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Saturday, October 13, 2012

Shrinking My Fibroids

Over these last few years many people have written to ask me to share more about my journey to shrink my fibroids.  I am not a doctor.  I am just one woman who has battled fibroids for 15 years and now I'm sharing my story of how I got better in the hope that it might help and encourage other women.  Read my earlier post and it will tell you more of my journey.  But recently, for people who write me, most of the questions center around how large were my fibroids, and how much did they shrink?  Also how long did it take?  What exactly did I do?  What do I still do?  Are all of my fibroids gone?

Firstly, it has been over two years and I am still maintaining my shrinkage.  Also the cysts I had in my breast have not returned.  Hallelujah!  When I first started on my journey I had 7 fibroids.  They ranged in sizes from 2 to 7 cm.  I know that some women have been diagnosed with fibroids even larger.  Some people just have one fibroid, and others like me have multiple fibroids.  The reduction in all my fibroids has ranged from 35% to 70% reduction.  I am not 100% fibroid free.  However, my fibroids are small enough that they don't give me any problems, and I am now free from the terrible and sometimes debilitating symptoms.  I think that should be everyone's goal, becoming symptom free.  To be symptom free some people's fibroids only need to shrink 30% others may need 50%.   Also if you really pay attention to what doctors say about surgery,  they don't say you will be 100% fibroid free. They say you will be symptom free.  That's because it is not harmful to have a few small fibroids.  It's only when they get so large that they can interfere with pregnancy, getting pregnant or then you have painful and heavy periods and all the other bad stuff.  So shoot for symptom free, not 100% fibroids gone.  Also when you have surgery doctors don't always get to all the fibroids.  Typically they may concentrate on the larger ones.  Sometimes at surgery time a fibroid is small, not worth treating, then 4 years later that small fibroid is larger.  That is what happened to me.  That is why no matter what treatment you choose, surgery or natural, if you do not want the fibroids grow back or larger you have to follow a plan to prevent it. OR there is a good chance you'll be back battling the same problem again.

So what did I do?  As I've written in my earlier blog, shrinking my fibroids is a 3 step plan of attack.  To this day I am still taking the same supplements, and I have also added in some more helpful diet changes.  When I started on my regimen it took me 2 months to start seeing results.  I continued on and each month, they shrank more, and I got better. The natural method isn't as fast as surgery when you go in one day and come out in a few hrs.  You will need to be patient, and most of all diligent.  In all I would say give it 4 to 6 months, but seeing progress after 2 months.  You will then be encouraged and you will then keep going.   If you try this natural method you should pay attention to the little signs along the way to help you determine if your fibroids are shrinking.  For me, each month I kept track of how all my symptoms were improving.  Like I said in my earlier posts on this blog I had lots of symptoms of estrogen dominance.  Like heavy bleeding, cyst in breasts, blood clots during my periods, pain, pms, hair breakage, acne and more.  So each month I looked for all these things to get better each month and they did. There was time that lasted about a week when my fibroids were shrinking that I had a little pain in between my period.  It felt like cramping. It was from the larger fibroid dyeing and shrinking.  This happened around my 3rd month.  It only lasted on and off for about a week, and I just took an advil.

 It's also important for you to be really in touch with your body and to pay attention to all your symptoms.  The reason I say this is because even after you get your fibroids to shrink you want to maintain it.  Fibroids can grow slowly so them getting larger again can also sneak up on you.  But along the way your body will send you messages if you have too much estrogen.  For me it's my acne.  My acne is my warning signal.  It sounds the alarm that my hormones are out of balance and I need to pay attention.  For others your alarm could be different.  But take the time to find out your alarm system of your body saying your hormones are out of whack.  Pay attention to the alarms and then you won't let it go on for so long that the fibroids have a chance to get larger.

The 3 step attack I keep talking about that I used to shrink my fibroids is diet, supplements, and liver detox and cleanse. 1st Step Diet: You have to change your diet so that you are not adding extra estrogen into your body.  You should switch to a low estrogen diet.  That means reducing dairy, sugars, meat with estrogen, caffeine.  Many people switch to organic meat only.  I actually just have cut down on my meat.  Organic meat means no extra hormones were added to fatten the animal, but you still do have the natural occurring estrogen in the meat.  So I do 3 meatless days per week.  No meat period these 3 days. On those days I also end up eating more fruits vegetable beans and whole grains.  Then the other times when I eat meat, I will either eat organic and limit how much meat I eat.  The point to the diet changes is that you must put a lot less estrogen in your body than what you are doing now.  So avoid lots of dairy, sugar, caffeine, soy, eat organic meat, and/or cut back on meat.

2nd Step: Supplements and food to process and eliminate.  The purpose of the supplements is to help your body process and eliminate the excess estrogen in your body.  That's why I take DIM.  I take 4 everyday.  Two in AM and 2 in PM.  DIM is like eating eating 2 lbs of broccoli and it has been shown to help your body process estrogen and restore hormonal balance. I also eat more fiber.  My choice is oatmeal in the morning.  You need fiber to help remove the estrogen. Fiber helps you poop and when you poop the excess estrogen is eliminated.  So if you are not pooping everyday, then estrogen is staying stuck in your body.

3rd Step: Liver strengthening and detoxing.  The liver is a filter that cleanses our bodies from toxins and excess estrogen.  So if you have a weak or sluggish liver it can't do it's job correctly.  To detox daily, strengthen my liver and and increase antioxidents I drink Xango juice twice per day. 1 oz in am and 1 oz in PM.  I also take the Pure Essence vitamins.  These vitamins are great and contain whole foods that help detox and strengthen my liver and improve my overall health.

So that's what I do.  I do it everyday.   Also I have found it very important to do all three.  Each step by itself is not enough.  You can't just become vegan and vegetarian.  You still need the other 2 steps.  So don't try and take a short cut.  Be diligent, Be consistent and Be patient. You'll know if it's working for you.  I always think you should work with your Dr.  My doctor let me do the natural way and monitored me for 4 months to make sure.

Good luck on your journey.  I pray it will be as successful as mine and that you too can experience healing.

Keep Reading more of my post on fibroids click on this link, see other posts on the right side of this page.  Knowledge is powerful.

http://shrunkfibroids.blogspot.com/

I order my DIM online because it's cheaper than buying it in a health food store.  Here is the link where you can save $10 on your order and get free shipping if you want to start using DIM and any of the other supplements I use. I posted pics on this blog and the name of the supplements I take.   Dim (4 per day) , Green Tea (1 per day), Vitamins 2 Per day,  and drink Mangosteen Juice.


Take Care,

Deborah



CLICK HERE TO READ 10STEPS TO KICKSTART SHRINKING YOUR FIBROIDS




12 comments:

  1. Hi Deborah,

    Thank you so much for writing this blog. I have multiple fibroids as well and I was searching online on how to shrink them. I'm really glad I came across your blog as it is very realistic.

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  2. I'm on a mission to shrink my fibroids (or whatever it is) too! I haven't actually been diagnosed with fibroids, but I am very aware of my body and I have all the classic symptoms (i.e. very heavy periods, debilitating cramps, periods every 15 days or so, etc.). Although my periods just recently within the last 5 months or so started acting really crazy, the debilitating cramps just started maybe 3 months ago. I have never in my life felt those/these type of cramps, EVER!

    My mother also suffered from fibroids and she's the one that made me aware of some of the symptoms as she had it very bad until she had a DNC, which eliminated most of her symptoms. I am a health conscious person and do not intend to ever go under the knife. I do not like doctors and the foolishness that they will have you to believe. I can't believe that they even recommend hysterectomies for something like fibroids.... seriously!

    Anyway, I started researching and researching and because I'm already in to herbs and holistic health, I was no stranger to natural healing! I started taking MACA, cod liver oil, vegan multivitamin, eating a lot of beans (I make a pot of vegetarian chili weekly as beans are very good for women with fibroids and hormonal issues), and I also take blackstrap molasses on and off. In addition, I drink raspberry tea. I also take a YONI formula, and a few other things (I’m an herb addict), but I’m almost 100% sure that it’s the cod liver oil and MACA that helped the fibroid/heaving bleeding issue (research it). I say that because I was already taking the other herbs. MACA is really good for hormonal issues (google it)…WARNING it will significantly increase your sex drive and may even increase your booty/breast size.

    Anyway, I’m proud to say that after a month of starting my regime, my period this month was almost right on track. Instead of coming on 15 days after my last period in September, it actually stayed off for a full 24 days or so and the cramping is not at all that bad considering for the last few months I've literally been in so much pain that I wanted to die...I mean nothing helped, it literally felt like I was in labor (had a natural birth so I know the feeling)! This month, as I stated, it's been 24 days, which is almost a normal cycle, and the pain is very manageable. My goal is to have a normal 28 to 31 day cycle with only 2 to 3 days of very light to moderate bleeding. Healthy women should only have light bleeding for 2 to 3 days and no longer with barely any pain! I remember when I was a teenager, my periods were so light that they were barely there and they only lasted a couple of days not to mention the pain was non existent...that's were I want to be!!! I will be there! Oh, I also cut out beef and only eat a little chicken here and there, maybe some turkey, but I always make sure it's all natural with no added hormones, etc., I also juice every day! I'M ON A MISSION!!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'm on a mission to shrink my fibroids (or whatever it is) too! I haven't actually been diagnosed with fibroids, but I am very aware of my body and I have all the classic symptoms (i.e. very heavy periods, debilitating cramps, periods every 15 days or so, etc.). Although my periods just recently within the last 5 months or so started acting really crazy, the debilitating cramps just started maybe 3 months ago. I have never in my life felt those/these type of cramps, EVER!

    My mother also suffered from fibroids and she's the one that made me aware of some of the symptoms as she had it very bad until she had a DNC, which eliminated most of her symptoms. I am a health conscious person and do not intend to ever go under the knife. I do not like doctors and the foolishness that they will have you to believe. I can't believe that they even recommend hysterectomies for something like fibroids.... seriously!

    Anyway, I started researching and researching and because I'm already in to herbs and holistic health, I was no stranger to natural healing! I started taking MACA, cod liver oil, vegan multivitamin, eating a lot of beans (I make a pot of vegetarian chili weekly as beans are very good for women with fibroids and hormonal issues), and I also take blackstrap molasses on and off. In addition, I drink raspberry tea. I also take a YONI formula, and a few other things (I’m an herb addict), but I’m almost 100% sure that it’s the cod liver oil and MACA that helped the fibroid/heaving bleeding issue (research it). I say that because I was already taking the other herbs. MACA is really good for hormonal issues (google it)…WARNING it will significantly increase your sex drive and may even increase your booty/breast size.

    Anyway, I’m proud to say that after a month of starting my regime, my period this month was almost right on track. Instead of coming on 15 days after my last period in September, it actually stayed off for a full 24 days or so and the cramping is not at all that bad considering for the last few months I've literally been in so much pain that I wanted to die...I mean nothing helped, it literally felt like I was in labor (had a natural birth so I know the feeling)! This month, as I stated, it's been 24 days, which is almost a normal cycle, and the pain is very manageable. My goal is to have a normal 28 to 31 day cycle with only 2 to 3 days of very light to moderate bleeding. Healthy women should only have light bleeding for 2 to 3 days and no longer with barely any pain! I remember when I was a teenager, my periods were so light that they were barely there and they only lasted a couple of days not to mention the pain was non existent...that's were I want to be!!! I will be there! Oh, I also cut out beef and only eat a little chicken here and there, maybe some turkey, but I always make sure it's all natural with no added hormones, etc., I also juice every day! I'M ON A MISSION!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have been shrinking my fibroids for a month now. I have had previous success in the past when following a low estrogen diet. But in the past year or two my fibroids have grown to make me look 4+ months pregnant. I had stopped the low estrogen diet, and, the result has been periods that are really heavy (super tampons + super pads and still flooding).

    Last month I started the low estrogen diet again (including juicing) and I also introduced Magnesium, Fish Oil and Multi Vitamin supplements. My last period was much better (still very heavy (uncontrollable flooding) but only for about 8 hours - not the usual 3 heavy days + 3 to 4 light days, in fact my whole period only lasted 5 days with only one heavy day and night!)

    My fibroids/Uterus are still enlarged, but, not quite so bad as at this time last month. I have just introduced DIM as a supplement, and I am looking forward to seeing whether it has any positive effect on shrinking my fibroids. But, regardless I am beginning to feel much better and the other supplements really helped with the mental PMS symptoms and to a lesser extent the physical ones. But I will not give up yet!!

    Thanks to everyone else for their comments, I am finding them really useful and inspiring.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This is very helpful as as I was told in the hospital that I have 4 fibroids with the largest being 4cm. I think this blog is pretty helpful.

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  7. Thank you so much for posting this. I just found your blog and it is helpful. I have been on a quest to shrink my fibroids naturally for almost a month. I have been using MacaHarmony (2 pills per day). I started with a 10 day detox (green smoothie detox cleanse by JJ Smith) and have stopped eating meat (I eat fish/seafood only) and I have upped my whole grains and fiber intake drastically since I consume green smoothies for 2 meals and eat one healthy non smoothie meal per day. I started seeing results in three weeks, specifically a much smaller waistline, shrinking abdomen, and a shorter period (was 10 days for past 15 years, this past month it was only 6 days! I am going to try the DIM and check out the Mangosteen juice and supplements as well. May you have continued success in your journey to wellness!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi I have just joined this site and I wanted to thankyou for helping us women who are struggling with these fibroid issues. They have manage to almost ruin my life and I'm looking for a way out and I would also like to preserve my fertility especially since Im coming on 33 years without children. Do you have an email address if we had any specific questions?

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  9. I also have multiple fibroids diagnosed late Nov 2014. The largest was the size of a 5 month old pregnancy. The doctor recommended a hysterectomy. I googled fibroids and saw that you can shrink it naturally. So I cut dairy, caffeine, sweets, meat for a week, I started juicing and lost 5kg. I haven't lost any more weight and I am still off dairy, caffeine, sweets, and from the 2nd week onwards have been eating a bit of meat everyday because I just got so hungry and unsatisfied with just drinking juice and eating fruits. Anyway, the week after I was diagnosed I got my period and its been going the whole month and it is heavy, there have also been some days with huge clotting. I'm still bleeding one month on so I really have to work on my liver, and progesterone levels.

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  10. Thank you this is going to help me a lot.

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  11. Hi Deborah

    I strongly believe in all your healing process because I started my own diet and lifestyle changes since May/2014. But after seeing my last result on 12/2014, my fibroid grew to 7cm but no cysts. At least it cleared out the cysts. After this result I desperately started more research on how to shrink fibroids and I found you. I started your steps in March/2015 and stopped eating meat but I'm having an MRI by June. I want to see that it is finally shrinking. I was advised for surgery but my inner self is telling me to keep going with the steps because it is working. But I just recently stopped taking dim only because my new integrative dr. said that my hormone is normal according to my blood work. And again my inner voice is telling me that my hormones are not normal. I still get the heavy bleeding, blood clots during period, etc. What can of test will prove my estrogen level? I refuse surgery because I truly agree with you that this will not solve the root causes of fibroid. Should I continue taking dim even if my hormones are normal?

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  12. You cAn get a test for all your hormonal levels including estrogen and progesterone. And there are differnt types of estrogen. Just like we have good and bad cholesterol , hdl vs ldl, we also have some good and bad estrogens.

    ReplyDelete