Sweet Fellowship: Duggars and Friends (aka the Bates Family and Other Featured Families Thread)

[Temperance]

Anna Marie Maxwell posted an update about her cancer. The good news is they got it all. She's stage 2A. 

The weird news is this. WTF is natural chemo?  This doesn't sound good to me.

"We have an appointment with another oncologist on Tuesday and will see what she recommends. From there we will determine if I need chemo or anything else besides the natural chemo and supportive therapies I am already in the process of, in addition to setting up a protocol for monitoring for recurrence."

Sounds like she's using "alternative therapies" and is playing chicken with her health. 

@doodlebug I would like your opinion on this. 

[JustRosie]

7 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

Stupid question. Shrader kids can still get American citizenship right?

Not a stupid question. 

[galaxychaser]

11 minutes ago, Temperance said:

Anna Marie Maxwell posted an update about her cancer. The good news is they got it all. She's stage 2A. 

The weird news is this. WTF is natural chemo?  This doesn't sound good to me.

"We have an appointment with another oncologist on Tuesday and will see what she recommends. From there we will determine if I need chemo or anything else besides the natural chemo and supportive therapies I am already in the process of, in addition to setting up a protocol for monitoring for recurrence."

Sounds like she's using "alternative therapies" and is playing chicken with her health. 

@doodlebug I would like your opinion on this. 

Probably herbs and what not. 

[Sew Sumi]

18 minutes ago, galaxychaser said:

Probably herbs and what not. 

 "Whatnot" probably being essential oils and other forms of woo.

[65mickey]

Looking at the gift registry it looks like they are asking for 2 complete sets of kitchen utensils and 3 sets of cutlery. That seems a little strange. Three comforters maybe one for Mama Jill. Other than the rum scented body wash and the back scrubber it seem like a legit. registry I guess. Mother of the bride tokens?? 

Edited March 9, 2020 by 65mickey

[galaxychaser]

38 minutes ago, Sew Sumi said:

 "Whatnot" probably being essential oils and other forms of woo.

You are probably right.

[Chicklet]

Ugh these people. Do you know what else is natural Maxwells? Death is natural also, and they are playing roulette, which of course is always stacked against the player according to casinos. Of course if they are using Samaritan "health" plan, that is also insane and probably not enough coverage for real chemo.

[Jynnan tonnix]

32 minutes ago, Chicklet said:

Ugh these people. Do you know what else is natural Maxwells? Death is natural also, and they are playing roulette, which of course is always stacked against the player according to casinos. Of course if they are using Samaritan "health" plan, that is also insane and probably not enough coverage for real chemo.

I haven't really been following this story that closely, but if  they are sure they managed to get every trace of the cancer, maybe further treatment was deemed unnecessary. That's what happened with my cancerous colon polyp last year. They took out 6" of surrounding colon and lymph nodes in the area, and found no indication that it had spread at all, so told me to just have yearly colonoscopies, but no further treatment. If that is the case with Anna Marie, the "natural" chemotherapy will probably do no harm, and may do some good - why knows? While many/most dietary supplements and such have not been proven to work, there is still enough anecdotal evidence on many which suggests that they might do some good, and in the absence of the doctors' prescribing further treatment, it might just be a further measure to feel as though they are doing all they can. Heck, it's probably a good sign if they don't see prayer as the only possible adjunct to surgery.

[Dimi1]

I don't blame her for doing natural chemo..having worked at one time in the cancer industry I have heard oncologists go into knock down drag out fights over  the patient doing...chemo, radiation, vaccines and of all thing juicing (the juicing patients raised their red blood counts through juicing and therefor did not need the blood medicine they were prescribed)...and natural chemo could mean anything..could just be what some oncologist said to make her feel better...as in ...its more natural....also most of my patients (melanoma)....they died...except for the ones who went to mexico and did Laetrile ...which is b17 ...they are still alive...so yeah...don't blame her one bit and hope she recovers and lives a long life..

[doodlebug]

21 hours ago, Temperance said:

yes, because their parents are US citizens.

I believe their parents have to notify the US embassy of their birth in order to get citizenship for them, but it is a formality;  as long as one of the parents is an American citizen, the kids are eligible.

[doodlebug]

18 hours ago, Temperance said:

Anna Marie Maxwell posted an update about her cancer. The good news is they got it all. She's stage 2A. 

The weird news is this. WTF is natural chemo?  This doesn't sound good to me.

"We have an appointment with another oncologist on Tuesday and will see what she recommends. From there we will determine if I need chemo or anything else besides the natural chemo and supportive therapies I am already in the process of, in addition to setting up a protocol for monitoring for recurrence."

Sounds like she's using "alternative therapies" and is playing chicken with her health. 

@doodlebug I would like your opinion on this. 

The word 'natural' is not a standard medical term; therefore there is no way to know what she is talking about.  Let's face it, anything that wasn't in your body to begin with is NOT natural; so, technically, herbs and supplements are no more or less natural than standard chemo.

I saw on the blog that Anna Marie bragged that she had very little pain postop because her surgery was done with a laser.  This is bullshit; popular bullshit spread by people who do surgery with lasers and charge more for it because they can; but bullshit never the less. In general, a lumpectomy with lymph node removal is not a terribly painful surgery whether done with knife or laser and there's no data supporting the notion that laser surgery is less painful.  Sounds like Anna Marie and family are very susceptible to pitchmen who promise fewer side effects or less discomfort or less time spent with their 'treatments' and are not really looking at the hard truths and facts surrounding breast cancer and its treatment.

Stage 2 A means that, either her breast tumor is 2 cm or less but there are positive lymph nodes in her armpit on that side or that the tumor measures 2-5 cm but the lymph nodes were negative. Since she had surgery primarily without chemo, I would suspect that her tumor is under 2 cm with positive lymph nodes as most people with large tumors are given chemo pre-op to shrink the tumor and make removal easier.  Of course, it is already apparent that she is very open to alternative treatments and it is entirely possible that her treatment plan is not traditional. So, she could've refused to get pre op chemo which led to her decision to switch surgeons after expressing confidence in her medical team.  I imagine Stevehovah got online in a hurry and searched for options that didn't include chemo that might affect fertility.

Without knowing the specifics of her tumor including the cell type and hormone receptor results; I cannot speak to her specific case.  However, after a lumpectomy, most women would get radiation therapy and there are a significant number who would also get chemotherapy (regular, crummy chemo not peach pits or herbs or spices).  If the tumor is estrogen receptor positive, then she would receive a SERM or aromatase inhibitor for 5-10 years and some docs would even talk to her about removing her ovaries (I do not know the specifics as to when this is appropriate).  There are now genetically targeted therapies for tumors positive for receptors like HER2 as well as immunotherapy based on genetics. 

From what I've seen, I expect that she is balking at regular chemo because, at her age, it will probably put her into menopause and that is the reason she is so excited about 'natural' therapies and I expect that she will soon announce that there is thrilling new treatment for breast cancer that is just as good as regular chemo but allows a woman to keep ovulating and popping out babies.  If her tumor was greater than 2 cm, and previous blog posts suggest that it well might have been, she should've gotten pre-op chemo.  That she didn't indicates to me that Jesus wants her to stay fertile and she is going to only have therapy that is not going to risk menopause.

Hey, well known natural therapy lunatic Suzanne Somers treated her own breast cancer with laetrile (from peach pits) rather than regular chemo and she's still around 20 later; so it isn't like she might not get away with it.  Of course, Suzanne also claimed she 'regrew' her operated breast using stem cell therapy which doesn't actually exist, so there's that.

Edited March 9, 2020 by doodlebug

[GeeGolly]

Using natural 'cures' is scary to me. Mountains, valleys, the woods and even our own backyards are filled with poisonous plants. Just because it wasn't made in a lab doesn't mean it is good for humans, or an effective treatment.

[galaxychaser]

She is definitely worried about her fertility more than anything 🙄. 
Off to google Suzanne Summers.

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, GeeGolly said:

Using natural 'cures' is scary to me. Mountains, valleys, the woods and even our own backyards are filled with poisonous plants. Just because it wasn't made in a lab doesn't mean it is good for humans, or an effective treatment.

And so many of the drugs we use for various ailments come from the wood and the fields.  Start with Penicillin which was derived from mold.  Digitalis for heart conditions stemmed from Foxglove.  We even treat menopausal symptoms with a drug derived from Black Cohosh.  Just because something is found in nature and can perhaps be used to treat certain ailments doesn't mean it is safe and without side effects.

 

 

[doodlebug]

56 minutes ago, galaxychaser said:

She is definitely worried about her fertility more than anything 🙄. 
Off to google Suzanne Summers.

She's really big into 'bioidentical' hormone replacement for all women.  She's written many, many books on the topic and frequently touts getting one's hormones tested using saliva despite the fact that there are scads of research papers showing very poor correlation between salivary hormone levels and blood levels.  She also rails against traditional doctors and drug companies who don't prescribe the saliva tests and 'bio identicals' produced by a compounding lab.  She complains that all of these people are just prescribing name brands because they are being paid by drug companies.

Interestingly, aside from the millions of dollars she's made in book sales; she and her doctor are invested in a lab that does salivary hormone testing (which she recommends be done every couple of months on everyone) and also own a stake in a compounding pharmacy which just coincidentally happens to produce the very hormones she plugs.  And, in her book, she happily provides the contact information for both as well as information on how to get a doctor who will never see or examine you to prescribe these meds.  But it's the DOCTORS who are ripping people off.  Suzanne Somers has made far more money from hormone replacement than all of the doctors I know put together.

Last I saw her, she was pushing her own results and it turned out the blood level of estrogen she was recommending was about 80 times what would be considered normal in a typical 18 year old.  Amazing she hasn't had a blood clot with that amount floating around inside her.  I guess we can presume her breast cancer was negative for estrogen receptors.

 

[MichaelaRae]

Suzanne Somers can ROT. I am SO sick of every brand of cancer-curing hokum and the celebrities and wanna-be celebrities that lead people to believe they can eschew data-based science. And it's been going on for DECADES, even before her. Shame on all of them.

[sondraK]

I haven't read her books,but Suzanne sounds just as ditzy as the character Chrissy she played on Three's Company.And I'm old enough to remember.LOL

[ginger90]

 

[GeeGolly]

OMG. JillR is challenging folks with the devil to attend this retreat. What an ass. 😈

Edited March 10, 2020 by GeeGolly

[BetyBee]

24 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

OMG. JillR is challenging folks with the devil to attend this retreat. What an ass. 😈

But it's the best picture of her I've ever seen! 😉

[doodlebug]

1 hour ago, BetyBee said:

But it's the best picture of her I've ever seen! 😉

They definitely caught her best angle. 

[BradandJanet]

"I know that I have been fought by the enemy BIG time!" (JR)

I'd like to think that comment is about us, but in persecuted Jill's dramatic, angst-filled life, who knows? 

Edited March 10, 2020 by BradandJanet

[Barb23]

On 3/8/2020 at 9:52 PM, 65mickey said:

Other than the rum scented body wash and the back scrubber it seem like a legit. registry I guess. Mother of the bride tokens?? 

Oh no, the back scrubber is mentioned again.  That is really skeeving me out.

Where is THE retreat being held? Who are the speakers?  I think it's funny that it starts on  Friday the 13th. (Maybe Jason & the movies will be shown on Movie Night.) I noticed the participants don't even get a full day's worth. The retreat officially lasts only 22 hours long.  I'm sure Jill is hoping the Waller women will attend. Can you imagine if Anna showed up?  

Edited March 10, 2020 by Barb23

[kokapetl]

19 hours ago, doodlebug said:

She's really big into 'bioidentical' hormone replacement for all women.  She's written many, many books on the topic and frequently touts getting one's hormones tested using saliva despite the fact that there are scads of research papers showing very poor correlation between salivary hormone levels and blood levels.  She also rails against traditional doctors and drug companies who don't prescribe the saliva tests and 'bio identicals' produced by a compounding lab.  She complains that all of these people are just prescribing name brands because they are being paid by drug companies.

Interestingly, aside from the millions of dollars she's made in book sales; she and her doctor are invested in a lab that does salivary hormone testing (which she recommends be done every couple of months on everyone) and also own a stake in a compounding pharmacy which just coincidentally happens to produce the very hormones she plugs.  And, in her book, she happily provides the contact information for both as well as information on how to get a doctor who will never see or examine you to prescribe these meds.  But it's the DOCTORS who are ripping people off.  Suzanne Somers has made far more money from hormone replacement than all of the doctors I know put together.

Last I saw her, she was pushing her own results and it turned out the blood level of estrogen she was recommending was about 80 times what would be considered normal in a typical 18 year old.  Amazing she hasn't had a blood clot with that amount floating around inside her.  I guess we can presume her breast cancer was negative for estrogen receptors.

 

She was doing daily vaginal hormone injections ten years ago. Probably still is. 

[Sew Sumi]

4 hours ago, Barb23 said:

Oh no, the back scrubber is mentioned again.  That is really skeeving me out.

Where is THE retreat being held? Who are the speakers?  I think it's funny that it starts on  Friday the 13th. (Maybe Jason & the movies will be shown on Movie Night.) I noticed the participants don't even get a full day's worth. The retreat officially lasts only 22 hours long.  I'm sure Jill is hoping the Waller women will attend. Can you imagine if Anna showed up?  

Yeah, what kind of retreat starts at 3pm one day and ends at 1pm the next? You get a dinner and breakfast lecture?

[GeeGolly]

16 minutes ago, Sew Sumi said:

Yeah, what kind of retreat starts at 3pm one day and ends at 1pm the next? You get a dinner and breakfast lecture?

With some folks coming early, it becomes a 3 day retreat, of which the sponsor(s) are only responsible for about 12 hours. Who is sponsoring it?

[Barb23]

I was just reading Melanie's update on the Maxwell site. It's interesting they (Terri) are dodging the commentor's questions about the natural chemo. Many of them asked & Teri's reply was that Melanie may tell at a later time but now she is working on recuperating & being with her family.  They gave a somewhat detailed explanation of the surgery's findings but they can't even give a sentence or two explanation of what they mean by natural chemo?   I know this is how this family works.  I just wanted to post my observation. 

[emma675]

Wait, is that a pic of Jill's back in her post? I thought it was Nurie or one of the Not Nuries. I wonder how much women are being charged to participate in a 22 hour conference that the devil does not want them to attend?

[galaxychaser]

Guess it is herbs and essential oil. Sigh.

Just now, emma675 said:

Wait, is that a pic of Jill's back in her post? I thought it was Nurie or one of the Not Nuries. I wonder how much women are being charged to participate in a 22 hour conference that the devil does not want them to attend?

I don’t think it’s Jill. No blond hair and she loves to post pictures of her face!

[GeeGolly]

5 minutes ago, galaxychaser said:

Guess it is herbs and essential oil. Sigh.

I don’t think it’s Jill. No blond hair and she loves to post pictures of her face!

And it can't be one of the Nots - the hair is relatively healthy, and shortish.

[Sew Sumi]

1 hour ago, Barb23 said:

I was just reading Melanie's update on the Maxwell site. It's interesting they (Terri) are dodging the commentor's questions about the natural chemo. Many of them asked & Teri's reply was that Melanie may tell at a later time but now she is working on recuperating & being with her family.  They gave a somewhat detailed explanation of the surgery's findings but they can't even give a sentence or two explanation of what they mean by natural chemo?   I know this is how this family works.  I just wanted to post my observation. 

Melanie posted? What about Anna.Marie (who is the person with cancer)?

[Sew Sumi]

Another Bates is officially courting. 😔

 

[galaxychaser]

Much cuter than a Duggar male

[Sew Sumi]

He's a freshman in college. How long will Kelly last before she starts pressuring Travis to put a ring on it? She's the absolute worst.

Edited March 10, 2020 by Sew Sumi

[galaxychaser]

Married by Xmas! 

[GeeGolly]

The Clark family appears to have some money. Anyone know what the parents do for work?

[Annabel11]

Anyone else done with the way the ads on this site make the text jump around? Just when I'm Settled in reading something it jumps back a few comments and I've lost my spot! Almost as annoying as the Rods at a funeral!

Edited March 11, 2020 by Annabel11

[floridamom]

I thought it was just my computer that jumped around. I'm quite tired of it too. Not a good thing to be happening here. Just when I think it's stopped and I can read something, it jumps around again. Can anything be done about it?

[Annabel11]

1 minute ago, floridamom said:

I thought it was just my computer that jumped around. I'm quite tired of it too. Not a good thing to be happening here. Just when I think it's stopped and I can read something, it jumps around again. Can anything be done about it?

I sent an email asking about this with no response.

[Madtown]

1 hour ago, Annabel11 said:

Anyone else done with the way the ads on this site make the text jump around? Just when I'm Settled in reading something it jumps back a few comments and I've lost my spot! Almost as annoying as the Rods at a funeral!

 

1 hour ago, floridamom said:

I thought it was just my computer that jumped around. I'm quite tired of it too. Not a good thing to be happening here. Just when I think it's stopped and I can read something, it jumps around again. Can anything be done about it?

When the ads got too much for me, I switched the theme to IPS Default. It's been wonderful. It looks a tad different, but I still can read everything and post and it's ad free! It's been wonderful.

I also promise that if any kind of JillRod retreat comes near me, I will take one for the team and go. I will pretend that I fight with Satan every damn day and need to be brought to Jesus...

Edited March 11, 2020 by Madtown

[Absolom]

3 hours ago, Madtown said:

When the ads got too much for me, I switched the theme to IPS Default. It's been wonderful. It looks a tad different, but I still can read everything and post and it's ad free! It's been wonderful.

I also promise that if any kind of JillRod retreat comes near me, I will take one for the team and go. I will pretend that I fight with Satan every damn day and need to be brought to Jesus...

I love first hand accounts of JillRod more than probably any other fundie.  Sadly she never gets near where I live.  

I use an ad blocker just to avoid ads doing odd things or showing up flashing and such.

[JoanArc]

15 hours ago, galaxychaser said:

Married by Xmas! 

Labor Day.

[Oldernowiser]

When is JRod and what’s his face’s anniversary? 

[ginger90]

2 hours ago, Oldernowiser said:

When is JRod and what’s his face’s anniversary? 

October 4th.

[Oldernowiser]

1 hour ago, ginger90 said:

October 4th.

That’s my bet.

It officially will be “Sweet Nurie’s idea” and will feature a vow renewal very, very prominently.

[Sew Sumi]

Jill just did a vow renewal like two years ago. The girls were dressed like saloon hall tramps. If anyone has the werewithal, the pics are worth revisiting. 😁

[Temperance]

1 hour ago, Oldernowiser said:

That’s my bet.

It officially will be “Sweet Nurie’s idea” and will feature a vow renewal very, very prominently.

Nurie and Nathan are supposedly getting married in July. People were speculating when teenagers Katie Bates and her young fiancee will be getting married. 

[ginger90]

 

4 hours ago, Sew Sumi said:

Jill just did a vow renewal like two years ago. The girls were dressed like saloon hall tramps. If anyone has the werewithal, the pics are worth revisiting. 😁

Here’s a video:

 

 

[Churchhoney]

This seems to be the aggressively non-accredited college (as in "we get our accreditation from God, the only accreditation that matters," basically...) Travis Clark attends -- 

http://www.visionbaptistcollege.org/

Based on their course offerings, I'm guessing that, like the first three Duggar adjacents, he's a would-be missionary or preacher.....Or maybe just a very ambitious lay god-botherer, I suppose....

Here are available courses for the spring semester...

I wonder if "Able Men" (1 credit hour) and "Virtuous Women" (1 credit hour) are available only to students of the titular sexes, available only to students of the opposite-to-the-titular sexes, or available to all .... 

https://indd.adobe.com/view/c5439971-69da-41c1-b5bb-3a893595f6fa

 

[Sew Sumi]

Oh, sounds like Jillybean's going through another "firey trial." 😂

I wish I could remember the name of Timbit's school. Are they already on Spring Break? Did coronavirus shut them down? Inquiring minds...

Travis' grandfather founded his "college." Or his uncle. The other one is the pastor of his church. I just can't recall which does what at the moment.

Edited March 12, 2020 by Sew Sumi