Medicinal Mushrooms Mushrooms have been recognized for their healing properties by Western Medicine since the 5th century, when the "father of medicine", Greek physician, Hippocrates (who fittingly also said “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.”) spoke of their abilities.  In Eastern traditions, the use and scope of medicinal mushrooms is even more established. In the West, mushrooms haven’t always been appreciated.  Some people immediately associate them with the mind-altering properties of “magic mushrooms”, some with poisonous varieties that have caused liver failure or death and some think of the environment of decay where mushrooms thrive and think, 'Oh Gross’.  As with any species, the world of mushrooms is vast, varied and full of beautiful treasures. I had never thought much about mushrooms, until the day, over 15 years ago, at the Burning Man Festival, I stumbled upon a lecture being held at the “Earth Guardians” camp and entered the world of Paul Stamets. Paul is one of the Giants in the world of mycology (the study of Fungi). In the presentation, I watched while he shared his passion and knowledge of mushrooms.  He also told a deeply moving story of the mushroom Coriolus Versicolor, commonly known as “Turkey Tail”. He had been working with Bastyr University School of Naturopathy in Seattle, using this mushroom to treat a terminal illness and the short version is, it may have played a contributing role in saving his mother’s life.  He went on to describe this intricate “internet of” mycelium, essentially the root system of mushrooms that literally spreads across this planet, helping not only mushrooms, but also trees and plants to communicate and coordinate underground. From the ability to neutralize radiation from nuclear disasters, to breaking down oil from contamination spills, showing antiviral potential in the department of defense sponsored efforts to find a treatment for SARS, the mythology and pharmacology in mushrooms is mighty. Since that day, I have developed a deep appreciation and respect for mushrooms and have used them consistently as medicines. Tea’s and capsules are my personally preferred forms. I also continue to learn about ways in which mushrooms can help us save the world, from restoring balance in our eco system and in our inner systems, from new frontiers in research with psilocybin assisted psychotherapy for severe depression and playing a role in breaking the torturous cycle of cluster headaches.   Notably, we see several mushroom species act as immune modulators when dealing with viral invaders and chronic illnesses and as natural insect repellants. As discoveries continue and this list grows we will keep you posted. I highly recommend watching Fantastic Fungi, a beautiful documentary featuring Paul Stamets and his colleagues.   Sean Devlin

Infectious diseases causing “demics” are strange and often unpredictable.  Some lay waste to an area and then suddenly disappear, sometimes for years, sometimes forever.  Some pop up at random in widely distant and variant geographic locales then go quietly only to show up somewhere else.  Others spread like wildfire to encompass the globe and wreak havoc.  So what are the factors a pathogen needs to run a successful pandemic? Lethality How lethal a pathogen is helps determine its success.  Take Ebola, with an average of around 50% lethality, the mere mention of it causes people to flee to a non-endemic area.  The infected are incapacitated fast, die rapidly, and thus are not able to effectively spread the disease.  Ebola is very infectious but held back by being too fast acting and deadly.  It would be more effective if it mutated to a milder form making spread easier.  In essence, what makes it terribly deadly also makes it less effective.  Infectivity How good is it at spreading? The most effective way to infect humans is to be airborne and have the ability to survive on skin and surfaces. Add in viral shedding before and after symptom onset as well as asymptomatic carriers and you have the ability to effectively find new hosts.  Containment How difficult it is to contain an outbreak? With global travel so prevalent in todays society pathogens that aren’t particularly deadly and are good at spreading have no problem subverting efforts of containment. Vaccines How susceptible is it to vaccines?  Influenza constantly mutates making vaccine effectiveness highly variable.  It is a best guess that is planned out months in advance, achieving an influenza vaccine that is 50% effective is considered successful.  There have been at least five mutations of Covid-19 that make it more infective but despite these mutations the vaccine is still projected to be effective. So the key to a successful pandemic is that the pathogen doesn’t kill too well, spreads easily so it can circulate widely, and mutates around vaccines. Let’s take a look at a few well known pathogens. Ebola Highly lethal with rapid onset making it difficult to spread combined with swift and coordinated response to contain, no vaccine as of yet. Small Pox Highly contagious, 30% mortality, susceptible to vaccines, global travel not as established as it is now.  Eradicated via aggressive global vaccination and rapid containment response via “ring vaccination” (isolating cases and vaccinating all people in that area).  Influenza Low mortality rate at 0.1%, easily spread, Host can spread virus 1-2 days prior to symptom onset and up to a week after recovery.  This along with global travel and its ability to mutate make it difficult to contain and vaccinate against. Coronovirus’ SARS (SARS-CoV-1)   Average to low infectivity with 10% mortality, spread globally with over 8000 cases.  Considered contained in humans due to strong global cooperation, but still exists in animals.  No vaccine but CDC has developed prototype. MERS (MERS-CoV) Less infective, 2500 cases, 34% mortality, still popping up in humans but, so far, rapidly contained.  No vaccine. Covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2) Improved on the coronavirus strategy by being more infections with a lower mortality of 2-3% but much more deadly than influenza, not to mention asymptomatic carriers.  Luckily the development of mRNA vaccine technology has allowed rapid and highly effective vaccine development. Covid-19 far outpaces SARS and MERS in total number of deaths because of this lower mortality rate and higher infectivity. All three are zoonotic, meaning they jumped from animals to humans, and all appeared at the turn of century. Alarmingly scientists estimate there are over 800,000 unidentified pathogens in animals that have the potential to jump to humans, so the struggle is real.  Don’t be surprised as more of these pop up in the future. What can be done? Pandemic preparedness   Politics aside, The WHO and CDC continue to develop strategies to handle pandemics.  Vaccinations Vaccine development is evolving rapidly and has been shown to be safe and effective. Social Precautions Hypervigilance with distancing, masks, hygiene, and public vaccination buy-in makes these pathogens less likely to spread but it’s no guarantee that they won’t.  Personal Health Avoid vices that are known to be unhealthy, stay well hydrated, exercise, and don’t forget about addressing your overall wellness. Western Medicine Vaccines aside, modern western medicine has developed some pharmaceuticals that can reduce symptoms such as antivirals and monoclonal antibody treatment, but in reality there are not many options out there once you are sick. Naturopathic Medicine Vitamins, minerals, and plant-based alternatives do show some promise at protecting individuals from contracting disease and may optimize the body’s ability to resist and fight invaders.  There is evidence that some help modulate the inflammatory and immune response from invasive organisms and some have shown to inhibit viral attachment and replication. At Lig & Ceptor we developed our viral formulation based on years of clinical practice and taking a deep dive into the current available literature. If you would like to know more check out our Resist: Viral Formula, review the ingredients and the science to understand why we choose to them in the fight against viral invaders.  See "Lessons From the Covid-19 Pandemic". It’s crazy times but stay vigilant, care for yourself and your community, and remember…What you do matters! Laning Andrews, M.D.

Enhanced with cannabidiol, Lig & Ceptor formulas are effective, science-based products for those looking for a better and more proactive way to address symptomatic health issues while donating 2% of profits to Global Giving initiatives. RENO, Nev. - January 26, 2021 - Lig & Ceptor, a nutraceutical company producing natural, safe, effective alternative medicine for all people, launched three lines of novel plant-based formulas, enhanced with cannabidiol, inspired by healing traditions from around the globe while being firmly rooted in current scientific research designed to relieve, resist and renew. By fusing compassion and conscience with the data, science and knowledge accumulated through years of medical practice — Lig & Ceptor will help decrease suffering and increase peace of mind and comfort for their customers. For patients seeking new treatment options for chronic illnesses, for medical and health professionals looking for new and different ways to help, for people, young and old, who just want to feel better and increase their overall health and well-being – the three product lines were developed to live better, with more products launching soon.     Relieve: Pain Formula Focuses on several key receptors to aid in a safe and effective means of supporting and recalibrating stimulated pain receptors. Resist: Viral Formula Optimizes the body’s response to invasive organisms by helping to modulate the immune system and inflammatory response. Renew: Focus Formula Supports the body and mind to operate at an optimal level.    All of Lig & Ceptor’s formulas have a Cannabidiol (CBD) backbone, which enhances the wide-reaching benefits of other ingredients. By turning on or off certain receptors in the body, desired results can be achieved for a number of conditions. Over 43% of prescription medications are derived from plants. Mother Nature has been the birthplace of all indigenous healing traditions.   “'How can we evolve medicine in a way that makes it better for all and could even make all of us better? As integrative physicians on the front lines of healthcare, we ask ourselves this question every day,” said Sean Devlin, D.O., co-founder at Lig & Ceptor.   “For the past year and a half our team has tirelessly endeavored to review and study the scientific literature from around the world in an effort to address some of the most pressing medical concerns of our time. After seeing firsthand both the benefits and shortcomings of modern-day pharmacology, we’ve made it our goal to provide safer and more effective alternatives.”   The company is mission-based and committed to donating 2% of profits to supporting groups and initiatives that are having the biggest positive impact towards sustainable health for humans and planet earth. Optimal health arises when the most fundamental needs are met including access to clean water, food, shelter, medicine and safe, supportive communities.    Lig & Ceptor formulations are manufactured in an FDA approved facility and in accordance with the FDA’s Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) which validates the identity, strength, quality, and purity for all formulas.   For more details and to purchase visit: https://ligandceptor.com/.   Direct to consumer and wholesale opportunities available at launch.    About Lig & Ceptor Lig & Ceptor is a physician-founded company that produces natural, safe, and effective medicine for all people looking for a better and more proactive way to intervene, prevent, and discover alternative treatments for symptomatic health issues seen in society today. Through effective, thoroughly researched, science-based products along with their conscientious, compassionate approach to business and health, Lig & Ceptor is evolving the way to think about medicine, health, wellness and self-care.      

Over the past two decades opioid use in the US skyrocketed creating widespread misuse, addiction, and overdose, leading us to a modern day opioid crisis.  At its peak overdose deaths in the US exceed that of car crashes and the majority of these deaths are due to opioids.   2018 data showed that in the US 128 people died daily after opioid overdose.  Let's go back in time and explore some of the events that got us here.  In 1980  a Letter to the Editor written by Jane Porter and Hershel Jick was published in the well respected New England Journal of Medicine entitled “Addiction rare in patient treated with narcotics.”  It was loose science at best with a misleading conclusion that opioids are essentially non-addictive.  Drug representatives began using this letter as proof that it was safe to now prescribe opioids for a variety of circumstances.  Another article published in Pain in 1986 by PK Portenoy concluded that use of long-term opiates was safe for chronic, non-cancer pain.  The study had a whopping total of 38 patients!  38 patients is nowhere near the number needed to make such claims, nonetheless this paper was extensively cited as proof that opioids were safe.  As the patent for MS Contin ran out, OxyContin arrived in 1996 and was vigorously promoted as less likely to be addictive than other opioids because of its “extended release” variant, later proven to be quite the opposite.  Drug reps went nuts promoting OxyContin aggressively with advertising, sales benchmark bonuses, and free coupons.  The infamous Prudue Pharma spent $200 million dollars promoting Oxycontin in 2001 alone, stating risk of addiction as being <1%.  The Porter and Jick letter as well as the Portenoy study were in heavy rotation during this time.  Enter pain, the 5th vital sign.  Vitals signs (blood pressure, pulse, respiratory rate, temperature) are measured objectively.  Pain is subjective as reported by the patient and cannot be measured, thus it really has no place on the Mount Rushmore of vital signs.  JHACO (Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations) began promoting pain as a 5th vital sign in the 90’s with the belief that health care professionals were not adequately treating pain.  This continued to gain traction and is universally used throughout the US today.  So based on the subjective account of pain levels usually on a 1-10 scale there was a push to get those high, subjectively reported, numbers down, most often with opioids.  Opioid makers gave millions of dollars promoting this campaign and within the first decade of its introduction opioid overdose deaths increased 4 fold, opioid prescriptions increased 7 fold.   The US, by far, has the largest amount of opioids in the world despite having a relatively small percentage of the worlds population.  As our opioid prescription practices increased along with the subsequent rise in overdose deaths the “Pill Mills” proliferated rapidly.  Glorified pain clinics began popping up throughout the US, willingly writing large doses of opioids for long periods of time for any “justifiable” pain complaint.  These clinics usually did not accept insurance, preferred patients pay cash, and were highly profitable.  Over time these clinics were shut down and other legit clinics were affected by new regulations.  We reached our peak opioid prescription total in 2011, after regulations began this number has steadily decreased.  So now we have a large population addicted to opioids and the access door was promptly shut.  With no access people were forced to turn to the streets due to lack of prescription opioids.  The street value of prescription opioids was very high and heroin was cheap so we start to see a rise in heroin overdose deaths.  It was reported in 2011 that 4 out of 5 heroin users stared with prescription opioids.  Over the last 5 years fentanyl has been increasingly added to or replacing heroin all together, why, simple economics.  They costs the same to make but the street value of fentanyl is roughly 6x higher.  So dealers began adding small amounts of fentanyl to diluted heroin to make it hit harder up front.  Fentanyl has 100x the potency of Morphine so even small additions of this drug can be enough to push a user over the edge.  Fentanyl can also be easily put in pill form and labeled as Norco, Vicodin, or Lortab for those that shy away from intravenous administration.  As we continue to climb out of this crisis approximately 30,000 Americans still die yearly due to opiates.  Fentanyl will continue to rise and prescription regulation will only partially address the problem.  People suffering from addiction to opioids will continue to get their opioids somewhere and pills containing high potency opioids will cause more overdoses.  Treatment options will continue to be limited as methadone/Suboxone clinics as well as rehab facilities continue to struggle.  Big pharmaceutical companies such as Purdue Pharma will be slapped on the wrist but others will continue to find loopholes and creative strategies to promote and sell their drugs.  As awareness grows about the true dangers of opioids and misinformation is quickly disproven, people will begin to discover better ways to get relief from pain.  Opioids do have a place in medicine for acute pain and some chronic pain conditions but for most things there are very effective, nonaddictive alternatives with no side effect profiles.  Plant-based medicine, physical therapy, yoga, acupuncture, meditation, and a myriad of other modalities are readily available and have proven to be highly effective in the treatment of pain.  In future posts we will break down pain and do a deep dive into a myriad of non-opioid treatment modalities.  We encourage your feedback and want to hear about your experiences with pain and what methods you use to mitigate that pain.  Laning Andrews, M.D.

We have all experienced anxiety to some degree.  Universally it is uncomfortable.  Anxiety can manifest as worried mind chatter, constantly asking “what if this bad thing or that bad thing happens… what if…? Underneath the distraction of anxiety, we find fear at the root.   The true path to healing anxiety involves acknowledging these underlying fears, accepting their presence and yes actually befriending them. Often when we have been able to understand the source of our fear from a different perceptive it can enhance our lives.  Our brains are wired to err on the side of fear, prioritizing the fear response over relaxation.  Many early experiences have left a strong imprint of fear in our minds so when we are exposed to even a shadow of a previously traumatic event, fear and anxiety can ensue. There are many plant allies that can assist us in transforming our relationship with anxiety producing fears.  Numerous plants contain compounds that help stabilize our nervous systems in the presence of fear, binding to receptors that maintain balance and optimum function through up regulation/ down regulation by occupying key receptor sites when the primitive parts of our brain are responding with the fight and flight response to a real (or more often perceived) threat.  Our limbic system guides the processing of our emotions in our amygdala, governing the resulting communication between other brain and hormonal centers.  Some of the most critical neurotransmitters that play a role in this process are GABA, serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine. Yes many of the “threat’s” that our vagal system responds to are only imaginary.  Using plant allies in conjunction with mind body therapy such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Emotional Freedom Technique, EMDR or Somatic inclusive therapies can deeply support profound physical and emotional healing and help recalibrate our nervous system when we have become stuck in patterns of hyper vigilance and worry. Ann Barnet, M.D.

We recognize that optimal health arises when a variety of needs are met.  The most fundamental of these include access to clean water, food, shelter, medicine and safe/ supportive communities.  Overarching all of these things, we need to treat each other and our planet with respect and gratitude.   We are aware that basic needs are not being met for many of our fellow humans that live on this planet. We are dedicated to changing that. With enhanced awareness of the importance of protecting Indigenous wisdom, food bearing land, healing plants and natural medicines as well as supporting the communities that keep these ecosystems in balance. We are dedicated to supporting and sharing the importance and wisdom of nature’s ability to heal and the need for balance and harmony as we engage with nature. Across the globe, approximately 844 million people have limited access to safe drinking water or hand washing facilities.  In this time of pandemic, civil unrest and economic stress it is more critical than ever to show our love and support for those who struggle with just the basics…clean water! Some research has shown that 1/3 of high quality farmland in the world has been lost over the past 40 years. Over 20% of the Amazon rainforest are gone.  The very origins of some of the medicine we use in our formulas are being threatened as you read this. Over 43% of prescription medications are derived from plants.  Mother nature has been the birthplace of all indigenous healing traditions. We are committed to donating 2% of all our profits to supporting groups and initiatives that are having the biggest positive impact towards sustainable health for humans and planet earth.  These groups have been vetted for their fiscal transparency and overall integrity.  We will start by supporting Waterkeeper Alliance, a highly impactful nonprofit that is preserving and protecting water worldwide. If you know of a reputable nonprofit or group that supports our vision, please share their contact information with us so we can support planetary health on multiple levels.  With passion and resolve we remain fully vested in spaceship Earth With Peace, Love and Medicine Evolved, Lig&Ceptor

According to scientists the most dynamic and structured dreams occur during REM or rapid eye movement sleep.  REM sleep is an important neurodevelopmental process that involves selective pruning and maintaining new synapses.  During REM sleep, newly formed postsynaptic dendritic spines are pruned, facilitating subsequent spine formation during development and storage of newly learned motor tasks.  REM sleep is not a passive process. REM fosters developmental neuroplasticity, which starts during embryonic and fetal development and continues during the first 3 months of infancy. REM plays an important role in modifying and maturing brain circuits. The lack of this plasticity, or dysregulations of active sleep, may result in reduced intellectual ability, reduced learning and memory consolidation, and mental illness.  Even though we are not completely clear on the role of dreaming and REM sleep we know that dreams can be indicative that the REM sleep experience may be happening.  Dreams of course by subjective account can be extremely pleasurable and even life altering.  A phenomenon known as lucid dreaming can be so life like it can be confused with waking moments.  Lucid dreaming may allow for enriched creative processes and greater personal awareness.   All in all, we know dreams are critical for memory formation and maintaining our mental health.  The foundations of learning, emotional recovery, and processing may be deeply influenced by functional sleep and dreaming.  The importance of dream filled sleep is critical for our overall health and should be supported if not being achieved on a regular basis. Sean Devlin, D.O.