Blog #234--Interesting Tidbits Not Included in Book, Part 21

This article is a continuation of short topics that expand upon conclusions drawn in my book “It’s a Secret, So Pass It On: a Toolbox For Life.”

Tidbit #1: I am attached to an oxygen concentrator at all times. When it was first brought into the house, it had a humidifier attached, as well as a moisture trap within the tubing since some of the distilled water makes its way down the tube. However, I found that the trap doesn’t prevent all the moisture from reaching my nose. Since I didn’t wish to drown in my sleep, I removed the humidifier and trap.

Unfortunately, oxygen blowing constantly onto my nasal membranes during low humidity conditions causes my body to excrete water to moisten them. It can be embarrassing if I have someone visiting while water is dripping from my nose. Like everything else in this world, every good thing also has something bad about it. We want solutions, cures and perfection in a world where there is no permanency.

Rosanne Roseannadanna (played by the late Gilda Radner) might have drawn the following conclusion as part of a Saturday Night Live skit: “It just goes to show ya, it’s always something. Either you have water pouring into your nose, or you have water pouring out of it.”

Tidbit #2: Neutron stars are a long way from Earth and are formed from collapsed stars. But they have at least one thing in common with objects on Earth. Namely, cells of living organisms have a similar geometry to neutron stars. Indiana University astrophysics researcher Charles Horowitz states:

“Seeing very similar shapes in such strikingly different systems suggests that the energy of a system may depend on its shape in a simple and universal way.”

It will take many years before scientists can complete investigative work on the whys and wherefores of this phenomenon, but finding commonality within diversity should be no surprise to anyone. That is the way of the world.

Tidbit #3: Everyone has reflexes inherited through our genetic structure that have helped our ancestors survive over the millennia. Each has a range of responses to specific stimuli, depending on variables such as the intensity of the situation and the need for a different approach. For instance, the sucking instinct is necessary for newborns but is usually reduced over time as we begin to eat solid food and lessen our dependence on mother’s milk.

The gag reflex is another one. We have the ability to prevent toxic or excessively large objects from going into our esophagus and stomach. However, some of us have encouraged a gag reflex when it isn’t needed. For instance, some people gag at the mere thought of taking a pill, even when it is a necessary treatment. Yet most of those same people can swallow large bites of food. Clearly, their resistance to taking medicine encourages the gag reflex in excess of their best interests.

The gag reflex can be cultivated to permit larger bites if one wishes. I have learned to take multiple pills simultaneously through repetition. Starting with two pills and increasing a little at a time, I can now swallow 8-10 pills and capsules of multiple sizes with ease. It’s just a matter of relaxing and accepting items in the back of our throats so our gag reflex will not take effect. While I’m sure Linda Lovelace had an ability many of us lack, her work in the pornographic movie “Deep Throat” demonstrated how big an opening some people have for swallowing large objects, and how it is possible to shut off the gag reflex with practice.

The black vulture is one of several types of birds that need the gag reflex to feed their young. Their chicks stick their long beaks down a parent’s throat to stimulate regurgitation. They then benefit from recently swallowed prey. In the same way, we can induce a gag reflex by putting a finger down our throats to vomit excessive alcohol or other substances causing us stomach irritation.

I don’t know if this is a reflex or simply fear manifesting itself, but some people have an aversion to seeing blood, especially their own. One man in my veterinary school graduating class could work readily with animal blood. But while in surgery one day, he accidently cut himself and fainted. He was bothered more by his own blood than the dog on the operating table. It makes no sense, but perhaps it is equivalent to an opossum acting dead to prevent a predator attack.

These are examples of instincts, but it must be understood that all instincts can take two opposite paths. Each of us is a mixture of these opposites, and each of us has a small range of variations we can use depending on need and experience. Not all of these variations are in our best interests, but we can learn what doesn’t work and make changes. That is, if we can overcome our fear of change.

Tidbit #4: We have an inner guidance that helps us but may not always make sense to us at the time. I have needed a certain rapid-acting inhaler for my emphysema for 19 years. Originally, I used it 7-8 times a day. Since I kept using each inhaler until I could no longer hear any noise upon shaking, it would often last longer than a month, but I kept getting more each month. I also got new prescriptions each time I was given a new doctor, which was frequent, and these prescriptions overlapped one another.

At one point, I was 18 inhalers ahead. I wondered why I was letting it build up like that, but it was really cheap at first. I paid $6.00 a month for a long time, then $12.00. In more recent times, I had to pay $33.00 and then $55.00 for the same medicine, but I still obtained more monthly. Then the company jacked up the price so high that Medicare refused to pay a portion of the cost. If I were to buy one now, it would cost $374.00 monthly (as of 6 months ago…it may be higher now).

Fortunately, I had those 18 extra sprays to use instead. When I was down to my last one, a respiratory therapist finally showed me a dosing formula using a cheaper medicine, which allowed me to stop using that particular inhaler. Without the guidance to buy all those extra supplies when they were cheap, I’d be near bankruptcy by now. The more we can learn to trust our inner guidance, the better off we will be.

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