Gifts of Construction: Gift #1

When I finally stopped resisting the intrusive reality of large duplex construction five feet from our shared property line, something shifted in me.  I felt myself opening to the possibility of “gifts” resulting from viewing my situation from a distance, literally, because, for several months now, I have been no longer “in it,” but have spent most of each day somewhere else.

Gift #1:  focus on my health

Instead of focusing on what they were doing, I shifted my perspective and focused on my health by committing to being a guinea pig for yet another “health innovation.”  For the past forty years, I have chosen to experience “alternative health” treatments first-hand, because I’m basically a healer who wants to know what it is and whether or not it works.  For example, I spent time at Optimum Health in San Diego when I was a massage therapist, because I wanted to know what that experience was like for clients I might refer, or even for myself if ever I succumbed to a serious illness.

Therefore, having read about Dr. McComb’s Candida Plan, I decided to try it. It’s a four-month commitment, and I have the time, because I can’t really do anything I want to do with All that noise going on all day.  The information on his website was convincing, and I was hooked when I read, “If you have ever taken an antibiotic at any time in your life, then you have systemic fungal Candida.” – Dr. Jeffrey McCombs, The Candida Expert

Components of The Plan

• Supplements:  Candida Force, Detox Essentials, and Flora Prime
• Diet:  lists of “Yes” and “No” foods, similar to the Paleo diet but more restrictive
• Elimination:  manage 3-4 bowel movements/day
• Sweating:  Jacuzzi or Sauna six times/week
• Water:  one quart for every 50 pounds of body weight

Supplements:  I was so excited when my first box arrived that I began taking the pills immediately as directed on each bottle.  Two weeks passed with no noticeable effects before I went back to the web site to see what other people had experienced.  I discovered that I had been taking the supplements wrong!  Grrr.  I had to start over, completely from the beginning.  On Saturday, February 18, I began again–taking four-five times as many pills each of the five times/day on their suggested schedule which I printed.  It did not take two weeks to notice effects.

Diet:  By the time my box of supplements had arrived, my kitchen was clear of all “NO” foods:  dairy (including butter), vinegars (including salsa, capers and olives), flours, sugars and sugar substitutes (even stevia and agape), grains, cereals (even my Ezekiel sprouted grain cereal), condiments (hot sauce, salsa and ketchup), canned tomatoes and fish, nuts, seeds, popcorn, legumes, soy (including Tamari and soy sauce).

For years, I had been following D’Adamo’s Blood type diet (Eat Right 4 Your Type), as an “A” which is primarily a “vegetarian-plus,” living on beans and rice and tofu with vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds plus the occasional fish, chicken and Maple, Cream-top Yogurt from Brown Cow.  Sigh.

I printed the list of “Yes/No Foods” and went to work, piling all the “No foods” on my table and calling the gal downstairs to come get them.  She was thrilled.  It took her five trips for the first batch, carrying two tote bags at once; it took me three sweeps through the pantry shelves, refrigerator and freezer to completely eliminate all “No” foods.

What I’ve noticed  about the diet so far:  major withdrawal symptoms during the first two weeks, possibly from no sugar!  It’s not that I used it a lot.  I drink my coffee black, avoid sodas, pastries, etc., but I had developed a ritual “tiny piece of dark chocolate” (one Dove “Promise” or one square from a 70% dark chocolate bar) following dinner.  The withdrawal symptoms were certainly not on par with tobacco withdrawal.  (Please see My Final Quit .)  Now, into my fourth week, I’m just missing the zip! of my former diet that included hot sauces and chilies, especially jalapenos and salsa.

I’m making up for the perceived blandness of the Candida Plan diet as I discover new seasonings in the spice aisle, like my new favorite “Moroccan Seasoning” by McCormick.  I dust that fragrant powder on almost everything!  Apples replaced the after-dinner chocolate.  Ambrosia apples work best for “dessert.”  Forget the Enterprise apple which is more appropriate for, say, a Waldorf salad.

Elimination.  After Detox Essentials kicked in, I began following his advice to take either ConcenTrace Trace (liquid) minerals, a natural colon cleanse, Magnesium (Natural Calm Magnesium) or psyllium seed husks to ensure three-four BM’s/day.  I already had those supplements because I routinely fast or do some kind of cleanse for several weeks annually.  Please note that if the body can’t eliminate, it simply reabsorbs it!

Tips for folks not acquainted with detox:  if the “plumbing’s blocked,” use “explosives” like psyllium seed husks with cascara sagrada; I like Sonne’s products.  If it’s a “slow drain,” try Natural Vitality’s “Natural Calm” magnesium drink.  I like their organic raspberry-lemon flavor.  Just be sure to follow the instructions for preparing it or you’ll waste a lot.

Sweating.  The importance of elimination is also behind “Sweating:”

The major detoxification organs of the body are the liver, lungs, gastro-intestinal (GI) tract and skin. Fungal Candida increases the toxicity of the entire body and overloads the detoxification system. Thus, it’s essential to detoxify the body through its largest detoxification organ – the skin.

I decided to try both bath and sauna to see which one worked best for me.

At the sports club my insurance includes, the sauna available to me is located in the women’s locker room.  It’s a dark little wood-lined room isolated from the world, a place where one truly can feel nurtured (if she is the only one inside).  The profound quiet was a balm to my construction-traumatized self, so sensitive to noise that I can hear conversations half a block away.  And, the sweating felt good.  It was also fun to note the absence of water weight when I stepped on the scales outside the door!

The Jacuzzi there, also in the women’s locker room, was not appealing to me, so spoiled was I by the outdoor hot springs I had used for over thirty years.  So, naturally, I packed up my gear and headed north to nearby Trimble Hot Springs.  At first, I only bought the ten-punch pass, because I wasn’t sure I “could spare the time of the drive…blah, blah, blah.”  Ha!  That’s the old, stuck-in-her-work-rut Pam speaking.  New Pam used four punches then whipped out her credit card to renew her membership for four months!  (Of course, one could soak in their own bathroom if they had a tub deep enough to submerge their body or even a water heater large enough to provide hot water for a bath.  I don’t.)

Water.  Aside from the pleasure of soaking up to my neck in 105˚ F water was that it made drinking my three quarts of water so much easier than sipping at home.  It’s not that I have an issue with water.  For years, since reading Your Body’s Many Cries for Water (F. Batmanghelidj, M.D.), I have been drinking “half my bodyweight in ounces”  of filtered water every day.  Drinking water under the Candida Plan guidelines adds a little more.

Exercise.  While it isn’t included in the main elements of The Plan, I’ll continue my routine of walking at least half an hour/day (2 miles), and am exploring other possibilities available at the gym.

THIS INITIAL STEP “OUTSIDE”–outside the workaholic mode I had assumed last year writing and publishing two books and learning enough about social media to tiptoe into the game–was huge for me.  And taking on the four-month challenge to restore balance in my digestive tract has already provided benefits:  more energy, clearer thinking, and shedding excess weight, and I’m only a few weeks into it!

The gifts just keep coming and I look forward to sharing them with you.  Till then, I’ll just keep Skating Thru my days with the renewed perspective that my life truly is in Divine order, knowing that as long as I’m open, I’ll be able to recognize and enjoy the gifts that come my way.  Sometimes it just takes a cosmic landmine (like construction next door) to shake us off our positions.  How about you?  Run into any walls lately?  Found the secret door yet?

[Posted by Pam Young, author of SkatingThru2012.com, March 9, 2012]

Related articles in this series re’ living next to winter construction:

1. Practicing yoga with construction noise 
2. Dancing with my devil:  winter construction
3. Footers & foundation in winter construction
4. Snowfall doesn’t stop the winter construction
5. Effects of construction noise