How I Healed My Breast Cysts Naturally

Finding a breast lump is scary business. I’d like to start this post by acknowledging the absolute terror of that experience along with gratitude that it wasn’t cancer.  I am well and happy to be sharing this story with all of you. Recently, I found two lumps, one large and one small. Though I had also found several small lumps in the past, they were never anything like this, as those turned out to be fibrocystic tissue.  

​These lumps were definitely different. One of them was huge, and there was no question that it was there and it was real. The morning after I found it, I even had a friend check it for me. After feeling it, she shrieked and jumped away from me. She acted how I felt...scared.

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I had these two lumps, but my logical, rational self also knew that they didn’t have any of the “signs” of cancer.  The large one moved around really easily, it was smooth and round, and was kind of soft. Did I mention it was huge and I was scared?  My fear was intertwined with my already present physical and emotional fatigue. I found the lumps at the end of a really tough time and felt so incredibly overwhelmed by the idea of another big thing, more possible pain and potential loss. I was scared that the stress has been so much that I now had cancer.  

If you know me, you know that there aren't many things that take me into a doctor's office. This one did! When I first went in, the nurse practitioner told me that she “would feel comfortable telling her sister that it was fine and not to worry.”  She believed they were simple cysts. That made me feel better for like a minute. I was told to keep an eye on it through my menstrual cycle, see if it changed, and contact her in six weeks.  That was a long six weeks, but after the first day or two of paralyzing terror, the real me began to emerge. I started my “I’m going to heal this damn thing” process. 

There’s this part of me that emerges when I’m told that “there’s nothing that can be done and these things just happen.” My inner healer goes a little crazy and the late night research, connecting with other practitioners, tuning into myself, looking at my food choices, visualisations, and mantras began in full force.  The more research I did, the more I understood what my body was telling me. I was tired, run down, traumatized, lost and afraid. My blood wasn’t filtering properly. I was stuck structurally (I had tightness all throughout my chest and left arm as well). My liver was stagnant and energy was not moving through my body. No wonder my body had developed these two cysts!

Six weeks later, I went in for an ultrasound.  They were both simple fluid filled cysts. I was advised to leave them alone,  or if I continued to feel discomfort, I could pursue aspiration. Another big “no thanks”!  

I was deeply relieved and also determined.

So, I created the protocol below and followed it pretty religiously for a couple of months, and  continued with much of it for a total of 6 months. Everything that I read about dissolving cysts held true for me. Soon the cysts began to dissolve and shrink. The cysts continued to stay almost the same for several months and then one day I checked and they were completely gone!!!  I had the same friend feel for the cysts again and she couldn’t believe it. All of my practitioners were pretty amazed as well. Since dissolving the cysts, I have experienced the same sensation and tightness in that area several times since and just gone back to the protocol below to resolve it!

Here’s what I did....

Overview: 
From a natural medicine, or root cause perspective, cysts are like little garbage pails in the body.  When there are toxins in the body, or the lymphatic system has restricted flow, our bodies put toxins into a little package. This is the cyst.  Never forget the incredible intelligence of the body! To dissolve simple fluid filled cysts, the system needs to be cleansed out and the toxins need to be able to leave the body. 

Another way to view breast cysts is through Traditional Chinese Medicine and Liver Qi stagnation. I found this tremendously helpful as TCM address the body, mind and spirit. We develop Liver Qi stagnation though poor diet, toxins, frequent or strong emotional upsets, and stress. As you can imagine, TCM recommends that to address the symptoms of breast cysts, it is important to eat healthy, fresh foods, detoxify the body, clear emotional blocks, seek counseling, get regular exercise, and manage stress. Conventional treatment suggests something very similar!  I addressed this from all angles.

1. Nightly Bentonite Clay Breast Packs: 
To make a bentonite clay pack, make a thick slurry with either bentonite clay or zeolite clay and some coconut oil. The consistency should be like a think paste (think toothpaste).  Pack the past onto the breast on top of the lump, extending it out around the lump an inch or so. Then, take a cloth/plastic bandage and tape on with medical tape that is safe for skin. Sleep the whole night with this pack on your breast. Rinse off in the morning. Repeat every night. Upon waking, drink a lot of warm lemon water to flush your system.

2. Do this breast lymph massage three times a day:
This breast massage is super simple. I found this video online and it is great. It will get your lymph moving in your breast which will help to drain the toxins in your cyst. If your breasts tend to feel painful and/or fibrousy, just do this exercise and the pain will decrease significantly.  It really works. I did this breast lymph massage three times a day with frankincense, lavender, and lemon in a carrier oil like coconut or jojoba. I moved from significant breast tenderness to almost none after only a couple of days.

3. Follow a liver cleansing diet:
Food is medicine! To remove toxins and dissolve breast cysts, choose a whole food and easy to digest diet.  The goal is to get the body the nutrients it needs, as easily as possible, without creating additional strain, stagnation, or congestion for the liver, The body needs healthy fats, protein, fiber and lots of minerals! A liver cleansing diet requires less fat and fewer heavy proteins. To cleanse the liver, and therefore clean out the blood and lymphatic system, we need to increase our cleansing foods and decrease our building foods. Below are the basics for a cyst dissolving diet.  As always, listen to your body to determine what is best for you!
Foods to Avoid:

• Sugar
• Processed foods
• Caffeine
• Alcohol
• Excess Dairy, consider using only aged/ fermented dairy or none at all
• Gluten
• Soy
• Most grains, feel free to add sprouted quinoa or rice once per day
• Too many starchy carbs
• Processed meats and too much meat in general
• Hydrogenated oils and too many oil rich foods (even healthy fats)
• Strictly no processed foods
• Chocolate
• Bananas

Food to Enjoy:

• Lemon and other citrus
• Garlic
• Fermented foods
• Root vegetables and squashes
• Leafy greens
• Broccoli Sprouts, Cilantro, Parsley
• Some fruit, especially green apples or berries
• Avocado and other healthy fats
• Cruciferous vegetables (cauliflower, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, etc.)
• Wild caught fish
• Free-range chicken and turkey
• Bone broth
• Fresh pressed green and fruit juices (lots of these!)
• Nuts, such as walnuts and almonds, preferably sprouted, but not too many
• Seeds, such as pumpkin, chia and flax
• Beets and beet greens
• Tumeric
• Tomato sauces

A daily diet of raw fresh green juice or raw vegetables can help cleanse the liver, blood, and lymphatic system.  Watch out here for digestive symptoms and move towards steamed vegetables if you develop spleen and digestive chi deficiency. Be sure that all vegetables are organic and fresh. Juicing allows us to have the cleansing benefits of vegetables, with less strain on digestion. This is important for a stressed liver and digestive system! For juicing, add carrots, beets, cucumber, celery, cilantro, or parsley. For meals, add sweet potatoes, beet greens, spinach, garlic, citrus fruit, avocado, and tomato sauces into your diet whenever possible. Eat less meat and no dairy. Don't overdo it on nuts. Walnuts are the best nut for the liver. Lastly, add herbs such as milk thistle, dandelion, and tumeric.

4. Tune in and address the emotional cause: 
I found my breast cysts after a challenging, exhausting, and trauma filled time in my life. I knew that my emotional fatigue was affecting my well being and it was impacting me physically.  Over the years, I have referred back to Louise Hay's book "Heal Your Body" and her healing affirmations and emotional causes of disease have always been so spot and meaningful as a part of my healing.  Here's what I learned about the cysts in my left breast 

From Louise Hay:
“BREAST (left):Feeling unloved, refusal to nourish oneself. Putting everyone else first."
Affirmation: "I am loved and nourished by all around me"
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Of course! I was in the midst of deep soul growth on learning to love myself.  I felt unloved by myself and others. I was deeply afraid. I had lost my sense of self, my connection to my sacred feminine.  I was caring for everyone else above myself and I had endured significant emotional trauma. Loving myself and prioritizing deeply nourishing my mind, body, and spirit was necessary for my healing.

I committed to the affirmation as well as a daily practice of self love, emotional clearing, and energetic cleansing. I committed to these 9 Daily Practices of Energy Cleansing.  I began tuning in regularly to my body and specifically my breasts.  I learned to feel the energy flowing through my left breasts or notice when it was not.  I acknowledged my emotions and deliberately released them.

5. Lifestyle and Exercise:
If you have breast cysts or liver qi stagnation, it’s time to get moving!  Moving stagnation, toxins, and blocked emotions requires moving your body. If you have liver stagnation along with blood deficiency, you will need to also be careful to get enough calories from your diet to not further aggravate the liver. In addition to exercise, find time to take it easy, listen to your body, and nourish yourself! If you have breast cysts, your body is giving you a clear message that you need to cleanse and move. Find a balance between action and rest. For more on cleansing the liver you can go HERE.

6. Additional ways to heal breast cysts through moving and transmuting energy: 
There are so many ways to shift energy in the body. Many people, myself included, stick to food as the best way to move energy and heal and as I said before, food is medicine! However, there are so many other ways to transmute negative or blocked energy in the body and access our innate ability to heal. For me, food is always a part of my healing, but my diet is rarely the problem. With these breast cysts, I knew that I needed to dig deeper.  I went to massage and chiropractic to open up my left chest and shoulder. I was amazed at how stuck my left side was and how long I had been ignoring that reality. The massage was excruciating and emotional. I was holding on to a lot! Going regularly for these treatments along with acupuncture and energy healing helped me to move the energy out of my breast and restore flow to my stomach and liver meridians as well as my lymphatic system.  As soon as all of the energy starting flowing again and I had cleaned out my system, the cysts dissolved!

This experience is a reminder to me of just how amazing the body is and how we are truly capable of healing from within! It’s so important to me that women know that they can heal breast cysts naturally and especially that we are all always able to activate our innate ability to heal!  We have infinite opportunities to tune in and listen. Our bodies are giving us messages and there's a reason that certain symptoms are showing up. If we listen, and pay attention to the physiology of the body process, while at the same time accessing our spirit, many times we are able to heal ourselves! 

Sending you all deep healing- Mitten