https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/noncommunicable-diseases
Wednesday, December 16, 2020
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2020 Update: A Report From the American Heart Association
https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIR.0000000000000757
Obstructive Sleep Apena and Obesity
70 % of OSA due to obesity. Weights loss best solution to completely resolve most cases of OSA.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3021364/
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Homebirth #2
This is the long detailed version, you get what you pay for... the pictures at the end do contain some from the labor, and immediately after the delivery. I am 100% comfortable with them being here for all to see, I know that there were some who were not comfortable with the pictures I posted after my last birth, there are far fewer pictures than last time and if you are comfortable seeing women in bikinis on the beach you should be just fine with these pictures. Enjoy.
I have been asked if my labor was short, and depending on how you look at it would change my answer. I started waking up almost every night for two weeks before I had Natalie and had about 2-4 hours of contractions. They would end in time for the sun to be coming up and the kids to be getting out of bed. It made for a very loooooong two weeks. I woke up early Sunday morning having contractions, but much stronger than the nights before, and started to think that maybe, just maybe this would be it. A few hours later they almost completely stopped and left me to spend the day having a contraction or two every hour, and this was more frustrating than I could handle. We went to my parents house for dinner that night, and while I knew we would make it home without anything major happening the contractions did seem to be building in intensity, but not quantity while we were out. When we got home Danny and Rudi put the kids to bed I showered, and asked Danny to give me a blessing. I am very grateful that he did.
There were two key words that he said in his blessing that shifted my energy and helped me focus on what was going to be happening. The words were surrender and trust. I felt the desire to sit in silence and be with myself and my thoughts, I was really glad this was all after the kids had gone to bed. The mantra surrender, trust, love came into my mind and seemed to calm my whole being down. I got into bed with this on my mind, and as the contractions would come this is what I would chant to myself as they swelled and went away. After about two hours of half sleep contractions I got up because it was no longer comfortable to be laying down. I wasn't convinced at all that I was in real labor, with the way the morning had gone and the two weeks prior I wasn't going to be convinced until my water broke and my baby was crowning! At some point in my sleepy contractions the mantra had changed itself from surrender, trust, love to down, trust, out. I think Danny knew something was up but he didn't say much other than, having contractions? I stood in our bedroom watching TV, and not timing the contractions exactly but aware enough to know that they were every 10 minutes and about 2 minutes long. Again, this was contrary to everything I had ever heard about labor, contractions are supposed to get closer together to be real labor. I completely lost track of time but did recognize that the contractions were increasing in intensity. I still didn't want to say I was in labor yet, I didn't want Danny to go to all the work of getting the birthing pool out only to wake up the next day and still be pregnant. At some point I must have hit the switch, I started my low ohhhhing with the contractions and Danny got out the pool. I almost asked him not to, partly because the only position I had been comfortable in for the past few hours had been standing. I tried to sit, squat, kneel etc. but standing was it. He got the pool filled half way up and we ran out of hot water. I was okay to stand in the pool, with each contraction I felt like I had to pee and this way I could. My contractions still remained about 10 minutes apart and were very intense when I had them. I was getting so very tired, and I didn't know how much longer my legs could hold me up, but I knew that there was no way I was going to be in any other position. I forced myself to not ask about the time, knowing I would trust my instincts a lot more if I wasn't asking a clock for answers. I did ask one time and was very surprised to hear that it was 3 am. I was finally able to back myself into a sitting position in the pool, and was starting to prepare myself for the fact that it could be a lot more hours before this ended.
During a contraction shortly after sitting down my water broke, I yelped! It didn't hurt but scared the living bejeebees out of me. Transition seemed to happen so quickly after this it was overwhelming. Almost immediately after my water broke I flipped over onto my hands and knees. I am certain that when my water broke my baby flipped herself around from being posterior to anterior and this enabled me to be more comfortable in my preferred birthing position. I also started to cry and remember thinking and saying I don't want to do this I can't do this. In my sane mind I knew this was a good sign that meant I was in transition and that it wouldn't be much longer. In my not so sane mind I was thinking about how I wanted to go and have a c-section and be done with it! These thoughts didn't have much time to stick around because I started to feel like I needed to push with each contraction, that was still about 10 minutes apart. I was still in a bit of disbelief that I was feeling the need to push already and tried to not push but as anyone who has ever felt the need to push a baby out can tell you, body wins on that one. I pushed with about 4 contractions and was feeling very defeated as I felt that I wasn't getting anywhere with the pushing. I had one last overwhelming moment of doubt and fear. As quickly as the moment started, I had gratitude that the contractions were so far apart. I was able to literally sit up, close myself off from birthing, take deep breathes and find myself, and why I was doing what I was doing the way I was doing it again. As soon as the next contraction started up I knew I was all in. I pushed and was rewarded with the feeling of her head descending. On the next contraction (that so kindly came much quicker than the others) I delivered her head. Here is where I yell my famous line of get it out, knowing in my heart that I don't want anyone to lay a hand on my baby, and luckily Danny knows this. I tried to push her out without a contraction, and was reminded that contractions actually do serve a purpose. I waited and on the next contraction pushed the rest of my baby out. I immediately turned myself around to sitting and scooped my prize out of the water. Then I cried, sobbed, and released a lot of emotion. They weren't tears of joy, or sadness, they were tears of pure raw emotion, there isn't a label that can be put on what I felt in that moment, other than purity.
There is nothing more wonderful than that first moment of having the life that was inside of you clinging to you but on the outside. It would take more than a small army to pry my newborn from my arms in those first moments. Danny and I were the only ones there and I wouldn't trade that for anything. The feelings that I had regarding this homebirth were very different than they were the last time. At first it seemed a little anti-climatic. I couldn't imagine giving birth any other way, so it was very natural. Also the empowering feelings that I had the last time were no where to be seen as well. I was grateful to be holding my baby, grateful that it was over, and felt very raw and pure in that moment. As the days have come since having Natalie the feelings of wonder and awe at the very awesome nature of birth have overcome me, and I once again am struck with the power of God to design a woman with the ability to achieve such a high magnitude of glory. Again my feelings remain very pure and raw and without words about the whole experience.
I know the reason my feelings seem so raw is that for the moments that I was actively pushing and then holding my new baby I was 100% real. With my first homebirth I had visions, and decisions about how it was supposed to be. While my experience was somewhat different than I had envisioned I was still in my head trying to control the experience. Just days before going into labor I read somewhere about letting go and allowing yourself to be exactly what you needed to be to give birth. I appreciated this as I had always felt I had failed myself by being so vocal (read screaming) the first homebirth. This time around I gave into that and I found a part of myself that was buried very deep, and it was wonderful to let that raw true self have a moment in time to be. I am glad that only Danny was with me, as anyone else may have hindered my ability to truly "go there."
After being so convince this whole pregnancy that this baby was a boy, after getting it into my arms I was no longer convinced. Danny said something and in referencing the baby said he, and I asked him if he was sure, he said no. I checked, and much to my non surprise my he is a she. I would have been happy either way, we haven't ever had any of our children in an effort to have one or the other, but to me this seemed significant after all my 99.9% conviction of having a boy I was 99.9% wrong and it felt so good! She had a pretty short umbilical cord, and she wanted to nurse almost immediately so after about 10 minutes we cut the cord and Danny had his first moments with his FIFTH daughter!! I started to shake, very badly right after having her, and while I knew that I was okay I needed Danny to reassure me, he said he was pretty sure I was in a bit of shock. Seeing how everything really did go so quickly it didn't surprise me. I was happy to get out of the pool, and latch my new little nursling on. After a short bout of that I was no longer comfortable because I was having contractions again. I had to "labor" to the placenta the same way I labored for the baby, standing up. At this point it's a good thing it didn't take to long (only about 20 minutes of standing) to deliver the placenta, I don't know how much longer my legs would've held up. I retrieved my baby from her daddy and he went to inspect and cut up the placenta. Everything was fine with the placenta, and much to many peoples fear I did swallow some of it raw. Don't worry some day there will be a whole post dedicated to that. In the meantime I have to laugh, as the first thing a friend said to me when she heard we were going to have our first homebirth was promise me you won't eat your placenta, in the moment I said of course not. How things can change!
Danny asked if I wanted to wake up the other kids, it was about 5:30, she was born at 4:11, I said no I am enjoying our time right now. I showered and the three of us got into bed. A few moments later Katey woke up and was so happy to see a pool in the middle of our bedroom. Danny tried to show her the baby, who was nursing, but she was more interested in the pool. That was until the baby started to cry. I will never forget the look of amazement, delight, and surprise in my little girls eyes! Over the course of the next hour or so our other children woke up and all delighted to see that the baby in moms tummy had finally made it's debut. They were surprised that she was a girl, Nathan kept saying, and it's a girl too. Annika was the only one who was really hoping for another brother. They were surprised they had slept through the whole thing, as was I my throat hurt from screaming, but didn't care that they had missed it.
I was impatient most of this pregnancy and labor and delivery. I am now learning a lesson in patience, it's a beautiful gratifying, humbling thing. Surrender, Trust, Love.
Here is a link to my first homebirth http://freeinfofriday.blogspot.com/search/label/Homebirth
I have been asked if my labor was short, and depending on how you look at it would change my answer. I started waking up almost every night for two weeks before I had Natalie and had about 2-4 hours of contractions. They would end in time for the sun to be coming up and the kids to be getting out of bed. It made for a very loooooong two weeks. I woke up early Sunday morning having contractions, but much stronger than the nights before, and started to think that maybe, just maybe this would be it. A few hours later they almost completely stopped and left me to spend the day having a contraction or two every hour, and this was more frustrating than I could handle. We went to my parents house for dinner that night, and while I knew we would make it home without anything major happening the contractions did seem to be building in intensity, but not quantity while we were out. When we got home Danny and Rudi put the kids to bed I showered, and asked Danny to give me a blessing. I am very grateful that he did.
There were two key words that he said in his blessing that shifted my energy and helped me focus on what was going to be happening. The words were surrender and trust. I felt the desire to sit in silence and be with myself and my thoughts, I was really glad this was all after the kids had gone to bed. The mantra surrender, trust, love came into my mind and seemed to calm my whole being down. I got into bed with this on my mind, and as the contractions would come this is what I would chant to myself as they swelled and went away. After about two hours of half sleep contractions I got up because it was no longer comfortable to be laying down. I wasn't convinced at all that I was in real labor, with the way the morning had gone and the two weeks prior I wasn't going to be convinced until my water broke and my baby was crowning! At some point in my sleepy contractions the mantra had changed itself from surrender, trust, love to down, trust, out. I think Danny knew something was up but he didn't say much other than, having contractions? I stood in our bedroom watching TV, and not timing the contractions exactly but aware enough to know that they were every 10 minutes and about 2 minutes long. Again, this was contrary to everything I had ever heard about labor, contractions are supposed to get closer together to be real labor. I completely lost track of time but did recognize that the contractions were increasing in intensity. I still didn't want to say I was in labor yet, I didn't want Danny to go to all the work of getting the birthing pool out only to wake up the next day and still be pregnant. At some point I must have hit the switch, I started my low ohhhhing with the contractions and Danny got out the pool. I almost asked him not to, partly because the only position I had been comfortable in for the past few hours had been standing. I tried to sit, squat, kneel etc. but standing was it. He got the pool filled half way up and we ran out of hot water. I was okay to stand in the pool, with each contraction I felt like I had to pee and this way I could. My contractions still remained about 10 minutes apart and were very intense when I had them. I was getting so very tired, and I didn't know how much longer my legs could hold me up, but I knew that there was no way I was going to be in any other position. I forced myself to not ask about the time, knowing I would trust my instincts a lot more if I wasn't asking a clock for answers. I did ask one time and was very surprised to hear that it was 3 am. I was finally able to back myself into a sitting position in the pool, and was starting to prepare myself for the fact that it could be a lot more hours before this ended.
During a contraction shortly after sitting down my water broke, I yelped! It didn't hurt but scared the living bejeebees out of me. Transition seemed to happen so quickly after this it was overwhelming. Almost immediately after my water broke I flipped over onto my hands and knees. I am certain that when my water broke my baby flipped herself around from being posterior to anterior and this enabled me to be more comfortable in my preferred birthing position. I also started to cry and remember thinking and saying I don't want to do this I can't do this. In my sane mind I knew this was a good sign that meant I was in transition and that it wouldn't be much longer. In my not so sane mind I was thinking about how I wanted to go and have a c-section and be done with it! These thoughts didn't have much time to stick around because I started to feel like I needed to push with each contraction, that was still about 10 minutes apart. I was still in a bit of disbelief that I was feeling the need to push already and tried to not push but as anyone who has ever felt the need to push a baby out can tell you, body wins on that one. I pushed with about 4 contractions and was feeling very defeated as I felt that I wasn't getting anywhere with the pushing. I had one last overwhelming moment of doubt and fear. As quickly as the moment started, I had gratitude that the contractions were so far apart. I was able to literally sit up, close myself off from birthing, take deep breathes and find myself, and why I was doing what I was doing the way I was doing it again. As soon as the next contraction started up I knew I was all in. I pushed and was rewarded with the feeling of her head descending. On the next contraction (that so kindly came much quicker than the others) I delivered her head. Here is where I yell my famous line of get it out, knowing in my heart that I don't want anyone to lay a hand on my baby, and luckily Danny knows this. I tried to push her out without a contraction, and was reminded that contractions actually do serve a purpose. I waited and on the next contraction pushed the rest of my baby out. I immediately turned myself around to sitting and scooped my prize out of the water. Then I cried, sobbed, and released a lot of emotion. They weren't tears of joy, or sadness, they were tears of pure raw emotion, there isn't a label that can be put on what I felt in that moment, other than purity.
There is nothing more wonderful than that first moment of having the life that was inside of you clinging to you but on the outside. It would take more than a small army to pry my newborn from my arms in those first moments. Danny and I were the only ones there and I wouldn't trade that for anything. The feelings that I had regarding this homebirth were very different than they were the last time. At first it seemed a little anti-climatic. I couldn't imagine giving birth any other way, so it was very natural. Also the empowering feelings that I had the last time were no where to be seen as well. I was grateful to be holding my baby, grateful that it was over, and felt very raw and pure in that moment. As the days have come since having Natalie the feelings of wonder and awe at the very awesome nature of birth have overcome me, and I once again am struck with the power of God to design a woman with the ability to achieve such a high magnitude of glory. Again my feelings remain very pure and raw and without words about the whole experience.
I know the reason my feelings seem so raw is that for the moments that I was actively pushing and then holding my new baby I was 100% real. With my first homebirth I had visions, and decisions about how it was supposed to be. While my experience was somewhat different than I had envisioned I was still in my head trying to control the experience. Just days before going into labor I read somewhere about letting go and allowing yourself to be exactly what you needed to be to give birth. I appreciated this as I had always felt I had failed myself by being so vocal (read screaming) the first homebirth. This time around I gave into that and I found a part of myself that was buried very deep, and it was wonderful to let that raw true self have a moment in time to be. I am glad that only Danny was with me, as anyone else may have hindered my ability to truly "go there."
After being so convince this whole pregnancy that this baby was a boy, after getting it into my arms I was no longer convinced. Danny said something and in referencing the baby said he, and I asked him if he was sure, he said no. I checked, and much to my non surprise my he is a she. I would have been happy either way, we haven't ever had any of our children in an effort to have one or the other, but to me this seemed significant after all my 99.9% conviction of having a boy I was 99.9% wrong and it felt so good! She had a pretty short umbilical cord, and she wanted to nurse almost immediately so after about 10 minutes we cut the cord and Danny had his first moments with his FIFTH daughter!! I started to shake, very badly right after having her, and while I knew that I was okay I needed Danny to reassure me, he said he was pretty sure I was in a bit of shock. Seeing how everything really did go so quickly it didn't surprise me. I was happy to get out of the pool, and latch my new little nursling on. After a short bout of that I was no longer comfortable because I was having contractions again. I had to "labor" to the placenta the same way I labored for the baby, standing up. At this point it's a good thing it didn't take to long (only about 20 minutes of standing) to deliver the placenta, I don't know how much longer my legs would've held up. I retrieved my baby from her daddy and he went to inspect and cut up the placenta. Everything was fine with the placenta, and much to many peoples fear I did swallow some of it raw. Don't worry some day there will be a whole post dedicated to that. In the meantime I have to laugh, as the first thing a friend said to me when she heard we were going to have our first homebirth was promise me you won't eat your placenta, in the moment I said of course not. How things can change!
Danny asked if I wanted to wake up the other kids, it was about 5:30, she was born at 4:11, I said no I am enjoying our time right now. I showered and the three of us got into bed. A few moments later Katey woke up and was so happy to see a pool in the middle of our bedroom. Danny tried to show her the baby, who was nursing, but she was more interested in the pool. That was until the baby started to cry. I will never forget the look of amazement, delight, and surprise in my little girls eyes! Over the course of the next hour or so our other children woke up and all delighted to see that the baby in moms tummy had finally made it's debut. They were surprised that she was a girl, Nathan kept saying, and it's a girl too. Annika was the only one who was really hoping for another brother. They were surprised they had slept through the whole thing, as was I my throat hurt from screaming, but didn't care that they had missed it.
I was impatient most of this pregnancy and labor and delivery. I am now learning a lesson in patience, it's a beautiful gratifying, humbling thing. Surrender, Trust, Love.
Here is a link to my first homebirth http://freeinfofriday.blogspot.com/search/label/Homebirth
Monday, February 1, 2010
Breastfeeding my personal history
Alison and Lisa were born 6 weeks early. The had the tiniest little mouths. I didn't seem them until 6 hours after they were born. I didn't try nursing them until 12 hours after they were born. I will never forget the first moment I latched my little baby on. My mom was standing in the room and my eyes must have lite up like Christmas morning. She said to me, it's an amazing feeling isn't it. It certainly was. I had to leave them in the hospital for 13 days. I really wanted to nurse them but the nursery staff wasn't supportive, at all. They were so concerned with them maintaining their body temp. that they would only let one of them come to my room every three hours. After I left the hospital I pumped, and came diligently the first morning to visit them. The nurses in the nursery quickly put a screen up for my "privacy" and left me alone with my 3 day old tiny baby who didn't know what was going on. I silently cried, feeling ashamed that I didn't know how to do this, assuming it was suppose to just happen. I desperately wanted help but didn't know how to ask and I think even if I had I wouldn't have gotten to far. I pumped for 6 weeks for them. I didn't know anything about how the body and breast work I thought I had to pump every three hours or I wouldn't have enough milk. After 6 weeks I felt like I had triplets 2 babies and 1 breast pump. I called it quits. It was formula from there on out for my babies. At 11 months they were switched to Pediasure, the pediatrician was so concerned with their size they were only 16 pounds. After some time on this we switched to whole milk. They never liked formula, Pediasure, or milk. The only time they ever liked cow's milk was to dip cookies into. They don't drink cow's milk now but that's an different post for a different day.
Annika I was dedicated to doing it this time. She was a good size, had a good latch, and things were going well. Two weeks in a got a cause of mastitis. I thought I was going to die. I pumped a little for a few days, she was still willing to latch on, but my heart wasn't in it. Formula until 13 months. Tried whole milk, CONSTIPATION!!! She couldn't tolerate the stuff. Switched her to soy until she was twoish. Nothing since. She doesn't drink cow's milk and if she eats ice cream she gets diarrhea, she does not tolerate the stuff.
Nathan I was dedicated to nursing Nathan until he was at least two. So much had changed in our lives between having Annika and him. I read this article and was committed whatever it took it was going to happen. I had Nathan via surprise c-section. My milk didn't come in for almost 5 days. They were telling me at the hospital that he needed to be supplemented. I said no way. The first 6 weeks were HELL. I had a crack the size of the grand canyon on my nipple, it felt like I was being kicked in the teeth when he latched on. After some serious time on the internet I determined he was latching on right. After correcting this, and using ALOT of Calendula cream to heal the crack we were on our way. I thought I was feeding him on demand. I wasn't he was on a schedule of every 3 hours. He was nursed 10 minutes on each side, until he got efficient enough that it took about 4 minutes on each side. After which I plunked the pacifier in his mouth. At 4 months old he went through a nursing strike. If I had formula and a bottle in the house he may have had some. I purposely didn't have it in the house so I wouldn't be tempted if it got hard. For two weeks I would have to rock him until he fell asleep and then switch his pacifier out for the boob. He would then nurse it took about an hour. If that didn't work I would have to pump until my milk let down and then get him latched on. I knew because of all the reading that I did this wasn't him being "done" it was called a nursing strike. When I started my period a month later I realized that the change in my hormones must have effected the taste and or my milk supply. For the next few months I always knew I was going to get my period because he would fuss a little for a few days when I would feed him. I didn't offer solids to him until he was 8 months old. He wasn't interested until he was about 11 months old. At which point he suddenly wanted 3 meals a day 2 snacks and continued nursing every 3 hours. At night he would sleep from 8-2 am nurse and sleep until 8. At 13 months old he slept through the night. At 15 months old he weaned, I was 4 months pregnant with Katelyn and it didn't feel good.
Katelyn, I had learned so much by the time I had her that nursing was enjoyable from the start. I finally knew what on demand meant, anytime she acted like she might want to nurse I offered. If it had been 5 minutes or 2 hours or anything in between. She took to it well, because of nursing on demand I didn't get engorged the way I had before, I understood proper latch so I didn't get cracks. I knew how to avoid mastitis. She didn't have a pacifier (my other 4 did) I was (am) the pacifier. There have been several times where I wish that she did, being the human pacifier is a lot of work BUT I know that we wouldn't be having such success and a good nursing relationship if she did. I co-sleep with her, and though she may get up a lot at night I don't know because I am able to switch sides, do the whole song and dance in my sleep. I am committed to making it to 20 months with her. Strange timing, but I have some places I want to go this fall. If not completely weaned I would like to know she can make it a day or two without. If I can do that then we will continue until one of us says enough. I would like to reduce the number of night nursing sessions because although I mostly sleep through it I know I am not getting all the sleep that I need. At 12 months I am going to start working towards this, I am hoping to gain at least a 6 hour stretch. She is going to be 1 in two weeks and in the past week started to eat solids. I have loved watching nature takes it's course with her, I offered solids earlier and beside pretzels and bread she hasn't wanted to eat anything else. I started to offer things at 8 months and occasionally she would eat a little of this or that but not much else. Now she loves avocados, bananas, rice, lo mien noodles, bread, cereal, and water in a sippy cup.
I have to just say it again read this article it certainly changed my life, and I think it is one of the greatest breastfeeding articles out there.
Annika I was dedicated to doing it this time. She was a good size, had a good latch, and things were going well. Two weeks in a got a cause of mastitis. I thought I was going to die. I pumped a little for a few days, she was still willing to latch on, but my heart wasn't in it. Formula until 13 months. Tried whole milk, CONSTIPATION!!! She couldn't tolerate the stuff. Switched her to soy until she was twoish. Nothing since. She doesn't drink cow's milk and if she eats ice cream she gets diarrhea, she does not tolerate the stuff.
Nathan I was dedicated to nursing Nathan until he was at least two. So much had changed in our lives between having Annika and him. I read this article and was committed whatever it took it was going to happen. I had Nathan via surprise c-section. My milk didn't come in for almost 5 days. They were telling me at the hospital that he needed to be supplemented. I said no way. The first 6 weeks were HELL. I had a crack the size of the grand canyon on my nipple, it felt like I was being kicked in the teeth when he latched on. After some serious time on the internet I determined he was latching on right. After correcting this, and using ALOT of Calendula cream to heal the crack we were on our way. I thought I was feeding him on demand. I wasn't he was on a schedule of every 3 hours. He was nursed 10 minutes on each side, until he got efficient enough that it took about 4 minutes on each side. After which I plunked the pacifier in his mouth. At 4 months old he went through a nursing strike. If I had formula and a bottle in the house he may have had some. I purposely didn't have it in the house so I wouldn't be tempted if it got hard. For two weeks I would have to rock him until he fell asleep and then switch his pacifier out for the boob. He would then nurse it took about an hour. If that didn't work I would have to pump until my milk let down and then get him latched on. I knew because of all the reading that I did this wasn't him being "done" it was called a nursing strike. When I started my period a month later I realized that the change in my hormones must have effected the taste and or my milk supply. For the next few months I always knew I was going to get my period because he would fuss a little for a few days when I would feed him. I didn't offer solids to him until he was 8 months old. He wasn't interested until he was about 11 months old. At which point he suddenly wanted 3 meals a day 2 snacks and continued nursing every 3 hours. At night he would sleep from 8-2 am nurse and sleep until 8. At 13 months old he slept through the night. At 15 months old he weaned, I was 4 months pregnant with Katelyn and it didn't feel good.
Katelyn, I had learned so much by the time I had her that nursing was enjoyable from the start. I finally knew what on demand meant, anytime she acted like she might want to nurse I offered. If it had been 5 minutes or 2 hours or anything in between. She took to it well, because of nursing on demand I didn't get engorged the way I had before, I understood proper latch so I didn't get cracks. I knew how to avoid mastitis. She didn't have a pacifier (my other 4 did) I was (am) the pacifier. There have been several times where I wish that she did, being the human pacifier is a lot of work BUT I know that we wouldn't be having such success and a good nursing relationship if she did. I co-sleep with her, and though she may get up a lot at night I don't know because I am able to switch sides, do the whole song and dance in my sleep. I am committed to making it to 20 months with her. Strange timing, but I have some places I want to go this fall. If not completely weaned I would like to know she can make it a day or two without. If I can do that then we will continue until one of us says enough. I would like to reduce the number of night nursing sessions because although I mostly sleep through it I know I am not getting all the sleep that I need. At 12 months I am going to start working towards this, I am hoping to gain at least a 6 hour stretch. She is going to be 1 in two weeks and in the past week started to eat solids. I have loved watching nature takes it's course with her, I offered solids earlier and beside pretzels and bread she hasn't wanted to eat anything else. I started to offer things at 8 months and occasionally she would eat a little of this or that but not much else. Now she loves avocados, bananas, rice, lo mien noodles, bread, cereal, and water in a sippy cup.
I have to just say it again read this article it certainly changed my life, and I think it is one of the greatest breastfeeding articles out there.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Circumcision
I have been busy and the things I have wanted to FIF about just keeps on growing so without further ado todays topic circumcision.
Here's the background: Just about 8 years ago I found out I was pregnant. I went to the OBGYN, while I was being weighed and blood pressure taken I was asked a series of questions. Questions that I now wonder why they were asking me at 11 weeks pregnant, but asked non the less. Questions one, do you want and epidural when you are in labor, answer; yes. Question two, if it is a boy do you want to circumsize him, answer a little more hesitantly, yes. Reason for the hesitation I hadn't discussed this with Danny, and I actually didn't know if religiously I needed to. All the little boys I had ever babysat where circumsized, Danny was, all my brothers were, but no one from church had ever laid out doctrine to me stating that we needed to do this. At the time I stuck with my yes, went home and asked Danny and he looked at me like duh, of course we will. Fast forward 9 weeks, we found out we were having twin girls and the subject wasn't revisited. A few years later I was pregnant again, with a girl, the answer was the same at the OB life goes on.
Then we moved to GA, were a lot changed for us, I got pregnant we decided not to find out what we were having. BUT this time I wanted to know why we should circumsize, if in fact we were supposed to, and I wanted to make sure I was doing what I felt right in my heart. So I researched, and read, and talked with people, and asked others why they did what they did. We had a boy 2 years ago, and he is intact.
Generally at this point in my post I copy and paste my relevant article, but because the article I have selected uses correct terminology, I would like to avoid crazy google hits to my blog, please click the link read the article and come back and finish my post :) CLICK HERE FOR ARTICLE
My argument for circumsision: I have none.
My argument against circumsision: The article referenced above states that it is more painful and more difficult to recover from if done as an adult. I would argue that if a grown man feels pain when cut, a small fresh infant is going to feel the exact same pain when cut, he just can't vocalize it as well. If there is no commandment from God to circumsize than there is no reason to remove something on a boys body, I don't think the foreskin was placed there by "accident". Also to answer this I would like to share what the last two years have been like with an intact boy. It has been just the same as a parents experience with a circumsized boy. Wait a few differences I have noticed, not once did Nathan pee on me during a diaper change. And I didn't have to care for a fresh wound on my newborn. The foreskin doesn't retract until puberty so hygene has been a non issue, one is not cleaner than the other. Nathan hasn't asked, and I don't think he will ask why his dad and him don't look the same. On a side note, Danny's dad being born in Germany, is intact this never caused concern for Danny.
These are the two most common arguments I have heard as to why people have chosen to circ their son. It is my job to teach my son hygene, and good self esteem. If someone were teasing him for being intact I would want to know what's up with the kid that is not only checking my sons "stuff" out but making this fact known by teasing him about it.
This is a question of truth versus tradition. Do you do it cause your parents did, or because of the truth and conviction you feel for the matter.
Link for LDS parents who want to know:ASK GRAMPS
MORONI 8:8
Here's the background: Just about 8 years ago I found out I was pregnant. I went to the OBGYN, while I was being weighed and blood pressure taken I was asked a series of questions. Questions that I now wonder why they were asking me at 11 weeks pregnant, but asked non the less. Questions one, do you want and epidural when you are in labor, answer; yes. Question two, if it is a boy do you want to circumsize him, answer a little more hesitantly, yes. Reason for the hesitation I hadn't discussed this with Danny, and I actually didn't know if religiously I needed to. All the little boys I had ever babysat where circumsized, Danny was, all my brothers were, but no one from church had ever laid out doctrine to me stating that we needed to do this. At the time I stuck with my yes, went home and asked Danny and he looked at me like duh, of course we will. Fast forward 9 weeks, we found out we were having twin girls and the subject wasn't revisited. A few years later I was pregnant again, with a girl, the answer was the same at the OB life goes on.
Then we moved to GA, were a lot changed for us, I got pregnant we decided not to find out what we were having. BUT this time I wanted to know why we should circumsize, if in fact we were supposed to, and I wanted to make sure I was doing what I felt right in my heart. So I researched, and read, and talked with people, and asked others why they did what they did. We had a boy 2 years ago, and he is intact.
Generally at this point in my post I copy and paste my relevant article, but because the article I have selected uses correct terminology, I would like to avoid crazy google hits to my blog, please click the link read the article and come back and finish my post :) CLICK HERE FOR ARTICLE
My argument for circumsision: I have none.
My argument against circumsision: The article referenced above states that it is more painful and more difficult to recover from if done as an adult. I would argue that if a grown man feels pain when cut, a small fresh infant is going to feel the exact same pain when cut, he just can't vocalize it as well. If there is no commandment from God to circumsize than there is no reason to remove something on a boys body, I don't think the foreskin was placed there by "accident". Also to answer this I would like to share what the last two years have been like with an intact boy. It has been just the same as a parents experience with a circumsized boy. Wait a few differences I have noticed, not once did Nathan pee on me during a diaper change. And I didn't have to care for a fresh wound on my newborn. The foreskin doesn't retract until puberty so hygene has been a non issue, one is not cleaner than the other. Nathan hasn't asked, and I don't think he will ask why his dad and him don't look the same. On a side note, Danny's dad being born in Germany, is intact this never caused concern for Danny.
These are the two most common arguments I have heard as to why people have chosen to circ their son. It is my job to teach my son hygene, and good self esteem. If someone were teasing him for being intact I would want to know what's up with the kid that is not only checking my sons "stuff" out but making this fact known by teasing him about it.
This is a question of truth versus tradition. Do you do it cause your parents did, or because of the truth and conviction you feel for the matter.
Link for LDS parents who want to know:ASK GRAMPS
MORONI 8:8
Thursday, March 19, 2009
My Unassisted Homebirth
This is the whole story, with all the details. On my personal blog I did a little more editing as so much of this was a surprise to so many. If you find youself with questions or a desire for more information, let me know I am happy to answer any and all questions!
My UCI had a c-section for my third pregnancy and wasn’t happy about it, my baby boy had been breech for sometime but my midwife never “noticed” and claimed that he must have flipped right before I went into labor. My instincts had told me for some time that something was off, but because I was under the care of a professional I didn’t question what my intuition was telling me. When I found out I was pregnant again I new that I wanted something different from last time, and at first I thought that would be a natural childbirth in the hospital with the same midwife. I had done more research, and learned more about pregnancy and birth since my third pregnancy and had some definite plans about what I wanted for this pregnancy and delivery. I waited until I was 13 weeks to go to my first prenatal appointment as I knew that it wasn’t necessary to go before than. I told my midwife that I didn’t want blood work done, but accepted that as a formality of going with her. I lay down on the exam table and my midwife exclaimed how big I looked, and was sure that it might be twins. Had she had her ultrasound equipment in the room she would have proceeded to try to do an ultrasound, we would have battled as I didn’t want any ultrasounds this pregnancy. Fortunately she didn’t have the equipment, but proceeded to tell me that I would need an ultrasound at 16 weeks I told her at this point that I didn’t want any ultrasounds, and she told me that I HAD to have one at 20 weeks. I was starting to feel helpless at this point, I was intimidated, and although I knew what I wanted I was having a hard time standing up for myself. Danny was a little taken aback, as he knew what I wanted as well, and was surprised that I wasn’t standing up for myself. After the visit on the car ride home I asked Danny what he thought, “It was awful, I hated it.” I wasn’t expecting that, but was relieved to know that I wasn’t the only one who was not happy with the visit. He then said ‘let’s do it at home”, I said “okay, should I call the homebirth midwife I had read about?” He said “no let’s just do it ourselves.” I agreed and said “okay”, his surprised reply was “It’s not illegal?” I said “nope.” The decision was made, and I never looked back. I knew that I didn’t need any “traditional prenatal care.” I know that I am ultimately responsible for my health and wellbeing and while pregnant I am guardian over my baby as well. I didn’t need a midwife or OBGYN telling me that I was okay, or that something was wrong. I would know well before them if something was off, and at that point I would get the type of care that I needed. I was in charge of my nutrition, exercise, and thoughts through my pregnancy. This was my fourth pregnancy, and the best of them all. I was more in tune with my body, more aware of my body, and more relaxed. It was a good day when I realized that this goodness came from me knowing these things myself. In the past I remember anxiously waiting for that monthly doctors appointment to be told that things were okay. I didn’t have to wait this time, I knew daily that I was okay. Upon finding out our plans to UC my mother asked point blank “What makes you think you know more than a midwife or OB about pregnancy and childbirth?” I replied, “Nothing, I don’t think I know more than them about it, HOWEVER, I do know more about my own body during pregnancy and that is what matters.” After the decision to UC I become a researcher of all things natural and childbirth. This is in my nature, and became a passion for several months early on. After feeling like I had acquired an adequate amount of knowledge I made myself stop looking. I knew that in order for this to go the best for me I had to rely on my faith in my Heavenly Father, myself, and my husband. Again this added to the enjoyment of the pregnancy. I learned to trust more than I had before, I learned to pray and listen and to quietly meditate.I loved getting all of the birthing supplies together, and am glad I took my time doing it. What started out as a really long list of things turned in to just a few. I knew that I wanted a water birth and so I got a birthing pool. I knew that I would want some of the blue “chux” pads to sit on or lay on. I started out with a list of several herbal remedies that was narrowed down to two, shepards purse and afterease tincture. I haven’t used either. A friend from church offered a homebirthing kit she had purchased and never used from there we got the umbilical cord clamps. To cut the cord I planned on using my hair scissors. To fill the pool I was going to buy a hose to hook to the kitchen sink but my Herculean husband was willing to carry 5 gallon buckets from the bathroom to the pool. We had a closet full of towels, and was reassured by other UCers that hydrogen peroxide would take any blood out (it does.) I got my receiving blankets ready for the baby, a hat, diaper, and some onsies, knowing that a baby really only needs something to help keep it warm, and a something to suck (breast) after birth. Once getting this all together the game was waiting. I never told anyone a specific due date, as babies come “due” when they are ready. I was aware of about where things were at, and going off of previous pregnancies I thought I would go into labor. As that day came and went, and then that week past on I started to feel the effects of being pregnant. My body got larger, my movements slower, the desire for donuts stronger, and the fatigue of the last 9 months started to catch up to me. I did stay focused on my belief that this baby would come when it was good and ready, I didn’t get to be the boss this time, I got to trust. On February 16 I had the distinct feeling in the evening that this baby would be arriving in the next 24 hours. Being an optimist I thought for sure that a few hours after that I would be in labor. I woke up the next morning pregnant but still had the “feeling”. I spent the day doing things as if I were going into labor soon. I let things slide with the kids, I skipped my Tuesday swim, I had Doritos and donuts for lunch, and when we cleaned up for the night I went into overdrive. I told Danny that he needed to have his phone with him, and needed to check in with me. At about 7:30 I started having contractions, nothing regular, or to intense, but enough to know that things were starting to move. I knew this was the case when I didn’t tell anyone what was going on. Danny got home from school and we watched American Idol and the Biggest Loser. We got into bed about 11:30 and I was still having contractions about 7 minutes apart, but again not enough for me to say anything to anyone. Shortly after getting into bed we were joined by Annika, and Nathan, just as we were all settled in my water broke! This is the second time this has happened, and I love it! I told Danny and for a minute he just lay there. I told him I needed a towel so I could get up, and avoid getting to much fluid on the bed. We got up, put Annika into her bed and starting to get things together. This was very easy, it consisted of moving a small box of supplies from our room to the “birthing arena” as my husband called it. My first two labors were 4 hours start to finish so I thought this would be the same. After a few hours Danny started to fill up the pool and I got in. I will never labor anywhere else again! It was so nice to be in the warm water, and while I think this contributed to my labor lasting a little longer it was okay with me. Every hour I would get up and go to the bathroom and knew that if I wanted things to get moving I would probably have to spend some time out of the pool. At one point I thought I needed to know what was going on so I tried to “check” myself. I didn’t know what I was looking for and was only able to confirm that the baby was in fact head down. After doing this a few times I realized it was futile and needed to stop. At this time I started to feel like I was going to be in labor forever and that things weren’t progressing. Danny found a homeopathic remedy for me (arnica) and while I denied that I needed it he gave it to me, and I am glad that he did. Within a few minutes of taking the arnica I had a new found resolve and trust in my body. I knew that I wouldn’t be in labor forever, but if it lasted 24 hours then that is what needed to happen. I knew I needed to get out of the water, this was at 8 am. I told myself that I would have this baby at 10 am. The time went by so quickly, I think my contractions got a little closer together, and their intensity increased. I went from silent breathing to low oooos. At 10 am I wasn’t ready to push but I was ready to get back into the water, I think in my subconscious mind I needed my other children away for the actual delivery to happen. I was so grateful that our friend Rudi was here, and that is was Wednesday. Annika has a tumbling class at the YMCA on Wednesday and so Rudi and the four kids gathered up and left at about 10:30. Once they were gone things started to move, I was concerned about pushing to soon and wanted to make sure that it was my body telling me to push and not my desire to be done. After trying to hold back through one contraction I knew that it was time. Danny knew this as well as the deep ooooos started to end in what he called opera singing. The pushing sensation all but overcame my body and I knew it was time. I pushed and thought I wasn’t getting anywhere until I felt the aptly named “ring of fire”. Since I had never felt this before it scared me a little and I thought for sure I was ripping in half. Luckily I knew that this was the time to slow it down and let things stretch. After a second push and feeling things move, everything seemed to stop. Time stood still for just a moment, every pain from the contraction and stretching was gone, it was as if I could get up and walk away from the whole thing. Then the next contraction hit and my babies head was born. I was on my hands and knees in the pool and was so happy to have Danny behind me to reassure me that he could see our baby’s eyes and nose and forehead, it was exactly what I needed to get me through the next big push. He checked to make sure there was no cord around the neck, but other than that he kept his hands off until after our baby was delivered. Once out he gently guided the baby from behind me, and I scooped her up and felt euphoria like I never had before. I couldn’t believe that I had done it, the feeling was so overwhelming and the beauty of the moment is one that can’t be put into words. I was leaned up against the side of the pool clutching my baby and was so grateful to know that I didn’t have to let her go until I was good and ready. Danny embraced me from behind, and we shared a moment of pure joy. About a minute after this our friend who was going to video the birth for us walked in the door. He was a bit shocked at the scene he saw as I was the first thing you saw from the front door but he came in and quickly took over the camera duties. After a little bit Danny finally asked me if I was going to look and see what the baby was, it was a girl. I knew all along that would be the case, had she been a boy I probably would have dropped him in the pool! About 20 minutes after she was born I was ready to get out of the pool, and ready to get things moving with the placenta, I didn’t feel like I could nurse her very well in the pool, we checked to see if the cord had stopped pulsing, it had so we cut the cord and we got out of the pool. We moved over to the couch and I put her to my breast, she wasn’t interested in nursing but the close contact got the contractions moving to get the placenta out. About 45 minutes after her birth I felt like I should stand a little to get gravity on our side, I hadn’t rushed anything with the delivery of the baby, but I was more than a little anxious to deliver the placenta. I stood a little and pushed and gently pulled on the cord just to see if anything was moving. The first time I tried this nothing happened so I left it alone a few minutes later I tried again and felt the cord move so I pushed a little harder and delivered the placenta. I had never felt this part of the process before, and in the moment I felt more relief from this than delivering the baby. My other four children arrived home shortly after that and things got a little whirlwind after that. They were so excited to see their baby sister, Annika was so happy that she could in fact call the baby rainbow girl. In a flurry of activity I held the baby and shared her with the other kids, Danny inspected and cut up the placenta and I finally remembered how hungry I was. Through the entire labor I remember how hungry I was but I refused to eat because of the nausea I felt every time I thought about eating. After a piece of toast and some vitamin water I started to feel very light headed. I hadn’t torn at all when I delivered the baby, and my bleeding was minimal after delivering the placenta. Just to make sure things were okay Danny took my blood pressure and that was fine, I think it was just a combination of exhaustion, low blood sugar, and a drop from the adrenaline rush. Because I knew that it would help I asked for a piece of placenta, Danny dropped it on my tongue and I swallowed it down, and surprised myself when I asked for another piece. Arrangements were quickly made for the girls to go spend the afternoon with Chris and Rudi, and Nathan was put down for a nap. At this point we weighed and measured and decided on the name. I liked the middle name Joy or Noel, but Danny wasn’t sold, after a few minutes he said what about Rose. At first I thought Rose? But after saying her full name in my head a few times I knew that was it. Her name is Katelyn Rose Hansen, she weighed 7 pounds 4 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. A little side note that makes the name even more special is Danny’s older brother, who died several years ago, when he and his girlfriend where expecting had chosen the name Katelyn spelled the exact same way me and Danny decided upon, we didn’t know this until after Danny had talked to his mom and told her the name. I knew the name was special, because it means pure, and that is what I felt about this whole experience. I also know that the angels where there to help guide and protect me through the experience. And I know that Katelyn knew her uncle Michael before she joined us. My recovery has been the best I have had, the joy and gratitude I feel in my heart has increased ten fold. I know that it was through my previous labors and deliveries I was led to UC, and I wouldn’t change a single one of them. They are all special to me, I learned and grew from each of them and they all had an impact on my decision to UC. The greatest difference to me with my UC was the amount it increased my spirituality. My faith is deeper and stronger, my love for my husband has increased and my gratitude and testimony of eternal families has only strengthened. The joy I feel when I look at all five of my children causes me to rejoice. I know that each and every one of them is a gift from God. I know that my Heavenly Father loves me, and watches over me. I know that when I pray I will receive an answer and that he is guiding me and helping me with the Holy Ghost, and the people that have been put into my life. Although I felt pain like I had never felt before during the height of my delivery, I have since experienced joy like I have never felt before. Because of the deeper ability to feel joy and love I wouldn’t change a single contraction, or discomfort that I experienced during my pregnancy, labor, or delivery. We are only able to feel joy to the extent that we have felt pain, making the entire journey, the physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional journey worth every second.
My UCI had a c-section for my third pregnancy and wasn’t happy about it, my baby boy had been breech for sometime but my midwife never “noticed” and claimed that he must have flipped right before I went into labor. My instincts had told me for some time that something was off, but because I was under the care of a professional I didn’t question what my intuition was telling me. When I found out I was pregnant again I new that I wanted something different from last time, and at first I thought that would be a natural childbirth in the hospital with the same midwife. I had done more research, and learned more about pregnancy and birth since my third pregnancy and had some definite plans about what I wanted for this pregnancy and delivery. I waited until I was 13 weeks to go to my first prenatal appointment as I knew that it wasn’t necessary to go before than. I told my midwife that I didn’t want blood work done, but accepted that as a formality of going with her. I lay down on the exam table and my midwife exclaimed how big I looked, and was sure that it might be twins. Had she had her ultrasound equipment in the room she would have proceeded to try to do an ultrasound, we would have battled as I didn’t want any ultrasounds this pregnancy. Fortunately she didn’t have the equipment, but proceeded to tell me that I would need an ultrasound at 16 weeks I told her at this point that I didn’t want any ultrasounds, and she told me that I HAD to have one at 20 weeks. I was starting to feel helpless at this point, I was intimidated, and although I knew what I wanted I was having a hard time standing up for myself. Danny was a little taken aback, as he knew what I wanted as well, and was surprised that I wasn’t standing up for myself. After the visit on the car ride home I asked Danny what he thought, “It was awful, I hated it.” I wasn’t expecting that, but was relieved to know that I wasn’t the only one who was not happy with the visit. He then said ‘let’s do it at home”, I said “okay, should I call the homebirth midwife I had read about?” He said “no let’s just do it ourselves.” I agreed and said “okay”, his surprised reply was “It’s not illegal?” I said “nope.” The decision was made, and I never looked back. I knew that I didn’t need any “traditional prenatal care.” I know that I am ultimately responsible for my health and wellbeing and while pregnant I am guardian over my baby as well. I didn’t need a midwife or OBGYN telling me that I was okay, or that something was wrong. I would know well before them if something was off, and at that point I would get the type of care that I needed. I was in charge of my nutrition, exercise, and thoughts through my pregnancy. This was my fourth pregnancy, and the best of them all. I was more in tune with my body, more aware of my body, and more relaxed. It was a good day when I realized that this goodness came from me knowing these things myself. In the past I remember anxiously waiting for that monthly doctors appointment to be told that things were okay. I didn’t have to wait this time, I knew daily that I was okay. Upon finding out our plans to UC my mother asked point blank “What makes you think you know more than a midwife or OB about pregnancy and childbirth?” I replied, “Nothing, I don’t think I know more than them about it, HOWEVER, I do know more about my own body during pregnancy and that is what matters.” After the decision to UC I become a researcher of all things natural and childbirth. This is in my nature, and became a passion for several months early on. After feeling like I had acquired an adequate amount of knowledge I made myself stop looking. I knew that in order for this to go the best for me I had to rely on my faith in my Heavenly Father, myself, and my husband. Again this added to the enjoyment of the pregnancy. I learned to trust more than I had before, I learned to pray and listen and to quietly meditate.I loved getting all of the birthing supplies together, and am glad I took my time doing it. What started out as a really long list of things turned in to just a few. I knew that I wanted a water birth and so I got a birthing pool. I knew that I would want some of the blue “chux” pads to sit on or lay on. I started out with a list of several herbal remedies that was narrowed down to two, shepards purse and afterease tincture. I haven’t used either. A friend from church offered a homebirthing kit she had purchased and never used from there we got the umbilical cord clamps. To cut the cord I planned on using my hair scissors. To fill the pool I was going to buy a hose to hook to the kitchen sink but my Herculean husband was willing to carry 5 gallon buckets from the bathroom to the pool. We had a closet full of towels, and was reassured by other UCers that hydrogen peroxide would take any blood out (it does.) I got my receiving blankets ready for the baby, a hat, diaper, and some onsies, knowing that a baby really only needs something to help keep it warm, and a something to suck (breast) after birth. Once getting this all together the game was waiting. I never told anyone a specific due date, as babies come “due” when they are ready. I was aware of about where things were at, and going off of previous pregnancies I thought I would go into labor. As that day came and went, and then that week past on I started to feel the effects of being pregnant. My body got larger, my movements slower, the desire for donuts stronger, and the fatigue of the last 9 months started to catch up to me. I did stay focused on my belief that this baby would come when it was good and ready, I didn’t get to be the boss this time, I got to trust. On February 16 I had the distinct feeling in the evening that this baby would be arriving in the next 24 hours. Being an optimist I thought for sure that a few hours after that I would be in labor. I woke up the next morning pregnant but still had the “feeling”. I spent the day doing things as if I were going into labor soon. I let things slide with the kids, I skipped my Tuesday swim, I had Doritos and donuts for lunch, and when we cleaned up for the night I went into overdrive. I told Danny that he needed to have his phone with him, and needed to check in with me. At about 7:30 I started having contractions, nothing regular, or to intense, but enough to know that things were starting to move. I knew this was the case when I didn’t tell anyone what was going on. Danny got home from school and we watched American Idol and the Biggest Loser. We got into bed about 11:30 and I was still having contractions about 7 minutes apart, but again not enough for me to say anything to anyone. Shortly after getting into bed we were joined by Annika, and Nathan, just as we were all settled in my water broke! This is the second time this has happened, and I love it! I told Danny and for a minute he just lay there. I told him I needed a towel so I could get up, and avoid getting to much fluid on the bed. We got up, put Annika into her bed and starting to get things together. This was very easy, it consisted of moving a small box of supplies from our room to the “birthing arena” as my husband called it. My first two labors were 4 hours start to finish so I thought this would be the same. After a few hours Danny started to fill up the pool and I got in. I will never labor anywhere else again! It was so nice to be in the warm water, and while I think this contributed to my labor lasting a little longer it was okay with me. Every hour I would get up and go to the bathroom and knew that if I wanted things to get moving I would probably have to spend some time out of the pool. At one point I thought I needed to know what was going on so I tried to “check” myself. I didn’t know what I was looking for and was only able to confirm that the baby was in fact head down. After doing this a few times I realized it was futile and needed to stop. At this time I started to feel like I was going to be in labor forever and that things weren’t progressing. Danny found a homeopathic remedy for me (arnica) and while I denied that I needed it he gave it to me, and I am glad that he did. Within a few minutes of taking the arnica I had a new found resolve and trust in my body. I knew that I wouldn’t be in labor forever, but if it lasted 24 hours then that is what needed to happen. I knew I needed to get out of the water, this was at 8 am. I told myself that I would have this baby at 10 am. The time went by so quickly, I think my contractions got a little closer together, and their intensity increased. I went from silent breathing to low oooos. At 10 am I wasn’t ready to push but I was ready to get back into the water, I think in my subconscious mind I needed my other children away for the actual delivery to happen. I was so grateful that our friend Rudi was here, and that is was Wednesday. Annika has a tumbling class at the YMCA on Wednesday and so Rudi and the four kids gathered up and left at about 10:30. Once they were gone things started to move, I was concerned about pushing to soon and wanted to make sure that it was my body telling me to push and not my desire to be done. After trying to hold back through one contraction I knew that it was time. Danny knew this as well as the deep ooooos started to end in what he called opera singing. The pushing sensation all but overcame my body and I knew it was time. I pushed and thought I wasn’t getting anywhere until I felt the aptly named “ring of fire”. Since I had never felt this before it scared me a little and I thought for sure I was ripping in half. Luckily I knew that this was the time to slow it down and let things stretch. After a second push and feeling things move, everything seemed to stop. Time stood still for just a moment, every pain from the contraction and stretching was gone, it was as if I could get up and walk away from the whole thing. Then the next contraction hit and my babies head was born. I was on my hands and knees in the pool and was so happy to have Danny behind me to reassure me that he could see our baby’s eyes and nose and forehead, it was exactly what I needed to get me through the next big push. He checked to make sure there was no cord around the neck, but other than that he kept his hands off until after our baby was delivered. Once out he gently guided the baby from behind me, and I scooped her up and felt euphoria like I never had before. I couldn’t believe that I had done it, the feeling was so overwhelming and the beauty of the moment is one that can’t be put into words. I was leaned up against the side of the pool clutching my baby and was so grateful to know that I didn’t have to let her go until I was good and ready. Danny embraced me from behind, and we shared a moment of pure joy. About a minute after this our friend who was going to video the birth for us walked in the door. He was a bit shocked at the scene he saw as I was the first thing you saw from the front door but he came in and quickly took over the camera duties. After a little bit Danny finally asked me if I was going to look and see what the baby was, it was a girl. I knew all along that would be the case, had she been a boy I probably would have dropped him in the pool! About 20 minutes after she was born I was ready to get out of the pool, and ready to get things moving with the placenta, I didn’t feel like I could nurse her very well in the pool, we checked to see if the cord had stopped pulsing, it had so we cut the cord and we got out of the pool. We moved over to the couch and I put her to my breast, she wasn’t interested in nursing but the close contact got the contractions moving to get the placenta out. About 45 minutes after her birth I felt like I should stand a little to get gravity on our side, I hadn’t rushed anything with the delivery of the baby, but I was more than a little anxious to deliver the placenta. I stood a little and pushed and gently pulled on the cord just to see if anything was moving. The first time I tried this nothing happened so I left it alone a few minutes later I tried again and felt the cord move so I pushed a little harder and delivered the placenta. I had never felt this part of the process before, and in the moment I felt more relief from this than delivering the baby. My other four children arrived home shortly after that and things got a little whirlwind after that. They were so excited to see their baby sister, Annika was so happy that she could in fact call the baby rainbow girl. In a flurry of activity I held the baby and shared her with the other kids, Danny inspected and cut up the placenta and I finally remembered how hungry I was. Through the entire labor I remember how hungry I was but I refused to eat because of the nausea I felt every time I thought about eating. After a piece of toast and some vitamin water I started to feel very light headed. I hadn’t torn at all when I delivered the baby, and my bleeding was minimal after delivering the placenta. Just to make sure things were okay Danny took my blood pressure and that was fine, I think it was just a combination of exhaustion, low blood sugar, and a drop from the adrenaline rush. Because I knew that it would help I asked for a piece of placenta, Danny dropped it on my tongue and I swallowed it down, and surprised myself when I asked for another piece. Arrangements were quickly made for the girls to go spend the afternoon with Chris and Rudi, and Nathan was put down for a nap. At this point we weighed and measured and decided on the name. I liked the middle name Joy or Noel, but Danny wasn’t sold, after a few minutes he said what about Rose. At first I thought Rose? But after saying her full name in my head a few times I knew that was it. Her name is Katelyn Rose Hansen, she weighed 7 pounds 4 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. A little side note that makes the name even more special is Danny’s older brother, who died several years ago, when he and his girlfriend where expecting had chosen the name Katelyn spelled the exact same way me and Danny decided upon, we didn’t know this until after Danny had talked to his mom and told her the name. I knew the name was special, because it means pure, and that is what I felt about this whole experience. I also know that the angels where there to help guide and protect me through the experience. And I know that Katelyn knew her uncle Michael before she joined us. My recovery has been the best I have had, the joy and gratitude I feel in my heart has increased ten fold. I know that it was through my previous labors and deliveries I was led to UC, and I wouldn’t change a single one of them. They are all special to me, I learned and grew from each of them and they all had an impact on my decision to UC. The greatest difference to me with my UC was the amount it increased my spirituality. My faith is deeper and stronger, my love for my husband has increased and my gratitude and testimony of eternal families has only strengthened. The joy I feel when I look at all five of my children causes me to rejoice. I know that each and every one of them is a gift from God. I know that my Heavenly Father loves me, and watches over me. I know that when I pray I will receive an answer and that he is guiding me and helping me with the Holy Ghost, and the people that have been put into my life. Although I felt pain like I had never felt before during the height of my delivery, I have since experienced joy like I have never felt before. Because of the deeper ability to feel joy and love I wouldn’t change a single contraction, or discomfort that I experienced during my pregnancy, labor, or delivery. We are only able to feel joy to the extent that we have felt pain, making the entire journey, the physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional journey worth every second.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Holistic Approach to Ear Infections
It is amazing to me that some children suffer bout after bout of ear "infection". With all of my children this hasn't been the case, with Nathan at 18 months old he can put a check in the NO column after ear infection. I think to many of us (I was one of them so I can say this without being judgemental) rush to the doctor at the first sign of tugging at the ear, fever and possible ear problem, or one that I wasn't a victim of, having the doctor tell you your perfectly happy child has an infection because at a well child visit the ears were examined and appeared to be red. I am not saying everyone should adopt my philosophy, however get educated so the next time your doctor says it's an infection and wants to prescribe antibiotics you can as the pertinent questions; 1. How do you know it is bacterial (the only type antibiotics will work on) vs. viral. 2. Is it just red, is there fluid? 3. And the ringer questions: According to the AAP it is suggested the antibiotics NOT be used until 48 hours after the intial diagnosis, what are your feelings on this?
This isn't about making everyone holistic it is encouraging everyone to become the boss, advocate, and decision maker in your child's health. Without knowing about ear infections it would be hard to double check what the doctor is telling your. The following article is written by an M.D.
Holistic Approach to Ear Infections
by Lawrence P. Palvesky, M.D., F.A.A.P., A.B.H.M.Jan-Feb 2003 It is 3am and your child wakes up complaining of ear pain. What can you do? Ear pain is one of the most common complaints in the pediatric population. Parents exchange frequent stories about the number of times their child has taken a banana or cherry flavored antibiotic for one or more ear infections. It is the rare parent who sits by, not wanting to add to the anxiety of other parents, with the knowledge that their child has never taken an antibiotic for an ear ache. What's more, the child has never had a serious problem resulting from not using antibiotics.When I went through my medical school and residency training, we were warned about the serious complications of allowing an ear infection to progress without antibiotic treatment-mastoiditis, an inflammation and infection of the bony area behind the ear at the base of the skull, and meningitis, an inflammation and infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord which could lead to permanent brain damage, not to mention, the possibility of permanent hearing loss. Over the last 13 years, evidence from the European medical literature and observation of the medical practice of some of our own pioneering primary care providers and ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) physicians, has taught us that the majority of cases of ear pain can and will resolve on their own. Without antibiotics. Without serious outcomes. With good clinical follow-up. Yet, many children receive antibiotics, and sometimes multiple antibiotics, for ear aches. And their ear aches continue to recur. Are Ear Aches Really Ear Infections? Inflammation occurs in the body as characterized by the following five observations--redness, swelling, heat, pain and loss of function. When a young child has an ear ache, the ear drum is usually found to be red (redness) with clear fluid or mucus buildup in the middle ear (swelling) causing pain, often accompanied by fever (heat) and occasionally accompanied by an acute loss of hearing; clearly a description of inflammation. Even if there were an infection, most studies confirm that viruses are the main organisms responsible for causing the development of these symptoms, not bacteria. Neither a viral infection, nor an inflammation in the ears responds to treatment with antibiotics. Only bacteria respond to antibiotic treatment. Therefore, in the majority of cases, antibiotics do not help. And, in many cases, antibiotics may cause more harm than good when they are used inappropriately.A child is found on exam to have a red ear and no complaint of ear pain even though a fever is present. A pre-verbal infant or toddler with a red ear drum or fluid behind the ear appears well and is smiling. Another child presents with ear fluid and is no longer in pain. Most often these children are not suffering from ear infections and do not warrant antibiotic treatment. By definition, these children simply have inflamed ears which often respond better to other types of treatment. Children who have infections, on the other hand, also present with these five signs of inflammation but, for the most part, do not look clinically well and often have an illness that is more serious than a simple ear infection. A child in pain who appears not to look well should be re-evaluated after the pain is relieved. Early in my pediatric practice, I often gave a child a ten day course of an antibiotic for what I believed was a classic ear infection using the criteria I described for inflammation. More often than not, 2-3 days after completing the antibiotic, the child returned with the same symptoms. I would subsequently write another antibiotic prescription. Frequently, the same pattern would recur. Conventional training taught me that the child had an infection caused by a bacterium that was resistant to the antibiotic. Therefore, a different and stronger antibiotic was needed. Eventually it occurred to me that perhaps the child never needed the antibiotic in the first place. Perhaps there was a different process going on that required a different set of treatments and understanding. Why do infants & children get ear aches? How do the ears become inflamed?Conventional pediatric practice focuses on prescribing treatment interventions once a child's symptoms have already appeared. Non-conventional approaches concentrate on preventing the development of inflammation and infection and attempt to evaluate the causes that contribute to their presentation. In addition, non-conventional approaches use remedies and interventions that facilitate the body's natural healing abilities in a nourishing way in an attempt to avoid suppressing the inherent healing mechanisms that are present in the body. Often, elimination of the factors that are known to contribute to the development of the underlying symptoms is sufficient to treat the problem(s) without introducing additional remedies. This is especially true when it comes to ear pain and ear inflammation. Infants and children have a natural tendency to generate a lot of mucus. The production and the amount of mucus lessen as the child grows older and the developing immune system strengthens. When a child has a build up of excess mucus (one of the primary indicators of inflammation), his/her body attempts to "burn off" this mucus in order to return to a balanced state, also known as homeostasis. This is accomplished by the onset of an illness accompanied by a fever. Children, even without the presence of a fever, tend to run on the hot side. Most of their heat rises towards the head. Heat generated by a fever (another of the primary indicators of inflammation), further raises the energy towards the head. With an abundance of mucus already present in the nose and throat during an upper respiratory infection it is no coincidence that the ears repeatedly become inflamed.Many clinicians and parents report that after a child has recovered from an illness with a fever without the use of suppressive pharmaceuticals, he/she experiences a growth spurt in neurological, developmental and behavioral milestones. Clearly, the immune system is now stronger. Children, who develop excess mucus and need to burn it off through an array of normal childhood febrile illnesses, and are blocked from accomplishing this through the use of inappropriate, suppressive pharmaceutical treatments, often remain in a state of chronic mucus production, i.e., chronic inflammation. This can be seen today in many of our children who live with excess mucus, are often sick and never quite fully recover and have a life of chronic illnesses and delays in reaching their milestones. Prevention & TreatmentUltimately, the goal is to reduce the production of excess mucus, support the process of acute illnesses with good clinical follow-up and safe and effective, non-suppressive, supportive interventions and offer information for families that will both prevent and treat serious acute and chronic illnesses. In the case of ear inflammation, the two approaches that I have seen work most effectively to reduce ear fluid, ear pain and chronic ear problems is a change in the child's and family's diet and the incorporation of manipulative modalities into the treatment plan, i.e., chiropractic, osteopathic and/or cranial sacral therapy.Children have undeveloped digestive systems. Spitting up, vomiting, frequent burping, excess gas and loose stools are frequent pediatric complaints indicative of poor digestive function. Often, children are given a food or a combination of foods that serve to further weaken and stress their digestive systems. Invariably, food is incompletely digested and, as a result, children are confronted with having to deal with nourishment that does not serve them. Consequently, the body's response is to produce additional mucusAs described in immunology, Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda and nutritional medicine, mucus in the nose, throat, sinuses, airways, ears and other parts of the body can arise merely from the failure of the digestive system to accomplish its task successfully. Adults may suffer from the same process as well. Those foods most likely to increase mucus production and further stress a child's already weak digestive system are: dairy, soy (especially overly processed soy products), commercial formulas, a heavy diet of raw fruits and vegetables, iced or cold foods and beverages, wheat and most flour products, baby cereals and commercial cereals, thick, creamy and heavy foods, processed grains, juice, soda, soft drinks, refined sugars, processed and refined foods, fried foods and oils, multiple food choices at a time and overfeeding. Reducing and/or eliminating these foods from a child's diet will often quiet the inflammation and prevent the development of further problems in acute flare-ups and, more specifically, in chronic inflammation of the ears. On the other hand, offering a child warm, cooked, simple, smooth, easy to digest, whole, non-processed foods, accompanied by small amounts of food herbs and spices, will strengthen and support a weak digestive system and keep mucus production and inflammation at a minimum. Immediate ManagementSo, it is still 3am and your child's body is doing its best to purge the excess mucus. Yet, the fluid is not draining and the pain is the main focus. Ultimately, the goal is to rid the body of the mucus. The following is a list of suggestions for parents to help them get through this difficult situation:1) Hold and comfort your child.2) Try to raise the head of the bed. For smaller children, place blankets or pillows under the mattress.3) Keep your child hydrated with room temperature water, clear soup and/or tea. Herbs that help to break up the mucus and comfort your child include thyme, ginger, licorice, eyebright, elder flowers and chamomile. Keep the diet simple. Keep solid foods to a minimum. Offer small doses of vitamin C throughout the day with fluids. Start children's Echinacea within the first 24 hours of illness.4) Diffuse lavender essential oil in the room to help calm any anxiety you may have.5) Place several drops of mullein oil in a container and warm inside a pot of water on the stove. Take several drops of the mullein oil and place them in the affected ear canal. Gently pull and massage the ear lobe away from your child's head and in a slightly downward direction. Use extra virgin olive oil in the same manner if no mullein oil is available or, 6) Take 1-2 drops of organic tea tree essential oil and mix in a base of 20 drops of olive oil and place several warmed drops of this mixture into the affected ear canal. Use any one of the ear drop remedies several times a day to relieve the discomforts of the inflammation. Please be sure to use essential oils that are organic and top grade quality whenever possible.7) Use the tea tree oil combination and massage it into the front of your child's chest below the collarbones in a horizontal fashion. Then rub the oil behind the affected ear(s) and massage down the side of the neck towards the collarbones. This will help open the drainage of lymph fluid into the chest cavity and allow the congestion to drain from the head. This can be done 2-3 times per day until the congestion has resolved.8) See your chiropractor, osteopath or cranial sacral worker the next day. Repeat visits as discussed with your provider.9) Contact your medical health care provider if your child does not improve within 48 hours, develops drainage from the ear or appears to be getting worse.Dr. Lawrence B. Palevsky, MD is a board certified pediatrician who received his medical degree from the NYU School of Medicine. He completed a pediatric residency at the Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC and a one year fellowship at Bellevue Hospital-NYU School of Medicine in the outpatient department and emergency room. Dr. Palevsky's clinical experience includes pediatric emergency room and pediatric acute care medicine, in-patient and out-patient pediatric medicine, neonatal intensive care, newborn and delivery room medicine and private practice. Most recently he was in practice as the holistic and integrative pediatrician at the Center for Health & Healing, a complementary medical facility affiliated with the Beth Israel Medical Center in NYC. Dr. Palevsky is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a Diplomate of the American Board of Holistic Medicine.
This isn't about making everyone holistic it is encouraging everyone to become the boss, advocate, and decision maker in your child's health. Without knowing about ear infections it would be hard to double check what the doctor is telling your. The following article is written by an M.D.
Holistic Approach to Ear Infections
by Lawrence P. Palvesky, M.D., F.A.A.P., A.B.H.M.Jan-Feb 2003 It is 3am and your child wakes up complaining of ear pain. What can you do? Ear pain is one of the most common complaints in the pediatric population. Parents exchange frequent stories about the number of times their child has taken a banana or cherry flavored antibiotic for one or more ear infections. It is the rare parent who sits by, not wanting to add to the anxiety of other parents, with the knowledge that their child has never taken an antibiotic for an ear ache. What's more, the child has never had a serious problem resulting from not using antibiotics.When I went through my medical school and residency training, we were warned about the serious complications of allowing an ear infection to progress without antibiotic treatment-mastoiditis, an inflammation and infection of the bony area behind the ear at the base of the skull, and meningitis, an inflammation and infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord which could lead to permanent brain damage, not to mention, the possibility of permanent hearing loss. Over the last 13 years, evidence from the European medical literature and observation of the medical practice of some of our own pioneering primary care providers and ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) physicians, has taught us that the majority of cases of ear pain can and will resolve on their own. Without antibiotics. Without serious outcomes. With good clinical follow-up. Yet, many children receive antibiotics, and sometimes multiple antibiotics, for ear aches. And their ear aches continue to recur. Are Ear Aches Really Ear Infections? Inflammation occurs in the body as characterized by the following five observations--redness, swelling, heat, pain and loss of function. When a young child has an ear ache, the ear drum is usually found to be red (redness) with clear fluid or mucus buildup in the middle ear (swelling) causing pain, often accompanied by fever (heat) and occasionally accompanied by an acute loss of hearing; clearly a description of inflammation. Even if there were an infection, most studies confirm that viruses are the main organisms responsible for causing the development of these symptoms, not bacteria. Neither a viral infection, nor an inflammation in the ears responds to treatment with antibiotics. Only bacteria respond to antibiotic treatment. Therefore, in the majority of cases, antibiotics do not help. And, in many cases, antibiotics may cause more harm than good when they are used inappropriately.A child is found on exam to have a red ear and no complaint of ear pain even though a fever is present. A pre-verbal infant or toddler with a red ear drum or fluid behind the ear appears well and is smiling. Another child presents with ear fluid and is no longer in pain. Most often these children are not suffering from ear infections and do not warrant antibiotic treatment. By definition, these children simply have inflamed ears which often respond better to other types of treatment. Children who have infections, on the other hand, also present with these five signs of inflammation but, for the most part, do not look clinically well and often have an illness that is more serious than a simple ear infection. A child in pain who appears not to look well should be re-evaluated after the pain is relieved. Early in my pediatric practice, I often gave a child a ten day course of an antibiotic for what I believed was a classic ear infection using the criteria I described for inflammation. More often than not, 2-3 days after completing the antibiotic, the child returned with the same symptoms. I would subsequently write another antibiotic prescription. Frequently, the same pattern would recur. Conventional training taught me that the child had an infection caused by a bacterium that was resistant to the antibiotic. Therefore, a different and stronger antibiotic was needed. Eventually it occurred to me that perhaps the child never needed the antibiotic in the first place. Perhaps there was a different process going on that required a different set of treatments and understanding. Why do infants & children get ear aches? How do the ears become inflamed?Conventional pediatric practice focuses on prescribing treatment interventions once a child's symptoms have already appeared. Non-conventional approaches concentrate on preventing the development of inflammation and infection and attempt to evaluate the causes that contribute to their presentation. In addition, non-conventional approaches use remedies and interventions that facilitate the body's natural healing abilities in a nourishing way in an attempt to avoid suppressing the inherent healing mechanisms that are present in the body. Often, elimination of the factors that are known to contribute to the development of the underlying symptoms is sufficient to treat the problem(s) without introducing additional remedies. This is especially true when it comes to ear pain and ear inflammation. Infants and children have a natural tendency to generate a lot of mucus. The production and the amount of mucus lessen as the child grows older and the developing immune system strengthens. When a child has a build up of excess mucus (one of the primary indicators of inflammation), his/her body attempts to "burn off" this mucus in order to return to a balanced state, also known as homeostasis. This is accomplished by the onset of an illness accompanied by a fever. Children, even without the presence of a fever, tend to run on the hot side. Most of their heat rises towards the head. Heat generated by a fever (another of the primary indicators of inflammation), further raises the energy towards the head. With an abundance of mucus already present in the nose and throat during an upper respiratory infection it is no coincidence that the ears repeatedly become inflamed.Many clinicians and parents report that after a child has recovered from an illness with a fever without the use of suppressive pharmaceuticals, he/she experiences a growth spurt in neurological, developmental and behavioral milestones. Clearly, the immune system is now stronger. Children, who develop excess mucus and need to burn it off through an array of normal childhood febrile illnesses, and are blocked from accomplishing this through the use of inappropriate, suppressive pharmaceutical treatments, often remain in a state of chronic mucus production, i.e., chronic inflammation. This can be seen today in many of our children who live with excess mucus, are often sick and never quite fully recover and have a life of chronic illnesses and delays in reaching their milestones. Prevention & TreatmentUltimately, the goal is to reduce the production of excess mucus, support the process of acute illnesses with good clinical follow-up and safe and effective, non-suppressive, supportive interventions and offer information for families that will both prevent and treat serious acute and chronic illnesses. In the case of ear inflammation, the two approaches that I have seen work most effectively to reduce ear fluid, ear pain and chronic ear problems is a change in the child's and family's diet and the incorporation of manipulative modalities into the treatment plan, i.e., chiropractic, osteopathic and/or cranial sacral therapy.Children have undeveloped digestive systems. Spitting up, vomiting, frequent burping, excess gas and loose stools are frequent pediatric complaints indicative of poor digestive function. Often, children are given a food or a combination of foods that serve to further weaken and stress their digestive systems. Invariably, food is incompletely digested and, as a result, children are confronted with having to deal with nourishment that does not serve them. Consequently, the body's response is to produce additional mucusAs described in immunology, Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda and nutritional medicine, mucus in the nose, throat, sinuses, airways, ears and other parts of the body can arise merely from the failure of the digestive system to accomplish its task successfully. Adults may suffer from the same process as well. Those foods most likely to increase mucus production and further stress a child's already weak digestive system are: dairy, soy (especially overly processed soy products), commercial formulas, a heavy diet of raw fruits and vegetables, iced or cold foods and beverages, wheat and most flour products, baby cereals and commercial cereals, thick, creamy and heavy foods, processed grains, juice, soda, soft drinks, refined sugars, processed and refined foods, fried foods and oils, multiple food choices at a time and overfeeding. Reducing and/or eliminating these foods from a child's diet will often quiet the inflammation and prevent the development of further problems in acute flare-ups and, more specifically, in chronic inflammation of the ears. On the other hand, offering a child warm, cooked, simple, smooth, easy to digest, whole, non-processed foods, accompanied by small amounts of food herbs and spices, will strengthen and support a weak digestive system and keep mucus production and inflammation at a minimum. Immediate ManagementSo, it is still 3am and your child's body is doing its best to purge the excess mucus. Yet, the fluid is not draining and the pain is the main focus. Ultimately, the goal is to rid the body of the mucus. The following is a list of suggestions for parents to help them get through this difficult situation:1) Hold and comfort your child.2) Try to raise the head of the bed. For smaller children, place blankets or pillows under the mattress.3) Keep your child hydrated with room temperature water, clear soup and/or tea. Herbs that help to break up the mucus and comfort your child include thyme, ginger, licorice, eyebright, elder flowers and chamomile. Keep the diet simple. Keep solid foods to a minimum. Offer small doses of vitamin C throughout the day with fluids. Start children's Echinacea within the first 24 hours of illness.4) Diffuse lavender essential oil in the room to help calm any anxiety you may have.5) Place several drops of mullein oil in a container and warm inside a pot of water on the stove. Take several drops of the mullein oil and place them in the affected ear canal. Gently pull and massage the ear lobe away from your child's head and in a slightly downward direction. Use extra virgin olive oil in the same manner if no mullein oil is available or, 6) Take 1-2 drops of organic tea tree essential oil and mix in a base of 20 drops of olive oil and place several warmed drops of this mixture into the affected ear canal. Use any one of the ear drop remedies several times a day to relieve the discomforts of the inflammation. Please be sure to use essential oils that are organic and top grade quality whenever possible.7) Use the tea tree oil combination and massage it into the front of your child's chest below the collarbones in a horizontal fashion. Then rub the oil behind the affected ear(s) and massage down the side of the neck towards the collarbones. This will help open the drainage of lymph fluid into the chest cavity and allow the congestion to drain from the head. This can be done 2-3 times per day until the congestion has resolved.8) See your chiropractor, osteopath or cranial sacral worker the next day. Repeat visits as discussed with your provider.9) Contact your medical health care provider if your child does not improve within 48 hours, develops drainage from the ear or appears to be getting worse.Dr. Lawrence B. Palevsky, MD is a board certified pediatrician who received his medical degree from the NYU School of Medicine. He completed a pediatric residency at the Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC and a one year fellowship at Bellevue Hospital-NYU School of Medicine in the outpatient department and emergency room. Dr. Palevsky's clinical experience includes pediatric emergency room and pediatric acute care medicine, in-patient and out-patient pediatric medicine, neonatal intensive care, newborn and delivery room medicine and private practice. Most recently he was in practice as the holistic and integrative pediatrician at the Center for Health & Healing, a complementary medical facility affiliated with the Beth Israel Medical Center in NYC. Dr. Palevsky is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a Diplomate of the American Board of Holistic Medicine.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
The Balance Between Allopathy and Homeopathy
The Balance between Allopathy and Homeopathy:
Where Are We Twenty Years later?
by Dr. Luc De Schepper
Call it coincidence, but twenty years ago is when I immigrated to
California from my native Belgium as a medical doctor, acupuncturist
and above all, in my heart and mind, a homeopath. I have been
fortunate to have encountered the most brilliant medical minds in
Europe and here in the US. New drugs, new vaccinations, new genetic
discoveries, new techniques to probe deeper and deeper in the human
body ... there seems to be no limit to the wonders we can expect from
allopathy. Most people believe that modern medicine has arrived at
the peak of scientific achievement, from which it will go from
triumph to triumph.
Yet there is disturbing news on the horizon. Since World War II we
have considered infectious diseases on the verge of eradication; in
fact Secretary of State George Marshall made a speech to that effect
in1948. Yet they are the number one cause of death in the world, and
old-fashioned diseases like whooping cough, TB and cholera are coming
back in record numbers. Microbes are becoming more and more
resistant, due in part to the flagrant overuse of antibiotics by
medical doctors and factory farms. These antibiotics, which we
thought would eradicate infectious diseases in our lifetime, are
becoming increasingly powerless against the new strains of resistant
bacteria. Diarrhea, which we think of as a relatively harmless
infectious disease, kills millions of children worldwide every year,
making it the second leading cause of death after cardiovascular
disease. TB, malaria, diarrhea, and sexually transmitted diseases are
the real silent epidemics. Our attention may be diverted by the
horror stories about AIDS and the Ebola virus, but these silent
epidemics affect far more people.
Nor is much said about the 600,000 new victims of cancer every year
in the US. In fact, in light of the newest genetic therapies,
allopathic scientists predict that cancer will be conquered by the
year 2010. As a medical doctor, I do pray that they are right, but as
a homeopath, I doubt it. There are too many risk factors in the
unhealthy American lifestyle and too many hereditary factors (which
in homeopathy we call miasms) which allopathic medicine cannot touch
with genetic therapy. Cancer is now the number two cause of death,
not a hopeful sign for the immediate future.
Medical practices outside of "official" medicine always have been an
important part of the public's health care. In fact, until the early
decades of this century, allopathic medicine coexisted with
homeopathic and herbal medicine in this country, as it still does in
nearly every other country in the world. In fact I know of no other
country in which one form of medicine has such a monopoly of legal
protection and insurance reimbursement as allopathic medicine does in
this country. Alternative healers, through the centuries, have
offered a multiplicity of ways to address the confusion and suffering
that accompany disease. The notion of alternative medicine as
quackery (a term originally applied to allopathic physicians for
using toxic doses of mercury to "cure" syphilis ) has been reinforced
by a once commonly heard definition of it as any treatment not taught
in an accredited medical school. This definition is no longer valid,
as most medical schools have added nontraditional courses in response
to growing public interest in alternative therapies. With this change
in attitude came a change in name to complementary or integrative
medicine, indicating that allopathy and alternative methods can be
used together to support each other.
At the same time that we see tremendous interest in complementary
medicine among the public-and a slow but increasing interest among
medical doctors-we also see tremendous ignorance. One mistake I see
among allopathic practitioners is to lump all the different forms of
non-allopathic healing into one basket. But certain forms-notably
acupuncture, homeopathy, and chiropractic- require years of study of
health sciences comparable to the years of training in conventional
medicine, and they should not be lumped together with psychic
healers, pendulum dowsers and tarot card readers. This does a
disservice to forms of healing which are based on scientific laws and
principles and which merit the serious inquiry of the open-minded allopath.
In my lectures about homeopathy at medical schools and hospitals,
certain lines of questioning keep coming up. One is the argument that
homeopathy, like herbal and other "eclectic" medicines, is an
old-fashioned form of healing, practiced by people with little to no
training, regulation of practice or standards for quality of care.
While it is true that in allopathic medicine we certainly would not
accept any drug or procedure from more than 50 years ago (and most
drugs are out of date within a few years), it is a strength of
homeopathy that we use the same remedies discovered when homeopathy
was founded nearly 200 years ago. When a new drug comes out, often
side effects and serious problems are discovered only when millions
of people start using it. It gives me confidence in homeopathy to
know that the remedies have already been used by millions of people
worldwide for many decades, and their effects are well-known. Our
knowledge in homeopathy keeps building and building on strong solid
scientific principles; we do not have to keep discarding what we know
as allopathic medicine does.
When we study the history of homeopathic medicine in this country, we
also see that in the nineteenth century, when homeopathy enjoyed such
widespread support especially among the educated classes, homeopathic
physicians received the same training as their allopathic colleagues
plus an additional two years of homeopathy. It was well known that
the most brilliant medical students would go on to become homeopaths.
Unfortunately the American Medical Association (formed two years
after the American Homeopathic Association, and with the express
purpose of rooting out homeopathy in this country) succeeded in using
legal and economic pressure to prevent homeopathic physicians from
practicing. Homeopathic medical schools were forced to convert to
allopathy or their graduates would not qualify for licensure exams;
homeopathic physicians were taken into court to have their licenses taken away.
The "dirty tricks" of the allopathic medical societies in the early
years of this century, plus the lure of the "magic bullet" of the new
antibiotic drugs, led to a decline in homeopathy in the middle of
this century, to the point that 20 years ago very few medical doctors
were practicing it. The old guard had almost all died off and very
few new doctors were joining. With the rise of interest in
alternative medicine a quarter-century ago, the gap was filled at
first with lay homeopaths. Now we have a tremendous interest in
homeopathy among MDs, osteopaths, naturopaths, veterinarians, nurse
practitioners, chiropractors, and acupuncturists. I can see this in
my own school, where dozens of health care professionals are learning
to incorporate homeopathy into their practices.
Another major change I see in the past 20 years is the research being
done in homeopathy, both in the US and abroad. So often we see in the
popular press-and even in medical journals, whose authors should know
better-that homeopathy is "unproven" and "there is no scientific
evidence to support it." The fact is that homeopathy does have good
scientific evidence to back it up. Unfortunately most of the research
has been done overseas and is not easily available here. Until
recently, the US government has not funded research in alternative
medicine, and it still has not committed funds in any way comparable
to the funding of drug research in this country. And some of the
research on homeopathy is faulty simply because it is difficult to
apply the double-blind method (in which normally one drug is tested
against a placebo) to homeopathy, which gives a different remedy to
almost every patient with the same diagnosis (due to homeopathy's
principle of individualizing) . Yet the meta-analyses (overviews of
all the studies on homeopathy) have shown that the better designed
the study, the more likely it was to demonstrate the effectiveness of
homeopathy. Within the past few years some good research on
homeopathy has been done in this country and published in mainstream
medical journals. With the government finally funding research, we
can look forward to more of it in the years to come.
I have no problem with my allopathic colleagues scrutinizing the
potential risks and benefits of alternative medicine. Let's examine
some of them and see if homeopathy can pass muster.
Quality of care is often the first argument brought up by my
colleagues. Homeopathy definitely has the potential to provide the
same (or better) quality of care as allopathic medicine. In the past,
as we mentioned, the most brilliant physicians were the homeopaths,
and homeopathic licensure had the same components as allopathic
licensure (in terms of the content and length of time of training,
testing and certification, a defined scope of practice, review and
audit and codified disciplinary action). The fact that homeopathy
does not currently have this licensure system is a reflection on the
political and economic forces at work in this country, not a
reflection on homeopathy itself. Licensure efforts for homeopathy are
underway in a number of states, at the same time that an increasing
number of already-licensed professionals are incorporating homeopathy
into their practices. In other words, this objection is only a
temporary one until the United States can catch up with Europe, the
former Soviet States and India in providing professional training and
licensure for homeopaths.
Quality of products is another potential argument against alternative
modalities. Random tests of supplements and herbs often show that the
contents do not measure up to what is on the label. And the labels do
not contain adequate warnings about the potentially toxic effects of
large overdoses of some supplements and herbs. But homeopathic
remedies are completely safe, non-toxic (in most potencies they don't
even contain one molecule) and very inexpensive. And a true homeopath
prescribes one single remedy at a time, therefore avoiding possible
interactions among multiple remedies. Allopathy would do well to
learn from this, since we physicians have the tendency to prescribe a
multitude of drugs for various symptoms. This has never worked before
and it never will, for it creates a jungle of side effects on top of
the symptoms of the disease itself. And we may not forget that
100,000 deaths a year in this country are caused by conventional drugs.
Quality of science is probably one of the main allopathic arguments.
Conventional medicine is touted as the leader in the management of
infectious and surgical diseases. But allopathic medicine still does
not have good weapons against cholera, for example. Yet homeopathy
was already successful against the great epidemic diseases of 150
years ago: cholera, typhoid fever, diphtheria, scarlet fever. In a
great flu epidemic earlier in this century, the statistics in London
hospitals showed the mortality rate at allopathic hospitals was 55%,
but less than 5% at homeopathic hospitals. Allopathic medicine claims
to be based on the double-blind method, and discredits any form of
alternative medicine which cannot fully support every remedy or
procedure with double-blind research studies. Yet allopathic medicine
itself violates this principle every day. Surgeries, for example, are
difficult to test by this method. When surgeries are assessed by
outcomes (how many people were doing better at the end of five years,
for example), millions of surgeries per year are shown to be futile
or unnecessary. And sadly enough, according to allopathic research,
67% of prescriptions are made based on the side-effects of drugs-in
other words, not according to the original double-blind protocol.
When we look at the last twenty years, homeopathy as a healing
modality has gained the attention of the public. Without any doubt,
homeopathy could be advanced by professional standards and greater
availability of instruction to interested health care professionals.
That the public has embraced alternative medicine has been proven by
the excellent 1998 study by David Eisenberg of Harvard Medical
School, which indicated that 70% of the population had consulted an
alternative practitioner. Because of its great results in the past
and present, homeopathy will undoubtedly catch the attention of
patients ready to embrace a scientific approach that has proven its
validity in the last two hundred years. I hope that allopathic
physicians will show a serious interest in this marvelous approach
before they reject it. Humankind will be the better for it!
Dr. Luc De Schepper
Renaissance Institute of Classical Homeopathy (RICH)
Full of Life Publishing (FLOP)
Mailing address:
P.O. Box 31025
Santa Fe, NM 87594
Email:drluc@cybermesa. comwww.drluc.com/allopathy.htm
Where Are We Twenty Years later?
by Dr. Luc De Schepper
Call it coincidence, but twenty years ago is when I immigrated to
California from my native Belgium as a medical doctor, acupuncturist
and above all, in my heart and mind, a homeopath. I have been
fortunate to have encountered the most brilliant medical minds in
Europe and here in the US. New drugs, new vaccinations, new genetic
discoveries, new techniques to probe deeper and deeper in the human
body ... there seems to be no limit to the wonders we can expect from
allopathy. Most people believe that modern medicine has arrived at
the peak of scientific achievement, from which it will go from
triumph to triumph.
Yet there is disturbing news on the horizon. Since World War II we
have considered infectious diseases on the verge of eradication; in
fact Secretary of State George Marshall made a speech to that effect
in1948. Yet they are the number one cause of death in the world, and
old-fashioned diseases like whooping cough, TB and cholera are coming
back in record numbers. Microbes are becoming more and more
resistant, due in part to the flagrant overuse of antibiotics by
medical doctors and factory farms. These antibiotics, which we
thought would eradicate infectious diseases in our lifetime, are
becoming increasingly powerless against the new strains of resistant
bacteria. Diarrhea, which we think of as a relatively harmless
infectious disease, kills millions of children worldwide every year,
making it the second leading cause of death after cardiovascular
disease. TB, malaria, diarrhea, and sexually transmitted diseases are
the real silent epidemics. Our attention may be diverted by the
horror stories about AIDS and the Ebola virus, but these silent
epidemics affect far more people.
Nor is much said about the 600,000 new victims of cancer every year
in the US. In fact, in light of the newest genetic therapies,
allopathic scientists predict that cancer will be conquered by the
year 2010. As a medical doctor, I do pray that they are right, but as
a homeopath, I doubt it. There are too many risk factors in the
unhealthy American lifestyle and too many hereditary factors (which
in homeopathy we call miasms) which allopathic medicine cannot touch
with genetic therapy. Cancer is now the number two cause of death,
not a hopeful sign for the immediate future.
Medical practices outside of "official" medicine always have been an
important part of the public's health care. In fact, until the early
decades of this century, allopathic medicine coexisted with
homeopathic and herbal medicine in this country, as it still does in
nearly every other country in the world. In fact I know of no other
country in which one form of medicine has such a monopoly of legal
protection and insurance reimbursement as allopathic medicine does in
this country. Alternative healers, through the centuries, have
offered a multiplicity of ways to address the confusion and suffering
that accompany disease. The notion of alternative medicine as
quackery (a term originally applied to allopathic physicians for
using toxic doses of mercury to "cure" syphilis ) has been reinforced
by a once commonly heard definition of it as any treatment not taught
in an accredited medical school. This definition is no longer valid,
as most medical schools have added nontraditional courses in response
to growing public interest in alternative therapies. With this change
in attitude came a change in name to complementary or integrative
medicine, indicating that allopathy and alternative methods can be
used together to support each other.
At the same time that we see tremendous interest in complementary
medicine among the public-and a slow but increasing interest among
medical doctors-we also see tremendous ignorance. One mistake I see
among allopathic practitioners is to lump all the different forms of
non-allopathic healing into one basket. But certain forms-notably
acupuncture, homeopathy, and chiropractic- require years of study of
health sciences comparable to the years of training in conventional
medicine, and they should not be lumped together with psychic
healers, pendulum dowsers and tarot card readers. This does a
disservice to forms of healing which are based on scientific laws and
principles and which merit the serious inquiry of the open-minded allopath.
In my lectures about homeopathy at medical schools and hospitals,
certain lines of questioning keep coming up. One is the argument that
homeopathy, like herbal and other "eclectic" medicines, is an
old-fashioned form of healing, practiced by people with little to no
training, regulation of practice or standards for quality of care.
While it is true that in allopathic medicine we certainly would not
accept any drug or procedure from more than 50 years ago (and most
drugs are out of date within a few years), it is a strength of
homeopathy that we use the same remedies discovered when homeopathy
was founded nearly 200 years ago. When a new drug comes out, often
side effects and serious problems are discovered only when millions
of people start using it. It gives me confidence in homeopathy to
know that the remedies have already been used by millions of people
worldwide for many decades, and their effects are well-known. Our
knowledge in homeopathy keeps building and building on strong solid
scientific principles; we do not have to keep discarding what we know
as allopathic medicine does.
When we study the history of homeopathic medicine in this country, we
also see that in the nineteenth century, when homeopathy enjoyed such
widespread support especially among the educated classes, homeopathic
physicians received the same training as their allopathic colleagues
plus an additional two years of homeopathy. It was well known that
the most brilliant medical students would go on to become homeopaths.
Unfortunately the American Medical Association (formed two years
after the American Homeopathic Association, and with the express
purpose of rooting out homeopathy in this country) succeeded in using
legal and economic pressure to prevent homeopathic physicians from
practicing. Homeopathic medical schools were forced to convert to
allopathy or their graduates would not qualify for licensure exams;
homeopathic physicians were taken into court to have their licenses taken away.
The "dirty tricks" of the allopathic medical societies in the early
years of this century, plus the lure of the "magic bullet" of the new
antibiotic drugs, led to a decline in homeopathy in the middle of
this century, to the point that 20 years ago very few medical doctors
were practicing it. The old guard had almost all died off and very
few new doctors were joining. With the rise of interest in
alternative medicine a quarter-century ago, the gap was filled at
first with lay homeopaths. Now we have a tremendous interest in
homeopathy among MDs, osteopaths, naturopaths, veterinarians, nurse
practitioners, chiropractors, and acupuncturists. I can see this in
my own school, where dozens of health care professionals are learning
to incorporate homeopathy into their practices.
Another major change I see in the past 20 years is the research being
done in homeopathy, both in the US and abroad. So often we see in the
popular press-and even in medical journals, whose authors should know
better-that homeopathy is "unproven" and "there is no scientific
evidence to support it." The fact is that homeopathy does have good
scientific evidence to back it up. Unfortunately most of the research
has been done overseas and is not easily available here. Until
recently, the US government has not funded research in alternative
medicine, and it still has not committed funds in any way comparable
to the funding of drug research in this country. And some of the
research on homeopathy is faulty simply because it is difficult to
apply the double-blind method (in which normally one drug is tested
against a placebo) to homeopathy, which gives a different remedy to
almost every patient with the same diagnosis (due to homeopathy's
principle of individualizing) . Yet the meta-analyses (overviews of
all the studies on homeopathy) have shown that the better designed
the study, the more likely it was to demonstrate the effectiveness of
homeopathy. Within the past few years some good research on
homeopathy has been done in this country and published in mainstream
medical journals. With the government finally funding research, we
can look forward to more of it in the years to come.
I have no problem with my allopathic colleagues scrutinizing the
potential risks and benefits of alternative medicine. Let's examine
some of them and see if homeopathy can pass muster.
Quality of care is often the first argument brought up by my
colleagues. Homeopathy definitely has the potential to provide the
same (or better) quality of care as allopathic medicine. In the past,
as we mentioned, the most brilliant physicians were the homeopaths,
and homeopathic licensure had the same components as allopathic
licensure (in terms of the content and length of time of training,
testing and certification, a defined scope of practice, review and
audit and codified disciplinary action). The fact that homeopathy
does not currently have this licensure system is a reflection on the
political and economic forces at work in this country, not a
reflection on homeopathy itself. Licensure efforts for homeopathy are
underway in a number of states, at the same time that an increasing
number of already-licensed professionals are incorporating homeopathy
into their practices. In other words, this objection is only a
temporary one until the United States can catch up with Europe, the
former Soviet States and India in providing professional training and
licensure for homeopaths.
Quality of products is another potential argument against alternative
modalities. Random tests of supplements and herbs often show that the
contents do not measure up to what is on the label. And the labels do
not contain adequate warnings about the potentially toxic effects of
large overdoses of some supplements and herbs. But homeopathic
remedies are completely safe, non-toxic (in most potencies they don't
even contain one molecule) and very inexpensive. And a true homeopath
prescribes one single remedy at a time, therefore avoiding possible
interactions among multiple remedies. Allopathy would do well to
learn from this, since we physicians have the tendency to prescribe a
multitude of drugs for various symptoms. This has never worked before
and it never will, for it creates a jungle of side effects on top of
the symptoms of the disease itself. And we may not forget that
100,000 deaths a year in this country are caused by conventional drugs.
Quality of science is probably one of the main allopathic arguments.
Conventional medicine is touted as the leader in the management of
infectious and surgical diseases. But allopathic medicine still does
not have good weapons against cholera, for example. Yet homeopathy
was already successful against the great epidemic diseases of 150
years ago: cholera, typhoid fever, diphtheria, scarlet fever. In a
great flu epidemic earlier in this century, the statistics in London
hospitals showed the mortality rate at allopathic hospitals was 55%,
but less than 5% at homeopathic hospitals. Allopathic medicine claims
to be based on the double-blind method, and discredits any form of
alternative medicine which cannot fully support every remedy or
procedure with double-blind research studies. Yet allopathic medicine
itself violates this principle every day. Surgeries, for example, are
difficult to test by this method. When surgeries are assessed by
outcomes (how many people were doing better at the end of five years,
for example), millions of surgeries per year are shown to be futile
or unnecessary. And sadly enough, according to allopathic research,
67% of prescriptions are made based on the side-effects of drugs-in
other words, not according to the original double-blind protocol.
When we look at the last twenty years, homeopathy as a healing
modality has gained the attention of the public. Without any doubt,
homeopathy could be advanced by professional standards and greater
availability of instruction to interested health care professionals.
That the public has embraced alternative medicine has been proven by
the excellent 1998 study by David Eisenberg of Harvard Medical
School, which indicated that 70% of the population had consulted an
alternative practitioner. Because of its great results in the past
and present, homeopathy will undoubtedly catch the attention of
patients ready to embrace a scientific approach that has proven its
validity in the last two hundred years. I hope that allopathic
physicians will show a serious interest in this marvelous approach
before they reject it. Humankind will be the better for it!
Dr. Luc De Schepper
Renaissance Institute of Classical Homeopathy (RICH)
Full of Life Publishing (FLOP)
Mailing address:
P.O. Box 31025
Santa Fe, NM 87594
Email:
Friday, January 9, 2009
The Power of Intention
I'm BACK! It's been a nice break, and I later in February I will probably take another little hiatus (although birth may give me a whole new place to blog from!)
If this wasn't Free Info Friday I would have titled this post, "I am not my check engine light." I am not sure how many are familiar with the Ekhart Tolle book a "A New Earth" or with Oprah talking about being your true self, and being present, but we have taken on studying this. We have gone further out, up and down than just Oprah and her book of the month, and it is finally starting to sink in. The difference between being present, and not takes a bit to conquer. Overcoming your Ego, is what it takes to get there. I am further on this journey today than I was last year at this time, and to be completely honest than a was a mere 6 weeks ago.
My first realization that I was getting there happened just the other night. I got in the car to go and get some frozen yogurt. After starting the van and heading out I noticed the check engine light was on. Previously as this has happened my adrenaline immediately starts to pump, my mind starts to wonder what is wrong (this doesn't last long I am not to familiar with things under the hood) and then the biggie, how much is it going to cost. My thoughts become all consumed with this until Danny takes the van to AutoZone to have the free diagnostic test run on it, truthfully this almost increases the anxiety, worry, wonder as I am not sure what the codes mean. The next step is to call our friend and mechanic and ask him what, when, and how much. These answer either calm me down a bit or ramp things up as the bigger the cost the bigger the worry for me.
The check engine light has gone on a few times since we have lived in GA. My reaction has been similar every time to what I described above. At this moment I could only tell you one of the repairs that have been done, I have know idea how much it cost, and the best thing... It DOESN'T matter. This hasn't changed how I take care of my children, myself, or my house. This hasn't changed how I drive, pay for things, or vacations I take. The only thing I was doing was raising my heart rate, blood pressure, and stress level.
Back to a few nights ago when I noticed the check engine light was on. I looked and saw, the check engine light was on. As I sat for a moment the desire to panic was there, but it was faint. I was curious as to whether or not it had just turned on so I called Danny and asked, his reply "It's been on all day." And that is where it ended. At some point we will need to take care of this, but the van is running, it doesn't smell, it's starting, and I am not the van, or the check engine light. I did ask Danny if was going to take it to Auto Zone, and he said yeah I guess, and I have been able to leave it there. It feels good to have the control over the situation. It's also nice to recognize that what I thought was "controlling" the situation before was simply me freaking out over a small thing that didn't change me.
So far in all the books I have read and the speakers I have heard there is one that stands out above the rest. I really enjoy his style, it is basic, anyone can get it and that is because being present and overcoming your ego is basic and anyone can get it. I highly recommend buying the book (after reading 5 pages I bought one for my sister) and I am going to include a link to a video you can watch online. I have only watched the first 20 or so minutes but it was so powerful that I asked Danny to stop so I could digest what Dr. Dyer had said. Here is a link to his book "The Power of Intention". This is only one of the many books he has written, he has actually written 2 children's books on the importance of being you that I think everyone child should have. Here is a link to his video online: "Dr. Wayne Dyer video."
And here is how he sums up the first chapter in his book, and what gave me the realization that I am not my check engine light:
"At this point, as I am writing about my excitement of realizing a long-obscured truth, I knew that intention is a force that we all have within us. Intention is a field of energy that flows invisibly beyond the reach of our normal, everyday habitual patterns. It's there even before our actual conception. We have the means to attract this energy to us and experience life in an exciting new way." (To me it makes perfect sense that this "energy" that is being referred to is our spirit, it existed long before our physical bodies did and is our true self.)
"Ego is made of six primary ingredients that account for how we experience ourselves as disconnected. By allowing ego to determine your life path, you deactivate the power of intention. Briefly, here are the six ego beliefs. I've written more extensively about them in several of my previous books, most notably "Your Sacred Self."
1. I am what I have. My possessions define me.
2. I am what I do. My achievements define me.
3. I am what other think of me. My reputation defines me. (I really think this one affects a lot of us...)
4. I am separate from everyone. My body defines me as alone.
5. I am separate from all that is missing in my life. My life space is disconnected from my desires.
6. I am separate from God. My life depends on God's assessment of my worthiness.
No matter how hard you try, intention can't be accessed through ego, so take some time to recognize and readjust any or all of these six beliefs. When the supremacy of ego is weakened in your life, you can seek intention and maximize your potential."
**One note, oft time in these books, videos etc. they talk of the power of the universe, or source, and energy and intention. It didn't take me more than a second to recognize that these things are simply another term that describes God, and the Spirit. Dr. Dyer does acknowledge this in a sense in his video and his book, but I know that this makes some people uncomfortable... my advice, get over your ego ;)***
If this wasn't Free Info Friday I would have titled this post, "I am not my check engine light." I am not sure how many are familiar with the Ekhart Tolle book a "A New Earth" or with Oprah talking about being your true self, and being present, but we have taken on studying this. We have gone further out, up and down than just Oprah and her book of the month, and it is finally starting to sink in. The difference between being present, and not takes a bit to conquer. Overcoming your Ego, is what it takes to get there. I am further on this journey today than I was last year at this time, and to be completely honest than a was a mere 6 weeks ago.
My first realization that I was getting there happened just the other night. I got in the car to go and get some frozen yogurt. After starting the van and heading out I noticed the check engine light was on. Previously as this has happened my adrenaline immediately starts to pump, my mind starts to wonder what is wrong (this doesn't last long I am not to familiar with things under the hood) and then the biggie, how much is it going to cost. My thoughts become all consumed with this until Danny takes the van to AutoZone to have the free diagnostic test run on it, truthfully this almost increases the anxiety, worry, wonder as I am not sure what the codes mean. The next step is to call our friend and mechanic and ask him what, when, and how much. These answer either calm me down a bit or ramp things up as the bigger the cost the bigger the worry for me.
The check engine light has gone on a few times since we have lived in GA. My reaction has been similar every time to what I described above. At this moment I could only tell you one of the repairs that have been done, I have know idea how much it cost, and the best thing... It DOESN'T matter. This hasn't changed how I take care of my children, myself, or my house. This hasn't changed how I drive, pay for things, or vacations I take. The only thing I was doing was raising my heart rate, blood pressure, and stress level.
Back to a few nights ago when I noticed the check engine light was on. I looked and saw, the check engine light was on. As I sat for a moment the desire to panic was there, but it was faint. I was curious as to whether or not it had just turned on so I called Danny and asked, his reply "It's been on all day." And that is where it ended. At some point we will need to take care of this, but the van is running, it doesn't smell, it's starting, and I am not the van, or the check engine light. I did ask Danny if was going to take it to Auto Zone, and he said yeah I guess, and I have been able to leave it there. It feels good to have the control over the situation. It's also nice to recognize that what I thought was "controlling" the situation before was simply me freaking out over a small thing that didn't change me.
So far in all the books I have read and the speakers I have heard there is one that stands out above the rest. I really enjoy his style, it is basic, anyone can get it and that is because being present and overcoming your ego is basic and anyone can get it. I highly recommend buying the book (after reading 5 pages I bought one for my sister) and I am going to include a link to a video you can watch online. I have only watched the first 20 or so minutes but it was so powerful that I asked Danny to stop so I could digest what Dr. Dyer had said. Here is a link to his book "The Power of Intention". This is only one of the many books he has written, he has actually written 2 children's books on the importance of being you that I think everyone child should have. Here is a link to his video online: "Dr. Wayne Dyer video."
And here is how he sums up the first chapter in his book, and what gave me the realization that I am not my check engine light:
"At this point, as I am writing about my excitement of realizing a long-obscured truth, I knew that intention is a force that we all have within us. Intention is a field of energy that flows invisibly beyond the reach of our normal, everyday habitual patterns. It's there even before our actual conception. We have the means to attract this energy to us and experience life in an exciting new way." (To me it makes perfect sense that this "energy" that is being referred to is our spirit, it existed long before our physical bodies did and is our true self.)
"Ego is made of six primary ingredients that account for how we experience ourselves as disconnected. By allowing ego to determine your life path, you deactivate the power of intention. Briefly, here are the six ego beliefs. I've written more extensively about them in several of my previous books, most notably "Your Sacred Self."
1. I am what I have. My possessions define me.
2. I am what I do. My achievements define me.
3. I am what other think of me. My reputation defines me. (I really think this one affects a lot of us...)
4. I am separate from everyone. My body defines me as alone.
5. I am separate from all that is missing in my life. My life space is disconnected from my desires.
6. I am separate from God. My life depends on God's assessment of my worthiness.
No matter how hard you try, intention can't be accessed through ego, so take some time to recognize and readjust any or all of these six beliefs. When the supremacy of ego is weakened in your life, you can seek intention and maximize your potential."
**One note, oft time in these books, videos etc. they talk of the power of the universe, or source, and energy and intention. It didn't take me more than a second to recognize that these things are simply another term that describes God, and the Spirit. Dr. Dyer does acknowledge this in a sense in his video and his book, but I know that this makes some people uncomfortable... my advice, get over your ego ;)***
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Death by prescription
It is interesting to me that in all the searches I did for this I was unable to find a government sponsored website that was willing to share the information on iatrongenic deaths, "The term iatrogenic is defined as "induced in a patient by a physician's activity, manner, or therapy. Used especially to pertain to a complication of treatment." Some may lean to the conclusion that this information is false and it is not supported by the government, I lean to the conclusion that the entities supporting the government pay a hefty sum to keep that information out of the statistics. If you would like further information click on either link for the list of statistics, the one that really catches my eye is the DEATHS from use of PROPERLY used drugs.
I am prepared to now take my health into my own hands, I accept that it is my responsibility to provide my body with the nutrition, environment, and energy that it needs to treat me well. Garbage in, Garbage out. I am becoming acutely aware that a quick fix, or a prescription pill is simply that a quick fix, no pharmaceautical drug can claim to eradicate the CAUSE of the symptom or disease that you are experiencing. A prescription pill simply suppresses the symptom. I was amused one day to hear a lady on a asthma medication commercial comment in surprise that even when she was taking the competitors pill her asthma didn't go away! I am not a "hater" of modern medicine, it has it's place. At my house it is the last resort, a we need to buy more time situation. If I am in a car accident and my guts are hanging outside of me please don't take me to my chiropractor, I would like to be rushed to the nearest, and best hospital to have my parts put back together. If I have a fever, please take me to my chiropractor, give me lots of fluids, and time to rest, I will pass on the Tylenol.
Incidentally I was at my chiropractors office today and overheard a older woman discussing how she was just diagnosed yesterday with type II diabetes. She was surprised, and I am sure upset with the life changing information. She reported that she was still just borderline, and went on to give her geneology about how no one on her side of the family had diabetes. She needed help, and commented that she had taken her first pill last night. Quite honestly I wasn't surprised at the diagnonsis, however I was disappointed at the doctors decision to so quickly give her medication. She was overweight, and I am sure a closer look at her records would show to any educated person that the body had held off as long as it could. Our pancreases can only take so much of a beating of a garbage lifestyle! At some point after we have failed our bodies for so long they WILL start to fail us. Type II diabetes can not only be managed it can be CURED by diet and exercise! I am not offereing medical advice, I am offering an alternative. I love the show the Biggest Loser and every season without fail someone arrives at the ranch with diabetes, by the end (if not midway through) the season the type II diabetes gone, along with things such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and sleep apnea.
At what point are you going to be willing to say that prevention is more important the a quick fix later. Aren't you better off putting the realiable pipes into your home, giving yourself more of a gurantee against leaks? I have found the chiropractic lifestyle that we have adopted to be the realiable pipes. Admittedly it seems to cost a little more upfront, but I am worth it, Danny is worth it and so are my kids. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and the cost for it seems to pan out that way as well. Knowing what I do now about the benefit of good nutrition and alternative health care I ask the question can you put a price on good health?
If you have a symptom I have a mirred of suggestions as to what you can do to help your body heal itself. There is a good chance that your will first have to wrap your mind around the fact that it won't come in the form of a pill, I won't want to take your blood pressure, or have you pee in a cup. Chances are you won't ever have to take your health insurance card out of your wallet. You won't have to find out if I am in your network of preferred providers, double check how many visits you can have a year, and what if any of my services are covered. To some it is at this moment that the panic sets in, I assure you this is the exact opposite of what you should feel. The moment you stop looking to Blue Cross and Blue Shield, IHC, UHC, Aetna (should I go on) to be responsible for your health and well being is the moment you have accepted responsibilty for your health, and can truly begin to heal.
Heart disease: 652,091
Cancer: 559,312
250,000 Total deaths per year from iatrogenic* causes (This is somehow left off the list the CDC publishes, I added from my own research, link is below)
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 143,579
Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 130,933
Accidents (unintentional injuries): 117,809
Diabetes: 75,119
Alzheimer's disease: 71,599
Influenza/Pneumonia: 63,001
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 43,901
Septicemia: 34,136
CDC death statistics 2005
106,000 Non-error, negative effects of drugs2
80,000 Infections in hospitals10
45,000 Other errors in hospitals10
12,000 Unnecessary surgery8
7,000 Medication errors in hospitals9
250,000 Total deaths per year from iatrogenic* causes
Iatrogenic Deaths
I am prepared to now take my health into my own hands, I accept that it is my responsibility to provide my body with the nutrition, environment, and energy that it needs to treat me well. Garbage in, Garbage out. I am becoming acutely aware that a quick fix, or a prescription pill is simply that a quick fix, no pharmaceautical drug can claim to eradicate the CAUSE of the symptom or disease that you are experiencing. A prescription pill simply suppresses the symptom. I was amused one day to hear a lady on a asthma medication commercial comment in surprise that even when she was taking the competitors pill her asthma didn't go away! I am not a "hater" of modern medicine, it has it's place. At my house it is the last resort, a we need to buy more time situation. If I am in a car accident and my guts are hanging outside of me please don't take me to my chiropractor, I would like to be rushed to the nearest, and best hospital to have my parts put back together. If I have a fever, please take me to my chiropractor, give me lots of fluids, and time to rest, I will pass on the Tylenol.
Incidentally I was at my chiropractors office today and overheard a older woman discussing how she was just diagnosed yesterday with type II diabetes. She was surprised, and I am sure upset with the life changing information. She reported that she was still just borderline, and went on to give her geneology about how no one on her side of the family had diabetes. She needed help, and commented that she had taken her first pill last night. Quite honestly I wasn't surprised at the diagnonsis, however I was disappointed at the doctors decision to so quickly give her medication. She was overweight, and I am sure a closer look at her records would show to any educated person that the body had held off as long as it could. Our pancreases can only take so much of a beating of a garbage lifestyle! At some point after we have failed our bodies for so long they WILL start to fail us. Type II diabetes can not only be managed it can be CURED by diet and exercise! I am not offereing medical advice, I am offering an alternative. I love the show the Biggest Loser and every season without fail someone arrives at the ranch with diabetes, by the end (if not midway through) the season the type II diabetes gone, along with things such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and sleep apnea.
At what point are you going to be willing to say that prevention is more important the a quick fix later. Aren't you better off putting the realiable pipes into your home, giving yourself more of a gurantee against leaks? I have found the chiropractic lifestyle that we have adopted to be the realiable pipes. Admittedly it seems to cost a little more upfront, but I am worth it, Danny is worth it and so are my kids. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and the cost for it seems to pan out that way as well. Knowing what I do now about the benefit of good nutrition and alternative health care I ask the question can you put a price on good health?
If you have a symptom I have a mirred of suggestions as to what you can do to help your body heal itself. There is a good chance that your will first have to wrap your mind around the fact that it won't come in the form of a pill, I won't want to take your blood pressure, or have you pee in a cup. Chances are you won't ever have to take your health insurance card out of your wallet. You won't have to find out if I am in your network of preferred providers, double check how many visits you can have a year, and what if any of my services are covered. To some it is at this moment that the panic sets in, I assure you this is the exact opposite of what you should feel. The moment you stop looking to Blue Cross and Blue Shield, IHC, UHC, Aetna (should I go on) to be responsible for your health and well being is the moment you have accepted responsibilty for your health, and can truly begin to heal.
Heart disease: 652,091
Cancer: 559,312
250,000 Total deaths per year from iatrogenic* causes (This is somehow left off the list the CDC publishes, I added from my own research, link is below)
Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 143,579
Chronic lower respiratory diseases: 130,933
Accidents (unintentional injuries): 117,809
Diabetes: 75,119
Alzheimer's disease: 71,599
Influenza/Pneumonia: 63,001
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis: 43,901
Septicemia: 34,136
CDC death statistics 2005
106,000 Non-error, negative effects of drugs2
80,000 Infections in hospitals10
45,000 Other errors in hospitals10
12,000 Unnecessary surgery8
7,000 Medication errors in hospitals9
250,000 Total deaths per year from iatrogenic* causes
Iatrogenic Deaths
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Maternity Care: High Tech vs. High Touch
From Consumer Reports:
Back to basics for safer childbirth
Too many doctors and hospitals are overusing high-tech procedures
Noninvasive measures can mean better outcomes for baby and Mom.
When it's time to bring a new baby into the world, there's a lot to be said for letting nature take the lead. The normal, hormone-driven changes in the body that naturally occur during delivery can optimize infant health and encourage the easy establishment and continuation of breastfeeding and mother-baby attachment.
"Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve," co-authored by Carol Sakala and Maureen P. Corry of the nonprofit Childbirth Connection analyzed hundreds of the most recent studies and systematic reviews of maternity care. The 70-page report was issued collaboratively by Childbirth Connection, the Reforming States Group (a voluntary association of state-level health policymakers), and Milbank Memorial Fund, and released on Oct. 8, 2008.
Overuse of high-tech measures
The report found that, in the U.S., too many healthy women with low-risk pregnancies are being routinely subjected to high-tech or invasive interventions that should be reserved for higher-risk pregnancies. Such measures include:
Inducing labor. The percentage of women whose labor was induced more than doubled between 1990 and 2005
Use of epidural painkillers, which might cause adverse effects, including rapid fetal heart rate and poor performance on newborn assessment tests
Delivery by Caesarean section, which is estimated to account for one-third of all U.S births in 2008, will far exceed the World Health Organization's recommended national rate of 5 to 10 percent
Electronic fetal monitoring, unnecessarily adding to delivery costs
Rupturing membranes ("breaking the waters"), intending to hasten onset of labor
Episiotomy, which is often unnecessary
In fact, the current style of maternity care is so procedure-intensive that 6 of the 15 most common hospital procedures used in the entire U.S. are related to childbirth. Although most childbearing women in this country are healthy and at low risk for childbirth complications, national surveys reveal that essentially all women who give birth in U.S. hospitals have high rates of use of complex interventions, with risks of adverse effects.
The reasons for this overuse might have more to do with profit and liability issues than with optimal care, the report points out. Hospitals and care providers can increase their insurance reimbursements by administering costly high-tech interventions rather than just watching, waiting, and shepherding the natural process of childbirth.
Convenience for health care workers and patients might be another factor. Naturally occurring labor is not limited to typical working hours. Evidence also shows that a disproportionate amount of tech-driven interventions like Caesarean sections occur during weekday "business hours," rather than at night, on weekends, or on holidays.
Underuse of high-touch, noninvasive measures
Many practices that have been proven effective and do little to no harm are underused in today's maternity care for healthy low-risk women. They include:
Prenatal vitamins
Use of midwife or family physician
Continuous presence of a companion for the mother during labor
Upright and side-lying positions during labor and delivery, which are associated with less severe pain than lying down on one's back
Vaginal birth (VBAC) for most women who have had a previous Caesarean section
Early mother-baby skin-to-skin contact
The study suggests that those and other low-cost, beneficial practices are not routinely practiced for several reasons, including limited scope for economic gain, lack of national standards to measure providers' performance, and a medical tradition that doesn't prioritize the measurement of adverse effects, or take them into account. Article on the Web
Back to basics for safer childbirth
Too many doctors and hospitals are overusing high-tech procedures
Noninvasive measures can mean better outcomes for baby and Mom.
When it's time to bring a new baby into the world, there's a lot to be said for letting nature take the lead. The normal, hormone-driven changes in the body that naturally occur during delivery can optimize infant health and encourage the easy establishment and continuation of breastfeeding and mother-baby attachment.
"Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve," co-authored by Carol Sakala and Maureen P. Corry of the nonprofit Childbirth Connection analyzed hundreds of the most recent studies and systematic reviews of maternity care. The 70-page report was issued collaboratively by Childbirth Connection, the Reforming States Group (a voluntary association of state-level health policymakers), and Milbank Memorial Fund, and released on Oct. 8, 2008.
Overuse of high-tech measures
The report found that, in the U.S., too many healthy women with low-risk pregnancies are being routinely subjected to high-tech or invasive interventions that should be reserved for higher-risk pregnancies. Such measures include:
Inducing labor. The percentage of women whose labor was induced more than doubled between 1990 and 2005
Use of epidural painkillers, which might cause adverse effects, including rapid fetal heart rate and poor performance on newborn assessment tests
Delivery by Caesarean section, which is estimated to account for one-third of all U.S births in 2008, will far exceed the World Health Organization's recommended national rate of 5 to 10 percent
Electronic fetal monitoring, unnecessarily adding to delivery costs
Rupturing membranes ("breaking the waters"), intending to hasten onset of labor
Episiotomy, which is often unnecessary
In fact, the current style of maternity care is so procedure-intensive that 6 of the 15 most common hospital procedures used in the entire U.S. are related to childbirth. Although most childbearing women in this country are healthy and at low risk for childbirth complications, national surveys reveal that essentially all women who give birth in U.S. hospitals have high rates of use of complex interventions, with risks of adverse effects.
The reasons for this overuse might have more to do with profit and liability issues than with optimal care, the report points out. Hospitals and care providers can increase their insurance reimbursements by administering costly high-tech interventions rather than just watching, waiting, and shepherding the natural process of childbirth.
Convenience for health care workers and patients might be another factor. Naturally occurring labor is not limited to typical working hours. Evidence also shows that a disproportionate amount of tech-driven interventions like Caesarean sections occur during weekday "business hours," rather than at night, on weekends, or on holidays.
Underuse of high-touch, noninvasive measures
Many practices that have been proven effective and do little to no harm are underused in today's maternity care for healthy low-risk women. They include:
Prenatal vitamins
Use of midwife or family physician
Continuous presence of a companion for the mother during labor
Upright and side-lying positions during labor and delivery, which are associated with less severe pain than lying down on one's back
Vaginal birth (VBAC) for most women who have had a previous Caesarean section
Early mother-baby skin-to-skin contact
The study suggests that those and other low-cost, beneficial practices are not routinely practiced for several reasons, including limited scope for economic gain, lack of national standards to measure providers' performance, and a medical tradition that doesn't prioritize the measurement of adverse effects, or take them into account. Article on the Web
Friday, November 14, 2008
Chiropractic and Ear Infections
I have 3 blogs, this one, one dedicated to FIF, and lastly my chiropractic blog. While I love them all, I take special pride in my chiropractic blog. As chiropractic has changed my life it brings a little joy to see all the visits from around the world on my chiropractic blog. The number one topic that gets hit is chiropractic and ear infections. I have had other authors link to my blog specifically for these articles. The articles weren't written by me, but are more easily accessible on my blog.
Yesterday when I arrived at the YMCA for Annika's music class I joined in a conversation that two mothers were having about their childrens recurrent ear infections. I mentioned they should see a chiropractor, to which I received a look of whatever crazy. As the conversation progressed it moved to the need for tubes. I took this as another opportunity to mention chiropractic, but with a more personal story to share. I have a friend who's daughter had entered the evil ear infection antibiotic cycle and the doctor had mentioned that the next step would be tubes in the ears. Wanting to avoid this at all cost she finally called me and asked for my chiropractors number. Her daughter went in for one visit, one, just one visit, the ear infection cleared up and has yet to return. Major surgery avoided for a $7.00 visit to the chiropractor. The women were suprised, and wanted to know how a "back" doctor could help with ear infections. I gave them a really quick explanation and one women asked if I had the chiropractors card. I also shared that my 17 month old hadn't had a single ear infection and that he had been adjusted at 6 hours old. She wanted to know why it would be necassary to adjust such a small baby. Think of the first thing that happens as soon as the babies head is out of the birth canal, your doctor pulls on it to help get the rest of the baby out. He may not pull hard enough to pull your babies head off (let's hope) but it doesn't take much to move those fragile bones out of alignment. Here is one of the articles from my other blog that explains how chiropractic works with ear infections, and it's not from some secret chiropractic journal it is from Ladies Home Journal.
"Chiropractic Helps in Prevention of Recurring Ear Infections.
In the October 1998 issue of the Ladies Home Journal appeared an article entitled, "Chiropractic Adjustments for Chronic Ear Infections." This article reviewed several studies showing the effectiveness of chiropractic care for preventing re-occurring ear infections known as Otitis Media or OM.
According to the article, reoccurring ear infections account for over 35% of all pediatrician visits in the United States. Sometimes these infections are due to bacteria and sometimes these are due to a virus. The most common medical care for this situation has been antibiotics, even though antibiotics have no effect on viruses. While the article mentions that the antibiotic may be effective in an acute bacterial infection, they do nothing to stop repeat infections. Research and statistics is now showing that repeated use of antibiotics is contributing to future infections by creating drug-resistant infections. The surgical approach has met with little long term results as the "tubes" placed in children’s ears often come out and usually require a child to be put under general anesthesia to do the surgery.
The article in the Ladies Home Journal states, "Chiropractic care is thought to prevent recurrent infections by correcting misalignments (called subluxations) and allowing normal fluid drainage from the middle ear." What the article took special note of was that 6 months after the chiropractic care was given to the children in the study, 80 percent had not suffered a recurrence of ear infections.
In closing the article did make a profound statement. They made a recommendation to parents on this subject. "If your child is between ear infections and his doctor suggests ear-tube surgery, ask if you can try chiropractic treatment first." While we agree with that sentiment, we suggest you not wait for a period between episodes, and you don’t have to "ask" permission from any other doctor to seek chiropractic care. As the sneaker company said, "just do it!"
Don't wait around for Danny to make it back to Utah, you can come and see him when he gets there. Help your kids be ear infection free take them to a chiropractor today! Article on the Web
Yesterday when I arrived at the YMCA for Annika's music class I joined in a conversation that two mothers were having about their childrens recurrent ear infections. I mentioned they should see a chiropractor, to which I received a look of whatever crazy. As the conversation progressed it moved to the need for tubes. I took this as another opportunity to mention chiropractic, but with a more personal story to share. I have a friend who's daughter had entered the evil ear infection antibiotic cycle and the doctor had mentioned that the next step would be tubes in the ears. Wanting to avoid this at all cost she finally called me and asked for my chiropractors number. Her daughter went in for one visit, one, just one visit, the ear infection cleared up and has yet to return. Major surgery avoided for a $7.00 visit to the chiropractor. The women were suprised, and wanted to know how a "back" doctor could help with ear infections. I gave them a really quick explanation and one women asked if I had the chiropractors card. I also shared that my 17 month old hadn't had a single ear infection and that he had been adjusted at 6 hours old. She wanted to know why it would be necassary to adjust such a small baby. Think of the first thing that happens as soon as the babies head is out of the birth canal, your doctor pulls on it to help get the rest of the baby out. He may not pull hard enough to pull your babies head off (let's hope) but it doesn't take much to move those fragile bones out of alignment. Here is one of the articles from my other blog that explains how chiropractic works with ear infections, and it's not from some secret chiropractic journal it is from Ladies Home Journal.
"Chiropractic Helps in Prevention of Recurring Ear Infections.
In the October 1998 issue of the Ladies Home Journal appeared an article entitled, "Chiropractic Adjustments for Chronic Ear Infections." This article reviewed several studies showing the effectiveness of chiropractic care for preventing re-occurring ear infections known as Otitis Media or OM.
According to the article, reoccurring ear infections account for over 35% of all pediatrician visits in the United States. Sometimes these infections are due to bacteria and sometimes these are due to a virus. The most common medical care for this situation has been antibiotics, even though antibiotics have no effect on viruses. While the article mentions that the antibiotic may be effective in an acute bacterial infection, they do nothing to stop repeat infections. Research and statistics is now showing that repeated use of antibiotics is contributing to future infections by creating drug-resistant infections. The surgical approach has met with little long term results as the "tubes" placed in children’s ears often come out and usually require a child to be put under general anesthesia to do the surgery.
The article in the Ladies Home Journal states, "Chiropractic care is thought to prevent recurrent infections by correcting misalignments (called subluxations) and allowing normal fluid drainage from the middle ear." What the article took special note of was that 6 months after the chiropractic care was given to the children in the study, 80 percent had not suffered a recurrence of ear infections.
In closing the article did make a profound statement. They made a recommendation to parents on this subject. "If your child is between ear infections and his doctor suggests ear-tube surgery, ask if you can try chiropractic treatment first." While we agree with that sentiment, we suggest you not wait for a period between episodes, and you don’t have to "ask" permission from any other doctor to seek chiropractic care. As the sneaker company said, "just do it!"
Don't wait around for Danny to make it back to Utah, you can come and see him when he gets there. Help your kids be ear infection free take them to a chiropractor today! Article on the Web
Friday, October 24, 2008
28 Laws of Attraction
Danny, being in chiropractic school, has afforded us several opportunities to experience greatness. Every quarter the school lines up speakers that Danny hears as part of the curriculum. They have additional seminars called lifesource, and these are filled with amazing speakers as well. This weekend is homecoming, and it is more of the same, wonderful speakers. Knowing my passion Danny and I either go together or divide and conquer to experience as much of this powerful knowledge as possible. Thursday night I had the chance to hear Dr. Guy Reikeman. When I have the chance to hear these empowering speakers I can't take it in fast enough. I leave on a high and know that I can take on the world. Someday I will be standing on a stage and sharing the passion that I have for life with others. I only hope to do it as well as those that have inspired me, and to lead others to want to experience life.
Tonight Dr. Reikeman shared the 28 laws of attraction. I am not going to share all 28, you will have to find that on your own, I have picked several of my favorites to share. Danny also wanted me to add that when FIF gets to long he won't read it so he encourages a short post.
**While the ideas are from the speaker the words and thoughts are my own**
Tonight Dr. Reikeman shared the 28 laws of attraction. I am not going to share all 28, you will have to find that on your own, I have picked several of my favorites to share. Danny also wanted me to add that when FIF gets to long he won't read it so he encourages a short post.**While the ideas are from the speaker the words and thoughts are my own**
1. The people who attract abundance are selfish. Not in a negative way, but in focusing on learning and growing and becoming better so they can give more to others. How many times have you heard that a mother that isn't taking care of her own needs will struggle to meet all of her children's needs. You can't help others unless you are helping yourself.
2. Unhook from the future. The law of attraction works in the present. If you are spending all of your time focusing on what is to come, you will miss what has arrived. On Oprah a few years back there was a man who mentioned the habit of holding out for what is coming is like a disease. Along with having a misguided focus, you miss out on the goodness that is happening RIGHT NOW!
3. Become irresistibly attractive to yourself. Learn to love yourself. The more your love yourself the more attractive you become to others. I will never forget the day that I was thinking about love. I was thinking about why Danny would love me, and I had a life changing moment when my first thought was "why wouldn't he love me, I love me, and think that I am worth and deserve his love." If you had asked me if I loved myself before this I would have said yes, but I know that until that moment I wouldn't have meant it from my core. Now I know that I love myself all the way, and I think that I am deserving of the love I get from others.
A great life is attractive a great LIFESTYLE is seductive.
4. Eliminate delay, time is expensive. Wasting time is unattractive, are we wasting the moment. As Danny and I start making plans to finish school and start a practice this advice has become invaluable. I remember hearing my grandma say often, why put off until tomorrow, what you can do today.
5. Get your needs met, find your own happiness. It is the complainers in this life that are seeking for others to meet their needs. Until you realize that you and your needs are your responsibility you will drag others down as you wait for them to bring you up. If your needs are unmet you will attract other likes that. My mom always said misery loves company...
6. Tolerate nothing, how do you hold others, and yourself responsible for what is going on. I didn't truly learn this lesson until I worked at Discover Card. It is one of life's most important lessons, the ability to accept responsibility for the good AND the bad.
7. Show others how to please you, don't make them guess. Dr. Phil has always said you teach people how to treat you. If someone does something to you that you don't like, they won't stop doing it until you show them how you WANT to be treated.
8. Endorse your worst weakness, when you can accept your own weaknesses you can understand others better. See my FIF from last week empathy is empowering.
9. Sensitize yourself, the more you can feel the more you'll connect to others.
10. See perfection in the present, even when it's clearly not there. I LOVE THIS ONE!
11. Have a vision, when you can see what's coming you don't need to create a future.
12. Be more human, at the end of the day we are all human, and just want someone to connect with.
***Celebrate what is right with the world, don't wallow in what is wrong****
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Ignorance
Ignorance.
I think this is something that is hard to admit that we have, or we delightfully exclaim that ignorance is bliss. I am guilty of both, however, my feelings towards admitting ignorance has changed as well as my thoughts that it is bliss.
In order to better prepare myself for this I looked up ignorance in the dictionary. While the first definition was slightly insulting, LACK OF EDUCATION, stupidity, foolishness, blindness, illiteracy, benightedness, unenlightenment, unintelligence, mental darkness. I found the second definition to more accurately describe the ignorance I have or have had. It described ignorance as UNAWARENESS OF, inexperience of, unfamiliarity with, innocence of, unconsciousness of, greenness about, oblivion about. The two adjectives that stick out most to me are unawareness and innocence of. I think both are something that I have overcome, or am working on overcoming.
In all the changes we have made regarding our health and lifestyles the thing I have learned the most about has been sympathy and empathy. While I have always had a knack for listening and comforting others this has been taken to a new level. Because I have experienced life one way, and now experience life another my ability to be sympathetic is greater. My capacity to love, and show compassion without sharing my own obstacles has heightened, and the way I show my sympathy has changed. I used to listen and be compassionate by sharing my own similar experiences. I choose now to listen and comfort while trying to redirect energy to the positive and expand on the good, or simply stick with listening. While I have experienced life events that seem devastating at the time one thing has been consistent for me, life moves on. With this I have two choices, I can pick up as many pieces as I can put a smile on my face and move on with life, or I can sit in my misery puddle and let life pass me by. Having done both I know which one is more beneficial for me and those around me.
I am often confronted by those who are shocked and amazed that I have four children with a fifth on the way. Just today a woman commented that she was surprised that I still had hair. Confused I touched my hair and said what? She responded saying she was surprised that I hadn’t pulled it all out with the stress that I must have from my children and having a husband who is gone so much. She asked how I did it. I have a simple answer for that, I just do. And I try my hardest to do it with a smile. Some days are hard or really hard and I won’t lie and say that I think raising four kids is easy, but is it supposed to be? Is being a parent supposed to be easy? A parent with two children faces challenges just as a parent with eight children does. It is not the challenge that needs focus it is having the skills to deal with the challenge that are important. In this situation size does not matter, skills do.
I told Danny I struggle with how to respond when people comment to me that I sure have my hands full, or something of that nature, I always felt my response played into the fact that indeed my hands were full and I was overworked and underpaid. I was so grateful the day the inspired response came to me of “I know, aren’t I lucky.” This has stopped a few people in their tracks, and usually puts a smile on the comment maker’s face. Positive energy is sometimes hard to come by, I try my hardest to deliver it wherever I can. The best thing about this response is that some days I do feel like my hands aren’t big enough, but I redirect myself when I focus on the blessing and not the challenge.
What does this have to do with ignorance? I was ignorant in my understanding that my reactions to others could affect their energy as well as my own and I was a more selfish person. I learned a great lesson from a healer. He has studied for many years and is very learned in what he practices. When explaining to us what his response to those who tell him that what he is doing is foolish or stupid, he doesn’t respond with anger or malice. He told us that it simply causes him to love them more. I believe that this is how Christ loves us. He loves us for the things we know, but loves us even more for the things we are ignorant in. I know that if we have a sincere desire in our heart to replace ignorance with truth Christ with bless us with a path to gain this knowledge. I have had moments of pure intelligence, and simple epiphanies that I know are a blessing for having my heart in the right place, and my mind open to receive the answers to my questions.
Am I still ignorant, certainly, am I working on this? My desire to gain knowledge is greater now than it has ever been before. I know that next to my relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus, and my family the knowledge that I have and gain is the most important thing to me. I am grateful to have the gift of the Holy Ghost who lets my heart know when I have found truth, or when I am simply dealing with the philosophies of men. My mom said it best to me the other day as I was describing what is what like listening to Dr. Ted Morter speak. I mentioned that I almost felt like I was listening to general conference, to that she replied “truth is truth is doesn’t matter where it is coming from.” It made me realize that sometimes you will know the truth in your heart long before you are able to accept it in your head.
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