Recovering from the flu

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It’s Thursday evening. Last weekend I had the flu. It really slammed me hard Saturday evening. Still feverish and lethargic on Sunday.

I stayed home Monday. Although my fever was down, my energy was low. I was really worried about how long it would take to fully recover, since I have movers coming tomorrow (Friday), and I had to work Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

My energy returned strongly on Monday afternoon. I felt strong and well, and I cleaned out my shed, sorting what to keep and what to give away. (Whatever’s left goes to Goodwill or the Habitat Re-Store. Or maybe I’ll post something on Freecycle.) My appetite returned as well.

All day on Tuesday, I felt crappy. Worked anyway. Had a meeting after work, then child care. Got home after midnight. Didn’t sleep well. Felt contracted, anxious, angry, depressed. Low appetite.

Woke twice during the night with sudden nasal congestion. The second time I got up and took a Claritin. That was weird. It was as if my immune system wasn’t quite all back in order yet.

Wednesday I was tired and felt weird all day. Realized it was probably the lack of sleep and the Claritin. My body has gotten clean and sensitive. Low appetite.

Today, Thursday, I felt good. Recovered. Buoyant. Hungry!

I don’t know if this is a “typical” pattern of recovery from the flu, or if it was particularly speedy. I am very grateful to have my energy back. Plus I lost two pounds!

~~~

Wish me good luck on my move!

Recovering from a virus, recovering from adrenal exhaustion

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I awoke sick Saturday morning with a sore throat. I thought maybe it was strep throat. Drank lemon echinacea Throat Coat tea, sprayed a throat numbing liquid, and took two Alleves. Ate breakfast.

As the day progressed, I began to feel achy and chilled. Not much nasal congestion, and my throat became less sore, so it was probably not a cold. Pretty sure this was some type of influenza. The first battle of an invader with the immune system takes place in the tonsils, right? They fought hard, thank you very much, but were overpowered by a virus.

Sigh. Who knows how long this will last?

I did whatever I could think of to boost my immune system. I drank Tulsi tea, then made tea from fresh ginger steeped in hot filtered water and drank that. I ate a clove of garlic. (Slice thinly and swallow quickly, don’t chew.)

I did EFT three times. I did the thymus thump several times. I took three long naps. I had no appetite at all but stayed hydrated with the teas and water.

I finally remembered I owned a thermometer and took my temperature Saturday night. It was 102.2 degrees F.

That evening was the worst of it. I couldn’t lie still. Kept needing to flex and point my feet and circle my ankles, changing position often. Weird, huh? All I can figure out is that these movements were activating meridians (several of which begin or end at the feet) and moving lymph.

(Lymph is a fluid that contains infection-fighting white blood cells. The lymphatic system clears the toxins, waste, and other stuff  your body no longer needs. It’s a key part of the body’s immune system. Since the lymphatic system doesn’t have a pump, it works better when you take measures to help it circulate: by moving the body, dry-brushing, and lymphatic drainage, a type of light massage.)

I’ve learned in my studies of trauma recovery to allow the body to move as it needs to, unless it’s dangerous. So on with the foot movements.

Sunday morning I felt a bit better. Took my temperature twice that day, 99 in a.m., 100 in p.m. Aches and chills were gone, and my appetite came back somewhat later in the day, but my energy was low. I decided to stay home yesterday (Monday), believing that resting would speed my full recovery.

It seems I had a mini-virus, a two-day bout of illness. I have no idea if what I did shortened the duration of it, or if it would have been a 48-hour bug no matter what. You’d need a scientific experiment with a control group to determine that, and there could still be variables unaccounted for.

Still, it just feels better to know that I did what I could to strengthen my immune system.

Today (Tuesday) my temperature was normal. I went out and did a few things that couldn’t be postponed (I’m moving on Friday, after all), but I still feel weak and not quite back to myself.  I’m accustomed to feeling well and having a nice level of energy.

I have so much to do this week, it’s imperative that I recover quickly. I need to clean out my shed, get boxes, pack, and work three days this week. I need to get well. I made an acupuncture appointment because it helps.

~~~

Postscript, July 9, 2012. Hindsight is such a great teacher, bringing the gifts of perspective and insight.

When I look back on the time when I originally wrote this post a year and a half ago, I can see that I was stressed. I was selling my house, moving, and starting a new contract job. That’s when I got sick.

Stress weakens the immune system. If it goes on too long, you can suffer from adrenal depletion or exhaustion.

That happened to me this spring. I had just just studied for and passed the national certification exam for massage and bodywork, not exercising or resting enough, and I was stressing about money and work. A friend suddenly showed distinct signs of mental illness, which freaked me out. I experienced a fight-or-flight reaction, which means the adrenals are producing copious amounts of stress hormones that keep the sympathetic nervous system dominant.

I took different contract job at a technology company, working in a group that was experiencing a lot of chaos, with an hour-long commute. Much more stress and misery.

No wonder, when I saw my acupuncturist after the job ended, she told me I was suffering from adrenal exhaustion.

She advised me to take over-the-counter high quality rhodiola and eleuthero as directed on the bottles to recover from the adrenal exhaustion. I’ve been doing that for about a month now, and I feel much better. (These are also listed on my Products I Recommend page.)

As a massage therapist, I recommend frequent massage to help the body release stress and tension. A relaxing massage helps the nervous system begin to regulate itself again instead of being stuck in sympathetic mode, which helps you recover from stress more quickly and experience the deep relaxation (and strong immune system, better digestion, better sleep, stronger sex drive, more playful attitude) that occur when the parasympathetic nervous system comes back online. I also recommend Epsom salt baths for stress relief.

Related: See my post about preventing illness and recovering quickly.

Yoga lineages flow chart

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Came across this awesome graphic this morning that shows the development of yoga over time. Bravo to Alison Hinks for creating it!

If you’ve ever wondered about the many different types of yoga and where they came from, this chart shows them very nicely.

Almost all my yoga experience has been in the Krishnamacharya lineage through Iyengar, although I have taken a class in Sivananda yoga in the Bahamas and took classes for a couple of years from a teacher whose background was in Integral yoga.

One omission I see is Shiva Rea. I understand she has studied with Krishnamacharya’s son and associates Desikachar, Mohan, and Ramaswami. (Maybe it was too difficult to show that!)

I’m unfamiliar with Babu Bhagwan Das, who is shown to have influenced Krishnamacharya. I haven’t encountered that name in my readings about Krishnamacharya. When I googled it, I got links to Bhagwan Das, the follower of Baba Neem Karoli who met up with Richard Alpert in India and took him to meet his guru. (Richard Alpert became Ram Dass.)

But Babu Bhagwan Das preceded Krishnamacharya, so obviously they are two different people in two different eras with similar names.

Just FYI, from Wikipedia, shramana refers to the belief that salvation is possible for anyone (in contrast to the Vedic caste system) and to monastic, ascetic traditions. It underlies Buddhism and Jainism. Buddha later shed shramanic practices, but Buddhism has a strong monastic tradition in Asia.

All signs point to rest, quiet, and stillness today

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For weeks now, I’ve been planning to have a party after I closed on my house.

Well, I closed yesterday. Woo hoo! The money after paying my mortgage was supposed to be wired into my bank account! I was ready to make a deposit on a fabulous vintage trailer.

After I picked up my paychecks from the contract agency (big SNAFU in getting me set up, and someone stayed late to give me these checks), I went to the bank to deposit them. I was in a drive-through lane, very crowded on Friday afternoon, and my car was running hot.

(This is the car that I had a collision in on Dec. 23 that has been in the shop more than out since then, that I’ve taken back twice so they could finish the job.  Last week they replaced the thermostat because the heater didn’t work.)

It was my turn. I deposited my checks only to be told that they were dated Feb. 21, and the bank can’t deposit them until then!!!!

So I left the bank and called my daughter to vent, about the car and the checks. Sometimes you just want to tell someone.

Luckily, she had just been talking to a friend up north who could pick me up and bring me home.

Sweet. I left my disabled car in North Austin. Last night I made plans to rent a car over the weekend.

Guess what? I woke with a sore throat and later developed aches and chills and fatigue.

I’d been exposed to strep and the flu when my granddaughter was over on Tuesday while my daughter worked. Been doing the thymus thump to boost my immune system, but alas, it was not to be.

I haven’t been sick in so long, I forgot what it was like.

So I’m sick today, and I’m moving out next Friday, and I need to get boxes and sort through stuff and give stuff away and take stuff to Goodwill and pack.

Oh, and celebrate!

The way I’m seeing it now, with the car disabled, and me sick, the universe has just made arrangements for me to have a day of stillness, quiet, and rest. Because that’s what my body has the energy for. I did make the bed and wash the dishes and cook a little. But mostly not.

Because all I want to do is take naps, drink herbal tea, watch videos, read, and try to stay warm enough.

And sometimes that’s enough.

I did learn that before they were applied to trauma, induced body shaking was used in sports as a way to speed healing.

Maybe I’ll have enough energy to do them today. But not right now.

And maybe that celebration will just have to occur later. Like when I move into my trailer.

Shaking medicine, a Facebook group

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Crazy! There’s a Facebook group called Shaking Medicine. There are several discussions, including one about the historical practice of shaking.

Ever heard of the Shakers and the Quakers?

Oh, yeah, and it’s usually considered subversive.

Check it out!

More on the therapeutic uses of trembling

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Apparently body tremor research is not a new thing in sports. Russians preparing gymnasts for Olympic competition in the 1970s induced trembling. It was called vibrational therapy then.

Since then, numerous studies have demonstrated that low-amplitude and low-frequency mechanical stimulation of the neuromuscular system has positive effects on athletic performance (Cardinale & Bosco, 2003; Torvinen et al., 2002; Bosco et al., 1999). For many years it was primarily used by elite athletes to help increase the strength and coordination of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems and to increase the rate at which athletic injuries heal (Bosco et al., 1999).

I’m not a competitive athlete. I had no idea. Maybe I’ll become more coordinated and heal more quickly!

I must say that I have been feeling really, really excellent lately, even given the stress of a new job, repeated repairs to my car, selling my house and moving.

This is after doing the trauma releasing exercises about eight times this month so far.

The web page goes on to say:

Over time vibrational therapy has developed as a serious field of research known as Biomechanical Stimulation ([BMS], Bosco et al., 1999). It is being used in physical therapy and rehabilitation programs to correct restricted body mobility, range of motion, the coordination of musculoskeletal and nervous systems and to increase the rate of healing injuries (Bosco, Cardinale, & Tsarpela, 1999; Bosco et el., 2000). BMS research has demonstrated that exposure to vibration frequencies between 20-50Hz increases bone density in animals. It is also helpful in providing pain relief and the healing of tendons and muscles (Muggenthaler, 2001). Vibrational stimulation between 50-150 Hz has been found to relieve suffering in 82% of persons suffering from acute and chronic pain (Feldman, 2004).

I could use more bone density and healing of tendons and muscles from my long-time alignment issues.

Hmmm. I’ve heard that cat purring speeds bone healing. That could be related. Thinking aloud here…

My father had Parkinson’s disease. I got excited when I read this! The shaking that happens in my left hand is similar to the Parkinson’s shaking.

Speculation in the field of BMS research suggests that tremors in humans associated with certain diseases may not be a symptom so much as the body’s attempt to detoxify itself through increased metabolism and lymphatic circulation which is produced by the body’s self-induced tremors (Feldman, 2004).

So maybe if I tremble and detox now, I won’t get Parkinson’s disease. It’s worth the effort.

Neurogenic tremors

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I did the trauma releasing exercises tonight. I forgot to do them last night. : ( Lots going on.

I tried a shortcut and did the first exercise, standing on the right edges of my feet, for 30 seconds on each side. I didn’t repeat that 5 times, and it didn’t seem to make much difference. My body is programmed to release now.

I noticed tonight that I had longer pauses between bouts of releasing than I’ve experienced before. I would come completely to a stop, not knowing if they would start again. Sometimes I’d be still for 10 or 15 seconds before they started again.

I had waves of leg shaking, not just quivering.

I did some mild rocking at the same time my legs were quivering. That’s different.

I had one bout of wild releasing from my left shoulder and arm.

After 20 minutes, I straightened my legs, and then they started shaking again! My left arm had one last bout of shaking.

Then I laid on the floor, feeling the energy buzz. It was definitely stronger where I’d been shaking the most.

~~~

I found a video by David Berceli about neurogenic tremors. This video is copyrighted 2005 and posted in 2007, before the book.

Berceli doesn’t talk about the tremors in relation to trauma, but about how they assist in relaxation, pain relief, physiological changes, increased agility, and increased mobility in the pelvic and lower back areas.

You can watch it here. What do you think? Kind of sexy?

Did Marianne Williamson and legions of angels help Egypt?

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Just came across a blog post by the spiritual teacher Marianne Williamson, dated Feb. 2, during the darkest days before the Egyptian people prevailed and dictator Hosni Mubarak stepped down.

Maybe she’s onto something!

February 2, 2011

IN THE LAND OF EGYPT

In a radio interview this morning I was asked if I have hope for the future… whether I think love will ultimately prevail on earth.

From a spiritual perspective, yes love will ultimately prevail. Buddha became enlightened; the Jews made it to the Promised Land; Jesus resurrected. All those are religious tales that inform us of the basic imprint of the universe. No story is over until the happy part, and if it’s not happy yet then the story isn’t over.

But that is only the beginning of a framework for understanding. We mustn’t let the phrase,”Love will ultimately prevail,” be a mere platitude that serves to justify complacency…either spiritual or political. For whether we learn to love one another through wisdom or through pain is completely up to us. How long it takes before love prevails is completely up to us. How much human suffering occurs before love prevails is completely up to us. Free will does not mean we get to determine what ultimately happens, but it does mean we get to determine what happens in the immediate future to us and to those we love.

When you have thousands of people acting out a high-emotion, high-stakes drama such as that which is occurring in Egypt today, almost anything can happen.

On the one hand, we are witnessing the purity and power of the quest for freedom. The demand for basic human rights, the repudiation of a dictator, and the protest of an economic order in which 40 per cent of one’s population lives on less than 2 dollars a day – all of this is a pure, democratic rising up of the human spirit. And if America doesn’t stand in support of those things, then we’ve completely lost our own moral center.

At the same time, this situation has gone from volatile to violent. Freedom is rising, but the forces of oppression are cracking down. Chaos overrides not only the impulse to freedom but also the impulse to basic human decency. Blood is spilling. People are dying. The situation has gone from liberating to tragic.

Right now, let’s pray for a miracle.

May a great wave of sanity and peace flood the minds and hearts not only of the protestors, but also the military and police and government. The phrase “may cooler heads prevail” comes to mind. May men and women of honor and good will within every corner of Egyptian society be listened to, and their words and ideas heeded. May thousands of small miracles that you and I will never ever know about quiet down a conversation over here, cause a peaceful solution to emerge in a neighborhood over there. May a general sense of peace and good will – something we’d seen almost miraculously on display at the beginning of the protests — return to the streets of Egypt.

Try closing your eyes and see, with your mind’s eye, legions of angels roaming through the streets of Cairo. Do this as frequently as you can throughout the day. It is no idle fantasy. This is the exercise of spiritual power, and in the words of Martin Luther King, Jr., such power is “more powerful than bullets.” Even when we are materially passive, he said, we can still be “spiritually active.”

The Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle means that as the observer changes, there is a change in that which is observed. Worldly news anchors report the news: miracle-workers help change the news by the nature of their thoughts. And the greatest medium of miracles is prayer. So today, let’s pray for Egypt.

Dear God, please pave a miraculous path for the people of Egypt, to peace and freedom and joy unending. Bless their hearts. Guide their minds. Illumine this moment. May love prevail. Amen.

I’m ready to visualize legions of angels roaming the streets of Tehran. And Washington, DC.

How about you?

Kindness and giving challenges

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This is just informational — I’m doing my own trauma releasing exercises challenge in Feb. and March, plus selling my house, moving out, seeking the perfect vintage trailer, finding just the right place for it, and arranging to have it transported and made ready, and moving in, while I work at a temporary job full-time. I’m feeling stretched a little thin! Just a little, at times, enough to not want another challenge at this time.

So I’m not participating in either of the challenges described below. Maybe later! I love the idea and want to pass the information about these challenges on to you all, to accept or decline as you wish.

The Extreme Kindness Challenge runs Feb. 14-20. It’s sponsored by the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation. (Today’s Feb. 15, but you can start today and end Feb. 21. Or never end!)

Today’s challenge is to smile at 10 strangers. You can easily do that in the grocery store!

Here’s the link: http://www.randomactsofkindness.org/extreme-kindness-challenge.html

My friend and fellow blogger Shelley Seale is doing a year of 30 day challenges. She’s already done the “six items of clothing” challenge. You can read her blog here: http://30days2011.wordpress.com/

Now Shelley is doing a 30-days-of-giving challenge. That’s how I learned about the Extreme Kindness Challenge. She started her challenge on Feb. 11 and has donated to St. Baldrick’s Foundation to fight childhood cancer, given a couple of dollars to a panhandler, donated clothing to Goodwill, and today she donated a scientific calculator to St. Monica’s Girls Home in Kenya.

If you would like to donate to St. Monica’s Girls Home, Shelley will pick up donations given in Austin. They need sports bras, bike shorts, flip flops, and some basic office supplies. See the list on Shelley’s blog.

Is your heart challenged to connect to our world in a deeper and more meaningful way?

A love letter to yoga, passive backbend to open the heart center

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Happy valentine’s day!

From Yoga Journal, an enlightened mother writes a valentine to yoga.

Thank you for teaching me how to be more gracious and generous in my relationships.  As my first yoga teacher Ruth told me, “Don’t be stingy!”

~~~

I love the passive backbend, where you roll up a towel or yoga blanket, lie on the floor with knees bent, feet flat, and place it under your lower shoulder blades.

Hang out here for 10 minutes. Adjust the towel up or down if you like. Let your knees fall together and the rest of you melt into the floor.

It’s one of the most refreshing and simple yoga poses I know. You’ll get up feeling good and energized!

You can also use a bolster, stacked blankets, and eye pillow as shown below. If the floor is cold on your hands and arms, put a blanket down first.

Passive Backbend