Cysts: Their Meaning, Self-Care, and Prevention

Cysts are abnormal sacs or closed cavities filled with liquid or semi-fluid morbid matter. The encapsulated material is unwanted in the body. When the usual mechanisms---kidneys, lungs, and/or skin---cannot or do not dispose of the material, it is stored as a cyst.

For kidneys, lungs, and skin to operate well, your body needs rest, adequate and healthy nutrition, 8-10 glasses of clean water, protection from pollutants, and low stress.

Your body is wise. If you overlook your needs, your body may nag at you gently, at first. If you disregard the message, stronger communication, such as a cyst, is needed.

A condition, such as a cyst, is a communication, a special language, through which your body speaks. These identifiable conditions often tell us we need to heal from a deeper, often unconscious wounding.

A cyst can grow in a matter of days when we feel controlled or criticized by others or when we control and criticize others.  Anger can result in a false growth, such as a cyst. Old hurts may also be related to the development of a cyst.

Energy blockages that create cysts can also result from stress, which might not be negative. It could be that you have a job you love (or not), and are consumed by it. Believing that money and power are needed to be happy can lead to working in a job that is detrimental to your health. This can lead to neglect of the need to rest, eat well, avoid pollutants, etc. A cyst can result.

 Self-Care and Prevention Treatment for Cysts include:

• Acupressure
• Affirmations
• Crying/Grieving
• Diet
• Exercise
• Herbs
• Health Care Practitioner Choice
• Holistic Approaches to Investigate
• Reflexology
• Stress/Lack of Rest

 Acupressure (Gentle)

• For superficial cysts, hold left hand on top of the cyst area and right hand on top of that for at least 5 minutes; more if possible
• Use the hand on the same side as the cyst and Hold the little finger with the 2^nd, 3^rd and 4^th fingers of the other hand; exert just the right pressure to balance the flow between the fingers and hold for up to 5 minutes
• Hold the ring finger over thumb or vice versa while watching TV or riding in a car
• For bigger cysts

Hold these spots:

1. on either side of the spinal column at shoulder blade level until you feel a balanced pulse between the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th fingers
2. in the middle of the back of both forearms
3. in the hollow in front of the elbows
4. below the shoulder blades
5. at waist level
6. on the fatty part of both thumbs
7. at the top of the hips
8. middle of the chest on both sides
9. under the breasts at diaphragm level
10. behind the knees

Affirmations

Louise Hay says that cysts are due to running an old painful movie, nursing your hurts (rather than grieving and releasing them), and false growths.

Affirmations she suggests for this condition are:

The movies of my mind are beautiful because I choose to make them so. I love me.

I am balanced in my creative flow.

I dissolve old angers.

Nothing can hurt me.

Say or write one or more of these affirmations at least 20 times each day. Write them on 3X5 cards and place them wherever you’ll read them many times a day---mirrors, refrigerator door, dashboard, calendar, etc.  (This will counter the negative thoughts you may have.)

Crying/Grieving

Surgically removing a cyst does not necessarily heal the energy blockage that created the problem.

Make your surgery part of the healing process by staying with your feelings and accepting them, then releasing them to the universe to become pure positive energy.

Anger, disappointment, conflict and other feelings require an outlet. Allow yourself to cry about situations that have angered, disappointed or conflicted you. This can be immensely healing. Give yourself permission to grieve and let go. If you feel no one has ever loved you for the person you are, cry about that and release the feeling. Spend some quiet time thinking about the blockages in your body. Cry about whatever has created this block in your bodily function.

Grieve the removal of your cyst and replace the area where the cyst was in your mind and picture it filled with perfectly healthy tissue.

Diet

*Use a diet of cleansing foods such as fresh organic fruits and vegetables (5-10 servings a day)

*Omit meats, fish, fowl and all dairy products. They clog the body, and meat is associated with increased risk for heart disease and cancer.

*Avoid the following because they interfere with immune system functioning that helps keep you healthy:

• Bleached flour products
• Alcohol in any form
• Aspartame sweetener
• Glutamic acid found in MSG and other food enhancers
• High fat intake (fried foods, meat, chicken and turkey skin, cheese, whole milk)
• Junk Foods made from non-nutritious white flour and white sugar
• Caffeine
• Sodium nitrate (found in frankfurters, baloney and many other cured meats
• High protein intake, especially from meat

To strengthen the kidneys so they can help cleanse your body:

1.  Eat polyunsaturated fatty acid foods.

Some foods to eat include green leafy vegetables, flaxseed (add to salads, soups, yogurt, cereals, or fresh juices), olive oil, seeds and nuts.

2.  According to several studies, fish oil may reduce high blood pressure, prevent the development of proteinuria (protein in the urine) and minimize any kidney lesions. To insure these effects, take fish oil capsules daily.

3.  Eat a high soy and vegetarian diet and include flaxseeds. A report in the American Journal of Kidney Disease reviewed the recent findings from dietary intervention studies and found that soy and flaxseed both protect the kidney.

4.  Increase your intake of garlic. It can protect the kidney cortex (Free Radicals in Biological Medicine) and stop kidney damage in chronic kidney syndrome (Molecular and Cell Biochemistry).

5.   Drink a pint of raw carrot juice mixed with one pint of raw spinach juice daily. It would be best to purchase a juicer because the juice must be made fresh daily and drunk immediately.

6.  Try to eat the following foods more often. They are considered kidney tonics in Chinese Medicine: chestnuts, cinnamon, cloves, dill, fennel, fenugreek, lobster, pistachios, raspberries and strawberries.

7.  To balance negative thoughts, say or write one of the following affirmations 20 times every day:

      *  It is safe to grow and be joyful

      *  The right action is always taking place in my
          life.

      *  All things good come into my life

8. Hold your hands just above your waist on your back and say, "Phew!" 25 times. This will bring cleansing circulation to your kidneys.

9. Avoid concentrated sugars, dates, raisins, lots of protein, beet greens, cooked spinach, rhubarb, chocolate, coffee, tea, sugar and alcohol.

Exercise

Gentle exercise such as walking or Tai Chi may be best. Large cysts have been known to rupture with strenuous activity.

Herbs

Poultices:

Dr. Vaillancourt suggests a castor oil pack to rid the body of hardened mucus in the body which may appear as cyst, tumors or polyps. Castor oil packs can also help heal the area after surgery. The castor oil goes right through the skin, healing, lubricating, and drawing out toxins.

Procedure:

• Take a piece of wool or cotton flannel or a baby’s cotton diaper, and fold it into four layers thick, keeping the overall size big enough for the area to be treated.
• Place the folded cloth in a glass dish and pour high-grade castor oil (available online or at your health food store) over it until it is well saturated (can be used for up to 6 weeks)
• Wring out the saturated cloth so it is wet but not dripping
• Place the cloth over the area and cover with a larger piece of plastic and then a small dtowel
• Cover with a hot water bottle and then a heavy towel to keep the heat in for 1-1 ½ hours
• Repeat for 4 days, then for three days rest, then repeat the process, continuing until good results are achieved.
• To clean the oil off the body, use a solution of two teaspoonfuls of baking soda to one quart of warm water
• Do not spill any on clothes, bedding or rugs; use baking soda/water to clean if you do spill

 Comfrey can be used instead for the poultice; it is a healing herb

Capsules:

1.  Milk thistle (Silymarin) is a liver cleanser herb with no known side effects. Start with 1 capsule a day or use a tincture and follow the directions on the bottle.

2.  Lecithin (made from soy)has been known to dissolve cysts. Take at least 2 1900 mg caplets a day. Follow the directions on the bottle. (See Sources/Resources below for how to obtain these supplements)

Health Care Practitioner Choice

Listen to your inner guidance and choose a health care practitioner who values and respects you and your inner wisdom. You are the expert in you and your body. Only you know when you are tired, in pain, need to rest, are joyous and enjoying your life.

Holistic Approaches to Investigate

Visualizing

Find a calm spot and spend 10-15 minutes picturing the cyst dissolving

Reflexology/Foot Massage

 Use a very gentle, rolling motion and massage all aspects of the big toes and the middle of the sole of the feet.

 Massage the feet for only one or two seconds per spot to start. Build up to longer periods of time after massaging for only several seconds for the first few times. You do not want to overload your body with toxins when you start out. Use whichever hand works best for you.

Stress, Especially Work-Related, and Lack of Rest

Work may be loved, but when the need for rest is neglected, a cyst may result. Working more hours than the body tolerates can lead to a cyst.

Consider living a simpler life so large amounts of money are not required.

Find work that nurtures and feeds you. Allow yourself to play and enjoy yourself. Feed your playful, right brain more often: draw, dance, play with your children and avoid lectures/lecturing others, and intellectual tasks at least two days a week.

Sources/Resources:

To obtain supplements and herbs, click on www.carolynchambersclark.com/id125.html

Mildred Carter. Helping Yourself with Foot Reflexology

Betsy Ruth Dayton. High Touch Jin Shin Workbook I. http://www.hightouchnet.com.

Louise Hay. Heal Your Body, The Mental Causes for the Physical Illness and the Metaphysical Way to Overcome Them.

The American Holistic Nurses' Association Guide to Common Chronic Conditions: Self-Care Options to Complement Your Doctor's Advice, Wiley, 2003.

Ronald J. Vaillancourt, MH, PhD. Simple Earth Solutions: Powerful Paths to Health and Healing Through Natural Remedies