Natural Cures

[woodstork]

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I found a book at Borders called "Prescription for Natural Cures" by Dr. J. Balch". It is just loaded with information, but I just focused on lupus information.I just ordered milk thistle from Puritan's Pride, which is reported to improve liver function and protect against potential damage of pharmaceutical medications.
Has anyone tried this? Has anyone used Dr. Bach's flower remedies?

Thanks a bunch.
Roxana, Florida style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/Thanx.gif

[raggedyann1]

Roxana,

Those are not remedies I have tried before. I hope they will be helpful to you. Please double check for drug interactions with your medications. It is surprising how many herbs can interact with the meds we take. The http://www.drugdigest.org can help with checking some of your herbs against your meds. Also your pharmacist can be a good source. I also make it a rule to check with my rheumy before starting any complementary therapies so I have his approval.

Karen

[woodstork]

Thank you bunches Karen! I have checked (although not thoroughy) and can't find milk thistle interaction anywhere. Are you familiar with the book"Prescription for Natural Cures"? It coveres everything from anxiety to constipation and cancer! I always tend to lean toward natural cures...I just hate all these meds we have to take. I'm even considering going to a Chinese Medicine clinic. Any experience with that[??
Roxana,

http://www.drugdigest.org can help with checking some of your herbs against your meds. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/foryou.gif

[rwb200]

I have seen and in fact think I may have an older copy of the book that you listed.
Many people have tried many natural or alternate plans for healing or helping there conditions.
None that I have ever heard of have been cured of Lupus but some swear by the benifits of some cures, others have had no effect or worse yet an adverse effect from them.
People can have reactions to these the same as they can any other cure.
Before starting anything on your own please be sure to mention it to your doctor in case they have any information on adverse effects that you could have with your condition or with your medications.
Even if they do not see any it is always best to insure that the doctors are aware of any thing that you are taking in case you would have an adverse effect of some type.

[Clare.T]

I'd be very wary of any so called "cure" when talking about chronic possibly life threatening diseases
It's only a cure when it has stopped the disease for the rest of a patient's life. Even the successful stem cell transplants aren't claimed as 'cures' for that reason.

Lupus is very sneaky : it comes and goes and sometimes can come back after many years remission. Basically I don't believe a word anybody says to me especially if they are making money from it, until I have enough real evidence to convince me how safe it is.
So whatever you decide to try, make sure you have check ups from time to time and at the first sign of worsening see a doctor.
Remember that Plaquenil is no more risky than OTC preparations for which you are not checked medically and same goes for any alternatives.
Of course a healthy life style will improve general health and well being. There are many measures that can help with symptoms such as joint pain

Remember too that there are any number of crackpots out there ! Check everything out.

Good luck
Clare

[woodstork]

Clare...I agree. I really don't believe there is a 'cure' for lupus.....but I think there may be natural ways to alleviate (or lessen) some of the symptoms. I see my Rheumy in a few weeks and I'll run some of these by her...I wouldn't attempt to start taking any herbs, etc. on my own....it's scary what could happen between prescription drugs and herbs....
In the meantime....I have just finished my second round of antibiotics for my sinus infection...and it's just as bad as it was almost a month ago. I'm anxious to see ear/nose/throat dr. in 2 days.. He'll have to do a 2 for 1. My mouth sores are worse than ever...cheeks, tongue....very hard to eat solid food and now can't even brush with baking soda...so I switched to salt water. Laughing now...you'd think I'd be losing weight......losing weight? ha ha ha......ice cream fits the bill too easily! If I don't laugh I'll cry...we just have to be thankful for the blessings we do have....and I have to keep reminding myself of that.
We should all think of one positive thing about ourselves before turning in for the night.
Night night...
Roxana

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[raggedyann1]

Roxana,

I still lean toward natural things in a very limited scope. I thought they put me in remission 9 years ago and had stopped taking all my medications for over 6 years. I came out of remission almost 3 years ago now and am so much sicker than i was the first 7-8 years. I still use probiotics which help with keeping my thrush problems at a minimum. I use simple things like vaseline for nasal and ear ulcers. And other simple mouthwashes and stuff for mouth ulcers.

I was totally unwilling to try any chinese herbal preparations when I was having accupuncture. This was in spite of knowing my accupuncturist very well and trusting her. There has been a problem of steroids in chinese herbs in the past and that could still be happening. Also it is hard to do drug interaction checks on that type of treatment. That is just my 2 cents.

I am now on 19 different medications versus 3 years ago none at all. However I am able to function somewhat and know without my meds I would be totally bed-ridden. I would tend to try things that have no chance of interfering with my medications. Like emu oil for joint pain as one example.

See what your rheumy has to say about it.

Karen

[woodstork]

Karen...it was nice hearing from you. So, if you had it to do all over again, what would you do differently? Would you rather have kept taking meds? I wonder if your life would be different now. Oh for a crystal ball to see into the future. I am so sorry you're taking so many meds just to live somewhat comfortably. I didn't know that about possible steroids in Chinese herbs.
I just don't know what to do. I was in remission almost 2 years and then whammmoooo, it came back with a vengenance....I never had these mouth ulcers before and now can hardly eat....Pain is a lot worse too. I guess I'm just reaching out for anything. After trying plaquenil for ONE WEEK and being allergic, I'm feeling like I'm drifting nowhere. I'm between rheumy visits.... When you feel like we do, patience is not always available. Do you think the accupuncture did anything?
Emu oil? I didn't know that. They have that at health food store?
You sound like a corageous woman! Karen. Wish we could sit down and chat over a cup of tea (Chinese tea???) style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/ohmy.gif)

Roxana style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/foryou.gif

[raggedyann1]

Roxana,

It is hard to say what I think I would have done differently. If I had stayed on the plaquenil maybe that would have kept me in remission. But what if it hadnt? Then my STD and LTD thru the job I had wouldn't have covered lupus. Because I had been med free for over 5 years my prior problems didn't interfere with the private disability insurance.

Yes the accupuncture helped but it didn't give me any last help except for my costochondritis. I always felt good on the table with the pins in. And after awhile it would last several hours. But after 8 months I never had any improvement longer than 24 hours. I think it is definitely worth a try but again I personally would avoid the herbal preparations.

See what your doctor suggests.

Karen

[Clare.T]

Roxana, was the alternative anti malarial ,called Quinacrine , ever mentioned ? Many people who don't take well to Plaquenil have no problems wiith this one because it's chemically different.

Lack of reliable quality and lack of standardisation are major problems with herbal medicines. Quite often the wrong plants are used since supplies are decreasing. Even the right plant can vary in active substances depending where it was grown.

Make sure you get treated by a licensed practitioner in both Eastern and Western traditions.

I use one of Bach flower remedies , the Rescue Remedy. I'm rather sceptical of the science behind them but they can't do any harm and who knows. Maybe the effect of the rescue remedy is psychological but no matter, the mind has healing powers.

I went to a work shop on Bach Flower remedies. The general idea seemed to be that if we are happier with ourselves we will feel better and be less at risk of developing illness or will cope better with the health problems we do have, easing symptoms.
The most significant part of the workshop to my mind was when we each talked about our lives and the major problems we faced. We also had a questionaire about various character or personality traits and were invited to choose what we felt applied to us. Things like indecisiveness, feelings of dread, incessant talking, over concern for the welfare of others. I don't have the booklet to hand but I am sure you can find a list if you look around.

In that way we identified arfeas that we were not happy with.
In that respect the Bach Flowers rather resembles true homeopathy, in that the remedies are designed for certain personality types who tend to suffer from certain types of constitutional problems
Certain essences are said to be particularly indicated for the various emotional symptoms or habits that are causing us problems, that might be called "dis-ease".

As I say I can't help but be rather sceptical about the science behind how particular plant essences come to have such powerful properties. This isn't herbal medicine as such. The amounts used are infinitesmal.

I was also rather put off by the first step in the workshop, which was to look at the array of bottles and make a note of those which appealed to us, for whatever reason. After we had done the other exercises we then saw how the bottles we had chosen blind correlated with what we had identified as our personality or character failings.

That worked often enough to be sort of convincing, but rather like signs of the zodiac or horoscopes can be : you note what seems to fit but reject the rest.
I was also very put off by a discussion of birth signs and personality & tendency to certain associated illnesses. (Just mentioning it, not to start a debate about it !)

It seemed to me that they could be a useful tool to increased general wellbeing through self improvement and increased self awareness. They can't do any harm either.
As with true homeopathy, ("like treats like", not herbal medicine), reputable holistic trained practitioners would never claim to treat serious systemic disease with them.

Cheers

Clare

[Mootie]

I know that herbal remedies have their place in medicine and that some herbs are already part of precription drugs. I have tried many things and spent a lot of money in my search for a "cure" eg rekei, kineaseology, colour healing and so on and I even went to a vet who worked with intuitive therapy.

However, I will never ever take a herbal tonic or naturopathic remedy again. Ten years ago I had a bad time with bronchitis that ended up being asthma. Went to a GP and onto a respritory specialist who put on all the asthma drugs but thought to myself why not go to a naturopath. She put me on a range of herbals including tonics, vitamins and a diet (this was in addition to my asthma drugs). The diet was the liver diet and I followed it religously. Alarm bells should have rung when I lost a lot of weight, felt exhausted and ill and then out of the blue then I started getting hives and swelling up with angioedema. I went to my GP for the hives and he asked me if I was taking anything herbal, well yes.

It has been ten years now and I still have urticaria, (the worst kind and hardest to treat )and in every year since then I have picked up another "auto immune disease".

I was using a particular brand of vitamins and about three years ago that company got sued as several people died including children with reactions to their drugs. The govt shut them down and since then have introduced new regulations.

My immunologist has a real mind set against "natural therapies", I know that presciption drugs can be lethal too but at least they are tested sometimes for years before they are released. They are also made in a clinical environment by scientists.

Anyone with auto immune issues is already compromised, personally I wouldn't take the risk again.



Mootie

[woodstork]

Clare:
I wasn't aware there was another antimalaria drug (Quincrine) to choose from!
Are these type of drugs directed to muscle/joint pain, or do they cover more than that? Don't suppose they'd kick off a remission? Wouldn't that be something? I was really bummed out about the plaquenil. I went to eye dr to get exam before going on it and had such high hopes!
Bach Flowers......I'm pretty familiar with the flower and it's associated ailment. I bought some Rescue Remedy last week and was saving it for an anxiety episode (I am also bipolar which is another burden)....anyway......I put a few drops under my tongue and had a VERY uncomfortable experience! It CAUSED an anxiety attack. I could actually feel my response from it slowly changing. I laid down and tried to do relaxation tapes but I couldn't even concentrate. My heart was beating a mile a minute! I couldn't believe it.!! I was so excited about the whole idea that I wasn't skeptical going into it and thought how cool to have a few drops when you need them. Well my whole belief in it has changed! I threw the d*#n bottle out. I'm also going to be MUCH more skeptical with any herb or accupuncture. I get so darn hopeful about anything that would work, and now am back in the pit I was in before.
I do have a question though. After my visit yesterday with ENT dr., are the sores in our mouths always thrush? Could it be so simple as a fungus ? I'm taking lozengers 4x a day for 10 days. The ENT dr. also told me my Rheumy is one of the best around, so that was good to hear.
Well, hope you're having a good day today.....Thanks again Clare.
Roxana


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[Lily]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE</div><div class='quotemain'>After my visit yesterday with ENT dr., are the sores in our mouths always thrush? Could it be so simple as a fungus ?[/b][/quote]

The 'usual' sores in our mouths we refer to in regards to lupus are ulcers and totally different to thrush problems. I have had thrush problems before and the lozenges helped a lot - so I hope you get some relief soon style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/foryou.gif

love
Lily

[woodstork]

Thanks Lily...
I have thrush and started using those tablets but also need to have a biopsy for the ulcers......I wonder if that's overkill??? He knows I have lupus....sigh.....
Roxana

[Lily]

Hmmmmmm, well one way to find out is ask what he hopes to discover from the biopsy I guess? He must have a reason for doing the test you would think, esp as he knows you have Lupus?

Maybe there are other sorts of ulcers we can get that may not be just 'normal' lupie ones?

Good luck and I reckon chocolate might help after the biopsy style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/wink.gif style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/hugbetter.gif

Let us know what you find out.

love
Lily