And medicine finds nothing

[LBTC]

Hi, everyone!

Well, I've had very few rides in the last few weeks. I've dropped out of the two races I was going to do.

I've been tested for a barage of ailments, and all of my tests read normal. (edit: for those who missed the earlier thread...I keep getting sick this training season)

There's only the stool sample and a follow-up urine sample to go...(fun, right?)

When I saw the homeopathic practitioner, she kind of scared me. But she did see a digestive problem that would be a contributor. Told me to stop taking almost all of my supplements, drink ginger root tea (the real stuff, not the bagged stuff), take this stuff called USNEA and Royal Jelly....and to stop eating bran and use ground flax seeds instead. Day two of having all of that going on and....well...I'm not loving it but I'll definitely give it a try for a few weeks. I'm surprised that my energy level hasn't gone completely rock bottom, but it's not all that high, either.

Have any of you tried any of these supplements / remedies before? Any thoughts? How did they feel to you?

This week I expect to have one or two really stressful days - I may have to work quite late, so I don't expect to be able to ride...at least not a lot. Wednesday I plan to ride with the gang, and hope that I make it through that alright. heh. I'll keep you posted.

Keep well, everyone,

Namaste,
~T~

[neuroticcyclist]

My father in law was very depleted during chemo and was given royal jelly for energy and it seemed to perk him up. I had looked the stuff up and found out that it is the food eaten by the queen bee!

[Justina]

You said you had to drop out of a couple races... I used to teach aerobics and your story reminds me of overtraining and perhaps a mild case of pnumonia. When I first started to teach I worked soooo... hard and kept getting sick (it was very frustrateing) turned out the problem was a combination of the two.

[RoadRaven]

LB, I'm like Justina... I'm wondering about over-training too... even with rest days in a week, sometimes the body wants a complete break and you might find taking a week off completely is just as helpful as anything else.

Keep us posted about the change in diet/supplements. I find that kind of thing very interesting.

[Surlygirl]

I use flax seed. If you can, buy the seeds whole and store them in the fridge because they will go bad quickly otherwise. I bought a pepper mill this week and I put the seeds in that and store in the fridge. I grind them on yogurt, fruit, cereal whatever. They have to be ground. Good for your heart.
Sorry your not well. Sometimes the solution isn't always easy to find.

[LBTC]

Thank you all, once again for your generous support! It's great to hear your ideas and to bounce my ideas off of all of you!

here's what I've found so far: The usnea tincture is fairly unpleasant to take, but not horrible. I don't know what exactly it's supposed to do, but I don't seem to have any negative response to it.

The ground flax seeds are easy. I've actually started putitng them in my cat's food too (hyperthyroid and mild kidney issues). 2 tablespoons on my cereal in the morning, another tablespoon with whatever later in the day.

the royal jelly is horrible. those vials are most disgusting! but, once it's down and the taste is gone from my mouth, there are no negative problems. It is very expensive. If I can find some alternative to it, I'd be quite happy.

the ginger root tea is curious. I know I've made it correctly (sliced ginger root placed in boiling water and simmered for at least 20 minutes), and it tastes just fine to me. Unfortunately, it burns - from my esophogus through my stomach, it burns for about 1/2 hour or so. It's like heartburn, sort of.

Have any of you drank ginger root tea before? Has anyone else experienced this burning sensation? oh, and that seems to be accompanied by a sort of light-headedness....anyone?

If no others have experienced this, it makes me wonder if my real problem is an allergy to ginger (something I'd thought I'd had a long time ago after a bite into ginger made my tongue go numb). It certainly would explain a lot!! With each onset of each new "cold" or "flu" I've increased my ginger intake: nibbling on crystalized ginger, drinking store bought ginger tea, adding crystalized ginger to my banana bread, making soup with loads of garlic and freshly grated ginger.

What do you think? Any chance of that?

As for overtraining - well, it's been about a month since I've done anything close to training. So, over the next few weeks I'll try to bring myself up to a level where I think starting makes sense (at least 2 rides in a week, plus one other workout), and see how that goes. I"ll keep you posted and thank you all for all the support and ideas!!

Namaste,
~T~

[Veronica]

I'd cut out the ginger. It just sounds unpleasant.

Hope it all goes away soon.

V.

[snapdragen]

I agee with Veronica - cut out ginger. Food allergies can knock you down!

From transworldusa.com:

Usnea General Information
Usnea, also known as old man’s beard, is a lichen and is used medicinally. Usnea looks like long, fuzzy strings hanging from trees in the forests of North America and Europe, where it grows. Throughout history, herbalists have used Usnea to treat indigestion. The usnic acid in Usnea gives it a bitter taste.

Usnea Uses & Scientific Evidence For
Usnea contains mucilage which is helpful in easing irritating coughs. It is also used to treat colds, sore throats, and infections. This lichen has also been tested for use as an antibiotic and in test tube studies have suggested anti-cancer activity for usnic acid, but at this time the results do not warrant further investigation in humans.

Usnea Dosage Information
The standard dosage of Usnea is 100 mg 3 times per day in capsule form. If using a tincture, 3–4 ml 3 times per day, can also be used.

Usnea Safety & Interaction Information
There are no known side effects or drug interactions with Usnea and it is considered safe for use in children; however, the safety of Usnea during pregnancy and nursing is not known.

----------------------

[LBTC]

and yet, another friend just emailed me that ginger is supposed to burn...all the way down. how would i know if it's an allergy then?

Thanks for the info on usnea, snap! I did know that's the plant it came from, but wasn't sure which thing it was supposed to help with. I guess it's for digestion.

thanks!~
~T~

[Veronica]

and yet, another friend just emailed me that ginger is supposed to burn...all the way down.

As Thom says, "Include me out of that plan."

I've had crystallized ginger and grated ginger and not experienced a burning sensation. And what about the lightheaded thing? If all that leads back to ginger, it sounds like an allergy could be the cause.

V.

[LBTC]

And what about the lightheaded thing? If all that leads back to ginger, it sounds like an allergy could be the cause.

funny, it hasn't been until now that I'm drinking the stuff that the lightheadedness seems connected to the ginger. it's been one of the symptoms we've been trying to figure out.

okay, then, tomorrow I try a ginger free day.

wish me luck!

thank you, V!
~T~

[snapdragen]

okay, then, tomorrow I try a ginger free day.

I'd go longer that a day - try a week ginger free. Them maybe introduce it back in your diet, and see what happens.

snap "not a doctor, but I stayed at a Holiday Inn" dragen

[Veronica]

I hope it works out. I only play doctor with Thom But it seems to me that if you see a connection it's worth a try. I'm with Snap though, give it more than a day.

It would be nice if it were an easy fix though. No more gingerbread cookies for you.

V.

[CorsairMac]

the hardest thing about food allergies (ok most allergies) is the symptoms can be so - not what you expect. Allergies can make you think you have the flu, arthritis, indigestion, etc. The other problem is: it can take anywhere from instantaneous to over a week for a symptom to a food to manifest itself. and it takes your body up to 2 weeks to completely remove the offending food from your system. My allergist told me as I got older, I wouldn't be able to fight off allergic reactions to things like I could in my past like: strawberries! That being said: if you were allergic to ginger as a child, there's a good chance you're STILL allergic to ginger, you just didn't have as strong a reaction in the recent past OR you didn't reconize it for what it was. Like everyone else here said, cut the ginger out, but do it for at least a week if not longer. And then try the ginger tea again and see how you react. If you've increased your ginger to aid with your illness, you could actually be making yourself ill.

Corsair "you should see my diet due to food allergies" Mac

[LBTC]

Thanks, Corsair....

'course I've never really been sure that I'm allergic to ginger. When I bit a chunk and my tongue got numb I thought that was a bad sign! When we cook nice meals they are alsmost always of some kind of oriental design, and always contain ginger (luckily we don't cook fancy very often). I've never really been able to finish a whole serving of kung pao....heh. I really love that type of food. And, well, thai food makes me feel euphoric. Kind of light headed and happy. Not sure what it is, but during our last thai meal out, it really increased when I bit into the basil leaf. That's enough to leave me even more confused!

I thought maybe the ginger thing was all in my head, so, just kept cooking with it and eating it. Our consumption has definitely gone up this spring, so, yeah, if that's it, I've just been making myself worse!! I just made a batch of banana bread *without* crystalized ginger.

I find I'm "allergic" to the most bizarre things. Onions of all things!! Make my intestines hurt wicked bad for hours!! and even leeks or green onions will do it, but I have no adverse reaction to garlic even though it's in the same family. And I get short of breath and fluttery if I eat aspartame. And the last time I had some soft drink with sucralose I was slammed with a 5 day migraine after a year of not one!

I've always figured I have other allergies, but I'm too impatient to try to figure them out. Nearly everything I eat will make me bloated. But that always passes (no pun intended), so I don't worry about it too much. And, yeah, I have the telltale bags under my eyes. Once in awhile I wake up and my lids are slightly swollen....all classic signs, but to what, I"m not sure.

oh, right, and when the cat goes to the vet and I have to cuddle the poor guy up close while he's stressing out, I get the classic allergy symptoms - extremely itchy red eyes and runny nose. That lasts a few hours. It never happens at home!!

I'm convinced I"m wired funny! heehee

But, since, I am my own warranty, Tomorrow I will ride to work again and plan for my big ride on Wednesday with the gang and will decide that cutting ginger out will make me well. (along with adequate rest, great food, regular exercise, etc.)

I'll keep you posted. One week at least.

Namaste,

ginger-free ~T~

so what all are you allergic to, Corsair?