alternative medicine

John23 said:

Kersha -
Although I'll be happy to discuss most anything "off-board", I have
always felt it best to say things out in the public domain.

My personal reasons for that are fairly simple: Any information any
of us receive should be available for questioning and/or challenged by
others in the group. It's like getting second, third and fourth opinions!

And of course, others benefit from the board only when things
are discussed on the board.

So, all that said (and feel free to drop me a note anyway), let me
begin by saying one thing about alternative medicines:

We are here because what we have is considered a terminal illness.
There isn't too much room to play, when you're playing with something
that can kill you.

It's dangerous for anyone to "self medicate"; even doctors rarely
treat themselves, just as lawyers don't defend themselves
.
When -you- have the problem, you're too close to that problem
to be able to use the good judgement you might usually have at your
disposal for other's problems.

Now, is an alternative as good as the mainstream? We can't even
ask for a "show of hands" here, since those that come here, come
here for the peer support for the mainstream medicine they're taking,
and the board doesn't give "rogue renegades" a room of our own...
(Probably be empty anyway)

I almost went the "chemo" route myself. My oncologist(s) had initially
thoroughly convinced me and my wife, that chemo was the most
important thing to do if I want to stay alive; there was no other choice.

They also said that it had to be started within the first month after the
operation, or two months at the most. They showed us charts that
managed to indicate a 60-70% better chance of survival with chemo.
And they said that once chemo began, it had to be finished; stopping
would be perilous. They wouldn't start chemo until my wounds healed.

Well.... It took almost 6 months for my wounds to heal, and at that time
they said that chemo was a 50/50 chance; and also admitted that initially,
chemo wouldn't have given me a 60-70% better chance, the real figure
was 2%, and that's not including second cancers, etc.....

So.... what to do? My TCM practitioner didn't believe in using herbs to
kill cancer cells specifically. He already had two late-term cancer patients
in his care that western medicine gave up on. For them, he was doing
what his Chinese schooling taught, and that was to work on the patient's
immune system, etc. (Both patients remain in fine shape, to this day).

The difference between those patients and me, was that they had chemo
to kill cancer, and even though it didn't work well enough, it did kill
some tumors.

I wanted to kill cancer cells first and foremost, and also get my immune
system working...

So I did a ton of research, and found herbs that are said to kill cancer cells.
My TCM doc didn't have those herbs, and didn't use them in his practice,
but he agreed to help me if I ran into problems taking the herbs.

I bought the herbs from an importer of medicinal strength herbs here
in Florida. The cost was minimal, with a months supply costing around $100.

The herbs are cooked in 9 cups of water, reducing it to 3 cups. The
mess is then strained and cooled. I drank 3 cups per day, for a six month
period, then nothing for six months, and repeated again, for six months.

I did have some problems, but my TCM doc gave me herbs to get my
system back on track each time I did. There's a combination of a toxic
effect of too many cancer cells dying at once, and/or the (possible) toxic effects
and system imbalances caused by too much of one or another of the herbs.

That.... is the reason the herbs should not be taken without a qualified
doctor of TCM, or a qualified herbalist on hand to oversee your condition
every step of the way.

My last scans were the same as each past year's series..... clean. CEA= 0.6.

I keep in mind, that my condition is subject to change for the worse at any time,
just as it could, had I gone the mainstream route; There are no guarantees.

Herbs cannot be used as a substitute for surgery; If you have a tumor that's
about to kill you, have it removed.

There is nothing "wrong" with taking the chemotherapy route, but don't let
fear drive you to it.

Do not ever, allow fear to steer you into an alternative either. Take your time
and try to lose your fears, and make choices that your own instinct tells you
is right.

People can die of cancer after taking chemo, just as they can die of cancer
after using an alternative to chemo; there is no guarantee with anything.

Many here are "juicing" to help fight against cancer, and it appears to be
working out just fine! It's very interesting to learn of all the ways one can
do battle against cancer, and have great results to show for it.

To tell you the truth...... I just can't understand the logic of making yourself
sick as a dog, with the notion that it will help you survive.

It really does sound ridiculous, doesn't it? Weaken the immune system,
make your body so sick you can hardly stand up, give yourself severe
neurological problems that may be permanent, and do it all in the name of
"trying to get better".

I guess that's just my silly inner self talking.....trying to make sense
of what seems so wrong, while doctors tell us it's right.

Some good reading material is here:
http://www.taoofherbs.com/articles/56/BasicsOfTCM.htm


Stay well; think healthy.

John

John23 said:

Carl_Renee -


Re:
"It is a couple hours away so may move the RV there and see where life takes us..."

Congratulations on the RV life! My friend and his wife full-timed for
ten years before moving back into their home. My wife and I full-timed
for about two years while looking for a new home in Florida.

Full-timing or not, it's a great way to go!! Living in an RV really brings new
life to old relationships..... (or it causes you to commit murder) (haha).

TCM has been used as an adjuvant to chemotherapy for many years
by oncologists that allow it. Both my oncologists would not permits me
to use TCM for the side effects of chemo, claiming that "if it takes away
the side effects, it may take away the usefulness".

Imagine that? They would prefer to use more drugs to take away the
side effects that other drugs are causing, and disregard the interaction
of compounding drugs that haven't been thoroughly tested with one another.

By the way.... some new studies have indicated that it might be the
drugs that are used to counteract the side effects, that could be causing
"chemo brain". Good grief. They had been saying that "chemo brain"
isn't a fact, it's just a myth.....

Don't allow fear to steer you into anything, alternative or otherwise.
I think you're headed into the right direction... Getting healthy in spite
of cancer, is the way to go. A healthy body fights best! And we have to
continually do battle.

Keep us all posted, willya'?

Best wishes for a long, long life!

John