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A few days ago I wrote a note on the subject "Live until you die".  I got 32
positive responses and no flames, which supports my hypothesis that celiacs
are a bunch of nice people!  Thanks to you all.  I thought I would write
again, presuming to give a little more advice from an old celiac.  The
question is: What lifestyle changes have we old timers found useful in
living long and productive lives, even with significant physical
constraints?  I am sure others on the list also have some good advice for
the rest of us, that I would like to hear.

One piece of advice that I have given many times to my advisees, and that
would apply even more to celiacs, is to get enough rest.  Most people
require 7-8 hours of sleep to be fully functional.  The engineering students
that I knew that bragged about getting only 4 hours of sleep were really
referring only to their time in bed.  They got the other 3-4 hours that they
needed by sleeping through class.  I contend that this is an uncomfortable
way to get your sleep and also inefficient in the use of tuition money.

The mind requires more sleep than the body, typically around 8 hours.  And
the most efficient way of getting that sleep is in one stretch, in bed,
mostly while it is dark outside.  One needs to find the amount of sleep they
need to be fully functional, and go to bed so they will get that sleep
before they need to get up for work or school.  If one has to be up by 6 am,
and needs 8 hours of sleep, they should be in bed by 10 pm.  This logic
seems simple enough to me, but I have seen hundreds of young people who
seemed unable to figure it out.

In my 8.5 years of college, while getting three electrical engineering
degrees, I never stayed up past midnight studying or working on projects.
Whatever was not done by midnight would wait for the next day.  This means
that I had to start work sooner than some in order to meet the deadlines.
There is always peer pressure to stay up late before some important exam,
but in my years as a student and 28 years as a teacher, the best students
were those who came to the exams well-rested.

Along the same lines, I rarely drive past my bedtime.  Vacations are not
much fun if one is dull and groggy the first day or two after an all-night
drive.  I realize there are small children and other emergencies that
require interrupted sleep, but we should schedule the things that are under
our control to get the rest we need.  And if we are tired during the day,
there is nothing wrong with lying down a few minutes.  I have done that
regularly during some of my bad spells.

I believe that if we get the rest we need, we will feel the best that is
possible, given our physical problems, and will be able to be the most
productive.  Being productive, feeling like we are earning our keep, goes a
long way toward a positive mental attitude.  This needs to be a priority
with us.  I was elected to a church board a few years ago, and announced at
the first meeting that I was leaving before 10:30, whether we were done or
not.  The rest of the board was willing to hang around until midnight or
later, and did, so I resigned within a couple of months.

I also believe that I accomplished more in my career than some who were
brighter and better looking than me.  They were not forced to take care of
themselves, hence would come to class or work groggy, and not get much done.
Perhaps there is a silver lining to being celiac if it nudges us toward
personal habits that enable us to be even more productive than the
eat-everything types.

Gary Johnson in Kansas