If you’ve been dealing with sluggish liver and gallbladder symptoms this blog post is for you! It can be hard dealing with symptoms; some being skin rashes, blood sugar imbalances, fatigue, and upper right abdominal pain. Along with poor digestion, brain fog, allergies, indigestion, reflux, inability to digest fats. Other symptoms can be feeling sick after a fatty meal and having pain in your upper right abdomen after eating. Good news is there are plenty of ways to support these organs day to day to achieve healing!
The Liver and Gallbladder
Contrary to popular belief, most gallbladder removals are unnecessary and in many cases leave the patient still suffering with symptoms. The liver and gallbladder work hand in hand. Which is why if you are dealing with a sluggish liver, the gallbladder most likely needs support too. Eating a meal that has fat triggers the gallbladder to contract and use bile to break down the fat. The liver is what manufactured our bile flow production. A healthy and properly functioning liver is how we get enough bile production so proper breakdown can take place. The bile thats made by the liver will then get stored in the gallbladder for use when eating meals that contain fat.
We need proper bile flow production so the gallbladder can do its job properly. Also to help break down fats from our meals. When the liver is sluggish bile flow becomes stagnant, this is where you start to see the gallbladder malfunction. AKA dealing with those common sluggish gallbladder symptoms. Some like inability to digest fat and pain with eating meals that contain fat. The bile produced from the liver can be little to none or it will become thick and sludge like. Which makes it harder for the gallbladder to contract the way it should. Having bile thicken and turn to sludge is where the gallbladder really starts having a hard time working normally. This is when we start to develop symptoms of gallstones/bilestones since the gallbladder has become congested and clogged.
Herbs That Support the Liver and Gallbladder
Milk thistle is anti-inflammatory & antioxidant rich. It also helps to promote bile flow, supports the liver, and aids in detoxification. MT is best known for naturally rebuilding liver cells and removing toxins from the body. Some like heavy metals, pesticides, and pollutants). MT is used in the mainstream medical field to treat diseases of the liver and even viral hepatitis.
Dandelion Root is high in vitamins and antioxidants. Some are silymarin, silibinin, curcumin, berberine, polyphenols, beta-carotene, and resveratrol. DR helps support the liver by protecting it from oxidative stress and lowering inflammation. Along with that, it works to prevent cell damage and detoxify the gallbladder & liver. Working to detoxify things like heavy metals, pollutants, and pesticides). DR is a great source of fiber and helps to support the liver by slowing down the absorption of sugar in the bloodstream. It’s good to note that our liver regulates blood glucose levels.
Chanca piedra works to help the liver detox, promote healthy liver enzyme levels, and promote healthy liver function. CP works to naturally break down and dissolve bilestones & gallstones. It also helps the gallbladder function properly, alleviate the pain associated with gallstones and sluggish liver/gallbladder. Some of its best known properties are: antilithic (expelling stones), pain-relieving, hypotensive, antispasmodic, antiviral, antibacterial, diuretic, antimutagenic. CP also contains an alkaloid (phyllanthoside) which acts as a relaxing agent to smooth muscles. The spasmolytic property is why CP is so good at expelling stones from the liver and gallbladder.
Ginger root is anti-inflammatory and antioxidant rich. A main component of ginger is gingerol which most of its healing properties come from. It works great to stimulate bile flow production, protect against liver fibrosis, and protect against nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. It also reduces oxidative stress in the liver. GR is primarily used for general stomach upset, calming nausea and morning sickness. Also immune support, improving blood pressure, and improving blood circulation. But aside from the traditional uses, it works wonders at supporting the liver and reducing inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract.
Peppermint contains anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antispasmodic and antimicrobial properties. It works great at lowering inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract (including the liver and gallbladder) and protecting the liver from toxins. Reducing inflammation and alleviating pain is key to supporting the liver and gallbladder while naturally softening gallstones/bilestones at home. This is a huge reason why peppermint can be a great aid in healing from something like sluggish liver/gallbladder or gallstones/bilestones.
Enema History
Coffee enemas have been around since late 1800’s to help speed up healing following surgeries and to combat cases of accidental poisoning. Enemas have been used for a long time to help restore the gastrointestinal tract, colon function, and overall health. They’re a very traditional way to naturally cleanse the colon and support the liver, gallbladder, pancreas, and duodenum. Mainstream medicine often tries to demonize enemas because they’d rather sell you a product that’s full of toxic and harmful chemicals that actually don’t support your colon. Those products actually cause long term issues and disease within the gastrointestinal tract and gut microbiome. Some like miralax, dulcolax, exlax, magnesium citrate, pepto bismal, buscopan, nauzene, gasx, imodium, bloateze, tums, omeprazole, etc.
When you do a coffee enema, caffeine and other compounds travel via the hemorrhoidal vein to the liver, as mentioned above. Then the coffee opens up blood vessels, relaxes smooth muscles that help with bowel movements, and improves circulation. Then caffeine makes it’s way to the liver and helps to open up bile ducts. Opening up the bile ducts increase the production of bile flow that’s needed for proper digestion and excretion of bile sludge.
Castor Oil Packs Work Wonders
Our liver filters over 1.4 liters of blood per minute to remove toxins, waste products, pathogens, and cellular debris. Castor oil enhances both Phase I and Phase II of our liver detoxification pathways to clear these substances more efficiently. We can improve our detoxification by the use of castor oil packs that work to protect against many chronic diseases by preserving liver function. CO packs also helps lead to balance hormones, improved immunity and energy, clear skin, and improved lymphatic drainage.
Castor oil contains such strong anti-inflammatory properties that it helps to lower inflammatory markers like C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin 6 (IL-6). In turn, this helps decrease swelling and inflammation in liver tissue caused by toxins, processed foods, preservatives, pesticides, pathogens, high iron, medications, chronic alcohol use, autoimmunity, and metabolic issues. CO packs also help us with weight loss and breaking down fatty deposits. Which then helps to restore normal fat processing and prevents further accumulation to reverse non alcoholic liver disease.
CO packs help to relieve constipation by helping elimination through the intestines. It improves many other digestive issues like bloating, cramping, and nausea by reducing gut inflammation as well. It also positively influences the nervous system from having a calming effect that makes it easier to fall asleep and get better deep sleep. Getting deep sleep gives the liver a chance to carry out its vital regeneration and detoxification processes throughout the night.
Feeling More Confident With Naturally Supporting the Liver and Gallbladder?
There are many ways we can achieve healing in a natural way. The first step to healing is to taking your health into your own hands. Learning about how our body and organs works is a great way to get the ball rolling. Symptoms are our body’s way of communicating with us. We must learn to listen to the whispers before the body decides to scream.
Just remember that healing IS possible. We are all capable of understanding whats going on in our body and what our symptoms truly need. Our symptoms are there to tell us what we need to focus on to achieve healing and homeostasis in the body.
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