12/09-09
Prayer request- Help, I need patience, but I'm afraid to ask God for patience. Last time I did I sat at a red light for 5 minutes before I ran it !
The problem is my progress feels like it's going slow, my Candida is back and I have a new set of side effects. I know it's a fight but it gets old having to repeat things over. I feel like I'm back to where I started, repeating , going in circles to try and reverse the damage I have caused my body over the last 52 years.
Alright God what are you trying to teach me? The answer came to me in this morning's devotional. God's grace is sufficient enough for me; But he, (Paul talking) said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. II Corinthians 12:9
Note; I would not take the thorn out of my side. It has brought me closer to God and family . I consider it a blessing not a curse. Thanks for letting me vent.
On a positive note people tell me I have color in my face and I look better than before. I still need to gain weight, currently 157lbs. The side effects are stable ( hives on legs, sinus infection, Candida), which is all part of purging toxins.
12/14/09-
God has been answering prayers in a big way. Our prayer request was to get a game plan for a holistic cure of cancer, and have chemo as a last resort. Through all the referrals from you, we have found 2 Christian Doctors (no coincidence) with schedules so full that the earliest opening was April. God opened those doors and within one week I was able to see both, an ND ( masters in nutrition), and Health Practitioner (masters in chemistry). They gave us the primary pieces to the puzzle. I took this information to my Oncologist and let him know that I wanted to try a Holistic approach for a month or so, and we would test the progress with blood tests. He agreed, and said we could do chemo in conjunction if desired. For now no Chemo for the month of December. I had my blood tested today and most of my functions are close to normal range, Thank you God!
12/18/09-
The pieces of the puzzle are as follows.
1. Attack the cancer to stabilize the growth. This is done with a balanced PH diet. Cancer cannot live in a alkaline state. Get the body to a stabilized 7.5 ph. Alkaline foods- Lemon in water, avocados, raw or min cooked green vegetables ect.., no sugar foods, no yeast foods, no mold foods (cheese).
2. Detoxify the body, things like, Colon cleanse to start, Sinus wash, Consume Alkaline minerals (zeolite). Later I will do the Liver and kidneys.
3. Restore the Body's natural cancer fighting mechanisms. Sounds good but the problem is, it takes time which a cancer patient doesn't have. The process starts with supplements, which I have been taking, and over time they get replaced with food. Note: not all supplements will be replaced. The calcium will stay. This is known as normalizing cellular metabolism, defense, repair, and detoxification. I'm excited about the repair piece!
4. Finally- Obtain complete healing not just remission which I believe can be achieved through Holist process and a lot of prayer. Complete healing is stabilizing the immune system and physiological functions.
The New Wellness plan needs your prayers," Lord please allow this treatment to heal me fully, and keep me from any duplication of treatments."
Note: I have Hope and Faith in Gods plans, and would ask you to help me pray that if God needs for me to be doing something else that God would reveal his plans to me. I also pray for wisdom as I try to recover.
FYI- Zeolite- a mineral used to alkalize, detoxify, and reverse the negative charge of a malignant WBC which will allow the body to destroy it naturally.
www.cancer fighting strategies.com/zeolite.html Note: Sodium bicarbonate is alkaline, food Enzyme therapy is for the immune system, and removing Free radicals with anti oxidants is something we should all be doing. My next Blood test is 12/22/09 I will let you know how it goes.
Friday, December 18, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
11-30-09 The blog starts on Date October 20, 2009
The new me; I now live one day at a time, in the present, I give the control to God, and his purpose directs me which takes off the mental stress. Life is a whole lot easier when I align my plans with His purpose, and so it is.
I have learned that Whole Body Healing is being healthy physically, mentally and spiritually. I used to rely on my physical health as my primary baseline, and spiritual as a strong second. " I was always trying to be in control not living with Gods purpose as a priority". Well that’s all changed, I no longer have my health which was my primary focus , now it's my spiritual strength that I rely on. Having spiritual life as a primary focus is amazing. To start with all my worries are now in God's hands which means that it will all work out one way or another. My health will come back in time. The new me, Chill out mentally, I have always multitasked, my mind never rests, I'm always working on something. My health problems were a combination of health and mental factors. With spiritual strength I can manage the mental health which gives me Hope.
I feel great, but as my immune system changes the toxins are working their way out of my body with side effects like Shingles, Hives, and Sinus infection. My prayer request is to have the itching stop. I will survive. My current Health focus is on Alternative medicine options that eliminate cancer cells without destroying the immune system( good white blood cells). I have identified some options I have yet to try. Sodium bicarbonate shots that increases the alkaline in the blood; cancer cells cannot live in an alkaline body (Too expensive for now). I'm trying to eat an alkaline diet to slow down the cell growth. You want to stay well, eat alkaline foods and keep your ph balanced at 7.35. Thanksgiving didn't help with all the acidic foods, they sure did taste good and now I'm paying the price with my health! Ozone shots oxygenate the blood which kills off cancer cells, the problem is the cost of getting enough shots until the immune system can pick up where the shots stop.
My prayer request- God if it's your will please remove the cancer cells from my body, stop the itching on my legs, and remove the sinus infection. I have no doubt that somehow I will survive. The question is will it be by an alternative method or conventional wisdom. I have an appointment 11-03-09 at 9a.m. to 11a.m. to remove toxins with radio wave frequencies and a machine called a Rife machine. I'll let you know how it goes. My Oncologist says as long as it doesn't impend our process then it's ok with them. I think the idea of destroying cancer cells without destroying the good WBC's is the best approach. I hope it works. Thank you all for your prayers. End.
The new me; I now live one day at a time, in the present, I give the control to God, and his purpose directs me which takes off the mental stress. Life is a whole lot easier when I align my plans with His purpose, and so it is.
I have learned that Whole Body Healing is being healthy physically, mentally and spiritually. I used to rely on my physical health as my primary baseline, and spiritual as a strong second. " I was always trying to be in control not living with Gods purpose as a priority". Well that’s all changed, I no longer have my health which was my primary focus , now it's my spiritual strength that I rely on. Having spiritual life as a primary focus is amazing. To start with all my worries are now in God's hands which means that it will all work out one way or another. My health will come back in time. The new me, Chill out mentally, I have always multitasked, my mind never rests, I'm always working on something. My health problems were a combination of health and mental factors. With spiritual strength I can manage the mental health which gives me Hope.
I feel great, but as my immune system changes the toxins are working their way out of my body with side effects like Shingles, Hives, and Sinus infection. My prayer request is to have the itching stop. I will survive. My current Health focus is on Alternative medicine options that eliminate cancer cells without destroying the immune system( good white blood cells). I have identified some options I have yet to try. Sodium bicarbonate shots that increases the alkaline in the blood; cancer cells cannot live in an alkaline body (Too expensive for now). I'm trying to eat an alkaline diet to slow down the cell growth. You want to stay well, eat alkaline foods and keep your ph balanced at 7.35. Thanksgiving didn't help with all the acidic foods, they sure did taste good and now I'm paying the price with my health! Ozone shots oxygenate the blood which kills off cancer cells, the problem is the cost of getting enough shots until the immune system can pick up where the shots stop.
My prayer request- God if it's your will please remove the cancer cells from my body, stop the itching on my legs, and remove the sinus infection. I have no doubt that somehow I will survive. The question is will it be by an alternative method or conventional wisdom. I have an appointment 11-03-09 at 9a.m. to 11a.m. to remove toxins with radio wave frequencies and a machine called a Rife machine. I'll let you know how it goes. My Oncologist says as long as it doesn't impend our process then it's ok with them. I think the idea of destroying cancer cells without destroying the good WBC's is the best approach. I hope it works. Thank you all for your prayers. End.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
November 17, 2009- Tuesday My Liver is back!
Thank you God for answering all the prayers. My whole day was made when the RN from the Doctors office called and said that my liver was no longer elevated, and returned to the middle of the normal range. The problem with cancer and the liver, is the die off rate from the chemo and the speed in which the liver can filter out the dead cells ( good and bad cells).
Note: My body is responding very well to the chemo treatment. The chemo is killing everything in sight which is bad, but I 'm doing a lot of things right and God is blessing me with health. There are 3 measures as to how cancer goes away, (decrease abnormal cells and / or increase the immune system), including;
#1. The Liver ( AST) 0-40 normal range. On 11-10-09 I was at 103, today 27 YAA!
#2. CBC for size, numbers, and maturity of cells. WBC's ( white blood cells that fight infection) normal range 4.5-10.5 ,on 11-10-09 my WBC's were at 3.0 which is too low to fight off bad WBc's, they gave me a shot (6 ml of Neulastra). Today my WBC's at a normal level YAA!
#3. LDH- is a general indicator of the existence of the severity of Cell tissue damage. 11-10-09 normal range 100-250, I'm at 251 which means high damage. However, the infection is being destroyed so that's the good. The goal is to get the indicators in normal range and keep them there. Pray for minimal cell damage.
Prayer request: Lord please help my internal organs avoid damage, the liver, the spleen, the kidneys, the heart, the lungs, the thyroid, the lymphoid, and help lower my LDH to a perfect level, give me an appetite and the strength to keep eating.
I'm feeling a little tired of the battle, God will you hold my torch for awhile as I need the strength only you can give me. I know my road is long, keep me in your presence Lord. Thank you God for answering these prayers, we love you.
I am currently reading 3 books and they all have a common theme, focus on Positive Mental Imaging. Visualize the infection going away. Meditate daily on what it will feel like after the cancer is gone. Whole body healing, mind, body, and soul. My soul is good, I have a great relationship with God, Jesus, and the Holy spirit, but my Mind needs help.
Stress, being to wound up, not living in the present, but always multi tasking about future events. I am now going back to the simple things and clearing my mind for positive mental healing. Emotional anticipation (Hope) for the new life I am now living. I think stress played a role in getting sick. I need to change my life currently, and going forward to get well . A complete life style change.
Note: I have been complaining about my stomach being sore; it was my liver. I didn't know the liver is at the top of the stomach just below the ribs on both sides. It makes sense that my liver would be in pain with all the chemo drugs and dead cells that are being filtered out of my blood. Thank you all for the prayers, and know that you are also blessed for blessing others.
Thank you God for answering all the prayers. My whole day was made when the RN from the Doctors office called and said that my liver was no longer elevated, and returned to the middle of the normal range. The problem with cancer and the liver, is the die off rate from the chemo and the speed in which the liver can filter out the dead cells ( good and bad cells).
Note: My body is responding very well to the chemo treatment. The chemo is killing everything in sight which is bad, but I 'm doing a lot of things right and God is blessing me with health. There are 3 measures as to how cancer goes away, (decrease abnormal cells and / or increase the immune system), including;
#1. The Liver ( AST) 0-40 normal range. On 11-10-09 I was at 103, today 27 YAA!
#2. CBC for size, numbers, and maturity of cells. WBC's ( white blood cells that fight infection) normal range 4.5-10.5 ,on 11-10-09 my WBC's were at 3.0 which is too low to fight off bad WBc's, they gave me a shot (6 ml of Neulastra). Today my WBC's at a normal level YAA!
#3. LDH- is a general indicator of the existence of the severity of Cell tissue damage. 11-10-09 normal range 100-250, I'm at 251 which means high damage. However, the infection is being destroyed so that's the good. The goal is to get the indicators in normal range and keep them there. Pray for minimal cell damage.
Prayer request: Lord please help my internal organs avoid damage, the liver, the spleen, the kidneys, the heart, the lungs, the thyroid, the lymphoid, and help lower my LDH to a perfect level, give me an appetite and the strength to keep eating.
I'm feeling a little tired of the battle, God will you hold my torch for awhile as I need the strength only you can give me. I know my road is long, keep me in your presence Lord. Thank you God for answering these prayers, we love you.
I am currently reading 3 books and they all have a common theme, focus on Positive Mental Imaging. Visualize the infection going away. Meditate daily on what it will feel like after the cancer is gone. Whole body healing, mind, body, and soul. My soul is good, I have a great relationship with God, Jesus, and the Holy spirit, but my Mind needs help.
Stress, being to wound up, not living in the present, but always multi tasking about future events. I am now going back to the simple things and clearing my mind for positive mental healing. Emotional anticipation (Hope) for the new life I am now living. I think stress played a role in getting sick. I need to change my life currently, and going forward to get well . A complete life style change.
Note: I have been complaining about my stomach being sore; it was my liver. I didn't know the liver is at the top of the stomach just below the ribs on both sides. It makes sense that my liver would be in pain with all the chemo drugs and dead cells that are being filtered out of my blood. Thank you all for the prayers, and know that you are also blessed for blessing others.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
November 10, 2009- Answered Prayer. Count it all joy. Well, here I sit in the Oncologists clinic, getting my 2nd round of chemo (9am-5pm). I am doing well, no headaches just a low grade Brain fog, numb feeling! After 7 1/2 hours of chemo for the day, the power of prayer is definitely working, I feel great all things considering.
I had an allergic reaction to the Rituxan earlier (my ears were itching like crazy); this was solved with 50 mg of Benadryl.
So I’m sitting here reviewing the Doctors notes to update the blog, when I realized I weighed in this morning at exactly 163lbs! It made me so happy to have a positive affirmation from God. Do you remember my prayer request last week asking everyone to pray for my weight to be 163lbs before this round of treatment? Well here we are, and thanks to your prayers God answered our prayer request! Let all your requests be known to God, phil 4:4-6. Thank you for the blessing of prayer. God is great, and his love is never ending. Gaining this weight is huge; Chemo can take a lot of weight off in a very short period of time. If there’s any doubt that God answers prayers, here is your proof. By the way, with the volume I’ve been eating I could have easily weighed twice that.
Did you know that jumping on the trampoline stimulates your Lymph nodes , it’s true, and what does that have to do with Cancer you ask? The B cells in the lymph nodes remove the dead WBC’s (white blood cells, infection) from your body! Jumping in general will stimulate the lymph nodes to help process quicker. Now why doesn’t the Doctor tell you that? I don’t know, however she confirmed it, and went on to say she jumps on her kids Tramp all the time, go figure, thanks Doc.
This is great news; eliminating the cells quicker will help the body remove the byproduct quicker, before it becomes a problem for the Liver and kidneys. Jumping stimulates the lymph nodes which were designed for removing dead WBC’s from your system. Sick or well, there’s something we can all use. Another something else to note, supplemental eating or drinking of antioxidants during chemo is a no, no. Controversial because Doctors and Nutritionals can’t say if they really interfere with the Chemo. Antioxidents protect the good WBC’s to keep the free radicals from spreading.
Prayer requests- My spleen is still enlarged and sometimes hurts when I move around. Lord please heal my spleen and the cause that surrounds it. Thank you Lord for answering our prayers !
I had an allergic reaction to the Rituxan earlier (my ears were itching like crazy); this was solved with 50 mg of Benadryl.
So I’m sitting here reviewing the Doctors notes to update the blog, when I realized I weighed in this morning at exactly 163lbs! It made me so happy to have a positive affirmation from God. Do you remember my prayer request last week asking everyone to pray for my weight to be 163lbs before this round of treatment? Well here we are, and thanks to your prayers God answered our prayer request! Let all your requests be known to God, phil 4:4-6. Thank you for the blessing of prayer. God is great, and his love is never ending. Gaining this weight is huge; Chemo can take a lot of weight off in a very short period of time. If there’s any doubt that God answers prayers, here is your proof. By the way, with the volume I’ve been eating I could have easily weighed twice that.
Did you know that jumping on the trampoline stimulates your Lymph nodes , it’s true, and what does that have to do with Cancer you ask? The B cells in the lymph nodes remove the dead WBC’s (white blood cells, infection) from your body! Jumping in general will stimulate the lymph nodes to help process quicker. Now why doesn’t the Doctor tell you that? I don’t know, however she confirmed it, and went on to say she jumps on her kids Tramp all the time, go figure, thanks Doc.
This is great news; eliminating the cells quicker will help the body remove the byproduct quicker, before it becomes a problem for the Liver and kidneys. Jumping stimulates the lymph nodes which were designed for removing dead WBC’s from your system. Sick or well, there’s something we can all use. Another something else to note, supplemental eating or drinking of antioxidants during chemo is a no, no. Controversial because Doctors and Nutritionals can’t say if they really interfere with the Chemo. Antioxidents protect the good WBC’s to keep the free radicals from spreading.
Prayer requests- My spleen is still enlarged and sometimes hurts when I move around. Lord please heal my spleen and the cause that surrounds it. Thank you Lord for answering our prayers !
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
November 1, 2009- Your prayers are being answered, I have wellness ,at least for now.
Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
The delay in updating this blog is due to my wellness, YAA! I have been skiing in the back country, walking on the golf course at night, and doing my pushups. I need to start lifting more weights. The goal is to gain weight for wellness ( because I’m too skinny ), and the next round of chemo starts on Tuesday 11-10-09 which is going to take more weight off me, and I don’t have it to lose.
The goals for prayer are to gain 5 lbs in the next weeks ahead. Thank you God for all the people praying , I know that you hear our prayers, I definitely feel the power of all those prayers. I have gained 4 pounds the last week and a half, thanks to prayer, and those of you that brought food, thanks.
My body fat is measuring at 1.2% currently which is in the danger zone. It should be at least 5% or 6% minimum. My weight went from 173 to 154 and is at 158 currently. The final goal is 180 and the current goal is 163. A lot of you have offered to give me some of yours, sorry I couldn’t help as I would gladly take it.
The chemo is working! The bad white blood cells that started out very high are currently very low. Low is good. The goal is to get the good white blood cells to reproduce and eliminate the bad WBC’s. The good WBC are the body’s way of fighting infection. The Doctors have me back on antibiotics because I have little to no immune system. I’m back to where I started only now the infection is much lower.
I have been trying to minimize bad cell growth with a good diet of antioxidents which remove free radicals (cancer), and alkaline foods to balance the PH (large intestine/ immune system). Something interesting to note is that once bad cancer cells (WBC) start reproducing more bad cells, the DNA in the cell changes, and unless you completely remove them with a Bone marrow transplant, you live with the cancer and hope it stays in remission.
My prayer request and the reason I give all this to you is that I hope and pray for a miracle from God that my bad cancer WBC’s would go to zero without a transplant and my good WBC’s would regenerate my immune system back to a normal state.
10-28-09- This email is to let you know “I have decided I don’t have cancer anymore, I’m going back to work, cancer is too expensive! Being sick takes too much time and I don’t know how anyone affords it. Being sick is for the rich. I figure with the good insurance I will still spend $10,000 in the next 6 months.
The main reason is that holistic nutrition is not covered. We've had to take a hard look at our own personal insurance needs and thank God we have already purchased enough life insurance. (At this point I'm not insurable). Now is a good time to review your own insurance needs, because you just never know what God has in store. I'd love the opportunity to sit down and review your insurance needs over the phone or in person. 303-321-0039.
Food, the amount of food I have to consume in one day is ridiculous , 5 meals. I am burning 2,200 calories just sitting around. Do you know how much food it takes to just sit around? A lot, I should get a job in a kitchen as a cook, and what’s with all the gas? Enough already! The problem with chemistry is that the body is fighting a war. The antibiotics remove all the Probiotics, flora, and acidophilus which keeps my stomach turning over and over.
The lower intestine is constantly turning over ; quiet down there. What’s with the gas? Maybe it’s from the juicing. Now I know juicing is great for vitamins and nutrients but talk about a quick way to go through a bag of groceries from whole foods. I love you all, thanks for being with me for the ride. I hope to be cancer free in May . My new motto is "I've decided I don’t have cancer anymore - it's too expensive" !
Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
The delay in updating this blog is due to my wellness, YAA! I have been skiing in the back country, walking on the golf course at night, and doing my pushups. I need to start lifting more weights. The goal is to gain weight for wellness ( because I’m too skinny ), and the next round of chemo starts on Tuesday 11-10-09 which is going to take more weight off me, and I don’t have it to lose.
The goals for prayer are to gain 5 lbs in the next weeks ahead. Thank you God for all the people praying , I know that you hear our prayers, I definitely feel the power of all those prayers. I have gained 4 pounds the last week and a half, thanks to prayer, and those of you that brought food, thanks.
My body fat is measuring at 1.2% currently which is in the danger zone. It should be at least 5% or 6% minimum. My weight went from 173 to 154 and is at 158 currently. The final goal is 180 and the current goal is 163. A lot of you have offered to give me some of yours, sorry I couldn’t help as I would gladly take it.
The chemo is working! The bad white blood cells that started out very high are currently very low. Low is good. The goal is to get the good white blood cells to reproduce and eliminate the bad WBC’s. The good WBC are the body’s way of fighting infection. The Doctors have me back on antibiotics because I have little to no immune system. I’m back to where I started only now the infection is much lower.
I have been trying to minimize bad cell growth with a good diet of antioxidents which remove free radicals (cancer), and alkaline foods to balance the PH (large intestine/ immune system). Something interesting to note is that once bad cancer cells (WBC) start reproducing more bad cells, the DNA in the cell changes, and unless you completely remove them with a Bone marrow transplant, you live with the cancer and hope it stays in remission.
My prayer request and the reason I give all this to you is that I hope and pray for a miracle from God that my bad cancer WBC’s would go to zero without a transplant and my good WBC’s would regenerate my immune system back to a normal state.
10-28-09- This email is to let you know “I have decided I don’t have cancer anymore, I’m going back to work, cancer is too expensive! Being sick takes too much time and I don’t know how anyone affords it. Being sick is for the rich. I figure with the good insurance I will still spend $10,000 in the next 6 months.
The main reason is that holistic nutrition is not covered. We've had to take a hard look at our own personal insurance needs and thank God we have already purchased enough life insurance. (At this point I'm not insurable). Now is a good time to review your own insurance needs, because you just never know what God has in store. I'd love the opportunity to sit down and review your insurance needs over the phone or in person. 303-321-0039.
Food, the amount of food I have to consume in one day is ridiculous , 5 meals. I am burning 2,200 calories just sitting around. Do you know how much food it takes to just sit around? A lot, I should get a job in a kitchen as a cook, and what’s with all the gas? Enough already! The problem with chemistry is that the body is fighting a war. The antibiotics remove all the Probiotics, flora, and acidophilus which keeps my stomach turning over and over.
The lower intestine is constantly turning over ; quiet down there. What’s with the gas? Maybe it’s from the juicing. Now I know juicing is great for vitamins and nutrients but talk about a quick way to go through a bag of groceries from whole foods. I love you all, thanks for being with me for the ride. I hope to be cancer free in May . My new motto is "I've decided I don’t have cancer anymore - it's too expensive" !
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
10-21-09
10-21-09 Prayer request: The chemo from last week whiped out what little immune system I had, and I'm back on antibiotics. This is the only way to keep me from getting sick and worse. I feel like I am starting all over in the process of rebuilding my good bacteria. I think thats why they call it "fighting" cancer. I feel good, and the nutritionish has me eating enough for a third world. It's all joy. Brad
Oct 21
Hi Friends
Brad started Chemo on Oct 12, so we started reading a Psalm each day - it's amazing how God is reaveling himself to us ! Join us won't you ? We're on Psalm 10 today. (Thanks Bob and Karen Rausch for the inspiration!)
For those of you who have "Streams in the Dessert" devotional, today's topic is on our bodies being Holy Temples ! It's awesome.
Love you all !
Hi Friends
Brad started Chemo on Oct 12, so we started reading a Psalm each day - it's amazing how God is reaveling himself to us ! Join us won't you ? We're on Psalm 10 today. (Thanks Bob and Karen Rausch for the inspiration!)
For those of you who have "Streams in the Dessert" devotional, today's topic is on our bodies being Holy Temples ! It's awesome.
Love you all !
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Brad Stephens Update Oct 20, 2009
October 2009
Count it all Joy ! (James 1:2)
A blog from Brad Stephens.
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia – (CLL), curable with many symptoms and side effects. With Cancer of the Lymphoid and in the Bone marrow, it is possible to die, however many go on to tell the story.
This is what I intend to do. As a Christian I give it all to God. He is the ultimate healer and with the help of all the many people he has put in my path ( Doctors, Pastors, praying caring loving people with a true heart for God and compassion), all things are possible. I do believe in miracles and life with divine purpose.
The intent of this blog is to keep all of you up to date, and know the Stephens Family ( Brad, Linda, Luke, and Lauren), have felt your prayers and support from the start. We consider you all blessings.
1. Who is Brad Stephens ? Well I can tell you at 52 I am very athletic and think of my self in good shape with no identifiable reasons for health concerns. I like to push sports beyond average reason. God has blessed me with athletics. Thank you God.
2. What were the signs that lead to the blood tests you ask? Looking back there were many; turns out it was Candida ( an over growth of yeast caused, in my case by an immune system that had been destroyed with too many years of antibiotics). Carbohydrates and sugar will accelerate the growth of Candida yeast which leads to mold and creates a by-product . This by- product is a low grade viral infection which raises the white blood cells in order to get the immune system back in balance . All good unless your immune system isn't working right.
3. Where the story begins: In September the beer is cold(yeast), a lot of fruit is in season (sugar), and no real alarm because Candida will manage what my immune system can't, to get the PH in my stomach back in balance. The problem is with a sub-par immune system ( from the antibiotics) the Candida went wild and filled my system with mold which mutated to a low grade viral infection. Fix your immune system! I wish some one had told that to me( probiotics and acidophilus). Left unchecked the infection goes to your lower intestine and later migrates to all parts of the body which happened to me. Yeast is designed to send White blood cells to destroy the infection which is all good except The Mind remembers the host, and next time you come in contact with that fruit, bread, cheese, beer, moldy fresh cut lawn, your body triggers an allergic reaction. At this point the food in question will be removed by the (WBC) white blood cells and the thyroid will not convert the food to vitamins or minerals - again my problem. The consequence is the vitamins come out of muscle tissue and the minerals come out of your bones. I have lost 20 pounds in a 18 months time. Five of that in the last week. My body is consuming itself.
4. When I sat at my desk one sunny Friday afternoon with the basement window open ,the fresh cut lawn from across the street rolled in the window and smelled great. One hour later, at lunch with a friend the histamines in my body identified the mold as an allergy, turned it into a swollen right hand and sent me to urgent care to get a steroid shot because the circulation was getting cut off in the first three fingers. Now there’s a sign something is wrong, but I still didn't get it. Steroid are antibiotics, which sent my immune system even down further. My fingers were ok but the yeast and mold was now a full blown infection through out my body. What's interesting is; this didn't happen over night, the process took years.
5. Why had my primary Doctor had been giving me antibiotics on and off every year for the last 5 years ? I think it was a lack of knowledge in general nutrition on his part, and my ignorance for not putting the pieces together sooner. I was told I had sinus and bronchitis infections. It was the histamines!!! Not fixing my immune system was the problem, which created the infection. Another mystery solved was years of lifting weights and wondering why I couldn't gain the bulk I wanted . It was because Carbohydrates turn to sugar, great for energy and weight gain unless you have a low immune system, low grade infection which then only added to the problem.
6. How did Brad end up figuring out the problem? Well after my fingers swelled up the blood vessels started breaking under the skin every time I put any pressure on them. It felt like I burnt them on the stove a condition known as purpura. Now God had my attention. I went to get a full blood test known as a CBC, which showed high WBC's and low blood platelets. My Doctor said " Well it looks like a low grade infection which should go away in about a week or two. Let's do another CBC next week." The second CBC came in which was worse than the first. By this time, I fired him and I found an Acupuncturist ( Chinese Medical Herbs), Chiropractor Healer with Kinesiology back ground, and a Doctor of internal Medicine that would look at my medical history and blood relative to the chart. I was told I either did a lot of drugs , a lot of alcohol or I had blood cancer. I then found the best Hematologist / Oncologist within a reasonable distance to a Hospital of choice and my house.
October 1, 2009- ( Thursday), The Hematologist orders a test of the bone marrow and CT scan of the spleen for the following day. " We should have the test results back the following Thursday", and we set the appointment.
October 8,2009- (Thursday), I'm in a room with the Oncologist and my new Internal Medical Doctor when I get the news that I have cancer. You know that numbing feeling you get when in shock. Now you need to now I have great faith in Christ, and his promise is "not to harm me or to forsake me but to give me hope and a future…" Well A couple of days before, Linda and I were on line because every blood test was indicating Cancer, and Linda had checked out a book on Leukemia which we read prior to going in for the bone marrow results. God gave me peace through the book. I thought by some chance God may spare me with an infection known as Candida, and something as easy as a immunoglobulin IV. I sat there with out expression and when I finally tried to speak I started to hold back the tears. It wasn't the fear of knowing I have cancer, or the fear of dying, I trusted God would take of me. It was that every person who survived cancer had a strong faith and the will to live, and I saw myself at the finish line with a bunch of you there and me knowing I survived. My life is like the race. I ran the good race, I fought the good fight and God blessed me, used me and I survived.
I saw my self at the finish line with all of you there, and knowing that I survived and God said Brad, job well done, good and faithful servant. The idea that I could have my cake and eat it too and visualizing me completing a triathlon and knowing that in some way I beat the odds and would be a better person once I completed the race.
You see for me all my prayers will be answered. If this infection had not been caught, in 10 to 15 years I would not be here. I have advanced level 4 CLL. It's the fourth quarter of the game. My prayers are to grow old with my children. I needed to be sick now when my odds of survival are much better. I have wanted to gain weight most of my life, now it's possible thanks to God. I get my immune system back.
I was now on the path of enlightenment and I don't mean spiritual. My spiritual is in tack or so I thought. God had other plans and answered my prayers that all came together in one big promise. He promises to protect me and heal me, not to harm me and to use me for his kingdom and glory. My prayers are to see my young 8 and 6 year old kids grow old some day. I also pray for God to use me in some way to help others.
10-08-09 Thursday-Diagnosed with CLL
10-09-09 Friday-Cat scan- I have an enlarged spine. What this means is my large blood cells are having trouble getting through. The Oncologist says it's ok for now.
10-10,11-09 Saturday, Sunday I went Elk hunting to clear my head.
10-12-09 Monday-The beginning of Chemo. I showed up at 8am and for the next 8 hours I took intravenous drugs to reduce the infection in my body.
10-13-09 Tuesday-Chemo for another 3 hours ( Retuxin, Fludora, Cytoxin)
10-14-09 Wednesday-Chemo for 2 hours and 1 hour of Immunoglobulin's for the rebuilding of the immune system.
10-15-09 Thursday-Pet scan. Thank God for IPods ( Genova). They stick you in a X-ray scanning tube for 1/2 hour. Yes I took a nap.
10-16-09 Friday- the end of a very fast and crazy week. Just in time to have the side effects of Chemo start. My stomach was void of good bacteria and it felt like someone microwaved it. I wasn't hungry and didn’t care about food. Even the thought didn't matter, and to know me is to know that I love to eat. My sense of smell became acute and I found it hard to be in public. I lived with a low grade headache at the base of the skull and my hearing was a little fuzzy. All light seemed brighter and I was more sensitive to it. Can you say constipated, for the first time of my life, wow. That was quickly changed with 1200mg of fish oil. The good news is that I got up Saturday and it I was back to 100% energy . Light breakfast and off to Luke's Soccer game.
10-17-09 Saturday- beautiful weather , I felt great as long as I snacked in between meals and I ate foods I had not eaten for 2 months. The Chemo and immunoglobulin's were bringing my system back to the middle ground where I could eat good high calorie foods. Sunday the same food choices, with mild headaches every now and again. The church Elders and others prayed over Linda and I with the power of God, and the Holy spirit. "Gods will be done!"
10-19-09 Monday-Talked to the Internal Medicine Doctor about my pet scan results which is to identify if my cancer has moved to other parts of the body ( metastasized). She said good news that it has stayed in my arm pits, stomach, chest, neck . I think it's in my sinus also but it was not part of the test. God is answering prayers!
10-20-09 Tuesday- 10 am I go in for a complete CBC blood test to see if the Chemo cocktail is strong enough and what progress has been made. Then I meet with a nutritionist (across town) which I am excited to do. The problem is the team approach isn't really a team approach. Holistic and western medicine part ways somewhere in the middle. Dear God, put the right Doctors in charge of helping my wellness and recovery, amen. I fear there is duplication in the supplements that I take, between the Acupuncturist, Chiropractor (Kinesiology healer), and Herbalist. There is also the Chemo and immunoglobulin’s . So tomorrow I get my Flora (digestion) right, possibly a process to correct my system without duplication, and may be a diet with calories to start a workout program.
Note the next Chemo is November 10,11,12, another 12 hours of treatment. I'm told the Chemo reduces in the body over time but the effects and symptoms are cumulative which means strap on your seat belt. This treatment is going all the way to May 1st, unless God has other plans. All of your prayers are felt and I know my needs and family needs will only increase in time, thank you in advance for you and everything you do.
This is all for now. Brad Stephens bcsfinplan2@aol.com 303-321-0039
Count it all Joy ! (James 1:2)
A blog from Brad Stephens.
Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia – (CLL), curable with many symptoms and side effects. With Cancer of the Lymphoid and in the Bone marrow, it is possible to die, however many go on to tell the story.
This is what I intend to do. As a Christian I give it all to God. He is the ultimate healer and with the help of all the many people he has put in my path ( Doctors, Pastors, praying caring loving people with a true heart for God and compassion), all things are possible. I do believe in miracles and life with divine purpose.
The intent of this blog is to keep all of you up to date, and know the Stephens Family ( Brad, Linda, Luke, and Lauren), have felt your prayers and support from the start. We consider you all blessings.
1. Who is Brad Stephens ? Well I can tell you at 52 I am very athletic and think of my self in good shape with no identifiable reasons for health concerns. I like to push sports beyond average reason. God has blessed me with athletics. Thank you God.
2. What were the signs that lead to the blood tests you ask? Looking back there were many; turns out it was Candida ( an over growth of yeast caused, in my case by an immune system that had been destroyed with too many years of antibiotics). Carbohydrates and sugar will accelerate the growth of Candida yeast which leads to mold and creates a by-product . This by- product is a low grade viral infection which raises the white blood cells in order to get the immune system back in balance . All good unless your immune system isn't working right.
3. Where the story begins: In September the beer is cold(yeast), a lot of fruit is in season (sugar), and no real alarm because Candida will manage what my immune system can't, to get the PH in my stomach back in balance. The problem is with a sub-par immune system ( from the antibiotics) the Candida went wild and filled my system with mold which mutated to a low grade viral infection. Fix your immune system! I wish some one had told that to me( probiotics and acidophilus). Left unchecked the infection goes to your lower intestine and later migrates to all parts of the body which happened to me. Yeast is designed to send White blood cells to destroy the infection which is all good except The Mind remembers the host, and next time you come in contact with that fruit, bread, cheese, beer, moldy fresh cut lawn, your body triggers an allergic reaction. At this point the food in question will be removed by the (WBC) white blood cells and the thyroid will not convert the food to vitamins or minerals - again my problem. The consequence is the vitamins come out of muscle tissue and the minerals come out of your bones. I have lost 20 pounds in a 18 months time. Five of that in the last week. My body is consuming itself.
4. When I sat at my desk one sunny Friday afternoon with the basement window open ,the fresh cut lawn from across the street rolled in the window and smelled great. One hour later, at lunch with a friend the histamines in my body identified the mold as an allergy, turned it into a swollen right hand and sent me to urgent care to get a steroid shot because the circulation was getting cut off in the first three fingers. Now there’s a sign something is wrong, but I still didn't get it. Steroid are antibiotics, which sent my immune system even down further. My fingers were ok but the yeast and mold was now a full blown infection through out my body. What's interesting is; this didn't happen over night, the process took years.
5. Why had my primary Doctor had been giving me antibiotics on and off every year for the last 5 years ? I think it was a lack of knowledge in general nutrition on his part, and my ignorance for not putting the pieces together sooner. I was told I had sinus and bronchitis infections. It was the histamines!!! Not fixing my immune system was the problem, which created the infection. Another mystery solved was years of lifting weights and wondering why I couldn't gain the bulk I wanted . It was because Carbohydrates turn to sugar, great for energy and weight gain unless you have a low immune system, low grade infection which then only added to the problem.
6. How did Brad end up figuring out the problem? Well after my fingers swelled up the blood vessels started breaking under the skin every time I put any pressure on them. It felt like I burnt them on the stove a condition known as purpura. Now God had my attention. I went to get a full blood test known as a CBC, which showed high WBC's and low blood platelets. My Doctor said " Well it looks like a low grade infection which should go away in about a week or two. Let's do another CBC next week." The second CBC came in which was worse than the first. By this time, I fired him and I found an Acupuncturist ( Chinese Medical Herbs), Chiropractor Healer with Kinesiology back ground, and a Doctor of internal Medicine that would look at my medical history and blood relative to the chart. I was told I either did a lot of drugs , a lot of alcohol or I had blood cancer. I then found the best Hematologist / Oncologist within a reasonable distance to a Hospital of choice and my house.
October 1, 2009- ( Thursday), The Hematologist orders a test of the bone marrow and CT scan of the spleen for the following day. " We should have the test results back the following Thursday", and we set the appointment.
October 8,2009- (Thursday), I'm in a room with the Oncologist and my new Internal Medical Doctor when I get the news that I have cancer. You know that numbing feeling you get when in shock. Now you need to now I have great faith in Christ, and his promise is "not to harm me or to forsake me but to give me hope and a future…" Well A couple of days before, Linda and I were on line because every blood test was indicating Cancer, and Linda had checked out a book on Leukemia which we read prior to going in for the bone marrow results. God gave me peace through the book. I thought by some chance God may spare me with an infection known as Candida, and something as easy as a immunoglobulin IV. I sat there with out expression and when I finally tried to speak I started to hold back the tears. It wasn't the fear of knowing I have cancer, or the fear of dying, I trusted God would take of me. It was that every person who survived cancer had a strong faith and the will to live, and I saw myself at the finish line with a bunch of you there and me knowing I survived. My life is like the race. I ran the good race, I fought the good fight and God blessed me, used me and I survived.
I saw my self at the finish line with all of you there, and knowing that I survived and God said Brad, job well done, good and faithful servant. The idea that I could have my cake and eat it too and visualizing me completing a triathlon and knowing that in some way I beat the odds and would be a better person once I completed the race.
You see for me all my prayers will be answered. If this infection had not been caught, in 10 to 15 years I would not be here. I have advanced level 4 CLL. It's the fourth quarter of the game. My prayers are to grow old with my children. I needed to be sick now when my odds of survival are much better. I have wanted to gain weight most of my life, now it's possible thanks to God. I get my immune system back.
I was now on the path of enlightenment and I don't mean spiritual. My spiritual is in tack or so I thought. God had other plans and answered my prayers that all came together in one big promise. He promises to protect me and heal me, not to harm me and to use me for his kingdom and glory. My prayers are to see my young 8 and 6 year old kids grow old some day. I also pray for God to use me in some way to help others.
10-08-09 Thursday-Diagnosed with CLL
10-09-09 Friday-Cat scan- I have an enlarged spine. What this means is my large blood cells are having trouble getting through. The Oncologist says it's ok for now.
10-10,11-09 Saturday, Sunday I went Elk hunting to clear my head.
10-12-09 Monday-The beginning of Chemo. I showed up at 8am and for the next 8 hours I took intravenous drugs to reduce the infection in my body.
10-13-09 Tuesday-Chemo for another 3 hours ( Retuxin, Fludora, Cytoxin)
10-14-09 Wednesday-Chemo for 2 hours and 1 hour of Immunoglobulin's for the rebuilding of the immune system.
10-15-09 Thursday-Pet scan. Thank God for IPods ( Genova). They stick you in a X-ray scanning tube for 1/2 hour. Yes I took a nap.
10-16-09 Friday- the end of a very fast and crazy week. Just in time to have the side effects of Chemo start. My stomach was void of good bacteria and it felt like someone microwaved it. I wasn't hungry and didn’t care about food. Even the thought didn't matter, and to know me is to know that I love to eat. My sense of smell became acute and I found it hard to be in public. I lived with a low grade headache at the base of the skull and my hearing was a little fuzzy. All light seemed brighter and I was more sensitive to it. Can you say constipated, for the first time of my life, wow. That was quickly changed with 1200mg of fish oil. The good news is that I got up Saturday and it I was back to 100% energy . Light breakfast and off to Luke's Soccer game.
10-17-09 Saturday- beautiful weather , I felt great as long as I snacked in between meals and I ate foods I had not eaten for 2 months. The Chemo and immunoglobulin's were bringing my system back to the middle ground where I could eat good high calorie foods. Sunday the same food choices, with mild headaches every now and again. The church Elders and others prayed over Linda and I with the power of God, and the Holy spirit. "Gods will be done!"
10-19-09 Monday-Talked to the Internal Medicine Doctor about my pet scan results which is to identify if my cancer has moved to other parts of the body ( metastasized). She said good news that it has stayed in my arm pits, stomach, chest, neck . I think it's in my sinus also but it was not part of the test. God is answering prayers!
10-20-09 Tuesday- 10 am I go in for a complete CBC blood test to see if the Chemo cocktail is strong enough and what progress has been made. Then I meet with a nutritionist (across town) which I am excited to do. The problem is the team approach isn't really a team approach. Holistic and western medicine part ways somewhere in the middle. Dear God, put the right Doctors in charge of helping my wellness and recovery, amen. I fear there is duplication in the supplements that I take, between the Acupuncturist, Chiropractor (Kinesiology healer), and Herbalist. There is also the Chemo and immunoglobulin’s . So tomorrow I get my Flora (digestion) right, possibly a process to correct my system without duplication, and may be a diet with calories to start a workout program.
Note the next Chemo is November 10,11,12, another 12 hours of treatment. I'm told the Chemo reduces in the body over time but the effects and symptoms are cumulative which means strap on your seat belt. This treatment is going all the way to May 1st, unless God has other plans. All of your prayers are felt and I know my needs and family needs will only increase in time, thank you in advance for you and everything you do.
This is all for now. Brad Stephens bcsfinplan2@aol.com 303-321-0039
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