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From Relationships, Love & Romance To Heartburn & Food Hangovers
On this week's episode of the Harmony With Food Radio Show, I talked to Dr. Jackie Black about love and relationships, then explained what acid reflux is and how to overcome it.
Interview with Dr. Jackie Black
This week on the show, we had Dr. Jackie Black on to talk about relationships, marriage, dating, and romance. Through Dr. Jackie's guidance, once-distant couples have rekindled their love and affection for each other and experienced richer, deeper connections and romance. They express their love and caring more effortlessly, and they feel deeply loved and adored again. Dr. Jackie specializes in helping entrepreneurial couples whose relationships are a mess, and they feel disconnected. She has helped more than a thousand couples in 8 countries, and has written 3 books.
Why Couples are Dissatisfied in Their Relationships
Dr. Jackie says that one of the things that happens to couples is that they start relating transactionally, meaning they start interacting about stuff outside of themselves and outside the relationship. When that happens, they stop connecting emotionally.
Problems in Entrepreneurial Couples
Dr. Jackie says that the reason that entrepreneurial couples get divorced about 10-12% more than the average population is because being an entrepreneur is so engaging. Entrepreneurs love what they do and it feeds them. They're always thinking about how to do things better, how to serve their clients, and new things to do. That energy has to come from somewhere, and it is often from their relationships.
We have to be very mindful about showing up and stepping into our relationships. Not just when we have extra time, but really intentionally and mindfully being present and showing up with our partners. The big key is being present and making a plan, then following through with it.
How much conflict is ok in a relationship?
According to Dr. Jackie, you shouldn't have much conflict in your relationship. You can be disappointed, you can have your feelings hurt, but fighting and arguing is really hurtful. You need to remember that you're either feeding your relationship or you're starving your relationship of connection. But, even if you're hurt or mad, you want to maintain the connection. She encourages couples to extend empathy and be curious instead of being judgemental, critical, or blaming. Those behaviors weaken your relationship until your connection breaks.
Current Divorce Statistics
Overall, the divorce rate amongst entrepreneurs is 10-12% higher. Divorce rates are also skyrocketing for older people who have been married 30-35 years. Millennials are actually the happiest couples right now. They talk about everything, have good sex, and are excited with each other and for each other.
As couples get older, the research shows that they talk to each other and have tough conversations less and less. Dr. Jackie says that relationships are like bank accounts. If you keep pulling money out without making any deposits, you're going to go bankrupt. You have to keep infusing life and energy into your relationship.
Heartburn
One-third of Americans are affected by acid reflux and heartburn, and 10% have it daily. Daily acid reflux can lead to what is known as Barrett's esophagitis, which means that the cells in the esophagus are precancerous due to the daily exposure to acid.
There is a sphincter at the top of your stomach that is supposed to control your stomach acid and prevent it from going into your esophagus where it can cause damage. When you have too much weight, the sphincter doesn't work as well because it is pushed open by the weight of the stomach.
When you tell your doctor that you have acid reflux, they'll likely put you on a type of medication known as a proton pump inhibitor for 8-12 weeks. The problem is that a lot of times when you're on that medication, your system gets used to it. Then, when you try to go off it you have a rebound effect and wind up with worse acid reflux than ever. So, you wind up staying on the medication indefinitely.
A normal stomach acid level creates a 1.5 to 2.5 pH. As we get older, the parietal cells of the stomach lining produce less stomach acid. In fact, half of people over age 60 have low stomach acid, and by the age of 85, 80% of relatively healthy people have low stomach acid. Acid reflux medications further lower stomach acid and increase stomach pH to 3.5 or higher.
These medications don't solve the problem, they put a temporary bandage on it. It inhibits the secretion of pepsin, which is a potential irritant to the stomach but is also essential for the digestion and breakdown of protein. Stomach acid is also necessary for the absorption of many minerals. That means if you've been on heartburn medication for a long time, you may not be absorbing vitamins and minerals the way you should be.
Stomach acid is also an important part of our immune system because it kills bacteria, parasites, and viruses, including those that cause food poisoning. So, stomach acid is necessary. It just needs to be in a good ratio.
Lack of acid can cause anemia, H. pylori infection, autoimmune disease, and gastritis. The symptoms of low acid often mimic those of hyperacidity. People often complain of bloating, belching, burning, having to run to the bathroom right after meals, indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, and more.
Overcoming Heartburn
The conventional medicine treatment for acid reflux is to prescribe acid-reducing medications, but that can sometimes lead to even more issues. Luckily, there's a better way. With technology like our microbiome testing, we can look into the underlying causes of things like GERD and IBS, so we can treat them. Possible causes can be things like small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, or SIBO, leaky gut, lack of digestive enzymes, lack of stomach or bile acid, and more.
Food is also a contributing factor to acid reflux. High-acidity foods like tomatoes, greasy, fatty foods, coffee, chocolate, alcohol, and more can all contribute to acid reflux. You may also have undiagnosed food sensitivities that need to be addressed.
You'll also need to closely manage your stress. If you aren't doing that I highly recommend finding something that can manage your reflux symptoms.
If you're ready to get over heartburn once and for all, click the button below to schedule a call with me.
