Hello. I'm 22 years old, male.
I have had a very distracting moving itch that is focused mainly on my scalp & face for 3 years now. It happens once or twice every one or two days. It is more likely to occur in the evening and/or on an empty stomach, but can happen anytime. It can last anywhere from 15 minutes to a few hours.
When it starts, I scratch in that spot, then when I get relief, it reappears a second or two later, usually a couple of inches away, but can jump to anywhere on my body.
It's a medium strength itch that feels like it's just under my skin. When it happens on my scalp, I get relief when a loose hair falls out. I am NOT pulling my hair out - it never hurts when it comes out.
In recent months, the hairs that are coming out have started to turn grey.
On my scalp, the itching/hairloss is focused on the following areas, but it can occur to a lesser degree anywhere:
Specific points that I scratch the most (circled point is where it first started):
I scratch my face less than my scalp, but still quite a bit:
I have about 30% less hair all over than I did before this started, but these are the areas that are close to or completely bald:
Other symptoms:
-The nails on my right hand crack & peel very easily. It started affecting the thumbnail on my left hand in recent months.
-Slightly bulging gut. Feels rubbery.
-My right side feels weaker than my left side. Worse itching, weaker hearing, more aches and pains.
Also, I don't know if this is of any importance, but the itch first started when I was emptying my grandmother's apartment, which had VERY stale air.
Apologies if anyone thinks I'm going into too much detail. I just want to make sure I've got everything covered...
I think your detail is superb. Really nice work, with the specific. We could probably overlay meridians on your heads and see a match with the liver/gallbladder and so forth. And around here, there can never be too much detail.
:-) In fact, Uny has a questionnaire,that asks for more details, such as eating/drinking habits, and a bunch of other stuff, including this VERY pertinent question, which might sound obnoxious, coming from me, but it's key-important to seeing where a person is at. It is, do you know what Natural Healing is?
(the question before or after this is, what do you think is wrong?) And the thing is, many people assume NH the same as seeing a naturopath and getting supplements a and diet ideas from them, or buying something from the store that promises "herbal cleansing" or some such. People generally want one thing; on item, or piece of advice form another that will restore them to their normal habits. But what really needs doing is always the same, when it comes down to it.
"weed and feed", as it's sometimes said. Natural healing is what the body can do, on its own, given the means, which are: cleansing the eliminative organs/systems and rebuilding the mineral reserves, to be ultra-simplistic about it. But the cleansing comes first,-and often has to be gently done- because only when the body is returned to being able to assimilate nutrients that are real, and non-toxic, can anything good stand a chance to make a difference.
So eating/drinking habits are super important.
Most of us are/were doing several things that represent a deficit in bodily health terms. Ordinary food is loaded with anti-nutrients, and such stuff. Even so called "good food", like lean meat or fish and vegetables, and whole grain pastas and such are just new packages of old problems.
anyway, I don't mean to lay a lot of negative stuff on you, because we know nothing about what your nutritional status is, but it sounds to me like mineral depletion, and this is not something that store-bought minerals can fix. It only really changes with whole foods, and lots of live, nutrient-dense foods, and in my case, liver flushing, and parasite cleansing. The itching nose was something that bothered me for a few years, and is now gone, and many of the spots you highlight look familiar, but I'm still a student of all this--a life-long student! but still.
There is so much good information on this site, most of it posted by Uny, you could spend a month just reading.
Someone will probably be around soon with a page of good links as a starting point, or Uny's questionnaire, if you are really interested in following the protocols of Natural Healing, according to this tradition. There are some steps to it, but it's all good. It sounds like a few of the usual suspects are at play here. But nothing
that can't be remedied.
all the best, C
I've been a vegetarian all my life for moral reasons. Cheese, eggs, and fish are ok, but milk, meat, and anything containing products from dead animals such as beef broth, lard, gelatin, and rennet is a no-go. My diet until very recently was heavy on starch & oil, low on raw fruits/vegetables & protein. For some years now, I take a few betaine HCL capsules with 75% of all my protein meals.
I couple of weeks ago, out of desperation to stop the itching, I cut out all wheat products, cut down on refined sugar, and increased my raw fruit/vegetable intake. I do still eat small amounts of spelt products to ease the cravings.
Just a few days ago, in further desperation, I cut out ALL refined sugar, ALL excessively greasy foods, and my daily cup of black tea & honey.
I used to get hot flashes from eating peanut butter, so I stopped that a while ago, and more recently stopped all nut products.
I still get hot flashes from exerting myself.
My bedtimes have been crappy for the last couple of years. Usually asleep by 2:30 AM-3:45 AM and up by 11:30 AM-2:30 PM. This is due in equal amounts to excessive computer use and evening scratching fits. Around the time that the itching began, my bedtimes were more like asleep by 1:00 AM-2:00 AM, awake by 11:00 AM-12:30 PM.
My energy levels are fine, and my hair gets greasy very soon after washing. I've been using a natural shampoo containing tea tree oil as of late.
Although I do not follow his guidelines strictly, my view of natural healing comes mainly from Tim O'Shea. Natural foods, minerals, avoidance of drugs and vaccines, keeping a healthy colon.
Yes, I have read the colon article and several others. They contain some very interesting information.
Here's the completed questionnaire:
Height/Weight
I haven't measured myself in awhile. I'm about 110 pounds, with a skinny build.
Exercise daily? weekly? never?
In the summer I mow a lot of grass, and do some occasional running (once or twice a week), and in the winter I shovel snow once or twice a week, and collect sticks in the bush maybe once every two weeks (kindling for the wood-burning stove). But overall, I don't exercise much - I've never really felt the need - I've usually got lots of energy.
Water -- how much water do you drink daily? (what kind of water?)
My mother is always saying that I don't drink enough water. Other than a small amount I use to help swallow pills, maybe two 8 ounce glasses a week. Usually well water, sometimes distilled. I rarely feel thirsty.
Other beverages (daily, occasionally):
A small glass of fruit juice every day, and a bottle of ginger ale every 1 to 2 weeks (used to drink only commercial brands, now switching over to Reed's Premium).
Diet (in any given week) - please be as specific as possible:
--white sugar? white flour? white salt?
None of the above, aside from a scant few processed foods that have them as lesser ingredients.
--processed foods?
Some occasional fast food (once every two weeks or so).
--gmo frankenfoods (non-organic: soy/derivatives, corn/derivatives, canola/cottonseed oil, beet sugar)
The only kind I can think of using relatively often is corn starch for baking.
--how many/what kind of fruits/veggies daily? (raw, steamed, cooked?)
Vegetable soup of varying types almost every day, very recently a raw carrot & a raw apple every day as well.
--dairy (what kind? how much?)
Lots of butter until very recently, occasional powdered cheese on pasta, very occasional milk chocolate & ice cream.
--meat (what kind? how much?)
Zero land-based animals. A lot of fish, avoiding the farmed kind as best I can. Usually salmon, sandines, and pickerel (the latter not too often because of mercury).
--oils & fats (what kind? how much?)
Lots until very recently. Any type except lard. Butter, olive oil, and non-virgin coconut oil most often.
--what percentage of the above is organic?
About a third.
Do you use a microwave oven? If so, how often?
Never except for the very occasional fast food burrito.
How "un-wired" are you at home and at work? Cell phone? WiFi? Cordless phone (what mHz or gHz? DECT?); other wireless toys & gadgets?
Nothing obviously wireless. My video game console (which I don't use excessively) might be giving off some waves trying to detect a wireless controller, as may the family car's built-in Onstar system...
Are you exposed to chemicals in the home or workplace frequently? If so, what?
Gasoline & engine oil for the lawnmower/chainsaw is about it.
Allergies (food, chemical, drugs, other):
None that I'm aware of.
Food "reactions":
I get hot flashes when I eat peanut butter (I stopped eating it awhile ago), I get rage fits when I eat too much hard cheese (I consume it very sparingly nowadays), and when I eat too much sugar, I get a powerful twinge right on the edge of my left jaw near the joint. It feels like it's just under the skin, but I've never been able to absolutely pinpoint it. It never hurts in that area if I rub/put pressure on it. All of these reactions go back many years.
Pharmaceutical drugs (current/past):
None, ever.
Over The Counter drugs (current/past):
Nothing aside from a lot of menthol candies for sore throats (none in the past year or so), and some Vicks VapoRub when I was fairly young.
Drugs "other" (current/past):
None, ever.
Supplements (please be as specific as possible as include 'name brands' and amounts taken):
My mother prepares most of my supplements, so I'm not sure of the brands, although I do know that she is very concerned about using quality supplements. They include a lot of minerals (zinc, cal/mag, selenium, a few others), B vitamins (including liquid B-12), chewable vitamin C, vitamin E, very recently a glass of about a tablespoon of diatomaceous earth when I get up, a couple cups of Sunrider Calli tea every evening (also very recently), and a fair amount of Natural Factors betaine HCL capsules for helping digest heavy protein like fish, nuts, and cheese. I've been on this general amount of supplements for about 10 years now.
Other current therapies, cleanses or protocols:
Nothing ATM.
What, if anything, are you are doing or taking now that is yielding positive results?
Aside from my itching problem, I've felt the same for almost as long as I can remember. I used to have serious rage fits when I was younger, but my diet was a lot worse back then. A lot more dairy & refined sugar. I think the amount of supplements that I took may have increased around the time they started to go down. They totally disappeared around 5 or 6 years ago.
What, if anything, have you done in the past that yielded negative results?
A seedy sound therapist and a seedy acupuncturist both gave me treatments that made me dizzy. That's all I can remember for now.
Recent vaccines:
None, ever.
How many bowel movements daily/weekly? (color, consistency, etc)
Usually once every two days, although sometimes oftener. Much variance in colour & consistency, although almost always a darker brown.
Do you have a juicer? (if so what kind? centrifugal; single auger; masticating; if you don't know, what's the brand/model?)
Two juicers. One centrifugal, one single auger, but I don't drink very much vegetable juice - the machines are mostly utilized by my mother.
Current Health Issues (the more details, the better!):
The itching of course, plus a mild form of OCD since I was around 5-6 (counting in patterns, tapping objects in patterns, stepping in patterns, pressing buttons/flipping switches in patterns). My father has a somewhat stronger form. I've also had weak short-term memory since I was around 13. Also a "funny" feeling right knee. It went "thunk" when I slightly overextended my leg when playing some backyard baseball about 10 years ago. It gets kind of stiff when it gets cold.
If you've consulted any type of practitioner, what did they determine or suggest? Do you agree?
I went to a female naturopath once. It was pretty expensive. She gave me some basic advice about improving digestion, early bedtimes, more exercise (which I all agreed with, but was honestly too lazy to stick to), then suggested some kind of amino acid blood test for further diagnosis (this was all either before the itching or just when it started - I do remember that it never came up for discussion). I thought that was overkill, plus she gave an aura of inexperience, so I never went back.
Have you ever done any "cleansing"? (colon, liver, kidney, etc); if so, when and what type/product & results?
I haven't done any cleanses yet, although I would like to soon.
What other types of allopathic, alternative or natural therapies or protocols have you tried (if any)? results?
I used to take Sunrider NuPlus pretty consistently when I was a lot younger, but it got too expensive. :(
Past issues, drugs, surgeries that you think may be contributing to current issues?
I had a pretty strong fever when I was about 5 or 6. I think I was more "alert" before it.
Any major changes in diet, supplements, drugs, stress-levels, location, lifestyle recently? results?
The past few years, I'm using the internet WAY too much. My computer has a lot of electric motors in it too, which can't be helping.
Are you aware of the difference between "alternative medicine" and truly natural healing?
Not really. Whatever it is that Tim O'Shea over @ thedoctorwithin.com is promoting is what I am interested in.
What do YOU think & discern is wrong (and why?)
Could be anything, IMO. Heavy metals, parasites, toxins getting discharged, candida, malabsorption, leaky gut, plugged guts, general weakness... :\
Most of the above has been suggested by my mother, who before Tim O'Shea I got all of my health advice from (still get a good chunk of it from her - she is most into minerals, B vitamins (at least recently), and strengthening the guts.
Greetings Heatseeker (and welcome to the forum!) --
Chronic itching (no matter where it is) is always sign that our body cannot adequately eliminate toxins and/or has an overgrowth of a pathogen (bacteria, virus, fungus/mold/yeast, parasite) it cannot eliminate. Alternative medicine would suggest a group of supplements to 'turn off the itching' (which is fundamentally no different than taking drugs to do the same). Both squelch the only way our body has to cry out for help (and both force the body into actions that are not normal & natural to the body).
The human body is a magnifcent self-healing organism...it can (and does) heal itself of and from ANYthing when it's in it's natural state. The fundamental cause of all disease is the body being out of homeostasis (it's natural harmony & balance) - the cure for all disease is to help the body back to it's natural state. Here's a great synopsis: How "Cure" Happens - Dr. Kenneth R. Sutter
The first things two things we do in order to put the body back into it's natural state (always first and foremost) is to stop doing or ingesting anything that throws the body out of balance (or causes harm), and start doing & ingesting everything that puts the body back into it's natural state. As much as I (truly) appreciate & respect Tim O'Shea (Doctor Within), he has a couple of "issues". 1) He doesn't significantly address the liver & kidneys 2) He recommends taking isolated/fractionated supplements that are unnatural to our body. These substances (isolated/fractionated minerals, vitamins, enzymes, and other 'supplements'), are not natural to the human body and they do not cure anything...they only squelch symptoms (and many times throw the body further and further out of it's natural state).
Likely one of the best examples is what everyone 'knows' is THE most "innocent" of all supplements - Vitamin C. We all 'know' that if we take too much, our body easily eliminates it, and that we need it because we cannot create our own..and there's just no way we can harm ourself with Vitamin C/ascorbic acid. Right? Nope. Since the first thing I'm going to suggest you do to help get your body back into balance is to eliminate all supplements that are not natural, it's imperative you understand how these isolated/fractionated substances harm you...so the first two links in the list below (all about Vitamin C) are "must reads"...
Ok, three things. Okee-dokee, put on a pot of herbal tea and pull up a comfy chair :)
1: Just out of curiosity, is there a non-pharmaceutical symptomatic treatment for my type of itching? Well, the activated charcoal poultice I suggested would be one; topical application of bentonite clay would be another; there are a few herbs that have antihistamine qualities (nettle leaf is one; eye bright is another) - you could make teas/tinctures out of those if you feel this has something to do with histamine reactions. Slippery elm bark powder mixed with aloe gel and applied topically is very soothing/healing. But of course, none of those things are likely to get to the root of the problem.
2: One reason I admire Tim O'Shea is that he makes a point I've never seen from anyone else. Modern farming techniques have depleted the topsoil, and most farmers only use a P-N-K fertilizer, which does nothing more than make the food LOOK healthy. Because of this, he surmises that supplements are necessary. Do you think that he has a valid point? I think he has a very valid point that is very much the truth...which is all the more reason we need to ditch the unnatural supplement and add more foods, juices & superfoods into our diet in their NATURAL forms. Our bodies are constantly being pushed & forced out of their natural balance (homeostasis) and into a state of literal starvation and total imbalance by the poisons in our environment (overworking and doing all kinds of damage to the bazillions of tiny life forms and our major organs/systems that work together to make "us" an entire, working human organism). Putting MORE isolated/fractionated totally unnatural substances into our body is NOT the way to heal or cure this situation - the more imbalanced and unnatural the body is, the more we need to ensure that only wholesome, truly natural foods are ingested. (the furthest I'll "bend" is to juices, tinctures & teas...and many monkeys 'juice' their fruits, tearing open the skins, sucking out the juice --or chewing it up and spitting out the pulp -- so juicing isn't really unnatural :) For example, below is a list of the various vitamins, minerals, phyto-chemicals and co-factors found naturally in carrots:
This query displays a list of chemicals with accompanying biological activities for a particular plant. Chemicals for which we have no data on biological activities are not shown. When activities are excluded from the output (see checkbox below), all chemicals are shown.
So, there it is; all of the gazillions of chemicals & actions (at least those Duke has identified) in a carrot. Everytime we eat a carrot, everything our body needs to benefit from all the chemicals in the carrot are there for our body to utilize. Just how UNnatural is it to isolate, say, the beta-carotene from all the other vitamins, minerals, enzymes, phytochemicals & co-factors in a laboratory, and take ONLY that? When we take off the 'blinders of brainwashing' from science/medicine/society, it's freakishly unnatural. The words "come as a child" are running through my mind, because even a child would know that ingesting something as unnatural as this is the opposite of what we need to do to restore a natural body back to it's natural state!
And if child-like logic doesn't fit the bill, go back to O'Shea and his explanation of the trinity of food (I think it used to be in one of the chapters on enzymes). The basic trinity is vitamins, minerals, enzymes. When we denature the enzymes in raw milk via pasteurization, in order to process & utilize the vitamins & minerals in the milk, our body has to MAKE the necessary enzymes that have been eliminated. And to do this, our body has to TAKE CALCIUM from our bodies' own storehouse of calcium...which is why so many people that eat/drink pasteurized dairy have a lack of calcium. So if this is true of the vitamin/mineral/enzyme trinity (only THREE things), just think of the list above and the incredible compromise our body has to suffer/work through (and the vast amount of unnatural actions it's forced into) everytime we ingest a HANDFUL of unnatural fractionated/isolated substances! Sure thing, our bodies ARE smart enough to know what to do to try and 'get the goody out of them'...but for the most part it's a vicious cycle that does nothing more than bandaid one symptom and create a new symptom/compromise somewhere else.
Bottom line: if our goal is to restore our health by undoing the unnatural state of our body that is caused from being exposed to a lifetime of chemical poisons and unnatural substances, ingesting MORE unnatural substances is NOT the way to do it!
This is not a crazy newfangled concept or theory. Natural healers throughout the history of mankind have utilized it successfully (with Christopher/Schulze being the most recent I know of)...assist the body to remove the volatile poisons by cleansing the body/organs from the congestion caused by a lifetime of exposure to unnatural/harmful susbstances & foods while nourishing it with wholesome foods & cleansing/pure water. "Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food" Hippocrates.
3: Coffee enemas sound like an extreme measure. Is there anything milder you can recommend, even if it acts slower?
Extreme? That "coffee enemas are extreme" needs to go on Tim O'Sheas list in his chapter "The Doors of Perception". That CE's are "extreme" has got to be the TOP misconception about coffee enemas there is. Dr. Gerson had the most compromised of his patients (those on death's door) doing 5-6 CE's daily...if they were harmful or stressful in ANY way to the body, those patients would have died rather than recovered. From a Gerson lecture:
***
Where do we begin?. The most important first step is the detoxification. So let us go into that. First, we gave some different enemas. I found out that the best enema is the coffee enema as it was first used by Prof. 0. A. Meyer in Goettingen. This idea occurred to him when together with Prof. Heubner he gave caffeine solution into the rectum of animals. He observed that the bile ducts were opened and more bile could flow. I felt that this was very important and I worked out coffee enemas. We took three heaping tablespoons of ground coffee for one quart of water, let it boil for three minutes, then simmer 10 to 20 minutes, and then gave it at body temperature.
The patients reported that this was doing them good. The pain disappeared even though in order to carry through the detoxification, we had to take away all sedation. I realized that it is impossible to detoxify the body on the one hand and put in drugs and poisons on the other, such as sedation medication — demerol, codeine, morphine, scopolamine, etc. So, we had to put the medication aside which again was a very difficult problem. One patient told me that he had one grain of codeine every two hours and he got morphine injections . . . how can you take these away? I told him that the best sedation is a coffee enema. After a very short time he had to agree with that. Some of the patients who had been in severe pain didn't take coffee enemas every four hours as I prescribed — they took one every two hours. But no more sedation.
After just a few days there was very little pain, almost none. I can give you an example. A lady came to me not so long ago. She had cancer of the cervix and then two large tumor masses around the uterus. The cervix was a large crater, necrotic, producing blood and pus, and the poor lady couldn't sit any more. The condition was inoperable. She had been given X-rays and vomited any food she took in. She couldn't lie down anymore. She could not sit. She walked around day and night. When she came to my clinic the manager told me, “Doctor, you can't keep her here. This moaning and walking day and night is keeping the other patients from sleeping.” After four days she was able to sleep with no sedative whatsoever — which had not helped her much anyway. The sedation had worked for perhaps half an hour or so. After 8 to 10 days, she asked me for just one thing: let her omit that night enema at 3 or 4 o'clock in the morning. These patients who absorb the big tumor masses are awakened with an alarm clock every night because they are otherwise poisoned by the absorption of these masses. If I give them only one or two or three enemas, they die of poisoning.
I did not have the right as a physician to cause the body to absorb all the cancer masses and then not to detoxify enough. With two or three enemas they were not detoxified enough. They went into a coma hepaticum (liver coma). Autopsies showed that the liver was poisoned. I learned from these disasters that you can't give these patients too much detoxification. So I told this lady that for one night she could sleep for seven hours—but only for one night. I wouldn't risk more! When I didn't give these patients the night enemas, they were drowsy and almost semi-conscious in the morning. The nurses confirmed this and told me that it takes a couple of enemas till they are free of this toxic state again. I cannot stress the detoxification enough. Even so with all these enemas, this was not enough! I had to give them also castor oil by mouth and by enema every other day, at least for the first two weeks or so. After these two weeks you wouldn't recognize these patients any more! They had arrived on a stretcher and now they walked around. They had appetite. They gained weight and the tumors went down.
***
Allowing a body/organs that are already SO compromised that they cannot neutralize & expel toxins & poisons adequately (enough to prevent the skin from coming into play as an organ of elimination or prevent other symptoms)...to remain in a toxic/congested/compromised state is FAR more "extreme" (some might even say brutal) than EVER providing the body with the relief it so desperately needs!
Coffee enemas are a very gentle and effective way to increase bile flow and trigger the liver to cleanse the blood...WITHOUT risking that the toxic/stale bile will be reassimilated in large amounts (like other liver cleansing protocols). Be sure to read this so you'll understand why that is:
Those of us that have incorporated daily CE's into our schedule, can feel the benefits (that have nothing to do with 'caffeine buzz' and everything to do with our blood being cleansed of poisons & free radicals). I'm sorry, but there's nothing I know to of to suggest that is even remotely similar in efficacy and benefits.
And I thank you for asking these two 'major questions'...I realize my reply is 'long', but these are two things I've needed to 'get said' and 'in print' since the beginning of the forum.
Healthiest of blessings,
Unyquity
P.S. Be sure to do a forum search on "Earthing" as this is something we ALL should be doing daily/nightly :)