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They Said It Was Anxiety. I Had Ablation Surgery I Never Needed.
They said it was anxiety. Take an Ativan. Here's a Zoloft. Come back when it gets worse.
Dr. Christine Garvey had heart palpitations for years. Normal hormones. Normal thyroid. Normal heart. Every specialist said the same thing: it's emotional. She had ablation surgery she never needed. Turns out it was histamine. High histamine foods — healthy superfoods — were making her heart pound out of her chest while she sat on the couch watching TV.
This is Episode 15 of Diagnose This. Dr. Z is joined by Dr. Christine Garvey, DC, to talk about what's actually behind anxiety — and why the label is one of the most dangerous places the system leaves you.
Anxiety is not a diagnosis. It's a signal. It could be an infection. A food allergy. A hormone imbalance. A COMT genetic SNP that means you don't clear stress hormones the way the person next to you does. PANS or PANDAS. Lyme. A gut issue reflecting back through the vagus nerve. A perimenopause nobody mentioned. There is always a physiological reason. Always. And "it's anxiety" is not the reason — it's the system running out of time to find one.
Dr. Z spent over a decade being told it was anxiety. It was Lyme. Once the infection was gone, so were the symptoms. That's not a coincidence. That's a mechanism.
Inside this episode:
Why anxiety is a cluster label, not a diagnosis — and what it's actually pointing to
Dr. Garvey's story: heart palpitations, ablation surgery, and the histamine connection nobody found
The infection and immune connection to anxiety, OCD, and depression
What the Gulf War stress study shows about cortisol, immunity, and how perception becomes physiology
Why even a great psychiatrist won't get to the root cause
What to say to your doctor when anxiety is the only answer they're giving you
If you've ever been told "you're fine" when you know deep down you're not, Dr. Z was you. Now she's fixing what dismissed both of you.
Seven specialists. Eight prescriptions. Her brain electrocuted 20 times for what turned out to be an infection. They labelled her permanently disabled. Told her she'd never work again. So she's fixing the system that failed both of you.
This isn't just a podcast. It's the platform she desperately needed when she was sick, dismissed, alone, and searching for answers at 2 AM because no one else was asking WHY.
👉 Take the Ask WHY Quiz: https://diagnosethis.com/home
Your symptoms aren't random. Your dismissals aren't coincidence. Get your personalized WHY Report in minutes - the framework that helps you walk into your next appointment prepared to be heard.
Keep going: Follow DiagnoseThis on all platforms → https://www.instagram.com/_diagnosethis/→https://www.facebook.com/diagnosethisofficial/→ https://www.tiktok.com/@diagnose_this
#DrZ #DiagnoseThisPodcast #AnxietyMisdiagnosis #HistamineIntolerance #PANSPANDASAdults #LymeDiseaseAnxiety #FunctionalMedicineAnxiety #MedicalGaslighting #HeartPalpitationsMisdiagnosis #AnxietyRootCause #ChronicIllness #InformedPatient #FunctionalMedicine #WomensHealth #AnxietyIsNotADiagnosis
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By Dr. ZThey said it was anxiety. Take an Ativan. Here's a Zoloft. Come back when it gets worse.
Dr. Christine Garvey had heart palpitations for years. Normal hormones. Normal thyroid. Normal heart. Every specialist said the same thing: it's emotional. She had ablation surgery she never needed. Turns out it was histamine. High histamine foods — healthy superfoods — were making her heart pound out of her chest while she sat on the couch watching TV.
This is Episode 15 of Diagnose This. Dr. Z is joined by Dr. Christine Garvey, DC, to talk about what's actually behind anxiety — and why the label is one of the most dangerous places the system leaves you.
Anxiety is not a diagnosis. It's a signal. It could be an infection. A food allergy. A hormone imbalance. A COMT genetic SNP that means you don't clear stress hormones the way the person next to you does. PANS or PANDAS. Lyme. A gut issue reflecting back through the vagus nerve. A perimenopause nobody mentioned. There is always a physiological reason. Always. And "it's anxiety" is not the reason — it's the system running out of time to find one.
Dr. Z spent over a decade being told it was anxiety. It was Lyme. Once the infection was gone, so were the symptoms. That's not a coincidence. That's a mechanism.
Inside this episode:
Why anxiety is a cluster label, not a diagnosis — and what it's actually pointing to
Dr. Garvey's story: heart palpitations, ablation surgery, and the histamine connection nobody found
The infection and immune connection to anxiety, OCD, and depression
What the Gulf War stress study shows about cortisol, immunity, and how perception becomes physiology
Why even a great psychiatrist won't get to the root cause
What to say to your doctor when anxiety is the only answer they're giving you
If you've ever been told "you're fine" when you know deep down you're not, Dr. Z was you. Now she's fixing what dismissed both of you.
Seven specialists. Eight prescriptions. Her brain electrocuted 20 times for what turned out to be an infection. They labelled her permanently disabled. Told her she'd never work again. So she's fixing the system that failed both of you.
This isn't just a podcast. It's the platform she desperately needed when she was sick, dismissed, alone, and searching for answers at 2 AM because no one else was asking WHY.
👉 Take the Ask WHY Quiz: https://diagnosethis.com/home
Your symptoms aren't random. Your dismissals aren't coincidence. Get your personalized WHY Report in minutes - the framework that helps you walk into your next appointment prepared to be heard.
Keep going: Follow DiagnoseThis on all platforms → https://www.instagram.com/_diagnosethis/→https://www.facebook.com/diagnosethisofficial/→ https://www.tiktok.com/@diagnose_this
#DrZ #DiagnoseThisPodcast #AnxietyMisdiagnosis #HistamineIntolerance #PANSPANDASAdults #LymeDiseaseAnxiety #FunctionalMedicineAnxiety #MedicalGaslighting #HeartPalpitationsMisdiagnosis #AnxietyRootCause #ChronicIllness #InformedPatient #FunctionalMedicine #WomensHealth #AnxietyIsNotADiagnosis