Curing Hip Bursitis? I may be!

Well as I mentioned in my last post, my time seems to be more and more limited. I have spent ALOT of time working on myself. As you could tell from reading past posts (or if you are new) I have been dealing with hip bursitis for about a year and a half. I got diagnosed with it while working at my last job. I was a coffee roaster and it is VERY physically demanding. Because of it, I dropped off the raw wagon and gained 30 lbs. I was working 60 hours a week so I ate what ever was available (always vegan of course). After leaving my job I have been able to get 1/2 of my life back. I dropped half of the weight and got back on track with my lifestyle.

I used to be an avid runner. I couldnt wake up in the morning without lacing up my shoes and heading out the door.  After being diagnosed with hip bursitis I couldn't walk without limping. My life completely changed. I was devastated and the thought of never being able to be active was killing me.

I started taking MSM and it helped DRAMATICALLY with my inflammation and overall pain. I was able to lightly jog and not be keeled over in pain. It took about a week for me to notice any benefits and about a month to notice amazing benefits. Some days my pain was completely gone....others it was just barely there. My problem was remembering to take on days I had zero pain. When the pain is gone, you tend to focus on other things.

I am now running nearly at my peak from over 2 years ago and quickly moving even past that! I take my MSM after all my runs when my body is depleted and willing to absorb more vitamins and minerals. I figure that is the best time for it to go into those joints and rebuild! Somedays I will even take it before and after my runs. Especially if I plan on running higher mileage. My body is very sensitive to MSM and if I 'mega dose' then I have a very hard time sleeping. I have mega dosed twice now (taking twice the recommended value) in hopes to play 'catch up' and rebuild the damage to the joints I accrued over the last year or so.

I believe that MSM in conjunction to a 100% raw lifestyle is slowly curing me of my hip bursitis. Raw foods (fruits and veggies) are naturally inflammatory by design clearly making them the ideal foods, especially for ones with joint pain. Now, this has all been done with no physical therapy and no prescription medications. I am not saying to not consider those options but it is what worked for myself. I probably would have done physical therapy if I could have afforded it!

My hip bursitis is not completely gone and I can feel it hiding in my hips at times but I have found a way to manage it and subside it, making me able to go about living my life! Good things can happen when you take care of yourself! I hope I can stay on this path of freedom from pain but only time will tell.

If anyone out there has hip bursitis or any other bursitis for that matter dont give up hope. You have to fight to keep your body working at it's peak performance. I only hope the story can inspire people who deal with constant pain.

On my next post I want to talk about another 'supplement' (I really hate that word) I attribute to some of my running success. It keeps me feeling strong and powerful while giving me endurance!

Cheers!

MSM (Methy Sulfonyl Methane)

Approximately 1 month ago I started taking this supplement MSM for a variety of reasons. Many Raw enthusiasts recommend it due to its help in detoxifying the body, while others seem to be a bit more excited about its 'supposed' beauty benefits. Either way, my curiosity was peaked and decided to do a bit more research on this much talked about supplement.

I found some great information on MSM here as well as on this site. There are MANY more informational sites available but you will notice a lot of them go over the same concepts.

I myself am damn glad I found MSM and believe it is responsible for quit a few things! On the beauty front, my hair and nails are growing faster than usual. I feel like thats really saying something because even on a Raw diet alone, hair and nails seem to grow a bit quicker. I don't know if the MSM play a part of this but even the whites of my eyes are brighter. I  have worn contacts now for 15 years and my optometrist noticed some broken blood vessels roughly 2 months ago, during my last visit. I had wondered why my eyes always seemed a bit red! Now, they are gradually turning more white. I cant even notice the red anymore on the sides!

My skin is also reaping some pretty damn amazing benefits. I have always been blessed with freakishly great skin. If there were problems, it was only that it was on the slightly dry side. I never went through an acne faze and the only time I ever 'broke out' was three years ago when I went 100% raw. Overall, there was nothing a moisturizing lotion couldn't take care of. Over the past month I have used a moisturizing lotion maybe once a week and thats only because it is out of habit. David Wolfe describes MSM as  "producing a flame like tint in the skin and creating a subtle lustre as delicate as the halo around the full moon on a clear desert evening." I have never thought that my skin could use improving but seeing these results has changed my mind. 


After some research that I have done I saw that it is also great for repairing scar tissue. I am hoping this is the case but have yet to notice any results. I am using MSM as well as the Dry Brushing method to produce the results I am hoping for. I was not expecting immediate results in the scar tissue arena so I will keep you posted on the MSM and Dry Brushing combo!


The number one reason this supplement seemed so desirable to me were the claims that is helps with muscular pain and sever arthritis. Roughly 8 months ago I developed Hip bursitis in BOTH hips due to my previous job as a Coffee Roaster. I was limping for 4 months and in just plain pain for the other 4. My Doctor told me it was something that CAN go away but in many cases it can be something I may have to cope with for the rest of my life. I had to stop running which was the biggest let down. I was an avid runner (prior to my job, working 60-70 hrs a week) and ran 5-7 miles everyday. Running was the best part of my life for a very long time! I have since had to hang up my running shoes. 


Since I have taken MSM, I have noticed a significant drop in my hip and back pain. I refuse to be inactive so I still workout on a regular basis. Instead of running, it is now elliptical training and cycling. It's not nearly as fun or effective for me but I'll take what I can get. My boyfriend also rocks and does the elliptical with me! The fact that I am able to continue to work out 5 days a week and my pain is is at a mild to medium intensity is AMAZING! It has only been a month of taking this product so I am looking forward to the results I see further down the road.




I would highly recommend taking this supplement if your looking for a natural way to help relieve pain, looking for some beauty benefits or am looking for something to help with detox. If you are brand new to the Raw lifestyle it could be a greta supplement to help with the transition!


I'll keep you posted on the results I find down the road! 
Cheers and good health!