Jennifer Brea - Long COVID and ME/CFS (Ancestral Health Today Episode 008)

Honored to have Jen Brea on the show. We had a wonderful conversation about her personal journey with MECFS, growing up with healthy parents and her experience in the ancestral health community. Jen was warning about the potential of chronic illness post Covid-19 infection, on her X account back in March of 2020.
Jennifer Brea is an independent filmmaker based in Los Angeles. She has an AB from Princeton University and while studying for her PhD at Harvard she fell ill leaving her bedridden. In the aftermath, she rediscovered her first love, film. Her Sundance award-winning, Emmy-nominated feature documentary Unrest was shortlisted for an Oscar. Unrest has screened in over 30 countries, had its US national broadcast on PBS’s Independent Lens, and was distributed worldwide on Netflix. She is also co-creator of Unrest VR, winner of the Sheffield Doc/Fest Alternate Realities Award. Brea is a TED fellow, co-directed Call Me Cleo for HBO Max, is currently filming a new documentary about physicians, and is writing her first narrative script. Her Ted Talk has 2.5 million views. Jen is working on her second film and remains a fierce advocate for the ME/CFS community and now Long Covid. You can follow Jen’s work on her website www.jenniferbr... and on X @jenbrea

[@lucyilly428]

It’s great to see you doing so well Jennifer, it gives the rest of us hope. Thank you for continuing to speak for us.

[@carlahelin5203]

I wondered how you were doing and so happy to have found this update. Ren Gill is in your documentary “Unrest” and is doing better. He is currently getting treatment in Cananda. He was eventually diagnosed with Lyme disease. He just released his album Sick Boi which has blown up online and got the #1 album of the year in the UK. I wonder if you have kept up with him over the years. His music is so relatable especially if you suffer from chronic illness, mental illness, etc.

[@maxyazhbin826]

I had lyme as well, osha root, fringed sage, and lomatium root cured me after the doxycline and buhner's protocol failed. I had mercury poisoning and emeramide cured me. I had c. diff and oregon grape root cured me. I had covid multiple times including the two times i had the cytokine storm and gumweed leaf, zinc, and white horehound cured me. I look forward to the host blocking this comment as she did on twitter to me before.

[@neckbro]

Careful with chronic Lyme narrative: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30685081/

[@kimmartindale9205]

Great...where in Canada?

[@KiroRocks]

So happy to see her being a lot better. I am so glad that she is raising awareness to that horrible illness!

[@pauladixon9003]

I’m on the milder end with the work and crash version being most prevalent for me. I don’t get to do much else. I hate the days when I suddenly can’t think, can’t see well, can’t tolerate light, sound or anything touching my skin. It could be one thing or all of them. I’m always in pain, but sometimes I can manage that better than at other times, and I use time as a measure because it is moment to moment on some days. I remember seeing Unrest for the first time, and crying because M.E. was me, and I was so thankful to know that I wasn’t crazy.

[@heretoday788]

Jen was so right to describe sensory processing issues. The whole illness is understudied, but this area has been extra neglected. I have sensory storms...outside of general light and sound sensitivity.

[@EPBF1]

When I go to doctor its after I recover from a flare up When got flare up I cant even leave my house so doctor not going seem me when am at my worse it so so frustrating that why Long Covid programs have been such a scam in helping their patient or document a patient complaints or putting in our charts even the disgnosis of long covid it was incredibly frustrating so glad for talks like this

[@ToujoursDansLeRouge]

Jennifer save us all please 🙏🏻

[@user-zn3dq5jc8v]

Thank you very much for your video. From a Japanese old man. Now I feel like everything has come true.

[@restlesssands1849]

Jen you look and sound fantastic! So great to hear from you ❤

[@Kathy007s]

So glad that you feel so much better now, Jennifer, after all you went through! You are a brave individual that also helps so many other people with same or similar issues.

[@nikkipage9132]

I will be 66 soon and my life is ruined. My first symptoms started after a car crash in 1998. It has been a steady decline but much worse with my aging process and degenerative spine disease.

[@AznDudeIsOn]

timestamps will go a long way for these podcasts

[@Justusson]

That would be great! 👍

[@EPBF1]

Definitely timestamps needed

[@_SystemFailure_]

At 1:01:37 she explain how she recovery from Me Cfs

[@JustKeepSwimming1224]

Thank you very much 🙏

[@Elysian777]

Thank You!!

[@JustKeepSwimming1224]

Thank you so much

[@miya1030]

Thank you

[@maryr7593]

Cranial instability can cause symptoms related to ME/CFS....wow.

[@BB-0804]

I saw “unrest” years ago and wondered about you. Good to hear you’re better!

[@josiesmith850]

So good to see you well ❤❤❤😊

[@theworldofhealthwellness]

I am so glad she also did mention post-covid after a certain medical intervention given over the last few years, unfortunately, this has been seen in me./cfs too its just not talked about. I have met more than a few m.e. patients who got m.e. after some type of va........ this was over 20 years ago

[@ash0787]

My CFS became so strange after the first 5 years, I had a considerable disruption of my normal life then I started to have neurological decline, then problems retaining water, cysts etc, hypersensitivity crisis where I had to leave one room after another, this then later turned into multiple chemical sensitivity, mold hypersensitivity, food sensitivity / flushing, weird reactions to traffic fumes, pollen season etc, then SIBO and food intolerances / reactions, later figured out part of this was thiamine deficiency aka beri beri. I'm using bioresonance and frequency treatment now because my situation is too complicated and doctors have never been any help.

[@malakoffmom]

Do you have MCAS?

[@Truerealism747]

​@@malakoffmomsurely is mcas mcas linked

[@_SystemFailure_]

At the last 10 minutes of the video, she speeks about her live now, after Me- Cfs

[@beckyraskin3280]

I think it can be triggered by menopause - my fibromyalgia/insomnia (I've also had POTS). I am going to try estradiol patches as soon as I can get an appointment with an obgyn nurse practitioner. The only one in this area has a waiting list.

[@oliverbird6914]

Thanks jen

[@OraliekBordeaux]

It is sad how much of a batlle this has to be.

[@cristianserious]

good podcast thank you !!!!

[@maryr7593]

Pls put the medical terms on the screen when speaker says them. It helps ppl understand if they didnt understand the word but they could also look it up because the spelling it on the screen.

[@frasermoore9399]

Captions can sometimes (but not always) help.

[@chantellekirk2993]

Increased use of quaternary ammonium compounds during COVID could be a factor. They affect mitochondria.

[@Truerealism747]

Found out related to asperger's ADHD.heds ancestry so true

[@maryr7593]

Hypermobile spectrum disorder too

[@Truerealism747]

@@maryr7593 yeah have you got Autism diagnosis didn't no I had it until last year son's now diagnosed to and lost my mum last year to severe ms obvously autism heds to my father has CFS to obvously adhd

[@jaynebailey]

This is 3 years I have been really sick 2 days after my second vac physer I feel worse now

[@_SystemFailure_]

At minute 44:00 she say that not eat for a while she helps, and she can walk for a jear but then this stops to work

[@Hi_que]

What kind of surgeries did she have?

[@tallpoppysyndrome9578]

One very complex condition....ME/CFS

[@LuckyFish3000]

Did her and Omar split?

[@cadeheinberg3047]

What makes you think that

[@sea_hous]

Is this recent?

[@mihakavcic7237]

?

[@GhostSubstitute]

She said midst of the pandemic.

[@Ladybird22373]

How did she recover, she doesn’t explain that would be helpful

[@sea_hous]

@@Ladybird22373 Yes she does. Watch till the end.

[@Ladybird22373]

@@sea_hous I read about surgeries . I don’t get why that would do it . ? Had long Covid , took me a year & half to get better . This surgery isn’t anything to do with cells & and other biological factors . It’s not even neurology, it’s orthopaedic surgery. I’m convinced This was psychological I got better telling myself /brain a different story to the one my body wanted to do . It took time but I got there .

[@Elysian777]

I wish she would slow down a bit and speak words more clearly, especially words that may be unfamiliar- medical terminology. She is presumably speaking to people who do have brain fog and it would help if she remembers that. They also don't have the energy or patience to continually re-listen to various words and statements.

[@AEPhotog1]

Exactly

[@albineg]

You can just watch in 0.75 speed or 0.5

[@quantuma3421]

Coloque os pés descalços na terra o quanto puder ... Contato com a natureza ajuda muito... ❤🙏

[@blancamastrazzi6610]

Traducir al español !!!!!! 40:06

[@kimmartindale9205]

Concussion I one illness that the NOw take very very serious in the rest factor

[@charliegordon2266]

I heard she relapsed after recovery.

[@mariasperduti5316]

Do you know if this is documented anywhere?

[@cadeheinberg3047]

People keep saying this but ive never seen any article or blog she made saying such a thing happened

[@genuina8422]

In my case was not vírus was ondas eletromagneticas 5 G tecnology is Very cruel thanks you a Lot for the movie ☺️ I try tô brief cells.😔thanks from Brasil IM happy tô see you great and strong🥰

[@adamatova]

Jennifer, did you ever try D-Ribose?

[@MrSKlim]

There are so many CFS recovery programs out there. You don’t need to suffer with this? DNRS - Gupta - Miguel from CFS Recovery, etc.

[@gitteolsen8358]

Exactly !! Search for CFS recovery stories - there are so many and a lot of proof that our nervous system can come back into balance👌👌

[@imcnagpc2]

She’s says “UM” too much for someone who is a public speaker.

[@MissChrissyM1]

When was this ? Is Jen all healed ?

[@Ladybird22373]

It seems like she is