CHAPTER 4 - NEXT DESTINATION COLOMBIA

Chapter 4 – Next Destination Colombia

We arrived to Colombia on Friday August 10, 2012 at 6am. Upon arriving we got greeted by my two aunts and my cousin. It felt good to see them again and of course to be back where I was born after all I felt like I needed the break.  Monday came by and I was ready to go see my family doctor, he turned out to be an acupuncturist.

What is acupuncture?

*Definition from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/acupuncture*

Acupuncture is a Chinese medical practice or procedure that treats illness or provides local anesthesia by the insertion of needles at specified sites of the body.

The acupuncturist, Master Chang turned out to be really friendly and so did the other doctors that worked with him. They told me what my Chinese sign was, a dragon.

*Source from http://www.chinese-astrology.co.uk/dragon.html *

The Dragon symbol according to Chinese astrology is a symbol that represents the Chinese emperors. Dragons are born to be leaders and also masters of ceremonies. And because of this, every Chinese parent hopes they have a Dragon child. Dragon people get things started and keep them moving. We are feisty and gifted with power and luck. Most people look up to the Dragon.

The first appointment.

On the first appointment not only did I find out I was a dragon in the Chinese calendar but also I got to get poked by the needles I got some on my head one on my ear that hurt some throughout my body and feet. Then my needles got connected to a machine that gave small amounts of electricity, turns out I had to wait about 30 minutes with this on each session, also I got about a bag of serum through an IV ( i=intra or into and v=vein). My procedure continued it was twice a week I had to go do it for the first four sessions.

Alcohol and My Diabetes

*As quoted from the Clinical Practice Guidelines “as a general rule there is no need to avoid alcohol because you have diabetes”.

The time I had in Colombia was a blast however not only did I get to be treated by the acupuncturist but I also got to spend time with my family and friends. While I was there I also found out that I could also drink again but in a different manner. I now know I can still have a beer, maybe three… and my sugar won’t go below 4 mmol/L (72 mg/dL). I would also advice you to eat before you plan on drinking and check your blood glucose to monitor it. I should warn you please consult with your doctor before drinking and read more into it before you do. Will have a chapter later on about the subject.

The Cucumber

After my third visit Master Chang told me and my mom about a cucumber from Thailand that one of his patients used to “cure” or in other words help with your diabetes by keeping your blood glucose on a normal target. He gave us this orange like cucumber that had seeds and told us it was a gift and to make sure we planted the seeds so we were able to get more cucumbers out of it.

The trick with this cucumber is that you can only do it for nine days no more. In Canada this cucumber is called “Bitter Melon” below you will find the procedure.

The Bitter Melon Water

* Get the bitter melon at your grocery store this melon looks green.

* Cut one piece and boil for about 20-30 minutes.

* The boiled water that you used should be enough for drinking three times a day (breakfast, lunch, and dinner or bed time)

* Make the water every day and drink it for nine days each month this will help control your sugar levels as it will clean your blood.

The last day of my treatment finally came a week before I was leaving Colombia and they decided to do acupuncture once again and this time they decided they would clean my blood through the IV. They took some of my blood out and injected it to the serum and again I had to wait for the little bag to be drained.

Was the trip to Colombia worth it?

Yes! I relaxed and it’s always god to go back home. Also I found that acupuncture does seem to work for me since my blood sugar were at a normal range while and after my treatment. I would recommend any diabetic that’s having a hard time with their diabetes to go to an acupuncturist. I also got some natural medicine before I left.

THANKS FOR READING MY BLOG!!!

I WOULD LIKE TO APOLOGIZE BECAUSE I HAVENT BEEN ABLE TO WRITE THE CHAPTERS AND I APPRECIATE THE PEOPLE THAT DO READ IT. 

CHAPTER 3 - Out of the hospital and a new life

Chapter 3 - A new begining

I got back home from the hospital on Friday July 13, 2012. My blood was still around 14 mmol/L (252 mg/dL) still above normal, but I was ready to move on and change the ways of how I ate.

The first week wasn't hard I did after all know what I had to do to get my sugar down if it got too high, I started exercising again but not as much as I used to. I would run for 30 minutes now instead of two hours and I would check and see if my glucose was high or too low. My diet changed, before I never really worried about having breakfast and would eat whatever I wanted later on through out the day. Now I had to worry about having my 3 meals a day (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and supposedly I had to eat my 4 - 6 carbohydrates in each meal but along with that came more and more insulin I had to inject.

What are Carbohydrate Foods? 

*from DHR David Thompson Healthy Region

Carbohydrate rich foods is what turns into glucose (sugar) after you eat them, Carbs are important part of healthy eating habits.

$ Spending Carbs $

Men 4-6 carb choices per meal                                   Women 3-4 carb choices per meal
        1-2 carb choises per snack (if eaten)                                1-2 carb choices per snack

1 carbohydrate choice = 15 grams of a carbohydrate

This meant that for every meal I needed to inject 4-6 units of humalog insulin every time I ate not counting if my glucose was higher than 10 mmol / L (180 mg/dL) I would have to inject a bit extra, and of course my 28 units of lantus before bed time.

What's working for me

Well, after I was out of the hospital I did try the chart above and wondered if I could still eat and be satisfied with not so many carbs. I was injecting a lot of insulin and I wasn't happy.

My parents and I wanted to have a second opinion from someone else. I still felt annoyed by having to inject my self 4 times a day (3 every meal and 1 before bed time) I was going thorugh a lot of insulin it seemed. My dad called our family doctor in Colombia (a natural path) so he advised me not to take that much insulin for more than 100 days and that if I could go that would be great so he could put me in treatment. "In the mean time while he gets here, he should try to drink 'bird seed milk' that will help him lower his glucose" - he said to my dad.

WHAT THE HECK IS BIRD SEED MILK? AND HOW TO MAKE IT

Bird seed milk is a milk that is made out of cannery seed called Alpiste.

* As defined by http://silverq.hubpages.com/hub/Benefits-of-Canary-Grass-Seed

What is it?

Although many are familiar with canary grass seed as food for their bird pets, few know it to also be of great benefit for human consumption. Canary grass seed is one of the most powerful and nutritious seeds on earth because of its high content of enzymes, vegetable protein, amino acids, and antioxidants. Its antioxidant properties are very close to those found in Vitamin C. As for its protein content, 5 tablespoons of canary grass seed contain about 9 grams of protein. It is also contains many enzymes, of which lipase is the most abundant.

What are the benefits?

Because of its high enzymatic content, canary grass seed helps to reduce the inflammation of internal organs such as the liver, kidney and pancreas, which has proved to be of great help for people with diabetes and cirrhosis. In some cases, diabetes can be completely eliminated with the constant consumption of canary grass seed.

Canary grass seed is also helpful in weight reduction. Because lipase (essential enzyme in the digestion of fats) is the most abundant enzyme in this wonderful seed, it helps to clean veins and arteries from harmful fats, as well as getting rid of fat deposits in the body, leading to a reduction of obesity and cellulite.

The properties found in this seed also kill bacteria in the urinary tracts, thus reducing UTI’s, as well as kidney and gall bladder infections.

The Way I make it.

Take 7 tablespoons of Alpiste and pour into a cup.
Pour water into the cup and leave over night (usually 8-12 hours)
In the morning get rid of the overnight water and put the seeds in the blender.
Add fresh water into the blender (I usually get 2 L).
Grind the seeds.
Percolate the mixture into a jug. And only consume the milk and not whats left of the seeds.
Serve a glass and have one for each meal.
Store milk in the fridge other wise it will go bad.
Try to drink all the milk the day of and always make a new batch every day.

Did it work?

So we followed the doctors advice on this and we searched for the canary seeds, we found them and started to make the milk daily. I drink 2 Liters of it every day and it seems to be working for me. My glucose seemed to be normal but I was still injecting the Humalog every time I ate.

***CHAPTER 4 - Next Destination Colombia OUT NEXT SUNDAY NOV. 11, 2012!!!***

CHAPTERS 1-3 WILL BE UPDATED UNTIL CHAPTER 4 IS OUT!


-Thanks for taking time to read my blog.

Camilo Calderon