Knuckle Down

Hi. It's been a while. Aside from health struggles, our planet also had its first world wide pandemic. Needless to say, I did get the virus.Obviously, I survived it. :) Though there was a point where I didn't think I would. I want to touch on this for a moment. With my health as it was, I expected to be among those who perished. I was mentally prepared for this. I just didn't think I would catch it. Please understand, I am a recluse. I don't leave my home unless absolutely necessary. In this apartment, I had a roommate. Said roommate was vaccinated because they work in two essential businesses. Said roommate got ill for a week. We didn't know what it was. They just felt under the weather. Then, I got sick, and I immediately knew what it wasn't. It wasn't the flu. It wasn't the common cold. It wasn't bad sushi from the grocer's. It was absolutely something my body never had before. It knocked me out for a month. I did nothing but sleep on the couch and nibbled on food whenever I woke. My body had never been taxed that badly before. I couldn't even think. I was barely awake most times. Thankfully, my roommate would dash to the store to pick up whatever I might need. When it was over, I still felt weak about 2-3 weeks after I officially recovered. I was surprised I made it. 

Okay so that aside, I got the candida under control, and was able to find my source. I have H.Pylori. It just didnt present itself yet because of the candida. I think that was 4-5 years of candida. Most of that was trying to figure out what the candida was to begin with.

So now Im battling H.Pylori. I managed to control it with Mastic Gum from Greece. It seems there are some brands from the US that might help, but the ones from Greece are the real deal. I went about 8 months before stopping to see if I eradicated it. Unfortunately, not. It presented itself a few weeks later.

PARASITE CLEANSE

Recently: I am presently on a 1 month parasite cleanse using Paraguard and Mimosa Pudica capsules.
Why: H.Pylori is hard to get rid of. My reasoning is that some bacteria is being carried by parasites. It's the only other option I have left anyway, so why not?

Current:This is my last week, which focuses on healing the gut and recovery. So that's mostly heal the gut lining and eat more probiotics. I have not stopped consuming my daily kefir btw which has my mastic gum protocol to fight H.Pylori.  :)

I actually passed most of the parasites while I was doing the turpentine (pine gum spirits) protocol a couple years back when I was attacking the candida, but I do believe I got rid of a few more lurkers this round as well. I think I will make parasite protocols an annual/bi-annual thing. With all the factors contributing to basic life these days, this is just how it has to be, I think.

Do I think it helped?
So .. I play PC games with friends and I can't enter first person mode because I get motion sickness. I've been this way for more than 15 years. During the cleanse, I tried going into first person mode, and it didnt work as expected. About halfway through the cleanse, I tried it again and I was able to stay in this mode a little longer without feeling ill like I usually do. By the third week, I stayed playing in this mode and didn't feel sick at all. I dont know how it's related, but I'm not going to complain.

After this week is done, I will continue to work on leaky gut healing as well as the mastic gum kefir protcol until April 2023. Hopefully, results will be in my favor.

 

Also, since i know no one reads this, Im thinking about deleting this blog. For now, it will sit due to factors of laziness. ^^

First, detox drink worked. Gallbladder is working again. Stool is dark! \o/

I was taking B12 methylcobalamin (1000mcg) and B1 in the form of Benfiotamine 300mg for the tingling sensation, but since I had to stop taking celery juice and HCL, (it was necessary to back off on erosion and gut discomfort from the detox) it all came back.

So to aid my digestion (NOT my acid) I was taking OACV and baking soda.

• 1T Organic Apple Cider Vinegar
• 1/2t baking soda
• glass of warm water
• Take 3x a day
  
  I have 1/2 glass to 1 glass of water, and its not always warm, just room temperature. ^^;
   

Now that my gallbladder is working again, he's telling me to incorporate the celery juice again. So I'll start tomorrow morning. However, in regards to the tingling sensation, I need to change things up with my B vitamins. He's having me replace my B12 with a sublingual one since it can bypass the stomach. (I have absorption issues), and he's adding methylfolate.



Supplement Changes

• Change B12 methylcobalamin 100 mcg tablets to B12 Sublingual Liquid Drops 5000 MCG
• Add Methyl Folate, 1000 mcg
• Continue taking Benfotiamine 300mg

I also made mention that I was craving liver and onions and explained that in 2015, I was put on a restricted diet for candiasis that also included to avoid organ meat. He was shocked and said "That's probably why you have deficiencies to begin with." ^^;

 

(I don't blame Bill though. He was still the first person to help me identify that I was struggling with candida.)

DIGESTION
I tend to babble, so I'll try to stay on point :) I've been on 'HCL with pepsin' for 10 months. For a good while I plateaued at 9-12, but then I started to increase. At 15 pills I started to worry and sought other solutions: kraut, kim chi, more ginger, garlic and turmeric, even digestive bitters. The kind I bought didn't do anything for me, but other brands might be helpful. I've read that making your own is best. I'll probably try this after I move.

I've been on HCL for 10 months now. The changes I made above were in a span of 3 weeks.


WHEN TO INCREASE/DECREASE HCL
I found that weaning off HCL is the same as knowing when to increase my dose. I looked for that warming sensation in my stomach or gut. When I was at my max dose and felt that warming sensation, I would back off by 1 pill. (If I felt I needed to increase, I would look for my GERD/LPR triggers, usually sore throat, losing my voice and general difficulty with digesting. These would happen fast for me, especially any throat/voice issues) Not all meals are the same, however, so I wrote down how much HCL I took vs the protein I had every time I ate. I have brain fog issues so I have a little whiteboard on my refrigerator where I keep this information.

Mind you, I'm not off the HCL pills. However, the changes happened within 3 weeks time. Here's what I did.

- 16oz celery juice every morning
Organic is ideal, but sometimes I cant afford the strain on my budget. Sometimes I'll get 12oz of juice from 1 bunch of celery. That works for me. I do not juice 'packaged celery hearts'. I opt to buy whole heads of celery instead. (Buy by 'each' not by 'pound'!)

- begin consuming pseudo-grains. :
I started consuming quinoa, then wild rice, then brown rice. I avoided processed versions of these grains. I had buckwheat noodles (buckwheat is suppose to be ok for me), but the noodle version slowed down my motility. So no processed grains for me at this time.

- increase leafy greens (cooked!).
I get lazy. I have often opted to have salad or steam veggies instead of saute leafy greens. So this is a habit I've changed. Even if I have veggies, I will still saute some leafy greens in addition.

- consume 1 tsp chia seeds at the end of each meal (not after a meal!) and drink plenty of water

- massaging the ileocecal valve
mine was surprisingly tender to the touch


ANTI-CANDIDA
Starting with the thrush

Oil pulling
3 drops oil of oregano
3 drops clove oil
1 TBSP coconut oil


Note: Increasing to 4 drops of the first two oils burned the back of my throat. My 'coach' is surprised by this. I mentioned that i am using P73 Oil of Oregano. It's very strong, if not the strongest form of oregano. So, now I'm back to 3 drops.

My 'coach' also thinks I have early onset of SIBO-C, and tells me its impossible to cure naturally. I've read about others doing this naturally, so I'll look into that after. There's nothing in the books that say I am locked into heeding the advice of one person for the rest of my health. Besides, this broke girl doesn't have much choice.