Testimonials...

By Candee Masters
Blessings to whoever is reading this,

The testimony you are about to read is of my husband, Lindsay. The reason for taking so long to write, is that we have waited for clinical evidence to share, and not just our opinions.

I hope that you will be encouraged, and see how we approach sickness & disease through “Aromatherapy”. There are two parts to that word, and I believe that “therapy” should capture more of our attention.

On the other-hand, please know that we are so very thankful to all the medical doctors and for modern medicine. I believe God saved Lindsay’s life through their knowledge and steady hands. There is a fine balance between Allopathic Medicine & Aromatherapy, and that is what each person has to figure out for him or herself. Therefore, the reason of this letter is to show you the decisions we made in the months following the crisis that interrupted life, as we knew it.

It was a Sunday morning at 7:30 am, on October 25th, 2009 that Lindsay suffered a mild heart attack. We went to the hospital thinking it was just a pulled muscle in his chest since he was only 48! No way could it be a heart attack, but Lindsay being a firefighter for 16 years, was not taking any chances. By 8:00 am all pain was gone, and by 10:00 am we thought how silly it was for us to have called an ambulance! So there we waited… just wanting them to do “whatever” and release us to go home.

On Monday, at 2:00 pm, they took him in to do a “Cardiac Catheterization”. Still we are thinking… they would find no blockage, and would blame it on “too much caffeine”…ha ha. Come to find out, Lindsay had a 95% blockage in his main artery, feeding 70% of his heart, and 4 smaller arteries with 60% blockage! A stint was put in the main artery, and the doctor placed Lindsay on 5 medications! (Plavix-anticoagulant, Lopressor-heart, Lisinopril-blood pressure, Simvastatin-cholesterol, and Aspirin) He said he would be on at least 4 for the rest of his life!

Well, that is where serious decision making came in for us. After talking to the heart specialist, Lindsay told him that his desire was not to be on prescription drugs for the rest of his life. The doctor set up in his chair and said, “Oh…well if you want to change your diet, get some exercise, and decide to take care of your temple… then not only will you stop any damage from happening again, your heart will reverse itself and begin to heal.” (I know what you must be thinking right now…. “The doctor said that????” Yes he did! )

Now, he did say it would take time. You see, Lindsay didn’t get that way overnight. Since he resigned from the fire department, and went into ministry full time, he has not exercised for over 8 years. Also, his favorite foods were French fries, hamburgers, bacon, ribs, wings, fried chicken and pretty much anything that wasn’t a vegetable! He ate one of these things everyday….really. I know, I know! The only thing he had done was drink 1 ounce of Ningxia Red for the past year. We truly believed that Ningxia Red had something to do with the symptoms slowing. Now, understand…. one ounce of Ningxia Red is for “maintenance”. If you have ever had any health issue, you need much more. Just like your body needs more nutrients when you have a cold or virus. It is fighting, and when sludge is in the engine, you need to do more to clean it out!

You see, Lindsay’s arteries got in bad shape from all the plaque that developed as a result of bad cholesterol. Guess where the cholesterol came from? It sure wasn’t from eating fruits and vegetables! His levels in the hospital were: LDL /160 ( bad cholesterol) & HDL / 38. (good cholesterol) Optimal Goal should be: LDL / 130 & HDL / 60. *(at the end of this letter is a chart of what LDL and HDL mean.) So, this is what we did right from the start.

• Changed diet! (Low fat, low cholesterol and no fried foods. Whole grains, (no white breads, pastas, or rice) Egg substitutes, only 2 whole eggs a week. Limited sugar intake and sweets. Change to raw honey or Stevia for all baking needs or sweeteners. Added baked fish to meals, and of’course lots of water… no soft drinks. More vegetables & fruits. Snacked on nuts, almonds, pecans, walnuts, etc. (Okay, for all those that know me, and knew that I once suffered from “stove–a-phobia”… I have been cured… I cook now…. lots! ha ha!)
• Started taking 8 Omega 3 fish oils a day. 4 in the morning, then 4 at night.
• 6 ounces of Ningxia Red a day for 4 months. (Ningxia Red is the most powerful antioxidant that is rich in soluble fiber, which is highly efficient in removing triglycerides and cholesterol from the blood and lowering the risk of heart disease. Numerous clinical studies have linked a high intake of soluble fiber will lower blood pressure and improve cardiovascular health.)
• 7 drops of Clove Oil (for heart), 7 drops of Longevity Oil (for cholesterol), and 7 drops of Aroma Life Oil (for blood pressure), in a capsule, twice a day.
• Rubbed Aroma Life, on pulse points twice a day.
• Checked blood pressure twice a day. (have machine)

Did this aggressively for the first month, along with the medications, with the exception of Lisinopril, which was for blood pressure. Went off of that after 1 week because his blood pressure started getting too low. Also, went off Simvastatin, which was for cholesterol after 1 week, because we were attacking that with diet and Ningxia Red!

Had his first 30 day check-up. His blood pressure was 128 over 77 (great), and his cholesterol levels went from LDL (bad) / 160 to 138, but his HDL (good) went from 38 to 28. By the way, this all happened in 1 month… in which the heart doctor said no drastic changes would happen in 30 days! Well, okay he was surprised. He still fussed about Lindsay not being on the blood pressure and cholesterol medicine, and really wanted him to reconsider being on the cholesterol medicine, because his HDL (good) was so low.

Okay, we did everything the same for the next 30 days, and did not go back on cholesterol med. We also noticed that Lindsay was bruising so easy, and if he had a small cut, he would bleed for a long period. “Good gosh, Candee!”, I thought to myself. Clove oil is an anticoagulant, and so is Plavix. So we backed off the Clove and Aroma Life to every other day. The bruising let up within days. This showed us that Clove oil, and Aroma life are doing the same job as Plavix! That’s when we decided to start “weaning” from the Plavix at a slow rate. Then Lindsay went back for his second check-up. Blood pressure 129 over 72 (great!)

Dropped LDL (bad) / from 138 to 128. PERFECT! But, HDL (good) went from 28 to 18!

NOT SO GOOD! It is supposed to be at 60! He came home so confused! How could his HDL be dropping so drastically? Now the doctor was really fussing. He wanted Lindsay back on Lisinopril and Simvastatin again. So, we prayed… again for wisdom.

Did some research and found out that, Niacin (vitamin B), is the main ingredient in cholesterol medicines. So, why not just take Niacin? (See research at end of letter) You see, Niacin has been found to up HDL (good) levels of cholesterol. So, now Lindsay has added 250mg of Niacin a day. Now the kicker… we couldn’t understand why his HDL (good) kept dropping… guess what….it was the side effect on one of the drugs that he had NOT went off of yet! The prescription drug “Lopressor”- heart, was the only one with Plavix that he had be taking! Lopressor is one of 8 drugs that lower your HDL (good) and don’t touch your LDL (bad)! That explained why his good (HDL) was dropping! You see, if you are on Lopressor, it lowers your good (HDL) that is why you have to be on Simvastatin, cholesterol medicine to up your good (HDL). One drug plays off the other, and that is why Lindsay’s doctor was so persistent about being on both! Love our doc., but no thanks.

So, it has been 4 months since this all was happened, and Lindsay has lost over 15 pounds. He is now at an ideal weight. (wished I was… hee hee) His blood pressure, and cholesterol levels are good, and he is now DRUG FREE! Remember, they said he would be on 4 drugs for life, if he made no lifestyle changes. We could only imagine what shape his body would be in years from now, if we didn’t make the choices we have. “Choice”… key word. This is what he is doing now, and will continue to do.

1. Eating healthier
2. Exercises 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week
3. Back on 7 drops of Clove Oil and 7 drops of Aroma Life in a capsule twice a day, everyday.
4. Rubs Aroma Life on pulse points
5. 4 ounces of Ningxia Red
6. 250mg of Niacin, and 8 Omega 3 fish oils
7. Lots of hugs and kisses to the family…. thankful he is still with us!

This journey has been such an eye opener for our family. We are all making better choices in what we eat, even though we don’t make perfect choices all the time. Our kids are learning a valuable lesson that what you eat… brings strength, or makes one weak. We all know these things, but maybe we just choose to ignore. I know we did. Please understand, that I know that there are plenty of health issues that are not brought on by eating habits, nor did you choose to have it come upon you. I just want to challenge us, to step back, do some research, and see all other options that can be available for long term use, which have no negative side effects!

When I share with others about using “Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils”, I don’t say that I use “alternative” medicine; I say that we use the “original” medicine. My husband and I are firm believers that God knew we would live in a fallen world, and he his provided what we needed when sickness comes. Did you know that oils are mentioned in the Bible over 500 times? Ezekiel 47:12 says, “The fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.”

Oils have been used for over 4500 years… and they work!

In my family’s everyday life, prayer is the number one thing we do first when sickness comes, and then we reach for the oils, instead of the Motrin. We pray over our oils, and ask God to anoint them to do in our bodies what He created them to do. Be the medicine that He designed them to be.

I know that all medicines (drugs) are plant derived. But you see, most drugs have less than 7% of how the plant started out. Some drugs have less than 2%. After all the “access” is added in at the lab, we don’t end up with 100% of the way it was intended to be used.

My family only uses “Young Living” essential oils, because I know that they are totally safe, and un-adulterated. We can ingest, diffuse, or apply to skin. There are a lot of oils out there that say on the bottle, “Topical use only, do not ingest.” Then why are you putting it on your skin? Doesn’t it go through your skin? Then you just ingested it…right?

So in conclusion, I just want to say that I never dreamed that this would be a road our lives would take. That we would be using essential oils for everything in our house, from allergies to warts. Replacing “Pepto Bismol” to “Tylenol” & every “allergy/cold medicine” you can think of. I am not a doctor, I am just a mom on a mission to tell our stories to others. I hope that Lindsay’s story inspires you, and that you share it with others as well.

I am so very thankful to those that introduced me to “Young Living”, and have mentored me for over a year now. I hope that our lives reflect our Father’s Grace, and that we can help others to see what we have seen.

God Bless & Live Well,
Candee Masters

Read the article copied from Clinical Research that I found that helped us make our decisions. (PDF)