Gerson Flashback???

It seems I took the weekend off from blog posting. By Sunday night my hope was to post something on Monday afternoon (yesterday), but at 4 AM on Monday morning I woke up to intense abdominal spasms. By 4:30 AM I took a Vicoden and sort of fell back asleep. I eventually woke up around 8 AM and spent all morning and early into the afternoon reeling from the pain. If I was on my back, the next spasm would have me on my knees and leaning over the back of the couch or on my knees and bending down with my head on the cushions - the way a newborn baby sometimes sleeps. Eventually, I would wake up in one of the said positions from another spasm and either turn over and lay on my back or my side in hopes that I would fall asleep before the next spasm came. I felt like a slow moving rotisserie chicken, minus the heat of course.

And the toughest part about it was that my brother, who I haven't seen in over a year, was in town for only 24-hrs. He arrived Sunday at 2 PM and we had lunch with our folks and then he left around 4 PM on Monday to have dinner with them and then see my Mom's performance at the Merry-Go-Round Theater in Auburn. Not how I hoped our visit would go. Our relationship has grown so much since our adolescent years where being right about...whatever...was more important to me than the little bit of compassion it takes to have a great relationship with one heck of a great guy. The best part was when I attempted to eat some cereal to help my stomach tolerate a dose of Cipro (antibiotic) - prescribed for what seems to be a UTI resulting from the catheter I was blessed with for most of my hospital stay. I got about a half a bowl of cereal in my belly before my stomach decided it would be happier empty. Yeah. I have to say that vomiting just short of two weeks post-abdominal surgery with staples in my abdomen isn't exactly a recipe for a good time. I rarely consider the feeling of someone taking their hand and gripping onto my abdominal staples and pulling as a fun. Then again, I've been considered a bit odd now and again - maybe it's just me.

Anyway, by mid-afternoon, Daniela decided to call my surgeon's office for their input. She had talked to me about it earlier, but since I had no fever, chills, etc., etc., I asked her to just give me some time. Well, once I threw-up we both agreed it was a symptom worthy of a phone call. After a short conversation with the Nurse Practitioner in Dr. Cagir's office, we agreed it was a little less than a "blockage" moving it's way through my intestines (not uncommon post-intestinal surgery) or possibly intestinal spasming. During our second conversation with the NP, she and I agreed I was dealing with intestinal spasming. It seems my diet was a little too rich when the family was here.

PAUSE - This is like a Gerson Therapy flashback: intense abdominal pain for long hours. Man. I had hoped those days were over. Even Daniela felt like we'd gone back in time to the days of the Gerson detox flareups.

By 6 PM, I was on strictly clear liquids and the spasming had seriously diminished, but it was still there a little. So, at 6:30 PM, I took some Milk-of-Magnesia and got everything moved out a little more quickly. The spasming naturally increased as I had anticipated, but I took another Vicoden and after about half-an-hour and a few very difficult spasms, I found myself peacefully relaxing on the couch watching the Red Sox (loosing unfortunately). The point was to move through whatever was triggering my intestines and get it out of there ASAP.

By the way, you may be wondering how sports ever found its way into this blog. Well after 13-years of living without cable or antennae, we decided to take advantage of the local cable company's internet/telephone/cable deal - same price as what we were paying for internet and phone - you know how it goes. With all my "rest" and pain management, hockey playoffs into basketball playoffs into Summertime baseball has been the progression. As long as I stay away from television drama, I can control my addiction to the "boob-tube," which explains to you why I chose to be without it for the last 13-years. Some people find they can't stop drinking alcohol once they start. I have the same difficulty with drama TV. Some may say I'm "still using" even if I watch TV, but there's nothing like a good ball game to keep me clean.

When I woke up today, I was a bit hesitant to move too quickly - concerned about another bout of abdominal spasms. Fortunately, I was free of such problems. On Monday night, the Milk-of-Mag moved the last of whatever was causing the spasming right out of my system. And I ate very conservatively today. I'm going to ease food back into my body.

Oh. And most importantly, Dr. Cagir requested I have a CT Scan on Thursday, along with my previously scheduled appointment to have these staples removed, just to be sure all is well. I'm told I will feel much better once these metal hooks are out of my belly. I'll let you know.

Just Around the Corner

I felt great today and I have to tell you it's strange to feel great. What I'm used to is either having one hell of Gerson Therapy detox flare-up or the horrendous side effects from the chemotherapy & radiation. I am without any of that. Oh, it's great and I love it. I'm not saying it's not. But it's definitely a new experience when I compare it to the last year or so.

On Wednesday July 9th I go in for a pre-surgery CT scan followed by blood work and a visit with Dr. A - my chemo Doc. That should be pretty uneventful as long as my counts are good. I am imagine they will be. Like I said - I'm feeling great.

On Thursday July 10th, Daniela & I will meet with Dr. Cagir - my surgeon - and discuss the plan for my surgery on July 16th. We'll also meet with a Nurse Practitioner (whose name I don't recall at the moment) who will provide me with all the information I need about managing the colostomy.

After that, I will relax for four days. On the fifth day - July 15th - we will celebrate Daniela's birthday!!!!!!!!!! And in addition to the WILD PARTY we're sure to have, I will begin my pre-surgery prep. I will only drink clear fluids for the entire day along with enough laxatives to keep an elephant home from work!!!

Oh YEAH - good times. Hopefully I will be able to make it through all 15 seconds of "Happy Birthday" without having to excuse myself from the room in order to complete my hundred-n-forty-seventh trip to the bathroom. I suppose I could leave the door open and sing a little louder. Then again, maybe we should just celebrate her birthday on the 14th this year. She might like that a little better.

Update/Reflection

...and now the flu-like symptoms are over and I feel like a million bucks...off to lunch!

Update/Reflection

The pain in my knee is GONE. My legs still ache today and they did a bit yesterday as well. Yesterday was a nightmare. Emotionally I was way, way down. I was cranky, grumpy, impatient, angry and exhausted. Yeah, a real joy to be around. They told us to expect it. Then at 10 PM, like the flick of a switch, I felt great. Unbelievable. I turned to Chris and asked him how his day went. Up until that point, I couldn't see past my own nose...

Today I am experiencing body-ache, like a lousy cold without the ear, nose & throat symptoms. Also very little energy. Two hours ago I felt fine. I stepped out into the courtyard and stood in the fountain for a little refresher. I looked up and the kitchen staff were looking at me saying "Roberto es LOCO!" The pool is not warm enough. I will ask them to turn up the heat one day before I go.

The kitchen staff are the best - Chris and I agree on that. They are the angels of this place. I finished a song for a woman named Lola and sang it to her last night. It was a lot of fun. We will definitely miss them. Not to mention they're masters at cooking the Gerson meals. We'd sneak one home with us, but their children would have to come and the house is just too small (and I suppose immigration might have a small problem with that).

Marguerita just delivered my gruel to me and asked to see the family photos. They love to see our pictures of our families and Marguerita always asks how the babies are.

Detox Flare-Ups

Detox flare-ups are currently minimal yet consistent. One regular flare-up is being spacey/foggy every day. Example: I have re-written this entry three or four times and I'm only on the second sentence (and I just spelled sentence "scentence"). The detox is definitely working.

Another flare-up that has been regular is aching in my legs - mostly knees and calves and some hips. Charlote Gerson explained that any continuous strain on the legs, i.e., snow boarding for a few years or the manual labor jobs I held for may years, can build up toxins in the muscles faster than the muscles can flush them out. So, the areas of the body that worked the hardest are releasing toxins. She says I can anticipate pain where old injuries occurred. The therapy will actually detoxify the healed areas of the bones I broke when I was younger and then will re-grow healthier bone. I applied clay packs on my knees last night and it helped. Dr. Cervantes provided me with a Potassium solution to blot onto the pain areas in order to draw out the toxins. It's making a difference.

A third form of flare-up is drowsiness. Usually after lunch I can not keep my eyes open. I imagine the same thing would be happening in the morning and evening were the enemas not so close to the meals, not to mention the Live/B-12 shot every morning after breakfast. That'll wake you up. Chris had a B-12 shot last Sunday and he said the energy boost was almost too much. He went running in order to bring himself down off of it, while for me, it's like having a cup of coffee with breakfast.

Reflection

One factor I have mentioned very little is the companion. Chris Stadelmaier is my Gerson Companion - all Gerson patients must have a companion for the duration of the stay here at the institute. Chris's girlfriend Jackie is at home without him when his presence there would make a difference to her - Thank you , Jackie. Chris's mother whom he is very close to and sees regularly is at home without him - Thank you, Mama Chris. Chris is in business for himself and all of that is on hold while he is here with me. Chris eats an almost exclusively raw diet which he has had to adapt while he is here since very little of what he eats is available at the Gerson Clinic. He has put his life on pause so that I can heal my body a purely natural way and live to see my children grow with my incredible wife as we grow old together.

It is a huge undertaking to be a Gerson Companion. Chris has little time for himself and the time he has is not of his choosing. He finds time for himslef when my needs have been met and at this point the doctors have me on only about 60% of the standard treatment. Because the tumor is in the rectum, they are starting me slowly. A rectal tumor is vulnerable -it's exposed, so things need to start slow. Chris will be taking on more in the near future. It's not that I couldn't do all of it on my own, but healing does not happen with Gerson therapy unless the patient is resting CONSTANTLY. So, I am required to rest throughout the day. Some days I am too tired or sick (from the detox) to go to the dining room, so he brings me my meals. He makes sure I have remembered to take my supplements, which I forget when I am out of it or sick (again as a result of the detox). Chris prepares the enemas and he cleans the bucket and tube when I am done using them. And when the enema, let's say, doesn't go so well, he cleans it up without a word. To say I am humbled by his generosity and kindness barely touches the surface. I have yet to find the words to express my gratitude.

To comprehend my gratitude, close your eyes and imagine tears running off my face faster than I can wipe them away. I am deeply moved by who you are, Chris. I will be present to love and gratitude for you for all of my life time.

Love Bert

Update

This morning I felt great. This afternoon felt lethargic. I got into bed and watched a little bit of Spinal Tap the movie then fell asleep. When I woke up my head was pounding. All of these feelings of sickness are a result of the detoxification process. In other words, experiencing it is a good sign. It means the body is detoxifying...powerfully. The doctors have explained that my healing crises (aka detox flare-ups) will begin to occur in a continuous pattern, i.e., every 14 days or so. Eventually my body will create its own cycle and I'll be able to anticipate them. I felt much better following the coffee enema: headache nearly gone and lethargy reduced (caffeine in the blood stream is caffeine in the blood stream). FYI - A coffee enema consists of coffee, aloe vera juice, chamomile tea & distilled water. The goal is to retain it for 15 minutes and it definitely takes something to do that.