Fancy Nancy Designs

These stories and/or interviews were recently published in Natures Pathways Magazine for which I write.

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Steve's Story posted Winter 2009
Here is a remarkable, true healing story to which I was a witness. My brother, Steve Freier and I wanted to share his amazing healing experience as an inspiration should you, or someone you know, be given such a diagnosis. Steve discovered there are very definite alternatives you might want to discover on your road to healing. Questions? email: stevefreier@comcast.net

By Steve Freier

In the summer of 1999, I was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) – a type of cancer in which the bone marrow makes too many lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). CLL is a blood and bone marrow disease that usually gets worse slowly. CLL is the second most common type of leukemia in adults. It often occurs during or after middle age.

Stage IV Cancer - A Death Sentence
I was told that I was in Stage IV, the final stage of the disease. I was shocked and dismayed as I had recently moved to California to begin a new life with my partner. When she and I heard the diagnosis, we experienced a sense of disbelief. In the months that followed, I was hospitalized twice for massive infections because my immune system wasn't working properly anymore. I had huge lumps on my neck, shoulders and arms. There were several emergency room visits for related problems.

Investigating Alternatives
I told my doctors that I wanted to investigate alternatives and they said I had adequate time in which to do that. So I began a journey of doing everything I could think of to get well. I entered into vitamin regimens, positive thinking, and going to healers. I ate raw foods, drank wheat grass juice several times a day, and ate raw liver. From there I went to intensive vitamin therapies, essential oils, and therapeutic enzyme therapy. Nothing worked, and I was spending a small fortune on alternative modalities. In the meantime, my WBC (white blood cell) count kept rising.

Going Along with Big Medicine
I thought that I'd used up my alternative options, and after discussing it with my doctor, I agreed to two rounds of chemotherapy. First I tried the oral pill form called Chlorambusil. That made me sick so I quit after a few weeks. Later I tried liquid Floudaribine. I had a few infusions then stopped. Even though I didn't experience the horrible reactions that some people report, after the second or third round, I felt it was time to stop. I reasoned that killing the healthy parts of my body to get to the bad guys didn't seem right.

I Go to Stanford
My doctors, including one at Stanford, recommended a BMT (Bone Marrow Transplant) as the "final solution" which they would perform after six months of repeated rounds of chemotherapy. By then I was on Medicare so the cost was not an issue, however, the uncertainty of success made me pause. It was time for me to take my health and well-being into my own hands. I'd come to a point where I wasn't able to work because of the fatigue, and I knew I had to do something to rebuild my body.

Root Canals are Bad for Your Health
About this time my brother, Michael told me about a book by Dr. George Meinig that convinced me that root canals can be bad for your health. They can harbor silent infections that can affect your body in distant places and cause disease. I took a deep breath and immediately had my single root canal removed. Just to be safe, I left that area empty (even to this day). (For more information on root canals, visit: http://www.amazon.com/Root-Canal-Cover-Up-George-Meinig/dp/0945196199)

I Discover Coral Calcium
At the same time, I began taking coral calcium. After only five days on the product, I went for my regularly-scheduled blood test. The results were pretty impressive! For the first time in a year, my WBC count had dropped. It had been hovering around 30,000, and suddenly it registered 18,000! My doctor asked me what I'd been doing differently. I told him, and he dismissed it. As he walked out the door, he looked over his shoulder at me. "It can't hurt anything, though so why not keep it up?" And so I did.
   
Each month when I went for my check up, the blood cell count either stayed stationary or decreased. However, other parts of the blood panel were also moving in positive directions, and I was noticing major differences in my body. The lumps were slowly going down. My skin was clearing. My hair was growing in darker. The horrible body cramps were alleviated. I could sleep through the night without pain, and a particular problem I'd had - waking up in a painful jack-knifed position was gone. My endurance level increased, and I was feeling more like myself than I had in years.
   
I continued on coral calcium through November of 2001. As of April 1, 2002 my WBC levels were down to 15,600. I consider that to be a great demonstration after having a high of 159,000 just two years prior! In the next two years my WBC continued to improve according to tests conducted at Kaiser Hospital. By 2004 the levels were well within the range of normal. By then I had tapered off on taking the coral calcium and rarely use it now.

If I believed in ‘Big Medicine’ I would probably be dead right now. It does not yet have the magic bullet that will cure cancer and many of the regimens used are harmful to the body. I am not against using the benefits of medicine, but I do think we need to recognize that it’s limitations do not have to be our own.