Dr. Melissa Vandermissen

✨FREE 5 DAY FERTILITY RESET CHALLENGE
..coming in hot! October 11-15

Don’t miss out on this FREE 5 day challenge to reset and jump-start your fertility 100% naturally🙌

👉just simply click the link below to sign up

AND guess what?!?

I’ll be giving away a FREE 60 minute Fertility Planning Session to one lucky lady that completes the challenge☺️

👉Click 💗

👉Click Save (so you don’t forget if you can’t sign up right this moment)

👉Click share to spread the word to your friends

👉Click the link to sign up

https://fertility.thedrmelissa.com/fertility-reset

See you soon!😘

—>If you’re struggling to conceive and answered YES to a couple of the symptoms on the graphic...you could have PCOS.

And since September is PCOS Awareness Month, it is my responsibility to shine some light on the subject.

So how is PCOS diagnosed?🤷‍♀️⁣
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This is where a lot of misunderstanding comes into play... ⁣
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👉You DO NOT have to have cysts on ovaries to receive a diagnosis of PCOS👌⁣

What?? Then why is it called ‘Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome’?🤷‍♀️

That’s a good question...and I don’t have the exact answer. But a lot more is understood now than when it coined its name.
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On the photo above, it is clearly stated that you must exhibit 2 of the clinical findings:⁣
👉Increased androgens ⁣
👉Irregular cycles (>35 days)⁣
👉Cysts on ovaries ⁣
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📍Increased androgens:⁣
This can either be determined by serum testing, which would reveal elevated testosterone or DHEA...⁣
OR ⁣
by physical examination revealing acne, male-pattern balding of head, or male-pattern hair growth/hirsutisn (ex.facial hair)⁣
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📍Irregular menstrual cycles are defined as cycles being greater than 35 days, but less than 6 months, and also non-consistent timing. ⁣
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📍Cysts on ovaries are found by way of diagnostic ultrasound with 1 or both ovaries containing: 12 or more follicles, that are between 2-9 mm in diameter. ⁣
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PCOS is one of the most common menstrual conditions in females that is misdiagnosed and/or undiagnosed.⁣
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Many women will suffer with horrible symptoms because they either haven’t had proper testing/diagnosing...OR...they have a doctor that isn’t managing the condition properly😔⁣
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So what are some ways to help manage and heal from PCOS?? 🤷‍♀️ ⁣
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Stay tuned😉😉⁣
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👉”But I just want to get pregnant”.

Yes - I understand your goal is getting that positive test. BUT I know you, and I know that having a healthy baby is also your goal.

Every year there are more and more toxins added to our daily environment, which makes it even more vital to ensuring we are properly preparing our body for pregnancy at least 3-6 months before conception.

I know this sounds like a long time, but when you understand the influence that your current health state has upon developing eggs and your overall fertility status...you won’t think twice.🤓

When I work with clients I’m not just working to get that positive test, but also to ensure we are working on improving overall health status.

This not only helps balance hormones and boost fertility, but also improves the egg quality and health so that the development that happens after conception is precise and positively influenced.🧬

So instead of just , work on you and your overall health - and the TTC portion will just fall into place.☺️✨

✨Your fertility is calling!

No matter which route you take in your fertility journey, these tips covered in the guide, will fit perfectly and work synergistically within your care plan to other treatments being utilized.

👉Just click the link in the comments for access to this simple, but comprehensive, downloadable guide.👩‍💻

Enjoy!😘

💗This is what I want for you...

I want to give every woman the ability to experience the creation of life. And the ability to love like you never knew possible, to something that you took part in creating.🙏

It’s a love that is 100% indescribable until you experience it firsthand. And it really is true - ‘A mother’s love is like no other.’💞

I know the journey of getting to this point is different for us all. But it is my calling and responsibility to help those that are willing to put everything they’ve previously been told behind them, and work towards their goal, using the very medicine that God gifted to us all.

And Yes...it is possible.

Even for those that have previously been told that IVF or donor eggs are the only way.

Because guess what?!

Your body is amazing!🙌

The female body is so perfectly and intricately designed, and even though things can easily get out of balance - it is possible to return to a healthy balance without using medications or procedures.

Your body responds so well to the gentle nudges that herbs and nutrients give, and doesn’t always agree with the yelling and shoving that medications may put forth.

Is it always easy?
No

Is it a quick process?
It really depends on many factors...but usually not.

But is it worth it when you enter pregnancy as your healthiest self, and have a positive epigenetic impact upon your developing baby?
I would say 💯YES

So take some time and think about what you truly want.

Do you want the standard medical route that could come with negative side effects, tons of appointments, and a lot of stress?

Or are you ready to take a step outside the box, find the root cause of the inability to conceive, and use nature as medicine to guide you back to your healthy, fertile self?

The choice is yours.

And If you chose the latter...I’m patiently waiting for your message of “I’m Ready”. 😘

Photo credit Brooke Prins Photography

“All gave some, Some gave All.”

May we never lose sight of the freedom that those that came before us, risked their lives for.

This year proved to many of us how incredibly lucky we are to live in America, and how fragile those freedoms are, as you watch them being stripped away. I’m more grateful then ever for the sacrifice that so many have made, and continue to make, for those freedoms.

In our home, God, Family, and Country is where our loyalties lie.🇺🇸

Thankfully there is conventionally grown produce that isn’t completely overridden with pesticides, like with the “ ”

👉Make sure to save this post for future reference while at the grocery store😉

Avocados top the “ “ list again! 🥑 Thankfully...since they are a superfood that we should be enjoying on a daily basis for many different reasons. AND they also top my list for fertility and hormone-balancing superfood👊

👉Samples show less than 2% of conventionally grown avocados contain any pesticide residue at all!😲👏

So what does this mean exactly??🤷‍♀️

The items on this list (which is a list taken from )are shown to have the least amount of pesticide residue of all the produce that was sampled and tested. Which means, if you are unable to buy organic of these items, you can buy conventionally grown and have limited amounts of pesticide residue.

Now I do personally try to buy organic as much as possible...but I live in a very small town and this isn’t always an option. So I opt for conventionally grown avocados, pineapple and asparagus on a normal basis for our family. 🤓

Thanks to the for conducting this study on an annual basis to keep us informed, and able to make healthy decisions for our family. 👏 For more info on the list for 2021, visit their site!

How many ‘high pesticide’ foods do you eat on a regular basis? 🤷‍♀️🍓

Do you apply pesticides while at home or work? 🤷‍♀️👩‍🌾

Did you know that the more exposure you have to pesticides, the more likely you are to have hormone imbalance and/or fertility issues? 🤷‍♀️

📊Studies show an association between consumption of produce with high pesticide residue AND fertility status among women.

So what exactly does this mean???🤔

👉Choose organic as much as possible, or for the very least - for the “dirty dozen list” that is released from EWG yearly. (I posted the 2021 list last week🤓)

😲With regular ingestion of high pesticide ridden foods, probability of pregnancy could decrease by 18% and a 26% decrease in probability of live birth (JAMA 2018; 178(1):17-26)

Now please don’t take this information and think that not eating produce will be the answer to this. As we know that the phytonutrients in vegetables and fruits are incredibly powerful and necessary for a healthy functioning body. But instead take this info and use it to make better choices while shopping for food.

This can be as easy as choosing to buy from your local farmer that doesn’t use pesticides on produce, or even planting your own garden. 🪴

✨Your health is by far, your greatest wealth✨

It’s here!!!🙌
(Make sure to save this for future reference😉)

Thank you for putting in the work to release this list every year.👏

These 12 offenders should be only consumed when in organic forms. Whether that means choosing certified USDA organic from the grocery store, organically grown from your local farmer, or growing in your own backyard - it’s best to avoid conventionally grown produce from this list.

Unfortunately strawberries have topped the list for the past 6 years, and are also found to have up to 10 different types of pesticides on them 😲😲😲

That alone should make your decision to only eat organic strawberries, pretty simple. 🍓🚫

👉But honestly...wouldn’t it make more sense to make the companies label and list all the chemicals used vs having to certify a product ‘free from chemicals’???🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

Those that are , pregnant, nursing, or children, are much more vulnerable to the negative effects of these toxins. So taking this list (at the very minimum) seriously is important to stay healthy. Though everyone should avoid as many toxins as possible...this is a good starting point for many that have not bought organic produce in the past.👌

This topic is talked about often with my clients, and decreasing the amount of toxins in our environment and diet is of upmost importance when trying to reach optimal health. Since there are SO many things we can’t control...we must make a clear effort to control the things we can - otherwise our body becomes overwhelmed and begins to “malfunction”.🔥

👉Thankfully there are things like avocados, that have little to no pesticide residue when conventionally grown.🥑 Stay tuned for more on the “Clean Fifteen”🤓















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Today marks the start of ⁣
👉1 in 8 women have difficulty getting pregnant ⁣
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👉7.4 million women have received infertility services during their lifetime ⁣
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👉A couple ages 29-33 with a normally functioning reproductive system has only a 20-25% chance of conceiving in any given month ⁣
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These statistics are not decreasing, but instead increasing, and I’ve made it my life’s work to change this. 💗⁣
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I’m with you - 1 in 8 😘⁣
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Are there any treatment options besides birth control/hormone therapy or surgery for ?🤷‍♀️⁣
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Of course!⁣🙌
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Nature always has our back, BUT it isn’t always the easy route. ⁣🌿
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What are some of my favorite treatment options for women that need some relief ASAP?⁣
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📍It’s always important to remember that finding the root cause to the inflammation/immune imbalances must be found...otherwise true healing will never occur.⁣
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👉Castor oil packs over the lower abdomen and/or liver for detoxification and scar tissue healing ( is the brand I rx for this😉)⁣
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👉Vitex/Chaste Tree herbal therapy to help combat the estrogen dominance and help naturally boost progesterone production (click the link in my bio for the ONLY brand that I rx to my clients )⁣
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👉Red Raspberry Leaf Tea for the pain that can occur during menstruation ( and are the brands I rx for organic tea)⁣
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👉Gotu Kola is an amazing herb that can help with soft tissue/scar tissue healing. This is a great option for endometrial healing...especially after surgery to prevent scar tissue formation. (Again, is the brand for this herb too🤓)⁣
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👉DIM is a great option to help the body properly detoxify and breakdown the estrogens from your body, to help prevent an overload of estrogen. ⁣
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👆These are just a few of the options I utilize with my clients WHILE working of the root cause and proper lifestyle changes. ⁣
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✨Want to learn more about my approach? 🤷‍♀️⁣
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Send me a DM for more details😉🩺⁣
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So you’ve got ...⁣
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Where do you start? 🤷‍♀️⁣
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This really depends on the approach that you choose. ⁣
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If you simply go to your medical provider, you will be given a fee options. ⁣
👉Hormonal birth control ⁣
👉Narcotic pain meds⁣
👉Surgery ⁣
👉or if you have a medial doc that thinks outside the box...some supplements may be added⁣
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BUT....⁣
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If you decide to seek an alternative health provider that has a functional medicine approach, you have a plethora of options...which all are based on your individual needs.👌⁣
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What are some of the common tests that I run on my clients that have endo? ⁣
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👉 hormone panel
👉 Comprehensive GI stool analysis ⁣
👉Liver function markers⁣
👉Food allergy panel⁣
👉Full thyroid panel (with antibodies) ⁣..and whatever else needs to be addressed on an indivisible basis ⁣
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🔻Endometriosis is not 1-Size-Fits-All condition -⁣
And it’s darn time we stop “treating” it like that. ⁣
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Women deserve better. ⁣
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YOU deserve better. ⁣
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And I fight like hell to get answers and find relief for the women that are stricken with this illness. ⁣
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You don’t have to do this alone....I’m here😘⁣
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🔻What are the causes behind ???⁣⁣
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Though much is still unknown with this condition, there are some things that we do know and have been able to determine within the health community over the years. ⁣⁣
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Is there 1 known cause?🤷‍♀️⁣⁣
No. ⁣⁣
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And in many cases, there may be a combination of many factors that result in endo in some women. ⁣⁣
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Possible causes that are known within the health community AND what I’ve seen clinically in my own practice:⁣⁣
👉Immune dysregulation⁣⁣
👉Estrogen dominance-caused by underlying factors ⁣⁣
👉Heightened inflammatory response⁣⁣
👉Genetic predisposition⁣⁣
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What is quite interesting, is what may be uncovered when digging deeper with the ROOT CAUSES behind the immune dysregulation, inflammation, and estrogen dominance. ⁣⁣
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What I’ve seen with my clients in these situations👇⁣⁣
📍Underlying food allergies/sensitivities ⁣⁣
📍Upper GI dysfunction/altered pH/digestive enzyme insufficiency ⁣⁣
📍Liver detoxification issues ⁣⁣
📍Gut infections ⁣⁣
📍Microbiome dysbiosis⁣⁣
📍Altered aromatase enzyme activity⁣⁣
📍Mold/ heavy metal exposure⁣⁣
📍Chronic viral infection ⁣⁣
📍Thyroid/adrenal dysfunction ⁣⁣...and more!!!⁣⁣
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But how do you get from an endo diagnosis to uncovering the actual underlying root causes? 🤷‍♀️⁣⁣
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✨I’ll cover that topic next😉⁣⁣
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So what is ❓⁣🤷‍♀️⁣
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👉This is a disorder in which women have endometrial tissue (which is normally only within the uterus) throughout other areas of the body. ⁣⁣⁣
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📍Ovaries, Colon, Abdominal Wall and Fallopian Tubes can be common sites of this tissue growth. ⁣⁣⁣
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This disorder affects about 1 out of 10 women, but may take several years for them to reach a medical diagnosis as to why they experience such pain with menstruation. (Though they are cases of “silent endometriosis” which doesn’t cause any pain, and can go undiagnosed for a very long time) 😳⁣⁣⁣
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Painful menstruation is the most common symptom with endo, but there are many others that come along too. ⁣⁣⁣
👉Very heavy periods⁣⁣⁣
👉Infertility⁣⁣⁣
👉Digestive issues/pain⁣⁣⁣
👉Pain during sex⁣⁣⁣
👉Nausea/vomiting during period⁣⁣⁣
👉Low back pain ⁣⁣⁣
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Though the exact cause of endometriosis at this point is unknown, there are factors that drive endo and its symptoms. ⁣⁣⁣
📍Estrogen dominance ⁣⁣⁣
📍Inflammation⁣⁣⁣
📍Immune dysregulation⁣⁣⁣
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Knowing that these factors are involved with endometriosis, gives a lot of insight on how to help women overcome and heal from this nasty condition. ⁣⁣⁣
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👉 I will continue on this topic and some options for testing and ‘root causes’ in the following posts⁣
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💗Photo credit to for this amazing illustration of the female anatomy with endometriosis ⁣
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—-> check out their site for more amazing photos of female anatomy🌸⁣
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1 in 10😲⁣⁣
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176 Million😲⁣⁣
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8 to 10 Years🙁⁣⁣
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30-50% 😢⁣⁣
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👆These are all numbers that women who suffer with endometriosis understand. ⁣⁣
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March is and it is my duty to shed some light on this topic to not only inform those that may not have an understanding of this disorder...but to give hope and a plan to those that suffer with this condition💗⁣⁣
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👉And just a FYI - there are options outside of the medical scope that can either greatly help downgrade the severity of endo or even heal from the condition. When the root cause is found and addressed... amazing things can happen✨⁣⁣
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Stay tuned for some interesting info regarding endometriosis over the next several days👌⁣⁣
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📍6 Tips to help ditch your 👊⁣⁣
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For those of you that fear the evil “ ” every month...I want to reinforce that negative symptoms during your period are NOT NORMAL! This is a clear sign that something is “off” and needs to be addressed. (and no...birth control is the absolute worst thing you can do if you actually want to fix the issue🙄🤦‍♀️) ⁣⁣
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There are some conditions, such as , which can cause severe pain during menstruation. If you feel that you’re unable to function and have to take narcotic pain killers for the first few days of your period...please find a doc that will dig deeper and give you the care you deserve. ⁣⁣
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But anyways...lets get to those tips😉⁣⁣
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1️⃣Engage in some light exercise or movement - walking, stretching, yoga, etc.⁣ ⁣
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2️⃣Castor oil or heat packs on your lower abdomen⁣, for a few days leading up to your period
⁣ Dr Marisol ND - Queen of the Thrones is the best brand for castor oil✨
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3️⃣Red raspberry leaf - tea or capsules (I rx Traditional Medicinals brand of tea for my clients) ⁣ this can be done daily, or at least a few days leading up to and during your period⁣
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4️⃣Magnesium - glycinate supplementation or Epsom salt bath⁣⁣
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5️⃣Vitex/Chaste Tree - herbal supplementation (MediHerb USA is the only brand I use for herbal supplementation with my clients🌱)⁣ ⁣
Message me to purchase this brand, as it is prescription 🌿
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6️⃣Find the ROOT CAUSE through functional testing with a functional medicine clinician ⁣⁣
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*(Always consult with your physician before making any changes to your diet/lifestyle) ⁣⁣
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These are some pretty simple things can that be incorporated very easily🤓⁣⁣
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👉Please reach out for any questions regarding working with me to dig deeper and get the answers you deserve🙌⁣⁣
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