"Gerson Therapy" in Tijuana, Mexico

by OrphanCrow 8 Replies latest watchtower medical

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  OrphanCrow

  Since at least back to the 1960s in Canada, JWs have been travelling to Mexico for cancer treatment. And, I believe, other medical treatments.

  Because I watched my uncle die of cancer back in 1962, unable to receive treatment because the doctors couldn't operate without blood, I have always been curious as to why the JWs with cancer were going to Mexico. My aunt and uncle didn't have the money to go to Mexico and instead went to Vancouver for some kind of treatment.

  I just read a post on reddit that named the cancer therapy in Mexico that the JWs often elect for treatment.

  The Gerson Therapy.

  Developed by Max Gerson, a German-born physician who immigrated to the States in 1936, bringing with him his ideas on how to cure cancer and...well, almost anything. Except, his ideas and methods were not able to be proven and are, in fact, dangerous.

  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Gerson

  It is interesting to note that his therapy included not using aluminum cookware. Sound familiar?

  http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/complementaryandalternativemedicine/dietandnutrition/gerson-therapy

  The methods and ideas that are used in Gerson Therapy reflect much of the early 'medical' advice given to the Bible Students back in the days of pre-JW. The early Consolation magazines of the 1920s and 30s endorse many of the same methods and principles that Max Gerson was promoting in his therapy. And, Gerson would have shared the anti-AMA sentiments of the Watchtower in the time he spent in New York prior to his therapy being banned in the States.

  I now understand the attraction to Mexico for medical treatment for JWs.
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  FayeDunaway

  What I heard about this is anecdotal. There was a rancher who had cows who ate grass from a certain hill. He noticed the cows who had abnormal growths would eat the grass from this hill and the growths would go away. So a doctor made a concoction using the special mix of greenery from the hill and blends it together in an herbal shake and gives it to cancer patients.

  The nuttier sort of witness falls for this. I actually can't read the right hand side of your post above, but I heard that this is part of the Gerson Therapy, if not the main part. But these ARE witnesses we are talking about, delusional people susceptible to pipe dreams.
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  blondie

  Were these 2 guys related - Hoxsey

  http://www.ighome.com/search.aspx?q=hoxsey&cx=partner-pub-9759840060944682:1937503931&cof=FORID:10&ie=UTF-8
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  OrphanCrow

  Blondie, I hadn't heard of Hoxsey Therapy before. After reading http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoxsey_Therapy, I would think that Hoxsey would fit hand in glove with those early Watchtower quack doctors.

  Maybe it was the Hoxsey Therapy that was being sought after by JWs in the early 60s. I notice after reading more about Gerson Therapy, that it wasn't established in Mexico until the late 70s.

  Faye, what you describe resembles the Hoxsey Therapy rather than the Gerson Therapy. Sorry about the right side of my post - I don't know how to fix that.

  Regardless, they are both questionable and dangerous 'cures'. Which makes those quack cures prime candidates for people gullible enough to believe that 7 men in New York have a direct line to some gawd in the sky.
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  Faded

  It's Hoxsey that has the Canadians flocking to Mexico (at least in my part of Canada). I know of many people who swear by it. They feel it cured their cancer.

  And then there are those that are not alive. I can think of a few of those too. Although some had exhausted their options with traditional medicine and when to Mexico as a last resort. So they may have been unsavable with any course of treatment. IDK. I have mixed feelings about it. I know western medicine isn't the be all to end all though.
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  oppostate

  Which one is the therapy of black coffee enemas and liquefied sheep pancreas shakes?

  I've known three Witnesses who went to Mexico to treat their cancer with this nonsense, all died within a year of their refusal to go the usual radiation treatments followed by chemotherapy.

  The Witness religious culture breeds mistrust for science and medicine, preferring the sensationalized pseudo-scientific cure claims of quackery. Elders are right there of course to aid in the making of wills to leave money and assets to the WT.
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  Gulf Coaster

  I can't understand how squirting coffee up your butt does anything. Why not drink it? Gerson also wants you to stand around all day making juice out of pounds and pounds of organic fruit and veg. Why not just eat the stuff at meal time? It makes no sense but desperate people will do desperate things. And get their life-savings drained, then dying anyway.

  Problem is there is no one cancer. There are many cancers that require different treatments. They've made a lot of headway for cancers like childhood leukemia and breast cancer but for many cancers there's still way more research needed. And some cancers are just plain incurable, for now. Yes, chemo and radiation are awful and oftentimes don't work wonders but paying scamsters tens of thousands for unproven "treatments" where most everybody dies, makes no sense at all. The ones who survive, if you dig deep enough, have had surgery and chemo/radiation, but they tout the "alternative" treatment as being the reason for their success. Because it gives them a sense of empowerment, like they cured themselves versus helplessly depending on the cold hand of the medical establishment.

  People are free to choose whatever they want for their medical treatment. Me, I'll go with the regular medical world. They don't promise 100% because they realistically, truthfully can't make that promise. Cancer sucks that way. The scamsters will promise wonders and guaranteed cures, which for me is a warning sign. Then if it doesn't work and you die, they blame you for not following their protocols 1000%, or for stuffing up something along the way, or maybe not believing enough. It's never them, it's all your fault. Another warning sign.
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  eyeuse2badub

  I live in California and know many,many jw's that have gone to TJ, Mexico for cancer, arthritis treatment. To be honest, I think it's a crap shoot. Some are helped and some just die. Cancer treatment in the USA has basically the results. I really think the excitement for many jw's in going to Mexico was the clandestine nature of having to 'smuggle' the "tonic" back across the border. Kinda like having to go "underground" because of persecution.

  I just lost a very dear friend, only 51 years old, to a rare form of leukemia. The only 'real' option the US doctors offered was blood transfusions which they admitted only produced a 10% survival rate. So off to TJ, Mexico we went for the "tonic". $1,100.00 was the cost for the "tonic" and he died a week later. RIP.

  just saying!

  eyeuse2badub
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  rebel8

  Yeah, Gerson is dangerous, as are many woo treatments that dubs and other fundies flock to.

  I periodically post about "alt med" on my cult prevention blog because wooism mirrors cults in so many ways. Dubs are ripe for it. It requires rejection of logic, facts, skepticism and science.

  I personally was a victim of it. My jw parent rejected appropriate medical care for "alt med" and 1930s-style jw healing. Not only did the rejection of medical care severely endanger me--my condition was made worse by herbs.

  I was also essentially required to enter an "alt med" training program so I could fund my pioneering. The training program consisted of 2 days in a fellow dub's living room, talking about macrobiotics, iridology, acupuncture, qi, herbs and other poppycock.

  But it was all legit though because we had an anatomy book.