Pause is the cause

November 2, 2021

I regularly visit a small number of PD-related discussion groups and forums. There is always talk of findings thought possibly to point to the root cause of Parkinson's. I've seen discussion centered on various possible gut microbiome issues, fungus issues, virus links, a neuroticism link, and many more. Reports on these findings are put forward with fanfare, each time in the hope that the fundamental cause of PD has finally been found.

Once you understand a bit about the neurological mode “pause” as identified and described by Janice Walton-Hadlock (JWH), and unquestionably if you have also felt pause turn off, you understand all such findings in a different way. To the degree those various findings are associated with Parkinson's, the old phrase “Correlation does not imply causation” almost surely applies. That is, once you appreciate the reality of pause you begin to see that the kinds of issues discussed are, in most cases, brought about by long-term use of pause mode. Pause is the cause of idiopathic Parkinson's, and its presence leads to a variety of bodily issues.

Consider one example — gut microbiome issues. Drawing on Chinese medical theory, JWH explains in Recovery from Parkinson's (2020) that in PD one of the key impacts of pause is on the stomach channel. In fact, pause makes the stomach channel run backwards. One result is a range of impacts on digestive processes. JWH writes, “In pause, not only the swallow reflex but the whole digestive system is somewhat shut down.... [the] digestive system is not using normal appetite cues and normal peristalsis” (RFP, 2020, p. 165). It's not much of a stretch to consider that when a digestive system is chronically inhibited, dysbiosis of the gut microbiota, among other issues, might result. Hence the kinds of microbiome issues we see in Parkinson's. (That is not to say that an altered microbiome might not then exacerbate aspects of PD.)

So the next time you see a report on something thought to be the newly found cause of PD, ask yourself if the thing in question might be merely an effect of long-term use of pause. Pause is the cause!