Shares Your Story about why you started to live Healthier

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My Story by Jo Hainsworth
I was chronically ill for nearly 20 years. My health challenges began in earnest when I was 9 years old, and initially manifested as sinusitis, which was diagnosed by various doctors as chronic sinus infections. I was treated with antibiotics, and while the symptoms of the infections abated initially after each lot of antibiotics, my bouts with sinus infections became more and more regular. Many other symptoms started to creep in, and most of my teenage years were spent with chronic fatigue and a lot of pain throughout my body. In my 20’s, I had periods of time where I was unable to work for several months on end, because I was so fatigued and in so much pain that I wasn’t even able to muster sufficient energy to have a shower most days. While I never stopped searching for answers, and tried all manner of different natural and medical methods to heal, the lack of answers, coupled with the pain and fatigue, inevitably resulted in periods of depression.

After many visits to doctors, including various specialists, I was eventually lucky enough to come across a doctor who, while he was mystified as to how to help me, acknowledged that I was very ill and he was determined to find a way to help me. He referred me to another doctor who was also trained in naturopathic ways of healing who confirmed the diagnosis of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (a.k.a. CFS/CFIDS/ME) and Systemic Candidiasis. This doctor was able to help me to get back to functioning enough to work, and to better understand the physical aspects of my illness.

Early in 2007, my health was relatively stable so long as I stayed on the restricted diet I had adopted. I was however keenly aware that the smallest thing could tip me over. Exposure to a small amount of agricultural chemicals had in the past resulted me not being able to get out of bed except to go to the toilet and to try to eat, for two weeks. Accidental exposure to foods that I appeared to be allergic to could result in me being very ill for days on end, even if I wasn’t aware that I had eaten any of the foods (on several occasions we only tracked down that I had eaten a substance I was reacting to after I had been ill for some days with the symptoms of an allergic reaction.) Filling up the car with petrol left me with a nasty headache for hours on end, and exposure to someone’s perfume could result in me feeling sick for hours too, so I tended to have to avoid enclosed spaces like elevators, and going to things like concerts or flying in aeroplanes were often problematic.

At that time I re-discovered a form of healing that I had previously been introduced to, but had written off as being mechanical and ineffective. The method is called EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques), and involves a simple process of tapping on various acupuncture points on the body with you fingertips. Despite my initial scepticism and being sure that my allergic reactions were an inevitable result of the damage done to my immune system by the medication over the years, I decided to give EFT a go. It was a decision that I will always be very thankful for.

In three sessions, all less than an hour long, working with my partner who was also new to EFT and wanted to support me, using ideas we had picked up from reading about EFT and watching some EFT training DVDs, we got to the bottom of my life long battle with ill health. I was incredulous to discover that my problems had started at birth – when I was born with the umbilical cord wrapped several times around my neck and I was born in a very stressed state. If I had not experienced this myself, I would not believe that it was possible to heal so rapidly, with no side effects and minimal cost.

Now, 18 months on from doing those life changing EFT sessions, it’s hard to believe that I ever reacted the way I did. Long gone are the days where I couldn’t fill up the mower or car with petrol, because I would feel so incredibly unwell, and I have even occasionally been known to eat an entire pizza, followed by a desert (either one of which is a essentially a cocktail of many of my former allergens), and feel great doing so. Spring has become a season I can enjoy—in the past I avoided all flowers that had the potential to set me off with one of my reactions, and now I find myself deliberately placing my yoga mat near the flowers so I can enjoy them while breathing deeply with yoga. Where there were so many times I didn’t even have the energy to have a shower, I now live a very active life, exercising every day, and am full of energy.

I am living life with a sense of freedom that for so many years would have been unimaginable. I had no idea how much my feelings of being unsafe, that I had carried since my birth, had permeated my life, until I was released from the prison of those beliefs. It is just incredible, and something I will forever be thankful for. Where in the past, I for so long had the metaphor of myself as canary in the coalmine – alerting the world around me that what we are doing to the environment and our own bodies is not OK, the metaphor has now changed, and the canary is now out of the cage and flying free. Instead of seeing myself as weak and vulnerable, I now feel so healthy and strong that my entire self concept has changed.

Healing from my years and years of physical challenges has resulted in major changes in my life. I’m passionate about spreading the word about this amazing method, and keen to see people empowered to be using it for their own healing. I’m keenly aware that there are many people who have been unwell for some time who are not in the position to be able to afford to work with a practitioner, so I have recently written a book which is available to download free of charge from the Self Healing Portal*. If you, or anyone you know, may be able to be benefit from learning this amazing method of healing, please download and share the free e-book, called “You CAN Heal with EFT.”

I have been ordering gluten-free grains from Bob's Red Mill and am very happy with the quality of the products. www.bobsredmill.com
~ Kim

If you are looking for an acupuncture physican or information about acupuncture a great site is: www.acufinder.com.
~ Debra G.

Master Sha is an M.D. (allopathic doctor) licensed in China and Canada. He is an acupuncturist as well as a Master of Qi-Gong and Feng-Shui and a very powerful spiritual healer. Since 2003 he has been serving humanity with Soul Mind & Body Medicine. Master Sha believes that if we heal the soul first, the mind and body will follow. His mission is to serve humanity unconditionally and “teach healing to empower people to heal themselves and others.”

My schedule doesn’t provide much time to devote to reading or doing “practices” so I’ve been very happy and very impressed how devoting a very small amount of time and effort yields such big results with Master Sha’s healing methods! One of my favorite times of the week is the two hour Divine Blessings teleconference call with Master Sha on Sunday nights. He is very generous with his time and blessings and will often give a spontaneous healing gift to all the participants on the line.

Master Sha also offers Soul Songs. They are available for purchase on his Soul Song website for $5 each. (The link for his Soul Song website is on his Home Page) Be sure to download his Soul Song for Stress. It’s free! I play these songs while I drive to and from work each day and feel they have a positive energetic impact on my physical and emotional health. Also, be sure to listen to Love, Peace and Harmony which plays automatically on Master Sha’s Home Page. It’s the first Soul Song that was given to Master Sha and my favorite.
~ M.F.

I used the honey and cinnamon (recommended below) on an area of inflammation on my son's feet, and the next day it was almost gone!! This is after medications and other treatments we tried didn't work - maybe there is something to this!!!!
~ Alison P.

Facts on honey and cinnamon: It is found that a mixture of honey and cinnamon cures most diseases. Honey is produced in most of the countries of the world. Scientists of today also accept honey as a 'Ram Ban' (very effective) medicine for all kinds of diseases. Honey can be used without any side effects for any kind of diseases.Today's science says that even though honey is sweet, if taken in the right dosage as a medicine, it does not harm diabetic patients. Weekly World News, a magazine in Canada, in its issue dated 17 January, 1995 has given the following list of diseases that can be cured by honey and cinnamon as researched by western scientists:
HEART DISEASES:
Make a paste of honey and cinnamon powder, apply on bread, instead of jelly and jam, and eat it regularly for breakfast. It reduces the cholesterol in the arteries and saves the patient from heart attack. Also those who have already had an attack, if they do this process daily, they are kept miles away from the next attack. Regular use of the above process relieves loss of breath and strengthens the heart beat. In America and Canada, various nursing homes have treated patients successfully and have found that as you age, the arteries and veins lose their flexibility and get clogg e d; honey and cinnamon revitalize the arteries and veins.
ARTHRITIS:
Arthritis patients may take daily, morning, and night, one cup of hot water with two spoons of honey and one small teaspoon of cinnamon powder. If taken regularly even chronic arthritis can be cured. In a recent research conducted at the Copenhagen University, it was found that when the doctors treated their patients with a mixture of one tablespoon Honey and half teaspoon Cinnamon powder before breakfast, they found that within a week, out of the 200 people so treated, practically 73 patients were totally relieved of pain, and within a month, mostly all the patients who could not walk or move around because of arthritis started walking without pain.BLADDER INFECTIONS:
Take two tablespoons of cinnamon powder and one teaspoon of honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink it. It destroys the germs in the bladder.
TOOTHACHE:
Make a paste of one teaspoon of cinnamon powder and five teaspoons of honey and apply on the aching tooth. This may be applied three times a day until the tooth stops aching.
CHOLESTEROL:
Two tablespoons of honey and three teaspoons of Cinnamon Powder mixed in 16 ounces of tea water, given to a cholesterol patient, was found to reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood by 10 percent within two hours. As mentioned for arthritic patients, if taken three times a day, any chronic cholesterol is cured. According to information received in the said journal, pure honey taken with food daily relieves complaints of cholesterol.
COLDS:
Those suffering from common or severe colds should take one tablespoon lukewarm honey with 1/4 spoon cinnamon powder daily for three days . This process will cure most chronic cough, cold, and clear the sinuses.
UPSET STOMACH:
Honey taken with cinnamon powder cures stomach ache and also clears stomach ulcers from the root.
GAS:
According to the studies done in India and Japan, it is revealed that if honey is taken with cinnamon powder the stomach is relieved of gas.
IMMUNE SYSTEM:
Daily use of honey and cinnamon powder strengthens the immune system and protects the body from bacteria and viral attacks. Scientists have found that honey has various vitamins and iron in large amounts. Constant use of honey strengthens the white blood corpuscles to fight bacteria and viral diseases.
INDIGESTION:
Cinnamon powder sprinkled on two tablespoons of honey taken before food relieves acidity and digests the heaviest of meals.
INFLUENZA:
A scientist in Spain has proved that honey contains a natural
Ingredient which kills the influenza germs and saves the patient from flu.
LONGEVITY:
Tea made with honey and cinnamon powder, when taken regularly, arrests the ravages of old age. Take four spoons of honey, one spoon of cinnamon powder and three cups of water and boil to make like tea. Drink 1/4 cup, three to four times a day. It keeps the skin fresh and soft and arrests old age. Life spans also increases and even a 100 year old, starts performing the chor es of a 20-year-old.
PIMPLES:
Three tablespoons of honey and one teaspoon of cinnamon powder paste. Apply this paste on the pimples before sleeping and wash it next morning with warm water. If done daily for two weeks, it removes pimples from the root.
SKIN INFECTIONS:
Applying honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts on the affected parts cures eczema, ringworm and all types of skin infections.
WEIGHT LOSS:
Daily in the morning one half hour before breakfast on an empty stomach and at night before sleeping, drink honey and cinnamon powder boiled in one
cup of water. If taken regularly, it reduces the weight of even the most obese person. Also, drinking this mixture regularly does not allow the fat to accumulate in the body even though the person may eat a high calorie diet.
CANCER:
Recent research in Japan and Australia has revealed that advanced cancer of the stomach and bones have been cured successfully. Patients suffering from these kinds of cancer should daily take one tablespoon of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder for one month three times a day.
FATIGUE:
Recent studies have shown that the sugar content of honey is more helpful rather than! than being detrimental to the strength of the body.
Senior citizens, who take honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts, are more alert and flexible. Dr. Milton, who has done research, says that a half tablespoon of honey taken in a glass of water and sprinkled with cinnamon powder, taken daily after brushing and in the afternoon at about 3:00 P.M. when the vitality of the body starts to decrease, in cr eases the vitality of the body within a week.
BAD BREATH:
People of South America, first thing in the morning, gargle with one teaspoon of honey and cinnamon powder mixed in hot water, so their breath stays fresh throughout the day.
HEARING LOSS:
Daily morning and night honey and cinnamon powder, taken in equal parts restore hearing.
~ L.B.
(Note: I am not sure of the accuracy of the following information, so please use your best judgement, or speak with a medical professional before trying.)

If you are suffering from adrenal fatigue or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome talk to your doctor about supplementing with adrenal cortex - this has helpd me to feel much better and has provided increased energy. Compunding pharmacies often have doctors who will test for adrenal insufficiencies and prescribe adrenal cortex. A simple saliva test can tell if you are suffering with an adrenal issue. Also, in my opinion the adrenal thing goes hand in hand with the thyroid thing. If one is bad the other is bad or has been bad for a while and we didn’t know it, you have to repair both of them to get yourself out of bed. Here’s the kicker that most allopathic endos don’t address-along with any adrenal issues. Most don’t tell the patient that you HAVE TO TREAT THE ADRENAL FIRST. If you try to treat an underactive thyroid issue-as seen by a lab result-you are overwhelming the adrenals because the adrenals support the thyroid, which will furthermore leave you in bed because you gulped the thyroid with a “fix” but did not give the adrenals anything by which to feed the thyroid, hence you get about 1 week of bliss which will land you back in bed for a year. The cycle continues. The answer: you must treat the adrenals first. After supplementing the adrenals for about 1 month, then one may introduce small amounts of thyroid medication slowly. The adrenals will always make sure that you know that there is only one queen in the castle. When the queen is happy, all the servants fall into place. Most are trying to fix these 2 glands at the same time. The recovery will be long. Both glands are fighting for the same result in your body: homeostasis. When you body is already tired there can be no fighting amoungst the ranks, more unrest=more fatigue. This has been the experience that I have lived out for no telling how long in my life, thru much study and digging I’m finding out how the body works. It doesn’t hurt that several holistic endos back these facts up.
~ Kathy E.

Check out www.infiniteloveandwisdom.com - I just finished Dr. Darren Weismann's book, The Power of Infinite Love and Wisdom. It is a wonderful book, and I have heard that the program he offers is awesome too.
From: Charlene

I am reading a great book, Get Out of That Pit, by Beth Moore...it has a spiritual perspective with a powerful message that those with CFS can really benefit from.
~ Kathy

If you are looking for a natural meat tenderizer try pineapple or kiwi.
~ Lynne

If you are looking for info about mercury fillings check out www.jigsawhealth.com. Also I am looking for information about post-op complications after a hysterectomy, especially if you have chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia.
~ Cindee

I would like to share some things you can do to improve your mood and/or achy body:

A bath with Epsom salt and towel close by with a few drops of lavender on it will make for an instant pick me up....maybe not quite euphoria but very close.....but then you didn't have to swallow a pill either!

When a bath isn't close by but stress is right on top of you......stop......don't dwell on what has just happened or is happening to you. Don't worry about what might happen.....most times things don't even come into fruition. Make something good happen. Make a happystance instead of circumstance. It is every bit in your control to change things to good as it is to keep things bad.

Redirect your focus and start doing something positive. Positive pondering is always allowed......noting negatives should be banned. Positive reaps positive...negative reaps negative...simple concept....anyone can comprehend.

Caution: Don't wait long to refocus when something bad happens...negativity can swallow you up in a heartbeat.
~ Lynne B.

"It is important to find someone to work with who will work with you, and don’t stop looking until you do. Don’t settle. Don’t trust anyone just because they work for a big hospital or have tons of degrees. There must be trust between you and the practitioner otherwise you won’t fully heal."
~ Karen

When you are having a challenging day, remind yourself that it's just your body sending you a message to take care of yourself. Take the time to do just that and believe that "this too shall pass". Take it all one step at a time.

When inundated with appointments, tests, etc...remind yourself that each one is a clue or a piece to the big puzzle. Someday the puzzle will be complete!

Try to return to mother nature in all that you do: simplicity, in the food and drinks you consume, cosmetics, skin care, household cleaning, maintenance and improvements, lawncare. When ever you pick up a product to use or consume, think first....is this good for me and those around me?

"When pressures of life come your way such as health, money, marriage and children don't let the pressure of the circumstance stop you, allow it to change you- so push through and find the real meaning of this current challenge. The spirit of the living God will enlighten you, if you will allow your faith or your knowing to carry you. Don't allow the fear of anything or anyone stop you.

Hebrews 13: 5,6 God has said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you'. So we say with confidence, 'The lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?' Through my experience I was relieved to know that such a scripture existed, and to know that God had a plan design for such a time as this. Persevere, you’re worth it."
~ Kristi