactful if I can get up early and then take a nap later. However, I am totally open to the idea of changing that if it seems prudent.

Monica:  Yeah, yeah. Well, the body does go through different parts of the–in Chinese medicine, for example, there's different meridians connected to different organs at different times of the night. And so, that's all connected where some people who always wake up between certain hours. Sometimes that's because there's an imbalance in–

Ben:  Yeah. Well, that's what I've wondered. Do I wake up every morning at 3:30 and 4:00 ready to go change the world because I've just got this great purpose, an ikigai in life? Or, is it because my body really kind of wants to sleep till 6:00 but something's off? Yeah.

Monica:  Okay, good. Alright. So, I will check that as well. And, I'm going to check your pineal gland because that's what we call the sleep point. And then, I know you have the veneers. And, when did you get that?

Ben:  Two years.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Yeah. That's actually another podcast. I'm doing one down here in phoenix.

Monica:  Oh, interesting.

Ben:  I'm currently working with another dentist, Dr. Eniko Loud. And, she does this really cool functional medicine holistic dentistry.

Monica:  You actually helped me up–

Ben:  She's doing a jaw realignment with me. We did a really cool video series on it yesterday, all these cool cone scans, and pulled three scans in the mouth. And then, she develops these, it's kind of Invisalign, but she spends two or three months realigning your jaw and your airway and everything. And then, when she's done all that, then she starts to go to work on the teeth. So, it's pretty cool.

Monica:  Well, actually since I moved here from LA, I don't have any contacts with holistic dentists here.

Ben:  I'll connect you.

Monica:  So, I would love that because I'm producing events for wellness to match people and I want to have a holistic dentist at every event, which is really important to me because each tooth is connected to a different organ and a lot of people don't know that. So, that's really important.

Ben:  She'll totally be on board with you.

Monica:  I would love to connect with her. Okay, great. Maybe we'll do dinner.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Alright. So basically, you got that about two years ago, and then when you wrote nightguard Invisalign, were you talking about the things she does?

Ben:  Yeah. That was the thing that she did.

Monica:  Okay. And, do you know–

Ben:  So, that was just in the past two months.

Monica:  Do you happen to have that with you or no?

Ben:  I have the casting for it with me, but I don't have the actual thing with me. She's got all my stuff at her office. She's shipping it back to me because she had to change everything. You want it or doesn't matter.

Monica:  Not the casting–No, I would want the actual implant that you would wear only because the stuff that they make night guards out of, it does impact pancreatic enzyme production. So, I'm curious if she's using a different material or not. That'll be interesting.

Ben:  I'm guessing, knowing her, she's using something as natural as possible. But, I wasn't sure.

Monica:  Yeah. I'm so interested in meeting her–

Ben:  She ships all her stuff off to Germany.

Monica:  That's so awesome.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Okay, good. I'm excited for that. Okay. And then, when you checked off about using either Kangen water, smart water, reverse osmosis, or alkaline, which one is it?

Ben:  I have a double block carbon filtration system that then passes through structured filtration. And, it's a really, really nice filter.

Monica:  That sounds good.

Ben:  It's super, super high-end. My dad's, he's in the water filtration industry.

Monica:  Fantastic.

Ben:  He's got the Tesla's of water filters.

Monica:  Amazing.

Ben:  And, whenever he gets the craziest sexy newest cutting-edge stuff, he's like, “Hey, Ben, can I install this in your house and do water test?” So, I've just got the best water filters.

Monica:  That's fantastic.

Ben:  So, it's great.

Monica:  Okay, good. I like all of that. Alright, great. So, I'm just going to ask you about a couple of other potential symptoms that you didn't mention. And, you can just say yay or nay and then we'll do the exam.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Okay. So, bloating.

Ben:  Yes.

Monica:  Gas.

Ben:  Uh-huh. But, not all the time. Usually, about 2:00 to 4:00 pm in the afternoon.

Monica:  Here's what I'm going to say. If 10 is the worst and 0 is not at all, just give me a number for each one.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Bloating. If 10 is the worst.

Ben:  I can't just give you a number. If I eat lunch, I would say a 7. If I skip lunch, 3.

Monica:  Okay. So, we don't want you skipping any meals, so we're going to–

Ben:  No, I prefer to have lunch. I like lunch.

Monica:  Right.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Lunch is good. What about gas? What number would you give that? Let's assume you're eating food.

Ben:  7.

Monica:  Okay. Cravings.

Ben:  Anything specifically or just cravings in general?

Monica:  Just cravings in general.

Ben:  I think about food a lot.

Monica:  Because if you're balanced, you don't have cravings.

Ben:  I would say 7 to an 8.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Constipation.

Ben:  8.

Monica:  What about diarrhea?

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Stomach cramps.

Ben:  2.

Monica:  Acid reflux.

Ben:  3.

Monica:  Nausea.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Vomiting.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Indigestion.

Ben:  6 to 7.

Monica:  Excess appetite.

Ben:  I was going to say 8 cause I'm always hungry.

Monica:  I'm not going to ask you about weight because you don't have trouble gaining or losing weight.

Ben:  I would say that probably in conjunction with increasing severity of gut symptoms, I have a harder time keeping on weight.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  Yup. I suspect I'm not absorbing as much as I should be.

Monica:  Okay. Yeah, I can definitely take a look at that. Bone and joint pain.

Ben:  The knee, just because of the knee–especially considering everything I do, I'm pretty good. But, I'm guessing because of the knee, I'd say 7.

Monica:  Carpal tunnel.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Weak muscles.

Ben:  3.

Monica:  Numbness or tingling.

Ben:  2.

Monica:  Muscle spasms or cramps.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Eczema or rashes.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Itchiness.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Fatigue.

Ben:  It would depend on the day and everything, and especially how the gut is doing like a specific day. For example, today, I would say fatigue is probably a 6 because today the gut's probably a 7. Yesterday, fatigue was probably a 2 because the gut was a 2.

Monica:  Yeah. And, that also made you go off stuff that you usually take.

Ben: Yeah. So, I highly correlates to what's called my stomach, my fatigue. If my stomach's good, I've got energy for days.

Monica:  Yeah. Well, it's definitely connected.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  What about brain fog?

Ben:  Kind of correlative to that as well. I would say a 2, 3 on a day when it gets good and 7 and 8 when the gut's not good.

Monica:  Okay. What about any headaches or migraines?

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Seizures? No. Dizziness.

Ben:  1.

Monica:  Insomnia, we talked about. Any hair loss?

Ben:  1.

Monica:  What about teeth grinding?

Ben:  Probably 4.

Monica:  Okay. Any lump and throat feeling?

Ben:  No.

Monica:  Runny nose or sinus?

Ben:  2.

Monica:  And, any bladder issues, frequent pee?

Ben:  I pee a lot.

Monica:  Is it because you're drinking a lot of water or do you feel you have to pee all the time?

Ben:  I feel like when I go out to dinner with a bunch of my buddies and I'm the guy who gets up to pee five times before anybody–

Monica:  Okay. Alright, there's definitely something going on there. Alright, we'll check that out. I'm assuming no vaginal infection, so we'll take that off the list.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Painful periods, no. Okay. Alright.

Ben:  [00:46:14] _____ vaginal prolapse.

Monica:  Right. That's right. I forgot to write that down.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  What about erectile? Any issues there?

Ben:  No.

Monica:  What about ear? Any inner ear issues?

Ben:  No.

Monica:  Okay. Alright, that's pretty much it. Do you have any questions before we get started?

Ben:  No.

Monica:  Excellent.

Ben:  I may as we go, but no.

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Monica:  You're not wearing grounding underwear or anything. I swear to God, but–

Ben:  I'm wearing a Christmas underwear my kids got me.

Monica:  Excellent. Because Trina was doing my program and she got–

Ben:  No laser lights up my butt, no crazy things in my ears, nothing.

Monica:  And so, she got home and didn't realize her husband, Josh, had grounding sheets and blankets on the bed that were plugged in. And, I was like, “Unplug them, turn them off.”

Alright, here we go.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, I'm going to talk a little about muscle testing and what we're doing here. You may end up wanting to come close up at some point, but right now, stay the hell away, please. Thank you. Alright. This arm goes up and you're going to make your elbow locked and straight. Okay, perfect. So, what we're doing now is we're going to do a thing called calibration, which tells me–basically everyone muscle tests differently. This gives me his strength and weakness through calibrating.

Okay, good. So, you're already pushing too hard because you're a dude and you're strong. So, lower your arm.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  There you go. No, I'm sorry. Halfway. Right there. Perfect. Good. And, it's too common with athletic men especially sometimes they'll start to bend a little bit because then it's not a muscle test, it's a strength test.

Ben:  Oh, yeah.

Monica:  So, we want to actually–

Ben:  Keep that locked out?

Monica:  Yeah. Just put it locked because it's not about me pushing hard, it's more so about getting the lock versus no lock. Okay, good. Good. Now, go ahead and put the arm all the way down. So, what we check for first is to make sure there's a lock, and he does have a lock. So, that's a good sign. Because sometimes people come in and they don't even have a lock and I have to fix that before I can– 

Ben:  [00:52:00] _____

Monica:  They literally can't. I can do this and they won't be able to hold it.

Ben:  Oh, wow.

Monica:  Yeah. That's the nervous system pissed.

Ben:  Wow. And obviously, for those who are listening right now, you're probably getting the sense that this is the point which you may want to switch to the video version of this podcast.

Monica:  Right.

Ben:  So again, BenGreenfieldFitness.com/MonicaandBen if you want to be watching this, which I recommend.

Monica:  Okay. Alright. So now, we have the lock. So now, I'm doing a thing where I'm checking for blocking. There's a lot of circular nerve plexus around the belly button. The way it has to be is I do the palm of my hand with my fingers extended as far back as I can. My thumb cannot be separate. And, this goes over his belly button, and then it creates sort of how batteries or magnets create opposite reaction, that's what we're looking for here to see if his nervous system is open and the regulation is open. And, I'm getting a good sign that it's open because him going weak here is good. And so, see, you're pushing back with strength. Here's how I know you're pushing harder than me because if I let go, you go back.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Okay. There you go. Good. But, this is good. We want it weak because that means you're not blocked. If this was strong, it would mean you were blocked and that would be a problem. And, I'm going to give you an example just for fun since we have people watching. Oh, I used to have a little thing of Windex up here. I don't anymore. Oh, I know what I'll do, I'll put birth control on you. That'll do it.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, I also have a breast implant over here.

Ben:  Great.

Monica:  Now, see how that's strong now?

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  I'm doing the exact same thing and you're strong. That's because if I put you on birth control, it will block your nervous system.

Ben:  Okay, got you. So, when there's a block, I am stronger.

Monica:  When I'm doing this over your belly button.

Ben:  On my belly, okay.

Monica:  Yeah, yeah. But, see now that I've taken that off, big difference.

Ben:  Interesting.

Monica:  Right?

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Okay, good. So now, we're going to check for neurogenic switching. Keep your elbow locked for me. Oh, shoot. Can you take your watch off, please?

Ben:  Oh, my gosh, I thought I had it off.

Monica:  No problem.

Ben:  That's so weird.

Monica:  I'll put it over there.

Ben:  I'm like, I could have sworn I took my watch off. Crazy.

Monica:  Alright. So, lock the elbow. Okay, good. Now, you're going to put your pinky and thumb together just the tips, just like this. Good. Okay. So, your nervous system is switched. So, before we can do a body scan, we have to find out what's causing the switching. So, that's what I'm going to do now.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  You can relax your arm while I explain this to the listeners. So, we have these homeopathic vials in these test kits that are made up. And, if you want to see these, I'll bring them a little closer. Mine are old and kind of beat up. It's a little embarrassing, but they're very well used. So basically, they're broken down into categories. They have energetic imprints in them and they're broken down into different pathogenic energy patterns. So, we've got fungal, viral, bacterial, parasite, but again, I have to reiterate for legal reasons. We are not diagnosing or treating conditions and diseases, we're just determining what's causing interference so that we can determine which supplements would counteract that interference. So, we are not treating.

And then, we've got all the common food things over here like corn, oats, everything, everything. Yeah. And then, in this one, we've got all of the different chemicals and metals. So, this side, we've got all the metals and all the common chemicals. Yeah, yeah.

Ben:  Is that kryptonite on there?

Monica:  Yeah. Well, you are Superman, so.

Ben:  [00:55:25] _____ that's not the fact.

Monica:  We could figure that out.

Ben:  Wow. You put all those on there, huh.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Alright. So, arm up and do the pinky thumb for me. Good.

Ben:  What's the one you have on my chest right now?

Monica:  I'm going to have you not talk during this part because you can throw up the testing, but I will say this side that we're putting on you now. But, I also don't want you to know because I don't want you to impact the testing.

Ben:  Oh, okay. That's good.

Monica:  So, good. So, it's not a pathogen. After I test, I'll say what it is. That'll make it easier. Okay. So, something's coming up with food which means it doesn't mean that you're necessarily eating something wrong. It could be that, but it also could be that your body is having problems making the pancreatic enzymes you need. So, that could be what that is. And, we'll find out.

Now, do you see the difference between this side which goes weak, and this side which is stronger?

Ben:  A little bit. Slight, a little bit.

Monica:  Yeah. It's also because I'm not pushing very hard and you're strong. So, just for fun for show and tell sake, we can go a little harder so you can see more of a dramatic difference.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Now, you can see it more dramatically. So, you've got metals also switching you. Okay. So, now that we've determined there's two different areas causing the switching, the first thing I'm going to do here is–and I was right, it's pancreatic enzyme production. So, I put pancreatic enzymes on them and that corrects that and then we like to just double-check and make sure that when I put the food back on him now, we get an opposite reaction. So, that should go weak and it does. So, that's how I know that that's the right one. And, you don't have any metal fillings, right?

Ben:  No.

Monica:  Have you ever in the past?

Ben:  No.

Monica:  Good job. Metal fillings, you guys. They have to come out. They are not good for you. Put your arm down all the way. I like to double-check things with my legs sometimes. It's my little cross-check system. Oh, my god, do I have enough air conditioning on or what?

Ben:  Shall we. I will admit. It's a little chilly.

Monica: It's a little nippy.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  I'm just going to fix that.

Ben:  People pay good money for cryotherapy chambers though.

Monica:  I know, right? It's like a cold plunge but without the water. I know they're doing it on every reality show right now. A lot of times the order in which we do this and how we do it is literally comes up as we go. It's sort of like, oh, I'm going down this one path and now I'm at a fork. So, based on what I find, I'm either going to go this way or this way. Okay. So now, I'm going this way. So now, based on what I find here.

Every person's body is totally different and done in a completely different way based on the priority and the order in which I find it. Because it's like a giant game of dominoes going on in here, and if I'm not doing the dominoes in order, if you don't hit that top domino, they don't go together. It ends up stopping halfway and you don't get the whole chain of dominoes. Did you know you were a giant game of dominoes?

Ben:  No. First I've heard that.

Monica:  See. It's good. I'm not finding you blocked to any pathogens. This is really good. Alright. So now, we got to determine your mineral priority.

Ben:  I knew I was a pathogen superstar.

Monica:  Yes, you are. Alright. And, you are doing the CBD. And, are you doing a little vaping too?

Ben:  Mm-hmm.

Monica:  Okay. Alright, turn. Yes, I found it. Okay. So, put the metals back on again. So now, if this is the right thing, it's going to cause the opposite reaction and it does. And now, we take this off.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And, keep them for me, keep that straight. Good. So now, I can do a body scan because what happens is a lot of times people get muscle tested. And, if they are blocked or switched, their body is going to lie and give them the wrong answers.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, now that we're going to put supplements on you that address the switching, I'll be able to do a body scan.

Ben:  Okay. Body scan sounds.

Monica:  I know.

Ben:  Cutting edge.

Monica:  Very intense.

Ben:  Is that like natural? Why are you using that electricity or something?

Monica:  No, I'm going to actually physically push on all of your organs. Alright. So, keep your arm right at that angle. A little bit lower. Right there, perfect. That's your sweet spot. Okay, good. Put this down for a second. Tell me a little about what's going on over here. So, you've got some stuff with your skin or what is that from?

Ben:  What that is?

Monica:  Is that just paint?

Ben:  Yeah. It's just something stuck on. No, it's something that's stuck on there. Must have been on the watch or something. Yeah. I don't know what it is, but it's not skin.

Monica:  That's just–

Ben:  Oh, that's lotion. There we go.

Monica:  Just making sure I wasn't missing any physical issues.

Ben:  Yeah, not weird.

Monica:   Okay.

Ben:  Poor job washing my hands.

Monica:  No problem. Okay. Put that one right there. Good.

Okay. So, I'm going to call out the organs as we do them. This is frontal brain. CSF stands for cerebral spinal fluid. Crown. And, crown is testing weak, so I'm going to make a note of that. You can relax your arm in between. Arm up and keep that straight. Okay, good. Now, I'm doing cerebellum, frontal sinus. That's also weak. Pineal gland. That's also weak. Pituitary. Hypothalamus. Maxillary sinus. Tonsils. Thyroid, also weak. Relax.

Ben:  This is the body now that you're doing?

Monica:  Yes. I just moved here.

Ben:  Oh, wow.

Monica:  Yeah. When I was in Los Angeles, I did it there for 14 years and I was seeing 70 patients a week but I had no life.

Ben:  Wow. That's how you get stronger, all these body scans.

Monica:  I know, right. And then, I had shut down for a while and that I had moved to San Diego and I was doing lion's share and all that stuff and doing online. And then, I moved back and opened again and decided I basically cap it at 30. Yeah, just because that way I do three half days a week but I can work on the events and the other stuff I'm doing.

Ben:  Seems reasonable.

Monica:  So, keep it small now. So, I'm going to do another thing too. Sorry, I stopped calling them out. I'll go back where I left off. So, thyroid is where we left off. And then, these are lungs. There's three different lung points and I'm hitting on each side. Then this is thymus which rules your immune system. This is heart which is testing very strong. Good job. And then, spleen, spleen is testing a little weak. Liver. Gallbladder. Stomach. Pancreas. Now, we have pancreatic enzymes on them, so pancreas is testing strong. Ascending colon. Transverse colon. Descending colon. Sigmoid colon. Small intestines. I call it the claw. Small intestines. And then, we get into bladder, and bladders weak. And, prostate kidney. Adrenal. Kidney. Adrenal.

Okay, lower your arm.

Ben:  Okay. Strong heart, weak bladder.

Monica:  Alright. So, the other thing I'm going to do because you have certain supplements in your system and you have been biohacking, you're not going to necessarily show up on a normal body scan the way most people would. So, I'm going to do a sneaky kind of testing now without this on you to determine if you have any organ blocking you. So, for example, with Trina which we talked about earlier, people would do a normal body scan on her and they weren't able to find what was wrong with her because she had that hidden organ situation going on. So, we're going to check you for that now.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Alright. So, do pinky thumb on this side.

Ben:  Hidden organ. I mean, like a third nipple or something like that?

Monica:  Yeah. A third ball. Lower the arm. Okay. So now, what I want you to do is with this hand, you're going to just push down right here for me. A little bit further to the left. Right there. Good. Stay there. Arm up. And, straighten your elbow and you can undo this part. Good. Good. Now, lower this arm but keep your hand there. Lower the arm all the way.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Good. Now, take your hand off of there.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So now, what I'm doing is checking, and this is more of an unusual situation because we know that he's on a lot of supplements with all of the biohacking which is not a bad thing but it can prevent us from finding things that would normally show up.

Ben:  It's not that many supplements, just six of them.

Monica:  But, you've been taking more before that.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah.

Monica:  It takes 72 hours for your body to even dump anything. So, what I'm doing here is checking for hidden blocking on any of the stressors, but I'm also going to look for him blocking to an organ just based on what we know about what he's taking and so forth. So, what I'm going to do is I'm just going to check some of the muscle supplements that we just talked about. And again, it's about priority, it's about what goes on the body first. Good.

Ben:  I keep getting nervous. I'm going to fall off and break.

Monica:  What?

Ben:  I keep getting nervous like sneeze or something, fall off and break.

Monica:  No, don't worry. That's funny. Alright. And so, this is the part that's woo-woo. I'm intuitive testing now where I'm asking his body if there's somewhere I need to go first before I move on. This goes outside of the actual technical part of it. Okay, good. Excellent.

So now, I'm going to have you put your middle finger nail in the crease of the thumb.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  In the crease of the thumb.

Ben:  Oh, the crease. Good.

Monica:  Yeah. And then, straighten your arm. Great. Okay, good. So, this is going to help us determine the priority organ when he goes into this position with the middle fingernail in the crease of the thumb. And, we always check the endocrine organs. And, for you, it's pituitary, which is super common, especially for men at your age.

Alright. So, what we're going to do now is a body scan with these supplements on him to make sure everything tests strong. And, all I need to determine that I'm missing is what his second priority organ is going to be. And, with his history, we can determine some things to check. So, I'm going to look at Biodent because he's doing the John T thing. I'm going to look at Ostrophin for bone and joint. And, we're also going to look at ligaments because it's all structural for Ben's history. And, we're also going to look at scar tissue. Yes.

Ben:  I've got a lot of that.

Monica:  Yeah. That's something you and Trina have in common. Okay. So, with that hand, I want you to go, look at me here. Go like this against your jaw.

Ben:  With this hand?

Monica:  Uh-huh.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And, push down, there you go. Stay there. Okay, don't move. And, she's going to be realigning your jaw, you said.

Ben:  Gradually as I wear this thing on a daily basis. It kind of gradually just shifts the jaw, yeah. But, it's not a chiropractic adjustment or something like that.

Monica:  Yeah. It is kind of Invisalign but for the jaw, I get it. Okay. Alright, good. You can remove your hand.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Okay. So, arm up and straight and just a little bit lower, right there. Good. Now, we're going to do a body scan to make sure all those weak points are in. so, do pinky thumb for me on this side. See, that's strong now. And, I just want to point out when I take these supplements off of him, keep the pinky thumb. You can feel the difference.

Ben:  Definitely. I can just tell the viewers you're not pushing harder.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  I'm pretty tuned. You're not pushing harder. Yeah.

Monica:  Yeah. And, you can push hard if you want. Look at that. So, undo that part for me and do pinky thumb on that side. Good. And now, you can undo that. Now, this is the part I'm just telling you about before where we check around the vagus nerve to make sure anything's with allergies. Now, I want to show you something funny, Ben. Not funny ha-ha, but funny, cool.

When we take this part off, this is your allergy point, your vagus nerve. Match my pressure.

Ben:  Oh, wow.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Pretty.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  What does that mean?

Monica:  That means that you are in in what we call an allergic state, which means that you'll react to things, that if you're taking supplements that address what's causing that, then you won't have that allergy anymore.

Ben:  Interesting.

Monica:  Yeah. So, that's what helps get rid of the allergies.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  So now, that's strong.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So now, we're going to do the body scan, make sure all the points are in. And again, I'll just call out the points. Frontal brain. CSF is cerebral spinal fluid. Try saying that three times fast, it's not easy. Crown. Cerebellum. Frontal sinus. Pineal gland. Pituitary. Hypothalamus. Maxillary sinus. Throat tonsils. Thyroid. Parathyroid. All the lung points. Thymus which rules the immune system. Heart. Heart is strong like bull. Spleen. Pancreas, head and tail. Liver. Gallbladder. Stomach. Small intestines. Ascending colon. Transverse colon. Descending colon. Sigmoid colon. Bladder. Now, look, bladder is strong. Prostate. And then, we've got kidney adrenal. Kidney adrenal. The adrenals just kind of sit on top of the kidneys. They're like a bean.

Okay, good. And now, keep strong for one more sec. See. See, his open regulation. We like to double-check that he's not blocked. Pinky thumb. Strong. Undo that. Pinky thumb on that side. Strong. And, seen.

Ben:  Wow. You've written an article about this or a book about it for people who like, “Wow, that was crazy” about information, “I got to watch this again”? So, people who are readers or anything like that?

Monica:  No.

Ben:  No.

Monica:   No. I think video is probably easier for people because it's so visual like how you were saying, “You, guys, go watch the video now.” Because conceptually, it's hard. There's a book that's kind of well-known. I can't remember the name of it right now, I'd have to look it up. That one of my patients–so I treated this guy who was a really well-known oncologist. I was scared to take him on. So, I was like, “You're a doctor, I'm going to tell you shit, you're not going to blame me.” And, he was like, “No, no, I'll be a good patient.” So, he was fascinated with the muscle testing.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Because it goes against everything, and they don't really get nutrition training. And so, there's this book. It has the word “power” in it. I can't remember the name of it, but it explains muscle testing.

Ben:  Interesting.

Monica:  The concept of it. It's like the power of something. I'll look it up and let you know.

Ben:  Okay, cool.

Monica:  But anyway–

Ben:  We'll add it in the shownotes for people watching.

Monica:  Yeah, totally.

So, the exam is done. So now, we're going to sit down and go over it.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  Okay.

Ben:  This is the folder?

Monica:  This is normally the pack. So, I'm just going to go over it with you just to show people what we normally do. And, this is stuff that you probably won't need and we don't need to go over all this, but you can just have it. But it has the program guidelines in it. What can affect your progress. And so, the way it works here and obviously you don't live here and things like that, but in here, we've got just for research purposes and if you guys want to use any of this, I can also give you the digital copies.

Ben:  That would be great, so I could add them to the shownotes.

Monica:  Yeah, I can do that, the breakdown of how your program works, how the different phases work on the program. And, I'll explain a little about that now as we're going over it as well. And then, we always include the immune repair food list. And, people can even get that for free on my website as well.

Ben:  Cool.

Monica:  And then, a breakdown of how the supplements work as well. So, that's just a little take-home gift thing. But basically, what I'm going to go over with you now is that–and in your case, I'm going to just highlight these here. So, I didn't find pathogens. And again, you probably don't have any overwhelming with pathogens but I don't know 100% for sure because you've been biohacking for a while, which isn't a bad thing because it just means that your body has dealt with that stuff. But, I think your biggest issue and I can put you back on the table and we can look in more depth as to what metals are showing up because in the initial exam, we usually don't go into it because people, A, it's overwhelming for people and B, we do it at the revaluation visit where we actually go through and determine which metals, which chemicals.

Ben:  Yeah, okay.

Monica:  And, if you're curious before you leave, I don't mind doing it.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  But, your biggest issue, and I'm going to highlight these here so you can take it with you. And, you were right, your intuition was right. Your body's not making the pancreatic enzymes and hydrochloric acid that you need to absorb your nutrients properly.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  That is a big thing.

Ben:  Got you.

Monica:  And, you've got chemical and metals–

Ben:  Is that common?

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  For someone to have poor enzymatic production like that that would limit nutrient absorption?

Monica:  Yes, especially the people I see, but I'm going to explain that with explaining the five layers to illness. I also have a video for that as well. So, I'm going to switch this one for the one I gave you because I highlighted it for you.

So, let's talk about that for a second. So basically, there's five layers to illness. And, how it works is that first, people have inflammation. They all say all symptoms, all disease starts with inflammation. So, what causes the inflammation is chemical toxins, metal toxins that cumulatively build up over time. So, if you think about it like drops in a bucket, and when that drop, that drop that makes the bucket overflow hits, boosh.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Or, if you're pouring something into a colander faster than it can drain out, same concept. Because we have drainage organs, we're draining toxins out all the time. That's how the body works. But, if more is going in, then can drain out in time, then the body goes into overload. And, that's when you start to have problems. So, that's the initial start of anything. That's the bottom layer of illness is the toxicity. And, that goes on unaddressed for too long. The next thing that happens right away, you don't even have to have pathogens yet, just the toxicity inhibits your body's ability to make the hydrochloric acid and pancreatic enzymes it needs to digest proteins, carbs, and all of the nutrients properly.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  So now, you're already compromised from that.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  Okay. So, that's like right after the first layer, the next layer is digestion. Okay? So now, now you're a little screwed because now you're not digesting your nutrients properly and you can start developing problems from that. And, the third layer that it goes into when that goes unaddressed for too long is guess what, allergies. Now, you're in an allergic state.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  So now, you are out of place–

Ben:  Allergies you might not have had in the past due to that constant sympathetic nervous system stimulation–

Monica:  Yeah. And, you also may not know that it's an allergy, you're just having symptoms and you're not calling those symptoms allergies because allergies can show up in a lot of different ways. It's not necessarily typical of what you might think. And so, it could be food allergies, environmental allergies, any kind of allergy. Skin reactions. Sleepy after you eat. All kinds of things are allergic responses. So now, you're in an allergic state which is technically the definition of an allergy is an inflamed immune response. That's exactly what's happening. You're having an inflamed immune response. So, if you fix what's causing the inflammation, that inflamed immune response goes away, your body can kick back in and start producing those things again.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, if that goes unaddressed, then we go into the fourth layer, which is pathogen. So, you can have overgrowth of bacteria, fungus, virus, parasites without it showing up in labs at all.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  And then, the fifth layer is bad labs. Once you actually it's so bad that it actually shows up in labs.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah.

Monica:  And, this isn't your issue, but a lot of people don't realize that 11 out of 12 stool samples are false negatives for parasites.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, you can go and get tested for parasites. And, if you get a negative, it doesn't mean you don't have parasites.

Ben:  In many cases, I think that that's why that three-day GI Effects test is a decent stool test because it's three days in a row because you get some parasite shedding. You know more about this than me.

Monica:  Well, let me give you an example from my own personal poop. So basically, when I was sick, when I was sick, we did do a bunch of stool samples. We didn't what you're describing, and it's the fun kind where you get to do it at home and you get to poop into a little dish and then pick your poop out. It's really fun. And basically, at the time, from that same stool sample, we sent one piece to one lab and one piece to another lab. One lab found it, the other one didn't.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Same piece of poop. So, it's just like you have to get the right part of the poop to test too. So, the parasites can be in the poop, but if you're not testing that–

Ben:  Right. Teeny tiny little spoon they give you with the GI test, yeah.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Yup, I get it.

Monica:  So, there's worms which are bigger. But, they have life cycles. And, they have eggs that hatch and they are secreting, they're basically letting these chemicals out that prevent the eggs from hatching so that when they die, it stimulates the eggs to hatch. So, you get stuck in this never-ending cycle. And so, if you're doing a stool sample and you're not catching them during the right part of the life cycle or if they're in a different organ, they might not be down in the colon, they might be in the gallbladder.

Ben:  Yeah. Yeah.

Monica:  So, these are all things that can factor in. And so, worms are bigger and so finding that or finding eggs is one thing, but if it's cryptosporidium or protozoa or an amoeba, then it's a little bit trickier because they're so teeny tiny. So anyway, that's the deal on that.

Ben:  Okay, got it.

Monica:  So, those are the five layers to illness. So, what we're dealing with for Ben is that you would be in what I would call basically the third layer in the allergic state.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, where you're not dealing with the pathogens, which is fantastic. And so, the things that cause that and a lot of people don't realize this is inflammation of the parotid glands, prevents your body from adequately dumping. Yeah. And so, your dentist friend is going to know about that. They're the largest salivary glands in the body. They're like this big. They're here and here.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, you've got those veneers going on, you've got other stuff. And so, these are inflamed and not doing their job properly and you're not dumping toxins properly.

Ben:  Interesting.

Monica:  Yeah. So, you're just getting–

Ben:  During our dentist podcast we recorded yesterday, there was some TMJ, temporomandibular joint misalignment, which is interesting because that's where those glands are, right?

Monica:  It's exactly where they are. And, a lot of times, the prodigal glands condition connects to TMJ.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, you would be testing for a supplement called Parotid PMG which helps to restore the function of the parotid glands. And then, also the mineral Min-Tran, which is short for mineral tranquilizer. But, we see that a lot when people are using a lot of CBD or vaping as well because it connects and it helps also with the brain. And, it helps with dumping metals.

Ben:  Got you.

Monica:  So, you don't have so much chemicals and metals that you need to get them pulled out or drained, which is great. It's more so from the actual structural issue with your parotid glands and your mineral imbalance.

Ben:  Yeah. And, I've done some metal tests before and it's never absent. But it's never up in the red zone.

Monica:  It's not overwhelming. Yeah, it's not overwhelming.

Ben:  There's always like a trace, which I think a lot of people probably walk around [01:18:26] _____–

Monica:  But, you might just be showing up switch to metals because you're taking this magnesium because minerals and metals are the same chemical composition in the body. So, that might be why you're showing up for metals. It might not actually be metals, it might be connected to this.

Ben:  Interesting, okay. Got it.

Monica:  So, that's the deal on that. And so, as a result, the toxicity chemicals or metals are impeding your body's ability to make HCL and pancreatic enzymes. Now, the pancreatic enzymes was one of the things you're switched to which might be happening–we also see pancreatic enzyme production issues if people are wearing a nightguard which I know you said you're not doing that yet. And, we also see it in people are, for example, drinking wine, you would need pancreatic enzymes for that, any sugars. Not sugars like normal ones, but a sugar and a dessert or something. Even if it's honey or maple syrup if it's a sugar.

Ben:  And, for people who are purchasing and using say digestive enzymes, there's a whole bunch of different forms out there–

Monica:  Absolutely, yeah.

Ben:  The most digestive enzyme formulas have pancreatic enzymes in them or is that something totally different?

Monica:  That's a good question. I actually don't know the answer to that because our training is in specific supplement lines. So, I only work with standard process because it's been around since 1928–

Ben:  It makes like an isolated pancreatic enzyme.

Monica:  Yeah, we use Multizyme. Yeah. And, that one does have some porcine qualities in it. So, it's not vegetarian or vegan. But basically, what's nice about it is anytime you do drink alcohol or have sugar and if you take that, it takes the burden off the body.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And so, for whatever reason, the other thing we see this with in terms of pancreatic enzymes if you're eating things that have like tapioca starch, guar gum, any types of binders like that, thickeners, stabilizers, those kinds of things–

Ben:  Which is probably why the paleo diet seems to work so well in conjunction with your program because by definition, I'm not doing a lot of shopping in Trader Joe's and Costco and all the packaged foods that are perceived to be healthy but in reality, almost all of them have fillers, and gums, and carrageenan, and stabilizers. And, even the healthy stuff.

Monica:  Yes.

Ben:  Right. So, that's why I tell people to open my fridge at home because I am pretty good about that.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  People like, “It's just all glass, Mason, jars, dude. Where's the cardboard?” There's none of the crinkly openings, aside from occasionally stuff. So, you have little bottles and stuff like that, but yeah.

Monica:  Yeah. And so, part of the issue with that as well that people don't realize is that a lot of times people follow a paleo diet and they don't really do it right. So, for example, they're not doing organic. So, if you're not doing organic, you're getting pesticides. That's not paleo.

Ben:  Eating cashew butter all day long.

Monica:  Yeah. And, that's not paleo. If you're eating stuff with pesticides, you're not doing paleo.

Ben:  Right.

Monica:  If you're eating conventional animal protein. That's the other thing that cracks me up when people do paleo and they're eating conventional factory farms.

Ben:  [01:21:08] _____.

Monica:  Yeah. And, it's like you have to do the pasture-raised grass-fed animal protein. It literally does the opposite thing to your body. It literally heals your body and the factory-farmed animal protein actually harms your body and builds arterial plaque and raises your cholesterol.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And, the pasteurized does the opposite. So, it really does make a difference. And also, then all of those paleo puffs that have all these weird ingredients in it. You know what I mean? So, it's like very trendy.

Ben:  You name that an industry will spring up around it.

Monica:  Yeah. So, you want to read the ingredients is where we're going with this.

Ben:  So, we have these findings that you've found.

Monica:  Yes.

Ben:  And then, there are certain supplements that are associated with those.

Monica:  Yes.

Ben:  That you would then put a patient like me onto.

Monica:  Right. And so, let me just break down what these phases are.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And, I'll give you the digital version of this as well and it's also on the website. So–

Ben:  Okay. So, we put this in the shownotes.

Monica:  Yeah. So, phase one which you're actually not even in phase one. You wouldn't be a typical patient I would see because you're too well. So, Ben is too well to see me.

Ben:  Right. Although it may not have sounded like it on our whole intake thing, but I mean I'm also one of those guys who's, I'm very tuned into my body. So, if something's not working out, I'll tell people about it.

Monica:  Yeah. You're actually doing pretty well. So, you're not even in phase one. So normally, people are in phase one when they come to see me which is where we're dealing with the overwhelm of toxins draining out the extra metals and chemicals with the drainage formula. And, we're also addressing the digestion, inflammation in the endocrine organs, which means your pituitary adrenals, prostate or ovaries, thyroid, all of that has to be put into balance with food-based supplements that have glandulars in them, bovine. And then, we also are looking at dealing with the overwhelm of the pathogens. We use herbs for that where we help to kill any fungus bacteria parasites virus. So, that takes about six months for the first immune phase.

Ben:  This is the one you're calling the fine-tuning phase?

Monica:  Well, the fine-tuning phase is also in the immune phase. The fine-tuning phase is really just the first three or four weeks of immune phase–

Ben:  Oh, I see. You wrote here simultaneous with fine-tuning.

Monica:  Yeah. And, the fine-tuning phase is just because we don't want you on your full dose right off the bat, we gear you into it on a gradient so that the body doesn't get overwhelmed from too much too soon–

Ben:  Yeah. And then, you've written in this as if someone goes through this five to six-month immune phase. They're doing weekly or biweekly muscle testing exams. You kind of do follow-ups.

Monica:  Yeah. I check the body like I did with you every single time.

Ben:  Yeah. And, changing supplements and dosages based on those follow-ups.

Monica:  I adjust it based on that. And, we also make sure the organs are improving. We pulse the organs and we check the organs. Anything that tested weak, we make sure it's moving in the upward direction.

Ben:  Yeah, yeah. It seems prudent.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Okay. So, you have the immune phase–

Monica:  And, you're on a lot of supplements.

Ben:  That's conjunctive to the fine-tuning phase.

Monica:   Yeah.

Ben: And then, what happens?

Monica:  Then, when you stop testing for those supplements, that's how we know that you're done with the immune phase and the body is ready for the repair and rebuild phase. That's the phase you're in. And so, during that phase, usually we're dealing with the parotid glands. Everyone's parotid glands have to be addressed during repair and rebuild phase. And, that helps the body to help repel future chemical exposure as well as mineral reestablishing. So, when we pulled out the excess metals, your body won't actually allow you to absorb minerals properly when you have high metals.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And so, when we help pull those out, then we're able to get the body minerally balanced.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And, that helps with thyroid function and the body's ability to sleep properly and all of that.

Ben:  And, it looks like in this phase from a dietary standpoint, it's a little less restrictive as I'm looking over this.

Monica:  Yeah. You can have fruit.

Ben:  You even write like oats, and quinoa, and brown rice, and some of those things that are on strict paleo diet.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  And, you still say stay away from cassava and wheat and like keto flowers and grains, not on the good list. But, it looks it's a little bit more liberal on this–

Monica:  And, it's very individual. So, we do–

Ben:  This repair and rebuild phase.

Monica:  Yes. And, we do a weekly food log with everybody in the beginning regardless because, for example, like you just mentioned, a lot of times I get men who have trouble gaining weight. And so, I will have the mom grains during the immune phase, but if they have to be sprouted in organic and it's usually just either brown rice, quinoa, I prefer quinoa.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  Because otherwise, they'll just lose too much weight in the beginning. Because if we need time to straighten the metabolism out and get the body working properly so that it can gain the weight because you're not absorbing the nutrients.

Ben:  Okay, cool. And then, you do some follow-up testing during that rebuild phase as well. It's just less frequent or?

Monica:  Yeah. Yeah, exactly. And, it's based on each person's body and how they test. And, once a person tests the same two visits in a row and I don't have to make any adjustments, then we start pushing them out further.

Ben:  Yeah, you wrote here this phase is complete. Meaning the rebuild phase. When you stop testing for the organ repair and you are just on one mineral and one essential fatty acid, then you get moved into maintenance.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  And then, you're done with the program.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  So, what's maintenance?

Monica:  So, maintenance is like your body is working the way God intended. It's literally doing its job. Nothing is in the way. You now know how to eat and avoid toxins. There's also an educational aspect–

Ben:  You can have wine at a wedding and sugar at a nice dinner out without worry. I like that. Okay.

Monica:  Right, right. Yeah. And, you'll just know. Okay, I'm going to take Multizyme if I have wine.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And, you also know at that point that your body can balance itself. So, I can give you a perfect example. And, I know this might be controversial if you want to cut it, that's fine. But, I have been actively and knowingly exposed to people super, super sick with COVID and never got it.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  And because I am balanced.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And then, I had one instance where I slipped and fell in front of Ross Dress For Less because I didn't see the curve and I bit it on the cement, and I messed up my shoulder. So, I needed high, high doses of cardiotrophin because I tore the muscle a little bit. And, what happened was I wasn't taking the time to check myself for that dosing.

Ben:  That by the way became more expensive visit to Ross Dress For Less than most people experience.

Monica:  They were kissing my butt. I was like, “I just bit it in front of your store.”

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  But, yeah. It was a little bit out of the socket like I couldn't even use the arm for a couple of days and then I went in and got it. But, my point is is that I did start testing based on my testing. Again, you may need to cut this, but that I was getting some symptoms which I normally never get symptoms. And, I was like I feel I've been exposed to COVID and my body's having a little bit of a hard time with it. So, I checked myself. I have a vial for it.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  And, I was like, “Oh hell.” I was like, “Wow, this is showing up.” And so, then I checked my cardiotrophin and the muscle injury against it. And, as soon as I upped my dose on the cardiotrophin, it was gone within a day.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  Yeah. That just goes to show you how the balance of your body impacts your body's ability to repel anything you get exposed to. Whether it's parasites, whether it's virus, whether it's omicron–

Ben:  What you're basically saying is if you had say not only I think most people understand if you had inflammation, exposed to a lot of pollution, maybe poor lung function, et cetera. It goes without saying most people probably understand you'd be more susceptible to COVID, but what they may not realize is say muscular inflammation, tendonitis, injuries, et cetera. Anything like that would also potentially render you more susceptible to some type of immune system assailant just because your body is that much more weak or in that much more of a sympathetic nervous system mode.

Monica:  You can actually be blocked to an injury. Yeah.

Ben:  Wow.

Monica:  And then, if the nervous system is blocked or neurogenically switched, then your immune system is not working right.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  But, it can correct just as easily like that.

Ben:  Crazy, crazy.

Monica:  Yeah. And so, what's important to know about that is that basically when you're in maintenance, you also have been educated as to what to do so that you were talking about the filtration system you have at home. If people are just showering in regular tap water, they're getting exposed to chlorine on a daily basis in a warm wet environment that's suppressing their immune system every day. So, on the program, they learn about using a shower filter, not drinking tap water, knowing which waters to drink and to avoid. For women, you're using tampons that are bleached. That bleach is going into your bloodstream, through your vagina. And, a lot of people don't realize they put chemicals in tampons to make you bleed more. So, it's like there's so many little details that we teach here so that you know how to avoid that. Like with Trina's products, Primal Life Organics. they use deodorant that doesn't have all the toxic chemicals like aluminum and all the things that go right into your lymphatic system.

Ben:  Yeah.

Monica:  So, that's all the stuff that we know through biohacking. So, we do some biohacking here too in terms of teaching you what products to avoid, how to get the right food if you have trouble where you get meal deliveries done properly, wherever you live. Vital choice for seafood. ButcherBox. And, even just with beauty and skin care. So, all of those things add up cumulatively. If you're using plastic water bottles and you're storing leftovers and heating up in a microwave, all of that.

Ben:  It's how we live our days. That's how we live our lives. These little things add up. Okay. So, we go through these phases. And so, in my case, what would be the next steps that you're recommending that I do?

Monica:  Well, in our case because you're not going to be here every week and you don't live here.

Ben:  Yeah. I don't feel like flying a few times a week.

Monica:  That's a lot. Yeah. But, if you were a patient, then you would go on these supplements. So, let's talk about the findings which is not much. So, you're not even in the beginning of the repair and rebuild phase, you would be in probably a third through the repair and rebuild phase. And, the things that are showing up for you are endocrine which also might be because you are using the testosterone cream. So, it's throwing some balance out with pituitary, adrenal, prostate and thyroid. It's out of balance.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, there's a glandular supplement that tests for that. And, the other thing that's showing up is Biodent for the teeth which is probably from the veneers. And so, that's affecting your body's ability to absorb calcium properly which helps you to sleep and relax and all that kind of stuff.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  So, you are testing for a supplement called Biodent which is a bone and joint but it focuses on teeth and jaw and all of that.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  It's interesting that–

Ben:  The testing part, I mean these are supplements that I should–

Monica:  Well, that your body would need. Yeah.

Ben:  Body would need, okay. Got it.

Monica:  Yeah. And again, this is based on you being on less supplements than you normally are. And, that's why I wanted to do the testing to get a more accurate read. And then, the other things that are showing up are the betaine hydrochloride which you would want three a day one per meal, and the Multizyme which is the pancreatic enzymes, which would help you to start absorbing your nutrients properly.

Ben:  Okay, got it.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  Cool.

Monica:  Yeah. And so, the parotid–

Ben:  Are those written on here somewhere?

Monica:  No, I can–

Ben:  You'll send those to me?

Monica:  Yeah. No, I mean, I can literally print out a program for you before you leave. But, the big issue is just that they may not mix with the other stuff you're taking.

Ben:  Yeah, okay. Okay.

Monica:  So, you can play around with it.

Ben:  Okay. Meaning, I should try to take as little as possible except this stuff that you're recommending.

Monica:  Well, normally when I take a patient on, they're not allowed to take anything else but the program. And, the reason for that is because the program perfectly balances your body. And, in doing so, anything outside of that throws that balance off.

Ben:  Right, okay. That makes sense.

Monica:  That's all.

Ben:  Okay, got it.

Monica:  Yeah. But, what would be easy for you to do, I maybe wouldn't worry about the Symplex M for you because you're doing all this other stuff. But, what might help you or might be good for you although it might help with your sleep. I mean, you can play around with it. It's up to you. But basically, the HCL and the Multizyme for sure could really help you.

Ben:  Got it.

Monica:  Because that's something you're talking about having trouble gaining weight and feel like you're absorbing your nutrients, and the gas and the bloating, and all that stuff.

Ben:  Yeah. Okay. Alright, got it.

Monica:  Yeah.

Ben:  So, I know that obviously when we release this podcast, people are going to be interested in getting some of this testing done themselves. Tell me about what options they would have to be able to work with you.

Monica:  Okay. Well, basically it would have to be someone local because they do have to come and personally–

Ben:  Do some people come here and stay for a little while?

Monica:  I've had people move here to work with me. I'm treating someone right now–

Ben:  [01:32:46] _____.

Monica:  But, the other thing to keep in mind that we're doing and I know that I've spoken to your team about this as well is that we are producing wellness events and we're going to be doing them in every city to match people with practitioners like me as well as other practitioners. So, we're doing the first one that's in the Scottsdale, Phoenix area in March 26th where I'm going to be one of the presenters. There's going to be some other like Jack Wolfson, the paleo cardiologist.

Ben:  Oh, yeah.

Monica:  Yeah. And then, Tricia Pingle. She's a naturopathic doctor here. We're going to have different vendors like Trina and different, our resources like–

Ben:  Oh, so it's not like a conference, expo, seminar kind of thing.

Monica:  Sort of but not because it's specifically for people like we were just describing to match you with a practitioner to work with to put you on a program for you that you can work with in person.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And then, other vendor resources that connect to that. So, for example, the holistic dentist is important. Meal delivery company. Trina's company, Primal Life Organic. It'll be six vendors. And, we don't want to overwhelm our people because our people are usually struggling with not feeling well, so it's hard for them–

Ben:  And, both physicians, as well as patients, could attend an event like that.

Monica:  It's really for patients.

Ben:  It's for the patients, okay.

Monica:  It's really for people who are struggling with chronic illness and can't find answers and are tired of spending money and time running around a hamster wheel to be like, “Hey, I have vetted these people, they all have experience with cracking hard cases and treating the mystery illnesses. And, they have testimonials. And, I vetted them myself. And, they're each going to do a presentation with Q&A explaining how they would work with you as a patient.”

Ben:  Okay, cool.

Monica:  It's really for the patients. It's not educational. It's really for the patients. I would show how I do a muscle testing exam. And then, each one's going to offer some kind of a deal to do a consultation exam with them. So, it's an opportunity to really go and meet with four health professionals where do you live that specialize in the weird stuff that you can ask anything. And then, we have an online membership area that you get for free for the first month and you can stay in where you can continue to ask questions and engage and have support of the community of other people like you.

Ben:  Well, you said that you gave my team some links and stuff that we can put in the shownotes.

Monica:  Yeah. And, in addition to that, we'll be doing it in Tampa. We'll be doing it in the Washington DC area. We're going to be doing it in Los Angeles. The next one is Los Angeles because I have so many contacts there.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And so, that way, whatever city you're in, if you can still go to the website and put yourself on a waitlist for your city and then you'll be notified when we come to your city.

Ben:  Okay.

Monica:  And, it's all going to be done virtually because we don't know what the restrictions are going to be in different areas with all the COVID stuff. So, this is nice because you don't have to be on, you don't have to do your hair and makeup for you ladies, and you don't have to take a shower. You can just–

Ben:  [01:35:32] _____.

Monica:  Yeah. And so, it'll basically just be a form–

Ben:  Maybe you're in a blocking underwear.

Monica:  Exactly. And, we're going to have people that are also going to do short bio breaks on life. EFT tapping to show you how to deal with flares or anxiety, guided meditation, breathwork, and all of that. All for you to have resources tools and ways to make yourself feel better. And then, who to work with to actually get your health back and keep it so that you can finally be rid of all of the things that are in the way.

Ben:  Cool. So, what I'll do is I'll figure out whatever links and stuff you need to direct people to that because I know you sent them off to us. And, we'll put all that at BenGreenfieldFitness.com/MonicaandBen where you can also find a link to Monica's website, all the information about the things that we discussed, uploads that you could send to me some of these helpful PDFs and diets and recommendations–

Monica:  Yeah. I'm also giving you a discount to your people with your code that only they get. Yeah, they're getting 75% off of a consult. And, only your people are getting that.

Ben:  Sweet. Okay, cool. I don't know what the code is or anything, but I'll put it in the shownotes for you guys. And then, also–

Monica:  It's BEN75.

Ben:  BEN75. Easy. There we go. Where do they go? BEN75 is–

Monica:  They go to MonicaHershaft.com/patients. And then, when they check out, they just put in BEN75.

Ben:  Okay. And then, if you have questions, if you have comments, if you have feedback, anything you want to ask Monica or I about this entire process because I know something seemed kind of confusing in the blocks, the locks, the testing, just leave them there and we'll do our best to answer your questions. Although, Monica's probably going to do a better job than me at that. But anyway, we'll take care of it. So, BenGreenfieldFitness.com/MonicaandBen for the shownotes.

Monica, thank you very much. This is fascinating.

Monica:  My pleasure. Thank you for coming.

Ben:  Alright. I'm officially proud that despite my establishment on this podcast that I have a very small bladder and a weak bladder but a strong heart that I've managed to only pee two times during this entire recording.

Monica:  Yay.

Ben:  Alright, later people.

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Monica Hershaft is one interesting practitioner, and on a recent trip to Phoenix, Arizona, I had the chance to experience her very unique “flavor” of muscle testing and nutritional prescription…

Monica Hershaft is a bestselling author, motivational speaker, holistic health practitioner, and nutritional consultant with Advanced Clinical Training Certification in NRT. After 15 years building one of the top-rated holistic health practices in Los Angeles, she moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, and is now working 1:1 with people in the Phoenix area (use code BEN75 to get $75 off) to help them get their health back.

Being plagued with her own mystery illness for 10+ years after participating in a popular detox program, Monica knows first-hand the frustration that chronic symptoms and an improper diagnosis can create for those struggling with their health. Having this personal experience has allowed her to not only heal her clients physically but to understand them on a deep, personal level.

Monica’s conflict over incorporating animal protein and going Paleo in order to recover her health was the most difficult dilemma she had ever faced, as she was born and raised Vegan. Her father is famed animal rights activist, founder, and Holocaust survivor, Alex Hershaft, who's renowned all over the world for his many talks on the connection between the Holocaust and the Vegan lifestyle. Monica was heartbroken that she was unable to recover her health as a Vegan, and going Paleo was an ethical crossroads that was riddled with doubt due to her upbringing and knowledge of the factory farming conditions. She will never consume animal protein that has been conventionally farmed, opting only for sourcing from grass-fed, pasture-raised Paleo-centric farms.

Responsible for healing thousands of people struggling with undiagnosed chronic illnesses, Monica has established herself as a true trailblazer in the wellness space. She's the bestselling author of Treat the Source Not the Symptom: The 3 Pillar System to Get Your Health Back, now available on Amazon, and has been named one of the top Los Angles nutrition and health experts by CBS as well as one of the top holistic nutrition experts in the nation by DietSpotlight.com.

Monica has been a featured speaker in multiple health summits including Healing Rosie – The Fix for Female Hormones, The Chronic Mystery Symptom Summit, Health Hacker f(x) Summit by the co-founder of Paleo FX, Keith Norris, and The Bone Health Academy Speaker Series. She’s also been featured in The Healthy Me Podcast by CEO of Primal Life Organics, Trina Felber, as well as for Get Well Now with Dr. Meg Haworth, a celebrity holistic chef and author, as well as a guest on renowned Los Angeles psychic Colby Rebel Radio Show on UBN and spoken on psychiatric drugs on Watchdog Radio.

After working one on one with countless patients in her private practice located in Scottsdale, AZ, she realized it was time to create an event that could help more people on a wider scale and that led to the development of her online health event “Treat the Source” to help people who are struggling with chronic symptoms and can't get a true diagnosis. This event offers a private online community to receive ongoing support as well as vetted health practitioners and doctors local to you who can help you get your health back. Plus you can get access to local, healthy products and services to help you achieve and maintain a healthy life, feel empowered again, and get your life back once and for all.

Monica believes that too many legitimately sick people are being put on anti-depressants because the doctors can’t figure out what’s wrong with them. She understands that just because your labs are “normal,” it doesn’t mean you’re not sick—and she can explain why that happens and how to fix it. Her mission is to tell you that you are not crazy and that there are answers.