A Mother's Love

“A mother’s love is the fuel that enables a human being to do the impossible” – C. Garretty

The bond that a mother and her baby share is something profound. Something that expands limitless depths and rises to insurmountable heights. It is endless and enduring.

This type of love is pure. It’s heavenly. It’s unadulterated.

It is unapologetically real.

It could be the most beautiful thing on this planet. It’s a mother’s love.

Beberly de Leon embodies this love. She is a mother to her two-year-old son Tzen; her greatest and most precious joy.

From Panajachel in the Western Highlands of Guatemala, Beberly was beyond surprised to find out that she was soon to be a mother after being told that a series of health problems had left her sterile and unable to conceive. Tzen was to be born in a matter of months; the miracle she thought was impossible.

“I named him Tzen Florian. Tzen comes from the Maya Mam word ‘nTzen,’ which means smiling one. Florian is derived from the Spanish word for flower and means pure beauty and magic that brings joy to everybody… This is exactly what Tzen means to me,” shared Beberly.

Beberly, who has undocumented Indigenous heritage, has always had a strong relationship with the world around her. To the birds and the trees, to the food we produce and feed our bodies, to the happiness of her people near and far.

To the health and wellbeing of Mother Earth.

She is an activist for justice and a talented creative, who is deeply passionate about art, photography and dance. She has recently discovered Nritya yoga, otherwise known as ‘yoga of dance,’ and has combined elements of theatre with the practice to unite people and encourage expression. 



I was fortunate enough to work alongside Beberly at the United Nations Conference of Sustainable Development in Rio de Janerio in 2012 where she was a youth representative for her community. At the conference, she shared the significant loss of Indigenous traditional values and practices in the production, commercialisation and consumption of food in Guatemala and proposed ways of supporting the small-scale producers and scaling up healthy traditional Indigenous foods that had been outlawed or de-prioritised by large agribusinesses.

To say that I was blown away by her presence there would be an understatement.

Beberly’s loyalty to her community and dedication to the cause is steeped in values and personal beliefs. She is unlike most people. She is strong-minded and unwavers at the sight of risk or impossibility, not afraid to pose the tricky questions and facts. At the same time, she is soft and caring, and envelops her role as a mother with the same fierce passion and love.

But her own health has stopped her in her tracks.

**Watch this video to follow Beberly and Tzen's story, and see how you can help

Since a child, she has been very sensitive and reactive to most outside stimuli, which has resulted in liver failure, diabetes at a very young age and the odd symptoms of vertigo.  A collection of issues that have stumped doctor after doctor. “I was actually told that I wouldn’t live much longer than 10 more years… The conclusion was that I had a pelvic inflammatory disease and an ulcer. The pain was unbearable. I was told that I had no choice but to have surgery to remove basically the entire reproductive apparatus, to begin with.”

From a modest family with only enough funds to support day-to-day living, treating Beberly’s ongoing health deterioration was not possible.“We didn’t have the money to follow through with the surgery so didn’t. Yet before long, I came across healers who work from a more holistic perspective. They each diagnosed me with an infection which was in fact in my uterus, triggered by a mercury imbalance in my body.”

This new knowledge instilled a sense of hope. A possibility of a different future.

“I made many lifestyle changes, including to my diet, the products I used, and introduced yoga and meditation to my every day… The tests revealed that the infection had reduced and the ulcer had decreased in size. Then the miracle of conception happened, and with it, my uterus healed completely. Yet, this was only part of my health issues,” Beberly explained.

“Then my friend (more like a sister) asked me one day if I had dark fillings in my teeth – a question I had not yet been asked by the many doctors I have visited for years,” she shared.

“My answer: Yes, in almost all of my teeth since I was young,” Beberly added.

Beberly soon discovered that these fillings happened to be mercury amalgams, which are highly toxic but still used by dentists in some countries. “This explained why my liver was failing and why my detox pathway was blocked, causing more mercury to allocate elsewhere in my body. It was an absolute relief to find this out. It explained why I felt extremely fatigued all the time. The story of my health was slowly starting to make sense."

But the health problems didn’t stop with Beberly. Her baby Tzen too displayed many similar symptoms. “He showed many allergies and infections, including traces of mercury, and then at six months, we were both actually diagnosed with displaying signs in the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) - a range of conditions classified as neurodevelopmental disorders - which again were more clues to this never-ending puzzle.”

The causes of ASD are unknown and controversial. The characteristics can range from impaired to superior levels of intellect, delayed or advanced communication skills, social and behavioral detachment, and often a repetitive repertoire of interests and activities.

Research shows that both genetics and the environment though play a key role, and recent studies have suggested that parasite infections, as well as traces of mercury, are linked with many theories, speculations and hypotheses floating around in the medical community.

This got Beberly thinking.

She began to avidly research, scouring journals and websites for more knowledge and clues, and speaking with doctors, healers and friends – anyone who knew anything on the subject – to find answers.

 “Tzen is both my reason and purpose, Tzen both leads and guides me like a sun. He has given me the chance to experience I have a lot more strength that I could have ever imagined. He has made me realize essential things. I feel truly honored for being his mother and try my best to enjoy every change needed, to be grateful for every single moment, to put immense love in every drop of medicine and every prayer, and to look for inner peace. This certainly will guide us to a fulfilling life for both of us,” she shared.

What Beberly discovered was the CD AutismOrganization (including an amazing Facebook group), among others, which confirmed that viruses, bacteria, toxins, heavy metals, parasites, allergies and inflammation are all associated to ASD. The organization claimed that, in fact, ASD could be prevented, treated and cured through adjustments to diet, daily dosages of Chloride Dioxide (a gentle oxidizer which targets bacteria, viruses, yeast and heavy metals) and a Parasite Protocol to rid the body of parasites. Through this treatment, 155+ children have recovered from ASD to normal health.

“We began treatments. Tzen showed major improvements after first changing elements of his diet to a natural and clean eating slate and then incorporating the daily dosage of Chloride Dioxide. Yet one crucial part of the treatment was pending – the parasite protocol.”

“Then at the beginning of the year, Tzen went into severe crisis. He had an ear, urinary and parasitic infection combined with an allergy reaction to food. We got scarily close to losing my baby. After almost ten difficult days of touch and go, my parents were able to borrow some money for the first treatment of the parasite protocol… Now he is actually breathing freely and is communicating again through sight, touch and expression.”

It’s now time though for Tzen to have the complete CD protocol treatment and Beberly desperately needs to have her mercury filling changed and replaced.

Two crucial treatments, which quite frankly, they do not have money for.

Beberly admits that being ill has deeply affected her and the life she and Tzen live, but with the pain, fatigue, irritability and setbacks has been a new perspective. “I read that one must be grateful for the gift of health that is keeping us alive. This surprised me and has had a profound impact on the way I look at health now. No matter how ill we are or how many issues we have, we are alive! So now I focus on supporting the body's ability to heal,” she explained.

“I have personally learnt so much and have experienced the magic of the body's ability to survive and to heal. But most importantly, I’ve learnt that I can’t do it alone and that’s ok. I tried to for a long time but it doesn’t work. I’ve learnt that part of healing is actually asking for help.”

“We need help. It’s really difficult for me to say that and to ask for it, yet we do.”

Beyond grateful for all the shows of help they have received from their family and friends up until this point in the way of money, food, shelter and a whole lot of love, Beberly is now asking for help in the way of a donation – even if it is a small contribution – to help her and Tzen receive the treatments that they need.

“I want to be healthy so I can help Tzen and be a better mum, and return to my work of helping others. I want Tzen to know what it feels like to have energy and to be strong, to be able to learn and grow during these very precious formative years into the amazing person he is.”

To help Beberly and Tzen, you can make a donation here at Go Fund Me.

With infinite gratitude.

Question: To all the mothers, or soon-to-be mums, can you relate to Beberly's story of incomprehensible and all-encompassing love for her son Tzen? Share your thoughts and comments in the box below :)