In the clear

Dear friends,

I am happy to say that we are in the clear. Moses is officially abscess-free and has been so for a few days. Woo hoo!!!!

So basically it took SEVEN WEEKS for Moses to clear all of the abscesses which resulted (in my opinion) from three reflexology appointments.

And because I like to track these things, I need to tell you that a total of 10 abscesses developed in the last seven weeks, four of which were drained under local anesthesia. Ack!

• one on his groin (drained under local anesthesia);
• three on one armpit (drained under local anesthesia). This one was the worst one on Moses since it was incredibly painful;
• two on one armpit (drained under local anesthesia with a complication that resulted in one night in the hospital);
• two on his bottom that resolved on their own;
• one on the back of his neck (drained under local anesthesia); and
• one on his jawline (which miraculously disappeared within days of the one on the back of his neck being drained).

I’ve already shared some blessings that occurred during this same time:

• Moses becoming more confident in his body;
• His hand writing and reading improved; and
• His breathing improved temporarily, but during the last few weeks, he’s been wheezing again…  hmm…. What’s up with that?

One of the best developments is that we developed a GREAT relationship with a new surgeon who we absolutely love and we are so happy that his surgeon was on our side about NOT admitting Moses to the hospital for 10-14 days of IV antibiotics (Vancomycin), which just about most physicians would have done given the number of abscesses Moses developed. Thank God!!! I was happy that the surgeon was able to see how well Moses did emotionally and physically throughout these seven weeks.

Moses has been healing incredibly fast. For example, whereas last fall, it would take Moses 3-4 weeks to heal an abscess after it was drained, the last one healed within 12 hours of being drained. I feel that this is a really good sign of his underlying health. When his surgeon saw him 3 days after it was drained, he said with surprise, “He might have stuff going on with his immune system, but he heals incredibly fast“. It was during that same visit that they also determined that the abscess on his jaw (which the surgeon had already planned to drain by general anesthesia) had completely resolved itself. Whew!

My prayer and hope is that now that we will now have a good long break and rest. I’m not planning on re-starting anything that may potentially cause any abscesses. No more homeopathy. No more reflexology. We’ll continue with essential oils, some supplements, chiropractic, total body modification and cranialsacral therapy (more details about his treatment plan here). That’s about it. Our family needs a break and rest.

I write this post on the eve before Moses 7th birthday. I can’t help but think of my shamanic healer’s vision, when Moses’ soul told her that he would be done most of his medical difficulties by the time he is 7 years old. He showed her, holding up 7 fingers. Seven.

So be it, and it is so and so it is.

Please join me in my prayers.

The gifts of the week

The gifts of the week…

• On Monday, Moses returned back to school for his first full day of school in almost two weeks. That night, he surprised us by reading a book that he hadn’t read before, which was longer and more complicated than other books that he typically reads. Wow! Not only that, Moses’ teacher called us that night to also let us know that Moses’ also surprised her by reading a similarly complicated book at school too!
• Moses playing street hockey with some of his neighbourhood friends. It’s really not my imagination — something this month has really clicked for him physically — he really is more present and confident in his body.
• Today, he took his scooter out for the first time this year, and again, suddenly he has the coordination to ride and balance on his scooter.
• He has seemed happier in the last couple of days since the third abscess was drained.
• On our first night back at home after this week’s ordeal, when Moses was supposed to be sleeping, he left two notes for DH and me on our respective night tables. One said, “I love you Mom. From Moses”. The other said, “I love you Dad. From Moses”.

It feels like as these abscesses are being drained ,and poisons and toxins are being released from his system, he is energetically, emotionally, mentally and physically clearer and healthier. It’s showing up on all aspects of his being.

More good news…

• The site of the last drainage has healed sooooo quickly. Last year, it took abscesses that were surgically drained 3-4 weeks to heal and we had daily visits from the nurse for days on end. The last site was drained on Tuesday and now, three days later, the swelling is already down and the site doesn’t need to be packed with a wick anymore, and it will probably completely close and heal within the next couple of days.
• His left armpit, which a few days ago looked like it might be developing a secondary abscess, seems like it’s settling down.
• Today, the surgeon remarked that Moses’ abscesses have a way of walling itself off from the rest of his body (i.e., containing the infection). The surgeon explained that this doesn’t always happen, and is actually a huge blessing that had never occurred to me before. I really do like Moses’ surgeon. He has a way that completely puts the whole family at ease.

There are still two abscesses that are not yet resolved– one on the back of his neck and one on his jawline. He is scheduled for an ultrasound early next week, and the plan will be to hopefully drain both of them at the same time under general anesthesia due to the sensitivity of these areas.

Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.

Happy to be home

There is something that compels me to share this journey with you. The highs and lows. The ups and downs. It helps me to document Moses’ healing journey, unburden my heart during the difficult times and hopefully share some inspiration with you from time to time.

Yesterday, Moses had a third abscess this month drained under local anesthesia. This time his right armpit. The surgeon put in a drain that required one stitch so that it could continue to drain.

Unfortunately, there was a complication, and two hours after it was drained, we needed to bring him back to the ER because it was draining, not pus, but blood.

By the time we got to the ER, half of his sweatshirt was soaked through with blood, all the day down to his pants. And thankfully, the site that was bleeding didn’t cause him pain (or any fear).

Since he was bleeding, they needed to insert an IV since they were concerned that if he lost too much blood and needed a blood transfusion, they wanted to be prepared. Moses was very upset / terrified about this development since back in November, they had a very, very difficult time accessing his veins for IV insertion. Thankfully, the nurse was able to insert the IV on the first attempt. Thank God.

His surgeon soon arrived (since this was the evening and after hours, he had to return to the hospital), and assessed the situation. He essentially used strong compression to stop the bleeding and they taped the site in place. Thankfully, this procedure wasn’t painful, and it really helps that we all like and trust Moses’ surgeon.

Moses was admitted to the hospital so that he could be monitored overnight. The nurses were instructed to take Moses’ blood pressure every hour to make sure that all was well. We are at the hospital so often that we know many of the nurses both in the ER and on the surgery floor. In fact, one of his triage nurses was my sister-in-law’s cousin, and Moses’ first nurse on the floor was actually an old friend of my MIL’s. So nice to be surrounded by so many familiar faces. We now also know the chaplain who visited Moses and we gladly welcomed her prayers.

We were free to go today, after two painful dressing changes. The tape that they used bound strongly to his skin and was excruciating for them to remove. My poor boy’s sensitive skin.

We were thankful that Moses’ surgeon discharged Moses and didn’t insist on starting him on IV antibiotics.

The blessings

One positive development during these recent hospital experiences is that I’m really trying to make friends and make peace with the medical system, and as a result, our experiences with the medical system have been more positive.

During the days before this hospital visit, I had been trying to find balance for myself and had been doing a lot of nurturing things for me:

• a get together with some dear friends for a group energy healing;
• a walk by the ocean with some friends;
• Yin Yoga taught by one of my dearest friends; and
• received an amazing essential oil raindrop therapy from a dear friend.

Thankfully, I was feeling balanced, replenished and full before the hospital visit. It helped to carry me through this ordeal.

Since I carry 8 essential oils with me at all times in a small key chain holder, I always have my “oil friends” with me for support. I smelled Balance, Deep Blue and OnGuard quite frequently, and wore Balance on my terra-cotta pendant. I really felt that it made a difference to have their energetic support and nurturing reassurance in the hospital setting. Balance is good for grounding and comfort, Deep Blue is good for physical and emotional pain, and OnGuard is an antimicrobial and also provides energetic protection.  I put Balance , OnGuard, melaleuca (antimicrobial), lemon (antimicrobial), lavender (calming) and peppermint (supports respiratory system) on his Moses’ feet.

An everyday miracle was that after the hospital, we stopped off at the toy store where we coincidentally bumped into one of our dear friends, who had a visit with us over lunch and then came over and played with Moses while DH and I napped. I napped for the entire afternoon. She was a God send.

Robin and Moses hanging out

We are very, very, very thankful to be home. Please pray for continued healing for Moses and for our whole family.

A happy end to a trying week

After Moses’ amazing recovery on Monday and Tuesday, I was feeling pretty optimistic about things.

But then he developed another abscess on the back of his neck (the right side). And, then he developed a very swollen lymph node (and/or abscess?) on his right jawline. Moses’ body is obviously fighting a huge infection. Ack!

What is going on???  I wondered if they were healing reactions to all of the healing codes that I’d been doing on Moses’ behalf. After he responded so quickly to the healing codes when we were in the ER on Monday, I started doing them more frequently and also asked my mom to  join in. Perhaps they were working too effectively and bringing more stuff to the surface to be healed (indeed, Alex Loyd does mention in his book, “The Healing Code”, that the healing code can lead to healing reactions in 10% of individuals).

As the week progressed, thankfully the pain in Moses’ left arm started to subside, but then he started to develop intense abdominal pain (which we now attributed to diarrhea that resulted from the Clindamycin that he has been on for 2 weeks – 20 mL 3 times a day — holy goodness, that’s a lot of antibiotic). My poor boy’s digestive system. He’s been in excruciating pain. We’ve had him on a constant dose of Advil for the past 2 weeks (something that we don’t like to do, but desperate times calls for desperate measures). I also tried diluted Deep Blue and DigestZen on his belly, which sometimes helped and sometimes didn’t. But what really seemed to help the pain was The Healing Code. Twice, in the middle of the night when he was awake with pain and I started the healing codes on him, he feel asleep part way through the healing code, minutes after being in excruciating pain. It happened again and again and again.

Given the increase in abscesses, I was really, really, really worried that Moses’ surgeon would suggest admitting Moses to the hospital since the Clindamycin obviously wasn’t helping the abscesses. I was also worried that the abscess on his right armpit was ready for drainage and then he would have both of his armpits healing at the same time.  Also, the community nurse thought that the surgeon would need to re-incise the left armpit because the incision was healing too fast and the abscess has still been producing a lot of pus. It just felt like too much.

But, I was pleasantly surprised when we brought him to see the surgeon today and happily, all of my worries were put to rest.

• The surgeon didn’t think that the left armpit needed re-incising — if the wound is ready to close — let it close;
• He is going to wait another week before treating the right armpit.
• If all three of the remaining abscesses are ready at the same time, he will drain all three of them under general anesthetic.
• Even though the last abscess was MRSA-positive (yikes), his surgeon is not recommending IV antibiotics because his left armpit is healing so well.
• We can stop the clindamycin (thank God) and restart him back on his normal prophylactic antibiotic (which is a much smaller dosage – 5 mL twice a day and it’s much more palatable, although my hope and intention is to eventually get Moses off this prophylactic antibiotic as well). Hopefully stopping the Clindamycin will give his gut a chance to heal — of course, we will be using probiotics as we always do.

I prayed that Moses would be able to stay at home (i.e., not be admitted to the hospital), and we are being given that opportunity. Hallelujah!

So this was our big miracle of the week — we have found a surgeon who is in alignment with us.

It gets better… This surgeon has offered to be Moses’ surgeon for all of his abscesses. He even gave us his office number so that we can be in touch with him if the need arises.

And it gets even better… Last week, when Moses’ left armpit was drained, this surgeon used a different anesthetic (Xylocaine) which actually numbed the pain of the incision (previous to this, all of the local treatments were painful to Moses because they weren’t using a strong enough anesthetic). It’s been such a tortuous process for us all up until this point.

So at the end of this trying and tiring week, I am feeling very, very, very, very thankful. Supported. I feel that there might be some light at the end of this tunnel.

On the good side of things, I do want to mention that Moses’ lungs have remained clear during these last couple of weeks. Maybe this is the gift coming out of all of this….

Please continue to pray that Moses’ abscesses all heal. We pray that the left one will completely resolve itself. We pray that the right one will burst on its own. We pray that the two new ones resorb on their own. We pray Moses’ gut may heal. And then we pray for a good long break from abscesses and healing reactions. We pray for ease and grace for our family (and for yours too).  And it is so, and so it is.

p.s., This is only relevant for those of you who deal with abscesses under the armpit…  We’ve discovered that a clavical brace is very effective at holding a warm compress under an armpit (or both).

The power of prayer

It has continued to be a very trying week for the family, but also a week full of surprises and miracles.

A snippet into our lives and the power of prayer can be witnessed from my email updates to some of my dear friends:

Monday afternoon

(The following was written shortly before bringing Moses to the ER — he was running a fever and complaining of pain all over, in particular abdominal pain. He was sobbing when we brought him to the hospital.  I was certain he was going  be admitted to the hospital. I was feeling pretty hopeless and felt that our family needed some prayers on our behalf).

We are having a rough week here — been to the ER just about every day for the past week and a half with Moses.
 
Was already there this morning for a consultation with the surgeon re: abscesses.  In the past week and a half, he’s had two abscesses drained. One has healed, another is healing and yet a third is unresolved.
 
Bringing Moses back to the hospital tonight. He’s running a fever and complaining of a sore belly. Typically this means pneumonia.  Hopefully, it doesn’t in this case.
 
Need some prayers for ease, grace and speedy healing.

Monday evening

Thank you so much for your thoughts and prayers.

We are home now and I believe that the power of prayer helped.

I started doing the healing codes when I got to the hospital and within minutes, he calmed down and soon after that, his fever subsided. They took a lung x-ray and it’s not pneumonia. Yay!

They are going to do an ultrasound of his arm tomorrow to see if the infection is spreading.

More good news — the abscess that they drained is starting to slow down on its mucous production (this morning – 2 days after they drained it, it was still dripping pus like crazy ~ half a cup).

Not great news — he has yet another abscess that has started on the back of his neck.
Other not great news– if the infection cultures positive for MRSA, they will want to admit him to the hospital for IV antibiotics.  We want to avoid this, if at all possible.

Please continue to send prayers, healing energy, Reiki, good thoughts / intentions, etc. our way.

Tuesday morning

Moses had a great sleep last night — 11 hour sleep, and when he woke up, he told me, “I feel like a new person”.
 
He’s moving his left arm well and not complaining of pain and is fever free.
 
Thanks for the love and prayers.

Tuesday afternoon

Great news!! 

Ultrasound of arm looks good and overall,  the surgeon was happy with how things are going and how Moses is presenting.  If everything continues as it is going, the surgeon said that he will NOT treat with IV antibiotics even if the culture is MRSA.  Thank God!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you for your prayers!!!!!

Big breath out….

It truly felt like a huge miracle for our family, but our story doesn’t end here. Read about the second half of our week here.

Forgiveness prayer

A friend sent me this simple forgiveness prayer today. I needed it because I’ve been feeling guilty about Moses’ latest abscesses.

It’s such a simple prayer that I thought I’d share….

I forgive myself for…….

I forgive others for…..

And let’s all forgive ourselves.

Thank you Divine Light, amen Divine Light.

Please continue to keep our family in your prayers. Moses is still healing…

Learning to ride his bike

Oh, yes. Because life is always in balance… With the difficult times come the joys…

Some of the gifts that have likely resulted from the reflexology / essential oils (in addition to his lungs healing), are that Moses’ fine and gross motor skills and physical confidence have improved dramatically in the last little while.

• When I took him swimming a couple of weeks ago, he wasn’t nervous about swimming in the deep end of the pool (with a life preserver on).
• Last week, DH said that Moses did the best job that he ever did ice skating. And this is without skating lessons.
• His skills at Tae Kwon Do have drastically improved.
• His penmenship has drastically improved AND he is learning how to spell and write on his own (without us needing to write the words out for him to copy).
• On Monday, he wrote in his journal for school: “I love me.”
• And this week, he officially learned to ride his bike. The picture below is hours after having the abscess removed.
• And today, we went to a dance class and learned our friend’s “Robot Playground” choreography.

Riding his bike

This healing journey is certainly not easy, but it can be rewarding when I open my eyes to see the gifts.

God’s healing power

I woke up this morning to Moses coming into our room crying and inconsolable. In pain. Sad. It was early in the morning considering that he had to fast and our appointment wasn’t until 10 am.

He looked up and told me through his tears, “I asked God to use his healing power to burst my bump, and it’s still there”.

Oh.

My.

Heart.

My heart broke in pieces. For my boy’s pain. For his pure belief in God’s power, and also his potential disillusionment with God’s healing power.

And me unable to articulate that I really do believe that God’s healing power is real to my six year old, despite the fact that both of our prayers have (seemingly) gone unanswered.

So, I broke down and cried. I came down into my body to be fully with my boy, and sobbed real tears and joined in his pain.

And, somehow, through the grace of God, that shifted everything.

Moses stopped his crying and came over to me, to comfort me. To let me know that everything was going to be okay.

I believe that God is always with us, but in that moment, both of us felt God’s healing presence. We were fully present to God in that moment.

And in that moment, Moses stopped identifying with his pain.

We spent the next 2.5 hours before his appointment playing cars and trucks, and playing BeyBlades, and then when DH came home after his run, all three of us did spontaneous yoga poses, and Moses showed us how flexible he is, and he punched and he kicked and showed us how strong his body really is.

The hours flew by.

Moses practicing his high kicks, minutes before we left for the hospital. (And, yes, I recently celebrated a milestone birthday)

It was an every day miracle.

Reflections on Reflexology

I’m sad to report that we’ve had a rough week.

Moses had three reflexology appointments within 15 days (you can read the details about each appointment here). Who knew that something seemingly as benign as reflexology could result in such dramatic healing reactions???

As I mentioned, a day after the first appointment, Moses developed a huge groin abscess. I felt strongly at the time that we should stop the reflexology appointment to give Moses’ body a break while he was still processing the abscess, and even cancelled the second appointment. But…. DH didn’t believe that the reflexology and abscess could be linked and thought that the reflexology would help support Moses’ body.

And, I wanted to believe that reflexology was a gentle treatment, so I kept the second appointment. The morning of the second appointment, it looked as though the abscess was starting to get smaller, but by the evening after the second appointment, it was bigger. Five days later,  DH brought Moses to the ER to get it drained. It took three adults to hold him down. Moses assures me that even though they use a local anesthetic, it is still a painful procedure. Not fun at all.

We really should have stopped there, but I optimistically hoped that would be the end of it (and didn’t stop to check in to my intuition), and so he had his third reflexology appointment the day after the abscess was drained. I was still feeling optimistic and was happy that Moses’ lungs were clearing so I felt that we were on to something…..

But by the next day, my poor boy had developed five abscesses under his armpit: two under his right and three under his left. And the ones under his left armpit were painful.

It’s been a heartbreakingly difficult week. Typically Moses’ pain threshold is high and the abscesses aren’t painful and he doesn’t complain — even when he’s had abscesses the size of golf balls under his armpits. These ones have been brutal and he’s been crying and in pain for a lot of the week. We brought him to the ER on Wednesday, but the abscesses weren’t ready to be drained (i.e., weren’t soft enough). We brought him back in on Thursday  (last night), and they were ready to be drained, but Moses was hysterical at the thoughts of having more of them drained (especially in a terribly sensitive spot and vulnerable spot).

The surgeon suggested that administering warm compresses for an hour at a time four times a day could help the abscesses to burst on their own. The surgeon seemed to prefer the idea to give it some more time, and Moses also preferred that option, so we went home. Once home, DH and I regretted this decision because Moses again complained of terrible pain and then we had to go through with administering the warm compresses (which truthfully, is a huge inconvenience). We all had a terrible sleep.

The plan is that if the abscesses don’t burst on their own, the surgeon is going to drain them tomorrow. We need to fast him for the morning, and then go through the ordeal. Not fun at all.

So… it feels like a HUGE lesson for me to LISTEN TO MY INTUITION. It’s been a not fun lesson to learn and, unfortunately, resulted in much suffering for Moses, missed school, missed work, and lots of stress, anxiety and crankiness at our house.

And the blessings?  I do feel that there are always blessings in every situation, even during trying times (often especially during trying times).

I hope that whatever his body has processed and brought to the surface will result in deep, long-lasting healing for Moses. Perhaps this stuff needed to come up to help his lungs to heal.

Nonetheless, we are going to take a long, long, long, long, long, long break from reflexology. And when / if we try it again, they will be shorter session and not as frequent. Another reflexologist suggested that she would only do a 20 minute session with a child, especially a sensitive child.

What about the essential oils?

Of course, I’m still continuing to use the essential oils, but Moses isn’t keen on me putting them directly on the abscesses (which I can understand), so I’ve been putting them on his feet instead. With something like an abscess and the fact that his body is likely fighting a difficult to treat infection such as MRSA, the best place for the oils would be on the abscess itself and with frequent application (e.g., every 2 hours), but given that Moses isn’t supportive of that idea, I’m just doing the best that I can.

This difficult week also has made me so APPRECIATIVE of the three months break that we experienced from January to March. Really, a miracle. I am very, very, very hopeful that once these abscesses have resolved themselves, we can go back to smooth sailing and enjoying life and each other. I’m thankful for the hope that I have, and do feel that the essential oils have given me a lot of reasons to feel hopeful.

As a friend said to me today,

Maybe his body is just saying ‘leave me to it – I know what I’m doing’ and mama’s awesome essential oils are all I need.

So be it, and it is so, and so it is.

Thanks for sending some healing thoughts and well wishes our way.

Updates

April 13, 2013 - God’s healing power

April 14, 2013 - Some gifts that have resulted from reflexology…

Lungs are healing

Well, one of my prayers is being answered.

Moses’ lungs are clearing up. He hasn’t needed his Ventolin puffer regularly for a few weeks now (March 2 was the last day that I have in my notebook of Moses needing his puffer regularly, and interestingly, March 2 was the day that I changed his essential oil routine).

What helped?

• Was it the healing codes that I did for his lungs?
• Was it the essential oils (which includes several doTERRA oils, but also the NAN Rejuvenate oil, which I was told was developed to help someone with lung cancer)?
• Is it because his body is now expressing at the level of the skin (e.g., the swollen abscess that developed last week)?
• Is it because of the reflexology?
• Or is it all of the above?

It’s likely a combination of all of the above. In any case, I’m feeling very optimistic, and very, very pleased.

It does seem like Moses body needs to express inflammation / agitation somewhere in his body.  It’s always better from a healing perspective for things to be showing up at the level of the skin (i.e., the abscess) rather than internally, so I’m happy for this shift.

The abscess is still healing and seems to be going down in size (although still is sizeable). We are being optimistic that his body will be able to handle it on its own. I’ve been treating it 3-4 times a day with oregano oil, melaleuca, OnGuard blend and lemon essential oils (diluted with a carrier oil), and then the same oils on his feet (undiluted). I’m trusting it will resolve without medical intervention.

The small swollen lymph node under his right armpit is very, very small now (pea size).

We decided to keep the reflexology appointment today. I wrote detailed notes about the appointment here, but of particular note is that Kim didn’t detect irregularities in his lungs or left eye this time, and she spent a lot of time on his lymph system and also opening his lymph ducts at his collarbone and groin. His adrenal system seemed blocked, so she worked to clear that. I’m really fascinated by reflexology as a method of healing.

I woke up this morning with a message to start Moses back on his homeopathic constitutional remedy (Sulphur), so I started both of us back on our constitutional droppers today.

Thank you for your prayers and, as always, I’ll keep you posted on how things continue to unfold.

March 31, 2013 — The abscess is definitely going down in size!!!!!!!! A happy Easter, indeed.

Reflexology

Moses will be receiving ten reflexology treatments from a massage therapist who needs to practice on a child as part of her reflexology training. How amazing is that?!

He had the first session today. I wasn’t sure how he would do — I didn’t think he’d sit for a full one hour session, so Kim planned a 30 minute treatment. He did just fine (it helped that I brought snacks and his DS to keep him occupied), so next week, she’ll plan for a 45 minute session. Interestingly, she was able to detect irregularities on his left foot (corresponding to the left side of his body) related to his eye, his lungs and his adrenal glands, which make sense since his left eye is still healing from the eye shield ulcer and the left side of his lungs generally present the most problems. She used a drop of peppermint essential oil to support his lungs in the apricot carrier oil.

I’m sure that these treatments will support his body, organs, lymph and immune system, and I’ll continue to share weekly updates on this post so that I can track what she finds and how his body responds to the treatment.

March 24, 2013 – The day after his reflexology appt, Moses developed a swollen lymph node on his left groin — a healing reaction that resulted from the reflexology appt? I did a quick search about healing reactions and reflexology and it does seem like they go hand in hand. I’m treating it with melaleuca and a diluted mixture of melaleuca, oregano, On Guard and lemon essential oils.

March 30, 2013 (2nd appt) – I was on the fence about keeping this appointment because I wondered if it would make the swollen lymph node worse (the lymph node is still present, although seemed smaller to me today). My husband wanted to keep the appointment because he thought it would help, so we kept it. Kim did a full 45 minute session, so this time was able to get to all of his systems (last time, she didn’t get to his digestive system, skeletal system or nervous system). This time, she also concentrated on his lymph system and also opened his lymph system near his collarbones. She used OnGuard essential oil to support his immune system and help fight infection in his body.

Moses did well for the first 40 minutes of the session, but was getting impatient towards the end of the session. She said that this time, his left eye point seemed okay and his lungs seemed okay (and interestingly enough, his lungs have been clear all week). Yay! She found that he was dehydrated this week, so we need to focus our attention on keeping him hydrated. She also found that his adrenal glands on both sides weren’t clear this time, with his left side being particularly gritty. She showed me how to do some of the main points that are pertinent to him, including the lymph system and his lungs, so I will see if I can remember to work on some of these points when I am applying the oils to his feet.

I’m really fascinated by this whole process and modality of healing. I’m feeling very, very optimistic, especially given that his lungs have been clear!!!

April 6, 2013 (3rd appt) – Well, the abscess was drained yesterday by a doctor. Today, Moses was very ansy during a lot of the session. Kim said that his right foot was clear. Yay. His left foot showed some “fullness” in his lungs and his adrenals. Over this last week, Moses lungs have continued to be clear for the most part, although he needed his Ventolin puffer a couple of times. We are also starting to give him RespirActin rather than his Ventolin puffer, which seems to be an effective (and natural alternative). We will continue with reflexology, but if any new abscesses appear, we may reconsider…

April 7, 2013 (day after 3rd appt) – Well, a day after Moses` third appointment, he developed two swollen lymph nodes under both armpits (he had a very small one under the right armpit previously). Ack! We`re definitely going to take a good long break from reflexology. Need to give Moses` body a chance to process this, and then give his body a break from clearing…

April 12, 2013 – Read about my reflections about the last week here.

Healthy and strong

I have more good news to share. We saw our  naturopath this week. I love seeing our naturopath because she can see the long-view with Moses. We generally only see her every 6 months to a year, so she can see the big picture.

She reminded us how far Moses has come. How healthy and strong he looks. How his body isn’t showing signs of being stressed with allergies, as it once did. How his skin looks so healthy. We’ve been seeing this naturopath since Moses was three years old, and she reminded us how his skin once looked. Inflamed. Infected and weeping in places. Raw. Sore-looking.   And it covered much of his body – his scalp, his neck, his ears, parts of his face, his entire back, groin, arms and legs. (As an aside, when Moses was two years old, we saw a cranialsacral therapist who tried to bring attention to the part of his body that wasn’t covered in rashes. She told me, “Look at how clear his feet are”. God love her. Reminds me of our angel at A&W).

I explained our current protocol (which is generally using essential oils and probiotics — we’ve really simplified things), and she was happy with what we’re doing. I wanted her thoughts on us taking a break from homeopathy. I’m still concerned with some things — he had gone through a period of time when he was still needing his ventolin puffer quite regularly (but now that I reflect on it, in the last couple of weeks, Moses hasn’t really been needing his ventolin puffer very regularly at all), he’s been having night terrors again from time to time, and something else had recently popped up (which is a whole other story, which I’ll fill you in on soon).

She reminded us that we have worked so hard over the last few years healing him (really his whole life – almost 7 years), and Moses has gone through a lot during that time. She liked what we were doing — taking a break from homeopathy so that we can see how his body can do on its own. She thought some of the “flare ups” may be Moses’ body pushing stuff out on its own. And regarding his lungs, she thought that with time as his body strengthens, his lungs will strengthen too. She sees Moses’ body just getting stronger and stronger, with fewer and fewer flare ups, and with the flare ups becoming less and less of an issue. Interestingly, her vision is very similar to the message that our shamanic healer recently shared. A vision that mirrors my own feelings and inner truth.

She did have a couple of suggestions:

• She suggested that we start him back on Vitamin B12 (she thought it would help the corner of his lips, which are still cracked), so we’ll make more of an effort to bring that back into our routine. We got out of the routine when Genestra changed the formulation of their Multi-B complex, which Moses didn’t like the taste of. He didn’t even like the taste of their Bio-Vitamin B12 plus Folic Acid chewable tablets, which taste like a chalky candy (I think they taste good), but we’ll be more consistent with it since it’s important.
• She asked if we were still making sure that he was getting sources of dietary omega 3s, like flax seed oil and hemp seeds (which he is), but it’s so good for the reminder.
• She suggested the following lung tonic: Pulmogen by Genestra (which truthfully, we likely won’t doing since it’s very, very challenging to get supplements into Moses, especially ones that have a strong taste). But it’s good to know that we have some options to explore in the future.

After the session, she sent me an email that said, “It is so good to see Moses so strong and healthy.”

Again, it’s more and more confirmation that we are on the right path. More confirmation that my boy is healing. He’s really really healing. He is healthy and strong. Healthy and strong. Healthy and strong. A dream come true.

“One of my healthy students”

During a recent meeting with Moses’ grade 1 teacher, she told us that she considers Moses to be one of her “healthy students”.  It’s been a difficult year healthwise for the grade 1s in Moses’ class this year. Many coming down with pneumonia (a third of the class!). Strep throat. Flus. Stomach bugs. Several hospitalizations. For several weeks at a time during the winter, she often had 1/3 of the class home sick. I think it’s time to revisit this post.

And guess whose body has been strong enough to fight off infection? That’s right. Moses’s body has been strong enough to fight infection. The boy with a diagnosed primary immuno-deficiency has a strong immune system.

I feel that it’s a strong, strong, strong sign that Moses is definitely healing, and we are definitely on the right course. I have no doubt that the 2.5 years of Heilkunst homeopathy played a big role in his healing. And I feel that the essential oils are currently helping to bring his body ease, strength  and comfort.

In addition to physical health, he’s also been doing well emotionally, mentally, socially, academically, and behaviourally. We are very, very pleased. He’s still not that keen on being in school, but he’s adjusted very well. Has a few good friends. It’s no longer a struggle to get him to school. He no longer tells me that he hates school in the morning. I feel that the oils are helping to bring his body ease and comfort. Balance.

I typically walk him all the way to the school door (and sometimes, I walk him into the school), but a couple of weeks ago, he left me at the entrance to the parking lot of the school. He ran to the school door, met a friend at the door and they walked in together. I was an emotionally full / heart-full mama in that moment. My boy is growing up. My healthy and strong boy is growing up.

Ten of Cups

After I took a break from writing my last post, I chose three tarot cards. And one of the cards that I choose was: Ten of Cups.

It’s definitely a sign for me to open my eyes and see how very, very, very, very blessed our family is.

To open my eyes and see that Moses is really, really, really, really healing.

Be patient, my little ducky. Be patient.

All is unfolding.

All is coming.

Enjoy this moment now.

You have a happy and healthy boy.

You have an amazing husband.

You are blessed beyond belief.

Open your eyes and see the truth.

You don’t need to do anything special or do more of anything.

You are enough.

You can rest. It is safe for you to rest.

Moses is safe and he will be forevermore.

He always has been and he always will be.

I have always held him in my arms.

Just as I do you, and all of my children.

Ten of Cups

It’s a picture of a happy family, and this is what it means:

Happiness. Love. Fulfillment.

A promise fulfilled.

Dreams really can come true; you can be blessed with good fortune, success and a warm, loving family.

Rainbows appear after it has rained – the storm is over and the indications are that the positive situation will endure.

Loving relationships.

Happiness – spiritual and emotional blessings.

My cup is overflowing….

And, it is so and so it is.

Moses is healing

Hello friends:

It feels like it’s time for an update.

Moses is doing well. Really well. No more abscesses (which as you know was a huge source of stress for our family last year). His skin is really clear. Emotionally, he’s doing well. DH is completely on board with the essential oils. It feels so good that we both agree on Moses’ treatment at the moment. A huge source of stress is gone from our lives.

That said, Moses has had a couple of bouts of illness in the last little while. He had strep throat a few weeks ago, but he recovered quickly and easily. Only missed two days of school.

We had a quick trip to the ER a couple of weeks ago. I think it was a healing reaction to frankincense that I put on his chest. Moses came home from school and was having a difficult time breathing and I put frankincense on his chest. Later that night, he threw up globs of mucous (which I think is a good sign) — I think the oils have been releasing and bringing up phlegm from his system, but Moses doesn’t know to spit it out, so he just swallows it all. (I actually found when I started using the oils, I was also bringing up phlegm myself, and I didn’t even realize that I had a mucous problem). He was still having difficulty breathing after he brought up the mucous, so we brought him to the ER. By the time he saw the triage nurse, he only had a slight wheeze, and by the time he saw the doctor, he was not wheezing at all. They sent us home without any treatment. Yay! I should also mention that I started doing the Healing Code when we were in the waiting room, and I think that really helped too. I will share more about the Healing Code soon!

So basically, many things have resolved for Moses, except he still has congestion in his lungs. I am hopeful that with time, the oils will help Moses’ lungs. I’ve read time and time again that they have helped others with asthma and respiratory problems. In fact, a friend’s dad who had chronic bronchitis now hardly needs to use an oxygen tank to breathe as a result of using the oils. I have faith that I will find the right combination of oils that will help Moses. I just need to be patient (which truthfully, is not my strongest quality).

Starting today, I’m going to change the oils that I’m using on Moses. (This post describes what we were doing up until now, and I feel that it has been very helpful at keeping the MRSA infections in check).

This is our new essential oil protocol (focuses more on healing his allergies, and I actually had a dream a few weeks ago to start using the allergy trio on him).

• Morning: lemon (natural antibiotic), peppermint (good for his lungs) and lavender (calming to his system) (together, these oils are considered the allergy trio, and I have found that they completely eliminate my own allergic symptoms to dogs and cats, which is actually pretty amazing considering that I am VERY allergic to animal dander).
• Evening: peppermint (good for lungs), melaleuca (natural antibiotic) and frankincense (so healing, good for so many things).

Just one drop of each, rubbed on the bottom of his feet. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Other considerations

Yesterday, I received a couple of recommendations, which I’m considering.

A friend of mine is very enthusiastic about the oils at Native American Nutritionals. I talked to the owner and he made some suggestions for Moses (Defense, black cumin oil, Rejuvenate and Breathe EZ). My friend thought the DNA Repair may also be helpful considering that Moses has a genetic disorder. DH isn’t interested in trying anything new right now, so I don’t think I’m going to change anything at the moment, but it’s something that I’m considering.

Also, a healer whose opinion I really trust recommended a karmic healer. Something else for us to consider. I’m interested, but DH is not.

As always, I’ll let you know how things continue to unfold for our family.

DigestZen for tummy aches

The other night, after Moses received a short impromptu osteopath treatment* from a visiting family member, he woke up with terrible tummy pains.

He was in distress and upset, and we were both tired as it was 5:30 am in the morning, and the second time he was up that night.

I knew that doTERRA’s DigestZen (a blend of anise, caraway, coriander, fennel, ginger, peppermint and tarragon essential oils) and peppermint essential oil are good for digestive upsets, so I rubbed some coconut oil on his belly (to dilute the essential oils), followed by 1 drop of DigestZen, and shortly after, 1 drop of peppermint oil. I rubbed it on in a clockwise motion. It was amazing to witness the difference as Moses went from writhing in pain and discomfort to immediately being subdued and calmed when I started rubbing his belly.

When I stopped rubbing his belly, he told me that his belly still hurt, so I kept on rubbing. (I later read that it’s good to repeat the treatment [i.e., add another drop of DigestZen or peppermint oil] every 15 to 20 minutes until the discomfort passes).

I told him, he’d feel better if he went to the bathroom, so he tried a couple of times with no success.

After about 20 minutes, I figured that we couldn’t stay up all night, so I tried to cuddle him back to sleep and rubbed his back to comfort him. Within 2 minutes, he started to wretch and threw up the offending food, and he felt perfectly fine immediately after. I cleaned everything up and he went back to sleep. He woke up feeling good and went to school like any other day.

*I later found out that healing reactions are a common response to osteopathy, which might explain the stomach pains, in addition to the night terror that he had last night — the first one that he’s had for a long, long, time.

“My body is really healthy”

I forgot to mention that last week, at the end of the appointment, Moses’ chiropractor asked him how he was feeling on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 feeling not so good, and 10 feeling really, really good.

Moses just buried his head in his blanket in response.

So, I rephrased it, “Does your body feel not so good, or a little bit healthy, or really healthy?”

And, Moses responded, “I’m not feeling a little bit healthy. My body is really healthy. I feel really good.“

An answered prayer.

Our essential oil update

Just wanted to give you an update that Moses is continuing to do really, really well. I almost don’t want to say it, in case it jinxes it, but he is doing really, really well.

I am feeling very optimistic, and feeling very good about how things are going. I do really think he is responding well to the essential oils.

Currently, I am putting these oils on his feet in the mornings:

• On Guard – a protective blend, for immune support and it has antibacterial, antiparasitic, antiviral and disinfectant properties.
• melaleuca (tea tree oil) – a powerful antimicrobial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antistringent and disinfectant
• Breathe – provides respiratory support. It contains Eucalyptus, Laurel leaf, Lemon, Melaleuca, Peppermint and Ravensara.
• Balance  – promotes tranquility, balance and groundedness. It contains spruce, rosewood, frankincense and blue tansy and smells just like being in a spruce woods.

And these oils on his feet at night:

• On Guard
• melaleuca
• Breathe
• Frankincense -  a very power essential oil that has many applications, including calming, immune support, and lifts mood and awareness.

We’ve been diffusing Breathe in the livingroom and in his bedroom before he goes to bed to help his breathing.

When he needs extra emotional support, I’ll encourage him to smell Balance or lavender.

If he needs extra support during homework time, I’ll take out the lemon, peppermint or Balance oils.

If he gets an infection, I’ll add oregano to the mix, and be more aggressive with the oils, but for now, I think this seems to be working well.

We saw our intuitive chiropractor today and the chiropractor mostly did structural work on Moses (some adjustments), did some work clearing his head and some points for his lungs (since he is still wheezing and still needing his puffer daily). But, his chiropractor said that his lungs are better than they have been in the past, and he didn’t need as much work on his liver and kidney as he has in the past. All good news.

Mama’s update

I’ve also been doing really well. I really love the oils, especially Balance. This is my absolute most favourite essential oil blend. I diffuse it in my office, smell it throughout the day and carry it in my pocket. It is reassuring and grounding and oh, so very healing to my soul. It smells like being in a spruce forest, and the frankincense in the blend is so healing as well. I feel it clearing my brain and helping my body to settle and connect with the earth. It is so very comforting.

My chiropractor said that he really likes how my body is responding to the essential oils. He can see that they are having a very discernible effect on my energetic system and physical body.

What’s great about the oils is that my whole family has been responding to them. DH even likes them and has been getting me to make him an essential oil flu bomb (oregano, OnGuard, melaleuca and lemon) when he feels like he is coming down with a cold / flu.  The flu bomb really helped both of us, and we both quickly recovered with the help of the essential oils (whereas many around us have been sick for several days or even weeks). I felt its effect within hours of taking it.

I’ve been taking an essential oil allergy capsule (lemon, peppermint and lavender) to help me with my allergies to animal dander and it also works almost immediately.

My mother-in-law loves the oils (she loves to smell them, how they clear her sinuses and kept a nasty flu out of her lungs) and now has an intro kit of lemon, lavender and peppermint. Clear Skin oil blend is helping my brother with his eczema. I’ve been giving my husband and my mother-in-law foot rubs with lavender massage oil, and helping friends and family with back pain with Deep Blue essential oil blend (a topical pain reliever). It seems like everyone loves the oils and are really responding to them. I’m starting to use them in my healing sessions as well.

And, excitingly, they are also helping other families with sensitive children, like Emily’s sons with ADHD, and another friend who is using oregano for her daughter who has candida.

If you want to read more about how our family is using essential oils in our home, read more here.

The highlights of 2012

I want to end 2012 on a high note, reviewing my highlights of 2012.

Family

• I am blessed to have my dearest husband and Moses to share my life with.
• I am blessed to have such a close relationship with my mom and dad, and a loving relationship with my brothers.
• I am blessed to live close to my husband’s family and to have especially have such a loving and supportive mother-in-law, brother-in-law and his wife, cousins and the rest of the huge extended family. There are deep family roots here.

Friends

• I feel very blessed to have the dear friends that we have and to receive the support that we do during times of need;
• I feel blessed to have a group of soul friends who I can share my deepest fears and also my greatest joys;
• I feel very blessed to have a group of women who I can relate with on a deep spiritual level;
• I am blessed to have friends to laugh with and cry with.

Health

• DH and I are blessed by good health.
• I am thankful for Moses’ good health and his continued healing.

Self-Care and healing

• Meditation
• Yoga (restorative, yin, flow)
• Massage
• Acupuncture
• Heilkunst homeopathy
• Shamanic healing
• Chiropractic
• Total body modification
• Cranialsacral therapy
• Naturopathy
• Essential oils
• I am blessed to have such amazing health care practitioners and healers in my life.

Professionally

• I presented a well-received talk presentation at an international conference in Phoenix.
• Found an ideal balance with work life, as an environmental consultant and also as a healer. I feel very blessed!!
• DH also loves his job.

Home

• I love our home! We are creating deep roots.
• I love our neighbourhood, our city, our province, our country, our planet earth.

Relaxation

• Weekend get-away at my friend’s cabin with two of my dear friends;
• Northern Bay Sands with our family and family friends;
• Vacationing with DH and loving Sedona;
• Spending quality time with my mom in November; and
• Gros Morne with a dear friend in November.

Workshops and healing

• created a powerful vision board with some dear friends;
• Teaching restorative yoga workshop;
• Thai yoga massage workshop;
• Introduction to Bowen Therapy;
• summer equinox fire ceremony;
• a healing session with two visiting indigenous Peruvian shamans;
• 2 day Dying Consciously workshop in Gros Morne with a dear friend in November;
• 4 weeks of Energy Healing for Sexual Trauma;
• 4 weeks of Feminine Energy Body Empowerment;
• 4 weeks of Ancient Egyptian Mysticism (such powerful and beautiful offerings from Mommy Mystic);
• and candlelit restorative yoga on the winter solstice.

Spiritually

• I feel blessed to have a healing room in my home where I can pray, meditate, practice yoga and help cultivate healing for others;
• I feel blessed to have a spiritual lineage that I strongly resonate with; and
• I feel very blessed with my relationship with the Divine.

My spiritual offerings

• Subbed two yoga classes;
• Hosted three despachos (prayer bundle ceremonies) for healing the masculine, healing the feminine and honouring our ancestors;
• Hosted several Wish games; and
• Offered healing sessions for individuals and families locally and also throughout Canada, the US, Australia and even an individual in Turkey.

So all in all, 2012 was a tremendous and fabulous year with many, many, many blessings. There is much to be thankful for.

I pray for continued blessings for all of us (my family and yours) in the new year.

Peace and love, dear friends.

Reflections at the end of 2012

2012 felt like a doozy of a year. So many highs and so many lows.

I was one of the people who started anticipating the Big Shift of 2012 as early as 01.01.01, and it’s funny how when 12.12.12 came and 12.21.12 arrived, I didn’t even blink an eye or  feel a huge need to participate in a ceremony (although I did welcome the winter solstice quietly and beautifully during a candlelit restorative yoga workshop led by one of my dearest friends). I resonated with a different interpretation of the end of the Mayan calendar and actually felt the big shift last year on October 28, 2011.

I think most everyone is feeling things strongly these days. I personally feel that we are all being strongly called to live from the heart. If we try to live from the mind, we will literally go out of our minds. But if we live our lives from the quiet stillness from our hearts, we will find peace within, no matter how chaotic things may appear on the outside.

I feel that I have been shedding much over the last few months. I hosted an Aya despacho (a ceremony that involved the preparation of a prayer bundle to honour our ancestors) at the end of October. In November, I attended a two day Dying Consciously workshop, during which we wrote our own obituaries, experienced the death rites (twice) and listened to our obituaries being read while our luminous body were disconnected (temporarily) from our physical body. It was a very profound experience. And then a couple of days ago, I experienced another form of the death rites as part of an Ancient Egyptian Mysticism course. So much shedding of the past, so that we can be reborn.

I feel that I’ve done so much processing and deep energetic work that, ironically, over the last few weeks since our 12 days in the hospital that I’ve fled up into the safety of my mind. I’ve been researching, researching, researching. Hoping to find comfort by reading how doTERRA essential oils have helped so many people. Hoping and praying that my son will be amongst those that they will help.

During our Christmas holidays, I’ve also slowly been trying to ease back into my body. Practicing yoga here and there. Meditating again. Connecting to that deep and wise voice within that tells me that all will be alright. We are all safe. My boy will be okay, is okay, actually is more than okay. He is healing. He is really healing. Trust, trust, trust, trust, trust.

And, I really do believe in my heart of hearts that he is. I know that he is. He has come so far that other than during our periodic hospital visits (!), no one can tell that he has an immune disorder.

Christmas 2012

He runs around. He is happy and well. He is smart. He is funny. He loves to dance. He has tons of fun with his favourite cousin. He brings us so much joy. He has lots of energy. Nothing holds him back. He is a typical crazy six year old.

His body seems to be recovering well from his pneumonia. It’s not holding him back. The day after our trip to the hospital last week, no one could tell that he was recovering from pneumonia. He bounces back so quickly.

Now, he has three new abscesses. One of them is huge. All of them are in a very sensitive area. Not fun at all. But, he doesn’t complain. He still runs around and plays. He’s been in a great mood. But the one that is huge looks like it may need hospital intervention. Possibly as soon as tomorrow. And, truthfully, I’m devastated about that. It’s the absolute last thing that I want to do on the first day of a new year — have a trip to the ER, a consultation with a surgeon and try to keep my son calm during a painful procedure (he assures me that even though they use a topical anaesthetic, it still hurts when they drain it). And it’s in a sensitive area — his groin. Not fun for any of us.

I’m terribly sad. Feel that it’s not fair. He’s gone through so much. Why does he keep getting these d*mn abscesses. From a homeopathic perspective, it’s a sign of healing — things are coming to the surface to resolved. I’ve been taking a break from homeopathic clearing because I feel that his body needs a break from clearing, and yet his body is still creating abscesses. Is it because his body is still trying to clear the syphilitic miasm on its own?  Is he responding to the recent energy work that I’ve been doing (which he seems to do — when I undergo healing for myself, his body tends to respond). Is it a healing reaction to the essential oils — are they clearing him from a deep level too?  I’m not sure. I hope that the abscesses are signs of healing. I need to believe that they are. It would be heartbreaking and demoralizing for me to believe what the medical model believes — that he’s just getting them because his immune system is compromised and his body has a difficult time from fighting infection. I need to believe that they are a sign of healing.

So then, I go within. I connect to that deep and wise voice and inner knowingness. And the deep and wisest part of me tells me the truth: Moses is healing. He is healing. He is healing. Trust. Trust. Trust. Trust.

And so I do. I need to.

I pray for ease, grace, balance, health, joy and beauty for our family and for yours in 2013.

Happy New Year, dear friends.

Updates:

January 1, 2013 – We decided to wait a couple more days to give Moses’ body some more time to see if it can resolve the abscesses on their own. Whew! I’m very thankful.