It’s already starting to fade, so most of you won’t see it. ‘Cept here. !

see? there's the nose, and those are it's ears....

But he’s off home again now. And the kitties were born last night- check the garden blog. And I’m off to haul horse poo.

1. Make, keep, and maintain friendships with both men and women.

2. Be as honest and as real as you know how to be.

3. Find out what you need and go get it.

4. Know who you are, and go after your dreams.

5. Eliminate all passiveness.

6. Be committed to discipline.

7. Be a man and never apologize for it.

8. Do things you love.

9. Hug people (all the time).

10. Pursue encounters with God.

Nothing like having it all summed up, huh? LOVE IT. It’s from the www.puritypursuit.com website, I believe.

and ps. The “be a man and don’t apologise” part- adjust if you’re a woman.

Scout not very happy....

Maddie's "Tink"

Ilsa's "Faith" out of Tink and Titan

Fanny - Ilsa's loan mare from Joel

Phil's "Scout"

Wellington

The kids have been out every day riding. It’s been crazy beautiful here! The 10 day forecast is saying 50-60′s !! Weird. We get blizzards in April here. So we’re not really sure what’s happening, but we’re enjoying it !

waiting

Wow, we’re actually experiencing SPRING in northern MN…..hmmmm…..wonder how long it will last?

It was gorgeous yesterday. 55 degress +.  The greenhouse was over 80 ’til we opened it up. Phil and Ilsa and Maddie have been riding their horses almost every day, and the other day they took Eli along just for fun. I don’t think they’ll ever do that again. Because once he experienced riding a horse by himself, he will never let them leave  him home again, ever.

He said to me later, “Mom! NOW I KNOW why Ilsa and Maddie do this EVERY DAY!!!!”  He’s hooked. Here’s some pictures:

Maddie on Tink, front, and Ilsa on Fanny

"Mom....Mom take my picture. I loooooooove Reno."

Our big cowboy...except his legs aren't long enough to fit in stirrups

Big sister Ilsa was always right there to help if needed

Phil and Scout- Scout has gotten so BIG!!

Maddie and her beloved Tink.

Ilsa ready to grab Reno if needed....but Eli & Reno were doing pretty well!

Makes me want to ride too!

Wellington left behind....

Faith & Wellington pacing the pasture

Ilsa's filly Faith- out of Tink & Titan- she's so lovely!

Pretty girl Faith- she was wanting to play with our dog Jack

We just got back from the coast. We came here a week before the conference we’ll be attending for several reasons- a family vacation, our daughter was here, and extra time for a trip to the coast. If we hadn’t wanted to go to services at bethel tomorrow, we would have stayed a few more days. We really feel like we just dipped our toe in.

Sensory overload. Driving across the mountains the first time, I’m seriously freaking out. Woooo-hoooiing in the car. My kids don’t get it. My husband does It’s just so overwhelming- the mountains, the lakes, the trees, the vegetation. The windy road. Knowing at times if you veered left you’d be off in a canyon. Green water, rapids, glowing moss, evidences of past forest fires. Flowers and trees in flower. Elk. No deer, just elk, lots of elk. Right there on the road.

We get to the last ridge and the clouds start rolling in from the ocean. Our next few days are cloudy but no rain. It isn’t MN nice here. The locals aren’t thrilled at us tourists with California plates driving slow, pointing, and picture taking. Several times I am sworn at. Wow. So not used to that. I am sensitive, but even my husband is saying, what the heck? But there also were the super helpful, friendly people at the hotel, and the happy hippies at the hippie grocery store….sweet.

Remember that movie- I can’t remember the name- about the college graduate who gives away all his money and leaves his family and goes to Alaska to live on his own? And he starves to death? True story? I think it was called Into the Wild. It was disturbing. This kid had everything, except real relationships. So he went looking, and found himself in a place he couldn’t get out of, eating a bunch of berries that killed him. So young, so incredibly sad.

I saw a lot of young people like that here, on the coast. Walking, biking, traveling in converted vans and buses, sleeping in tents, hitchhiking. I wondered where they were all going, where their families were, if anyone was wondering where they were, missing them. There were so many. And this, I was told, isn’t even the “busy” season.

We saw great stuff too. Before we left, we prayed as a family, asked God to give us “clues” of stuff he wanted us to find on our trip. Phil got “red barn,” Grace got “orange” someone else got “woman with grey-ish hair in denim shirt.” We all got a bunch of stuff, these are just a few. So we’re driving, and BOOM- out of the blue sky, we come up on a place called the Red Barn. We pull over. Inside, there are orange walls. And a woman with grey-ish hair in a blue-denim-ish shirt comes out to greet us. (yeah, I know! crazy! but fun!)

So I tell her, uh, we have your name on this paper….I show her all this stuff. Got anything we can pray for you for? YES!!! she says. She comes out from around the counter, and our family gathers around her. We just all pray for her, blessing her. No great healing, no huge word. Just, “God is thinking about you and sent us to tell you that.” It was awesome, amazing. We exchange phone numbers & emails and hugs and off we go, after buying Eli 2 squirtguns.

Then, more scenery. A winery. (Wine a little. It will make you feel better.!!) A stop and a hike. The coast, a hippie grocery store, a nice Howard Johnson hotel that gladly takes us all in. Super duper chlorinated pool and hot tub, stinging eyes, bedtime.

We hit the road in the morning, exploring Trinidad and having to run back to the hotel for clothes. Our kids got completely soaked in the surf- who knew? We had a few random things for them to change into….and Phil and I made a dressing room with a our bodies blocking the view of kids changing. Hilarious. Screetches of “don’t look!” and “for pete’s sake, I changed your diaper a million times, I’ve seen your behind!!” hitting innocent bystanders.

Then, lunch at a little funky cafe. We all order fresh fish. Wow.

Off to the Redwoods. By the time we get there, we have two hours before dark. Not enough time to hike to the cathedral, but we make it about half way. Take a few pictures. I spend the rest of the trip trying to figure out how to explain redwood trees…

The only thing that came close was on the way home, I was listening to Revelation Song, the Kim Walker version. She sings the first part of the last verse three times: filled with wonder/awestruck wonder/at the mention of Your name. And I realized that that is the Redwood trees. Standing among them, I was filled with wonder, awestruck wonder. They were whispering His name, the name of their beloved Creator. I swear you can almost hear it if you stand there and put your hands on their trunks. Nothing compares. They are larger than whales…..in pods of dozens…..surrounding you. They made me feel small and mighty at the same time. They made me want to laugh and cry. I didn’t ever want to leave them, because I could hear their song, and it was so so so beautiful.

But we had to go. It was getting dark. And tomorrow we head back to Redding. Goodbye trees. I still have this sick feeling in my stomach knowing they are three hours away and I won’t see them again for a long long time.

The drive home was even more beautiful than the drive over. I don’t know why. It just seemed we could see more all at once. We stopped at one point to pick some willow reeds (can’t help it, it’s spring here and Grace fell asleep under a tree. Everything has that “it’s been raining for a month green” going on- and with the moss and the recent rain and sunshine, it all had an ethereal glow. I kept expecting to see the lamp post and a white stag bound across the road.

So now, I sit in bed thinking about all of this, listening to cheesy music from a movie downstairs and the rain and thunder outside. The Kings and Queens have stepped back through the wardrobe, and all is as it once was. Crazy sensory overload- it’s all out there. Crabby coastal Californians, happy hippies, someone’s wandering children, magnificent singing trees, oceans and oceans of ….ocean. Ooooohhhh I wish I could sit in it one more time

The aroma of burnt toast met us at the door. Do dead people smell burnt? No- just the pizza that was forgotten in the oven.

We met Phil’s mom, one granddaughter, Phil’s brother Charlie, and the family priest in the dining room. Then his mom took us to see his dad. The livingroom had been rearranged to be a hospice room, and Amandus was in his bed. He looked like he was sleeping. His mother was weeping, and Phil was telling her she had been a good wife for almost 60 years. She kept him home, she took care of him, slept in a bed next to him, fed him & cleaned him. Had 15 children with him. My husband is number 12. What if they had stopped at 3- 8- even 11?

I have never really been close to my in-laws. Parents, at least. I enjoy them, but there has been a wall. We are not catholic. Some catholics have a hard time with that. Some don’t. But I asked God to give me compassion for him as he was dying, to help me see. Watching him hold my children to him in his hospital bed two months previous, blessing them and crying, knowing this was his last time to hold them- gave me the love I needed.

So as I watched my husband love his mom and encourage her, I felt grief for this man that I didn’t know. Leona told us that his breathing had gotten fast and loud, and she said, “this can’t be normal!” Then it slowed. Phil’s brother Charlie laid his head on his Dad’s chest and felt his heart- stop beating. And he was gone. I wished I had known him better, heard his stories, walked his fields with him. But even my husband didn’t get that priveledge. So we take what we can, right?

My husband and his mom made their way to the dining room. I am left alone with my father in law’s body. All I can think to do is wave at him- say goodbye- and thank him for having more than 11 children. How many people do that? Hack a farm out of prairie grass and raise 15 children? Fight in WWII while they’re at it? Stay with the same woman, faithfully, for 60 years?

More and more family and near relatives come. Aunts bring food, plastic cups for the SunnyD. Gingersnaps, ham sandwiches. A few neighbors come who enjoyed morning coffee with him. Phil’s mom Leona takes them all to see him. They remember good times, they are thankful his suffering is over. They cry. There is some regret and guilt. My husband sends that packing. “No guilt- no regrets. It is what it is. He knew you loved him. You gave all you had.” He died peacefully, praying the rosary in his home with his wife and son.

We have rare opportunities to speak true words. You are loved. You are wanted. You are a good parent, a good son, a good daughter, a good wife. Mercy is greater than you think.

A granddaughter, 7-ish, flits around all day, like a butterfly. At one point I see her sprinkling purple flower blossoms on her grandpa’s body. Another granddaughter, 10-ish, takes a nap on the couch opposite him. An aunt brings a photo of my father in law when he was a boy- he had the wiry, curly ringlets that my son has. Most of the family attends Mass. Phil and I and brother Leonard, the “non-catholics” stay back with “Pops” as most of the family had come to call grandpa. We sit on the front step, under the shade of hundred year old trees, small town Minnesota. We talk of life and death and growing up on a farm. We talk of Mom hearing her sons sing of the glories of grass after Leonard left his Cheech & Chong album with his younger siblings. The album mysteriously disappeared.We talk of our own children- are we loving them well? Do we see them? Do they know that no matter what they ever do or how they dress or how they act- do they know we love them, that home is a safe place? Or do we love with an agenda?

Leonas garden is lovely, and I pick a fresh tomato, eat it like an apple. We say our goodbyes and head back to our children and friends. We watch a funny movie about doing whatever you have to do to get your family back. We field calls from siblings, can I help with flowers? Can Grace make a video? Times for this and that. Plans to get cousins together. Writing times & events of his life. Set off fireworks that our six year old son has been “waiting and waiting and WAITING for….”

It really was a beautiful day.

Amazing.

Phil and I visitng Belgium (Phil is like 99.9% Belguim….)

Phil and I in Paris. Always wanted to go there.

And we stopped at a little sidewalk cafe that made spectacular iced lattes…

And as we travelled home last night, it was 83 degrees at 10:30pm!! Beautiful…

Part 4- Non vitamin/supplement changes

This testimony is in no way medical direction or advice.  I am not a trained medical professional.  It is simply what I have done to improve my health. I would not recommend to anyone to self-medicate without the direction of a health professional. I have had many health professionals give me direction along the way, and this lifestyle is a result of their combined advice and efforts. In essence, I have taken the good and left the bad, in my opinion.  You must do the same.

Go Organic Whenever Possible

Another suggestion of Dr. Sudak was that we buy organic whenever possible.  We have a great little community grocery store here in Bemidji called Harmony Food Co-Op.  For a one time fee, you can become a member and enjoy member benefits. I have found from some research that in many cases, Harmony is comparable to the food prices of the larger grocery stores in Bemidji. Except for Wal Mart, but that’s another story. I do shop at Wal Mart sometimes, but in all sincerity, I try not to.  We try to support all the grocery stores in town because we need them all. If Wal Mart pushes them all out of business, what’s to keep Wal Mart from skyrocketing their prices with no competition? We buy local when we can. At Harmony, I often buy in bulk, thus saving even more. And as members, we can volunteer as little or as many hours helping out as we like, earning discounts on our groceries.  Many communities now have these types of grocery stores. There are no trans-fats or high fructose corn syrup products at Harmony, and much of their produce and dairy is locally grown & produced, which helps to support the local farmers in our area.

Non-homogenized Milk

Here’s another goofy little pet peeve of mine.  I can’t stand drinking homogenized milk if I don’t have to. From what I understand, homogenization is only about shelf life. The milk is shaken to such a degree that the molecules are shattered to a fraction of their normal size. So instead of flowing nicely through our systems, they get lodged in our arteries. Fresh raw milk is the best, but if you can’t find that, there are a few non-homogenized brands out there. In our area, Black Cow Dairy provides this. They are not certified organic, due to restrictions and fees, but they operate organic and do not homogenize their milk.  They also sell cream, so I make my own ½ and ½ (for my coffee) by simply mixing their cream with their milk.  The only drawback that I have found is that the shelf life is shorter. But with the way my kids go through milk, it’s never a problem.

Chiropractic care

This is something I never understood until I had pain. I don’t know if I can accurately explain the importance of chiropractic care.  Our spine is the lifeblood of our body. When our spine or spinal cord is out of order, pinched, twisted, crushed, or in any other way compromised, our entire body is compromised.  So many people go through life in pain and with decreased mobility and quality of life simply because they haven’t taken care of their spine.  Chiropractic care is not a miracle cure or a quack scheme; it is simply good sense. We have purchased good supportive pillows for our necks from our chiropractor and do stretching exercises every day. Just stretching as we go about our day doesn’t feel like a big regimen; it’s just part of our lives.

Good Skin Care

Did you know that our skin is the largest, most neglected organ in our body?  Whatever we put on our skin is ingested into our bloodstream within twenty five seconds. So if you wouldn’t feel good about eating what you put on your skin, you shouldn’t put it on your skin! Feeding my skin instead of depleting it is something I’ve learned along my journey back to health, and this is where Arbonne comes in.  Arbonne’s products are pure, safe, and beneficial, botanically based, contain no mineral oil, contain no harsh dyes or chemical fragrances, are ph balanced, use no animal products or by products, are produced in the USA, are put through stringent testing batch per batch to ensure safety…the list goes on literally.  I love Arbonne. I feel good about putting it on my skin and my children’s skin.  I feel good selling it, because I am helping move people toward better health.  I love the company, because they are all about training and encouraging people to be their best, which is using their gifts to encourage and train more people to be their best for our communities.  It is expensive (because they don’t use cheap ingredients and fillers), but as a consultant, I get a great discount and can earn a lot of product at even greater discounts. So I feel it is responsible, in many ways, to use Arbonne. With Arbonne, I can choose to just buy wholesale and not worry about keeping any monthly minimums or quotas, or I can choose to build a business. There are no strings, and I made sure of that before signing up!  Contact me for more info or samples. You can check out their line of products at www.arbonne.com. 

Organic Coffee

To Dr. Sudak’s dismay, I am a coffee drinker. She asked me to stop. Basically, I said no.  Then she said, “Ok, if you HAVE to drink coffee, at LEAST drink organic, swiss-water decaffeinated.”  Well.  I can do that. Sort of. After much trial and error, I have settled on ½ caffeine and ½ swiss water decaf, organic, fair trade espresso and americanos. This is my reason: espresso has about 40mg caffeine per cup, while regular brewed coffee has about 300mg.  An Americano is simply a shot of espresso topped off with hot water, in essence, making a cup of coffee.  Sometimes I splurge and make a latte with espresso and steamed milk (my quirky non-homogenized stuff), and I am a cream drinker, so I put my homemade ½ and ½ in my americanos.  We use organic because coffee is the highest pesticide crop in the world, and we buy fair trade because we want the hard working farmers who grow these organic beans to get a fair price for their labor.  With those adjustments, I can feel good about drinking coffee.  And here’s a tip for you coffee lovers out there: spend a few extra dollars and buy a burr grinder, as opposed to a blade grinder. They make all the difference in the world! Why spend money on great beans and then lose half their flavor with a cheap blade grinder? Email me and I’ll let you know which kind we’ve bought and why we like it.

Parasite Cleanse

More and more, I am beginning to understand the connection between digestive health and parasites. I simply cannot go into all the details here; do a search online and you will find myriads of information on the subject, probably more than you want.  Because of the ease of international trade and travel, we come in contact with parasites more easily than ever.  Cleaning our fruits and vegetables before we consume them will help (I use a sink full of water with about ½ tsp. of grapefruit seed extract), but we still get some exposure. They take up residence in our digestive system, they breed, they lay eggs, they excrete toxins into our bodies.  Yuck.  Once when I had a particularly bad Candida reaction, I mentioned to the ladies in our health food store that I was experiencing acne galore and panic attacks. While these are symptoms of Candida, they are also huge red flags for parasite infestation.  So I did a cleanse, and immediately my skin cleared up and I felt like I was my old self again – no more panic attacks.  Four months later, however, it all came back. I am thinking I didn’t do the job well enough the first time, and now I am on a serious three month regimen to rid my body of anything that would seek to rob me of my life!  I am two weeks into this as I write, and I feel good.  No more constipation, bloating, panic attacks, acne, or candida reactions.  I don’t feel like I have a mild bladder infection all the time.  I can eat pizza and not get sick.  The only thing I continue to deal with is a tight feeling in my chest if I drink too much caffeine.  So then I cut back on caffeine and I feel better. 

Part of the cleanse is just getting constant elimination. I think I have lived in a state of semi-constipation my entire life. I remember times when elimination once a week was normal for me! Now I drink detox tea at night and fiber in the morning.  Arbonne has a really good fiber shake called “Just Go” and if you blend it with ice, orange juice, and a banana, it tastes like an Orange Julius.  Fabulous.  It’s great in the summer with berries as well. They also have a Colon Cleanse supplement; I try to take that for a week per month, just to make sure stuff is moving along.  And their detox tea is wonderful.  Sometimes when elimination seems to be slow, I’ll also drink 1/8-1/4 c. of pure organic aloe vera juice with my juice in the morning. Aloe vera helps on the inside as well as the out.

Eat Low-Glycemic, Whole Foods, and Stop Eating at Night!

I took a class on eating low-glycemic and it was eye opening. Most of us eat white bread, white flour, white sugar, white rice and white potatoes. And instant, at that. All that white stuff gunks us up! Foods that are high in sugar (as white stuff is) cause our blood sugar to spike and then crash. Are you tired at 1pm? What did you have for lunch? I found that when I started eating lower glycemic foods, or at least eating proteins with them, I had more energy.  The goal is to keep our blood sugar levels constant, rather than up and down. When they’re constantly fluctuating, they mess with our metabolism, making it difficult to lose excess weight. I can’t explain all the fine points; you might get a good book on the subject or check online. Or take a class like I did. I’m still trying to eat better- it’s a lifestyle change that takes time.  I have stopped buying white stuff for the most part. We use ½ brown rice and ½ white. I make sweet potatoes with white. (minus the brown sugar and marshmallows!) When I make bread, I try to use whole grains and wheat flours with my white.  The closer a food is to its original form, the better.  Sugars that are less processed, fruits and vegetables from local gardens, whole grains. And read your labels – just because something says “Whole Grain” doesn’t mean it is!  It may have loads of trans fat and high fructose corn syrup, but because they put oats in it, they call it “whole grain.” It’s just a re-training of how you look at things, and again, it takes time. It’s all a step in the right direction. 

Another thing I’ve really been working on is to STOP eating at night!  We used to eat popcorn almost every night and then go to bed. So in essence I was eating a SUPER high glycemic food and then sleeping! No wonder I have extra weight.  We try not to eat after 8pm at our house, and are working on making that 7pm, and then 6pm.  These are all just little things you can do, one at a time, to improve your health.

Tea Tree Oil/Essential Oils

Essential oils are simply the oils found in plants. For instance, it takes 1000 rose petals to extract one drop of Rose oil. So you can imagine, essential oils are powerful and need to be used with caution. So many plants have different healing properties, so using essential oils can have wonderful health benefits. I don’t claim to be a specialist on them, but I use Lavender and Tea Tree almost daily.  Tea Tree oil in our house is synonymous with burn or wound. Anytime anyone gets sunburn or a scrape or cut or anything, on goes the tea tree oil.  We dilute it 4:1 with olive oil and use it as an ear drop for earaches. I mix it with Arbonne’s face moisturizers and use it on sunburn. We apply it direct to cuts and burns. It’s really wonderful stuff: anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, anti-viral.  If anyone has a canker sore or cut in the mouth or sore throat, we dilute it ½ tsp. to ½ c. of water and gargle. (don’t swallow it though!)  When my children were in diapers, I made homemade wet wipes with it:

1 super heavy paper towel roll, such as Bounty, cut in 1/2, take out the cardboard center

2c. purified water

2 tbsp. oil- olive or avocado or almond or mixture

1 tsp. lavender essential oil

½ tsp. tea tree essential oil

1 tupperware container large enough to hold ½ paper towel roll

Mix all the liquid in a Tupperware large enough to hold ½ the paper towel roll, then place ½ roll inside, cut side down, secure lid, and flip over. Let all moisture soak into towels, and they’re ready to use.  You can adjust the oil levels if you like the towels less oily or less fragrant. We rarely had any diaper rash or cradle cap when we used these – I used them on their whole bodies as “baths.”  Makes babies smell wonderful J  And it makes a great baby gift- include the ingredients so the new Mom can refill as needed!

There are many other uses for essential oils and there are many good books on the subject. Have fun!

Part 3- Hormone Balancing

This testimony is in no way medical direction or advice.  I am not a trained medical professional.  It is simply what I have done to improve my health. I would not recommend to anyone to self-medicate without the direction of a health professional. I have had many health professionals give me direction along the way, and this lifestyle is a result of their combined advice and efforts. In essence, I have taken the good and left the bad, in my opinion.  You must do the same.

Natural Progesterone

Hormone Balancing is such a big subject that I can only scratch the surface here and point you in the right direction.  I’m attaching a document that Dr. Deanna Osborn, an Executive Regional Vice President with Arbonne in my upline, has written on the subject.  Some wonderful books on the subject are What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopauseand What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About PremenopauseI have used natural progesterone off and on since I was 35, and I will continue through menopause and beyond!  I am convinced of the health benefits. Here is that document for you:

Hormone Balancing     Deanna Osborn, MD

Board Certified Family Practitioner

Arbonne International

Independent Consultant

Executive Regional Vice President

Naples, Florida

Natural Progesterone Cream

1. Should not contain Mineral Oil. Mineral Oil coats skin and works as a barrier not allowing any other ingredients to penetrate.

2. Should be in airtight container to prevent oxidation.  If air is allowed to enter container, the cream will become less and less effective.

3. Should not be compounded hormones as compound hormones are hand mixed. All ingredients should be mixed thoroughly by machine. Machine mixing creates an even consistency throughout.

4. Apply correct dosage.  Using a metered container ensures the right dosage every time.

Symptoms of Hormone Imbalance

There are about 80 known symptoms. The following are only the most common complaints of women Dr. Osborn has found in her practice.

• PMS               

• Mood Swings               

• Irritability               

• Fibroid Tumors – Does not turn to cancer but may cause extra bleeding and pain. One third of all hysterectomies done in the U.S. are because of Fibroid Tumors. Most are not aware that these tumors shrink and may go away after menopause.               

• Breast Cancer – Too much estrogen in the body contributes to Breast Cancer and can lead to breast cancer according to research Women’s Health Initiative published in July 2002.  This study found that continual exposure to estrogen had a huge increase risk for Breast Cancer, Heart Attacks, Strokes, Blood Clots in the Leg and Blood Clots in the Lung as well as Dementia.               

• Breast Cancer at one time was known as a disease that general happened to women over the age of 50.  This is no longer true. Today women as young as 28 have contracted Breast Cancer.               

• Fibrocystic Breast Disease – A condition where the breast is tender, painful during certain times of the month. Breast may feel lumpy as well.               

• Weight gain – Weight gain of 5 to 10 pounds yearly in the middle area of body due to no change in diet or lack of activity.               

• Depression               

• Fibromyalgia               

• Lupus               

• Auto-immune Thyroid Disorders               

• Arthritis — Certain types of               

• Decrease Sex Drive               

• Vaginal Dryness               

• Thin, Wrinkly Skin               

• Postpartum Depression – Known years ago as the “Baby Blues.”               

• Osteoporosis               

• Infertility – Becoming an epidemic with women in their 30’s. Women who use hormone-balancing cream are finding wonderful results.               

• Abnormal Periods – Excess bleeding, inconsistent cycles

How Hormones are Suppose to Work in our Bodies

There are 2 hormones in our bodies:  Estrogen and Progesterone.

A.Estrogen – 3 types:   Estrone, Estrodiol and Estriol

• Estrone and Estrodiol are in lower or lesser concentration. Both are stronger estrogens and are more likely to cause cancer.               

• Estriol is in higher concentration and is the safer estrogen.  Dr. John Lee has coined this estrogen as the “designer estrogen”.

Estrogen’s Job in our Bodies – As a reproductive hormone, its job is to grow the lining of the uterus. It tells cells to multiply and divide so that if an egg were fertilized, it would have an appropriate place to implant itself.  Estrogen does this job during the first part of a woman’s cycle.

Estrogen is a reproductive and growth hormone.

B. Progesterone

• Comes during the middle of cycle when the woman ovulates.  Progesterone is responsible for increased sex drive at mid-cycle.               

• Its job is to oppose the estrogen. It tells estrogen that the lining in the uterus is good and stops estrogen’s process of multiplying and dividing               

• Gets its name from “progestation” meaning pregnancy. It is the pregnancy hormone.               

• In the last trimester, a woman produces up to 400 mg of Progesterone per day.               

• Progesterone is necessary for woman’s body to maintain pregnancy.  Frequent trimester miscarriages are often due to low progesterone level               

• Progesterone plays in the development of the nervous system.

Ways Hormones Become Imbalance

1. Prescription Synthetic Hormones

• Birth Control Pills – Over time women may notice inability to handle stress, not able to sleep well, depression or hot flashes. Doctors may diagnose PeriMenopausal and prescribed HRT               

• Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) – According to the American Heart Assoc. HRT is very dangerous to the heart.

2. Diet – Chicken, beef and pork are often fed with estrogen to promote growth to get livestock quickly to the market.

• Dairy Farmers also feed estrogen to cows to increase production.

** Twenty years ago the average age for a woman to begin menstruating was 14. Today the average is 10.7 years. This is the result of consumption of hormone-induced diets.

3. Environment

A. Petrochemicals

• Dr. John Lee refers to these as “false” estrogen               

• Toxic to humans               

• Have ability to bind to estrogen receptors and mess up the body.

a. pesticides, fungicide, dry cleaning solutions, chemical household products, plastics, mineral oil/baby oil,

** When plastic is heated in the microwave, dioxins are released into the air and into the food. Dioxin is considered the most toxic man-made substance.

** The World Health Organization list Mineral Oil as a carcinogen (a cancer causing substance).

** The U.S. government did a study on 3,000 chemicals found in everyday cosmetics and personal care products such as body lotions, moisturizers, makeup, etc.

• Findings showed that 1 out 3 of the chemicals were toxic enough to kill if in the right concentration.               

• 1 out of 10 could cause cancer or a birth defect               

• 1 out of 11 could cause reproductive problems               

• 98% of personal care products contain mineral oil

** The medical field has known for years that the skin is an excellent vehicle to penetrate the body.

** According to the EPA, it takes 26 seconds from the time you put a toxic substance on your skin for it to be absorbed into the body and reach all major organs.

** Estrogen is “fat-loving”. It stores itself in fat tissues in the body such as the breast.

• After a mastectomy, if the breast tissues are examined, traces of all the carcinogenic substances are found

4. Stress

• When stress occurs, our adrenal glands produces cortisol to beat stress.  The building block for cortisol is progesterone.  The body uses cortisol to fight stress. If all the progesterone is used to produce cortisol, no progesterone is left to fight Osteoporosis.               

• Low levels of progesterone cause osteoporosis.

Ways to Bring Hormone Balance Back

1. Eat organic meats, produce and dairy products as much as possible.

2. Never use plastic products in the microwave.

3. Learn to recognize when you are under stress and find ways to balance yourself.

4. Use organic products for the home and garden.

5. Air out dry cleaning 1-2 days prior to bringing into the home.

6. Supplement with natural hormone balancing cream.

How to Use and Evaluate Natural Progesterone

1. Absolutely must say USP Progesterone – Standard Pharmacopeia assures real Progesterone.

2. Read label to make sure it does not contain Mineral Oil.

3. Air-tight container to preserve integrity

4. Dosage of 20mg per ¼ of teaspoon.

Who Should Use Plain Progesterone

1. Women who have cycles. – Count from 1st day of period to day 12. Start the cream on day 12. Use 1 pump per night on one side of inner arm. Rotating sites of left arm, right arm, chest, etc. Use for 2 weeks. Period should begin after 3 days of stopping use.

2. Women who’ve completed menopause, not taking any hormones and not having hot flashes. – If having symptoms described earlier, use one pump of cream nightly 25 days per month. Take 5-day break.

• If no symptoms, women who want to prevent breast cancer may use hormone balancing cream
• May be used to prevent or reverse Osteoporosis (use ½ pump daily for 25 days with 5 days off)

** Natural Hormone Cream will not interact with any medications.

Who Should Use Progesterone with Phytoestrogens

1. Women who have hot flashes. – Use 1 pump per day, 25 days and 5 days off. If hot flashes continue after 2 weeks of use, increase to 2 pumps per day.

2. Women who are trying to wean off HRT – Check with doctor prior to coming off HRT. During first month, cut HRT to ½ dosage and use daily. In the 2nd month, decrease HRT to every other day.  In the 3rd month, use HRT only every 3rd day.

All the while decreasing HRT, use hormone cream from day 1. Use 1 pump a day for 25 days and 5-day break.

90% of women get desired results.  If not, check with your doctor. Especial mixture of estrogen and progesterone may be needed.  However mixed, the cream should always contain both hormones.

When compounding mixture, Estriol is the desired estrogen type. It is the safer estrogen.

** Those with uncontrolled high-blood pressure should begin with Progesterone without Phytoestrogens until blood pressure is under control. Phytoprolief contains Licorice and a study shows that Licorice may increase blood pressure.  Although Phytoprolief has a low level of Licorice, use caution and begin with Prolief first.