This post covers day 3 of solo backpacking the SHT (Superior Hiking Trail) while living with MCAS.
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Table of Contents
Why hike the SHT?
I have MCAS, and I’m always looking for ways to push the limits of my disability. After reading Cheryl Strayed’s book Wild this summer, I decided to do a solo hike in the Minnesota wilderness.
To manage it, I had to cut back on some of the supplements and therapeutic practices that I use to manage my MCAS, and in the process, I found I could manage with less than I thought.
Who is Betsy Leighton?
I’m a writer, blogger, and healer dedicated to helping individuals reconnect with their innate peace and wholeness by healing nervous system dysregulation. My personal experience with chronic illness called Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) shapes my work, and my content offers tools to empower those with chronic illness to improve their well-being and take charge of their health.
I created the Sacred Self-Healing Method and am a trained and certified Safe and Sound Protocol provider, an author, blogger, and A Course in Miracles Teacher. I hold a Master of Divinity in Spiritual Counseling and am a trained spiritual mentor, with certificates in sound healing, aromatherapy, nutrition, and Sacred Deathcare. I offer a self-study certificate program in the Sacred Self-Healing Method, provide spiritual counseling and coaching, courses, and supported subscriptions for the Safe and Sound Protocol.
What is MCAS?
Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) is a chronic condition that affects all organ systems. It can cause severe, disabling symptoms every day, including potentially fatal anaphylaxis.
The common triggers for MCAS are infections, toxic exposures including mold exposure and EMFs, trauma, concussions, and stress.
MCAS often occurs with other chronic conditions like Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS). Managing MCAS is challenging because many healthcare providers are unaware of it, and diagnostic tests can be unreliable. Treatments include antihistamines and mast cell stabilizers in the form of medications and supplements, along with avoiding triggers. Check out this post on managing MCAS.
The Superior Hiking Trail
The SHT is a hiking trail in northern Minnesota, spanning about 300 miles across public and private lands.
On day three of my hike, I planned to pack up my camp, head south, and do a section of the SHT near Duluth today.
As I drove down Hwy. 61 I was amazed by the enormous amount of water pouring down from higher elevations. Besides the highway, little waterfalls were gushing down the glacial rocks where there had only been a trickle on my way north a few days ago. I stopped to take videos of the Cross and Temperance Rivers because they were so impressive. There was also evidence of places where Hwy 61 had been closed the night before due to flood waters, and sizable chunks of the shoulder and edge of the road were washed away.
Stay away from the SHT!
I also stopped at the SHT administrative office in Two Harbors to buy a set of paper maps. I have Gaia Maps, Avenza, Strava, and Garmin Explore on my phone, but I feel so much more secure with a paper map in my hands. I keep trying to get the hang of navigating on my phone, and I’ll keep at it, but having the paper maps feels like a good backup.
While at the SHT office, the staff said they were urging everyone to stay off the SHT. The recent rain has overwhelmed the trails, putting them at serious risk of erosion. I’ve been trying to do my part by staying off the vulnerable parts, but it impressed upon me the need to stay off completely. They recommended I do the Duluth Lakewalk portion of the trail, which is all paved.
Opting to hike on paved trails instead
So, I started at the Rose Garden at Leif Erikson Park in Duluth, which has a nice-sized parking lot, bathrooms, and easy access to the SHT. I love how the SHT is very well marked, and this part in particular was marked with stickers at every turn. Just when I was wondering which way to go, I found a little sticker on a lamp post with an arrow guiding my way.
The contrast between this urban section of the SHT and the beach walk I did yesterday was pretty amazing. There were lots of people around, including some homeless folks camped in the park, but there were lots of beautiful views. It made me realize there isn’t much of a leap from being a thru-hiker to being homeless. In both cases, you are out in the elements trying to survive, though, of course, hiking is a huge privilege taken by choice.
Mosquitoes and ticks
Some people have asked about bugs on the trail, and this is one area that is a pretty big deal for me. I’ve had chronic Lyme disease for decades, and it took a lot of trauma healing over the last five years for me to get past my fear of ticks and vector-borne illness in general and be able to go out into nature at all. Add to that the multiple chemical sensitivities that come with my MCAS, and I can’t tolerate chemical bug sprays or sunscreens.
The bugs have been fierce, both mosquitoes and black flies. I’ve been wearing long-sleeved and long-legged sun protection clothing and my trusty sun hat. And I have a fine-mesh bug net for my head that has been a godsend. I’m also using two kinds of essential oil-based bug sprays that have worked well for the exposed parts of my skin. I can’t tolerate EOs much, and I’m prone to developing skin sensitivity, so I’m using them sparingly.
An example of the crazy bugginess is that when I parked about ten meters into the woods at the beach walk, I was immediately attacked by millions of mosquitoes. I quickly put on my bug hat and sprayed my hands, but I still got many bites. I can only imagine how bad the bugs are up in the deep woods.
We’re in it for the long haul
If you’re following along, this is going to be a long haul. Part of the challenge of doing the SHT is finding the time away from regular life to spend doing it. I’m heeding the SHT staff’s advice and staying away from the SHT for at least a few weeks to let the trail recover from the heavy rains, and I will continue working on the book I’m writing. I’m also sore from the little hiking I’ve done, and I plan to build my stamina on local hikes near my house before I head back up North in a few weeks. I’ve got two time spans earmarked for July, and then I plan to focus the bulk of my SHT hiking in August and September when it will hopefully be cooler, drier, and less buggy.
So, that’s it for now! Thanks for following along! It’s been fun imagining you all tracking my route, and I’ve loved reading your comments. See you next time!
The bucket theory
The bucket theory simplifies understanding symptom reactions with MCAS. Imagine your body as an empty bucket you don’t want to overflow. Reactions to various stimuli fill the histamine bucket at different rates, forming the total histamine level (how full your bucket is). More histamine means more symptoms. By managing triggers, reducing exposures, and taking medications and supplements, you can control your bucket’s level.
Know your typical symptom progression
Understanding your symptom progression during a flare is key to developing your rescue plan. This post discusses how to recognize symptom progression so you can be prepared to address them.
Get my free ebook, symptom log, and meal plan!
Want a tool to easily track your symptoms?
Check out these circadian health tools!
I’m an affiliate with Bon Charge, a company that makes tools for circadian health, and you can receive 15% off your order with my coupon code BETSYL.
Bon Charge offers tools such as yellow– and red-tone blue-blocking glasses, red light therapy devices, PEMF mats, infrared saunas, and EMF-blocking products.
Sign up for the SSP!
I’ve found the Safe and Sound Protocol (SSP) to be the most helpful bottom-up healing strategy if your nervous system has been overloaded with toxic exposures, including mold or non-native EMFs, chronic infections, concussions, stress, or trauma. The SSP is a passive listening therapy that helps heal nervous system dysregulation. Many people with MCAS and other chronic conditions have nervous system dysregulation stemming from infections, toxic exposures, concussions, and trauma. The SSP is an easy-to-use app that lets you listen to specially filtered music for 30 minutes each day as part of a 5-hour cycle. Studies show the SSP has a profound effect on mental health and chronic conditions. Here’s a short podcast describing the Safe and Sound Protocol.
You can sign up for the SSP here!
Heal your mind!
While the SSP is a bottom-up, somatic therapy for healing the nervous system, the Sacred Self-Healing Method I offer is a top-down nervous system-healing modality that focuses on cognition, attention, perception, and emotion, using the mind’s higher functions. The SSP and the Sacred Self-Healing Method complement each other and together produce lasting results. Here’s a short podcast on my self-healing practice.
I provide one-on-one in-person and remote chronic illness and caregiver coaching, as well as Sacred Self-Healing Sessions based on the Sacred Self-Healing Method, a proven, novel co-creative healing modality detailed in my Books.
Order my books!
Here’s a short podcast highlighting my five books.
My latest book, Living In The Light: Healing with Forgiveness, Sound, and Light, is all about the tools that have been most helpful for me to heal: forgiveness, sound, through nervous system retraining using the Safe and Sound Protocol, and light, through entraining my circadian rhythm with the energy of the sun. Living In The Light is available here!
Rocks and Roots chronicles my solo backpacking journey on the Superior Hiking Trail and my efforts to overcome nervous system dysregulation, gut dysbiosis, and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome symptoms to complete the 328-mile hike successfully.
The Sacred Self-Healing Method ebook is available here and in most ebook retailers!
The Sacred Self-Healing Workbook is available for purchase here!
Betsy’s first book, Sacred Self-Healing: Finding Peace Through Forgiveness, is available here
Companion Recordings
The companion audio recordings of chants, guided meditations, and sound healing demonstrations that accompany the Sacred Self-Healing Method are available for free on my YouTube channel here
What do you think?
I’d love to have your reply below!
Disclaimer
The preceding material does not constitute medical advice. This information is for information purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, cure, or treatment.
