What triggers hiccups and how can they be stopped. Why do some home remedies for hiccups actually work. When should persistent hiccups be a cause for concern.

Understanding the Mechanism Behind Hiccups

Hiccups are a common and usually harmless occurrence that many people experience from time to time. But what exactly causes these involuntary contractions of the diaphragm?

The diaphragm is a large, dome-shaped muscle located at the base of the lungs. It plays a crucial role in the breathing process. When the diaphragm contracts, it creates negative pressure in the chest cavity, causing air to be drawn into the lungs. When it relaxes, air is pushed out.

Hiccups occur when there’s an interruption in this normal rhythm. The diaphragm suddenly contracts involuntarily, causing a quick intake of breath. This is immediately followed by the closure of the vocal cords, producing the characteristic “hic” sound.

What Triggers Hiccups?

Various factors can trigger hiccups by causing the diaphragm to contract unexpectedly. Some common triggers include:

• Carbonated beverages
• Alcohol consumption
• Emotional stress
• Swallowing air (aerophagia)
• Eating too quickly or too much
• Sudden temperature changes
• Certain medications

Dr. Omar Khokhar, a gastroenterologist at OSF HealthCare St. Joseph Medical Center, explains that swallowing air, known as aerophagia, can be a significant trigger. This often happens when trying to sip the last bit of a drink through a straw, resulting in more air intake than liquid.

Popular Home Remedies for Hiccups: Do They Really Work?

We’ve all heard of various home remedies for stopping hiccups, some of which may seem quite bizarre. But is there any scientific basis to these methods?

While there may not be rigorous scientific studies backing up every home remedy, many of these methods can be effective due to their underlying mechanism of action. The key is to interrupt the hiccup reflex by stimulating the vagus nerve or altering your breathing pattern.

Common Home Remedies for Hiccups

• Holding your breath
• Drinking water from the opposite side of the glass
• Swallowing a spoonful of sugar
• Pulling on your tongue
• Getting startled or scared
• Breathing into a paper bag
• Pressing your right thumb into your left palm

Dr. Khokhar suggests that these remedies work by shifting your focus away from the hiccups. “Ignore the hiccups, focus on something else and you’ll often snap out of it,” he explains. “A change of scenery can do it. Walk into another room. Play a game.”

The Science Behind Hiccup Remedies

While some hiccup remedies may seem like old wives’ tales, there’s often a scientific explanation for their effectiveness. These methods generally work by stimulating the vagus nerve, resetting the diaphragm’s rhythm, or altering your CO2 levels.

Stimulating the Vagus Nerve

The vagus nerve runs from your brain to your abdomen, passing through your diaphragm. Stimulating this nerve can help interrupt the hiccup reflex. Methods like drinking cold water, swallowing dry bread, or pulling on your tongue can achieve this.

Altering Breathing Patterns

Techniques that involve holding your breath or breathing into a paper bag work by increasing the level of carbon dioxide in your blood. This can help relax the diaphragm and stop the hiccups.

Distracting the Mind

Some remedies, like getting scared or solving complex math problems, work by distracting your mind from the hiccups. This can help break the cycle of involuntary contractions.

Preventing Hiccups: Lifestyle Changes That Can Help

While occasional hiccups are normal, frequent episodes can be bothersome. Making certain lifestyle changes can help reduce the frequency of hiccups.

Eating and Drinking Habits

Dr. Khokhar emphasizes the importance of proper eating habits in preventing hiccups. He suggests:

• Eating slowly and chewing food thoroughly
• Avoiding carbonated beverages or drinking them in moderation
• Limiting alcohol intake
• Avoiding overeating, especially before bedtime

“In general, we eat and drink the wrong way,” Dr. Khokhar explains. “We should have a big breakfast, followed by a moderate lunch and moderate dinner. Instead, we flip the script. We eat a big pot of pasta right before going to bed. Your body is not designed for that.”

Posture After Eating

Maintaining an upright posture after meals can help prevent hiccups. Dr. Khokhar advises, “You should make sure to stay upright for three hours after you eat.” This can help reduce the likelihood of acid reflux, which can sometimes trigger hiccups.

When Hiccups Become a Concern: Persistent and Chronic Cases

While most cases of hiccups are harmless and resolve on their own, persistent or chronic hiccups can sometimes be a sign of an underlying medical condition.

Defining Chronic Hiccups

Chronic hiccups are defined as episodes that last more than 48 hours or recur frequently. These cases are rare but can be distressing and may interfere with eating, sleeping, and daily activities.

Potential Underlying Causes

Dr. Khokhar warns that persistent hiccups lasting more than a few days could be a sign of something more serious. Some conditions that can trigger chronic hiccups include:

• Alcoholism
• Diabetes
• Encephalitis
• Kidney disease
• Multiple sclerosis
• Stroke
• Certain medications (e.g., tranquilizers)
• Tumors

“If your hiccups persist more than two weeks, it could be an early warning sign of something you don’t want to miss. See a primary care provider,” Dr. Khokhar advises.

Medical Treatments for Persistent Hiccups

When hiccups persist despite home remedies and lifestyle changes, medical intervention may be necessary. Healthcare providers have several options for treating chronic hiccups.

Medications

Several medications can be prescribed to treat persistent hiccups:

• Baclofen: A muscle relaxant that can help reduce diaphragm contractions
• Chlorpromazine: An antipsychotic medication that can also suppress hiccups
• Metoclopramide: A medication that increases the movement of the stomach and intestines, which may help with hiccups
• Gabapentin: An anticonvulsant that can help regulate nerve signals

Surgical Interventions

In rare, severe cases where medications are ineffective, surgical interventions might be considered. These could include:

• Phrenic nerve block: A procedure that temporarily blocks the nerve that controls the diaphragm
• Vagus nerve stimulation: A technique that uses electrical impulses to stimulate the vagus nerve

It’s important to note that these treatments are typically reserved for cases where hiccups are severely impacting quality of life and have not responded to other treatments.

The Impact of Chronic Hiccups on Quality of Life

While occasional hiccups are usually just a minor annoyance, chronic hiccups can significantly impact a person’s quality of life. Understanding these effects can help emphasize the importance of seeking medical attention for persistent cases.

Physical Effects

Chronic hiccups can lead to various physical discomforts and complications:

• Chest pain and soreness from repeated muscle contractions
• Difficulty eating and drinking, potentially leading to weight loss and dehydration
• Sleep disturbances, causing fatigue and decreased alertness
• In severe cases, exhaustion and even malnutrition

Psychological and Social Impact

The persistent nature of chronic hiccups can also take a toll on mental health and social interactions:

• Embarrassment in social situations
• Anxiety about when the next bout of hiccups will occur
• Depression due to the ongoing discomfort and disruption to daily life
• Difficulty concentrating at work or school
• Strain on personal relationships

Given these potential impacts, it’s crucial for individuals experiencing persistent hiccups to seek medical attention. A healthcare provider can help determine the underlying cause and develop an appropriate treatment plan to alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life.

Hiccups in Special Populations: Children and Pregnant Women

While hiccups affect people of all ages, they can present unique challenges or considerations in certain populations, particularly children and pregnant women.

Hiccups in Children

Hiccups are common in infants and children, often occurring more frequently than in adults. In most cases, they’re harmless and resolve on their own. However, there are some special considerations:

• Infants often get hiccups during or after feeding
• Hiccups in babies usually don’t cause discomfort and don’t need treatment
• If hiccups are frequent and seem to bother the child, consult a pediatrician
• Some safe methods to try for children include offering a pacifier or a small amount of water (for older infants and children)

Hiccups During Pregnancy

Pregnant women may experience an increase in hiccups due to several factors:

• Hormonal changes can affect the diaphragm
• The growing uterus can put pressure on the diaphragm
• Increased instances of acid reflux during pregnancy can trigger hiccups

While hiccups during pregnancy are generally harmless, persistent cases should be discussed with a healthcare provider. Some safe remedies for pregnant women include drinking water slowly, practicing deep breathing exercises, or eating small, frequent meals to avoid overfilling the stomach.

It’s important to note that what works for adults may not always be appropriate for children or pregnant women. Always consult with a healthcare provider before trying new remedies, especially for these special populations.

Stopping and preventing hiccups | OSF HealthCare

So, you have the hiccups. They’re driving you crazy. Someone suggests a remedy – stand on your head, hold your breath or breathe into a paper bag.

Stop rolling your eyes. Some of those goofy-sounding home remedies actually work.

“There’s the old-wives’ tale that if someone suddenly scares you, you’ll snap out of the hiccups. There’s no rigorous scientific study to back that up,” said Omar Khokhar, MD, a gastroenterologist and president of the medical staff at OSF HealthCare St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington, Illinois.

Then, Dr. Khokhar smiled and added, “But …”

But? But what?

“Hiccups are an involuntary retraction of the diaphragm, which helps control your breathing. So, anything you do to reboot your diaphragm isn’t going to hurt anything, and it could help,” he said.

What triggers hiccups

The diaphragm is a sheet of muscle below your lungs. When it contracts, air is drawn into the lungs. When it relaxes, air is pushed out. Usually, those contractions and relaxations occur in an even, controlled rhythm.

When that rhythm is interrupted by an involuntary contraction, your vocal cords suddenly close and produce a hiccup.

“Lots of things can trigger a contraction of your diaphragm: carbonated beverages, alcohol, emotional stress, swallowing air,” Dr. Khokhar said.

Swallowing air?

“It’s known as aerophagia. You ever try to sip that last bit of soda out of a cup with a straw? You don’t get a lot of soda, but you get a lot of air. That can trigger your diaphragm.”

Why home remedies work

Because the cause of hiccups is relatively simple, most solutions are, too. If you’ve had hiccups, you’ve probably heard of some: swallow fast three times, splash cold water on your face, press your right thumb into your left palm and hold it there for 20 seconds. Or imitate a certain rock star and stick your tongue out as far as you can for 10 seconds.

There are more. All of them are rooted in the same premise.

“Ignore the hiccups, focus on something else and you’ll often snap out of it,” Dr. Khokhar said. “A change of scenery can do it. Walk into another room. Play a game.”

Or even get a friend to scare the hiccups out of you. Same deal.

“And if that doesn’t work, focus on purposeful breathing for a few minutes,” Dr. Khokhar said. “Take deep breaths and maybe do some side stretches. Pay more attention to your breathing – in through your nose, out through your mouth – and realize to some degree you can reassert control over your diaphragm.”

How to prevent hiccups

The best way to deal with hiccups is to prevent them from happening in the first place. A few simple lifestyle changes can help a lot. Think about what, when and how you eat and drink.

“Some people pop six diet sodas a day. If you’re hiccupping, that’s why,” Dr. Khokhar said. “If you drink four coffees before 9 a.m., calm down. You don’t need that much, and it probably hurts you. If you’re having six or seven drinks at night and hiccup, back off the alcohol. If you have a big bowl of pasta and then kick back in the recliner to watch the Cubs game, that’s not a good idea either.”

Which? The pasta, the recliner or the Cubs game? Oh, never mind.

“In general, we eat and drink the wrong way,” Dr. Khokhar said. “We should have a big breakfast, followed by a moderate lunch and moderate dinner. Instead, we flip the script. We eat a big pot of pasta right before going to bed. Your body is not designed for that.

“You should make sure to stay upright for three hours after you eat.”

See a doctor for chronic hiccups

Annoying as they are, hiccups are not dangerous. Most of the time, they last only a few minutes. Sometimes, they will recur with varying degrees of frequency. About the worst thing that can happen is you might develop a sore throat or soreness in your chest.

“However, if you do have hiccups consistently, for more than a few days at a time, that can be a sign of something more sinister,” Dr. Khokhar said.

The list of conditions that can trigger chronic hiccups is large. Here are a few:

• Alcoholism
• Diabetes
• Encephalitis
• Kidney disease
• Multiple sclerosis
• Stroke
• Tranquilizers
• Tumors

“If your hiccups persist more than two weeks, it could be an early warning sign of something you don’t want to miss. See a primary care provider,” Dr. Khokhar said.

View all posts by Kirk Wessler

Categories: Kids & Family

Stopping hiccups – Harvard Health

Strange cures create a stimulus that interrupts the reflex.

Several bodily functions can be played for laughs, and hiccups are one of them. Hiccups are usually minor and short-lived, if a little embarrassing and inconvenient. But they’re often associated with good times — a bit of overeating, perhaps, or getting tipsy. The sound itself is funny.

Some of the remedies are amusing, too: drinking from the wrong side of the glass, having someone jump out at you and shout “boo,” biting a lemon, and drinking pickle juice, to name a few. “It is good to cast colde water in the face of him that hath the hicket,” was the advice in 16th-century England. There are also standbys like holding your breath or breathing into a paper bag. Some of these cures make more sense than others, but they’re all pretty much untested.

Sometimes nothing works. Hiccups can go on for a long time. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, an Iowa resident named Charles Osborne had the hiccups for 68 years. But even a few days’ worth can be distressing. And if hiccups go on longer, they can cause serious problems, including difficulty eating, dehydration, depression, and loss of sleep (although it’s also possible to hiccup while you sleep).

Persistent hiccups can be related to an underlying medical condition. Tumors can impinge on nerves in the chest or abdomen. Hiccups can be a symptom of diseases that affect the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), such as multiple sclerosis or strokes.

What is going on when you hiccup?

A hiccup begins as if you’re taking a big breath of air much faster than normal. Your diaphragm contracts and pulls down, and your chest muscles go to work. A fraction of a second later (precisely 35 milliseconds, according to one classic study), the narrow opening between the vocal cords snaps shut — and you hear the distinctive hiccup sound. It’s unclear whether the voice box (glottis) is pulled shut or if it closes because of negative pressure from expansion of the chest.

Neurologically, hiccups are an unthinking reflex, like the kicking action of your leg when a doctor taps your knee. Typically, a reflex begins with a signal from the body to the spinal cord or brain that triggers a second signal from the spinal cord or brain back to the body.

Nobody is completely sure how the hiccup reflex is triggered, and the cause may differ in different people. But a common explanation is that it starts with irritation or stimulation of the phrenic or vagus nerves, and perhaps other nerves in the autonomic nervous system. The phrenic nerve leads from the brain to the diaphragm. Vagus is Latin for wandering, and the vagus nerve does seem to wander, traveling from the brain to the ear, throat, and many parts of the chest and abdomen.

The involvement of the vagus nerve may explain why hiccups can start for so many different, and sometimes odd, reasons. Doctors in Italy have reported that two men could provoke hiccups by stroking or shaving their beards. In another case, the source was a hair tickling the eardrum.

After nerves are stimulated, the message is sent to the medulla oblongata, an area of the lower brain involved in regulating breathing and other basic functions. Some researchers have suggested that this region contains a “hiccup” center entirely separate from any control of breathing. After passing through the medulla oblongata, the “hiccup message” gets sent down the phrenic nerve to the diaphragm.

Several factors can trigger the short bouts of hiccups that many people periodically experience:

• a stomach full of too much food, alcohol, or air
• sudden changes in temperature
• excitement, stress, or other heightened emotion.

Cures

Many of the remedies for mild hiccups may work by creating a stimulus that interrupts the signals causing the reflex. In effect, you take the nervous system out of its rut. So, for example, when you drink from the wrong side of the glass, you may be exciting nerves in the back of the mouth, nose, and throat that aren’t stimulated by normal drinking. The throat (pharynx) seems to be a hot spot for generating these interrupting messages, which explains why so many cures involve unusual drinking or eating.

Breathing into a paper bag works a different way. It increases the carbon dioxide (CO₂) level in your blood, and it’s been shown that as CO₂ levels go up, hiccups tend to recede.

A maneuver called “supra-supramaximal inspiration” was described in the Journal of Emergency Medicine many years ago. You exhale and then take a very deep breath and hold it for 10 seconds. Then, without exhaling, you breathe in again, pause, and then breathe in a third time. The doctors theorize that stacking three inhalations in a row stops hiccups both by increasing CO₂ levels in the blood and by immobilizing the diaphragm.

The most commonly prescribed medicine for hiccups, and the only one approved by the FDA, is chlorpromazine (Thorazine). Often, drugs approved to treat one condition prove useful in treating another. That’s the case with chlorpromazine, which was first approved as a drug to treat psychotic disorders. It can also treat hiccups, either in pill form or — in severe cases — intravenously.

Small studies suggest that several other drugs also may work, including baclofen, metoclopramide, phenytoin, valproic acid, and gabapentin, although the FDA has not approved their use to treat hiccups. Other small studies suggest that marijuana, acupuncture, or hypnosis may help. Although surgical approaches have been developed, they are a last resort, reserved for the rare cases that last, literally, for years.

Image: surely/Getty Images

What is hypochondria or how to stop looking for diseases in yourself > Rubric Medicine in Samara

There is nothing wrong with the fact that a person strives for a healthy lifestyle, maintains immunity, goes in for sports, monitors hygiene.

However, sometimes the desire to stay healthy becomes obsessive. This phenomenon has a scientific definition – hypochondria. We learned from psychologists what it manifests itself in and how to get rid of it.

A hypochondriacal disorder or syndrome is a psychological condition in which a person experiences a fear of contracting one or more diseases. Obsession with one’s health was first described by the ancient Greeks. The physician and philosopher Hippocrates suggested that this condition causes a disorder of a special internal organ, which is located under the ribs. This is where the name “hypochondria” came from, which means “area under the ribs” in Greek.

Many emotions

According to the international classification of diseases, hypochondria belongs to the class of mental disorders. From 3 to 14% of the world’s population suffer from it.

“Half of the psychotherapist’s clients are neurotic,” says clinical psychologist Bina Nerudova . – A neurotic is not a hysterical, nervous brawler, this is a personality type in which a person is often emotionally involved in experiences, easily gets into negative emotions, and constantly winds himself up. He is prone to vegetative disorders.

They, in turn, appear when a person experiences discomfort in one area or another, but the cause is not found. Pain or tension is not associated with a specific disease. Doctors usually say to such patients: “You are healthy.” As a result, the neurotic begins to imagine in his imagination a bunch of explanations for what is really happening to him. This is what hypochondria looks like.

[vrezka color=”#FFFFFF” bgcolor=”#7a97ad” image=”” image_mode=”” bgfixed=”” padding_top=”” padding_bottom=””] Nine signs of hypochondria:

1. You perceive any deviation from the norm as the development of a serious illness.

2. Search the Internet for symptoms and use them to diagnose yourself.

3. Seek to see a doctor for any reason, no matter how small.

4. People with contagious diseases scare you.

5. Feel a strong distrust of doctors.

6. When you travel, you take a lot of medicines.

7. You are greatly concerned about the heredity of diseases.

8. You think you might have a terminal illness.

9. You are haunted by a craving for sterility.[/vrezka]

— In my practice, hypochondria is observed in most cases in clients with anxiety disorders and panic attacks. In general, panic attacks are a direct path to becoming a hypochondriac. A person in this state really thinks that he is about to die or have a heart attack, although in fact he is healthy. As a result, a long rigmarole of going to doctors begins in order to find heart disease, for example. Although, in fact, you need to go to a psychotherapist and deal with the deep intrapersonal causes of panic attacks, Nerudova explains.

Focus on the body

Most patients with hypochondria have common character traits: self-doubt, ambivalence, lack of independence. Many of them have a parent or partner who acts as the “master”. At the same time, the hypochondriac feels like a child, even when he is 40 years old. As a result, he switches the focus of attention to his body, trying to control at least one area of ​​his life – health.

pixabay.com

— Focusing on health, a person returns to early childhood, when mother’s love was manifested through caring for the child’s bodily needs. Therefore, with hypochondria, the patient is self-loving, filling this care, – adds the psychologist.

The hypochondriac also has secondary benefits of not being healthy. The presence of a diseased condition allows him not to deal with his life – career or family. Instead, he begins to run around the hospitals, refuting another diagnosis. At the same time, you need to understand that hypochondriacs do not feign, but really feel malaise or pain.

The main fears

The habit of entering symptoms in a search engine and diagnosing oneself according to articles becomes a favorite pastime of hypochondriacs. As for the diseases that they find in themselves, then there is a top of several points. Oncology tops the list.

“Very often hypochondriacs start looking for a tumor when they feel ill,” confirms Bina Nerudova. – It is explainable. Carcinophobia, or the fear of getting cancer, is common among those who have lost loved ones to this disease.

The next item is heart disease. Often, hypochondria develops in people with intercostal neuralgia, a psychosomatic disease in which a person feels a sharp pain of unclear etymology.

Completing the list are diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, and rare autoimmune diseases. In women, among other things, the possibility of pregnancy causes concern. More often this happens in young girls who are not yet ready for motherhood.

Expert advice

Hypochondria responds well to psychotherapy. The patient will have to resolve internal conflicts, increase self-esteem and learn useful practices. Bina Nerudova recommends several classes for those who notice an unhealthy interest in pathologies.

First, master breathing exercises, any meditation, sign up for yoga. All this teaches you to focus your attention on the state of “here and now”, helps to calm the nervous system, reduces anxiety and allows you to get to know yourself better.

[author title=”Elena Baida, family psychologist: » image=”http://old.sgrpess.ru/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Bajda.jpg”] — In my practice, hypochondria is quite common often as I work with phobias and panic attacks. Every second client with a phobic disorder suffers from looking for symptoms of diseases. Most often, they are afraid of oncology or disorders of the heart – stroke, heart attack. When such fear is centered on a particular illness, we call it p a tophobia. And hypochondria refers to the search for any symptoms without fixation on anything specific. The hypochondriac often has a traumatic experience in which he or someone close to him suffered from a serious illness. If the first episode made an impression on the human psyche, then he begins to notice similar cases, and this traumatic experience is fixed. This is how our brain works: in the midst of a huge flow of information, it fixes attention on the one that lives at the subconscious level.[/author]

Second, try to use autogenic Schultz training. This is a special set of exercises designed for patients with vegetovascular dystonia and neuroses. It is aimed at self-regulation of the body. Autogenic training allows you to learn how to relax your muscles, control your heartbeat, and normalize the blood supply to internal organs. It eliminates the physiological effects of stress in the body.

Thirdly, limit yourself from unnecessary information. Do not be led by the desire to find the disease. Stop reading medical reports, don’t try to look for symptoms. If you start to control yourself, then every day the bad habit will manifest itself less and less. In order to start productive treatment, you need to contact a specialist.

Cover photo: pixabay.com

“I’ve been looking for, and still looking for, a sense of competition.” Thomas Morgenstern talks about new and old sports careers

The invariable Redbull cap and a big smile against the backdrop of the Tver forests: a special guest has arrived at the Russian Open Helicopter Championship in Konakovo. Thomas Morgenstern, who put his jump skis away two years ago, is still in the air, but now he does it with the help of a sleek Robinson P-44.

Morgenstern began to get involved in aviation long before he was faced with the need to choose a new profession, but in the last two years the old passion has grown into a vocation, accompanied by constant training and competitive activities. Thomas’ new sports career started very briskly: the World Championships in Poland last year, the first official competition in which he took part, ended with a gold medal in the junior category (up to 250 hours of competitive flight time). The second competition, the World Air Games, “Aviation Olympiad”, brought bronze in the overall standings. Beginners are known to be lucky.

However, in Russia, he failed to continue the prize streak at the third helicopter competition in his life: in the final protocol, his name can be found only in twentieth place out of twenty-eight. Only in one of the disciplines of the Russian Open Helicopter Championship, in flight for accuracy, Thomas and his co-pilot Stefan Zeer managed to get into the top ten. The remaining three – navigation, cargo delivery and slalom – can only be added to the treasury of experience. However, both members of the Austrian helicopter team do not get tired of repeating that this is only the beginning of a long and difficult journey.

Why the Open Championship of Russia?

Thomas Morgenstern: We don’t have many major competitions on our calendar this year – in Russia, Germany, the Czech Republic and Belarus. The best pilots of this sport have gathered in Russia, and the airfield, as well as the space surrounding it, is perfectly prepared for competitions. And we had the opportunity to train well here for a few days in the first half of the week. Therefore, the visit to Konakovo was originally an obligatory part of the program for this season. Perhaps we will come to the next training camp to practice surrounded by the best pilots in the world and get valuable advice from them, so that we can then be able to fight with them in the future. And in general, I like it here.

Stefan Seer, co-pilot: Russian pilots help us a lot and give us tips – they are really the best in helicopter sport. And this place is perhaps the only one in the world where you can now train according to all the rules, learn the subtleties and look for the right sensations.

What makes this event different from other competitions you have competed in?

ТМ: To be honest, I can’t say for sure yet – for me this is the very beginning, a new sport. When I finished jumping, I found a new passion – helicopters. Last year I competed in the World Championships and in the World Air Games with Stefan, so here in Russia it’s only my third competition. This year we also want to go to Germany and the Czech Republic. After that, I can talk about it better. But in general, everyone is constantly talking about Russia, that here, in Konakovo, the best space for training, and maybe the best competition.

SHZ: The general level of the participants is very striking here, and in order to take high places here, you must really know your business. At other competitions, sometimes you can perform poorly and take a higher line in the protocol, but here it doesn’t work like that.

TM: It’s all very similar to the World Cup.

What is it like for a person who has reached the heights in another sport, ski jumping, to start all over from scratch?

TM: This is a long process. I retired from jumping two years ago, and when I got serious about helicopters, it took a long time, many hours of training. In addition, it is a very expensive sport, so you always have to look for good sponsors to be able to train hard and be at a sufficient level to compete. But we are moving forward. Stefan and I have been working as a team since last September. The road still seems long, but progress is already being made.

Ski jumping experience helps in any way?

ТМ: None at this level yet. I can’t say that we train quite a lot in general: we still need to work a lot, as we make mistakes, either with gates in slalom, or in transporting goods. Workouts are not as systematic and regular as in jumps, where the rhythm of the World Cup helped to get in shape and stay in it. This is not the case in helicopter sports.

SW: It seems to me that the main difference is that in ski jumping everything depends only on yourself, and you feel good, understand and control everything that happens, and you can adapt to the circumstances. But here everything is different: the pilot practically does not see the full picture, and only the co-pilot controls the situation and can monitor what is happening with the cargo and what spatial position it is in. And this is a very important difference: you really do not understand everything that is happening. Therefore, the main task is to work in a team. And accuracy, simultaneity of actions is the most important thing. The co-pilot needs to be able to feel what the pilot is thinking and to choose the right moment; and this is also a non-trivial task, since nothing happens suddenly, and all actions must be spoken out in advance, two or three seconds before they are performed.

TM: So you really need to trust your co-pilot. (laughs) But it’s not easy at first. You see the gates, it seems to you that you have passed them, you already need to turn, but nothing like that, the sensations are deceiving. So it takes time to work out.

How different is the perception of the competition, its rhythm and essence, in jumping and in helicopter sports?

TM: Very strong. Jumping stages take place in Central Europe, in Scandinavia, this is a very popular sport, especially in Austria and Germany, there are always a lot of journalists, fans at the stadium, up to thirty thousand – of course, this is all different. But we are working on making helicopter sport more famous in the future. This is our big goal, but it also takes a lot of time.

But I need to compete – I have been looking for and still looking for this feeling. I like the taste of constant competition with others.

Do you miss anything from your past sports life?

TM: (long pause) Of course.

But I made a decision two years ago: jumping is a thing of the past. It was great time. And when I later watched the competitions of the Four Hills Tournament or, for example, the World Championships, I can’t properly describe the feelings that I experienced, but they were strong.

And now it’s completely different – in a sport that is not so well known. I try my best to feel something similar to what jumping gave me. And at the World Aviation Games last year in Dubai, when we were able to take bronze, I was able to get closer to this feeling – a great event, a great success.

***

What’s next? Are there any long-term plans, projects in which you are involved?

TM: Nothing special. For the time being, I plan to continue to engage in helicopter sports in order to one day be able to compete with the Russian guys. I also think about how to raise the popularity of this sport – we already have some ideas, but it’s too early to talk about them.

Do you have any contact with the hopping world?

TM: A little. I try to keep track of how the stages are going, I look at news sites when I have time. This winter I will take part in sponsorship events at the 4-Hills-Tournament and most likely in Planica.

And from personal contacts, I communicate a lot with Heinz Kuttin, the head coach of the Austrian national team. He is, in fact, my neighbor, lives twenty minutes from my house, so we often meet to chat, play golf – through him I do not lose touch with our team.

You are in Russia for the first time after the Olympic Games. Two years have passed – has time somehow changed the view of the Sochi events? Now it is perceived more as a test that had to be overcome then, or does the silver medal at the end obscure all the difficulties?

TM: The Sochi Olympic Games were one of the most emotional competitions of my career. Maybe it’s all because of the fall in front of them, urgent rehabilitation … I don’t know, I really can’t explain why, but it is.

But I was very proud that I managed to get to the Games, no matter what. Now I remember how great everything was organized. And the silver medal in the team was something absolutely incredible for me personally. And for the whole team.

What was it like attending this year’s World Championships at Kulm, after what you experienced there and what happened this year?

TM: Very strange feeling, you know. Everyone knows what happened to Luke Müller – but he is already on the mend; We’ve been talking to him a lot lately. But you need to understand that such incidents can happen anywhere, on absolutely any springboard. And Kulm… I love Kulm, to be honest. It has always been one of my favorite jumps and despite my experience it is still a pleasure to be there.

If your daughter, Lilly, wants to play sports – like jumping – professionally, will you discourage or support?

ТМ: I will support you, of course. For me, jumping is the most beautiful sport in the world, it has always been and still is. I started jumping myself when I was nine years old, and it was a glorious time, not only because of the success. The feeling itself, when you fly over two hundred meters, cannot be described in words. So if Lilly wants to jump, then I will support her – but this should be her decision, just like I made it once. I always made my own decisions: when I wanted to do football, skiing, then jumping, and now helicopters.