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Note - You can read more about how I
developed this healing regimen in the holistic
center.
I drafted this in response to a recent email and realized with a
little editing it was my "Healing Regimen". Remember, I am not a
medical professional - I am a reasonably well educated patient who has
become a human guinea pig in search of a cure for Aplastic Anemia. I am not
selling anything or recommending any magic formula or cure all. It is all free
lifestyle changes that will help you in your battle to regain control of your
immune system.
The fundamental strategy I have adopted is to Provide a
Healthy Environment to Allow My Body to Heal Itself.
- Take the time to read everything at my
site because it chronicles my journey and many others with all
the ups and
downs - http://aplasticcentral.com.
Start and end with My Journey and this Holistic
Approach. I tried ATG and the toxic drugs regimen, I
was a candidate for Bone Marrow Transplant and decided
against it. I was also very close to undergoing another
toxic strategy using a drug called cytoxin. I decided
against all of them and have taken a "Natural or
Alternative Approach". The good news is that it is
not expensive - the bad news is you have to make radical
changes in your lifestyle and diet and it took almost 6
months before I stabilized. I am now transfusion
independent and have 85 % of my old life back!
- Read the books by Dr. Sherry Rogers that
can be found at either http://amazon.com
or http://prestigepublishing.com.
If possible, start with an environmental
or chemical allergy doctor if you can find one. If not,
maybe go online and start with http://www.macrobiotics.org/default.html
and try to build from there using other links I provide at
http://aplasticcentral.com/Alternative_Medicine/alternative.htm
(bottom of page). Also check this website http://www.geocities.com/marlakins/index.html
- Marla uses a vegetable based diet and is very
knowledgeable on how virtually everything impacts our
immune system. I use a
vegetable and macrobiotic combination. Other very
good sources that have been recommended by Marla and
others include: http://www.gerson.org,
http://www.godshealthplan.com/healthtips/healthtips.html,
- Set a goal to become transfusion and drug
independent. Maintain the transfusion regimen
because it is necessary to keep you alive while you fight
your fight, but set goals to lengthen the time between
transfusion and then meet the goals (It takes time and
there will be setbacks so also be patient with yourself).
As of December 14, 2002 it has been nearly seven months since my
last blood transfusion and nearly four months since my last
platelet transfusion.
- Make the necessary lifestyle changes
based on the belief that AA is an autoimmune disorder and
we need to help our body rebalance its immune system.
Avoid the "quick fix" cures with herbs and shark
oil or any "other one stop shop for a
cure" Many of them may help but it is the
understanding of a full program that will result in
success.
- Become at peace with your self and your
illness - If you are a "Type A", become a
"Type B". Dr. Bernie Siegel says that a
positive attitude is perhaps the most important ingredient
in combating illness and disease.
- Give your body the rest it is asking for
- Even if it means sleeping 10 hours a night - It is
literally battling for your life and needs all the help
you can give it. Take naps when you feel tired, but also
push yourself to exercise as much as you can.
- Get tested for toxins by the
environmental or chemical allergist and take the antigens
prescribed. Avoid people who smoke, use lots of
perfumes, gasoline fumes, etc. After a while you
will virtually smell and feel the things to avoid. Go for
fresh air and sunlight. Get a good air cleaner (mine
cost about $500) and use it to clean the air in your
sleeping room. Keep the dusts and pollens down.
- Find a regimen that will help eliminate
harmful toxins from your system (I take a daily sauna).
Clean up your personal environment. Get rid of
carpets (I moved to a different house with hardwood
floors). Avoid chemicals in your house and
environment. Pay very careful attention to your physical environment -
Clean air? (get a good quality air filter - $500) Mine is an Austin Healthmate
(Search on Austin Healthmate at http://google.com
and you'll find lots of places to by one) Avoid toxic substances (gas,
cleaning fumes, etc)
- Exercise at least 45-60 minutes per day
You will likely have to build up to this as I could barely
walk when I started)
- What you eat is critically important and
we all seem to be constantly experimenting with this
facet. The one clear theme is what NOT to eat,
i.e. processed foods, fast foods, "enriched"
flours, etc. I personally subscribe to what I
call a "rotational mostly
macrobiotic diet". As much as is humanly
possible, I eat Grains (30-60% of each meal), Greens
(25-30%) and Beans (10-15%). This means I eat lots of
Healthy Brown Rice, Oats, Barley, etc. I also try to eat only organically
grown fresh vegetables and many say you should not even cook the
vegetables (strictly raw fruits and vegetables) and I eat beans prepared from scratch (black, red,
navy and a few others). I also eat a limited amount
of meat including turkey, chicken and fish. (Once in
a while I have pork even though I know it is not good for
me, but it is a serious weakness.) I have
successfully gotten off beef. I am quite sure that everyone's situation is a bit different
and you probably need to experiment with different
wholesome foods to see what it is your body needs. After a
while you can actually feel what is good and what is not.
Obviously avoid smoking, caffeine, drugs or any kind,
processed foods (especially sugar), fast foods - All the
things your mother told you would be bad for you!
- I drink only fresh spring water
courtesy of my In Laws. They have a natural spring on
their property and we make a weekly trip to their property and
then refrigerate the water. I strenuously avoid soda,
caffeine drinks, sweetened drinks, etc.
- I also must tell you that I do a daily
colon cleansing routine using a coffee enema as
prescribed by Dr. Sherry Rogers in her books
"Tired or Toxic." Yuk, Ugh, etc. but it
works. Here is the
procedure and history.
- Research and read everything you can find
that discusses these alternative approaches and decide
what will work best for you and be willing to a make the
necessary changes. Keep a journal so you can refer
back to it. You will definitely feel overwhelmed and
confused at times. That is one of the reasons I keep
this website active and chronicle all my successes and
failures. If you falter, regroup and start
over.
- Do not lose hope or become discouraged
because your outlook is critical. Maintain a positive
attitude - When you lose you way, come back and read the
success stories and words of hope at my site.
- Find spiritual peace - I became active in
church and strengthened my faith in God after drifting
away for a long time. Everyone of us needs three
things: Someone to love, something to do and something to
hope for.
- Do a personal fund raiser - I had a golf
tournament and raised the money I needed to attend the
treatment center in Dallas (EHCD) and cover expenses not
covered by insurance. My wife, daughters and friends
organized it and it was very successful. I had a second
one primarily to let people know that their kindness
worked. It was hundreds of people giving small amounts but
added up to a big enough number to cover my expenses.
- Keep up with the forum and become an
active participant. Surround yourself with positive
people and bombard yourself with positive
thoughts.
- Seek God's Blessing and Good Luck in Your
Endeavor!
As Dr. Kenneth Bock states in his book "The Road to
Immunity", No one therapy works all the time, just as nothing is 100
percent preventive. When my patients start out with an attitude of "This
is It", I counsel them that healing is the result of hard work at many
levels, and their healing regimen may involve many different treatments and
approaches used simultaneously.
Another step by step plan I recently recommended in an email:
Unfortunately there is no "quick fix" solution that will boost the
bone marrow. I have been on my alternative approach now for about a year
and my counts are just now beginning to stabilize (not yet going up). As
I tell everyone, I am not a medical professional and I am very careful in
my advice to anyone regarding this potentially life and death situation.
If I were to do it over again, I would try this approach before
subjecting my body to the toxic treatments recommended by most docs these days
(ATG, BMT, steroids, chemo, etc.):
Step 1 - Find an allergist and try to determine what foods and other
substances you are allergic to - i.e. what is causing your immune system to be
out of balance
Step 2 - If you are unable to find an allergist, then take a body
flushing approach by going on the macrobiotic - 50% grains, 30% leafy greens
or vegetables , 10% beans 10% soups" diet prescribed by Dr. Sherry Rogers
in her book, The Cure is In the Kitchen - ISBN 0-9618821-3-1.
(I started with that diet change way back when and still go back to it as a
way to flush the junk out of my system - It takes weeks before you notice
any change)
Step 3 - Pay very careful attention to your physical environment -
Clean air? (get a good quality air filter - $500) Mine is an Austin Healthmate
(Search on Austin Healthmate at http://google.com
and you'll find lots of places to by one) Avoid toxic substances (gas,
cleaning fumes, etc)
Step 4 - Drink ONLY purified water -Pure spring water is even better - Lose
the soda, coffee, etc.
Step 5 - (This one is kinda ugly, but it works) - Do a coffee enema every day
- Boil 4 cups of water with 4 table spoons of coffee and do treatments of 2
cups each - According to Dr. Sherry Rogers this type of remedy was commonplace
less than 20 years ago and helps to flush the toxins out of your digestive
system
Step 6 - Reduce the stress in your life - I dramatically changed from a
"Type A" driver personality to a much more relaxed "Type B' -
Reducing the stress on your system is critical to the success of anything you
have her do. Be sure to get plenty of rest as your body is fighting a
very significant battle and sleep is critical.
Step 7 - If at all possible, buy or locate a CLEAN sauna and do daily sauna as
described above
Step 8 - DO maintain regular visits with Dr. , monitor blood counts and get
transfusions as necessary - The doctors are instrumental in keeping you alive
while you try the approach. But avoid the steroids and other chemical
toxins they may want to prescribe.
Step 9 - Be sure to get good exercise daily starting at whatever level you can
tolerate but eventually moving to at least a good 60 minutes of walking every
day.
Step 10 - Realize it will take a LONG time and watch for small signs of
progress. There is no magic cure for this illness.
If after six months on this regimen you see no progress, then consider the
doctor's recommendations.
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