I needed to disable self sign-ups because I’ve been getting too many spam-type accounts. Thanks.
lil chick's log
Quote from lil chick on September 19, 2024, 4:24 amHi Joe, keeping feet warm is important in my case, with the Raynauds and all. It's not like I was going around forcing myself to have cold feet before, but I did purchase a pair of ugg boots with white fur inside and they have amped up the luxury warmth. (I don't know if you've seen that I suspect that I might sometimes react to dyes). How silly is it that they dye the inside of most of the color-ways of ugg boots?
As someone in your updates you posted stated: I became, over time, a canary-in-the-coal-mine regarding toxins, and in my case one problem was clothing toxins. I've reacted to clothing a few times, especially new clothing. Especially in places that get damp. So, I've been collecting natural fiber, undyed, latex-free clothing. Especially I try for a pure first layer and some lounge wear and bedding. I can't make myself dress in white all the time, though. I love color. Bloggers who talk about clothing toxins recommend washing clothing many times before wearing. I suppose it is worth mentioning that dyes aren't the only bad things that end up on our clothing, for instance wrinkle treatments. I only mention dyes because I know I react to hair dye.
Of course, the healing of cutting back on VA for so long (5.5 years on the slowboat) continues. And now it's been 9 months with very little alcohol too.
Can relate more than you can know. Japanese friend asked me why I wear t-shirts inside out. Explained the rashes start on hems. Explained how reactive I am and my best version ofwhy. Wife interrupted in Japanese. He translated. She wanted to know if this is the reason all Japanese kids' clothing has the hems pointing out until they are like 4 or 5.
Yeh so I am all cotton and wool. Already wearing wool socks at night in September. Will be wearing them all day and night in another month. By November will be wearing wool long johns all day and night. Been this way since 1993.
Wild that at this age, I am improving the most I have ever improved. Sitting in shorts and flip flops right now. First September I can remember doing that. So we will see. In my teens and twenties I never wore coats or jackets. Wore gloves and sometimes hats but only to cover skin for frostbite. Worked outside year round. Ran couple miles each way to work.
Definitely a circulatory thing. Betting it can improve and this is probably our best measure of toxicity.
Well that was a fail or a spoke-to-soon situation... though maybe I have some more clues now?
I had a banana at lunch, I only mention it because it isn't normal for me and this problem about foot cramps may be, at least partially, about electrolytes. (I've also linked them to potatoes, another high potassium food)
Then I went shopping, which has often been a trigger. Silly enough, I think it is because of the pointing and unpointing the feet to get into shoes and pants. I've even had to endure foot cramps in the parking lot of stores before getting behind the wheel. The ligaments in my feet are tight and don't want to bend. I need to start a foot yoga sort of thing.
Then hubs and I had dinner out. He ordered a margarita with salt and I had a few sips. (alcohol and now extra salt)
It was cold in the house that eve before bed, but I wasn't cold in bed.
Had two really bad foot cramps! I'm sleeping so much heavier that it was hard to wake up to deal with it. Instead, the cramp just went on and on in my dream, LOL. On finally waking I was thirsty.
Inability to deal with potassium may show that my kidneys could use some more healing.
I think the RDA for potassium is too high. I've been needing less potassium but more sodium living in a hot climate. Our blood has more sodium than the other electrolytes.
Quote from lil chick on September 21, 2024, 4:12 amInability to deal with potassium may show that my kidneys could use some more healing.
Been having consistent success playing with magnesium, potassium and sodium intake. Topical and oral. Taste test tells what is needed. Wake up with foot cramps, usually I need potassium. After a few days of potassium, I wake to cramps and they get worse when I try potassium. Then I try salt. It tastes extra good and cramps fade within seconds. If more needed, fine. Sometimes a salted apple seals the deal. Topical magnesium works better than oral. Might be true of potassium too. A few of us on the blog which must not be named run by the naturapathic doctor who must not be named have found this year that the binders that deliver these supplements might need to be balanced too. Excessive chloride in itself gets problematic. Citrate? Gluconate? carbonates? Glysinate?......
Good luck. Advise you check in with your friends who must not be named on the blog who must not be named. Perhaps we call it voldemort?
Incidentally, this tip is free and not for profit. Perhaps that is an indicator of its value too. Although it cost me $100 annual subscription to find this information out a bit earlier. I still think it was worth it.
This is for the "coping" bin, (coping with delicate, damaged or falling-out hair). A few weeks back I chatted with someone here about NOT wet-combing hair and it made me re-visit the idea. (thanks to whoever that was). Well, I've managed to figure out how to get through life without wet-combing my hair.
Hair people all around the web talk about the benefits of NOT wet-combing hair. When hair is wet it's in a delicate state. You are more apt to yank it out, damage it, break it off or make it mad (frizz).
So, ultra-gently detangle your dry hair before washing. Often it is best to start with patient finger detangling, move to a gentle brush to get the hair moving in the right direction and then finally attempt a wide tooth comb.
Make sure you have time for air drying if your hair looks weird wet and you have to be presentable. Don't get it messy during washing, including not flipping the head upside down. Wash it "in place". Pat it dry in place. Give it a shake, wiggle or scrunch it to get it off the dome and help it remember it's natural wave pattern. Don't start fiddling too hard to the point where you tangle or stress the hair, but you can arrange it a little. Put on a white terry cloth robe and let any excess water drip out while you continue to get ready. (don't touch it anymore). Get dressed and let it continue to air dry. When it is completely dry you can rub the scalp softly or run fingers through it gently, if needed.
I've been doing this for a few weeks and I really think it's helping beef things up. Every strand matters, LOL.
Hello @lil-chick! I don't remember ever advising you to take thiamine. All I did was explain what it did to me. Frankly, I don't know if it would be good for you!
However, if you are contemplating taking action for nerve pain, it must mean that you are suffering. After nearly 5 years on the extra low vA diet, this does not happen anymore for us. Sometimes, after doing too much/too much stress/ night out with (not so good) drinks, we have a few cramps when waking up, but after a couple of days it all goes back to normal. The strange thing is we still had some nerve pains until last august, even though minor. Nothing since and also it seems that in general we have passed an important point.
Are you threatening me with thiamine to nudge me to write a post on this forum? I wonder...
Apart from thiamine, what has helped spectacularly recently (you may try it but I don't advise anything) is:
- red light therapy. We used it on our hair and it worked wonders. Your hair looks fantastic if you are this doll photographed in your post! Because it worked so well I tried it in my ears (better hearing measured by ability to tune the instruments). At the moment it is still inconsistent, better one or two days then worse for a day or two. A little cerumen is coming out too. Used it on the thyroid (nothing wrong there, supposedly) and it gives me energy. Currently using it on my face. It seems I see a little better, and I get ticklish eyebrows (or what's left of them). All of this quite positive.
- sound. I get sound massages. This is done by a lady who positions brass bowls over my (dressed) body and hits them softly. Incredibly this works!!!!!! I do listen to music and play it too and sing but this sound massage is vastly superior. Unlike the red, which works topically, this is a general thing, and I suspect works through the brain. It gives me a very alert mind for a week, with the ability to fix problems in my practical life that had lingered on because I was not energetic enough to do maning things in my day PLUS healing from vA injuries. My life is simpler and more controlled. VERY USEFUL! Using the BAST method.
Good luck @lil-chick! Hugs!
I love your ideas, Ourania! Please forgive me if I don't always do what you suggest--my head is like a rock. Your suggestions do stay in my mind and when I don't feel well I kick myself for non-starting! Non-starting seems to be my way now, and wonder if it is the time of life (here at 61). Coasting feels good hahaha. Music IS very important. A good substitute for bad habits. I revisited the post you made about how you thought that perhaps B1 deficiency can lead to VA toxicity. A very interesting idea.
Super interesting about the bowls. I've been ringing a little bell sometimes, as I've been told it "clears the air". It's amazing how long the reverberations go on. It kind of hurts my ears though haha.
I bought a full spectrum B and Benfotiamin. I see now that I probably should have bought what you mentioned which was alithiamine. Next time? I don't intend to go hog-wild, but I took two benfo's last week and two this week. I gave hubs a couple of the full-spectrum because he has stress. I don't have stress, just VA overload. The first two pills didn't seem to change anything, but the two pills this week caused things like stinky pee, which makes me think detox. Gosh I just hate supplements!
Regarding nerve issues, I remember what you called "the familiar burn" and it fits the feeling so well. I don't feel like my naughtiness level (drinking, coffee, sugar etc) is high enough to be causing the issue, which makes me think it is either detox or damage.
thanks @ourania you are a good friend! Threatening to nudge you to post hahahaha, would I do that? YUP!!!!! I'm AM glad that you appear when I "rub the genie lamp". Hugs back to you!
So I took two benfothiamine last week spread out, took two this week spread out. The fourth one caused a major detox or as I've heard it called: paradoxical reaction. Very flu-like. I want to write it down so I don't forget. Of course it could be a bug or that I ate something bad. But I doubt it.
Day of 4th pill: stinky pee. ear crackling, gums spontaneously bled.
Evening, excess BM. Through the night lower-GI filled up, gut sore, bloated with BM and trapped gas. Slightly shivery.
This morning, lots of excess BM, which burned. Lots of nose mucus.
By mid day, headache (hangover feeling), prostration, slept all afternoon.
On awakening, nostril very sore as if suddenly infected. Tired.
Besides being flu-like there were also some parallels to how I feel when I fast. Shivery, sick.
The areas of detox make sense to me like the front gum, right ear, right nostril.
Sarabeth was nice enough to share some interesting info on co-factors that one can take to help avoid these sorts of problems, but gosh it seems pretty complex. The info she gave says you will return to a higher status quo each time you go through a rigorous detox like this. It's interesting to me that nothing happened until the fourth pill over two weeks. Maybe I should take one pill every two weeks. I'm all for slow detox.