Gersday Thursday: Why So Much Juice?

Hello again everyone!

One question we get quite a bit is about the amount of juice that Sy drinks on his therapy. His schedule now requires him to drink 2 green, 2 carrot, and 6 carrot/apple juices each day. That's a lot of liquid!

One of the two main facets of the therapy is correcting any nutritional deficiencies and providing the cells of the body with more than enough of what they need to do their jobs the best they can. In Sy's case, we have been slowly trying to correct the fact that his immune system sees food as a foreign invader. If we can help support the body as a whole, we hope to encourage Sy's immunity system to focus more on attacking the right things. As you made have seen from a past post, Sy's endoscopy last November was well within normal ranges...something we have never seen with him before. With other chronic diseases, the Gerson Therapy looks to practice the same principle and support the body to heal itself (like it was designed to do), unhindered.

After many years of trials and research, Dr. Gerson found that these particular kinds of juices made the biggest impact on improving health. It's not to say that other kinds of fresh juices aren't great (as long as the amount of fruit is limited) but when you are focusing on healing through therapy, stick with what's been proven.

The reason that the fresh produce is juiced is for a couple of reasons. One is the fact that your body does not have to do all the work of breaking down the foods to get the nutrients out. Our digestive systems are set to absorb the nutrients we give it, so if it's already broken down, you're going to get even more bang for your buck. The Hallelujah Acres site wrote a great article on this:

According to Dr. Kirschner (M.D.) in his book Live Food Juices, eating a carrot forces your digestive system to separate the carrot fiber from the carrot juice. This uses a lot of energy and destroys over 65% of the nutrients in the process.

Dr. Kirschner goes on to say that juicing carrots before consuming them is a different story. The juicing machine removes the pulp for you, eliminating much of the digestive process. As a result, 92% of the nutrients are available at cellular level for almost immediate use.

Another thing that people often ask is why Gerson doesn't stress drinking water when on the FULL therapy. Does this mean that you should never drink pure water and that it's bad for you? No way. Sy is an active little guy and definitely needs his water when playing in the nasty Florida summer weather. Anyone would tell you that dehydration is not a good thing and causes the body to do goofy things; however, if you consider the amount of liquid you are consuming on the therapy, you would understand that you are getting plenty of healthy hydration. Sy makes plenty of trips to the bathroom with just drinking juices and his output shows that he is staying plenty hydrated. If Sy drinks tons of water on top of his juices, he will float away! 

I hope this post gives you a little insight to the ideas that have been researched and documented with Gerson. If you have any questions, please post them in the comments.

Do you juice? If so, have you seen benefits in your own health? Post us a comment and let us know!

Transformational Tuesday: Meet Brennan Manning

As you already know, our blog is dedicated to helping you live a life gunk free. Although we are passionate about keeping this stuff off our skin and out of our bodies, we also want to encourage you to look at the areas of your life that aren't as easy to see. Yesterday, Heather shared a healthy way to keep your face beautiful and today we are looking at a much deeper part of yourself.

I'm not sure if any of you have had the pleasure of reading or hearing the work of Brennan Manning. Although he has recently passed away, this man had a story and a message that has left an impact on so many people in this world. When you take the time to do some digging, you see someone who has experienced great triumphs and has wrestled with lows that would humble any human being. It was through these experiences that Manning came to learn about "Furious Love" and working to both comprehend and live according to that. He also championed a special mission to bring "good news for the bedraggled, beat-up and burnt-out" and saw you and me in a way that leaves us amazed. Do you ever take the time to stop and realize how unique and special you really are? Do you see others that way?

Heather and I had the opportunity to hear Brennan several years ago and it is something that we will never forget. He spoke openly and plainly about the feelings that we all have in our hearts and encouraged us to grab hold of the truth of our world, whether we want to believe it or not.


Take a couple minutes to watch this video and comment about what you think. Know that you matter more than you know and we desire for you to stay encouraged!

Cuckoo For Coconut Oil As a Moisturizer

So coconut oil is one of my all time favorite products...I mean this is a hall of famer! It's both "green" and super budget friendly. The uses for this are endless--but today is all about moisturizing that cute little face of yours.

First of all, make sure your coconut oil is organic, unrefined, and virgin. Besides the obvious labeling, you'll be able to tell by the scent. Unrefined oils actually smell like coconuts whereas the processed, refined impostors are odorless and colorless. Bleh. Since you'll be spreading this directly on your skin, go for the gold standard and be sure to store it in a glass jar. I've also found that the better the quality, the better it absorbs into the skin. I've been using the Artisana brand now for quite awhile and I'm really happy with it, but there are a lot of great brands out there.

When using coconut oil as a facial moisturizer (you can also wash with it too), dab a little on your finger and spread evenly all over your face and neck. I wait about five minutes and then I splash a bit of water on my face and wipe with a towel. This will get off any oil that my skin doesn't absorb. I live in crazy, humid Florida and it's currently August (sizzle, sizzle) and I feel way less greasy than I did using my other moisturizers. Coconut oil also is a natural sunscreen (ding, ding, ding!) which I like for my face. I'm serious--this stuff is a Jem...as in truly outrageous! (Five points to the person who can pick up on that joke in a comment--old school!)

Oh and I've tried other oils supposedly less comedogenic (pore clogging) like apricot and hemp but I like the texture and feel of the coconut oil better. I ended up shiny half way through the day with the others and I'm not that into the greaseball look. (It makes an amazing body moisturizer too. Ahhh, the uses go on and on but those are for another day.)

Anyway, give coconut oil a try and let me know what you think in the comments below!

Lotsa love,
Heather*

Gersday Thursday: What If I'm Considering Gerson?

The Gerson Therapy has obviously made a huge impact in our family's life. To make a tremendous turnaround with a severe case of a disease that is thought to have no cure is more than noteworthy, especially when it's your child. We have heard and seen so many stories of people who were almost completely out of hope and found an option that made all the difference with Gerson.

When we came to the end of the road with conventional medicine, we were forced to desperately search for another way. It was in this time that the Gerson Therapy came to our attention and it deserved a closer look. Let me just say that Heather and I (mostly Heather) spent countless hours digging and trying to find the real scoop on what was going on. Since our son's health was on the line, it was more than worth it, but it was a frantic time of trying to get the real information we needed to move forward. After doing the work, we took the next steps and made even more investments of time and money to see if it was a viable option. Once we listened, learned, and prayed, we obviously made one of the best decisions we could ever make. This decision opened door after door and we are where we are today because we went "all in" on this.

When we talk to other people who are interested in Gerson, it's very difficult to take a person from knowing nothing to getting them to a place of understanding the whole picture in just a conversation. The bottom line is that people have to do the same digging and grunt-work it took us to get to really understand and believe in what we are doing. Let's be frank, this therapy is not how we unwind in a day. It takes hours upon hours of work, but when healing (or even living in some cases) is on the line, it definitely outweighs any negative aspects.

So, let's talk about what we always tell people who are looking into considering Gerson for themselves:

1. Watch the documentaries

The Gerson Institute has worked extremely hard to put out their information in an easy to digest manner. There are several documentaries that give a great overview of the therapy and interviews with people who have had experience with it. Watching a few documentaries is the smallest time commitment you can make and is much easier than trying to dig through books. Here are the documentaries that you can find on either YouTube, Netflix, or Hulu: Dying to Have Known, The Gerson Miracle, and The Beautiful Truth. There is also a new documentary that has just been put out by Gerson Media called Heal Yourself, Heal the World. We haven't seen that one yet, but it's on it's way to us. We'll let you know!

2. Order the books

If you are ready for even more information, it's time to do the studying that you MUST do for yourself. Gerson has several resources available, but the one to start with is called Healing the Gerson Way. It will give you a good in depth look at the whys and hows of doing the Gerson Therapy. There is also a handbook that nicely condenses a lot of the information in the book for quick reference called the Gerson Therapy Handbook. For those of you who are more scientifically minded, you may want to get some of Dr. Gerson's very detailed case information and order A Cancer Therapy: Results of 50 Cases.

Hear me on this one: If you want to get the best information you can, you have to know enough information to ask the right questions for your specific need. If you really take the time to research this information, you should be in great shape. You know yourself the best and the Gerson Institute is designed to help empower you to take your health into your own hands. You really have to believe in what you are doing if you are going to undertake the serious commitment to healing.

3. Go see it for yourself (either live or virtually)

The Gerson Institute provides informational workshops that allow you to go even more in depth and have the interaction you need. It's a few days of a lot of information, but again, they want you to know why the therapy works. They are extremely open with their information and have a done a great job of not compromising a proven protocol. The live workshop also gives you a great opportunity to connect with the Gerson folks themselves and others who are on their own health journey. It's pretty amazing to see folks who had stage four cancer (other life threatening/debilitating diseases) who were given no hope to live, completely healed and thriving! Check out a Gerson Basics Workshop or a Gerson Basics Live Stream.

I would also like to mention that the Gerson Institute isn't trying to sell you anything. They focus solely on getting information out about what has made a difference in so many people's lives. They are a non-profit organization and only sell books, media, and a few other things to help keep the lights on in the office and continue to spread the word. Take specific note of that.

4. Consider the big commitment and weigh the financial costs

Just tonight, Heather and I were again saying how reduced our lives have become (socially, recreationally, relationally, etc.) just to keep this ball rolling. If you saw the difference between Sy's health before the therapy and now, you would understand why we keep going. However, I'm not going to lie. It has taken every ounce that we have been able to give and then some. This isn't just a little something that you will just add in to your day but again, it is so worth it!

I would also like to say that this therapy could not have even been considered financially without faith that God would make something happen if it was His will. Since we were convinced that this was the road we had to pursue, we allowed Him to do things that we were not able to do. We have seen miracles happen right in front of our eyes! It has been through Him that others have rallied around us and kept us going day after day (holla to our peeps!). I don't know how it's exactly going to work for you, but you have to be open to even the most unexpected provision.

5. Go For It!

The Gerson Clinic allows you time to be monitored by doctors and staff when you are kicking this thing off. Depending on the severity of your condition and the time sensitivity, this may be for you.

The therapy itself is designed for you to do it from home (with lots of help from loved ones). Instead of being dependent on other facilities or professionals to make the right decision for you, you have control of how you want this to go. It will probably take a lot of adjustment to your lifestyle (especially in your kitchen and bathroom), but when you need healing, you have to go for it...

So much to consider, I know. If you know that natural healing is the way for you or you've run out of options, you will make time for something this important. We can't say enough good things about it!

Disclaimer: Neither us nor the folks at Gerson can tell you what you should or shouldn't do. You must make the decision for your health, regardless of what avenue you decide to pursue. Just promise me that you won't be afraid to ask lots of questions, no matter who you are talking to. We hope you find clear direction with your healing journey!

Transformational Tuesday: After the Sabbath

Here's our report on our day of ceasing last week...it was truly a transformational experience that we highly recommend!

Since this was our first time doing this, it actually took quite a bit of planning and effort, but it was well worth it. The days leading up to our day of rest took a few runs to the thrift store (for candleholders, centerpiece accessories), the grocery store (traditional food items, candles), and making sure to grab some flowers to remember creation. Everyone in the family pitched in to make sure that all the work was done so it could truly be a restful day. The house was cleaned, kids made sure their "chore sticks" we're completed early, technology was tucked away where it wouldn't be a distraction from each other, and our table was set as if we were expecting a very special guest (which we were). 

So lucky to have these gals to myself!

An extra setting was placed at the table to visually remind us of our true Guest of Honor. When Sy found out that God was going to be in that seat, he asked to take a picture with Him... What a fun picture to have.

I think the big G man was definitely enjoying this hug from Sy

As the beginning of our Sabbath began, we all were more than ready! I will admit that trying to have a nice leisurely meal with that guy in the back of this picture was not exactly restful. We couldn't keep the food coming fast enough! Regardless, we gave it our best shot and had fun.

Getting ready for 24 hours of focusing on what's important

Our meal was full of traditions, prayers, and blessings over each member of our family. It was a time to really stop and realize that we have been given so much. Essi got to light one of the candles and say the Redemption Prayer. Sy got the big job of praying and passing the handwashing bowl before our meal.

Phoebe did a good job of not splashing her brother

Our entire 24 hours took work to not get drawn back into old habits like getting sucked into media or checking our phones. In fact, we turned all that off so we could focus on each other. It is going to take practice to really get into the groove of this, but our part is just to remain faithful to the instructions we've been given. I can see that it will take a while to undo all our years of rushing around seven days a week, but we will continue to practice this fantastic day.

Please comment if you have any questions about our day!

Btw, a quick shout out to My Father's World for providing the practice of these traditions in their curriculum!

No Muck Monday: Dr. Bronner's Soaps

Happy Monday! Here is another green tip to get the muck out of your home and personal care products. This will for sure get you one step crunchier as you work toward granola. :)

Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap has a ton of uses--it's like a one-stop shopping kind of product. Seriously, this stuff is amazing! I should also point out that this product is not only Gerson Therapy friendly, but comes highly recommended by folks at Gerson. Boo yah! Because of the versatility, we obviously buy in bulk. We've found it at Target or online at Amazon or Vitacost.

Ok, so what in the world is castile soap? Without getting into all the hoopla, castile means that it's made from 100% plant oils (no animals products at all). It's also a true soap, not a chemical detergent, making castile soap completely biodegradable and majorly earth friendly. On the Environmental Working Group website (another great topic to come), it ranks a "0-1" for toxicity which is the best you can rank. The ingredients are water, organic coconut oil, potassium hydroxide, organic olive oil, organic hemp oil, organic jojoba oil, citric acid, and vitamin E. It's also organic and certified fair trade. It comes in various flavors--Unscented Baby Mild, Almond, Citrus, Lavender, Eucalyptus, Tea Tree, Rose, and Peppermint.

So this stuff boasts that it's good for 18+ uses. Believe it or not, it is true! Now keep in mind, this isn't going to work in the same way that all of the chemical and toxic crud does... For some things, it may take some getting used to. I just love it for some uses and others?--well, not so much. However in a pinch, it can do almost anything! So here is the lowdown:

1. Body Wash:  Just squirt a bit of this onto your loofah (that word is just silly to look at) or washcloth and suds up. I use the baby mild and it is my all-time favorite body wash. I am amazed at it's ability to lather and not have the mucky ingredients.

2. Shampoo:  1/2 T in your hand and work into wet hair, or dilute 1/2 T in 1/2 a cup of water. Since this alkaline, you'll need to do a vinegar rinse after. Don't be a scaredy cat...give it a shot.

3. Baby Wash:  It is gentle enough to use on baby (just be careful around the eyes, it will sting). Use it like the body wash or you can dilute it and use about 2 T in an average size tub. It won't suds up like bubble bath, but it will clean for sure.

4. Hand Soap:  Some people just dilute this and use it for hand soap. I actually use it for the base of my homemade foaming hand soap (I will put those details in a future post) and we love it!

5. Multi-Purpose Cleaner:  1/4 cup in a quart of water in a spray bottle. Add essential oils or use the tea tree oil for its antibacterial qualities. After we clean all our carrots in the sink, we have quite an orange ring that's left behind. This is one of the greenest and most effective ways I've found to knock it out.

6. Toilet Cleaner:  Either dilute in a spray bottle (use the dilution for the Multi-Purpose Cleaner) or just squirt a bit in the potty and clean. You can also add a little baking powder for some added scrubbing effect. Poo be gone!

7. Toothpaste:  One drop on your toothbrush. It will suds up and taste like soap but it does clean. I recommend peppermint. Please post comments after you give this a try.

8. Detergent:  1/3 to 1/2 cup of soap for a large load in a normal washing machine. Add 1/2 cup vinegar to the rinse cycle. Half the amounts for an HE washer.

9. Dish Soap:  Use a 1:10 ratio with water. Ideally, rinse with vinegar after washing. However, I use it as my base for my DIY homemade dish soap which needs no vinegar rinse.

10. Liquid Dishwasher Detergent:  Use it as a base for a DIY liquid dishwasher detergent that is inexpensive and of course, eco-friendly.

11. Shaving Cream:  For men: Use about 10 drops on the face. For women: Use about 3 drops on the underarms; just pour a little out on hand and spread on legs.

12. Plant Spray For Bugs: 1 T in a quart of water. Add 1/2 t cayenne pepper or cinnamon, if desired. Take it outside to the garden yo!

13. Fruit/Veggie Wash:  Add 1 T to 2 cups of water. Keep the mixture in a squirt bottle by the sink.

14. Face Wash:  This makes a lovely face wash and suds nicely. Just a few drops will do.

15. Enema Bucket Cleaner:  This is what Gerson recommends for enema bucket cleaning. Nuff said.

16. Foot Bath: 1 1/2 t in a bucket of hot water. Bronner's, take me away...

17. Congestion Clearer: 1 T in a bowl of hot, steamy water. Drape a towel over your head and breathe in mist. Make sure you get in a few Darth Vader lines before you completely clear up.

18. Pet Wash: Depends on the size of your dog and how much fur it has, but start with a little and go from there. Jordan's tag line is, "Enjoy your doggy's style while being green!"

Whew! There are even more I could list but this is for sure long enough. Comment below on what other uses you come up with and we'll give it a try! Again some on my list may be hit or miss but regardless, you get quite a bang for your buck (with a little hippie action thrown in for free) with Dr. Bronner's!

See ya next time!

xo,
hh

Gersday Thursday: Carrot Apple Juice with Norwalk Juicer

Check out our detailed video that will take you through making one of Sy's famous juices with an amazing juicer.

If you can't see the video below, please click here. Enjoy!

Transformational Tuesday: To Cease or Not To Cease?

I want you to picture a firefighter sitting in the middle of his fire station, reading with tears running down his face. I'll tell you that it's not an everyday occurrence, so it's quite a sight to see... This also makes him easy prey for other firefighters and their jokes.

Heather and I are working to prepare for this year's school for our kiddos. I can tell you that it hasn't been an easy preparation, because we have come to realize that our lives do not have the margin we need in the midst of all our current obligations and distractions. Trying to prepare for something really important while stress continues to mount is not a real fun task. I will also tell you that there has been great discussion in our home about the need for change and how we can bring more peace and a healthy rhythm into our family. We have had many discussions about the pace being set around us and the tendency in our culture to continue to run, and run, and run without end. There are so many things to do, so many places to go, so much news to gather (especially from social media), etc. that it can go on and on forever. Can the life we are all hungry for be found when everything around is a blur?

One last thing that I'll point out is that Heather and I have paid close attention to many health-conscious non-Christians around the world and how many of them sometimes do a better job of realizing their need for ceasing. When we compare ourselves as Christians and the community of these folks I just mentioned, there is a stark contrast. We are watching as some non-Christians actually get the fact that they must take time to temporarily put everything aside and refocus on their lives and how they are being lived. Jesus' life was a clear example of the need to withdraw for a time to focus on God and our relationship with Him and then go from there. It has been spelled out clearly in the Bible the need for stopping and resting, but we believe that we must continue to push our lives and our gas tanks beyond what they are capable of. What happens after this is not fun to watch. Marriages disintegrate. Children's hearts are "managed" and not nurtured. Health fails and illness prevails. Addiction grows. The list goes on, but you get the drift, right?

I just finished reading a chapter in a book that we will be using for our school year called "Celebrating Biblical Feasts In Your Home or Church". The first chapter goes over God's most important holy day, the Sabbath. We know how powerful the Sabbath can be and we've seen it modeled, but when you really take the time to understand all the gifts that God placed in it, it can make a guy cry in his firehouse. When you don't take advantage of it, it's like having best present in the world sit in the corner of your house, still wrapped, decades after it was supposed to be opened and enjoyed.

We all need a day to reacquaint ourselves with our Father who loves us beyond measure and is the sole provider of all our needs. My wife needs a day to cradle Ash (while he's still little) and not be rushed or respond to screams in other parts of the house. Sy needs a day where we can work on his new Lego set like I've promised for months. Essi needs a day to be snuggled and given full attention to her random comments. Phoebe needs a day where we can appreciate the new stampwork that she put all over the sides of her bunk bed (grrrr...). I need a day to tell Heather how much I love her and couldn't live without her. We all need a day to not worry about how things are going to work out and what our next steps are. This is what Sabbath is.

I will let you do your own research on the Sabbath and the gifts in it, but all I can say is that I'm sold. My rotating schedule makes it a bit tough, but I can promise you that this week will contain a day of following the instructions as close as we can. It's not easy, but I can already see great benefits waiting for us to grab onto. There's only one catch...we have to CEASE (which is what Sabbath translates to). As much as I would like to have all these benefits while continuing to run, it just can't happen. Don't be deceived that it can. Here's a quick quote from the book mentioned above:

So much of life as we know it has become hectic and exhausting. Important meetings, exciting activities, sports events and very good causes are pulling families in a thousand different ways. People everywhere are busy being busy--never stopping to really rest. When balanced, our activities during the week become preparation time for the Sabbath, somewhat like a path leading us to the gate of a garden...It can become a time for us to rediscover places inside ourselves that are forgotten during the rest of the busy week.

We will keep you posted on how our Sabbath goes, so stay tuned. I already wish it was sundown on Thursday!

I also guess that I need to confess that that crying firefighter was me. It was worth it, though.

No Muck Monday!: Easy Exfoliant

Check out Heather's super easy (and super cheap) "green" exfoliant. It works great, so enjoy!

If you are unable to see the video below, click here.

Let us know how it works for you. Thanks for watching!

Let's Mix It Up!

Just as our own lives are a work in progress, so is this blog. We've been praying and planning through some new updates so here they are!

First of all, we realized that we've probably never taken the time to explain why we write. I mean, why even bother? :)

No Muck Messages was created to help foster the beautiful and abundant life through the continual transformation of the body, mind, and spirit. Our goal is to inspire ourselves and others to get the gunk out of our lives in ALL areas (and having fun while doing it)! We believe in living every day to the fullest.

With that being said, we are going to have three topical days per week--Yay! After listening to those of you who write in, these seem to be the areas in which we get the most questions.

On Mondays, we'll encourage you to take reasonable steps to make a clean change for yourself and those you love. This may be a new natural hygiene tip, a greener cleaning product than what you are using, or just suggestions to simplify your life. We know that there are many of you who don't even know where to begin when looking around you. We will just be sharing what we've learned over our time of changing our lifestyles step by step. Keep in mind that getting the gunk out is a process, but you can do it!

Tuesdays will focus on reaching our innermost parts that we often neglect in day to day life. In order to truly take care of ourselves, we have to do some rethinking, reflecting, and intentional soul care. Remember that true, lasting change only comes from real and authentic transformation. There is no quick fix or pill you can take to make the kind of changes we're talking about. This is going to take some practice, but it will be well worth the investment we make! 

On this day, we'll share more details about Sy's (and our) journey with the Gerson Therapy. It's hard to believe that we've been in this sixteen months! Needless to say, we've picked up some tips and tricks along the way, so we hope that we can help educate folks on what life looks like when you use food as your medicine.

These are our current areas of focus but we are far from having all the answers. However, we have discovered that life is all about rhythm and lack of it can have grave consequences. We see it all around us even now. We were not designed to live in a constant state of rush, chaos, and stress. It is nearly impossible to hear the voice inside you when you are running full speed in all directions. This kind of life is not the full life we've been promised.

So please journey with us and spread the word! Together, let's have the courage to free ourselves from the gunk that entangles us and robs us of our joy. Let's discover the beautiful rhythm, authentic community, and amazing service found in the daily living of the abundant life.

Let's encourage and inspire one another in this forum... Hop on the No Muck Mobile!

Sy's Burning Bash!

We realized that we missed posting about Sy's big birthday... When it comes to a kid that can't eat much, you have to focus on doing some super cool stuff. Check it out!

Sy was definitely pumped to turn 7! He even lost a front tooth for the event.

First stop was coming to see Pop at the firehouse and do some cool stuff.

Only Essi would find a way to shoot rainbows from a fire hose.

Waiting to blast someone...

Just a couple more years to grow into this seat.

I'm so proud to be a part of this crazy kid's life.

Quite a fire brigade, huh?

Sy is now a huge baseball fan, so it was off to the batting cages...

Sy was a complete natural. He crushed probably 80% of the balls.

Even Mom had to come show off her home run swings. She really got in there!

I don't think anyone would argue when I say that 7 has definitely been Sy's healthiest birthday yet. We had tons of fun and made him his own birthday cake made of nothing but potatoes. We are looking forward to future birthdays and continuing to see Sy grow up to be a godly young man.

Happy belated birthday, big man! We love you!