A LITTLE DAB OF OIL

Sometimes we just don’t use the resourceful people that are in our path.  I continually forget that my nephew is marrying someone who just graduated from a Wholistic Health Program at college.  When my sister asked her for advice, she gave some helpful insights on using Essential Oils:

“I would suggest to NOT ingest any essential oils. I’m not 100% sure, but that would be my recommendation, based on some research I just did. Gayle may have unknown sensitivities, I would follow the recommendation of the practitioner she went to and dilute it with a base oil, or lotion. I also wouldn’t inhale it either. This is as well based on sensitivities she may have, and I wouldn’t recommend inhaling or breathing in any strong scents. The oils could also be used in a warm bath, with epsom salts. Here is a great website about epsom salts and benefits. http://www.epsomsaltcouncil.org/. I would also make sure that Gayle use the proper dosage to avoid an overdose of the oils, even when diluted. A really great way to keep safe would be to use LESS than the recommended about, see how it affects you, and then increase gradually if necessary, sometimes less works better. “

I am feeling more and more confident what I am going to do when these oils arrive.  And as I was putting some things away yesterday, I came across a small bottle of Pain Release Oil that I must have bought several years ago in my pursuit for solutions.  Today, I decided to have a trial run using oils since I wanted to go into a store I was a little hesitant about.  I decided to put a dab of oil on a cotton pad and inhale it several times while I was in the store!  I know that my nephew’s fiance didn’t recommend this, but I figured inhaling this oil had to be better than inhaling the toxic smells that I knew were in this particular store.  The positive is that I was not as overpowered by the strong smells in that store!  Now the question is whether that means it can effectively minimize any reaction!  And that was not using the oils recommended nor probably the quality of oil I purchased from New Directions!

It is so important to me to feel like I have some control over an illness that has dominated what I do for the past twelve years.  That is why I have continually tried treatments that many people would claim were bizarre, experimental, and questionable.  I find it better to try something rather than just sit back and allow this illness to control me. It gives me the sense that I am in the driver’s seat – not this illness!

BIBLICAL USE OF ESSENTIAL OILS

“Essential oils are some of the oldest and most powerful therapeutic agents known.  Most people today are unaware that they have an impressive, multimillenium-long history of use in healing and anointing throughout the ancient world.  Dozens of essential oils are cited repeatedly in Judeo-Christian religious texts and records show they were used to cure virtually every ailment known to man at that time.” Essential Oils by D. Gary Young

These reactions are getting rather tiresome.  I had on again  on Saturday after Greg took me to Sport Chek looking for a coat and yesterday after I decided I felt well enough to go to Home Outfitters alone.  I really felt “safe” going to the latter since I hadn’t had a reaction there before.  However, when I entered, the smells were particularly strong – probably from all of the extra Christmas merchandise.  I didn’t stay more than five minutes but last night I had the cold tremors.  Today, I don’t feel as strong as I did yesterday, but at least the reactions don’t last as intensely as before.  However, it reinforced my desire to find something that might lower these sensitivities.  This morning Greg expressed concern about my pursuing these essential oils since I don’t know much about them.  I don’t think I have a choice.

Using these oils can’t be such a bad idea since there are many Biblical references to the use of oil, don’t you think?   Various verses even indicate how they are used.  Perhaps, I could follow their lead.

Take a look at Psalm 45:*:  All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they had made thee glad.”   I could just spray the oil on my clothes.

Or take a look at Proverbs 7:17: “I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.”  I know that some people like to spray lavender oil on their pillows to help them sleep.

Or how about Mark 14:3: “Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.”  In my book, Essential Oils by Gary Young, he mentions how therapeutic it can be to rub oil on the feet particularly on the reflexology points!

I may just opt to burn the oil in a diffuser due to  the number of verses that talking about burning oil in the Old Testament as an offering unto the Lord:  “And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; it is an offering made by fire unto the Lord.” (Leviticus 2:16)  I could incorporate physical and spiritual health as I sit by the burning oil while reading my Bible!

I am going to experiment with these different forms of application once I get these oils.  I don’t believe I can cause any harm and maybe they will be therapeutic!

BEWILDERED ABOUT APPLYING ESSENTIAL OILS

Yesterday I ordered the three essential oils I was told might help with my multiple chemical sensitivities.  Oddly, what caused my greatest confusion was how to apply this oil.  The aroma therapist told me to use 5 drops of Lemon, 5 drops of Geranium Egyptian, and 2 drops of Benzoin.  Now what?

I had taken a book out of the library called Essential Oils by G. Gary Young and I began skimming this rather large text trying to discover what I do when these oils arrive!  I learned that the English model of application suggests that you dilute a small amount of the essential oil in a vegetable or massage oil and rub it into your skin.  The French model prescribes undiluted topical application or even to ingest it by putting it on a piece of bread!  And the German model focuses on inhaling the oils.

With that information, I was still trying to figure out if I can fill a container  with this combination of drops or do I mix these drops each day.  If I combine the drops for more than one day, I still had to determine how to measure 25 mls each time!  I began thinking that a syringe would be ideal.  The aroma therapist mentioned adding the oils to a favorite cream or adding them to water and spritzing it on me.  However, I am still back to the same dilemma of knowing how much to use!  She seemed to reiterate the importance of using just that amount each day and no more.

I finally ordered two containers – one a small jar and the other a serum spray.  I still have no idea what I am going to do when the oils arrive.  In fact, I have begun wondering if I should order a diffuser and just sit by it and burn the oils.  But then how long does it take for the oils to burn?  I am rather embarrassed that I am stuck on a problem that is most likely obvious to everyone else!  However, I admit that I am bewildered!

EIGHT DROPS OF OIL TO A SANER LIFE

“With the increasing demand for holistic health care and the ‘green revolution’, the demand for aromatherapy will increase, and hopefully we will reach the point where medical doctors incorporate it into their repertoire. It will become routine for doctors to send culture samples to the pharmacist for testing, and identify the relevant aromatherapy for the patient. The stress-relieving properties associated with aromatherapy make it an indispensable part of health care.”

-Robert Tisserand, of London, England

Today, when I went to the chiropractor, she told me that there was a cancellation with the massage therapist who works with her and she has certification regarding aromatherapy oils.  I immediately took that appointment and met with her hoping I might learn how these oils can help with my chemical sensitivities.

And what I found most interesting was this woman’s caution never to use more than 25 ml of oil per day.  Any more than that can be toxic!  That information I need to pass on to a woman I know since she burns those oils often.  Anyways, this woman says she is careful not to use the oils very often at home since she is exposed to them at work!!  There are even some oils pregnant women shouldn’t use and of course if they are used for young children the amount used is  reduced.  Therefore, the first thing I learned today is that it is not like burning a scented candle.  These oils have “power” and that power must be used with caution and with knowledge.  Therefore I am glad I didn’t just decide to call a store that sells these oils and just try something!

This woman I spoke to today doesn’t sell oils but she gave me an idea of how much each one she recommends should cost so that I make sure I purchase a quality oil.   I thought it would just be easier to order the same oils she does and now I am in the process of getting information about the company New Directions.   She recommended 3 oils to combine and one of the small bottles costs $50.00!

I asked her if her patients with MCS have had much success with the use of oils and she said yes, but the people she has treated haven’t had as severe reactions as mine..  More commonly their eyes burn and they get headaches and their reaction doesn’t last very long.  However, I’m thinking that even a little improvement is good and so I have decided to try using these oils.

When I asked how to use these oils, she said I could burn 25 ml every day or just add it to some cream, or just purchase a spritzer and spray it on my clothes or on my wrist. Initially, I thought I was looking for an oil just to use when I entered an airplane or store or new building, but using it every day means that that sensitivity should always be lowered.  This is a great advantage I won’t have to remember to spray some oil on me just prior to entering a building.

Well, one thing my husband and children will attest to – I have certainly tried a lot of different treatments over the years on this quest for health!   And here goes one more interesting venture!!

REST IS A FOUR LETTER WORD

I am still trying to recuperate from my exposure to multiple chemicals and this morning I began the treatment protocol to pull out more mercury from my body that seems to affect my body adversely.   I am not struggling as much as I was on the weekend but enough to require lots of rest.  Greg came home for lunch and as he was getting ready to leave, I was just laying on the sofa.  He came in the family room to say goodbye and to remind me to just go to bed and get lots of rest this afternoon.  I smiled but said, “ The word rest has become another four-letter word to me. In fact, I am ready to use other four letter words than the word rest!”  He joked, “I wouldn’t blog about that!!”  My response was that I didn’t think I would blog today since I doubted I would have anything too positive to write!

And yet here I write!  I know from past experience, these are the days when I need to remind myself I have gone through setbacks lots of times and I have pulled through them.  I need to remind myself that I am resilient and that nothing is going to prevent my goal of getting healthy .  These are the days when I must assess my priorities.  Do I want to get well and do what is necessary or do I want to whine and rebel and do things that can jeopardize my progress? On these days when I am attacked by doubts and fear that I am setting myself up for disappointment, I must choose to rebuke those thoughts.

I am really not the kind of person who uses profane four letter words, but my comment was my way of expressing frustration and impatience.  However, perhaps I wasn’t so wrong when I made my retort to Greg.  I do need to replace the word REST and instead focus on other four letter words such as HOPE,  LOVE, and  PRAY!

HOW TO DECREASE CHEMICAL SENSITIVITIES

I really believed that my multiple chemical sensitivities were improving.!  Two weeks ago I went to Costco with Greg and suffered no reactions.  I thought it was a result of my not being on the treatment to pull out the mercury this month.  Therefore, I felt fairly confident to go with Kristen Friday morning to several stores that I haven’t been able to enter this past year.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t have been more wrong and that evening I began suffering cold chills and shakes.  On Saturday, the pain began settling in.  On Sunday, I had great difficulty getting out of bed since the pain, the nausea, the dizziness,  the chills and the fatigue were so intense. Today, I am still suffering many symptoms.

My doctor has told me that these sensitivities will gradually lessen as more of the chemicals are pulled out of my body.  However, I have begun wondering if there are some things I can do to lessen the reactions when I mistakenly expose myself to these toxins.

When I was at the dentist last week, I told him how I couldn’t go on an airplane due to all of the toxins.   He told me that his wife used to get physically ill when she was on an airplane, but now that she carries with her aromatherapy oils, her reaction has lessened.    However, he cautioned that it is important to find an oil that is not too strongly scented since passengers beside her aren’t always very happy!   I have decided that I need to learn more about these oils to see if they can help me tolerate going on an airplane and into certain stores that are strongly scented.

PONDERING ON PASSIONATE PURSUITS

As Greg and I watched the one man play, Ben Franklin: Unplugged in Portland, I became fascinated about what helps clarify a person’s passionate pursuits. Ben Franklin, always a strong Loyalist, became passionate about breaking away from Britain after one devastating and humiliating circumstance. He waited several years to be able to speak to the Crown and to the Courts regarding the grievances of the Americans, but when he was finally called, he was treated with scorn, contempt and judgment.  He left in a complete outrage determined to use all of his resources to separate from Britain.

A less dramatic illustration of how a person can find his passion was revealed by the playwright   himself.    As he was standing in front of the mirror one morning, he noticed he actually looked a little bit like Ben Franklin!  This revelation lead him on a passionate journey researching this man, which of course lead to the current monologue Greg and I were watching. This playwright also soon realized that his passionate focus on Franklin’s relationship with his son was due to his own personal  needs as he was wrestling with his own relationship with his father.

A final illustration of how a person finds his passion was when this playwright met the renowned Ben Franklin scholar Claude-Anne Lopex.   He was surprised to learn that she wasn’t a traditional scholar who had accumulated many degrees, but had gained a respected credibility just by her own personal, avid research of this man. She told him it all started when as a bored professor’s wife, she wandered into the university’s Rare Books Section of the library. During a discussion with one of the professors, he learned that she could read and write French and he desperately needed someone to translate the letters of Benjamin Franklin during the years he was living in Paris, France.   She says, “I really just fell upon my passion.”

Most motivational books tell us to discover our passions by answering two questions:  What did you enjoy doing as a child and what activities would you gladly do without receiving any money?  After watching this play, I think several more questions could be asked.  What makes you angry or even outraged and do these emotions reveal something you are passionate about?  When the playwright Josh Kornbluth looked in the mirror and thought he looked like Ben Franklin, he began his passionate interest in this man.   If you looked in the mirror and believed you reflected the image of Jesus Christ, what would be your passion?  As this playwright also discovered, his passionate interest revealed some of his own personal needs.  Are you aware of any particular personal needs that could be clarified through a particular passionate pursuit? .

Probably what speaks to me loudest is Claude Anne Lopez’s success without the “required” degrees.  I too often put a “cap” on any of my interests since I often believe I am not qualified.  I also put a limit on my passions when I decide that I shouldn’t think about them while I am ill. Certainly how I pursue my passionate interests and to what extent must be determined by health issues, but the actual passionate interest doesn’t change.   I am hoping that these observations will help me finalize my mission statement as I am currently stuck in Chapter 2 of Jack Canfield’s book The Success Principles!

TRAVELING WITH MY YOGA MAT

Do you remember when women were all purchasing the cassette , “The Jane Fonda Workout?” Greg and I took our son who was 23 months old to England during this rage and while we stayed at Capernwray Bible College for a week, some of the women decided to get together first thing in the morning and exercise to this cassette.  In those days, I often thought about exercising, but all of my other priorities pushed those thoughts away.  Therefore, the morning these ladies began to meet, it was my husband who met with them and exercised and I stayed back to take care of our son!

That is just one illustration of how I have viewed exercise most of my life:  it was something worthwhile but it was never a high priority.  And then I became ill and what I used to take for granted was no longer functioning at optimum level.  I have thought so many years that when I became well I would view my body with much greater respect and treat it kindly.  It has been difficult to exercise over the years since often that expenditure of energy would have devastating effects.  Of course, this problem was exasperated by my unwillingness to listen to what I could do at the time and when I did exercise, I would exceed what my body’s energy could offer.

However, these past 60 days as I am sensing my body gradually cooperating to my doctor’s treatment, I am ready to exercise and develop flexibility, endurance and strength.  I believe I have been approaching these goals slowly and cautiously.  Therefore, when we decided to go on a road trip I decided I wanted to stay focused on getting my body strong.  I knew we would be taking some walks that would count as my “aerobics”.  I say that word loosely since I am not at that level yet, but I knew I would be at least moving my body!!  Therefore, I decided I would also take my Yoga DVD and yoga mat to continue working on flexibility and most importantly, to stay on my program that I had just started.

I felt a little embarrassed to carry my yoga mat through the hotel lobby, but it gradually became a symbol for me that focusing on my health had really become a priority.  As I did yoga first thing in the morning, I found it was empowering since it helped me stay focused on my goal of doing whatever it takes to become healthier.  However, toward the latter part of the trip, I no longer practiced yoga since I found getting out of bed first thing in the morning, showering, having breakfast and beginning our day’s drive was more than enough for me to do. When we returned home late last week, I was discouraged that I had so quickly lost my discipline and focus. However, today, I have decided not to judge myself so harshly.  Not listening to my body and doing only what I am capable of has given me more setbacks than I can even count.  I like to think that stopping this discipline for that last week was actually a result of listening to my body for a change.!  I was already expending enough energy and my body just needed to maintain what energy it had to enjoy our sightseeing drive.  What is most important is resolving to return to those disciplines as soon as I can.  And the good news is that as of yesterday morning I was back on my yoga mat doing that downward dog pose!

SHARING MY OWN NORTHERN FISH STORY

I had another amalgam filling removed this morning and as we waited for my ceramic filling to process, my dentist and I chatted about his adventures in Inuvik where he practiced dentistry for many years. He began saying, “You know how we refer to stories as fish stories if they are exaggerated?  There are no “fish stories” up in Inuvik.  They are all true.” He described how he had a patient who used his dentures as bait since he could catch so many fish with them.  And then my dentist said, “I actually have my own fish story. My wife and I went to Yellowknife with some friends and I decided to cast an old fishing rod that was in our boat into the water.   This rod didn’t even have a reel.  Anyways, not really expecting to catch any fish, I cast it into the water – without any bait.  Suddenly, the rod began to move and I had this huge jack fish.  Unfortunately, he got away but a few minutes later the rod moved again, and I was ready.   I returned home with several huge jack fish.”

One dictionary defines a “fish story” as an incredible or far-fetched story.    Another dictionary says that a fish story is a boastful tale about an improbable event.  When I read books about auto immune disorders,   or when I check out people’s blogs regarding this type of  illness, there is always the understanding that those afflicted with this disorder will endure it for a lifetime.  The emphasis is how to cope with this disease.  There are no boastful stories that describe cures for auto-immune disorders unless it is a company that is selling a miracle supplement.  And yet,  I have never accepted this pronouncement of doom and I have consequently had many unorthodox treatments in my quest to be healed.  I embrace the improbable, the far-fetched, and the incredible.

Most people love to hear a good fish story even when they doubt its accuracy since it is encouraging to hear how events can occur that don’t follow the prescribed rules, how sometimes an exciting event can disrupt the norm or the expected.   It is gratifying to believe that   the improbable can occur.   If I can believe my dentist, some of those boastful fish stories can be wonderfully accurate and true.  Why shouldn’t I believe that  it is possible for me to someday share my own “Northern Fish Story” in which I will describe all of the incidents that lead to an improbable and to some people, impossible conclusion:  my healing!

JUST DOING THE BEST WE CAN

No question our decision to go on a road trip had its challenges.  First and foremost, there were the constant dangers of being exposed to chemicals that I would react to. Secondly, my doctor advocates eating what he calls “designer foods” to give the body optimum nutrition. However, that was no easy accomplishment when we mainly ate in restaurants. Thirdly, as I mentioned in another blog, it was not easy for me to get enough rest during the day.  We certainly tried to be flexible and when we weren’t in a hotel by early afternoon, we found parkades and parking lots for me to rest in the car.  Fourthly, there was a constant balancing of expenditure of energy. When I was under another doctor’s care, he used to tell me that I have to see my health as a bank account.  I need to put something into that account before I could make withdrawals.  Something I have struggled with since the onslaught of this illness is making too many withdrawals and my account is quickly emptied!   That is how I felt sometimes during this holiday.  Our last stay along the coast – in Bandon was just one example.  We wandered around the town and we explored some of its shops.  That was enjoyable for me since until that day I hadn’t felt well enough to go into the quaint stores along the coast.   However, after my nap that afternoon, we decided to walk to the beach.  That expenditure of energy, especially since it was later in the day, was too much and I was ill all evening and the next day.

A final comment that is more a frustration than a challenge is that a combination of fatigue, sleep, pain and mental fog dulls my memories.  When we were driving back up the Oregon Coast and actually drove through a couple of places we had already seen, I needed Greg to fill in those gaps of what we did and what we saw the first time.  Fortunately, taking photos help jog those memories, but I look forward to going on a holiday healthy so that all of my senses will be fully engaged in sightseeing rather than being distracted by health issues.

All of these challenges might suggest that I regret going and I most definitely do not!  It was emotionally therapeutic after 11 months of mainly staying home that I got to drive in the car with the man I love and chat and enjoy stunning scenery.  I think Greg best summed it up when he stopped at another viewpoint, got out to see it, returned to the car and said, “Gayle, this view is worth your getting out of the car.”   As he helped me out of the car due to debilitating pain in my legs that day I commented, “We really have a strange life don’t we?”  He just smiled at me and holding my hand said, “We are just doing the best we can.  And later when he would first enter stores at a factory outlet to tell me whether I could enter due to the smells, I just smiled and thought “We do live a rather odd life, but we have definitely learned through the years to do the best we can to live as well as we can.”