Tag Archives: health

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Only the good die young

I wonder how old that saying is?

How long have we known what science only recently figured out?

Here’s how it works: stress hormones suppress the immune system.

The immune system doesn’t just fight off disease. It also cleans up dead, dying, misbehaving and malfunctioning cells.

That means a properly functioning immune system prevents cancer and autoimmune diseases.

There are three ways of dealing with stress.

  • The healthy way.
  • Explode outward.
  • Turn it inward.

The third one results in people pleasers who are too nice for their own good – literally.

The first two both release stress. The third lives with chronic low levels of stress suppressing their immune system.

In Gabor Mate’s book The Myth of Normal it talks about nurses accurately predicting ALS diagnosis based on how nice the person was.

Folks with autoimmune issues talk about “flares” when symptoms flare up after over exertion. The interesting thing is that it happens after – the increased stress during over exertion temporarily suppresses symptoms. When the stress and accompanying hormones decrease and the immune system ramps back up, either ignored issues get addressed or symptoms that were there before but you had acclimated to have to be readjusted to.

So either problems piled up and your immune system has to pull out the big guns or the temporary relief from symptoms reminds you how bad things actually always are and a “flare” is just how long it takes you to readjust/dissociate again.

I like to use the metaphor of shoes sometimes. You put them on in the morning and they fit fine. You walk and stand all day. Maybe they’re a little tired. You finally take off your shoes and it’s such a relief! If you have to put them back on for some reason, now they’re too tight and it really hurts. The thing is, they were too tight and painful before you took them off, you just didn’t notice because you slowly adjusted to it. Even if your feet suddenly swelled – that’s your immune system kicking in and trying to repair things.

I’ve been told that you can actually lose about 70% function in some cases before you start feeling pain.

Human bodies are amazingly resilient and redundant.

Books

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Hydration

Figure out if your sense of thirst works (part of interoception). If you can go hours without getting thirsty, it might not be working so well.

If your “thirsty don’t work” then building in a hydration habit is important to avoid dehydration.

Ted Ed: What would happen if you didn’t drink water? – Mia Nacamulli – YouTube

Habits: https://youtu.be/PZ7lDrwYdZc 
Effective practice: https://youtu.be/f2O6mQkFiiw

Water | Bunny’s Info-Dump (sweetpeastudio.biz)

Water Calculator: Water Intake Calculator – How much water should you drink per day? (gigacalculator.com)

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Heat vs Pain

I’ve been using the Sunbeam heat pads to target my mid-back pain. Sometimes they are enough for my cervicogenic headaches, but the last one I had it was not. Next on the list is trigger point injections to help with my mid-back pain.

Even just raising my arms is enough weight to cause my rib/spine pain to flare up. So then I have to go sit and heat treat to prevent it from cascading into another cervicogenic (mine last three days usually) headache that was misdiagnosed as a migraine.

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Misophonia

I was looking at upgrading my 23andMe, but then I saw they mislabeled Misophonia. So I sent them a letter instead:

Misophonia was incorrectly labeled: (hatred of the sound of chewing) on https://you.23andme.com/chip-upgrade/
While that is the most well-known and common form, Misophonia is actually specific sound sensitivity. Having two family members who suffer from it and NOT the chewing form, it was disappointing to see 23andMe spreading misinformation.

Misophonia – Wikipedia

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Dental care list

Preferred order but not required:

Mouthwash – swish for 30 to 60 seconds, then spit into sink

Floss (gets mouthwash between teeth)

Rinse and put away flosser

Brush:

  1. Wet brush
  2. Apply toothpaste if using (optional – the friction of the bristles is enough)
  3. Divide mouth into quadrants, spend at least 30 seconds brushing each one
    1. Either upper right, upper left, lower right, lower left
    2. Or right outsides (teeth together), left outsides (teeth together), top insides, bottom insides

Test for clean teeth using your tongue, especially both sides (inside/outside) of all four back molars. Get any spots that aren’t clean/don’t feel smooth.

If you can’t reach the back molars, look into tongue tie.

Rinse and put away toothbrush.

Clean tongue (use toothbrush or scrape with spoon, no special tongue scraper needed).

Clean tonsils if required (I use the spoon handle).

Spit as needed.

Spitting is why we brush and floss in or near the bathroom. If you live alone the kitchen sink works too. If you don’t live alone then you need to coordinate with those you live with to see if they’re ok with you brushing and flossing outside the bathroom.

Why brush & floss:

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Power over Pain

I’m recovering from the hour drive to and from the Stanford Pain Clinic but I am hopeful as they have Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists and options for trigger point injections and emergency pain meds. I’m hopeful that after the PT/OT evaluations they’ll be able to refer me to someone more local that can help with the Muldowney Protocol.

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Sutures (Stitches) or Gooey Gooey Glue?

I have EDS.

Glue allergies run in my family.

I’ve read (and can link later if someone cares enough to request it) that because our tissue can be more friable (tears easily) that stitches can result in worse scarring (keloid scars?). I’ve known people who have suffered from excessive scarring after surgeries before they found out they had EDS.

I chose glue for the tongue tie release since I’ve found I generally am fine the first use of a glue (mostly taping for joint support or bandages) and then move on to rash the second or third time and then I can discontinue use. I think the glue was mostly gone by the first day or two, definitely faster than they expected, but it healed up nicely.

I had dissolving stitches post-partum, getting the stitches was the only thing I needed pain meds (nitrous oxide) for. Getting those stitches in 2015 was the most pain I’d ever felt until I got punched in the nose in Dec. 2023. No, the lidocaine didn’t help reduce the pain of the stitches at all. Another EDS thing – metabolizing medications differently.

I had some cysts removed from my scalp during quarantine – one had gotten infected and ruptured so it went from “cosmetic” to “medically necessary” according to insurance. The dermatologist used non-dissolving stitches. I took the front one out on my own when it started itching and it healed up nicely. I tried to leave the one in back in until my appointment to remove them. I tolerated an extra day or two of itching and then couldn’t stand it anymore and removed that one too. I regretted waiting because that one took forever to heal while the one I took out earlier was fine. Partially the delay in healing was because it kept trying to form a keloid scar – turns out skin picking can cause scarring, but can also reduce scarring.

So far the Patch bandages and hydrocolloid acne patches are the only ones I haven’t developed any reaction to.

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Adjusting

Life changing chiropractic for about $20:

Dr. Ruch’s books (WAY cheaper than an adjustment):

Knees: AmazonSmile: GOT KNEE PAIN? Where is Your Tibia?: 9781977224149: Ruch, William: Books

Hips/pelvis (as important as the spine since they mess up everything else if they are off – it’s not just for birthing): The Level Pelvis Method: for Pregnancy and Birthing Ease – Kindle edition by Ruch DC, Dr. William J.. Health, Fitness & Dieting Kindle eBooks @ AmazonSmile.