One of the most awful parts of navigating a cancer diagnosis is the side effects from treatment.
I got my first up-close and personal taste of this during a very difficult conversation shortly after my 3-year-old son, Kicker, was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. While chatting with another cancer dad, he shared his experiences with his young son and how I needed to prepare for…
- all of the vomiting from chemotherapy
- how Kicker would lose all of his hair
- there would be major mood swings
- most likely, Kicker would have some difficulty walking
- in the next year, we would be hospitalized at least 10 times for secondary infections
This man really was trying to help, and he was gentle in his words. However, I was absolutely horrified, and my “mama bear” mode took over.
As a result, I took matters into my own hands over the next couple of weeks. I didn’t want these things to happen to my son. So, I reached out to our Osteopathic Physician, Nutritionist and Naturopath, and we devised a natural healing protocol. The goal was to help Kicker stay as healthy as possible during the his 3-year chemotherapy treatment.
First, we overhauled his diet. Then, we focused on detoxing his system, as well as, put him on an essential oil and supplement protocol. Basically, we supported him with natural medicine every step of the way!
Thankfully, Kicker never experienced those horrific side effects!
He threw up only one time during treatment, never lost his hair and was never hospitalized for secondary infections. In fact, he actually stayed healthy and vibrant during the entire three and a half years of daily chemo.
So, to help, here’s 10 things we did prior to Kicker receiving the high doses of chemotherapy and before any surgery:
- Take a detox bath every day for the week leading up to chemotherapy and/or surgery, as well as, for at least one week after. This also includes the day of the procedure, as long as, the surgery site was not exposed to the water. Here’s my detox bath recipe.
- Do castor oil packs every day for the week leading up to chemotherapy and/or surgery, as well as, for at least one week after. Here’s my castor oil pack instructions.
- Topically apply 2 drops of Zendocrine Essential Oil over the liver after chemotherapy and /or surgery.
- Drink ½ of your body weight in ounces of filtered water daily with 2 drops of doTERRA’s Lemon and Frankincense Essential Oil. Make sure to drink only out of a glass or stainless-steel container, and here’s my favorite water filter.
- After chemotherapy and/or surgery, drink 24 ounces of filtered water with Lemon and Frankincense Essential Oil in it.
- Rebound for 10 minutes every day for the week leading up to chemotherapy and/or surgery.
- Practice 10 minutes of meditation AND prayer every morning before you begin your day. Then, write down 10 positive affirmation. The Headspace App is a great guide, but here’s some simple examples:
- I am healthy.
- I am strong.
- I am capable of healing.
- I am beautiful.
- I am loved.
- I am supported.
- Use Peppermint, Ginger and DigestZen Essential Oils topically and internally 30 minutes before chemotherapy is administered or prior to surgery. Then, use again topically and internally immediately after chemotherapy or waking up from surgery.
- Drink 12 oz. bone broth every day for the week leading up to chemotherapy and surgery. Here’s my recipe.
- Completely remove all sugar and grains for the week leading up to chemotherapy and/or surgery, as well as, for at least one week after.
And as some extra support, here’s a list of 15 healthy snack ideas to bring to the appointments:
- Organic Seaweed – Here’s our favorite.
- Organic Unsweetened Coconut Flakes – Here’s our favorite.
- Superfood Bars – Here’s our favorite.
- Organic Beef Jerky – Here’s our favorite.
- Organic Cucumber with Celtic Sea Salt
- Sliced Apples with Almond Butter Packs or Coconut Butter Packs
- Forager Cashew Yogurt
- Organic Raw Cheese – Here’s our favorite.
- Bone Broth – Here’s my recipe. You can make it ahead of time and store it in a mason jar.
- Organic Green Juice – Here’s our favorite recipe. You can make it ahead of time and store it in a mason jar.
- Plantain Chips with Guacamole – We love these plantain chips, and we get organic mini guacamole containers at Costco.
- Hardboiled Eggs
- Homemade Gummies – Here’s my recipe.
- Kale Chips – Here’s my recipe.
- Homemade granola – Here’s my recipe.
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Thank you, Thank you, and Thank you again for sharing this!!!
🙂 You are so very welcome! I’m glad you found it so helpful!
What does “rebound for ten minutes” mean?
Hi Wendy – Here’s a great article that might help you: https://www.chrisbeatcancer.com/rebounding/
This is the most wonderful story and display of mama caring for her young. I send you and your family lots of love and hope that your little man is doing better. Thank you for sharing your journey.
Awe…thank you so much! And yes, he has finished treatment and is thriving!
My son is 11 and will start chemo in two months. How many drops of DigestZen, peppermint and ginger would he take internally? And I assume you mean fill a capsule with the oils and take?
Hi Amy – He would only need 1 drop of the oil, and yes you could put them in a capsule and swallow if he couldn’t handle the taste of applying them directly on the tongue and can swallow pills. Hope that helps!
Hi, thank you for sharing your experiences. I am happy to read that your son is finished treatment and thriving.
My father in law was just diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. We are making a complimentary natural therapeutic treatment for him with chemo. I have read some articles suggesting to not detox during chemo but I’m not sure if this means during the days of receiving chemo or during the whole process. He gets chemo for 3 days, 18 days off and 3 days on again and so on. I believe he needs to detox but don’t want to harm him in any way.
Do you have any suggestions about when to use the Zendocrine oil?
I supported my son through detox during his treatment. And you can use Zendocrine either directly on the liver, the bottoms of the feet or internally 1x a day. It’s a great detox oil and is great for overall support. Thanks!
I just completed 18 weeks of strong chemo & can attest to the benefits & power of castor oil packs. Most patients on the chemo regimen I was prescribed have to take Neulasta to boost their white blood cell count; mine never deviated from normal levels. In fact, one of the 1st questions the oncologist asked at each visit was “are you still using castor oil?” They were fascinated at castor oil’s ability to keep my immune system so strong. Now in remission but still not even a month out of treatment, I still use castor oil packs regularly b/c it boosts my energy and reduces residual side effects that cause pain.
Wow!!! Love this, Jenny. Thank you so much for sharing and am so thankful that you did so well. Congratulations on being done!!!!! 🙂
Jenny,
Thank you for sharing your experience with castor oil packs and so happy to hear that they helped you tremendously. Jenny would mind sharing the way you prepared the castor oil packs? My mom just got diagnosed with rectal cancer and going through chemo pills and radiation and would love to use the castor oil packs!! Thank you kindly for you assistance!!! Blessings !!!
Sayra – Here are my directions on how to do them: https://www.seasonjohnson.com/choosing-strength-cancer-detox-remedies/
Thank you for sharing your journey. Do you know an essential oil recipe to apply to my 3 year old sons skin after radiation to keep him from blistering?
Hi Casey – You might try Helichrysum, Tea Tree, Lavender and Yarrow|Pom.
Hi, thank you for all the information. My uncle will start his first chemo tomorrow followed by two weeks of oral chemo with one week break. Can he do the castor oil detox during the chemo process? Including the oils? I use Doterra, what oils can I give him before he starts the chemo tomorrow before and after to help. I was told by the nurse to give him peppermint candy during the process to help with nausea??? Isn’t that sugar !!