Monday, August 13, 2012

Painful ovarian cyst, Chinese herbs, and proteolytic enzymes

So the pain continued despite the ACV.  I went last week to see my TCM herbalist.  She switched recipes.  This new recipe has helped to diminish the pain greatly.  I am on a schedule of 3 days per package of herbs and 2 days off.  She advised me to drink everyday once my period arrived.

My period arrived yesterday - painfully.  And the pain in my side has been pretty much there the entire day.  But I am hoping that this is the final clingings of this cyst and that the herbs wash it out, or make it pop, or encourage my body to absorb it.
 
I'm an animal.  I'd like to gnaw my own ovary off and be done.  It's not excruciating pain - which it's been in the past - it's just there most of the time.  Reminding me of its presence.  Freaking me out with worry.  Whispering to me of the craptastically long wait at the county hospital with the robotic doctors who by the time they get to you - you are so worn down with waiting you are eagerly submitting to whatever treatments they are rotely prescribing.  UGH.  Tiny teeth chomping on the cyst tasking it away.

I'm also taking between 9-12 Wobenzym N tablets - hoping that the enzymes will assist in my body's reabsorbing this thing.

I'm fantasizing about poking this cyst - kind of the way you pop a blister on your foot.  And then it hurts for a day or so, but it's gone.  I actually punched myself in the gut hoping to pop it.  Not hard really but with enough force that I felt it.  I opted not to punch myself a second time.

Two interesting things have come up in my  research regarding the cysts.  One brings me back to ACV - potassium and the second one is iodine.  I read that ACV has potassium - and that low levels of potassium are associated with ovarian cysts.  In fact, low levels of potassium can be linked to many things - kidney stones, hypertension, osteoporosis, stroke...  If you read Linus Pauling Institutes assessment of potassium here you will see the great deal of significance it has - even on a cellular level.   What's so interesting is that Gerson also discusses the potassium thing.  And both Gerson and Linus Pauling admit that the Western diet is several times higher in sodium than potassium, while native diets are the opposite. 
 
What does this mean for us - well I've now started to make an effort to reduce sodium - even though before we were eating sea salt.  We're cutting down significantly.  We've also begun to look out for sodium in any processed foods we eat.  Conversely I've tried to pay more attention to getting potassium into our diet - baked potatoes, fresh squeezed orange juice...

Iodine - something that I am not going to go into to detail today - but needless to say - it too is something that has come up in the ovarian cyst realm.  And interestingly enough - something Gerson too writes about.  For those of you who don't know - Max Gerson is founder of the Gerson protocol - a rigorous vegan diet, supplement, and coffee enema approach to healing cancer and other chronic diseases.  I am contemplating ordering some Lugol's iodine and adding it my diet. 

So far - now 4 days into my period the pain has gone down enough that I can, for the first time in over a month, lie on my right side without intense pain.  We'll see - I am feeling good about this batch of herbs - last one did not help so the TCM doc created a new one.  I've included a picture of the current mixture.  I rinse, add 5 cups of H2O, and boil down to about 8 ounces (about 2-3 hours of cooking).  Then I drink.  The taste is really awful - like sour, muddy, dirty - herby - but like a taste that reminds me of the drinks we would make as kids when we we're bored at weddings or parties my parents too us to.  It was the throw everything into the glass until it was brown and chunky - then each kid would take turns sipping to see who could drink the most.  Yuk - I keep muttering to myself - the ovarian cysts is diminishing, disappearing, gone - as I drink it.  Then I gag, make faces, a swig some water as a chaser.  My herbalist said, to drink this for 2 months and go back for another ultrasound and the cyst will be gone.  Here's to it being so.
Traditional Chinese Herbs for Ovarian Cyst




6 comments:

  1. I am hoping you are still monitoring the site to talk about results? I have two fair sized fibroids in the fundus of my uterus and one good sized complex cyst on my right ovary. Doctor recommends surgery, I am refusing at the moment. I just started Wobenzym a few days ago and will take these for three months then get another ultrasound. These fibroids and cyst have caused: heavy menstrual bleeding, huge blood clots (like lemon sized), debilitating lower back pain, bloating, weight gain...needless to say I've been in another 'world' since October with 9 day heavy Menses, stop for five, then it comes back for another 7 days of hell. I'm anemic too. So....did this treatment work for you???

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    1. Hi I have a similar condition to yours . Did the Wobenzym help you ? Please let me know. Thanks Much .

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  2. Hi Sandra

    I am slow to respond here - sorry. I've been focusing on my site - healinghacker.com.

    At any rate, I did not have fibroids or anemia. I was diagnosed with endometriosis because of intense pain and a clear ultrasound (small cyst that resolved itself). It sounds like our experiences have similarities & differences. The western docs didn't recommend anything based on my diagnosis - except birth control pills. I have a friend with huge fibroids - and anemia like you are mentioning with nonstop periods - and surgery did solve her problem. She had a rough go at first - because they also did a hysterectomy - but now she is back to her lively self. There's always a light at the end of the tunnel.

    Yes, the herbs worked me. And when the pain returns I do one of 2 things:
    for the endometriosis pain (which was so bad I used to white knuckle through it) I will take a thumb size piece of fresh ginger and blend it with some juice (apple, with some fresh strawberries). Usually drinking this intense concoction 1x day for 2-4 days makes the pain go away. If it doesn't, then I go back to my TCM herbalist.

    The pain tends to come and go every several months. So every 3-4 months, I'll get the starting of some pain and I'll just jump right into my routine and nip it in the bud in a day or 2. It also goes up around ovulation - but overall it's a million times better than it was.

    For myself, depending on where I am at (my own determination of level of pain, danger, emergency) - I integrate. I follow what my western doc says and do TCM on the side until I feel better or I am making adequate progress. I also research fanatically - so that I feel like I understand as much as possible what my options are.

    What made you decide on wobenzym? Ginger too can be very helpful - according to some studies. Powdered ginger for some issues, raw for others. I use the raw as I mentioned above - and it is way more potent for me than taking ibuprofen.


    Hope this helps.
    Please let me know how you are doing.
    Denise

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  3. While researching low potassium and ovarian cysts, I stumbled upon your blog. I died of laughter when you mentioned gnawing off your ovary.

    If it makes you feel better, mine are from being exposed to toxic mold from negligent landlords. Ovarian cysts are only one of about 15 symptoms I endure almost everyday. I was perfectly healthy before this. Life sure sucks.

    Well, I seem pessimistic, but I really do everything I can to fight my disease. I've yet to find a doctor to help me (and by the way, I had a Korean doctor brew me a spleen tea that hasn't done sh*t), so I've become a walking alternative medicine encyclopedia.

    I hope you have at least gotten to the root cause of your agony by now. I just hope yours isn't fungus as well, because I have yet to find a remedy to kill these buggers for good.

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    1. Hi Beth,

      I'm glad someone got a chuckle. The painful cysts seem to have subsided. There was also suspicion of endometriosis. That being said, what worked for me was Chinese herbal medicine. I would say with these sorts of practitioners, you need to go back and back. They have so many herbs to choose from, that you need to be open to explaining and trying concoctions several times. Very different than doc running through handful of pills she/he has at disposal.

      Wow, mold. So how do you connect the mold to the cysts? Are you then saying it's an immune issue, or a detox issue, or both? That is interesting. Have you thought about ginger or probiotics? Ginger worked wonders on the pain for me - but I believe is antifungal as well. Just curious, what have you tried, and what lead you to mold?

      Thanks for reading the blog.
      Best,
      Denise

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