Hi Dr. Stillman. What I love best about substack. Especially about doctors who write on substack is when the doctors respond to comments. I have noticed that you do not respond. I can guess that you would have a greater readership if you engaged your readers. Just a thought.
I’m one of Dr. Stillman’s patients, and I know he regularly takes questions from both patients and readers to answer on his podcasts. He covers a lot of thoughtful topics there, and I always look forward to hearing his insights. He’s also extremely busy, so the podcast seems to be his main way of responding to questions in depth.
That would be amazing. It is truly one of the best things about substack. A Dr. who does this very well is Dr. Anthony Phan who is also an extremely busy man.
Dr. Stillman, if you don’t have time to respond to comments maybe just acknowledging that you have read the comment by clicking the heart would be nice for your readers. It always feels strange to read an article, comment on it and then get total silence.
I would suggest that we all should be looking into health care 4.0. Starting with Body Area Networking. How the human body is now connected to the Internet Of Things. The Cloud,
This is a really readable reframe, and I can see why it resonates with patients who’ve been told “your body is attacking itself” and left feeling doomed.
A few thoughts from a physician-scientist lens:
1. Your core point, antibodies are a signal, not a personality trait, is worth repeating. Antibodies often mark where immune activity is happening; they don’t automatically tell us why it’s happening or whether the net effect is purely “attack” versus a mix of injury + repair signaling. That hurricane/fire-department metaphor is a good way to reduce fear without denying biology. 
2. At the same time, for autoimmune thyroid disease specifically, it’s important to keep the nuance: thyroid antibodies can be associated with immune-mediated tissue damage over time, and some people will still progress. So I like that you included the “proof of what’s possible (not a guarantee)” line, more of that humility strengthens the message, not weakens it. 
3. The “what to do today” section is the strongest part because it’s low-regret physiology: protein adequacy, potassium-rich whole foods, and morning light/circadian anchoring are foundational behaviors that tend to improve sleep, energy, metabolic signaling, and stress reactivity, whether or not someone’s antibody titers budge quickly. 
I prefer the more in depth posts, but this style will encourage more engagement
I will continue to post these as I am able to. More in-depth content coming in the book!
Yeah I'm with you.
This is the first time I have read your Stack and will do so again. I will look for your book
Hi Dr. Stillman. What I love best about substack. Especially about doctors who write on substack is when the doctors respond to comments. I have noticed that you do not respond. I can guess that you would have a greater readership if you engaged your readers. Just a thought.
I’m one of Dr. Stillman’s patients, and I know he regularly takes questions from both patients and readers to answer on his podcasts. He covers a lot of thoughtful topics there, and I always look forward to hearing his insights. He’s also extremely busy, so the podcast seems to be his main way of responding to questions in depth.
I am working on having more time for this!
That would be amazing. It is truly one of the best things about substack. A Dr. who does this very well is Dr. Anthony Phan who is also an extremely busy man.
Dr. Stillman, if you don’t have time to respond to comments maybe just acknowledging that you have read the comment by clicking the heart would be nice for your readers. It always feels strange to read an article, comment on it and then get total silence.
I would suggest that we all should be looking into health care 4.0. Starting with Body Area Networking. How the human body is now connected to the Internet Of Things. The Cloud,
This is a really readable reframe, and I can see why it resonates with patients who’ve been told “your body is attacking itself” and left feeling doomed.
A few thoughts from a physician-scientist lens:
1. Your core point, antibodies are a signal, not a personality trait, is worth repeating. Antibodies often mark where immune activity is happening; they don’t automatically tell us why it’s happening or whether the net effect is purely “attack” versus a mix of injury + repair signaling. That hurricane/fire-department metaphor is a good way to reduce fear without denying biology. 
2. At the same time, for autoimmune thyroid disease specifically, it’s important to keep the nuance: thyroid antibodies can be associated with immune-mediated tissue damage over time, and some people will still progress. So I like that you included the “proof of what’s possible (not a guarantee)” line, more of that humility strengthens the message, not weakens it. 
3. The “what to do today” section is the strongest part because it’s low-regret physiology: protein adequacy, potassium-rich whole foods, and morning light/circadian anchoring are foundational behaviors that tend to improve sleep, energy, metabolic signaling, and stress reactivity, whether or not someone’s antibody titers budge quickly. 
A shorter version would be easier for me to follow