Gastrocolic Reflex and Coffee

As I was drinking my nth glass of coffee today (yes, glass, couldn't find a cup) I remembered a doctor friend who visited me recently to fascinate me with her stories of tribal Mindanao and to introduce to me the term gastrocolic reflex.

Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary
Main Entry: gastrocolic reflex
Function: noun
: the occurrence of peristalsis following the entrance of food into the empty stomach

How did my brain drag her along with my act of drinking coffee? She likes drinking coffee, yes, but that is not the link.

Here is the linked list in my brain:

drinking coffee after eating guava -> raw salad plus coffee -> detox -> gastrocolic reflex -> my doctor friend

And here is the story behind the linked list:

On my way home from my morning walk today, I passed by a fruitstand. A guava was calling my name. Or so I imagined, in my hunger! Back home, I ate the guava right away and then saw the packets of instant coffee on the countertop. No, the coffee was not calling me. Maybe because my tummy was already smiling.

But then I recalled a discovery my salad buddy and I stumbled upon, when we had to go on a race to the rest room everytime we drink coffee after a raw salad lunch at the office (her office still, but not mine anymore). We associated coffee after salad with detox.

How I managed to link detox with gastrocolic reflex is another story worth telling another day. For now, let me just say that my experience with liver flushing is the culprit.

You already know the rest of the story of my linked list.

My ending seems abrupt but I am already experiencing a reflex whose medical term eludes me and I need to do something fast about it.

Good night! I am sleepy now.

What did you think the reflex is, you horrible crook!

Hey, don't get me wrong. That's a term of endearment I learned from my favorite literature teacher in college, spoken in an endearing tone accompanied by a playful, sweet look.

"You didn't study your lesson again, you horrible crook!"

- Gemino Abad

Back Talks Back

Narrator: Head and Back were out in the park today. They were sitting beside each other in my pebble bench enjoying the sun, lost in each other’s world. Suddenly…

Back: Agh!
Head: Whachapen?!
Back: Aagh!!
Head: Ah, you are distressed again. Is there anything I can do for you?
Back: Aaagh!!!
Head: Okay, I already induced Chest to breathe slow and deep and Shoulders to drop dead! How are you feeling now?
Back: Agh!
Head: Will you just please tell me what’s wrong with you now?!
Back: Aagh!!
Head: Please speak up! Don’t you know how you are distressing me?! I’m so fed up with your wordless drama!
Back: Aaagh!!!
Head: Aaarrrgh!!!

It was a moment of crisis. Both now became distressed.

To be continued.

Celtic Beat

More popular pronunciation of Celtic: 'kel-tik

I have been listening to Celtic music on AccuRadio today. I would dance to some of them or rock on my seat to some while at my computer or sing along or hum. Somehow those helped in alleviating the congestion I feel in my tummy area and tension in the clavicular and neck areas and the guyon channel in my right hand – the usual places where I feel tense.

Ah, now I see that congestion goes with the chronic tension I have been struggling with.

When my system is acidic, as was yesterday, the tension is much less. So is the cracking sound of my joints. But the flow of energy is better.

With the congestion, I need to consciously flow my energy. Today it was dancing and singing – more enjoyable options than my usual remedies: hatha yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, tai chi or tetada kalimasada.

Food that helped me decongest today include apples, ripe Philippine mangoes (yum!) and green Indian mangoes (with bagoong, yum-yum!) To regulate the acidity, I also had watermelon, blended buko (young coconut meat and juice in electric blender) and blended eggs (manual fork blender). :-)

Thank you, Windel for the link to AccuRadio!

Thank you, Yoshio for helping me discover thru chanting how I can flow my energy by the use of my vocal cords!

Thank you, Marison for introducing me to Celtic music!

Thank you, Olive for introducing me to your style of unstructured fun dance!

Acid-washed

My tummy had a predominantly sour feel today. When I have this feeling, I notice my hands being more wrinkled and I feel I am shrinking and losing mass. I feel corroding.

Here is my interpretation of what is happening: my digestive organs are busy dumping acid to my system, a detox reaction that resulted from what I ate (sourish mangoes) and did (went too long without food when I went out, twice).

To counter the discomforts of detox, I decided to eat eggs that I have been ignoring in my ref. Raw. Two whole eggs in a glass, add a little salt, and beat with fork. That’s how I take it.

So far I had three such egg meals today. My system felt immediate relief each time.

Why raw eggs?

Those were the only available raw animal food in my ref.

And why raw animal food?

Raw animal food beats any raw plant food in soothing a hyper-acidic system. That is suggested by Aajonus Vonderplanitz’ Primal Diet which recommends a high percentage of raw animal food for fastest recovery time. And that is verified by my tummy.

What about salmonella and parasites in raw animal food?

I dunno. Maybe my acids will take care of them dead. Or the acids and enzymes in the fruits I eat will. Otherwise, I will just have them all flushed out of my system later, when I have successfully transitioned to full-fruitarian diet.

Free Jyorei and Gratitude Lesson

This morning at the park, after my sun gazing and sun bathing session, I came across a poster that says "Free Healing" and has some japanese signs on it. There was a diagram that gave me the impression that it was something like reiki. The man sitting beside the poster gave me his attention. He exuded a radiant aura so I happily sat on the chair he offered and availed of his healing energy.

This healing method called Jyorei is non-contact healing. With eyes closed, right hand over left both facing upward, I breathed slowly and relaxed. I shifted to sensing mode and felt a mild warmth in my left upper abdomen. I opened an eye slightly to check what the healer was doing. He had his hand raised and was directing energy to my forehead. After a while he asked me to lower my head, so he can direct energy to the top of my head. I felt the same mild warmth in the same area in the abdomen.

I recall a similar experience when during a break in a kalimasada practice over a year ago, a fellow practitioner who is a reiki master played chi with me. At that time both of our chi were already flowing well, thanks to the substitute instructor who urged us to make the movements snappier. The reiki master raised his hand about two feet away and directed energy to me. I instinctively stretched my arms out in acceptance and felt a strong surge of magnetic energy in my upper spine that lasted about a minute. When the energy surge stopped I felt very energized. When we finished with the kalimasada session, I felt so relaxed and was surprised to find out that the cracks in my joints were all gone! I was ecstatic!

I thanked the reiki master and I thanked my kalimasada instructor and skipped happily on my way home.

Sad to say, the ecstasy lasted for only two hours. The cracks returned and never left.

The Jyorei session this morning, though didn't induce a substantial flow of my energy, reminded me of that momentary ecstasy that has inspired me to go on in my pursuit of permanent healing.

Back home, after my second water meal for the day (1.5L structured water with a little epsom salt), I did some asanas then sat quietly in half lotus until I felt the warmth of my flowing chi as I contemplated on gratitude for the spirits who offered me healing. I am not yet crackless but I imagine I will soon be.

Here is the contact information for free Jyorei:

Shumei Phils., Inc.
Unit 906 Tower B, Valencia Hills Condominium
Valencia cor. N. Domingo Ave., QC
Tel: +63 2 7217337
Website: www.shumei.org/philippines

Bonding with the Sun

When I went out at 7:00 A.M. the sun was already high up in the sky and was shining too brightly for sun gazing. I just had a look at it for a brief moment, like how I would look at a stranger I meet in the street.

At the park I sat on my favorite stone bench. It's not actually made of stone but made with cement. The surface is set with small pebbles. I should call it my pebble bench. I like this bench because it is hard and very solid and very welcoming. It is usually empty and waiting for me. And it is fully exposed to the morning sun. It is my favorite spot for morning sun gazing and sun bathing.

On my pebble bench I quietly tuned in to my body. I felt the tensions in the usual places. With the warmth of the sun I allowed the tension in my body to melt. A deep sadness soon rose to consciousness: the grief of losing my best friend.

I released the emotion and the tension by doing a few rounds of tapping using EFT. The set-up phrase I came up with at the karate chop point went like this:

Even though I feel this grief which I believe is detrimental to my health, I accept my feelings and myself deeply and completely.

Top of the eye: Oh, how I miss my best friend.
Side of the eye: I have no one now with her enthusiasm to hear what I want to say.
Under the eye: Sad not to have anyone affirm me as I affirm others.
Under the nose: Not fair.
Chin: So what!
Collarbone: I let go of painful bonds with people.
Underarm: I will just bond with the sun.
Top of the head: Ah, I look forward to playing with people who have bonded with the sun!

I left my pebble bench feeling lighter, with an idea how to release the remaining chronic tension in the spleen area. Better than continuing with the fast I started yesterday.

Cooked Indulgence

It is the fourth day that I've been eating cooked food. It started on the day I set up this blog. I had a nagging thought to eat grilled pork liver. On my way to buy liver, I also bought some eggplants. I didn't really grill the liver. I just seared it using my oven-top grill, one which I wanted to give away a few weeks earlier so I won't be tempted to cook my food with it. The liver was delicious. Eyeing the eggplants, I also cooked them with a little oil using the same grill and ate them slowly. Nothing impressive. My mind wandered on to other food and I went out again to buy a meal of rice and chicken. Yum!

I planned on going back to raw diet the next day but somehow didn't. Maybe the next day, I thought and still didn't. On the second day I was feeling bloated but managed to feel okay by drinking soda. On the third day, yesterday, I ate bananas out of convenience. Today, I had no more craving for cooked food but decided to eat more of it anyway, thinking that it might be a long while before I get to it again. After a meal of rice and chicken, I had chips, chocolates, coffee and ice cream. I had a guiltless indulgence. As I was eating, I thought, My body still resonates with processed and cooked food. I need to change my vibration.

My detour to cooked food this time was a different experience from one I had a month earlier when I decided to eat out with a friend for the purpose of bonding. I had plenty of bonding time over cooked food with friends but after a week, when I had a bad case of back and neck pains associated with PMS, one which I didn't have anymore for the past several months since I started eating all-raw, I was furious with myself, my friends and my world. I went into anti-social mode.

I remember a dream I had before I woke up this morning. I am staying in a hotel room which a friend found for me on the net. A freebie. The ceiling is dirty. The bed is sagging. The room is filled with body care stuff belonging to a previous lady occupant. Applying the gestalt dreamwork technique, I asked myself, What stuff do I have in my home that belongs to the old me and which no longer serves me?

I guess I should go ahead with my decision to get rid of my oven-top grill. And the stove.

Mental Intent

Hello world! I set up this blog today to share with you my journey towards healing my spine naturally.

I had been suffering from upper back pain for the past 10 years, since I was in my late 20's. The pain eventually radiated to my neck and arms and, before and during my periods, to the entire right side of the body. Last year, an ortho-surgeon diagnosed me with cervical spondylotic radiculopathy secondary to herniated nucleus pulposus with foramenal stenosis. He advised disc replacement of four cervical dics, C4-C7, under intraop spinal monitoring. The replacements may be from bones grafted from my hips or -- the more expensive option -- artificial disc plates.

Not a cell in my body likes the idea of surgery. Several years earlier, when the pain and heaviness started getting worse, I began on my search for natural cure. Some methods helped, while some aggravated my condition.

In my subsequent posts I will be mentioning in passing the things I tried, e.g.,

• ayurvedic medicine
• liver flush
  
• raw diet
• cranio-sacral therapy
• tetada kalimasada

but I will be focusing on what I do in the present. It is my desire that you get inspired by some of the things you encounter in my blog, and you avoid the pitfalls that made me stumble.

I intend to maintain this blog until the day I get well completely. As to when that may be, I don't know. Maybe you can help hasten my healing by giving me your blessings thru sharing with me your insights.