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My Blepharospasm Story
Steve Zarren, President
Feel Better LLC
In February 1993, I began blinking excessively and uncontrollably. As it became worse, I went to a number of eye doctors. They all agreed that my vision was not impaired and thought the problem was dry eye and prescribed drops. They did not help. The others thought the cause was nerves, but it was not that either.
My Focal Eyelid Dystonia Symptoms Intensify
When I coached my sons' basketball games, I not only would miss half of the games, caused by my eye blinking, I would wear a baseball cap and sunglasses to hide my eyes. When at a restaurant, my sons, sitting opposite me, would turn away to avoid looking at my eyes twitching. They joked about it, not realizing the discomfort and embarrassment I felt. My wife had to do the weekend driving since I could not and even though I would become a passenger, the twitching would continue. It always seemed to intensify when I was in a moving vehicle. It did not matter if I was driving or someone else. My 90 mile daily round trip to work became a nightmare. Thankfully, I was able to avoid having any accidents.
Two Years and Not a Solution
Two years later, I was quite concerned and upset. By this time my quality of life had become worse. Being a corporate controller, I felt my future and family’s financial security were being threatened.
In June, 1995, I found a local doctor who diagnosed my symptoms as a rare neurological disorder called focal eyelid dystonia or blepharospasm. It is the result of “faulty” brain signals sent to the optic muscles, forcing them to contract, hence the twitching. With the cause being unknown, there was no hope of relief. It is not life-threatening but is debilitating. In the worst cases, the sufferer would be considered legally blind even though their vision could be 20-20.
A neurologist told me that the preferred treatment was eyelid injections. After following this treatment method, I noticed my eyes looked different. I then also realized my smile were being affected. After the second round of eyelid injections, six weeks later, I decided to stop.
A Healthy Option Seemed Hopeful
Several weeks later, I learned of a natural and organic whole food program. It's a one of a kind whole food that is loaded with nutrition. This whole food has been available for about 30 years and has helped several hundred thousand people with many health issues. I decided to try it.
When I would back out of my driveway to go to work, the spasms would begin. They would not stop until the car was parked. Six weeks after starting this organic, whole food program, my wife made me realize that I had not had any spasms all week. I said, "Could it be that the focal eyelid dystonia is caused from a nutritional deficiency?" A seed was planted in my mind, that maybe this organic, whole food program could help many other sufferers.
The Quest to Help Others
I spent the next twelve years trying to convince the medical community that I had discovered something remarkable. No one would listen. During this time, I did introduce the food to sixteen individuals with focal eyelid dystonia and seven told me it helped.
Sometime later Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland decided to do a double-blind study at the Wilmer Eye Opthomological Institute. Six years later the results of the study, where I was mentioned twice, was published. The research article appeared in The Journal of Ophthalmology, July, 2004 Issue Volume 138; Issue 1 pages 18 – 32.
The results noted that the food was safe, helped some, with no side effects.
I was told, by the doctor who conducted the study, that the food was safe and he expected it to help many more people. Also, that he would recommend it for all who wish to try it for several months.
In the summer of 2005, I received an honor from the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation being recognized with a 2005 Courage Award. It was received, along with several others, for inspiring other dystonia sufferers. Dystonia is the name of movement disorders with focal dystonia being one of many.
My Focal Eyelid Dystonia Symptoms Intensify
When I coached my sons' basketball games, I not only would miss half of the games, caused by my eye blinking, I would wear a baseball cap and sunglasses to hide my eyes. When at a restaurant, my sons, sitting opposite me, would turn away to avoid looking at my eyes twitching. They joked about it, not realizing the discomfort and embarrassment I felt. My wife had to do the weekend driving since I could not and even though I would become a passenger, the twitching would continue. It always seemed to intensify when I was in a moving vehicle. It did not matter if I was driving or someone else. My 90 mile daily round trip to work became a nightmare. Thankfully, I was able to avoid having any accidents.
Two Years and Not a Solution
Two years later, I was quite concerned and upset. By this time my quality of life had become worse. Being a corporate controller, I felt my future and family’s financial security were being threatened.
In June, 1995, I found a local doctor who diagnosed my symptoms as a rare neurological disorder called focal eyelid dystonia or blepharospasm. It is the result of “faulty” brain signals sent to the optic muscles, forcing them to contract, hence the twitching. With the cause being unknown, there was no hope of relief. It is not life-threatening but is debilitating. In the worst cases, the sufferer would be considered legally blind even though their vision could be 20-20.
A neurologist told me that the preferred treatment was eyelid injections. After following this treatment method, I noticed my eyes looked different. I then also realized my smile were being affected. After the second round of eyelid injections, six weeks later, I decided to stop.
A Healthy Option Seemed Hopeful
Several weeks later, I learned of a natural and organic whole food program. It's a one of a kind whole food that is loaded with nutrition. This whole food has been available for about 30 years and has helped several hundred thousand people with many health issues. I decided to try it.
When I would back out of my driveway to go to work, the spasms would begin. They would not stop until the car was parked. Six weeks after starting this organic, whole food program, my wife made me realize that I had not had any spasms all week. I said, "Could it be that the focal eyelid dystonia is caused from a nutritional deficiency?" A seed was planted in my mind, that maybe this organic, whole food program could help many other sufferers.
The Quest to Help Others
I spent the next twelve years trying to convince the medical community that I had discovered something remarkable. No one would listen. During this time, I did introduce the food to sixteen individuals with focal eyelid dystonia and seven told me it helped.
Sometime later Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland decided to do a double-blind study at the Wilmer Eye Opthomological Institute. Six years later the results of the study, where I was mentioned twice, was published. The research article appeared in The Journal of Ophthalmology, July, 2004 Issue Volume 138; Issue 1 pages 18 – 32.
The results noted that the food was safe, helped some, with no side effects.
I was told, by the doctor who conducted the study, that the food was safe and he expected it to help many more people. Also, that he would recommend it for all who wish to try it for several months.
In the summer of 2005, I received an honor from the Dystonia Medical Research Foundation being recognized with a 2005 Courage Award. It was received, along with several others, for inspiring other dystonia sufferers. Dystonia is the name of movement disorders with focal dystonia being one of many.
Helping Others Improve Their Quality of Life
Steve Zarren, President
Feel Better LLC
Since my quality of life has improved so dramatically as a result of following this nutritional program, I make it the focus of my life, to help others with dystonia and blepharospasm, improve their quality of life.
If you have any questions or would like more information, you can call me at (410) 486-2525 between 9 AM and 8 PM EST, 7 days a week or or fill out my free consultation form.
To read testimonials, click here.