Bonnie Writes Us About Emphysema and Green Smoothies

I met Bonnie at my lecture near Baltimore. What a delight she is, a caretaker to her husband with emphysema. We got this email from her. (And I love to read the stories you send my way, so keep sending them!) Bonnie told me she knows diet won’t “cure” emphysema. I said, “But what if it gives you more years with Bob, and he was happier and healthier?”

I think you’ll enjoy this letter Bonnie wrote as our East-Coast friends hunkered down to get through the hurricane:

As I wait for Hurricane Sandy to slam into the east coast, I have been reading The Green Smoothies Diet.  I attended Robyn’s seminar/class last week in Edgewood, Maryland. I had the great pleasure of meeting Robyn after the class. What a warm and sweet spirit!

Since that night I have read 12 Steps To Whole Foods, given up anything containing aspartame (including my 6-pack-a-day diet gingerale addiction), and added sufficient water to my daily life.

I have begun to purge our kitchen of processed foods and anything containing MSG. I was already on the green smoothie train. I have added Steps 2, 3, and 4 from 12 Steps to Whole Foods to my life.

I talked with Robyn about my 3-year journey down from almost 300 pounds through Overeater’s Anonymous. I am no longer on the 100-pound roller coaster I have ridden for most of my life. God has allowed me to release 88 pounds. (I say “released” because saying “lost” implies I am going to look for them.)

God has led me from bingeing and food compulsion, to green smoothies and whole foods, towards health and well being.

There was a time when I would eat 4+ fast-food “meal deals” on my way to or from work.  I would then look for somewhere to throw away the trash so no one would know.  Food was my cocaine….my drug of choice.

Now God has brought me to this new phase of my life.  He did not do this just for me, but also for my husband who has advanced emphysema.  His diet consisted of sugar, pasta, beef and junk.  Why? Because those white flour / sugar products are SOFT.  It is difficult for him to chew, swallow, and breathe.  Eating salad was a major challenge for him.

He had his first green smoothie about 6 weeks ago, and every day since.  His favorite right now is the Hot Pink Breakfast Smoothie. He is virtually off sugar except for us Uncrustables each morning because they’re easy to chew. But he used to have 4 every morning with coffee.

Tomorrow morning I plan to make him a PBJ sandwich using peanut butter powder mixed with coconut water, 2 tablespoons of raw organic coconut oil, on Italian bread. Baby steps! Whole-grain bread will soon make an appearance.

Robyn is teaching me how to make the quality of Bob’s life so much better.  His coloring is no longer gray and sallow.  His skin is pink and his eyes are bright.  I am seeing him get back his sense of humor along with his appetite.  He does not have the constant hacking cough that plagued him all the time. He still coughs, but it is immeasurably better. I think his body was full of inflammation that is being cleared with nutrition. We will not “cure” the emphysema, but we can certainly make the body that houses those terribly damaged lungs a better place for him to live. If this gives us a few more years with a better quality of life for Bob, that’s another blessing in this journey.

As a side note, my carpal tunnel is almost gone in my right hand.  I had surgery for carpal tunnel in my left hand last year, and actually had surgery scheduled for my right hand earlier this year. Life events caused me to cancel the surgery. Thank God! I have (had) severe arthritis in my left thumb that the specialist wants to operate on to rebuild the joint. The pain in the base of my thumb is virtually gone.

I reach out to anyone who asks about what Robyn calls a “gateway drug”—green smoothies.  Okay, I’ll be honest—people don’t really need to ask. I find myself telling total strangers about green smoothies.

I talked with two people yesterday in a grocery store packed with people prepping for Hurricane Sandy, and gave them the website address so they could get more info.  There are five people in my office who have now progressed from the NutriBullet (gateway equipment) to the Blendtec and green smoothies for themselves and their families.

Robyn is on a mission, and the seeds she plants are growing in so many ways, but growing in the same direction toward health and a new happiness with life.  I see my husband and people around me changing…sprouted seeds.

I think Bob may be concerned about power failure in the storm more because the Blendtec needs electricity than for his oxygen concentrator! He says he has backup oxygen tanks, but no backup for the Blendtec.

God richly bless each of you for the work you do.  You have a special place in my heart and in my prayers each day.  You will hear from me down the road to let you know how this is changing our lives.

Bonnie Kauffman

Posted in: 12 Steps To Whole Food, Green Smoothies, Health Concerns