WOW! Marie is six years symptom free. How inspiring is that! Six years ago, in the middle of my November to Remember, No Excuses November, 30-day challenge 2011, a comment was posted on the blog that Marie would not be accepting the 30-day challenge because she was fully recovered. How inspiring is that!!!
Now, here we are, six years later from my November 11, 2011 post entitled, “Fighting Parkinson’s, and Marie is symptom free.” For the last six years, Marie has continued posting comments to inspire and encourage all of us.
I will begin with Marie’s comment announcing her recovery:
From my November 11, 2011 post, six years ago today, with what Marie had to say:
Marie says:
November 10, 2011 at 1:07 pm
“I accepted an internal 30-day challenge from myself when I discovered
fightingparkinsonsdrugfree almost a year ago. And that was just the beginning. I made a promise to myself that I would do whatever was necessary and change my life in whatever ways would support recovery, if it was really possible to have my condition improve rather than degenerate. As Howard so often says, ” What did I have to lose?” I trusted Howard as my guide, and the bearer of good news that penetrated the bleakness of my fear and despair . I put my faith in my power to heal myself. The Recipe for Recovery was my lifeline. AND it is why I can happily and gratefully report to you today that the reason I am not accepting this challenge now is that I am symptom free! YES! Symptom Free!!!
Cheering you all on as you courageously overcome the disease. I am a happy example of the success of the Recipe for Recovery.
With love to you all~ Marie”
Up until that time, I was the only one who had cured myself utilizing the Parkinson’s Recipe for Recovery®, so Marie curing herself became proof of concept: Yes, the Recipe would work for others! This was big news as many people were greatly inspired to learn that the Recipe worked for Marie — it made them know it could work for them.
Here is an excerpt from a comment Marie wrote shortly after being cured of Parkinson’s:
Marie says:
November 19, 2011 at 10:35 pm
“I’ve just read both of the latest posts, and all of the comments. How exciting to feel all the faith, courage and support being shared here. We are a lucky bunch! It is wonderful to read the comments and see the shifts in awareness and the victories over the disease. I never took any meds and am in awe of each of you who is defying that medical model and choosing to take yourself off the drugs and fight Parkinson’s.
You are so brave, and from what I read in your posts, it is working. You are getting better.
Because it is such a powerful component in my own recovery, I offer this :
Fully acknowledge yourself and give yourself credit for what you are doing. Love yourself for how truly brave you are
and how dedicated you are to healing yourself. Thank yourself for this precious gift you are giving yourself. Sit in that feeling and give your brain a lovely dopamine bath.
Our gracious guide, Howard, always tells us that we are doing it for ourselves, and still, I think we tend to praise everyone else for the inspiration they are providing.
Be grateful to yourself, too, for having that opening that let the inspiration move you.
For me, this has been a good tool, and I hope it may be useful. I found it very hard to do ,at first. Kind of embarrassing. And actually, it is even a little hard to write about
now.
“What? She sits around loving herself????”
I’ll tell you, I do, every chance I get.”
Over the last six years, Marie has continued to support our recovery community with comments she has posted. Last week, she posted this comment to inspire all of you in this year’s November to Remember 30-day Challenge:
Marie says:
November 2, 2017 at 1:10 pm
“Sending heartfelt best wishes to all of you who are making this commitment for November. Be compassionate with yourself and trust the process~ From personal experience, I know it works! Literally everyday, I give thanks to Howard for the Recipe for Recovery. Following it to the best of your ability changes your life on every level.”
Additionally, four years ago, we all were fortunate to have Marie attend my Santa Fe, New Mexico workshop. At the Santa Fe workshop, I got to meet Marie in person for the first time. I can assure you, she is the luminous soul all of you presumed she would be from reading the comments she continues to post on this blog to support and inspire all of us.
Here is a picture from the following day, when I got to spend time with Marie at her home. This picture is in one of her beautiful gardens:
Even though we had met in person for the first time the day before, I felt that special connection, the one that feels like you have known somebody for decades, not just a couple of days. Before I left, Marie shared with me something she had been told in a seminar many years ago. The instructor explained that fear is like a prayer. If you live in fear, it is like praying for everything you fear to come true.
Let’s live in faith. Let’s live in love. Then faith in recovery can be your prayer, and love for yourself and others can kindle the flame of joy in your heart.
Finally, three years ago, Marie posted a comment to help all who were forging ahead in that year’s November to Remember 30-day Challenge 2014. Here is what she had to say:
Marie says:
November 5, 2014 at 2:02 pm
“Dear Recovery Community,
It is so beautiful to read all of these posts. To those of you who have accepted the 30 Day Challenge, congratulations!! You are so fortunate to have found Howard and his amazing Recipe for Recovery! You are recovering from Parkinson’s!
Since I recovered , I don’t do the Recipe for Recovery anymore, but when I committed to following the Recipe, it totally changed my life. From the Recipe, I learned how to live a happier, less stressful life and learned the importance of savoring what is good in each day, and practicing, Gratitude.
Howard once told me that for some people who find the website….and I paraphrase here, since I do not remember the exact words….a block to recovery is thinking that Howard is so amazing ….so committed, so full of Faith…that, in some way he is “better” and that is why the Recipe worked for him. Maybe you do not believe that you could do the Recipe ”as well” as Howard did it. Maybe you don’t feel 100% faith in your recovery and you think that will keep you from recovering.
As he does for many of you, Howard holds a very special place in my heart, my mind and my spirit. I love and admire him. He is a truly rare and awesome being!!!!!
To each of you I want to say that you can most certainly do the Recipe for Recovery as well as I did, and I recovered. I committed myself to doing the Recipe, even when I was not sure that I believed it. The commitment was rock solid. Faith was a little more difficult. When I didn’t feel like doing the Recipe, I did it anyway. When I did not have Faith in my recovery, I did not let that derail me; seeing how easy it would be to let lack of faith get in my way , I “acted as if” I had faith, until my faith caught up with me again.
Whatever obstacles you find, you can also find your way to sidestep them. Don’t let ANYTHING stop you.
Love and best wishes, Marie”
So, my dear friend, Marie, here we are six years after you becoming cured from Parkinson’s. Absolutely amazing! Absolutely inspiring! Absolutely loving! Your recovery…and you…absolutely amazing! and inspiring! and loving! You could have given your gratitude and walked away. You could have said, “I am cured, good luck to the rest of you…and disappeared.” But no, here you are, still opening your heart to all of us, still being such an active part of our recovery community with your blog post comments.
I want everybody to know that I never have asked you to post a single comment since your recovery, but instead, that you have continued to give of yourself from your heart. I am grateful for you, Marie, my dear, dear friend. With gratitude, blessings, hugs, and love, Howard.
CONGRATULATIONS, MARIE!!! SIX YEARS SYMPTOM FREE FULL RECOVERY, CURED FROM PARKINSON’S!!!
Who’s next? What are you waiting for?
Make the commitment to cure yourself from Parkinson’s!
Okay, everybody, put big smiles on your faces and chant together so the whole world can hear:
“Parkinson’s is curable.
I am my own Parkinson’s cure.
I am halting, slowing, and reversing the progression of my Parkinson’s.
I am extraordinary.
I am recovery.
I am doing great!
AND, I AM WORTH IT!!!”
Yes you are. Each and every one of you is WORTH IT!!!
All my best,
Howard
Marie, congratulations and happy anniversary. You are an inspiration to us all.
Congratulation Marie!!!
You are inspiring me alot.
Hugs and with Love
Congratulations Marie!
Congratulations Marie. I always love reading your posts as they inspire me alongside Howard’s. Thank you for your commitment to the rest of us.
Love and blessings
Waseema
Xxx
Congratulations to you, Marie!
What I don’t understand is why you stopped doing the Recipe. Does that mean you don’t do Qi Gong anymore?
I can’t imagine not doing Qi Gong anymore. I find it so beneficial that no matter what will happen, I will practice it for the rest of my life!
Love to you
Christiane
Hi Christiane,
What Marie was getting at is that none of us who have had our full recoveries needs to do the Recipe-specific Qigong anymore because we do not have Parkinson’s anymore. That is why we say we are cured; we did the Recipe’s soul, mind, and body treatment, and when we became fully recovered, we no longer needed the Recipe-specific Qigong. The mental and spiritual healing became a part of a healthy way to live life.
Each morning, I do a light set of six Qigong exercises because, like you, I find Qigong to be a healthy, peaceful way to start the day. However, like Marie and the others, the Recipe’s Parkinson’s-specific Qigong is unnecessary.
Love and blessings,
Howard
Hi Christiane,
While it is true that I no longer do the entire Recipe for Recovery, since I have ben 100% cured, I do still practice Qigong or Tai Chi everyday. Occasionally, if I feel like it is appropriate, I do the exercises that are part of the Recipe. for example, I often do Standing Like a Tree, which I find has an overall effect of relaxing and centering me. If I have become angry, I love doing the Medical Qigong for the Liver exercises which are part of the Recipe. I also talk to my liver and apologize, and ask it not to hold on to the anger.
My experience with Qigong was very powerful. Though I had never even heard the word before finding Howard on the internet, I found the Qigong exercises to be wonderfully beneficial, right from the beginning.
Far from leaving Qigong behind, I have continued to study and have been certified as a qigong instructor. So for me, the journey that began with my Parkinson’s symptoms and lead me to Howard and the Recipe for Recovery continues! It did not end when my symptoms left. Following the Recipe opened up my life in remarkable ways and set me off on completely unforeseen directions…..more about that in another post.
When I finish my daily Qigong/Tai Chi, I give thanks to each of my teachers. Howard is number 1 on the list!
Thank you , Howard!!
with love to this beautiful and inspiring Recovery community~Marie
Thank you Howard and Marie for giving us this opportunity to celebrate with you and be reminded of how we too can join you in recovery!
Congratulations Marie!
Thank you for giving me so much hope
Thank you for staying with us and your comments
Love and blessings to all
Marie – you are an inspiration to all of us! God bless you and Howard and all the warriors pursuing the same path!
Luv U All,
Beth
Dear Marie, congratulations!!!
Thank you that you still are supporting us, that’s fantastic and very kind!!
Howard and you give us hope and faith. Our path isn’t easy as you both experienced yourselves!!
THANK YOU🌺
Dear Marie,
You are a great inspiration to us all!
Much love! Trish
Congratulations Marie! You are an inspiration to all of us. And big thanks to Howard for showing us that parkinsons is curable xx
Thank-you, Marie. I am really moved that after curing yourself, you continue to put energy into this website, to inspire and give hope. I am interested that Qigong has remained part of your everyday life. I’d love to see more photos of your gardens. I’m a poet and a gardener… you might like my website (www.lovellmelinda.wordpress.com)
Congratulations to my favourite warrior princess Marie. I love the way you have not forgotten the rest of us in your recovery and continue to champion us on. I love your
“Fake it till you feel it” tip. Thank you for the gift of you Marie to this community. You ROCK my friend . Big Love to you! Karen xx
I am highly blessed to be a part of this dedicated and committed group. Each one of you is a precious gift from our Creator-God! I thank you, Howard, and thanks to Sally, for giving both of your lives to the betterment and healing of each person who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. My life is improving day by day. Even on the most challenging day, I know to find my way back to a calm state which makes symptoms fade.
Thank you, Melinda. I am on your site and enjoying myself.
Love and hugs to everyone!
Thank you all for your messages! This anniversary is always a time of great personal joy and celebration. The gratitude I feel to this community and the beacon of hope it provides is enormous. Howard’s sharing his experience and the Recipe for Recovery was, for me, nothing short of miraculous, lifting me from despair into action and then to full recovery. This is one of the most beautiful and profound gifts I have received my lifetime. And I can tell you, Howard’s wisdom is no less applicable after recovery! His approach to living a balanced life still inspires me. When he posted recently about chipping away from inside the iceberg, it struck me (again!) that this my absolute favorite metaphor in the whole world. I still cannot read about chipping at the iceberg without seeing myself inside the iceberg in my white lab coat with my chistle in hand! It still helps to know that whatever life’s challenges, if I am working diligently, even if it looks like nothing is happening, progress is being made.
Knowing that I was able to chip my way free of Parkinson’s has been so empowering.
In celebration of my anniversary I want to offer this to each of you:
APPRECIATE YOURSELF AND BE GRATEFUL TO YOURSELF FOR EACH STEP YOU MAKE TOWARDS YOUR
RECOVERY!!
CELEBRATE EVERY SUCCESS!!
LOVE YOURSELF MORE!!
and as Howard always reminds us all, remember : YOU ARE WORTH IT!
You are so absolutely worth it!!
Sending love and best wishes to each of you as you journey on to YOUR full recovery,
Marie
Thank you Marie for sharing yourself so generously! Remembering and giving us the details of your recovery process boosts my resolve and confidence that my future is bright. There is always something new, no matter how small, or a new angle when you post a comment on the blog.
As I have suspected for a long time, though we battle and fight Parkinson’s, it is also the tool I can be thankful for because God uses it to teach me the better, balanced way to live. The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.” Psalm 32:8 My symptoms are necessary to remind me to actively work on retraining my adrenaline driven mind, using the Recipe’s methods and Howard’s counsel. Without PD symptoms, I don’t see myself changing for the better. For example, I never used to “have time to” stop my busy day to appreciate and take in the beauty around me. Now because I am limited physically, I stop several times throughout the day to do so.
Congratulations on your recovery anniversary! Much love to you, Marie.
And to all my fellow warriors, thank you for commenting on Howard’s posts. I love reading your thoughts and seeing how your stories are unfolding. God bless both the writers and the readers.
Love to all, Pat
Pat what a beautiful post! xx
Marie, your loving spirit overflows from your words! That is a notable quality that both you and Howard convey – strong, loving encouragement! Thank you!
Congratulations to you Marie..!! Your post is so inspiring and you are such a wonderful human being still there to cheer up all of us.. motivating. .. I am truly lucky to have found all of you. . Gratitude .. Thank you so much
I believe others come into our lives at a certain time for a particular purpose. Our paths cross because God has allowed us the chance to find that purpose. Why Howard has arrived in my life at this point in time is my mystery to discover. Day by day that becomes a little clearer. Thank you Marie for being part of our journey and helping us in that quest. Blessings to you both.
Love
Veronica 🌱🌺