Mark Christian Shaw
Before and after lifestyle changes to alleviate painful arthritis.
When I think back now, the jabs of pain I experienced, had been a regular part of my life. I remember limping past a work colleague once who asked if I had hurt myself and I replied, “No, I get this pain in my ankle every now and then. It usually passes in a day or two.” I hadn’t really dwelt on the issue more than that because it wasn’t too debilitating, just annoying, and I had the pain come and go for as long as I can remember.
While working with Dr Sandra Cabot’s as her book designer, Sandra recognized my symptoms of arthritis and asked if there were other examples of arthritis in my family, which there are. Previous diagnoses or guesses, from other concerned friends and colleagues had supposed I was suffering from gout. However, Dr Cabot was pretty sure it was arthritis and asked if I would have some tests. The bone scans showed bright spots where I experienced pain. Especially my left ankle and toes. The diagnosis was arthritis, possibly rheumatoid arthritis.
Dr Cabot prescribed cortisone which I took when the inflammation was high, however, I wasn’t very keen on taking anything long term having seen how the contradictions of some arthritis medication caused my brother’s kidney failure. I fully appreciate the need for allopathic medicines, though I don’t like the thought of popping potentially harmful drugs for the rest of my life, which seems to be the norm for arthritis sufferers.
Things changed one morning when I awoke and was unable to stand up due to the painful inflammation in my left ankle. After a couple of days resting my ankle and taking the cortisone I was able to wobble around with a walking stick. When Sandra saw the difficulty I was having she ordered the “big guns”. I had a cortisone injection in the morning and within the hour I was walking without a stick and back to my old self again. However, by the end of the day, to the Doctor’s frustration, I was back on the walking stick again.
Of course, Dr Cabot had quizzed me with usual questions, what are you eating, drinking, what supplements are you taking etc.? By this time, I was scrutinizing everything I ate because that is usually the main reason for these kinds of flair ups. Modern thinking about arthritis by GPs and Naturopaths alike consider it to be an autoimmune disease. In layman’s terms an autoimmune disease means the body is attacking itself. That for some reason the body’s own immune system produces antibodies to attack the joints and affected organs. This is normally treated with immunosuppressant drugs, which suppress the function of the immune system – they can work but side effects such as an increased risk of cancer are inevitable
Let’s face it, both allopathic and naturopathic practitioners struggle with getting good results for severe arthritis. They take a hit and miss approach and sometimes get lucky. The results vary from patient to patient with some obtaining relief and others remaining in the grips of pain.
With this in mind I decided to try various suggestions leaving the more poisonous ones aside.
The solution to reducing inflammation in arthritic joints and organs, according to Dr Cabot, is not to suppress the immune system but to balance and strengthen it. First by removing toxic elements from the body and strengthening the immune system with a nutrient rich but low allergen diet.
A detox was required – eat raw vegetables and fruits for 28 days to clean out the toxins.
This wasn’t as hard on me as it was for others watching me do it. I love fruit and vegetables and hoping this would assist my body to heal I jumped in boots and all. I started every day with a big banana smoothies and later, fruit and a combination of salads.
I topped it off with a variety of supplements recommended by Dr Sandra Cabot for strengthening the immune system, liver function and building collagen.
The detox and change of diet worked. The painful arthritis is now under control and has stayed that way for over six months. There were some unexpected side effects however. I lost 15 kilos as well. This probably occurred because I had been diagnosed previously with a severe fatty liver. Curious how the liver affects the immune system eh? As Dr Cabot says, your liver protects your immune system from overload.
This kind of diet probably doesn’t suit everyone, and I know that people shake their head when they see me consume a nutritional vegetable meal, as if humanity should be living on vegemite sandwiches and sausage rolls, but I feel great and can run now when previously I couldn’t even walk. When I finished the 28 day detox, which Dr Cabot recommended, the cravings for the foods that were feeding the inflammation subsided, which made a diet free of processed food all the more easier.
Supplementing essential vitamins and minerals and eliminating foods that my body no longer tolerated has been the key to alleviating my arthritic pain. The most important supplements for me were Livatone Plus, MSM with Vitamin C powder, NAC and selenium.
Taking supplements and eliminating gluten, dairy and meat is quite controversial lately and many find it a difficult diet to sustain. I have found it a joy. I love fruit and vegetables, but it does take a little more planning. However, the benefits of being pain free now and dropping all that excess weight has really, really been worth it.
A special thank you to Dr Sandra Cabot and her colleagues and friends who came to the rescue when I needed it most.
