Lovin’ Horsetail

Horsetail is my buddy. My teeth & gums & joints all love horsetail tea, but we’ve been out of it for about a month. I’m feeling it. So we went adventuring… in our new car!!!! …well… new to us, anyhow. It doesn’t like going uphill, we’ve found, and only seats 5 of us at a time, and it has a few other quirks, but hey, it was FREE, and it got me to my horsetail! That makes it a good car in my book 😀

At any rate, my house is currently overflowing with another medicinal plant to be stored up for winter. I’m a happy camper 🙂

Oh, yeah, and there’s an ancient “arrow” or two,  pointing us toward exploring things like horsetail:

‘and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food”; and it was so.’

–Genesis 1:30

… and that 7th year letting the land rest and eating the stuff that grows on its own thing:

“You shall sow your land for six years and gather in its yield, but on the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, so that the needy of your people may eat; and whatever they leave the beast of the field may eat. You are to do the same with your vineyard and your olive grove.”

–Exodus 23:10-11

Being kind to the poor and the animals is just a great health investment 😉

For more info on how horsetail may be of benefit in your world, you can visit this link:

http://www.herbs2000.com/herbs/herbs_horsetail.htm

For more info on dealing with joint pains, here’s a post I wrote on that:

https://leavesheal.wordpress.com/2011/12/22/arthritis-adventures/

For my multivitamin recipe that includes horsetail, click here:

https://leavesheal.wordpress.com/2012/01/22/home-grown-vitamins/

For my toothpaste recipe, click here:

https://leavesheal.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/diy-all-natural-toothpaste/

Hope you all are having a beautiful Summer! Let me know if you find an herb you love, and why! 🙂

Hearts, Bones, Veins, and Insulin

 

‘Wanna keep ‘yer teeth? I was looking at Vitamin K-2 a bit more closely today, as I take it for my teeth, and bumped into an article that I had to post here. I have to wonder how many “incurable diseases” are really just nutritional deficiencies…

Yes, K-3 can be problematic in large amounts, but it seems K-1 and K-2 are pretty beautiful and benign tools in much higher quantities than the USRDA:

http://www.springboard4health.com/notebook/v_k2.html

So they say to eat plenty of green leafies for your health… hmm… where have I heard that before???

“Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you;
And you will eat the plants of the field;”

–Genesis 3:18

Standard Disclaimer:

I’m  no doc, and don’t pretend to be one. I am therefore not legally licensed to diagnose, cure, treat, prevent, or otherwise mitigate any disease, and neither is the stuff I generally choose for healing… but then, I’ve not been educated / indoctrinated by boards with big pharma reps on them, either   so do your own research and find what works for you

DIY All-Natural Toothpaste

3/4 Cup Powdered Xylitol (I like a clean coffee grinder for this)

15 Drops Lemon-Myrtle Essential Oil

3 teaspoons MSM powder, Powdered more finely

1 Tbsp Calendula-infused olive oil (can be purchased at a health food store or made w/ your own flowers)

40 Drops Rosehip Seed Oil

15 Drops Grapefruit Seed Extract

6 Tbsp Organic Olive Oil

 

Mix it up, and put it in a food-grade squeezie tube.

Kosher for Passover 🙂

I Hate Particleboard!

Pretends to be wood. Chemicals & what-not jammed together to make you think it’s furniture or subflooring or cabinets or what-have-you. A drop of water, and it turns to mush. Irritating. Not the worst of it, though.

I wrote a post a while back called Gifts, Monsters, and Blessings about some of my experiences with a toxic house, which we escaped, and have significantly healed from. Hindsight’s supposed to be 20/20. We’ll see. We all walk learning.

I bumped into a blogpost online from a lady who got formaldehyde poisoning from the formalin in a hair product. Reminded me of a book I read once, Your Health & Your House by Nina Anderson and Albert Benoist. P 47-54 describe problems that can come up with formaldehyde-laden products, and another lady’s experiences w/ formaldehyde poisoning. Hers was from the particleboard subfloor in her home. She had her carpets cleaned, and the moisture released the formailn. Her symptoms looked like a milder version of my own– more like what Hubby & the kids experienced. The picture fits better than the ex-meth house picture. There was a known meth user in that house, and it was a “party house”, covered up nicely by the landlady before we moved in and found out the history on it, but I’m thinkin’ maybe formaldehyde fits better with our experiences there.

We steam-cleaned the floors, trying to get “something” out of the carpets. They felt all crunchy & springy– not like normal carpet fibers. It only seemed to get worse. Whenever we’d take a shower or run the dishwasher, the air seemed to cloud up, and the respiratory & skin & joint issues were more pronounced. It was definitely more intense near floor level. When the hot water heater flooded the garage, a big cloud of it hit me in the face, and I got 16 cavities all in one month immediately after that.

I did a bit more research, and found that formaldehyde or formalin breaks down bone tissue. Hmm… pitted bones that could be felt through the skin, holes in teeth that had been perfectly healthy for 5 years prior to this experience. I’m thinkin’ this may be a new avenue of healing for me. Thought I’d write it out to give other folks a heads-up. I’m on a warpath against formaldehyde in my world.

For me, in my world, avoiding formaldehyde entirely may become more realistic than for most, but I figure I’ll let you know what I’m doing.

1. We don’t buy new clothing except for socks & undies, and wash those 3 times in hot, soapy water before wearing.

2. No particle board furniture in the house.

3. Running charcoal / carbon filters (the kind that get formaldehyde out of the air best)

4. LOTS of spider plants (several species are good at getting formaldehyde out of the air. Spiderplants are one of ’em)

5. Keeping the humidity in the house low (there’s still some particleboard in most construction. Unless you own your own home, and can do what you want for yourself, it’s likely that the subfloor will contain formaldehyde)

6. Moving toward an AWESOME BLESSING! We’ve been given (YES, GIVEN!!!) LAND!!!! TODAH, YHWH!!! (thank God) Wanting to keep our location offline under my hat, but also wanted to share that bit of news w/ all of you who have known our hopes & dreams that all center on having our own “bit of Earth” to care-take.

7. Planning a home that will not include formaldehyde 😀

A huge thank you to all of you who have been praying for us!

 

If you suspect that you may have experienced something similar, I’m happy to share w/ you various tools in my basket that have been an enormous help.

 

Standard Disclaimer:

I’m  no doc, and don’t pretend to be one. I am therefore not legally licensed to diagnose, cure, treat, prevent, or otherwise mitigate any disease, and neither is the stuff I generally choose for healing… but then, I’ve not been educated indoctrinated by boards with big pharma reps on them, either   so do your own research and find what works for you

Gettin’ It Down: Pudding w/ Beef Gelatin

Got to thinking today, about the Ancient Hebrew Pictograph for the word Mother.  Sometimes a mamma needs a bit of extra support to keep her “gluing” strength at full capacity. Maybe there’s something about the Teaching and Instruction in that pictograph that could tell us where to get more of that fortitude we need daily? Here’s where that works for me: The pictograph is “Strong water”, or “glue”, made in much the same way as Beef Gelatin is still made. Danged if it ain’t medicinal for me!

So I have a few friends who are all over trying out beef gelatin for everything from hair & nail growth to healing teeth and bones. They’ve asked what I do with it. A lot of times, I’ll just dissolve some (maybe 1/2 cup per gallon of soup or stew) into a little (3/4 cup?) hot water, and stir that mixture into the stew. If it doesn’t all dissolve on the first shot, a little more hot water should do it. My favorite method for gettin’ it down, though, is dessert 😀

Here’s Chocolate Pudding:

1/2 cup Beef Gelatin

1 cup Cocoa Powder

3 cans Coconut Milk (or real milk if you’re not allergic to dairy)

3/4 cup Hot Water to dissolve gelatin (maybe a bit more to get the last bit dissolved, after you pour it out the first time)

1 Tbsp Real Salt

1/4 tsp Peppermint Extract (or Orange Extract if I’m in the mood… I choose one or the other– not both)

1 1/2 cups Honey

Dissolve gelatin into the hot water.

Heat coconut milk in a large pan.

Stir in Dissolved gelatin and Cocoa Powder.

Add Real Salt, simmer a few minutes

Remove from heat, and stir in honey.

Chill in refer if you’re patient. In freezer if you’re like me… or have kids to blame it on 😉

Sources for Beef Gelatin here:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=FSa&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=beef+gelatin+now&gs_upl=94306l96445l0l96840l4l3l0l0l0l0l290l731l2-3l3l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&biw=1024&bih=605&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=9496090215603229196&sa=X&ei=WX4fT42dJKO-2gWN9v2nDw&ved=0CH0Q8wIwAw

and here:

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?q=beef+gelatin+kosher&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=shop&cid=10368982407147358228&sa=X&ei=930fT_aJM6GQ2QXQ24WxDw&ved=0CFYQ8wIwAg

Enjoy!!!

Standard Disclaimer:

I’m  no doc, and don’t pretend to be one. I am therefore not legally licensed to diagnose, cure, treat, prevent, or otherwise mitigate any disease, and neither is the stuff I generally choose for healing… but then, I’ve not been educated indoctrinated by boards with big pharma reps on them, either   so do your own research and find what works for you

Naked in the Sun & CLO

Most folks are a bit familiar with the story of the Garden of Eden– the whole Adam & Eve being naked-and-not-ashamed thing. There was something good / functional about that. Yes, there are dysfunctional things that happen when folks twist that beautiful, functional picture, but the original picture and the original design was to have folks runnin’ around naked in the sun. We don’t do that so much now. Not only was it a “good thing” for Adam and Eve, but according to the prophet Isaiah, there’s a “good thing” coming where there’ll be a significantly greater sunlight at some point– a time of healing:

Isaiah 30:26“The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, on the day the LORD binds up the fracture of His people and heals the bruise He has inflicted.”

With these two pictures in mind, maybe there’s “something good” that we can use in the here-and-now, in-between times.

A significant and mounting body of research suggests that, unless you’re a surfer year-round in the tropics, you’re probably not getting enough sunlight on your skin to produce sufficient Vitamin D. The USRDA is extraordinarily low, when compared with the requirements that are being suggested by some studies to prevent depression and build bone & dental strength… and danged if we don’t find a bazillion people in a world o’ hurt over dental issues and depression– especially seasonal affective disorder. *I’m no doc, so do your own research, and find what works for you.* That said, I find that my body responds extraordinarily well to around 10,000-14,000 iu of vitamin D drops daily. I tend to alternate with Cod Liver Oil ( I like Carlson’s Brand, Lemon Flavor best, and so do the kids. We put it in smoothies & yogurt & what-not). I tend to ignore their “recommended dosage” of 1-2 teaspoons, and give the kids 1-2 Tablespoons, and myself 2-4 Tablespoons / day on days when I don’t take the vitamin D drops. Let me repeat that– I do either, or– not doubling up b/c the CLO has good vitamin D in it at that dosage. My skin, hair, nerves & fingernails like the CLO best, while my teeth seem to like the lanolin-based vitamin D drops best (I get Nature’s Answer brand on that– 2,000 iu per drop), so I alternate between the two.

My world has been improved by this “Natural Miracle” among many others. Things I can see directly correlated to my own experiences with Cod Liver Oil: Reduced nervous tension, healing dry, brittle, paper-thin skin that would tear upon brushing against soft fabrics, reduced joint pains, reduced pain in cavities in my teeth, smoother, stronger-feeling teeth (they felt like brittle glass, and I was afraid to bite down with them for a while, certain I’d chip a tooth at any moment), watching a child’s feet, pointed in toward each other, point straighter, and the child walk straighter same-day with 2 Tbsp / day dosage. I’ve watched children’s hair go from a frayed, frizzy mess to smooth and shining with sufficient CLO, and complaints of “growing pains” eliminated by CLO.

Our grandmothers, or great-grandmothers knew the good of this “Natural Miracle.” Maybe their wisdom, combined with the wisdom of TaNaK can point us in a direction that validates some modern research 😉

 

Standard Disclaimer:

I’m  no doc, and don’t pretend to be one. I am therefore not legally licensed to diagnose, cure, treat, prevent, or otherwise mitigate any disease, and neither is the stuff I generally choose for healing… but then, I’ve not been educated indoctrinated by boards with big pharma reps on them, either   so do your own research and find what works for you