A Passion for Running

Comment by Thomas

Tuesday October 16, 2007 @

I’m glad you’re happy – I’d freak out if I had to swallow a lot of barium.

At least you’re happy with your new doctor. Maybe you should have switched a while ago.

Comment by Jim

Tuesday October 16, 2007 @

I hate to see another human being (especially an accomplished athlete like you) go through this sort of thing over and over.

I realize it would be a paradigm shift for you, as it is for everyone, as it was, and continues to be for me. So, I can appreciate the skepticism and hesitation. All this because we’ve “forgotten” how to live healthfully. A long, long time ago, no one had to tell us…

There are very, very few doctors who actually know anything about creating health, and that it’s done from the inside-out. But they sure do know how to mask any symptom you bring to them! All so you can “feel better” and continue doing what you’ve been doing, so you don’t have to change anything you’re doing. Meanwhile, the underlying problem(s) remain(s).

Did it ever occur to you that maybe it’s your lifestyle that’s causing you problems, and that you don’t need to be eating any Barium to figure that out??

It seems you would rather be poked and probed (ok, so it was by a woman with a good bedside manner), swallow chemicals, and then subject yourself to radiation, so you can be told you now have to take this pill and that prescription to mask the symptoms of your unhealthful living. When all you really need is to live healthfully! On the one hand, it’s… baffling, but, on the other, it’s understandable.

However, these things don’t “just happen.” You caused it. Remove the cause, and you “fix” the “problem.”

(In reality, it’s not a problem at all, it is just your body telling you you’ve been treating it like crap. But, again, soooo many people have no idea how to even hear, never mind listen to, the messages their body sends to them every day. They would rather just tell it to “Shut up!”, again, so they don’t have to change what they’re doing.)

To perform optimally, live optimally. And that doesn’t just mean being fit physically. There are twenty or more factors that contribute to your overall health. Ignore any one for very long, and you’ll hear about it, just as you are hearing about it now.

: ^ )

Comment by Mark

Tuesday October 16, 2007 @

Jim,

The “skepticism and hesitation” you think you are seeing is in your own mind.

You have left me three comments with virtually no information. Everything you are saying is cryptic and provides no detail about the message you are trying to convey.

How could I be skeptical or have hesitation about what you are telling me? You haven’t told me anything yet! You are speaking in very general terms only.

Do you have a book? A web site? What are you specifically trying to tell me, Jim?

Thanks!

Comment by Ben

Tuesday October 16, 2007 @

Jim,

Whatever your selling, I want it! Does this “healhful living” you are selling come in pill form, liquid, or is it a software application?

However it comes, if it means I can keep eating my Hostess Cupcakes and drinking my beer, I’m happy!

Ben

Comment by Annalisa

Tuesday October 16, 2007 @

Um, Jim? I’m pretty sure that Mark and his doctor are going to try to figure out what is causing this problem, and not simply throw meds at it and hope it goes away. :rolleyes:

Mark, I hope you figure it out and sorry about the Barium. Rob had to drink a crapload of that when his appendix was perforated and he found it to be un-freaking-pleasant, for sure.

Keep us posted.

Comment by Jim

Tuesday October 16, 2007 @

>“skepticism and hesitation”…is in your own mind.

Sorry about that, Mark. I assumed the “typical reaction,” based on these electronic posts we’re exchanging. My bad.

LOL at the “selling something,” Ben. Unfortunately, no pills, no powders, no potions, no lotions, no “cleanses,” no chemicals… just…healthful living, as nature intended, yields superior results.

Annalisa, Mark and his doctor shouldn’t have to “figure out” ANYTHING. But, I understand where you are coming from. ; ^ )

> You have left me three comments with virtually
> no information.

Hope you don’t mind if I disagree, lol, but, it took me a while to begin to grasp it too. And I’ll be the first to admin I’m still struggling to understand (and UN-learn!) many things about how we’re designed and what that means as to how we live.

> Do you have a book? A web site?

From an athletic-performance perspective, try foodnsport.com.

As for books, Herbert Shelton (from what I’ve read, he’s probably the most prolific on the subject?), T.C. Fry, Doug Graham (from the above web site), to name a few. I found Doug Graham’s “Nutrition and Athletic Performance” a good quick-start introduction. I know you can find some of Shelton’s works in the public domain now…try soilandhealth.org

I hope you make the journey; it’ll be worth it.

Comment by Bruce

Wednesday October 17, 2007 @

All the best Mark, I’ll bet you’re happy now you know what your dealing with. Get healthy soon.

Comment by Jon (was) in Michigan

Wednesday October 17, 2007 @

Good luck with the test, Mark. Sounds like fun.

Comment by Mark

Wednesday October 17, 2007 @

Jim, thanks for the information. I appreciate it.

Comment by Tea

Wednesday October 17, 2007 @

Mark–I’m sorry you’re going through this, but I’m so glad that you have a doctor that you like. that makes all the difference.

Comment by jank

Friday October 19, 2007 @

Radio-licious! (bleh!)

Gastrointestinal distress is tough, but solvable.

Comment by Anne

Sunday October 21, 2007 @

That barium can be hard to get down, but it’s not always as bad as people think. And when I have to go through unpleasantness, I remind myself it can always be worse. On a more positive note, so long as you don’t plan to pull a fast one on Saturday Night Live and try to lip-synch the wrong song…you should come out of this just fine. There are many ways to treat this one.

Comment by Pamalamadingdong

Monday October 22, 2007 @

“sphincter”
heh

Comment by jeanne

Wednesday October 31, 2007 @

goodness i’ve missed all the excitement. i’m PRETTY sure you are living healthfully.

Except for all the boozing and wild women.

Comment by Lee Saxby

Monday December 17, 2007 @

Dear Mark,
As a fellow POSE runner I assume you are prepared to question conventional wisdom. My comments below can be substantiated by any good medical physiology textbook, stress physiology/endocrinology resource.
GERD is due to LOW stomach acid not high stomach acid! Chronic stress shuts down non essential physiological functions that do not contribute to ‘fight or flight’ such as digestion and reproduction. Sympathetic dominance (fight or flight) shunts blood away from viscera (digestion) to periphery (muscles) and stomach acid production is inhibited. How does this relate to GERD? The valve at the top of the stomach (cardiac sphincter) is kept ‘tight’ by the difference in pH either side of it ie alkaline in eosphagus and acidic in stomach. If the pH is too similar then the valve can drop open letting acid into the eosphagus which does not have the membrane structure and protective mechanisms too handle it = pain and inflammation.
Try taking HCL and betaine tablets with each meal. Slowly increasing dosage daily until mild burning can be felt in upper abdomen = your maximum so take one less eg day 1= 1 tablet per meal, day2 = 2 tablets per meal, day 3 = 3 tablets per meal, slight burning so 2 tablets is therapeutic dose. You can supplement HCL all your life, it may even slow down the ageing process as hypochloridia (low stomach acid) is a biomarker for old age! Whilst your body is healing, sleep with your head elevated relative to feet.

regards

PS Herbert Shelton is a famous nature curist/ natural hygienist, the foundation of modern naturopathy

Comment by NZ Naturopath

Thursday February 14, 2008 @

Mark, I encourage you to follow up on what Jim and Lee Saxby have written here.

GERD is often brought on by actions that you can simply eliminate to get rid of it (which I am sure your doctor has discussed with you).

A little bit of research can relieve a lot of irritation (I know this from personal experience).

Comment by Damion Michaels

Tuesday February 19, 2008 @

You could always do what friends have mine have done. Increase the alkalinity in your diet. Some foods are loaded with alkalinity. Most foods, even some bottled waters, are acidic. Stress and diet cause excess acid in the diet. I have heard great things about Evamor water which is high in alkalinity straight out of the ground. I came across Evamor when I was trying to lose weight. My friend who is an internist told me about sugars, fat and acid. Acid being the worst. He said that if you balanced your body’s pH you could manage all sorts of ailments and become healthier.

I scoffed at first but then tried it. Whoa! Worked like a charm. I have had a “bad” stomach since I was a child. Nothing brought relief and what did made my mouth taste like metal and ruined my taste for food. Changed my diet to things that were higher in alkalinity, eliminated coffee and soft drinks, and bam – no more stomach problems.

Best of luck. I hope you get better. Acid reflux sucks and makes you miserable.