We discuss in this podcast:
- How Juliet fought her breast cancer with chemo and radiations
- The estrogen-blocking treatment she went under for five years
- Possible links between treatment, antibiotics and RA
- The emotional impact of an RA diagnosis
- How her rheumatologist excluded a role for diet and exercise in treating RA
- How pain level dramatically dropped after 7 days on the Paddison Program
- The perseverance with which Juliet applied to the Program, that led her to being discharged from rheumatology
- The support she received from her husband
Clint – Today, I’m really excited to welcome Juliet, all the way from Hamilton in New Zealand, which is the North Island of New Zealand. And today we’re going to hear about her progress with her rheumatoid arthritis. She’s got a transformational story on how she used the Paddison Program for rheumatoid arthritis. And how she was able to eliminate significant inflammation. All the way from the back of her spine and jaw, all the way down to her affecting so many joints into her feet. So, Juliet thank you for joining us today, I’m really excited to hear what you did.
Juliet – Thank you, Clint, I am really excited to be here. Thanks for having me on your show.
Clint – Yes, and we’ve connected a little bit here and there on Instagram prior to setting up this interview. And then you reached out and said, hey, I’ve got this great outcome and I’ve spoken to my rheumatologist. And I’ve had a milestone based on the discussion with him and I said that’s fantastic. You’ve got all of the all the ingredients to make for a fabulous interview. So let’s start with, first of all before we hear your journey and how things evolved. Tell us how bad were you at one point? Like, how significant were your symptoms?
Juliet – At first, I felt pain from my wrist, my jaw, my neck, and all the way down to my ankles. It was pretty much throughout my whole body. My hands were really bad and I was getting to the stage where even during the day it was hard to make the best out of both. Before it was just morning and night until it got very often. So, there was no relief during the day. I was getting worried about where would it go next. Because even when you wake up in the morning and you can feel it. It’s just quite scary in that way.
Clint – And what about now, how do you feel today?
Juliet – Fabulous, I’d say it’s every now and then I get a little bit of pain in my wrist and that’s about the only place I feel pain. Everything else is pretty much resolved, so good so much freedom, I’m so excited.
Clint – Well, awesome thank you. Let’s get into some of the details. Before rheumatoid arthritis, you actually experienced another serious health condition. Going back eleven years, you’ve got breast cancer. Can you talk us through that? And then we’ll lead from there into the rheumatoid.
Juliet – It was about 2009, I lost quite a bit of weight and I discovered a lump. It was about the size of a pea. And I went to my GP and had some tests done. Interestingly even I could feel it, it wasn’t showing up on the mammogram because I had still deep tissues. So they did an ultrasound and they found the lumps. So I had a wide incision lumpectomy. My breast cancer was estrogen positive, which means estrogen in my body was fading because of breast cancer. Then I had radiation and chemotherapy after that. And then I did five years of tamoxifen and Remedix, which is like an estrogen-blocking drug. So it blocks all the estrogen in your body. So the cancer cells cannot link anywhere and it stops it from growing. That was probably the toughest part of my treatment because when you (Inaudible). Estrogen I think is like a youth hormone. So not having estrogen was pretty tough going for five years. So, yeah, that was it.
Clint – Does your gut tell you that these treatments may have played a role in later developing rheumatoid?
Juliet – I do and the only link I can agree about is, I think because it plunged me into early menopause. Because I was forty-five when I had breast cancer so it plunged me into early menopause and then I started to get a lot of UTI’s. And I know that comes with menopause for a lot woman, so then I had a lot of antibiotics. So in that way, I do think it contributed. And the treatment as well, probably I don’t know what way, but probably.
Clint – No, I was just thinking out loud as you were talking there and hearing it for the first time. We had a small group meeting which had been running recently. Just as a small group of us in a video chat like this. And one of the participants sees a dramatic link between hormones and rheumatoid. And we know of the link because of (inaudible) science, the evidence is there in the medical literature. And I had a guest on about two years ago called Dr. Richard Matthews, and he went into all the details, and all of the complicated ways in which hormones are related to the autoimmune process, inflammation, and so on. So, when you were speaking about the treatment afterwards, I wonder if all this hormone adjustment activity unbalanced the body. And yet we know of the hormone and rheumatoid link. So and then you went on to add after that you had all these antibiotics for UTI’s. And Dr. Michael Gregor put out on his website NutritionFacts.org a video about the link between UTI’s and rheumatoid arthritis. Under the umbrella of is this possibly one of the contributing factors as to why women get rheumatoid arthritis more than men? Now, it’s not one of the leading theories, but it’s a theory and it’s as valid as another. So anyway, I believe that a lot of stuff that you went through all unbalanced your system, the antibiotics, the hormone, and the disruptive treatments. So I always like to try and piece of the puzzle together. And I think that if we can understand the why a little more, it helps us then to move forward and say, okay, I can settle into the way the world works. I can accept that, and I can move forward. It’s when it happens and we cannot see any conceivable reason that is a little bit more, I don’t know. It’s not as it’s more unsettling when we’re trying to then go forward and work on it, isn’t it?
Juliet – Yeah, it sure is and I would imagine it would have(inaudible) systems. Because there were a lot of symptoms with not having estrogen in my body. My skin got very dry and probably my gut wasn’t good. My heat space wasn’t always good. It was like being six weeks pregnant, when your hormones are up and down, and you are all over the place. And that felt like it was about five years of that. And that’s quite a long time.
Clint – That morning sickness, basically you don’t really want that to go on like that. That would have been very unpleasant. So you got through all that and then a few years later, how did the rheumatoid arthritis start?
Juliet – It started one morning in Melbourne actually I just woke up, we were visiting my daughter. And I thought I could feel my, my pain felt funny and it was a funny feeling. It was like, it is really hard to describe it. It’s not like you banged it or anything like that, but I just went to my (Inaudible). And then slowly I started to notice every night I couldn’t make a fist. It was (Inaudible),then the time we got home, I noticed that I started getting tingling in my hands and almost like carpal tunnel in my little finger and my ring finger went numb. And then I still got lumps on my thumbs. And it was almost like they described it as a trigger finger, because my finger was starting to look like that. Then I got a little lump on the outside of my wrist and it was like a puppy swelling. And my fingers would swell up, they were like they looked like Polonies at the end of my hands and it was just very swollen. And I actually went to physio because I thought maybe I’ve done something (inaudible) she thought I had carpal tunnel. So she put me in some wrist guards for about a few months, years. So they just got very sore, and I had to sleep with my hands outside of the bed dangling down, because my hands went so numb at night time. But by about three or four o’clock in the afternoon, I couldn’t make a fist. I was about here in (Inaudible). So, she sent me to a specialist for carpal tunnel.
Juliet – So while I was waiting to see him, I noticed that my shoulders started to get really achy and I couldn’t lift my arms up to take clothes on and off. It was really difficult. Trying to get my husband and I have a tandem bicycle and I was just trying to get into like her to go for a bike ride in the winter. It was just a night-active in my sleep. (Inaudible) they’re very tight and trying to put all that it was just a nightmare. And then I noticed it started going to my knees and I missed some steps on my tracks that I do. And I couldn’t even get up and down those tracks. And in walks, my knees were getting so sore. And then it started to go down to my ankles, which was really painful because I was trying to work, walk, and it’s just like so hard. So I’ve got quite a physical job so that became really difficult because I couldn’t (Inaudible) I couldn’t get in and work with everybody at work and do the lifting and everything. So I just went around supervising a little bit and after that, I just go to my office and do other office jobs, which is really hard. I probably thought I was fine because no one can see you pass all your feelings. You look like you’re fine. But, no one knew what pain I was in. When my jaw went there, it was horrible cause I opened my mouth too wide to try and eat something. Like I couldn’t eat a burger or anything like that because it would kind of lock and I’d get searing pain in my jaw. And the last thing to get really sore was my neck. So sometimes if I move in a certain way, I’ll get shooting pain up into my neck, which was really painful. So I just didn’t know when I woke up in the morning, where it was kind of (Inaudible). And then I think that there is something wrong inside my body. I’m worried that you continue to hurt your organs if it’s on the outside and in your joints. Because there are little joints the side everywhere as well and snag your tissue. And I just thought, I don’t know where this thing’s going next.
Clint – Now before we get into what we’ll talk about next is your rheumatology visits and then getting on to the Paddison Program. And you’re going to share all of the details how you use the program effectively, and reveal the most important aspects of it for you, how quickly the symptoms went away, and how much or how little you have certain aspects of it. So we’ll talk about that in just a moment. But I just want you to comment on how was this compared to cancer? I mean, I know it’s like, it’s almost the two worst things you could possibly want. I mean, tell us how did you view these situations with that reference point of having had cancer before?
Juliet – Well, I link it back to when I actually came out of the rheumatologist appointment and I thought I’m like, oh that is worse than my cancer diagnosis. I’m not talking to anybody else’s diagnosis particular mine because I had hope. Like they gave me hope once they take the lump out, and they gave me a treatment that I had a good chance of recovering from breast cancer. Thus, when I came out of the rheumatology because I went by myself (Inaudible) arthritis, I’ll just be fine. But when I came out of there, I thought oh my goodness, I don’t know where this is going. And this was the feeling when I have to take his drugs, which was to take this chemo. And I just thought, this is forever and he said to me, these drugs are going to take ten years up into your life. Oh, at least breast cancer I had a chance, they gave me a good chance of my type of cancer, of having a good recovery. But this was just like a life sentence, and that was the first time I felt really, really scared and I felt that I don’t know where this is going. I thought really scared and I didn’t have any treatment hope. The treatment was almost as bad, not as bad as rheumatoid, but it is not great, it was an ongoing treatment. They said to me, you’re gonna be on this for the rest of your life. Chemo and radiation were the short term and hopefully a recovery after that. But I didn’t see a recovery after this.
Clint – I’ve said before that both are just such awful things. And whilst rheumatoid doesn’t have that sort of life-threatening, immediate, and terrifying angle to it. At least when there’s a cancer situation, friends and family rally behind you and give you support and sometimes even funds raised for individuals. And there are all sorts of positive energy and prayers sent to the person, and you can do this and get through this and she just as you’ve described, so effectively and vividly. When it’s a rheumatoid diagnosis, no one shows up to that. That is like this is ugly, this is lifelong, this is awful, this is miserable and here are the drugs. See you again and I’ll see you again and I’ll see you forever. And that is just as you said, there’s no hope bundled up in that package. Well, let’s quickly get onto under the good news. And that’ll be when you start making lifestyle changes. Can you tell me though, what drugs were you put on or suggested to go on? And then we’ll talk about your implementation of the Paddison Program.
Juliet – Sure, so I went to see my rheumatologist privately. And he said, so what do you think you hit? And I said Dr. Google tells me I have rheumatoid arthritis. He said, well Dr. Google is right. And he said I think you have zero negative rheumatoid arthritis. And basically, I’m a drug dealer and you will be on drugs for the rest of your life.
Clint – He said I’m a drug dealer?
Juliet – So he basically told me he was a drug dealer, and that I would (inaudible) my life. He thought he was being funny and he was saying it jokingly. But I had a lot of specialists on this side. And I said, well, what about diet and exercise? And he said, Well, dear, you can try your copper bracelets, and you’ll be back.
Clint – You know what Juliet, what for frustrates me is you’re not talking about a situation that happened 25, 30 years ago where the dark ages exist. You’re talking about two and a half, three years ago?
Juliet – Yeah, it was 2017.
Clint – Well, some people have a long way to go with their education. Tell us what worked and how you did.
Juliet – Okay, so I did go on Methotrexate and I was on it for eight weeks. And week four of Methotrexate, me and my husband googled rheumatoid arthritis and diet. And he said to me because we were paleo at that stage and we have been paleo for a year. And he came to me and he said, we’re going to go with a vegan diet. And I’m like, what do you mean, you’re going to be a vegan? It’s the thing for like Google vegan and rheumatoid arthritis, which I did and then I found the Paddison Program. So I watched your TED talks and one day, I’ve listened to your podcast made me think and I said, I’m going to do this Paddison Program. I’m not sure yet, but I’ll let you know. And he goes, well, if you’re gonna do I’ll do it with you. And I’m like, oh my God, this is amazing. He used to be a rugby player and he is now a cyclist. There is no way he is going to be a vegan. It’s not going to happen, he doesn’t even like vegetables anyway. So I downloaded your program and you recommend to start, I think with the juice fast on a weekend, so that you can kind of relax. But then I decided, I’m not doing a juice fast on a weekend, so I decided to do it during work. So I took my juicer to work and I was juicing at work. And I have to say (Inaudible) wasn’t the name of the juice. But anyway, I did the juice fast for two days. On the second day of the juice fast, we were sitting in the lounge that night while making a list and I couldn’t believe it at home. And I was like, look at this and he goes, what? And I said, look, normally I’m about the (Inaudible) at night time and he’s like, oh, my God. He didn’t do the juice fast by the way. Yeah, so that was the second night of that juicing. I was able to do that and I’m so excited. And so then I followed the protocol of the folks to the (Inaudible). And I’d have to say by day seven, I didn’t have much pain in my joints at all. And I think the first to go was my jaw pain and then my neck pain, so it was really exciting. And I follow everything to the letter, I didn’t have too many bumps on the way. I was pretty much able to arrange all the fruits in the right sequences and got to absolutely love the juice. After about two weeks, I’d love sitting here lost my juice. Now it’s one of my favorite things now. But yeah, I managed to introduce everything really quite easily, and I would say within two weeks I was pretty much pain-free. And I was able to get out of being in the morning without just having to go straight in the shower, warming my joints up. Because what I do before is, I had to warm everything up in the shower. And that just really got me and I think the reduction in pain was so quickly allowed me to stick to the program and I got to really love buckwheat, quinoa, and green vegetables. Once, I got onto the sequence of foods, my husband was doing that part with me. That’s pretty much when we tried plant-based as well.
Clint – Yeah, that’s fantastic. So when did you come off the Methotrexate?
Juliet – I only stayed on the Methotrexate for another four weeks after doing the Paddison Program and I was a bit naughty and I didn’t consult my rheumatologist. And I just hindsight, I would probably have done that and come up. I was only on 10 milligrams, but I just stopped it. Which I know is not a good thing to do, but I was feeling so good. And also, if the pain comes back a little bit I will start it up again, but it didn’t. And I was very lucky, so I just went off. And then the next time I saw him, I told him what I’d done and I actually didn’t see him. But, I saw other person and I just told them what I’d done and they were not very happy with me. But I said (Inaudible)
Clint – So you went through and correct me if I’m wrong, but you went through the reinterred tests and you started to add more of the recommended sequence foods and expand your diet. Meanwhile, keeping your pain levels really low or only occasionally, as you said like in the wrist. And you were able to do it all without any further use of the medication or painkillers. And then you got to a two-year mark now, isn’t it? Since you’ve been doing this and you had a conversation with the head of rheumatology recently who phoned you. Can you tell us about that conversation?
Juliet – Yeah, that’s what kind of triggered made to get in touch with you because I had a bit of a moment when he rang me because it was the same guy that I saw privately. Because I’ve now gone on to the public system firm and I’ll cancel a few appointments with him because I think so. And he rang me during lockdown because we weren’t able to go and stay patient and content. So he rang me and he was just catching up. So I believe you are not taking Methotrexate. And I said no and he said, how have you been? I said, not being very well. I hardly can get a little bit on my wrist and probably that’s about all. And I said I’m doing then he goes, I noted that he was also doing the Paddison Program, but I don’t know. I think he knows what it is. But he hit it on my notes and he said, that’s it, it’s basically a Whole Foods plant-based diet and lots of exercises. And I see that’s keeping me really fit and well. And he just said, oh, well, so keep doing what you’re doing. And if you need us, we’ll be there. But yeah, and he just didn’t really put an emphasis on tap or ask any more questions about what I was doing. But I was just happy that I’m able to tell them I’m well, especially with COVID-19 at the moment, I’m pretty happy I’m not on Methotrexate. I said, I’m so glad I’m able to not be on Methotrexate because otherwise, my husband is an essential worker ao he wouldn’t of being able to go to work. And I would’ve had to isolate and all that and I will still be able to go to my work, so I’m pretty excited. So he just discharged me from rheumatology.
Clint – Did he discharge you?
Juliet – Yes, on the proviso, I can go back (inaudible). I am so excited and I was like it’s so awesome. And when he discharged me, I just thought, well, what are you doing? You can’t do it, sign.
Clint – Awesome, well congratulations, I mean it’s no easy thing. This is something that you’ve put a lot of effort into. And no one gets to where you’re at without putting in huge amounts of discipline. Now your husband, any observed changes in his physique, strength, energy, and sleep? Anything like that?
Juliet – That’s hilarious, because like I say, he was a meat and a potato guy. So his being with me all the way. I take my head off to him and so he’s totally whole food plant-based as well. Like I said before, we were I’m doing paleo and we write the thing together. And while we were doing paleo we were writing like rubbish, our writing was really bad. And he’s quite a hardcore cyclist as well. Some (Inaudible) vegan in his cycling has just got amazing. And both of us around the tandem, they like to be there. So he’s pretty excited about that. He is osteo as well from a wreck injuries in his fingers. Let’s go on, pretty much gone. He couldn’t get us ranked on and off Unni’s. His fingers are really good. And yeah, he’s amazing. So he noticed a lot of changes and like to tell people about his changes. But he’s also got a blood disorder called hemochromatosis, which is when your body doesn’t get rid of iron, it’s a genetic disorder. So his iron tends to get stored on his level, which is really bad for you. But since he’s been doing this, his iron levels have been really good. And normally they treat it by taking blood out. So he hasn’t had to head there as often as he would have normally. He has been pretty good and even has the blood doctor see to last. Keep doing what you’re doing or your friends can. Really good side. I don’t know. Maybe it’s the difference between (Inaudible).
Clint – That’s a good guess, a very good guess. So yeah, quite possibly, but I don’t know. But that’s, that’s as good as guess as I currently could have.
Juliet – Yeah. So I just think yeah. He’s just loving it and he loves kale and he loves broccoli. He has a green juice every morning which is like, where’s my husband? What have you done with him and he just loves vegetables. Yeah. And all of my children are doing amazingly and some of them are eating a lot more plant-based. When they come to my house they love my cooking and they see my recipes and they make a plant-based recipe. And that’s what makes them so great (Inaudible). And my daughter in Melbourne, they’re raising your child with a dairy-free diet. Maybe with milk once a week and she’s thriving. She’s one year old and she’s just doing so well. It’s really good to say it’s flowing on even into my workplace to make the girls at work. Well, when I’m working, she’d listen to your podcast all the time saying. They were all listening to it and taking it on board, so it’s really good.
Clint – Yeah, yeah. The great thing about it is that there’s no downside, that’s the thing. It’s not like anything else that you can put into your body. We’re just eating plants, we’re just eating completely renewable energy sources, and the plant doesn’t suffer. You can just get very excited about the sort of no impact way that we can live our life. And we can also influence others to do this sort of harm-free eating and healthy eating. Our body is designed to eat plants, and yes we can eat other things, we can consume and you can see what people stuffing into their mouths and they still survive for a good amount of time. The body is extremely robust, unbelievable how we can eat different stuff and still live. But, the ideal fuel source is some complex carbohydrates. And then the more different varieties of fiber that we’re consuming, the better our microbiome. And that keeps our immune system well. And I just get so happy hearing about your story. So I want to try and impart some words of wisdom other than the inspiration that you’ve provided us. Some words of wisdom, Juliet’s top three or top four things that you must do when you’ve following this program.
Juliet – Exercise, this point is huge. If I get more than three days without exercising, I can feel it in my body and at the joints. Like I did notice I was going to the gym while a joint sore in my shoulder. You will be working out hard as she can go on their shoulder and the next step was amazing.
Clint – Can I stop you there? Because that’s such an important point. And this is a point that most people may sort of shrug or frown and say, are you sure? And then maybe not take action on. I have found for the major joints, which I’ve known. I’ve not had any trouble with shoulders, but major joints I consider to be shoulders, elbows, and knees. So I’ve definitely had my share of experience with the elbows and knees. And I can say with great confidence that for my body that the major joints that I’ve experienced problems, with those elbows and knees respond best to challenge and being pushed. So I loved that you’ve had a similar experience with shoulders, which are another major joint. Because I was told by one medical professional that I should not move my left elbow if it hurts to move it. And that one ended up in surgery real quick, that was a disaster. So when the right one started to see symptoms, I went hard on that and I went hard on my knees too. And I got that into a fantastic place after it was looking at knee replacement like 12 years ago. Now, with the footnote being that we have to find through careful trial and error the right exercise for us and our joints for our body. But the goal should be if the joint is one of those three majors, then the goal should be to try and find a quite stronger and quite challenging exercise. That we can do each day that feels better the next day. Would you agree?
Juliet – I would definitely agree and I think it’s funny to think about working that out when it’s so sore, but it really pumps the blood. From what I understand, it pumps the blood into the (Inaudible), which heals the joints side or helps for (inaudible) stuff. Well, it might hurt a little bit. You just got to push it as much as you can and even like things like doing push-ups. I guess I’m never gonna be able to do a push up because my wrists are so bad. But if you can push yourself, try not to injure yourself, but if you can push yourself in a safe way and just give love to that joint. It just makes such a difference.
Clint – Yeah, I agree and a lot of people would be like, there’s no way I’m putting pressure on that joint. There is no way I’m gonna try and get up off the floor with that knee or whatever. And that might be the current situation and that might be how things are today. And we respect that, we listen to our body. However, it’s all I want to do is just really underline what you’re saying because it’s worked for me. And I want to say that explore, see what your body can do, and never go to the point of extreme pain. But a little bit of discomfort when you’re exercising. A little bit of discomfort may be still perfectly fine. As long as you don’t feel worse the next day.
Juliet – That’s right and it’s just trying different things like I’ve got some of those, what do you call them?
Clint – Grip strengthener?
Juliet – Yes, and if I do three sets of that while I’m watching TV at night, my hands have been a little bit sore. I’ve been doing it even if there’s something wrong with it. And then the next day, my hands are fine. So even down to the little things up and beams, just as the Bane’s in pulling the man, just sitting more, watching TV and getting some Bane’s and doing some exercises with Bane’s, that’s really good. And whatever part you saw even, if you just employ a personal trainer for an hour and just get some ideas about what you can do at home with a personal trainer. Because they could help you with how to not injure yourself and how to do things correctly, and that helped me a lot too. I got some advice from a personal trainer who showed me safe ways of working out my shoulders so I didn’t pop anything.
Juliet – The other thing I just want to mention is before I started the Paddison Program, I’d lost so much and I do have a small frame. I lost so much muscle tone from not being able to do the daily workout that I don’t like. I looked terrible and I had no muscle tone, I’m just slim. So being able to work can’t get a little bit of muscle tone back just helps everything every day just spin up to. Even one time when I was really my five or six year old grandchild, I was standing on the couch and she launched herself and she made me catch her. While she was going to fall I’m like, my back is going to hurt so much. But now I can do that too and I’m fine. Let’s just keep the muscles tone.
Clint – We definitely listen to the same podcast. I say that strength defeats inflammation. We need to get strong and strong is different for each of us. Strength for one of us might just mean being able to open the handle of the drawer or the car door or that might be strength. A strength for another person might be able to do a couple of chin upset at the gym and that’s the strength for them. Whatever strength looks like your physical capacity and your current set of abilities, go for it. Go for the maximum strength we can get within our own limitations. Because this strength means that our muscles do a lot of the work rather than the joints having to be dependent upon. And strength also means that the major muscles take the pressure away from the ligaments and tendons which get inflamed as well. So when you’ve got, say a bigger bicep muscle and a bigger triceps muscle, that means less pain because of the tendinitis that develops in the back of the elbow, and less pain due to the sign of tendinitis. That’s in the joint itself because the muscles are doing the work that like shock absorbers and pneumatic lifters. So, I’m loving what you’re saying because it’s not coming from me. It’s coming from you and it’s your experience and you are saying this is what works and you have gotten rid of inflammation. You are the example that we are tuned in to pay attention to. So what works is to challenge the joints if they hurt, as long as you’re doing it safely and you find the way that works for you. Anything else that’s an absolute must-do whilst you’re on your journey?
Juliet – I stick pretty much to the diet if I stray from it too much. I came to actually get a little bit of oil, not too much. And I can have a little bit of bread, but not too much. And, I saw some pretty much stick to whole food, plant-based. I do a lot of my own cooking, I love cooking and I love making up recipes with that food frame. So I think sticking to the food is a must, and I do I like experimenting with, like (inaudible) and that type of superfoods and putting them all in my smoothies or making at like my I kept a brew with mushrooms on it. And I drink that instead of trying not to have a coffee. Oh, heaven, my mushroom brew. And that’s nice. It’s really lovely. It’s like a nice mushroom stock, but it’s good. Yeah. Good for you as well. So little things like that. And smoothies. Like, I like to put things in my smoothies like Chia and (inaudible) I can have a little bit of that without too many problems. And a favorite thig or just Banda’s one called Ishwar Luganda and a few food and that. In just finding, you know, that’s really nice. And I try. I’m just trying, like to have a smoothie for my breakfast now and then just have a good lunch and a good dinner.
Clint – What’s your breakfast smoothie?
Juliet – My breakfast smoothie is, I think now (inaudible) and flax seeds that are growing them as happened, just keep them in the fridge. Then I put on some spirulina, (inaudible) moringa powder, and then I put in some when I chop up my kale. I do it like a meal prep every week and I chop up kale for my salads and the bottom half of that goes into a smoothie bag. So that goes into my smoothie. There was some spinach and then I put some (inaudible) on top and I hopped on the hard work and I might put a scoop of protein powder in there but not all the time. Let on maybe.
Clint – And any fruits, did I miss the fruit?
Juliet – I just put some frozen fruits. I put a blueberry mix or I eat like a tropical mint which just got passion fruit and mango. Yeah, it’s very delicious and I do that every day.
Clint – Wonderful. well, no wonder you’re well.
Juliet – I do still my juices every morning, my green juice. But now I added, ginger and fresh turmeric if I can get it and some of black pepper, rosemary, and cucumber.
Clint – Yeah absolutely, those little extra touches are beautiful. Well done and thank you. This has been really cool to hear all the things that you’ve done. And how can people follow you on Instagram?
Juliet – That’s RA_Whole Foods Plant-Based_mama or ra_wfpb_mumma.
Clint – Okay. Wonderful. We’ll put that in the show notes too so people can just click straight through it. So it’s easy right, ra_wfpb_mumma. Thanks very much for going through this and then being very transparent about the challenges that you had with your initial breast cancer situation, which was very challenging. And then on to your round two in the ring, this time battling rheumatoid arthritis and you really are resilient. And so congratulations on all you’ve achieved with your health. And I wish you all the very best. And I’ll look at your recipes that you put up on your Instagram and I do look forward to more updates. So, thanks a lot.
Juliet – Thanks, Clint, I mean I’m just so happy I found you and you really influenced my life, my family, my friends, and stay safe everyone.
I have been dealing with RA for 15 years. Got breast cancer stage 2,five years ago. I did chemo,then 2 weeks after my lumpectomy, i was in the ER with staph MRSA Infection. I had surgery on both breasts,finally did radiation.But these last 5 yrs of remission was not celebrated because i had 5 surgeries.I now have lymphedema, out of the hospital, iv antibiotics and home health and therapy for this arm i cant raise cause i have infection in my shoulder bone.Later i need shoulder replacement but Dr says no because of these infections and my RA.Im literally miserable. I now deal with neuropathy and sciatica added to all my R A aches ,steroids and meloxicam for now.Im now disabled and cant walk much it use my right arm.
Thank you for your story,it all was familiar, I cant stand when people compare RA to arthritis that may have also.I want to explain its not the same but whatever,they wont understand.
Looks are deceiving on good days they think your faking it cause you dont know how you'll feel the next day.
Thank you Juliet… I related to your experiences. When I returned to the rheumatologist, feeling better having just been swimming and having refused the methotrexate and another ( unspellable) he decided to tell me that I never had ra after all. Of course I did! But it didn’t fit, and he had a student in with him. I was distraught and couldn’t go home. Before going I was so proud of myself. I imagined that they would treat me like someone to aspire to, or someone they could follow as an example of healing without drugs. But that isn’t how it works. …. They have actually kept me registered at the ra hospital department and I see the nurse each year. The comments made by your consultant were shocking. But you have come out on top, and you have so much to be proud of. Achieved by your beliefs, willingness to try and your super dedication. What a wonderful moment for you when you closed your hand. It was very inspirational to listen to your story. Aren’t we lucky to have Clint… Many thanks, blessings, Christine
Thanks for your lovely comments!! Yes so happy to have found Clint ! I am still amazed by some rheumatologist, you would think they would be interested in patients who improve? Not tell them they never had RA ? . Hope you are well
Juliet
This is so fantastic. She and I are pretty much parrellel except for the cancer. My husband also has hemochromatosis. I am wfpb and living it. I still have pain. I don’t work out as much but I will try to puss myself more. Thank you so much. I have the Patterson program as well and use lots of the ideas. I appreciate reading this story and many other stories. Be well everyone!