Going Organic

I said earlier that I intend to plant some fruits and vegetables around the house. Well this is an update of the effort. Before I show you the photos, I must admit I have been slacking.

A Date Plam Tree From Dammam, Saudi Arabia


This is the date palm tree (about 4 feet tall) that I brought back from Dammam, Saudi Arabia. The date palm tree is now about 3.5 years old. I am not sure if it is a male or female tree and will have to wait till it is between 6 and 8 years when it starts to bear fruits. I also do not know what variety it is because I found the seedling in one of my morning jog around Al-Mujan Island. Date plam tree can be grown from seeds or from the suckers which are found at the base of the plam tree.


Even if the palm tree is from the common variety, fresh dates sells for RM20 per kilo.

Papaya Tree

This is my only success to date. At least the papaya is fruiting. I was about to give up because it took too long to grow.

Plot of Land For Planting Organic Vegetables

Yes, I know, lalangs all over. Earlier it was definitely clear. I planted tomatos and also potatoes. Those little squirrels dug up the potatoes and stole it. People say tomatoes are difficult to grow but I will not give up.

I will work on the land again for the next few days and ready to transplant the potatoes. Hopefully, I can show better results the next time.

Vegetables Juicing

New Juice Press
I have been thinking for a while to get an extractor as I think the Green Power juicer that I am using is not extracting enough. The pulp that comes out is still a little wet and I think I can get better for the money I paid for the fruits and vegetables. This is what I had in mind:


I will use the Green Power juicer only for grinding and use the press (shown on the extreme right of the picture) to get higher quality and pulp free juice. The Green Power juicer does not filter fully especially on apples. I am buying this press from USA (http://www.juicepressfactory.com/) at a cost of US$295 + shipping (written an email to request for cost).

Vegetables Suitable For Juicing
Some of my friends have been asking me what vegetables I use for juicing. The bulk (80%-90%) of the vegetables I used are lettuce and the balance with spinach, brocolli and red cabbage. The greener the vegetables, the more difficult is to drink the juices. Some of the types of lettuce that I use include:

Sweet Lettuce

Romaine

Green

Butter Head

Short Lettuce


When preparing vegetables for juicing, during washing, it is important you remove the little snails, caterpillars and earthworms besides the dirt. In addition, it is not recommended to soak the greens too long in water because the greens will absorb the water. Before feeding the greens to the juicer, ensure you have squeeze water out of the greens. It is not good enough just to ensure the greens are free of water after washing. Otherwise, you will have a large bowl of green juices half of which are the tap water!

Happy juicing.

Chaotic Day

This morning started bright and sunny. After the usual juicing and morning coffee enema, I began to prepare to take castor oil and organic coffee at 10.15am so that I could take the castor oil enema at 3.15pm. After taking the castor oil, everything was fine until about lunch time. I had some stomach discomfort and there was much gases in my stomach. However, it did not deter me from drinking the juices or eating lunch. However, after lunch the stomach discomfort became more pronounced. I also felt like vomitting.

I quickly prepared the 3pm vegetable juice but the Green Power jucier was giving me some problems as I could not power it on. I need to do a reverse switch before it could power on. It also gave a squeeking sound when it is operational (sound did not come from the gears). I was afraid that it may breakdown anytime and where am I going to get another juicer? I reported this problem to the supplier and to my delight, she said she will loan me a unit while they take back to check what's wrong this coming Monday. The juicer comes with a 1 year warranty and has been in very active and heavy use for the last 4.5 months.

As luck would have it, the bucket I used for castor oil enema leaked and I could not do the castor oil enema at 3.15pm. I have separate buckets for castor and coffee enema (not to be shared even for my own use). As the stomach discomfort intensified, I also felt very hungry and proceed to cook brown rice noodles as tea time meal instead of my usual oat meal to cure the hunger first. I also added Bragg Apple Cider to give it a little more oomph and it did lessen my stomach discomfort after the meal. Since I could not do castor oil enema, I proceeded to do the normal coffee enema. But the normal coffee enema that followed was not easy to do. The spasm was very strong. The night coffee enema was even worst. Drinking of two tabelspoons of castor oil and organic coffee makes me feel moody for the whole afternoon arising perhaps from the stomach discomfort. Of course, after each enema, I will get a sense of relief. I take castor oil enema every other day, so you can imagine how I feel on such days. Who said life was easy?

Health Status @ 30 January 2010

This report is 10th in the series. New information are presented in italics.

Problem
Tumor mass of size of about 13cm on the right kidney and 21 and 23 over nodes all over my left and right lungs respectively with one up to 3cm in size on both lungs. Possibly also spread to the liver.

First detected on 11 September 2009 through CT Scan. Subsequent CT scan on 24 October 2009 showed a slight improvement and possibly no growth.

Prognosis
Consulted four urologist (one in Singapore and three in Malaysia) and two oncologist (one in Malaysia and one in Singapore). Both oncologist suggested removal of right kidney. Singapore urologist also suggested removal of kidney. The three urologist do not recommend surgery or chemotherapy. The last urologist consulted said most of his patients died within six months of surgery while two on the experimental drug Sutent is not responding. All agree that is no cure for the moment.

My urologist said my cancer is at stage 4 and did not recomment me to take any treatment. It is also my own choice not to take conventional treatment after considering all the facts of the case.

Schedule for next scan is in March 2010.

Treatment Undertaking
a. Modified Gerson Therapy
a1. Coffee Enema
Initially, four times a day for four weeks, every four hours apart. Subsequently three times a day in the morning, afternoon and evening for 15 minutes.

Commence castor oil enema from 23 January 2010.

a2. Nutrition Diet
All fruits and vegetables mentioned are organic.
i. Juicing - 12 fruit and vegetables juices a day begining around 7am and ending 7pm. First juice is either 40% ripe papaya (with skin) or green apple, then alternating between carrot+apple and vegetables (mainly lettuce) and ending with carrot juice. Juice from 7.45am to 12.45pm and from 2pm to 7pm, every hourly.
2. Diet - No oil, no sugar and no salt on all cooking. For breakfast and supper, maily oats with some raisins, sometimes a little manuka honey is added. For lunch and dinner, vegetables such as Siew Pak Choy, Lettuce, lady's fingers, califlower, broccoli and spinach are mainly steamed or boiled. K-salt is added for flavouring. A teaspoon of flaxseed oil is added when serving (but not during cooking). Somali organic brown rice is consumed and sometime potatoes are also used. ABC or hipocrates soup are also prepared every other day for daily consumtion.
3. Supplements - K-salt, B12, naicin, lugol solution, digestive enzymes and Q10.
4. Others - Rye bread, papaya, guavas, oranges and bananas are consumed at regular intervals.

b. Homeopathy Medicine
Consulting Doctor: DR AU Ramakrishnan MBBS,PhD, Chenni, India (http://www.drramakrishnan.com/)
Local Consultant: Vishuddi Lee
Treatment Started: 6 November 2009.
Consulting: Once every two months in Singapore. Next appointment 6 March 2010.
Medication Given : Phosphorus and Carsinosin (alternating between weekly), morning and evening tablet.
Reaction: No further reactions observed other than mouth ulcers every now and then.

c. Urine Therapy
Drink the first urine of the day. Suspended for the time being.

Health Status
Current weight is around 70.3kgs. No further symptoms. Physical energy levels still low. Some discomfort when sitting on the buttocks still present due to loss of muscles during the early stages of treatment. Legs a little tired due to constant standing when juicing. Needs a little more sleep.

Verdict
Feeling great.

Lack Of Chinese New Year Atmosphere

Health wise, I am feeling great and plan to do visiting to some of my ex-colleagues next week to catch up. Appitite is good, weight has stablised (actually gained a little), no pains or symptons and can sleep rather well.

Even as Chinese New Year is just around the corner, I felt a little different this year. It is not because of my sickness but rather the changing weather. About this time, we should have lots of sunshine and dry weather. As the North blows across your face, you should feel Spring is in the air and begin to sweat profusely due to the high humidity. A few visits to the hypermarkets shows lack of crowds and urgency, perhaps it is still too early to begin buying New Year goodies or it is a reflection of the state of the economy?

Ever since I switched to RON95, I feel my Vitara is not the same. I can hear cranking noise from the engine. I have checked and found that Vitara does accept RON95. As I travel frequently to Cameron with the Vitara, I though it is time to part company even though the car is only 11 years old. It has served me well for the last 3.5 years. Cars are a financial liability but then again how can you live with it? No new cars for me.

Tomorrow I will resume making rye and raisins bread. After some unsuccessful ties sometime back, I got some new instructions to try out. If it is successful, I will publish it. This time round, I will use premixed rye and wheat flour. Toasting the bread brings out the aroma of the bread and the raisins making it very crispy and delicious to eat.

Bitten By Travel Bug

After dinner, I went back to Giant to return the unused distilled water to them and thereafter lodged a complaint. Hopefully, the manufacturer will stop claiming the water is distilled water. Right after that I did my night coffee enema. I noticed that the sharp pain around the abdomen was gone. Since changing my distilled water supply back to Carefour, I did not suffer from further dehydration for the night.

Earlier I said I found some red noodles made from organic wheat and brown rice that is salt free. After tasting it for a second time, I believe it is not salt free. Grrr... I hate it when this happens. I read the ingredients to make sure that it is salt free. So now I am back to my brown rice vermicelli which I take on Sundays.

I have been watching a lot of documentaries about Himalaya and surrounding regions in between my therapy and hope to plan for another trip either later this year or next year depending on my recovery condition. If my present condition prevails or improves further, then the trip is definitely on. This trip needs more planning because the place that I will be visiting involves three countries (India, Nepal and Tibet, China) across very rugged terrain. I hope to visit Everest base camp this time round. The cost is now affordable because of Airasia. The other alternative is to join some 4WD adventure group to drive to say Mongolia. To gain experience, I am trying to con some friends to drive to Chiangmai with me. I hope to sell off the Vitara and get a 1988 Classic 200E instead. Chee Peng I have reserved a place for you. Any others?

A Little Comfort

I was fully dehydrated when I work up early this morning to urinate. My throat and mouth was so dry that I needed to drink water immediately. I normally do not drink water since I am already drinking 4 liters of juices a day. The water I used for coffee enema is not pure distilled water that caused me to dehydrate. My wife said the water taster sweet. How can distilled water have taste? I am going to write an official complain to Giant.

Last night I bought a baby cotton mattress at the night market for my coffee enema. Previously I had used a very thin mattress and it was painful to sleep on. Now with the thicker, it is more comfortable to lie on.

About an hour after I finished my castor oil enema this afternoon, I felt a little short but sharp pain around the right side on my abdomen. I was worried about it for a while and so I lie down in bed for a while. The last attack I had was in August 2009 that led to the discovery of the tumor and the pain was around the back but this time it is on the side. I had experience this type of short sharp pain earlier in the therapy. I am not sure what to make of it. Hopefully it will go away after some rests.

Day 145

My second castor oil enema took place on Monday morning at 10.15am instead of 5.30am. Since i not not getting enough sleep, I may as well start the castor oil enema later. The reason why some start earlier is because they have problems taking breakfast after consuming two tablespoons of castor oil. Yes, it is rather difficult to drink raw castor oil. It's very oily and also has a distinct after taste. I did not experience any stomach cramps but I did have stomach discomfort for the whole morning. I had no problems drinking the juices but did have a little problem taking my lunch as I feel like vomitting. So I ate a little slower and a little lesser than usual. I then took the castor oil enema at 3.15pm. Same problem in my dinner as well.

I have been using distilled water procured from Carefour but since they are out of stock, I bought 20 1.5l bottles from Giant. After a few days of coffee enema, I felt dehydrated. I suspect the water which I bought from Giant is not pure distilled water, possibly reverse osmosis water despite its label saying it is distilled water. So this morning, I went to the USJ City Carefour to see if they have new stock of distilled water. I was happy to find 5 bottles of 5.5l but it was not enough. Running short of distilled water has bitterly taught me a simple lesson to stock up. So I scooped up the entire display of 25 bottles of 1.5l as well.

The organic food market in Malaysia is taking shape. Previously most of the products are sourced from overseas and lately I see more being produced locally. So I was pleasently surprised to find organic wheat and brown rice noodles (salt free). Almost 99% of brown rice noodles have some sea salt. I can only take salt, oil and sugar free products. At last, I can have my noodles, at least another variety (other than organic brown rice vermicelli which I am currently consuming) for me to cook during the weekends. I made tomotato soup noodles this morning with it and it taste like heaven.

Late yesterday, a friend called me and asked for my help. Apparently her friend who is 60 years old has just being diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer which has spread. I wanted to meet him last night but he was very tired, so I am meeting him this afternoon. He is planning for surgery and possibly chemotherapy after that. He is also into TCM. My intention is very simple. Make him aware that there are several options available after his conventional treatment.

Not Enough Rests

I am feeling a little tired for the past week. The situation was made worst because of my castor oil enema wherein I have to get up at 5.20am to prepare the coffee and drink castor oil. I am sleeping an average of 6 hours daily and not getting enough sleep. I have to find ways to get some sleep in between. Because I juice every hour, it is almost not possible to sleep because I am prepare hourly juices, Monday to Sunday, no holidays. I take homeoathy medicine at 8.30pm and finish by about 11pm. One way I am thinking is to miss out one juice (the 3pm juicing). After my 2pm juicing, I immediately take a nap and wake up at 3.45pm. To make up for the missing 3pm juice I drink 20% more during the 2pm, 4pm, 5pm, 6pm and 7pm to compensate. I am also changing the timing to begin my castor oil enema from 5.30am to 10am. This would allow me to sleep more and hopefully less disruptive on my daily routine.

Treating cancer is really a 24x7 business. Since the cancer has the upper hand controlling the food intake, I have to constautantly fight it with diet. The Gerson Therapy is really effective here but it is not easy to follow without any help but I am coping. I met a lady in her 40s at the place where I usually buy my organic vegetables and she was wondering why I bought so much vegetables (I use about 3kgs of vegetables and another 4kgs of carrot+ apple for juicing a day). I told her I use it for juicing because of my cancer. She said she had breast cancer about 3 years ago but recently her friend's breast cancer reappeared and she is getting worried. Apparently she used the Gerson Therapy for two years during her breast cancer days but stopped after she recovered. I reminded to her that the cancer cells is still in her body and suggested that she watch her diet (less sugar, oil and salt), drink more juices and to detox regularly.

A Fruitful Day

I did my first castor oil enema this morning. At 5.30am took 2 tablespoons of castor oil, a cup of organic coffee with manuka honey and thereafter a slice of orange. I had a little difficulty drinking castor oil. Even after taking coffee and orange, the castor oil taste still remains around the mouth. I tried to go back to sleep after that but could not sleep. I had expected some stomach pain but there was none. However, I did feel a little stomach discomfort. I got up at 7.30am and began with the usual daily routine. At about 9am I had an urgent bowel movement. At 10.30am I began the castor oil enema. I used 3 tablespoons of cator oil, 8oz of coffee, 8oz of distilled water laced with bath soap lather but no ox bile or lecithin powder and began the castor oil enema. I had to continue stirring it to ensure all the contents are evenly mixed. The enema went smoothly but I only managed to hold it for 5 minutes. It was messy to clean.

Because of the castor oil enema, my timetable for the rest of the day was also messed up. The subsequent coffee enema was very smooth but it caused me some difficulty because of frequent spasm. I noticed the discharge was oily and also some whitish discharge, possibly soap lather. Otherwise, everything was normal. My next castor oil enema is scheduled for Monday and thereafter every other day.

Health Status @ 23 January 2010

This report is 9th in the series. New information are presented in italics.

Problem
Tumor mass of size of about 13cm on the right kidney and 21 and 23 over nodes all over my left and right lungs respectively with one up to 3cm in size on both lungs. Possibly also spread to the liver.

First detected on 11 September 2009 through CT Scan. Subsequent CT scan on 24 October 2009 showed a slight improvement and possibly no growth.

Prognosis
Consulted four urologist (one in Singapore and three in Malaysia) and two oncologist (one in Malaysia and one in Singapore). Both oncologist suggested removal of right kidney. Singapore urologist also suggested removal of kidney. The three uronogist do not recommend surgery or chemotherapy. The last urologist consulted said most of his patients died within six months of surgery while two on the experimental drug Sutent is not responding. All agree that is no cure for the moment.

My urologist said my cancer is at stage 4 and did not recomment me to take any treatment. It is also my own choice not to take conventional treatment after considering all the facts of the case.

Schedule for next scan is in March 2010.

Treatment Undertaking
a. Modified Gerson Therapy
a1. Coffee Enema
Initially, four times a day for four weeks, every four hours apart. Subsequently three times a day in the morning, afternoon and evening for 15 minutes.

Commence castor oil enema from 23 January 2010.

a2. Nutrition Diet
All fruits and vegetables mentioned are organic.
i. Juicing - 12 fruit and vegetables juices a day begining around 7am and ending 7pm. First juice is either 40% ripe papaya (with skin) or green apple, then alternating between carrot+apple and vegetables (mainly lettuce) and ending with carrot juice. Juice from 7.45am to 12.45pm and from 2pm to 7pm, every hourly.
2. Diet - No oil, no sugar and no salt on all cooking. For breakfast and supper, maily oats with some raisins, sometimes a little manuka honey is added. For lunch and dinner, vegetables such as Siew Pak Choy, Lettuce, lady's fingers, califlower, broccoli and spinach are mainly steamed or boiled. K-salt is added for flavouring. A teaspoon of flaxseed oil is added when serving (but not during cooking). Somali organic brown rice is consumed and sometime potatoes are also used. ABC or hipocrates soup are also prepared every other day for daily consumtion.
3. Supplements - K-salt, B12, naicin, lugol solution, digestive enzymes and Q10.
4. Others - Rye bread, papaya, guavas, oranges and bananas are consumed at regular intervals.

b. Homeopathy Medicine
Consulting Doctor: DR AU Ramakrishnan MBBS,PhD, Chenni, India (http://www.drramakrishnan.com/)
Local Consultant: Vishuddi Lee
Treatment Started: 6 November 2009.
Consulting: Once every two months in Singapore. Next appointment 6 March 2010.
Medication Given : Phosphorus and Carsinosin (alternating between weekly), morning and evening tablet.
Reaction: No further reactions observed other than mouth ulcers.

c. Urine Therapy
Drink the first urine of the day. Suspended for the time being.

Health Status
Current weight is around 70.5kgs. No further symptoms.

Verdict
Feeling great.

Live To Eat or Eat To Live?

Have you ever tried eating vegetables or food without sugar, salt and oil? How do you motivate youself to eat these stuffs everyday for the next 24 months? What do you do when your stomach automatically reject the food everytime you put into your mouth?

Life for some people are never easy but never say life is not fair. When you do that, you are on the road to self pity and may go downhill all the way. For me, my body has served me notice and is giving me an opportunity to correct the inbalance. All that I said in the first paragraph are just discomforts of life, dramatise to reflect the degree of discomfort. To some people, eating meat is just as discomforting. After all, one man's meat is another man's poison. I just need to understand the food that I am taking better and then adjust accordingly and I have made good progress for the last five months. Yes I do get sick of it sometimes but when that happens, I innovate. For example, I have never made bread in my life but now I know how to make good organic rye bread. My first few attempts in bread making were total failures but each time I learn from the mistakes and improve. Sometimes I take toasted rye bread as supper and it tastes like heaven. In fact, tonight I am looking forward to eating it again.

I once seen a show about Lee Rock (acted by Andy Lau), one of the most famous corrupted cop in Hongkong in the 60s. He said the most difficult thing about living is earning a living, putting food in one's mouth. Whoever said living is easy? Mine is only a matter of a few thousand degrees harder.

Trying Out Castor Oil Enema

Today I went to Carefour to replenish the distilled water but only to find out that they have been running out of stock for over a month now. Perhaps this is the Chinese New Year season and they were more keen to stock aerated drinks instead. I parked my car at B2 and did a walk to 3rd floor non stop, a total of five floors. Although I managed to to get to 3rd floor, I took nearly one hour to recover back to my normal breath. I really miss my good old days where physical energy is not at a premium. Get really sick and you find yourself really handicapped in so many ways.

This Saturday I am planning to do castor oil enema. I am still short of ox bile powder or lecithin powder (sodium free) but I thought I will give it a try. There are two parts to the castor oil enema. I got a shocked after reading how difficult castor oil enema can be after reading Steven's blog (http://mylymeblog.com/?m=200904) and this is what he said:
"I woke up at 5:30 am today to have an earlier start. I take 2 tablespoons of castor oil, 2/3 cup of organic coffee, raw honey, and a slice of an orange. Then I try to go back to sleep. The coffee activates your stomach acids and helps move the oil along quicker. It is hard to go back to sleep from the nausea. You can feel the castor oil snake its way through your intestines. This can be very painful! But who said this therapy was easy? Who said life was easy? THIS THERAPY IS NOT FOR SISSYS. The castor oil will finish its way through my body by 10am."

This is only the first part of the castor oil enema but Steven did not do the second part which starts at 10am. The second part is even more fun. Just as the coffee enema preparation of the coffee solution but this time I add two spoons of cator oil into the coffee solution. Then I use bath soap to add lather into the solution. Then I insert the tube into the anus just like the normal coffee enema. Because I added lather and castor oil to the coffee solution, I must continuously stir the solution until fully administered and sit out for 15 minutes.

I do not know what to expect but I know it won't be easy. Maybe I might not even complete the first part. This is what you get yourself into when you are very sick. Sigh...

Size Does Matter

I took a break yesterday from blogging.

The flare-ups are still there but is now milder. One of the thing about this flare-up is that it is dependent on the amount of lugol solution I used. The current recommended dose is three drops. The only problem is how big should each drop be? Perhaps there is a standard syringe to apply. The method I used is crude. I used a small baby spoon and then create the drops. The larger the drops, the bigger the flare-up. So after reducing the size of the drops, the flare-up became bearable. I read that a little bit more iodine is not harmful.

Today as I was renewing my insurance at MPIB (still a strong supporter), I met some old colleagues and an agent. I am happy to see them as they are happy to see me. In fact I was told I look better now then previously. Of course, I like my present size too, no more big spare tyres. I am looking forward to go back to normal life again and hopefully I can do that by end of the year. This journey is still long.

Flare Ups

I have been on the Gerson Therapy (GT) for over four months now and so far so good. In my opinion, I think the potassium and iodine (ie. lugol solution) are two of the more important supplments that GT followers take. Previously I use kelp as substitute for the iodine because that was the best I could get.

However, with my brother's help I managed to get lugol solution as recommended in the GT. It's only 5 days into using the lugol solution when I experienced the full flare-up since yesterday. For most patients, the flare-up occurs within the first two weeks of treatment. I had nausea and lots of gases in my stomach yesterday but today I had problem eating dinner. I felt like vomitting everytime I take a bite at the potatoes and stewed vegetables. I just don't feel like eating. There was also a lot of gas in my stomach too. However, I had little problem eating raw fruits but then these are not filling. So I made myself some otas but this was also difficult to eat, basically I felt like vomitting. Anyhow, I push myself to eat as much as possible. I still feel hungry but have no mood to eat! Luckily I had no problems (yet) with the coffee enema and it helps a bit everytime I completed my enemas.

The recommended treatment is to take large amount (2 liters) of peppermint tea, served with brown sugar and a bit of lemon for 24 hours. Such flare ups are expected to last not more than 4 days. It will occur again in the future though. Patients are recommended to remain in bed but I do not have this luxury as I need to do the juicing myself. Sigh...

Clinically, these flare ups are favourable reactions and should be regarded as part of the healing process.

If It Ain't Broken Don't Fix It?

Since I started using lugol solution in place of kelp supplement for the iodine, I have been feeling some discomfort around my chest area. As you know my lungs are severely infected with cancer nodes. Lugol solution is definitely more potent that any iodine supplement and one possible explanation is that when the cancer cells are dissolved by the potassium/iodine combination, the toxins are released. Since my body is not able to rid of the toxins that fast, hence the discomfort. So one way to help my body detox is to take in more frequent coffee enemas. I will now increase the coffee enema to at least 4 per day.

The question of detoxification is interesting and controversial depending on how you look at it. This story was told to me by my brother. Apparently there were two elderly sisters from his church, who where quite healthy. After being told how good detox is, they started detoxing (don't know which method or formula they used). Suddendly one of them passed away and ever since people found out have been staying away from detoxying. Of couse, we really do not know what actually happened unless an autopsy is being performed.

The question before us is can detox kill a person? No matter how remote the possibility is, the answer is it can. I infer this from Dr Gerson's work wherein he performed autopsy on the patients and found out that they died of toxins in liver. Statistical research by Blond suggests that 98% of all cancer of the internal organs succumb not to the cancer but to the liver disorder (1928 Kasper Blond, The Liver and Cancer). It is not possilbe to know your condition of your liver (which may be on the verge of failing) and the detox program just accelerated it. Many will disagree with this argument but the point is when you detox, are you aware of the mechanics of how the detox works? Most detox programs are injested orally with some herbs, tea, medicine, etc and then depend on the person's internal organs such as the liver and kidney to do the work of cleansing and expelling the waste. Therein lies the problem. If your organs are functioning, then we do not have a problem but what if it is not?

Of course the other method uses is coffee enema which is administered via the rectum. I am not saying this method is better than the rest but only to say that I have used it for more than 450 times since September 2009 and some other cancer patients more than a few thousand times. My internals organs like the kidney and liver are not functioning properly. I am detoxying at a higher rate (than any of the elderly sisters) and taking in supplements to dissolve the cancer cells. My friend in cancer from Singapore who did his chemo (which you know how toxic it is) is doing coffee enema 5 times a day and have no problems since October 2009.

So understand what detox you are doing first. Where are the toxins released in the body and which internal organs are responsible for removing the toxins and how they are release out. Do not stop detoxying just because of some "rumour" but also be careful of the method used. In fact I am depending on detox to keep myself alive and free of cancer subsequently.

Health Status @ 16 Jan 2010

This is the 8th report. New information are presented in italics.

Problem
Tumor mass of size of about 13cm on the right kidney and 21 and 23 over nodes all over my left and right lungs respectively with one up to 3cm in size on both lungs. Possibly also spread to the liver.

First detected on 11 September 2009 through CT Scan. Subsequent CT scan on 24 October 2009 showed a slight improvement and possibly no growth.

Prognosis
Consulted four urologist (one in Singapore and three in Malaysia) and two oncologist (one in Malaysia and one in Singapore). Both oncologist suggested removal of right kidney. Singapore urologist also suggested removal of kidney. The three urologist do not recommend surgery or chemotherapy. The last urologist consulted said most of his patients died within six months of surgery while two on the experimental drug Sutent is not responding. All agree that is no cure for the moment.

My urologists do not recomment me to take any treatment. It is also my own choice not to take conventional treatment after considering all the facts of the case.

Schedule for next scan is in March 2010.

Treatment Undertaking
a. Modified Gerson Therapy
a1. Coffee Enema
Initially, four times a day for four weeks, every four hours apart. Subsequently three times a day in the morning, afternoon and evening for 15 minutes.

a2. Nutrition Diet
All fruits and vegetables mentioned are organic.
i. Juicing - 12 fruit and vegetables juices a day begining around 7am and ending 7pm. First juice is either 40% ripe papaya (with skin) or green apple, then alternating between carrot+apple and vegetables (mainly lettuce) and ending with carrot juice. Juice from 7.45am to 12.45pm and from 2pm to 7pm, every hourly.
2. Diet - No oil, no sugar and no salt on all cooking. For breakfast and supper, maily oats with some raisins, sometimes a little manuka honey is added. For lunch and dinner, vegetables such as Siew Pak Choy, Lettuce, lady's fingers, califlower, broccoli and spinach are mainly steamed or boiled. K-salt is added for flavouring. A teaspoon of flaxseed oil is added when serving (but not during cooking). Somali organic brown rice is consumed and sometime potatoes are also used. ABC or hipocrates soup are also prepared every other day for daily consumtion.
3. Supplements - K-salt, B12, naicin, discontinued kelp and replaced with lugol solution and Q10.
4. Others - Rye bread, papaya, guavas, oranges and bananas are consumed at regular intervals.

b. Homeopathy Medicine
Consulting Doctor: DR AU Ramakrishnan MBBS,PhD, Chenni, India (http://www.drramakrishnan.com/)
Local Consultant: Vishuddi Lee
Treatment Started: 6 November 2009.
Consulting: Once every two months in Singapore. Next appointment 6 March 2010.
Medication Given : Phosphorus and Carsinosin (alternating between weekly), morning and evening tablet.
Reaction: No further reactions observed other than mouth ulcers.

Met Dr rama on 9 January and he is quite happy with the progress. Will continue with the same medication but with increase potency for another 2 months. He has als requested me to see the oncologist for a progress review.

c. Urine Therapy
Drink the first urine of the day.

Health Status
For the past week, gain about 1kg. Must start watching weight when I reach 72kgs. Physically getting a little stronger. What has changed is that I drink a little more juices (from 250ml to about 300ml), more consistent in taking Hipocrates soup and taking of raw fruits and vegetables during lunch and dinner.

Verdict
Actual progress will be known when I do the next scan on 1 March 2010. Muscle and skin are bit more firmer. Meanwhile, I believe my health is improving.

A Great Week

This week has been a remarkable week for me. I felt for the first time my body is healing, a sense of firmness in my skin and also the muscles. Although this could be the work of the mind, but I do feel stronger. Exerting my muscles is less painful and I gain some 0.7kg of weight. Due to my tight schedule in juicing, taking the diet including Hipocrates soup, fresh fruites and vegetables and eating on time, I am feeling a little less hungry in between.

I have started to use lugol solution for two days and there are some reactions. I seemed to have more gases in my stomach/rectum before, during and after coffee enemas. Last night I had to drink peppermint tea to calm my stomach down which at one point was causing a little heartburn after the evening coffee enema. I also experience a little pain around the ribs once in a while. I am not sure what to make of it or whether this was caused by the lugol solution or healing reaction. Still I feel great.

Sharing of information is great. Recently KC, a brother in cancer from Singapore sent me an email offering to help me procure some of the supplements that I could not get. These supplements are very important to the healing and some of them are really difficult to get like lugol solution and pancreatin. I believe he must have read my earlier postings and offered to tell me where to get the supplies in Singapore. KC had colon surgery in May 08, chemo from Nov 08 to May 09 but the cancer had spread to the liver. He then took up Gerson Therapy from Oct 09. I wish him speedy recovery. In addition I would like to follow his progress as well because there is so much information we can share and help each other and also those who want to follow this therapy.

Link To Facebook

I created a link from this blog to Facebook (ID: jchangct) so that some of my friends who uses Facebook do not need to navigate to Blogspot to follow my blog. The update is automatic and I find this feature useful. At least one after my blog is buying a juicer and changing to alkaline water. I hope more will follow and lead a healthier lifestyle.

The Indian Government has changed their visa terms. Now tourist can travel only two times per the six months visa issued and there must be a two months break in between the travel. This will be a serious blow to pilgrims who normally spend a day or two in Lumbini, Nepal before going back into India. I am not sure if pilgrims can get exception. Current exemptions only apply to business and medical visas. If you do plan on pilgrimage, please ensure you have this point sorted before you travel unless your base is in Kathmandu.

This morning, I started using the lugol solution. Lugol solution is not pungent in smell but it is not sweet either. I got 100ml and then added another 100ml of distilled water to the solution to half the strength. I used a small tablespoon to apply three drops of the solution. The carrot+apple juice became a little brownish and a little bitter as well but I have no problem drinking it. I will report on any reaction or flare-up.

This morning the sun was very bright and I feel great. I have gained 0.5kg the last two days. However, my legs are a little tired not sure if it is from too much standing in the kitchen. I also feel some improvement in my strength. When exerting my muscles to juice, it's not so painful. Hopefully, this is not temporary.

Ups and Downs

Today is the first day of the 5th month since the discovery of my kidney tumor. The last four months has been a very difficult journey for me. I take each day at a time as I do not know if I will wake up the next day. Although I have not had any new symptoms or persistent pain (I do get pain around the ribs once in a while), I am still in the dark as to my actual condition. In a way I could only guess from the condition of my body. Of course, I would want to be positive about it as feeling otherwise would not do any good.

I know everyone will die one day but knowing you can die anytime makes day to day living challenging. Sometimes when I experience a little pain here and there, the mind will be wondering if the cancer is now planting itself all over the body waiting to strike. I try not to think about it and perhaps the only way to confirm is to do another scan which is being planned on 1 March. Confirmation also has its drawback. What if the scan is negative? This waiting mind game continues to battle on every now and then but is more pronounced whenever any pain is being experienced.

Still I will not break and give up and continue to fight. Everyday that I wake up, is a day won. I believe I am still in positive territory. The support and encouragement that I get from you is unbelieveable and it also helps. Thank you.

Iodine Deficiency

I managed to obtain lugol solution about a week ago through prescription but I was not sure if it can be consumed orally since the warning outside the bottle said "External Use Only". Lugol solution which is essentially 5 g iodine (I2) and 10 g potassium iodide (KI) mixed with 85 ml distilled water is now not sold over the counter, apparently on the theory that it could be used in the manufacture of amphetamines. The RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) for this mineral is 150 micrograms for normal people.

Lack of iodine in the body can cause many disease such as type II diabetes, hypothyroidism, fibrocystic breast disease, breast cancer, intestinal dysbiosis, reduced cellular metabolism, infertility, obesity and prostate cancer (www.laurapower.com/iodine deficiency.htm). There is a easy way to check if you have iodine deficiency. Simply paint an iodine stain about the size of a silver dollar somewhere on your body. Then observe how long it takes the stain to disappear. If vanishes in less than 24 hours, you are deficient. If it is still visible, after 24 hours, even if only faintly, you are not deficient.

For the Gerson Therapy (GT), lugol solution has a medical explanation. Lugol solution (given at half strength) according to Holler and Singer, is that iodine invades cancer tumors when inflammed, not otherwise. I have also searched some website and found that consuming lugol solution is small quantities is not harmful but desireable. For the GT, first three weeks six drops on the carrot+apple (but not on green vegetable) juice six times (6x3) daily. Dosage will be reduced to 6x1 for 8 weeks and subsequently 3x1 for the duration of treatment.

Since this doubt has been cleared, I will begin to use lugol solution from tomorrow onwards. The only problem is how many drops do I start since I am already 4 months into the GT? Well, I will start from the beginning and report the results.

You Can Make A Difference

As I spend most of my time in the kitchen, I have been listening to the Chinese radio station 988 (www.988.com.my). I followed their 12pm radio drama which is quite interesting in addition to brushing up my Mandarin which I have not used for sometime.

One of the early morning program is where listeners will write in with a problem and the DJ will then invite listeners to provide comments, advice or feeback. This morning's topic was from a girl by name of Siew Kuen who has just been diagnosed to have cancer. She wanted to spare the agony of her pain by splitting with her boyfriend of 3 years. Her question to the listeners was "Should I tell my boyfriend about my cancer?" Of course all the listeners who responded said she should. I also wanted to participate but the line was very busy. My concern is not whether she should tell or not but from her way she writes her message, I think she has concluded she would die and as such should not involve with her boyfriend as they have no future together.

Last week on my way back from Singapore, my friend Vishuddi Lee who has been accompanying me to Singapore told me that one of his allopatic trained doctor friend said of my case is that I should enjoy the rest of my life. There is no cure and don't waste time/money trying to find cure (I suppose he meant on allopathic medicine). I believe we are all conditioned to think this way due to our exposure to our doctor friends, newpapers and most existing literature on cancer. There are very few supporters of alternative medicine. Even my allopatic trained Dr Ramakrishnan said that the majority of his patients are those who have tried allopatic medicine and came to him when it did not work.

The news of having cancer can be really devastating when first heard from the doctor. Negative thoughts arises. Friends can really help but don't just sent or forward emails. Besides offering morale support, sharing of information is also vital at this juncture. You can make a difference.

Sharing of Information

My meeting with Dr Ramakrishnan went quite well. Since I have not done further CT scan, the only way to tell if I am OK or not was from symptoms and pains, if any. Since I di not have any of these, Dr Rama was quite happy with my progress. But he did request me to see my oncologist before we meet the next time in March. This would mean I need to do a scan and if I do the scan, I would have taken 3 scans in about 6 months. Due to the radiation involved, having too many short scan is not recommended and I may opt to have the scan only in May instead. I will check with some radiologist for some recommendation.

Having also seen some other on the Gerson Therapy at home, I realised that some of us cannot follow the exact recommendations. For example, the blog of the American that I visited in Chiangmai takes 10 juices at 12oz (recommendation is 13 at 8oz) and he takes mainly carrot and apple juices (recommendation is to include other vegetable juices). At about 9 months, he introduced protein into his diet by consuming bamboo worms (even had photographs of it)! He takes two tablespoons of castor oil but does not follow-up with castor oil enemas.

Getting some of the Gerson recommended supplements are also difficult in Malaysia. Most pharmacist do not even sell K salt, niacin, B17, ox bile powder, pancreatin (most have not even heard of it), lugol solution (controlled item only available in hospitals). Well Gerson Institute has revealed that lecithin powder can be used as replacement for ox bile powder. Getting lecithin power is also difficult (most phamacist do not sell) and I managed to find one but it contains small amount of sodium. Lugol solution that I managed to obtain by prescription are for external use only and I do not know the makeup. So I have yet to use it and instead use alternatives like kelp. Pancreatin is a digestive enzymes and I managed to find an alternative marketed under Biogrow which is derived from plants.

Despite the challenges faced, I still believe this is the correct path. I believe many following home based therapy would have to make the necessary changes or subsititutions as best as possible. That why sharing of information is important as it can help us to make such important life depending decisions. Of course it would be good if we have RM45K and spend two weeks at a Gerson approved clinic (in Budapest or Mexico).

Mixing Of Similar Therapies

There are a lot of alternative therapies for cancer out there. If you do a search in Google for "alternative cancer therapies", you can see there are over 3 million entries. Each alternative therapy has its own followers and claim to success.

Although I am using the Gerson therapy, this does not mean I endorse it for you. This also does not mean other therapies are not effective. I am not making any statement of recommendation or preference. What I have done is I have made my choice of therapy. As I treat myself with this therapy, I also let you know of my success and failures. I am sharing experience with you in case you want to follow this therapy. I am also not an expert on Gerson Therapy but a mere follower but due to the non avaiability of some supplements, I am forced to adapt at my own risk. You must understand this risk before you follow.

Why am I making this distinction? I think it is important to understand the therapy you are taking so that you do not mix and add. This is not a lego set and you should not experiment with you life trying this or that. Just because some other therapies also use juices and coffee enema does not mean the therapy is Gerson therapy. I will summarise the Gerson Therapy in the hope that you will understand it better (please help correct me if I got it wrong). In fact Dr Gerson's recommendation is that if you cannot abide by it, don't follow.

Summarised Gerson Therapy
The three main pillars of Gerson Therapy are:
a) Gerson Nutrition Diet
b) Detoxifying
c) Supplementation

Gerson Nutrition Diet
This consists of no oil, no salt and no sugar diet. In addition, at least 13 fruit and vegetables 8oz juices (no pulp/fibre) per day. For breakfast and dinner, oragnic oatmeal while for lunch and dinner, baked or boiled potatoes in their jackets, stewed vegetables, salads and Hippocrates soup.

Gerson Detox
Two type of enemas are used namely coffee enema and castor oil enema, alternating in use every other day.

Gerson Supplements
Supplements here are not just for the purpose of providing additional minerals or nutrients. Two of the main supplements that are taken is large quantities are potassium salt and lugol (iodine) solution. These two minerals are required to cause tumor cell inflammation that will result in the tumor cells dying.

As you can see, Gerson Therapy is not just about juicing and detoxying. In Dr Gerson's earlier years of practice (as recorded in his book, A Cancer Therapy), patients died due to the release of toxins in the liver when tumor cell dissolve. The kidney is not able to rid the toxins itself and as a result, the enemas was introduced to help the body rid of the toxins.

The Gerson therapy to be effective must be in use for at least 18 months and recommendation is 24 months. This is to allow the liver (cancer patient's liver is functioning below 35% capacity) to be restored to as normal as possible. Even after this period, it is recommended that we do not revet back to our previous diet. Indeed the Gerson Therapy is not easy to follow and I read in some websites, impossible to follow. All I can say is NO PAIN NO GAIN.

Health Status @ 9 Jan 2010

This is 7th report. New information are presented in italics.

Problem
Tumor mass of size of about 13cm on the right kidney and 21 and 23 over nodes all over my left and right lungs respectively with one up to 3cm in size on both lungs. Possibly also spread to the liver.

First detected on 11 September 2009 through CT Scan. Subsequent CT scan on 24 October 2009 showed a slight improvement and possibly no growth.

Prognosis
Consulted four urologist (one in Singapore and three in Malaysia) and two oncologist (one in Malaysia and one in Singapore). Both oncologist suggested removal of right kidney. Singapore urologist also suggested removal of kidney. The three uronogist do not recommend surgery or chemotherapy. The last urologist consulted said most of his patients died within six months of surgery while two on the experimental drug Sutent is not responding. All agree that is no cure for the moment.

My urologists do not recomment me to take any treatment. It is also my own choice not to take conventional treatment after considering all the facts of the case.

Schedule for next scan is in March 2010.

Treatment Undertaking
a. Modified Gerson Therapy
a1. Coffee Enema
Initially, four times a day for four weeks, every four hours apart. Subsequently three times a day in the morning, afternoon and evening for 15 minutes.

a2. Nutrition Diet
All fruits and vegetables mentioned are organic.
i. Juicing - 12 fruit and vegetables juices a day begining around 7am and ending 7pm. First juice is either 40% ripe papaya (with skin) or green apple, then alternating between carrot+apple and vegetables (mainly lettuce) and ending with carrot juice. Juice from 7.45am to 12.45pm and from 2pm to 7pm, every hourly.
2. Diet - No oil, no sugar and no salt on all cooking. For breakfast and supper, maily oats with some raisins, sometimes a little manuka honey is added. For lunch and dinner, vegetables such as Siew Pak Choy, Lettuce, lady's fingers, califlower, broccoli and spinach are mainly steamed or boiled. K-salt is added for flavouring. A teaspoon of flaxseed oil is added when serving (but not during cooking). Somali organic brown rice is consumed and sometime potatoes are also used. ABC or hipocrates soup are also prepared every other day for daily consumtion.
3. Supplements - K-salt, B12, naicin, kelp (for iodine) and Q10.
4. Others - Rye bread, papaya, guavas, oranges and bananas are consumed at regular intervals.

b. Homeopathy Medicine
Consulting Doctor: DR AU Ramakrishnan MBBS,PhD, Chenni, India (http://www.drramakrishnan.com/)
Local Consultant: Vishuddi Lee
Treatment Started: 6 November 2009.
Consulting: Once every two months in Singapore. Next appointment 6 March 2010.
Medication Given : Phosphorus and Carsinosin (alternating between weekly), morning and evening tablet.
Reaction: No further reactions observed other than mouth ulcers.

Met Dr rama on 9 January and he is quite happy with the progress. Will continue with the same medication but with increase potency for another 2 months. He has als requested me to see the oncologist for a progress review.

c. Urine Therapy
Drink the first urine of the day.

Health Status
Physical energy is low but does not pose problems for walking or climbing stairs.

Verdict
So far, so good. Will do another scan on the 1st week of March to check actual progress.

Day 119

While waiting for my oatmeal to cool last night, I surfed the net to read about other people's experience on the Gerson Therapy and found an interesting read at this site http://www.blogcatalog.com/blogs/my-gerson-therapy-lyme-blog/posts/tag/daily+update/2. Caution: contains vulgarity.

This American guy is on the Gerson Therapy for almost 1 year now and is based in Chiangmai, Thailand. From his blog, I can see he is in much more pain than me. He was also losing weight in the beginning from 165lbs to about 135lbs but only recently he gained back some weight. Some common things are he also gets up a few times a night for urination and also feels hungry and eats all the time. However, he is much more luckier then me as he has 12+ hours of sleep everyday and has people helping him in the juicing and cooking.

The thing I admire about him is his determination and will power. Obviously his condition is frial and but his believe in the Gerson Therapy is strong despite sceptics and other well wishers wanting him to change to other treatment, he plodded on.

But like most cancer patients, we also contemplate giving up. I believe it is one of the process we go through. You just do not know how difficult is it for us cancer patients. This is especially if you experience pain which can be unbearable so much so we have to take mophine drips/jabs. The pain I experience now is from exerting the muscles when I prepare vegetable juicing. I just don't have enough physical power to press even when using both hands! As a result, I have to use my head as additional support. Of course one way to reduce hand power requirements is to feed in small vegetable quantities to the juicer.

I am also getting a little sick of eating the potatoes and stewed vegetables during lunch and dinner. So to add a little flavour and make it easier to eat, I mix it with some raw fruit and vegetable such as guava and sweet turnip.

Today marks the 119 day of the discovery of my tumor. I draw courage and encouragement from other patients who are also on the Gerson therapy. The journey is long and difficult but I will be strong and not give up.

A Long Journey

It's been about four months now since I started the Gerson therapy. This therapy may be quite easy on paper but it is quite difficult to follow, that is if you are doing it alone like me. I have been very strict with myself, ensuring that I do not go lazy or take shortcuts. I have also been guarding my food intake. Starting the Gerson therapy is difficult, maintaining it is even more difficult. Yesterday I received the Gerson Institute's newletter and there was one article that appropriately reminded me to abide the Gerson therapy or else don't follow it.

I have been using Granny Smith apples for juicing but of late, the apples come in larger sizes.
The big ones are causing me some difficulties to mix with carrots in equal proportion. The prices have also gone up with the big ones selling at 3 for RM10. I preferred the medium size which is selling at 4 for RM10.90 and the smaller size sells at 4 for RM6.90. Sometime I wonder why organic apples can be so much larger than ordinary green apples?

I spent most of my time in the kitchen. Chinese New Year is around the corner and the weather is not as sunny as it should be at this time of the year. I observed that the weather has an impact on my emotional state. For example, when it is sunny, I get this feel good feeling while if it is cloudy, I tend to get moody. I have not been paying attention to such things before because I was busy working but not I have more time to observe things around me. Yesterday evening we finally managed to catch the Avatar movie in 3D at Sunway Pyramid. I am a scifi and animation fan and this is one of the best I have seen todate, the animation was better than Transformers and Lord of the Rings or any I have seen. The 3D rendition give the viewers a chance to participate in the scene as if they were there. The story is also touching and as the characters and story develops, you cannot help but find yourself participating as if you were part of the team, maybe sheeding a tear or two.

The Avatar story also reminds me of my condition. A alien taking over a portion of my body and trying to take over. Despite being a small group compared to the larger body but has so much power over the body. To defeat the alien is not to confront it directly but to engage the overall system to fight.

Want to Lose Weight?

Arising from my conversations with some of my friends, many would like to lose weight but don't know how. Even in August 2009 (a month before the discovery of my tumor) , I went to visit a shop in Medan Mara that sells some form of power that you would drink to help lose weight but it costs RM1.6K and you need to consume over a period of time, so I told the beauty consultant I will think about it. I have tried pills and herbal tea and all of these are somewhat effective only, maybe 1 or 2 kgs.

Of course after the discovery of my tumor, I changed my diet drastically and lost weight. It is from this experience that I am sharing with you. I just need you to commit to 2 weeks of diet change.

If you continue to eat the way you do now, even if you try and reduce the portions, you will gain little results because the body adjusts to your food intake. So the way I found out is to change your diet. For two weeks, I want you to be a vegetarian. Not only that, when you consume your food (if you order from restaurants during lunch), make sure that they do not use oil when they cook. Also reduce sugar and salt in the food as well. Yes, be oil free for two weeks.

What is the downside? Besides losing weight, you will feel a little short of physical energy. Don't worry as this is only temporary. You will quickly lose weight during this two weeks. After losing your weight, you can go back to your normal diet but you must now employ a low oil, low sugar and low salt diet. Otherwise you will not be able to maintain your weight.

My sister's colleague who is suffering from serious diabities to the extent that he is on the verge of losing his eyesight tried this approach and it worked for him. Of course, it also worked for me. You can do it too.

Do write and update me on your efforts. Good luck.

Detox Your Body

A number of my friends after seeing my condition and how the coffee enema has helped me rid my 25+ years of pain on the shoulders wanted to start the coffee enema. This posting is written for that purpose.

Buying the Enema Set

The best place in my opinion to get the enema set is at Newlife International, a few shoplots away from Affin Bank along SS2/24. Besides buying the enema bucket set, don't forget to buy the organic coffee and also hydrogen peroxide (for cleaning after use). You may also want to buy KY gel from a pharmacy. The total cost is around RM90.

Preparation
Toilet
You need to do the enema preferable inside the toilet where you can lie down comfortably. If possible, have a CD player nearby where you can put soft music that will help you ease your mind during the enema. You will also need a string/wire or a chair of about 18 inches in height from the floor to secure/put the coffee enema bucket.

Organic Coffee
Use must only use organic caffinated coffee. We need the caffine.

Water
Use only distilled water. Carefour sell 5.5l bottle for RM3.10. You need to use 1 liter per enema.

Blankets
Have some used blankets wrapped by plastic to be laid on the toilet floor. You will lie on top of this blanket during the coffee enema. This will make your coffee enema more comfortable rather than lying on pure hard tiles.

Watch/Alarm
Have a watch or alarm/handphone by your side. You need to time the coffee enema.

Utensils
Use only steel pots to boil the water/coffee.

Procedure
Fill 1 liter of distilled water into the steel pot. Add 3 spoonfulls of coffee. Stirr the coffee until dissolved in the water. Heat the pot until boil for 3 minutes. Lower the flame and simmer the coffee for another 15 minutes with the pot lid closed. When done, allow coffee to cool down to body temperature and then strain the coffee. Pour the strained coffee into the enema bucket. Do not forget to fastern the tube to prevent coffee from escaping.

Now go to your toilet and lie on your back on top of the blanket. Apply a little (size of a soya bean) KY gel to the top of the tube. Relax yourself, put the music on and slowly insert the tube into your anus. Do not insert more than 4 inches deep. 2-3 inches is good enough. Once inserted, release the tube fasterner so the coffee can flow into your rectum. Do not increase the height of the bucket, otherwise you will get a burning sensation. the coffee should take about 15 minutes to be fully in your rectum. Breath deeply and slowly.

When the coffee has fully entered, set your alarm/handphone to ring at 15 minutes later. Next, lie on your right side and bring your thighs closer to your chest/chin. Remain in this position for the full duration of 15 minutes.

If for any reason, you get spasm and cannot hold, then just get up and sit on the toilet bowl and release. Over time, you should be able to complete a full 15 minutes. A minimum of 12 minutes is recommended.

Washing
Upon completion of the enema, wash your bucket with soap and water. After that pour 2 capfuls (1 cap if cap is big) hydrogen peroxide over the tip of the tube and some on the bucket for disinfection. Rinse and then allow to dry for next use. Drain the tube.

Overtime feces may get lodged inside the tube. With some warm water poured into the bucket and tube attached, allow warm water to escape from tube. As water flows, squeeze the tube (which is now a little soft) to clean the affected area.

Frequency
How frequent do you do your enemas? Well, a minumum of once a month and if time permits, once a week. Another way is that if you feel weak or tired, consider doing more often.

Replenishing of Lost Fluids
Please drink pleanty of juices or isotonic drinks after each enemas to replenish lost fluids.

Before You Begin
When begining the coffee enema, it is likely you cannot even hold for 1-2 minutes. This means that you will waste organic coffee in the beginning. My suggestion is this for beinners. Instead of using the full 1 liter in your bucket, you can divide it into 4 portions of 250ml. So with 1 liter, you can have four tries and this will give you practice which is important. Overtime, you find that you can increase your holding power longer and longer. When that happens, you can the perform the full enema as detailed above.

Do write your experience by commenting. Oh, one last thing, please empty your bowels and urine before you begin.

It there a good time to do? Morning is good, after a night of cleasing by your body, you can help the body rid the toxic. Do not expect immediate results but you should see in 3 to 6 months time depending on your frequency.

GOOD LUCK

Spiritual Energy

When I was in India performing my pilgrimage, several of my friends and my family were indeed worried about me. Some called me while some other SMS me. I can understand their concern for I was also worried for myself. I did a simulation run the week before I left for India and found that I will not have the energy to sustain me, let alone carry 10.5kgs of backpack and lead a team of 4 ladies and negotiate and arrange transport from place to place.

I arrived in India with a stomach upset due to the vegetarian fried rice I took on board of Airasia and after taking the "poh chi" pills, it eased. But somehow, during my entire stay in India, I did not feel tired nor have lack of energy or feel sick. There was only one occasion that I need a Counterpain rub on my thighs. Perhaps it is the normal vegetarian food I took, maybe the cold weather or maybe I was so charged up for the spiritual journey or perhaps the combination of all these factors I felt like any other people, showing no signs of the problem I had during the simulation run. During my pilgrimage, I have seen some very old people that needed assistance to walk, sit down or stand. So there is no reason for an abled body whether got cancer or not, not being able to do the pilgrimage.

Pilgrimage evokes different energies and in Buddhism, your karma must be good in order for it to happen. For example, I know of people who had money but would not do it. I have seen people who went there a record 9 times. I also know some who wanted to go but do not have the money. With the DIY that I wrote, I hope "Now any Buddhist can do pilgrimage", a tag phase coined by my friend Vishuddi Lee, borrowing the slogan heavily from Airasia. Such is the case. So my Buddhist friends, what are you waiting for? Same goes for my Christian friends. You can also do it in the Middle East for your pilgrimage. There is no need to fear. Your faith in God will keep you save.

Self Portrait

Well, it's been a long time since I have seen some of you. For those who saw me the first time said I do not look thin but those who knows me can tell I have indeed lost weight. Anyway I was carrying excess weight of equivalent to 3 notebooks on my back, 10kgs. Now I not only feel lighter but feels much better as well. I took a photograph of myself just 1 minute ago using my Nikon and you can see and conclude for yourself.

Self Portrait


I do feel good and there have not been any pain except for some muscles. Of late when I am lying on my back to take in the coffee enema, the uneven floor cased some pain on my back. I hope to rectify it and the pain should go away. I also have an ulcer just under my tongue. It does not disturb very much. My same usual complain is that I always feel hungry.

I will be travelling to Singapore this saturday to consult Dr Ramakrishnan who will be reviewing the homeopathy treatment. I meet him once every two months. I believe he will begin the phase 2 of the treatment that is he will prescribe medication to shrink the tumors. Of course in the meantime, I believe the Gerson therapy is also helping to restore my health and is already shrinking the tumors.

DIY Buddhist Pilgrimage Trip To India

I have corrected some spelling errors and new information are in blue.

Preliminaries
You should know that a DIY pilgrimage is not for the faint heart. It involves some risks and also some of unknowns. There will be no one to be your guide (except this posting and some other guide books) and you will have to arrange and negotiate your transport from place to place. It is hoped that with this guide, your pilgrimage would be much easier and memorable one. The bulk of the material was contributed by my friend Vishuddi Lee.

For cost optimization, it is best to travel in groups of four and the group should not exceed 12 otherwise, it may be difficult to book trains tickets.

The travel itinerary is based on my 9 days travel, commencing on Thursday 17 December 2009 and ending on Friday 25 December 2009. You can get further details here. The cost of this trip is under RM2K. Commercial tours will set you back between RM4K and RM6.5K per person.

Advance Booking
To do a DIY pilgrimage trip in India requires some planning. Two of the most important plans are booking of the air and train tickets. If traveling on larger groups, then it is advisable to books rooms at the monasteries as well. It is also important to take travel insurance.

AirAsia
Since we are traveling on AirAsia, it is best to book early to get the best rates. As the travel time approaches, we must then booked the train tickets. Make sure you pre-book your meals rather than on board not just for the discount but food can run out quickly and the journey takes about 4 hrs. Also, it is advisable to check in your at least one luggage for every group of four as some items cannot be carried on board. With effect from June 2010, the departure tax at the airports have been increased to INR515! Perhaps they are trying discourage people visiting India.

Indian Railway
The Indian Railways (www.irctc.co.in) allows the booking of train tickets three months in advance and you must book as early as possible as there are limited seats for the air-conditioned class. Do not travel in the sleeper, 2nd or 3rd class unless no choice. To optimise cost, it is best to travel in groups of four (five is possible if children is involved). There is no canteen or pantry on board a train. All food must be purchased at the platform. Some stations, street vendors do come up and sell but may not be clean.

It is important to note that some trains are not available everyday. The train used here are based on traveling on Thursday and ending Friday the following week.

Go to www.irctc.co.in and register a name and user id/password. Then click Plan Travel to book your tickets.

1. 17 Dec 09, Train no. 2307 Depart 23.30hrs from Howrah JN(HWH) to Gaya JN(GAYA) cost Rs747 per pax, 458m arrive at 07.15hrs. When booking select AC2 class.
2. 20 Dec 09, Train no. 2381 Depart 14.57hrs from GAYA JN(GAYA) to VARANSAI(BSB), costs Rs463 per pax, 220km arrive at 16.38hrs. When booking select AC2 class.
3. 21 Dec 09, Train no. 550 Depart SARNATH(SRNT) to GORAKHPUR JN(GKP), costs Rs291 per pax, 221km arrive 07.15hrs. When booking select First class.
4. 24 Dec 09, Train no 5052 Depart GORAKPUR(GKP) to KOLKATA(KLT), costs Rs1,176, 880km arrive 04.15hrs. When booking select AC2 class.

Note: Time table and prices are indicative and may change.

After booking, make sure you print at least two copies of the e-ticket. You use this e-ticket for boarding and checking purposing. There is a charge of Rs40 per booking/cancellation. All trains except for Train no 550 which does not provide blanket and pillow. It's rather cold in train no. 550. If you lose your e-ticket, a charge of Rs50 will be levied per person.

Hotel and Monasteries
If larger group is traveling, then booking of rooms in hotels and monasteries in advance is a must. Monasteries are the preferred place to stay during the duration of a pilgrimage.

Visa Arrangements
When applying Indian visa, do not forget to apply for multiple (or minimum double entry) entries visa. It costs RM180 per person. It is cheaper to apply for Nepalese visa in Kuala Lumpur. You can also apply on arrival visa at the Nepali border by paying US$20 for 15 days entry. You will also require a photograph.

Best Time To Travel
The best time to travel is from November to January as the weather there is cool in the daytime and a little chilly in the evenings and early mornings. Depending on the places you want to visit, the minimum is 8 days. If you follow my recommendation, then you will require 9 days. When doing the Buddhist pilgrimage, there are only four main sites to visit (Lumbini - place where Buddha was born, Bodhgaya - place Buddha attained enlightenment, Sarnath - place where Buddha delivered his first Sermon and Kusiniaga - place where Buddha passed away into parinivarna). All other places are secondary.

Food
Quite clean food are easily available and may consists of Indian, Chinese and European dishes. Normal food is not pricey. The food is quite tasty too and you can get a mix of vegetarian and non vegetarian. Some hotels like Ganpati Guest House in Varanasi where we stayed, only served vegetarian food. It is best to buy bottled water from shops and not street vendors. 2lt bottled water costs Rs23 while 1lt bottle sells for Rs12. Exchange rate used is RM7.80 = Rs100 or RM1 = Rs12.80.

Safety
It is quite safe in India. Do observe simple safety precautions like not walking alone in the dark, no late nights out and not walking on the back lane. Beware of pick pockets, however.

Things to Bring
1. 2 torch lights per group and some candles. Frequent power failures are to be expected.
2. Sanitiser for washing of hands (2 bottles per group)
3. Insect repellent (2 bottles per group)
4. Toilet tissue, each person to bring one roll
5. Warm clothing such as sweaters and shawl (and maybe foldable umbrellas) for ladies.
6. Comfortable walking shoes and socks.
7. Shampoo and toilet articles such as brush and toothpaste.
8. Converted Indian Rupees and about US$100 dollars. Budget for Rs250 (RM7.80) per day for standard meals. Budget Rs400 for hotel per night and Rs250 per night for monastery stay. Try and change small change by avoiding Rs1,000 (many fakes and many traders may not accept). Train tickets are prepaid in advance.

Suggested Itinerary
Day 1
a. Arrive at Kolkata from KLCC at about 4.30pm local time. Buy pre-paid taxi ticket just before you exit airport. This counter does not have small change, so you will be likely be charged to the next Rs100, so bring small change.
b. Taxi stand is just in front of airport exit and taxis are yellow in color.
c. Go straight to Howrah train station. The cost is Rs235 per taxi for 4 pax.
d. When arriving Howrah train station, look for the restaurant "Food Palace" on the left of the entrance. Here, have your dinner. Downstairs is for standing only. Suggested food include Thali set (consist of 2 chapatis, rice, dhal and potatoes), chowmein, fried rice and chicken rice. You can also order dosa (our tosai) but you won't find it in the menu.
e. After dinner, go to book shop and buy one train guide for the whole group. It will cost you Rs35. In case of derailment (touch wood), you will need to make alternative travel arrangement and this train guide will help you to find alternative routes. Traveling by road at night is not recommended (can be dangerous as road conditions bad).
f. Go to the First Class waiting room which is located left of Food Palace. You will need to show your train e-ticket before allowed in. Put your luggage there. You need someone to look after luggage. Not guarded.
g. For the more adventurous, you may venture out of the train station to look around but not alone.
h. Check with information counter for the platform (most likely 9) of the train based on your train number.
i. At about 11pm, someone to look if the train is already at platform. Search for the coach that you will be staying. Passenger names are displayed on the entrance. Normally AC2 class seats are towards the end of the train. Pillow and blanket are provided.
j. Train leaves at 11.30pm (timetable as at 1 November 2009).

Day 2
a. Arrive at Gaya Station at about 7am. Not possible to buy decent food here. If you had made prior arrangement, your guide will be here waiting for you. Otherwise, negotiate your own taxi to Bodhgaya (28km away). Do not pay more than Rs1,000. No necessity to hire guide actually if you are well read. Very easy to find your way round Mahabodhi Temple and other temples. Bodhgaya is infested with mosquitoes even in winter.
b. Suggested accommodation is Root Institute (a semi monastic Tibetan styled monastery). Dormitories are price Rs240 per person per day while if you prefer privacy, you can book room for two. It will costs Rs540 per person per day. You can pre-arrange at www.rootinstitute.com. Vegetarian food costs Rs80 per meal and it is assumed you want meals. You must write in a book if you do not want meals. Make sure you write no meal for the next day (day 3) as you will be out the whole day. You will stay two nights here. If you stay two or more days here, suggest that you spent one day mediating throughout the night at the Mahabodhi Temple. There is a fees of Rs100 per night. Please bring insect repellent and have you own mosquito tent ready (you can buy from shops nearby) failing which you will spent the whole night fighting the mosquitoes.
c. If no accommodation is available, you can try the Burmese Temple or other commercial hotels nearby like the Mahayana Hotel. Plenty to choose from.
d. After check in, have breakfast and then you can walk around. If you intend to stay out late, bring torch lights as there is no street lights leading back to Root Institute/hotels. It gets dark by 6pm. Restaurants and temples including Mahabodhi Temple are about 30 minutes walk. Most temples closes by 5.30pm while Mahabodhi Temple closes at 9pm.
e. Most of the time, most places you go, there will be no electricity until 7.pm. Most bigger monasteries have backup power.
f. Please keep small change for donations to temples.
g. I arranged with Raj Kumar (rajkumar6348@yahoo.com) to pick us up original to Root Institute only. Subsequently he took us to some of the other temple and also Mahabodhi Temple. We also visited Dongha hill. We ended about 1pm. The jeep fare was Rs2,000.

Day 3
a. You can arrange with Raj Kumar for today's itinerary. Alternatively you can join Root Institute’s tour if there is enough pax. Its cheaper and the abbot will also provide chanting services at Vulture’s peak. Cost is Rs1,600 per pax including breakfast. You can also ask Root Institute to get contact numbers or arrange transport for you for local tours or back to Gaya Railway Station.
b. Raj Kumar charges about Rs800 per day as a guide and he can make all the car booking for you. Charges are Rs2,500 per car/jeep.
c. We will be going to Rajgir and Nalanda today. Starts at 6am and ends about 4pm.
d. Have breakfast in Rajgir town (Green Hotel).
e. Suggest you go to Rajgir first (Raj would go to Nalanda first) as it is easier to climb in the morning. Nalanda is flat and easier to walk in the afternoon rather than climbing a hill in the afternoon.
f. Take cable car ride up to mountain. Return trip costs Rs30 per pax.
g. At the hill top, you have option of walking down and around halfway point go to Vulture's peak where Buddha's did his meditation. Otherwise, you will have to walk up from the foothill.
h. By the time you finished, take lunch at foothill or you can have lunch at Rajgir town.
i. Afternoon visit Nalanda. Bring umbrellas and water. Quite hot.
j. Walk to restaurants and have dinner. After that visit Mahabodhi Temple to see the night view.

Day 4
a. Have breakfast at Root Institute at 7am.
b. Check-out after breakfast.
You can arrange Raj Kumar to take you to visit Sujata Village in the morning at about 8am. It is also possible to walk there if you are prepared to hang around the dry river bed (which is just further up of the Mahabodhi Temple) and follow the Tibetan lamas by walking there.
c. You may want to bring pencils to give to the school children but do not give the children cash. The school beside the temple may ask for donation. Give Rs500 for the whole group. We do not know how the money will be used but we also want to some charity even though receipt is being given.
d. After that, you may want to want to pay a last visit to Mahabodhi Temple.
e. Have lunch before leaving for Gaya train station as there is little to eat there.
f. The jeep far will costs Rs1,200.
g. Raj Kuma's 3 days guide fee will costs Rs2,400.
h. Train leave at 14.57pm for Varanasi.
i. When at the train station, go to the waiting room on the first floor, entrance on the left side. Otherwise, the beggars will crowd around you.
j. I have also booked my room at Ganpati Guest House (Rs800 per night) for two persons. Make sure you also arrange for them to pick you up at Railway station. It's free if you stay two days or booked two rooms. Otherwise there may be a charge of Rs250.
k. Do not go to the hotel yourself and you will not be able to find it. Some roads leading to all the hotels are not accessible by vehicles. The last part to the hotel is by walking.
l. The hotel will provide a guide to take you there.
m. Dine at the hotel roof restaurant. Most dishes costs Rs100.
n. Arrange for transport to Sarnath next morning with hotel. Costs Rs500-600 per jeep.

Day 5
a. Wake up at 5.30am and go down to the Ganges riverside by 6am.
b. Boat ride is Rs40 per head and if you bargain or walk further away from the hotel, it can be cheaper at Rs30. Charged by the hour.
c. If you put lighted flower in the river, don't pay more than Rs10 per person to the girl.
d. You have option of going left (the temples where you can see people take bath) or right (place where they burn the bodies) during the boat ride.
e. After boat ride, go back to hotel and have your breakfast. You may also want to wonder around and have breakfast elsewhere. No recommendations.
f. Always bargain at least 60% when buying things. Do not accept any offer of massage even if the price sounds too good to be true. It's a trap.
g. Walk around, buy at the bazaar and take pictures.
h. Make sure you leave hotel latest by 10.30am for Sarnath. Journey takes about 1 hour (15km away only).
i. When arriving at Sarnath, head for the Chinese Temple. Sarnath is a small town with one main road only.
j. See the abbot (Banthe Devraj, tel 0091542-2595280) and ask for a room(s) for the whole group. This is for you to place your luggage and take a bath and maybe a rest for those who are tired. No electricity during daytime. No hot water during day time except after 7pm.
k. Don't forget to make a donation.
l. Then have your lunch at Holiday Inn Restaurant.
m. After lunch visit the Dhamek stupa complex. Entrance fee is Rs100 per person.
n. Then visit the museum opposite. Very good exhibits.
o. Find an internet cafe and check if Nepal is on strike. If Nepal is on strike and not ending on the next day, abort going to Lumbini. Consider spending the extra day in either Kushinagar or Gorakhpur.
p. At 6pm, suggest you attend service at Sri Lankan temple. Takes about 45min. The monks chant Buddha’s first sermon Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta.
q. Have dinner after that and return to temple to rest.
r. Leave for train station by 10.30pm. Walk left of the temple and straight all the way. you will need torch lights. About 15 mins walk.
s. When at station, ask the station master to confirm train time. The staff will let you know where to sit/sleep. Night train very cold as no pillow and blanket is given. If sleeping on upper deck, no railing to hold you and you may fall 5ft below and hurt yourself. Bring a cloth or string to restrain yourself from falling.
t. Train depart 11.30pm for Gorakhpur.

Day 6
a. Arrives at about 7.15am
b. Have breakfast nearby or you can have it later during the stop.
c. The jeeps to Sonauil is just along the main road outside the train station.
d. Costs Rs150 per person but sits 15 persons! Hire whole car for Rs700 and sits 7.
e. Journey takes about 2.30pm hours including a 30min stop for breakfast/toilet break after about 1 hour.
f. When arrived at Sonauli, jeep stops about 400m away from the Indian Immigration.
g. No need to take trishaw. Just walk to Indian Immigration which is just a small shop on your right. Don’t miss it and chop your passport.
h. Make sure you fill departure form before you walk across to the Nepalese side.
i. At the Nepalese immigration office, fill in form for on the spot visa issuance and pay US$20 for 15 days entry permit.
j. You can negotiate taxi to Lumbini at Rs500 or Nepalese Rs800.
l. We use a contact Prakritik (00977-9847117070) to arrange transport to take us to Lumbini (Rs500) and back tomorrow morning as well as taxi to Gorakhpur (Rs900) and then Kushiniagar (Rs900). At the local tel shop, ask them to call and charges are about Rs3 only instead of using your own hand phone. Very expensive to call in India/Nepal.
m. Go to the Tibetan monetary. They charge Nepalese Rs1,400 per night per room. Very clean and hotel like facilities except no TV. Lumbini Garden hotels charges US$80 per night. Other local hotels about Nepalese Rs500 per night but no hot water!
n. Eat at outside stall or Buddha Hotel Restaurant. Lumbini Hotel's food is very expensive.
l. Put you things down and immediately walk to Lumbini Garden complex about 15 minutes away.
m. visit as many temples as possible but don't forget Mahadevi temple. Entry costs is Rs32 or Nepalese Rs50. No changes for other temple. This temple closes at 5.30pm.
n. Next morning, can continue to come and vists other temples within the vicinity.

Day 7
a. Leave Lumbini by 9am (latest 10am).
b. Journey to Gorakhpur and Kushiniagar is long and you will arrive at about 3+pm.
c. Do not forget to ask driver to stop halfway for your lunch.
d. When arriving at Kushinagar, stay at the Japan Sri Lankan monastery.
e. Pay respects to abbot and request for blessing service if possible.
f. Walk to Mahaparinibbana temple about 15 minutes away.
g. Do not forget to make contribution for staying there. Request abbot to arrange transport tomorrow morning to go back to Gorakhpur. Cost of jeep is Rs750. On the way back stop by the Makutabandhana stupa, place where Buddha was cremated for 5 minutes.
h. Abbot will arrange simple breakfast for you.
i. Have dinner at the restaurant run by the tourist association. Prices are reasonable.

Day 8
a. Leave by 8am latest. Journey takes 1hr.
b. Train leaves for Kolkata at 10.10am.
c. When at train Gorakhpur station, buy lots of food, water and biscuits. Decent food on the train will only be available after 4pm. Try their mini puri (Rs10 per box) and curry puff like delicacies (Rs5 each).
d. Someone will come and take you food order at about 6pm and food delivered at 7pm. Dosa (tosai) is available on board from street vendors.

Day 9
a. Arrive at Kolkata station at about 7.0am (after 2 hrs delay).
b. You need to decide where you want to go in Kolkata town centre. We went to New Market at Chowringhee area for some shopping. Taxi fare is Rs250.
c. Had breakfast at Blue Sky Restaurant along Strudder Street (parallel to Lindsay Street), opposite New Market. Reasonable prices patronized by foreigners.
d. Leave for Airport by 12.30pm. Taxi fare is Rs300.
e. Do not forget to have your Airasia online booking slip or else you may not enter the airport!

Bon Voyage!

5. Rajgir and Nalanda (photos)

Rijgir is the place where Buddha subdued the drunken elephant and is consider one of the miracle sites. Nalanda is a very famous Buddhist university in ancient times that was destroyed by the Muslim invasion of India.

Rajgir

The World Peace Pagoda on top of Mount Rajgir which was build by the Japanese.





The Japanese also build a temple on top of the mountain.


Vulture Peak, the place Buddha likes to meditiate is located somewhere halfway up the mountain which is accessible by walking.





Nalanda

As we approach the ruins of Nalanda university which was founded in the 5th century. It used to house over 1,000 teachers and over 10,000 student monks at any one time.



The ruins occupies a very large place and can take 2 to 3 hours to complete.