Healing your gut: a workable morning routine

 What is it about the human mind that allows useful information to be filtered out just as easily as useless information? Scientists say while we sleep, the brain filters out useless information, but I'll tell you what, my brain doesn't discriminate. The adage "use it or lose it" is so, painfully, apropos to memory. 

And so, over time, I had lost my morning digestive routine to the sinkhole of time, chock full as it is with endlessly entertaining distractions. And for some reason I started feeling like crap again! Go figure.

Here's what I take/drink every morning to keep everything in balance:

• Zenwise prebiotics (greens) and probiotics (not a compensated endorsement- it's just what works)
• Magnesium
  
• matcha with a little manuka honey
• a small glass of aloe juice with my various supplements (mainly D and B complex)
• a shot of kefir, or a cup of miso broth with seaweed (I alternate)
  

Thanks to these things, my stomach almost always just feels right.

Minimizing indigestion: try aloe vera juice

My father-in-law is known for being rather gullible when it comes to what I'd politely call alternative medicine- really outright quackery. He subscribes to a number of odd catalogs with supplements claiming everything from restoring hair and eyesight to reversing dementia. He was well aware of my problems with acid reflux (Abbey and her mom talk frequently about whatever I'm going through- this month or that year, there always seems to be something) and said to me when we stayed for a few days recently: "Have you tried aloe juice for your stomach problem?"

Just a random, non-sequitur question, so I just said "no- why?"

"I've been having problems with reflux too," he responded. I read in [insert wacky catalog name here] to try aloe juice. So I did. my problems completely disappeared. No more reflux, no more stomach pain, no more problems of any kind."

"Completely disappeared" always raises a red flag for me, but I said something like "wow, really?"

"Yep!" he thundered. "I thought of you, too, and bought you a jug. Happy Birthday!" And he presented me with my own gallon jug of aloe juice. ($5.99 at Walmart, by the way.)

The regimen, according to him, is two 8-ounce glasses of the stuff a day. I started that while we were still visiting, but found it hard to stomach 8 ounces. Still, I swilled it down (it's not the greatest tasting stuff. Tip: it's better chilled.) for the next day or so, and  it had a pretty remarkable, almost instant positive effect on me. So I continued doing it, dropping the amount down to about two old fashioneds of aloe a day. Someone in those kooky catalogs is onto something. My digestion has been rock-solid every since. I hardly ever even burp anymore. That sounds crazy, doesn't it? But it's true. I am not being paid by anyone to say this. But if you are in the acute phase of LPR, this stuff might really help you keep the burping and gagging down to a minimal level- as you are aware more than anyone by now, I'm sure, all it takes is one burp to bring that acidic gas back into your throat and mess with you. Maybe aloe will help keep it down.

Note: you may freak out when you go to buy this stuff, as I did, and discover all the varieties you find have added citric acid. Supposedly, aloe is so alkaline, the citric acid is added to neutralize the ph. I was very skeptical, but I think this may be true- aloe has an extraordinary calming effect on my digestion, more so than even baking soda.

I hope it does on yours, too.