It’s Only NaturalChapter XII
Bloodless SurgeryBy bloodless surgery, I mean a treatment that changes or alters the position or placement of bodily parts without actually cutting the skin itself. Most bloodless surgery is performed on the abdomen, because the physician's fingers can most advantageously work in this area. Many forms of internal distress respond to this classic but little known therapy- pyloric spasm, nervous indigestion, gastritis, adhesions due to surgery, constipation and certain types of spastic colitis often give way to this therapy.
Long before I became a physician, I read an article in the Readers Digest entitled "The Man with the Miraculous Hands," which described a doctor Felix Kersten, who lived in Germany before and during World War II. Kersten had the reputation of being able to correct many abdominal disorders without surgery by using certain manipulations performed on the abdomen. Heinrich Himmler, then in charge of the S.S. in Germany and one of that country's most powerful and feared men, was afflicted with occasional severe attacks of abdominal pain that were beyond the ability of Germany's best physicians to alleviate. Himmler had heard of this so called "Doctor with the miracle hands," and had his storm troopers bring him to his headquarters.
When Kersten arrived, he examined Himmler and declared that he could alleviate the abdominal cramps. Kersten would take no pay for his work, but requested that certain people then held in custody by Himmler be freed. Himmler responded characteristically by threatening to torture Kersten if he didn't help him. Kersten admitted that Himmler could do this if he so desired, but of course if he were tortured or killed, Himmler would never obtain help for his condition. This answer increased Himmler's rage, which also increased the severity of his abdominal distress.
In desperation, Himmler agreed to free the hostages, but only if the doctor's treatments were successful. Kersten accepted the challenge and set to work. After a few minutes of manipulative therapy on Himmler's abdomen, the pain disappeared. The Nazi was so elated that he ordered the prisoners released. His condition returned at various times during the ensuing years, however. Whenever it did, Himmler immediately sent for Kersten. Each time he was called, Kersten requested the same fee, and each time Himmler relented and certain "enemies of the Reich" were released.
After I became a physician, I ruminated on two aspects of this story that had originally interested me. First, that functional abdominal pain could be severe enough to cause even a fanatic such as Himmler to meet demands directly opposed to his interests. Second, I conjectured that if Kersten could correct such severe abdominal pain by simple manipulation, why couldn't I do the same?
In my early practice, I encountered patients with problems similar to those of Himmler. Because there was often no ready medical answer to some of their difficulties, I began experimental manipulations of the abdomen. In most patients, I found tension directly over the solar plexus (the section just below the ribs and above the navel). By careful palpation of this area, I often found hard nodular accumulations beneath the upper fatty layer of tissue. With gentle manipulation of these areas, I found I could reduce this tension and encourage the hard knots to disappear.
As the knots disappeared, my patients' difficulties also disappeared. In time, I felt that I had discovered many of Kersten's secrets. I later found that the methods I had developed were related to a technique known as bloodless surgery and they had been used in one form or another by physicians in the natural field more than seventy years. While the relaxing work just described usually creates its beneficial effects through reflex influence of the solar plexus (a large autonomic nerve center behind the stomach also known as the abdominal brain of celiac plexus), many other types of movements are utilized in the full breadth of bloodless surgery.Pyloric Spasm and Nervous Stomach
A common problem encountered in digestive disorders is a spasm of the pylorus part of the stomach (Distal end). This area of the stomach has several circular muscles that must contract and relax to enable the proper release of food into the small intestine after it has been thoroughly digested by the stomach. In some patients this stressed muscle will become spastic, causing a disorderly release of the stomach contents. This in turn can produce symptoms very similar to those of a gastric ulcer. Upon X-ray examination, if no ulcer if found, the diagnosis of a nervous stomach is made and tranquilizers or antispasmodics are given. Sometimes, these drugs are effective, but all too often the pyloric spasm is not affected by their action. However, a pyloric spasm usually responds well to bloodless surgery. In treating this condition, we generally use a deep penetrating twist directly over the pylorus, performed using both hands simultaneously. This usually breaks the immediate spasm. After this movement, the solar plexus treatment is given as previously described. In some patients this treatment may need to be repeated several times before complete recovery is assured. However, it is a rare pylorus that doesn't eventually succumb to this therapy. This is another treatment given us by the prolific Dr. Linke.
The so-called nervous stomach may or may not be a true nervous stomach, because pyloric spasm is often diagnosed as such. A true nervous stomach usually responds well to the basic solar plexus therapy.
Adhesions
Adhesions are fibrous bands of tissues that can form from fluids that develop during almost any type of surgery. Adhesions most commonly develop in the abdomen and when not too tenacious or thick, can often be stretched or even freed from their attachments by the proper use of bloodless surgery.
In this type of treatment, the physician first palpates the abdomen to determine if there is a lack of proper movement of the various parts. If he finds a restriction, he can usually be certain that there are adhesions in this area. If he is knowledgeable in anatomy and bloodless surgery, he can find the attachments of the adhesions and calculate what forces are needed to either stretch or free them from these attachments. I usually work toward stretching adhesions because I find it very difficult even by bloodless surgery to break an adhesion. Even if one can be broken, the damage caused by this action might produce more adhesions that could be more troublesome than the original problem. Because the major difficulty caused by adhesions is their tendency to prevent parts and organs from moving freely, thereby interfering with their normal blood and nerve supply, the stretching of adhesions to provide more normal movement for parts and organs usually produces results as beneficial as those gained by adhesion removal.
When the adhesions are old and thick, poor results are to be expected from this method. If the patient tends to form adhesions readily, orthodox surgery is also a poor risk, because there is no way of being sure that surgery for adhesion removal will not cause even more adhesions. For these patients.we usually use a combined therapy of bloodless surgery, herbal colonic therapy and, in women, pelvic manipulative therapy, plus the various modalities that encourage circulation such as surging sine wave, diathermy, and the Magnatherm. With this type of therapy, these patients are usually greatly relieved of their previous distress. Although the treatment may need to be repeated occasionally, it is rare that a patient is not satisfied with its usefulness.
Recently we are using the MicroLight 830 to help these conditions. Preliminary results are encouraging.Manipulation of the Lower Bowel
Manual manipulation of the lower abdomen can often be of great use in treating constipation and colitis. It is one of the few methods I have found that may be of immediate value in ulcerative colitis. Because ulcerative colitis seems to depend greatly on the integrity of the nervous system, the manipulative work on the tissues that reflex to the solar plexus combined with gentle manipulative therapy over the colon itself has proven of great aid. This is not a cure, but it does aid in reducing the irritation and in reversing the adverse emotional effects on the large bowel that are so often present in these patients.
Constipation can be caused by many problems, but the proper use of bloodless surgery can be a real help in revitalizing a poorly functioning colon.
Mucous colitis also responds well to manipulation of the bowel. In general, however, this is carried out at the same time that the herbal colon therapy is given. Thus, with this therapy two types of treatment are given simultaneously. It is perhaps this combination that makes our colon therapy as effective as it is.