This year has been all about getting my life in order. I've:
- Settled my finances,
- Started Getting Things Done,
- Begun a successful diet, and
- Given up the oh-so-fun but oh-so-addictive World of Warcraft.
Over the past week, I've made another change, too.
I'm a skeptic by nature. I don't believe in ghosts, or aliens, or witches, or any other sort of supernatural being. I'm wary of acupuncturists and chiropractors and naturopaths. I don't buy into conspiracy theories.
Because of my recent battle with depression, though, I've decided that it can't hurt to at least try some natural remedies, remedies I would formerly have eschewed. Spurred by this recent AskMetafilter thread, and by a doctor's visit last week, I spent some time in the organic vitamin aisle over the weekend. I picked up a natural multivitamin (vitamin A from betacarotene and fish oil!), a bottle of 81mg aspirin tablets, some melatonin, and some St. John's wort.
The multivitamins and the aspirin are general-purpose health-enhancers. The St. John's wort is apparently a natural anti-depressant. (In fact, in Germany it is the most widely prescribed anti-depressant.) It breaks down into something that is a "pre-cursor" to serotonin, a "feel-good" substance in the body. (Like my non-scientific explanation?) The melatonin not only helps me get to sleep, but also helps me sleep more soundly. (It also gives me wild, vivid dreams.)
I've only been using this regimen of pills for a few days, but I'm beginning to feel the effects. I feel well-rested this morning for the first time in weeks. (Months?) I'm in a good mood, too: playful, happy, excited. (When I sat down to write a weblog entry, I had a million ideas flying through my head; it was difficult to focus on just one.) In fact, at the moment I feel positively euphoric.
Are these changes all in my head? Or is there some real physiological effects going on? Who can tell? Does it really matter?
I'm keeping a private self-medication journal, tracking my dosages and my mental state. I'm curious to see how things go over the course of the next month.
On a related note:
I've managed to stick with my diet for an entire month. I started May at 202 pounds. I start June eight pounds lighter.
I've been using FitDay to track my eating and exercise. After every meal, I go to the web and enter what I've eaten. After every walk (since walking's the only exercise I've done so far), I go to the web and enter how far and how long I walked.
FitDay is a great tool, though its reports are mediocre. Still, they tell me enough to know that I'm only burning sixty calories through exercise every day. That's less than a third of what I ought to be exercising. FitDay also gives me a breakdown of my calorie consumption.
For the month of May, I averaged the following each day: 2031 calories, 67g fat (22g saturated), 291g carbohydrates (23g fiber), 93g protein, and 14g alcohol. (Yes, I know these numbers don't add up. I'm not sure why, but if you multiply the calories for the individual nutrients, you come up with a couple hundred extra calories per day. It's not important.)
Based on this first month of dieting, I've developed some goals.
First of all, I'm shocked to see how much alcohol I'm drinking. I'm averaging a drink a day. There's no way I would have believed that if you'd told me. I'm not sure I want to continue that pace. I realize that research continues to indicate that a glass of red wine a day has health benefits, but I'm skeptical of this. I'd be happier if I were consuming only a couple drinks a week, if that. My goal is to cut my alcohol consumption in half during June.
Second, I'm not getting enough fiber. I started the month well, focusing on fruits and vegetables. I'm just not a fruits and vegetables kind of guy. I rarely choose them for myself. I'll eat them if they're put in front of me, but when it comes time for me to choose something to eat, I'm going to get my veggies in the form of potato chips. (During the past month I've become the master of s-t-r-e-t-c-h-i-n-g junk food. It takes me half an hour to eat a bag of M&Ms. I can eat an ounce of potato chips a nibble at a time, using them as my vegetable course at dinner.)
Third, I need to eat a little less saturated fat and a little more protein. This shouldn't be too difficult. I love tuna and I love beans, so I just need to eat them more often. (Instead of potato chips!)
With continued discipline and a little perseverance, it's possible I could be down to 180 by the end of July, and maybe even back down to 160 by winter. It happened wight years ago; it can happen now.
On this day at foldedspace.org
2004 — My Liberal Agenda In which I post two articles from elsewhere, one a letter-to-the-editor from the mother of a gay son, and the other an op-ed piece blasting Bush.
2003 — Simon Grey Simon is social, but he's not a lap cat. He likes to be in the room when we have company, and he's especially tolerant of children; he lets the kids dote on him and pet him.
A couple of years ago I gave a talk for National Medical Laboratory week about naturopathic/herbal remedies. St. John's Wort is very effective and probably the most economically efficient way to treat depression, but it is not FDA regulated so you never know what dose/quality you are getting. In fact, there is no requirement for a bottle labeled "St. John's Wort" to actually contain St. John's Wort! Also, be careful with the Vitamin A - too much can cause liver damage (just like eating a polar bear liver). Don't take more than the RDA.
And not having done the math, I'll try to explain it: Fiber doesn't get digested so the 23g may be the source of your missing 100 calories.