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Host Theory

#2 Corona Virus 101

Liz James · March 11, 2020 ·

Post #2 Corona Virus 101…. The Facts… let’s unpack them, shall we?

šŸ‘‰Fact #1:
NOTHING is secure about the statistics being presented…. NOTHING.
Current stats as of Friday 3/6/2020…….
101,714 confirmed cases and 3,461 deaths from the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak as of March 06, 2020, 18:05 GMT….. remembering that this doesn’t even include mild cases that haven’t been tested or were tested with a false negative. If the rational person were to factor in the false negatives AND the mild cases that aren’t even tested at all…… the conservative estimate of deaths vs illness would be <0.1%, with most of those deaths having primary serious health issues already. (more on this in a later post).

šŸ‘‰ Fact #2: Corona Virus….. A cousin of the common cold virus with a ground zero in Wuhan China….. although strong evidence suggests that contrary to popular news coverage, this particular virus likely originated in a high security lab at the University of North Carolina several years ago. As is common practice, scientists from another part of the world (Wuhan, China in this case) bought into the research, and took some of the findings back home with them. #thingsthatmakeyougohmmmmmm
Additionally, this particular virus has, within its DNA, the written chimera (ie: a grafting) of an RNA snip of one of the HIV retroviruses…. something that is impossible to achieve in nature. Again,….. #thingsthatmakeyougohmmmmmm
This does NOT mean someone can get HIV from this virus… (so don’t go there mentally), but it does indicate manmade tampering and a “gain in functionality” which means the virus transmits more easily than the traditional common cold virus.

FOLLOW THE MONEY: This is a multibillion dollar business (if not trillion)…. Approximately 20 companies are vying for the right to make a vaccine….. whomever “wins” will make billions of $$$

šŸ‘‰Fact #3: Don’t compare to 1918 spanish flu or any other historical plague like event…. They were all Pre antibiotics, pre- better hospital care and most importantly…. before we had better hygiene practices.

šŸ‘‰Fact #4 251,000 deaths per year due to errors in medical care, 3rd only to heart disease and cancer…. WHY are we not talking more about THESE things? THIS topic should warrant pandemic alarm…. and all we hear are šŸ¦—šŸ¦—šŸ¦—šŸ¦—šŸ¦—.

šŸ‘‰Fact #5 National Institutes of Health’s infectious disease chief, Dr. Anthony Fauci, said, ā€œThe mortality rate (of Covid 19) looks like 2% to 3% but could be much lower if many mild cases or infections with no symptoms are going undetected.ā€ SARS proved fatal in about 10% of cases. The flu’s mortality rate is only 0.1% btw this year.

šŸ‘‰ Fact #6 Pollution (external and therefore internal) and the role it plays in disease and immune support…China has among the world’s most dangerous air pollution… Ya’ll…. have you noticed that even when there isn’t a pandemic virus in China, many citizens still wear face masks?

šŸ‘‰Fact #7 Smokers…. China, and some of the newer harder hit countries are still heavy smokers. In China, an estimated 354 MILLION people still smoke regularly. #healthhabitsmatter

šŸ‘‰Fact #8 the Germ vs Host Theory
I can’t take credit for this well written piece…. but it hits a homerun in truth and it’s THE reason I implement toxin free living suggestions in my health coaching. Either you are or you are not living this way. There really isn’t much of a gray area here.
“The big difference between the two is this: If your garbage piles up in your home for weeks or years, you will invite pests, rats, cockroaches, mice, ants…all sorts of unfavorables to your home. The Germ Theory states we need to continually bring something in to kill the pests, while the host theory states, ā€œHey, how about we take out the garbage?ā€

Dr. Julian Baldor, a surgeon, in a speech before the Florida League of Human Progress, talked about Dr. Bechamp as one of the greatest scientists of all time. He said, ā€œDr. Bechamp proved that our bodies become hosts to a germ only after chemical and mechanical changes have damaged our system and that as long as our bodies and tissues retain a high vitality and resistance, a germ, infection or disease will not make progress. Furthermore, the disease organism will not survive after its entrance into a healthy organism. For example, we see flies on a manure pile, and other parasites also. Some of these parasites may be dangerous and capable of producing disease under favorable circumstances. If, however, we remove the pile of manure, the parasites disappear at the same time. Which do you think is the more intelligent: To fight disease by swatting flies or removing the pile of manure?ā€
Pasteur was better connected, more well-spoken, and wealthier than Bechamp. When it came down to it, these proved to his advantage when their two scientific papers went up against each other. Pasteur won out, paving the way for the Germ Theory to gain in popularity. Bechamp fell into disfavor and his books listed on the Index of Librorum Prohibitorum (the index of books prohibited by the Catholic Church).”

šŸ‘‰Fact #9 …5G – What in the world? What does faster stronger cell phone reception have to do with the virus? This topic is for another post another day…. but understand this…. regular exposure to 5G very much has MUCH to do with how easily people contract a virus or bacteria. Wuhan was one of the first countries to roll out 5G and they have over 10,000 cell phone towers in their city. The citizens of the city simply cannot get out from under that radio frequency…. that frequency affects us at a cellular level. This (in addition to the pollution/toxin load) is VERY important to keep in consideration. #unplugregularly

…..more to come friends. Stay tuned.😘

xoxo ~ liz

#aintskeeredandyoushouldntbeeither
#knowbetterdobetter
#yourtoxinloadmattersnowandforever
#ThanksYL

Oasis in the Desert: Choosing a Reputable Supplement Company

Liz James · January 8, 2019 ·

The uniqueness of the world I’ve chosen to live in is not lost on me. On one foot, I’ve got my mud encrusted muck boot as I wade thru one of the wettest fall/winter cow pastures in North Texas history. On the other foot…. my trusty Dansko’s: the only footwear I’ve found that are comfortable for a 10-11 hour shift at the pharmacy. I spend most of my days using my pharmacy knowledge to teach people how to avoid a long term relationship with a pharmacy.  Other days, I put my white coat on and fill prescriptions…. some for those who have no choice, and others….because they continue to make life choices that come with a prescription price tag….. and still others, who simply don’t know any better. #knowbetterdobetter …… that’s why I feel so called to be here.

With the New Year comes a slew of questions regarding supplements at the pharmacy. Resolution toting customers looking for an easy way to lose weight, minimize fresh workout pain, or simply just trying to get healthy in baby steps.

The supplement industry is a tricky business, and deciphering the options can be overwhelming to anyone that hasn’t done a great deal of research…. doctors included. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a patient tell me incorrect information given to them by their doctor regarding supplements. The rare doctor has done his/her research it seems (Not much is taught in medical, nursing, or even pharmacy school regarding supplements. It’s up to the practitioner to crack the code and educate themselves), and the patient is pretty much left to their own devices to find the best product for themselves. My team is spending the next few months educating our ‘family’ on types of supplements, and this topic is so very important that I thought I’d include some of that education here.

​​Why do we need supplements anyway? There are several reasons:

  • Farming practices since the 1970’s have stripped our soils of valuable nutrients. The only way we can receive minerals in our diet is thru nutrient dense soil. Plants soak up that nutrition and then pass it along to the herbivore (or omnivore) that eats it. Somewhere up the line, a carnivore may get involved and the nutrients are passed (or not passed) along to them.
  • Genetic modification of our veggies, fruits, and grains have continued the depletion process. Nutrition has been sold out to prettier “eye candy” produce that ships well, stores well, and looks like something out of a glossy magazine. Fresh produce today is an estimated 50-70% less nutritious than its counterparts 50 years ago.
  • Pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, fluoride, and chlorine contamination all have played their part in binding nutrients and making them unavailable for our body’s use.
  • Existing health challenges, a regular diet of fast/processed foods, use of acid blockers/reducers regularly, and/or reoccurring GI issues? If you answered “yes” to any of these, odds are high that you have a crippled system preventing efficient production or use of nutrients. (This means you likely need more supplementation than the average bear.) 
  • And finally…. medications. Who’d have thought this was even a problem? Next to nutrient deplete food itself, it’s one of the biggest problems of all. More than half of Americans take medication regularly, and those that do (on average) take four or more on a daily basis. FACT: Hundreds of medications suppress or rob your body’s ability to produce or utilize vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and co-factors necessary for a healthy life.​​

How DO you find a good supplement company? The answer >>>> very carefully! 

While the FDA does quite a bit of governing in the supplement world when it comes to wording (no diagnosing,treating,curing etc… or you might have some ‘splaining to do to the FDA), the reality is that the supplement industry lacks rigid standards that ensure  product integrity and quality. If you sift thru articles, you’ll find dismal stories of adulterated products (especially in the weight loss, antioxidant, sexual performance and workout booster categories). The problem doesn’t just lie in possible contaminants tho… it also encompasses cheap and/or ineffective ingredients.

What this means is that company integrity should mean absolutely everything to you. Do you really know the company you’ve chosen to buy product from? In most cases, you can tell a lot about a company’s product line based on company standards, policy, history, and mission statement:

  • Are the employees well treated and paid fairly?
  • What was the motivation of the company to build a particular supplement? Usually, the best companies are the ones founded by people who had health problems themselves, and found a solution thru proper nutrition. (A great example of this is Kate Farms for their quality nutrition drink for those with strict dietary and medical needs.)
  • Does the company put the purpose of the product above the profit? ie: This doesn’t mean the product will be inexpensive. On the contrary…. a well made product will usually come with a higher price tag (more on that later).
  • Do you know their value system? Are the ingredients fairly and sustainably sourced?Are the ingredients without compromise? 
  • Does the company leave a positive impact on the communities they work with?
  • Does the company have transparency? Are you able to visit them? Do they have 2nd and 3rd party testing?

​If you cannot easily find answers to these questions, odds are high that you may be duped by your current company. Back away from your supplements, and listen up…….  ā€‹


The Care and Feeding of your Body: Supplements 101
Vitamins, minerals, and other micro-nutrients are absolutely essential for all body processes to function in a healthy manner. Energy must be produced, the immune system supported…..vision, brain function, attention span, digestion, skin, repair and recovery processes, structural integrity and thousands of other little nuanced jobs must happen for optimal health.

Our body is no dummy. It does it’s best to prep for us… stashing extra vitamins and minerals as it is able, in anticipation of a sabotage event. There’s a little bit of ‘prepper’ in all of us! If we’ve not allowed our body the resources to stash those excess nutrients, when the moments of stress, lack, or ‘robbery’ happens….. suddenly, there is no backup plan, and one or more systems begin to give warning signs of impending failure. Long term lack allows for dis-ease and dysfunction to set up housekeeping. This is one of the reasons our country is overflowing with auto-immune disease.

If it’s THIS important to keep adequate supplies of these nutritional building blocks on hand, it makes no sense to rely on less than ideal sources. Supplement companies can be tricky little suckers and it pays to be savvy and knowledgeable so you don’t get duped into thinking you got ‘something’ for next to nothing.

Price: There is no such thing as a high quality inexpensive supplement. Common sense should tell you that between bottling, labeling, shipping, marketing, distribution, and profit, a $10-$15 bottle of vitamins leaves precious little $$ left over to invest in quality ingredients. How much is your life worth after all? If you are willing to spend $5 per day on a cup of designer coffee (which is likely loaded with some of the very things depleting your body), you should have no qualms with spending the same amount (per day) on quality supplements your body desperately needs.

Throw out the ‘all in one pill’ mindset: It just can’t happen. There’s no way to cram everything into one pill and end up with a reasonably sized product that only an elephant could swallow. Size does matter, but it’s even more complicated than that. Not every nutrient is compatible with each other, and some nutrients need to be be brought in to the body multiple times a day because storage is just not possible (ex: digestive enzymes). If you’re really serious about protecting, fortifying, and prepping your body for health, expect to take 3-6+ capsules/supplements per day depending on the health challenges you may have been toting around for awhile.

The Junk: Quality and sourcing….. if you are trying to get healthy, the last think you want is unclean ingredients, and yet that happens all too frequently. If your body is having to filter unclean ingredients from your supplement regimen, you’ve lost sight of one of the main reasons you want to take supplements in the first place!

  • Fish oil coming in from waters contaminated with PCB’s, heavy metals, toxins, and radioactive waste. Rancid fish oil that actually causes what it should be preventing. Other ingredients that are sourced from questionable, impure, or unclean environments……A recent study found over 800 supplements containing prescription medications (unlabeled).
  • Fillers that are also allergens: byproducts of wheat, yeast, soy dairy, gluten, corn, or that are low grade and possibly irritating to GI tissue. Additives that are used to stretch the bottom dollar, but at best, do nothing for your health. SLS (sodium lauryl sulfate)… a chemical sometimes used as a disintegrator in tablets. This is a topical no-no in skincare but imagine the implications when consumed. Studies show it has a “degenerative effect on cell membranes…”. Ummm, no thank you. I’ll keep my cell membranes intact for as long as possible thank you very much. 
  • Cheaper forms of ingredients that are less biologically active (ex: using cyanocobalamin instead of the more bioavailable [and pricier] methylcobalamin.)
  • Artificial colors, flavors , and sweeteners (Ahem, God provides awesome natural flavors and sweeteners! Why not use them?)
  • Coatings- how well does your vitamin or supplement dissolve? Ideally, most need to be in capsule form for ease of dissolution. If you’ve ever seen your vitamins in your poop (a common thing), this should be your aha moment.

Ultimately, the question comes down to this: Do you trust the brand you buy, or are you relying on blind faith? If you are relying on the latter, it might be time for a do over.  Just because the product(s) may be found in well known stores doesn’t mean it’s a reputable brand. The bottom line matters to a store, and buyers aren’t generally schooled in supplements (frequently it’s a 19 year old kid who is doing the ordering!)…. they are schooled to find the largest profit margin for their employer. Just as they are looking out for their employer’s best interest, YOU are the CEO of you, and you need to look out for the best interests of your ‘corporation’ too. 

Be kind to yourself. Research before you buy…. and for goodness sake, find a company worthy of your trust. Your health depends on it! 

Hugs and Love, Liz

#knowbetterdobetter
#thisiswhyIdowhatIdo

​

Whoops…We Did It Again(smh)

Liz James · July 17, 2018 ·

Yesterday, while at work in the pharmacy, we got official word of a voluntary recall on several brands of valsartan containing medications. A voluntary recall means that the drug company requests that products be pulled from the pharmacy shelves, and selling of that product cease immediately until new product is issued. It does not extend to the consumer level. You can read more about the recall itself here.

Recalls like this happen every so often in pharmacy, and are not usually call for alarm unless it happens to be one that extends to the customer level (not the case this time). That said, media caught wind of it and began reporting on the recall, causing fear and worry amongst customers who are on this particular blood pressure medication. I began and ended my pharmacy day yesterday fielding these many calls from customers who were fearful of continuing their medication even one more day, now that this information was known. 

Once you know something, you can’t un-know it.

The cause of the recall? It became known that one of the ingredients used in this particular medication is a ā€˜probable’ cancer causing agent.  (Ironically, one of the people I spoke to was a smoker. SMH!) Now, before you start calling your pharmacy wondering what you are supposed to do if you are on valsartan,  let’s take a look at the facts:

  1. Right or wrong, the alleged ingredient has been in the medication since at least 2015.
  2. The recall is not at the customer level (meaning that the situation has not given the FDA cause to issue a recall on dispensed medication too).  In fact, this statement was issued by the FDA: ā€œBecause valsartan is used in medicines to treat serious medical conditions, patients taking the recalled valsartan-containing medicines should continue taking their medicine until they have a replacement product.ā€
  3. ā€œProbableā€ cancer causing agents should be fully excluded from our daily lives, but sadly they are everywhere you turn. The FDA and the EPA turn a blind eye daily as companies pump probable (and known) cancer causing agents into the environment, our homes, our food and drinking water, AND our personal care products. It’s no wonder that the cancer rate in the United States has skyrocketed since the 1950’s.

Visit the American Cancer Society website, you’ll see a list of  these ā€˜probable  (and known) cancer causing agents’ that people unwittingly use and allow into their lives.

Once you know something, you can’t un-know it.

I would advise stopping reading now if you want to remain blissfully unaware, because I’m about to give you the lowdown on just a few items on the FDA/EPA list.

Seriously. Stop now. 

Here are just a few offenders from the long list:

  • Acetaldehyde- solvent used in the manufacturing of many items including perfumes
  • Asbestos – As recently as last week, Johnson and Johnson (yes, the very same company that produces well known baby products) was found guilty of producing asbestos laden talcum powder and must now pay 4.7 BILLION dollars in settlement to women who have suffered physical damage (cancer) because of regular use of their product.
  • Azathioprine, Chlorambucil, Cyclophosphamide, Cyclosporine, Etoposide, Metronidazole, Tamoxifen….. these are all medications. The list is so long, I can’t name them all. Several on the list are cancer treating agents (that also may cause cancer themselves. SMH!)
  • Formaldehyde – used throughout industry. Commonly found in nail products, soap, hair growing products. Also commonly found in the ingredients of cosmetics. (It is considered an inexpensive preservative….hence, its use. Economy trumps health unfortunately).
  • Arsenic, Cadmium, Chromium, Cobalt, Lead, Mercury, and Nickel (not all of these are cancer causing agents, but do potentially cause significant health concerns and are found in many ā€˜mainstream’ cosmetic companies).  The FDA has published an interesting survey on cosmetics that can be found here (or on the full length reference at the end of this post).  https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/general-info/known-and-probable-human-carcinogens.html
  • Herbicides such as Roundup and others. These are truly among the most disastrous carcinogenic agents allowed into our food and water supplies. If you’d like to read a treasure trove of information on this topic, please take a bit of time to visit a document depository on the history of the subterfuge within the chemical industry that stretches back nearly 100 years: The Poison Papers(link below). Roundup and other Monsanto/Bayer chemical products have been banned by wiser countries (sadly, not our own).

Giving you examples of known and probable carcinogens could easily consume my day, because this list just goes on and on and on.…… and ultimately I will bore you to tears (or wake you up to what you likely have in your home).  

I’m hoping by now you see my frustration in yesterday’s moment of media hyped hysteria over the valsartan recall. Of course it should have been recalled, but friends…… we have much larger fish to fry if we are going to worry about this.

I would venture to guess that each person I spoke to about the recall yesterday has more than 100+ known carcinogenic products in their home and garage that they willingly (but perhaps unwittingly) choose to expose themselves to on a daily basis.

SMH.

If you didn’t listen to me, and read this post to completion, you’ve got some decisions to make. What you can’t choose tho, is to now ā€˜un-know what you now knowā€˜. Knowing gives you personal responsibility for the skin in the game (your own) and begs the next question….. what are you going to do about it?

Reality is this:  It’s not possible to avoid every carcinogenic or body damaging product out there, but there IS so much we CAN do to avoid the majority of them within our own home. There are also many ways to encourage detoxification of the body cheaply, effectively, and holistically.

If this post has you thinking that maybe it is time to wake up and clean up, I’d encourage you to start small in big ways. Get the ā€˜standard’ household cleaners out of your home…. one by one. When you run out of a product, don’t buy that junk again. Consider switching to Thieves Cleaner (a completely healthy way to clean).

Get the candles and formaldehyde laced air fresheners out of your home, and replace them with healthy diffusers. I promise…. you’ll sleep better, be happier, have fewer headaches, and….. if you diffuse the right oils, you’ll even boost your immune system and provide positive emotional support. This trumps possible and probable carcinogenic loaded products any day. Science backs this ya’ll….. as a pharmacist, I wouldn’t be here if it didn’t.

The cosmetic industry is rife with concerning chemicals. Use up what you have, but as you get close to needing more, consider ā€˜clean’ skin care and makeup. Yes, it does exist. I’d love to send you a few samples of whatever you’d like to see or try that is not only beautiful, but also loaded with health promoting ingredients. Ever heard ofĀ Savvy Minerals?Ā If not, you are missing out.

This is one of the (many) things I love about Young Living. They stand in the gap for us where other companies do not. Scouring labels for toxins was time consuming and the print is small and fine (purposefully I think). I know I am taken care of safely with whatever I purchase for my family and our farm, and that we are taking personal responsibility for us….. because clearly, the governmental entities, are not doing enough of it.

If you’d like to learn more about living a more carcinogenic free life, please feel free to private message me. 

I am not perfect in my walk, but I’ve done it now for much of my adult life and would be happy to walk with you as you begin your journey. It’s never too late to start.

Hugs and love  ~ Liz


​
References:

fda article
freeethoughtproject-baby powder
fda harmful ingredintst tables
poison papers
nbc news – chemicals cause cancer

Equipped and Called

Liz James · June 18, 2018 ·

Have you ever felt like you were at a crossroads in your life? I’m not talking about a midlife crisis, but rather something bigger and more profound.

About 3 years ago, we took a pretty long road trip to pick up a bull in a remote (VERY REMOTE) area in West Texas. I mean…… drive to the very edge of civilization and then head 3 hours further…..the kind of remote that requires a physical map instead of cell phone/ GPS service. Without a map or good navigational tools, you’re sunk kind of remote. As you might guess, we confidently drove down the road….. in the wrong direction because we thought we knew where we were going. It cost us about 3 extra hours that day. We were reminded the value of an old school map and a dose of intuition!

This kind of parallels the last 15+ years of my life. I have been a pharmacist since 1991. I graduated, and like most health professionals…. upon graduation…… was pretty sure I had a really good grasp of the profession. I’m not saying I was God’s gift to pharmacy (hardly!), but I certainly thought I knew enough to make a difference in people’s lives. I toodled along in pharmacy doing the absolute best job I could do (because that’s my nature….. never tackle anything halfway).

When I was in my 30’s I thought we were living the dream. Charlie and I both had good jobs, had bought our farm, and had begun building our home (by hand, ourselves…. because that’s how we do things…. with all our heart and soul). We worked super hard…. 40-60 hrs a week at our respective jobs and then swung hammers and wielded paint brushes on nights and weekends for about 3 years before completing our home. It was somewhere during that time that I broke my wrist, was subsequently diagnosed with osteopenia , and both Charlie and I were diagnosed with high cholesterol.  In hindsight, that broken wrist was probably the best thing that could have ever happened to me. I won’t go into great detail (you can read more about that journey here and the second half here), but it was a big fat hairy road sign to stop and assess what I thought I knew.

That broken wrist reopened a different avenue of education for me…. only this time, it was not subsidized by the pharmaceutical industry and there was some skin in the game…. my own. When you are a pharmacist, you’re in the business of knowing side effects of meds. The good news is…. you know the potential side effects. The bad news is…. you know the potential side effects. I wasn’t willing to go down that road given the med options they were dangling in front of me. My gut said no way, and once my research started it changed my life forever. It all began with raw milk. From there, my research extended into finding access to truly healthy and healing foods. Each time I thought I knew enough, I found that more pieces to health puzzles were MIA…. not just my puzzle, but everyone else’s too.

About the same time, I went to work at a pharmacy that specialized in rare diseases, oncology, auto-immune disorders, and infertility (which frequently has an auto-immune component). Sadly, this pharmacy represented the outcome of people living in toxin filled environments. Silly me. I still thought I was helping people. I guess I was. Kindness matters, especially when you are dealing with life altering body dysfunctions….. but kindness and pharmaceuticals don’t dissolve the problems these patients face every day.

Another personal puzzle piece fell into place after I was diagnosed with something called interstitial cystitis and discovered (after 9 years of no REM sleep and frequent trips to the bathroom), that it could be managed well with a fresh and healthy, but limited, diet. Expensive medication and daily catheterization are the common treatments. Ummm, no thank you. I would later learn that IC is part of the autoimmune disorder family. Not surprisingly, approximately 1 in 5 adults in the USA are card carrying autoimmune disorder patients. I had been given my card.

Eight years ago, my dad was diagnosed with dementia. It made no sense to me and we had no family history of dementia. I backtracked the onset to a statin drug (commonly prescribed for high cholesterol). In the finest of the fine print of this class of drugs you will find information alluding to possible memory loss with these drugs. Dig deeply and you’ll find it. I thank God for leading me to raw milk to lower my cholesterol instead of that which stole my dad’s memory. I don’t blame the pharmaceutical industry for burying the whole ā€˜memory loss’ side effect in the fine print. I mean, would you want to take a drug that could potentially rob you of your memory as a side effect? Ummmm, no thank you.

By now, I’ve truly begun second guessing pharmaceuticals. I began educating myself on everything I could get my hands on that gave honest and documented proof that maybe what I knew wasn’t EVERYTHING…… that perhaps there were some gaps in my education and knowledge base. I dug deep deep deep into gut health and discovered the link to most autoimmune disorders. I studied sleep patterns, herbs, thyroid and hormones. I picked up yoga and began healing my posture and my stress level. That led to my recent certification (7 years later) as a Christian yoga instructor. ā€‹

I had a life changing accident 3 years ago this week, and (eventually… after a 3 month recovery) walked out of it when I should have been an amputee. Last week I walked a 37 minute 5K with many close friends. Thank God.  Despite the severity of my injury, I have no pain day to day and am not on any medication. I’ve got oils, supplements and a little thing called Dolphin MPS that rocked my recovery world so much so that I decided to begin taking classes so that I could help others as I was helped…. another tool in my toolbox that wasn’t related to pharmacy.

The last 18 years, by serendipity or Divine design (I believe the latter), I have been gathering tools to help people (myself included) heal physically and emotionally. What had started out as a mission to care for myself and my family gradually extended to include friends and strangers who have become dear friends. The more truth in healing I gleaned, the more uncomfortable I became in my white lab coat. Back in the day, we took an oath to do no harm (that oath has been changed and no longer includes that phrase).

Once you know something, you can’t unknow it.

I have grown uncomfortable in my pharmacist skin (and coat)….. able to speak only truths that are approved talking points regulated by the pharmaceutical industry.

Once I found that there are better, safer, more life sustainable ways to heal, it became harder and harder to deny people access to these opportunities in wellness……. because they exist for the taking.  

Every day, people make unconscious choices that affect their health….. making poor food choices, drinking chemically treated water, watching too much media and not exercising enough…. taking meds without researching them thoroughly first. They think a pill will solve their ills. I’m here to tell you that medications are simply adding to the already hefty toxin load within all of us. The heavier the load, the sicker the individual.

I’ve had several people in the last many months call me a healer. I don’t claim that moniker. I feel more like a shepherd, leading those who are thirsty to a safe place to drink, eat, and rest. It gives me great peace, and it makes my heart sing a song it’s never sung before.

I have straddled both worlds now for many years, and being true to myself is becoming increasingly difficult despite the six figure income that comes with the white coat. I fill prescriptions for people I have grown to love in the community, knowing that they can be helped in other ways that actually heal. I respect my duty as a pharmacist and do not step outside that boundary……but I feel God’s hand firmly on my back telling me to Go. Do. Become. Shepherd those I send your way. 

Really God?

Yes. Really.

And so I prayed. ā€œLord, if it is your will, send me those who need me.ā€  I began praying this daily about 5 months ago. God has a sense of humor. I’m sure of it. About a month ago, I had to alter my prayer a tiny bit. ā€ Lord, if it is your will, can I have a little breather so I can adequately help those you sent so far? ā€ God is so very good.

I would have never in a million years guessed that I would step away from pharmacy more than halfway thru my career.  Pharmacy has taught me so much. Perhaps most importantly, it has given me the gift of scientific discernment: the ability to understand fact from fiction or skewed data.

When I was a young pup out of pharmacy school, I thought my life was set on auto pilot. I couldn’t have been more wrong. God took me down a completely different path, guiding me and giving me tools along the way: pharmacy, nutrition, exercise, yoga, health coaching, scientific based knowledge of essential oils, supplements, and herbs, Dolphin MPS, and most importantly the empathy acquired from personal experiences.

God doesn’t call the equipped. He equips the called.

Here’s to the journey! I can’t wait to see what the second half of my life holds.

Hugs and love, Liz

PS: I am not completely stepping away from the pharmacy just yet. You will still see me in a white coat one or two days a week.

In the Garden

Liz James · March 23, 2018 ·

I am constantly amazed by God and all He has given us. He has given us everything we need from day ONE….. it was all there in the Garden…. and much he did with a little bit of humor and a wink. (I love that about Him…. he has a wry sense of humor at times!)

Pharmacy school has an elective class or two in something called Pharmacognosy: ā€œA branch of knowledge concerned with medicinal drugs obtained from plants or other natural sources.ā€
This has fascinated me well before I ever even thought about going to pharmacy school (I did a term paper on herbal medicine when I was a Freshman). The list is terribly long, but here are some examples….
 Foxglove = Digoxin (heart)
 Poppy = Codeine (pain)
 Autumn Crocus = Colchicine (gout)
 Tobacco = Nicotine (insecticide/ anti-helminthic.. who knew!?!)
 Valerian = Sedative

In Biblical times, ā€˜superbugs’ and diabetes likely didn’t even exist except in the rarest of occasions. The prevalence today of these are the result of man messing with things we shouldn’t have. Go back and research the incidence of bacterial resistance and diabetes in ancient times. Neither one existed with any regularity, yet today, they are both epidemic. An oddity (back in the day) deserves an oddity treatment…. don’t you think? Here’s a few more…..

​Gila Monster spit = diabetes
Yesterday, I saw this… Platypus milk! ….. one of my most favorite animals may hold the key to this superbug crisis we currently have. I feel like God created odd creatures as a clue to man (back in the day)…. odd creatures for odd diseases.

God gives us clues to ourselves and His future plans for us ( Jeremiah 29:11). I marvel at how He put events, people, and opportunities in my life (even 30+ years ago), knowing that I would need these things later for what He has planned for me now.

Keep your eyes, ears, and heart (and even your gut) open. God speaks to us all daily. He nudges us in the direction he wishes us to go. It’s up to us to follow or ignore that nudge.

How has He used something in your past to prepare you for what’s going on in your life today?

​Hugs and Love, Liz

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