Drastic Times Call for Drastic Measures

25 Feb 2009 3 Comments

by Christina Heald in Uncategorized

My doorbell rang around 11am on Saturday morning.  It was the chiropractor down the street who came bearing information, and a bottle of some strange looking brew.  Cheryl came in and we sat at my kitchen counter for a couple hours talking about everything.  She shared with me her story of surviving cervical cancer.  I shared my story of what was happening to me.  She shared her mother’s story of surviving breast cancer the year before.  I really felt like I could relate with this woman I had lived near for over 3 years but had never invited down for a BBQ.

The liquid in the jar was strange looking and smelled even stranger.  She explained that it was Kombucha (pronounced kom-BOO-cha) tea and home brewed at that.  I was told it is sold in health food stores and is excellent for raising the alkalinity in my body.  I have to admit that I really didn’t pay a lot of attention to chemistry and biology back in high school and even though I have gone back to school, I have still tried hard to avoid those subjects.  I was very open to anything Cheryl had to say, though, and this topic of alkalinity was something I had never heard of before. 

She gave me a chart which it explained where your body is in terms of acidity and alkalinity.  It listed from most acid to most alkaline the foods found in each category and subcategory. In a nutshell, the more acidic, the worse off your health.  I quickly scanned the 4 columns of acid foods.  Based on what was listed under each, I’m surprised I’m even alive.  It’s so easy to fall into the junk food routine.  It’s easily accessible, its cheap, it tastes sooo good.  I know its not healthy for me.  I know that I shouldn’t drink fountain pepsi in the large quantities I do and every New Year’s my resolution is to eat healthier, exercise more (or just start), get more sleep, and generally take better care of myself.  I start out good for a few days and then I slide off the bandwagon.  The guilt lasts for a couple days and then I just have to put it out of my mind.  I think a lot of people are like that. 

My life moves at a high rate of speed.  Do I like it…of course not, but it is what it is.  I knew that these past two years would be intense for me as I tried to accomplish a great deal of credentialing in a short amount of time.  After years of giving up caffeine, I have succumbed to the influence once again and I live for a pepsi or cappuccinno to get me through the 20 hours of work I put in a day.  As I listened earnestly to Cheryl talk, my eyes began to really open up.  My body was shouting at me to change my lifestyle.  My body was screaming at me to fill it with nutritional foods and faith.  My body was giving me a sign.  WAKE UP!!!  The alarm bells are going off.  This sign was given to me early–not when it was too late to even try to do something about my life, but early enough to make a difference and stick around to see my children grow up. 

I wanted to just spend the day with Cheryl.  Everything she said to made sense.  She understood what I was talking about as far as how I could visualize what was going on.  We talked for a couple hours and she helped me understand a little bit about how the chemical effects on an acid/alkaline body can be affected by the foods we eat.  When I look at the chart, I am reminded glaringly that I was responsible for feeding my dragon, nourishing my dragon, giving this dragon an optimum environment to thrive.  I was a walking sess pool.  I was not honoring myself, my physical health, or my ph levels.  I know that there has not been a tried and true cure all for cancer many times.  I know that people who don’t have the usual risk factors–in my case, early onset of menstruation, family history, usage of birth control pills–can still develop cancer.  Hell, look at me.  I know that there are perfectly healthy people that develop cancers–people who do everything right, but whatever the case–I have it.  I have been diagnosed with it.  I have to figure out a way to slay this dragon.  My first decision was to take control of the things I was putting into my body.

We left each other for a few hours and agreed to get together later so she could take me to the health food store and show me around.  I was energized and clear headed as I proceeded to take a good look at the brew she had brought me.  It was in a bottle labeled by the same name.  It had a cloudy film in it, odd things floating around in it, smelled like vinegar, and seemed to be fizzy.  Was I really going to drink this?  Would I just give up my staple soda for something so oddly named?  I felt like I was auditioning for the show Fear Factor.  I hate that part in the show where you have to eat all the disgusting stuff.  It makes me gag.  Yet, here I was about to chuck everything I ever knew to be sugary and sweet for a diet of bland or strange tasting.  Could I do it? 

The alarm clock is beeping in my head telling me, “You have no choice.  You had 41 years to get it right.  You blew it and now you’re paying the price.  So plug your nose, close your eyes, tip your head back and drink.”  So, I did.

Labeled under the name Synergy, this Kombucha tea or organic and raw. Meaning, that strands of the culture may appear.  That must explain the floaties.  The label states that these are natural, normal and only occur in raw Kombucha.  It boasts 95% G.T.’s Kombucha, whatever that means.  It is infused with enzymes, probiotcs, and detoxifiers.  It supports digestion, metabolism, immune system, appetite control, weight control, liver function, body alkalinity, anti-aging, cell integrity, and healthy skin and hair.  It does state on the label that the statements found on the label have not been evaluated by the FDA and it is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.   It can be found in a variety of flavors which is a good thing because since it is made from a  mushroom that has fermented for 30 days, I was going to need some flavoring.  The fermentation process creates the fizz and that’s sort of a good thing.  I often wondered if I was really addicted to Pepsi, or just the fizz. 

Kombucha is a handmade Chinese tea that is delicately cultured for a period of one month.  During this time, essential nutrients form like:  Active Enzymes, Viable Probiotics, Amino Acids, Antioxidants, and Polyphenols.  All of these combine to create an elixir that immediately works with the body to restore balance and vitality.  It’s staunchest supporter, G.T. Dave, began bottling Kombucha in 1995 after his mother’s success from drinking it during her battle with breast cancer.  Well, enough said, for me.  I’m sure there are quacks out there that will sell you anything including snake skin oil.  I’m sure this concoction is not the be-all or end-all, but it is loaded with vitamins and judging from the way it flies off the shelves, there must be a lot of believers.  I am just a newbie to the organic world, though, what do I know? 

Drastic times call for drastic measures.   If I wanted to take control, I was going to have to give up control.  That is a hard thing for me to do, but I was ready.  I was ready to go shopping later in the day and be open to new philosophies, new foods, new friends.  I was slowly realizing that I was in a stagnant place and in order to get out of the swamp, I would have to make the first move.  I got myslef into this mess, I needed to get myself out.  As I waited for my new friend to finish with her afternoon schedule so we could get toget her again, I went to the bookstore in search of the book I had been thinking about.  I found it…The Art of War by Sun Tzu.

This book is actually a military treatise that was written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu and is considered to be a prime example of Taoist strategy. Composed of 13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare. Sun Tzu recognized the importance of positioning in strategy and that position is affected both by objective conditions in the physical environment and the subjective opinions of competitive actors in that environment. He taught that strategy was not planning in the sense of working through a to-do list, but rather that it requires quick and appropriate responses to changing conditions. Planning works in a controlled environment, but in a competitive environment, competing plans collide, creating unexpected situations.

Chapter summary

1. Laying Plans explores the five key elements that define competitive position (mission, climate, ground, leadership, and methods) and how to evaluate your competitive strengths against your competition.
2. Waging War explains how to understand the economic nature of competition and how success requires making the winning play, which in turn, requires limiting the cost of competition and conflict.
3. Attack by Stratagem defines the source of strength as unity, not size, and the five ingredients that you need to succeed in any competitive situation.
4. Tactical Dispositions explains the importance of defending existing positions until you can advance them and how you must recognize opportunities, not try to create them.
5. Energy explains the use of creativity and timing in building your competitive momentum.
6. Weak Points & Strong explains how your opportunities come from the openings in the environment caused by the relative weakness of your competitors in a given area.
7. Maneuvering explains the dangers of direct conflict and how to win those confrontations when they are forced upon you.
8. Variation in Tactics focuses on the need for flexibility in your responses. It explains how to respond to shifting circumstances successfully.
9. The Army on the March describes the different situations in which you find yourselves as you move into new competitive arenas and how to respond to them. Much of it focuses on evaluating the intentions of others.
10. Terrain looks at the three general areas of resistance (distance, dangers, and barriers) and the six types of ground positions that arise from them. Each of these six field positions offer certain advantages and disadvantages.
11. The Nine Situations describe nine common situations (or stages) in a competitive campaign, from scattering to deadly, and the specific focus you need to successfully navigate each of them.
12. The Attack by Fire explains the use of weapons generally and the use of the environment as a weapon specifically. It examines the five targets for attack, the five types of environmental attack, and the appropriate responses to such attack.
13. The Use of Spies focuses on the importance of developing good information sources, specifically the five types of sources and how to manage them.

YES!!  YES!!  YES!! YES!! YES!!

This is exactly what I was trying to grasp in my mind, but didn’t know how.  I have had this book on my list for a long time thinking that it might not be a bad idea to understand and adapt the strategies for the never ending battles with my teenager.  But now, I could see myself applying it to my current situation.  It is exactly how my brain works.  I couldn’t wait to start reading it, as always, though, my schedule left little time for additional pursuits.  I was just managing to find time to create this blog which was key for me in organizing my thoughts and processing what was happening to me.  I knew I would be running out of time and needed to get home to meet Cheryl once more.  I was glad I cancelled all my piano lessons for the day.  I needed to have a day to think about me. 

I had always been intimidated by the health food store.  I am really uneducated in regard to all the curious foods that can be found there.  Our local grocery store now has a health food section in it, but I never go in.  I’m afraid once I pass over the threshhold a siren will go off alerting everyone in the store that a junk food-aholic was entering.

“WARNING…WARNING…YOU HAVE VIOLATED A HEALTHY AREA…LEAVE IMMEDIATELY…SECURITY IS ON THE WAY!”

I know that seems melodramatic, but I swear I think that way.  So, I peek in and wish that I knew more about it, had more time to devote to understanding the philosophy behind the products.  I also don’t have a clue how to shake up the menus and meals I prepare in a way that wouldn’t require hours of prep time or a large learning curve.  Its just easier if I peek in and then set about to pick up the meat and potatoes. 

What an interesting world I walked into!  I was mostly interested in picking up healthy munchies.  I graze all day as I am preparing all the meals and snacks for the kids.  Probably why I’ve gained 20 pounds.  I brought my chart and began picking things up…almonds (non-salted) and pumpkin seeds.  Cheryl gave me a tour around and explained this and that.  I knew that the majority of the fresh fruits and veggies I’d buy at Walmart because of the price difference, but I was thankful for the opportunity to accompany her.  I didn’t feel so lost and out of place.  I didn’t feel like I didn’t belong.  I felt like I was at the first stop on my road to recovery.  I felt like I could do this.  I realized that your mindset is half the battle.  I realized I would have to really rip through the pantry, fridge, and freezer, and get my family on board as well.  Easier said than done, but hey, you have to start somewhere.

Many have expressed to me that they think I’m going a little extreme.  Damn right, I am.  What I have been doing obviously wasn’t working.  It hasn’t been proven that pepsi or junk food are proponents for developing cancer, but in my mind, I’m the one dealing with the diagnosis.  When one gets a diagnosis of this magnitude, you start to freak out and you begin to make changes to the way you do things so you can stick around.  It hasn’t been proven that Kombucha tea cures cancer.  With whichever side of the argument someone falls on, it is a fact that eating healthier, reducing stress, and exercising more have more benefits to one’s life than the opposite.  Just because one person chooses to handle a situation in one way doesn’t mean the next person to come along will handle it the same.  I get that and that’s ok.  Everyone has to find what works for them.  Each person has to draw up their strategy and have faith that they are doing what’s right for them.  Everyone needs to be their own healthcare advocate.  What’s the worse thing it could do, anyway?  Make me healthier?…not such a scary thought when you have Cancer as an alternative.