summertime, and the livin' is ... what?

See, that's the difference between fiction/movies and real life.  Summertime, here, and the livin' is hectic, uncomfortable, edgy, and anxious.

It's been a "funny" spring and summer in the Midwest.  It stayed cool and damp for a long time after the early spring flowers came and went.  Since we got back from our cruise it's continued mostly cool and damp, and the worst part has been the atmospheric allergens.  By the time the tree-pollens faded away we started having constantly-high mold readings -- weirdly constant!  The rain stops, leaving lots of puddles in our torn-up back yard, and the temperature gets high for a few days, till the next storm-front rolls in to dump another load of rain -- Nature's ultimate "rinse and repeat" cycle!  Most days are in the "high" to "very-high" range for mold, with two separate "moderate" days ALL SUMMER so far!

I'll bet a lot of people don't realize how this affects them.  The sneezing may stop, but the more subtle allergy symptoms don't go away.  Inflammation in the upper and lower respiratory passages remain, plus gut problems -- bloating and signs of candida overgrowth.  There's not a prayer of losing weight when the bowels are fighting to keep inimical fungi and bacteria at bay.  The dull ache over my eyes and behind my ears, my throat either rough from the drainage or dry from antihistamine....  Mostly, though, I just find it drains me out and when it's hot, it's exhausting.

I feel fortunate that the gelatin has helped my joints so much.  People with weather-sensitive arthritis must be very uncomfortable indeed, with the frequent pressure- and temperature-changes. 

Weather has unseen impact upon us, beyond hot and cold, dry and wet, dark and bright.  When things are otherwise going well in our lives, an unfortunate heat wave or arctic stream can invisibly spoil our moods;  a pressure front can make us feel crummy without any idea why, if we're not alert to the possibilities. 

So cut your loved-ones some slack -- and yourself, too!  Pamper yourself a little, and don't try to do too much when you don't feel like it.

...But remember that sugar isn't the answer.  When thunder is in the air, the last thing you need is a sweet cocktail or added-sugar treat.  Those are just encouragement for the worst processes already going on in your body.  If iced tea or coffee isn't a favorite with you, maybe a Norcal Margarita can be relaxing without stirring up the candida or other irritants.  Yeasty things like wine, aged cheese, salami, nuts, or mushrooms might not be as good a choice as clear spirits or mineral water, plain (rather than flavored) pork rinds or crudités with fresh-mozzarella or cottage-cheese based dips.

The second Atkins book, the New Diet Revolution, was an eye-opener to me about how dietary and environmental allergy issues affect our bodies' processes, impacting weight-loss as well as sense-of-well-being.  We can't do anything about the weather, but we can ameliorate our discomfort significantly through what we choose to eat and drink.