Proof in the Pudding...a personal story.

By the early morning hours of Monday, January 16, 2012, we had brought our 6 year-old son Samuel to the emergency room at Nationwide Children's Hospital for what we thought was an urgent need for hydration due to some kind of severe constipation or stomach irregularity. Within hours, we passed from "normal" concerns to the indescribable tumult of emotions any parent feels when their child's doctors use words like: malignancy, metastasis, inoperable.... It is an end to a certain phase of life, and a dawn of a new battle. Everyone needs a moment. 

For us, a moment of hope came three days later with a very early morning text message. Our family's dear friend Tonya needed to talk with me as soon as possible. 

Samuel had been in excruciating pain following surgery on Tuesday, January 17 to biopsy the mass in his abdomen, place the double intravenous port in his left shoulder, and insert a nasal-gastrointestinal tube to relieve the build up of stomach bile which was presently unable to pass through the impingement of his duodenum as a result of the tumor. He had been administered hefty doses of morphine over the course of 48+ hours, which only resulted in a violently negative reaction complete with punching and kicking at the air and an inability to relax or sleep. By Thursday morning, we were done with the narcotics and needed an alternative. So, I called Tonya quickly, hoping somehow she might be able to help. 

In a desperate-to-not-intervene-or-overwhelm tone (which I now know well because I have taken it several times with other families we've met), she told me that she had been unable to sleep that night. She had been woken up countless times with a single thought in her head, and one with which she could find no logical connection. Frustrated, exhausted, and even slightly irritated, she reached out to another friend who had experience in the field of therapy using essential oils. 

"Have you ever heard of Jesus oil?"she texted. Immediately, Sally's response was, "Who do you know that has cancer?"

The ensuing conversation enlightened Tonya to the fact that a great deal of scientific and clinical research has been conducted using Frankincense oil (otherwise referred to as "Jesus oil" since it is most commonly known as one of the gifts given to the baby Jesus at his birth) to treat certain types of cancer cells. Tonya learned it was also highly effective for pain management, and she was able to bring a small bottle of it to us at the hospital that morning. Unsure of how best to administer the oil for maximum effectiveness, but desperate to help my young son be free from the pain that had kept him writhing and groaning for days, I simply placed a drop of the oil on my index finger and swabbed it underneath his tongue. 

Within minutes, his body relaxed. His facial muscles released the tension that had been present. He was quiet and calm, and he rested. For the first time all week. Needless to say, we were impressed. 

-Adriana (mom)

Why This Blog?

Parents always want the best for their children. And certainly no parent would ever want a child to undergo the oftentimes unpleasant challenge of overcoming cancer. When that happens, access to the most helpful information, advice, products, techniques, and supplemental therapies becomes critically important. We are those children's best advocates, and we cannot afford to let them down. Our hope is that through this site all of the above will be available for you to help ease the journey to complete recovery by providing you with everything we have learned so we can keep our kids "chemo strong".