Ok, we've talked about what Lupus is. An autoimmune disease that causes your own immune system to attack healthy tissue and/or organs. Could be joint pain from joint tissue, rashes from skin tissue; and if more severe, vital organs. I've been overconfident that "I got this", almost to the point of denial, because I've chosen to treat my body with natural "alternative" medicine*. It can help suppress many symptoms.
*Note: It's funny -hilarious- that society calls healing products from the rich earth, with no chemical alteration, alternative. Western medicine, man's science experiment, has become the convention. Conventional medicine is often the culprit of chronic diseases.
My diagnosis was in December. Despite my freakish optimism that I can will myself to health, sadly, the disease has progressed and attacked my bladder. Despite not foreseeing this, can it get any more embarrassing?
It started when I expected married life to be a turn for the healthier. As women know, a blushing bride transitioning into an "active" woman can shock the body, for better or worse. I had bit of both, but a lot of pain. Already having a weakened immune system from "reliable" pharmaceutical meds, I couldn't fight foreign specimen. Not even the fun ones. It was bacterial galore in my nice-parts. Urinary Tract Infections. I will not prattle on about the agonizing adventure that followed, but I will have you note that nothing, I mean NOTHING, would make it go away. Not antibiotics, not cranberry pills, not soaking in hot, then freezing, then scalding, then bubbles. To this day, I'm not sure how I got periods of relief in between. I was advised to get a cystoscopy. I was shrugged off and told this happens to all newlyweds. I was led to some wild and unimaginable remedies that would lead you to judge me if you haven't already. So, I waited it out.
Fast forward to the present, one year later, a UTI lands me in the ER. Crazy theories fly about, i.e. kidney stones, gallbladder, cancer, dementia. A mere $200-plus, antibiotics, Demerol, Percocet, and 2 weeks later, I'm still sitting on a pillow at work. The antibiotics didn't work, much to the surprise of the doctors who scoffed at me when I said, "Antibiotics don't work on me". The infection was running rampant. I come to tell all you UTI sufferers I found a remedy that works better than any prescription a doctor can get kickbacks off of. Take it from a girl who has done everything and spent shoe-money on peeing.
Bless this following website (also found on my blogroll to your right).
http://www.nutritionarticlesonline.com/bladder_bacterial_infection.html
Just send a friend or family member who doesn't have to do the pipi dance every 15 minutes to the nearest Health Food store and have them pick up these easy-to-find teas. Here is the remedy:
Herbal Bladder Flush Remedy
Fill a 2 quart stainless steel or glass pot with clean water. Bring the following herbs to a boil, then immediately simmer on low for 20-30 minutes;
- 2 bags or 2 tsp Uva ursea (or corn silk)
- 2 bags or 2 tsp Dandelion root (or Dandelion root powder, not roasted)
- 1 bag or 1 tsp Golden Seal Root
- 2 bags or 2 tsp Horsetail Herb
- Optional; 1 bag or 1 tsp Stinging Nettles
Drink one cup of this Bladder Flush Tea every hour, two cups an hour if you're close to a bathroom. This is a diuretic (makes you pee) as well as a powerful antibiotic (Golden Seal). Note, Golden Seal is also a powerful liver detoxifier, you may experience a head ache from this concoction if your liver is in need of cleansing. This will pass, drink extra water.
Worked like a charm. It was such a relief when the floodgates opened. Read up a bit more on extra supplements that help.
HOWEVER!!! For this particular anecdote, the account does not end here. It might begin here.
My pain continued, this time in a more puzzling and concerning manner. A few days later, I went to the general physician to pee in a cup and see if the infection was gone. It seemed as if it was flushed down the toilet, but -without detail- all kinds of pelvic pain and frequent urges persisted. I also did one of a female favorites, pap smear, to rule out hidden cancer. Yes, I'm paranoid. I don't want to die.
The doctor freaked out with me for having severe pain when she softly pressed down on that area. She took out her cell phone, sat down, and raised hell with disgruntled Urologists' receptionists until I had an immediate appointment. Do not go back to work. Do not collect $200. Spend more than you earn. Go straight to a specialist. Cutting to the point, the kind doctor that was able to make me feel comfortable in a very uncomfortable position suspects Interstitial Cystitis. And guess what?
He said it has a higher prevalence in people with rheumatoid diseases. *The extra spacing is indicative of a dramatic pause.*
They want to raid my bladder with a perverted mircro-camera and see what the damage is so I may learn to deal with yet another chronic malignancy that is all thanks to the wolf disease. I'm a bit shattered by the reality of this and the significance of what it is to live with more limitations.
No pity party here! They will try to medicate me to rebuild the lining of the delicate organ. You know, one of those medicines with small print side effect warnings as long as the Bible. I return to this wonderful site I just mentioned above, and restate another portion below:
Healing Interstitial Cystitis Naturally
http://www.nutritionarticlesonline.com/bladder_interstitial_cystitisIC.html
This brings me to the celery concoction from yesterday. After I miserably cheated with an acidic, dairy Oreo McFlurry (which I have preached no one on earth needs to have one), due to the emotional drama of my new ailment causing me to cave, damage control was in the works or havoc would ensue. It also works like a charm :
Easy Alkalinizing Celery Juice:
- One Cucumber
- 4 Celery stalks
- 3 sprigs of parsley
- A few cubes of watermelon (my idea!)
I don't remember which website I found this is on, so my apologies. The recipe calls for a juicer, but I don't have one, so I use a blender. It's more chunky! This is hard to swallow if you're not used to veggie overload. On top of that, personally, I must always tread carefully around anything sugar, so I dare not put even Agave syrup until my healing factor is better, but you can definitely add honey, or Turbinado. Whatever. I chose to add watermelon for sweetener, adding little by little as to not overdo it and end up with more problems.
To sum up, I share with you:
- The fastest, safest, natural UTI cure I have ever found.
- An alkalizing tip if you're feeling too acidic.
- And a story of a piece of my travesty with you and how I deal. Hope this can be of help to someone some day.
Stay tuned, I'm sure there will be fascinating updates after this.
