this is what it looks like when I’m sick

True confession: I got sick on Tuesday. I did yoga and worked out with my tennis team from 8-11 after waking up feeling a little weird and weak. I went home and took colloidal silver, with some powdered Vitamin C mixed in, every few hours. I texted my massage therapist Kortni, who fit me in and worked on my neck/lymphatic system.

In the afternoon I felt a little feverish, so I climbed in bed and slept for a couple of hours. Then I got up and worked at my computer and took care of my kids, feeling about 50%. I watched TV for the first time in a year and slept 8 hours that night (which is 2-3 hours more than normal). I took a big spoonful of my friend Charlene's Anti-Plague formula before bed, which is raw apple cider vinegar and raw garlic and 8 immune-strengthening herbs. (It's based on a Dr. Christopher's formula which you can buy.)

Then I woke up feeling fine and normal the next morning, went to the gym and ran 4 miles.

In my 20's, I used to get sick a dozen times every winter. I'd go into a dark depression because I couldn't seem to get healthy. I believe this happened because of MANY rounds of strep throat and antibiotics when I was a child weakening my immune system. Finally when I was 28, I got strep for the last time. I'd been reading a lot, starting into better nutrition, and becoming less enamored of medicine. Also, I was pregnant. So I refused to take antibiotics, and instead took the herb GOLDENSEAL. The strep disappeared quickly and has never returned.

I've never had any respiratory problems or sinus infections or bladder or yeast infections, ever---since abandoning the S.A.D. and drug interventions.

So often I hear people say, "I never get sick" as evidence that they are very healthy. I've known a number of people who suddenly have Stage 3 cancer even though they rarely got viruses. My point is just that whether or not you're susceptible to viruses is only ONE measure–not even necessarily the most important measure–of how your immune function or even your overall health is. There are many functions of immunity.

That said….I now get sick about one day, every year or two, and even then I'm totally functional. If that were the ONLY miracle that occurred from our switch to a whole foods, mostly plant-based diet 17 years ago, it would still be one of the best decisions I've ever made!

And, your body flushing out with clear, thin mucous when you get a cold or slight fever is a POSITIVE THING. It's necessary and it builds those immune-function "muscles." Suppressing a fever is unwise. Read Dr. Robert Mendelssohn (who was a pediatrician and wrote How to Raise a Healthy Child in Spite of Your Doctor) on how utterly rare an out-of-control fever is, and how helpful and necessary it is for the body in resolving the illness.

What ISN'T healthy is when that mucous becomes thick, yellow, green, and/or stagnant. Thick, acidic mucous sitting in your throat, sinuses, and lungs is a breeding ground for infection and cascading problems. Lots of alkaline water, lots of green food, living plant food, and extra REST, are the best enemies of that condition.