A Cancer Survivor's
Journey Back To Good Health
by Stephanie Hedgepath
In 1996, I heard the words that no one wants to hear: I was diagnosed with
colon cancer. There is no history of cancer in my family. The symptoms were
few and I was hit suddenly with debilitating pain. Due to the swift action of
my physicians, I was in the hospital within a week for surgery. The prayer chains
were active and I had Christians all over the world praying for me. The surgery
proved more challenging than expected and I was given a rather grim prognosis.
After radiation therapy I began a year of chemo treatments. My family physician
was concerned that I do all I could to boost my immunity and recommended that
I start taking 'Prime
One' and 'Brekhman’s Gold',
an adaptogen supplement. Dr. Martin (my physician) had done extensive research
on the subject and was convinced that this was something that I should begin.
The only place I could get it at the time was at the local health food store.
It was difficult to obtain as they always seemed to be out of it. It was also
expensive! But I persisted in taking it - when I could get it.
In the late 1940’s the Russian scientist, Dr. Israel Brekhman, was sent
on a research expedition to study the long lifespan of the people in the area
he was studying. In his observations, Dr. Brekhman noticed one constant among
these long-lived people--the consumption of certain rare plants. After exhaustively
studying these plants, he eventually penned "adaptogens" for their
unique ability to help the host adapt to stress. He believed that by consuming
adaptogens, a living person could significantly improve his/her health, athletic
performance and life expectancy. The Soviet government commissioned him to develop
a formula that could be used by the government elite and athletes (especially
in light of the uproar of steroid use in the Olympics). When AMS acquired the
exclusive worldwide distribution rights of Dr. Brekhman’s formulas in
2001, our own Dr. Martin signed on to become an AMS distributor. We finally
signed on in 2006 as AMS distributors only so we could obtain the product at
cost. As I write this testimony in May, 2008, I have been cancer free for 14
years – not bad for someone thought to be terminal. I give the glory to
God for my cure and know it is due to the prayers of my brothers and sisters
in Christ that kept me from being consumed by the cancer in my body.
Today, I am at home recuperating from my second foray into major abdominal surgery
due to complications from the surgery done in 1996. Again, my prayer cover was
extensive and though the surgery proved to be even more involved than they first
thought, I came through extremely well and had very little pain post-op. After
a week-long stay in the hospital I came home and am better each and every day.
My surgeon remarked to my husband that they rarely saw someone as sick as I
was, at my age (61) coming in for such serious surgery be in such good health!
My blood work numbers were all excellent and my general state of health rather
remarkable, especially considering that I not only was suffering from adhesions
of the small intestines to my bladder (the original purpose of the surgery),
but that those intestines had formed multiple adhesions to each other and also
had multiple perforations that were leaking fecal matter into my abdominal area
resulting in a spreading abscess. These perforations were caused by a deteriorating
mesh sling used in the original surgery 14 years ago to keep my intestines out
of the radiation area. I attribute my good health to the fact that we are careful
to eat wholesome whole foods and that I’ve been on 'Prime
One' concentrate and 'Saba'
steadily for two years. Prior to that I had used 'Brekhman’s
Gold' when I could get it. As I stated above, we joined AMS only
to obtain the product. I’m not a very good salesperson – but 'SABA'
is one product in which I believe as I have seen the results of taking it and
I would like to share it with anyone seeking a healthier way of life.
My husband, Jim, has also become an enthusiastic user of AMS products. Five
years ago he was badly out of shape from sitting at a desk all day and his hamstring
muscles in his legs had tightened to the point that he could not get out of
a chair or a car without pulling himself up with his arms; kneeling was also
quite painful. His shoulder muscles had atrophied so badly that when he tried
to lift some wall board to do some home repairs, he tore the rotator cuff in
his shoulder. After 6 months of physical therapy he was beginning to get in
shape but his endurance was poor. We went on a trip to Virginia and Jim decided
to do a short 1 mile hike in the mountains up to Humpback Rock. He had to stop
and rest every few hundred yards. Since he enjoyed hiking, he began to exercise,
eat right, and soon added SABA to his diet.
Jim
now takes 'SABA'
regularly and uses other AMS products too. He is now a very active hiker and
backpacker and likes the strenuous wilderness hikes and climbing to mountain
tops. At 57 years old, he recently hiked the Coosa backcountry trail which is
13 miles with a 5800 foot altitude increase. The sign at the beginning of this
hike warns you to take more than one day to do this hike because it is so strenuous.
Vogel state park - where the trail begins - requires that you get a permit to
hike, wear an identification tag on your back pack, and check in when you get
back the next day. Jim started the hike at 9am and completed it at 4:15 pm the
same day, 7 hours and 15 minutes later. Then he went hiking again the next day
for another 10 miles. Jim takes the 'Prime
One' concentrate when we travel and he loves the AMS “Spark
of Life” which he adds to his smoothies for the potassium
and energy so important to anyone engaged in athletic pursuits. At 57 he seems
to be speeding up rather than slowing down. What a change in four years! He
now says he wants to hike he entire Appalachian trail - 2150 miles.
Jim and I believe that good diet, exercise and the right supplements play an
essential role in good health and endurance. I look forward to hiking the mountains
again with him later this year.
Personal Note From Jim:
Stephanie
and I have come a long way in improving our health by changing our diet and
adding exercise to our daily routine. When Stephanie learned that AMS would
be the new supplier of her supplement we both decided that it would be best
to become a dealer and buy it from ourselves at a lower price which made it
possible for me to take the SABA and Spark of Life and what a difference it
has made in my endurance on the trail. The photo at the right is me on top of
preaching rock on the Appalachian trail where I met a homeless man who lives
on the trail. He was an agnostic but on that day I shared my faith in Jesus
as we sat and talked while I cooked lunch and enjoyed what God had made.
Our Bible tells us that as believers our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit:
1) 1Cr 6:19, and 1Cr 3:17 says "If any man defile the temple of
God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which [temple] ye
are."
2) Romans 12:1 says "present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God".
My reading about health issues taught me that the vast majority of free radicals
that exist in your body at any given moment can be traced back to environmental
toxins, such as industrial pollutants, household chemicals, cigarette smoke,
plus physical stressors, such as unhealthy oils, food preservatives, and the
wide variety of chemicals that are found in almost all highly refined foods,
the chlorinated water we drink and emotional stress. I learned how antioxidants
and adaptogens can counteract the damage free radicals do to the body and the
AMS products give us the adaptogens and antioxidants we need to aid us in that
battle.
The other possibility that AMS afforded was selling to others and helping them
to become dealers also. We were not interested in that aspect of the AMS opportunity
and have not pursued it.We just wanted to get the best pricing we could for
our own use. I do want to tell you how this product has helped us to regain
good health and encourage you to improve your own health! If you wish to pursue
the other business AMS opportunities, I wish you the greatest success and will
help in any way I can.
Now let's go hiking.
Jim
Living
Well the Natural Way Web Site