Other's Experiences and Testimonials on Amalgams & MS

We've already mentioned in an earlier post that the Counsellor here at Living Valley Springs, Joanne Roche, herself suffered from MS and has regained her mobility and all of her MS symptoms, while they may occasionally flare up a bit, are under control.  Besides Joanne, several other people have experienced amazing recoveries from this supposedly incurable disease and have made their stories public for others to learn from.

Carmel Egan wrote a book about her experience with MS and then her recovery, which really began with her stay at Living Valley in 2004.  Tammy and I have each read her book while we've been here and of course to both of us it's quite a compelling read.  Though her experience is not exactly the same as Tammy's, it's true of MS that the progression of the disease and the specific symptoms experienced vary from person to person.  Linked here is a review of Carmel's book, or you can read her testimonial on the LVS website.

Johan Jacobs is a South African man who began experiencing the symptoms of MS at the age of 30.  After largely controlling his initial symptoms through diet and lifestyle, he entered a period of 'primary progression' that left him significantly debilitated after 2 years and by 2004 he was no longer able to work as an engineer.  In April of that same year Johan attended Living Valley and the treatment he received here was the first step in his recovery.  Johan's testimonial is written here, and you can watch a video testimonial here:

Smoking Teeth = Poison Gas is a video produced by the International Academy of Oral Medicine & Toxicology showing how even 20+ year old mercury fillings continue to release mercury vapour; you can also read a summary of the video in this PDF.

The University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada has performed some research demonstrating the neurotoxic effects of mercury, as reported in this short video clip on Youtube.

Dr. Dawn Ewing has prepared three 10-minute video lectures on the topics of mercury amalgams, root canals and cavitation with some good illustrations and lay level explanations.  Part 1 is embedded below - you can readily search Youtube for parts 2 and 3.

Dr. Hal Huggins originally raised the issue of the dangers of dental amalgam over 40 year ago after becoming a qualified dentist himself!  In this short video clip, he discusses the link between ALS, MS and mercury amalgam.

Various reports suggest that dental professionals have an elevated rate of MS and of suicide (i.e. potentially mentally affected by mercury toxicity)

We're told that MS becomes more prevalent the further you go from the equator.  In general, this may appear to be the case however there are several exceptions to this 'rule'.  For example, Russia has a relatively low incidence of MS when compared with Canada but is just as 'far' North.  Also, there are very few, if any, recorded cases of MS among the Inuit.  Another well-known exception existed in Norway where two of 19 counties studied there had lower rates of MS than other counties that were decidedly further South!  Looking at the map below, it's clear that the trend isn't as easy as simply considering distance from the equator...

Map of the global prevalence of MS

Interestingly, when a map of relative global affluence is compared to a map of MS prevalence, there is at least as good correlation between affluent countries and incidence of MS as there is between distance from the equator and MS!  Could this be due to eating of richer foods by people living in more affluent countries, along with the means to have dental work performed?  If there were readily available data on the prevalence of dental amalgam fillings used in various countries, and possible even various regions within a country, that would be interesting to see.  I don't believe such data exists, nor is likely to be made available!

Map of global affluence by income levels

These few references only scratch the surface of the available information, but regardless of the searches performed online, it quickly becomes clear that the issue of dental amalgam is highly controversial.  Even with any number of indicators pointing towards mercury as somehow playing a part in onset of MS, the picture is not that simple.  Plenty of people with amalgam fillings - several of them in place for several years - show no illness whatsoever.

All of that said, there are enough practitioners now treating patients by "dental revision" with dramatic improvement resulting that I am becoming convinced that some harm is being done by dentistry, and not only with MS.

Day 10 - That's a Wrap

We've come to the end of our 24 days at Living Valley having had a wonderful experience overall!  The weather has been terrific (glad to be missing hurricane Sandy!); the people have been so kind and supporting throughout, and the learning has been exceptional.  We feel like we've significantly advanced our cause in addressing MS by coming here and receiving all of the care and treatment that we've described on this blog.

All told, Tammy's symptoms are no better, nor any worse, which is a victory in itself.  For the three or four months before our trip here, as we became more strict in diet (vegetarian - vegan - raw - juicing/fasting!), Tammy's health deteriorated at an alarming rate; at least having slowed or stopped the progression now is a 'win'.  Not only that, we believe that we're on a path now that will see slow but sure improvements over the coming months!!!

I'll continue to post blog entries over the next week with more background and detailed info that we've learned during our time here, specifically about MS & mercury; about using a high fat/protein diet to address mercury toxicity; and about Living Valley Springs' overall 'philosophy of care'.


After that, we'll post an occasional entry when something newsworthy comes up, so feel free to check in on the blog every once in a while!!


Today was a day for tying up loose ends, like paying our bill at the Health Shop and at the Front Office and of course getting packed up.  Most of the guests were gone shortly after breakfast, and then most of the staff were gone shortly after lunch, but we stuck around until later.

It turns out that tonight was Gary's 60th birthday party, held at the local hall in Kin Kin and tomorrow he and Debbie are taking off for a well-deserved two-week vacation.  Since their flight is only two hours earlier than ours, Gary offered to give us a ride to Brisbane!  We left just after the party and got to bed just after midnight! : )

Gary telling more funny stories at his 60th birthday party

At the 'Brizzy' airport...

The LVS staff have really treated us like family and we're certainly going to look back fondly on our time for years to come, while also looking forward to the next opportunity that we have to visit!  For anyone interested in making the trek to LVS themselves, please feel free to contact us at any time with any specific questions at jpduchesne@hotmail.com.  Also, LVS gives guests discount vouchers to share with others and we'd be more than happy to share all four of ours - just ask!

Thanks to all who have read and commented, emailed, prayed for and otherwise encouraged us on this adventure!!  To those reading back home - we'll see you all soon!!

So long, LVS!

Day 9 - Traces of Mercury...

If you've read our recent blog posts, you'll know that today was the day we went to Brisbane to see Eric Davis, the biological dentist to whom Gary refers LVS guests who have potential dental issues.  Gary met us at 6:30am and we were in Brisbane just before our 8:30 appointment time.

Gary helping Tammy to the door for our 8:30am consult...

Dr. Davis checked the electrical conductivity on several of Tammy's teeth - admittedly, we didn't really get the gist of what this was testing, but suffice it to say that there was nothing indicating a problem using that test.

Next, Dr. Davis used "Meridian Stress Assessment System" to assess Tammy and the test indicated problems in 3 areas: autonomous nervous system, the left side of the brain and the left lung.  It further implicated a couple of potential toxin sources: mercury and petrochemicals.

Based on the x-ray we had done last week and a visual exam looking for darkened areas on the teeth, Dr. Davis identified a spot behind the composite filling on Tammy's upper right back molar.  This could represent amalgam that wasn't completely removed back in 2006/7.

Tammy walking into the clinic for her follow-up appointment... 5hrs after the initial one!!

Stylin' & profilin' - this look is all the rage over here : )
Actually, that's a rubber dam to prevent mercury or
debris from being swallowed or absorbed

When we met with our 'case coordinator' following the dental consult, she informed us that there was a cancellation available for 2pm today, if we could arrange to stay and we could get the filling replaced right away!  Gary was able to rearrange some afternoon commitments so we did lunch together in Brisbane then went back to the dental office for 2pm.


At 2:03pm, Tammy went 'under the drill' : )  By 2:26pm, she was getting up out of the dentist's chair, fully amalgam-free!  There was just a speck of mercury inside the tooth which was 'cast out' and the tooth refilled.

Time will tell what effect this little victory will have on Tammy's recovery, but it certainly is a great to know that we've addressed this little bit of residuum.

We drove back to LVS, did Tammy's final live blood analysis with Michael, the newest member of the naturopath team here, and there really wasn't much of significance different from last time.  We then went up to the main centre in preparation for the graduation dinner.  The dinner was once again a wonderful meal and a time for everyone to share their experience at LVS and say 'thanks'.

This program's grad dinner theme: finger foods!

Yes, it tasted as good as it looked : )

Tammy was quite enthralled by the chocolate
cups thing-ys and has requested the recipe...

Room 6, adjacent to the dining room

Yesterday, we changed rooms again (4 room since we've been here!).  The guests who were staying in the room 6, located in the same building as the main centre left, early yesterday morning and offered us the suite since it would mean much less walking for Tammy and less shlepping her up the hill in the wheelchair for me!  It's a beautiful room, and even though it's only for 2 nights and 3 days, it's been a great blessing!

Day 8 - Beginning to Look Forward

Appointments today included a visit to Rod for some quasi-torture that remarkably helped Tammy walk better!  Rod taught me a couple of things but really, we'll have to find folks back home like chiropractors or osteopaths who can help re-adjust some neuro-muscular and/or skeletal issues.

Next was our final consult with Toby during which time we discussed all of the avenues to continue exploring as possible root causes of Tammy's condition.  While mercury toxicity is the principally encountered cause of MS that LVS has seen, there are some other possibilities:

Autoimmune malfunction (u/k cause) - this is the main viewpoint taken by the medical community.  There are a number of possible mechanism proposed that could lead to the body 'turning against itself' in this way, though the true underlying cause is not established.  The testing we've had done that would normally indicate autoimmunity hasn't turned up anything so far, but that doesn't conclusively eliminate some kind of autoimmunity as underlying all of Tammy's symptoms.  This is one area to keep in mind as we go forward with more testing and experience...

Viral infection - e.g. the borrelia virus that causes Lyme's disease.  There is apparently a place in Palo Alto, California called Ingenex that is apparently one of the few places that can perform 'reliable' testing for the presence of the borrelia bacteria.  Maybe we can look into this more while in California on our way home...

Neuromuscular - possibly a pinched nerve leading to secondary mal-adjustments, mis-alignments and whatever other 'misses' you can think of... The temporary improvements that we saw during Rod's treatments were dramatic.  While the malfunctioning muscles could simply not be getting proper info from the brain, the improper signals could also be due to a mechanical problem in the body, perhaps due to historic injuries or the body's response to chronic stress.

Hormonal imbalance - progesterone, estrogen, cortisol and DHEA were suggested by Toby as hormone levels we could have checked to see if all is well.

Dental - we're scheduled to leave for Brisbane tomorrow morning at 6:30am to see the biological dentist Eric Davis and we should get a good sense from him about whether there are any obvious flags in Tammy's dentistry that we should pursue.  And if so, hopefully some leads on folks closer to home who can help!

Along with a slightly tweaked meal and supplement plan, Toby suggested a couple of other things we could do to help strengthen Tammy's body while we seek to address the underlying cause, including:

HBOT, or hyperbaric oxygen therapy - Toby provided some references to papers describing the use of HBOT to help improve MS symptoms (this link is not one of the references, just some info on HBOT & MS).  Not sure how much we can do about this one since we're not aware of any nearby chambers and non-commercial ones are quite expensive and not really at a high enough pressure to get the maximum benefit - we'll see what we can do to address this one!

Supplementation - Toby gave us a stack of papers on which he's summarized a number of publications for studies of MS managed in part using the supplements he has recommended for Tammy.  We are already using most of them, but it's still nice to be able to review the scientific literature ourselves that forms the basis for Toby's and Gary's recommendations for supplements : )

For example, many of the supplements recommended here have been used by Dr. Klenner in his protocol, with some good success in helping MS patients.

What's more, while we've bought our original supply of supplements from Living Valley, we've been able to source comparable supplements from Canada at a much lower price in most instances.


To end the day, we took in Gary's lecture on Meal Planning, part 2.  As usual, was very interesting and worthwhile reviewing once more the philosophy behind the LVS approach to diet.  Gary recommended to the guests to read Weston A. Price's book Nutrition and Physical Degeneration.  We intend to read on further ourselves and compare with what we've learned and believed to date...

The Seventh Day

This second program has flown right by for us!  It's already Saturday and there's really only Sunday and Monday left in the program as Tuesday is basically breakfast and dismissal.

This morning's brekkie.

Like every other Saturday morning during a program, a crew of guests climbed Mount Cooroora in Pomona this morning.  I decided to opt out this time, though it didn't help me much with my sleep as I woke up just before 3:30am anyway.  I 'resisted' the temptation to join the 4am excursion (that wasn't difficult : ) and Tammy and I started our day with breakfast at 8am.  Interesting 'tangle' of mushrooms this morning!

Gary lecturing this morning.

Gary then presented the 'Focus' lecture dealing with the connection between our thoughts and our physiology.  Once again, very interesting talk!  Particularly interesting was the discussion on endorphins, how they're produced and how they affect the body.

Gary also discussed dopamine and it's role in providing get-up-and-go or motivation to get things done; and how it can be increased by our deliberate choice, just like a muscle can be strengthened.

Next came the chapel service at 11:15am where Samuel (marketing manager here) and his recent bride Melanie (an American girl who works in the health shop) led a spiritual presentation on the power of God as demonstrated in the universe and in nature.  The also sang a few songs using the guitar.  A nice time was had by all : )

The view from the gazebo.

After the chapel service John, the colonic therapist for men here, and his recent bride, Joy, took Tammy and  I for a ride up the mountain at the back of the LVS property (there are over 140 acres).  There's a gazebo lookout up there and walking trails leading up to it, but we realized early on that Tammy wouldn't be able to make the trek up there and I wouldn't be able to push, pull or tow her there.  What we didn't realize is that it's a drive-able trail, if you have a 4WD truck - which John does!

Sign marking the trail that we drove down!

It's about 3km round trip and we had a great time scaling the steep inclines on the way up and then holding on for dear life on the even steeper declines on the way down!  

Though it was a bit hazy out, the view from the gazebo was awesome!  We could see farmland below, Lake Cootharaba in the distance and then ocean beyond that.  It was super-kind of John to take us up there!  It has been our universal experience that the staff have gone out of their way to make our stay as wonderful as possible here - and this was one more example : )

Aww, teeny tiny little mangoes along the path to our room.
I wish we could be here to eat them!

Lunch, a snooze, supper and a movie (Crocodile Dundee... didn't realize how foul movies could be even back in 1986!) completed the day.  A bit of rain came later in the afternoon, though nothing like we've read has happened near Wawa, only 2 hrs North of our home, in the past couple of days!

Days 5 & 6 - This & That

We were blessed to have another opportunity yesterday afternoon to see some of the local sights.  Noosa Heads is a tourist-y town within 1/2 hour of Kin Kin, where LVS is located.  The main street is called Hastings Street and it seemed to me to be a very good mix of upscale shops and trendy restaurants with a beachfront town atmosphere.

One end of the beach at Noosa Heads, adjacent to Hastings Street -
the open ocean is just out of the picture to the left...

After a short sight-seeing walk up Hastings Street and then briefly to the beachfront boardwalk, we went out for a nice supper at a marina restaurant.  It was a lovely night away and was wonderful to see a bit of the local charm and beauty that we otherwise would not have seen.  There is so much to see and do here that we definitely look forward to a time when we can travel back for the sake of visiting and sight-seeing!

This morning saw us go through our usual routine of stretch class and breakfast followed by a colonic for Tammy at 9am.  By 10:30 we were back at our room where we spent some time on the deck, in the shade, until I had a chat session with Joanne at 12:00.

We took lunch up at our room because Tammy's legs were still a bit tired from yesterday.  The 2:30 death-knell then sounded time for my second and final colonic.  I wonder if the word came originally from the words "colon" and "ick!"

Front cover of the latest LVS newsletter

The afternoon was open and we relaxed before heading down to the main centre for the supper soup and Gary's lecture on dental issues.  I'm pleased to report that it was just as interesting the second time around!

While we've shared a few details of the information we've received while here, I should mention that much of the lecture content is available on DVDs recorded by LVS.  The 2008 set was recorded in New Zealand, is called "Feeling Great" and sells in the Health Shop here for $50.  The updated lectures have been re-recorded in the main dining room just a couple of programs ago and will be advertised on the LVS free, quarterly, print and online newsletter - Lifestyle Excellence - once they're available for order.  Not a sales pitch - just sayin' : )

Day 5 - Another Clay Day

As I've mentioned before, we've chosen to focus on colonic and clay treatments for Tammy during this second 10-day program.  After having two colonics so far this week, today was time for the first of the two clay wraps this session.

Last time, it was quite warm out and by the time Tammy had showered before her clay treatment, she was pretty much spent.  Rodney thought this might have limited the benefit of the clay treatment if Tammy's body was in a 'stressed' state due to the heat - i.e. less likely to be prepared to release toxins.  In fact, we didn't see any of the typical red rash-like skin discoloration that usually results after a clay wrap.  Angela, the clay therapist, estimated that about 9 of every 10 people experience the redness from the clay.

So Tammy had high hopes for a good rash today!  It was again much cooler today than last time and Tammy was in good condition to start the treatment.  As before, Angela first applied the green clay to the body, wrapped Tammy up in a sheet and blankets, then did a nice facial with almond oil and finished by painting on a gentler, white clay to the face.

After several minutes, Tammy rinsed off in the shower and (drum roll, please...) she had a red rash!  Yay! 

Ok, we really don't know what that means, other than what's happened with others in the past has happened to Tammy this time, and not the last.

A quick read online suggests that the clay works as a 'cation exchanger'.  That means that the clay is negatively charged and adsorbs ions that are positively charged (e.g. heavy metals) through the skin.  The clay particles are super small meaning that a relatively small amount of powder can have a huge amount of surface area - in other words, lots of 'space' or capacity to grab these positively charged ions.

The exfoliating, warm shower taken before the clay wrap is intended to clear the skins pores of sweat and any other debris, while also opening them up a bit using the heat.  This prepares the body to make the most of the clay treatment.  Some clay treatments described online actually use the clay internally!  Thankfully, clay eating for detox is not practiced at LVS!

Day 4 - Cooler Weather

As Canadians, and perhaps even more as Northern Ontarians, we're often consumed by what's going on with the weather [we hear it's rained a lot back home since we left... one email we received recently made allusion to Noah's ark : )]  It seems that this part of Australia would be less preoccupied by the weather because by and large, it sounds like it's a lot more predictable.  Most of our time here has been warm & sunny and somewhere between 25 and 30 degrees with two or three days much warmer and one or two days, noticeably cooler.

The view up the hill to our room from the main centre

Today was one of the cooler days - topped out at maybe 23 or 24 degrees with a cool breeze most of the day - and it made it much easier for Tammy to get around.  The higher temperatures tend to reduce her ability to function for very long; though she's done well overall here given the generally warm weather, the cooler days have certainly been that much better!  This morning, she walked all the way up the hill to our room from the main centre on her own!  She also made it back down the hill later, also without any assistance, which she hasn't been able to do in the warmer weather.  Never thought I'd say this, but it will be good to get back into the cooler weather : )

A view along the path heading back down from our room
The surrounding hills in the distance are just visible
above the tops of the mango trees!

Today's schedule included the 7:15am stretch class, breakfast at 8:00am and then a colonic for Tammy at 9:00am, which I sat in on and asked a bunch of questions.  After my 'experience' yesterday, I was curious to find out more of the technical details.


We had our mid-program consultation with Toby for just over half an hour at 12:00pm and then after lunch, Samira, one of our fellow guests who is currently on her third consecutive program, took us in her vehicle to the nearby town of Gympie so we could check out the mall.  Samira was so thoughtful in affording us this opportunity to 'get out' for an afternoon and we enjoyed the drive and conversation there and back.


We managed to snap this picture of one of the beautiful purple-flowering trees that are quite stunning.  The evening's lighting and camera work by yours truly doesn't really do these trees justice, but you'll get the idea - they really stand out!

Best we can tell from the internet, these trees are called "Jacaranda" trees.  Sadly, they can't be grown in Goulais River : (

Moving Two Dimes (a.k.a. "Paradigm Shift")

After stretch class and breakfast Tammy and I attended a treatment with Rodney ('Rod') who's office and treatment room are in the same building as our room.  Rod is known by all staff as a man with very unique knowledge and skills when it comes to the muscles of the body.  Folks have told us that he "turns muscles on and off".  What's that supposed to mean?!

Today, I found out.  

It's a bit much to explain in a 'short' blog post, and after a single session, I'm not sure I'd do that great a job in passing along the details here.  In short, Rodney manipulates the muscles of the body using only his fingertips and what I'd describe as 'medium' pressure.  He first observes the body and it's mechanics and given his experience, he can almost immediately tell where any muscles may not be functioning.  These muscles may have been 'turned off' by the brain as self-protection against an injury and then simply never turned back on, or because we undertake repetitive activity where we don't use a particular muscle properly.   The body then compensates for the 'turned off' muscle by over-using other muscles.  

Rod doesn't try to reactivate such turned off muscles directly because the brain will usually not allow the muscle to start functioning again because of the 'known' history that caused it to turn off in the first place.  Instead, he works to stimulate such muscles by applying pressure to complementary muscles, usually in apparently unrelated and remote parts of the body.  This approach is more subtle in that it allows the turned off muscle to be stimulated without the brain overriding the request for its use.  After the muscle is 'turned on', Rod has the patient use it at least 3 times, which apparently then informs the brain to accept its use once again.  

Knowing that I'm a scientist, Rod decided to demonstrate the 'turning on and off' to me in a tangible way - perhaps to pre-empt any skepticism!  He had me lie down on his massage table on my back with my arms at my side.  He then had me bicep curl upwards against his grip using my right arm.  I could lift against the pressure he applied without a problem.

Right bicep before muscle turned off...

 Rod then 'turned off' my right bicep in about 15 or 20 seconds and then had me try to lift him again.  Though I had the full sensation of flexing the muscle and I 'felt' as strong as before, I couldn't even budge him a bit!!!  That was a strange experience!  He left my bicep like that for 10 or 15 minutes while he 'turned on' one of the muscles in my quads that he noticed I was compensating for!  He then had me try again to lift him up with the right bicep and - nothing.  Same as before.  Mercifully, he reactivated me in just a few seconds and I was again able to lift him off the ground!  

Right bicep after muscle turned off!  [didn't say whose bicep : )]

With Tammy, he was working to restore some range of muscle functioning to her legs and hips, in large part by stimulating muscles in her neck!  There was some improvement, though nothing overly dramatic.  He also spent some time trying to treat the muscles that control her jaw as her jaw does kind of veer off to her right as it's closing.  He showed me the points to apply pressure on Tammy's jaw and we're supposed to do this 3 times a day until we see him again on Friday.  Rod also pressed on those areas on my jaw (I have a bit of the same veer to the right) and does it ever hurt!  Not a lot of pressure, but loads of pain!

After lunch, I had my first experience with a colonic - a treatment we decided to add for the benefit of my health, and so Tammy could make fun of me!  Seems to have gone well and been quite 'productive'!  I have another one on Friday.  Oh, goody (not sure what emoticon to use to convey sarcasm...)

After supper, we stayed for Gary's lecture on foods and menu planning.  Once again, very interesting information!  LVS promotes a high fat, high protein, low carb diet.  While this is exactly the opposite of the diet we've followed and promoted for years, the science and experience behind the high fat/protein, low carb diet is surprisingly (for our long-time vegetarian minds) quite compelling!  It would take too long to outline all of the points in a blog post like this, but suffice it to say, we will be testing this dietary approach over the next several months to see for ourselves how it works!

R2D2 : )

No, not the robot, but 'Round 2, Day 2' for us at Living Valley Springs!

With the arrival of the new group and the start of a new week, Mark is once again holding daily stretch classes in the chapel at 7:15 each morning.  We started our day with his class, had breakfast at 8:00am, then lounged in our room until 10:30, when Tammy had her first treatment of this second program: a colonic!  She is scheduled to have 4 colonics and 2 clay wraps this time around.  She's also going to have 2 treatments with Rodney this week, looking at any structural or muscle problems he may be able to correct.

[In a disturbing development, I'll also be receiving 2 colonic treatments this week... definitely mixed feelings about these!]

In the afternoon, Gary had the HR Manager here, April, drive us the 1/2 hour into Noosa so Tammy could have a jaw x-ray taken at the hospital there.  This is in preparation for our consult with Dr. Eric Davis, the renowned biological dentist in Brisbane whose work has been key to the recovery of several MS patients who've attended LVS in the past.

Here's what Dr. Davis will look at for our consult.  Anyone willing to offer an amateur opinion? : )

Round 2 - Day 1

The new group of guests began arriving this morning : )  Those of us who were here over the last break had our naturopath consults earlier in the day, freeing up the afternoon consult times for those arriving later.  Tammy and I met with Toby at 9:30am and spent about a half hour catching up on how things went over the break (e.g. steams and vitamin C flush) and confirming the plan for the week ahead.

We then met with Jess again, another one of the naturopaths at LVS and she reviewed Tammy's live blood analysis and re-measured her body composition.  Neither of these techniques is used in mainstream medicine, however, they are not uncommon in alternative medicine practices.

Jess pricking Tammy's finger to draw out a wee drop o' blood

The darkfield microscope, camera and screen used for the analysis

Live blood analysis involves pricking the patient's finger, transferring a drop of blood to a glass slide and then viewing the blood using a darkfield or phase contrast microscope.  The theory behind this test is that there are a number of characteristics to be observed that are considered indicators of certain conditions (not specific diseases) in the body.

This is definitely a controversial analysis and is not accepted as legitimate by 'traditional' medicine.  Simply using the old noggin', it does make sense that diseases could/would manifest in some cases in the condition of the blood; the question then becomes, to what extent can you reliably interpret what is observed?  There is enough info on the internet, both for and against, that anyone interested can look up and make their own decision.

For our part, we've been comfortable that LVS' use of this test has been objective and balanced and isn't being used to 'jump to conclusions'.  It's simply seen as one of many indirect indicators of what's going on inside!

A low mag view of the blood sample taken Oct 21st

For Tammy, Jess did note a larger-than-usual number of white blood cells called eosinophils, which indicate a greater-than-usual immune response in the body.  These are the larger, bright white cells present in the field of view.  

Jess also noted a fair amount of variability in the sizes and shapes of Tammy's red blood cells (the majority of the cells visible - the simple, round circles).  It's hoped that dietary changes we're making here, perhaps along with some of the supplementation, will help Tammy's body build cells such that there are fewer variants - and therefore, the blood 'works' better.

Tammy's blood on October 7th - 1st day of the 1st program...

Tammy's blood on Oct 21st, viewed at the same mag as the Oct 7th pic.

Can you see any difference between October 7th and 21st?  There wasn't much to differentiate between the quality and condition of the eosinophils (white blood cells) and the red blood cells.  However, the red blood cells have a life span of 3 to 4 months, so any improvements in cell formation would only be expected to show up after a few months time.

What was different on today's analysis was the amount of smaller white particles present in the field of view.  On the live view these were moving around quite a bit.  Apparently these smaller bits are nutrients (fat?) being carried about in the blood - products of digestion from a recent meal.  The October 7th pic was taken several hours after breakfast but before lunch whereas today's analysis was just over an hour after breakfast...

Tammy didn't have any other appointments today (Sunday).  Given that it was a really hot day again, which limits Tammy's ability to get around, we spent most of the time between meals in our room with the AC turned up!

The Rest of the Rest

We're into the 2nd 10-day program now after enjoying what was a quiet break.  As mentioned in earlier posts, we used the steams a couple of times and did a vitamin C flush, each of which took some energy out of Tammy.  On Friday, we had a ride arranged by Living Valley to go to the Australia Zoo.  Tammy and i and one other guest - Rosalyn, went together and... we finally saw kangaroos!  We also saw lots of koalas and plenty of other cool animals.  Australia Zoo has done a great job of having spacious, natural areas for all of their animals - very impressive.

Because it was stinkin' hot and we knew we'd be moving around for a few hours, we brought along LVS' wheel chair so that Tammy could take it easy and still see the entire zoo - worked out beautifully.  That, and I'm managing to perfect my work mule sounds : )

A 'red' kangaroo gives me 'the stare'.  The grey kangaroos are smaller, cuter and apparently more common.

Mmmm, corn & pellets!  

A happy customer!  After the 'roos ate the pellets & corn, they immediately turned to their native diet - grazing!!

These guys sleep 20 to 22 hours each day!  Why?  Apparently because of all the energy
that it takes their bodies to digest eucalyptus!  From where we were looking,
this little guy looked like he might've been expired!

On Saturday, we spent a quiet day on the grounds, taking a few naps, sitting out on the deck, reading various books and enjoying the company of the other guests at mealtimes.

And then Sunday, back to the grind!

How Many Different Ways Can You Flush Bowels?

Because cleaning out the bowel is so important when detoxifying, there are several different approaches to getting this done: isotonic water flush, laxative tea, natural laxative capsules, enema, colonic irrigation, to name a few.  Tammy has done these many times over now and today's approach was a first-time experience for her:  The Vitamin C Flush!

There are a few slight variations on the process depending on where you look it up, but for the most part, this flush involves taking a teaspoon of vitamin C powder (sodium ascorbate) in 250mL of water, on rising.  You repeat this every 20 minutes until you get diarrhea!  Once you get to this point, you take 1tsp of charcoal in 250mL of water and the whole show stops pretty much right away.  Simple, eh?

It typically takes a person 4 to 7 servings of vitamin C before 'liquidation' occurs, but per Tammy's usual practice with bowel flushing (i.e. sluggish), she got all the way up to drink #10 and still no action!  This is a challenge because, like an isotonic flush solution, the concentration of vitamin C 'salt' in the water is similar to the concentration of 'stuff' in the blood, so the liquid doesn't absorb through your intestinal wall.  You can imagine the bloating that occurs after drinking 2.5L of water; this is 1/2 litre more than the isotonic flush! 

Gary suggested we stop for an hour after 10 servings and see where things went.  After about 45 minutes, it seemed like things were starting to 'gurgle' and we did one more serving of the vitamin C.  Maybe another 1/2 hour afterwards, we had a 'breakthrough'!  And then about an hour later, the rest of the flush came out and we used the charcoal to stop the treatment.  

From the time we started until we used the charcoal was about 6 hours.  While Tammy just rested during the entire treatment, it still took the mickey out of her and she was a little weak and tired the rest of the day.  We of course took it easy; I wheeled Tammy down to the main centre and back for lunch and dinner.  

Now, she can add another bowel cleansing technique to her resume!  Of course, there are more left to try: next program, Gary suggested we may do the Ghee flush...

Interlude...

Today was our first full day off following the first 10-day program.  It's very quiet around here with only 6 of us guests staying over to the next program (that's more than usual, though) and only one staff member assigned to look after us from morning till night.  After Gavin's heroics with the pumpkin soup last night, June was on the grounds at 5:30am to turn on the steam baths and to start working on everyone's breakfast!  All day long she's plugged away in the kitchen on her own and she's done a great job!

June prepared breakfast, then a mid-morning whey & water drink for four of us, then lunch at 2pm, then a mid-afternoon whey drink, then a supper soup for some, protein shake for Tammy and fruit & yogurt for me : )  The quantity of food that Tammy's expected to eat is certainly more than she's used to; so much so that she asked if she could have the protein drink for supper instead of food!

Tammy and I tried the steam bath again around 11am and she was once again able to do a 10 minute session, this time followed by a cold shower rinse and 10 minutes of rest lying down.  Our second go 'round was only for 5 minutes then a rinse and a rest.  Today, as opposed to yesterday's experience, Tammy lost a fair bit of motor control because of the heat.  She regained a good amount by the time we finished everything, but even by bed-time, she wasn't fully recovered.  In part, we think her recovery was poorer because we used the steam during the heat of the day (30C today, or thereabouts).

That being the case, I brought Tammy up to our room and then carted meals and protein shakes up here from the kitchen and we just relaxed in the shade, on the deck next to our room!  Not a bad way to spend an afternoon!

Besides June, there are a few cleaning and maintenance staff here and there getting things cleaned up and ready for the next program beginning this Sunday.  Gary and Toby were also intermittently in their offices today, catching up on a few things they haven't had time to complete this past week.

Gary was also finalizing a revised nutrition plan for Tammy based on the consult we had with he and Toby on Monday.  We're planning to do a Vitamin C flush tomorrow morning... stay tuned!!  [insert dramatic music here...]

Day 10 - Round 1 Complete

As mentioned in yesterday's post, breakfast this morning was served at 7:15am to accommodate those guests having to leave on the 8:30am bus.  A few members of the group had already left after 7 days of cleansing and 6 of the guests, including Tammy and I, were staying over the 4-day break to participate in the next program, so that left 20 guests, give or take, who were leaving this morning.

The 'bus' really only took a handful of guests away to the airport (Maroochydore?); a smaller group of guests  had separate transport arranged for a little later in the morning, heading for the Brisbane airport.  Perhaps somewhere around a third of the guests lived within 2 hours drive of LVS and several had brought their cars, heading home at various times during the morning.  As the Canadians in the group, we had traveled the furthest to get here by about 15,000km (two or three of the other guests were from Tasmania!).

The route shown would cover over 1/2 the globe if stretched out!  Thankfully, our travels were a lot more direct!

The pink "A" locates Living Valley Springs on the map of Australia!

"A" marks LVS relative to the major cities
of Sidney and Brisbane

Right around 12:00pm, we were told that we could move our things into our room for the break and 2nd 10 day program.  It's a much more spacious room with a nice deck just outside.  Though a bit farther from the main centre, we'll certainly enjoy the extra space and quieter location.

Room 1

Looking from the green chair towards the bathroom door and the deck

The deck, of course!

After lunch we visited with a few of the guests and staff until we'd waited long enough to try a steam bath.  We got into the steam room around 4pm and had a 10 minute steam session followed by a 1 minute cool-off shower; then, since Tammy was actually still able to move her legs decently and to stand (mostly) on her own, we went back in for another 7 minutes and then cooled off again.  

Tammy didn't lose nearly as much function as she has in the past either with saunas or hot baths!  Getting Tammy to sweat regularly will be an important part of the detoxing, hopefully for the rest of our time here!  We'll try another one earlier in the day tomorrow and if Tammy's recovery is as good as it was tonight, we may just try another in the evening!  Of course, we want to be very careful not to push too much...

We rested on the sun deck for about 15 minutes then got dressed, had a cleansing tea at the main centre then headed down to the gym for 5 minutes on the Cellerciser and 10 minutes on the Chi massager. 

During the break various staff will be in to look after meals for the 6 of us guests who are spending the break here.  Gavin, the resident Cellerciser expert and also a therapist, made us an excellent pumpkin soup!

Of note, the front office has arranged a day-trip for us to the Australia Zoo, which was established by Steve Irwin, the famed Crocodile Hunter.  That's supposed to take place this Friday!

Also of note, we've been blessed to have an appointment arranged to see Eric Davis, the biological dentist in Brisbane who's worked with Gary on a number of guests over the years.  We sent ahead some scanned x-rays from 2004, 2005 and 2007 as well as a few pics of Tammy's teeth.  Gary wanted us to get an opinion from someone like Eric as to whether Tammy's cross bite may be playing any role whatsoever in her condition... that's slated for the morning of October 29th... logistics to be determined!

Pull 'em all?!?  ... we do live in Goulais...

Day 9 - A Full Day & Graduation Night!

For all intents and purposes, Day 9 is really the final day of the 10-day session.  After the graduation dinner on Monday night all that remains is a 7:15am breakfast and then the bus arrives at 8:30am to cart folks off to their various destinations (airports, mostly).

Today was actually the busiest day of the entire program for Tammy.  After her usual protein shake breakfast at 8:00am we headed down to the naturopath's building for a counselling session with Joanne at 9am.  I intended to work out, so went to the gym, but it was too soon after breakfast... okay, I wimped out and read instead : )  Good book, though: the story of Hudson Taylor, 19th century missionary to inland China, by Janet & Geoff Benge.

Next, we headed off to Treatment room #10, just up the hill from our room and adjacent to the steam baths, where Tammy was given a good old fashioned massage by June (also her colonic therapist).  Tammy commented afterwards on how surprisingly strong June's fingers were!

After the massage, we headed back down to the naturopath's building for our 12:00pm consult with Toby.  Each guest has three such consults scheduled during the 10 days.  The first is called the "Individual Health Assessment" - we had a jump start on this because we'd consulted with Toby over the phone before coming, meaning he had a lot of info on Tammy's history and current condition.  During this first consult, the week's program is individualized in regards to special dietary needs, supplements that may be useful and which therapies might be emphasized or excluded.

The second consult is the "Mid Program Review" and, as the name implies, it's a time to review how the detox and other therapies are going to see what adjustments need to be made.

The final consult, which we had today, is the "Lifestyle Planning Consultation" where guests are given forward-looking advice on strategies or changes they can apply to continue improving their health and to maintain ground gained while at LVS.  Our consult was a bit different in that we're staying through another 10 day program, so today was more like a 2nd mid-program review.

Gary joined in for this consult and it was especially advantageous to have both he and Toby reviewing and discussing Tammy's status and adjusting her nutrition plan for the next 10-day phase.  We also had a chance to ask more questions and get some good answers.

As a special bonus, Toby showed us several photos of the LVS property over 22 years ago when Gary and his family first bought and began preparing it.  It wasn't quite a bush property, but it wasn't far off.  Turns out that the building we're going to be moving into for the next program (Room 1) was Gary's home until about 12 or 13 years ago!

Lunch was the first meal for all of the guests following the second fasting phase and once again featured a wonderful buffet of salads and condiments.

Post lunch, we headed back to our room and then Tammy walked three doors down to Treatment Room 6 for her third and final colonic irrigation this go round.  This time the treatment was especially fruitful!  The special laxative herb that Gary provided Tammy last night didn't actually do anything by morning (much to Gary's surprise) but it did seem to have loosened things up for the irrigation!

I went for a quick steam bath at 4:30 and we were ready for the graduation supper at 6pm - and what a supper it was!  Nita, the head of the LVS kitchen, explained what all of the dishes were (Lebanese theme) and then we were at it!  It was truly a beautiful meal and a worthy celebration of the time and effort that both guests and staff have put into the past 9 days.

Nita providing an orientation to the night's feast so no one would get lost - it was that big!

After the meal there were 'diplomas' for all of the participants and each one was asked to say just a few words in front of the gathering of guests and staff.


After all of the more formal program Allen showed the DVD and pictures from the Mt. Cooroora climb and gave out certificates.


Finally, Gary addressed the group for a few minutes recounting a few hilarious stories from the past and also telling how Living Valley Springs came to be - in short, it was the story of Divine guidance and a vision to take LVS from no more than a concept to the world class retreat that it's become today!


We'll be sad to say good bye to this group after Tuesday's breakfast, but as for Tammy's health, we're looking forward to the 2nd half of our healing journey with LVS and all of the new guests who'll be arriving next Sunday for lunch!

P.S.  Please consider this limited time offer: if you book a 10-day stay at Living Valley Springs and use one of our coupons below, you'll receive $500 off the cost of your program!  [Offer not valid for residents of Quebec : ) ]  Once we've accumulated four (4) referrals, we'll then be eligible to cash in the dark coupon at the bottom for a 500 clam discount for ourselves!  ; )