How our family learned the importance of getting second opinions in health care

Bladder infections, allergies, and severe digestive problems are gone.

My husband, David, and I have been married for 30 years, and I can say that he is in better health today than all of the other 29 years we have been married.

This story began back in April of this year. It was then that David was scheduled for his first colonoscopy. We got up on Monday morning and went in for David to have a “normal procedure”—we thought. We really didn’t give any thought to anything going wrong. We had just moved to Durham, the City of Medicine, and what better place could a procedure be performed.

After the colonoscopy, the doctor told us that a 5mm polyp was removed, but other than that everything looked good. Late on Tuesday evening, David began hemorrhaging severely and passed out shortly after arriving at the hospital. At that point I thought I had lost him, but within a short time, the emergency room staff had him stabilized.

After a visit from the gastrology team, it seemed as if David was going to be fine, but on Wednesday the bleeding increased, and David was rushed back into emergency surgery to have the polyp site repaired. After recuperating in ICU, we returned home hardly believing what had happened during a “normal procedure.”

Right before moving to Durham, I had read a book review in the July 2011 issue of Samaritan’s Christian Health Care Newsletter, titled Iodine: Why You Need It. Why You Can’t Live Without Itby Dr. David Brownstein. The article mentioned that sufficient iodine “is nearly 100 percent effective at eliminating bladder infections.” I immediately ordered the $100 test kit to determine my iodine status from FFP labs (1-877-900-5556 or www.helpmythyroid.com). Tests showed that I was truly iodine deficient, but since we were in the midst of moving, I tucked the article away with the hopes of finding a doctor that was willing to treat my iodine deficiency, thus eliminating my bladder infections.

One doctor told me it was normal to have bladder infections. I was pushed to the point of finding another doctor.

I had suffered from constant bladder infections for over a year and was taking antibiotics daily to manage my pain in order to function and go to work. I had already been to several doctors, but to no avail. One doctor told me that since I was in my 40s it was normal to have a lot of bladder infections at that age. After hearing that, I was mentally pushed to the point of looking outside of traditional medicine for help. I sensed that I was losing my health. So on a mission to find someone who practiced integrative medicine, I discovered Dr. Elizabeth Vaughan in Greensboro, North Carolina. In addition to treating my low iodine, she ordered blood work and allergy testing. Tests concluded that I was highly allergic to casein, a dairy protein. Within a month of beginning iodine supplementation along with a few other basic supplements, and eliminating dairy from my diet, my bladder infections disappeared for good!

After David’s follow-up visit from the gastrologist, he was instructed to stay under the care of his family physician. Not having a family physician, I called and scheduled David an appointment with Dr. Vaughan. She ordered an upper GI scope to be done along with a clipping of the small intestine to test for celiac disease. She also did blood work and allergy testing. Once all results were in, David was diagnosed with a gluten allergy.

Today, David is eating gluten-free and is feeling the best he has ever felt. Now we can see things so clearly as we look back. David’s allergy to gluten caused him to live on multiple antacids and antibiotics down through the years. He suffered with esophageal pain, which sent him to a hospital several times because the esophageal pain mimics heart attack symptoms. His weight is no longer cyclical, and the digestive problems that were ever present are gone. He is living Prilosec-free. His body mass is returning. The consumption of gluten had caused his colon to be so unhealthy that he was not able to absorb the nutrients his body needed. And another huge blessing is that our daughter is no longer suffering like her father! She was tested, also has a gluten allergy, and is now living gluten-free.

It’s been a little over a year since I first read the July 2011 article in the Samaritan newsletter, and solely because of that article we have experienced a restoration of our physical health.

It has been a surrender to give up lifelong eating habits. Yes, we have truly changed the way we eat, and I have cried over not being able to eat my cheese. But in the process of David eating gluten-free and me eating casein-free, we are better both physically and spiritually. I do not let a month go by that I don’t read the Samaritan newsletter. I can’t imagine where we would be now if I had not read that article last July.

The Lord has answered our prayers, “Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for Thou art my praise” (Jeremiah 17:14 KJV).

David and Amanda Trump have been members since 2001 and are from Durham, North Carolina.