This morning, I made myself a tea with thyme leaves, powdered lion’s mane and locally harvested honey. I do this on mornings I’m not fasting because it’s supposed to be good for my sinuses.
It actually seems to work — I used to wake up each morning with a drippy nose thanks to my allergies. I take Singulair every evening. I was also, on really bad days, using my Neti Pot and/or taking a nasal inhaler and/or taking a Sudafed.
However, now I drink thyme tea every morning, and it has pretty much cured the problem. The local honey also helps, plus it tastes good and soothes my throat. The tea is actually lovely to sip.
The lion’s mane — I add a pinch for my brain and immune system.
In fact, with all of the ingredients, it’s just a bit. A couple of pinches of thyme in my open infuser, then when the herbs have steeped for 5 or so minutes (I don’t measure anything exactly!) I take out the herbs and add a pinch of the powder and a squirt of honey.
On days that I am fasting, I only use the herbs.
I do a lot of other things MOST OF THE TIME to help my recovery from cancer.
Yes, my oncologists are great, but I also have to do my part.
As a Christian, I know the drill — we trust in God, but we must also act responsibly and follow His will. There is an old joke which is actually not that funny about someone who confesses to the same sin every week, figuring he doesn’t have to change his life since he knows he will be forgiven.
I’m not a Catholic, so I’ve never gone to confession, but I can imagine the priest might not feel as charitable after week 71, say, as he did after the first time.
I bring this up because we treat our doctors like they are minor deities sometimes — in fact, another joke is that M.D. actually stands for that instead of medical doctor.
However, they are fallible human beings just like the rest of us, they are just trained in ways that we are not and they tend to be very smart. So it’s important to respect them and listen to their opinion.
That doesn’t mean, however, that we blindly obey.
One thing that used to drive my current oncologists mad — I would deny treatments I did not think were necessary at the time. That doesn’t mean I haven’t had chemo and radiation. I hate doing these, but there are times I know they are necessary, and so I have authorized them.
Unfortunately, the medical bills are dreadful.
However, the money is not the real reason I sometimes refuse the treatments they want me to do. It’s because I feel horrible during treatment, and I want to have a decent quality of life.
And, I think, my strategy seems to work.
I listen to my body, and because of that, I think I have way outlasted the expiration date they gave me.
Back in April of 2021, when I was diagnosed with metastatic brain, lung, and liver cancer, the surgeon told me I had maybe 6 months to live.
“You might get an extra couple of months, or it might be a couple months shorter,” he said. “And notify hospice because you’ll probably be bedridden during the last part of it.”
This was 2 1/2 years ago. I am 2 years past the date he gave me, give or take 2 months.
I honestly believe it’s because I do my own research and have made changes to my lifestyle based on this research.
There are plenty of people who have given me advice of the “take this mushroom, it cured my friend’s cancer”. I take it all with a grain of salt. I listen to them, but then do my own research.
In some cases, I have found papers in reputable journals which provide double blind studies or other credible evidence that guide my decisions. I also pray for wisdom and guidance, because there are also plenty of charlatans out there, so you have to be careful. Unless you find actual, real, scientific evidence from an actual medical or biological study, avoid it.
One thing I’ve been doing based on my research is fasting the day before treatment and for at least a few hours after. I actually try to fast for 48 hours before and up to the next morning after, but I can’t always manage it. I have seen how this helps me both respond better to the treatment and have less side-effects, which is also documented in the science.
I have been sharing this information with other cancer patients and oncology nurses, but I have discovered that most people don’t want to bother.
And I get it.
The lifestyle changes I’ve made are hard, and, frankly, there are times when I’ve broken the rules too!
Shocker, I know.
But sometimes you have to color outside the lines to feel alive.
So, even though I know it’s not advisable, I have gotten together with small groups of friends while doing treatments. I realize this could expose me to germs, but I need this to feed my soul. I do minimize the risks however by making sure it’s only a few people, usually just one good friend. If any of them are feeling under the weather, we reschedule.
I don’t go to church during chemo. Instead, I watch it online. I can hear the music and the sermon, and see my friends. Until my white blood counts recover, this is the best thing for me.
The other risk I take — I sometimes cheat on my cancer diet.
I have found healthy options for just about everything, including potato chips, which both my oncologist and my heart doctor have told me to eat. Hey, I won’t argue with them!
However, I have found organic potato chips cooked in avocado oil that are very tasty. However, I sometimes still crave the unhealthy Thai Chile Doritos. When I do, I buy a bag and don’t stress.
Same with sweets. Both Mom and I crave them sometimes. But one thing I’ve learned from watching her — she doesn’t do it every day and she sticks to just a serving. Since the rest of the time she is eating mostly home-cooked food that is rich in healthy vegetables like spinach, cabbage, cauliflower, and mung beans or lentils — she is doing well. Her diabetes medication was lowered by her doctor three times in the last 10 years because she is managing her condition so well.
From her I’ve learned — it’s OK to cheat sometimes. Just don’t do it too often!
I hope you found this story informational.
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This post was previously published on Shefali O’Hara’s blog.
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The post Trying to Stay Healthy Through the Chemo appeared first on The Good Men Project.
