1. More about Hermetic Laws. Been reading up on this since finding out about it last week and especially liked this Infinite Waters video explaining them.
2. Looking into the Hermetic Laws let to me looking into Alchemy which was more popular than I realized. For example I had no idea Isaac Newton was an alchemist! Here's an interesting Teal Swan video explaining Alchemy.
3. The Healthy Bug in Halifax. This is a great place to get herbal supplements and various healthy things, super friendly helpful staff. They do a 'Mad Monday' first Monday of each month where regular priced items in the store are 15% off. I'm still cleansing and picked up some Black Walnut Hull and Wormwood; 2 key ingredients in parasite cleanses. I also got advised on some good B12 supplements to support the weeks of being a raw vegan; they made my cravings for beef go away. For anyone interested in parasite cleansing, highly recommended taking the parasite killing herbs, they stopped the crazy die off symptoms I was having of feeling things crawling around.
4. Clove tea. Clove is supposed to be great for killing off parasite eggs and I read on line somewhere suggesting one could make a tea by simmering cloves in water on the stove. I threw in some cinnamon, cardamom and ginger and it doesn't taste great but not terrible either, and more pleasant than swallowing ground cloves. Hopefully its working.
5. The Humaworm website. This is a great resource for people looking at parasite cleansing, with various informative pages. Their products are herbal and seem reasonably priced and effective from what I've read on various other sites. I haven't tried their products yet but am thinking about it when I use up the Black Walnut Hull and Wormwood tinctures.
6. The movie Anna which is available on Canadian Netflix. Could be an enjoyable watch for folks who feel like they may have been bamboozled by a psychopath.
7. The Truth (part one). In cleansing I've noticed I've become a lot less fearful, and, where this blog is my space to express myself there are few key details I've kept mum about that have really been bothering me over the past few years and I've decided, why not just blog about them. What have I been afraid exactly? Nobody hardly reads my blog anyhow and I think sharing a few things I've kept secret will make me feel better, like it's part of the cleansing process.
Whatever. Here's a start.
When I first arrived in Halifax in October 2008 I was a wreck. I had broken my back jumping out of my burning house in Regina the year prior, shattering my L1 and L2 vertebrae and was still healing from a spinal fusion operation. The fire took place in June 2007 and not only engulfed my character house in flames, but burnt down the 2 houses on either side of mine. I spent about 9 days in hospital following the operation. My 2 roommates/friends were injured in the fire as well as all 3 of us jumped out of windows at 3am, but being the homeowner I was glad to have the most serious injuries. For a few months following the operation, I had to wear a chair back brace and walk with a cane, and while it was painful I was glad I could walk. I'm extremely grateful that Regina has such an excellent health care system and I had a top notch surgeon.
The fire had occurred right before I was scheduled to go visit my parents in BC so I had to miss the trip. Unfortunately about a month after my accident my father took a very bad stroke and died a month later. He and I were very close and this was devastating but oddly because of my back injury I had to delay the grieving process. I stayed in Regina for over a year, but the relationship that led me there had ended, and the Art School I attended there was rather awful. I made some good friends that I miss, but there wasn't much keeping me there. I had been thinking about moving east for years and decided it was time to make the move.
When I arrived in Halifax in October 2008 I was a broken grieving mess and knew nobody except my real estate agent who has since become a good friend.
I had issues with PTSD before my house fire, due to various other life experiences, but the events of 2007 made things quite a bit worse. I did have a good insurance policy from the house fire but for various reasons I've been figuring out, felt guilty about having it.
I met someone years ago who is a student of Buddhism who told me "when you gain in riches the thieves will come". I think this is very true.
Looking back on various events of 2010 - 2014 from a Hermetic Law point of view, I think my injury and grief had put me in a "low vibrational state" which led me to attracting the experiences I did. Today I no longer feel like a victim, though I've felt that way at times. It feels like the parasite cleansing I've been doing is helping to that end, as feelings of victimization are being replaced with feelings of connection to the world around me.
So writing about my experience isn't an attempt to throw a 'pity party'. Everyone goes through hard times, and I feel like I'm emerging from the other side of mine. It is more to make sense of what happened because I did something that I've since felt incredibly embarrassed about and I'm thinking blogging about it might be a way to help me get over it and move forward.
I also think when we share our stories it can be helpful to others who have gone through similar experiences. It could make people feel less isolated, I know I felt better after reading certain books.
I did a bit of reading up on victims today and why they stay silent. It's a lot to do with fear, shame and a loss of pride over letting oneself be duped. But now that I'm feeling a return to the physically healthy person I used to be, in my former life as a biologist in BC, I'm feeling rather fearless these days.
That's enough for a start.
8. This Teal Swan video about how to let go of mistakes.
9. Thinking about secrets made me get the catchy script of this old US forces training cartoon stuck in my head. It was written by Dr. Suess and animated by Chuck Jones. Private SNAFU - Spies 1943
Thursday, February 19, 2015
Friday, February 13, 2015
This Week's Favourite Things! February 2nd - February 8th 2015
I'm still obsessed with parasites and cleansing so have been having a break from the studio. With all the snow and freezing weather we've been getting, the trek across the yard to the kiln shed isn't looking too appealing so my next firing could be awhile. To be honest I've quit working on the stuff in my studio and keep reading/watching stuff about parasites and wondering how many medical conditions they may actually explain.
1. This youtube video about Candida - the North American parasite. It's an interesting cartoon explaining how the fungus Candida may have become more prevalent with all the sugar in processed foods.
2. The Markus Rothkranz youtube channel. Lots of entertaining raw vegan recipes and other informative videos.
3. This web article - Parasites as a Cause of Cancer
4. This page about Parasites that a Reiki Master compiled on her website
5. The phrase "As Within So Without" which is part of Hermetic Law which goes on about how your outer world is a reflection of your inner world. I thought this so much as cleansing and now wonder if over the past few years I'd manifested some parasitic relationships, it seems like an interesting way to explain a few bizarre experiences I've attracted. And for example the 108 bags of trash that had to be removed from my house last year when we had our tenant disaster was chock full of highly processed crap wrappers that would make excellent Worm Chow. Interesting to think about anyhow.
6. Snowshoeing
7. Chickadees, Goldfinches, Blue Jays, Woodpeckers, Nuthatches, Sparrows, the bird feeders are hopping
1. This youtube video about Candida - the North American parasite. It's an interesting cartoon explaining how the fungus Candida may have become more prevalent with all the sugar in processed foods.
2. The Markus Rothkranz youtube channel. Lots of entertaining raw vegan recipes and other informative videos.
3. This web article - Parasites as a Cause of Cancer
4. This page about Parasites that a Reiki Master compiled on her website
5. The phrase "As Within So Without" which is part of Hermetic Law which goes on about how your outer world is a reflection of your inner world. I thought this so much as cleansing and now wonder if over the past few years I'd manifested some parasitic relationships, it seems like an interesting way to explain a few bizarre experiences I've attracted. And for example the 108 bags of trash that had to be removed from my house last year when we had our tenant disaster was chock full of highly processed crap wrappers that would make excellent Worm Chow. Interesting to think about anyhow.
6. Snowshoeing
7. Chickadees, Goldfinches, Blue Jays, Woodpeckers, Nuthatches, Sparrows, the bird feeders are hopping
Thursday, February 5, 2015
This Week's Favourite Things! January 26th - February 1st 2015
1. This past week has all been about health, so this is going to be a long list, and I've been delayed on my next firing because I've been cleansing. It started with my watching this video lecture about inflammation being the cause of most diseases
How To Prevent Inflammation and Oxidation by John Bergman
John Bergman also has a bunch of other great lecture videos on youtube, like How to Heal Yourself With Your Thoughts
2. In looking up more about inflammation I saw a video where the host said it's really important to cleanse from parasites, check it out, do your own research. Which led me to watch this. This video is a bit sensationalized and sells a product but gets the point across in a compelling, shocking way.
Parasite Cleanse - What's Eating You?
3. Next is an interview with naturopath Valerie Saxon talking about how widespread parasites are in humans, according to a source she cites 85% of American could be hosting at least one form of parasite. This is the link to part 1 of 3 but the other segments come up for viewing. She makes a convincing argument that parasites are more common that we think, and cleansing is very important
Parasites: What the Medical Doctor Will Not Tell You
I'll admit that I stumbled on to this stuff when I accidentally started a parasite cleanse by drinking nothing but fresh ginger cubes in hot water for a day, because I wasn't feeling well. I ended up in severe pain, but it wasn't hunger. The next day all I wanted to eat was chia seeds and apples. By the next day I had figured out I was probably cleansing parasites. Coming from a farm family, my mom had worms as a kid so it didn't sound too far fetched. I have another farmed raised friend who was also 'dewormed' as a kid. Parasites would explain the struggle I had with weight the past few years - now I'm thinking that even just eating small amounts of starches, sugar or dairy seemed to be enough to keep a colony of whatever I had alive. So I started a serious natural raw vegan cleanse and yes, I had a few types of worms and probably some protozoa or fungus, who knows. All I know is that I feel way better now and seem to be getting things under control but I did experience some die-off symptoms. I felt a bit less crazy with respect to feeling worms moving in me when I read this woman's blog post:
4. Parasitic Die-Off, what to expect (blog post). This blogger has other great posts with advice for doing a natural parasite cleanse. I had a bunch of these die off symptoms, including pain, the feeling of things wriggling out my ears, nose, back of the throat, and eyes. No I'm not kidding or delusional, this really happened, for several days. Yes it's gross.
There is also this whole "Parasite Support Forum" for people who have figured out they have parasites, as a place to post questions and stories of their experience. On here I found my new favourite cleansing breakfast: soak chia seeds in a couple inches of water in the fridge overnight, and eat with some diced pineapple or papaya (both are antiparasitic fruits). Pretty tasty. There are also a lot of great raw vegan recipes online that would be easy to fill with high chlorophyll food (parasites don't like raw chlorophyll apparently). I made a modified version of these raw vegan thai lettuce wraps but with no sweetener, they were really good! Raw vegan maki sushi has also been a lot of fun to experiment with.
I don't know that anyone can have the right answer for the very best antiparasitic diet, there's some conflicting information out there and I think people are just starting to wrap their heads around the fact that parasites are even a problem for humans in 'first world' countries and cities. I do find that as I cleanse I get more signals from my body as to what foods are nutrient rich and cleansing, versus what foods support parasites. Here's a good video with an antiparasite juice recipe, though personally I try not to juice too many apples because of the fructose that is released - this is still a simple sugar. Probably better to add apples in a blender or eat them raw to keep the fiber. At the same time I got serious and tried adding onion to a juice I made, and ending up needing to add apple juice in order to drink it.
Since I've gotten all excited about parasites and identifying the probable cause of a whole pile of my problems, I've noticed that most people just plain don't want to hear about parasites, or are in denial they could possibly be hosting some. Not naming any names! As a biologist I'd love to just remind everyone that, highly evolved as humans may be, we're all running around in chassis that are pretty much ape-based. Apes get parasites. Most living organisms get parasites. It's a pretty common thing in the animal kingdom for parasites to control their host's behaviour, so it's not surprising to hear that food cravings may well be the chemical signals sent up by parasites. This makes sense if you think about it. Why on earth would humans crave for nutrient-poor, crap food, especially sugar and other simple carbs that could come from dairy and starches. And how can so many people eat and not feel like their getting full, leading to overeating and the corresponding obesity epidemic. Blame parasites!!!
As an aside, apparently teeth grinding is another symptom of parasites, they feed at night triggering an "eating response" in the mouth.
It seems to me since we all started moving off the farm and into cities, people have begun to lose touch with where our food comes from. From what I've read and heard it seems that deworming with some castor oil twice a year was a pretty common anti-parasite routine back in the day on the small farm. And maybe North America used to be more parasite free. However, look at globalization and where all our food is coming from. It'd be so easy for parasites to travel on produce even, from foreign countries where the water being used for irrigation could be contaminated. Raw fish and rare meat is also a culprit. Not to mention the possibility of transmitting parasites human - human in a variety of places. Couple all of this with our western beliefs that "we can't have parasites that's impossible" we drop our guard and the parasites start to win.
5. Here is a favourite example from elsewhere in the animal kingdom of parasites controlling the behaviour of their hosts:
Article: 12 Real Parasites That Control The Lives Of Their Hosts
I'm quoting the linked article here, which is by Joseph Benningon-Castro, to see more examples check the out the link:
6. Parasite Alert: 3 Signs to Watch Out For (article)
7. Gut feelings: the future of psychiatry might be in your stomach (article)
This next point admittedly sounds insane but my first degree was in animal behavioural ecology so I really do think this is in the realm of possibility, and perhaps the world could be saved in a few weeks if everyone would just do a cleanse. Maybe if the Nova Scotia government and members of the Turkey board would all do a cleanse suddenly this province would be more pro-small farms and healthy food and less pro-factory farmed gmo fed turkeys that keep fueling our parasitic overlords...
8. My cracked out theory that maybe the storyline in the movie "The Matrix" is real and we're secretly all at risk of parasitic control. I mean, look at all the things this would explain: agribusiness, government, our medical system, school system, grocery stores and chain restaurants full of processed food, factory farming, the whole GMO industry, big pharma, big oil. Some of these very systems seem "parasitic" in a way. This Stefan Molyneux youtube video about the decline of Canada makes the point of how harmful a bloated government, and increased regulation can be to an economy.
Our parasites would prefer stupid hosts that never clue into their presence, and who are largely sedentary, gather with other humans for better transmission, and who eat a nutrient poor diet full of the sugars and simple starches, dairy and meat that parasites love so much.
Voila, look at modern North American culture. So many parts of it look like they could absolutely be driven by our internal parasites. Many people seemed to be employed in the production and distribution of worm food. Could we be like those zombified spiders in point #5, though at a bigger scale?
For example look at what food is being fed hospital patients: boiled out soup and fruit cups. Cooked food is dead food, and dead food is worm food. Why aren't patients in hospitals being fed fresh squeezed juices and a healthy raw vegan diet? Maybe because they are under parasitic control, via the hospital administrators. And really, what a great place to pick up a parasite if you don't already have one.
As for grocery stores, we've had storms lately and since I started cleansing I've noticed a lot of people are pushing carts with chips, cookies, pop, and other highly processed food. Are they being driven by their parasites to eat this stuff that doesn't even provide their bodies with proper nutrition? Something to think about, though most people probably won't want to.
Even kids don't play outdoors as much any more, and so many people spend so much more time on the couch glued to their laptop or smart phone. A prone body is a parasite's dream environment, as the less we move around, the easier it is for them to feed.
If I want to get even crazier with this: I've been noticing all the movies on Netflix that seem to glamourize cheating and white collar crime. Not going to name names but there's one that's really funny but the moral seems to be that all men cheat, but it's ok, because you can make friends with your husband's mistress and drink wine in eachother's closets trying on eachother's clothes as you become BFFs. This makes sense if you realize that parasites will spread themselves if their hosts can't stay monogamous and start running around. As for the white collar crime: the victims of these crimes are kept in a state of stress. Perfect. And check out the news we take in: lots and lots of fearmongering. Also perfect for parasites as their hosts suddenly want to munch out on chips to reduce the stress of coping with the impending apocalypse, financial collapse, world war, what have you. Do parasites run Hollywood and mainstream news media? Maybe we could test that hypothesize by having every human involved in these industries do a cleanse!
I have a hunch my own personal parasite build up began to take off when I started seeing my husband, who was working shiftwork and loved to eat frozen yogurt late at night; perfect worm food at the perfect feeding time, not something I used to do. Where I was less active this seemed to be the beginning of my issue and the beginning of years of 'wtf is wrong with me I can't lose any weight'. Since starting my cleanse I've dropped 12 pounds in about 10 days and I'm still getting down to a better weight for my height. Thank god. I'm pretty sure that any weight problems I've had throughout my life have really been a function of chronic inflammation from parasites. Now there are other parasites that would likely have the opposite effect: people can eat tonnes and not put on weight, I think tapeworms might do this.
9. My other cracked out theory that maybe there are no "empaths" and "psychopaths", after all that time I spent obsessed with this topic, that maybe there are just people who have been infested with different types of parasites.
As I've cleansed I'm starting to feel more connected to the world but at the same time less fearful and anxious. It makes sense that parasites would want their hosts fearful and anxious, so they keep eating more chips and cake.
After a short time cleansing any food cravings for junkfood vanished and I've hardly gotten hungry. The cravings I do get now are for the things I think parasites would hate. Drinking lots of fresh vegetable juice helps (I've been drinking beet, carrot, ginger, celery, parsley), so does drinking lots of hot water with ginger or just water with cayenne or apple cider vinegar.
Now I wonder if there could be parasites that could cause their hosts to be psychopathic, drug addicted or alcohol addicted. It is interesting that I think I've heard that psychopaths can't be rehabbed in prison. Well, prisons also serve up nutrient poor, processed foods that parasites would love. Maybe there's an opportunity for a study here.
9. There are definitely people looking at the link between Toxoplasma and mental illness. Toxoplasma is a common cat parasite that can travel up into the human brain and start messing around with the wiring up there.
Toxoplasmosis May Trigger Schizophrenia And Bipolar Disorder (article)
Really. If cat parasites end up being behind these debilitating, stigmatizing mental illnesses I don't know what to say. A lot of psychiatrists might have egg on their face. How awesome could it be if these disorders could be cured quickly with anti parasitic drugs.
Here's another interesting article about it, in The Atlantic Magazine, with an interview from a scientist from a Czech research lab:
How Your Cat Is Making You Crazy
On this topic, I wonder how many other diseases might have inflammation at the cause, with inflammation due to parasitic infection at the cause of that. Bear in mind parasites aren't just 40 foot long tapeworms, they could be tiny fungi, bacteria, single-celled organisms, and all sorts of microscopic worms. In all my reading, diseases and symptoms that could have originated with parasite infection include eye disease, cancer, vasculitis, colitis, heart disease, seizures and the list goes on. Seeing as parasite will clear themselves out through a person's lungs, I even wonder if IPF (Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis) could be caused or aggravated by parasites. Suddenly a parasite cleanse is looking like a good idea, and really, if you do a natural one, what harm could it do.
Here is a youtube lecture by a Naturopath (I think that's what he is) Internal Overhaul by Dr. Tent. It's long, but at a few spots throughout he mentions how medical doctors will often assume patients concerned with parasites are crazy, and he lists off various health problems he's treated by treating parasites.
To be effective in my experience and from what I've read, I'd suggest doing a cleanse that is 100% raw, vegan and full of antiparasitic foods or even supplements - I've seen black walnut hull, wormwood and fresh ground cloves recommended though I've only been able to track down cloves so far. The thing is as soon as you cook even vegetables, the enzymes are killed and they become 'worm food'. And as for meat, it has no fiber and slows down digestion. I've had success with lots of fresh juice and raw vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds. For example raw pumpkin seeds and garlic are anti-parasitic. There's lots of information on the internet, if you're interested best to do your own research!
And to see more about the health consequences that parasites can have, on youtube there are a bunch of episodes of "Monsters Inside Me" a documentary series from Animal Planet with real life stories about what people have gone through with parasites.
Finally I'll admit I've been wondering if Oprah might have a problem with parasites, and that likewise explains her struggles with weight. I've got this daydream that wouldn't it be awesome if Oprah did a parasite cleanse, found some worms, and did a big spread about them in her magazine. What a service that would be to humankind, destigmatizing the parasite issue and dragging it out into the light. Imagine the headline "Oprah has worms, lifelong struggle with weight solved". And a photo shoot "Meet Oprah's Worms". And suddenly having parasites and talking about them would be chic. Oh to dream the impossible dream...
10. Ok, that's a lot about parasites, for now, I also loved this article in the Herald:
Oxford Foods' Home Loan Program helps keep workers in Rural NS
I think it shows a great example of companies helping their employees via the opportunity to own their own homes; nice to see a "feel good" story in the paper.
11. This movie which is now on Canadian Netflix: GMO OMG
How To Prevent Inflammation and Oxidation by John Bergman
John Bergman also has a bunch of other great lecture videos on youtube, like How to Heal Yourself With Your Thoughts
2. In looking up more about inflammation I saw a video where the host said it's really important to cleanse from parasites, check it out, do your own research. Which led me to watch this. This video is a bit sensationalized and sells a product but gets the point across in a compelling, shocking way.
Parasite Cleanse - What's Eating You?
3. Next is an interview with naturopath Valerie Saxon talking about how widespread parasites are in humans, according to a source she cites 85% of American could be hosting at least one form of parasite. This is the link to part 1 of 3 but the other segments come up for viewing. She makes a convincing argument that parasites are more common that we think, and cleansing is very important
Parasites: What the Medical Doctor Will Not Tell You
I'll admit that I stumbled on to this stuff when I accidentally started a parasite cleanse by drinking nothing but fresh ginger cubes in hot water for a day, because I wasn't feeling well. I ended up in severe pain, but it wasn't hunger. The next day all I wanted to eat was chia seeds and apples. By the next day I had figured out I was probably cleansing parasites. Coming from a farm family, my mom had worms as a kid so it didn't sound too far fetched. I have another farmed raised friend who was also 'dewormed' as a kid. Parasites would explain the struggle I had with weight the past few years - now I'm thinking that even just eating small amounts of starches, sugar or dairy seemed to be enough to keep a colony of whatever I had alive. So I started a serious natural raw vegan cleanse and yes, I had a few types of worms and probably some protozoa or fungus, who knows. All I know is that I feel way better now and seem to be getting things under control but I did experience some die-off symptoms. I felt a bit less crazy with respect to feeling worms moving in me when I read this woman's blog post:
4. Parasitic Die-Off, what to expect (blog post). This blogger has other great posts with advice for doing a natural parasite cleanse. I had a bunch of these die off symptoms, including pain, the feeling of things wriggling out my ears, nose, back of the throat, and eyes. No I'm not kidding or delusional, this really happened, for several days. Yes it's gross.
There is also this whole "Parasite Support Forum" for people who have figured out they have parasites, as a place to post questions and stories of their experience. On here I found my new favourite cleansing breakfast: soak chia seeds in a couple inches of water in the fridge overnight, and eat with some diced pineapple or papaya (both are antiparasitic fruits). Pretty tasty. There are also a lot of great raw vegan recipes online that would be easy to fill with high chlorophyll food (parasites don't like raw chlorophyll apparently). I made a modified version of these raw vegan thai lettuce wraps but with no sweetener, they were really good! Raw vegan maki sushi has also been a lot of fun to experiment with.
I don't know that anyone can have the right answer for the very best antiparasitic diet, there's some conflicting information out there and I think people are just starting to wrap their heads around the fact that parasites are even a problem for humans in 'first world' countries and cities. I do find that as I cleanse I get more signals from my body as to what foods are nutrient rich and cleansing, versus what foods support parasites. Here's a good video with an antiparasite juice recipe, though personally I try not to juice too many apples because of the fructose that is released - this is still a simple sugar. Probably better to add apples in a blender or eat them raw to keep the fiber. At the same time I got serious and tried adding onion to a juice I made, and ending up needing to add apple juice in order to drink it.
Since I've gotten all excited about parasites and identifying the probable cause of a whole pile of my problems, I've noticed that most people just plain don't want to hear about parasites, or are in denial they could possibly be hosting some. Not naming any names! As a biologist I'd love to just remind everyone that, highly evolved as humans may be, we're all running around in chassis that are pretty much ape-based. Apes get parasites. Most living organisms get parasites. It's a pretty common thing in the animal kingdom for parasites to control their host's behaviour, so it's not surprising to hear that food cravings may well be the chemical signals sent up by parasites. This makes sense if you think about it. Why on earth would humans crave for nutrient-poor, crap food, especially sugar and other simple carbs that could come from dairy and starches. And how can so many people eat and not feel like their getting full, leading to overeating and the corresponding obesity epidemic. Blame parasites!!!
As an aside, apparently teeth grinding is another symptom of parasites, they feed at night triggering an "eating response" in the mouth.
It seems to me since we all started moving off the farm and into cities, people have begun to lose touch with where our food comes from. From what I've read and heard it seems that deworming with some castor oil twice a year was a pretty common anti-parasite routine back in the day on the small farm. And maybe North America used to be more parasite free. However, look at globalization and where all our food is coming from. It'd be so easy for parasites to travel on produce even, from foreign countries where the water being used for irrigation could be contaminated. Raw fish and rare meat is also a culprit. Not to mention the possibility of transmitting parasites human - human in a variety of places. Couple all of this with our western beliefs that "we can't have parasites that's impossible" we drop our guard and the parasites start to win.
5. Here is a favourite example from elsewhere in the animal kingdom of parasites controlling the behaviour of their hosts:
Article: 12 Real Parasites That Control The Lives Of Their Hosts
I'm quoting the linked article here, which is by Joseph Benningon-Castro, to see more examples check the out the link:
"1. Hymenoepimecis "Build Me a Web!" argyraphaga
Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga is a Costa Rican parasitic wasp that terrorizes the spider Plesiometa argyra.
When it's time to procreate, an adult female wasp will seek out a
spider, paralyze it and then lay an egg on its abdomen. After hatching,
the larva wasp will feed on its host, while the spider goes about its
business like nothing's wrong.
Then things
get interesting. After a couple weeks of bloodsucking, the larva will
inject a chemical into the spider, which causes the spider to build a
web like none it's ever built before. The spider sits motionless in its
creation — which is far from pretty, but super durable and able to
withstand pelts of rain — to await its fate. The parasite then kills the
spider with poison, sucks it dry and builds a cocoon that hangs from
the middle of the new web.
Image via William G. Eberhard."
Here's another article about this wasp:
6. Parasite Alert: 3 Signs to Watch Out For (article)
7. Gut feelings: the future of psychiatry might be in your stomach (article)
This next point admittedly sounds insane but my first degree was in animal behavioural ecology so I really do think this is in the realm of possibility, and perhaps the world could be saved in a few weeks if everyone would just do a cleanse. Maybe if the Nova Scotia government and members of the Turkey board would all do a cleanse suddenly this province would be more pro-small farms and healthy food and less pro-factory farmed gmo fed turkeys that keep fueling our parasitic overlords...
8. My cracked out theory that maybe the storyline in the movie "The Matrix" is real and we're secretly all at risk of parasitic control. I mean, look at all the things this would explain: agribusiness, government, our medical system, school system, grocery stores and chain restaurants full of processed food, factory farming, the whole GMO industry, big pharma, big oil. Some of these very systems seem "parasitic" in a way. This Stefan Molyneux youtube video about the decline of Canada makes the point of how harmful a bloated government, and increased regulation can be to an economy.
Our parasites would prefer stupid hosts that never clue into their presence, and who are largely sedentary, gather with other humans for better transmission, and who eat a nutrient poor diet full of the sugars and simple starches, dairy and meat that parasites love so much.
Voila, look at modern North American culture. So many parts of it look like they could absolutely be driven by our internal parasites. Many people seemed to be employed in the production and distribution of worm food. Could we be like those zombified spiders in point #5, though at a bigger scale?
For example look at what food is being fed hospital patients: boiled out soup and fruit cups. Cooked food is dead food, and dead food is worm food. Why aren't patients in hospitals being fed fresh squeezed juices and a healthy raw vegan diet? Maybe because they are under parasitic control, via the hospital administrators. And really, what a great place to pick up a parasite if you don't already have one.
As for grocery stores, we've had storms lately and since I started cleansing I've noticed a lot of people are pushing carts with chips, cookies, pop, and other highly processed food. Are they being driven by their parasites to eat this stuff that doesn't even provide their bodies with proper nutrition? Something to think about, though most people probably won't want to.
Even kids don't play outdoors as much any more, and so many people spend so much more time on the couch glued to their laptop or smart phone. A prone body is a parasite's dream environment, as the less we move around, the easier it is for them to feed.
If I want to get even crazier with this: I've been noticing all the movies on Netflix that seem to glamourize cheating and white collar crime. Not going to name names but there's one that's really funny but the moral seems to be that all men cheat, but it's ok, because you can make friends with your husband's mistress and drink wine in eachother's closets trying on eachother's clothes as you become BFFs. This makes sense if you realize that parasites will spread themselves if their hosts can't stay monogamous and start running around. As for the white collar crime: the victims of these crimes are kept in a state of stress. Perfect. And check out the news we take in: lots and lots of fearmongering. Also perfect for parasites as their hosts suddenly want to munch out on chips to reduce the stress of coping with the impending apocalypse, financial collapse, world war, what have you. Do parasites run Hollywood and mainstream news media? Maybe we could test that hypothesize by having every human involved in these industries do a cleanse!
I have a hunch my own personal parasite build up began to take off when I started seeing my husband, who was working shiftwork and loved to eat frozen yogurt late at night; perfect worm food at the perfect feeding time, not something I used to do. Where I was less active this seemed to be the beginning of my issue and the beginning of years of 'wtf is wrong with me I can't lose any weight'. Since starting my cleanse I've dropped 12 pounds in about 10 days and I'm still getting down to a better weight for my height. Thank god. I'm pretty sure that any weight problems I've had throughout my life have really been a function of chronic inflammation from parasites. Now there are other parasites that would likely have the opposite effect: people can eat tonnes and not put on weight, I think tapeworms might do this.
9. My other cracked out theory that maybe there are no "empaths" and "psychopaths", after all that time I spent obsessed with this topic, that maybe there are just people who have been infested with different types of parasites.
As I've cleansed I'm starting to feel more connected to the world but at the same time less fearful and anxious. It makes sense that parasites would want their hosts fearful and anxious, so they keep eating more chips and cake.
After a short time cleansing any food cravings for junkfood vanished and I've hardly gotten hungry. The cravings I do get now are for the things I think parasites would hate. Drinking lots of fresh vegetable juice helps (I've been drinking beet, carrot, ginger, celery, parsley), so does drinking lots of hot water with ginger or just water with cayenne or apple cider vinegar.
Now I wonder if there could be parasites that could cause their hosts to be psychopathic, drug addicted or alcohol addicted. It is interesting that I think I've heard that psychopaths can't be rehabbed in prison. Well, prisons also serve up nutrient poor, processed foods that parasites would love. Maybe there's an opportunity for a study here.
9. There are definitely people looking at the link between Toxoplasma and mental illness. Toxoplasma is a common cat parasite that can travel up into the human brain and start messing around with the wiring up there.
Toxoplasmosis May Trigger Schizophrenia And Bipolar Disorder (article)
Really. If cat parasites end up being behind these debilitating, stigmatizing mental illnesses I don't know what to say. A lot of psychiatrists might have egg on their face. How awesome could it be if these disorders could be cured quickly with anti parasitic drugs.
Here's another interesting article about it, in The Atlantic Magazine, with an interview from a scientist from a Czech research lab:
How Your Cat Is Making You Crazy
On this topic, I wonder how many other diseases might have inflammation at the cause, with inflammation due to parasitic infection at the cause of that. Bear in mind parasites aren't just 40 foot long tapeworms, they could be tiny fungi, bacteria, single-celled organisms, and all sorts of microscopic worms. In all my reading, diseases and symptoms that could have originated with parasite infection include eye disease, cancer, vasculitis, colitis, heart disease, seizures and the list goes on. Seeing as parasite will clear themselves out through a person's lungs, I even wonder if IPF (Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis) could be caused or aggravated by parasites. Suddenly a parasite cleanse is looking like a good idea, and really, if you do a natural one, what harm could it do.
Here is a youtube lecture by a Naturopath (I think that's what he is) Internal Overhaul by Dr. Tent. It's long, but at a few spots throughout he mentions how medical doctors will often assume patients concerned with parasites are crazy, and he lists off various health problems he's treated by treating parasites.
To be effective in my experience and from what I've read, I'd suggest doing a cleanse that is 100% raw, vegan and full of antiparasitic foods or even supplements - I've seen black walnut hull, wormwood and fresh ground cloves recommended though I've only been able to track down cloves so far. The thing is as soon as you cook even vegetables, the enzymes are killed and they become 'worm food'. And as for meat, it has no fiber and slows down digestion. I've had success with lots of fresh juice and raw vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds. For example raw pumpkin seeds and garlic are anti-parasitic. There's lots of information on the internet, if you're interested best to do your own research!
And to see more about the health consequences that parasites can have, on youtube there are a bunch of episodes of "Monsters Inside Me" a documentary series from Animal Planet with real life stories about what people have gone through with parasites.
Finally I'll admit I've been wondering if Oprah might have a problem with parasites, and that likewise explains her struggles with weight. I've got this daydream that wouldn't it be awesome if Oprah did a parasite cleanse, found some worms, and did a big spread about them in her magazine. What a service that would be to humankind, destigmatizing the parasite issue and dragging it out into the light. Imagine the headline "Oprah has worms, lifelong struggle with weight solved". And a photo shoot "Meet Oprah's Worms". And suddenly having parasites and talking about them would be chic. Oh to dream the impossible dream...
10. Ok, that's a lot about parasites, for now, I also loved this article in the Herald:
Oxford Foods' Home Loan Program helps keep workers in Rural NS
I think it shows a great example of companies helping their employees via the opportunity to own their own homes; nice to see a "feel good" story in the paper.
11. This movie which is now on Canadian Netflix: GMO OMG
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
This Week's Favourite Things! January 19th - January 25th 2015
1. The show that Ben Caplan and the Casual Smokers put on at the Marquee last Wednesday. Wow. It was awesome; especially loved the scream-along audience participation segment, very cathartic. The Marquee is looking pretty awesome too, with the Seahorse Tavern having relocated into its basement.
2. Nova Scotian Crystal. Established in 1996, this is North America’s only hand-cut, mouth-blown crystal maker, making some of the finest crystal available in the world! Now here's a feel-good story of a business that got saved from closure by a private investor coming forth to buy it such that it could continue to run without government money or similar assistance. From what I heard the business was bought by someone retired from the banking industry. Three cheers for people that have realized they can take responsibility to use their wealth to help their own community, rather than shoveling it into foreign investments or what have you. Better yet that in this case it is promoting a beautiful craft, and a landmark on the Halifax waterfront, hopefully for many years to come. Apparently the raw materials for crystal are only made in 2 places in the world. Cool.
3. The Turbine Fashion boutique in the Historic Properties. Speaking of local investing, Turbine is owned by Canadian designer Lisa Drader-Murphy and mainly features her designs as well as some really wonderful hats made by her manager/hat making expert who formerly had a very popular successful hat shop on Granville Island in Vancouver before coming home to Halifax. The shop is unique in that all the clothes in Lisa's lines are made locally by a small staff, and with that in mind the prices seem quite reasonable. Plus I believe they have another shop at the Sunnyside Mall in Bedford. Between Turbine and Nova Scotia Crystal I got to thinking that Halifax, as desolate as it seemed on a January weekday, could be on the cutting edge of a move towards a locally-based economy which would be so resilient to, and maybe even buoyed by all the global craziness going on with respect to things like oil prices and interest rates. A cheerful thought anyhow, reminding me of this video. I've posted it before but I'm not sure if it's been a favourite thing yet:
4. Sacred Economics by Charles Eisenstein.
5. Still digging that Infinite Waters guy and watched a tonne more videos. Here's a favourite, How to Stop and Spot Mental and Emotional Manipulators. Wish I'd seen this years ago, but better late than never! This is a favourite too: Seven Signs of a Spiritual Awakening. I like the bit about being all about "promoting what we love instead of attacking what we hate" much more conducive to stress-free living.
2. Nova Scotian Crystal. Established in 1996, this is North America’s only hand-cut, mouth-blown crystal maker, making some of the finest crystal available in the world! Now here's a feel-good story of a business that got saved from closure by a private investor coming forth to buy it such that it could continue to run without government money or similar assistance. From what I heard the business was bought by someone retired from the banking industry. Three cheers for people that have realized they can take responsibility to use their wealth to help their own community, rather than shoveling it into foreign investments or what have you. Better yet that in this case it is promoting a beautiful craft, and a landmark on the Halifax waterfront, hopefully for many years to come. Apparently the raw materials for crystal are only made in 2 places in the world. Cool.
3. The Turbine Fashion boutique in the Historic Properties. Speaking of local investing, Turbine is owned by Canadian designer Lisa Drader-Murphy and mainly features her designs as well as some really wonderful hats made by her manager/hat making expert who formerly had a very popular successful hat shop on Granville Island in Vancouver before coming home to Halifax. The shop is unique in that all the clothes in Lisa's lines are made locally by a small staff, and with that in mind the prices seem quite reasonable. Plus I believe they have another shop at the Sunnyside Mall in Bedford. Between Turbine and Nova Scotia Crystal I got to thinking that Halifax, as desolate as it seemed on a January weekday, could be on the cutting edge of a move towards a locally-based economy which would be so resilient to, and maybe even buoyed by all the global craziness going on with respect to things like oil prices and interest rates. A cheerful thought anyhow, reminding me of this video. I've posted it before but I'm not sure if it's been a favourite thing yet:
4. Sacred Economics by Charles Eisenstein.
5. Still digging that Infinite Waters guy and watched a tonne more videos. Here's a favourite, How to Stop and Spot Mental and Emotional Manipulators. Wish I'd seen this years ago, but better late than never! This is a favourite too: Seven Signs of a Spiritual Awakening. I like the bit about being all about "promoting what we love instead of attacking what we hate" much more conducive to stress-free living.
Thursday, January 22, 2015
This Week's Favourite Things! January 12th - January 18th 2015
1. Still the movie Case 39, here's a brief documentary I found on youtube about the making of it which explains why it's so great.
My very most favourite part of the movie seems to be around minute 59 (spoiler alert). I was able to find these quotes on subzin.com
Emily: "What is she?"
Lilith's 'father': "I can tell you what she's not, she's not a daughter of mine. She's not a 10-year-old having trouble in school. And she's not some innocent victim whose door you busted down and life you saved. She's not going anywhere soon, lady. Not till she's good and done with you.
Emily: "Done with me how?"
Lilith's 'father': "However she wants. You think it's an accident her ending up with you? She saw you coming a mile away. Kindness. Decency. That's what she feeds on. Bleeds you dry, moves on to the next."
Oh my that is some excellent script writing!
2. Bird feeders! I cat sat for a friend who has so many feeders her yard looks like a scene from a Disney movie. So, monkey see monkey do, now I have a couple too. I learned that the cheap birdseed with corn isn't as delicious to native birds as black oiled sunflower seeds. So far we've seen a bunch of chickadees, a blue jay, and a couple of woodpeckers. Plus some starlings we shooed away so they don't get used to hanging around our fruit bushes and cherry trees.
3. This super awesome Gregg Braden talk on youtube, "How To Control The Matrix". It's over 3 hours long but addresses links between spirituality and science in an excellent way, including an interesting discussion of bits that got removed or condensed from the bible in the 3rd century.
4. This entire youtube channel by Ralph Smart called "Infinite Waters - diving deep". Youtube suggested I'd like the video on how to decalcify your pineal gland (aka third eye) and I got so hooked on this guy's cheerfulness I ended up listening to dozens of his videos while sculpting - progress pics will be coming at some point. I thought wouldn't it be cool if he and Teal Swan did a video together and it turns out he did interview her in 2013, and the discussion they had is super interesting; here is the video of the interview on youtube.
5. This recipe for Crack. ... the no-bake relatively healthy coconut dessert kind - I used honey for the sweetener and threw in some cinnamon and cardamom, it was delicious.
My very most favourite part of the movie seems to be around minute 59 (spoiler alert). I was able to find these quotes on subzin.com
Emily: "What is she?"
Lilith's 'father': "I can tell you what she's not, she's not a daughter of mine. She's not a 10-year-old having trouble in school. And she's not some innocent victim whose door you busted down and life you saved. She's not going anywhere soon, lady. Not till she's good and done with you.
Emily: "Done with me how?"
Lilith's 'father': "However she wants. You think it's an accident her ending up with you? She saw you coming a mile away. Kindness. Decency. That's what she feeds on. Bleeds you dry, moves on to the next."
Oh my that is some excellent script writing!
2. Bird feeders! I cat sat for a friend who has so many feeders her yard looks like a scene from a Disney movie. So, monkey see monkey do, now I have a couple too. I learned that the cheap birdseed with corn isn't as delicious to native birds as black oiled sunflower seeds. So far we've seen a bunch of chickadees, a blue jay, and a couple of woodpeckers. Plus some starlings we shooed away so they don't get used to hanging around our fruit bushes and cherry trees.
3. This super awesome Gregg Braden talk on youtube, "How To Control The Matrix". It's over 3 hours long but addresses links between spirituality and science in an excellent way, including an interesting discussion of bits that got removed or condensed from the bible in the 3rd century.
4. This entire youtube channel by Ralph Smart called "Infinite Waters - diving deep". Youtube suggested I'd like the video on how to decalcify your pineal gland (aka third eye) and I got so hooked on this guy's cheerfulness I ended up listening to dozens of his videos while sculpting - progress pics will be coming at some point. I thought wouldn't it be cool if he and Teal Swan did a video together and it turns out he did interview her in 2013, and the discussion they had is super interesting; here is the video of the interview on youtube.
5. This recipe for Crack. ... the no-bake relatively healthy coconut dessert kind - I used honey for the sweetener and threw in some cinnamon and cardamom, it was delicious.
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
This Week's Favourite Things! January 5th - January 11th 2015
1. The movie Case 39. This topped the list last week but I've since rewatched it, and yes, I find it makes a fine metaphor for not just my experience of 2014 but probably for all of 2010 - 2014 so it is now one of my all time favourite movies. Thank you, makers of Case 39, for helping me make sense of my life. It's set in Vancouver which is cool. Just to be clear I relate to the character played by Renee Zellweger. I think Case 39 is underrated and possibly full of great life lessons if it is true that demons lose their power in the absence of fear from their victims... bringing me to
2. All sorts of songs, lyrics and videos on the AWOLNATION youtube channel. What a lot of great lyrics, like the line "never let your fear decide your fate" from Kill your Heroes, "If you're feeling like I feel then run your life like it's a dance floor" from Burn it Down, and all of Jump On My Shoulders. Plus there are lots more I like, what an awesome band!
3. This TED talk about the Prison of Your Mind by Sean Stephenson which I liked so much I ended up watching his video on How To Create Powerful Connections With Anyone which I really liked as well.
4. Pranayama. Yogic breathing! I'd forgotten I used to do it after learning about it on a trip to India in 2001. It's nice so I've been watching various videos on youtube about the different techniques.
Here's an example for Kapalabhati Pranayama, and here's another video that goes over a few different breaths with a focus on Pranayama for weight loss.
5. Sprouting! I was researching what sort of sprouter to get when I found this video link from the Mumm's Sprouting Seeds Website pointing out that glass jars with screens work just as well. They do. I found a pack of paint strainers that we got a hardware store that are a perfect mesh for cutting up to put over jars.
2. All sorts of songs, lyrics and videos on the AWOLNATION youtube channel. What a lot of great lyrics, like the line "never let your fear decide your fate" from Kill your Heroes, "If you're feeling like I feel then run your life like it's a dance floor" from Burn it Down, and all of Jump On My Shoulders. Plus there are lots more I like, what an awesome band!
3. This TED talk about the Prison of Your Mind by Sean Stephenson which I liked so much I ended up watching his video on How To Create Powerful Connections With Anyone which I really liked as well.
4. Pranayama. Yogic breathing! I'd forgotten I used to do it after learning about it on a trip to India in 2001. It's nice so I've been watching various videos on youtube about the different techniques.
Here's an example for Kapalabhati Pranayama, and here's another video that goes over a few different breaths with a focus on Pranayama for weight loss.
5. Sprouting! I was researching what sort of sprouter to get when I found this video link from the Mumm's Sprouting Seeds Website pointing out that glass jars with screens work just as well. They do. I found a pack of paint strainers that we got a hardware store that are a perfect mesh for cutting up to put over jars.
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
This Week's Favourite Things! December 29th, 2014 - January 4th 2015
1. 2015!! Hello, 2015! 2014 was a rather challenging year though full of good learning experiences. To sum up what I learned in 2014 the movie "Case 39" keeps popping up in my mind as a reminder that situations aren't always how they may first appear. Anyhow, onwards and upwards!
2. Jenny Jib! In thinking of "2014 in review" this shop in Lunenburg takes top prize for things I'm grateful for, it's super awesome, I'm super grateful for the relatively low consignment rate, the fact that it's close by, how low key the owner is about how awesome this shop is, and I can't wait to make lots of Jenny-Jib-specific items in 2015. In fact Lunenburg County in general is a favourite thing especially the signs about it being the Balsam Fir Christmas Tree Capital of the world. It's inspiring living near so many Christmas tree farms. As a random aside here's an interesting article about where a lot of ornaments come from in China.
3. Dried beans! Aha, so if you soak dried beans first for a day or two before cooking they actually don't take all that long to cook and have way more taste, fiber and protein than canned, plus fewer chemicals. Plus they're cheap! I had a bad experience trying to cook chick peas once without soaking them first years ago but just gave it another shot with black beans and ended with awesome soup.
4. The Supercharged Hormone Diet by Dr. Natasha Turner. I read her first book (The Hormone Diet) years ago and this one is a really good reminder of lots of stuff, my big resolution for 2015 is to turn into one of these people that goes to sleep early and wakes up really early instead of staying up really late all the time.
2. Jenny Jib! In thinking of "2014 in review" this shop in Lunenburg takes top prize for things I'm grateful for, it's super awesome, I'm super grateful for the relatively low consignment rate, the fact that it's close by, how low key the owner is about how awesome this shop is, and I can't wait to make lots of Jenny-Jib-specific items in 2015. In fact Lunenburg County in general is a favourite thing especially the signs about it being the Balsam Fir Christmas Tree Capital of the world. It's inspiring living near so many Christmas tree farms. As a random aside here's an interesting article about where a lot of ornaments come from in China.
3. Dried beans! Aha, so if you soak dried beans first for a day or two before cooking they actually don't take all that long to cook and have way more taste, fiber and protein than canned, plus fewer chemicals. Plus they're cheap! I had a bad experience trying to cook chick peas once without soaking them first years ago but just gave it another shot with black beans and ended with awesome soup.
4. The Supercharged Hormone Diet by Dr. Natasha Turner. I read her first book (The Hormone Diet) years ago and this one is a really good reminder of lots of stuff, my big resolution for 2015 is to turn into one of these people that goes to sleep early and wakes up really early instead of staying up really late all the time.
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