Acid Reflux

I Never Realized How Acidic My Food Life Was!

I've always felt badly for people who struggle with acid reflux. I've seen all the advertisements for over-the-counter and prescription heartburn meds all my life and have felt grateful that I haven't ever had an issue with it. 

Until a year ago. 

It started with an occasional dose of of a popular chew-able medication and progressed to almost non-stop chewing gum and some Googling. Finally last March I made an appointment to see my GP about it. The appointment was to be on March 16. 

Then: COVID-19. There was no way I was going to the clinic. I canceled the appointment. 

And now here we are in July and I've started "The Acid Watcher Diet," by Dr. Jonathan Aviv. I have 4 or 5 weeks before I have to go back to work and it's the perfect time to spend all day shopping, preparing, and cooking food. His book has a 28 day plan for healing and preventing acid reflux.  The Acid Watcher Diet

Here are the NO GO Drinks:

Coffee other caffeinated beverages -I've been drinking coffee, black and strong, since I was about 11. I've been drinking black tea since before that. 

Wine-I've been on and off with wine, either red or white, for the last dozen years. I won't really miss it.

Pop-I gave that up years ago. No problem. I don't drink any effervescent beverages at all. So I'm good there. 

No Go foods:

Citrus

Vinegars

Peppers-the spice kind

Tomatoes

Chocolate

Mint

Raw Onion

Raw Garlic

The big 3 for us is the tomatoes, onion and garlic. Lemons are a close 4th. This stumped me for a day or so. 

Lifestyle Changes:

Aviv also recommends not allowing the stomach to be empty. So my tendency not to start eating for the day until 9 or 10 is out. Also, he says don't lay down or go to bed less than 3 hours after eating the last meal of the day. Since I usually get up between 4:30 and 5:30 in the morning, I tend to be heading to bed at 8:30 pm. Bob doesn't usually get home until nearly 6, so often we don't get to eat until 6:30 or even 7:00 pm. 

As always, Bob is always amenable about our meals. I told him what I'm planning and we decided I'll get supper ready when I need to eat, and he'll just eat when he gets to it. No problem. But I am having to work on staying awake almost another hour to give digestion some time. 

So far I've had a lot of good stuff to eat. This is day three. Last night we had Miso-Agave Glazed Halibut and sesame bok choy.

The Rapture of Canaan, by Sheri Reynolds

The Rapture of Canaan by Sheri Reynolds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wanting to fit in, wanting to believe, pretty much believing, but knowing something isn't quite right. I understood this book.


View all my reviews

Book Review: Travelling to Infinity: My Life with Stephen, by Jane Hawking

Before picking up this book, my knowledge of Stephen Hawking could fit into maybe two sentences: He has something like ALS. He's a super-genius science guy who talks about black holes. 

Both of those are true, but of course there is so much more. This book, written by Jane Hawking, is a fascinating story about Stephen Hawking's meteoric rise to scientific fame, as well as his descent into physical immobility. 

Ms. Hawking details how they met in their later teen years (through Stephen's sister) and their decision to marry, despite his diagnosis of motor neurone disease, with it's bleak prognosis. Through years of struggling to obtain disability assistance from Britain's National Health Service, and navigating the globe without the handicap accessibility we take for granted these days, Stephen thrived in academia and the Hawking children grew under Ms. Hawking's steady and constant care. 

Hawking's struggles are detailed and persistent in this book. She pulls no punches, calling out people and institutions who failed to offer support. But she also heralds the many people and institutions who provide unflagging encouragement and assistance. The book is not bitter, but one can not fail to wonder how she managed to escape developing an entirely bitter outlook on life. 

The edition I read had two postscripts, written as the book was re-published after it's original 2007 release. The story has also been made into a movie, "The Theory of Everything," which came out in 2015.

Book Review: Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

This is the story of  Ifemelu and Obinze, two Nigerians who emigrate from Nigeria to two different countries and then come home again. I'm not sure how this book came to me, but I sure didn't want to let it go back to the library. I am quite certain, however, that I decided to read this book solely based on my experience another Adichie book, "Purple Hibiscus." Her absorbing storytelling, done with some of the best prose I can remember ever reading, is both entertaining and educational. 

Adichie's observations about human behavior touch home. As you read her books, you often find yourself realizing, "Of course! I've seen people do and say those things and now I get a glimpse of understanding the thought process behind it!" 

Ifemelu came to the U.S. as a student on an education visa. Her education in Nigeria was frustrating as she tried to find continuity in a time of turmoil that caused work stoppages, power outages, and government upheaval. In the U.S, she moved in with her aunt who had emigrated here with her young son. Ifemelu's struggles to find work and become self-sufficient were tough, but she survived the hardship to become a blogger and speaker with a focus on race issues. Her assessment of racism in America, and her observations of the heirarchy of non-white people is compelling and familiar. 

Ifemelu's childhood friend and teenage lover, Obinze, emigrated illegally to the U.K. His plan was also to pursue education, but he did not have the benefit of family or government assistance. His part of the story is short but sometimes brutal, as he tried to work under a borrowed National Health card.

Both Ifemelu and Obinze end up back in Nigeria. I won't tell you how that happened for each of them, so as to not spoil the story.  They find their way to each back in Nigeria, which is the third component to the story. 

One of the most compelling passages of the book, to me, is when Adichie has a character that contrast racial attitudes in the U.S. with those in the U.K. 

There are time, particularly when Adichie inserts some of Ifemelu's blog entries, where the book drags for a few pages. But there are reasons for those entries, and they don't detract from the story.

Get this book. Then read "Purple Hibiscus" too.

Book Review: "Becoming Odyssa: Adventures on the Appalachian Trail," by Jennifer Pharr Davis

Becoming Odyssa on Amazon: $1.99 for Kindle

I loved reading "A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail," by Bill Bryson. And also "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail," by Cheryl Strayed. Both were made into pretty good movies, too.

But I hope this one is not made into a movie. It's a book you need to read in bites and enjoy. A book that has things to teach you about hiking and faith (without being preachy) and being willing to accept help and give help. 

Jennifer Pharr Davis went on this solo hike right out of college. It's a perfect time to do such an adventure, before the work world, bills, family and other cares take over your life. I guess another time to do something like this might be when you retire, or when you accumulate enough weeks of vacation to take extended time off. 

In the book, Pharr Davis is kind of hard on hikers who are not thru-hikers...people who tackle the Trail a section at a time, or who just hit a part occasionally for a weekend. Actually, she's a bit unfair. But you must remember she is only 21 in this book, and she did run into some self-absorbed lawbreakers during her experience. She has a blog on her website, Blue Ridge Hiking Company, and she does have an entry there where she expresses her regrets about some of those comments. I'm glad she did that, because it was wrong to paint everyone with a broad brush. 

This book allowed me to dream about hiking long distance, and to walk alongside Jennifer in spirit. That's what a good book is to me...one that allows me to live the story vicariously.

The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah

As much as I'm a little worn out on WWII novels, I have to admit I've enjoyed listening to The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah.

Yes, I know it's been on the NY Times Bestseller list for a while, so really who cares what little old me thinks about this historical novel?

But here goes: the book does often veer into the tried-and-true narratives about the Nazi occupation in France, as well as the brutal mistreatment of members of the resistance in the camps. BUT, the really great part of this book is the story of two women who worked to help people.

The bolder, brasher sister helped down ally pilots escape the Nazis, escorting them over the Pyrenees on foot to safety. These pilots, from various ally countries, met up with their units, allowing them to fly again.

The older, milder and more cautious sister, stayed in her hometown with her daughter as she waiting for her husband to be released from prison. She had Nazi officers billeted at her home, and ultimately saved more than a dozen Jewish orphans from certain death in the camps.

There many readers who say they chose their book because it was compared with another bestseller, "All the Light We Cannot See," by Anthony Doerr. I don't really see a resemblance, other than that both take place during the same time and same place. I personally didn't get to finish "All the Light," as I returned it to Audible after attempting to listen to it for 4 hours. I might try it again, but I got bogged down by the author's extremely detailed descriptions. There was just so much painting of the scene, that I couldn't hang out long enough for the real story. Maybe I'm shallow? I always feel a little shallow when this happens.