FIVE YEARS…..5 YEARS!
WOW, time has flown by!
I cannot believe it has been over 5 years since my stem cell, thymus, and supportive therapies for Lyme and co-infections. The five year mark seems like a perfect reason for an update!
I have been doing well since my last update 2 1/2 years ago.
Over the past 2 1/2 years I’ve:
- I graduated with honors from the nutrition consultant program from Bauman College.
- Started my nutrition consulting business, Flourishing Health.
- Continued building our urban homestead.
- Tent camped numerous times, without concern for tick bites
- Got to the root cause of our unexplained infertility.
- Took vacations to far away places like Bali, without fear being bit by ticks or getting sick.
- Worked with a mindset coach to help release negative emotions/thought patterns, and post Lyme stress.
- Stayed healthy and no relapse’s, even through a very stressful few months in fall 2018.
- Had my first podcast interview, more to come in 2020!
I found myself on vacation in Germany during my 5 year ‘stem anniversary’ and took the opportunity to take a quick visit to see the wonderful Michael Wittstadt at his clinic Villa Medigrun in Otzberg, Germany.
It was super fun to see Michael again! I feel extremely fortunate that he was still working with Infusio when I had my treatments in 2014. I am very happy he decided to open his own clinic, which has allowed him to provide high quality, attentive, and individualized care to this patients.
My 5 year stem anniversary photo with Michael Wittstadt
Here’s a snippet of Villa Medigrun’s ‘About’ section on Facebook
“First of all: We are naturopaths in our practice, and we work together with MDs in other practices and towns. We offer stem cell therapy since 2016, but our experience with stem cells goes back to 2013, especially in the treatment of tick borne disease. We opened this place to offer patients blood stem cells from peripheral blood or bone marrow because we believe that these stem cells have the biggest impact on the immune system and can also trigger repair in distant areas like the brain or in muscles. We are working together with experts in their fields to give you the best chances for a positive outcome and to limit side effects to a minimum. We just like to cooperate and learn, therefore we also share our protocols with your home care provider if necessary and we are always open about our procedures and what we are using. Transparency is the foundation for trust!”
Villa Medigrun is located in the village of Otzberg, 31 miles from Frankfurt Airport. It took me about a hour to get to the clinic via Deutsche Bahn, the German public transportation system. I was easily able to find my way using the DBB app on my phone and even purchase my tickets via the app. I believe if you are a patient booked for treatment, Villa Medigrun will arrange for staff to pick you up from the airport.
Otzberg is a quiet village, there is a grocery store and a couple restaurants within walking distance of the clinic. My understanding is most people stay at Airbnb’s near the clinic during their treatment. Michael said he picked this location because it was more peaceful than Frankfurt and has better air quality. Apparently, Frankfurt has some of the worst air quality in Germany!
One of Michael’s main reasons for opening Villa Medigrun was his desire to provide more comprehensive treatment post stem cells. The minimum treatment time at his clinic is 3 weeks, instead of the 2 weeks that was standard at Infusio. He feels working with patient’s an extra week for supportive therapies allows his patients to be more stable upon returning home.
The clinic is located on the 2nd floor in a beautiful stone building. It feels warm, inviting, and peaceful. The ceilings are tall and the color scheme of the clinic is white, light gray, and complimented by green accents. Every treatment room has a picture of nature or trees. There are separate rooms for IV’s, colon hydrotherapy, massage, and yoga.
During my visit, Micheal was “kind” enough to let me try the infamous “green drink,” also know as artemisinin. It was intense but a bit easier to drink than some of the bitter Chinese herbal formulas I’ve taken over the years! This green drink is used as the “killing agent” instead of IV dioxychlor treatment that I had at Infusio. I also was finally able to meet the famous Elke, who was off when I had my treatments at Infusio.
Micheal and I talked a bit about diet and we both agreed there is no “ideal’ diet for Lyme. Everyone’s body is different and we both also agree it is most important that people do what feels right for their body. My diet is drastically different today than when I was actively treating my infections. I also changed my diet as needed while treating. I think it is very important to remember that dietary flexibility may be required to recover. Be willing to try new things if your current diet isn’t working, even if a particular diet seems to be working for everyone else!
Near the end of my visit, I was kind of bummed I hadn’t schedule a week of supportive therapies. Guess I’ll need to take a trip back to Germany!
I personally feel that Michael and the team at Villa Medigrun are the best option for those considering thymus, stem cell, and supportive therapies for Lyme and co-infections. I believe thymus therapy is a huge asset to those with immune dysfunction and I do not know of any other clinics, besides Villa Medigrun and Infusio, that offers this helpful therapy. Michael is very aware of the potential for histamine issues post stems cells and I believe only one patient since the clinic opened 2 years ago has experienced histamine issues. Besides keeping his patients an extra week, Michael also runs a full blood and stool panel on every patient, this allows him to further customize treatments. Michael has also had success treating people with COPD and Hashimoto’s.
Here’s the list of treatments offered at Villa Medigrun as of October 2019.
- Autologous bone marrow and fat stem cell therapy
- Ozone treatments in blood, anally, sinuses, or on the skin
- Oxygen therapy according to Regelsberger
- Hypersound therapy (sophisticated TENS)
- BEMER treatments
- Intravenous laser therapy
- IV therapies that include:
- Cats claw
- EGCG,
- Licorice
- Alkalizing IV’s
- Chelation
- High dose vitamin C
- B-vitamins, including methylated versions
- NADH
- Germanium,
- Myers cocktails can be modified with choline, zinc, etc.Thymus and other peptides
- Injections
- Homeopathic’s like Metavirulent or HEEL products
- Thymus and other peptides
- Neural therapy in trigger points
- Massage
- Yoga
- Oral supplements – too many to list!
I can say with confidence that if you are considering stem cell and supportive therapies, that Villa Medigrun should be on the top of you list!
Currently, for English speaking inquiries, the best way to contact Villa Medigrun is via their Facebook page. The clinic does have a website that is currently only in German, the English version is coming soon.
If you are in the United States, Michael typically makes a two trips a year to have consultations with potential patients. He often makes stops in New York and Dallas, Texas area. He is hoping to add the California Bay Area on his next trip in 2020. I recommend following Villa Medigrun on Facebook to keep with his travel schedule.
If you want to learn more about stem cell therapy in general, the Facebook group, Stem Cell and Exosomes Focus Group is extremely informative.
I do not plan on reviving this blog, however I will try to update occasionally as the years go by. If you want to keep up with me follow me on Facebook or Instagram. I host several online classes and offer remote nutrition consulting.
Wherever you are in the your Lyme journey, know that you can get better and life a healthy and full life. Do not doubt your body’s amazing ability to heal! I wish you an amazing new year and new decade!
Honeychick Homestead 