Endometriosis and Extreme Bloating ~

[njcreate]

I have been about 80% Raw for about 6 months now, and I have had nothing but great results with it!

My problem is that I have Endometriosis and my doctor has had me on Birth Control for over 3 years now. I have had 2 Surgery's and have had an ovary removed due to a cyst from the Endo. She insists that I stay on Birth Control so that I don't lose my other ovary. My periods are extremely painful when I'm not on the pill, but lately after experiencing Raw, I just don't want to be on them anymore! I have heard about Endovan, a "natural" alternative for helping Endometriosis, but I'm not sure about this either! Anyone have any experience with this? Thoughts? Suggestions?

Also, I have extreme bloating! I'm 5'4 and 110 pounds and I look like I'm pregnant! Its so frustrating because I have had this problem for so long even before going raw. I feel like I cant even enjoy the benefits of being on raw foods because from the minute i wake up until I go to bed my stomach experiences pressure and bloating. I can eat very little and it still occurs. I have tried food combining raw foods thinking this will help and it sometimes does and sometimes doesnt. The only thing that made my stomach flat was when i did nothing but juicing for two days! It was the best feeling but i was starving!!
Any suggestions on this problem!?? I just dont know what to eat anymore... Im going a bit crazy trying to figure out why im having this problem!

My Daily Routine always consist of this:

First thing in the morning:
1 Tbs raw greens
1 Tbs Spirulina

Juicing:
Carrots
Celery
Cucumber
1Tbs Truly Natural Vitamen C
1/2 tsp Raw MSM
1 Tbs Ground Flax

Fruit
Always a salad/ usually different raw ingredients but never oil just lemon or Apple Cider Vinegar
sometimes sprouted Buckwheat with Coconut flakes
Sometimes Quinoa

Thanks Everyone!! :)

[michigan roman]

its a tough task but to me the mode is : juice fast as long as can , then eat raw for no longer than like 7 days or less . and keep repeating . over and over for years . youve got to get in that mode , yes its tough but its also a no brainer that this is a sure fire high percentage healing mode . thats my outlook anyway , obviously all arent going to agree . but i wanted to state that angle of seeing it in case it helps anyone with an ailment get focused

for starving feeling i suggest making nut or seed mylks then adding sweet fruits , ecspecially filling bananas . also making a nut / seed mylk and adding avacado plus cocoa . or plus fruit

what people have a difficult time grasping is just how wrong our diets been our entire life , and just how unhealthy said diet has made our cells / bones / tissues / etc . getting that anchored in mind helps me to fight to stay away from eating un nutricious slush . and to realize just how sickly my cells are and i thusly must eat raw and fast big time to rebuild cells / body

[michigan roman]

on filling meal mine is mixed greens salad with alot of avacado , plus brocoli - mushroom - chopped walnuts - sesame seeds and oother salad fixins .
those things really heartify salads for me

[njcreate]

Thank you for your Suggestions Michigan Roman! I think you are right... I really should try to go a little longer on the juice fast and like you said go Raw then Fast again... this could be something that could get me back on track. Its hard, but im sure the results will be rewarding.

Thanks for your reply! :)

[aviatrix79]

At 5'4 110 pounds, fasting for extended periods of time and too often is a really bad idea. Fasting once in a while is a good as it helps break down the adhesions caused by endo but fasting isn't really necessary. You're not overweight and you don't need to detox as much as someone who is. Endometriosis is what got me onto raw when I was very young and I've successfully got rid of it. What you need to do is focus on digestion because as you know, the adhesions stick your bowels together and to other organs making it more of a challenge to digest and eliminate food. Too much fiber is not your friend. You do not want too much bulk stretching out your bowels too much as they're already being pulled from the adhesions. So limit your fiber intake but increase your nutrient intake by juicing all your fibrous vegetables and eating your fruits whole. With less fiber, you won't need to have as much water either... water weighs down the contents in your bowels and slows things down. You still need water but don't go overboard, just drink water when you're thirsty. You should also go easy on the sprouts as they're very fibrous and cause a lot of gas. When fiber breaks down it results in ethanol and lactic acid that destroys good bacteria so you might want to take a probiotic for a while. Why don't you add oil to your salads? Good fats are very beneficial to the digestive system so you should include them with your salad. If I were you, I would add Evening Primrose Oil to any salad... it tastes nice too, a bit 'nutty'. The EPO will also help keep your menses under control. Another good one that will reduce the pain, the swelling, the bleeding and the length of your menstrual cycle is Black Strap Mollasses. It helped me a lot and I still take it as a preventative method. Keep up the ACV and the lemon juice as they help break down adhesions.

Another thing you should consider is massaging your stomach to help loosen those adhesions. Start off with a light massage and slowly, after a few weeks, work deeper into the tissue. A good vibrating massager works great too. Stretching is another good way to help get rid of or loosen those adhesions too. You can do some light yoga or stretch your stomach by arching over on a fitness ball. Don't overstretch though, especially when you first begin.

Hope this helps :-)

[fastfreedom]

Something else you could consider and do some research on is parasites and parasite cleansing. It's not talked about enough IMO.

[michigan roman]

she doesnt eat solids and goes on juice and feels better = its a no brainer = juice fast

i dont care about weight , thin people can juice fast staying / getting thinner all the while healing g.i. tract , and other , conditions by keeping the tract empty .
what good does it do keeping weight on the body if by doing so via solid foods its preventing the tract from healing / causing bloating ? not very good logic .
if tract feels better empty of solids move in that direction

and one can make some protein / fat rich nut / seed mylks on a rich liquid diet to help keep weight on while at same time resting tract giving it better chance to heal ,
babys fatten up on mothers milk . adults can fatten up on nut / seed mylk

[Arky]

(aviatrix, please don't go shooting me down for this ;-)



njcreate, both of your symptoms absolutely scream (to me) of poor liver/biliary (and possibly also pancreatic) function. All these organs interact extremely closely with one another, and with the bowel, too.

If the livers function is being impeded in some way, it will struggle not only to detoxify effectively, but also to modulate levels of hormones correctly in the body.

If bile flow is impeded in some way, then digestion can be severely affected (I've years of personal experience of this myself). Bile itself contributes to the digestive process (emulsification, and thus correct absorption, of fats and fat-soluble vitamins, being one example, along with calcium absorbtion, which is dependent upon correct fat-soluble vitamins absorption). However, good bile flow is also important because of its role in aiding transit of pancreatic secretions into the duodenum, again having a profound influence upon digestive processes. If pancreatic secretions cannot be secreted effectively, or effectively reach their intended destination, then poor digestion and bloating are quite likely to result, owing to putrefaction of inadequately-digested food particles.

Put symptoms of poor digestion and endometriosis together and it is my contention that this is strongly suggestive of an issue with hepatic and biliary function, since these are a common denominator for each of your described symptoms. But don't just take my word for it; people such as Julia Chang have a similar viewpoint:

http://tinyurl.com/798ur4l
(http://sensiblehealth.com/Journey-05.xhtmlTake)
If you do a little research into symptoms relating to poor liver and biliary function, I anticipate that you'll find several more that you may currently be experiencing.

Take care, and please let us know how you get on.




P.S. some info on non-stressful ways of improving liver function can be found here on Rawfoodtalk:

http://tinyurl.com/88b8oxf

and do please be careful of the 'liver flushes' you see all over the natural heatlh forums on the internet. Whilst many people have experienced good results with them, they are not without risk and these risks are too often downplayed by those who enthusiastically promote such flushes. I discuss some of those risks in the above link (e.g. possibility of one or more stones becoming lodged in the common bile duct, AKA 'choledocholithiasis'), but there are also risks relating to ingestion of large quantities of magnesium (Epsom salts are magnesium sulphate). You can read about these risks here:

http://tinyurl.com/7dwehk3 (http://curezone.com/cleanse/liver/epsom_salt_and_liver_flush.asp)


I'm not saying one should absolutely never try a flush, but what I am saying is that if anyone is considering doing one, they would be foolish not to heed the risks, and take suitable precautions. Precautions would include not consuming such enormous quantities of magnesium, and also ensuring that one consumes 'stone-breaker' herbs such as chanca piedra and jin qian cao (gold coin grass) for at least 4-6 weeks (preferably 2-3 months) prior to even considering trying to flush. I don't say this lightly, so please, anyone reading this, do be careful.

[aviatrix79]

she doesnt eat solids and goes on juice and feels better = its a no brainer = juice fast

i dont care about weight , thin people can juice fast staying / getting thinner all the while healing g.i. tract , and other , conditions by keeping the tract empty .
what good does it do keeping weight on the body if by doing so via solid foods its preventing the tract from healing / causing bloating ? not very good logic .
if tract feels better empty of solids move in that direction

and one can make some protein / fat rich nut / seed mylks on a rich liquid diet to help keep weight on while at same time resting tract giving it better chance to heal ,
babys fatten up on mothers milk . adults can fatten up on nut / seed mylk

Feeling better temporarily does not mean it's good long term. Depleting the body of vital nutrients from long term juice fasts is not a good option for anyone, especially for someone with endometriosis. I know... I've had it since my teens and I've kept it at bay through nutrition and yoga for years. She was asking for the advice from women who have had experience with endometriosis and yet there are posts here from at least one male... no idea if Arky is male of female lol. She might not have a problem with her GI tract (internally). Endometriosis sticks all your organs together from external adhesions (scar tissues) that form as a result of bleeding in areas outside of the uterus. Her bloating may also not be due to a poor GI tract but due to her inability to digest raw fibrous foods, which is normal for a person switching to raw. That doesn't mean she should avoid all fibrous foods in her diet by fasting constantly. She should just avoid or juice the ones that are causing her trouble. Her bloating could also be a result of the adhesions and inflammation causing conjestion in her pelvis making it even more difficult for her to pass that fibrous food. Some raw vegetables such as cabbage and other cruciferous veggies cause excessive gas and when she's already congested there, it makes the boating much worse. Fasting will help relieve her symptoms short term but it will do nothing to help her condition long term. Fasting for long periods of time repeatedly is not a good option and downright dangerous and completely unnecessary for someone who's that thin and has endo. An overweight person can get away with it for a while because their body will use fat as fuel. A person as thin as she is will break down muscle mass and that's not a good idea. That will slow her metabolism down further making everything worse in the long run. And I wasn't suggesting she should never fast, I'm saying she shouldn't fast for extensive periods of time and regularly as you've suggested.

She can ignore my advice if she likes and take yours, it doesn't really effect me. However, when it comes to mentruation issues and endometriosis, I'd be tending towards listening to a woman who's had experience with it rather than a male who probably knows very little about the condition. She might take your adive and fast on an off for years and realise she's made a poor choice when her hair starts excessively shedding, her energy levels drop significantly, her immune system and hormone levels go out of wack and other nasty early symptons that results from long periods of fasting. People here seem to fast as if it's a sport... let's see who can fast the longest lol. This site and the advice given in it from people who have been raw for a short period of time and who believe they know it all, really concerns me. I hope people dont read the advice about fasting for years and decide it's as a healthy option because it seriously isn't.

I'm done with this thread and others. It's a waste of time trying to help people in forums as I have to jump through hoops to do it. I realised yesterday that this site isn't here to help people. It's here for commercial reasons.

[snoops]

Aviatrix79 I appreciate totally your frustration and concur. I have read and appreciated your responses to people. Thank you for trying to help.

My response here does not negate others helpful responses. I really think you have to read and find your own way. Don't just take one persons thoughts and experiences as gospel. Every body is different . And don't believe everything you read in forums. Read read read and educate yourself. This is one persons forum and one persons way and it works for many. If it doesn't work for you find one that does. Sorry I am rambling...

[aviatrix79]

Appreciate it, snoops, thanks! It's fine though, I'm better off helping people one on one, privately, as I've been doing for years. That way I get a better understanding of the person and can help them more because there's no one remedy for everyone. All people are wired differently. If I help individuals privately, it's more rewarding for me too as I get to monitor them and watch them progress to health. I realise I can't help people in a forum... but at least I tried, eh?

Take it easy :)

[michigan roman]

- edited

[aviatrix79]

- edited

You may have edited your response but I sure recieved it on email.


Here is the message that has just been posted:
***************
if you want to set yourself up as thee all knowing healer go ahead

but seeing what worked for you as what shall work for everyone is very iffy logic , your going by a one case result

but fact of the matter is on a raw juice fast a person can get all the nutrients they get on a solid food diet and not become deficient at all
***************

What absolute rubbish!!!! Good luck!

[aviatrix79]

And just one last thing before I leave this site. I don't claim to be an all knowing hearler, you do, claiming that a juice fast can cure everything. I've come here to share my knowledge on the things I have great experience with, I do not post on threads where I don't. I've been practicing raw for 15 years in total! The first three were a huge learning curve for me and I've said it in other threads, I had no idea what I was doing back then and gladly admit it. When I started, I had no support whatsoever, I had people telling me I was nuts for eating raw food and I certainly didn't have forums where I could go around preaching my stuff. Even if there were, I would not have preached information that I had no clue about. And you, you've been raw, for how long? It's you who's the know all, preaching your bad advice in just about every thread. What on earth do you know about endometriosis and about the raw diet for that matter? All you've been doing is fasting and it seems to me, from reading your posts that you do it out of sheer laziness because you can't be bothered preparing a meal. You even get lazy juice fasting and switch to water fasts. You've mentioned something of that nature in the juice fasting thread. You probably also keep going on it because your digestive system has probably become so sluggish that you feel like crap going off it.

I'm going to leave this site because the advice I read here is alarming and I don't want to read it because it will just stress me out and all I'm then going to do is chime in, correct everything and have people like you calling me a knowall. I know a bloody lot and people should be grateful that I'm willing to come here and share what I have learnt for free. I don't have to, you know? I can easily write a book or charge people for it like most do but that's not in my nature. I like to help, for free. I know a lot because I've been banging away this for so long and I was my own guinea pig. The decisions I made did not effect anyone else but me. If you had an open mind and were doing this for as long as I have, you'd know a lot too... not everything... but a lot! I've been doing this for almost half of my life! You clearly have no idea about the raw lifestyle and if you juice fast for extensive periods of time for years, you're going to have serious health issues eventually. You're responsible for yourself but really, you should be careful what you type so you're not responsible for effecting a million others! Again good luck. I say that because you're going to need it.

[GoodCat]

On these boards.. everyone can share (in the guide lines of course) what has and has not worked for them. I believe when we start saying that my way is best or your way isn't, then we are now attacking a persons experience. It seems to be going on on all sides.

I'm closing this thread and will try to continue to delete or edit any bulling, strife, or hurtful words in the future..

Cathy