That's quite a list of things you are putting into your body! I wonder if you have calculated how much of the vitamins, minerals and herbs are being absorbed, and how many are (literally) being flushed down the toilet?

When you say you are following the Coimba protocol, are you also strictly following the diet limiting calcium intake, and drinking the required amounts of fluid? Are your kidney function and vitamin levels being monitored regularly?

While there is scientific proof of the merit of some alternative treatments, we need to remember that these substances are also "drugs" i.e. not naturally occurring in our bodies at the levels we ingest in supplements.

They can interact with one another and other medications we take. Finally, many herbs can cause or exacerbate allergies. For example, I cannot use aloe vera, in any form -it gives me hives. So I need to read all supplement and cosmetic labels carefully.

Finally, be sure you share a complete list of all of these substances with all of your providers and your pharmacist.

I understand the urgency to feel well again, but sometimes less is more. A healthy diet, adequate exercise and rest as well as someone to talk to may be more important than endless hours researching alternative treatments.

When we do choose to step into complementary and alternative choices, it is important to make sure valid research shows usefulness for our specific conditions and our providers know what we are doing in addition to traditional medicine.