I’ve always believed if you have some good news, you should share it. My failing health has had me confined to quarters since long before the Coronavirus came on the scene; this virus has carried considerable amounts of shock and awe with it. It feels as if mentally, lately, my mind has been traveling in overdrive, zipping along on the Autobahn.

This shrinking world’s communication systems share everyone’s troubles with the rest of the world instantly, nothing like the early days of Spanish influenza when news moved by Telegraph wires or the newspaper.

I have been bothered with leg cramps most of my adult life. Years ago, we had an old country Dr from Latvia. He prescribed quinine pills. They did work satisfactorily, and then for some unknown reason, the Food and Drug administration outlawed quinine. Quinine water will also help with leg cramps.

My cousin Karen suggested I try pickle juice. I sort of Pooh poohed that idea. I’ve been having some cramps lately in my left leg. They get so bad I have to get out of bed and stand up to get relief. It is not so bad if it’s close to waking up time, but I do not care to get up at 3:00 a.m. to do a wobble solo dance by the bed. If I fall, it means a 911 call because I can not get back up off the floor. Last night was my best sleep in a long time.
I also use a CPAP machine every night and have been for the past 20 years. Anyone that used a CPAP machine will understand it’s a constant battle keeping the face mask from leaking. My pressure got set almost as high as the device will go, so stopping leaks is nearly impossible. The CPAP also causes me to develop a lot of phlegm in my throat. It is about the consistency of a wallpaper paste or some super glue. Some mornings it’s to the point I am almost choking on it. At night the last thing I do is spray some dry mouth relief liquid into my mouth before I put on my face mask. I was thinking of Karen’s suggestion. Last night, a little voice was saying, “try Brandy,” but I took a shot of pickle juice before putting on the face mask. I woke up this morning rested with very little phlegm.

I checked on the Internet. There are dozens of places to read about the use of pickle juice to stop leg cramps. A study at Harvard suggested it was a good thing. I feel this is good news, and I will share it with the whole world on my blog site.

My prayers go out to all the people whose lives have been touched by the Coronavirus—wishing you all the best.

The old Finlander.

https://lelandolson.com