Almost time to come home!

Hello all,

What a busy week it has been! Mom is doing well though her healing reactions have increased and she has been pretty sick this week. This is good news though! Her blood work shows that there is a ton of tumor death occurring. There have been some rough times throughout the week, but we keep telling ourselves that the symptoms are her bodies way of telling us that this treatment is working! The most important thing for us to focus on is healing and RESTING! Doctor Ramos keeps telling mom that she MUST let herself rest, so that is a big goal of ours when we get home. REST REST REST!

Quite a few people left the clinic this week and there were several sad good-byes. Our wonderful friends Hee Moon and Christina left on Friday and we were very, very sad to see them go. Hee (or Luna, as we call her) has thyroid cancer and her sister-in-law, Christina, accompanied her to the clinic. They are heading to Korea together for 6 months to do the therapy intensively and get well. They've rented a small house near the mountains and are going to juice and coffee-break Luna back to health. We got very close with them - mom obviously "adopted" them and they ended up calling her mom and me their sister. We had a ton of fun, including swimming lessons, spanish and korean lessons, and TONS of tomfoolery and laughing hysterically - they are so crazy and fun and will totally fit in with our family and friends. We made them promise to come stay with us in Maine, so hopefully many of you will meet them eventually. Here are some pictures of our friends during a short walk we took on Thursday night when mom had a few hours of feeling really good...the facility is about 3 blocks from the ocean:

This path leads all the way to the border.

Luna, me, mom and Christina - our Gerson family!

"Sick" people and their companions...yeah, right!

The Tijuanian coast!

We love how happy everyone is in these pictures. We SO don't look like a bunch of sick, sad people. Everyone here has so much hope and is so positive. It has been such a gift to be in this environment for three weeks - although we are DEFINITELY ready to come home! In fact, we've changed our itinerary so that mom doesn't have to be off of the therapy for a whole day and a half. We leave Monday evening and will fly overnight and arrive in Portland on Tuesday morning - just in time for oatmeal and a coffee break!

We spent the week ordering supplements and supplies and rearranging our travel plans to make sure that mom is in the best situation possible when we get home. We have almost all of the supplements and supplies (tea, coffee, syringes and needles, vitamins, dressing supplies, etc.) that we'll need for the next three months. It is a relief to know that we'll be able to pick right back up as soon as we get home. We also ordered a special juicer and distilled water dispenser; they should be waiting for us when we get to P-town!

We are so very grateful for the messages and prayers from all of you and can't wait to get back home. It has been a tough, but amazing 3 weeks and we're looking forward to many more years of living happy healthy lives and making a million more memories with all of you. It's time for a "break" and then mom will be getting her dressing changed, so that's all for now.

Much love to everyone and see you all soon!
k

p.s. - Check out my three favorite pics of the week...

Mom resting in the shade outside of our room.

Mom and Charlotte Gerson - they've become great friends and will definitely be staying in touch.
(Charlotte is 90 this year and there's not a liver spot on her! She still drives herself across the border to the clinic evey week to visit patients and lecture. What an amazing lady!)

Everyone thinks we're sisters!

We're back!

Hi fam and friends!

Sorry we've been MIA! It's been a very busy couple of days.  Mom had her first major "flare up" a few days ago and was really sick for two days. She had chemo-like symptoms and was put on a gruel-only diet. WOOOF! She finally started to feel better on Wednesday night and we decided to take a midnight swim. Then we did a photo shoot and she took about 50 pictures of me. I tried my hardest to be a good model, but she was pretty tough. She got out of the pool and was shouting, "swim...now freeze...YOU'RE STILL MOVING...ok smile..a REAL smile...swim again...freeze...YOU'RE MOVING!!!" I tried to explain that it was hard to stop mid-stroke, but she has high expectations of models, especially a top model like me. Here are a few gems:

Still moving, which means
I'm getting yelled at.

Sad and confised by the situation.

Success...good thing because I was wrinkled
as a prune by the time she was done with me.

In other news, mom and I have become MAJOR 24 fans. We've watched the first two seasons and have developed a deep respect ad love for Jack Bauer. In fact, as an act of solidarity, mom now wears a special helmet and salutes J.B. at the close of each episode.

I salute you, Jack.

Yesterday we went through all of the information we've received about transitioning home. We ordered a bunch of supplies online and started to set up a schedule so that we can hit the ground running when we get home. We are so excited to get back to all of you, but it is definitely overwhelming to think about carrying this intense plan on ourselves. It is a huge luxury to have an entire kitchen and medical staff  on hand to cook, juice, administer meds and clean for us. But, we've got some really great ideas on how we can be successful back in Maine, and the people here are extremely supportive and helpful. It's overwhelming, but also so EXCITING and amazing that we have this new plan and so very much hope. Every day we learn more about how and why Dr. Gerson's Therapy works - for Cancer and other chronic and degenerative diseases. There are so many examples and case studies of people healing, all because they give their bodies what they need to fight back.

Dr. Gerson said that all chronic and degenerative diseases are a result of deficiency and toxicity. The therapy takes care of the deficiency by pumping the patient full of nutrients in the juices and supplements. The coffee and castor oil enemas encourage the liver to rid itself of all of the toxins it collects from what we eat, breath, put on our bodies and are exposed to in many other ways. It's so simple, compared to all of the other conventional treatments that are out there, but conventional methods most often add toxins to the body and prevent us from absorbing nutrients when what we really need is to restore our immune systems and nourish our organs so they can actually do their jobs. I meant to add a Gerson Info page, but haven't had the chance to do so yet. If anyone is interested in this or wants to share some info with another person who is sick with cancer, or anything else, PLEASE watch/share one of the three Gerson movies listed above. We have copies and will be bringing them home, but I know that you can get at least one of them from Netflix.

OK that's all for now. Mom's getting ready for her next big salute and I think she may want do a marching drill and maybe choreograph a synchronized swimming routine in honor of Jacky boy. Wish me luck.

Much love to all of you,
k

p.s. - Thanks again for all of your messages and comments...even when we don't get a chance to write, we check my email and the blog for messages and they have been a wonderful source of comfort and support. WE LOVE YOU ALL!

Don't get angry...get better!

Hello fam and friends!

It's almost 8 o'clock and mom and I are looking out at a beautiful sunny morning. We have breakfast at 8, which generally consists of OJ, oatmeal and raisins/prunes/apricots/bananas and a slice of rye bread. Delicious! Companions can have plain yogurt, brown sugar in their oatmeal and coffee, but I'm trying to stick as close to what mom's eating since I can definitely use some detoxing too!

The last few days have been great. On Friday I attended a yoga class and it was wonderful. Mom was really tired, so she rested in our room while I learned some good exercises and poses for lymphedema, back pain and arthritis pain in knees and ankles. We ended the session with an "Om Shanti" chant. Shanti means peace and it was definitely peaceful as we repeated the words in unison for about two minutes. Overall, a great way to spend an hour!

Later in the afternoon we went to a cooking class. We learned how to make the special soup that Gerson patients eat for lunch and dinner every day. The ingredients are garlic, tomato, parsley, potato, celery and celery root. It is a bit bland and hard to get used to at first, but I've started to really enjoy it! Most of our communal meals are spent sharing successful soup flavoring experiements. Dick, the husband of a lovely lady named Nancy who also has breast cancer, likes homemade salsa and apple cider vinegar in his soup. Mom puts onions and peppers in hers and I am a big fan of lemon juice and fresh minced garlic. Yum! (Although I have been walking around here like a fire-breathing dragon!)

During the cooking class we also learned how to make a delicous roasted wild rice, cookies and sorbet. The cookies are really yummy and don't have any sugar or flour in them. Mom and I are excited to try these new healthy recipes when we get home.  Auntie Buckles, Amy and Gram - I'm probably going to need some help in my kitchen!!

This weekend we also learned how to give B12/liver extract shots and we went over all of mom's supplements and learned exactly what they do in her body. It was really interesting and helpful to know which pill does what and why she is responding so well to this treatment.

Yesterday I ventured off of the property in search of a new pair of flip flops. Mom was having a bit of a flare up, so she rested by the pool while I struck out with a fabulous patient companion duo.  Hee Moon and Christina arrived on Friday and are a hoot! Hee has thyroid cancer and brought her sister-in-law, Christina, as her companion. They are really silly and goofy and I love them. Christina grew up in Argentina, so she speaks fluent Spanish and proved to be a very useful interpreter during our adventure. We searched for the store and ended up going "2 more blocks" about 7 times! Eventually we reached the store and I found a pair of "mucho grande" flip flops. We decided to grab a taxi back to the clinic - it was quite an adventure!

Mom found out this morning that she has had such a healing response that she is down to just one dressing a day for her wounds. This is amazing considering the shape she was in when she got here - the shape she's been in the last few years, actually. It is totally frustrating that in 6 days she has visibly healed more than she has in the past two years. It is awful that she had to suffer so much when she could have been using the dressing techniques here to ease her pain and discomfort. We plan to share some Tijuanian techniques with the Dana Farber staff when we return! We were pretty sad and angry yesterday as we chatted about how long she has been in pain. While speaking with her Doctor about the situation, mom became visibly upset. Her Doctor looked at her and said, "Teresa, dear, don't get angry. Get better." Needless to say, those words have become our mantra and they have had a very calming and healing effect on us. We figure if that Doctor can stand to see "terminal" patients come to his clinic and be healed time and time again - for 26 years - we can bear our frustration too. We just need to focus our energy on HEALING!

Mom is still doing great, but is getting a little homesick, so keep the comments and emails coming. They make her so happy! A GREAT BIG THANK YOU to my Auntie Becky (mom's sister) and cousin Amy for their super special care package. They sent a bag of letters, cards and special messages along with us - enough to last the entire trip! We've been opening 1 or 2 a day and they are amazing, ranging from insprational quotes and bible verses, to crazy messages, pictures and family jokes. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. These special messages have been some of the best parts of this trip. WE LOVE YOU!

OK, that's all for now. I've got to keep my patient on schedule!

Much love,
k

A quick update...

Hello all,

The wireless router has been out here so I couldn't get online to update everyone until today. The day got away from me and now we're getting ready to head to bed, so I'll share some more updates and stories tomorrow. Just wanted to let everyone know that all is well here. Mom is doing great! She has started to have some healing reactions, or "flare ups" as the Doctors here call them. This is when the body has a reaction to the toxins being pulled out of the kidneys and liver. Some examples are fevers and aches or symptoms like mom experienced during chemo, though not nearly as bad. The last few days have been peppered with these little episodes, but overall she is great and the Doctors are very happy with her progress.

The most exciting update today is that mom is off all 6 of her medications! Crazy! Doctor Ramos (my favorite...he is very silly and fun) is so proud of her and we found out at dinner today that he was bragging to all of the other patients about how well the lady in room 9 is doing. That's mom! She isn't taking ANYTHING other than the natural supplements prescribed by the Doctors here. Just 5 days ago she was on blood pressure medication!!! She is officially au naturel! Congrats mummy!

That's all for now...we're beat! Tomorrow I'll be back with more updates about yoga, cooking classes, learning how to give B12 shots and an adventure to a local store called Uno De Precio to find some flip flops. (There was an unfortunate incident by the pool today - I tripped, took a digger, cut my toe and broke a flop. I knew it was too good to be true that I hadn't injured myself yet!)

Love to all,
k

Fancy Shmancy!

Hello fam and friends,

It's a bit overcast this morning, but we've found that the days start out this way and the sun comes out around noon and it's gorgeous out for the rest of the day. The weather here is perfect. It's not humid at all - what a relief! The temp stays somewhere in the 70s and there's no need for air conditioning. Who knew Tijuana had such amazing weather?!

Last night the kitchen staff put on a special fancy shmancy dinner for Shirley and Darlene, a mother daughter duo that we met here. They are leaving this morning, so last night was their farewell dionner. Darlene has a tumor the size of a grapefruit in her uterus and has had multiple rounds of chemo and radiation. After three weeks here she is still pretty uncomfortable, but her blood work and scans are already improved and she feels a million times better than she had before she came here. Even though we only met them on Tuesday, we're sad to see them go. There are never more than 10 patients and 10 companions here (right now there are a total of 12 of us) and all meals are communal, so we've gotten close to people very quickly. Darlene is very brave and they are both so sweet. Say a few prayers for them today while you're sending good vibes mom's way.

Here are a few pics of last night's feast:

Fancy juice.

Fancy table.

More fanciness!

The girls in the kitchen wrote a farewell message to Darlene and Shirley...
FOOD IS YOUR MEDICINE!

Cheers! (Doesn't she look fabulous?!)

Mom felt pretty great when she woke up this morning and says that she feels better and better every day.  We got ready a bit early for breakfast and sat outside for a bit. It's calm here. Here's the garden we can see when we sit outside of our room:

Not-so-secret garden.

And here's mom on her way to breakfast:

Beautiful!

What a smile!

Breakfast was delicious - fresh OJ! Our favorite!

I mentioned adding more info about the Gerson Therapy today, but we've got a yoga class at 11, so I'm signing off for now. More updates and info tomorrow. I'll leave you all with favorite pic of the day: Mom resting peacefully. Hooray!

All of our love,
Kate

p.s. - I've made a new friend. At first, he really creeped me out. Here's a view of him from my bed:

This morning I spent some time with him and realized he's not so bad - he just needed someone to talk to. We're pretty close now.

You really get me.

This guy...what a ham.

So comfortable...

Today's affirmation:

I lovingly forgive and release all of the past.

I choose to fill my world with joy.

I love and approve of myself.

Hi everyone!!

Mom is sound asleep after drinking her 4th juice of the day and receiving a Laetrile IV. Laetrile is an IV treatment that's illegal in the US (which is outrageous). It is all natural and is derived from the essence of apricot pits, which contain a natural form of cyanide that cancer cells mistake for a delicious treat. They suck it up and it poisons them, without severely poisoning the entire body like chemo does. (We learned yesterday that 50% of chemo treatments stay in the body, continuing to poison the patient for years and years. Yuck!)From what we can tell so far, the reason that all of these amazing natural cures are outlawed in the US is because they are cheap and natural, so they can't be patented and pharmaceutical companies can't make money on them. Argh! We are learning SO much and while most of the information is extremely exciting and fills us with hope, we are also stunned and saddened by what we have learned about western medicine's ties to industry and the money making machine that is "conventional medicine." Yesterday, mom remarked that alternative therapies should be called natural medicine and conventional therapies should be called unnatural medicine. Anyway, I definitely want to share everything we are learning along with updating all of you on mom's progress, so I think I'm going to add a Gerson Info page for anyone interested in the political/economic information we're learning about. It's CRAZY!!!

On a more positive note, mom just woke up for a second and said, "I feel weak, but I am SO comfortable. I am SO SO comfortable." I could cry. I can't remember the last time she said that or even looked like she wasn't in pain. Not to mention the fact that she is sleeping through the night, which is a minor miracle. Thank goodness for this place and for the work of Dr. Gerson, his daughter, Charlotte and the amazing medical staff here!

We thought it might be interesting to share what a typical day is like here, since very few people know much about the Gerson Therapy. Check out our schedule and some fun pics of juices, healthy foods and some other interesting details...

Daily Schedule:
7am - "Coffee Break" (An integral part of the therapy is a steady regimen of coffee and castor oil enemas - yippee! Let's just say we'll never look at a cup of joe the same again!)
8am - Breakfast, supplements and 1st juice of the day (fresh squeezed orange - our favorite)
9am - Green juice
930am- Carrot Apple
10am - Carrot Apple, Laetrile IV, wound dressing change, castor oil treatment for pain
11am - Carrot and Liver pills
Noon - Green and a Coffee Break
1pm - Lunch, supplements and Carrot Apple
2/230pm - Green and educational session (ex: juicing at home, cooking Gerson foods, preparing clay packs for pain, Charlotte Gerson lectures)
3pm-Carrot and Liver pills
4pm - Carrot and Liver pills
5pm - "Coffee Break" (last of the day - hooray!) and Carrot Apple
6pm - Dinner, supplements and Carrot Apple
7pm - Last Juice of the day, shower, wound care
8-10pm - cards, 24, reading, being silly
10ish - Sleep!!!

We've also learned all about the science behind the therapy, which is fascinating. I'll write more about why and how the different supplements and the "coffee breaks" work tomorrow.

Mom's decided to rest during lunch today, so I'm going to bring her food and juice back to the room so she can stay in bed. Her Doctors say that the best thing for her is to follow the protocol and REST. They say that healing can't take place when you aren't rested and relaxed, so mom's trying to be extra relaxed and is getting lots of sleep. Here are some pictures of her supplements and a bit of our lunch - it's always so colorful!

That's all for today. Much love to all of you!
k

A day worth of supplements.

1pm-5pm

 

Coffee break!

Yum! A vegetarian's dream. There's also always baked potatoes,
a special soup and a few other steamed veggie dishes.

p.s. - As promised, some pics of our "bout of loopiness" on the 5+ hour flight from Charlotte to San Diego. These pics were taken after about 2.5 hours - when we realized we weren't even half way there. It seemed like a good idea to see what we could do with our neck pillows and we ended up hysterically laughing and wheezing, in typical beane gal fashion. I couldn't transfer the pics from my phone since I don't have service here, so here's a little video of our tomfoolery!

Hello Tijuana!

Hello Family and Friends!

It's day two in Tijuana and we are absolutely thrilled to be here. We've already met Charlotte Gerson, daughter of the late Dr. Max Gerson (the creator of the Gerson Therapy) and a bunch of other patients and caregivers. They are all wonderful and the program is very intimate, so we've gotten to know each of them and their stories in the first 24 hours. So far, this trip has been amazing.

We started our journey by driving from Portland to Newton where we stayed with my special friend Brooke who drove us to Logan at 4am (thanks, Cookie). We took a 5am flight from Boston to Charlotte and then jumped on a 5hour ride to San Diego. The flight was long, but we did pretty well (with the exception of a bout of loopiness at he mid-way point...a few fun pictures to come).

We arrived in San Diego at 9:30am and by noon we had crossed the border and were sitting in our new home for the next three weeks. The "compound" is lovely. There are gardens and fountains everywhere and an unchloronated pool just outside of the sliding glass doors that lead out of our room to a courtyard. It's beautiful and mom was especially thrilled to have the pool so close to our room!

  

As for the therapy, it is amazing. Mom has already lost 12 pounds and feels SO much better. Much of the pain and itching that has plagued her for so long has lessened or disappeared - in only 1 day. Hallelujah!!!The doctors have been wonderful and the nurses immediately dressed mom's wounds and made her feel better than she has in a very long time. We are so excited and full of hope; the next few weeks are sure to be incredible and seeing the results the other patients have experienced is very heartening.

That's all for now. It's almost time for dinner and we are watching the first few episodes of 24. We brought season 1-3 with us and are already hooked! All of our love to family and friends and more stories and updates tomorrow.

k

Our room!

Sitting area...

Tho pool - just outside of our sliders!

For those of you worried about our safety -
check out that sweet barbed wire!

Mom soaking up some vitamin D!