This post is long overdue. It hasn’t been written before now because the topic is huge … almost every paragraph could be turned into a post on it’s own. For today, I’ll do my best to give you the super-condensed version, of how $20 changed my life.
You see, I’ve struggled with chronic pain for the better part of 2 decades. A car wreck on March 31, 1994 left me with whiplash, and injured shoulder, and torn jaw joints. Minor injuries in the eyes the law, in the eyes of most people. The woman who hit me was charged with improper driving. I was left with injuries which turned into chronic, debilitating pain.
The car wreck left me with headaches … every day.
Fighting pain and trauma over a long period of time caused weaknesses in my whole body. I still don’t know the extent of it … but do understand that a heightened sensitivity to a variety of things was awakened. I became highly sensitive to wheat, corn, ink, sound, and light, to name a few. Over time I became more and more reactive to many things in my environment.
The sensitivities and the pain progressed, hand-in-hand, and the visits began. You know the routine, the rounds and rounds of visits to every doctor and therapist imaginable. I learned to sit the right way, lay the right way, wear this bite plate or that, take frequent breaks, and not lift over … 10 pounds, really? MRI’s, stretches 3x/day, anti-inflammatories, Flexeril … which made me feel like I was somewhere in the vicinity of Mars.
The pain spread throughout my body. Chronic, sleep-depriving, mind-numbing, depressing pain.
But I’m a pretty strong person. I was devoted to my son, and squeaking out every happiness I could from this life. I did my best to keep pain from interfering. I was determined to put it behind me.
I began to question everything I came into contact with … and in the process became quite a good detective.
I eliminated foods from my diet. I moved all the Sharpies off of my desk. I stopped wearing any fragrances, and switched to mineral makeup and crystal deodorant. I tried a variety of natural shampoos, and even tried making my own (all kinda’ gross, actually). I had my work station evaluated for ergonomic correctness, and got rid of all of my high-heeled shoes. I had therapies ranging from elbow in the back massage, to trigger point injections in my neck and armpit … and no, that wasn’t fun … at all!
For the most part, I developed relationships with some amazing doctors … amazing people. They were kind, compassionate, and loving. They did what they could, and they did it well. I am grateful for each of them. While each experience expanded my awareness, and did help me feel better. The relief didn’t last. They weren’t the end-all solution.
For 13 years I took Advil several times a day, almost every day.
I spent incredible amounts of time and money on doctors, therapists, and chiropractors. I worried that I had a tumor or a blood clot. I worried that one of my vertebrae was out of place, and might paralyze me at any moment. We moved on to blood tests, and I’d pray that the tests would show that I had something … anything that we could identify and treat! Hundreds of dollars a month on co-pays and prescriptions to try to get rid of this unexplainable pain.
A time came when I was unwilling to continue with the Advil. Not long after that, I became unwilling to continue with any prescriptions. I took myself off of everything, and decided I’d only go back on what I absolutely had to have. Rather than continue chasing this pain around my body, I knew that I needed to feel it fully in order to pinpoint it.
Sometimes at night I’d just cry. I was exhausted, and I’d cry at the thought of having headaches every day for the rest of my life. I feared being old, and unable to communicate my pain, and asked my husband to promise, that when I’m old, that he would give me Advil every day. He knew this was a desperate cry … it broke his heart … but he promised.
I knew there had to be an answer … and I had to find it.
I did everything I could possibly think of to get rid of my headaches.
I worked with a fabulous nutritionist at Duke Integrative Medicine, keeping a food journal. I detailed everything that I ate, and when, and how I felt at various times during the day. I was excited when we discovered that I was allergic to corn, and soon realized that corn is everywhere! All I needed to do was eliminate the corn, and I’d be home free. Corn was huge, and I was grateful for heightened awareness! When I ate corn starch, corn syrup, corn chips … and this list goes on … I could, and can still feel its effects right away! Eliminating it was quite a challenge, but I was steadfast … in the end, it wasn’t all of the answer. Nope … not that easy!
I worked with Dr. Ken Moorhead at Oriental Health Solutions. Together, we were able to further reduce the inflammation in my body with proper nutrition and elimination of dairy and most grain products. Over time, with a good diet, and regular exercise, I found relief from most of my pain … but the headaches persisted.
Still I searched. There was a missing piece. I knew that the piece was something that I was being exposed to. I knew that my body wasn’t just in pain for no reason … I kept going back to the shampoo. There had been times when I could actually feel my scalp tighten, feel my throat constrict when I shampoo’d my hair. I tried many … many shampoos, some made it worse, but none seemed to make it better.
Then sometime during 2010 I met Susan Loughrin online. She’s a singer, an educator, a blogger, and a wonderfully creative and caring woman. She also represents Miessence, a line of organic personal care products from Australia.
Susan offered to send me some free samples of the products. Nice … some hand cream, some face wash … and some shampoo. My gut told me that this could be it.
On the day my free samples arrived, I washed my hair with pure gold. I waited for the reaction … and waited … and went on with my day … and then, I went on with my life. I didn’t have a headache. My life was changed.
In October of 2010, I ordered a bottle for $20. I pray that Miessence stays in business for the rest of my life!
I don’t have many headaches, and when I do I really don’t like it. When I lived with them every day, that’s the way life was. Now I know that my life doesn’t have to be painful, so headaches kind-of piss me off.
Also, with my new shampoo, I have more hair, and healthier hair than I can ever remember having in my life! I don’t even have to wash it every day, unless I want to. The picture at the top of this post was taken after 2 days, we were on a mini-vacation … at the river, where I was playing, laughing, and relaxing with my family. It wasn’t a ‘good hair’ day … but it was a great day!
I have rules, and they must be followed. If I get into corn-stuff, the wrong grains, too much sugar, smelly inks or perfumes … my headache is more than happy to come for a visit … even happier to take an extended vacation at my expense.
… but if I follow the rules, and use “my” shampoo, I’m okay … really okay.
Sometimes when I recommend this product to people who are ill, they lose interest when they find out the price. I understand that those are the people who aren’t desperate, aren’t in enough pain.
But those who stick around long enough to hear my story understand. Our bodies are incredibly, perfectly crafted. They know how to be healthy … they know how. We just have to get out of the way. We have to stop filling them with toxic stuff. My body was sensitive enough to let me know that the chemicals in shampoos were hurting me. I believe they’re hurting us … even those of us who aren’t super-sensitive are still soaking up the chemicals every day.
My shampoo costs $20 a bottle. A bottle lasts me about 2 months. Much cheaper than daily headaches, tears, frustration, and doctor co-pays several times a week.
With gold prices today, I’d say $20 for my 8 ounce bottle of pure gold is quite a bargain!
*If you have unexplainable pain, headaches, or another condition that has people baffled, maybe I can help. I’ve been through alot, and would be glad to hear your story and see if I have any experience to offer that might bring relief. And by the way, I’ve seen the look on people’s faces … nothing will sound crazy to me … I promise! I can’t swear that I have everything in this post in exactly the right order … some years are just kind-of a blur. It has been a long road. I’ve learned alot, and am happy to help if I can. You can leave a comment or email me at teenytinypieces@gmail.com. If you’re still reading … I’m guessing that you’re either in pain, or know someone who is. Know that I’m sending you love and compassion.
**This isn’t a sales promotion. Susan didn’t ask me to promote her line of products, nor does she even know that I’m writing this post. I am, incredibly grateful that our paths crossed, and that I know Susan as a friend and as a Miessence representative. Here’s her contact information … I’d be super-pleased if you’d drop her a line. (… and thank you Susan … this post could just as easily have been titled “How Susan Loughrin Changed My Life” … hugs to you!!)
Email Susan at: organicsmi@hotmail.com
Find Miessence products at: http://organicsyes.mionegroup.com/
Also, check the toxicity of your products at http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/
♥ One final note ~ this will likely be my last post for a while. I will spend the month of July on my Healing Touch practice. I am super-excited about the amazing group of guest writers I have lined up for July, and part of August, so don’t miss the goodness! Please subscribe if you haven’t already.
Take good care everyone,
Love,
