Actually what I fear is that I have to become even more particular about my life. I may have to regulate myself more. Maybe I'm chemically sensitive? Allergic? Especially sensitive to stress? It seems that either I have to withstand regular illness or I have to make a change more profound than I already have. I mean what's better than regular sleep, regular meals and working out? Leaving my lifestyle? The only thing I can think of there is leaving the computer. For what? The priesthood?

I think the last time I was sick enough to have to lay down in bed was some time 2001. I rarely get sick, a light soar through and dripping nose now and then. Then during high school (I'm in college now), which was a somewhat hard time for me, I was regularly sick. Perhaps every month or so.

These days I feel great - physically, emotionally, mentally. Back then I didn't feel very well, certainly not emotionally.

And that's my point. What I'm trying to say is that sickness doesn't just have to do with your physical state of being. It has a lot to do with your emotional and mental state aswell. In fact, and now I'm making a bold statement I know, I believe that the greatest reason for sickness today lies in our emotions

I think your new physical lifestyle is great, a great basis for further improvement. But my advice for you is to look at your emotional state. You talk a lot about stress. You seem like a person having a hard time just relaxing into the moment. Having a hard time "not doing anything". But I just know you through links.net, so I don't know half of it. But again, try to look into your emotions - what could be straining you? Worries? Desires? Stress?

Love,
Simon

have you seen "Safe" by todd haynes? allergies can be scary...

Call me crazy, but I coulda sworn that illnesses were brought on by a new strain of virus/bacteria/whatever. In that case, you're just on a streak of bad luck with catching new and different colds. Just keep up the new, healthy lifestyle and things will be good *grin*

My $.02: start taking vitamins.

I used (~6 years ago) to get sick all the time too. Mostly flus, colds, sinus infections, sore throats. Then started taking these (yeah, product plug): http://www.futurebiotics.com/multi.html , big beefy horse-pill vitamins. So strong that your urine will smell all kinds of aroma if you take too many.

Haven't gotten a serious sick since last winter, and that was when I was 'off' the vitamins (ran out in a foreign country). Prior to that, it was in 2000 or so...

"Yogurt or eggs for breakfast..." If that is a complete description, look no further. There is plenty of evidence that you should concentrate your nutritional attention on breakfast. Just yogurt or just eggs won't cut it. Add some cereal, soy milk, fruit, nuts, seeds to that regimen and see if that doesn't help. To say nothing of staying off airplanes for, say, three months.

Exactly what blood tests did you get? You ought to at least contact your physician and see whether more tests might be warranted. A 29 year old should not be getting sick this often.

You are right to be concerned. As I keep saying, if your computer acted up this much, you'd get to the bottom of it.

Thanks for this thoughtful feedback folks. Let me add some information here -

Reid, I too take a multivitamin daily, have been since November. "Every Man's One Daily" from New Chapter.

Howard, in addition to the yogurt, I usually have granola and a banana. I ran out of granola yesterday, so I think that's why I didn't mention it. I eat a granola mix that has fruit and nuts in it, in addition to grains. So I feel I get a fairly balanced breakfast, especially with the banana. But I could probably do with more citrus.

The blood tests said nothing - fine cholestrol, fine blood pressure, no STDs, no notable problems. But I think I will resubmit my veins soon.

And Simon, I will pay attention to my stress level. Unfortunately, being sick stresses me out - a circle of awareness. Whee!

Shit just happens. I get sick more often than my husband, and stay sick longer. This, even though we share the same lifestyle, eat the same things! Some people are just more sensitive and we have to work harder to stay healthy.

Not fair, I know, but I think that's the way it is.

--Christine "sick again, too"

Shit just happens. I get sick more often than my husband, and stay sick longer. This, even though we share the same lifestyle, eat the same things! Some people are just more sensitive and we have to work harder to stay healthy.

Not fair, I know, but I think that's the way it is.

In the interim, keep up the good work! We take care of our bodies because we love ourselves and that is a good thing! Plus we are not only staying healthy to avoid the common cold or flu, but to better our life experience.

Big picture, big picture...

--Christine "sick again, too"

The shitty thing about starting to take good care of yourself is that it takes a while to build your immune system back up. Eventually you'll get sick less often, but there's no instant gratification. In the meantime, I hope you're gargling with warm salt water for your sore throat and thinking about taking astragalus every day. I hear you can buy whole roots and put them in soup!

is there a part of your house in which you feel most sick? i used to wake up sick every morning--until i figured out there was mold growing on the inside of the wall next to my bed (from a roof leak).

This might be a dumb question, but what about the possibility of a chronic ear-nose-throat infection - things like toncilitis can take hold deep in your glandular regions and come back month after month, with symptoms much like what you are describing...

Then again -- I bite my nails a lot. That may be a big part of my susceptibility to colds and flu.

Do you bite your nails or touch your face a lot with your hands?

Patience, Justin.

Howard is right about planes.

Wash your hands and keep them out of your mouth/eyes/nose in flu/cold season.

But most of all, be a little forgiving of your body. Use the time to play a game, write some poems, or just dream!

" Leaving my lifestyle? The only thing I can think of there is leaving the computer. For what?"

Well, there's always real (unmediated) life.

I suggest you wash your hands a lot. I also suggest that you don't get on an airplane with a weakened immune system. This is more difficult than it sounds since I usually have some ragin' party blowout the night I leave a city and get on the plane the next day nearly dead. I also tend to stay up all night packing and then consume lots of alcohol at the airport to ease the boredom of waiting for my flight to board. I also tend to have cheetos and diet coke a lot as a meal substitute. BTW...that bakery serves no red meat...is that a religious thing?

Hey, you could end up like that Atkins guy who tripped over a rock and cracked his head open. Or I know one local fitness guru who rode his bike everywhere until one day a car caught him from behind. My dad lives in check-the-air-in-your-tires world and he's the only person I know whose tires blow out on a regular basis. Similarly, too much of an emphasis on being healthy can lead to illness or even death, methinks. Be by not being, Justin. Do something unhealthy just to be healthy. Listen when you should talk. Talk when you should listen. Wear a hat when it is inappropriate to do so. Underdress or overdress. Smile when you should frown and frown when you should smile. Let a smile be your umbrella. Let a frown be your walking stick. Eat a pumpkin. Count to three. Clean your teeth with a sewing needle. Banjo on your knee. O Susannah, O don't you cry for me. I don't want your cold though. So stay away from me.

May I suggest Justin, that you check out your family history, re: health matters, to see if anyone else experienced what you are going through.

It could be genetic and you could learn to pinpoint the problem.

hey, why not go on a cleansing diet for a little while to try and get all the crap outta your system?

you could try elimination diets, like, leaving out dairy, or leaving out wheat, and seeing how it goes. could just be you're eating things that have ceased to agree with you...?

Well, don't let some of the wellness maniacs oversell their goods to you here. Living right wards off a lot of things--and it makes you have more energy and ability for the things that matter. I was down to 5-6 hours of sleep a night in the latter half of the semester last year, I'm back to 8, and I can measurably feel and see the difference in everything I'm doing. It's one reason why I wasn't updating my blog in November and December and why I am now--I just couldn't summon the energy.

But that being said, shit happens. Some viruses don't care whether you're a healthy little bugger. This is the season when many Americans, healthy and not-healthy, get sick. Because there are viruses out there, because some of them can't be stopped by even the best immune system, and because, much as it sucks to have a cold, they're not so bad in the broader spectrum of things.

Hi Justin - I had a thought while reading your blog that I thought might help your reoccurring sickness: I've been taking Aikido for a handful of years, and I have also noticed that sometimes I will get cold after cold after cold...even when I am super-healthy otherwise (working out a lot, eating right, sleeping well). One of my seniors in the dojo pointed out that he also had this problem until he started washing his hands before and after practice.

I think his theory was that usually when colds start circulating, people in the dojo get sick and start passing the colds around. Since there is a lot of contact (wrist grabbing, etc), sweat, and coughing / breathing it makes it extra easy for germs to hop around. This would explain why I'd get a cold, and then get it again 2 weeks later.

Anyway: try washing your hands before and after Aikido class. I started to do it, and I've been doing really well, health wise. Give it a shot, let me know how it goes.

Yup. I'd go with the hand washing. Single most important action you can take. So hard to break the hand, mouth, eye rubbing, teeth picking routine. Don't allow yourself any contact unless right after hand washing. And make that a serious hand washing. Hot water, soap, lather for at least 30 seconds i believe. You are a touchy feely guy. Lots of contact with people. That is fine just don't touch eyes, ears, mouth, etc until you have really washed. Antibacterial wipes might be handy for you to keep in car and pockets for on the road wiping.
I remember the pediatrician explaining to me why Mamie kept getting virus after virus for a period of time while small. Your resistance is compromised from virus # 1 leaving the door open for the next virus. Vicious cycle. Also you are building immunity to those viruses. The good thing is you won't catch that one again. Unless you are progressing onto bacterial illness from original virus. In that case go see Ear, Nose, Throat doc.

patience, justin. it takes your body a while to readjust to your new life style. i found that i never got sick as long as i was active doing stuff, and for a while i was very stressed out (work, school, and a lawsuit!. whenever i took vacations, i would inevitably get sick. and now that i'm unemployed, i've already gotten sick three times in the same year, once just a few weeks after the first sickness. there are problems with reinfecting ourselves with the same or slightly mutated virus, etc.

so... just continue to lay low and let your body get all this crap out of the way. sometimes you get sick when your body is in the process of repairing itself, too.

A note coming from a daddy who having put two kids through preschool has learned about these things the hard way:

When you have a nasty sore throat accompanied by fever, it's a good idea to drop by your doctor's office for a quick strep screen.

Lots of things can cause sore throats, but the streptococcus bacteria is one you want to identify if you've got it. That's because (1) if treated with antibiotics it usually clears right up (unlike virus, allergies, etc. for which antibiotics do precisely nothing); (2) if untreated it can have bad long-term complications; and (3) if you don't take care of it you stand a good chance of infecting all the friends, loved ones and co-workers around you.

Time is the best cure for some things, but strep isn't one of them.