The Beast

Today, Matt finished the second day of his 3-day motionsickness spin program.  And, for a second time, came home feeling fresh and non-nauseated.  He was called "a beast" on the chair and one of the experienced program directors told him she has "never seen anything like him" and believes he could outmaneuver anyone on base in terms of not getting sick on the chair.  He clocked 45 "advanced maneuvers" today, without getting motion sick once.  The typical difficult spin session averages about 22-25.

This was a huge shock and relief to us, as it shines a bright bright light at the end of the tunnel.  Matt's instructor believes his airsickness is due more to nerves and hyperventilation than anything.  Matt's typical stress level is atypically low, however since IFS started, I have never seen him as stressed, so it is not surprising that he brought some of those nerves with him in the air.  The biggest problem seemed to be talking himself through maneuvers (and thus having to take frequent gasping breaths through his oxygen mask in between sentences).  He told me that basically he has been talking nonstop through every flight (verbally going through everything he does and checks in the air), but that that habit has been affecting his oxygenation since it is more difficult to breath when you are flying.  This theory was tested by having him "chair fly" in full gear--and sure enough he was motion sick in minutes.

Matt will take to the skies again on Thursday!  We are very optimistic that his trainer is right and that he can get a real handle on his airsick situation!  :O)

Dollar ride?

Although Matt did not get to complete his dollar ride today, due to some scheduling problems in the computer lab (he has some forms he needs to sign off on before he flies), he did get to watch all but 3 of his buddies take flight.  And every single one of them got airsick.  Which does not bode well for his evening ("evening", as in "after two meals") flight tomorrow.  On the upside, since it is in the 5-6pm timeframe, the girls will be home from school and I will be done with work--so we will all be able to hang out in the yard and try to guess which plane is his.  Provided he does not get too sick in the air, he will actually get to land the plane (the remainder of the flight is ride-along).

To help prepare for tomorrow, the girls and I took him for a late-night spin in the Barany chair and I fixed up some blandish meals for his lunch (roast beef, spinach, and onion dressing on a gluten free bun & gluten free spaghetti with seaweed, green beans, and tamari sauce).  He got a taste of what he is in for stress-wise today (not as bad as expected) and is grateful to have about 10 spins under his belt prior to his dollar ride (many guys with known airsickness still enter the program not having spun at all).

The non-student side of base was having some sort of exercise (simulated threat/emergency) today, which I got caught up in at work.  I had left the building briefly to go to Security Forces to turn in some paperwork so that one of these weeks I can gain computer access--and returned to find the clinic on lockdown, trapping me outside for about 25 minutes.  This lockout corresponded exactly to Matt's originally-scheduled flight time, so I took a ton of pictures of some other student's dollar ride (didn't find out about Matt's rescheduling until after the fact).

Need to make sure I have the zoom lens for tomorrow, lol!

We both got some much-needed sleep last night and are feeling much more optimistic about what lies ahead.  A brief convo with my oldest's teacher today about her progress in reading (she has just moved up to the hardest series in her kindergarten class--and read 10 pages on her own!) reaffirmed our choice in offering the kids a Montessori education.  The public school on base boasts rave reviews, and I know many folks whose children are very happy and successful there.  But it is hard to imagine my two thriving to this degree elsewhere.  The personalized emphasis of the Montessori child-paced teaching method and the intensive student-teacher interaction really pave the foundation for learning at exactly the right level and both girls are very very happy there.  I believe it offers the benefits of a homeschool environment in terms of personalization--with all the social/cultural-development benefits of a traditional school.

On another note, Tunia and I were chased on our walk tonight by something that looks exactly like this:

on our walk tonight!!  Naked mole rats are not native to this area, but whatever it was, it was hairless, with a short tail and buck teeth.  And it was chasing us.

ANYWAY, looking forward to watching and hearing about Matt's flight tomorrow!!

The "puke chair": a family experience

This weekend the girls and I got to take Matt for a spin, and try out the Barany chair for ourselves.  With his "dollar ride" (first flight, nicknamed such because the students joking "tip" their instructor a dollar when it's done--although they often "jazz it up" a bit [at IFS, Matt drew a picture of his flight instructor as a superhero superimposed over George Washington's face--he does great likenesses]).

Matt definitely seems to be getting better at both taming "flare ups" (mostly by diaphragmatic breathing) and recovering after the spins.  He was passed out in his recliner and burping all evening his first day, and on Saturday he was his usual self within a few hours, and today, after he went with one of our neighbors, I would have never guessed he'd spun at all.  Then again, the Giants also pulled off a big win this afternoon, which undoubtably bolstered his mood a bit as well!  :o)

For the spin sessions, Matt is supposed to do at least 3 reps of 10min/ea every time he rides the chair.  He warned me before we went in that he may try to talk me out of a 3rd spin after he is 2 in, and sure enough, that is what happened!  But he stuck it out and performed fantastically.  While spinning, Matt can simulate dives, climbs, and turns by positioning his head at different angles.  A major key to calming motion sickness is to keep his head as steady as possible.  Apparently, after 20 seconds at a constant pace, the fluid in his ears stabilizes, allowing him to proceed comfortably, provided his head does not move too much.  This definitely helps explain why turbulence causes his symptoms to flare up dramatically.

Spinning (first pic is simulated ascent; second is normal flight position):

Here he is, post-spin, recovering:

The girls and I also got to go for a little spin.  I got [slightly] nauseous almost immediately, but both girls described it as "fun".  The chair is set up in a small fitness room, complete with a TV/DVD player, so the girls were in heaven.  Although they enjoyed testing out a few workout machines faaaar more than Phineas and Ferb (otherwise a favorite).

Checking out the room:

Going for a ride!:

All in all, a fun and educational afternoon and I was glad we were able to help Matt out a bit.  I definitely need to give the girls more credit.  They are probably about 2 years younger in my head than in real life, and it is sometimes easy to forget how much they can handle/how patient they are.  They have also been doing an awesome job in church service lately too (and traditional Catholic, not contemporary, to boot!).

The "puke chair"

When Matt is not in class, at the gym, in the "mancave", or in the house, he is in the "puke chair" (more officially formally known as the "Barany chair").  Matt is probably the most prone-to-motion-sickness person I've met, and this ailment has plagued him in pretty much every vehicle he's tried: roller coasters, cars (only when a passenger), boats, and planes.  He knew his nausea would be a problem going into IFS and looked up relaxation and breathing techniques (calm demeanor and diaphragmatic breathing [to stimulate vagal nerve] are major strategies) and more or less got passenger car-sickness under control months ahead of initial flight screening.

However, airsickness was another story.  By controlling his already-limited diet (he has mild gluten and lactose intolerances) and subsisting on bland, low-acid, low-fat foods like bananas and applesauce (strong flavors like garlic and egg, acidity, and fat are nausea/vomitting stimulants), he was able to obtain clearance for and successfully complete his solo flight, however, due to his frequent status as aircraft passenger during training (and later, as copilot, during routine flights) and his own limited control of the plane when he is flying, motion sickness continues to plague him.  He is definitely a fighter, though, and was in fact the only officer in his flight screening class who opted to stick out the mid-air puking in an effort to pass screening (others voluntarily washed-out).

Vance UPT boasts a 97% success rate in "curing" motion sickness, in large part due to this chair:

Once aerophysiology has oriented you to the chair, you are free to access it (with a partner) 24/7.  You are strapped into the chair and your head rests in the black adjustable headrest in one of several positions to simulate different flight maneuvers.  Your partner manually spins you until and continues to due so until you are at the point where you are ready to vomit.  Then he/she slows you down and your body is allowed to recover...however, immediately upon doing so, you are spun again until your limit is reached...the cycle continues.  The theory is that your body will learn to self-control nausea since it can no longer rely on vomiting for relief.

Worst part about not being permitted to throw up: feeling awful the rest of the day.  Matt will come home after an hour of spinning ready to pass out in his recliner, while alternately binging on peanut butter banana tortilla wraps.  Foul-tasting as vomit is, at least it regularly brought relief.  However, for obvious [control] reasons, you cannot be routinely throwing up while piloting an airplane.

I have yet to visit the chair with Matt, mostly because he is in class during my 3 hours of daily free/errand time, when our youngest is in preschool, and it is not an activity screaming "family affair".  The girls would go absolutely crazy if they saw this thing and probably beg nonstop to ride it (alas, the things we find "fun" as children, lol).  Luckily he has a buddy in his class and now one in the neighborhood as well who are also in need of spinning, so he should have plenty of opportunities to beat airsickness.  :o)