Stricture Emergency!
QUESTION: Please Help. About 2 months ago my colon constricted and tightened up and I couldn’t have a bowel movement. I have a home colonic kit and would do one everyday to get the waste out. This is the only way I could.
I was on antibiotics for 12 years that destroyed my gut flora. From that, I acquired multiple food intolerances (around 30) and looked for a good way to rebuild my gut flora and stop leaky gut. I started making dairy kefir, water kefir, and coconut kefir. I started making the fermented vegetables of all kinds. I was consuming these items quite frequently everyday. I had face acne and inflammation before and could see it disappearing slowing and my skin looking better and better all the time.
However, what I wasn’t paying attention to, although I should have, is that my bowel movements were getting less frequent. It’s strange because I didn’t have enough flora before the fermentation (I know this because I had it tested) but I had good bowel movements. But now, I was getting slight bowel spasms, something I don’t remember getting too much before. After that, it just got totally worse. Right now I can’t even go take a number 2. My colon has narrowed down small where nothing will come out of it.
I now have more pain all along my left side; and it feels tight and stringy, if that makes sense. I assume there are some colon strictures and/or diverticulitis. Now, when I do the colonics, I am having a harder time getting the waste out. I can feel more blockages. I am getting very scared! I have an appointment for a colonoscopy coming up. What do you suggest?
ANSWER: Please note that in Listen To Your Gut, I do not advise people to ingest fermented foods – I tell them to use the Natren probiotics (and many people have to start very gradually and often with one species). Fermented foods come in way down the road when you have your digestive flora stabilized. At that point, people can usually tolerate them and benefit from them. But again, you need to test and go slowly to see what your individual body likes and dislikes.
Regarding strictures, we have a number of options you can try that readers have experimented with. The first one involves a liquid, elemental diet to rest and flush the colon (be sure and sign up for the free report there as it has full info on how to do the clearance diet). Keep in mind, when you read about the 3 dietary options on this page, that you still need to test for your own sensitivities – some people do not tolerate raw milk, others do not tolerate raw vegetable juices, etc.
I am in the testing phase of my final formula/protocol for healing both intestinal strictures and abdominal adhesions: StrictureHeal. If you’ve been following my blog, or a member of JPT Wellness Circle, you know this has been a 3-year process thus far.
However, as a reader of my books, you also know that I never release anything that I have not tested first on myself and then numerous friends, family members and lastly readers and JPT Wellness Circle members. So for StrictureHeal, we’re completing the friends/family phase of testing and will shortly be entering the reader/JPT members phase of final testing. If all continues to go well – and along the way we usually make refinements to the formula to either expand the range of tolerance, or turbo-charge the efficacy – it will then be made available here.
In the meantime, we do have a tried and tested procedure you can use for abdominal strictures and adhesions that has worked for many to relieve pain and release an obstruction (especially when paired with the liquid or elemental diet for a few days).
1. Apply DMSO / Aloe Vera Solution to Abdomen:
Make up a 50% dilution of DMSO with George’s Aloe Vera Juice – this means you combine 2 tbsp. 99% DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide) and 2 tbsp. George’s aloe vera in a glass bottle, shake well.
Apply a single layer of solution to your abdomen (or wherever your stricture/pain/cramping is) using your fingers or a natural hair paintbrush.
Do not use synthetic anything with DMSO as it will pick up and transport everything it contacts into your skin/bloodstream. Make sure hands and abdomen have been washed with plain soap and water and do not have any creams or fragrance on them.
Allow to dry. Then apply a hot castor oil pack to your abdomen.
Note: After you have done this protocol a few times, if you think your skin will tolerate a higher DMSO content, then try a solution of 70% DMSO to 30% aloe vera. DMSO tolerance varies widely (with redheads being the most sensitive), so the 50/50 ratio is likely to be tolerated by most, but feel free to adjust up or down as you desire.
2. Apply a Hot Castor Oil Pack to Abdomen:
A castor oil pack is placed on the skin to increase circulation and to promote elimination and healing of the tissues and organs underneath the skin. It is often used to stimulate the liver, relieve pain, increase lymphatic circulation, reduce inflammation, and improve digestion. Just remember to use a cold-pressed castor oil and 100% cotton flannel (or wool) – no synthetics. You can use either a hot water bottle or a heating pad as the heat source. Here are detailed instructions:
Castor Oil Pack Components
• Castor oil.
• Two sheets of plastic (garbage bags OK).
• 1 yard cotton or wool flannel.
• Heating pad (if indicated).
• Large old bath towel.
• 3 safety pins.
Preparing a Castor Oil Pack
1. Fold flannel into three thicknesses to fit over your whole abdomen.
2. Cut a piece of plastic 1-2 inches larger than flannel.
3. Saturate the flannel with gently heated oil, but not so much that it is drippy. Fold it over and squeeze until it is oozing. Unfold.
4. Place plastic and old towel over flannel to prevent staining of surface you will be lying on.
5. Lie down, placing flannel over abdomen, putting fitted plastic over the flannel.
6. Now wrap the towel under you, around your torso and pin with safety pins (or just tuck in tightly).
7. Place a heating pad (low heat) or hot water bottle on top of the towel.
8. Rest for 30-60 minutes. Use visualization, meditation, or just sleep. A good time to use castor oil packs is just before bedtime.
9. When finished, it’s best if you don’t get up and walk around and be busy (except to go to the bathroom). Try to stay still and relaxed.
If you are doing your pack at bedtime, have a zip-lock baggie next to your bed, and a towel to remove any excess oil and protect your bed sheets. Fold the oily pack up and put it into the baggie, then drop it to the floor till morning. In the morning, put it in the refrigerator.
11. Store the pack in the covered container or baggie in the refrigerator. Remove it from the refrigerator 1-3 hours before you plan to use it, so that it is at room temperature when you are ready to use it.
12. Each pack may be used repeatedly. When it starts to smell stale, throw it out (don’t try to wash it) and make a new pack.
Note: If this procedure is way too complicated for you, apply a generous amount of castor oil to the skin of your abdomen. Cover that with an old cotton t-shirt or other cloth you won’t mind eventually discarding. Lay your heat source (hot water bottle, heating pad) on top of that. Keep the cloth you use to protect your heat source from the oil to reuse. Eventually it will smell like stale oil, but can be kept for a few weeks at least in a plastic bag. Rest for 30-60 minutes. Stay covered and warm so you can relax. Have a soft cloth or rag handy to catch any oil dripping off your body. You may want to put a towel or plastic underneath your body so your bed doesn’t get oily. It’s not necessary to have a castor oil pack that you keep in the refrigerator. Just do what works for you.
Frequency of Use
To be effective, a castor oil pack must be used at least 3 times a week, although 5 times a week is better. In cases of long-term chronic pain or acute stricture/obstruction, it works best to commit to a 6 week treatment period using the DMSO solution in combination with a castor oil pack 5-7 times per week, then as needed. Full healing may require 3 months of treatment.
If you don’t want to use the DMSO solution first, the hot castor oil pack on its own will provide significant relief from pain and softening of tissues. To actually begin to break down the scar tissue though, you’ll want to combine it with the DMSO solution.
Colonic Massage for Obstruction
If your intestine is obstructed, it is a good idea to also do this colonic massage after the DMSO / Castor Oil treatment – while the abdomen is soft and you are relaxed – to help massage the stuck food through the stricture:
IMPORTANT! Be sure and get my free instruction ebook for Intestinal StrictureHeal though, as this complete healing treatment has been working really well for people thus far. We have had reports of pain relief, better sleep, and even complete healing of a stricture in the small intestine – confirmed by colonoscopy.
Let us know what works for you in the COMMENTS section below….
Hi JIni,
I started consuming fermented foods (yogurt and vegetables) as a way to solve my chronic constipation and I have also noticed that it has gone worse instead of improving which seems kind of counter intuitive. Can you please explain what kind of reaction may be happening? Is it temporary and after this initial period it will start to produce the desired effect or I’d be better off if I stop consuming them altogether?
Right now I’m taking magnesium as a way to compensate for it. Do you know if it can harm the colonization process?
Thank you so much for your great work
Daniel – you could be intolerant to some ingredient (perhaps dairy) and that is causing constipation. Also, have you tried cutting out gluten? I’m hearing more and more that it is constipating people, but it’s really hard to figure out that’s what it is, because it causes NO other symptoms! And you have to be off gluten for 3 weeks to see a change.
You may also just need to reduce the amount of fermented foods you’re eating to allow your body to slowly adjust. Also, I would start with just one item and test it first, before adding another.
Have you been on therapeutic, high dose probiotics for 6 months minimum? – to normalize your gut flora as that often makes introducing fermented foods easier.
Magnesium will be fine if you’re taking a dose that just equates to a normal bowel movement. But if you’re getting a laxative-like clear out, then correct, that’s not ideal for stabilizing your gut flora. You might want to try Triphala instead – as long as you don’t have active IBD, as it’s untested in that instance.
Do you have my book on healing constipation?:
http://www.ListenToYourColon.com
at least go there, watch the vids, get the free report, etc.
hope that helps…
Thank you for your comments Jini. The truth is that I’ve been dealing with chronic constipation since my childhood. What you would term as a combination of peristaltic and stenosis constipation. I discarded an intolerance to dairy or gluten after having a clean diet for months and reintroducing them again.
After reading you and others my theory of my problem, discarding some kind of genetic tendency to constipation, is that the antibiotic overuse during my childhood damaged my beneficial flora and it wasn’t able to regenerate by itself. Till recent years I was able to make up for it adding tons of fiber to my diet but it caused me to be bloated all the time and in the end the strain of having to pass big impacted feces due to the excess fiber was becoming intolerable and I wasn’t treating the actual cause of the problem anyway.
Now I’m following most of your recommendations and stopped ingesting so much fiber and taking magnesium instead but the last step was to find reliable probiotics. I finally decided to start consuming fermented foods and it’s when, as I explained earlier, noticed that my symptoms have gone worse instead of improving. I’m 31 now, do you think it’s possible to regenerate the intestinal flora after years and years of abuse?
And do you know a source of Natren probiotics in Europe?
Thank you again for being such an inspiration for many of us
Hi Daniel,
Stool softeners and bulking agents are different from fiber as they create soft stools which are easier to pass. You can buy a combination product like MetaCleanse:
http://www.holistichealthshoppe.com/astragalus.php?id=29#298
Or, you can make your own by soaking chia and flaxseeds overnight in whatever iiquid you tolerate/prefer (e.g. yoghurt, kefir, almond milk). Start with 1.5 tsp of each and work up to 1 tbsp of each to determine the amount that works best for your body. You can add raisins, cranberries as well. And 1 tbsp Udo’s oil or coconut oil. This will bulk/soften your stools, yet keep things well lubricated.
Natren probiotics are the best therapeutic brand – The Sydney Colon Clinic tested 6 different brands and none showed an actual rise in colonic counts other than Natren. They also routinely take people suffering from extreme laxative abuse (up to 150 laxative/day) – these are people who are facing colectomy simply because their colon has shut down. There’s nothing “wrong” with their colon, it has just stopped functioning due to extreme laxative use. Anyway, they take these people and they restore them to normal functioning. I did a whole teleseminar about it with Bianca James, the owner. So yes, it is definitely possible to restore yours to normal.
So, we ship Natren worldwide – we actually have many Europeans buying from us because – in spite of the refrigerated shipping cost – it still works out cheaper than buying it locally:
http://www.holistichealthshoppe.com/index.php#27
You need to do high dose: 7-10 billion cfu per day
And would also benefit from Jini’s Probiotic Retention Enema – search my blog for details if you don’t have my books.
Let us know how it goes…
Regarding strictures, I personally have had excellent results with using glutamine powder, 1 tsp 3 – 4 times a day and also colloidal silver, which I believe did something permanent to “fix” my scarred tissue.
Eventually, I’ll get a colonoscopy to confirm this.
OMG – please don’t do that – the colonoscopy I mean. Unless you want to undo months of healing and the entire healthy gut flora you’ve managed to establish, plus risk infection from the scope itself… flare anyone? Read my colonoscopy report for details and also what to do if you HAVE to have a colonoscopy:
http://www.listen2yourgut.com/blog/colonoscopy-dangers-what-you-need-to-know/
I read about colloidal silver and scar tissue and tried it in the formula I’m testing now for about 2 weeks, but didn’t see a change with or without it. It’s diluted quite a bit and I wonder (since total application is only 15 drops) if a more concentrated preparation would work better.
Also, serrapeptase taken orally has shown a lot of benefit with internal scarring, so would also be worth a course – take 120,000 U per day.
Thank you for the encouragement Jini, for those of us who have been dealing with this kind of issues for most of our lives any ray of hope is more than welcome.
My goal would be that taking the magnesium and reducing the fiber my colon will progressively shrink and be able to process normal size stools once again. I’m a bit concerned though about consuming magnesium during such a long term. What do you think about it?
About the probiotics I started taking some commercial brands but I stopped when I started reading you and the concerns about the soil organisms and the reliability of non refrigerated probiotics. I’d like to try Natren but I’m concerned about ordering them from outside Europe as I had once a bad experience:
I live in Spain and some years ago I ordered some supplements from the US. As the cargo arrived here the health officials treated it like it was some kind of biohazard and returned it back . Do you have any experience in shipping to Spain? If you have found any way to bypass the customs control or you are aware that the policy has changed I’ll gladly order probiotics and other of your supplements from your site.
Daniel:
Ian here – Jini’s husband – I handle all Customer service..Regarding shipping to Spain, we do not have many experiences of shipping product to Spain – however the best way to ensure you receive products from overseas is to try to get a letter from your GI/Doctor that the products you are ordering cannot be found in the country you are in and you need them as a medical necessity. Also you may want to look at getting a license for specific products. For example in the UK it helps to get a license if you want to import in whey protein products – since the UK is very strict on bovine products since the mad cow incidents.
The other thing people do is order product to be delivered to a friend’s house in the US or UK (or somewhere else that has easier importing) and then either that friend brings in it in, or they pick it up.
Hope this helps and please email us directly if you have any further questions: service [at] HolisticHealthShoppe.com
Hi Jini,
I read with interest your DMSO mix and was wondering if you maybe able to tell me what part of the real aloe vera plant I could use with the DMSO.
I live in Kenya on the coast and we have these things growing wild everywhere.
Do I just slice open the leaves and use the juice/sap that oozes out?
Regards from Kenya
Mike
Mike – you just cut away the leaf, leaving only the clear gel. You can then put it in a blender to liquefy, or just mash it up really well. Can you get DMSO in Kenya?
I was born in Nairobi and left when I was 5 – when my kids are old enough I hope to go back, finally, for a visit!
Hi Jini,
What a coincidence. You will not recognize Nairobi now. If you ever do get down this way look me up. My email address is a clue to finding me.
I just ordered DMSO off Ebay a few days ago. It was coming from Poland. Just on the off chance I called a school chemical supply shop here in Mombasa and they had piles of the stuff. You can find anything in Mombasa if you look hard enough. We have horses and my girlfriend/partner used to use it on them with great success. I use it to treat my shoulder after a bad game of golf. A few weeks back I discovered I had a touch of toenail fungus and when I got online to find out more about it I was horrified to see how many people are affected. I immediately went out and got all the necessary equipment to settle into a long term treatment. I then remembered the DMSO and it’s properties. I thought why not just mix it with the aloe vera or Tea tree oil to penetrate under the toe and direct into the nail bed. Makes a lot of sense.
Get in touch offline and I will give you my personal website so you can see what you are missing by not living in this Utopia.
Regards
Mike
Hi Jini,
Quick question on Aloe Vera.
Is the brown gel that comes out from the bottom of the leaf more potent than the clear gel higher up the leaf?
What is the best method of storage for fresh Aloe?
How long can I keep the fresh leaf and still retain it’s medicinal properties?
Thanks again.
Mike
Hi Mike – this post answers all the aloe questions:
http://helpfulaloevera.com/harvesting-fresh-aloe-vera-gel/
I will contact you via email about the rest! I’m a horse-lover too so of course I HAVE to see your pics!
Mike – I went to your site and the architecture on your house is amazing! I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything so organic. It looks a wonderful place!
Hi Jini,
If you ever do get over please come and see us in person. You are most welcome.
I play a lot of golf with an old guy called Jack Patel. Ring any bells?
Love from Utopia.
Mike
Nope, no one knows any Jack Patel!
Did you try this protocol yet? One of my readers posted on Facebook after trying it – said it worked within 24 hours and saved him a trip to Emergency.
[...] Stricture Emergency! [...]
Jini, Are you supposed to apply the entire 4 tbsp of the DMSO solution with Aloe Vera in one day? This is taking a long time to dry!
Thanks!
Dawn
Hi Dawn – no, you just apply one layer and let it dry (however much you need for one application over the area of your stricture), then apply the castor oil.
So when you make up the bottle of solution, you have enough to use for quite some time.
Yeah! I am so excited to try this – I will let you know how it goes! I was in tears today over the pain and the fact that I don’t want to get scoped to get to the bottom of it for fear of them doing more harm than good…then I find your email about your StrictureHeal program in my inbox tonight! So crazy – like a sign from above!!! Thanks so much for your lightning-fast response and all of your research on our behalf!!!
Dawn
Hi, Jini! I just loved your web. My mother has Crohn and now she is underweight , very weak (probably due to anemia) and often has difficulty to defecate. I was wondering if you could help me. Which products could she take in order to improve this situation? I’d also like to know if your book is published in Spanish as well.
Regards
Hi Daisy, Absorb Plus would probably be the fastest way for her to gain healthy weight and here is a recipe to add magnesium citrate to it to make her bowel movements easier too:
http://www.absorbplus.com/help/help2.php
Sorry, no, my book is not published in Spanish, but Dr. Silvio Najt MD (who does phone consults) speaks spanish:
http://www.holistichealthshoppe.com/index.php#48
Jini, many thanks for your kindly reply. I read lots of interesting information on your site and i´d like to have the books in order to improve my mother’s health. In case of stenosis constipation, is the magnesium citrate also useful?
Regards
Daisy – that depends on whether her rectum is in spasm or not. If it’s in spasm, then taking any kind of “laxative” will just increase the pressure on the rectum and make it even harder to pass stool. In that case, use the hot castor oil pack on the levator ani muscles (around the anus and up under the tailbone) to first relax the tissue. Otherwise, the magnesium citrate should be fine, but get her to try some of positions in my Constipation Pooping Positions video:
http://youtu.be/W3r3J3mIegI
I don’t see anything about anybody complaining about the DMSO odor coming out of their skin during the Stricture oral/topical treatment. What are the reports on this from you and your testers? Thanks for everything you do!
Hi Brenda – Some say it’s a garlic odor, but others report smelling soured milk, or spinach beginning to rot. You usually cannot smell it yourself, but your loved ones will be able to! My husband tells me the smell is not there all the time, it comes and goes. Sometimes one of my kids can smell it, but the other can’t – at the exact same moment. I expect the timing and intensity of odor varies from person to person. Regardless, the results are well worth the smell, especially when you compare it to the alternative!
Hi Jini
Thanks for advice about what to take instead of antibiotics and painkillers. I had already start taking the oregano oil to prevent infection but pain was very bad so had to take painkillers. I done the strictureheal protocol for four weeks and elemental diet for six weeks and now have started SCD. I done all this so I can have a healthy pregnancy without meds but was wondering how long I should be off the strictureheal before I start trying.I will be delayed anyway because of my operation. I want to start back on strictureheal after my pregnancy is over but how long also would I have to wait after I stop breastfeeding.
Thanks again for all your help
Rebecca
There’s no data on pregnancy/breastfeeding and DMSO. The only related info I could find was on a cancer site, where they felt that since fetal cells are very similar to cancer cells and they use DMSO to stop cancer, pregnant women shouldn’t go anywhere near it.
No one knows how long it takes to clear the system. Perhaps one month would be long enough? If you want to be super cautious, then give it 3 months.
DMSO would definitely go through to the breastmilk… but would it cause any harm, or would it benefit? Again, we don’t know. I’ve used wild oregano during breastfeeding, no problem.
Hi JINI…How are U…I read all in detail but Please explain it…DMSO stands for what ?
Is it available some where in Pakistan. I am living in Islamabad and my mom have the same problem .She is 81 and diabetic patient ,
DMSO is dimethyl sulfoxide.
If you can’t find it, t is sometimes available through laboratory supply stores, or sometimes veterinarians.
We ship worldwide, but you have to check with your customs first to see if they will allow the supplements into your country – our Shoppe is not responsible for that, so don’t order unless you have checked whether they will be allowed in:
http://www.LTYGshoppe.com
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