Last night I experienced what a lot of us old guys call GERD or GastroEsophageal Reflux Disease. It's heartburn for the layman in all of us. My Doctor tells me the cause of such a painful disorder is due to my weight, diet and age. Fun. another Old Guy thing to muse about.
For those of you who don't suffer from this malady, I 'splain it to you Lucy... (As Ricky would say.) It's characterized by a painful burning sensation in your chest that generally is accompanied by violent coughing fits (which can fracture ribs in extreme cases,) and a foul acid like taste in your mouth. Fun. After you cough your fool head off for 30 minutes or so, you are left with the aftermath... sore chest and stomach muscles, clogged sinuses and that awful taste. Fun.
The treatment is this- lose weight you Old Guy. Take this pill, currently Prilosec, elevate the head of your bed, stay way from spicy foods... Another Old Guy thing to muse about and wear loose clothing. When I have an attack, I eat Gaviscon and drink ice water. The ice water soothes the burning quite a bit. The Gaviscon kind of makes this gooey chalky lump that's supposed to plug the hole so no acid comes back up. You see, the acid from the stomach seeps past the epiglottis to do it's dirty work all the way up the pipe. Fun.
If you have these symptoms, please consult with your Doctor and get treated. Next time I see mine, we're going to talk about it again.
Here are a few links if you want some more information about GERD:
gerd.com
Wikki
WebMD
Now on to a lighter subject, we've been enjoying watching reruns of Northern Exposure lately on KVCR. The show is set in a small imaginary town called Cicely Alaska. While sometimes the subjects they cover delve into the prurient desires of a fallen world, last night's episode was really funny. It dealt mostly with a hunting trip that Chris, Joel and Holling took. You'll have to watch it to see who they are. Let's just say that Joel was opposed to killing any animal at all while Chris was not and neither was Holling who by the way only photographs the animals. A different kind of hunting... more my speed. Joel ends up really getting into the whole hunt ritual. ANd ends up shooting a smallish grouse. He totally freaks out when he just wings it then refuses to end the bird's suffereing by ringing it's neck. He takes the bird back to his office, he's the town's doctor and attempts unsuccessfuly to save it's life. They ended up eating the bird at a brithday celibration for Ruth Anne who is the store keeper. There Joel dicovers how good grouse tastes with wild rice. They did a pretty fair job diving into the controversial topic of animal rights, a human's base needs of the hunt and the emotions involved. Tammy, Sara & I really enjoyed it. I guess it gives us a little slice of small town life that I sorely miss.
History of the show
Old Guys Rule?
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