Supplement This

Through 25+ years of excessive beer and alcohol consumption, I must now rely on a handful of drugs to get me through a day.  Where I was once a big believer in "sucking it up" at all costs, I now believe getting through and enjoying each day is more important.  If various prescribed medications are required, then so be it.

[On a side note, I actually grew up with an aversion to swallowing pills, and a fear of the effects of medication.  Located above our kitchen sink was the equivalent of a small pharmacy.  My mom was on countless medications throughout her life.  She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when I was in high school, and years prior to that was a human guinea pig for doctors trying to discover the cause of all of her symptoms.  Every morning she would choke down countless pills, some with horrible side effects...and I wanted absolutely nothing to do with anything doctor or pill related.]

Back to the subject at hand, supplements.  I have been critiqued for my muscularity since junior high.  With the amount of steroids I have been accused of taking in my life, I should be dead, broke...or dead-broke.  Since getting back in shape, and strength gains occurring regularly, of course, I must now be back on 'roids, HGH, or just good ole testosterone supplements.  Not quite.  For me, it is all about sweat your ass off hard work.  I have already destroyed my body with one substance, I sure as hell don't need help in that department...nor would I waste my Big Red and cookie money on something I don't need.  But, if you really want to know, here is what I do take on a daily basis...

#1:  Effexor
Here is my what you need to know about anti-depressants:  when you find one that works, stick with it.  These drugs require a tedious trial and error process, and typically several weeks to take effect.  If it does not work, then the process of getting it out of your system begins.  It is a serious pain in the ass.  If I am not mistaken, I had to repeat this process about four times.

#2:  Amphetamine Salts
Like the rest of the world, I am ADHD...of course, mine was not diagnosed until after I stopped drinking.  With meds, I can plan my day, prioritize things, formulate one single thought.  Without meds, there are a million unfinished, varying thoughts and ideas that will pop in my head at any given moment.  I am unable to finish a single task, which quickly leads to frustration, followed by anger, followed by all hell breaking loose.

#3:  Krill Oil
My daily Omega-3.  I always hated fish oil...the fishy taste alone was enough for me to throw them in the trash.  Krill oil provides the same benefits in one pill, with zero fishy taste.

#4:  Digestive Enzymes
I have wrecked my body's ability to properly digest many types of foods.  Without sounding like a high school science book, I basically destroyed the enzymes required to break down the nutrients in food.  Thus, I have to take an enzyme supplement prior eating any size-able meal or snack.

#5:  Aleve
Every athlete's best friend.  During the latter part of the strongman season, this becomes a daily supplement in order to minimize the swelling in my joints.  I only take one, first thing in the morning.  In college, I found myself relying on a much higher dosage of anti-inflammatories, and subsequently ended up with some very memorable stomach issues...thus the reason I keep these to a bare minimum.

#6:  Carbohydrates
No, this is not a joke.  I eat an enormous amount of carbs, and most for a reason.  The short of it...it has to do with low serotonin levels.  I learned the hard way that without carbs throughout the day, which will result in a drop in serotonin levels, I am negatively affected with enough aggression to destroy four aisles of a store in a matter of minutes.  And yes, that did happen, and I did clean it up.

If you are an athlete, you are probably thinking...what about protein?  At this point in my life, I rely on my meals for protein, eggs and meats, no shakes.  When I first got back into shape, I had a hard time keeping weight on, so I did rely on shakes as an extra supplement.  Now, I do not see/feel the benefit of protein shakes as much, so I cut them out of my diet.  And in a nutshell, this is how I live each day.

This is not a recommendation, or a "what you should go out and buy" list.  This is what works for me, and me only.  It has been a learning process spanning two and a half years, as well as an adaptation to the changes that have occurred since giving up booze.  Finding the right mix of meds is not an easy thing to do for an alcoholic, and many give up too soon.  Picking up the bottle again was never really an option for me personally, but initially, I did face a lot of frustration and anger.  Ultimately, being hard headed about staying on track finally paid off.

Unrelenting

Unrelenting:  1. Used to describe someone who does something in a constant and determined way without stopping or becoming less forceful.  2. Not yielding in strength, severity, or determination.

There was a time, not so long ago, when I thought I had finally done just enough to destroy my life; mentally, physically, emotionally...and every other "ally" word you can think of.  But with help, I made a huge change in my life...and I can officially say, I have taken my life back.

This year has been absolutely amazing, and I apologize for not keeping my blog up to date in recent months...especially to those interested in learning what an addict is capable of...if and when they decide to clean up their life.  And yes, it is possible to be successful in recovery.  It is an undefined process of self-discovery, which will redefine everything you once knew.

The biggest key to my success has been finding various hobbies in which I never lose interest.  Strongman and powerlifting have effectively filled that role, with the addition of various creative pursuits geared for down time at home.  From lifting, to writing, to fixing and building things, to drawing, they all share one thing in common...there is no absolute, final end result.  Meaning there are in infinite number of weights to lift, techniques to learn in building and drawing, and subjects to write about.

Up until age 14, I spent hours in the evenings, after it was too dark to play outside, doing creative projects.  I traded my coloring books for a drawing tablet, and sketched whatever came to mind.  One of my favorites to this day is a black and white of Bill Laimbeer, that I replicated from an ad for shaving cream (could have been razors?).  And remember the good old science/social studies fair, in which everyone's mom stayed up late "helping" to finish the project.  Not mine.  I did my project on Abraham Lincoln's assassination.  At age 12-13, I built from scratch...wait for it.......a replica of the scaffolding in which the four individuals charged with the assassination were hung.  I am fairly sure this would not be allowed on school grounds in this day and age, and I would be tagged as a potential serial killer.  But I went into great detail by wrapping my G.I. Joe's in pieces of black trash bag, and using small pieces of twine to hang each one...literally.  To this day, I don't understand why I didn't win. ;)

As I entered my high school years, I abandoned these "outlets".  Although, I am not sure if the increase in the volume of alcohol caused me to lose interest, or I lost interest and then turned to increasing my alcohol.  Who knows?!  But my creative side has definitely returned. Since arthritis, and a broken thumb, continues to decrease the functionality of my hands, I find it increasingly difficult to write, much less draw.  I have, however, found its replacement in a little thing called Photoshop...the touch screen version.

I also love to research (real research, not wikipedia) various topics that catch my interest, especially those with historical significance.  After college, I never thought the word "research" would come out of my mouth again.  But since sobering up, my desire to learn has gone into overdrive.  Filled with so much useless knowledge, I would be an all-star on a high school debate team.  However, as Thomas Jefferson said, "...knolege is power, ...knolege is safety, and...knolege is happiness." (Quick note: the word "knowledge" is intentionally spelled "knolege").