MS and other neurological conditions
Bee venom therapy for MS
Who could have predicted my diagnosis of MS in early 2000? At 53 I was healthy and fit and joyous, ready to begin the next adventurous phase of my life.
My brain became jumbled and crowded with theories. I needed to blame this on something. I had recently been through the upheaval of a divorce. Could this emotional turmoil phase have been the culprit? Was it pesticides, the pollution from the power plant nearby, the additives in my body cream? Or possibly Lyme disease? My two Labs were diagnosed with Lyme at the same time, and I did notice a small rash on my back, which a young doctor had dismissed as nothing to worry about.
During the next few years I heard many stories of women who had also been diagnosed with MS: a young healthy runner-artist on my island, another young mother-designer in a neighboring town, and the wife of a furniture designer friend in Portland [Maine]. I was incredulous. I felt this was the designer illness of the 2000s, just as mitral valve prolapse had been during the 1980s. (I was diagnosed with MVP, as were two of my neighbors, during the mid-1980s—it has since vamoosed.)
I knew immediately that I would never take any drugs, as I was dubious of the illness anyway and felt totally uncomfortable introducing a serious manufactured drug-company product into my energetic living system. My body said no—even when another acquaintance told me that not taking the drugs was akin to driving without a seatbelt. For me, taking the alien drugs was the danger.
Margaret Lawrence, an artist friend, introduced me to Susan and Theo Cherbuliez, who had just moved to our area with their bees and their friendliness. Margaret thought that their work in apitherapy might be something to investigate. Theo and Susan are vital members of the AAS who began sharing their wisdom and experience of the bees with me, my family, and my friends.
Theo began stinging my feet and spine over a period of two years. Now, if necessary, I order a box of bees from Ferris Apiaries in Maryland. I take my mixture of royal jelly, pollen, and propolis three times a day.
During these past few years, the story of apitherapy and the bees has been my manifesto. I sing it across backyards and in coffee shops. The journey has been wondrous. I am healthier than ever. I have hope, energy, and curiosity about the future and am ready to spread the word of the healing power of the hive. All this is significantly different from the unnatural, pitiful, tragic, “woe is me” perspective that I first felt in the neurologist’s office seven years ago.
Carol Bass
Yarmouth, ME
cbass@maine.rr.com
BVT for MS: “Dancing with Bees”
As man and his world deteriorate progressively each day, the bees build and produce without respite as they have been doing for the past 60 million years. I spent two years in a wheelchair due to (I am convinced) an invisible neurotoxin invented by mankind: my dental fillings containing mercury. Since the beginning of my illness (multiple sclerosis, diagnosed in 1999), I have never taken a single chemical medication, and progressively, slowly but surely, one beautiful day, apitherapy succeeded in lifting me from my wheelchair, on June 6, 2006.
For the last year and a half, I have been blessing my bees each day and anxiously awaiting the 20 stings they lavish upon me twice a week. Add to that honey, pollen, and propolis diluted in a large glass of water that I drink each morning upon awakening. I can easily have access to my bees through two holes that are located in the panel of my mini-hive. Nature never lies! I tried all of the imaginable natural therapies possible without one ever having succeeded in stimulating the strength and optimism that the bees have inspired in me.
After the first three months of my treatment, my physical state worsened to the point that I spent 48 hours suffering from vomiting, diarrhea, and body aches. After this, progress was slow but steady. To further promote the positive effects of apitherapy, a therapeutic hive was recently started with the help of my doctor and a beekeeper friend. These confined bees are nourished by a pocket of honey that has been flavored by the essential oils of my treatment. My first session with this special venom started on September 29, 2006; we are awaiting the results.
Twice a week I open the entry to the hive so that my bees may make a cleansing flight. Then, at nightfall, I close the hive. Eventually, special chromatographic and electrophoresis testing will be done to determine if the composition of the venom has undergone modifications.
Conscious from the beginning of traveling a long and difficult road with this alternative treatment, I can now measure the results. Nature is grand!
I have written a longer account of my experience, as one would write a journal, in order to help others. The book will be dedicated to my fellow sufferers of MS, in the hopes that it will give them the strength to fight this disease. Contained in the book is a picture of a bee gathering nectar from a beautiful flower while I take my first tentative steps with the help of crutches: this is the symbol of life and the newfound hope I have, thanks to holistic, or green, medicine. Ten small steps for me and one big step for all those who believe in nature and its benefits. It represents the victory of true solidarity, the interdependence among minerals, plants, animals, and humans.
Maryse
Pioch-Prades
Vias plage, France
pioch2@hotmail.com
December 2006
BVT for back pain
I n April 2000 I hurt my back lifting and testing computers in a large nationwide retail store. Eventually surgery was needed on C3 and C4, C5 and C6, and C6 and C7. After the first surgery I inexplicably began to have strong spasms and tremors followed by severe pain. A second surgery was needed to remove radical bone spurs pushing in to the cervical spinal cord. Afterwards, the spasms and tremors came back, lasting for hours at a time after all the medication had worn off, causing severe pain and extreme discomfort.
Two and a half years later-living with the tremors and massive pain and, as a result of the medication, feeling as though I was in a fog-I decided to wean myself off of all the medication and to see what would happen. I did this over a two-month period. I definitely felt much better emotionally, but the pain in my neck and lower back persisted, down my neck to my tail bone and down my leg to the bottom of my feet; my toes were going numb. After several months of this, I had reached the point of calling my doctor and going back on pain medication.
Then came a phone call to my wife's business from a client asking for an appointment for her taxes. She asked how I was doing; for a couple of years she had been trying to get me to come to her home for bee therapy. It was Reyah Carlson, our local apitherapist. I said that I was doing terribly, was in a lot of pain, and was having a horrendous time trying to walk. Each step was a task, like pulling weights behind me. My legs felt really tired, and the pain had returned with a vengeance in my neck, lower back, and legs.
A chronology of my bee venom therapy, starting in February 2005:
1st week
At the end of this week, the pain was virtually gone in my upper and lower back.
2nd week
I no longer used my cane for short walks-only for long ones. I was able to walk without extreme fatigue in my lower extremities.
4th week
I was able to sit on a chair in church without having to leave early because of the pain from sitting upright.
5th week
I went to the barber for the first time in two and a half years. I also drove to the store and picked up some small items for my wife and myself.
6th week
I started taking propolis for my stomach. I have been on Nexium for nearly 12 years. I will take it for three to six months; my personal goal is to see if I can wean myself from it. I also started taking royal jelly. It gives me added energy, and I feel good-physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. This was after being house-, couch-, La-Z-Boy-, and bed-bound for nearly two and a half years after surgery, even to the point of fearing I would end up losing my driver's license.
8th week
I purposely missed these sessions to see how my body would do. To my surprise, I did quite poorly. I made up my mind to start back the following week. I won't skip any more sessions.
9th week
As of now I have a lot of energy and feel like a crisp $100 bill!
A word to the wise: be sure to pace yourself during your bee sting sessions so you don't have setbacks. Reyah was my witness to these grueling times, and she helped me through them.
As miraculous as all this seems, I should give credit where credit is due-to God for giving us the bees, to my church family and all the prayers that have been said for me, and especially to my darling wife (who is my best friend) for all her sacrifices. Without her, I don't know what I would have done. My utmost respect goes to spouses who are seeing their partner through some of those most difficult of times of their lives.
Gerald Emshwiller
Ventura , CA
caroltax@pacbell.net
September 2006
BVT for MS
Several years ago I saw a news program on the use of honeybees as a treatment for multiple sclerosis. I found this interesting, but surely I did not need anything that drastic, since I was working 40-50 hours a week as a nurse and I was fully ambulatory.
How quickly things can change when you have MS. Nine years ago I had to go on disability because I needed a cane and could walk only short distances, I could no longer drive, I had tremendous fatigue, and I had to take two-hour siestas and still had to be in bed by 9. I also had intractable vertigo that no prescribed medication could help. Did I mention urinary incontinence? I had to go to the bathroom every few hours.
This lasted until 2003, when I found Pat Wagner's website- www.olg.com/beelady -and ordered her book, How Well Are You Willing to Bee? I also bought some long locking forceps and a "bee hotel." I was able to get bees for free from a local beekeeper, who is a wonderful person, as most beekeepers tend to be.
The treatment lasted six weeks, and my husband graciously gave me eight to ten stings three times a week (you start out with one or two stings to test for allergy). I also got an EpiPen prescription from my doctor, in case of an anaphylactic reaction. Lots of people think they are allergic to bees, but they don't realize that a little redness at the site is not a true allergic reaction. When your tongue swells and you can't breathe-for most people, this qualifies as an allergic reaction.
Did it hurt? How you rate the pain depends on your tolerance, but it usually lasts only 30-45 seconds after you get stung. I would generally take two ibuprofen an hour beforehand and then ice the sites I was going to sting. I would use a warm washcloth on the site after receiving the stings, to help disperse the venom from the sites.
Was it worth it? I would do it again in a heartbeat. I am now walking independently, although sometimes I overdue it and begin to stagger a little. I'm driving without hand controls or any other type of assistance, but sometimes I wish I had a GPS system. My fatigue has eased significantly, but my short-term memory is variable and I still have my MS moments. Summer is still my worse season, but I'm now able to do water aerobics outside, as long as it's early in the morning.
Susan Brommage, R.N., M.S.N.
Goochland , VA
suebee58@iglide.net
September 2006
Kudos to the bees! I can still remember when the neurologist gave me the diagnosis of MS. I was 55 years young, knew no one with MS, and didn't really know what it was or how it would affect my life. I don't remember feeling devastated or frightened, just thankful that whatever was going to happen hadn't happened to me when my children were still at home.
For the first five years it was the usual routine: Avonex (my daughter administered it) and then Copaxone (I injected myself). The MS progressed, my mobility going from a walker to a wheelchair and scooter, and the need for hand controls for my car. It was only when I learned about a drug typically used in chemotherapy that I thought, enough is enough!
Through a serendipitous series of events I learned about the AAS, subscribed to the Journal , and attended my first CMAC, in August 2003. I no longer take any MS drugs, and bees and hive products have become my life.
I am grateful that my daughters have fully committed themselves to stinging. It has become a family affair (I never go to family events without my traveling bees). Five of my grandchildren, ages 4 to 10, line up to either sting or remove the stingers. I have 90 bees shipped to me every week and average 70 to 80 stings a week, ideally about 25 in each of three sessions. If schedules do not permit a third session, we do a major sting of 50-60. After a session, I have an increased sense of well-being.
Of equal importance are the other hive products. Fresh pollen with honey at least five times a week, propolis (1500 to 2000 mg a day), and royal jelly (500 to 1000 mg a day). Has this regimen "healed" me or restored my mobility? No, but I never started using the bees and hive products looking for a miracle cure. I wanted to stay as healthy as possible so that I could function as well as possible while living with MS. The progression has slowed, and I am able to maintain a high energy level-which is crucial, since I still work full time (probably more than full time, since I am a workaholic!).
Now, 10 years post-diagnosis, bees are my best buddies. Anyone who knows me or my family knows about our bees. We gladly share bees, tweezers, pollen, propolis, royal jelly, and books, especially when they people come to learn how to sting.
Barbara Arnold
Irvine , CA
barbaraannarnold@msn.com
December 2005
Whenever I look back at the sequence of events that led me to today, I always feel awe and wonder.
It all started with my friend Carol, who has MS. She was diagnosed shortly after we both started nursing school. She decided nursing wasn't for her, and went into a banking career. I continued on and became a cardiac nurse.
After trying many of the MS medications, she felt nothing was really helping. But what else was there? One day, unexpectedly, a fellow approached her with the name of a beekeeper who did a treatment for MS. Because of my medical background, she asked if I would accompany her.
I didn't know that this would open a whole new life for me. We made arrangements to talk to the beekeeper; just to talk about it. We found ourselves sitting on a porch bench with five people who had come for "bee therapy." I was quite nervous. There were bees flying around everywhere. Mr. R. kept a hive of bees on that very same porch, for easy access. He always said they were better than a burglar alarm.
I listened intently that day to the testimonials of those gathered for their "bee therapy." At least three were prior beekeepers. They received "bee therapy" for arthritic knees, hands, and shoulders. One man was there for carpal tunnel, one young girl for MS. She was Mr. R's miracle case. She started the bee therapy pretty early after being diagnosed with MS. She doesn't even use a cane now. She taught aerobics for a while, takes care of her three small children, and holds down a job. Not only does she do the therapy, many years later, but now her sister does it too, having herself been diagnosed with MS two years ago.
After hearing the testimonials, observing the process, and doing some individual investigation, my friend Carol decided she would make a six-month commitment to the therapy. We started out three times a week. She would drive to my place, and then I would drive us to Mr. R's for the therapy.
Eventually I became very interested in the whole concept. Mr. R. showed me the ropes, so to speak. A gentleman of almost 90, he pointed out certain sting points for arthritis, Bell's palsy, MS, headaches, and asthma. I sat with him for many hours. I never tired of listening to his accrued knowledge, mixed with stories of the success of bee therapy and nature tales. I felt as though I had enrolled in a class of natural healing. It wasn't just the bee therapy. I was learning a new respect for the weather, patience, and an acceptance of how little control we really have, the effects of the rain on the plant and insect world, the importance of pollination for our crops, the production and harvesting of honey, its richness and nutritive value, even some recipes. It was wholesome in philosophy, including mind, body, and spirit. It allowed me to look at our earth in a new respectful, appreciative, and protective way. The bees themselves taught me many lessons-such as that with persistence and focus, all is achievable. I learned about life inside the hive, bee communication, and bees' specific roles. It was all so fascinating!
Then came the day when Mr. R. said that the student would become the teacher, and I started giving Carol her bee therapy. Before long, I was doing apitherapy on Mr. R's people, and even Mr. R. himself.
After about a year or so of my becoming more involved, more intrigued with the bee girls, my husband drew my attention to some mail from the Center for Complementary Medicine, in Pittsburgh , that enclosed an application for an extensive course in Shiatsu, a healing acupressure massage. With hardly a second thought (so unlike my planning, thorough mind), we enrolled in a 260-hour committed certification program. I knew that this was just meant to be. not even realizing at the time that it would play a huge part in my future. My husband and I studied hard. Everything else was put on hold. We learned many acupuncture points and acupressure techniques. There was a full clinical experience, complete with written papers and case studies. I felt it almost equaled my nursing training.
Throughout it all, I continued to do the bee therapy on Carol, who was observing increased movement and energy, and a few others. But now I wanted to observe the bees in their daily living. I talked to the local beekeepers, of whom many are ministers, and met many wonderful men and women. I learned there was such a thing as an observation hive. I had one made special for our own little place, and had a hole cut in the wall for outside access. This allowed me to watch the bees in their natural setting. I observed many really interesting things, like the bee dance, the capping of honey, the queen's entourage, the laying of eggs, the difference between drones, workers, and nurse bees. The books all came alive, not to mention the education for the neighbors, their children, and their children's friends. The observation hive also permitted the bee therapy to continue during the winter.
Life is truly amazing! The Shiatsu instructor, an inspirational woman who lives her talk, recommended bee therapy to one of her clients, Miss M., who has fibromyalgia, depression, and arthritis. After more than a year of receiving bee therapy, Miss M. too is an avid advocate. Her energy has increased, and she is now living life with joy and enthusiasm.
As life moved on, I felt the need to have an outside hive also, to take off my own honey and use the hive products for health and healing. This has been a real adventure!
Apitherapy and its good results have spread by word of mouth. People have found my bees, and me, and have come from as far away as 300 miles, round trip.
At present, my belief in bee therapy has never been stronger. I am able to supply skeptics with a well-founded but basic rationale regarding the healing response of the bee therapy. My passion is education, so I have given many lectures to local groups, professionals, and laypersons. My mission is to promote the hive products and a more natural, gentle way of life. I have a lending library for those interested in researching this fascinating topic, and a few videos that I share gladly. My individualized therapy includes coaching on diet, hive products, and stress reduction. Included are take-home acupressure points to practice and use when needed between bee therapy sessions.
A session consists of a Shiatsu bodywork routine, which releases muscle tensions and works on stiff joints, followed by a gentle bee therapy session. With the bees placed on strategic acupuncture points, tendon bands, and spinal nerve areas, results appear more effective and specific.
I am now practicing as a hospice nurse part time. But two days a week I also spend time with wonderful, grateful people who have found relief, added energy, and increased movement from their bee therapy. Some have fibromyalgia, MS, chronic fatigue. Others have arthritis, carpal tunnel, depression, warts, or scars. Still others have asthma, menstrual problems, lower back pain, sinus problems, or bursitis.
My husband and I participate in a networking system of beekeepers. We help find apitherapists across the country to take care of people we know who are traveling, or relatives and friends of those we now treat who are too far away to come to Pennsylvania . Many beekeepers take off honey and use the pollen for allergies, but have been unaware of the healing properties of the honeybee sting.
After being shown some pertinent sting points for bursitis in his elbow, one such beekeeper was actually able to reverse his disability. He now stings not only himself but also his preacher and the preacher's wife. He is truly a "Bee-liever."
And why do I sing the praises of this natural bee therapy so highly? It's because I bear witness to its healing effects. I now do the bee therapy on myself for carpal tunnel, migraine headaches, and back pain. My husband takes bee therapy for carpal tunnel and an arthritic knee. And Nezzie, our springer spaniel, gets bee therapy every now and then to decrease a non-malignant fatty cyst.
Connie Frank, R.N.
West Newton, PA
centeredpointtherapies@hotmail.com
December 2005
Arthritis
BVT for arthritis pain: stung by the realization
Ouch! I jumped a bit in pain. I've quietly walked into a friend's garden to his beehive. Holding a clear masonry jar up to a hole in the hive, I knock on the top of the wooden box. Lots of bees are moving into the jar, but one has stung me, and lots of the others are buzzing around me. Oh, no! Another has flown up my coat sleeve, and now another up the other sleeve.
Last June I would have panicked and run from the hive. No…. Last June I would never have walked into anyone's garden to collect a jar full of bees. I become calm and stay still, hold the jar against the hive and slowly slide it away from the little hole and let all the buzzing ladies fly around me and slowly crawl out of my sleeve, and eventually all return to a cluster around the entry to their home. Sliding the lid back on the jar, I feel pleased with this successful harvesting of my new helpers. My husband, William, and I return home with Calypso, my standard poodle service dog, have dinner, chill the bees slightly in the fridge to slow them down, capture them in tweezers, and sting each other before going to bed.
Few of my friends would consider this a normal Saturday evening—and before last summer, neither would William and I. In April I told my rheumatologist that my arthritis pain was getting much worse and that I would consider taking an arthritis drug. My pulmonologist and GP were concerned about the side effects, so I said, "No, not yet," and just put up with rheumatoid and degenerative arthritis pain, stenosis, asthma, and type 2 diabetes. It was the time when meds for one would start causing cross-complications with the others. So, just grin and bear it (and take ibuprofen 10-15 times a week).
I couldn't walk enough to exercise my dog, so arranging doggy play dates was crucial. In August I was throwing a bright orange ball for the dogs to play with, but it rolled down the hill behind the fence. I could see the ball, so I reached around the pickets to get it. One of the dogs romped up to play this new game with me, and reached back around to paw at the ball and try to get it. Suddenly, I had a sharp pain in my left hip. I must have pinched a nerve. Then another sharp pain in my right leg, and another. Oh, no! Yellow jackets! I shouted out to my friend. She said, "Don't move; be calm and they'll stop stinging." I stood still about 20 seconds and then said, "No way! I'm getting out of here." I ran out of the garden, still being stung. My bright raspberry-colored shirt was covered with yellow jackets. I threw the shirt on the ground, and my friend ran inside for baking soda and an EpiPen. I had at least 25 stings, and they were very painful. As my friend was applying moist soda, I suddenly realized that I had no pain. I had run up the hill (ordinarily, I would limp slowly) within a minute or two of the first stings, and I now was moving around with no hand, neck, hip, or foot pain. "Okay, no more baking soda, and don't take out the stingers." I just calmly stood there and felt elated about feeling so good. The dogs had two or three stings each and were fine; their long curly fur had protected them. Some of the yellow jackets were still crawling and buzzing around on my shirt. We sat down to talk about this serendipitous moment. I recalled that years ago my sister-in-law had used bee venom therapy for MS. At the time I had thought it strange. Now I knew that I was going to find out more about it right away. What a great job my service dog had done, leading me into the proverbial "hornet's nest.”
I walked much more than usual that evening, feeling quite comfortable and not limping. For three days I moved more easily than usual and was energetic and excited about what this might mean. On the third day, some of the pain in my lower back and legs returned.
After contacting the AAS, I found a local apitherapist, Kate McWiggins, who was able to see me right away. Kate did not expect me to have a bad reaction to the honey bees, since I’d had so many yellow jacket stings with no allergic response. Still, she gave only three stings to start. Even so, I got relief from the pain within two minutes of the stings.
Kate showed William how to catch the bees in the tweezers and hold the stinger end to my skin until the girls stung me. For the next few weeks we did stings at home every three days, increasing them by one each time. We returned to Kate for more bees and more supervised stings every week. I continued to feel better after every session.
It got easier for me to walk. The pain in my shoulder significantly decreased. Most of the time my hands and feet are pretty much free of pain. My lower back pain, a problematic disc, and bursitis pain in my left thigh are alleviated for several hours after stings. And my breathing has improved—I’ve used my rescue inhaler for asthma about 30% less than a year ago, and my peak flow measure of lung capacity has increased about 10%.
Without noticing these improvements, I would never want to get bee stings. They hurt at first and are uncomfortable for a day or so. Just as the stings quit itching, it's time to sting again. It takes almost an hour. When I get stung, I cry out and sometimes kick. It's not fun. But this is nothing compared with the pain of arthritis.
I had problems with weight gain and increased blood sugar levels. Kate communicated with a doctor in Romania (Dr. Stefan Stangaciu) and California (Dr. Andrew Kochan). After following their advice, I managed to lose the six pounds I had gained, and I got my blood sugar down to normal levels for me. I felt totally cared for and informed by these experts!
I increased the stings to seven and backed up a bit after a weekend of feeling flu-like, feverish, and chilled: a possible Herxheimer reaction. We worked back up to eight, and I have not yet gone above that—I’m concerned about possible anaphylaxis. There is much more arthritis pain to address, so I will soon return to Kate to have her walk me up to more than eight stings at a time. She is a gentle, nurturing, experienced apitherapist. What a hopeful and helpful journey this is!
Marlene Anderson
Seattle, WA
206-935-2255
January 2008
BVT for arthritis
At age 68 I have long tried to stay in physical shape by playing racquetball twice a week, occasionally walking 18 holes of golf, and hiking—including climbing Kilimanjaro and Machu Picchu two years ago. And as a 14-year cancer survivor, I pay close attention to any new or unusual pain or feeling. Mid-summer last year, an increasing pain in my left foot became so severe that it caused me to begin falling on the racquetball court. That sent me to an orthopedist’s office. A stress fracture? Bone cancer? X-rays and then a bone scan led my doctor to say “no” to those possibilities. “You have arthritis in your foot. Take some extra-strength Tylenol.” I did, but I did not get any relief.
Fortunately I read an article about bee venom therapy, and upon further inquiry I learned that the AAS was about to hold an apitherapy course. So in September my brother and fellow beekeeper, Jimmy, and I headed to Salt Lake City, where we were introduced to the ancient world of healing modalities for pain relief, MS, arthritis, shingles: apitherapy.
Back home after completing the course, I began stinging myself, sometimes with Jimmy’s help, two or three times a week. I used “mini” stings in four or five places on my foot at points identified by Frederique Keller, my newfound acupuncturist/apitherapist friend. Within minutes of the first sting, the pain in my foot was almost gone. Over the next several weeks, the pain between stings was reduced by 95% or more. Some discomfort and an occasional shooting pain occurred when I was just standing or sitting, but what a difference! I also began taking one or two 400-mg capsules of propolis, pollen, and royal jelly.
I remain ready to use BVT whenever old “Mr. Arthritis” comes around, and I am willing to try and help anyone who needs BVT. Am I better? I hardly ever notice any pain from my left foot. 99% improvement is darn good!
Fountain Odom
Charlotte, NC
fountainodom@mecklaw.com
June 2007
BVT for rheumatoid arthritis
I was born Catholic in Paterson, New Jersey, and raised in the inner city for 23 years. In 1998 I moved to Connecticut and became Muslim. I searched for God in many places and finally found Him. And then, in August 2005, he guided me to the honeybee.
For one week I worked as an apprentice at Honey Gardens Apiaries, in northern Vermont, and slept in a tent behind the barn. While I was there, the AAS held the Charles Mraz Apitherapy Course nearby, and because I was working at Honey Gardens I was invited to attend. I met a group of wonderful people and learned about apitherapy. I even let them sting my back. My first thought was, these people are crazy; what are they doing? On returning home I realized what an interesting trip it had been. I was so connected to God and nature!
Six months later I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. I was 31 years old. I woke up one morning and couldn't walk. I sat on the edge of the bed and cried for about half an hour trying to figure out what was wrong. Mind you, I had a six-year-old son that I needed to get ready for school. After I managed to talk him into dressing himself and getting on the school bus, I called my doctor, who told me to come right in. He took some tests. I was very emotionally distraught.
A week later I woke up and again couldn’t walk. My joints were very swollen, and I was in extreme pain: I felt as though I was being stabbed with a knife. I called my doctor again. He said he had been planning to wait to give me the results until I returned to his office, but now that I was on the phone he said, “You have big-time rheumatoid arthritis” (his exact words!).
I didn’t know what he was talking about. He suggested that I come to the office to talk about medicines, to prevent me from becoming crippled, and it was recommended that I go on disability. I could no longer work, and since I had worked since I was 14, I had no idea what to do with myself. I struggled for a couple of months alone, in pain and in fear. I refused to take the medicines: I am a recovering drug addict, so drugs were not my friend. I have been clean and sober for three years and am proud of it.
I then remembered apitherapy and what the apitherapists had been doing in Vermont with the bees. I contacted AAS board member Glenn Perry in nearby Branford, Connecticut, and told him my story. At his urging, I went to his house right away. While he was explaining the procedure, I was so anxious that I said, “Just sting me. I don’t care how much it’s going to hurt.” And he did. Although earlier that day I could barely walk, within ten minutes the pain was gone and I felt a bit high. I could feel the venom flowing through my body.
I then began ordering bees through the mail and got involved with the Back Yard Beekeepers Association of Connecticut and meeting people who kept beehives. That summer I went to someone’s house a few times to get bees. For the next six months I stung myself a couple of times a week, with much success and healing. I even began stinging my friends. I also eat honey every day to assist my healing.
I am happy to say that these days I have little to no pain and I am grateful to God for this humbling experience. And I didn't have to take any drugs. My doctors are amazed. They say that they had faith in what I decided to do, and they were very supportive. Now my job is to share this healing with others as it was shared with me by God's wisdom and mercy!
I never thought I would be going through this, but here I am. I never thought I would ever stop using drugs—I had gotten involved with them as a teen and couldn't kick the habit. I am now taking courses in natural healing, chaplaincy, organic gardening and beekeeping. What a transformation!
Nur Moebius
Woodbridge, CT
nur@nurshoneyspot.com
The angels of agriculture: BVT for arthritis
"Ouch, that one really, really hurt!"
That one was the kidney point representing fear." . This is what my acupuncturist/bee venom therapist said after stinging me with a bee. Acupuncture is based on releasing stuck energy through meridian points in the body. With bee venom therapy, the process is greatly enhanced.
I was introduced to BVT last October while apprenticing at Honey Gardens Apiaries. During my week there extracting and bottling honey and wrapping hives, I was stung several times. My co-workers informed me that bees are divinely inspired to sting at points where your body needs attention. I was fascinated, and I wanted to learn more. Todd Hardie, president of Honey Gardens , explained how he stings people deliberately-the healing art of BVT.
I told Todd of my physical struggles, and he consulted his acupuncturist/BVT teacher regarding a plan for stings. We began the process right away. I was stung in several meridian points. Todd told me that I reacted well: I was swollen, red, and itchy for several days. But the pain from the arthritis in my knees subsided.
I learned that for it to be really effective, the stinging needs to be done regularly for a period of time determined necessary. A few months later, I spent three weeks with Todd's acupuncturist friend and experienced freedom in many ways. I had never before realized how emotions such as fear and sorrow can affect health.
I will continue to seek healing from the bees by ordering my own bees and stinging myself as needed.
I am amazed at the many healing facets of the bee. Bee venom therapy is just one of these.
Mary Lokers
Honey Gardens Apiaries
Hinesburg , VT
June 2006
About five years ago my husband and I treated a lady with severe arthritis in both her knees. Because she was unable to walk, she was quite heavy. She used two canes and couldn't stand for more than a minute. And she was unable to drive, so her son drove her to us. She came only infrequently, as they were poor-she would come when they could afford the gas, which was anywhere from every week to every other month. Because her visits were inconsistent, we used a fairly drastic treatment. When we stung her, we did both knees and administered many stings, up to five to eight on each side. We advised her to drink lots of water to help flush out the toxins, as well as chamomile and other calming herbal teas. She used raw honey to help the itching from the stings, and lots of ice to reduce the swelling.
The last time I saw her, after about a year of treatment, she was in great spirits, she was able to drive, and she stood and talked to me for more than an hour without her canes. Because she needed less help and could be left alone, her son was now able to go to work. I'm sure this reduced their financial strain, and this development may have been part of her holistic healing.
Admittedly her treatment was drastic, and I probably wouldn't advise anyone to adopt this example. And yes, there will be swelling and discomfort-when we start treatment, we must be willing to accept this discomfort as part of the healing. But BVT does work on arthritis. Helping our patients through this difficult time can be a comfort to them, and reminding them of the healing crisis will help them get through it. It is always my hope that people will at least consider natural healing before using chemical and surgical methods.
Kathi Glen
Armstrong, British Columbia
ulia@telus.net
December 2005
Editor's note: This testimonial has been adapted from an article published in the November 2004 issue of the Catskill Mountain Beekeepers Club newsletter (www.catskillbees.org). The author, who is vice president and webmaster of the club, has been keeping bees for ten years and has seven hives near his house.
I was more surprised than anyone when I was diagnosed with an early form of arthritis. I was told time and time again that beekeepers don't get arthritis. When I started experiencing a dull pain and loss of strength in my hands and wrists, I went to a doctor who gave me the bad news. My doctor prescribed a month of occupational therapy, which included paraffin baths for my wrists. I enjoyed the sessions but found that they did not really fix the problem. Rather, the therapist told me that this was something that I would have to get used to for the rest of my life. A few weeks after my therapy ended, I continued to have the dull and steady ache.
After rebuilding a shed on our property (carrying heavy loads, hammering
nails, etc.), I started having a lot of pain, to the point where
it was difficult to do my regular 9-5 work on a computer. I called my neighbor,
Dick Johnson, and asked him about bee stinging for arthritis. For
as long as I have known Dick, I have been interested in apitherapy and
the magic of bee stings. I even took the first online apitherapy course
taught by Dr. Stefan Stangaciu. But I had never seen stinging done and
knew only a few people who had experienced it firsthand. All my experience
and knowledge about apitherapy was academic.
Dick spent 10 minutes and told me everything I needed to know,
lent me an observation hive as a bee source (the bees were going to die
over the winter anyway), showed me how to set up a jar, gave me some
books and pamphlets, and then sent me on my way. That night I gave myself
the first two stings. I continued stinging myself every day with two
or three bees right on the spot where it hurt most. The pain went away!
It wasn't just reduced, it actually went away. I was really surprised.
Even though I understood how everything works biologically, it was a
whole new experience to feel the pain get alleviated so fast and so completely,
too.
I read in Charlie Mraz's book Health and the Honey Bee how tests
had been done on dogs and cats with bee stings, and then I looked over at
my 18-year- old cat. Champagne had been suffering for many years with arthritis.
Over the years I have watched him slow down more and more, to the point where
it might take him several minutes to go up or down stairs and more than a
minute to get up from a lying position. He would hiss and bite at the slightest
touch on certain parts of his back. I began stinging him with one or two
bees on his back and legs. Within a day or two, his movement altered dramatically.
He did much better than he had in a long time. He walked much more easily,
and I even saw him run from one room to another (of course, this was in response
to a bee sting). He has since died, but the bee stinging did wonders to make
his last few months more comfortable. I wish I had started stinging him
years ago.
I feel that we, as beekeepers, have a tremendous resource available to us.
Apitherapy is not just bee stinging or bee venom therapy; it also includes
pollen, honey, propolis, and royal jelly. Adding these items to your diet
is necessary to get the full benefits of BVT, but they also contribute significantly
to your overall nutrition and health. For next year, you might consider adding
a pollen trap to your apiary or maybe a propolis screen, so you can start
harvesting some of these treasures of the hive. If you have some arthritic
pain, try placing a bee there and enticing it to sting by rubbing its abdomen
in that spot. You never know how much these little doctors can do for you!
John Sturman
Lexington, NY
john@bluemoonfarm.com
September 2005
In 1996 I developed osteoarthritis in both knees. My doctor put me on Celebrex, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), which I took for a year and a half. Once I had started the Celebrex, I could hardly tolerate a day without it. However, my condition was gradually worsening. Meanwhile, I had read some negative things about NSAIDs and wanted to stop taking the Celebrex. Against my doctor's advice (he wanted me to double my dose!) and with the help of Dr. Stangaciu, Dr. Aguirre, Fred Malone, and other members of the Apitherapy-List, I started bee venom therapy. This helped me go off the Celebrex within two days!
Over the next several months, my condition continued to improve. After about a year I stopped noticing any improvement, but I continued the BVT occasionally for another six months or so just to be sure. I still have limitations, but I'm feeling much, much better now than I have since I developed the disease.
Yvonne Bernal
Lakewood, CO
yvonne_bernal@hotmail.com
September 2004
I n February 2005 I received two bee stings on my right lower back for chronic pain that I have had for years. The stinging was done by AAS board member Jim Higgins during the Charles Mraz Apitherapy Course in Los Angeles. Here it is a year later, and my back continues to feel great! I had previously been treated with acupuncture, physical therapy, and muscle relaxants, with no relief.
In early May, I treated a 71-year-old friend who has severe osteoarthritis of the right hip. She had great difficulty walking, and she dragged her right leg as the pain radiated down to her big toe. I administered two bee stings a week apart. With the second sting, she felt almost immediate relief. Since then she has been able to walk normally with no difficulty and no pain. She is even dancing! She is enormously grateful for this treatment and for the wonderful bees.
I have administered BVT to several people in the San Antonio area and a man from the Houston area. All have had excellent results. I encourage everyone to use the products of the hive, in combination with proper nutrition.
Fidelia Rodriguez, LVN
San Antonio, TX
March 2006
Lyme disease
BVT for Lyme disease
After being ill for 11 years with chronic Lyme disease, contracted on a camping trip in Northern California, I found information on apitherapy and decided to try it on my own. I had been a clinical R.N. at UCLA and other Los Angeles–area hospitals for 30 years before my illness, and I had researched various modalities of alternative health throughout the arduous course of my illness.
Because of the intense regimen of IV and oral antibiotics and pain medications for the effects of the Lyme disease and the side effects of the multiple medications, I was one terribly sick human being, disabled from working in my profession and barely able to care for my family and growing children. After the last of my five children went away to college, I was faced with the loneliness of a continued illness or challenging myself to try bee venom therapy. I contacted people in my area who were familiar with the therapy and also with AAS board member Ina Abercrombie in Oregon, who was wonderfully helpful.
After testing to be sure that I was not allergic to the bees and having a physician-ordered EpiPen and Benadryl on hand, I located beekeepers and potential bee suppliers. I also began using certain acupuncture points according to a manual on beginning apitherapy. Over the next several months, my pain lessened considerably and I was able to wean myself off most of my medications, depending more on herbs, vitamins, and homeopathy.
The most critical issue in my Lyme disease was the horrific chronic pain, which was relieved by almost no type of treatment (my physicians had prescribed morphine, codeine, and at least five other pain medications, as well as antidepressants and antiseizure drugs to relieve the pain). The antidepressants left me bloated, overweight, and depressed. Four pain doctors tried several procedures to relieve my pain, to no effect. One doctor believed that I had trigeminal neuralgia and suggested the gamma knife (used to produce focused radiation). This left me not only with the familiar pain but also with a disturbing new syndrome of constant tingling.
Meanwhile, I had moved with my family from Houston shortly after Hurricane Katrina, and the stress caused my pain to flare dreadfully. In the dawn hours of New Year's Day 2006, I took two codeine pills prescribed by my doctor. I had not been taking the codeine for some weeks, trying to use herbs and acupuncture instead. I never woke up that day until I found myself in the emergency room of a local hospital, intubated and restrained, finally awake after a full respiratory arrest—caused by the codeine in combination with prescribed Klonopin and probable undiagnosed sleep apnea, possibly caused by the medications. It was a horrific dream, because the medical staff heard from my husband that I had been on codeine and assumed I had overdosed, which was not the case. Two days later I was discharged, disoriented and distressed at this ordeal and still in pain.
When I returned home, I committed myself never to take codeine again and somehow to get off the Klonopin, which I had taken since the beginning of my illness. At the end of January 2006, I began my journey with apitherapy. My pain has become either nonexistent or tolerable and, thanks to the bees, does not interfere with my sleep. I did manage to completely get off Klonopin last April after gradually reducing my dosage over several weeks.
My only treatment now is apitherapy, and I have managed to find a constant supply of bees until this week, when the weather turned cold. My beekeeper will supply me during the colder months ahead.
Most of my symptoms are resolved. Incidentally, members of my daughter's college tennis team who are from Eastern Europe tell me that their relatives have used bees for generations to relieve chronic pain.
I am eternally grateful to apitherapy and would like to learn more from others who are practicing this miraculous art.
Donna Carrillo Lopez, B.A., R.N.
Austin, TX
alopeztcr@sbcglobal.net
March 2007
My path as an aspiring herbalist has brought me to the Honey Gardens family in time to join in the fall harvest. As the bees work to build up a secure winter cache, we work hard beside them, ensuring their winter survival while also gathering honey. When I arrived, I had been diagnosed with Lyme disease, received from a deer tick while in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. With my energy low and joints stiff, on certain days it was quite painful to work. At Honey Gardens, I soon became aware of the treatment called bee venom therapy, where bee stings on varying pressure points and meridians of the body can help to remedy ailments such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and Lyme disease. After being stung for several weeks now, I feel a dramatic increase in life energy and a decrease in stiffness in my joints.
Some people believe that bees have a divine way of stinging you where it is needed the most. This has been my experience. On a two-day trip to gather honey, I received a great many stings. One memorable sting was when a bee crawled inside my boot and stung my inner ankle, on an acupuncture point where I have been receiving bee venom therapy, known as spleen six.
I truly have been blessed by working with the bees, not only learning more about them and their sweet gifts, but also receiving the strong healing qualities they share with us.
Dave Stier
Honey Gardens Apiaries, Hinesburg , VT
www.honeygardens.com
December 2005
Skin conditions
BVT for a skin rash
I began to develop a rash on my body in February 2002. My dermatologist thought it might have been caused by a blood transfusion I had been given. The rash got progressively worse as the year went on, so much so that by December I was admitted to the hospital and given huge doses of prednisone. This made the rash less aggressive, but it remained with me. I was kept on a regiment of prednisone.
I then went to a specialist who thought it was caused by a parasite (dust mite). In addition, he said that my immune system was compromised because of chemotherapy and radiation I had received, following cancer surgery in early 2001.
I met Reyah Carlson in September 2004. She believed that my condition was due to excessive toxicity in my body and suggested bee stings, starting with 3 or 4 and gradually increasing to 22 to 25, twice a week. I wasn't able to see her twice a week, only occasionally, but I did manage once a week most of the time for about nine months. After Reyah left California, I continued to get stings from Ray Seipel in Dr. Andrew Kochan's office in Encino, California.
My rash is now completely gone. I continue to get stings one a month to improve my immune system and to keep in check a slight arthritic problem in my fingers.
I can't emphasize enough how this has changed my life. The itching is gone, and so is the redness of my skin. I am so comfortable now, not having to worry about my appearance and, most of all, that irritable itching.
God bless His bees, and Reyah, for everything.
Dan Ackel
Los Angeles, CA
dackel213@sbcglobal.net
December 2006
BVT for psoriasis
Before I started apitherapy, my legs were pretty bad. I've had psoriasis for about 20 years and had tried doctors' treatments and every over-the-counter remedy I could find. At best I would have remission, only to suffer a comeback of the condition and new patches. My shins were so awful that I refused to wear shorts. The itching was so strong that I would scratch myself and draw blood.
A friend and his wife were using apitherapy for entirely different conditions, so I asked whether it might be able to help me. I was at the "What have I got to lose?" point.
What I did was to gradually increase to 16 to 18 stings down both sides of my spine and stings directly on the patches on my legs. I had to start around the patches, as the skin was too tough for the bee stinger to go through. But after a while the hair grew back and the stinger was able to penetrate.
After just a few months my legs have healed wonderfully. The primary remaining indication is skin discoloration. No more itching (oh, thank you, Lord), scaling, or new patches. Other patches on my buttocks and back have healed or are healing without direct stinging. The "after" photo of May 4, 2006, shows a work in progress. The scaling is gone, and the remaining spots are almost extinguished.
I started with two sessions a week and am continuing the same schedule. Each day I apply a topical bee-products-based cream purchased through the "Bee People" network. I've also found creams like this at a honey farm's commercial outlet.
Incidentally, my minor bouts of arthritis in my shoulders have stopped. That's the frosting on the cake!
Irl Henderson
irll@juno.com
September 2006
For nearly four 4 years our daughter, now 15, suffered from severe, scar-producing acne. We spent about $2,000 on various remedies - over-the-counter products like Noxzema and Clearasil, and ProActive, the prescription product popular with celebrities. Nothing seemed to work.
One day, at Bennett's Honey Farm, where I work, I heard Reyah Carlson speak about propolis and other bee products. Even though our daughter is not one to try natural remedies, she realized that she had nothing to lose by giving propolis a try. That night she took two capsules. The next day her swelling had already started to go down and her face was no longer red.
Every human being is different, and we realized that chemicals were not suited to our daughter's body. We are thrilled, and so is she. Her self-confidence is back.
She has also started taking two capsules of royal jelly a day for rejuvenation of her skin. I now take propolis myself at the first sign of a cold. It's better than echinachea.
Tonya Harris
Fillmore , CA
Tonjaharris4@msn.com
September 2005
In 1992, at the end of a season of "camp" nursing, in which I would live communally, I found my feet infested with several plantar warts. I decided to apply a few stings. I placed 6 "bee kisses" around the periphery of the wart. Immediately I noticed that most of the area immediately around the wart remained white, indicating that it was receiving no blood supply, probably because of the wart. Three days later I applied another 6 "bee kisses" around the periphery of the wart. Within less than 6 weeks, the wart turned blackish and fell off, leaving a pink-lined crater that filled in with time. The amount of affected area was astonishing - it was much larger than I would have guessed. This helped me understand how difficult it was to get the "mother" seed with other types of treatments I had tried. Although I only treated 3 of the warts on one foot, all the others on that foot, as well as on my other foot, vanished. And they have never come back.
In 2002 my niece, then a high school junior, asked if I would sting her plantar warts. I treated 2 of hers on one foot in the same manner. These too fell off in about 6 weeks and left a pink-lined crater that has since filled in. Her other warts on both feet vanished as well. Nor have they returned. I have since treated 11 people for plantar warts; all of them experienced the same success.
Yes, it does hurt, and sometimes the pain seems unbearable. However, it only hurts for a short while, and then it lessens. So it is well worth the final result.
Perhaps it affords immunity for life. I certainly hope so! Although it's too soon to claim this, it has been 13 years that I've been free of plantar warts.
Kate Chatot
Cabot, Vermont
katechatot@charter.net
June 2005
Injuries
How my injuries were healed by bee stings and honey treatments
In mid-2004, while training for a marathon, I fell down a flight of stairs and was rushed to a local emergency room. I was X-rayed and diagnosed with osteoarthritis on my right knee. With severe pain, I could barely walk. Heating pads, knee wraps, and massage equipment became a central part of my life.
I visited the local hospital’s orthopedic department head, who immediately scheduled me for surgery in September. Stunned by the sudden diagnosis, I decided to do more research and get a second opinion. As a believer in alternative medicine, I did not want to opt for surgery without considering other possibilities.
My herbalist suggested prolotherapy, a treatment for chronic pain, which I’d never heard of. Research on the techniques and doctors associated with it led me to Dr. Andrew Kochan’s website. His reaction to my condition was to look at my X-rays before providing treatment. He recommended first trying apitherapy and then reviewing my injuries as we progressed. After testing to be sure I wasn’t allergic to bee venom, I started a series of bee stings on my knee. I have since completed four marathons and several half-marathons, all pain-free. I exercise and train daily basis. I have lots of energy and lead a healthy life.
In June 2007, while running uphill I landed wrong on my left foot. My Achilles tendon was injured and painful. I went back to Dr. Kochan for more apitherapy. I did well after only a few treatments and began training again with my group for another marathon.
In October 2007 in a car accident, my body was thrown around and dragged like a rag doll. I sustained a severe abrasion to my left foot over the great toe, bruises from my waist down on my body, and second-degree abrasion and burns and a hematoma the size of an orange on my right arm.
I was taken by ambulance to the emergency room, where X-rays determined that nothing was broken. The next day my doctor prescribed silver sulfadiazine ointment and Betadine wash. When I said I would be using honey for my burn, he looked at me as if I were crazy; he had never heard of such a thing. I was told that the wound might need skin grafting in a couple of months.
That was not going to happen. Instead, I went home and called Dr. Kochan’s office. Meanwhile, I took charge of my own healing. I washed the burn wound with saline wash, used clean gauze and applied honey to the wound, and wrapped the wound with non-stick wound gauze. For the bruising and swelling, I started taking Arnica montana (a perennial herb) three times a day for about two weeks, together with Bromelia, a pineapple enzyme. Bee pollen, royal jelly, and propolis also became part of my daily routine.
That evening, I received a call from Dr. Kochan’s assistant, Ray, and I recited my homemade treatment. At an appointment the next day, Dr. Kochan checked for infection of the wound and encouraged me to continue the wound dressing of honey on the burns. I did these daily, and Dr. Kochan or Ray examined the healing twice a week. In addition, I received bee stings on my right arm around the hematoma and on my lower back, which had been twisted in the accident and continued to be painful.
All the bruising and swelling subsided in record time: just two weeks. The skin is healed and the color is almost back on my arm. I did not need a skin graft. The abrasion over the ankle took a little more time, but it too healed completely within six weeks—again, no graft needed.
I am enormously grateful to have found apitherapy and honey treatments. I think we should all stock our home cabinets with an extra bottle of honey for emergencies. I keep a supply of honey and any honey products that I can find.
Thank you, Ray and Dr. Kochan!
Velma Thomas
January 2008
BVT for a hand injury
My wife, Joan, age 50, has had epilepsy since she was 18. There is no warning when she is about to a have seizure, and she often falls unexpectedly.
In the spring of 1995 Joan fell and dislocated two knuckles on her right hand. After a trip to the emergency room, she was told by the orthopedist that she needed physical therapy to gain control of her hand. She had about 20% range of motion in her fingers. At best she could almost form the number seven with her right hand. Making a fist was impossible. She tried to learn how to write left-handed, as she could not hold a pen.
After six weeks of physical therapy, Joan had gained about 10% more range of motion in her hand. Her knuckles were swollen to three times their normal size, and she was in constant pain. Her doctor said that she would have arthritis in her hand and would most likely be in pain for the rest of her life.
I had known Pat and Ray Wagner for over 20 years. Although I was aware that they were stinging people for various problems, mostly MS, I hadn't thought about having Joan get stung until Pat and I spoke on the phone and she suggested that we come by to have her sting Joan's hand.
Pat gave Joan two bee stings in her knuckles, and we waited for the bee venom to work into her hand. Pat was understanding about the pain and did everything possible to minimize it, but she continued to have "that smile" she has when stinging someone: she knows that the pain is nothing compared with the benefits we get from the stings.
We chatted for about 30 minutes until Pat removed the stingers. To our amazement, the swelling in Joan's hand had already subsided by at least 50%. After another half hour, at Pat's request, Joan made a fist and started to cry. This, Pat said, is why she calls them "God's Bees"!
Eleven years later, Joan has been stung several more times. In 1999 she fell and shattered her ankle, needing 23 pins to put it back together. After surgery and removal of the final cast, our first treatment was with Pat and Ray. Since then, Joan has had her ankle stung several times, again with amazing results. She recently developed some ankle pain, so it's time to visit Pat and Ray again.
I too have taken advantage of God's bees and have had my back stung a few times a year to help with five herniated disks. I also have my knees stung at least twice a year and have had stings in other places that cause me pain. People I know who have seen Pat and Ray for various problems have also had positive results.
And Joan's hand? She has never had any more swelling, problems with range of motion, or pain since her first stings. God's Bees are truly amazing.
John
Sherbert
Lat Plata , MD
sherb9848@yahoo.com
September 2006
BVT for a hand injury
"This is an A+ recovery. We're not talking B or C here. Considering the extent of the damage, this is an A+ recovery."
These were the comments from my doctor at my final appointment for the hand injury that occurred in April 2005. I knew I had done something seriously wrong to my hand, but when I turned on the light and looked at my thumb, twisted and sticking up from the back of my hand, I almost passed out. At first I thought I could grab it and twist it back into position, but I couldn't figure out which way to turn it. I knew I'd have to go to the emergency room. It was 1:00 a.m. I had run to answer the phone, tripped, and flung myself around my home office-not a smart thing to do. I know people will always call back, but with teenage kids and on-call duty for work, I had to answer the phone. I hit my hand so hard against the desk that I dislocated my thumb.
The ER doctor shot the hand full of Novocain, twisted the thumb back into place, and wrapped the hand and wrist into a cast. He referred me to a hand specialist, saying that I most likely would require surgery to repair the torn ligaments.
The hand specialist did an initial exam and then scheduled an MRI. The injury was described as a severe skier's thumb injury or ulnar collateral ligament of the thumb. During the exam there was no pain when the doctor pulled, twisted, and pushed the thumb around. I took that as a good sign. He said it was a bad sign, because it meant that the ligaments were completely torn and I would need surgery to repair them. If the ligaments are completely torn they will not reattach themselves and heal; they have to be sewn back together. Fortunately, he decided to wait and look at the MRI results and let the hand rest before doing anything so intrusive.
At work I told everyone my story. I'm glad I did, because a colleague, Mark McWiggins, suggested that I try bee sting therapy, and the sooner the better. I was game: the doctors were looking at surgery, and that was the last thing I wanted. Mark introduced me to his wife, Kate. She started out by using arnica ointment to help with the swelling. Then we set up an appointment for the first bee sting. From my childhood experiences with bees, I knew I would not have a serious reaction, so I felt okay about getting stung. I was more worried about my doctor's reaction to this. I did not want him to notice the bee stings, so I decided to have the stings timed between my appointments with him and my physical therapy sessions, to allow the swelling to go down. In fact, once I had received physical therapy a couple of times and learned the exercises, I canceled many of the sessions. The therapist wanted me to come twice a week, but I only went every two weeks. I did the exercises every day, because I knew this was one way to get full functionality back in my hand.
Kate was wonderful and came to my house to do the bee stings. During the first session, she explained all the risks and warned me about all the discomforts. I thought, "yeah, yeah, let's just do this." So she picked a bee and did a test sting on the arm that was not injured. I was surprised-I'd forgotten how painful that stinger is and I was amazed at how much the spot swelled up. So I realized that I should sit up and pay attention to Kate. I'm glad she was being cautious and taking it a bit slow. She then decided to do micro-stings on the injured spot. I'm glad she did that, too. When she stung the injured area, it was like a hot needle going into the joint. She applied liquid propolis (Glenn Perry's aqueous solution), and that immediately calmed the injured area. An hour later, though, the area was swollen and itching. It was worse than annoying, but I kept reminding myself that this was the healing process and better than surgery. The hand was swollen, hot, and itchy for about two days, and then things settled down.
Kate was willing to come out to my house to do the bee stings once a week, but I felt bad because of the distance and time involved. I got brave and told her that I could do the stings if she would provide some bees. She brought me about 20 bees in a mason jar, plus the equipment. As a result, I was able to pick the bees up, and I did one more round of stinging. I was so happy to have my own bees. I kept them in a nice spot in a kitchen cabinet, and there they stayed for about a week. I thought it would be easy to sting myself, but I kept putting it off, waiting for the right moment. It was a bit harder than I'd thought.
I finally decided to give myself another sting, because after each session there was a noticeable difference in my hand and I wanted to continue that healing. This was about six weeks after the injury. Both my physical therapist and my doctor were impressed with how quickly I was getting motion back in my hand and thumb. By now the idea of surgery had been dropped, and now the therapist and doctor were focused on getting as much range in motion back into my hand as possible, considering the injury and my age (50). The therapist measured my uninjured left hand and set those measurements as the goals for the injured right hand. So it was easy to see progress, and this gave me an incentive.
Back to trying to do a bee sting on myself. It's not easy. It was easy to take a bee in the tweezers, but to set the bee on my hand and to know that he was going to sting me and that it would hurt was another matter. I knew that I was thinking too much about the process, so I switched gears and started thinking about the benefits and how much better my hand felt after the stings. With that in mind, I was able to set the bee right on the most injured area. It took a lot of concentration to remove the stinger with the second set of tweezers to try to do micro-stings, as Kate had done. It really is painful, and it does not get easier with each time. I wish I had the skill to do the micro-stings.
So I continued with the bee stings and the physical therapy sessions, timing the events so that the therapist would not notice the stings. She was curious about the slight swelling, but she was so impressed with the progress in the range of motion that she concluded that things were fine. She said she did not have an answer for the swelling. I felt bad about not being forthcoming with the information about the bee sting therapy, but I believed that the members of the medical community see things only one way and would not be open to an alternative approach. It was a lack of trust on my part and on theirs.
Many people had told me I would never get the full range of motion back in my hand and that I would always have some pain in my hand after this type of injury. I'm happy to be able to tell them that this is not true! Two months after the injury, the doctor gave me an A+ for recovery, and I'm so glad my right hand is back to normal. Yes, the ER doctor was good when he initially set the thumb. And yes, the hand specialist was good; I'm glad he took a conservative view about surgery. And yes, the physical therapist gave me good exercises to do. And yes, I was determined to get well. But the bees did a tremendous job, too.
Cheryl Sykes
Seattle , WA
Cheryl.sykes@nsriusa.com
June 2006
Bee venom therapy isn't a well-known treatment for ligament or tendon injuries. In fact, I didn't even know it existed until about a year ago.
I'm 14 years old, and I participate in track and field and cross-country. In March 2004 while running track, I developed an injury in both Achilles tendons. I was unable to participate in track that season and had conventional therapy 2 to 3 times a week for 5 months. My pain was diminished, but it remained constant at a lower level.
Fortunately, my doctor was aware of alternative treatments for the injury and referred me to Andrew Kochan. During my consultation Dr. Kochan decided that bee venom therapy would be the best treatment for me. On the first day he injected me with a small amount of venom to see if I was allergic to bee venom. (I wasn't.) Then he numbed my ankle by icing it, and he stung me with 2 live bees. The stings were in the 2 areas of my ankle where the pain was the most severe. My ankle was sore for the next 2 days, but as the week progressed, I realized that I no longer had any pain. At my next visit, Dr. Kochan numbed my other ankle and stung me with 2 more live bees. Once again, my ankle was sore, but I was pain-free within a week. I started running about a week after the treatment was over, and I resumed training 2 weeks after my treatment was complete.
Bee venom therapy has had a big impact on my life. It allowed me to participate in a sport that I love, and it rid me of constant pain that I had dealt with for 5 months. Thank you so much, Dr. Kochan, for all of your help!
Joy Samuels
Granada Hills,
CA
June 2005
Bee sting therapy has made a believer out of me! My apitherapist, Reyah Carlson, has produced some amazing healing for calcified tendonitis in my right shoulder. An MRI showed the problem in late 2003, right after I'd strained my shoulder lifting heavy luggage. Despite six weeks of physical therapy, there was still very limited range-of-motion in my shoulder and pain when I tried to raise my arm to do simple things like wash my hair.
Having known Reyah for many years, I finally decided that conventional medicine was not working. I'm not afraid of bees, but I was reluctant to try apitherapy. I shouldn't have been, because Reyah was excellent - she carefully explained the process and how the venom works, and she increased the number of stings over several weeks, so I never had a big reaction or was too afraid to continue. For about four months in early 2004, I had a total of about 200 stings. The painful places where the calcifications had been embedded in the tendons no longer hurt, and I could raise my arm fully. I could also resume my gym workout and move the shoulder during my running without pain.
I now get monthly touch-ups of a few stings just to keep the calcifications from lodging again and creating a problem. I'm very pleased and grateful for what bee sting therapy did for me, and I would not hesitate to use it on another part of my body if I have problems in the future.
Karen Bates
Ventura , CA
kcplants@juno.com
September 2005
Other conditions
BVT for chronic pain
The clever, feisty little honeybee has changed my life. Never having been introduced to the high-spirited little ladies before, I am now, one year later, intimately connected to these healing sisters of nature.
At first, when Todd Hardie from Honey Gardens Apiaries identified the girls as a way of healing chronic pain, I was wary, even alarmed, at the idea of being voluntarily stung by a bee. But Todd’s wisdom and relentless encouragement led me to give it a try. Thus did I meet a major healer in my long search and deepening relationship with many forms of alternative healing, as Todd introduced me to Frederique Keller—acupuncturist, apitherapist, and healer.
With her expertise and faith in the healing power of BVT and the requisite sense of humor and courage to do this work, Frederique set about to help me feel better and begin to heal. This is what I have done and continue to do. My health has definitely improved. I have more energy, more stamina. For someone in relentless pain, I’m capable of something very empowering. With the bee stings, I feel I can manage the pain. A debilitating pain in my neck and upper back becomes tamed. Difficulty walking because my knees hurt big time is relieved, and the stairs seem easier. Hurtful arms and hands are released so I can hold a book to read and do what I enjoy the most—draw and paint. No, the pain is not entirely gone. I have a mere one year of bee therapy compared with 18 years of struggle, but given the rapid improvement in one year, the odds are pretty good for a lasting and complete recovery with continued care.
Finally, a word about what I call “the energetics” —the bees. They seem to bring to me a life force that was depleted. I don’t know the chemical components of their healing venom, but I do know that I’ve experienced something elusive yet tangible. I think of it as a light wave entering my body. It courses its way from the site of the sting to whatever needs to be healed, released, and finally let go of. It’s like being vaccinated by nature. Thousands of years of healing energy straight from the source is contained in each sting, and I can access this to make my tired, ill body better. In a word, there is HOPE.
I can’t fully describe what I’ve been taught and what has been communicated to my body through this close relationship with a high form of feminine energy. It’s not lost on me that the "girls" die once they have generously healed me. They give their lives so I can have a better one: no small feat for such a tiny creature. There’s an inexplicable, awesome order to this. Sometimes after a bee has shared her life force with me, she'll fly near where I'm sitting and allow me to pet her soft silky back. I feel the tiny flutter of her wings on my finger. I say thank you, and she seems to take a tiny bow, or so I like to think.
Teddy Shevack
Pt. Pleasant, PA
intheimage@comcast.net
June 2007
In aseptic necrosis of the head of the femoral bone, circulation is blocked, typically by trauma. In time the bone becomes deformed, with arthrosis of the oxo-femoral articulation, shortening of the leg, lameness, and disturbance of the spinal cord and of the other coxo-femoral articulation. Most cases are very painful, though many patients seek medical help only when the disease is advanced. However, with bee venom it is possible to interrupt this process.
My example is that of a 10-year-old boy who was struck by a car two years ago. I saw him 8 months after the accident, by which time he had degeneration of the head of the bone and of the neck of the bone (the part between the head and the body of the femur).
For bee venom, I first used Apireven and then VENEX 10 in diluted form, because of the age of the patient. The bee venom was diluted 1/5 from VX10, a strength that produced a good reaction and was tolerated well. He was given 2 sessions a week, with no more than 7 stings at each session. At the beginning of the treatment I applied the BVT on the lumbar zone of the urinary bladder acupuncture meridian. A month later I applied it to the points above the articulation on the anterior part of the body, on the lateral part, and on the back side of the body, between the points stinging by the lateral part and the points stinging by the urinary bladder meridian; this way I surrounded the joint with the stinging. In addition I used royal jelly, pollen, propolis, and honey internally and also some medicinal plants.
After a few days of treatment, the pain disappeared and he was able to walk without limping. Three months later, radiologists declared that progression of the disease had stopped. The bone's structure was denser, and the neck of the bone was thicker both results were signs of the bone's regeneration. So, by using bee venom and other natural remedies, it is possible to help even the bone to reconstruct.
Cristina Aosan
Judet Timis, Romania
draosan@zappmobile.ro
March 2005
It all began with a phone conversation last October when one of my oldest and closest friends seemingly had gone off her rocker. She had warily told my wife and her best friend of a crazy new pathway to healing. The tale was incredible.
She had met Kristine Jacobson, an apitherapist in Grand Rapids , Michigan , who had begun treating her damaged and arthritic knees by actually stinging her with honey bees. Real bees. Live bees. Those little creatures we'd learned to fear since childhood! My only thought was, what a bizarre remedy. I was convinced that she had finally slipped over the edge, even though she swore she was getting relief in her first weeks of treatment.
My wife, Ardy, however, was enthusiastically and passionately pursuing anything she could find on the Internet that would persuade me to take a leap of faith and risk my not-so-comfortable comfort zone to find a cure for me.
"A cure for me." What a concept. I had long before given up fantasies of "cure" and chased down every pain-relieving pill, infomercial gimmick, or magic wand I could find - with little or no relief from the chronic and debilitating pain that I had been experiencing for 25 years. After an injury at work in 1979 and subsequent surgery, there had been little respite from the pain. Ultimately, in 1985 I was given the diagnosis of ankylosing spondylitis, with a poor prognosis and a dim future.
Over the years, things I had taken for granted were stripped from me. I couldn't walk more than 20 feet at a time, I couldn't sleep in my bed with my wife, I couldn't sleep, period. I couldn't bend over to pick up a coin from the floor, I couldn't stand up straight, I couldn't pick up my grandsons once they were big enough to toddle.. I couldn't even put on my own socks and shoes. Life had become a mere existence. The strongest of pain relievers never took the pain away - but they did manage to turn me into a zombie while dulling the pain and my senses as well. At the time of "The Call" I had been wondering if life was truly worth continuing.
In November 2003 Ardy flew from our home in Las Vegas to Grand Rapids to help celebrate her mother's 80 th birthday. I stayed at home because traveling on a plane, let alone walking through an airport, was more than I could withstand. During that visit she was able to see our friend Cherie's results first-hand, and to get acquainted with Kristine. That visit sent Ardy's level of enthusiasm out of the ball park. Kristine showed her how to gently snatch the bees from the jar and guided her as she placed the stings on Cherie's back and knees and later watched as she removed the stingers. Upon Ardy's return, any resistance I might have had earlier was expunged with one lift of her eyebrow.
Immediately we began "healing from the hive" (thank you for the term, Rita Elkins) by taking honey, propolis, royal jelly, and bee pollen. I began reading everything we could find on the Web, even searching for negatives, yet finding only positives and inspiration. Dared I even hope that I could find relief in these little creatures I had been taught to fear? I tucked a thought behind my ear, in the back of my mind, to apologize later to Cherie for my previous accusations of dementia.
Kristine had introduced us, through email, to her cousin and mentor, Reyah Carlson in Ventura , California . Under Reyah's guidance, we began preparing for my treatment. My first hurdle was to convince my doctor of my chance for recovery, or at least relief of my pain, by engaging in this unconventional treatment. The second hurdle was to get him to change some of my medication and to give me a prescription for an EpiPen. Providentially, I had a doctor who was receptive to this idea and excited about the prospect. He replaced medications that would hinder the positive effects of the bee stings and looked forward to tracking my progress.
By early spring, enthusiasm had engulfed me as well. Reyah had been emphatically firm in her belief that I could be liberated from my pain, and I was chomping at the bit to get going. Finally, on April 3 we made the trip from Las Vegas to Ventura , where we met Reyah for the first time. She was an excellent and knowledgeable teacher. She gave me my first stings and taught Ardy the techniques and time table to treat me at home. That day I was certain that my life was changing forever.
I got determined, took the bull by the horns, and changed my life style. I began eating better and moving more. By the end of the first week my spirits had lifted to an all-time high. I was teasing Cherie about her coming birthday, which I had formerly done but had stopped several years earlier because fun for me had long since ceased to exist.
My first cognitive awareness that I was improving came when I bent over and picked up a coin from the floor. I don't know why I felt I could do it. But I did! By the end of the second week, I was able to walk throughout our Wal-Mart superstore for nearly two hours without once sitting down. I had been confined to a handicap cart for what had seemed like an eternity and was now miraculously walking pain-free within two weeks of beginning bee venom therapy. At four weeks I was able to put on my own socks and tie my own shoes. But infinitely better than that, I discarded my night-time confinement to a recliner and began sleeping again with my amazing and beautiful wife. What a reward! At five weeks I was able to take a road trip to Zion National Park and the Grand Canyon - an event I had only once dreamed of.
At three months I was able to fly back to Michigan - yes, get on a plane! Once there I was able to take a three-day road trip with my wife up to the Mackinac Bridge and once again walk back in to see Tahquamenon Falls that I loved but never thought I'd have hopes of ever seeing again. But probably the best treat of all was that Reyah was visiting her cousin, Kristine, that very week in Grand Rapids , and Ardy and I were able to see them together and thank them for giving me back my life. You can be sure there were lots of hugs, lots of laughs, and of course, lots of stings!
Now, after four months of bee venom therapy, under Reyah's encouragement, I have begun physical therapy on my back and neck, something that six months ago I couldn't even have considered. Pain would have kept me from even lying on my back, let alone receiving any manipulation. Reyah is unwavering in her belief that I will stand straight again, but if true, that will just be the frosting on the cake. I look forward to each new day knowing that I can do things that I haven't been able to do in years - or maybe ever. I thank God for those wonderful little bees and for my friends, old and new, who led me to this new-found life.
Jack Ballard
Henderson, NV
beehealthy040304@aol.com
June 2005
In 1988 my wife had had a bone spur in her wrist for almost three years. Three doctors in Grenada and Barbados had been unable to provide relief.
So we decided to try BVT. Her treatment consisted of an application of three to six stings over and around the spur every other night for four months. Before each session, some crushed ice wrapped in a piece of cloth helped reduce the affected area's sensitivity to the pain of the stings. The first week was frustrating, as the stings seemed to actually increase her discomfort. But we kept at it, and at the end of the second week she noticed a big reduction in the pain, as well as the absence of a feeling of "tension" (her word) around the area.
At the start of the second month the size of the concretion started to diminish, and by the end of the fourth month it had disappeared. Sixteen years later, she has had no recurrence at the site or elsewhere.
Jorge Murillo-Yepes
murillos@caribsurf.com
September 2005
A n apiculturist's friend was in despair, having been diagnosed with a malignant tumor too far advanced for possible surgical removal. The apiculturist took him to an apiary with the affected area uncovered. The first day a swarm of bees stung him in the affected area. He went to the apiary once a week. After a while, each time he was stung (I should say pricked) by fewer bees in that area, and the time came when no bees stung him at all. At that point the apiculturist advised him to go to a doctor, who was greatly surprised to learn that the tumor had disappeared.
We would like to study this effect on malignant tumors in rats, but we have not been able to start it; the Health Ministry lacks the needed funds. Ironic, isn't it?
But for now, I recognize that bees have the gift of knowing where they must sting. Mother Nature is wise. Even so, physicians-acupuncturists must also know where to place the needles.
Dr. Eduardo Lema
Montevideo, Uruguay
celema@adinet.com.uy ; www.apifarma.com.uy
(Testimonial
sent to "Lista-de-Apiterapia" January
20, 2005)
March 2005
I engaged in a desperate attempt to help a baby with a tumor that members of the medical community viewed as inoperable and hopeless. They said the tumor was causing calcification that would spread to the eye, causing blindness, and then to the brain, and eventually causing death.
For 3 months I gave the baby continuous micro-stings (limited pricks or punctures with the "needle" of the sting removed from the bee) 3 times a week; she never cried during the procedure. I then applied a "real" sting to the tumor itself on the inside of her cheek. Before applying the sting, I swabbed the area with extract of propolis and let it sit for 5 minutes. Propolis has a powerful anesthetizing effect (it has been shown to be 10 times stronger than cocaine as a local anesthetic). The baby made a face, but there were no tears. As of the last report, the tumor has shrunk a lot, along with the external discoloration. The area is now soft - not hard the way it was before BVT.
Reyah Carlson
Ventura, CA
beecharmer1958@aol.com
March 2005
Treatment for animals
BVT for a basset hound
M y 12-year-old basset hound, Hunter, had trouble getting around. She was slowing down, and her back was stiff and inflexible. She'd been getting regular acupuncture treatments, but one day, she couldn't get up at all. I carried her everywhere she needed to go for a week. I helped her stand when she went outside and wondered how to help my old friend.
I was considering the conventional prednisone treatment when I suddenly had a hunch and phoned apitherapist Kate McWiggins. I had heard that bee venom therapy worked for people, and I asked if it might work for dogs. "I don't think she'd like getting stung," I said, "but do you have it in a form she can eat?" Kate said she had bee venom pellets, so I ordered some immediately.
Within one day of taking the pellets, Hunter got up and walked on her own. It was a shaky start, but by the end of the week she was able to walk up and down the ramp outside on her own. Each day she continues to improve. I am amazed at how well she stands and walks now. I just ordered more pellets, since I now consider them to be an essential part of her health routine.
My old dog also eats about 1/4 teaspoon of pollen a day, which has made a world of difference in how clear her eyes look, especially in the spring. She takes propolis to help boost her immune system, and now and then she sneaks a lick of apitherapy honey.
I can't tell you how happy I am that this therapy has worked for her. I wish I'd known of it with my last basset hound, who died last year. I hope that more holistic veterinarians will become aware of this as an option for our four-legged friends.
Debra Daniels-Zeller
Edmonds , WA
DDanZel@aol.com
September 2006
Last February my sister in Minneapolis asked me to treat their beloved dog, Snickers, for Cushing's disease, since the standard veterinary treatment was prohibitively expensive and had unpleasant side affects. Cushing's disease, which strikes animals as well as people, is caused by a tumor on the pituitary gland or the adrenal gland. It stimulates an overproduction of corticosteroids in the body; the first outward symptoms are increased thirst and increased urination. For a dog of working owners cooped up in the house all day, this was a big problem.
I obtained aqueous propolis solution from Glenn Perry and followed his protocol. Because Snickers weighed about 70 pounds, she received one teaspoon of propolis three times a day, as close to eight hours apart as possible for three months. Within a week, she was symptom-free. Her energy level improved, and her water consumption and urination returned to normal. A bonus result was that hundreds of what the vet called "doggie warts" literally fell off her body. Because she was an elderly dog and quite sedentary, she developed a mild bladder infection some months later. However, when the vet checked her urine and blood, there was no sign of Cushing's disease.
As a footnote, Snickers recently died peacefully of old age after enjoying the summer.
Kate McWiggins
Issaquah , WA
kate@healingbees.com
December 2005