Ankylosing Spondylitis - Fight and Win

I was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder, Ankylosing Spondylitis, in 1998. The news hit me hard to say the least. I was 29-years old and had experienced back problems since I was 18-years old. What is wrong with me? Initially, the doctors didn’t have any idea what was wrong with such an outwardly normal, active-looking young woman.

I pleaded for x-rays, and what they found was a spine in terrible shape, a back of a 75-year-old woman. Within one year my back had fused in several places. I found a great doctor who continued to search for the cause and after several months of blood tests I tested positive for the HLA-B27 gene. Ninety percent of people with this rare gene develop Ankylosing Spondylitis, an autoimmune disorder where the body attacks itself along the spine, an arthritic condition which causes fusion of the vertebras.

My doctor called me into her office and told me “you have a rare disease, which can lead to fusion of the spine”. I was told my posture would have to be impeccable because if not the back could shift forward and I could fuse bent over. I stumbled out of the office with tears welling up even though I fought fiercely to hold them back. I was at a loss of options and immediately found a Rheumatologist to start dealing with what I now had a name for.

The physical and mental pain at that time was excruciating, as I was drug deeper and deeper into the world of long term illness and a disease without a cure. I spent many days at the doctor’s asking questions and searching for some kind of knowledge that would unlock the mysteries of this suffering. I was prescribed sulfa drugs, which in a week’s time caused internal bleeding. Then only anti-inflammatory and pain pills remained. I didn’t want the anti-inflammatory to cause other gastrointestinal problems later in life, and I resisted the pain pills because I did not want to live life dulled and dazed.

Each passing morning was tougher and tougher to get out of bed and straighten up but even tougher was not having a viable option to fight this horrible illness. Not following conventional medicine was a hard road to take and kind-of scary. This path was especially hard on my friends and people who cared about me. My job as a Logistics Specialist was becoming harder and harder to handle due to the excessive stress characteristic of the position and the fact I could only sit for 20-minutes at a time.

At that time, I was going to the doctor for many other symptoms that developed: heart effects, lung tests, inflamed gall bladder, and irregular blood results to name a few. Each time I waited for the results without my family because I could not handle the pain of putting continual stresses and hurt on them. I already saw the pain in their eyes, and I couldn’t stand to be the reason pain was there even though I had no control. I had a good friend and co-worker to whom I poured my worries out. She stood by me and waited-out each result with me. I’m very sorry that I did not share what was happening with my Mom, Grandparents, Aunts, and two brothers who cared about me and who love me very much.

My Mom never stopped searching for a way to stop the devastating progression of this illness. My mother had been in the natural health field for 7-years and owned an herb shop in Georgia, Herbtime. My Mom, through many contacts, found a man in my area that dealt with several so-called “incurable” illnesses.

Lose the Label!
By the time I had my first session, my left arm was at my side unable to move due to stiffness that had developed in my back. I entered his office with several charts, reports, x-rays, the name of my disease, and the facts that I had learned. The very first thing he said to me was, “Lose the Label, you will not have this”. His statement stopped me in my tracks since I had all of this documentation and these lengthy reports stating otherwise. "Losing the label" took me some time but was very well worth the mind-effort to overcome. A positive-mind is one of the strongest drugs on earth, and the side effects are out of this world! I became aware of the effects of the mind by looking back at the time I adopted the label. At that time I was immediately immersed into the depression and despair of so many others living with the label, and my physical symptoms seemed to increase due to the mental state I was in.

I spent 5-hours that day being physically manipulated out of the spasms and knots that had become of the muscles in my back. On the table, I was acutely aware of the pain-digging deep into each shoulder blade. I could not move my left arm because the shoulder blade did not have a gap. The muscle was full of inflammation and tension from the constant attack that my body was assaulting against itself. After an hour of constant work on the left shoulder blade, I endured the pain of the second. The remaining 3-hours were spent on the other areas of the spine. The first thing I realized from this session was that the process is going to be long and intense. I needed the lengthy constant work to straighten and lengthen the muscles, and I was quick to appreciate the time that was spent on me.

I went home that night feeling a bit beat up but in no way was I expecting what happened next. That night I went to a neighbor’s house, and I ended up leaving 5-days later. Several hours after the session, I developed a painful headache, chills and convulsions. I was undergoing a major cleansing of all of the toxins and inflammation that had build up over the years and was now on their way out. After several rough nights and exhausted days, I began to come out of this healing crisis. I don't recommend anyone go that quickly in moving toxins and lactic acid out of the body. I recommend a slower progression through bath body soaks.

Mine was too much too quick which can be detrimental to the body. I was put on a very strict diet consisting of mainly vegetables so my body would be under little stress and could do the hefty job of eliminating all of the toxins. After several months of strict dieting, my pain subsided, and I became pain-free for periods of time for the first time in over ten-years. I also stayed on a program of herbal supplements to build up my cartilage and reduce inflammation. I have been on a routine schedule for physical therapy to maintain and gain-back some mobility that was lost during the siege. Please feel free to download a free copy of the plan I followed to put AS in remission at http://www.herbtime.com/.

Theories of what went wrong
I am very proud to say that I am not on any medication, and I continue to strive to gain mobility. One of my very first questions to the Rheumatologists was why does autoimmune target certain areas of the body? Ankylosing Spondylitis in the spine Lupus systematically Multiple Sclerosis in the nervous system Rheumatoid in the joints My own thoughts on the subject were that the body’s immune system was trying to attack and rid itself of something hidden or dormant. A virus is one thing that many of us have experienced at a young age.

Interestingly, I was struck by Scarlet Fever at the age of 1 1/2yrs. I was rushed to the hospital and was given a rather large dose of penicillin at the base of my spine to save my life. My mother recalls a large lump at the base of my spine a week after the medicine was injected. At the age of 18, I was experiencing back problems and went to see a Chiropractor.

Initial x-rays showed I had spondylolisthesis, part of my vertebrae on the side where the medication was injected did not develop. My theory has always been that the Scarlet Fever virus hid from the massive dose of penicillin in the spinal area. Modern day drugs are unsuccessful at combating viruses due to the size and ever changing form they take to survive. Viruses can lay dormant until an upset causes their re-entry/activity into the system.

I found that as long as I live a clean a life as possible my symptoms subside, and I’m in a form of remission.Personal journey to changeI’ve changed a lot as a result of my journey. In a sense, the disease made me discover who I am and what life means to me. A full night’s sleep, waking up and being able to get out of bed, walking, and sitting in the car to go to work are major accomplishments and were some things that I couldn't always do.

I also realized that the stress of my job is too much for my body to handle, and I found that my real passion and zest for life comes from being creative and helping others. I spent 5-years working my way through college to obtain a Chemical Engineering degree from Georgia Tech, and I worked my way up the company ladder to a very good position. My accomplishments should be very gratifying; however my current state of health and passion lies elsewhere. I have always enjoyed helping others, and I joined Herbtime.com an on-line business with my Mother to share what I have learned with others.

I want people to know that other things can be done to change the course of their destiny. I want to give my story and ideas to possibly help another out of despair and what may seem like a hopeless situation. Integration between natural & medical fieldsAnkylosing Spondylitis (autoimmune in general) is a very rare disease and not much exposure has been given to its devastating effects.

I think I can help others to see another side-- one that they can have some control in directing with their thoughts (mind power) and their bodies (nutrition and cleansing). Times are changing, and the natural-health field and medical field are slowly beginning to merge.

Physicians are now hearing about herbal medicine from their patients, and therefore, need to know what herbs do and what effects they may have with certain drugs they are prescribing. The best world would be for herbal practitioners to work with the medical field to find the best solution for the patient. I hope to be a link in making this come about.

The mind is a powerful tool, and our bodies are perfectly engineered by God to overcome all that ails us. The question is...what is that path and how do we aid our body in finding the solution? Feel free to contact me at http://www.herbtime.com/ - ask for your free download of the plan I followed to get my body back in balance.