Comments on: Breathing Easy in Places Situated at High Elevation

By: Paco

Paco — Thu, 29 Jul 2021 19:13:47 +0000

In reply to SIMON. Simon, Me thinks, the taste of Tequila in your mouth, is a GOOD thing.

By: Mary Grayeske

Mary Grayeske — Mon, 28 Sep 2020 02:24:04 +0000

Hello Ashley,
It seems I have pulmonary hypertension but was never told and do not seem to be effected much because I live at around 5 K feet elevation in NE AZ. Do not be offended but Bryce Canyon is in the very scenic state of Utah. Of course there is beauty all around us.
I am enjoying reading about people’s experience here and hope someday to visit MX more than just walking across the border now and then.

By: Mary Grayeske

Mary Grayeske — Mon, 28 Sep 2020 02:10:28 +0000

In reply to I.v.d.B.. Sounds as if you are very lucky to have had some good advice to help you make adjustments. How did the tea from coca leaves work? That is how did it make you feel ?

By: Ashley Lieberman

Ashley Lieberman — Thu, 02 Jan 2020 02:25:59 +0000

In reply to Pat Dixon. Thank you so much. I am visiting San Miguel de Allende in a few weeks. My husband and I both experienced breathing issues when hiking in Bryce Canyon, Arizona. It was quite unpleasant. The altitude issues hadn't even occurred to me regarding my visit to Mexico. Wondering how much I should drink each day when finally there?

By: I.v.d.B.

I.v.d.B. — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 12:24:44 +0000

As a Dutch woman I lived most of my life below sea level in a humid climate till I moved to Santa Fe, NM @ 7000 feet and very arid.
Fortunately, I rented a guesthouse from a MD, who told me to drink LOTS of water (with electrolytes) and use Chlorophyl (liquids or tablets) and that it takes 6 weeks before your body has build extra red blood cells to transport oxygen. chlorophyl assists in that process.
Living in MX now in the mountainous region, it helps me a lot to know this and pass it on to others.
Nowadays, there are other natural remedies as well for ppl with altitude sickness.
During a special trip to Bolivia a local medicine man have us continuously drink tea from coca leaves. Worked very well.

By: Clive

Clive — Sat, 13 Apr 2019 23:30:42 +0000

I visited Copper Canyon with my wife and stayed one night in Chihuahua then got the El CHEPE train to Creel. That night I couldn’t sleep, had altitude sickness, went to see a doctor first thing the next day who told me I had to descend, so took the bus down the canyon to Batopilas (600m).

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 21 Jul 2016 03:16:44 +0000

Above 10,000 feet a patient may experience HAPE (high altitude pulmonary edema). This is a serious condition. Oxygen by mask does not help because fluid is draining into lung tissue blocking gas exchange. Altitude=low partial pressure of oxygen. Pilot physicians keyed to this early in small planes. There is one cure. Get to a lower altitude! Oh yes, in the mean time take Viagra which gives symptomatic relief. No fooling.

By: Mark J.

Mark J. — Tue, 05 Apr 2016 04:13:12 +0000

I have asthma to where I use an inhaler 10-20 times per year, plus a bit of emphysema from smoking 20 years ago, plus I am fairly heavy, 6′ 250#. I spent a week in Mexico City during the winter. The smog was not as bad as I feared. Maybe similar to LA, I live in the port area, San Pedro, which used to have bad air from diesel exhaust but is improving. Probably the air quality is much worse in the summer

What I was not prepared for was the spike in blood pressure, it really skyrocketed from the altitude! Not enough to go to a doctor, enough to increase my BP meds by 50% as allowed by my personal M.D. Anyone with high BP or even borderline should be aware of this.

After a week of touristing, hiking to Metro stops, and running around at 7200 feet, returning to 152 feet, I felt like a triathlete for a week, kind of a Superman rebound!

Viva Mexico, the heart and soul of North America!

Mark J.

By: Cindy Symington

Cindy Symington — Wed, 10 Feb 2016 16:00:21 +0000

In reply to Euphonia. Wow, thankyou, thankyou for this info, Euphonia. This explains so much for me. I am one who had high hopes of volunteering among the Quechua in the Andes, but I was so sick with throwing up bile for what seemed like no reason that I had to leave The area completely and return to my home (which is near sea level). Nobody else in my group experienced anything remotely similar.

By: Euphonia

Euphonia — Wed, 14 Oct 2015 23:52:14 +0000

In reply to Carol Schmidt.

Hi Carol,

It could be that after living in SMA for 10 years you developed Chronic Mountain Sickness. That’s what happened to me after living at 8000 ft for almost 10 years. The signs and symptoms tend to be “all over the place,” it can take years to diagnose. I got dark circles under my eyes (caused by not enough O2), my face got puffed up huge and red (high altitude edema), I fainted easily, had central sleep apnea, needed supplemental oxygen, had abnormal breathing pattern, shortness of breath, coughing, dizziness, loss of balance, extreme fatigue, bad headache every morning, fuzzy thinking. You may think that after enough time has passed the body adapts to living at high altitude. Ideally that’s what’s supposed to happen. But if you carry a certain 2 genes you will never adapt to living at high altitudes.

Here’s a link to an article about those 2 genes: http://consumer.healthday.com/diseases-and-conditions-information-37/misc-diseases-and-conditions-news-203/scientists-id-genes-behind-chronic-mountain-sickness-679172.html

By: Nat

Nat — Fri, 19 Sep 2014 23:10:15 +0000

This explains everything now! I was visiting some friends in a town close to Guadalajara this summer, and I am from the mid Atlantic region of the US, and I while I was there, I was worried that I caught some ailment, because after the being in the city for four or five days, I started feeling extremely tired and always needed a nap. I was also running there, (I’m a runner) and I noticed that I would lose energy when I would reach only half of what I would normally run, and I had to stop because I felt really almost sick. Now I know why haha!

By: SIMON

SIMON — Sat, 30 Aug 2014 19:54:48 +0000

I RESIDED ATOP CHIAPIAS (SCDLC) for a year and lived on Souza Extra and chicharones! The only bad memory I have is it took 3 months back in the States to get rid of the taste of tequila in my mouth…….
VIVA MEXICO!