An Ironman Hopefuls Thoughts on Cancer

I'm an athlete. I trained for two years to prepare my body and mind to participate in an Ironman Triathlon. This required discipline. I spent 3 hours a day training, monitoring heart rate, and measuring my performance. I learned how to eat or "fuel" for short or long runs. I learned how to use electrolyte supplements to ease muscle cramps so I could train longer. I hired coaches to help me improve my technique and form with swimming, running and biking. I would concentrate on improving just one or two things in each training session. I focused on improving on what I had done before and shunned any comparisons to others. This was a personal challenge, to improve on my own terms and no one else.

And despite all of this, Testicular cancer manifested in my body. A tumor that ballooned to the size of a basketball that crushed two vertebrae, lumbar 1 and 2. It strangled my stomach so I could not eat more than 2 teaspoons of food at a time and made it hard to breathe. I lost over 60 lbs. and ironically, I looked like I was 6 months pregnant with all of the symptoms, i.e. back ache. I was reduced to sleeping most of the day and kept up at night with dry mouth and a back that ached so badly that I had to muffle my cries in a pillow to not alarm my wife and children.

Death was a looming possibility. All of my efforts seemed to be in vain. I tried many medical devices and healers applied their skills with little effect. Everything that I thought I knew was thrown back into my face in a merciless mockery. I felt guilty for having this sickness. How will my family survive without me? Why did I let this happen? Where is the justice in having this condition? Where art thou God? His answer was simple: "right here. I never left you." I underwent 12 weeks of chemotherapy, you can read about it here. It was harsh, I almost needed a blood transfusion a few times because my white blood cell counts went so low and I had a fever several times. Friends and family prayed for my recovery.

I was comforted and strengthened when I needed it most. My sister Lynell, my brother Mark, my aunt Elma, my cousin Theresa, my nieces Melissa and Leah and my mother came to visit. I had a vision of our family line going back to the patriarchs of old, a wonderful gathering of the family where we sat down for a meal while hearing the stories of our ancestors and afterwards danced together. The witness of the holy ghost was very strong as I related what I saw.

I have made many changes to adapt to living with cancer. I started juicing raw carrots, apples, beets, ginger, turmeric and other mixed greens and fruits. I eat salads with mixed vegetables and nuts as condiments. I drink Peppermint and Essiac tea instead of water. I perform a daily cleansing with a coffee enema. I spend a few hours in quiet meditation and prayer. I write. I work part-time as a technical writer. I walk a mile or two to stretch out my back. Recently, I have been having 3 chiropractic and 2 massage visits a week.

Recovery is coming along well. I track my progress with blood tests, e.g. Alpha-Fetoprotein (AFP) and Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). I monitor the size and shape of the tumor by laying on my back and pressing down into my abdomen. I feel the lump in my back. The shape and size changes daily. I have my doubts some days. I refused an Retroperitoneal lymph node dissection (RPLND) surgery because I thought the price was too high: a kidney, lymph nodes and probably another round of chemotherapy. I still have the goal to complete an Ironman Triathlon.

How Essiac Tea Helps my Cancer

I'm brewing up another 2 gallon batch of Essiac or Cassi Tea this morning.  The process requires two 12 quart stock pots. I fill the first pot with 2 gallons of water and bring it to a boil. I add a cup of Cassi-Tea mix and stir for 10 minutes. I lower the heat, cover and let it sit for 6 hours.

The tea is a mix of 4 herbs: Sheep Sorrel, Burdock Root, Slippery Elm Bark, and Turkey Rhubarb.

A simple and elegant combination of herbs that I have walked past in my hikes. As a 5 year old I loved grabbing Rhubarb from a neighbors garden and still admire this hardy plant. I've hugged an Elm tree and enjoyed it's shade in the summer. I started drinking Cassi Tea about 7 months ago.

I talked to my sister Lynell on the phone and she reminded me that Essiac or Cassi Tea would help speed my recovery. At the time, I was sitting in a La-Z-Boy recliner recovering from 12 weeks of chemotherapy. I was starting to feel better but wanted to make sure that I did everything I could to cleanse my body of the chemo drugs and the cancer cells that were still active. I purchased the tea from an herb shop in Orem called Healthy Herbal Nutrients or HHN. It cost about $43 dollars with Utah state tax. The kit contains 4 packets of herbs in the correct proportions. I poured each pouch into a 22.8 cup Flip top Snapware airtight storage container. I shake the container to mix the ingredients and it renders 7 cups of mix.

The tea tastes like tree bark mixed with some roots dug out of the ground. I used to play alchemist when I was younger mixing up grasses, barks and leaves to see what it would taste like. I drink a cup of Cassi tea in the first thing in the morning. I notice that the tea helps keep me regular, gives a little energy boost and helps me feel better. My cancer indicators hcG and AFP levels continued to go lower. The tea is great for a host of other health problems too.