Sleuthing With Regards To Respiratory Alkalosis And Low C02

[Caitlin]

I read that acid reflux is caused by undigested food traveling from the stomach into the small intestine and then the SI "sensing" that it is undigested, it forces it back up into the stomach and esophagus, in other words a DEFICIENCY of stomach acid, not an excess.

Basically the food is going stomach -> small intestine -> stomach

I'm skeptical anyone has too much stomach acid. The stomach is supposed to be extremely acidic and if not adequately
Too much stomach acid ensure the food is properly digested, and you claim the food leaves you undigested.

I would look into:
-Betaine
-Digestive enzymes (with pepsin, proteases, + ox-bile)
-Bromelain
-Extra salt in combination with the above ^. Salt increases stomach acid.



And excessive burping (which I had in the past) is pretty much a sign you have SIBO.
I would try Rifaximin + another antibiotic to reduce SIBO. After Rifaximin excessive dragon burps stopped.


As far as increasing CO2, try plain baking soda + magnesium carbonate on an empty stomach first thing in the morning.

Thanks, SOMO! Unfortunately I have tried the majority of this. I agree with you that there is so much confusion in the low acid/high acid debate. The thing is, per all the exams and photos that the otolaryngolist took, my throat and larynx are super inflamed and "scorched" by acid. In his opinion, the pepsin has traveled too far up the throat and larynx, and whenever I eat anything acidic, the pepsin is activated and eats away at the esophagus. When I went on an acid blocker (I tried both a PPI (Prilosec) and an H2 Blocker (Zantac) things got better (only temporarily) in conjunction with the gabapentin. They improved for only a few weeks and then went back to baseline, but they did get better. So for some reason things do improve with less "acid." It's just tough to tell what is really coming up my throat. Is it really stomach acid, or it is gas from bacteria overgrowth? Regardless, it is creating a crapload of burning sensation in my throat and nasal passages (My sinuses are stuffed up every morning when I wake up and I am alreading sleep at 45 angle and finish eating at least 5 hours before bed)

I have tried taking HCL throughout the years and it hasn't helped. I take digestive enzymes, too, but that hasn't helped. I upped my dosage of salt last week because I thought hey, maybe that's finally the issue. But I felt worse on more salt, not better.

I was tested for SIBO years ago (before anyone knew what it was, haha) and my results were positive and off the charts. I took rifaximin and it did help initially, but it only worked for so long. My gut issues have improved considerably, and my most recent SIBO test came up negative. I know those tests are always completely accurate, but I just don't know what to think anymore -- and am therefore skeptical if I have it or not.

I do think there's something with the SIBO or excessive gas, I just don't know what to think anymore because I did get better on an acid blocker initially. And then my body adapted.

Thank you for your insight. I soooo appreciate it.

 

[SOMO]

Thanks, SOMO! Unfortunately I have tried the majority of this. I agree with you that there is so much confusion in the low acid/high acid debate. The thing is, per all the exams and photos that the otolaryngolist took, my throat and larynx are super inflamed and "scorched" by acid. In his opinion, the pepsin has traveled too far up the throat and larynx, and whenever I eat anything acidic, the pepsin is activated and eats away at the esophagus. When I went on an acid blocker (I tried both a PPI (Prilosec) and an H2 Blocker (Zantac) things got better (only temporarily) in conjunction with the gabapentin. They improved for only a few weeks and then went back to baseline, but they did get better. So for some reason things do improve with less "acid." It's just tough to tell what is really coming up my throat. Is it really stomach acid, or it is gas from bacteria overgrowth? Regardless, it is creating a crapload of burning sensation in my throat and nasal passages (My sinuses are stuffed up every morning when I wake up and I am alreading sleep at 45 angle and finish eating at least 5 hours before bed)

I have tried taking HCL throughout the years and it hasn't helped. I take digestive enzymes, too, but that hasn't helped. I upped my dosage of salt last week because I thought hey, maybe that's finally the issue. But I felt worse on more salt, not better.

I was tested for SIBO years ago (before anyone knew what it was, haha) and my results were positive and off the charts. I took rifaximin and it did help initially, but it only worked for so long. My gut issues have improved considerably, and my most recent SIBO test came up negative. I know those tests are always completely accurate, but I just don't know what to think anymore -- and am therefore skeptical if I have it or not.

I do think there's something with the SIBO or excessive gas, I just don't know what to think anymore because I did get better on an acid blocker initially. And then my body adapted.

Thank you for your insight. I soooo appreciate it.

It's good to hear your experience regarding the stomach acid and high/low debate. I myself have been confused by this debate and have also had mild acid reflux in the past, which interestingly was triggered by starch and cold/frozen fruit.

Did you consume the salt with food? RP says salt on an empty stomach can irritate it.

Regarding Rifaximin, I read that it only works in the presence of bile and if you are having digestive issues, a lack of bile could also be an issue you have.
I myself took Rifaximin an empty stomach and/or with a carbohydrate, low-fat meal and did not notice much improvement. When I took it with a meal containing some fat (meat) it actually seemed to "activate." Bile is produced in the presence of fat.


If your sinuses are stuffy, I would try this Xylitol nasal spray, it's antibacterial and helps dissolve biofilm in the nose and oral cavity:
https://www.amazon.com/XLEAR-All-Na...l+nasal+spray&qid=1564775143&s=gateway&sr=8-3

I think some things to calm your inflamed upper GI tract would be:
-Xylitol
-Bone broth/glycine
-Chamomile tea
-Milk (I understand you said you have dairy issues, so I would try lactaid milk or a lactase enzyme before and during milk consumption.)

Our of curiosity how do you react to ginger and what about spicy food like black pepper or chilis? Chilis aren't really RP approved but some experience benefit from them.

 

[Caitlin]

Hi Somo!

I was putting the Celtic sea salt in water and on top of food. I tried Himalayan too. The majority of it was consumed via drinking water. I did experience the "sea salt flush" and had crazy diarrhea a lot of the time. After some googling I realize that salt is often used as a flush/detox. anyway, it wasn't that my stomach really hurt after consuming so much salt, but I found that I was extremely weak physically. It was like my hypoxia was intensified. I could barely stand up last week. Perhaps the salt was the wrong approach, or perhaps I had it with too much water? I just find that it's a little hard to eat it straight. Don't get me wrong, I love salt, but it's hard for me to consume it in large chunks!

My stuffy nose seems directly related to reflux as I experience it only in the morning. I sleep on a 45 degree angle but still am getting reflux at night.

I drink a lot of chamomile and ginger tea in the morning. I seem fine with it and it even aids digestion/gut motility.

I don't know that I have ever tried xylitol on its own, but I have certainly had it in products from time to time. I have done a lot of bone broth but that hasn't helped much.

I love thai and vietnamese food but I haven't had much Asian food in the past few months because the reflux doctor has me off black pepper and chili per the acid reflux diet. I took Rifaxin so long ago -- in 2011 -- that I can't really remember how it I took it (with food or without). I guess i took it however it is prescribed. I remember at the time my gut was a complete mess and after taking it my bowel movements returned to normal (sorry, TMI). But then after finishing up each course my gut problems would return.

I still have gut issues and definitely think I might still have a parasite, but by gut motility is SOOO much better now than it was in 2011. I definitely still have gas and constipation, but not like I did back then. I take a really good probiotic and sacchromyces boulardi now, and that seems to help considerably.

i sincerely hope I don't sound like I am a Debbie Downer who is poo-pooing every idea. No pun intended! I am open to any and everything. I have just tried so much already -- from Western medicine to holistic treatments to crazy psychedelic ones that have brought me to Peru and Costa Rica and Gabon and beyond. For some reason life is testing me and prolonging this healing journey!!!

 

[SOMO]

Hi Somo!

I was putting the Celtic sea salt in water and on top of food. I tried Himalayan too. The majority of it was consumed via drinking water. I did experience the "sea salt flush" and had crazy diarrhea a lot of the time. After some googling I realize that salt is often used as a flush/detox. anyway, it wasn't that my stomach really hurt after consuming so much salt, but I found that I was extremely weak physically. It was like my hypoxia was intensified. I could barely stand up last week. Perhaps the salt was the wrong approach, or perhaps I had it with too much water? I just find that it's a little hard to eat it straight. Don't get me wrong, I love salt, but it's hard for me to consume it in large chunks!

My stuffy nose seems directly related to reflux as I experience it only in the morning. I sleep on a 45 degree angle but still am getting reflux at night.

I drink a lot of chamomile and ginger tea in the morning. I seem fine with it and it even aids digestion/gut motility.

I don't know that I have ever tried xylitol on its own, but I have certainly had it in products from time to time. I have done a lot of bone broth but that hasn't helped much.

I love thai and vietnamese food but I haven't had much Asian food in the past few months because the reflux doctor has me off black pepper and chili per the acid reflux diet. I took Rifaxin so long ago -- in 2011 -- that I can't really remember how it I took it (with food or without). I guess i took it however it is prescribed. I remember at the time my gut was a complete mess and after taking it my bowel movements returned to normal (sorry, TMI). But then after finishing up each course my gut problems would return.

I still have gut issues and definitely think I might still have a parasite, but by gut motility is SOOO much better now than it was in 2011. I definitely still have gas and constipation, but not like I did back then. I take a really good probiotic and sacchromyces boulardi now, and that seems to help considerably.

i sincerely hope I don't sound like I am a Debbie Downer who is poo-pooing every idea. No pun intended! I am open to any and everything. I have just tried so much already -- from Western medicine to holistic treatments to crazy psychedelic ones that have brought me to Peru and Costa Rica and Gabon and beyond. For some reason life is testing me and prolonging this healing journey!!!

Yes salt + water will cause diarrhea.
I think overly salting food is the way to go, even if it ruins the taste.

I found I had to take “excessive” salt with food for a few days before my sodium started to regulate itself and I experienced a reduction in bloating and shallow rapid breathing.

Parasite is a possibility so I would speak to a GI about Metronidazole.

I would actually quit the probiotics but maybe stick with the S. boulardii.

A lot of probiotics increase lactic acid which causes muscle weakness in some - when you exercise part of the reason why the muscles start to burn and get tired is the increase in lactic acid.

I used to take a lot of probiotics and probiotics together and found that it only degraded my health and caused GI issues. I even took the overpriced VSL#3 and it definitely never made any improvements to my health.

I think probiotics might be good for people with C. Diff but they all pretty much increase lactic acid and could contribute to your muscle weakness.

Definitely try progesterone and DHEA for your general weakness.

 

[Caitlin]

yeah, it's so tough to say. The probiotics and sacchromyces have been truly transformative for me and increased gut motility, so I don't want to stop them. I took VSL back in the day and it was a lifesaver for me. It turned my SIBO around. Now I use a different probiotic that doesn't need to be refrigerated, but it works equally well. This new one is combo of Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium Longum, Lactobaccilus platarum, and Bifidobacterium lactis). The one probiotic that I have tried that absolutely doesn't work is Bacillus Coagulans. It completely WRECKS my system and causes horrific bloating.

The problems with the hypoxia started before I started taking probiotics. And I don't observe a beneficial difference if I don't take them, so for the sake of gut motility, it makes sense to continue them.

Metronidazole is Flagyl, yes? I can't remember if I ever took that. I don't think so. With regards to the parasite, it's tough to tell what I have and haven't. I will say that right now I am experiencing an itchy anus. Along with itchy legs and back. TMI, I know. I am a clean person. But I know it can often be a sign of a parasite. This symptom comes and goes through the years, so it's so tough to know if it is an accurate one. When I did parasite tests long ago they came up negative, but then I finally went to see this old-school, but top-notch parasite doctor in NYC (I think his name is Kevin Cahill) who tests you in his office for the parasite. He literally does the rectal exam there and the stool swipe there. I had e. histolytica. I finally found like I knew what was wrong with me, but after course of taken the rounds of anti-parasite drugs. I think I was on paromomycin but it didn't change things. It might have helped the gut slightly, but it didn't change the hypoxia.

The one other thing I will add is that when I was in Peru I tried pulverized coca leaf. It's a sacred medicine there (not Schedule 2 like it is here), and after mixing powdered coca leaf in water I experienced a huge cellular boost. For two days straight, I could walk up hills without huffing and puffing and my legs weren't ridiculously weak. I was so amazed by it that I illegally sent some home to the US thinking that I had found something that would help me. It did give me a 30% boost of so, but never in the same way that it did those first few days that I took it. Coca leaf isn't well studied here because it is illegal, but I think the fact that it helps distribute oxygen to the body must have helped me in some way. It wasn't a cure-all, but it did help me considerably with energy. And it wasn't like cocaine. It was like a non-jittery cup of coffee that gave me a boost of cellular energy.

Anyway, just thought I would mention that as well in case it sparks an idea for someone!

 

[ecstatichamster]

The Buteyko method saved my life. Literally. I would be dead by now. Instead I’m off all medications for many years and incredibly healthy.

I recommend it highly. Nothing like it. You can find a good practitioner hopefully and pursue it. It will solve most of your health problems.

 

[Caitlin]

Hi! I am so happy you found success with Buteyko. As mentioned I tried the Buteyko method numerous times. Once in 2015 and twice more this year. I saw three different practitioners and practiced it religiously. I know it has transformed the lives of many, and in theory it works, but it didn't for me. I think there's just something additional going on physiologically for me that is preventing my co2 from being raised. I wish it worked for me. Trust me, I really wish.

 

[Caitlin]

Yes salt + water will cause diarrhea.
I think overly salting food is the way to go, even if it ruins the taste.

I found I had to take “excessive” salt with food for a few days before my sodium started to regulate itself and I experienced a reduction in bloating and shallow rapid breathing.

Parasite is a possibility so I would speak to a GI about Metronidazole.

I would actually quit the probiotics but maybe stick with the S. boulardii.

A lot of probiotics increase lactic acid which causes muscle weakness in some - when you exercise part of the reason why the muscles start to burn and get tired is the increase in lactic acid.

I used to take a lot of probiotics and probiotics together and found that it only degraded my health and caused GI issues. I even took the overpriced VSL#3 and it definitely never made any improvements to my health.

I think probiotics might be good for people with C. Diff but they all pretty much increase lactic acid and could contribute to your muscle weakness.

Definitely try progesterone and DHEA for your general weakness.

Also, just to clarify, I didn't know about lactobacillus causing more lactate production. But I guess that makes sense given the name! I would stop it, but it seems to help so much with my gut. I guess I am torn!

 

[tara]

My Buteyko practitioner mentioned something about chewing it throughout the day?

I'm not an expert, but this is something Peat has suggested too, and it sounds as though it works for some people. AIUI, tiny nibbles as needed through the day of a 25mcg tablet. (That's not medical advice from me, just a description of what I've heard some people do.) Monitoring body temps and pulse and observing symptoms is the DIY guide you can use every day at home.

I don't personally get such severe digestive distress, and it's not an area I am very familiar with, but it does seem people find different solutions. Some with changing the balance of microbes, some with less fibre, some by avoiding particular foods, etc. No one else is going to know exactly which foods your system needs when it's struggling. A lot of people find chickpeas and other beans a bit tough and gassy.

other beans a bit tough. My hunch is that because you are eating a range of foods you are probably covering a lot of the bases with nutrition. But it might still be worth running it through cronometer to see if you are missing something specific. How many calories you maintain on is another indicator of base metabolism, so this could be interesting too.

Previous poster Mittir wrote a number of posts about avoiding irritating foods that seemed to work for him. Others have found other methods.

Also, just to clarify, I didn't know about lactobacillus causing more lactate production. But I guess that makes sense given the name! I would stop it, but it seems to help so much with my gut. I guess I am torn!

If I were you I'd follow what works for you personally over snippets of theory.

Good luck.

 

[Caitlin]

I'm not an expert, but this is something Peat has suggested too, and it sounds as though it works for some people. AIUI, tiny nibbles as needed through the day of a 25mcg tablet. (That's not medical advice from me, just a description of what I've heard some people do.) Monitoring body temps and pulse and observing symptoms is the DIY guide you can use every day at home.

I don't personally get such severe digestive distress, and it's not an area I am very familiar with, but it does seem people find different solutions. Some with changing the balance of microbes, some with less fibre, some by avoiding particular foods, etc. No one else is going to know exactly which foods your system needs when it's struggling. A lot of people find chickpeas and other beans a bit tough and gassy.

other beans a bit tough. My hunch is that because you are eating a range of foods you are probably covering a lot of the bases with nutrition. But it might still be worth running it through cronometer to see if you are missing something specific. How many calories you maintain on is another indicator of base metabolism, so this could be interesting too.

Previous poster Mittir wrote a number of posts about avoiding irritating foods that seemed to work for him. Others have found other methods.



If I were you I'd follow what works for you personally over snippets of theory.

Good luck.

Thanks!

 

[empoweredliving]

Hi All,

I wanted to reach out and see if anyone could help me with some physiological “sleuthing.”

I am a 41-year-old female and I have been living in a state of hypoxia and respiratory alkalosis for about ten years. My muscles are permanently weak and as a result of chronic hyperventilation, and not enough oxygen is reaching my cells (per the Bohr Effect). I’m weak and out of breath all the time.

I don’t know how or why this started, but when it began when I was on an extremely low-carb Paleo diet for about 2 weeks. I don't know if that is causation or correlation or just coincidence. And in the years prior to this occurring, I was on birth control and Aldactone (a drug that can lower potassium) for about ten years for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. My hypoxia and chronic hyperventilation started in 2011, and I have been living with it ever since. I have seen countless doctors about it, but no one can figure it out. Myself included.

I don’t have a thyroid anymore (it was taken out in 2011), although my symptoms started before shortly before it was taken out.

In addition to the hypoxia, I have really bad acid reflux and a vagal neuropathy. Despite the fact that I have eaten a healthful, low inflammation diet for years (gluten free, mostly paleo-ish) the otolarynologist told me it was some of the worst reflux she has even seen. Also, my hair falls out when I brush it, and I can also see that food isn’t properly digested in my stool. I burp constantly. My legs itch a lot and there's no rash. I have been told that reflux can be counterintuitive and the result of not having enough acid in the stomach. That said, I have tried supplementing with HCL on several occasions and that hasn’t worked either. So I don’t know what to think.

I have tried adding more salt to my diet, thinking that this issue is tied to my thyroid and an electrolyte imbalance, but to no avail. I increased my salt intake to 2 tsp a day and felt much worse. I’ve also tried Buteyko breathing. I practiced Buteyko religiously for several months, thinking that that would finally heal me, but as hard as I tried I couldn’t alter the hyperventilation and bring up my CP.

The one thing that has helped me is an African plant medicine called iboga, from which ibogaine comes. I tried this plant out of desperation and frustration, and it was miraculous. That said, the healing effects lasted only about 1-2 weeks and then the hyperventilation and respiratory alkalosis returned. During every Iboga ceremony I experienced intense burping where trapped air exited my body by what seemed like the liter. The belches were dragon-like and painful. But once the 4-5 hours of constant burping were over, I could breathe again, and oxygen flooded to the rest of my body. My strength returned too. I felt new again. After each iboga ceremony I would feel great, but my respiratory problems would return within two weeks. Each time I did iboga the same thing would happen.

Because iboga/ibogaine is a schedule 1 drug, it has not been heavily studied. I have been told that iboga is a calcium channel blocker, and that it inhibits hERG channels, whatever that means. I have had my electrolytes tested throughout the years, and haven’t found any anomalies. Maybe there is one that hasn't been tested. According to the ENT, I don't have a hiatal hernia either.

I have been on Gabapentin and Amitryptiline for several months per the otolaryngologist’s instructions (because of the vagal neuropathy). I was also put on an H2 blocker, Zantac. After a few weeks I got better. My hyperventilation improved and my CO2 levels rose a little bit. I was so excited! But then things went downhill again as soon as they improved.

People seem extremely intelligent in this forum and perhaps something I have written above sparks a thought or an idea or something that I can explore. Can you think of any tests that I can have done that could provide some insight? Or any obscure syndrome that could be causing this? If you have any insight – any at all – I would love to hear it. I am so sick of being sick and want to feel better. I am surviving, but I am not living. Both doctors I have seen have not heard of the Bohr effect, and don't know how to move forward with my situation. Perhaps someone here could offer a tip or the smallest bit of insight that could help me.

Thanks!

Caitlin

Caitlin, the proper reliable way to directly raise your CO2 levels is by Practising Buteyko breathing daily. If you take all the B vitamins recommended on this forum but you still breathe too much take too many breaths per minute aka Hyperventilation, then that is a lack of CO2. For ideal health, we need CO2 @ 6.5% in our blood that is equivalent to holding our breath comfortably without gasping as shown in this video for 60 seconds and to Recreate this after 2 minutes rest. You can lower CO2 levels with diet and many people have with low carb or zero carb but eating more carbs taking this or that is not going to make a huge difference if one is 1/ Mouth Breather, 2/ does not sleep well and sleeps on the back. 3/ still has blood sugar levels ( CO2 related) Who am I to make this bold claim? I interviewed Ray in 2009. Have listened to all Peat's radio interviews and read all his articles. I also followed his diet from 2013 - 2017 only to find myself still hyperventilating big time. When I learned advanced Buteyko my blood sugar and sleep immediately improved within 30 days of daily practice. No supps no methylene blue, no niacinamide DHEA, progesterone Vit E, raw dairy, a load of fruit did for me what Buteyko has. Let me tell Buteyko has made the biggest difference to my health as well as not drinking all that orange juice which always crashed me even after some years of peating. The first thing that I do with all my Buteyko students/clients is getting them to breathe 24/7 via the nose only. Bag breathing is not enough. You can check your scores on that video, very simple do the CP test Control Pause ( hold your breath) and if your Breath Holds are anything less than 35 seconds you are not going to change or improve that with diet alone. You can certainly make it worse but to improve your CO2 levels, to oxygenate your brain, muscles and your liver, you need to stop hyperventilating which most people do today in silence without even knowing they are hyperventilating.

 

[Caitlin]

Caitlin, the proper reliable way to directly raise your CO2 levels is by Practising Buteyko breathing daily. If you take all the B vitamins recommended on this forum but you still breathe too much take too many breaths per minute aka Hyperventilation, then that is a lack of CO2. For ideal health, we need CO2 @ 6.5% in our blood that is equivalent to holding our breath comfortably without gasping as shown in this video for 60 seconds and to Recreate this after 2 minutes rest. You can lower CO2 levels with diet and many people have with low carb or zero carb but eating more carbs taking this or that is not going to make a huge difference if one is 1/ Mouth Breather, 2/ does not sleep well and sleeps on the back. 3/ still has blood sugar levels ( CO2 related) Who am I to make this bold claim? I interviewed Ray in 2009. Have listened to all Peat's radio interviews and read all his articles. I also followed his diet from 2013 - 2017 only to find myself still hyperventilating big time. When I learned advanced Buteyko my blood sugar and sleep immediately improved within 30 days of daily practice. No supps no methylene blue, no niacinamide DHEA, progesterone Vit E, raw dairy, a load of fruit did for me what Buteyko has. Let me tell Buteyko has made the biggest difference to my health as well as not drinking all that orange juice which always crashed me even after some years of peating. The first thing that I do with all my Buteyko students/clients is getting them to breathe 24/7 via the nose only. Bag breathing is not enough. You can check your scores on that video, very simple do the CP test Control Pause ( hold your breath) and if your Breath Holds are anything less than 35 seconds you are not going to change or improve that with diet alone. You can certainly make it worse but to improve your CO2 levels, to oxygenate your brain, muscles and your liver, you need to stop hyperventilating which most people do today in silence without even knowing they are hyperventilating.

Hi Empowered Living,

Thanks for sharing this. As you might have seen in the thread above I mentioned that I practiced Buteyko Breathing religiously this winter (2019) and in 2015, too. I have now worked with three different practitioners -- two in the US and one in Australia. I was practicing reduced breathing for 90 minutes a day this winter and still not seeing results. My CP was consistently between 12 and 15 seconds. The only time my CP when up (on two different occasions) was when I started taking a PPI and an H2 blocker, respectively, which leads me to believe that that acid production is somehow causing an issue. At that point it got up to 20-25. I am no longer on the acid blockers because as soon as I started to get better I got worse and my CP went down again. But there is some sort of connection there.

I understand about the mouth-breathing, too. For years I have been a mouth-breather and have worked hard to remedy that. For the past several years I sleep with paper tape on my mouth at night. It helps me sleep better, but it hasn't changed my co2 levels considerably. I even got a frenectomy this past January to fix a tongue tie. My tongue is now in the right place and I breathe through my nose the majority of the time now. But the Co2 levels have not shifted.

I believe in the power of the Buteyko method, and I was so excited when I first discovered it, but I have tried it so much that I think there is something else that is holding me back and keeping my C02 low. All of the Buteyko practitioners were amazed by my diligence and felt certain that I should have improved with the amount of time I was doing the reduced breathing and breath holds. When I try something I try it 100%, so it bummed me out when I tried it for so long and it didn't change things.

Thanks,
C

 

[Inaut]

Was going to order this on amazon but then found it had been posted on YouTube. I’m still thinking about doing a buteyko course but I’ve been doing this method for a while now and have a much better CP

 

[Caitlin]

Yes, I have read all of Patrick McKeown's books and the book that Sasha wrote with Thomas (above). I wish Buteyko helped me more. I'm not opposed to doing it more, but I am not progressing with it at the moment so I am trying to explore other avenues in the meantime. Perhaps there's something obvious (or not so obvious) that's holding me back. I wish I knew.

 

[Inaut]

Well eventually you will find it @Caitlin :)

 

[Caitlin]

Well eventually you will find it @Caitlin :)

Thanks for the encouragement - it means a lot!

 

[lampofred]

Was going to order this on amazon but then found it had been posted on YouTube. I’m still thinking about doing a buteyko course but I’ve been doing this method for a while now and have a much better CP

I've been interested in Buteyko for a while, but I thought hyperventilation was more of a symptom than a cause. If you lower mental rumination, physical pain, serotonin activity in general, your respiratory rate will automatically reduce, which is what opioids do. But artificially forcing yourself to hold your breath might start to cause cancerous, hypoxic damage after a point if your mind isn't sufficiently calm enough to handle the low oxygen.

 

[Caitlin]

Yeah, Buteyko and his followers (like McKeown and most practitioners) believe that hyperventilation IS the cause, not the symptom. That's where they disagree most with modern medicine.

 

[mangoes]

Sorry to hear about all your troubles.

Thanks, Charlie. I have tried taking B Vitamins -- and B 12 specifically -- multiple times and nothing changed, unfortunately. I was hoping that pernicious Anemia or a B12 deficiency was the answer, but sadly supplementing didn't change anything

Have you had your levels actually checked? If you’re unable to absorb b12 in the ileum then oral supplementation won’t work. You might need injections.

Also, how did you get diagnosed with vagal neuropathy? I think I have it too, as I have some similar issues to you with reflux, but I don’t know how to test for vagal neuropathy.

 

[Caitlin]

Yeah, I have had them checked throughout the years. Not recently, but several times in the past ten years. I have even had an injection and nothing changed. And I took tried taking different forms of b12 as well (hydroxy, methylcobalamin, etc).

The otolaryngologist did the vagal neuropathy test in her office. It's called an LEMG test. She poked me several times in the next with an acupuncture-type needle and that gave the readings, apparently. The jargon is way over my head, but she said that the test indicated I had a recent neuropathy (from about 6 months ago) and one that was "old." Meaning I got it years ago. But I don't know how she knows that.