Hydrating and Cooling Tricks for MS

Finally! Getting some good sleep. Good food, activity, supplement balance.

There are different kinds of vests and systems. A lot of trial and error goes into thriving with MS but there are many more options these days.

We Have a "trails trial" this Sunday so I am prepping for the heat. Cooling vests out and ready to freeze and cool accordingly. Here I am on "Dreamy" in my blue Cool Medic vest.I have an Artic Heat vest on underneath the sun shirt. Some vests are water cooled. Some frozen and some carry ice blocks in them.


I was nervous for this day as it was a 7-8 mile/10-12k in the open desert with predicted temperature around 90F. And I had never been on one before.

My packing list:

CamelBak with lots of ice in bladder.Chill bladder in refrigerator overnight add ice in morning.

Cooling vest #1 - Arctic Heat cooling vest, activated and in freezer.

Cooling vest #2 - Cool Medic cooling vest in cooler, to get wet right before ride.

Cooling neck wrap, activated and in freezer.

(2) quart size zip locks with ice for inside boots after ride.

(1) sun hoodie from Solumbra

(1) pair fingerless, sun gloves from Solumbra

(3) bandanas in cold water in cooler

(2) gallon ziplocks with ice for cooler

Hat

Layers and

sun shirt

Light weight jeans

4 bottles water at least

2 coconut waters

Banana or orange juice or both

Morning of event: Shentrition Coconut water Water Banana.... I'm ready for this!

And it was a success! I stayed relatively cool, body didn't get out of whack and even placed seventh overall. A good day was had by all.

Homeopathic leg cramp medicine not working!

6/20/12 8:34pm Stopping the Hyland's leg cramp medicine. Horrible reactions. Quinine scares me! Ate some great mahi mahi, sorrel, quinoa dinner. 8:13am Not sure about the Hylands leg cramps remedy. Woke with terrible cramps.not sure what from. Went on walk yesterday and thought was hydrating through the day. But obviously not enough. Today I've had a banana, 2 magnevelures, 2 coconut waters plus four glasses of water so far. Took a warm bath and massaged muscles. Soft tissues tight. Could be from wine last night. 6/19/12 Trying a new leg cramp homeopathic remedy. We will see. Have been dry brushing at night. Bathing and soaking with mineral salts Stretching, yoga Had a pretty rough night. Took a Benadryl for some poison oak and it kept me up all morning. Too much mixing. All I can handle is 1/2 a klonopin and 1 Tylenol pm.

First things first...

First things first, morning prayer: For The Common Task P. 27 pocket prayer book "Dear Christ, help me to make the common things of life and make them beautiful. Help me to do this today." Prayer book given to Connie Craven, my grandmother, on May 9, 1965, Mothers Day, by Community Christian Church in Burbank. Connie was a lovely lady but didn't have an easy life. She made her life beautiful in part with this prayer book. I can see how it effected her to become the angel she was when she returned to heaven. Now I need to learn this way of life. Through Christ and my faith. MS Research: Recovery is slow. Two days. Coconut water good but high in sodium. Lots of water retention after long hot rides. Body's natural defense against inflammation external and internal. Warm plus sunny. Today's ride planned for 70's and shade. Should be nice. Had good solid sleep after a day of wine tasting with girls. Came home and drank water. Took 1/2 klonopin and 1 Advil pm. Seems a good mixture but worried about liver and kidney health. Let's explore that more. Off to get ShenTrition drink and ready for the day...

I'm Back!

Hey there, Its been awhile. Lost focus. Things considered and things changed. Watch this spot and look forward to learning about life with Multiple Sclerosis. Not always fun but pretty darn good at times. After a recent six week relapse this MS survivor is coming back strong. If it doesn't have to do with family, friends, fun, food or fishing, it's not on my agenda. Of course horses belong in the fun category. Tomorrow is a big day. For those with MS you understand our sensitivity to heat but to others it's a continual cool down session in training. My goal is to ride a horse for about 2 hours in the morning in Palmdale in my first trails trials. With two cooling vests, (including this one from arctic heat), a cooling neck band and various other attachments and a chest full of ice, I should be cool, if not maybe mistaken for a terrorist of sorts. Im training for the heat as part of my MS therapy. Heres a great resource about active bodies and heat in general and helpful for those with MS and are heat sensitive: Strategies for Training and Competing in the Heat and Humidity: Click Here via @powerbar My main alternative is to use coconut water for a natural effective hydration program. Check out the health benefits. For up to date info about dealing with multiple sclerosis check out this site!