Osiyo, and Welcome. In this column, I will address health issues from a Native point of view. I am not a Medical Doctor, I am a Traditional, yet my words have placed many people on the Path of Health. I wish only to to share my knowledge with you, and encourage you to investigate various paths to your Healing. I will focus on our traditional Native American remedies and preventatives as well as other non-toxic treatments for disease. I chose the topic of cancer, because most other diseases may be treated or prevented using the same protocol or techniques.
Contrary to what we've been told, the truth is that European Civilization and Science has not improved the health and standard of life for the Native and Indigenous peoples of the world. Most books describing the European's first contact with Native Americans (or any other indigenous people for that matter) describe fit, healthy and energetic people. Tsa-la-gi people were said to "delight in athletics (both men and women), and excelled in endurance of intense cold. Well-featured and of erect carriage, of moderately robust build, they were possessed of a superior and independent bearing". Tsa-la-gi people lived in a natural manner; we planted both personal and communual gardens that provided us with pure vegetables and fruits free of chemical sprays. We hunted wild game that was not penned up, or force-fed with hormones and antibiotics. Every morning was begun with a cold dip in Long Man,(the river) where we said our daily prayer. There was a continuous round of New Moon Ceremonies, Feast Days, Fasting Days, and Dances that kept us in harmony with our surroundings and each other. We had Seven types of Medicine People, from Herbalists and Midwives to Priests.You only need to look around you to see that the health of our People today is not what it was in the past. Our people, both old and not so old, suffer from diabetes, high blood-pressure, heart problems, alcoholism, depression, AIDS and yes, cancer.
Cancer is quite rare among the so-called primitive people of the world. The more industrialized the country, the more cancers. Cancer is not the result of bad luck. It's not a matter of bad genes or a single virus. Most cancers are caused by the way we live, think, what we eat, and the environments we live in. Lung cancer is linked to cigarette smoking (or breathing in someone elses smoke), working around asbestos, coal, uranium or other toxic inhalants; living or working in areas of high level exhaust fumes or in areas with heavy air-pollution. Breast cancer and prostrate cancer have been linked to the high levels of pesticides in our diets, to the excessive use of meat and dairy products that are full of added hormones, hormones so strong that many countries refuse to buy American beef, and that was before the Mad Cow disease scare.Cancers develop for many reasons, some known, some unknown. The usual treatment given is an operation followed by radiation and chemotherapy, often with tragic results. For those of you who are comfortable with these treatments, May the Maker of Breath protect you. But if you, or a loved one choose not to be drugged, burned or butchered, there are alternatives.The orthodox view of disease is that something outside of you has a attacked you (usually a virus) and they must give you a powerful drug or strong radiation to kill it. The trouble is, anything that strong and toxic will usually kill you also.In the Holistic (and traditional Native) view, disease means something has gone "out of balance" within you, and your balance must be restored. Your immune system needs to be strengthened so that your body can heal itself.The first thing that you, or your loved one must do, is to believe you can be healed. Do not accept anyone's death sentence, many former cancer patients have lived many years after their doctor's funeral.
Visualize yourself in the healing white light of the Creator. Tell yourself, or your loved one that healing is possible. Not just "remission" but healing. Change your consciousness. Heal your thoughts and your emotional responses as you heal your body. Strengthen your spiritual connection, whether it is the Traditional Native Way, the Christian Way, or whatever Path you follow. Surround yourself with positive, spiritually strong people.If there is no one like this in your life at this time, contact Silent Unity, at 1901 NW Blue Parkway, Unity Village, MO 64065-0001, or call (816)246-5400. If you have an urgent need of Spiritual Support and no means of paying for the call, you may call Silent Unity toll-free at 1-800-669-7729.
If you feel more comfortable with Native Spirituality, you can write me, Noquisi Iga, c/o of BTTB Journal, Box 527-524, Flushing, NY 11352-7524. I will pray for you during the New Moon Ceremony I hold with the Red Corn Harvest Cherokee.
There may be times you feel afraid, times you may have doubts, and you will need to have others who can strengthen you in your healing. Do not remain around people who stress you, people who are argumentative, or people who drain you NO MATTER WHO THEY ARE.Now is the time to release all the harmful, negative habits that you told yourself you would stop "one day." That Day is Now. The abuse that a strong, healthy body can take before breaking down can KILL a weakened, sick body trying to heal. You must stop smoking IMMEDIATELY. You must stop drinking alcohol, sodas, kool-aid, caffeine IMMEDIATELY. If you are obese, overweight, you must lose the weight NOW. You should not eat meat. Animals today are given hormones to make them grow quicker than normal, and regularly fed antibiotics to try to combat the parasites and bacteria such as Salmonella and others that infect the animals. You need to direct all of your energy towards ridding yourself of the cancer, and not wasting vital energy on fighting food toxins and bacterias.
The food you eat and the water you drink must be as pure as possible. If your water is heavily laced with clorine, floride, or other chemicals, you must buy a water filter, or drink bottled water. If you can't afford to do this, at least boil your water before drinking it. It will not remove the chemicals, but it can kill many of the germs our American water supplies have become contaminated with.It was a Native tradition to take a "Spring Tonic" and a "Purge" (some of you older readers might remember having spring tonics as children.) My family's Spring Tonics were Sassafras or Sarsaparilla tea, and Dandelion leaf salad. Other good blood cleansers to remove toxins from your body are Burdock, Echinacea, Garlic Oil capsules (five in the morning and five at night for serious cases)Yellow Dock, Golden Seal Root, (take it in a cycle of two weeks on, stop for one week, then take it for two weeks again).
Goldenseal Root, Dandelion Root, Burdock and Yellow Dock are all quite bitter. You may prefer to take your herbs in capsule form, then follow with a cup of hot water. Always take herbs one hour before taking any fruit juice.Vitamins, however, should be taken after the meal. A good multi-vitamin is mandatory, and take extra Vitamin A, B-complex, E, Choline, and B-15. Vitamin C, an important anti-oxidant, should be taken in large doses, up to 5,000 mg. Vitamin C is water soluble, and any excess will come out in your urine. In high doses it is a mild "purge". In case of diarrhea, just take a little less. Do not take supplemental Iron tablets.
Foods that you should be eating are: mashed potatoes, vegetable broth, brown rice, carrots, greens of all kinds (especially collards, dandelions, poke salad, mustard greens) wild onions (ramps) red cabbage (especially valuable) green cabbage, parsley, eggplant, okra, new corn on the cob, peas, celery, lima beans, onions, garlic, cauliflower, baked potatoes, lentils, cucumbers, lettuce, soybean sprouts, wild rice, yellow corn meal. Stay away from processed food. Cook your vegetables for as short a time as possible, or try steaming them. In season, make meals of watermelon alone.Invest in a juicer. There are smaller models on sale now for under 50 dollars. Carrot juice mixed with 1/3 beet juice or spinach juice is cleansing to your liver and a rich source of Vitamin A. Black cherry juice, black currant juice and dark grape juice are also important. Bioflavinoids are anti-cancer substances found in many fruit and vegetable juices. When adding juices to your diet, drink the fruit juices early in the day, and the vegetable juices later on, from afternoon through evening.
Exercise is Mandatory. You may not be up to a Cherokee ball-game, but a long walk in fresh air is just as good. The slow movements of yoga are strengthening and balance your hormones while improving the function of your glands. The basic exercises are simple and easy do, you can learn them from books, though these days video tapes are also available. If you are really weak at this time (too weak to sit at the computer and read this..maybe someone gave you a print-out:> have someone open the window so that you can breathe in the fresh air. Visualize that you are breathing in health, hold as long as you can, breathe out dis-ease. Increase this at your own pace. Another way to work up a bit of a sweat, and to help your lymph glands to do their work, is to jump on a small trampoline. I have one and I love it - so do all the kids I know!)
Stay Strong and Keep the Faith, whatever your faith is. When you commit yourself to a holistic way of life, the Creator and the Universe will work with you.Lots of Love, and Walk In Harmony, Noquisi Iga.
