Episode 143 | His Cancer Scare Led to a 14-Day Water Fast (Unexpected Results)

[00:00:00] Dr. Katie Deming: What if the path your doctors call your only option isn't your only option? One man bet three weeks on something they'd never offer, and what he found surprised even him.

[00:00:11] Dr. Katie Deming: . Welcome to Born to Heal the podcast, helping people with cancer go beyond western medicine to heal naturally to the ancient power of prolonged water fasting

[00:00:22] Dr. Katie Deming: So you can ditch the toxic protocols, take back your health, and let your body do what it was designed to [00:00:30] do. Heal.

[00:00:31] Dr. Katie Deming: Today, I'm joined by my client, Joel Prudus, who recently completed a 14-day water fast after a cancer scare.

[00:00:38] Dr. Katie Deming: By the end of this episode, you're going to know why the rush toward the biopsy and surgery made Joel stop, trust his gut, and start asking the questions most of us are too afraid to ask. We'll also learn what 14 days of nothing but water is actually like and why the experience surprised him in ways that had nothing to do with food.

[00:00:59] Dr. Katie Deming: And finally, [00:01:00] what happened not just to the number that he came to change his PSA, but his thyroid, his testosterone, and his lifelong allergies he never thought to connect to any of it. Let's dive in.

[00:01:12] Dr. Katie Deming: Welcome back to the show. Today I have Joel Pruttis, who is a client of mine, who recently finished a 14 day Water Fast. Thank you, Joel, for being on the show.

[00:01:23] Joel Pruttis: Well, thank you for inviting me.

[00:01:24] Dr. Katie Deming: So, Joel, I know that you came to me, you know, you had had [00:01:30] a PSA that was rising and a nodule seen on your prostate on an MRI, and then you came to me and ultimately ended up doing a 14 day water fast. But I wanna s. Go back to that. When you were diagnosed, what were the doctors telling you? What were they asking you to do at that time?

[00:01:49] Dr. Katie Deming: So we can kind of get back there and, and see what led you down the path of water fasting and then what the results were for you.

[00:01:56] Joel Pruttis: Sure. So all, all this started for me in, [00:02:00] in 2021. I reached out to a, a doctor and, and, I was going through some things in my life and I, I just didn't have the energy I needed and stuff. So I reached out and, and got on testosterone therapy and at that time, you know, started taking labs and testing and whatnot.

[00:02:17] Joel Pruttis: So. My PSA at that time was, you know, one point something or whatever, and, and, I started taking testosterone and then periodically, you know, I would do a blood check and there [00:02:30] was a time in there during COVID that, you know, that I, I wasn't getting checked but, and my testosterone was, was getting really high.

[00:02:39] Joel Pruttis: And that was concerning to me. So I mentioned that to a doctor and I ended up changing doctors because of it, because. His attitude was, well, if you feel good, it's fine. But I ended up with testosterone levels of 1700. So I was like, you know, and I, I try to educate myself somewhat. I don't [00:03:00] spend a lot of time trying to be an expert on everything, but I try and find people that, you know, can help me out.

[00:03:05] Joel Pruttis: So, but as it went on every six months, every year, depending on when I was tested, my, my PSA just kept rising. So, you know, that goes on, up until August of 25 and I go and I was working with, somebody on nutrition and they wanted me to do some blood testing. So I, I, I have to drive to see [00:03:30] my doctor about four hours for my testosterone blood.

[00:03:33] Joel Pruttis: And on my way down, I stopped at a private lab and had a blood test taken like at seven 30 in the morning. Then I continue on to where my doctor's clinic is, and I have my blood taken there and I get, you know, PSA results from both. And one is 5.7, the other one is 6.55. And then my, my doctor at the time was like, well, I'm gonna refer you to UR all just because this keeps going up and it's getting higher.

[00:03:59] Joel Pruttis: [00:04:00] So I was like, okay. I was like, well, I don't really notice anything going on, but that's fine. So in September, I. I make an appointment with urologist, and again, I drive down three hours to see him take the day, you know, sit in the waiting room. And of course they're, I'm in, it's an afternoon appointment, so he's running late.

[00:04:23] Joel Pruttis: I get in there and the nurse takes my vitals and he walks in and he goes, do you know why you're here? And I was like, well, yeah, you're, I got a referral because [00:04:30] my PSA numbers are, you know, elevated. He's like, yeah. We started having a conversation. I was like, yeah, you know, in one of those labs they said, my, my free PSA is also low.

[00:04:39] Joel Pruttis: And oh, he said, well, I didn't know that. And he's like, okay, well, yeah. He goes, you probably have cancer. And I was like, okay, so we're not doing an exam. We're not going. Do another blood test. I mean, that's, and he's just like, yeah, so you [00:05:00] need to get scheduled for an MRI, and then we can look at that and I'll know where to do the biopsies and we'll just go from there.

[00:05:06] Joel Pruttis: And we're pretty much done. So I was like, okay, well we could've done that on the phone. You know, you could've just called me and said, Hey, this is what I want you to do. But anyway, while I was sitting in the waiting room and, and stuff, you know, I have,background in law enforcement and that's what I went to college for and whatnot.

[00:05:27] Joel Pruttis: But I, you know, so [00:05:30] when I'm out and about, I, I tend to read people when I'm sitting there with that doctor, I just got this feeling. It's like he's, he's not really concerned about my health. He's not really concerned about how he presents this to me. pre, pretty much my feeling that day when I was sitting there as I went through this process was like, you just want to get me into treatment.

[00:05:54] Joel Pruttis: You know, when I went down and did my MRI, it was the same thing. It was at the same hospital and, and that [00:06:00] was my feeling. It's like, you wanna get me into treatment? So, you know, to back up when I did my MRI, they have construction going on and they're building another room right next to the chamber I'm going into, so they can have two.

[00:06:12] Joel Pruttis: And you know, I run a business, so I'm sitting here and I'm going, huh, wonder how many people you have to run through here a year to pay for all this. And if you weren't running those many people through here, or you're running half through [00:06:30] here, I wonder how long you could stay open. You know, and, and so lots of things start running through my head at that point.

[00:06:38] Joel Pruttis: And, you know, you hear about the doctor in Ohio that was treating people for cancer that didn't have it. And there was a doctor here in Montana that just lost their license for something similar this year. And, when I left there, I was like, this, this just doesn't feel right, you know? So at the time I didn't know, you know, am I in denial because, you know, somebody told me I have cancer, [00:07:00] whatever, you know, I don't know.

[00:07:02] Joel Pruttis: Just the whole process and, and I'll go back to it, just didn't feel like they were concerned about my health at that point.

[00:07:09] Dr. Katie Deming: And on the MRI was there a nodule there.

[00:07:13] Joel Pruttis: Yeah. There was a, a lesion or whatnot. you know, it's in medical terms. So when I, when I got the results of that, I mean, I guess I could have probably asked AI what it meant, but it meant nothing to me. It's all medical terms. I was like, okay, well. I don't know what that [00:07:30] means.

[00:07:30] Dr. Katie Deming: you had a PSA that was rising. The, the highest level that you'd had there was a 6.55, but on the same day you had one that was five. So interesting. There's a big discrepancy.

[00:07:39] Joel Pruttis: Yeah.

[00:07:40] Dr. Katie Deming: 5.7 and then nodule on the, prostate. And this is ultimately what led you to see me because of these things that you were like questioning being pushed into traditional care and feeling like that you were, you know, okay.

[00:07:55] Dr. Katie Deming: This is the only route that we, you know, the PSA going up means you have [00:08:00] cancer, we're gonna put you in a treatment. Tell me how, how did you come into deciding to do water fasting with me? You know, in the midst of all of this.

[00:08:11] Joel Pruttis: Well, I do, I do follow, a couple different doctors on, on the carnivore diet and stuff on, YouTube. So when I'm working out and stuff like that, I'll, I'll watch their. Podcast stuff. And then I just really started researching prostate cancer and you know, there's some urologists out there with some YouTube videos, [00:08:30] talking about, you know, that prostate cancer is a slow moving cancer, don't get carried away with it.

[00:08:36] Joel Pruttis: And, things like that. And it's not really something you need to rush into. And, and a lot of 'em are saying, absolutely don't do a biopsy that's not going to prove anything. and, and then in the course of, of. Researching some of that, I came across some of your, videos and some of your work. and I'm at the point in my life where I've known enough people that have gone through cancer treatment.

[00:08:59] Joel Pruttis: It [00:09:00] comes back and, you know, they talk about secondary cancers that it really spread or is it caused by radiation? Who knows? Or, but to me, radiation and chemo is basically just poisoning your, you know, body. So, But yeah, I watched, some of your videos and, and, that you had on YouTube and I was like, you know, that makes sense.

[00:09:20] Joel Pruttis: And then what really hit home for me was, the journey that you've been on. You've been in the cancer [00:09:30] field, you've done, what I'll call Western medicine. And if I've learned anything in life, it's like these people that have had full lives and had journeys and maybe been on that side of the fence and like, you know what?

[00:09:44] Joel Pruttis: This isn't working. that, that really resonated with me just because I, I've made some changes in my life and I know how difficult that is and, and so right away in my mind. I [00:10:00] felt that, you know, you must feel really strongly about this in order to uproot your life like that, and that that's probably ultimately what made me get ahold of you was just understanding that alone.

[00:10:12] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah. And even when we met, if I remember this correctly, you were still not sure, you were like, you saw me, and you're like, I'm not sure about this whole thing with water fasting. Is that, is that true? You, you had some concerns? Like what were you worried about, when you thought about doing a prolonged water fast?[00:10:30]

[00:10:30] Joel Pruttis: well, there was a couple things, you know, for us, it's winter and, you know, extremely cold and, and so. Not being able to do anything for three weeks. You know, I, I, didn't wanna put that burden on my son, you know, he had a, his first baby on the way, and whatnot. So, you know, I have two wood stoves in my house.

[00:10:50] Joel Pruttis: I do have electric heat, but I primarily try to heat with wood. so, you know, I was concerned about the timing. And then also, just a little bit [00:11:00] skeptical. I mean, Just because of everything else that happens in the, in the medical community. It's like I, I've been, you know, misled or, or dealt with doctors that aren't concerned about what I want.

[00:11:13] Joel Pruttis: You know, before I found my doctor for hormone replacement, my primary care doctor, I went in for an annual physical and I was like, I want to have my testosterone checked. He was like, no, you don't need it. He was flat, wouldn't do it. So. To say that, you know, I [00:11:30] wasn't skeptical, with anything in the medical field would, would not be accurate.

[00:11:34] Joel Pruttis: So, you know, I, I did, when I did the consultation with you, I, I had some reservations, even with everything that I had, you know, researched about you and your program and stuff, and, and, but, in the end it, it made sense to me.

[00:11:50] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah. And was it for you? Why water fasting? What, what about that appealed to you? Was it the, that your body could, let's see what your body can [00:12:00] naturally do to heal itself with this, or what was it that that ultimately made you decide to go forward?

[00:12:06] Joel Pruttis: yeah, there was nothing about just drinking water for two weeks. That was appealing to me, but I, I had started the carnivore diet. and I would be on it and off it, since, you know, I was about 50 years old and I, I had seen results there and just the name of your podcast, born to Heal, and you talking about our bodies [00:12:30] naturally meant to heal. I, I definitely feel that way. It's kind of the same. We try and manage our animals. You know, we've done the same thing with livestock, where we've gone through and overmedicated and things like that and it doesn't work. you turn 'em out on green grass and leave them alone and good water and all of a sudden they're doing better.

[00:12:50] Joel Pruttis: So, but there was a point when I did my consultation with you that it was a leap of faith for me to just trust you with the process.

[00:12:59] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah.

[00:12:59] Joel Pruttis: I [00:13:00] decided to do that, then it just went from there.

[00:13:03] Dr. Katie Deming: Beautiful. So tell me what was the experience? I know that nobody looks forward to 14 days with nothing but water. It sounds terrible, but what was your experience in the fast? And then we're gonna get to your results. 'cause this is one thing that people always wanna hear. And with Joel, we do have results, from what is PSA has done after the fast, but.

[00:13:24] Dr. Katie Deming: Tell us what was the experience like for you? Was it what you expected? Was it horrible? Was [00:13:30] it

[00:13:30] Joel Pruttis: No, no, no. It, it was just the opposite. So the, the. The water fasting was actually easier than I thought it would be. And I have fasted before for short times or not been able to eat at certain times, you know, in my life, you know, when we were doing different things. But, what really got me with, with your program is it had so much more than just the fasting, you know, the people you were bringing in every day and, [00:14:00] and the.

[00:14:01] Joel Pruttis: The overall view you took of healing was just blew me away honestly. I, I didn't expect half of that. and I have, you know, done some research and done healing on my own the hard way, and I read a lot and trying to educate myself, but the information that, that you had there in those two weeks for me was just unbelievable.

[00:14:28] Joel Pruttis: Yeah. So [00:14:30] it, it was a, it was a great experience, honestly. it made me take some time. it made me think about some things, in my life. You get a lot of mental clarity. I learned that. I actually really enjoy cooking more than eating, actually I was trying to make breakfast for my son and everybody that's around you when you're fasting's like, well, I don't want to eat.

[00:14:51] Joel Pruttis: You know? ‘ cause they think that if, you know, you smell food or something's gonna be hard, and it's like, no, I'm fine. I'm, it's like, you know, there, [00:15:00] there's a few days there that are tough and then you kind of turn the corner and, and you know, and probably after the first week I just started getting this feeling like this is working.

[00:15:12] Joel Pruttis: And then I can't, I can't put my finger on it. I can't tell you, oh, I had a, you know, a lump and it went away and anything like that. It's just a feeling that I got that this is working and, and after going through the fast and coming out of it, you know, I realized that [00:15:30] like. you know, my flow is better when I urinate now and stuff, and things I didn't think about before because it probably happened so gradually, but I was like, yeah, this, this is a little bit better.

[00:15:40] Joel Pruttis: This is improved and, you know, and whatnot. And then when I got done with the Fast and, and went through the refeeding and whatnot, I was feeling really good then. And, and at one point, you know, I sat back and, and. [00:16:00] Thought, you know, what would it have looked like if I would've went and done a biopsy and got an infection, or maybe they damaged some nerves, or, you know, maybe they poked a hole in this thing and spread it.

[00:16:16] Joel Pruttis: And then what would, I've gone through chemo, radiation, you know, and when I look at all those things and, and I, I try to, in my mind. Think about how that would be my life. 'cause I don't know, I, I've never [00:16:30] been through those processes, so I don't know. But I sit here and think, but instead, I took three weeks off. Got a ton of great information about, emotional healing and, and whatnot. Got us some great information on cooking. got to do a fast, got to be in with a community of people that were. Very thoughtful. Got to work with you and your team who, you know, I, I, [00:17:00] I can't give you enough faculty 'cause I, I will never be able to tell you how grateful I am to you.

[00:17:06] Joel Pruttis: but I'm like, but instead of that horror movie playing out, I stayed at home, I relaxed, I fasted, and now I'm healing, you

[00:17:18] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah.

[00:17:19] Joel Pruttis: My oldest son said to me, you know, because I see him every day and we work together and he was here every day, you know, during the fast and he was doing chores and check [00:17:30] on me and stuff like that.

[00:17:31] Joel Pruttis: And we'd have conversations. And at one point he asked me, he's like, how is what they're doing to people not criminal? And I said, I don't know. It's just not the mainstream way, I guess, you know, but. When I, that for me, after the fact, when I compare those two things, just what that, the anxiety and what I would put my body through doing that, compared to what I did was, it's, it's difficult to even think [00:18:00] about.

[00:18:00] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah, and when he was saying. How can that not be criminal? Meaning the conventional medicine approach of pushing you into biopsy and doing all of those things? Yeah.

[00:18:12] Joel Pruttis: Could. I mean, think about how much different my life would've been between, the 22nd of September when I met with my doctor and I did a consultation with you. If that doctor had said to you, well, he goes, if he'd have just said, Hey, well, you know that, you know, you might wanna just try a fast first and see [00:18:30] we can do a supervised fast with you.

[00:18:32] Joel Pruttis: You'll be at home. It's no big deal. And see what we get for results. Just imagine, you know, how much more at peace or how much less anxiety I would have in, in, my life during that time and. You think you have things going on in life, but just let somebody tell you to your face that, you know, we think you got cancer.

[00:18:54] Joel Pruttis: And, there's a doctor I follow line, Anthony Chaffee, and I think I, it's swear I've heard it. He's like, [00:19:00] he like says it all the time. You know, everybody has a thousand problems until you have a serious medical condition and then you have one problem. that's true.

[00:19:07] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah, absolutely. And I think, you know, one of the things, I remember this, you know, your log in the very beginning, you said a couple things in there that I wanna tease out is that, you know, the first couple days it's being around food. It's tempting you want to eat, but then once you get to like day four, you're not really hungry.

[00:19:25] Dr. Katie Deming: And what you just described with your, you know, liking to cook actually while you were [00:19:30] fasting. People are always surprised by that. But I think it's important for people to understand that once you get to about day four on a fast, you're not really interested in food. You, you kind of are settled in and it's not, you're not hungry.

[00:19:44] Dr. Katie Deming: And then also the smells of the food, your senses start coming online in different way, and you. Get pleasure out of just being around the smells. And the one piece that I found really weird, I didn't expect this, but that people would like to watch their family members [00:20:00] eat. Like they would sit at the table and like the smell and then the crunching sounds, and like the chewing, which sounds so weird.

[00:20:07] Dr. Katie Deming: Like normally we're, you know, annoyed by people who are chewing too loud next to us. But when you're fasting, you start. The little subtle, your senses are heightened. So just being around kind of sensory information of people eating is actually really pleasurable and intriguing. So I, and it sounds like for you, cooking was something [00:20:30] that you really enjoyed being that during the fast, but also you didn't mind being around other people who are eating.

[00:20:35] Dr. Katie Deming: Is, is that correct? Is

[00:20:36] Joel Pruttis: No, not at all. Yeah, I, I wanted to cook for my son, but he was like, no, no, no, that's okay. And, you know, and, and then I started, you know, doing all kinds of meal prep and making, you know, chicken stock and doing all kinds of things when I was fasting. and I think you're right. I, I think. Part of the thing of, of being around the food or, or watching people eat, you know, it's like [00:21:00] other things in my life.

[00:21:01] Joel Pruttis: It's like you don't really appreciate certain things until they're gone outta your life. And then you're like, oh, you know, and that time at the table. So, you know, I live alone now, but my son comes over and a lot of times, we'll, we'll eat breakfast together. And then, and just not having that time, you know, change, change things a little bit.

[00:21:21] Joel Pruttis: So. You know, I, the dealing with the, just having water or drinking water and no food, that [00:21:30] really didn't bother me so much. It's all the other things that I had never really thought about before. Took for granted, you know, that, that, kind of rose to the surface and it was, it was a good experience for me overall, really was.

[00:21:43] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah. No. And I also, you, you mentioned in there saying how you felt like your, your body was healing. And I remember that from your log that you would, you know, in the log each day. clients fill this in, basically they fill in their, their vitals for me, but also [00:22:00] fill in kind of notes. And for you, Joel. As you were settling in, it was like, you are like, I can feel my body healing.

[00:22:07] Dr. Katie Deming: I can feel this, you know, working that my body is working to heal itself. And it's an interesting thing because it's very subtle, right? And it's subtle, which is why I think it. You know, when you're fasted, you can sense that. You can sense, oh, my body is actually, my body knows what to do, and it's working on healing itself.

[00:22:28] Dr. Katie Deming: And so I love that you [00:22:30] mentioned that because sometimes. It's really that subtle of like just noticing, okay, I feel like my body's working on itself. But then after you refeed or even during the refeeding is when people start to notice, oh, oh wow. Actually, you know what? I realized that before this, my urinary stream was really slow and now I have a nice stream.

[00:22:52] Dr. Katie Deming: Actually, I just had a gentleman finish refeeding today with bladder cancer and he had had, you know, kind of A-T-U-R-B-T, [00:23:00] which is a clean out the. The, bladder and kind of scrape it. And ever since then he had had like a weakened stream and then also, you know, less control of his bladder. And he was like, I didn't even actually realize it until just the other day because you know, you're living with it.

[00:23:17] Dr. Katie Deming: You're living with it. And then. It's changing during the fast, but he's like, I realized I can actually hold my urine now. Like if I need to go to the bathroom, I used to have to like immediately get to the bathroom. Now I can hold it. My [00:23:30] stream is stronger, you know? And so it's interesting that you mention that, that those are things that sometimes it takes time after to.

[00:23:37] Dr. Katie Deming: Oh wait, actually it is better than it was. If I look back to where I was before, the fast, my urination or whatever it is, was, you know, worse before. So you mentioned that, that maybe your urinary stream has improved. Are there any other things physically that you notice now in retrospect that are better after the fast than they were before?

[00:23:56] Joel Pruttis: Yeah, you know, I've, I've started working out again. [00:24:00] I'm definitely, leaner now and putting on muscles. So I, you know, before I started the fast, I was taking, testosterone and, and at one point I was taking a thyroid medication and all kinds of supplements and stuff, and, and obviously stop those for the fast.

[00:24:19] Joel Pruttis: The only thing I've been supplementing, since then is iodine, but I'm, I'm not taking testosterone. my thyroid was all over the place, you know, it was high during [00:24:30] this, this time of my PSA rising, it would be high, then it would be low, and they had me medicated. So I don't think that's something that I, that I told you the other day.

[00:24:38] Joel Pruttis: But, my thyroid now, my TSH is 2.27, right. Probably where it, right in the middle, where it needs to be. So, yeah. you know, the other thing I, you know, talking about things I've noticed is that I've had hay fever most of my life, and, which is crazy, you know, to be on a ranch, but, but I [00:25:00] manage it and it just, it seems like my sinuses are always plugged or I have a, you know.

[00:25:04] Joel Pruttis: Or sinus infection or something like that. But since the fast, my sinuses are clear and I can breathe through my nose a lot better. And so there's lots of subtle things. You know, the, the one way I would describe it, you know, in, in other ways that I talk about in my life is that, you know, when things start to go sideways for you, that death by a thousand cuts, you just don't notice it.

[00:25:26] Joel Pruttis: It's a little thing here, a little thing there. And that's what [00:25:30] concerns me about conventional medicine is, oh we'll just. Give you this pill, and then we'll just give you this pill and then we'll just give you this pill. talking with my son and daughter now with newborn babies, they want to give like 27 shots before they're a year old, really.

[00:25:48] Joel Pruttis: so that's the thing, is there's all these things that came from fasting with you that I wasn't expecting. I mean, I, I was concentrated on my PSA. [00:26:00] But there, there's all these other things that have seemed to have cleared up and are better now, and, again, I I just really appreciate the opportunity to fast with you and, and your program.

[00:26:13] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah, no, it was a pleasure having. You in there. And what's interesting is, you know, before you, I had very few men actually, now I've had, like recently I've had quite a few men who came through the program. But, before that I, I really didn't. And so [00:26:30] I hadn't, with prostate cancer or PSA, I hadn't seen, you know, what can happen, with the PSA and you know.

[00:26:37] Dr. Katie Deming: I think it'd be helpful for the audience to hear what happened with your PSA after doing the fast. So it was, you know, we had one measure of 6.55, but 5.7 was kind of the one that you were u that the doctor Right. Was using, is that right? Your And, what was your PSA after the fast.

[00:26:57] Joel Pruttis: So I finished Refeeding [00:27:00] on the 15th of February, and I think when we talked, you're like, you know, you don't need to retest for six weeks or something like that. But, I was interested to see where my testosterone was, which by the way, going into the fast, it was a hundred points lower than it is now. Just for. Something else that throw out there. But now my, my PSA, I had it checked on the 12th of March. I wanted to have my testosterone checked and our lab in town is doing some wellness [00:27:30] labs now, so I could have that done. And, and so when they gave me the sheet to do the testosterone, I seen PSA right next to it.

[00:27:36] Joel Pruttis: So I was like, oh, okay, we're taking blood, we might as well do it. But, when I got the results back, I forgot to call them. So I had to wait the weekend, and then on Monday they emailed them to me and my PSA is 2.34 now. So, and I haven't seen, the last time I seen a number, that low would've been in June [00:28:00] of 21.

[00:28:01] Dr. Katie Deming: Wow.

[00:28:02] Joel Pruttis: Yep. So, and, and again, you know, I, I have to. Kind of refrain because my, my first instinct is to grab my labs and go down to the urologist and be like, Hey, could you take a look at this and tell me what happened here? You know, but, I really don't want no part of that. But I do think it's important for people to know that, you want to be an [00:28:30] active participant in your own health, and.

[00:28:34] Joel Pruttis: I don't feel, this is my opinion, that you can necessarily trust the medical community in conventional medicine as a whole. I think it's a business. I have heard several people refer to the Goldman Sachs, you know, cell phone leak there, where their business model was. They were in a meeting there at Goldman Sachs and talking about is it really a good business model to heal [00:29:00] people?

[00:29:00] Joel Pruttis: Or do we make more money if we treat 'em for life? And you know, once I heard that, it made me think and then, you know, now I wonder. So, and I'm not, I'm not saying anything. It's like any profession out there. Whatever. There's good doctors, there's bad doctors, you know, there's good lawyers, there's bad lawyers, there's good police officers.

[00:29:21] Joel Pruttis: There's bad police officer. I've seen it everywhere. I've gone in life. But when it comes to your health, you, you know, how much, [00:29:30] how much risk can you really take? You know? And it's not one of those things that it's like, oh, well if I go do this, I'll lose $500, but it'll be fine when, let's say they told me, okay, yeah, we did a biopsy, it's definitely cancer.

[00:29:45] Joel Pruttis: We need to remove your prostate. Do you know what that looks like for the rest of my life as a man? my life would never be the same, you know, and just from the things I've, I've read and researched, you know, you can't [00:30:00] control when you urinate. you know, your sex life is over. you're not gonna have the vitality that you normally would.

[00:30:08] Joel Pruttis: you're done. You know, it's gonna be very difficult and I, I shouldn't say that 'cause I'm sure there's people that have had it done that are doing okay, but for the way I live my life, it would, it would, it would be very disruptive and, and I think it would probably cause some long-term depression, honestly.

[00:30:28] Dr. Katie Deming: [00:30:30] Yeah, no, absolutely. Well, and what's interesting is one of your fellow Fast, he's gonna be on the show in a couple weeks. He also had prostate cancer, but he did do the surgery first, and then his PSA was still elevated after. The prostatectomy suggesting that there was disease left behind and they were recommending radiation and hormone therapy, and he basically decided to do the fast, as a way to see if he could avoid the radiation [00:31:00] and the hormone therapy.

[00:31:01] Dr. Katie Deming: And the beautiful thing about him as well is that he just messaged me and his PSA also went down and when he went back to the doctor, they said, no, actually we're not gonna recommend radiation at this point. Your PSA is going down. We don't know what you're doing, but we're gonna watch and see what happens here.

[00:31:18] Dr. Katie Deming: So I think it's. it is life changing. And actually what's beautiful about his story is that he, he did have catastrophic side effects from the surgery where he could not, you know, urination was not [00:31:30] controlled, had to have an indwelling catheter, and after the fast, his bladder was working again.

[00:31:35] Dr. Katie Deming: So he went from completely incontinent of urine to be continent again. You know, and so you're absolutely right that having a prostatectomy. Can cause catastrophic, complications that affect the rest of your life. You know, being incontinent of urine or having erectile dysfunction permanently.

[00:31:56] Dr. Katie Deming: Those are things that are real life changing [00:32:00] events, so it's not a low risk decision of what to do. And, you know, for you, what I love about what you did was, you're like, well, let me just see. Before I go down that route of doing any of these other things, let's just see. Maybe, you know, a water fast could help, and if it does, there's really no downside, right?

[00:32:19] Dr. Katie Deming: There was three weeks outta your life and with you being a rancher, having to figure out how to cover the ranch was kind of the biggest deal, but you figured that out. And then look. [00:32:30] Not only is your PSA down now, but also your thyroid has normalized, your testosterone is going up, your seasonal allergies are improved.

[00:32:41] Dr. Katie Deming: You feel more at peace. It's like, why are we not, like, why is this not something that we're talking about? And then the crazy part is you go and talk to your doctor about this and they're gonna say, well, that's gonna make, you're gonna die if you fast. You know? So it's like, it's the

[00:32:56] Dr. Katie Deming: exact opposite.

[00:32:58] Joel Pruttis: I can't, you [00:33:00] know. I would love to go put that lab on their desk and ask 'em that question, but I know myself too well, and you know, after being in the military and in law enforcement, I'm no stranger to violence. And, you think about the difference in what they wanted to do to me compared to what you did for me.

[00:33:20] Joel Pruttis: And if that's not upsetting to you, then nothing is. But somebody's gonna take your life away as a man essentially, is what they're gonna do. and [00:33:30] nobody's bothering to do the research on this, you know? And, and you know, again, this is my opinion, but I know exactly why they're not, because there's way more money in conventional medicine.

[00:33:45] Joel Pruttis: And that's what I said, and that's the feeling I got when I went in there. you know, people can come after me for that or whatever. I don't, I don't care. I would gladly, I would gladly sit down with anybody that's gone through conventional [00:34:00] treatment, surgery, chemo, radiation, whatever.

[00:34:04] Joel Pruttis: I'll go have coffee with them anytime. Compare notes of what their life was like. We can even compare notes on what it cost them to do that. Compared to what it cost me and what I went through to fast with you. And that's why I say that, you know, what you're doing is I, I, I don't have enough words of praise for you.

[00:34:28] Joel Pruttis: And I knew when, [00:34:30] when I researched you, that you were primarily dealing with women and mostly, you know, a lot of your content was about breast cancer. But I was like, after watching, uh, I think it's Dr. Thomas Sifri talk about cancer. He said they're all the same. So I was like, well, if it's gonna work there, it's gonna work here.

[00:34:45] Joel Pruttis: So, you know, and whatnot. But, but yeah, I would love to do a cost comparison with somebody, both, both emotionally and financially.

[00:34:55] Dr. Katie Deming: And physically,

[00:34:56] Joel Pruttis: Yeah. And then, and then we can, then we can figure [00:35:00] out, you know, are people really trying to help you? Are they making money?

[00:35:03] Dr. Katie Deming: yeah. Well, thank you Joel, for being willing to come on and, and share your story. And, you know, as much as it, it actually pains me to think about, I think that most doctors go into medicine because they really wanna help people. But then once you're in, it is a system and it is designed to make money for big pharma and that.

[00:35:29] Dr. Katie Deming: [00:35:30] Unfortunately, there is a lot of money to be made there by people staying sick and, and that is one of the things that I was ready to step out of and just say, you know what? I wanna see what's possible. I wanna see what people can do on their own and get ahead of that. And so I love your story in that.

[00:35:48] Dr. Katie Deming: You didn't have to suffer all those consequences that you took, you know, this short time out three weeks and probably cost you $3,000 for a thousand dollars a week of fasting. And [00:36:00] to have the result that you have, I think is something that most people don't even know is possible. So thank you for coming on and sharing your story and also for trusting me to come with me.

[00:36:11] Dr. Katie Deming: It's been truly a pleasure to have you on the show, Joel.

[00:36:14] Joel Pruttis: absolutely. I, I, like I said, I can't say enough about your program and, and I don't think most people will ever understand what it was like for you to leave, the conventional medicine. You know, I know how that is when you go [00:36:30] against the grain, and especially for doctors, and I don't think that most doctors are malicious.

[00:36:36] Joel Pruttis: I think a lot of ‘ em have just gotten complacent. They're trusting information that's not correct. The pharmaceutical industry, you know, that that's a tough thing, you know? when you look at vaccinations and they have immunity, why is that? why is that? Why don't we, why don't we give doctors immunity?

[00:36:53] Joel Pruttis: And let them speak their mind openly, you know? So, I, I just want to recognize you though, for taking that [00:37:00] step and have the courage to do that. And that's a lot of what drew me to your program, because understanding people and, being in, in law enforcement, which is the same type of profession where when you're in, you're in, and when you're out, you're out.

[00:37:15] Joel Pruttis: I know what it's like when you leave there. And, whatnot. And, and I'm sure you've probably spent a little time looking over your shoulder. So like I said, I, I appreciate your journey and that was a, a lot of the reason I was willing to, to follow you and [00:37:30] take that leap of faith with you. And, and I would recommend your program to anybody, that wants to heal naturally

[00:37:36] Joel Pruttis: for things other than cancer, but definitely for cancer.

[00:37:40] Dr. Katie Deming: Yeah, for sure. Well, and that's one of the things that you, in the program you see people healing all kinds of different things. Like, it's like I learn every day something new, um, that gets better. And I appreciate you saying all those things. And the one thing that I will say, just from doing this work now, now that I've landed with the prolonged water fasting is [00:38:00] nothing has been more rewarding than this work.

[00:38:02] Dr. Katie Deming: Nothing has been more rewarding because not only are we reversing illnesses that I wasn't told, was possible, but people are healing like the human is healing. Like, you know, people in there are coming back in connection with themselves. You know, finding peace, finding trust in their body, connecting back with real food.

[00:38:26] Dr. Katie Deming: And for me it's been truly a privilege. So, thank you for [00:38:30] giving me the opportunity because I can only do this when people trust me and, and are willing to take the leap. So thank you.

[00:38:36] Joel Pruttis: Absolutely. I mean, I, I can't even imagine how rewarding it is for you. I'm guessing that's why. You know, 95% of people become doctors to be able to reach the point that you're at right now where you're like, I'm doing something that's really working. This is really changing people's lives,

[00:38:54] Joel Pruttis: Thank you, Joel. I appreciate you. Thank you for being on the show.

[00:38:57] Joel Pruttis: thank you for having me.

[00:38:58] Dr. Katie Deming: To summarize, here are [00:39:00] the key points we covered today. First, Joel's story shows what it looks like to become an active participant in your own health, to pause, ask questions, and refuse to be rushed into irreversible treatments when something doesn't feel right.

[00:39:16] Dr. Katie Deming: Second, a prolonged fast gave his body the space to do what it was designed to do. His PSA fell from five point seven to two point three four, the lowest it had been in nearly four years, with no surgery, [00:39:30] no biopsy, and none of the life-altering side effects he feared. And third, the healing went far beyond the numbers he came in for.

[00:39:39] Dr. Katie Deming: His thyroid normalized, his testosterone rose, his lifelong hay fever cleared, and he came away with mental clarity, emotional insight, and a genuine sense of peace. I hope you leave today feeling hopeful and empowered with a renewed sense of trust that your body knows how to heal when you give it what it truly needs.

[00:39:59] Dr. Katie Deming: Thank [00:40:00] you so much for listening. I know your time and attention are valuable, and I'm very grateful that you chose to spend time with me today. I release new episodes every Tuesday and look forward to connecting with you on the next episode. If you're ready to experience what real healing feels like th- from the inside out, I'd love to have you join me for my next three-day water fast.

[00:40:19] Dr. Katie Deming: The link is in the description below. Thank you for listening, and remember, just like me, you were born to heal