When I lived in the Mission I used to do my laundry at the corner of 25th and Guerrero. If I returned to take my laundry out of the dryer a little early, I would read the various ads people had placed on the bulletin board. For people who were renting out rooms in their houses, the standard line was "no drogas ni vicios". "No vicios" always seemed kind of quaint to me. Well, no major vices here, and all of my drugs are legal.
I stopped taking Avonex for MS several years ago now, when I decided that alternative therapies were making me feel great, and then I'd take the Avonex and feel weak and achey and horrible and finally I decided that if I had the choice between 10 crappy years on Avonex and 5 great years without Avonex, I'd take the 5 years. It was still scary, but what I did do when I quit the Avonex was to replace it with other stuff. Chiropractic. Acupuncture. Supplements. Here in Portland I haven't found an acupuncturist who's as good as the one I went to in Alameda, and I recently stopped going to the chiropractor for the same reason, which made me take a careful look at how to keep myself healthy and to reexamine my supplements.
Disclaimer: Blah blah blah, I am not a doctor, and thus you clearly cannot trust me to be telling you anything real about diet or supplements. Do not use this material as a substitute for sound medical advice. Howevah, note that my internist got my mom to start taking Omega 3 capsules.
Anti-Inflammation Tonic #1
I use this to improve my mobility, to relax me, and to treat tendonitis. I don't have tendonitis from typing on my laptop anymore now that I use this formula. Tango Mucha Labia's accordion player also uses this formula for tendonitis, so there you go! Endorsed by 2 members of Tango Mucha Labia!
2 capsules O-Mega-Zen3 vegan Omega 3 supplement
200 mg. chelated magnesium (so far, I like Solgar brand the best)
Repeat as necessary. O-Mega-Zen3 is made from algae and will make you understand that fish don't taste like fish. They taste like algae. :-) 2 capsules of O-Mega-Zen3 gives me the same results as 4 or more capsules of every other brand I've tried. They're very good quality. I have to order them online since the local stores don't carry them.
Anti-Inflammation Tonic #2
For really bad cases of tendonitis, wash down Tonic #1 with a cup of oat straw tea. You can buy oat straw at the health food store. Pour boiling water over it and let it steep for a while. This is very mild and safe to use.
Digestive Enzymes
Now only when I get itchy from something I ate. It doesn't happen often anymore. Friends remember how skinny I was; I started taking these when I moved back to Maine and almost immediately gained 10 pounds. The Rainbow Light brand (double strength) is the only one that made my hives go away overnight.
More Omega-3
I used to take flax oil twice a day in the early days, and boy does that stuff taste terrible. I still shudder when I think of it, and it always triggers a gag reflex. There's a hazelnut-flavored version I started using this year that is almost palatable, though, and when I mix it into my morning oatmeal I actually prefer it to plain oatmeal. Highly recommended.