Newbie - Apsley Acers - long

[Guest guest]

Good Afternoon Everyone;

my name is Sharon and I am new to this list.

I joined your list hoping one/some of you could help me with a catch 22 - liver

problem .

First some background information - a hard thing to write in a few words

- so please bear with me as it is rather involved ;-(

Really Basic Info

I have suffered with MCS - Multiple Chemical Sensitivities for 12 years due to

an extended (approx. 1 week) poisoning of a toxic soup of leaky bottles - broken

bags etc, of garden centre products while cleaning out a poorly ventilated old

chemical (herbicide-pesticide-fungicide) / fertilizer storeroom.

I had worked in this industry for many years.

I have not been able to work since.

I now have a sensitivity to most products which are derived from or utilize

parts of any petro chemical product(s)

- a long list to to say the least. cleaners - perfumes - gasolines - make-up -

shampoo - toothpaste - new rugs - paints- furniture

- way too many to list as most products, even foods use a great deal of petro

chemicals

This sensitivity manifested itself with

- lack of energy

- inability to think and remember

- poor speech making ability

- swelling and soreness in the front left temporal lobe

- Fibromyalgia and CFS also are diagnosed problems. I think they are intertwined

with MCS.

Plus many other problems too numerous to mention - but you get my gist - living

life in general can get quite difficult.

We moved to the country over 6 years ago ;-) to a circa 1875 settler log cabin

on a 100+ acres in one of Ontario's Vacation wonderlands ( which really means

rocks lakes trees and few year round residents).

We now enjoy:

- clean air

- pure water

- our home and acres are 100% chemical free

- grow most of our own vegetables

- cook from scratch, no additives

- several hepa air cleaners in case someone unexpectedly visits with a scent

- you get my drift.

As long as I stayed home my life was actually sometimes livable.

Unfortunately even with all these changes;

I experienced extended periods with on going health problems; especially after

an exposure:

- my memory, energy and speaking abilities were getting worse.

Our own local older doctor - who is so swamped as we are rural - doesn't

acknowledge yet the possibility of being sensitive to odors from everyday

chemicals, cleaners and scents. I have great difficulties even going into his

odiferous office and react to most prescriptions. I just basically do not use

our health system if at all possible.

He did send me for the two scans when I mentioned my sore liver - he said there

was nothing I could do to make my now enlarged liver better. Our nearest larger

centre an hour away has a doctor shortage and no one is taking new patients;

even if I could go into their offices.

A catch 22 - so I am muddling through the best I can..

I am in regular contact via phone with my naturalpath as a health practitioner

; I am fortunate as she also makes house calls if I need one ;-)

She also allows me input and to discuss possible avenues of care - we are

learning how to deal with my MCS together, as so little is known and all cases

depending on the original exposure react slightly different.

I am very knowledgeable with culinary/medicinal herbs . I grow and wild harvest

most of my own herbs and make my own remedies.

This ensures me; they are chemical free, plus puts me in charge of my own

health - which is great..

Our Environmental Health Clinic at Woman's College / Sunnybrook Hospital in

Toronto

- said I had already implemented most of what they could suggest, that there was

nothing else they could help me with.

It seems my liver is now the main thing to be compromised it is enlarged.

I will mention here that my gall bladder was removed 20+ years ago - if I had

known then what I know now It would still be in place ;-(

My (enlarged) liver gives me an ache for weeks at a time these past few years -

often keeping me awake at night.

When it does this - my bowel movements become light coloured - needless to say

my energy low.. I sleep a lot.

I do do and have done several types of cleanses over the past years.

For my liver and other areas of body.

The liver detoxes seem to clear the ache for periods of time. I do all cleanses

at half strength for several reasons:

- sometimes I react to some of the herbs used in the store purchased

preparations - hard to know if they use organically grown

- dumping too much toxic waste into my system sends me reeling and makes me

quite ill; they contain some of the stored up chemical toxins I have yet to

remove from my body fat and liver after all these years - a slow process.

I get so lethargic; all the above symptoms kick in full force and I seem to have

only enough energy do nothing but sleep when I detox anything too quickly.

I chose to purchase several of liver health related books.

The first one I utilized was Cabot's liver diet & cleanse formulas

- I did follow the diet & recommended capsules for several months -

unfortunately I didn't get much better; I think her dosages were too high for

my MCS.

In fact during this time my memory and speaking got decididly worse - I am sure

the cause was because toxins were releasing too quickly; but not being evacuated

out of my system.

I stopped the diet and slept and accomplished very little for a long time. Had a

really bad winter.

That early spring a new symptom appeared: similar to IBS (Irritable Bowl

Syndrome) to add to my woes

Then things got really bad:

- my speaking was the pits as I couldn't pull out enough words to make a

sentence

- I was using notebooks on every table of the house to write down my current

thoughts etc. so I wouldn't immediately forget them - mind you I had to read all

the books to find the bits I wanted to remember.. and my energy was

non-existent. I did not much of anything. In fact I was almost ready to throw

in the towel at times as it seemed like everything we had so far

accomplished had gone down the tubes. Very depressing!

Someone on one of my MCS lists mentioned that though not related to MCS

- a SCD Specific Carbohydrate Diet had helped their MCS memory / energy / speech

problems

http://www.breakingtheviciouscycle.org/

Grasping at straws I choose to give this eating plan a try.

After less one month on this eating plan my:

- memory has improved amazingly well

- no more speech problems and more energy

- unless of course I go off the diet or out into the world and have a bad

exposure..

Needless to say both my hubby and I are ecstatic that after 12 years something

is finally really helping.

Whether this diet helped so well becuse we had eliminated so many toxins from my

world; or that perhaps I had an undiagnosed problen which the diet addressed -

I have no idea but it was phenomenal - I was so happy..

PHEW!!! nothing is perfect it seems...

NOW the crux of the problem - my enlarged liver has gotten decidedly more sore

since I started this wonderful diet last spring. Some nights I cannot lie on

that side and it really is in achy mode.

I was hoping to stay on this diet for at least 2 years as this is how long it is

suggested to give ones digestive system time to heal.

I HAVE really gotten attached to actually thinking again, plus speaking clearly

and having some energy etc.

Some days I almost feel normal. Now I am gung ho to find ways to keep this

positive ball rolling.

I have a Rebounder to start draining my lymphs by gentle jumping.

My wonderful ever patient, soulmate - best friend and hubby is in the process of

making me a dry heat sauna to help me also detox in the winter as it is hard to

sweat when one's cabin is snowbound.

I also take detox baths plus am rotating 3 different liver cleanses at half

dosage

- I do one type for a month; then stop for a month

- then start another type.

I have just started doing Castor oil warm packs at night - I plan do these for 3

day per week for 3 weeks.

Can you think of anything I can also do to help with my achy enlarged liver?

I am not sure if you are aware of this SCD Diet

What I need to do now is merge the Cabot diet and the SCD diet together.

Taking the best from both but using the SCD as the base as it helped so very

much.

The result should give me a liver friendly SCD diet.

I suppose I'd be crazy to ask if anyone has already done this?

Yes I am over weight - but that is not a priority at the moment.

I know that my renewed energy will start to move the weight off.

The weight came with my inertness caused by lack of energy to do things.

It took years to add time and will take years to leave, now I have renewed

energy.

In case you are wondering I still react to chemicals when out but seem to bounce

back faster to norm.

Which means instead of several days in bed wiped out with symptoms listed above

- I now am only about one day - good news for me!

I actually had already integrated some of Cabot's ideas/recipes and

include things like her ground almonds - sunflower seeds and flax seeds into my

daily diet..

Can you suggest any other avenues for me to look into?

Any other ideas that would help me understand better how to make my enlarged

liver go back to normal?

Has anyone made up a list of foods that one should NOT eat if one has an

enlarged liver?

Then I could then easily delete all of these from the SCD diet (somehow I

really doubt life would get this easy.)

Needless to say I know I will someday do a flush - I am just really hesitant; as

I wonder if my body would react to it in a very negative way - has anyone with

MCS done one?

By algimatating the two books - eliminating negative foods and continue with the

Castor Oil Packs hopefully my liver will eventually stop it's aching and start

getting better.

Has anyone successfully healed their enlarged liver? if so what steps did you

take?

Thanx for your time and energy, as I know this is long and convoluted.

Any other thoughts will be welcome.

Warmest regards,

Sharon

Apsley Acers

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Immalee

I gather thyme upon the sunny hills,

And its pure fragrance ever gladdens me,

And in my mind having tranquillity

I smile to see how my green basket fills.

By clear streams I gather daffodils;

In dim woods find out the cherry-tree,

And take its fruit and the wild strawberry,

nuts and honey; and live free from ills.

I dwell on the green earth, neath the blue sky,

Birds are my friends, and leaves my rustling roof:

See the wild deer, and hail its hastening hoof;

The squirrels sit perked as I pass them by,

And even the watchful hawk sits not aloof.

by Rossetti