Why do I have to do this? Well, I'll be starting the Cowden Protocol next week. (Most Lymies will at least be familiar with the name, but Cowden is a set of herbal supplements that you take in rotation to help eradicate Lyme and co-infections. More on Cowden in another post.) One of the main rules of Cowden is that you MUST drink 96 oz. of water for it to work. I suppose this helps flush out the dying bacteria from your system.
In preparation for Cowden, I figured I better get used to drinking so much water each day. When I was still able to work, I used to drink plenty of water, but I'll admit my consumption has dwindled since I've been so sick. Sometimes just getting out of bed to get a drink isn't worth the effort. Now that I'm forcing myself to do it, here's what I've found:
- Water bloat is a real thing. Sometimes when I try to drink a lot of water at once, I feel it sloshing around in my stomach. It's uncomfortable for a while until it begins working its way through my system. I don't know if that's a result of digestion/absorption issues from Lyme or if it's normal. I never know if things are normal anymore.
- There aren't enough hours in a day. 96 oz. of water is a LOT. I drink water with all my meds and supplements and with my meals. I also drink it throughout the day. I limit myself to 2 cups of coffee a day (yeah, I know I shouldn't have any, but it helps my migraines) and I also drink 2 cups of Natural Care Tea as prescribed by my LLMD. Other than that, it's only water. I thought I was drinking a good amount, but once I measured out 96 oz., I was shocked at how far short I was each day. Sometimes I'm trying to chug the last cup right before bed and sometimes I just don't drink it all. Hopefully by the time I start Cowden I'll be more used to drinking that much every day.
- It makes you pee a lot. I know this seems obvious, but I feel like I'm pregnant again with how often I have to go! 96 oz. in, 96 oz. out. Only unlike when I was pregnant, it's more like Niagara Falls than a babbling brook. When I used to drink more water regularly, I don't recall having to go so much. I don't know if that's another issue with my body's breakdown, or maybe it's my fuzzy Lyme memory. And since I sometimes drink that last bit right before bed, I wake up and have to go. Sleep interruptions are not a good thing, so I need to work on drinking more earlier in the day.
- It reduces my hot flashes. This has been a shockingly pleasant side effect. I have no idea if it will work for everyone, but it has been a noticeable decrease for me. I've had hot flashes since surgically-induced menopause in July of last year, and I've tried pretty much every OTC remedy out there. I've been hesitant to go on long-term hormone replacement therapy for several reasons, so I've stuck to the OTC stuff and sweated it out. Literally. When I have hot flashes, I can be dripping sweat in an instant. But since I began drinking 96 oz. of water a day (or as close to it as I can get), I've felt a big difference. The number of hot flashes has dropped and those I do get aren't as intense. Major bonus and reason enough to keep drowning myself daily.
Maybe in time I'll see other benefits to all this water. For now, it still feels like I'm forcing myself to drink it every day. But keep at it, and in a week I'll start Cowden, which lasts for 6-9 months. I'll let you know how things are going soon.
