Today we are confronted from every direction with what pill we need to ingest to “cure” this or that ailment. I don’t blame anyone for doing so, for we’ve been conditioned to run toward the doctor’s office or local pharmacy whenever we are feeling under the weather; all the ads on radio, television and the web don’t help either. I’m no saint here, for I have fallen into the reactive medicine loop, too. At times because of the lack of alternative resources seemingly available, we take this or that because those are the only options we are presented with. Don’t get me wrong, for there is a time and place for modern medicine and I was taking last fall what amounted to handfuls of prescription pills over the course of several months post-op to mitigate pain during the healing process. Hernia surgery was necessary, yet the pills which hid the pain gave me a heavy dose of toxic crap on the side. No thank you for that. My sleep cycle was off because of pain, and the body was not working the way it could while the pain killers held the liver and kidneys hostage. If that wasn’t the worst of it, the painkillers no longer worked, and I had switched them out a number of times with the help of my doctor.
What is one to do? I for one am lucky to have worked at a natural foods coop and therefore had easy access to resources, knowledgeable staff, sometimes products that were close to their expiration date and a lovely discount to top it off. Going back ten years now I have been suggesting various foods and herbal remedies for friends and family to take in healing their bodies. For pain I would ingest turmeric, ginger, oat straw tea, etc. A kidney detox followed by a liver detox were in order for my system. A capsule chock-full of beneficial herbs, from milk thistle to burdock root for the liver and dandelion, parsley and nettles for the kidneys, targeted the source of a problem instead of masking it. This was taken when I awoke and later on when it was time to hunker down to dream. Being that the liver completes a multitude of its functions from around 11pm – 1am late at night, I would then do my best to give this amazing organ the time necessary for work. Also, I mixed up a concoction of chili powder, apple cider vinegar, chia seed, lemon juice, warm water and psyllium husk to work on my lower digestive tract. Homemade kombucha, fresh juices and smoothies did their part in bringing my body, mind and spirit back to a semblance of normalcy. These natural cures were not all taken at once, but rather in succession over the span of several months so as not to overtax the body.
Consequently my bile production increased, and so too the function of toxin removal was thereby increased exponentially from the liver, to the gallbladder and on into the beginning of the small intestine, the duodenum. While this is not the only function of bile, it emulsifies fats among other things, this is my focus at the moment.
My kidneys are back to optimum blood cleansing capacity thanks in part to another capsule filled with another mixture of herbs. One of may painkillers had a side effect of higher blood pressure, so the kidneys were likely not able to properly filter and pull out their usual levels of waste from the body or regulate the proper levels of sodium, phosphorus and potassium circulating throughout the body for that matter.
During this detoxification period I took additional herbal teas to cleanse my liver, went on fasts to purify my entire body and kept up with a basic workout routine consisting of yoga, cycling and light weights.
Having finished with that several months long daily regimen I slowly began to feel myself once again. Scar tissue from my operation continues on a path of working its way out, saying hello from time to time when I eat and drink, workout and move my body in basic fashion and when I run to the restroom. March will come along and I will be healed. In the meantime cross-country skiing has been my physical activity outlet. Over 35 miles of snow these old combi ski have taken me, both groomed and broken trails. At least a third of this distance covered was by breaking a trail myself on lakes, hilly parkland and wooded areas. Each day I finish near exhaustion, similarly to when you are just about full from eating, and yet you hold back so as not to gorge yourself too much. Although, this has been quite difficult since I’ve wanted to be out experiencing this kind of activity going back all the way to August of last year. Smiling as I write this, because I want to get right back out there. High school and college drift in and out of my thoughts as I glide down the path. Memories of my first ski, cheering, crossing the finish line, being part of a team, a unique community, starting up and running the Nordic ski program in college, racing on the official team the following year and all the people I met along the way makes me so happy.
With snow in mind, I’ve constructed and slept in a quincy/ quinzee/ quinzhee, an emergency snow structure. In the backyard I piled snow to my shoulders creating a mound six by twelve feet. Sleeping out there was so utterly quiet. Having been over ten years since being in one this was a real treat. I plan on winter camping and cross-country skiing in the weeks ahead. With my MN State Park ski and camping passes I’m all set. Now all I have to do is drive out to one of many great parks nearby and be with nature and the crisp air of winter.
Piano has been keeping my mind churning and myself occupied as I recovered from my surgery. Yes, I have been playing well before that. But, this has been a wonderful way to challenge myself each day and now I can play all the cords and scales with ease. Jazz, blues, classical and pop music are the genres I’ve been covering. My nimble fingers can manifest Imagine by John Lennon, multiple variations of the twelve bar blues and basic sheet music by the likes of Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Chopin, ect. Curiously, and the last thing I had ever imagined to happen, a tiny fly -not a house fly, but rather one you find living in potting soil- joins me whenever I sit down to play. Crawling between the keys I play and hovering around my sheet music, I would like to think it enjoys music too, though I cannot help go all logical on this thought and chalk it up to a light being on and the vibrations in the air from strings as the most likely reasons for its timely appearance each day. Still, the fly has become an unexpected fan. A few times I’ve worried about accidentally squishing it, though it anticipates my fingers’ movements and scurries across or flits out of the way to another key.
I keep my temple as clean as possible and alter my routine when need be, find fun around the corner even in the depths of winter and I see myself as that fly, playing with what comes my way or making a situation fun because it can be. Taking risks is part of my life and I have no regrets in doing so. Here’s to playing with giants among the keys.
