Re: Memory and Concentration Studyand a Question- et al/Cheryl-Anne

April 1, 2005

Hi Cheryl-Anne,

Thaqnks for the cute reminiscence. I actually don't have any memory problems,

which I think I mentioned. And the stress which is close to unbearable at

times, is ambient. In fact, I may have to move from this area although I don't

know where I'd go at this point. Nor do I have the funds to leave. So I

strongly suspect that the problem IS stress and I do what I can to blow off

steam but that's a little hard to do in a one-bedroom apartment in the midst of

urban sprawl. There is one park I discovered recently that could possibly be a

good place for walks. The other one near a university is full of dogs and

they're not all on leashes or friendly! ;--)

I have been going to a chiropractor for my lower back and some of the procedures

are very relaxing. As it warms up -- it's supposed to be spring, isn't it?--

I'll look for other places to exercise. There's more of Virginia to explore and

once one drives to the historic spots the rest is best on foot. land is

beautiful, too.

btw, I remember that you kept up with my long-range diet and I've kept the

weight off, I'm happy to report. It varies by 1 or 2 pounds either direction

when I visit my onc every two weeks. I do agree with you, though, that it isn't

just the calories that count. It's the nutritional quality of the food. I have

a terrible head cold and so treated myself to a big bowl of chicken Pho tonight

for dinner. Is Pho popular in your neck of the woods?

Until it warms up, I think I'll just get a fitness DVD and pretend that my

livingroom is the Shenandoah Valley.

Nice to hear from you! Thanks for taking the time to write.

Cheers!

[ ] Re: Memory and Concentration Studyand a Question- et al

Hey ,

Interesting topic, thanks for bringing it up. I like to blame memory

and other problems on Gleevec, but, I am finding it harder to do so.

Quite a few of my friends who are healthy and consequently not on any

drugs (that I know of anyway) are reporting the same types of

problems. Of course, this still doesn't stop me from cooking up a

few theories of my own. Lately, I have been thinking about the

association of blood oxygen levels. Lower levels obviously would

have a negative impact. Lethargy at any level seems to have a

cascading effect and depression can also be a culprit. To this list

I would like to add certain foods. I am becoming more convinced of

the effect of certain types of food. In the fall of 2003 I tried the

South Beach Diet - practically no carbs and no sugar (well for the

first wo weeks anyway). The difference in energy levels and

concentration was quite significant. I have been successful in

gradually changing my diet to more of certain types of vegetables and

proteins and find a good improvement. However, this past weekend the

Easter bunny amazingly showed up at the Buddhist retreat I was at,

and I being a recovering chocoholic, gleefully slipped down that

chocolately slope (peanut butter and chocolate - why the protein in

peanut butter almost qualifies it as real food anyway)only recently

pulling myself up. I've been very tired all week thinking I've

crashed from all the stress and exhaustion of the last few months.

Anyway, my indulgences of last Sunday surely couldn't have helped

any. I finally made it to the gym again and I feel like I am

starting to come around.

I think we cannot overlook the stress factor, sometimes we need to

cut ourselves a little bit of slack. I think we are more stressed

than we think sometimes.

Anyway that is my two cents, hope you've found it helpful and amusing!

Cheers,

Cheryl-Anne

> I got this information from one of the other CML sites and wanted

to pass it along with a comment and a question.

>

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April 1, 2005

Hello ,

Right, you did say you are not having a memory problem.

I can imagine it might be hard to blow off steam in a small

appartment, good luck with the new park. I find that Yoga works best

in small places and I am not sure how much you are into Yoga, but

there are some really neat yoga sites on-line that offer free yoga

lessons that guide you through some of the positions. In fact I also

subscribe to a free yoga journal on-line and it offers neat tips on

some of the poses. Yoga has always been an excellent way to off-load

stress. Start the day off with a few " sun salutations " and believe

me you can actually work up a sweat and have a good work out.

You can combine the yoga session in your apartment with burning some

nice incense or other forms of aromatherapy and get that " spa escape "

kind of feeling - if you're into that kind of thing. After a good

yoga workout I enjoy a nice hot cup of either Chai tea (I've found a

very good recipe for Chai tea on the web and I will try it out when

comes over this weekend), or green tea. You can even take

a luxuriating hot shower using see salts and a bit of olive oil as a

body scrub and feel as rejuvinated as an expensive day at a spa - and

completly de-stressed.

Once you've taken care of your body, you can also try a little

meditation for your mind. There are lots of free sites on the web

that offer guided meditations for beginners and even not so beginners.

If anyone would like me to post all the links, I'll be happy to do so.

I did follow your diet and I am delighted to hear that you've kept

the weight off. I've fluctuated a bit - oh well. What is Chicken

Pho?

How far away are you from burgh Virginia? I loved visiting

that place and have always had a deep affinity for studying and

exploring colonial times.

Of course, all that being said, I am not always so good at dealing

with the stress and am prone to a bit of cyber " whinning and geezing "

about things. I am grateful when people listen to me and mindful to

do the same for others - it all evens out.

Love and all good things to you,

Cheryl-Anne

> Hi Cheryl-Anne,

>

> Until it warms up, I think I'll just get a fitness DVD and pretend

that my livingroom is the Shenandoah Valley.

>

> Nice to hear from you! Thanks for taking the time to write.

>

> Cheers!

>

April 1, 2005

Dear Cheryl,

Thanks so much for the information. In fact, I really would like the web site

addresses for yoga poses (Did Hatha yoga many years ago) and also the meditation

sites. I absolutely love chai tea.

Pho is Vietnamese noodle soup which you can get with chicken or with various

cuts of beef. It comes with fresh bean sprouts, basil leaves and hot sauce on

the side. Delicious. It's very popular around here--so manyh Pho restaurants

that many of them just use a number for their name. Like Pho 50. Guess there

are more Vietnamese immigrants here than in your area.

Although my head cold hasn't gone away yet, I do feel lots better than

yesterday. Thanks again for true support when I needed it. I really appreciate

it.

Love,

[ ] Re: Memory and Concentration Studyand a Question- et

al/Cheryl-Anne