The recovery from Parkinson’s is a soul, mind, and body recovery. The days can be difficult and sometimes the journey can be lonely. It is wonderful to have all of you here cheering each other on. However, on a personal level, to be successful in your recovery, you need to know the answer to this question, “Aren’t you worth it?” is absolutely, “Yes, I am worth it!!!”
I conclude every one of my posts by reminding you that, “You are worth it!!!” However, my knowing this about you is not what matters the most. The others cheering you on who know this about you is not what matters the most. You knowing this about you, that you are worth it, is what matters the most.
Here are some reminders to assist you in knowing that you absolutely are worthy and deserving of this recovery, that you are worth it.
Ultimately, your recovery comes down to faith, attitude, and action to make progress. I will begin with action.
Action. In the Parkinson’s Recipe for Recovery®, there are medical Qigong exercises that require you to take action to fight your Parkinson’s. These are not general Qigong exercises that one would learn taking an introductory Qigong class. These are medical Qigong exercises designed to heal the liver and kidneys and help them function better. Since one of the causes of Parkinson’s is: “Kidney and Liver, Wind, Deficiency, which is caused by overwork and insufficient rest which unbalances the body’s natural rhythm,” I researched medical Qigong to focus my initial action to rectify these deficiencies.
Qigong in general. Your hearts pumps your blood through your body. Your lymph system needs your assistance to move it throughout your body to build up immunities and cleanse toxins. Enter Qigong. Qigong is known as a soft exercise in that it does not require a whole lot of physical exertion, but it still builds up internal energy because you are moving your body slowly and stimulating your lymph system.
Medical Qigong for Liver and Kidneys in the Recipe. The slow Qigong movements are focused on these specific organs. However, there are additional benefits. The liver is paired with the gallbladder as an organ system. The kidneys are paired with the bladder as an organ system. And, the lungs (it is not possible to do these Qigong exercises without breathing in a whole lot more oxygen than just sitting around) are paired with the large intestine as an organ system.
So, by doing these medical Qigong exercises, you are working on healing your liver, gallbladder, kidneys, bladder, lungs and large intestine. It is why many people have reported back to me that within days of beginning the Recipe, they notice an increase in energy, their bowel movements have become regular and easy, their sense of smell has returned, that although they still feel pain, their shoulders and knees are looser, they can turn their head and look back when backing up their car…these are small signs of progress, but they are signs of progress nonetheless.
Here is how I envision the Qigong is working: I am going back to my Titanic analogy, but taking it to the next level. Here is what I have said on this point in the past: “You did not get Parkinson’s the day you got diagnosed, and it is not going to go away the day after the diagnosis. The captain of the Titanic only saw the tip of the iceberg, if that, but an ice mountain had been growing for a long time beneath the surface. When Parkinson’s finally breaks to the surface, there are a mountain of layers below that need to be dealt with to beat the disease.”
Now, envision the mountain of ice below the surface that sunk the Titanic. Further, envision that you are placed deep into the center of this mountain of ice and you have a tiny hammer and chisel. Your goal is that each day you will chip away at the ice in a symmetrical manner. To an onlooker at the surface, they cannot even see you are in there chipping away. To an onlooker at the surface, the iceberg looks just as solid as it did the very first time they saw it.
Every day you are chipping away more and more, and every day the onlooker at the surface sees no progress. On one particular day, somebody who knows you are in there tells the onlooker, “Hey, there is a person in the middle of that iceberg with a small hammer and chisel chipping away.” The onlooker shakes their head and tells the person, “If that is so, they are crazy and they are wasting their time. I have been looking at this iceberg every day and I see absolutely no change at all.”
Ask yourself this: “If every day I am inside that iceberg chipping away and watching the hole inside get larger and larger, aren’t I making progress?” And, ask yourself this: “If every day I am inside that iceberg chipping away and watching the hole inside get larger and larger, does it really matter what the iceberg looks like on the surface in determining whether I am making progress?” How about this: “When I chip away at this iceberg in a symmetrical manner and I finally reach the outer edges, won’t the entire iceberg go away and won’t it happen quickly?”
There it is in a nutshell (or iceberg), how the Recipe works. After nine months of doing the Recipe and seeing very little improvement of my symptoms, I started seeing a lot of improvement and two weeks later I had no symptoms. The causes were removed and the disease went away. This is also known as full recovery. And since I stopped doing the Recipe that day and over five years later, no symptoms have returned, this is also known as being cured.
The medical Qigong in the Recipe amounts to you taking action. The medical Qigong in the Recipe amounts to you chipping away at the iceberg from the inside out. To an onlooker, you look like you are accomplishing nothing, that you are crazy and wasting your time. Yes, your symptoms are an annoyance and an inconvenience, but I was not focused on relieving my symptoms. Instead, I was focused on ridding myself of Parkinson’s, and then the symptoms would go away. Actually experiencing the symptoms is what gave me the insight to understand what needed to be accomplished to beat this disease. I saw the enemy, I was able to endure what it had to deliver, I learned what I needed to learn to defeat it, and I took action. Every day you do something to defeat this disease, you are making progress.
That is the purpose of medical Qigong for the Liver and Kidneys…even though you may not feel your organs healing from deep inside, they are. How do I know this? Faith, faith, faith…and success. I recovered. I am cured.
Faith. At the beginning, you have to have faith in your own recovery, faith in the process you are using to lead you down the path to recovery, and faith in yourself to see it through to the end of the recovery path.
Attitude. You have to keep a good attitude so that no matter how you feel, you know you are making progress because you have faith that you are on the correct path.
Action. I have said many times that faith without action is meaningless for Parkinson’s recovery. Action proves faith! Action says, “I so firmly believe that I will recover that I am willing to do Qigong exercises every day even if I cannot actually feel them healing me from deep within and even if I do not get immediate relief of my symptoms.” Some people think this kind of faith is crazy. I feel that this kind of faith leads to recovery. Did you ever stop to think that the same people who call this kind of faith crazy actually have no faith at all in recovery? They still feel that one cannot recover from Parkinson’s. You are proving them wrong.
Progress. Every day you wake up in the morning you are making progress on your path of life. Every day you do something in furtherance of fighting your Parkinson’s you are making progress on the path of Parkinson’s recovery. With strong faith, a great attitude, and proper action, you come to the realization that every day you employ this formula, you are making progress.
And, one day you may wake up making progress in the path of life and realize that you have successfully completed the path of Parkinson’s recovery. It will be overwhelming. You will be cured.
So, what are you doing in the moment, NOW? Why not grab onto some strong faith and a great attitude, and start taking some proper action with the Recipe, NOW! Aren’t you worth it?
Look inside yourself and find the answer, “Yes, I am worth it!!!”
Absolutely, each and every one of you:
YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!
All my best,
Howard
Hi Howard,
Thanks so much for the perfect post. I know that I am worth it…and I know that I show this knowledge of self worth by my actions that I take every minute of every day. I am grateful and am showing that gratitude. My actions show my Faith in Myself, in God, and in the Recipe for Recovery. Parkinson’s is curable and I am my own Parkinson’s cure. I choose Faith…. I choose action, and I choose Recovery. I am worth it !!
Sending Love and Blessings to each of you
Feeling grateful for life
Debbie
Hi Howard,
It’s great to be reminded of this as so often we forget and revert back to our old ways of being. We’re all worth it because we’re all special! Just one question Howard ….. you mention how your symptoms finally melted away in a short space of time. Was this the experience for the others that have recovered?
Love and blessings
Waseema
Great question Waseema! Always wondered that myself about Marie and Pratima. 🙂
Hi Debbie and Waseema,
You are welcome. Thank you for your comments and kind words.
Waseema, for the others who have had full recoveries, Marie and Pratima had a slow reduction of symptoms along the way. Betty was like me in that after 8 years of her having leg problems and difficulty walking, once her walking improved, she literally hit her stride and finished her recovery in the following couple of weeks.
Love and blessings,
Howard
Thanks Howard.
That’s helpful as it shows that the recipe allows individual recoveries to take place.
Gracias Howard es importante mantener en mente , que siempre que haces la receta en la parte fisica qigong medico, estas avanzando hacia la curacion yo agregaria algo mas , LA PACIENCIA es importante pork aveces nos desesperamos al no ver cambios con rapidez, Dios bendiga a todos.
Translation:
Thanks Howard, it is important to keep in mind that whenever you do the physical part prescription medical qigong, moving towards healing. I would add something else, patience is an important part, sometimes we despair at not seeing changes quickly, God bless all.
DETOX THE BODY- DETOX THE MIND- DETOX THE SOUL- REACH THE GOAL!
Thanks Howard!!
Wonderful post Howard! Thanks for helping to renew my faith in what I do each day. So very important!
Love and blessings.
Thank you Howard and community for rebuilding our faith in the process.
Best wishes
Hans
Hi Howard and fellow Warriors, fabulous reminder Howard! I’m chip chip chipping away daily! My Faith is the one thing that has never wavered. Like one of the guys said, patience has definitely been challenged 🙂 as has frustration but think I’m finally mastering both. Enjoying connecting with my shiny teapot these days through lots of meditation and being present in each moment. It’s like a conscious choice to know that I am divenly being guided and taken care off and each task that I perform, Spirit is right there with me. Feeling that love and presence. 🙂
Big Love to All.
Karen xx
i always love reading your posts karen. you say you’re doing lots of meditation. may i ask what kind of meditation you do,
and thanks for another great post howard
so timely for the beginning of spring down here in australia
big hugs
lindaxx
Linda bless your heart for your kind words. I think I am the biggest whinger of all the Warriors lol. I do a lot of meditation to get me out of my head. Nothing specific. I just go to my chair and ask God to take the overwhelm away and connect me back to my soul, my knowing, my strength. The chatterbox in the mind can be relentless as I stagger around ” oh look you’re getting worse, who are you kidding?” So I sit and call in ” Holy Spirit ground me, you’re in charge not this fear” To me Linda meditation is quieting my mind and letting the voice of my soul be louder. Hope that answers your question friend.
Karen xx
Dear Howard, it is always wonderful to be reminded of this wonderful metaphor of chipping away at the iceberg from inside. It was a powerful and sustaining image for me in my recovery. To add to what you stated: yes! my symptoms, especially tremors, improved some once I started doing the Recipe. In hindsight, I attribute that to the lessening of the strangle hold of FEAR. My obsession with symptoms was replaced by commitment to the Recipe. Paralysis replaced by action. It was not a straight trajectory, though, not just steady improvement. It was more like waves. Through the ups and downs, that beautiful image and everything I learned from you, Howard kept me going.
As I have said many times before, I did not have ” perfect faith “. What I did have was you, Howard, to inspire and urge me on. You, to demonstrate to me that recovery was a real possibility. thank you for that precious gift!
I also had determination, and put my recovery first and foremost in my life. Really. The Recipe for Recovery was my lifeline, my only hope, and I held to it with everything I had.
Another favorite image was “tuning out fear on the heart radio”.
tuning and chipping, tuning and chipping. Bathing my brain in dopamine. Learning to stop and appreciate beautiful moments. Let them sink in. Stay with them. Feeling gratitude. Washing anger from my liver.
Like you and Betty and Pratima, I no longer have any need to do the Recipe. but I do still love a good dopamine bath!
Marie, thank you for your comments! I, too look to Howard for proof that complete recovery is possible, and to the recipe as a lifeline. I also look to you as proof that recovery is possible! My faith waivers now and then, but I look to those of you who have achieved full recovery as a reminder that it is possible for us as well. Thank you for keeping in touch with this group of warriors as a reminder of your success as well as Howard, Betty and Pratima!
Thank you so much Marie for taking the time to comment and to encourage us. It is very much a roller coaster of a ride and yes, faith can waiver, but we keep our eyes on the goal and thanks to you, Howard, Betty and Pratima, we know there is a way through to recovery.
Fabulous Gift from you Marie, THANKYOU. I’ve read all the posts around your recovery period and it was in the November challenge that you announced your recovery. I have always found you to be so real, as in, when you mentioned how the receipe gave you something to focus on rather than how you could exit. That hit home with me as it showed me you had hit dark dark moments on your journey as I’m sure all of us have experienced. I also love that you admit you faked it until you felt it 🙂 fabulous guidance that is so helpful on the dark days. We all appreciate that you are in the wings constantly cheering us on. You’re an amazing warrior. 🙂 Bless you.
Karen xx
Dear Marie,
Thank you for sharing your own journey. It’s a great privilege to hear your experience alongside Howard, Betty and Pratima. I feel blessed to be part of this amazing community and intend on inspiring others to recover with us.
Love and blessings
Waseema
Howard’s posts are always like gold, and then to receive the BONUS of hearing from Marie, too, is such a wonderful gift! There is nothing like learning additional details from someone who succeeded in recovery. While each of you recovered by doing the Recipe, it was experienced in different fashions.
I am inspired, Marie by your determination to make your recovery first and foremost in your life. Learning to stop and appreciate beautiful moments, letting them sink in and feel gratitude. And keeping that image of the iceberg and chipping away, while tuning out fear.
I agree heartily with all the comments, insights and personal experiences from my fellow warriors. So grateful that so many are willing to share. It makes a big difference to me. And I believe there are many who are benefiting but not posting comments. (Like me oftentimes 🙂
Karen, I loved your description of how and what you meditate on. Good stuff!
And Tony, love your succinct – DETOX THE BODY, DETOX THE MIND, DETOX THE SOUL!!! Leave it to a man to simplify the message! Lol
A Big Thank you to Howard and Marie for their comments this week.
I am constantly grateful to Howard for his strength, faith, action,compassion and untiring dedication in not only healing himself, but then in turning around and helping as many people as will listen along on their healing journey.
I am so grateful to Marie for taking the time to share her story and uplift those of us who are on the path to recovery. It is good to hear from someone who followed Howard’s example and advice and made it to recovery.
It is a good healing week, and I am grateful to be on this path to recovery 🙂
Love and Blessings
Debbie
Thank you Howard and Marie. We need these reminders that if you could do we can too.
I often wonder specially in public places if I can see any one with tremors and believe me I haven’t seen any that means it is a very rare disease. If God has bestowed upon us this and mind you he has also given us a solution along with it in form of Howard so I believe it is for a purpose. The all mighty definitely has something special in store for all of us. So all my fellow warriors when ever we doubt ourselves with wavering faith this is what brings light to me. For most if Howard, Marie, Pratima and Betty can why can’t WE.
Thank you Howard for your round the clock mentoring. We are all very fortunate to have found you.
Look forward to meeting you and Sally this Sunday.????
Thank you, thank you Howard for your wonderful insights! Your words keeps me determined to win this battle.
Thank you too Marie for very encouraging testimony.
Thanks to all!
I am following your posts Howard and friends always a little late as so little time with small child.
I am doing the recipe when i can maybe several times a week but seem to have worse symptoms the more I do. I assume this is just my necessary healing path Howard?
Love to all you super people Xxx