Chaga mushroom grows on birch trees in very cold regions like Siberia, Canada, and some New England states. From my understanding, it came under scrutiny as a healing herb due to its use by a village of peasants in Siberia who all seem to live into their eighties and nineties. Who knows? But it's a good story. Chaga is considered an adaptogen, so it has a wide variety of uses, but it's definitely good for the circulatory system, and here's how I know.
My husband (who is the biggest non-believer in herbal remedies) started taking it about a year ago for a debilitating pain in his ankle. After two days of drinking two cups of Chaga tea a day, his ankle pain had significantly lessened. He could take the dog out for a walk, move around better, etc., and also said that he just felt "good". It was very subtle but very real. As well as the ankle pain, he also has high blood pressure, varicos veins, and prostrate issues. Within two weeks of drinking the Chaga, the huge varicos veins on his right leg just started to disappear. They are now just tiny blue lines. No raised areas. His blood pressure also leveled out so much so that the doctor reduced his prescription. The icing on this cake though, and completely unexpected, was the return of every man's early morning friend; something that the prostrate issue had been preventing.
So, my former non-believing husband is now making me batches of the tea to see what it will do for bowel integrity, hemorrhoids, and anything else it might want to adapt itself to. I'm on day two and will let you know.
You can google lots of info and see lots of youtube videos about Chaga and its uses. You can purchase it as a an extract (never tried it), dried mushroom chunk, or in tea bags. We use both. The tea bags and chunks are reusable, and the tea is easy to make and doesn't taste bad. We buy ours from a reputable source in Canada - www.fiddleheadheaven.com/chaga-mushrooms.php I don't have any affiliation with this farm but after a lot of research they seem to have a good product and reputation and it's what we use. Just wanted to pass this on, even though I sound like one of those website testimonials. I'm hoping it'll work for bowel integrity.
I"ll read your post in its entirety after my coffee. Looks good for now! Collinsonia root is good for vascular integrity. I took it when I had an episode of scarey hemorrhoids and it worked.(To be fair, the collinsonia root wasn't the only thing I took.) Hurray for your husband's enlightenment and conversion.
Post by kilg0retr0ut on May 25, 2017 4:34:14 GMT -8
I've used Chaga to start fires but had no idea it had other useful properties. I kinda live in a Chaga honey hole, stuff's all over the place. They're seems to be a argument over when best to harvest. I read it's best to harvest late fall because theres little sap, and the nutrients are at the highest levels. I've always grabbed it anytime for my use. I'm tempted to try it know with the trees just starting to bud.
I've used Chaga to start fires but had no idea it had other useful properties. I kinda live in a Chaga honey hole, stuff's all over the place. They're seems to be a argument over when best to harvest. I read it's best to harvest late fall because theres little sap, and the nutrients are at the highest levels. I've always grabbed it anytime for my use. I'm tempted to try it know with the trees just starting to bud.
Lucky you! I've been out in the woods looking but there's nothing like it around here. We burn the chunk chaga after making the tea and drying it out. It has a lovely scent. I've seen the videos about fire starting with it in Youtube. There's probably some info there about the best times to harvest etc. Let me know what you find out and whether you try the tea. We just drink ours cold, but I've heard people add honey and cinnamon to it when warm.
I've used Chaga to start fires but had no idea it had other useful properties. I kinda live in a Chaga honey hole, stuff's all over the place. They're seems to be a argument over when best to harvest. I read it's best to harvest late fall because theres little sap, and the nutrients are at the highest levels. I've always grabbed it anytime for my use. I'm tempted to try it know with the trees just starting to bud.
Morrel mushrooms! Yes, I lived one year in Illinois and there I foraged for Morrel mushrooms. I looked so hard for them that I dreamed about seeing them. It's sort of the ultimate "I spy" experience. When the season hits, it's easy to collect more Morrel mushrooms than you can cook and eat fresh. (This was long before I became SCI.) I strung and dried the over-abundance. So good. I'd like to have some again now.
Update on Chaga use. I've been drinking about 4-6 oz of tea a day for over a week now. The first three days there was no notable difference. On day 4 I realized that a rash I've had, literally for years, on my abdomen and under my breast was becoming less red and angry. It's below my injury but keeps me up some nights with spasms because it must itch. I usually slather some kind of anti-fungal or anti-itch cream on it, and it stops. It's a patchy, red rash, with raised bumps, and I've used prescription creams on it, anti jock itch stuff, anti-fungal powder, coconut oil, Butt Monkey cream, herbal oils, pau d'arco, etc. etc.. Some solutions calm it, but nothing gets rid of it. Now, it's a faded pink rash except for a small red patch on the right of my abdomen. The red, raised skin in the folds are now healthy and clear of any rash. It has completely - completely! - disappeared from under my left breast (I don't have a right one, anymore). No redness whatsoever. I'm stunned, quite honestly. My ankles, which are usually quite swollen by the end of the day, are now delightfully skinny. Hard as I press, there is NO indentation left. I don't know if it's the Chaga, but it's something. My bowel spasms that I usually experience early (2-3 a.m each day) have been so minimal the last two mornings that spasms aren't even worth mentioning. This is all very subtle and slow, and I keep thinking that maybe it's my imagination, but it's not. I hope this keeps up.
Please pm me with a link to your source of where you buy Chaga, Jaylock. Also, I'll contribute here my suggestion of diluted tea tree oil as an anti-fungal.
Please pm me with a link to your source of where you buy Chaga, Jaylock. Also, I'll contribute here my suggestion of diluted tea tree oil as an anti-fungal.
vintage, the link is in my first post, above. And thanks for the Tea Tree Oil tip. Yes, I have tried it. It lessens the redness, but doesn't completely resolve it.
Today, I ordered the chaga mushroom that jaylock recommended. I’m really looking forward to receiving it and trying it out. Also, today at the grocery store I bought a new tea strainer. It looks like a clever design and I hope I can use it in brewing chaga tea. It should at least make a nice “regular” tea. Photos below of my new (untested) Jakari tea infuser.