my path to healing lupus nephritis

My Lupus recovery

In 2009 a kidney biopsy showed class 5 lupus. The inflammation of my kidneys was to the extent that I was loosing several grams of protein a day. I had the lowest level of protein in my blood ever recorded in a live patient at the renal ward in the hospital that I received treatment. I was given intravenous rituximab in August 09, a chemotherapy drug developed to treat non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. It wipes out the B cells of the immune system. I was also out on cellcept, and cyclosporine, both severe immune suppressants. 50 mg of prednisone a day was also taken.

Naturally I was not happy about taking all of these toxic drugs, however they did put the fire out of the lupus and give me back enough energy to put in to place a healing regime. I researched and researched everything I could and came up with this plan.

My Cure

Vegan Diet

Firstly, I went totally vegan. There are many people around the world controlling lupus with a vegan diet. I highly recommend the book, the lupus recovery diet by Jill Harrignton. The immune system, in my case, reacts to animal proteins, which due to leaky gut, pass through the gut wall and into the bloodstream.

My immune system sees these proteins in the blood as foreign, they end up being filtered and lodged in the kidneys and the immune cells attack them there causing chronic inflammation. If I eat meat, diary or eggs, within several hours my kidneys flair up, its unreal, like clockwork! Thank god I worked this out. I truly believe that if I hadn’t found this out, I wouldn’t be here.

The western treatments put the fire out but they don’t stop the problem. The war rages on and lupus is smoldering its way through the body.

Leaky gut is, I think, at the root of autoimmune dysfunction. I saw it as imperative that I heal my gut. I am not a ‘hardcore’ alternative’ person. Anything I take on has to be relatively easy to implement and fit in with the rest of my life that has to go on. I wasn’t able to drop all responsibility and focus entirely on healing 24hrs a day. I have a business to run and it had to keep going to give me income, so the vegan diet I found fairly easy to do.


Gluten Free Diet

I went gluten free, this helped with the candida and addressed leaky gut. No more bloating etc.
I had slippery elm powder morning and night. I had probiotics also. I take 3 mouthfuls of liquid Olive leaf a day to control candida, which was systemic, for years before the lupus symptoms showed up.

Coffee Free

I gave up coffee ( the hardest of all for me). I take Vit C, B, Zinc, Magnesium and a herbal women’s multi vitamin. The western drugs have been tapered down to cellecpt and 5mg of prednisone a day.

parasites Cleanse

I did a parasite cleanse. It made my lupus reading go up due to the detoxification process but probably helped. I didn’t see any signs of parasites during this process but I think its an important thing to do.

Walking

As my energy returned I added walking each day. I strongly believe that one shouldn’t put the horse before the cart. Exercise should only come in to play when the body’s energy levels are improved. I would only exercise when I felt like it. In fact, I would only do something if I felt like it! No more, going to dinners etc out of obligation and no more pretending to be well. I surrounded myself in supportive and loving friends and eliminated the ones that questioned my approach.

In February this year, while much better I still felt symptoms. My knees were hurting, I was tired and my urine was frothy on and off during the day (sign of protein in the urine). One particular day I found myself having difficulty breathing and a complete feeling of exhaustion came over me. I could barely walk up stairs. This made me feel panicky and that night I prayed to my guides and angels for direction to something that would help me.

Earthing
The next morning in my inbox was a recommendation from the amazon website for a new book on ‘earthing’. A week earlier I had read a review of the earthing book in a nexus magazine and at the time remember feeling a connection to the concept. So, I did my research and started earthing each day by walking bare feet in my back lane. Earthing is essentially the idea that we are meant to connect with the earth’s energy field to balance and restore out systems. Shoes prevent this from happening and the resulting lack of earths electrons in our body’s results in things getting out of wack. So after walking barefoot for a few weeks I decided to invest in an earthing sheet for my bed. It took me some time to decide to make the purchase because I was over “buying” products that would help that didn’t and also paying for expensive consultations with alternative practitioners, which I felt were often just a blasé as western practitioners and who would also just throw products at the problem, sell, sell, sell.

Anyway, my intuition was into the earthing idea so in the end I forked out the money.

Within three weeks my hands and feet were warm. I haven’t had warm hands and feet since I was a teenager. I’m 35. This astounded people around me who were so use to my cold hands. This in itself was enough for me to be ecstatic about earthing. My knees stopped hurting. My joints were clicking less. Somedays not at all. Energy was improved. Mental fog totally lifted. I felt sharp, more energized and alive again! Went I go away I yearn for my earthing sheet. The only downside is that I want to stay in bed earthing for as long as I can, I go to bed early and read just to get some extra earthing time.

Last week I went to get my results from the renal specialist. My kidney function is TOTALLY NORMAL!! 100% IN THE NORMAL RANGE ON ALL MARKERS. The specialist said that he would have bet his house that I would NEVER get normal renal function again. My disease and damage was too severe.

Slowly, the drugs I am on will be tapered down and the aim is to be treatment free. Something that is unheard of for a case like mine.

I have spent my Sunday morning writing this to share with as many people as I can. I have been through hell and this year I have made a huge leap in my recovery. Perhaps my story will inspire and help you or someone you know.

Blessings,

silvaspring
Tweet