Part 2 Recovery Series: My Strategy to Mitigate the Damages of a Hospital Stay, Surgery & Radiation Exposure

I mentioned in Part 1 of my RECOVERY series that I had been hospitalized for 14 days and had thoracic surgery. In this series I layout my blueprint for accelerating recovery and coming back stronger from a setback.

Staying confined to a hospital for this long brings with it many mental and physical challenges — antibiotics (I had some of the strongest like vancomycin) and other drugs, being stuck indoors all day (no nature, circadian rhythm disruption, and no sunlight on my skin), limited to one visitor so I couldn’t see my kids, the stress from surgery, many, many x-rays and CT scans (according to a physicist at the Mayo Clinic, I received around 20,000 millisieverts* of ionic radiation over three months) and poor sleep (how am I supposed to recover when I’m woken every two hours for vitals, blood draws or something else???).

Needless to say, there were many things fighting against me.

But I had a plan and I hope it can help you if you need surgery, have an extended stay in a hospital or just need to bounce back from a stressful event.

I started with the basics — these are the things I’m going to address over the next few posts in my RECOVERY series:

1. Proper food
2. Supplements
3. Movement & exercise
4. Fasting
5. Sleep
6. Nature, stress management & breathing
7. Social connection & companionship
8. Biohacks & other advanced mitigation strategies

The basics aren’t sexy or glamorous. Or hi-tech. They aren’t “hacks” (but I’ll get into a few of those too). You won’t get a prescription for them from your doctor, and you can’t buy them on Amazon. 

The basics are up to you. They take work. Day in, and day out. 

But here’s the good news: the investment you make in the basics pays off—more than just about any other investment you could make in your life. 

And there are no negative side effects. 

But before I get into the specific tactics I’m using, here’s my strategy to reduce the damage and bounce back faster.

Pre-Hospital

• Morning sun exposure as often as you can leading up to your hospital stay. 15-30 minutes of sunlight from sunrise to 10am is ideal. This is a great way to optimize your circadian rhythm before you may be stuck inside for a certain period of time.
• Watch the sun rise and sun set as often as possible. Again, this sets your internal clock which controls a majority of your biology, both chemical and hormonal.
• Get as much sun on your skin as you can, preferable from 10am -2pm . This is the ideal time to get vitamin D. Ideal vitamin D levels will be key for a strong immune system and speedy recovery (and reduce the severity of covid if you were to get it while in the hospital).
• Consider a modified ketogenic diet, which has been shown to be muscle sparing.
• Eat an anti-inflammatory, immune-boosting diet which includes lots of herbs and spices like ginger, turmeric and garlic and high omega-3 fish (more on that here).
• Increase protein intake. Ideally 1g protein per pound of your ideal weight.
• Get as much good sleep as you can – aim for 8-9 hours a night.
• Move if you can – lots of walking
• Hydrate
• Grounding – walk or lie on the Earth. Go to the beach, walk a nature trail or just get outside.
• Breathe – practice stress reducing breathing techniques like Dr. Weil’s stress-relieving 4-7-8. Go ahead, try it right now.

During Hospital Stay

• Bring a plant in (if allowed) for detoxification, oxygen and nature
• Again, hydrate. Bring your own filtered water if possible. Avoid sugary drinks.
• Supplements (read my full list here)
• Get the best sleep you can. I used my blue-light blocking glasses from 7am until I went to bed, used a night mask and supplemented with a sleep cocktail that contained melatonin.
• Walk, walk, walk. Move as much as you’re medically approved for.
• Make sure to get adequate protein in. I supplemented with Four Sigmatic’s plant protein which contains additional medicinal mushrooms and adaptogens.
• Continue to practice breathing techniques
• Get acupuncture (if available in your hospital)

Post-Hospital Stay

• Repeat all of the Pre-Hospital protocols
• Detox with sauna and supplements to rid my body of any toxins I may have been exposed to (more on that here)
• Red Light Therapy (more on that here)
• Take probiotics
• Continue ketogenic diet, with adequate protein + collagen. Ideally 1g protein per pound of your ideal weight.
• Breathe
• More acupuncture (1-3 times a week)

READ PART 1: Starting from Scratch…Coming back from a Major Setback

READ PART 3: Food – The Secret Weapon to Bounce Back Faster from Surgery

*According to Dr. Peter Attia, exposure to 10,000 millisieverts of ionic radiation a year is normal; 50,000 millisieverts of exposure over a year is very concerning.

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Disclaimer: I’m not a doctor, so please don’t take this as medical advice.

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