Fibroids can be tough to deal with, so it’s no surprise that women will often seek natural methods to manage or shrink the fibroids. More recently, many have turned to using herbal treatments and castor oil packs for fibroids. Many holistic practitioners believe a buildup of toxins plays an important role in fibroid development. Castor oil packs increase the circulation in your lymphatic and circulatory systems.(1) This helps to increase the white blood cells that eliminate these toxins from the body. In many cases, fibroids shrink and disappear without treatment.
Uterine fibroids are benign tumors found within the uterus. They are extremely common. In fact, about 75 percent of women experience them at some point in their lives. (2) Fibroids typically grow slowly or not at all. Some women never experience any symptoms while others have debilitating symptoms. Castor oil packs for fibroids contain an anti-inflammatory compound called ricinoleic acid. This helps improve detoxification and decrease symptoms.
Western medicine has a variety of uterine fibroids treatment. Western herbalists view fibroids as a symptom of a larger issue. They are the symptoms of a disease not THE disease. They believe fibroids are caused by pelvic stagnation, estrogen dominance, endocrine disruption, poor liver function, insulin resistance, blood stagnation, or poor liver function.
In other words, fibroids are caused by a variety of underlying imbalances and the best way to treat them is to restore that balance.
Fibroid Treatment
Years ago, removing the entire uterus was the only way to take care of uterine fibroids. Today, there are many options for uterine fibroid treatment. Castor oil packs can effectively address the underlying reasons for fibroid growth so the body can restore its balance. Diet, lifestyle, and vitamins can also play an important role.
How Does Castor Oil Heal Fibroids?
There are thousands of stories about how castor oil heals the body. Castor oil often seems miraculous, for who would expect so many beneficial medicinal effects—everything from preventing abdominal surgery to improving fertility.(3) The main benefit of castor oil packs for fibroids is that they stimulate the lymph, promoting detoxification and cleansing when applied to the pelvic region.
The other benefits of castor oil packs for fibroids come from its effects on:
- the liver
- your hormones
- blood circulation
- your lymphatic system
The Liver
Irregular menstrual cycles, pelvic pain, and uterine fibroids are just a few of the symptoms that can occur when your hormones are out of balance.(4) Stagnation in the liver can lead to hormonal imbalance. The liver is your body’s lymphatic powerhouse, stores & processes toxins and hormones in the body. Castor oil packs help to decongest the liver which may promote hormone balance.
Your Hormones
As explained above, imbalances in your hormones are one of the main issues that can cause fibroids. It’s likely that fibroids are controlled by hormones, like estrogen and progesterone. Fibroids grow when hormone levels are high (like during pregnancy), and stop growing or shrink when people use anti-hormone medication or go through menopause. (5) Castor oil packs encourage liver and gall bladder stimulation which aids in hormonal balance and helps nutrient absorption.
Improves Blood Circulation
Blood is the body’s natural healing agent. Chinese medicine links blood stagnation to the growth of fibroids. (6) Castor oil packs stimulate circulation in the body, helping to bring fresh, oxygenated, untried rich blood to the reproductive organs. By moving blood circulation and improved biological energy to the area where it is applied, castor oil packs encourage the healing of scar tissue, the breakdown of adhesions, and provides nutrition to the ovaries and uterus.
Boosts Your Lymphatic System
Fibroids not only form as a result of poor circulation and hormonal imbalances. They can also be caused by poor lymphatic drainage in the uterus and ovaries. Castor oil packs help improve the flow and movement of your lymph fluid through the vessels. The pack helps the oil to be quickly absorbed into the body through the skin and to deliver its healing properties straight into the body’s tissues where it’s most needed.
How to Use Castor Oil Packs for Fibroids
You will need the following materials:
- Castor oil
- Flannel cloth
- Electric heating pad
- Plastic sheet—no coloring
- Two or three safety pins
- Bath towel
- A wool flannel works best when creating a castor oil pack for fertility. The cloth should be two or four thicknesses when folded and should measure about ten by twelve or fourteen inches in size after being folded. This is the perfect size for the abdominal application.
- Pour the castor oil onto the cloth, using a plastic sheet to keep it from seeping through. Make sure the cloth is saturated but not dripping with oil. Apply the pack to your lower abdomen and place the plastic sheet on the outside.
- Place the heating pad on the plastic sheet, covering the pack, and turn the heat to low first, then to medium and higher if the body is comfortable with it. Do not burn your skin. This is the opposite effect you are seeking.
- Wrap a bath towel, folded lengthwise, around your trunk, so that it covers the pack and the heating pad, and fasten it in place with safety pins. The castor oil pack should remain in place for an hour to an hour and a half.
- Afterward, cleanse the skin with a mixture of baking soda and warm water—two teaspoons to a quart.
The castor oil pack can be kept in a plastic container for future use. Unless the castor oil pack becomes discolored or the oil becomes rancid, you can continue to use it for about a month. It can also be kept in the refrigerator, but it should then always be warmed up before.
Frequency of Use
You should use a castor oil pack three to seven days a week. After three treatments you should follow up by taking a teaspoon of olive oil to stimulate the liver in its activity. The theory is that ingesting olive oil sends signals to the liver to open the bile ducts. As these bile ducts open up to anything that was previously stuck can more easily flow out. (7)
Other Strategies to Shrink Fibroids
1. Improve Your Diet
When trying to manage and improve uterine fibroids aim to eat a healthy diet that brings balance. Add plenty of fresh and cooked green vegetables, fresh fruit, legumes, and fish to your plate. Try to cut out as many sugary foods and carbohydrate-rich foods. These foods can trigger your body to produce excessive insulin hormones. they can aggravate your fibroids or symptoms. A Mediterranean diet is one way to do this.
2. Exercise
Lifestyle changes are some of the most effective ways to help shrink fibroids and eliminate the symptoms associated with fibroids. Exercise boosts the production of our positive hormones, anti-inflammatory chemicals, improves estrogen metabolism by the liver, and burns fat. Exercising can also reduce the production of estrogen and progesterone, limiting the growth of the fibroid (8).
3. Meditation
To help cope with the emotional stresses that may come from fibroid and endometriosis-related symptoms, a variety of relaxation techniques are helpful. Meditation can help create a sense of calm and well-being if practiced on a regular basis. And there is scientific evidence that meditation helps to heal the body. The relaxation response from meditation helps with your metabolism, lowers blood pressure, and improves heart rate, breathing, and brain waves. (8)
4. Drink Green Tea
Green tea is loaded with antioxidants and nutrients that have powerful effects on the body. Balanced hormone levels require a healthy gut. The chronic stress triggered by pathogenic gut bacteria can then start down-regulating other hormones, such as thyroid and sex hormones. Polyphenols in green tea can help keep your gut happy, which in turn will keep your hormones balanced.
5. High Quality and Consistent Sleep
While few people have to deal with oversleeping issues, a lack of consistent quality sleep can wreak havoc on your health. Your hormones are involved in every aspect of your health. You need them in very specific amounts for your body to function optimally. Sleep is a time when several of the body’s hormones are released into the bloodstream. Inadequate or poor-quality sleep has been shown to decrease fullness hormones, increase hunger and stress hormones, reduce growth hormone and increase insulin resistance.
Fibroids are a growing cause for concern in women today. Controlling how much estrogen you take in is difficult in our estrogen-laden environment. Natural treatments are becoming utilized more as women look towards alternative medicine. Many women have seen some success in using bentonite clay to shrink fibroids. Castor oil packs help fibroids by improving liver function, boosting the lymphatic system, and increasing blood circulation in the pelvic area. This along