HEALTHY ALERT!!!!   

MEAL  REPLACEMENT SHAKE

 This recipe really works to curb appetite....... or strengthen

those with no appetite!

2-3  large bananas     Potassium

300-350 mls Skimmed Milk  

150-200mls Coconut Milk      Highly nutritious water

50mls Kefir Milk    Excellent Probiotic and good for weight loss

1 tlbs Baoabab powder   Packed full of Vit C and very filling as it expands in the gut

1 tlbs Slippery Elm Powder   Excellent powder for loss of

appetite and also filling.  Healing to tissue

Vanilla essence   for flavour   but also treats intestinal gas

Whizz in your processor or milkshake maker

This recipe makes enough for two meals

Please make sure you realise this is not replacing a healthy

balance diet!!

Excellent tho to lose weight and balance the gut. 

Also good for those with acid reflux.

For those who are trying to control acid reflux naturally......a recipe for Lozenges is on its way!   

Many people that suffer the disease that is Lupus also have to contend with Fibromyalgia.

Having had Lupus antibodies and all the symptoms of full blown Lupus and also now having a diagnosis of Fibromyalgia, I am not sure which is the lesser of the evils.

Both illnesses are hideously debilitating, painful and frustrating in equal measure.

Can anything be done to alleviate the strain of constant chronic pain and even send it into some kind of remission?

The answer for some will be yes.

Although I have diplomas in Herbalism and Aromatherapy I still struggle, big time, to keeps these illnesses at bay.  Particularly when life is throwing situations head on that can cause stress and anxiety.

It is difficult to help yourself,  What doctor will treat themselves if chronically ill?  It is always correct to seek help.

I choose natural help and find that it is the solution to keeping relatively good health and to be able to maintain a near normal life style even while coping with the condition.

We can do this without heavy drugs!

Herbal medicine is powerful and needs to be treated with the utmost respect.  The secret, I feel, is to take control and responsibility for your own illness.  You are the one that knows best how you feel and therefore you are your own best advisor.  

However effort needs to be taken to do the research and seek the correct help.   

I am giving a few links here to a few people that have websites and media presence that can really help.

Dr Josh Axe.  https://draxe.com/natural-fibromyalgia-treatment/

For those in the South of the Uk a wonderful Herbalist who deals in Natural Western Herbal and Functional Medicine, which looks at the root causes of illness and dis-ease  

 https://www.sussexherbalist.co.uk/

Medical Doctor   http://http://drhyman.com/blog/2010/07/30/how-to-stop-attacking-yourself-9-steps-to-heal-autoimmune-disease//blog/2010/07/30/how-to-stop-attacking-yourself-9-steps-to-heal-autoimmune-disease/

GLUTEN - Is it to be avoided only by sufferers of Celiac disease?   What about those suffering Autoimmune disease?  Should it be avoided?

I have to say that throughout twenty two years of managing my own auto-immune disease I have always tried to avoid the subject of Gluten or no Gluten.   

It has always seemed to be a step too far.  Bread flour is a staple and to mess with other alternatives does seem too intricate and bothersome.

I have always tried not to be too obsessed with intake.  The illness itself is hard to manage already as it does affect your life and to take pleasures away seems unnecessarily harsh.(who doesn't love the occasional cake , bagel, doughnut)

However, it is good to be informed of the possible dangers and side effects of Gluten.   Then we can make our own choices.

In my search I have discovered much about so many pitfalls in our diets that can worsen our disease or, dare I say, even cause our illness?

The last blog briefly talked about Aspartame in foodstuffs.  I really have no doubt in my own mind that yes, Aspartame does have immediate and dramatic effects of the health of a person suffering autoimmune disease.

From personal experience I feel that the effect is felt within one or two days or consumption!  We can choose to help ourselves or hurt ourselves, and, I have to say that when I give into the urge to drink a Diet Cola I most certainly do hurt myself!   Without a doubt pain will come and brain fog and all the debilitating symptoms that make up Fibromyalgia and Lupus.  I try to avoid aspartame like the plague but on the odd occasion I seem to excuse it and trust it not to hurt too much then hey presto it never fails!!   Foolish of me I know.

  soo...... back to the Gluten issue. Is it just as harmful?

Frankly?  The answer is yes.  Through experience I truly believe that some Gluten can have a seriously bad effect of our health and well-being.

It seems to be proven that it is highly likely that Gluten can seriously aggrevate or even cause the symptoms of many twenty-first century illnesses. 

It is at least worthy of examination surely?

As usual in my blogs I must reiterate that I am talking through my own experience and limited medical knowledge.

I am diploma trained in Herbalism for my own benefit.  I am an aromatherapist, again for my own use, and I make no claims to be trained in any other medical sciences.

I do however like to point folk to the experts who do know exactly what they are saying.  There are so many opinions and I am just putting some of them out there for you to come to your own conclusions.

One thing that all seem to agree on is that Gluten can and does cause damage and inflammation in the digestive tract. 

For many that are sensitive this can trigger or even cause severe autoimmune problems.   The most commonly known, obviously, is Celiac Disease.

Gluten may not be the cause of your particular autoimmune disease but surely a person with any autoimmune condition needs to give their bodies bucket loads of TLC.  Anything that may cause extra inflammation is not required and to be avoided in order not to aggravate an already struggling immune system.

Bearing in mind that some autoimmune diseases can be life threatening, surely we should be aware of dangers?

Amy Myers MD  has a very clear and extremely informative site that deals with Gluten along side other very useful subjects such as Gut Health and Stress.  Also, other majorley important issues in the battle with auto immune disease

I must say that becoming Gluten free is a bit of a challenge but, with the right pointers, very do-able.   there are many products out there right now in most supermarkets that can help in this regard. Perhaps a little more expensive but what price your health?

For those trying to cook from scratch in a non Gluten way there are many books at the library and in the bookshops explaining the use of different kinds of flour such as Coconut Flour, Teff Flour, Brown Rice Flour and other products that can help in the baking process such as Potato Starch, Xanthum Gum.

Click on this link below for a fabulous website that really helps to start up a Gluten free lifestyle. Especially good if you are disabled and having to manage of a tight budget as the title suggests it is possible to be Gluten free on a Budget.   Happy days! 

https://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/all-purpose-gluten-free-flour-recipes/

I would be so happy to have comments from those of you with auto-immune illness of any sort who have found that cutting out Gluten has improved symptoms of the illness.  Also if you have any advise, favourite recipes or tips for those yet to begin a journey of Gluten free living that would be wonderful!

Lets help each other!

My very best regards to all.  

You have a difficult and potentially life threatening illness.

 Therefore you are likely to be having to depend on a benefit of some sort?

Full time work has been out of the question and you are struggling to pay the bills...of course you are!  How does anyone expect you to eat well?

The benefit barely covers the rent!

Firstly you have no energy!  You are constantly counting your spoons in order to pace yourself and prevent a further flare of this dibilitating illness.    spoonstheory

Cooking any meal, even a simple meal is feeling like you are about to climb a mountain!  or maybe you know that today that mountain climb is just not even an option....

However through your own diligent study on the subject of your health you have learnt that one of the ways to help manange an auto immune disorder is to eat well!  tips on eating well from people that know :-)

We need to understand that just because we dont have lots of money it is still possible to eat well on a budget, enjoy healthy homecooked meals and avoid foods that hurt us.

Shall we firstly examine a small selection the foods that would most definately hurt and and also the reasons why.  Lets do this over the next few blogs.

Lets take first

Aspartame.   One of my pet subjects....why produce aspartame? 

What products contain it?  What does it do to us?

Aspartame is found in many food products such as Diet         drinks,  flavoured syrups i.e the type they may add to        a     latte in a coffee shop.  (Yes I agree...sooo       tempting)  The             list goes on..  Yoghurts, deserts, condiments, meal       replacements, even flavoured waters

What is the harm?

    Aspartame is known to actually produce many of the symptoms associated with auto immune disease.  I know this from bitter experience.  Now....I am gonna hit you with a great long list. I gotta start typing...sorry but there is no other way. The list is long!

Actually no.....its a very long list.  There is no way I am typing it for you.  Gonna be really lazy and refer you to the original author

Dr Janet Hull   

Thank goodness for these people that do all this work for us to enable awareness! A Sweet Poison

have you read this now?   If you didnt read that link please do  It is vital that we inform ourselves!

         Enough said about aspartame!!

Next blog will be on the subject of Gluten!

If you have any stories of helping yourselves by avoiding Aspartame and improving  your health please comment on this blog   We would love to hear your stories!

�

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3107966/Thats-not-mistletoe--North-Pole-wont-block-pot-sales.html

I just want to comment on this article from the Daily Mail.  It is a subject that I feel quite passionate about.

As you may l know I am a herbalist.  

By taking herbs I have managed to turn around the extremely dangerous and life threatening effects of Lupus.

Having had antibodies I was keen to find why out why I had contracted this disease, and how I could find natural ways to control or cure myself of it.

Happily I am now free of the antibodies and am just left with Fibromyalgia and Tietze symptoms if I were to let my nutritional and emotional health slip.

So, herbs? Yes they have cured me from deteriorating and having to live with Lupus.

Cause of illness? It turned out that had I have listened to an allergy specialist, taken his advice, and stayed away from harmful chemicals in food or the environment.  I may not have suffered 12 years of illness.

I was carrying a toxic overload of chemicals that was damaging my body.

In my case, I had been damaged in the work place by using an uncontrolled substance containing Formaldehyde and Tolulene.

It took a lot of effort convincing the medics that conventional treatment for Lupus was in fact the very thing that was harming me.

It is accepted now that as long as I keep a healthy lifestyle and detox regularly I will be relatively healthy and certainly not have the Lupus and Antiphospholipid antibodies that were slowly killing my life cells and draining me of vitality.

The doctors are now supportive with my all holistic approach.

I am not against medicine. Sometimes it is life saving . For me..it was and still is dangerous.

Any way ... that is just my story.

However, it brings me to the debate raging, certainly in Britain, as to whether or not Cannabis should be legal.

All I really want to say is.... make it the same as any other herbal medication...... Regulate it. Make it prescription only via a holistic practitioners.

Why do I say this?

One of the biggest problems with serious illness, such as auto immune diseases, is stress.

I can only comment on my personal experience and twenty years of research.

Any herb will have a certain action.

For instance, some such as chamomile, will calm the stomach when a person is anxious.

Passiflora will calm the mind if a person is stressed and it is affecting the thinking and reasoning.

Withania, as an adaptogen will help the body to cope with ups and downs of life.

Other herbs will detox. Some will support the liver and many others will have other helpful affects on the body systems.

Yet more herbs that are not freely available over the counter but are prescription only will work supremely well. Such as Lobelia, on the respiritory system.

It is a known fact that some people taking Cannabis will become over stimulated.  I would.

This is the effect it would likely have on me...........

I would be really happy on it for a day or two. After a day or two I probably wont sleep. My mind would be too active. Without sleeping for one or two weeks.......I mean...no sleep, I would eventually start to hallucinate. My mind would lose correct thinking and I would go into would the medics would say would be a bi-polar episode.

I do not have a diagnosis of bi-polar.

What I do have, is a sensitivity to any chemicals that over stimulate the mind and body. It can be man made or in natural plant. If it stimulates the mind overly and causes tiredness, stress and anxiety it will eventually lead to a health crisis.

Herbs need to be given in a controlled and balanced way so that if cannabis is needed or deemed helpful for pain, at least other herbs can be given that will balance the finely tuned physiological body.

THIS IS WHY I BELIEVE THAT CANNABIS SHOULD BE A REGULATED HERBAL TREATMENT AND NOT A FREELY OBTAINABLE PAIN MEDICATION.

Are You Eating an Endocrine Disruptor?

I need to pass this on to anyone that wants to be open

to the info.

Those that already read my blogs know how determined I

am to bring to attention the damage caused by chemicals

in our foods and in our cosmetics.

THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF!

The illness I had came about because I exposed myself to

nasty chemicals.

It was Life Threatening.  Not just causing some kind of illness

but seriously Life Threatening

WE MUST PAY HEED TO THE WARNINGS

For a while now I have been promoting a range of

Body Products.  I have done this because it seems like the

right thing to do.   

The range uses only NUTRITIOUS  and BENEFICIAL oils.

It makes sure ONLY to use chemicals that are safe to humans

and definately not toxic.  https://www.tropicskincare.co.uk/shop/karenhale

Why do I say nutritious in relation to body products?

I say this because  the understanding is that is takes just

26 secs....26 secs...for a good or a bad chemical to reach

our blood stream via our largest organ..the skin. To provide nourishment or poision our systems.

 http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/chemicals/how_chem.html

We take in ...hopefully....nutritious foods via our mouths.  

We can equally take in nutritous products through our skin.  

Would we intake TOXIC chemicals through our mouths.  

Certainly not you say!

Sadly... MANY of us do.  We just dont realise it.  Life is so busy.

We barely have the time to check what goes into our foods.

While talking with many people in the course of being a

herbalist I know that many women are facing difficulties

with the endcrine system. 

Its a complicated system and when malfunction can cause

seriously disruptive and difficult illnesses.

This link is disturbing.

It is produced by a scienstist representing EWG.  

The report is shocking and if we are not aware of

the dangers ...how can we protect ourselves?

Remember this fact.........  In the beauty industry only  

3% of its ingredients needs to be natural to aquire a

label that reads NATURAL   Please do not be fooled!

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING LINK.  

THEN PLEASE LOOK AT WHAT YOU TAKE IN YOUR

FOODS AND WHAT YOU PUT ONTO INTO YOUR SKIN

PLEASE BE SAFE, BE WELL, AND BE HAPPY   

http://www.ewg.org/research/propyl-paraben?inlist=Y&utm_source=201504Propyl&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=201504Propyl

Well!!      Its been a long time since I wrote a blog!     Its been a rough ride this year.  For the first time in around 10 -12 years I actually thought I had got Lupus anti-bodies rearing their ugly head.

They didnt.  Unfortunately though have been suffering quite a lot with Fibromyaalgia costachondritis and other problems well known to auto immune patients.

New Year and New Beginnnings!!!

Lupus will not win.  I will not let it back into my life! 

How will this be possible?  It is said to be incurable!

I have had such a lot of help from all kinds of health professionals.

Having suffered the bereavement of my beloved father this year it has made me realise the real benefit of acknowledging bereavement and grief and the toll it can take on persons health.

The world has become a place full of stress and hardships in  many forms but still it is a place of enormous beauty and people that are very willing and able to show kindness and empathy.

Last year has taught me also to always try to focus on others, to realise that there are always people that are far worse off than ourselves and there are always ways we can improve ourselves and our lives.

How ever small those steps may be they will be positive ones and will cheer those around us.

I would like to thank a couple of natural health practitioners who have particularly helped me through this past year.

One of my many helpers is my Homoeopath Janet Miles.  This is the beautiful lady that first showed me the way to helping myself with this chronic illness.  Without her I am not sure where I would be.  My dependence and reliance on conventional medicine was without question and I believed that this was the only way forward.  With Janets expert and truly professional help I have realised that there is so much more we can do for ourselves.

http://www.janetmiles.co.uk/

Another practitioner close to my heart always is Andrea Hughes

Andrea is a lady after my own heart!   On learning from Janet about the possibilities to learn and to help myself I stumbled upon this wonderful world of natural herbal medicine.  http://http://www.sussexherbalist.co.uk//

One of the first treatments administered by Janet was a tincture of Milk Thistle.

What a herb!  Janet first explained to me the importance of a healthy liver.  We are bombarded by toxins on a daily basis.  It seems my toxic overload was at a critical point.  I was getting sicker and sicker and my liver was obviously going down.   It needed help desperately. Every flare would see me get more and more unable to perform the most simple task and my skin was getting more and more oddly tinge with a kind of yellow grey.

Janet explained that the liver being compromised would surely bring bad physical health and also depression.  I had never considered myself to be depressed but now realise that my whole ,entire body system was depressed both mentally and physically.

It set me off on a magical mystery tour!!    I became a herbalist and an aromatherapist and this is now my saviour with the help  of all involved in my continuing care.  

The purpose of this blog and my website is to try to share some of my findings and learn also from others.

For a while, during my recovery period I was volunteering at a Herbal Nursery.  What a beautiful place to spend an hour or two.  Andrea Hughes also does herbal workshops there.  That reminds me.... I must book one!!

http://www.culberry.com/

Well....the work of the day is beckoning so I must away but not before I wish everyone an very healthy year ahead.  I look forward to chatting with all the lovely people I have met on all the Fibro, Lupus and Natural Health Groups and of course, not to forget all the lovely friends I have met at     https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tropic-Pure-Botanical-Skincare-Sussex-with-Karen-Hale/709816915712092?ref=hl

A truly healthy and nourishing range of beauty care!  How did I forget to include this till the last!!!  And please look as there is a really very genuine and good sale going on at the moment!

Take care all and I wish you all the very best of health.

XXXX

Hi Guys

Been very busy with a new project!!

Found what I have been looking for!  Tropic Skincare.  

Take a look at Tropic at www.tropicskincare.com

You cant do better if you are looking for a luxurious and fragrant body product range.  Its heavenly.

Look at why I promote it at Facebook/Tropic Pure Botanical Skincare Sussex with Karen Hale.

Also check out Facebook/LupusNaturalHealing

Hope you are all as well as you can be.  Take care everyone!!

Hi everyone!  Well!  Lots been going on.  Trying to promote this website has been learning curve!  Things are taking off a bit now and I am loving the new Lupus Natural Healing facebook page. I hope you check it out and come chat with me and all other sufferers of chronic pain and Lupus.

What fantastic weather we have had.  Take advantage and plant up the gardens with those herbs!  Especially calming and stress reducing ones.  Lemon Balm is one of the best.  Look it up on the Medicine Chest.

This is just a quick post today so I wish everyone a good day and please try to use the Forum as this will really be a good way to share and get things off our chest in a more private way.

Have a good day all   :-)