Friday, February 15, 2013

was i "sick" and didn't know it?

Yesterday gave me a return of the old low-energy blues, and after the hypomanic evening i'd had Wednesday, i wondered if i had just overdone my exertions.  I woke up this morning with a stuffy nose, perceptible inflammation, and low-grade headache -- i think i caught somebody's bug, and it was so mild i didn't perceive significant malaise!

Being the reclusive cat-lady* i am, i don't come in contact with a lot of "germs" from day to day.  In the past this has meant that whenever i visit my grandchildren i run the risk of catching all those buggies that are so communicable in the "real world."  I think there's a darned good chance i'm improving my immune system a huge amount at the same time i'm fine-tuning my nutrition.

Not surprising.  If i wasn't getting enough pre-formed vitamin A before to keep my mitrochondria churning out the ATP decently, i probably wasn't getting enough to keep my immune system firing on all eight, either.  We all know that A is important for immunity, and i THOUGHT i was getting enough with my cod-liver oil, but the food version of liver is so much more effective, i won't be buying the Carlson brand of CLO anymore -- i have to doubt its potency.

But today i'm back wanting to trot up the stairs instead of trudge.  I had a couple of ibuprofen and a couple of benedryl, so the aches are almost gone, even though i can still feel a little inflammation in the tissues of my upper respiratory system.  I'm going to get myself a zinc lozenge next time i'm in the bathroom, and use the neti-pot later, and i expect tomorrow will be even better than today.

YIPPEE!  I may have been "sick" but i'm not SIIIIIICK!

______
*  i'm less of a cat-person than a dog-person but ... the leap from dog-lady to BITCH is just too easy!

10 comments:

  1. I would add to your treatment the good amount of garlic. Hot broth with garlic , ginger, even some spices will be helpful. I remember reading that some nations used egg yolks as a folk remedy at the beginning of a cold.

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  2. As with many things, I think your take on whole food liver vs. supplemental cod liver oil is spot on – just like fatty fish instead of fish oil pills, and oysters or red meat instead of mineral pills (from your personal experience, right?). I don’t discount the value of supplements, but I wouldn't rely on a knife in a gun fight. (i didn't say i would never bring one... just that I wouldn't rely on it.)

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    1. :-) good point. (knife -- point -- oh, never mind.... i AM an old fencer though, and feel very comfortable with a bladed weapon.)

      whole foods are good, but sometimes the competing amino acids etc can make absorption more iffy! in me, it seems to be harder to tease out the nutrients from some foods than from others. but liver and oysters -- i think i could live on those alone!

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  3. In my early 20-s I had a major health scare - so strong allergic reaction on the oil-based combined supplement of vitamins A and E that I had to take oral steroid for 2 weeks afterwards. Since then I became skittish. I eat one tea spoon a day of cod liver mixed with cod oil. It is sold in Russian ethnic stores all over US and Canada. I buy the can, open it, mix the content, add lemon juice and keep it frozen in a class jar. Due to the high O3 content it never frozen solid and it is easy to take one tea spoon of that mix.

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    1. coincidentally, i just ordered a carton of cans of cod liver from Amazon, for times when i'm traveling and good home-ccoked foods are harder to come by. :-) sounds like adding lemon juice is a great idea, but i'm not likely to limit myself to a spoonful. a lot of canned foods may be "iffy" but canned fish is our friend!

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  4. Cod liver oil is the only supplement I have used long term. I did try Evening Primrose oil for a time, but the boys on our team accused me of turning into a Lady boy (perish the thought) so I gave it up. Thems the breaks eh.

    Kind regards Eddie

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    1. they're so MEEEEEAN! ;-) i'd hate to think what they'd say about me working on my testosterone status....

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  5. I find when I start feeling a little slow, I look out the window and see if there is sunshine, if winter and no sun, I chalk it up to mild SAD type depression. This however, was the wrong diagnosis for how I have felt recently. The first thing affected when I get sick or depressed is my thinking. Lower energy physically and mentally when sick or depressed feels so similar to me that I cannot always tell whats going on. I am relieved when I finally found out that I am slightly sick because I know that it usually resolves itself in a few days.

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    1. and who's to say that "depressed" isn't a mild form of sickness? Sid and Wooo have convinced me that almost every mental problem has a biological basis....

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