I have allergies, hay fever some people call it. It is there all year round, but worse or “more active” during specific times of the year. Spring is a really sneezy time of year. Also anytime it rains and then there is sun right after. Also when it first starts to rain in the winter. And for about 10 years, during the month of March and the month of October, I can barely be around my cat. Just 30 seconds in her vicinity will set me off on a sneezing jag. The months that I am hyper sensitive to her have fluctuated the past three years. At this time, mid-November, I am having some lengthy sessions of sneezing after I get my snuggles in. As far as I know I have always been sensitive to cats and dogs, but that doesn’t stop me from having one and wanting one. It is just something I deal with. I used to take a combination decongestant-antihistamine every night, but now it is so difficult to get one. I feel as if I am a criminal by having to go to the pharmacist and be registered. Forget that. After they made it annoyingly difficult I would just purchase the antihistamines and for a long time I took that every night. Then I stopped. Now I just take it when my nose is so raw from rubbing it and sneezing that it hurts when I touch it. A few months ago I had a thought during one of my multi-sneeze sneezing jags. I thought I would ask you guys about it. Can a gluten sensitivity present as hay fever?
I have been resistant to jumping on the band wagon and claiming I have a sensitivity to gluten. I know many people who have obvious and more annoying symptoms. I know that a sensitivity and actually being allergic to gluten/Celiac Disease is very serious so I never really thought that my sneezing, congestion, itchiness, and inflammation could be because of a gluten sensitivity. But now I am thinking about it. Could it be?
If the wheat that is in our food supply and food “stuffs” is something that is barely related to the wheat of the past and it it being blamed for all types of health issues and primarily inflammation in the body it would make sense that gluten or wheat is causing allergy symptoms. Could it be the gluten is causing the allergy symptoms?
Or maybe the gluten is causing other “issues” (such as inflammation) in my body that does not allow my body to fight off the offending pollens so I end up having allergy attacks. Hmmmm . . . .That could be it.
But . . . . one of the reasons I had not linked it to gluten is I usually am ok in air conditioning. Hmmm . . . I just thought of that . . . . I have not been in air conditioning that much lately. When I am teaching a Nia class and I can turn the air on, it seems better. See, it is really difficult to pinpoint.
What do you think? Do any of you have issues with “hay fever”? Do you think it is tied to gluten? Have you don’t any type of experimentation? Does anyone have this issue?
Wow! It is Batkid Day. Well, the TV station I was watching last night was calling last night “Batkid Eve” so I figured they would be calling today “Batkid Day”. The day that San Francisco is turned into Gotham and a child gets his wish to be a hero. It is really, really cute. I’ve heard that the organizer from the Make-A-Wish Foundation was hoping to get 200 volunteers and she got thousands. I’ve heard different numbers, from 10,000 to 13,000. I am sure a lot more people will show up. I bet it will be great. I am really excited by this. I think it is so cool! I bet it is live on TV, but I am on my way to teach a Nia class.
That is one for my Goodie Jar. I am subbing a Nia class for a fellow Nia teacher. I am excited.
So how is your Good Things jar coming along? It is our Friday check in, what are you putting in your jar today?
Only seven weeks left until we get to read all the good things in our Goodie Jar! Yay! Oh my! Only SEVEN WEEKS LEFT until 2014. Time flies! WOW!!!!!!!!!!
So how is your goodie jar going? Our cat almost made it seven days, but she didn’t so we started our “vomit-free” count down again. Such is the life of a kitty with IBD. At the time of this posting we are on 3 days and 21 hours. Maybe we can make it past seven days this time. It is really important for her not to throw up because she needs to gain some weight. What happens is she start to look less skinny, then when she throws up it is like she is back at skinny cat again. Ok, sorry, my goodie jar posts have turned into vomit reports, but hey, just proving that any good thing can go in that jar.
My jar is almost full. I could press the papers down and it will probably make it until December 31, 2013, but I don’t want to crush them. I will probably take some out. As you can see they are all different shapes and sizes.
I hope you are still adding to your Goodie Jar. It see some people are posting on Facebook everyday for the month of November about something they are grateful for. Our Good Things jar kinda has a jump on that . . . .
Well, report in . . . how is your jar coming along?
As you know I am a Nia teacher not a doctor nor a medical professional, but I would like to share some things with you because it seems the situation is becoming more and more prevalent in the population. I thought I would point out a few things so we can learn the difference and try to keep it straight. I am talking about gut problems. Stomach, intestines, and colon issues. I talk to more and more people who are having issues. You might even be aware of the fact that my cat has an issue. Now, I am not going to get into what might be the cause of the issues because that is very complex and I think it relates to the individual. Plus you probably already know that I believe much of our food “stuff” is partially responsible for ALL of our health issues. This post though is just to help shed some light on the terms and letters you might be hearing. Specifically, IBS and IBD! What do those letters stand for: IBS is Irritable Bowel Syndrome and IBD is Inflammatory Bowel Disease. They are not the same thing. And I don’t think you want one over the other. They are just something no one wants.
Keep in mind I am just sharing what I have gleaned off the internet, so yes, the information could be faulty, but you might agree it makes sense. Also, keep in mind that this post, nor anything you read on the internet–including my blog–should not be used to diagnose a situation. Go to a medical professional for that. This article just might help you learn somethings that will allow you to ask the right questions or perhaps point you in the right direction to get a diagnosis (from a professional) and work on the treatment you need.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome/IBS and Inflammatory Bowel Disease/IBD are gastrointestinal disorders. The symptoms might present the same, but they are not the same . . . although some people think that you can have IBS if you have IBD. With IBS the doctor might not see anything wrong. The bowels appear normal, but they are not functioning normal and more than likely are causing pain and discomfort. With IBD, the intestines do not appear normal they are inflamed and do not function as they should. With IBD the entire digestive tract could be affected by inflammation.
IBS is considered a “functional disorder”, things look fine, but don’t operate fine. With IBD there is damage and the damage keeps the body from absorbing the necessary nutrients. A little like a gluten intolerance might cause pain and discomfort and Celiacs Disease keeps the body from getting what it needs from food. IBD is an autoimmune disease, where the body’s immune system is on overdrive and ends up doing damage to the very thing (the body) it is supposed to protect.
The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America’s website states researchers are leaning away from the idea that stress CAUSES IBS, they now believe it has to do with a “disturbance in the way the brain and the gut interact”. They think the nerve endings in the gut are overly sensitive and the controlling nerves are over active.
The cause of IBD is unknown.
Both disorders have digestive issues associated with them, and both can also have additional health issues arise in connection with the disorder. There you have it, a really quick glance at the main difference between Irritable Bowel Syndrome/IBS and Inflammatory Bowel Disease/IBD. Both have similar symptoms, but IBS does not have inflammation and show signs of damage, whereas the digestive tract with IBD is does.
Ooooo! Only TWO months left to fill up the Goodie Jar. It is never to late to note the good things so if you haven’t started yet, why not start NOW!?!?! I have a few good things to put into my jar today.
I had a fabulous conversation with a potential Nia student. I talk to a lot of potential participants, some actually do end up attending one of my Nia classes and some do not, but I have always had wonderful conversations. While I would love to have everyone I talk to come to one of my Nia classes and I would love to meet them, I still feel fortunate to have been able to talk to them on the phone. I love sharing about Nia and listening to their stories. So many are inspirational.
Also, I received a wonderful e-mail. The subject alone made me so happy. (“Nia rocks my world!”) How could it not? The rest of the e-mail made my face hurt (from SMILING)!!!!!!! I loved it so much, I printed it out and it is going in the goodie jar!
And, as some of you may know, our cat has Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) which is a chronic condition. Basically it means that the intestines are not working properly so the body does not absorb the required nutrients. When the body does not absorb what it needs it does not function the way it should. And when the intestines are not healthy there are other issues. So it is a matter of controlling symptoms and getting the body to a comfortable and a close-to-normal state as possible. It has been about three months since we started treating this and today is a good day. I think – as with many things – there will be days where she doesn’t feel as good as others. I think that is just the way it will be. But today we are half-way through our fifth day without vomit. When I wrote my post Spot Update we were almost up to a three day vomit-free period, but that was as long as we got. Now we are on our fifth day. That is really huge. Even if she throws up now we still made it almost FIVE DAYS! I am sure she is as happy about it as I am! To me four and half days vomit free is a darn good thing. See there really is no rule as to what you can put in your jar. THIS is a good thing for me. THIS makes me happy.
When I read about it on December 31, 2013, I will be happy.
What are you putting in your goodie jar? Any good things happen yesterday on Halloween?
Ha, ha, ha. Seems like “The Fox” will not go away. Two weeks ago I posted a video of a “live” versionYlvis did on Late Night. Today I received word that some of my fellow Nia teachers are going to use the song in their Halloween Nia Routine. They even printed out the words so that people can sing along. I love it. So funny. I posted the words here: I Give Up, What Does The Fox Say?
I am still filling my Goodie Jar with good things. Remember this is a practice to help us recognize things that we might not stop to notice normally. Also it is something to help us remember the good things even when there are things that are not good happening. So . . . . really . . . . anyone can do it. It is not too late to start, if you have not already. There are two full months left of the year!
I forgot to post to my blog last night. That is the second Thursday this month. I got home from teaching my Nia class rather early since all I did afterwards was run in to pick up some spinach. Then I got busy planning firming up the routine for my Gentle Yoga class, yet, I still didn’t work on the post. As I was getting ready to leave I started typing one up. When I got back from class I was interested in getting dinner on the table. The evening just flew by. I remembered I didn’t post at about 15 minutes AFTER midnight! Oh well.
Here is my #34 Good Jar check in. It is my hope that even though you are not commenting on the check-in you are still participating in recognizing and jotting down the Good Things. There are only two and half more months to go.
I can’t wait to read them all at the end of the year.
Hey! Yay! Two Fridays so far in October, two Goodie Jar – Check Ins! Yay! I do put things in my jar at least once a week, but there have been a couple of times when I forgot to post the check-in. At this time I am writing the check in on Thursday because I have a Nia call I want to participate in on Friday. I think I might get so involved in the call and its topic I will forget to post my check in.
So, how is it going? On last week’s check in a friend of mine commented that her jar would be over flowing because her daughter just had a daughter. First grand baby cute. Not everyone has such a huge GOOD THING. But that is kinda the point. The HUGE good things get document and noted in other ways . . . so sometimes it is the jar that reminds us of the little things.
Of course, we can still write down the big things and put them in the jar. Anything you want. Anything that will make you smile when you read it and say, “Yeah, that is/was a good thing!”
May your Good Thing Jar overflow!
I have already posted this, but I when I opened Facebook a minute ago I saw I was tagged in a status. I just had to add it to this post because to me it is a GOOD THING! Ha, ha, ha, ha! Thanks, Danielle!
Jimmy Fallon has Ylvis on Late Night doing a “live” version of The Fox!
And, if you want you can hear for yourself that Ylvis is Correct . . . . he has “what the fox say” down pat!
First check in of October. Goodie Jar – Check In #32. Happy Friday!
Yesterday my plan for the day got a little shifted because my cat wanted to go outside. You may know from my previous posts that she is ill. When she wants to go outside it is usually because she wants to eat grass because her tummy is bothering her. I have learned that it is easier to take her outside and let her eat the grass and expel it on the concrete then it is to deal with it inside. So I took her outside. We were outside for a couple of hours.
I did have time to draft a post for my blog, but once home from teaching I forgot to post it. It was chilly last night and so my husband and I had some tea. Between the hot tea and my nice hot shower, I got very sleepy. At one point all I was thinking was – BED! I totally forgot about posting.
I received a “good thing” in the Gentle Yoga class to put in my Goodie Jar. A student had excitedly shared with me a progressive step she had taken. Always so fulfilling to hear about an individual’s successes! Yay.
Here is to YOU! I am hoping that you had a lot of good things to put into your good jar this week.
I am playing a game on my iPad that is a hidden object kind of game. I like games where I don’t have to concentrate a lot, ya know, think too much – a little is good, but I like it to be fun. I have other things I have to think about so my games I want to be brainless and easy. This is kind of like that. Just look at pictures and pick out the objects. To me it is cool because it is not the same as the hidden objects games of my youth where the object is drawn into the scene. This game is tricky because the object are not necessarily hidden. Yeah, I know, they are right there in plain sight sometimes and it is still a challenge to see them. I find that really funny. I actually employ a theory of my husband’s about a phenomenon to play this game. It makes me laugh whenever I think of it. Especially when it works. My husband’s theory is: You can’t see what is not there.
That sounds obvious right? And it is, in reality you cannot see what is not there, but what he means when he says that is “I can’t see what I THINK is not there.” But the belief is so strong — it (the object you seek) is not there. So we don’t even bother with the “think” we just say, “I can’t see it because it is not there.” Because no matter what, once you believe it is not there it might as well not be.
My husband will often look for something then say, “Honey, can you look for the XXX (whatever) because I have been looking and it is not there.” Then I walk over without even looking and pick it up and give it to him. He says, “See? Sorry.” I say, “That’s ok. I get it.” Once you think it is not there — IT IS NOT THERE!
When I told him I was going to post about this he said it wasn’t originally his theory. He can’t remember whose it is. He kinda thinks it might have come from Sonny. Yeah, Sonny as in Sonny and Cher. But he can’t remember.
When you are looking for something that might truly not be there then this theory is difficult to get around. But in my game I can easily get around it. I know that the object on the list is there. So I have found myself thinking, “I will never find it.” Then I remember I can’t see things that aren’t there and I can’t see things if I think I can’t see them. So I take a breath and remind myself it is there and I can find it, and usually I find the object. I know it might sound silly to post about applying a theory to a game, but ya know, most of the time thinking is just a practice so if I practice it in a game situation, I can learn to practice it in real life. I just think it is funny because I believe the theory to be true so I work to counteract it in the game.
Also with the game I am not sure what the object will look like. So it is a good practice for opening my ideals of what things look like. Again, just a practice. As an example the object list might say bell. What did you picture? Bells can look a lot of different ways. As I typed this I thought of one of those bells that one used to ding for service. But it could be a bell like the liberty bell, or a school bell. You don’t always know. So in addition to letting go of not being able to see it because I THINK it is not there or I can never find it, I have to be open to recognizing what it might actually look like.
Ha. Just had a thought . . . just right now as I am typing . . . these ideas can be tied to Nia. Nia is not familiar to a lot of people so some think they will not get a good workout in a Nia class. Well, if that is what you think . . . then that is what you will get. If you walk in knowing it is a good workout then you will be able to participate fully. Also, when the participate releases the idea of what a workout “SHOULD” look like, they will be surprised that our skipping, moving, bending, dancing, etc. is great exercise.
So yeah, the theory can be applied to a lot of things so in some cases, when you don’t have a spouse to “see” it for you, you can be aware of the phenomenon and work to counteract it for yourself.
So are you aware of this phenomenon? Do you feel like this happens to you?
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