Period

[shb]

I usually get my period on time. I am two days late. I just started macrobiotics about ten days ago. I know the new moon is alittle late but I am concern of not menustrating. Could the macrobiotics stop menustration?

[Roy Collins]

Yes, the disruption of the menstrual cycle happens frequently in women who change over to macrobiotics. It should not last long but can, on occassion cease for up to a year if there are major problems with female sex organs or if diet is to rigid and/or salty.

That is why it is recommended to change over to macrobiotics slowly (gradual change is one of the three fundamental princliples outlined in the I Ching). If you find that your period has stopped fotr too long a period and you are getting uncomfortable you can try either black cohosh root tea or dong quai root tea a few times daily which will regulate hormones and promote menstruation.

In peace, Roy

[shb]

Never lost my period before except one time about 18 years ago. Yes I went into macrobiotics cause I was primarily having vegetarian, organic foods. I was alittle bloated and still am. My appetite was too high and thought it was all pms. Now I still have alittle bloat so I dont know if this will leave automatically as if I had my period?

[lighthouse25]

A little of the opposite though,

My period won't stop coming! Ever since I started the Macrobiotics I have been spotting everyday. Maybe my approach is to strong switching to this diet. I wil slow down and take your advice on drinking the teas you meantioned earlier, no wait I believe that those promote menstruation cycles, anyone know of any teas to help regulate it?

[shb]

I read that rosemary tea is best for long mentrual cycle. I got my period 10 days later by cutting out tamari and miso for the summer season.

[lighthouse25]

Thanks for the tip!

[Roy Collins]

Originally Posted by lighthouse25

A little of the opposite though,

My period won't stop coming! Ever since I started the Macrobiotics I have been spotting everyday. Maybe my approach is to strong switching to this diet. I wil slow down and take your advice on drinking the teas you meantioned earlier, no wait I believe that those promote menstruation cycles, anyone know of any teas to help regulate it?

Yes, if there is frequent bleeding, and blood is thin, with cycle being longer, then this is a sign of eating/drinking too much yin. You need to eat more whole grain, a little white meat fish, soup no more than once per day, more cooked veggies (roots, hard heaved plants, hard squashes, burdock, wild veggies, and use a little good quality sea salt during cooking. Dong Quai root will help to regulate cycle whether too yin or too yang. It is OK to use. Drink no more than 6 cups (not classes) of liquid per day.

I hope this helps.

In peace, Roy

[Bruce Paine]

Originally Posted by Roy Collins

Yes, if there is frequent bleeding, and blood is thin, with cycle being longer, then this is a sign of eating/drinking too much yin. You need to eat more whole grain, a little white meat fish, soup no more than once per day, more cooked veggies (roots, hard heaved plants, hard squashes, burdock, wild veggies, and use a little good quality sea salt during cooking. Dong Quai root will help to regulate cycle whether too yin or too yang. It is OK to use. Drink no more than 6 cups (not classes) of liquid per day.

I hope this helps.

In peace, Roy

Roy,

I wonder about the other traditional methods of oriental healing.

Naboru Muramoto says in his "Healing Ourselves" (ISBN 0380009005):

"Menstruation problems are a form of blood disease, usually blood stagnation. In the past when life and diet were more natural, a woman's menstrual cycle was always in harmony with the phases of the moon..."
...For excessive menstration, eat less and eat 5 raw aduki beans once a day...Black bean juice is also effective."

"For prolonged menustration, try eating five raw aduki beans, being careful to chew them well. This is often effective in terminating the bleeding."

"Blackbean juice taken over a long period of time (two or three months) helps regulate inconsistant menstruatio. Take 1/2 cup 3 times a day"

Recipe is 5 cups of water to one cup of black beans and boil for one hour (no salt). Then strain and take one half-cup of black bean juice at least a half hour before meals.

Michio Kushi with Marc Van Cauwenberghe, M.D., in "Macrobiotic Home Remedies" (ISBN 0870405543) says:

"If a woman has menstrual irregularity, pain, cramps, etc., she may eat a small amount of azuki beans every day".

"Take 5-10 grams of raw sesame seeds, chew them well, in case of menstrual irregularities"

"Yin people can take this (MU #16) tea everyday for 1-2 weeks when suffering from troubles of the reproductive organs, such as menstrual cramps or irregular menstruation."

Preparation and use of MU Tea for sick people:

"Boil the content of one teabag in 3 cups of water for 30 minutes (boil for the first five minutes, then simmer for 25 minutes) Boil until only 1 1/2 cups of tea left. That is the serving of one person per day. This tea may be reheated."

Are those remedies also useful or effective for helping to stop menstual irregularity?

Thank you, very much.

Bruce Paine

[Roy Collins]

Bruce. I don't know what other oriental system you are refering to as you are taking your quotes from two well-known macrobiotic leaders, from their books, as per your usual way.

The more traditional oriental approach regards menstrual irregularities as deficient liver blood (yin) and treats it with accupuncture and herbs. Some of the herbs include Gardenia jasminoides, Gentiana scabra, Heliotis diversicolor (abalone shell), as well as Bupleurum chinense (known by the Chinese as Chaihu) which specific for elevating yang.

The orientals also traditionally use a form of Motherwort (Leonurus sp.) for menstrual irregularities -- this herb is also much used in the western world.

The bean thing seems to be more of a Japanese folk tradition, adapted by the Japanese macrobiotic practitioners. Yet not all Japanese macrobiotics follow the blood/bean theory. Herman Aihara states that the underlying cause of menstrual irregularities is "imbalanced eating -- too much yin and/or yang food." He does not give any bean recipes.

It all may boil down to experience and knowledge of yin/yang or which books and people you prefer to follow in life. What is your belief? What does your intuition tell you? One leader in the macrobiotic field mentions red beans, another black beans. I can name 100 herbs that can be used for yin menstrual problems and 100 for yang menstrual problems.

Do you know the saying about knowing more than one way to skin a cat? My own 35 years as a practicing herbalist leads me to first discover the cause of the problem and then to recommend what foods or medicinal plants or other external treatments or exercises would work the best for that particular situation. How much first hand experience do you have in diagnosing people and knowledge of the plant kingdom?

What does your own heart call out for you to recommend? Maybe beans will work. Try it and see. Maybe brown rice fast for a few days; try it and see. But if it doesn't work you need to have a good back up plan, one that is deeply rooted to experience with the plant kingdom and working with people. This is what I have learned that works best for me. If you are a true Taoist you know the way of nature, of yin/yang, and do not need to recite from books.

I hope this answers your question.

In peace, Roy

[shb]

Thanks Roy and Bruce! I agree there will be different ways how to handle the situations. I was wondering adding any salt in the summer. I am changing in my physical ways since I am doing macrobiotics and the detox systems arent easy. I will post this on another thread.

[Roy Collins]

Yes, there are many systems and different points of view and protocols for dealing with all types of diseases and defficencies. We see this at all levels, both in the field of allopathic and holistic healing modalities. You are wise to percieve this fact, this truth of human nature. There is never one way to go about dispensing medicinals and one needs to take into consdieration a number of factors both about the peson making the inquiry as well as the length of time they've been macro, and their environment and season of their living habitat.

The main problem with giving on-line healing suggestions is that frequently many differnt people will give their own personal suggestions as well as recite recipes from books and this may sometimes confuse the person making the inquiry and then they simply give up and go somewhere else.

I remember an incident when I was living in California and met a woman walking crippled at a convenience store. We started talking and she told me that a crazy kid smashed into her side when she was checking out groceries a year ago. She told me she was taking acupuncture, herbs, vitamins, saunas, etc., etc. but had no relief. I told her that that was the problem --- too much advice and too many treatments were counter productive.

She asked me to help her and so for two weeks I moved into her house and cooked for her and gave her shiatsu. This simple internal and external approach would only work if she stopped doing everything else. After two weeks of treating with this method only she was back to her "normal" self. As I had no place to live at the time she sublet me the shack she was living in on a mountain top and moved into the city where she got a good job.

It is important to have faith in people who help you in the treatment process and to stick it out for the specified time. Then, IF that doesn't work seek additional guidance.

This will be my last post at cybermacro. I have too much on my plate at this time and not enough time to devote here. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but at the same time, everyone is entitled to ignore opinions that are counter productive. I wish you all the best and a journey filled with hardswhips to overcome.

In peace, Roy

[shb]

Well I enjoyed reading your post. Will this mean never come back or temporarily? Thanks for all the information you have given.

[Bruce Paine]

Originally Posted by Roy Collins

Bruce. I don't know what other oriental system you are refering to as you are taking your quotes from two well-known macrobiotic leaders, from their books, as per your usual way.

The more traditional oriental approach regards menstrual irregularities as deficient liver blood (yin) and treats it with accupuncture and herbs. Some of the herbs include Gardenia jasminoides, Gentiana scabra, Heliotis diversicolor (abalone shell), as well as Bupleurum chinense (known by the Chinese as Chaihu) which specific for elevating yang.

The orientals also traditionally use a form of Motherwort (Leonurus sp.) for menstrual irregularities -- this herb is also much used in the western world.

The bean thing seems to be more of a Japanese folk tradition, adapted by the Japanese macrobiotic practitioners. Yet not all Japanese macrobiotics follow the blood/bean theory. Herman Aihara states that the underlying cause of menstrual irregularities is "imbalanced eating -- too much yin and/or yang food." He does not give any bean recipes.

It all may boil down to experience and knowledge of yin/yang or which books and people you prefer to follow in life. What is your belief? What does your intuition tell you? One leader in the macrobiotic field mentions red beans, another black beans. I can name 100 herbs that can be used for yin menstrual problems and 100 for yang menstrual problems.

Do you know the saying about knowing more than one way to skin a cat? My own 35 years as a practicing herbalist leads me to first discover the cause of the problem and then to recommend what foods or medicinal plants or other external treatments or exercises would work the best for that particular situation. How much first hand experience do you have in diagnosing people and knowledge of the plant kingdom?

What does your own heart call out for you to recommend? Maybe beans will work. Try it and see. Maybe brown rice fast for a few days; try it and see. But if it doesn't work you need to have a good back up plan, one that is deeply rooted to experience with the plant kingdom and working with people. This is what I have learned that works best for me. If you are a true Taoist you know the way of nature, of yin/yang, and do not need to recite from books.

I hope this answers your question.

In peace, Roy

Roy,

Do you still have copies of "Resurrecting the Herbal Tradition with Yin and Yang:The Principles and Practice of Healing with Regional Plants" for sale?

I pulled it out to back up an argument that I was about to make and realized that I don't need to keep going down the path of exchanging negatives with you.

I don't and never professed to be a professional healer, counselor, nor am I an herbalist.

Actually, I wanted to post that Muramoto and Kushi information as soon as soon as I read the request but a housemate had borrowed one of the books without telling me and then after several days of rain, the weather cleared and I was working triple time and you posted, I then thought about it and finally decided that it would not hurt if I posted it anyway, and maybe I (and others) could learn something.

I think I remember Herman saying that beans need not be eaten every day but I'm wondering...that he spent his last thirty five years living in the semi-temperate North Sacramento Valley where palm trees and grapefruit grow, and not in the Northeast where cold winters extend from Mid-October to Mid April, so maybe his advice applied primariy to his region [warm climate less regular bean consumption, cold climate more beans).

What do you think?

How are beans less useful to healing than the more yin herbs?

Thank you, very much.

Bruce Paine

[Roy Collins]

Bruce. I have only one copy of Resurrecting the Herbal Tradition with Yin and Yang but can make additional copies if I get enough orders to sanction the work involved. I plan to revise it at (and Fire Over Heaven) at a latere date.

I know that YOU are NOT an herbalist, counselor or healer, but you are still missing the point, which is MY approach to guidance for people of all races and nationalities and divergent life paths without accepting payment. You need NOT respond to the specifics I write which will attract debate, but you should simply put forth what you have to add, providing it is useful and related to the person's need in question.

If you plan is to deride my advice then you cheat both the person in need as well as this group as a whole and yourself as well. You should have learned this in the 7 years that I have been giving healing advice at cybermacro. I have grown tired of your playing motherr hen here and with me and need not to go any further with you. I have always known what I was doing here, gave sound advice, and possessed good judgment in regards to what posts need to be kept and which ones deleted or ignored.

Stick with giving out URL's, phone numbers and addresses; that is what you are good at. We have positive qualities that can play an important role here. Maybe you should wich hold advice on healing if you don't have the confidence, knowledge, and experience. Maybe keep it light and non-specific in this area.

Bean are yin for the most part. You know this, but there are some beans that are less yin than others and some more yang. Beans, and all healing plants ARE HERBS, including brown rice. Don't start throwing curve balls here at this point in time. I have always said this and this can be backed by glancing through both old time herbals as well as modern herbals. The roots of Dong Quai and Black Cohosh are both time tested and well known for use in menstrual, pre-menopausal, and post menopausal conditions. Any herbalist can tell you this, including Germany's Commission E that tests and regulates the use of plant medicine.

I wish to have no further discussion with you. You got what you wanted and now I am gone. The path of least-resistance. Please be kind to all those people in need who post here. I did the best I could do and now I'm outta here.

In peace, Roy

[mike chen]

roy, while it's true that paine is much more (waaayyyyy more!) yin, what's harder to figure is why there's such an antipathy - you know?