Blog on Kris Freeman's Health Journey
My Body's Many Cries for Water.
Written by Kris Freeman
I love the taste of "good" water. But in my previous work life I was so busy that stopping to drink was an interruption to my productivity. Silly I now know.
This is the story of how I went from drinking only 1 glass of water a day to 2 litres a day and how that helped to change my life and free me from pain.
"You're not sick; you're thirsty. Don't treat thirst with medication."
- Dr F. Batmanghelidj.
This is what my Bowen Therapist shared with me from her book - "Your Body's Many Cries for Water" written by Dr F. Batmanghelidj when I first met her.
"Water is the basis of all life and that includes your body. Your muscles that move your body are 75% water; your blood that transports nutrients is 82% water; your lungs that provide your oxygen are 90% water; your brain that is the control centre of your body is 76% water; even your bones are 25% water."
How can I expect to heal if I am dehydrated. Heidi shared the analogy of a wilted flower once watered will once again stand straight once watered. So too with our bodies. Since our body consists of 70% water, it makes sense that it is essential for our bodies. It is generally accepted, that we should drink a minimum of 2 litres of water a day. Heidi told me that you take your weight in kgs and then divide that by 30 and that is how many litres of water we should each be drinking daily. She also told me the analogy of if I had a flat tyre in my car, would I fill it with air or continue to drive around with it deflated. Clearly I would fill it with air. When asked why, I had to reply because it would further damage my wheel and cost me more to repair if I didn't. She said well so too with our bodies. If you have pain fill it with water and you may be surprised at the results but it is what your body needs; to be replenished with water not drugs. If you don't, you too will be doing further damage and in the end, the repair will cost you more.
Don't believe, just try it. I did and I honestly believe, this was definitely one of the many natural things I did that took me from a body of pain to one free of pain.
After a Bowen treatment this is even more important, because amongst other bodily responses, Bowen Therapy stimulates the elimination of toxins and rehydrates the body. These toxins can be absorbed in the water and leave the body in a natural way. We are talking about 2 litres of water, not coffee or tea, as they dehydrate the body and our body cells and muscles perform better when they are hydrated sufficiently.
I committed to Heidi that I would do all that she advised me to so that I could allow my body to heal itself.
Going from 1 glass a day to 2 litres a day was no easy feat. After trying for a few days, I rang her to tell her it was impossible. I was running to the toilet all day long and expelling so much urine I felt like a waterfall.
Heidi then shared with me a habit forming technique that made it so much easier.
I was to drink 3 tall glasses of water within the first hour of waking. This would equate to 1 litre. Then for the rest of the day all I needed to do was drink 1 litre which is much easier than two. So I began to do just that; drinking the first of the three tall glasses with my vitamins, then another glass after my breakfast and then the last glass after brushing my teeth. This habit formed easily and I began to drink 2 litres of water with ease. I made sure each day I poured filtered water into a clean 2 litre milk carton so that I knew what I was consuming was true and accurate.
Here's an excerpt from http://www.watercure.com/gallery.html which is the site of the book "My Body's Many Cries for Water".
"Medical professionals of today do not understand the vital roles of water in the human body. Medications are palliatives. They are not designed to cure the degenerative disease of the human body.
The current practice of clinical medicine is based on the application of pharmacological chemistry to the human body. At medical school, more than six hundred teaching hours are allocated to the use of pharmaceutical products. Only a few hours are allocated to instructions on diet and nutrition.
The simple truth is that dehydration can cause diseases. Everyone knows that water is good for the body. They seem not to know how essential it is to one's well-being. They do not know what happens to the body if it does not receive its daily need of water.
We misinterpret thirst signals as pain, and treat them with drugs which silence instead of cure the problem. Because dehydration eventually causes loss of some functions, the various signals given by water distribution system regulators during severe and lasting dehydration have been translated as indicators of unknown disease conditions of the body. I discovered that histamine is a vital chemical messenger in the brain. Histamine has a most important function not written about in medical textbooks. It is in charge of water intake and drought management in the body. It is less active when the body is fully hydrated, and becomes increasingly active when the body becomes dehydrated.
To hush the body's call for water by masking the symptoms with drugs is like turning out the dashboard light that signal us that our car is about to overheat.
Every function inside the body is regulated by and depends on water. Water must be available to carry vital elements, oxygen, hormones, and chemical massages to all parts of the body. Without sufficient water to wet all parts equally, some more remote parts of the body will not receive the vital elements that water supplies. Without sufficient water to constantly wet all parts, your body's drought-management system kicks into action. The histamine-directed chemical messenger systems are activated to arrange a new, low quota of water for the drought-stricken area. When histamine and its subordinate "drought managers" come across pain-sensing nerves, they cause pain. This is why dehydration produces pain as its first alarm signal. If the dehydration persists and is not corrected naturally with water, it becomes symptom-producing and, in time, develops into a disease condition." - Your Body's Many Cries for Water - Dr F. Batmanghelidj.
Three years later after my first meeting with Heidi, when I was renovating my own clinic, she introduced me to Alkaway - The Alkaline, Hydrogen Rich Water Specialists. I purchased an Ultrastream Water Filtering System. It is "Scientifically proven to remove harmful contaminants including fluoride, chlorine, chloramines, heavy metals and bacteria AND to produce hydrogen-rich, alkaline and ionized water that you'll want to keep on drinking."
I can honestly say, I have never tasted better tasting water (we have a filtered water system at home and this is definitely better). I also know that by increasing my water intake, it helped me lose weight and free myself from some of my pain. Don't underestimate the value of water. We all need it and you are kidding yourself if you think you don't. Most people understand that drinking water is essential for re-hydrating and flushing toxins out of the body. But few people understand the health benefit of the hydrogen and oxygen that water is made from. That's where Alkaway comes in to teach you. Check out their site http://www.alkaway.com.au/.
Cleansing with Isagenix
Written by Kris Freeman
http://www.krisfreeman.isagenix.com/?sc_lang=en-AU
Isagenix Natural Cleansing Pak used to cleanse the body of impurities before starting new vitamins. Please note this is a weight loss program. You can lose weight aggressively by doing two cleanse days a week but I am only doing one a week. It is my goal to tone up and get back into shape.
Please Note I have hypoglycaemia and am 62kg and 163cm tall. I choose to do this so that I may take Product B; a product for lengthening our telomeres which may be the answer to youthful ageing. My fellow student and now Bowen Therapy Practitioner, Yvonne introduced me to this and she has had more energy, better sleep, feeling calmer, less stressed, reduced greys and clearer skin. For me I would like more energy and better sleep and youthful ageing whilst combating stress. Prior to starting, it is recommended to do a cleanse as per their program. Minimum is 9 days. My husband and I purchased the 30 day program as it was cheaper than two 9 day programs.
I have also not recorded all of the water I have drunk through the day. Sometimes I mention it but sometimes I do not; I easily drink 2 litres each day. I did take photos of all of my meals I made but I don't know how to put them in here just yet. This will be updated when I work that out.
My measurements 22.1.14:
Neck: 12 inches
Upper arm left: 11.6 inches
Upper arm right: 11.7 inches
Bust: 35 inches
Diaphragm: 28.5 inches
Waist: 30 inches
Hips: 33.9 inches
Butt: 38 inches
Upper thigh left: 22.6 inches
Upper thigh right: 23 inches
Calf left: 14 inches
Calf right: 14 inches
Upper knee left: 15.7 inches
Upper knee right: 15.7 inches
My measurements 20.5.14:
Upper Arm: 12 inches (0.4 inches lost)
Bust: 37 inches (2 inches lost)
Waist: 32.5 inches (2.5 inches lost)
Butt: 40 inches (2 inches lost)
Upper thigh: 24 inches (1 inch lost)
Please note this weight loss occurred over one year and eight months. I did it by doing Lite n Easy for 2 months where I lost 3kgs, increasing my water intake from one glass to two litres a day, doing cycling movements on my stairwell to grow my muscles from the inside and walking once a week for an hour.
My thighs are larger than my husbands and that it is what I want to target, but realise I need to exercise my legs more.
Day 1 – 23.1.14. Started Program. Found it very difficult. Was starving. Had eggs benedict salad for lunch. Had no ideas of calories. Had to go to bed at 7.33pm so I didn’t have to think about how hungry I was.
Day 2 – 24.1.14. Coped much better today. Didn’t feel that hungry. I had ham and salad with sweet chili for lunch at 2pm and a quarter of a banana. Still have no idea of calories but knew what I ate could not have been much with small portion. Went to bed at 11pm. Felt fine but not energised at all through the day.
Day 3 - 25.1.14. Started cleanse at 8.30am; 1 Isagenix shake, 1 Ionix Supreme and 1 Natural Accelerator tablet. By 9.15am I was on toilet but that’s pretty normal for me. 10am feeling hungry. 10.30am on toilet again; but very little, soft stool not runny at all. 10.33am morning snack 3 unsalted raw almonds then as per program. At 12.08pm I sat in subway with my daughter on the way to her work smelling all those delicious flavours without eating anything. How STRONG am I? Perhaps just a little bit silly should have sat in the car. 1.30pm feeling quite hungry and very low on energy. Had afternoon snack of two isagenix snacks 14.7 calories each (a bit like a large sized Ovaltine) and two glasses of water and accelerator capsule. Have just discovered calorie table in instructons. Could have eaten a lot more for lunch last two days. Do that tomorrow. 3.10pm feeling quite hungry have slight headache and no energy. Took cleanse as per program. Pick Liza up from work at 3.30pm. Have client to treat at 4pm. That will be interesting with such a light head and feeling so tired. Good news is Bowen is very uplifting for me when I’m giving. I have finished working and fed the children. It’s 6.25pm and I am feeling hungry and very tired. Looking forward to tomorrow and being able to eat. It’s actually Australia Day tomorrow and we are seeing friends so we are choosing to break the program slightly as it would be unAustralian not to eat and drink. It’s probably not very inspirational but it’s not like we are hugely overweight. We are just detoxing so we can use the other products. 6.35pm evening 2 isagenix snacks and a glass of water. That feels a little better. 7.45pm took evening meal of cleanse for life and isaflush tablet. In comparison to a sea water cleanse this is not very good. I’ve only had two bowel movements and Adrian has had none. 10.30pm went to bed but had interruptions and didn’t get to sleep until 2am.
NO FOOD CONSUMED
Day 4 – 26.1.14 – Woke at 8.30am went to toilet cleanse began with runny stool. 8.40am had two glasses of water. Adrian says he can’t do any more than those 3 days so is beginning his Performances and Energy Pak. (What's interesting is that Pak still requires you to only eat 1 meal. At Day 11 I told Adrian he has to each lunch. He is getting to cranky. He exercises big time so he doesn't need to lose weight on this program he just needs to increase his energy and performance through the vitamins and protein shakes after his rides). At 9am I had Isalean and Ionic supreme and accelerator tablet. I don’t feel hungry. At 10.25am went to toilet again cleanse is finally working its way through my body. Today is the first day I have done any exercise as I have not had energy. I just did 100 cycling movements with legs while lying on top of stairwell. Normally done easily but struggled. Adrian said he felt like he had dead legs in his 65km ride which he usually does with ease. 11am Adrian finally had movement but not easily; he is constipated. 11.11am morning snack poached egg and isaflush tablet. Ahh food glorious food. That egg went down so nicely and I was truly grateful for it. J 1.15pm half a plate of roasted veggies sweet potato, pumpkin, eggplant, beetroot, capsicum, onion eaten cold. Adrian and I shared the plate. 3.30pm at Swiss friends place for Australia day celebrations. At 4pm two pieces of the most amazing Paleo Swiss Cake with no flour. I know I shouldn’t have had two slices but it was so yummy. Also had 4 Manuka Honey Cashews and 2 white wines and 1 red wine. At 8pm had Isalean Shake. Went to bed at 9.30pm. Awoken at 3am.
Day 5 – 27.1.14 – Had 2 glasses of water, Isalean shake, ionix supreme and accelerator tablet at 7.45am. Took measurements. Waist 29.5 inches – I have lost half an inch in 4 days. At 8am I did 100 cycling movements. At 8.25am on toilet with very soft stool. 9.00am cleaning at investment property. Midday home visit to treat stroke patient. Feeling really good today. Quite energised and happy. 2pm lunch, bacon, poached eggs and salad. 2.30pm back to investment property to clean. 6pm body is sore and I have headache. Forgot to take water and afternoon snack with me. 6.25pm 3 grapes 1 accelerator tablet and Isalean shake for dinner. Sabotaged – Adrian asked if he could have Thai and I said yes as I could reheat and have the leftovers for lunch but he bought red prawn curry and said to me you can’t reheat prawns. He also bought 4 spring rolls which I shook my head at. So I was encouraged to eat with him as I had eaten so little. I went to bed at 11.30pm but didn’t get to sleep until after 1.30am.
Day 6 – 28.1.14 – Up at 6.45am and on toilet. Had program at 7am. At 7.35am on toilet again cleansed. 8am did 100 cycling movements. 11.09am two isagenix snacks and one Isaflush. Been cleaning from 9am-1pm. It’s 1.20pm and I’m starving. Just preparing lunch now. Have slight headache. Ok so today I decided to follow the calorie meal ideas plan to a T. I cooked 140g free range chicken breast in a tablespoon of olive oil with fresh rosemary. I laid that on 1 cup of sweet potato and surrounded it with 2 cups of tomato capsicum and red onion. It was way too much for me. I feel very full. I feel quite tired now. I’m finished eating and it’s 2.10pm. Have to take vacuum to other house but have to do washing up first. Back home by 3pm to greet girls on their first day of school. 6pm accelerator tablet no snacks as I am still full. Cooked dinner for everyone else. 7.45pm Isalean shake. I feel tired. Did too much today on not enough sleep. 9.30pm in bed and awoken at 11pm.
Day 7 – 29.1.14 – Woke at 6.30am. 6.35am on toilet normal stool. Took measurements and waist is now 29 inches. Lost one inch in 6 days. 7am I did 100 cycling movements. 7.15am start program. I should also mention I no longer have any sugar cravings which is nice. I am now comfortable with the program of only eating one meal during the day. 12.30pm took Isaflush as I missed morning tea and had marinated chicken drumstick on a bed of cauliflower pilau with mixed greens. 4.45pm Isagenix snacks. 5.15pm natural accelerator. 8.30pm to bed but at 9.30pm still awake and feeling hungry. Got to sleep about 10pm but woke at 3.30am on my own and had difficulty getting back to sleep for over an hour.
Day 8 – 30.1.14 – Woke at 6.30am. Drank 2 glasses of water. On toilet at 6.50am. 7am did 200 cycling movements with ease. At 7.30am started program. 7.45am toilet again. 8.25am on toilet again and this time it was a full cleanse through this time. 8.40am a bit more cleansing. 9am walk and Peak 3 run. It was very windy with a king tide today which made running difficult. It gave me a slight headache. 11.30am 1 isagenix snack and isaflush tablet. Midday lunch first one non paleo as it was Tanisha’s left over butter chicken and rice. I could not finish it and feel very full now. I know I ate morning tea too close but I have a lot to do this afternoon. Have I learnt nothing? LOL.
Day 9 – 31.1.14. Woke at 5.30am. Took measurements and I have lost half an inch off my bust – now 34.5. 7am had breakfast program. 7.30am I did 200 cycle movements which actually burned a bit this morning when I did it with ease yesterday. I wonder whether that’s because I did 200 yesterday and then my walk and run with Heidi as well. At any rate, I know it’s doing me good. 11am poached egg and isaflush. 12.20pm lunch marinated chicken thigh on a bed of sweet potato with mixed salad. 12.50pm ontoilet. I’m very full. 3.30pm natural accelerator tablet. 5.30pm evening program. We went out to celebrate at 6.30pm and went and saw The Book Thief. I was so strong not to have any maltesers and Adrian didn’t have his usual slushee. AT 9.30pm we went to Fasta Pasta and I had to sit there while my family ate garlic bread followed by delicious pasta. Tanisha had her first ever ravioli at a restaurant. She wanted me to taste what she was eating so I had one square. Adrian tried to get me to eat the remaining garlic slice but I wouldn’t and he asked me if I wanted to try his pasta but I said no. The girls were so proud of me and made fun of their dad by saying I am not as weak as him.
Day 10 – 1.2.14. 9.15am Started cleanse day. Cleanse for life accelerateor and ionix supreme. 11am poached egg 2 glasses of water isaflush tablet. 12.15pm cleanse for life. Went clothes shopping. Came home at 3pm as I was hungry. Had 2 isagenix snacks 2 glasses of water. Went shopping again. 4.30pm did grocery shopping and now know why they said don’t do that. I felt very light headed and hungry. At 5.40pm had dinner of isalean shake. Oops, wasn’t meant to do that. It was meant to be another cleanse for life. 5.55 cooked dinner for others. 7pm took the cleanse for life and isaflush. I got a bit confused today. Dind’t know what I was doing and I was very hungry and lightheaded. All symptoms of my hypoglycaemia. Went to bed at 11pm but was still awke at midnight with my daughter. Woke at 3.3am went to toilet and checked on children.
Day 11 – 2.2.14. This is afull meansurement day. Will do in the evening because that’s the time we did day one. Woke at 8am. At 8.15am had two glasses of water. At 8.20am went to toilet and was cleansed. 8.55am had breakfrast isalean shake ionix supreme and natural accelerator tablet. I’m not hungry which is good. Taking care of 3 children for breakfast; teenager still sleeping. Foldig loads of washing and washing more loads. 11.15am did 200 cycling movements. Id id it faster this morning and felt it ore on my thighs than my abs. At 11.25am had 1 poached egg and isaflush for morning tea. I’ve been cooking since midday preparing slow roast chicken for dinner for family, toated ham mushroom tomato and cheese sandwiches for children and marinated chicken breast on sweet potato with salad for Adrian, Lisa and I. We ate at 1.30pm. I feel full. I had 2 smallchicken breasts instead of one because I am losing a lot of weight and I am still hungry through the day. Yvonne suggested I may not be eating enough. I then cleaned out my clothes with Liza helping. 3pm I went shopping with the girls to get an appropriate school bag and some togs for the girls. While there I decided to try on some D cup bras as it has been a long time since I have been able to buy a bra other than at a speciality shop. I tried on 4 before finding one that kind of fit. To be honest I was bulging over a little but decided I would buy it as an incentive to keep going. At 4.30pm I did some veggie gardening. 6pm prepared veggies for dinner and had accelerator tablet. No snack needed as I am still full. 7.30pm dinner isalean shake. 8.30pm isaflush tablet. To bed at midnight.
Measurements Day 1 Day 11 Loss
Neck: 12 inches 12 inches 0.00 inches
Upper arm left: 11.6 inches 11.25 inches 0.35 inches
Upper arm right: 11.7 inches 11 inches 0.70 inches
Bust: 35 inches 34.5 inches 0.50 inches
Diaphragm: 28.5 inches 27.5 inches 1 inch
Waist: 30 inches 28.5 inches 1.5 inches
Hips: 33.9 inches 33.9 inches 0.00 inches
Butt: 38 inches 38 inches 0.00 inches
Upper thigh left: 22.6 inches 22.3 inches 0.30 inches
Upper thigh right: 23 inches 22.6 inches 0.40 inches
Calf left: 14 inches 14 inches 0.00 inches
Calf right: 14 inches 14 inches 0.00 inches
Upper knee left: 15.7 inches 15.7 inches 0.00 inches
Upper knee right: 15.7 inches 15.7 inches 0.00 inches
Weight 62kg 58.5kg 3.5 kgs
Day 12 – 3.2.14. Awake 6.30am. 2 glasses of water. NOTE I weighed myself this morning and I now weigh 57.1kg - so I lost 1.4kg overnight so total weight loss 4.9kg. 7.00am breakfast isalean shake, ionix supreme (I just realised this morning some days I was putting two capfuls of Ionix Supreme when it was meant to be 1) and an accelerator tablet. 7.30am on toilet normal stool. 10.30am Isaflush tablet and 3 cashews. 1.00pm Had lunch with Heidi; cooked the remaining marinated chicken breast on sweet potato with salad. Heidi feels I have now lost all the weight I need to and that if I continue there will be nothing left of me. She says that I have done enough experimenting to be able to share with others and for me to confirm with Yvonne, but she feels I need to get back to eating. I will contemplate this and consider what feels right to me. Initial thoughts is I think she's right. Continued on with the program into the evening.
Day 13 - 4.2.14. Awake 6.30am. 2 glasses of water. 7.00am breakfast isalean shake, ionix supreme. Today I had lunch and dinner and was very full afterwards. I also started 2 tablets twice daily of Product B. I have to say just with the removal of impurities from my body, I do believe that my hair is getting thinking and my family agrees. I will be extremely happy if this happens. I have been suffering with my hair thinning since having my children. I used to have thick naturally curly hair but now its thin and dead straight. I would love to have my curls and thickness back.
Side Note. My husband's has also lost inches of his waist and butt (I'm so jealous) and his thighs and calves have grown; so he is really happy as it shows the performance Pak is working to improve his ability in cycling.
Day 26 - 17.2.14. Just an update. My weight has been maintained at 58kg for the past week. I am now eating both lunch and dinner with shakes being continued for breakfast. I have not done another cleanse, although I feel I will some time soon. I am certain that my hair is thicker as a result of doing the cleanse and now that I have been taking 2 Product B tablets twice daily and 2 Active Ageless tablets twice daily, I also think my skin looks clearer and I do look more youthful (less wrinkles). I have not yet got more energy, but I get interrupted sleep so until that gets resolved, it may be hard for the energy to be fully rectified. I am very happy with my Isagenix products so far and will continue with them, so that I may record benefits for others to see.
Day 47 - 10.3.13. Another update. My weight is now 57.5kg and has been this way for the past 2 weeks. I continue to have the shakes for breakfast.
How Did I Get Here?
Written by Kris Freeman, 25.1.14
The most often asked question of me within an initial consultation of Bowen Therapy is "How is it that I came to do Bowen Therapy?". My answer is always "Divine Intervention".
I have not revealed a lengthened version of the story until now. Normally I give a short version that talks about how I came to meet my original Bowen Therapist, Heidi Hirschy, which I know was Divine Intervention in action. I sometimes talk about the health journey I was going through, the pain I was in (detail depends on the person) and how we met, but there are synchronicities that unveiled themselves to me to show me that I was, indeed, being Divinely guided.
Read More - Actually this page is under construction. Please shoot me an email at kris@krisfreeman.com.au or message me on facebook if you think I should continue with this blog.