Sunday, December 31, 2006

New Super Power Confirmed

No, not SuperPower(TM), the new productdiscipline for the losersfollowers of Scientology, but just the average run of the mill super-powers we all tend to have. For instance, my younger brother has the super-power "coming up roses", which's just what the aphorism would suggest. I'd envy him for it if he didn't also suffer from Instant Karma, which I so don't envy.

But, I've always known my super-power was "all dogs love me" (except for dogs that are either "on duty" or who've been abused). I have now had third-party confirmation to my second super-power, Opiate Resistance. I had to go to the hospital for a migraine, and got a "rather large" (the docs words) dose of Demerol that was supposed to turn me into a complete zombie in a half an hour or less. We had to stop the car so I could toss my cookies (in spite of the large injection of antinauseant preceding the Demerol injection), but otherwise the only ill effects were like being a half-way between being tipsy and drunk, with a dry mouth & slightly tweaky balance in the morning. Maddie says I have a "frightening resistance" to Demerol.

That's really cool: how many people have two super-powers? (Unless this means my dog-oriented powers are waning in the presence of so many catsen.)

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Human body chemistry is indeed very interesting.
Hmmm...I can't think of any super powers I have, besides unstoppable pessimism, and I lost my one super-skill from grad. school. I used to be able to tell by smell alone the difference between chlorobenzene, 1,2-dichlorobenzene and 1,4-dichlorobenzene, along with several other common solvents.

I've got plenty of super-weaknesses, but no more than any typical 4-F.

Congrats on your new discovery. Maybe you should have your DNA sequenced and get the results published so that medical science can develop opiate blockers for detox. of addicts.

Coffespaz said...

Hearty wishes that you feel better soon.

Regarding the super-powers, I have found that you gain powers as you get older. For example, animals have always come to me, something which continues today. However, in my adulthood, I have discovered an incredible, albeit scary, ability to drink alcohol with limited effects.

So, kudos on your new power, though I hope it doesn't hinder your healing from migranes.

JimDesu said...

Alex, if my opiate resistance were that strong (I can't imagine it's that uncommon), that might be a good thing to do for the general good, but that would probably mean getting dosed a few times & being tested, and I don't like opiates. Sure, I'll take a Vicoden to fix a migraine, but I've never understood why people would take these things recreationally; they'd have to pay me to do it.

Krista: be careful -- scary alcohol resistance w/o a history of alcohol abuse may mean that you have the genetic markers of true metabolic alcoholism. If so, you're one of the few that can fully metabolize ethanol, but the byproducts the body produces are hellishly addictive.

Coffespaz said...

Thanks for the warning, and don't fear, it has already been heeded. I was in London when I discovered this "gift" and it scared me so that I am very careful to limit my intake now. Especially given the history of alochol abuse in my family.

Glad you are feeling better. I agree with Alex, it is fascinating how the body works on a chemical level, something I feel isn't given enough attention in layman's medical science.

Anonymous said...

Yes Jim, I imagine that you wouldn't want to be a human guinea pig, but, my guess is that what brings you the resistance is something in your genetic makeup. Either some gene has not expressed itself fully and the human opiate receptors in your body have been turned to "off" (or at least to barely active). But you're probably right that someone out there has already mapped out the genes of opiate resistance and now they're figuring out which small molecules will activate/deactivate those genes.

boxingalcibiades said...

That's interesting, and I could test it out. How powerful is Vicoden? I have a friend who gets loopy when she takes it. I took it once for a migraine, but I don't remember it doing an awful lot more than aspirin and either a big meal or serious sleep would do.

Frankly, the best remedy I've ever had for a serious, killer migraine is Dextromothorphan Hydrobromide and a two-hour nap. Yep, good old Nyquil in a full dosage.

boxingalcibiades said...

I think I have Real Life Super Powers, too, but I can't remember what they are now... sad. Unless that's me with the Instant Karma...

getting our DNA sequenced and published would be COOL, btw.

Unknown said...

You should probably tell them to give you a different antinauseant, too, since this one didn't seem to work.
Hm, I wonder if "Extreme knowledge of random shit" counts as a superpower?

JimDesu said...

Russ: yeah, getting under the migraine by being asleep's generally a good thing, but that means waking up with a migraine, and often doing so dehydrated.

Amanda: your superpower would more likely be "extreme rebuttal".

boxingalcibiades said...

Not if you do it right: you drink a half-gallon of water, and then take the stuff. And if you've gone deep enough, it should be gone when you awake.

You know that this is a stress marker, I assume... so a huge meal as the sleepy-juice takes effect may also get your nervous system balanced again, since the juice should hinder your nausea. (Orgasm will, too, but I've yet to meet the migraine that would let me survive physical contact with anything except a mattress. This is strictly hearsay from a dude whose neurobiology I respect.)

I have some super-skills (herd pigeons, talk to crows), but I can't remember my SuperPower (the Clue by Four?), which makes me want to pout, because I remember having one!

Madeleine said...

I have a pretty definite superpower actually. I have been known to see parking spots, according to James, "around corners, behind me, from downhill" and it's not a one shot deal either - my superpower is near to 100% reliable. I do fear however that it will go dormant once we've moved to a place where parking isn't a full contact sport....then I'll have to expand on my supernatural ability to speak cat and seduce random felines.

boxingalcibiades said...

You'll use it, I promise. Though Granddad still looks out for us.

Anonymous said...

I am remembering Dave Letterman's list of "top 10 least useful superpowers" #9 was really bendy thumb. #1 was "Magnetic Colon", which depending upon how you use it (rail gun?!?) could be useful. :(

Not really sure if I do have any powers....I have maybe super skills, such as my ability to navigate Bureaucracy without fail, or heartburn, but I suspect I got that from my father, who if he was a hero, would be "Super Clerk". I actually mean that as a compliment - he can navigate through all sorts of forms with ease.

boxingalcibiades said...

That's DEFINITELY a superpower.

Anonymous said...

I'm sticking with my real Super Power.. "Resistant to the Urge to Kill Everyone".

Anonymous said...

Oh, I remembered one!

"Good with Titles."

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