A young woman in her mid-forties wrote me recently to say how sad and fearful she was because, despite her efforts, her white blood count and lymphocyte count went up. My answer to her was comprehensive, so I am sharing it now in this post.

Dear CLL Reader,

I truly understand about how you feel anxious, scared and nervous. I’ve been there, and honestly, some times I get nervous when I see a new bruise (could be low platelets) or if I look pale (anemia), and so on. However, I’m looking at your numbers, and I can tell you that although they did go up (in the wrong direction), you are still at a very safe place. I wonder if the doctor was alarmed…did he or she suggest that you come in again soon? Or that it looks like you will need treatment of some kind? I doubt it, although some doctors are too quick to prescribe treatment, in my opinion.

And…here’s the important part: at some point I learned that if my doctor wasn’t sounding alarm bells, then I just wasn’t going to get nervous either. What I also learned was to take a day (maybe two) to allow myself to be upset and depressed. Then it was time to do research and find ways to improve the blood test scores. So you’re on the right track by writing me. (Although by no means should I be your only source of answers.) Check each of your markers and do a Internet search. There are many examples below.

CLL WBC natural treatment.I just did this search and came up with this page: http://naturalhomeremedies.co/CLL.html. There are many others. Start searching for this in as many ways as you can come up with the right keywords. I have a friend who is a very conventional doctor.She explained to me that when doctors have no way to cure an illness (think of a cold virus here), they “aggressively treat the symptoms.” I’ve tried to apply this to the different blood markers that we test when we have CLL. You asked about your WBC and your absolute lymphocyte count and percentage. I see from what you wrote that you are eating organic and being careful of what you eat, even when traveling. That’s wonderful! Please keep it up!

The next question is: do you cook “low and slow”? This means at low temperature for a longer time, making certain never to burn or totally dry our your food. If you’ve been grilling or overcooking food, this is a place you can make an improvement.

Eat bone broth soup and fermented veggies. This is more advanced, as in not what people will start to do the moment they decide to take control. However, learning to make your own fermented vegetables provides probiotics that far exceed the numbers in those pills we buy online or in the health food stores! See this article: http://darwinian-medicine.com/ask-eirik-how-many-bacteria-are-there-in-sauerkraut/. And at least three alternative doctors/practitioners told me personally to have bone broth soup specifically for leukemia.  These are both healing foods. The Weston Price Foundation is all about both these foods. They have local chapters that teach classes on how to make your own sauerkraut and other veggies, and also how to make bone broth soup.

D’limonene and CLL. Are you eating citrus? I was doing very well eating whole oranges 5X/week. I had them in my smoothie. (Organic, of course.) (I’m not able to do that anymore for a non-CLL reason, but this is a very healthy thing to eat. The peel has d-limonene, which is specifically anti-leukemia.) So if you’re already having a smoothie, add that orange (or lemon or grapefruit or lime). Here is a study about that from a search on “Dlimonene Leukemia”: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17169807

Vitamin D3 and CLL. What about vitamin D3? have you had it tested? Your level in a Vit D hydroxy test should be somewhere between 70 and 100, in order to battle cancer. I takek 9000 IU of vit D3 every day, and test my levels about 4X a year. (It’s a blood test.) I also take at least one vitamin K2 pill/day to balance out my vitamin D3!There are also studies that indicate that D3 helps people with CLL. Here is one from a “Vitamin D Leukemia” search: https://www.oncologynurseadvisor.com/leukemia/vitamin-d-deficiency-increased-risk-leukemia/article/463796/

Other ways to get well. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you avoiding toxins? Are you taking Peak Immune by Daiwa? (check out LuckyVitamins.com, for the best deal.) I have a comprehensive list of what to do in this article: http://www.cllalternatives.com/2017/11/cll-diagnosis-15-natural-things-to-do/.  Please read and re-read this. Getting well is a process. It’s good to revisit things you know you should do, that you haven’t gotten to yet.

Remember that the C in CLL is for Chronic. Generally, this is a slow-moving illness, giving us time to work on our wellness. An important part of getting well is to think of yourself as well, and to expect to be here for the long haul. Visualize yourself in your eighties. Think of what life will be like then. I know it’s really hard to conquer the fear, but there is joy and life on the other side!  I remember when I first became Macrobiotic in 2005. That is what helped me conquer the fear. At that time, my WBC had jumped into the 20s, so like you, I felt the end was near. It wasn’t! But early July, it will be 17 years and counting. If it’s like this for me, it can be like this for you, too. Hang in there, and allow yourself some happy thoughts. Do something fun and get away from it for a while, and then double down with one or two new things to add to your wellness plan.

Wishing you peace and the best of health!

– Denise