Keeping a Journal and Asthma

Sonia Jones ND from the Haven Spa and Alternative Treatment Clinic, Boquete, Panama

Use a diary/journal to record your-

Food intake

Treatments

Symptoms

Emotions

Supplements and herbs

Medications

Attacks

Stressful events

Any thing that you think will help and you think is relevant

Most people are surprised to discover how invaluable the information is. Patterns emerge that would not have been noticed before, it can take up to 48 hours for a symptom to be noticed after consuming something you are sensitive to. It is worth the effort.

It is often too difficult to see what you are doing exactly until it is all written down in black and white, and until you can look back at the previous few days.

What lead up to the attack in the days before or hours before?

Right down when you remember or forget to take your supplements or when you reach for your allergy or asthma medication or when you need it less.

Write down when you don’t sleep well and look at what you wrote down for the previous two days, check what happened the previous time you didn’t sleep well. It will be your ‘book of clues’ that will help you to solve your mystery.

You can go to your local stationery store, ask them if they have any out-of-date diaries sometimes you will get extremely nice diaries very cheaply this way, or businesses sometimes have complimentary diaries left over. The diaries need to be a page a day type to fit in all your scribbling.

Or you can buy one of those beautiful purpose made journals. Others prefer to keep everything recorded on their computers. What ever method you choose, don’t under estimate the value of this practice.

I recently advised a friend to keep a journal, as she was in pain with a migraine on a regular basis for a few days with each attack. After a while she discovered a pattern that revealed eating certain foods that contained MSG on certain days. This discovery has made a big difference to her as almost half her life was affected. People have problems with MSG (mono sodium glutamate), found extensively in manufactured/processed foods and in Chinese foods. However, symptoms can vary from person to person, for some people its asthma attacks or allergies.