Warrior's Health Journal & POIS Protocol

[Warrior]

I've noticed that the optimal time for me to release is actually 2-3 hours before bed. When I give my body 2-3 hours of time after releasing, I notice my body is able to process the inflammatory storm and move on. The sleep then completely recovers me so to speak, and I feel good the next day. When I immediately go to sleep, I wake up the next day with the feeling that my body still needs to process the inflammatory storm, and that the immediately sleep has almost "paused" the POIS inflammation. I will feel more more stressed overall w/ distinct CNS activation i.e., more stressed, cortosol, more sensitivity, etc the following day IF i did not give my body at least 1-2 hours of awake time to process.

I wonder if anyone else has noticed something similar?

[Warrior]

Still havin electrolyte issues. Keto was a gamechanger, but unfortunately can't move past by the strange side effects from electrolyte supplementation. Problem appears to be somewhere in the sodium-potassium pump. But who knows.

On the other hand, I've realised a slight work around. I need glucose for adequate electrolyte balance. Fructose and lactose (majority of AB carbs) do not cut it. I feel better when I eat dried fruit (a significant source of glucose). I feel best when I eat starch (a significant source of slow release glucose). Unfortunately can't eat starch as that is what triggers/inflammes my POIS/food sensitivity condition the most.

[Warrior]

Dropped electrolyte dosages to minimal amounts and this has fixed 100% of the side-effects. So clearly was simply taking too much for my system.

I seperate carbohydrate and fat meals apart. This helps significantly. Currently following a starch-free wholefoods diet (a cross between animal-based and keto basically). So I have 1 meal with lots of fruit, honey, etc. Then I will have another meal with lots of fat, meat, etc. Non calory foods can be eaten at any time of day, but when I mix fat and carbs together (in a low carb state), I get severe electrolyte problems: headaches, lethargy, low energy, etc. I only really need to seperate the meals apart by at least 20-30 minutes. Ideally 30-60 minutes.

For electrolytes I've been taking 100mg of potassium (from potassium citrate), and 30mg of magnesium (from 150mg of magnesium malate). I salt to taste. My body doesn't seem to have problems holding onto salt.

[Warrior]

I've stopped electrolyte supplementation all together atm and everything seems to be rolling smoothly inc. improved libido etc. Currenty diet has mostly still been AB, but with more veg than the past. My main rule of thumb is starch-free. Starch appears to be what is inflamming me. Tho I still occaisionally enjoy/induldge in whatever I like as long as I steer mostly clear of vegetable oil.

Seperating fatty meals from carb meals seems to fix many electrolyte issues, so that's what I've been doing a lot and is working well.

Tried RALA and apigenin, and haven't really noticed much medicinal benefit imo. I will try RALA at higher dosages but for now both seem to not do much and won't be adding them to my protocol.

Protocol feeling very dialled in atm.

Question to ChatGPT: Are there any nutrients or minerals that help the body to process carbs and fats simultaneously?

ChatGPT:

Yes, there are specific nutrients and minerals that play crucial roles in the metabolism of carbohydrates and fats simultaneously. These nutrients act as cofactors for enzymes involved in energy production and metabolic pathways:

Key Nutrients and Minerals
B Vitamins

Thiamine (B1): Required for carbohydrate metabolism and the TCA cycle, where fats and carbs converge for energy production.
Riboflavin (B2): Essential for fatty acid oxidation and carbohydrate metabolism.
Niacin (B3): Precursor for NAD and NADP, which are critical for both glycolysis (carb metabolism) and beta-oxidation (fat metabolism).
Pantothenic Acid (B5): A component of Coenzyme A, which is vital for the metabolism of both fats and carbohydrates.
Biotin (B7): Important for gluconeogenesis and fatty acid synthesis.
Magnesium

A cofactor for enzymes in glycolysis and the beta-oxidation pathway. It also helps activate ATP, the energy currency of the cell.
Chromium

Enhances insulin sensitivity, helping with glucose uptake while facilitating the balance between carbohydrate and fat metabolism.
Zinc

Involved in insulin signaling and enzyme activity for lipid and carbohydrate metabolism.
Lipoic Acid

Acts as a cofactor in mitochondrial energy production, bridging carbohydrate and fat metabolism in the TCA cycle.
Carnitine

Essential for transporting fatty acids into mitochondria for beta-oxidation, ensuring fats and carbohydrates can be metabolized simultaneously.
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10)

Supports mitochondrial function, critical for energy production from both carbs and fats.
Iron

A component of cytochromes in the electron transport chain, which is crucial for the oxidation of both carbohydrates and fats.
Manganese

Supports the function of enzymes involved in gluconeogenesis and lipid metabolism.
Phosphorus

Involved in the formation of ATP and the activation of enzymes in carbohydrate and fat metabolism.
Synergistic Role
Many of these nutrients work together to ensure the efficient processing of carbohydrates and fats. For example:

Magnesium and B vitamins are synergistic in glycolysis and beta-oxidation.
Carnitine and CoQ10 collaborate in fatty acid oxidation.
Dietary Sources
B vitamins: Whole grains, eggs, meat, dairy, nuts, and green vegetables.
Magnesium: Leafy greens, nuts, seeds, and avocados.
Chromium: Broccoli, meats, and whole grains.
Carnitine: Red meat, fish, and dairy.
Iron: Red meat, legumes, and fortified cereals.

Interesting that Lipoic Acid came up. Perhaps it can help my body digest carbs and fats simultenously (in low carb states).

Chromium and carnitine are also interesting. AB is low in manganese.

[Warrior]

Greek yoghurt w/ maple syrup is a POIS superfood! (Not sure if it's the Greek yoghurt, maple syrup, or both)

Proven it time and time and time again.

Red meat steak, fatty ground beef/lamb (unique amino acid profile w/ collagen), eggs, and Greek yoghurt w/ maple syrup are all anecdotally very good for my POIS recovery. Liver should be great in theory also, but I've never really noted feeling better after eating it. Maybe a slight buzz.

Orange juice also appears to give me superhuman energy when combined with red meat.

[Progecitor]

Hi Warrior!

I was wondering if you have ever tried methionine in comparison to SAM-e. The reason I ask this is that I did a one day experiment with L-methionine (2x500mg) a few days ago and even had an O around noon. Surprisingly though POIS was unexpectedly light throughout the day. Of course I took a lot of other supplements too, but I believe methionine must have played a role as well. One of the many supplements was boron, which may have a synergistic effect with methionine in SAM-e production. I also must say that this first time experience was actually way better than with SAM-e, which is a lot more expensive though. Later I am going to test it more to see if it remains useful. In the past others have also found methionine to be useful, but I could only find one comparison in regard of their efficacy.

What I noticed from the NADH & SAMe combination is more energy and less allergies. Less scratching, itching and general signs of inflammation such as hives. I got similar results from L-methionine but it worked best when I felt energetic whereas SAMe seems to put me back on track even if I'm tired from working/exercising/whatever.

Hey man! Thanks for sharing this.

I'm not surprised AT ALL that you've had success with L-methionine. I haven't tried methionine but I am familiar with reading up on it regarding methyl donors. It's interesting how SAM-e didn't work as well for you, but L-methionine worked better. Methylation is so complicated, no one really understands at this point exactly how it all works. The best thing we can all do is experiment (safely) with all methyl donors and see how each one feels for you.

Methionine is actually an 'essential amino acid that serves as a precursor to SAM'. How much meat/protein do you eat? Perhaps if you eat a low meat / low protein diet, you are low on methionine, which would make sense why you've responded positively to it.

Here's a list of methyl donors which, according to the theory of methylation nutrients improving POIS symptoms, these all have the potential of having a positive effect in improving POIS symptoms:

Apart from the main ones - choline, betaine, folic acid, methionine, and vitamins B6 and B12

Here's some extras - carnitine, melatonin, quercetin

This website refers to these as 'methylation adaptogens' which include curcumin, betanin, anthocyanins, quercetin, rosmarinic acid, lycopene, and sulforaphane.

I'm sure theres many more out there!

Minerals are also super important for methylation. So, not surprised if boron is helping - it obviously may also be helping in other ways.

I am sorry for the late response!

Earlier I thought that I mainly have problems with acetylation. However by time I had realized that it must be more than just acetylation or methylation. So what I believe is that they are only part of the problem and practically all post-translational modifications (PTMs) are involved to some degree. The principal reason is that practically all PTMs are affected by lipid peroxidation and ultimately this may actually manifest as an autoimmune disease.

Protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) increase the functional diversity of the proteome by the covalent addition of functional groups or proteins, proteolytic cleavage of regulatory subunits, or degradation of entire proteins. These modifications include phosphorylation, glycosylation, ubiquitination, nitrosylation, methylation, acetylation, lipidation and proteolysis and influence almost all aspects of normal cell biology and pathogenesis. Therefore, identifying and understanding PTMs is critical in the study of cell biology and disease treatment and prevention.
https://www.thermofisher.com/ie/en/home/life-science/protein-biology/protein-biology-learning-center/protein-biology-resource-library/pierce-protein-methods/overview-post-translational-modification.html

Some of the lipid peroxidation products exhibit a facile reactivity with proteins, generating a variety of intra- and intermolecular covalent adducts. Such adducts could be the targets of B cell-mediated immune responses and induce T cell responses and add the potential of certain aldehydes to induce an autoimmunity by breaking the B cell tolerance to nonmodified proteins. It has been shown that the modification of self-proteins by lipid peroxidation products indeed results in a break of a tolerance to self-proteins. The fact that post-translational modification of proteins is enhanced in aging and stressed cells and arises under physiological conditions suggests the existence of an association between covalent modification of protein with lipid peroxidation products and autoimmune diseases.
Based on these findings, we proposed the hypothesis that post-translational protein modification with lipid peroxidation products, such as HNE, could serve as an immunological trigger for the production of anti-DNA autoantibodies in autoimmune diseases.
https://www.jbc.org/article/S0021-9258(20)74652-1/fulltext

[Warrior]

Reminder that D3 serum is KING.

I haven’t taken D3 for a long time, and let my serum levels drop quite low (relatively). Last test done many months ago it was sitting at 34ng/mL. My personal researched & anecdotal recommendation is 50-70ng/mL as being optimal. I got it tested again a week or so ago, but waiting to see GP for result.

I intentionally stopped taking it because it seems to worsen another condition I have, which is some sort of eye strain/ache. Currently working with optometrist/specialist on that.

But I’ve seen a drastic decline in quality of mood, energy, and recovery from POIS. Took some D3 again today (first in many months) and the immediate improvement in mood, clarity, energy, etc was astoundingly clear.

D3 serum is a critical part of my POIS protocol. It’s the bread and butter. Along with replenishing methylation, animal-based diet, etc. They’re all so important. Then chuck a few herbs on top (cordyceps & monolaurin), and replenish some immune nutrients (glutathione/NAC, zinc, etc)

[Warrior]

I was wrong in thinking that I no longer need to take a B complex. I thought I was for sure getting adequate methyl donors and B complex vitamins from diet alone, especially that I eat a lot of meat, chicken, eggs, dairy, etc. How painfully wrong I was. POIS is clearly depleting methyl donors/B vitamin complex nutrients at such rapid rates, dietary replenishment simply does not result in an optimised experience and health.

I decided to stop taking the B complex as often because I didn't like the idea of chronically elevated B vitamin levels. But since stopping the B complex, I've seen a drastic reduction in my health and my methods effectiveness:

Droopy eyes.
Low motivation.
Less energy. Tired.
Less clarity.
Worst mood.
More anxiety, CNS activation etc.
Less dopamine. Music sounds bad, etc.

These symptoms are exactly what my B complex fixes and optimises.

I was exceptionally lucky to find this particular B complex. It was literally the first one I tried. I've tried many B complex's, and they do not appear to be as effective as this one. The magic is in it's high dosages, but I'm not sure what specific nutrients are carrying most of the benefit.

The only issue I am experiencing with the B complex is at times I will experience apathy. But still much less so compared to never taking the B complex at all. My goal moving forward is to try to figure out what nutrients my body needs to balance excess methyl donors/B complex vitamins.

The 150 B Forte Complex will remain a staple in my POIS stack likely for the rest of my life.

I would be interested to see the effects this particular B complex has on other POIS patients. If you don't have issues with folic acid, I highly recommend: https://www.naturesown.com.au/products/energy/ultra-b-150-forte/

Nature's Own make another B complex called Super B Complex, which is just another B complex with lower dosages compared to Ultra B 150 Forte. The effects of this B complex are absolutely subpar compared to Ultra B 150 Forte.

It's also worth mentioning taking TTFD 100mg was not as powerful as this high dose B complex (which includes 150mg of thiamine).

I also suspect many of the sensitivity issues I've been having lately are to do with inadequate B complex vitamins. Sensitivity to electrolytes (which is very weird and unusual), etc. Many of the issues I was seemingly having have kind of dissappeared overnight since taking the B complex again. But I still need to figure out how to deal with excess methyl donors/B complex vitamin nutrients.

There must be some nutrient within the cycle that helps to balance excess to prevent the apathy I experience sometimes.

Here's a list from GPT of nutrients that help to balance excess methyl donors or B complex vitamins:

Magnesium, vitamin C, zinc, potassium, choline, taurine, tryptophan, tyrosine, omega-3, phosphatidylserine, adequate electrolytes, glycine, molybdenum, Phosphatidylserine, selenium, vitamin E, copper, ALA, l-theanine.

I suspect one of these are depleted from excess methyl donors/B complex vitamins that the body uses to refind homeostasis preventing unwanted symptoms ie., apathy.

Moving forward I am going to work on figuring out how to fix this excess issue. Will experiment with many of the nutrients above. If that doesn't work, I will experiment with different custom B complex formulas the find whats optimal for me. Thats the path forward atm.

Theory:

apathy increases around POIS because of bad electrolyte retention from frequent urination. I get frequent urination for at least 3 days or so following release.

sodium, potassium, & magnesium are needed for proper neurotransmitter status. B complex vitamins also increases demand for magnesium and potassium.

This may be why after so many years on AB taking electrolytes dramatically improved libido, energy, etc. Electrolytes need adequate B complex vitamins to work properly as well. So removing B complex vitamins caused electrolytes to behave dysfunctionally i.e., side effects from potassium, magnesium, & sodium

List of nutrients that appear to improve apathy, at least initially:
* B complex (Ultra B 150 Forte)
* Potassium
* Taurine?

[Warrior]

I'm going to work and experiment on my own custom B complex at some point:

B1 (Thiamine): 100-300mg [open to experimentation along w/ different types]
B2 (Riboflavin): 2-25mg [some experimentation, maybe higher dosages but I doubt it's necessary]
B3 (Nicotinamide): 100-500mg [open to experimentation, esp. for POIS medicinal effects]
B5 (Pantothenate): 100-150mg
B6 (P5P): 2-25mg [keeping nice & low to avoid side-effects & improve long-term safety]
B12 (Methylcobalamin or Adenosylcobalamin): 100-1000mcg [open to experimentation, unsure if methyl groups attached to B12 continue to provide medicinal benefit (probably), while B12 lvls in bloods were more than satisfactory]
Folate (Folic Acid): 0-100mcg [prefer to stop alltogether, as long as folate RDA is satisfied through diet]
Biotin: 100mcg

The purpose of this is to remove excess nutrients (along with their side-effects), and emphasis those that appear to get depleted faster through POIS and/or improve POIS at higher dosages i.e., possibly B1, methyl B12, etc. Much of this will be experimentive. My B12 and folate were both high in past bloods, something I'd prefer to bring down long-term. So those nutrients will be reduced accordingly. But it's possible the methyl groups attached to B12 continue to provide benefit, so it's something I will need to figure out with time.

I would also prefer to stop folic acid supplementation alltogether and just get all folate RDA through diet. Folate is actually very easy to get RDA through brocolli and navy beans, or beef liver and orange juice on AB. Folate supplementation also very commonly produces side-effects.

[SchizoPIOS]

Its summer where you are right now? I was also having a lot of greek yogurt this summer, it made me feel fantastic and refreshed.
Also agree with orange juice and citrus fruits in general, if I don't eat enough fruits for a while the first bite makes me feel like Im alive again.
But most importantly, red meat has the biggest impact. Even now and this past summer, when I was out of POIS and hadn't released in a long time, I could tell my whole mental and physical health sinks when I don't eat enough red meat. It feels like it completely stabilizes everything in my body and grounds me. And no other food I've tried has this same effect, not chicken, not milk, not eggs, not veggies, not fruits, only red meat.

In the past, before I joined this forum when my POIS was mild, I could still tell when I wasn't having enough red meat by how long it took to recover from Os, specifically by lower back pain and general fatigue, actually maybe my POIS was mild because I made sure to eat a lot of meat and red meat regularly. We've been eating a fair bit of chicken and fish these past couple days and I haven't released in a while but I still feel like Im not eating enough red meat Im feeling tired and on the edge. I heard red meat is full of b vitamins so you might be onto something.

[Physi]

Hi Warrior,

Thanks for sharing your journey.

What is your % of relief today with your diet ?

I am thinking of trying an AIP diet as it?s what you have started with but it seems that your diet has changed a lot since with lots of supplements.

My symptoms are mostly mental with strong brain fog appearing directly after release.

Do you still think AIP diet is enough to block your symptoms ? I can?t figure out  at what extent it worked for you as you seem to have added lots of modifications to the AIP diet.

Also Nanna1?s cascade stack did not help for my post (tried it for 1 month). I am thinking of trying the betaherpesvirinae some time but I can?t find any testimonies of anyone that took it with success except Nanna1 but it?s unclear as he tried it for a short period and with other supplements and just after doing his cascade stack diet.

Also I have trouble understanding the sense of all that as you are taking an animal based diet which is The opposite of Nanna1?s cascade stack. Supposedly it would raise Arachidonic Acid and launch Pois reaction. I am wondering if Nanna1 is not making a mistake in his explaination of the pois cascade. Overall except Nanna1 it?s hard to find other Poisers that benefited from his stack.

In a nutshell my main question is do you think AIP diet alone treats your pois.

Thanks !

[Warrior]

Hi Warrior,

Thanks for sharing your journey.

What is your % of relief today with your diet ?

I am thinking of trying an AIP diet as it?s what you have started with but it seems that your diet has changed a lot since with lots of supplements.

My symptoms are mostly mental with strong brain fog appearing directly after release.

Do you still think AIP diet is enough to block your symptoms ? I can?t figure out  at what extent it worked for you as you seem to have added lots of modifications to the AIP diet.

Also Nanna1?s cascade stack did not help for my post (tried it for 1 month). I am thinking of trying the betaherpesvirinae some time but I can?t find any testimonies of anyone that took it with success except Nanna1 but it?s unclear as he tried it for a short period and with other supplements and just after doing his cascade stack diet.

Also I have trouble understanding the sense of all that as you are taking an animal based diet which is The opposite of Nanna1?s cascade stack. Supposedly it would raise Arachidonic Acid and launch Pois reaction. I am wondering if Nanna1 is not making a mistake in his explaination of the pois cascade. Overall except Nanna1 it?s hard to find other Poisers that benefited from his stack.

In a nutshell my main question is do you think AIP diet alone treats your pois.

Thanks !

My relief today is still very very good. Hard to put a number on it. Still night and day difference compared to what I experienced in the past. But my relief is still very reliant on my protocol. If I stop taking my B complex or start eating foods I am sensitive to for example, symptoms get worst very quickly.

I have tried lots of diets as you've seen. The most effective for me has been a starch-free animal-based diet. Eliminating starches has been the most important for me in regards to mitigating inflammation. Though just recently I have introduced navy beans to specifically get molybdenum. So far I have actually been tolerating them well. But overall the best diet for me has been starch-free animal-based, which was better than AIP.

AIP was not as good as animal-based, for me. It seems to be a very individual thing, so you really just need to listen to your own body and see what it likes best. Mine clearly prefers starch-free animal-based, but I am actually trying to expand my food groups to cover possible nutrient deficiencies i.e., molybdenum.

Yes Nanna1 hypothesised AA consumption worstens POIS. I haven't actually gone on a vegan diet to prove his hypothesis, mostly because my symptoms would become far too intense from the starch I would inevitably have to consume on such a diet (hard to keep weight on with such a diet). I went on a 10-day Vipassana retreat many years back where I only ate vegetarian. I remember the food making me anxious back then (I didn't realise the foods were causing it though).

AIP does not improve my POIS as well as animal-based, but it certainly is better than eating a standard high starch diet. Sweet potato was also relatively benign compared to other starches, but still not great.

The best thing you can do is try them all (animal-based, keto, carnivore, vegetarian, wholefoods, vegan, etc) at least temporarily and see which one your body responds best to. We're all different. You need to listen and see what your individual biology likes. Only limit food groups if you have to (if I ate grains/starches my body would be in constant inflammation, body aches, fatigue, mood issues, etc). Track diet in cronometer for a few weeks and see which nutrients you aren't eating enough of. You want to dial them in at some point to prevent long-term deficiencies. That's kinda what I'm in the process of doing now.

All of this is just lots of trial and error. That's also why my supplement stack and protocol changes quite often (though the core has remained largely the same - B compex and animal-based diet). I experiment a lot. I try to remove things that I think may not be necessary, only to realise later on how much they were still helping i.e., B complex. The body also changes a lot over time, especially in response to supplements.

[Warrior]

Its summer where you are right now? I was also having a lot of greek yogurt this summer, it made me feel fantastic and refreshed.
Also agree with orange juice and citrus fruits in general, if I don't eat enough fruits for a while the first bite makes me feel like Im alive again.
But most importantly, red meat has the biggest impact. Even now and this past summer, when I was out of POIS and hadn't released in a long time, I could tell my whole mental and physical health sinks when I don't eat enough red meat. It feels like it completely stabilizes everything in my body and grounds me. And no other food I've tried has this same effect, not chicken, not milk, not eggs, not veggies, not fruits, only red meat.

In the past, before I joined this forum when my POIS was mild, I could still tell when I wasn't having enough red meat by how long it took to recover from Os, specifically by lower back pain and general fatigue, actually maybe my POIS was mild because I made sure to eat a lot of meat and red meat regularly. We've been eating a fair bit of chicken and fish these past couple days and I haven't released in a while but I still feel like Im not eating enough red meat Im feeling tired and on the edge. I heard red meat is full of b vitamins so you might be onto something.

I still haven't quite pinpointed what it is in red meat that makes me feel so great. I think it may be the iron. I got a similar response to eating liver. I don't seem to get much response from eating oysters (super high in zinc). My latest iron panel also showed from what I remember the body holding iron stores due to inflammation. So maybe this has something to do with it.

[Physi]

Hi Warrior,

Thanks for sharing your journey.

What is your % of relief today with your diet ?

I am thinking of trying an AIP diet as it?s what you have started with but it seems that your diet has changed a lot since with lots of supplements.

My symptoms are mostly mental with strong brain fog appearing directly after release.

Do you still think AIP diet is enough to block your symptoms ? I can?t figure out  at what extent it worked for you as you seem to have added lots of modifications to the AIP diet.

Also Nanna1?s cascade stack did not help for my post (tried it for 1 month). I am thinking of trying the betaherpesvirinae some time but I can?t find any testimonies of anyone that took it with success except Nanna1 but it?s unclear as he tried it for a short period and with other supplements and just after doing his cascade stack diet.

Also I have trouble understanding the sense of all that as you are taking an animal based diet which is The opposite of Nanna1?s cascade stack. Supposedly it would raise Arachidonic Acid and launch Pois reaction. I am wondering if Nanna1 is not making a mistake in his explaination of the pois cascade. Overall except Nanna1 it?s hard to find other Poisers that benefited from his stack.

In a nutshell my main question is do you think AIP diet alone treats your pois.

Thanks !

My relief today is still very very good. Hard to put a number on it. Still night and day difference compared to what I experienced in the past. But my relief is still very reliant on my protocol. If I stop taking my B complex or start eating foods I am sensitive to for example, symptoms get worst very quickly.

I have tried lots of diets as you've seen. The most effective for me has been a starch-free animal-based diet. Eliminating starches has been the most important for me in regards to mitigating inflammation. Though just recently I have introduced navy beans to specifically get molybdenum. So far I have actually been tolerating them well. But overall the best diet for me has been starch-free animal-based, which was better than AIP.

AIP was not as good as animal-based, for me. It seems to be a very individual thing, so you really just need to listen to your own body and see what it likes best. Mine clearly prefers starch-free animal-based, but I am actually trying to expand my food groups to cover possible nutrient deficiencies i.e., molybdenum.

Yes Nanna1 hypothesised AA consumption worstens POIS. I haven't actually gone on a vegan diet to prove his hypothesis, mostly because my symptoms would become far too intense from the starch I would inevitably have to consume on such a diet (hard to keep weight on with such a diet). I went on a 10-day Vipassana retreat many years back where I only ate vegetarian. I remember the food making me anxious back then (I didn't realise the foods were causing it though).

AIP does not improve my POIS as well as animal-based, but it certainly is better than eating a standard high starch diet. Sweet potato was also relatively benign compared to other starches, but still not great.

The best thing you can do is try them all (animal-based, keto, carnivore, vegetarian, wholefoods, vegan, etc) at least temporarily and see which one your body responds best to. We're all different. You need to listen and see what your individual biology likes. Only limit food groups if you have to (if I ate grains/starches my body would be in constant inflammation, body aches, fatigue, mood issues, etc). Track diet in cronometer for a few weeks and see which nutrients you aren't eating enough of. You want to dial them in at some point to prevent long-term deficiencies. That's kinda what I'm in the process of doing now.

All of this is just lots of trial and error. That's also why my supplement stack and protocol changes quite often (though the core has remained largely the same - B compex and animal-based diet). I experiment a lot. I try to remove things that I think may not be necessary, only to realise later on how much they were still helping i.e., B complex. The body also changes a lot over time, especially in response to supplements.

Thanks for your detailed answer. Your starch free diet is on my list of treatments to try. I?ll update here if I do it.

The thing is it?s hard to ? listen to my body ? as when I?m not under POIS I function normally no matter what I eat. And when I am on POIS it?s too late. The only way to try diets is going on a diet for a month and see if it prevents POIS.

Whereas it seems that diet is always affecting you even when you are not on POIS ?

[Warrior]

Thanks for your detailed answer. Your starch free diet is on my list of treatments to try. I?ll update here if I do it.

The thing is it?s hard to ? listen to my body ? as when I?m not under POIS I function normally no matter what I eat. And when I am on POIS it?s too late. The only way to try diets is going on a diet for a month and see if it prevents POIS.

Whereas it seems that diet is always affecting you even when you are not on POIS ?

My body functions similar in that when I'm not under POIS, food sensitivities go away. But mine takes a long time of abstaining for this to occur. At least 4-5 weeks.

So that leaves me with a very large amount of opportunity to test, considering that I basically need to do semen retention if I don't want food sensitivities.

Also, I don't just test to see if food sensitivities make POIS worst. I usually go off how I feel immediately after the meal - they're the symptoms I usually test for. Basically I don't need to release to test my food sensitivities, unless I've abstained for 4-5+ weeks.

[Warrior]

Currently experimenting with a new B complex multivitamin with active methyl folate, 'Whole Earth & Sea Men's Multivitamin' credit to u/7e7en87/ from reddit. Does seem to enable me to tolerate active methyl folate better when taking this supplement, which I can only assume is a co-factor thing.

I like this supplement as well because the dosages are much more moderate and thus sustainable long-term. Way less likely to lead to imbalances. Not to mention the wide array of nutrients it contains.

I am also experimenting with riboflavin 100mg additional, and that seems to be giving excellent results. My system seems to need more riboflavin than usual. I think this may be to do with my past synthetic folic acid supplementation. I tried this supplement because I sense my body's ability to convert folic acid into the active form appears to be impaired, which was not always the case. My homocysteine was higher than usual and the B complex was not as powerful as it once was.

So current methylation stack is:
- Whole Earth & Sea Men's Multi (includes B complex vitamins, active methyl folate, & bunch of important vitamins/minerals all in moderate/humble dosages, good for long-term sustainability & much less likely to lead to imbalances long-term)
- Riboflavin 100mg

Will experiment with adding thiamine again, but I sense riboflavin appears to be very important, perhaps more so than thiamine. My mood is incredible when taking the extra riboflavin.

[Warrior]

I've mistakenly been suffering from a K2 deficiency. It's hard to get K2 on animal-based without eating fermented foods, so my dietary intake was already almost non existent. Taking high dosages of D3 (14,000iu) would've depleted the heck out of it, and my calcium dietary intake sometimes can be double the RDA (2000mg) which would chew up even more K2.

I've even been tracking my diet on Cronometer and openly saw I was no where near hitting the RDA for K2, but in my mind I associated K2 as an unimportant nutrient. That it didn't really matter and the consequences of a deficiency wouldn't be so bad. How wrong I was. lol

I took about 1mg per 10,000iu of D3 back when I was megadosing D3. K2 is fat soluble. So that kind of goes to show how much K2 high dosages of D3 chews through, especially with a high calcium/dairy diet. I think most people's K2 supplementation with D3 is too small. My specialist recommended 1mg per 10,000iu. Most people do 100mcg per 10,000 iu...

[Warrior]

Some updates.

Caffeine to perceptual threshold (dose where you feel the caffeine working) is very effective for clearing up mild POIS symptoms for my cluster. Doesn’t work if you take a below threshold dose ie., if your tolerance requires 200mg daily to feel the effects & you take 100mg, it won’t help POIS.

I’ve began taking beef organ supplements and do feel better with them. I’ve felt lately that I am missing key nutrients. Eating only red meat, eggs, fish, sardines, fruit, and dairy is catching up on me. So I tried to introduce more non AB foods but unfortunately most if not all plant foods exacerbate symptoms, body aches, fatigue, clear signs of inflammations etc. I always thought organ pills were a waste of money given that it’s just powdered organs, but when you break down the logic of it: they’re freeze dried, where water has been removed (water makes up much of the mass of fresh raw organs). So they actually end up quite nutritious and worthwhile imo. Eating organs would be ideal, but I find them to be quite disgusting.

Started taking extra copper to counter low copper lvls.

Also trying maca root. So far feel an increase in energy & vitality. Lately I’ve felt my body system to be quite flat. So I’m exploring different herbs for revitalisation & adaptogens to bring back to optimal homeostasis.

B complex, cordyceps, monolaurin, NAC, D3, mag, K2 all remain staples of my stack. I’ve stopped taking D3, mag, & K2 for a bit as I noticed I wasn’t feeling as good with them.

Healing mysterious health issues like POIS requires constant experimentation, testing, & listening to the body. There are so many powerful herbs, nutrients, practices, lifestyle changes, & supplements out there that can help. You just need to meet your body where it’s at, and realistically given how limited the science is regarding POIS, this process is going to require tonnes of experimentation. Remember to, modern pharmaceutical medicine is for the most part derived from herbalism. This process isn’t without risk of course, but this is the hand of life we’ve been given.

[Warrior]

One interesting thing I noticed when I went keto is that I tolerated plant foods better. When I’m on AB, I don’t tolerate plant foods well at all. On keto, I was able to eat a decent variety of vegetables without problems it seems.

I think the cause of POIS is a really, really stubborn chronic infection. It makes it even more difficult given that the infection is internal. Like a stubborn fungal toe nail, you try treatment after treatment with varying degrees of effectiveness, until you eventually stumble on to your cure. Even so, the cure may take 3-6 months of consistent work. Now imagine doing something like that with an internal infection. Not easy without medical testing. Candida overgrowth is still on the table as a cause for my own POIS.

[Warrior]

Systemic candida overgrowth

https://www.byronherbalist.com.au/gut-health/candida-infections-when-harmless-becomes-harmful/

This guy has lots of good info on gut dysbioses, candida, etc. I will be working directly with him soon to do a complete deep dive into the gut, candida/gut testing, etc.

The gut microbiome is a complex system. Far too complex to just throw random stuff into something we don’t understand. Far too many nuances, traps, conditions, and complexity.

Need to work with practitioners & specialists that are more developed, modern, & intelligent in their thinking.
- Stage yellow spiral dynamics.
- Synergistic, holistic.
- They take what’s useful from multiple domains (modern medicine, science, traditional medicine, TCM, herbalism, ayervadic, etc.)
- Honest about their limitations, what they know, and what they don’t know
- Do not guarantee results per se, given that these systems are far too complex to guarantee anything. This is a green flag
- Knowledge & understanding of multiple systems & factors that make up chronic illness inc. gut microbiome, nutrition, toxicity, organs, herbs, environmental, etc.
- Non ideological in their thinking. They take what works. They learn multiple facilities with an open mind to explore & identify what actually works

Most modern doctors do not do this. Modern medicine is not currently equipped to handle the complexities of POIS and other complex chronic illness. Their practices are far too limited.

POIS requires very individualised and specific treatment and testing to each case.