I apologize for leaving readers hanging with the last blog post about Nicole’s unusual blood sugar crash. I’ve been working on full-length follow-up article that I think many will find very helpful for normalizing post-meal blood sugar levels. Indeed, one of the most common problems I’ve helped coachng clients with is keeping their blood sugars below 6.5mmol/L (150mg/dL) after they eat. It’s really not hard to do – if you are willing to “cheat.”
That article should be done soon. Nicole has been suffering from painful inflammation of the lymph nodes in her thighs. Why are they inflamed? Hard to say, as always. Is it a complication of the kidneys being offline or is it a healing reaction? We’ve been testing numerous remedies to clear the lymph nodes. Many things have helped but the fire isn’t over.
It has actually been a good testing ground for experimenting with some other methods we’ve had on the radar for treating kidney disease. A popular remedy I’ve often seen used in Asia is ginger compresses. I have long glossed over this approach because it seem too simple to actually cure something as serious as kidney failure. Recently, though, a reader send me a this case study from a man who used ginger compresses to cure his father of end-stage renal disease. It’s a simple treatment, yes, but labour intensive (about two hours a day for 90 days). Preliminary tests on the swollen lymph nodes confirms that the treatment does stimulate a surprising amount of circulation and heat in the area effected.
We’ve been using ginger compresses in combination with amniotic fluid packs which we’ve seen provide many healing benefits. Nicole cut her toe open a few weeks back. It wasn’t healing on it’s own and getting infected. So we used amniotic fluid-soaked socks and, as always, the healing was definite and apparent. I hope to one day do a full-length article on this with photos.
Likewise, last year, I treated a 90-year-old man with gangrene of the scalp (and possibly cancer) with amniotic fluid packs for 90 days. Complete cure. This really surprised me. We have photos of the experiment — week by week — which I plan on posting very soon in a detailed article.
Currently, Nicole is using amniotic fluid packs on her kidneys for six hours every day (instead of 2-hour three times a week). We are watching to see if increasing the frequency and duration increases urine output.
Last weekend, Nicole did another of her monthly 48-hour water fasts. Oddly, the fasting seems to be helping more with blood sugar rather than kidney function. She saw a substantial drop in long-acting insulin needs. Maybe it’s just reduced insulin resistance, but we’d rather think it’s increased beta cell function. If fasting could cure those T1D mice, why not humans?
It’s the eleventh hour for Nicole in many ways. Between the side effects of dialysis, kidney failure, dental toxins and T1D, it’s five step backwards every day. We need to counter with six steps forward to make any progress.
Ah, that reminds of another step forward she has made. This was totally unexpected. Her anemia has completely reversed itself. Like most people on dialysis, she has suffered from low hemoglobin. I mean really low. Every three to four month it would drop below 70. At that point she could barely walk. Two bags of blood would be transfused and she’d go up to around 90. Good for another three to four months.
Well, she hasn’t had a transfusion in 14 months. What changed 14 months ago? Vegan diet. No meat. No eggs. No dairy. No fat. Since then almost every blood test has shown a higher (instead of lower) Hg. A few tests dipped down a few points. But those were either during menstruation or when she was hospitalized in November and underwent way too many blood tests. Right now he’s hovering around 105. Not Red Cross material but higher than even after a blood transfusion.
We really feel like we are at — as they would say in chess — the “end game.” Nicole’s showing many signs of calcification of the arteries. The medical system blames this on the failed kidneys inability to clear calcium. I’d agree but also think the calcium used in dialysis treatment may be a big factor. Either way, life on dialysis in becoming more and more trying with sudden blood pressure drops, severe pain in the fistula, insomnia post treatment and inflamed lymph nodes.
Our efforts at raising $49,000 for the dental surgery have been moving too slow. After raising $10k in 2 years online we are experimenting with the postal system. In December, we mailed 50 individuals and businesses who have donated to similar causes. Cost us $350 in printing, paper and stamps. Didn’t receive a dime in donations. We are not resentful. I’m sure they tapped out making donations to other worthy causes. Next mailing will be to a much higher income bracket — millionaire’ and billionaires. But, to our surprise, crowd-funding has been very unsuccessful. Most people — for whatever reason — are unwilling to make even a $5 donation. At the same time, we were grateful and surprised by how many $50 and $100 donations have been made.
If the next two mailing flop we’ll abandon fundraising and go back to trying to earn the remaining $40,000 (may take years) while focusing our time and energy on more direct methods of healing the kidneys.
Nicole’s been also very busy with various mindfulness and meditative practices to help her overcome emotional turmoil she has been facing. In particular, she’s found Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth (no it’s not a sci-fi) and Scott Kiloby’s Natural Rest for Addiction (even addictions to anxiety and excessive thinking) books very helpful, as well as Rupert Spira’s YouTube videos.
As Atticus Finch says in To Kill a Mockingbird: “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.”
Losing kidney function and losing your queen in chess – a bit similar, aren’t they? Many people feel that if the lose their queen, it’s game over. That’s not true. You can still get your queen back. in fact, you can get eight queens. All you have to do is move one (or more) of the weakest piece on the board — the pawn — to the opposite side of the board and it gets promoted into queen.
What a glorious victory such an end-game turnaround makes.
Thinking outside the T1D Matrix,
– John C. A. Manley
P.S. The full-length article on stabilizing post-meal blood sugars is coming soon. If you would like one-on-one help, please book a consult.
P.P.S. For more on using amniotic fluid treatment for healing feet and kidneys you can read: Regenerating Dry and Damaged Skin with Amniotic Fluid
