natural girls
Comments
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Deanna, I can't find the post but I have wanted to find out if you were the one who was using the mushroom extract. I thought I posted this somewhere but if it was you, could you please tell me which one you are using?0
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MsBliss - I get my coconut creamer by So Delicious at Whole Foods. It is heavenly!
Patty
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MsBliss, it's THORNE MYCO-IMMUNE. It's a liquid in a dropper bottle.
Patty, I've noticed that product. I'll have to try it. My new "vice" is a bit of vanilla syrup in my decaf coffee. I've been experimenting with making it myself and have come up with a decent version, but I still haven't figured out how to make it healthy! Deanna
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Deanna - I have been taking the Myco-Immune. All I have to say is it better be working because I hate the thought of taking something that tastes so nasty and it not work, lol!!!!!
Patty
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Hi. I am about 3/4 of the way convinced not to have tamoxifen or radiation therapy, but to try and find the problem that lead to my breast cancer. I have been "out of sorts" for the last 10 years, trying to figure out what is wrong with me (in my spare time, working full time,, raising my family) I will be looking for information and this forum seems to be the one I can go to for information about alternative therapies. I think from all I have read that I have something called Estrogen dominance. That would explain the ER+ but I am still trying to figure out the PR positive.. Is that progestin positive or progesterone positive? I am reading there is a difference in this hormone. Has anyone read "What your doctors may not tell you about breast cancer"? Any comments on the book or the science behind it would be appreciated. Thanks!
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Wishing all of you gals a wonderful Thanksgiving. Travel safely and enjoy this special time!
Cyber hugs to each and every one of you.
Mandy
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msbehaven, you are on the right track. You are your best advocate! Research, research and do more research. In the end, what you decide to do is your decison. We all need to feel comfortable with the treatment we choose.
My personal opinion...estrogen isn't the enemy. If my immune system is doing it's job the stray cancer cells don't have a chance. My immune system needs all of my hormones to function at it's best. I don't want to take medication that puts me at risk for osteoperosis or other negative side effects. I have a cousin, who also had early stage bc. She has been on tamoxifin. She was put out that I didn't take tamoxifin. She recently learned that her cancer is back.
Again, you are in a good place. You are thinking for yourself!
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I have a question for you gals. Cookware... what kind? I imagine teflon is a no go. Is cephalon the same? What about hard anodized? Stainless steel? Just thought you all might have some ideas for me. Happy Thanksgiving!
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Just taking a break from cooking tonight and came across an article worth sharing. I think those of us here pretty much know this, but it's always great to have our beliefs validated by someone with academic and medical credentials:
Why Plants Are (Usually) Better Than Drugs:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andrew-weil-md/why-plants-are-usually-be_b_785139.html
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I'm thankful for each and every one of you! Deanna
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Deanna- Fabulous article! Michael Pollan also talks about how when we take one vitamin out of a plant, it doesn't work as well.....many micronutrients that we haven't even discovered, designed to work together. Thanks!
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Adey wrote: I have a question for you gals. Cookware... what kind? I imagine teflon is a no go. Is cephalon the same? What about hard anodized? Stainless steel? Just thought you all might have some ideas for me. Happy Thanksgiving!
Adey, Teflon is definitely a no-go... after my diagnosis, I bought a set of Cuisinart stainless steel, which I love (it cooks beautifully and doesn't leach chemicals like Teflon does), but the cookware I use the most is my cast iron.
Cast iron actually becomes non-stick over time (the more you use it). I have a big 12" cast iron skillet that I do most of my family cooking in (dinners etc.), and a little 8" version that I cook my two pastured eggs in every morning. I also bought a Dutch oven this year which is great for making stock, cooking the occasional pastured chicken, five-bean chili, stew chock-full of organic veggies, etc. etc.
barry, I believe that estrogen isn't the enemy too (although excess/imbalanced estrogen is).
Deanna, can't wait to read that article. DesignerMom, I posted here a long time ago saying the same thing about micronutrients we haven't even discovered yet working in synergy with all the other nutrients (although I didn't know yet that Michael Pollan also says that), and an anti-alternative person lambasted me for it and said all the micronutrients have been discovered now. ROFL!
HAPPY HAPPY THANKSGIVING, EVERYBODY!! Among many other things, I am thankful for YOU!!
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Happy Thanksgiving to all the Natural Gals!
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Crunchy- In Michael Pollan's "In Defense of Food" he highlights how "nutritionism" has actually resulted in us being sicker and fatter than ever. When the government started pushing low fat, etc.....many people lost the ability to just eat healthy, sensible foods....thinking the "healthy" low fat versions were better for us. He cited some study where they took a certain dose of vitamin C and compared it to fresh orange juice with the same amount of vitamin C. The OJ was more therapeutic, absorbable etc.... When vitamins are ingested from the whole food, they act differently. And scientists will agree that we still have not discovered and documented all the micronutrients etc... I'm not against supplements, but I try to get most of my vitamins from foods. I will say that I am more wary of any new "nutritional cure", including "natural" ones. I think Pollan's advice to go back to our grandparent's ways (growing our kitchen garden, cooking our own meals, making our own safe cleaning products, storing in glass containers not plastic) will certainly help.
Hoping everyone has a relaxing joy-filled Thansgiving!
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HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Crunchy, the older you get the less estrogen you have. I sure don't have an excess of estrogen. I wish my body produced more of it. It seems as if they want to get rid of all estrogen. In getting rid of it we struggle with bone loss and etc. I prefer to find other ways to prevent cancer than to get rid of something all my cells need.
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Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I had an exceptionally great one. My brother was in town visiting, and we conspired a special surprise for my mom, who is now 83 and a 30-year bc survivor.
Ever since I can remember, my mom has always said the same thing whenever she's asked what she wants for a special meal. "I want pheasant under glass!" As a kid, the joke had to be explained to me, that pheasant under glass is the ultimate high brow dining experience. Fast forward to the internet, and I discover that pheasant under glass sounded like something I could actually do for real. I spoke of this to my brother, and he found a place that ships out frozen birds. I told him if he paid for them, I would prepare them. I shopped for things I've never used before. Jus de Polet? Morel mushrooms? And what on earth is deglazing the pan?
It's all a pleasant, filling, and fulfulling memory now. Mom's face lit up with delight when I brought out two stuffed and roasted pheasants under a big glass dome. The cognac cream sauce creates an aromatic experience for all at the table when the aroma wafts over the table. They were gorgeous and delicious. The stuffing was wild rice with mushrooms. I was apprehensive about living up to decades of hype, but I must say, it was a delicious success!
Hope y'all had a great one too. ....and for cookware, I mostly use iron skillets -- small, medium and large.
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Seaotter: Oh dear Deanna I don't remember PMs talking about osteopenia
. I don't take calcium. I have read so much that it does not help. Strontium is the thing that helps better than calcium. Maybe someone else will chime in with some help. I cut back on calcium and began taking strontium. My bone mass increased 5% to 7% in one year, putting me back into the normal zone.
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I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!! I visited with my Mom in the nursing home yesterday. Someone asked her what her secret to living to be 95 was and my Mom responded with "I never ran into a serial killer." If the floor wasn't so dirty I would have fallen on it laughing!!!!!
Maya - I too am taking strontium. My dexa scan showed I was still losing in my hips. I have added some calcium citrate but not much. How much of each do you take? Thanks.
Love to all, Patty
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althea- Oh what a good, sweet daughter you are. To give your mom pheasant under glass, her ultimate fantasy, must have made her day, month, year, life! It also sounded downright deeeelicious!
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Althea, that is absolutely wonderful what you did... (and my mouth is watering now too, at your description of it!!) I agree with DesignerMom, you're such a sweet daughter to pull that off!
Barry, you're so right, and I'm thankful that (at least now) it seems I have a good balanced amount of estrogen... not too much, not too little!
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What are your thoughts about calcium d-glucarate? I've finished my pills and am wondering if I really need to get some more or is it one supplement that I can do without?
Terri
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Terri-
It probably depends on your 4OH levels. I have a tendency to produce too much of the "bad" estrogen metabolite(4OH). I dropped my Ca d-glucarate for one month and re-did my urine test and my 4OH had quadrupled - so I am back on Ca d-glucarate.
Patty-
WHat I have read by Dr. Jonathan Wright is that is is essential that anyone taking Strontium also take more calcium than strontium - as much as twice the amount of calcium as strontium(but not at the same time - since they will cancel each other out). The compound pharmacist that I work with on supplements told me that the suggested amt for strontium was 681 mg a day. He told me that I could take the strontium at lunch - and then split my calcium between morning and nightime.
http://www.tahomaclinic.com/strontium.shtml
Belated Thanksgiving wishes to everyone!
Beth
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What a beautiful, heart warming story, Althea! I thought about it a lot today. Thank you for sharing it.
Adey, we use unlined stainless steel cookware which isn't that great on our electric cooktop, but I bought an omelette pan that has an eco-friendly, non-toxic lining. I forget who makes it, but I found it at Home Goods, and it works great.
msbehavin, glad you've found us! Yes, the PR is for progesterone, and its role vis-a-vis breast cancer isn't exactly clear. Following Dr. Lee's theory, there are quite a few women on Natural Girls who use natural progesterone cream. I had tried it for a short time but decided I wasn't comfortable with it, but quite a few women are. But you're right -- conventional medicine has only a piece of the puzzle (the big treatment guns), and it's up to us to figure out what might have contributed to our bc, and what we can do naturally to prevent a recurrence. Deanna
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Althea, What a lovely Thanksgiving story. Thank you for sharing it with us.
And I hope everyone else had a good Thanksgiving.
As ofr pots, I use cuisinart steel---but I wondered if my old LeCreuset, enameled cast iron pots are ok. They are my favorite cooking pots.
Best
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Maya - I too am taking strontium. My dexa scan showed I was still losing in my hips. I have added some calcium citrate but not much. How much of each do you take? Thanks
Seaotter: About 800 mg calium and 635 mg strontium. I had been taking about 1200 calcium, but just felt it wasn't helping, so cut back on it. The strontium made a REAL difference.
I also take Vit D and magnesium with the calcium. Then let several hours go by before taking strontium.
Mandy1313: I too was exposed to DDT. I once asked my dad if it was dangerous because it smelled so bad. Of course, he thought it was safe. Why anyone thought that chemicals developed for weapons, if diluted, would just kill bugs and nothing else, is beyond me.
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Hello Everyone! I was out of town for the last week visiting my husband's family. I spent a week on a real farm where they grow everything organic and we ate mostly things grown in their backyard! I so wish we could do that here in Los Angeles. Unfortunately, we only have a balcony for herbs and small vegis. Just wanted to say how grateful I am for all of you here and to know that I have a safe place to share all things natural and alternative.
Althea: What a great thing you did for your mom! It made my mouth water. Would you care to share the recipe?
Deana: Thank you for sharing that article.
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Okay, it's decided. We'll all meet at Althea's house next Thanksgiving!
What an imaginative soul you are..
One question. What is the glass for?
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Mandy- I love the heavy LeCreuset enameled iron pots. Nothing beats them! I think enamel is fine. If I am not mistaken, I think it is sort of like glass that is melted at high temps onto the iron. I would be curious to know. By the way, TJ Maxx often has LeCreuset seriously discounted, which is good, because they are expensive, but they will last for generations!
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My Le Creuset pots were purchased as a set in 1980. I got four of them for less than one costs now. Plus I have some even older ones that were my mother's. I love their weight and even heating. I hope that you are right Designer Mom and that they are safe. :-)
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Hi, I've jsut been diagnosed with stage 4, 3 months ago and have been given lots and lots of vitamins and advice by caring individuals. Has anyone tried:
GRAVIOLA JUICE, BICARB OF SODA?
Can people give me lists of what they're on b/c it's overwheming by the amount of stuff that's out there. I even saw two different naturoapths who had opposing views on several things....xox
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Welcome to the thread kouragio. So sorry to hear about your dx. I'm curious if you had a previous dx? I'm only asking because I think back to the almost 6 years that I was dx'd, and I was so completely inexperienced as a 'health' care consumer. I'm still here mainly because I felt like crap literally for years after my chemo/surgery/rads and I'm finally feeling good again. Along the way I cursed my slow recovery. Now I'm *almost* grateful for it because I've spent time every day for years learning about better health, better nutrition.
Without question, the first weeks after dx were the absolute worst time of the entire journey. Information overload is a big problem during that time when so many treatment decisions are necessary.
For the sake of brevity (not my forte lol), I recommend you focus on good food choices. Food gets complicated real fast. Lots of very smart people have lots of different opinions. Meat, no meat, dairy, no dairy, gluten, no gluten. Even the vegans are divided based on cooked vs uncooked food. Yet, there's one thing that they ALL agree on -- avoid processed foods.
And even then, it's still complex, because so many foods are genetically modifed and treated with chemicals and pesticides. Even that can be simplified, though, by seeking organic produce. Beyond organic produce, become familiar with the 'clean 15' and the 'dirty dozen'. Strawberries and celery, for example, are on the 'dirty dozen' because they typically retain more residue from the chemicals used. Bananas and avocadoes are examples from the clean 15 list, because even if they're not organically grown, there's less exposure to chemicals than the dirty dozen items.
We could probably help more if you tell us more about yourself. The array is information is vast, and the place to start depends on where you are to begin with.
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