I’m sharing my grandfather’s testimony here, which some of you have heard.
Buckle up… it’s long.
My grandfather is an intelligent 85-year old man who was an electrical engineer for over 30 years and could give a half-hour explanation for anything.
He has always had a memory like a steel trap, and could tell you the time, day, and date for something that happened fifty years ago (no exaggeration!).
In 2016, when he began forgetting basic words and mixing up on which days things happened, my family knew something out of the ordinary for him was happening.
My grandfather was not particularly healthy, but this was new.
For thirty years, he had suffered from glaucoma, had reduced sight in his left eye and virtually none in his right eye, and had had five failed surgeries to relieve pressure in his eyes.
His ophthalmologist said he was not a candidate for any more surgeries because of the failed procedures and declared the eyes would only continue to fail until eventually he would have no sight.
He had had successful cataract surgery many years before.
He was also suffering from curvature of the spine (slouching), heartburn, venal insufficiency in his lower legs, brittle nails and thin skin, an episode of TIAs (trans-ischemic attacks, or mini-strokes), urinary incontinence, and occasional constipation.
After appointments with a neurologist about his forgetfulness, he was diagnosed with beginning-stage dementia and prescribed Memantine for the dementia in November 2016.
He moved into my parents’ house so they could take care of him.
Over the next six months, he declined rapidly.
He shuffled his feet, fell several times a day from falling asleep while standing…
He suffered compression fractures to three vertebrae that were too severe to be repaired with surgery.
He had extreme mood swings and stubbornness.
He forgot words.
He became confused by basic things like writing in a Day-Timer, which he had used to record every tiny detail of his life for over 20 years.
In early 2017, my parents could no longer care for him full time and hired 24-hour in-home care.
By April, that was not sufficient for his needs, and he chose to move to an assisted living facility.
He fell the first week of May, and, due to what his surgeon termed “extreme osteoporosis,” completely fractured the ball joint of his right femur from rest of the bone.
After a complete hip replacement surgery and residence in a rehabilitation facility for two weeks, he was ready to try something different.
On May 29, he quit Memantine and his vitamins and began the Root Cause Protocol, with an aide three days a week to assist him.
On June 5 – seven days later – his physical therapist commented that he was “doing much better, including thinking better.”
His confusion was lessened, but he still had trouble following written instructions.
The severe edema in his lower legs from his time in the rehabilitation facility began to lessen.
After only two weeks on the protocol, his memory had improved to the point that he was doing more of the protocol by himself.
Even on days without assistance — as evidenced by the charts we had made for him to log what he had taken.
His heartburn — for which he took Tums six times a day — was gone.
Each visit, his therapists commented on how he was improving and the swelling in his legs was going down.
The charge nurse for the assisted living facility remarked to me how much more aware he was.
The next few weeks, he had slow but steady progress with memory, comprehension, coordination, and keeping to a schedule.
He finished tapering off the aspirin he was taking to prevent transient ischemic attacks (TIA’s) which happen when the blood flow to part of the brain is blocked or reduced, often by a blood clot.
On July 12 – seven and a half weeks on the protocol – I was visiting with him and noticed that his right eye (which had virtually no sight) was open more and moving completely in sync with the left, something I had never seen before.
After several hours of observing this, I mentioned that his right eye seemed to be working better.
He stopped and stared intently at me for a minute – “I can see better out of that eye. The light I can see is brighter and the outlines of objects are clearer!”
It’s now week 11 — just after his 86th birthday — and he has made astounding improvements:
– The swelling in his legs and feet is almost completely gone and continues to improve.
– His vocabulary, word choice, and inflection are now nearly identical to what I have known him to have my entire life.
– He has increased his ability to follow written directions and successfully follows nearly every step of the protocol nearly every single day, even on days with interruptions to his routine, like appointments.
– He no longer shuffles his feet when walking.
– He has increased the amount of personal hygiene he is able to complete by himself, and now chooses and changes into an outfit each day, mostly without assistance.
– He has once again begun using an electric razor to shave his own face, and no longer needs assistance.
– He is off all prescription medications except Betaxolol, Azopt, and Latanoprost, which are all eye drops for his glaucoma, and Myrbetriq for urinary incontinence.
– He has not suffered any further TIAs or constipation since beginning the protocol.
– He has once again begun socializing, which is one of his very favorite things, and still is maintaining the protocol at the same time. 12 weeks ago, he couldn’t do the protocol at all without assistance.
– He does still need a fair amount of assistance with preparation for the protocol and with other daily tasks, but the incredible progress we have seen in three months has given us hope that he will continue to improve to an even greater state of health.
I am so elated and beyond grateful that my grandfather is coming back.
My thanks to Morley Robbins — There are no words for how grateful I am. I hope this is a small repayment for the years you have spent.
Your persistence and pursuit of the truth has wrought INCREDIBLE change in my grandfather’s life and the lives of myself and my other family members.
It is a debt we will repay by spreading the word: THERE IS HOPE.