I am still loving my kindle though finding the time to read can be tough. Even though the voice on the kindle is android I have found I enjoy plugging in some earphones and listening to the books while driving.
Reading:
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy
Weigh Down Diet
I'm Chocolate, You're Vanilla: Raising Healthy Black and Biracial Children in a Race-Conscious World
Read:
A Swiftly Tilting Planet (Madeleine L'Engle's Time Quintet)
A Wind in the Door (Madeleine L'Engle's Time Quintet)
A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'Engle's Time Quintet)
Growing Up in the Care of Strangers: The Experiences, Insights and Recommendations of Eleven Former Foster Kids
Nairobi Heat (Melville International Crime)
Heaven is for Real
Unbroken: A WWII Story
Secrets in the Cellar
Damaged: The heartbreaking True Story of a forgotten Child
My Dad's a Policeman
A wrinkle in time
Tough as nails: One Woman's Journey Through West Point
Ape House: A Novel
Climbing the broken stairs
Call It What It Is
Empty Chairs
Abused--a daughter's story
Pregnant women on drugs: combatting stereotypes
Oliver Twist
Hiding Place -Corrie Ten Boom
Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to.....
Bondage Breaker
Lamb
Green For Life
Smoothie Revolution
Citizen Soldiers: The U.S. Army form the Normandy Beaches to the Bulge to the Surrender
Harriete Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad
Taming the Nueces Strip - Durham
The War Journal of Major Damon "Rocky" Gause-Ambrose
5 Love Languages - Gray
Power Praying Wife - Omartin
Dare to Discipline - Dobson
123 Magic
When Bad Things happen to Good People - Kuhner
Scientist in the Crib--Science meets how babies brains work--this just interests me
Happiest Toddler on the Block
Millionaire Next Door - Stanley
Love Dare
Home Safe Home (alternatives to toxic laden household products)
'One of these days'
Skinny Bitch in the Kitchen (wholistic eating)
Omnivore's Dilemma
Power Spoken Word
Power Spoken Tongue
Sacred Marriage
Butekyo Breathing Shut your Mouth
The surrendered Wife-Neumans
"Better' - Atu Guande
Woman Power - Schlessinger
Priceless - Ramsey
Proper Care and Feeding Marriage - Schlessinger
QBQ - Miller
Raising Girls - Dobson
DNA of relationships-
The Greatest Words Ever Spoken
Power Praying Wife
Purpose Driven Life - Warren
Friday, November 11, 2011
Friday, October 21, 2011
cups, treatments & nebs, oh my
http://www.cff.org/UploadedFiles/LivingWithCF/StayingHealthy/LungHealth/WhichNebulizer/WhichNebulizerForWhichDrug.pdf
I was getting confused on which nebulizer cups to use with my mobilaire and my pari and for which drugs, this is helpful.
I was getting confused on which nebulizer cups to use with my mobilaire and my pari and for which drugs, this is helpful.
Tracking FEV1
Wow, what a slacker I am, I haven't been here in forever. I'd love to say I'm going to get better but the truth is life is pretty busy and while I think about good posts in my head they rarely make them to my fingertips. That being said I saved my pulmonary report from last week and wanted to get it recorded before I lost it.
Considering it's October, I just got over a cold, and a few other factors not in my favor I'm doing pretty well but my numbers are lower than I'd like. Need to hop on the compliance and work out bandwagon aLOT harder.
Oddly, after all my sensitivity issues and then reacting to antibiotics this most recent culture came back astoundingly sensitive, so much so I think it's a fluke. It showed only pseudomonas, no achromabacter and it was sensitive to everything except chloramphenicol which isn't even used in my clinic. I told the doctor I didn't buy it, I've worked in a lab long enough to see a HUGE outlier and we're taking bets on if the culture from this week shows up the same way or not.
Also, to note that my fantastic results of last april are highly atypical, I have not since achieved such results, of course, to be fair, I am no longer doing the candida diet and treatment, may be time to start that again. I have been running FEV1 in the 90's all year.
19Oct2011 FVC 95 FEV1-90 FEV25/75-84
Clinic Notes: One week post nasty cold, rainy, no morning breathing treatments. Mucous production still above baseline but cough back to almost baseline. Sinuses problematic lately. Some pleural tightness but not sick.
23Apr2010 FVC 127 FEV1 114 (up 14% WOW) FEV25-75 102 (up 12% WOW)
Notes: this is especially fantastic given my allergies are running wild and I have seen a drop in my peak flow the past few days from it. I normally write down my PEF (peak flow) but he pointed out that mine was off the chart this time, my Peak flow was 11.82 which equates to 150 L/min higher than two months ago i.e. the little plastic things we use measures in L/min.
Clinic Notes: Discussed recent treatment for candida. Fatigue, chronic pain, pleural pain, all gone. Lung functions are the best on record and it is after no drugs or steroids where as the 108% last year was after serious steroids.
18Feb2010 FVC 110 FEV1 100 FEV25-75 90
Clinic Notes: This was post IV's (stopped Christmas Eve) and 2 rounds prednisone totaling 5 weeks (1st round stopped New Years day and 2nd round was 3 weeks in January). Infection is gone but still having chronic pain on left side when breathing, especially deep breathing, still intermitten pleurisy, still fatigued and not feeling right, feel like I do right before I get a bleed. Discussed potentially entering chronic pain phase of CF (I do not accept this). Also started drinking mucomyst N-acetylcysteine since last visit so reported good results in gastro area from this, no large effect noted on the lungs. Discussed going to CA to consult with Dr.Moss on inflammation and also discussed pursuing testing for candida with family doctor.
3May2009 FVC 118 FEV1 104 (down 4%) FEV25-75% 88 (up 1%)
Clinic Notes: re-check post steroids and pre-pregnancy (attempt). Everything looks great, feeling good, allergies are problematic and doc did say that my theory on my allergic reactions having residual inflammatory effect on my lungs (which I did another week steroids for) was very possible. His pregnancy recommendations are to be vigilent with physiotherapy especially hit it hard in 2nd tri' to get ready for 3rd when lungs are most compromised and there is the biggest risk.
March2009: FVC FEV1 108 FEV25-75% 87
Clinic Notes: Recheck after end of steroids, feeling good. Best FEV1 ever!
29Feb2009 FVC 111 FEV1 100 (down 3%) FEV25-75% 88 (down 14%)
Clinic Notes: feel inflammatory in nature start 2 weeks steroids 40mg taper. Still got streaking in day 2 steroids.
15Dec2008 FEV1 103 FEV25-75 102%
Clinic Notes: summer steroids early winter cold w 3 weeks cipro)
21Feb2008: FVC 105.3 FEV1 99.3 FEV25-75% 89.1 BP 114/68 HR 59 Wt152
Clinic Notes: was getting huge variability and felt something 'stuck'
25Jun2007: FVC 105 FEV1 97 FEV25-75% 82
4Dec2007: FVC 99 FEV1 91 FEV25-75% 77
Considering it's October, I just got over a cold, and a few other factors not in my favor I'm doing pretty well but my numbers are lower than I'd like. Need to hop on the compliance and work out bandwagon aLOT harder.
Oddly, after all my sensitivity issues and then reacting to antibiotics this most recent culture came back astoundingly sensitive, so much so I think it's a fluke. It showed only pseudomonas, no achromabacter and it was sensitive to everything except chloramphenicol which isn't even used in my clinic. I told the doctor I didn't buy it, I've worked in a lab long enough to see a HUGE outlier and we're taking bets on if the culture from this week shows up the same way or not.
Also, to note that my fantastic results of last april are highly atypical, I have not since achieved such results, of course, to be fair, I am no longer doing the candida diet and treatment, may be time to start that again. I have been running FEV1 in the 90's all year.
19Oct2011 FVC 95 FEV1-90 FEV25/75-84
Clinic Notes: One week post nasty cold, rainy, no morning breathing treatments. Mucous production still above baseline but cough back to almost baseline. Sinuses problematic lately. Some pleural tightness but not sick.
23Apr2010 FVC 127 FEV1 114 (up 14% WOW) FEV25-75 102 (up 12% WOW)
Notes: this is especially fantastic given my allergies are running wild and I have seen a drop in my peak flow the past few days from it. I normally write down my PEF (peak flow) but he pointed out that mine was off the chart this time, my Peak flow was 11.82 which equates to 150 L/min higher than two months ago i.e. the little plastic things we use measures in L/min.
Clinic Notes: Discussed recent treatment for candida. Fatigue, chronic pain, pleural pain, all gone. Lung functions are the best on record and it is after no drugs or steroids where as the 108% last year was after serious steroids.
18Feb2010 FVC 110 FEV1 100 FEV25-75 90
Clinic Notes: This was post IV's (stopped Christmas Eve) and 2 rounds prednisone totaling 5 weeks (1st round stopped New Years day and 2nd round was 3 weeks in January). Infection is gone but still having chronic pain on left side when breathing, especially deep breathing, still intermitten pleurisy, still fatigued and not feeling right, feel like I do right before I get a bleed. Discussed potentially entering chronic pain phase of CF (I do not accept this). Also started drinking mucomyst N-acetylcysteine since last visit so reported good results in gastro area from this, no large effect noted on the lungs. Discussed going to CA to consult with Dr.Moss on inflammation and also discussed pursuing testing for candida with family doctor.
3May2009 FVC 118 FEV1 104 (down 4%) FEV25-75% 88 (up 1%)
Clinic Notes: re-check post steroids and pre-pregnancy (attempt). Everything looks great, feeling good, allergies are problematic and doc did say that my theory on my allergic reactions having residual inflammatory effect on my lungs (which I did another week steroids for) was very possible. His pregnancy recommendations are to be vigilent with physiotherapy especially hit it hard in 2nd tri' to get ready for 3rd when lungs are most compromised and there is the biggest risk.
March2009: FVC FEV1 108 FEV25-75% 87
Clinic Notes: Recheck after end of steroids, feeling good. Best FEV1 ever!
29Feb2009 FVC 111 FEV1 100 (down 3%) FEV25-75% 88 (down 14%)
Clinic Notes: feel inflammatory in nature start 2 weeks steroids 40mg taper. Still got streaking in day 2 steroids.
15Dec2008 FEV1 103 FEV25-75 102%
Clinic Notes: summer steroids early winter cold w 3 weeks cipro)
21Feb2008: FVC 105.3 FEV1 99.3 FEV25-75% 89.1 BP 114/68 HR 59 Wt152
Clinic Notes: was getting huge variability and felt something 'stuck'
25Jun2007: FVC 105 FEV1 97 FEV25-75% 82
4Dec2007: FVC 99 FEV1 91 FEV25-75% 77
Sunday, June 12, 2011
update on me
A couple weeks ago I had a pretty nasty cold it was also right after we found out the Elliott had MRSA. I took that week, two weeks ago, off work thinking if I rested up from the cold which was kicking my butt and did the right things it would be 'just' a cold. I also figured that would give me the time to find E a new home and get our house decontaminated from MRSA which was an undertaking, the washing of stuff at the Laundromat alone cost almost $50.
I went to the doctor that week for my lungs as well which was a normally scheduled visit. My lung function was down a bit but at that point it was still just a cold and we agreed to watch and wait. I started to feel better on Sunday and was more than a bit tired of ‘taking it easy’ so I decided to be busy and productive, tell my body to get over it and all was pretty good; I was looking forward to returning to work on Monday. My body had other plans I woke up about midnight with severe lung pain on both sides, after some ibuprofen failed to work I woke Jared and asked for a vicodin that I have for lung pain then I decided to go to the ER as the vicodin wasn’t working either.
The ER was a futile trip spent in pain during all the hours of waiting while listening to the drug addict next door yell about he was in fact sober and they should let go of him and let him get back to the mission…fun times, I’d never been so glad for my kindle. Everyone seemed to think either I was having chest pain or back pain, no one seemed to accept that I was having pain from my lungs radiating down part of my back and into my chest….try explaining that when you can’t take a real breathe. I have to admit hours later when the doctor finally came in and told me it was a virus that just needed to run it’s course and I should just continue doing all my normal treatments I completely lost my cool and chewed him out telling him if I could breathe enough to do a breathing treatment I wouldn’t be here in the first place. In the end I said I’d follow up with my doctors and wanted to leave and apologized for being short. He said that he would give me something for the pain and send me home with instructions I could take two vicodin next time and then had the nurse give me so much dilaudid I was loopey the good thing was it stopped my coughing which also served to reduce the pain; I could tell as soon as it took effect as I could draw a breathe without pain.
The next day once I woke up I called my doctors who decided to start me on IV’s which arrived the next day. I was to do on inhaled antibiotic and IV zosyn which I have been on many times over the past about 5 years. The drugs in my lungs are pretty resistant to many antibiotics and zosyn seems to be the one stronghold that really works. I started my IV that night so it did one IV then and one during the night while I was sleeping and then I slept through while it was infusing my early morning one, 3 doses in total. Imagine my surprise when I woke covered in blotchy hives. Zosyn is a member of the cephalosporin family and it looks like I’ve developed a sensitivity to them. This was obviously a big blow to me since I had to stop the antibiotics and then they weren’t really sure on what they wanted to do since it appears that most of the drugs the bugs in my lungs are not resistant to also just happen to be part of the cephalosporin family. It took a day or so and then I started levaquin which is a strong oral antibiotic, initially I protested because it doesn’t normally work for me and the doctor had already passed over it in favor of IVs. I have what they call “intermediate” to that drug meaning basically it works but not as well as it should. Since our options were limited my normal doctor confirmed that was the best course but at a higher dosase and in continuance with the twice as strong inhaled antibiotics I was still doing.
The good news is that this combo seems to be working. Honestly I believe it is the inhaled antibiotic doing a good portion of the work since it started improving before the levaquin but with the type of bugs we CF’ers have in our lungs you never want to treat with only one antibiotic since that allows them to more easily build a resistance.
What one drug reaction wasn’t enough? Ok number two has intensified over the past week or so on the oral antibiotics and I am not scheduled to finish until Friday. I have previously been told I have plantar fasciitis in my right foot now it has intensified greatly and the left foot has started in. The bottoms of both feet have a swollen red nodule present just past my heel that persists despite icing and ibuprofen popping. According to Dr. Google it seems I may have really aggravated the fasciitis or partially torn it…fun. Levaquin has a black box warning from the FDA about tendonitis and tendon rupture but I am pretty certain it is responsible for this recent turn of events. I’m going to give my foot doctor a call on Monday to see if he can get me in. Unfortunately the tendon on my left wrist and foot are also hurting, I’ve had a bad bought tendinitis in my wrist before so I’m pulling out the wrist guards for sleeping to hopefully keep it from getting worse.
So let’s see, cold, MRSA scare, lung infection, hives, and now I’m hobbling like an old woman….ah these are the times of CF.
The good thing is that even if I have to stop the levaquin my lungs don’t feel in too bad of shape. I may be able to stop orals and start a second inhaled antibiotic, that will make for a lot of nebulizer times but if it lets me walk again and breathe easy it will be worth it. Better news is that the MRSA scare was just that, so far, a scare I have not tested positive for MRSA in my nose or my lungs *claps*. Also awesome news is that E is doing wonderfully as the only child in a first time foster family who are thrilled to have him are supporting reunification but also hoping to adopt some day.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Long Overdue, Update & Candida
Seems I am long overdue for a post or an update. I have been neglecting posting things I've been thinking about but I *have* been thinking about the blog a lot. I've been wondering if I should combine this with my personal blog, it seems I have so many 'special interests' CF, IVF, budgeting/Dave Ramsey, and now being a foster parent and hopefully soon adopting and I can't start a blog for all of them LOL! I considered starting a blog for our fostering/adopting and then I thought 3 blogs, really? no way! I think there are some things on here that are just 'too much' for some in my family readership but I'm torn. What say you.........combine or compartmentalize?
Anyway I just finished a 2 week course of zosyn and tobramycin yesterday. SO thankful that is over. I know some of you are hardcore and handle IVs like a rock star and while I like to think I have a pretty high tolerance for some things IVs are NOT one of them, especially zosyn. The good thing is that it makes me take the time to rest and allow my body to heal. The bad thing is...well, I feel awful, get migraines, extreme fatigue, and nausea.
I started 40mg of prednisone yesterday. I have found the past 2 times I have done IV which for me is zosyn I get very clear, very dry, but also inf lammed. The first time they did a bronch and all sorts of stuff which I've previously talked about to confirm it was "just" inflammation. This time the inflammation is not as bad (I've got my theories on this..in a few) but I decided to ask for a short burst to get everything in tip top shape. this is a risk since I think 1/2 my town is sick right now so I'm staying away from people as best I can aside from picking kiddo up at daycare and that involves hand sanitizer galore! Right now we just got over stomach flu which is going around, I have a 1.5 you nephew who just had surgery for a sinus infection that went abscessed due to MRSA, a 3yo niece with pneumonia, and a 6 week old niece with RSV! Whew. No seeing family for a while either.
So, my 'tip top shape' plan includes drinking the NAC (for me 20% USP grade acetylcysteine) 3x/day @ 1500mg, taking a probiotic that is formulated to eat candida yeast, a probiotic blend that is highly rated, doing the 5 days of steroids, diflucan each day to kill off the overgrowth of candida, loading myself up on HTS treatments to moisten/loosen anything that got dried out and stuck during IV's (my normal pattern is to get clear/dry after a week on IVs then get nothing up then a few days after IVs I get some of the 'stuck' stuff up which I think is stuck due to the inflammation the IVs cause). I also am trying to do some light form of excercise each day but I have to work back into that since I've been out of it for a while.
The inflammatory cause, as I mentioned I have my suspects. I have been treating myself for candida overgrowth of the gut for almost a year now. I don't have it 'beat' by any means but its better and I think that is why my inflammation is better this time around. Candida for me causes a lot of inflammation. So, in addition to the regimen above I am also doing the MEVY diet again, I really should have been doing it while I was on IV's and I did, some days, or parts of some days. I am so miserable on IVs and when I first start MEVY my body was revolting and I was too weak to do both (weak as far as resolve not physically). MEVY stands for meat, eggs, veggies, yogurt which is all you are supposed to eat. I am including some nuts and a few blueberries blended into my plain no sugar yogurt to make it more palatable but other than that it's boring. I am a big fruit lover and true sugar addict so its hard. Having candida actually makes you crave sugar even more because if they aren't being fed ie carbs/sugar they aren't happy. The goal of MEVY is not to provide them with the sugar/carb sources they need to live, effectively starving them out.
If you haven't heard me talk about candida before you can look here to start but you can also look for 'candida' in my tag section and they will all come uphttp://cftoo.blogspot.com/2010/03/my-take-on-candida-in-cf-community.html
Essentially your gut has a balance of good bacteria and yeast however when your body balance is off and favors the candida yeast it can 'take over' killing off much of the good bacteria (in my case they could only find 1 of the 3 kids that are supposed to be there) which is beneficial, this then allows the candida to thrive with no one to keep their numbers in check. Excess of Candida can cause a myriad of factors, check here: http://cftoo.blogspot.com/2010/03/candida-what-are-symptoms.html http://cftoo.blogspot.com/2010/02/candida.html One way I have heard it described is that it attacks people where they are weakest. For me it causes inflammation, my allergies got much worse, fatigue, and fuzzy thinking/irritability when it was bad.
What are some of the things that offset your bodies balance to favor yeast over beneficial bacteria? Well it seems much of what us CF'ers need to stay healthy in our lungs is hurting the balance of our body and I believe candida is MUCH more common than we know, since it mimicks and or exacerbates our symptoms of cf.
Hormone treatments including birth control and fertility treatments
Repeated antibiotic use
Steroid use
oh and stress....we never have any of that while managing a chronic disease huh?
Anyway I just finished a 2 week course of zosyn and tobramycin yesterday. SO thankful that is over. I know some of you are hardcore and handle IVs like a rock star and while I like to think I have a pretty high tolerance for some things IVs are NOT one of them, especially zosyn. The good thing is that it makes me take the time to rest and allow my body to heal. The bad thing is...well, I feel awful, get migraines, extreme fatigue, and nausea.
I started 40mg of prednisone yesterday. I have found the past 2 times I have done IV which for me is zosyn I get very clear, very dry, but also inf lammed. The first time they did a bronch and all sorts of stuff which I've previously talked about to confirm it was "just" inflammation. This time the inflammation is not as bad (I've got my theories on this..in a few) but I decided to ask for a short burst to get everything in tip top shape. this is a risk since I think 1/2 my town is sick right now so I'm staying away from people as best I can aside from picking kiddo up at daycare and that involves hand sanitizer galore! Right now we just got over stomach flu which is going around, I have a 1.5 you nephew who just had surgery for a sinus infection that went abscessed due to MRSA, a 3yo niece with pneumonia, and a 6 week old niece with RSV! Whew. No seeing family for a while either.
So, my 'tip top shape' plan includes drinking the NAC (for me 20% USP grade acetylcysteine) 3x/day @ 1500mg, taking a probiotic that is formulated to eat candida yeast, a probiotic blend that is highly rated, doing the 5 days of steroids, diflucan each day to kill off the overgrowth of candida, loading myself up on HTS treatments to moisten/loosen anything that got dried out and stuck during IV's (my normal pattern is to get clear/dry after a week on IVs then get nothing up then a few days after IVs I get some of the 'stuck' stuff up which I think is stuck due to the inflammation the IVs cause). I also am trying to do some light form of excercise each day but I have to work back into that since I've been out of it for a while.
The inflammatory cause, as I mentioned I have my suspects. I have been treating myself for candida overgrowth of the gut for almost a year now. I don't have it 'beat' by any means but its better and I think that is why my inflammation is better this time around. Candida for me causes a lot of inflammation. So, in addition to the regimen above I am also doing the MEVY diet again, I really should have been doing it while I was on IV's and I did, some days, or parts of some days. I am so miserable on IVs and when I first start MEVY my body was revolting and I was too weak to do both (weak as far as resolve not physically). MEVY stands for meat, eggs, veggies, yogurt which is all you are supposed to eat. I am including some nuts and a few blueberries blended into my plain no sugar yogurt to make it more palatable but other than that it's boring. I am a big fruit lover and true sugar addict so its hard. Having candida actually makes you crave sugar even more because if they aren't being fed ie carbs/sugar they aren't happy. The goal of MEVY is not to provide them with the sugar/carb sources they need to live, effectively starving them out.
If you haven't heard me talk about candida before you can look here to start but you can also look for 'candida' in my tag section and they will all come uphttp://cftoo.blogspot.com/2010/03/my-take-on-candida-in-cf-community.html
Essentially your gut has a balance of good bacteria and yeast however when your body balance is off and favors the candida yeast it can 'take over' killing off much of the good bacteria (in my case they could only find 1 of the 3 kids that are supposed to be there) which is beneficial, this then allows the candida to thrive with no one to keep their numbers in check. Excess of Candida can cause a myriad of factors, check here: http://cftoo.blogspot.com/2010/03/candida-what-are-symptoms.html http://cftoo.blogspot.com/2010/02/candida.html One way I have heard it described is that it attacks people where they are weakest. For me it causes inflammation, my allergies got much worse, fatigue, and fuzzy thinking/irritability when it was bad.
What are some of the things that offset your bodies balance to favor yeast over beneficial bacteria? Well it seems much of what us CF'ers need to stay healthy in our lungs is hurting the balance of our body and I believe candida is MUCH more common than we know, since it mimicks and or exacerbates our symptoms of cf.
Hormone treatments including birth control and fertility treatments
Repeated antibiotic use
Steroid use
oh and stress....we never have any of that while managing a chronic disease huh?
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Topical yeast, fungus, Candida Wash
I have zero idea if this will work but it *should* as long as it is not too irritating for your skin. I have had a couple people mention having topical yeast issues, of course there is some feet issues but some people seem to have it on their skin and I have read in some instances it can cause breakouts. I recently bought a 'refreshing' foot spray with peppermint oil, when I looked at it closer it said it will cure foot odor and when I looked at the ingredients I realized I could totally make it myself.
Here is my attempt at coming up with a natural, cheap, wash for someone dealing with fungus or candida issues. I would definitely do a 'spot' test since tea tree oil can be pretty strong.
Here is my attempt at coming up with a natural, cheap, wash for someone dealing with fungus or candida issues. I would definitely do a 'spot' test since tea tree oil can be pretty strong.
Tea Tree Oil This oil readily penetrates the skin and is useful for treating burns, scrapes, bites, stings, and various skin irritations. It may also help to prevent or treat yeast infections. Very effective fungicide, antibacterial and antiseptic.
Rejuvenating Cleanser Recipe
Ingredients
6 tablespoon Flax Seed Oil
6 Tablespoons Olive Oil
12 tablespoons castor oil
30 drop essential oils of your choice
Instructions:
Add carrier oils to a clean, dark glass bottle. Add essential oils. Gently shake to blend before each use. Store in a dark, glass bottle in a cool place or fridge. Apply a small amount to face and massage to cleanse. Rinse with warm water and a wash cloth. Skin will feel super smooth and silky! Perfect anti-aging cleanser!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Yuck and Ugh
Well I've been meaning to post just a normal post but of course it's easy to forget when you are feeling pretty good. That's come to a crashing halt.
Last week I took off thursday since it was my 31st birthday. Wouldn't you know wednesday night I could tell I was getting sick and for my birthday I spent the day on the couch with Lillian or in my bed. I tried not to let it damper my day so when Jared got home from work he took Lillian out, picked up dinner and we ate dinner in bed with my bed heater on which I love and I opened my present from him and from Lillian and we watched a show. Friday however I was worse, I ended up with a wretched flu that is still hanging on. I started inhaled cayston and colistin on monday and start cipro tonight (wed) a full WEEK after getting sick. Yuck! My peak flow has went from 560-570 to 420-440.
Wouldn't you know I called my new doctors office on monday and was put into a voicemail and never got a call back. Come to find out she doesnt HAVE voicemail so who knows where it ended up but its why I didnt get a call back.
I'm going to give this a try and I have a clinic appointment next week.
Last week I took off thursday since it was my 31st birthday. Wouldn't you know wednesday night I could tell I was getting sick and for my birthday I spent the day on the couch with Lillian or in my bed. I tried not to let it damper my day so when Jared got home from work he took Lillian out, picked up dinner and we ate dinner in bed with my bed heater on which I love and I opened my present from him and from Lillian and we watched a show. Friday however I was worse, I ended up with a wretched flu that is still hanging on. I started inhaled cayston and colistin on monday and start cipro tonight (wed) a full WEEK after getting sick. Yuck! My peak flow has went from 560-570 to 420-440.
Wouldn't you know I called my new doctors office on monday and was put into a voicemail and never got a call back. Come to find out she doesnt HAVE voicemail so who knows where it ended up but its why I didnt get a call back.
I'm going to give this a try and I have a clinic appointment next week.
Monday, January 24, 2011
pH
Just realized I posted this on my family blog on accident, oops, double oops because I haven't gotten the book yet either!
So I got some test strips that measure pH from 5-10 in increments of 0.5 and my husband and daughters pH registered 7 while mine registered 6 and once 5.5 Now I just tested this randomly and there are 'ideal' times to test so I plan to do some more tests. So far my very brief research indicates that a pH of 7.3-7.4 seems to be what the majority of websites are citing.
I plan to read the book Alkalize or Die by Dr. Theodore A. Baroody
Bodily Responses That Fight To Maintain pH
All metabolic processes, including immunity, depend on a delicately balanced pH, which harmonizes electromagnetic energies. The body constantly fights to maintain a blood pH at around 7.35 -7.45 much like our internal thermostat that tries to maintain a 98.6-degree body temperature. There are seven homeostatic adaptation responses that fight to maintain this pH balance.
1) Using high pH bodily fluids such as water as a solvent to neutralize acid residues.
2) Pulling bicarbonate from the pancreas into the blood (an alkalizing agent). Bicarbonate ions are generated into the blood cells from carbon dioxide and diffuse into the plasma.
3) Protein buffers of glutathione, methionine, cystine, taurine, just to name a few, act as buffers intra-cellularly to bind or neutralize acids during cellular disorganization.
4.) Electrolyte buffers of sodium, calcium and potassium work in the blood, lymph, and extra-cellular and intracellular fluids to bind acids, which are then removed through the urine.
5.) Pulling stored calcium and magnesium from skeletal bones and teeth to neutralize blood acids.
6.) Filtration and elimination of acidic residues through the skin, urinary tract and respiration.
7.) Pushing blood acid residues and accumulated toxins into outer extremities as a storage bin away from vital organs. The wrist, joints, fingers, toes and skin are the major target areas to keep the toxins from saturating internal vital organs like the heart and lungs.
When all seven-protection phases are overwhelmed, the end result is accumulated acid residues at the cellular level, which drown out oxygen. With this acidic, low oxygen terrain, the microzyma’s (small ferments) trigger morbid microbe infiltration of fungus, molds and parasites, cancer cells, etc., where they seek the diseased acid terrain as food. (Editor's note: The term "microzyma" was created by Antoine Bechamp. These are small living components of cells and are described more fully later in this article ).
As these organisms feed, they produce waste just like you do. Their urine and feces are called mycotoxins, which are very poisonous to humans. Being acids themselves, mycotoxins greatly worsen the acidity caused by an acidic diet and toxic acid emotions. They are spilled into the blood as well as inside cells, where they cause free radical damage to the genetic material of the cell eventually causing cell death. The dead necrotic cells also spill out acid wastes. The blood poisoning results in more cell and tissue poisoning furthering the disturbance of the microzyma triggering morbid forms of yeast, molds and viruses, which disrupts body chemistry causing disease to the systems. So it’s a vicious cycle. One acid condition creates anothet Acidic diet coupled with toxic acid emotions creates an acid pH to the cells. This causes low oxygen levels (hypoxia), which is necessary for keeping back destructive anaerobic microbes and immuno-suppression is the result. Then medical doctors come in and treat the acid condidon with another acid (pharmaceuticals).
Thus the saliva pH parallels the extra cellular fluid ... pH paper test using saliva represents the most consistent and most definitive physical sign of the ionic calcium deficiency syndrome ... The saliva pH of the non-deficient and healthy person is in the 7.5 to 7.1 slightly alkaline range. The range from 6.5 which is weakly acidic to 4.5 which is strongly acidic represents states from mildly deficient to strongly deficient, respectively.
Most children are 7.5. Over half of adults are 6.5 or lower, reflecting the calcium deficiency of aging and lifestyle defects. Cancer patients are usually a bright yellow, a pH of 4.5, especially when terminal."
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
I'm applying for mystery diagnosis!
I'm sure it wont pan out but hoping it can raise some awareness and help others!
As an infant I had unusual bowel movements but gained weight and looked healthy.
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As an infant I had unusual bowel movements but gained weight and looked healthy.
As a young child I developed painful stomach problems that at the age of 2-3 would leave me writhing in pain and continually crying. My mother was told that as an only child I was spoiled and I needed to be locked in my room until I stopped. These stomach problems happened periodically throughout my childhood and the cause was never determined despite multiple tests and doctors, by the time I was 7 I had learned breathing and distraction techniques taught in labor classes.
My mother recalls that I had colds and flus more common that some kids and my cough would last longer after the cold was resolved. About middle school it started getting much more pronounced and I was diagnosed with asthma and re-occurring bronchitis. My stomach problems continued intermittently, about once a year.
In high school I started getting sick a lot and ended up with pneumonia, mono, sinus infections, strep throat; you name it and I had it. I also had my first bought of pleurisy but it was after a skiing accident and was attributed to that. My first year of college I got sick a lot, I was living in dorm and I caught everything that went around. I had had a chronic cough for years but in college it began taking on a life of its own, I would cough so much throughout the night security would wake me up at night trying to see if I was ok.
In high school I started getting sick a lot and ended up with pneumonia, mono, sinus infections, strep throat; you name it and I had it. I also had my first bought of pleurisy but it was after a skiing accident and was attributed to that. My first year of college I got sick a lot, I was living in dorm and I caught everything that went around. I had had a chronic cough for years but in college it began taking on a life of its own, I would cough so much throughout the night security would wake me up at night trying to see if I was ok.
The 1st semester of my 2nd year I was seeing the campus doctors, I got sick enough that the campus doctors wrote me a note to take incompletes while they were trying to figure out what was wrong. During 2nd semester I dropped to a minimal course load and quit going to 2 of my 4 classes, I couldn't keep up with classes or my job as an RA; having always been an excellent student this was very hard. I could barely make it to my 4th floor dorm room (no elevator) and the uncontrollable cough made sitting through classes nearly impossible. I tried to bide my time until the semester was out, when I left that summer I knew I wasn’t going to be able to come back.
Once I was home I read articles on how to talk to your doctor, I made lists and went in prepared to be an educated patient. I was told that she only did 10 minute appointments and if I had more than 1-2 items to talk about I’d have to make multiple appointments. I did multiple appointments, nothing worked even when I told her I thought I had cystic fibrosis based on my reading and reminded her that I had 4 inconclusive sweats tests performed in middle school by another doctor. During the time I was under her care I was told: to get my asthma under control, that I had to loose weight, that I was too stressed, finally at my pushing she diagnosed me with fibromyalgia for my pain and COPD for my lungs. I was referred for a cat scan for the headaches, when that came back clear I received a referral to a psychiatrist in the mail……it was the last straw. I later my medical records and found the terms ‘drug seeking’, ‘hypochondriac’, that I and my mother had a ‘vested interest in my health but were misguided”. I had never even received a nebulizer!
At this point I was sleeping with a trash can next to my bed for the massive amount of mucous that felt as if they were suffocating me during the night. I was suffering from chronic fatigue, my entire body was sore all the time, I had migraines, anxiety, pleurisy that at times prevented me from moving, chronically swollen lymph nodes, my anxiety was out of control because I feared that I would die in my sleep before I would be believed.
I moved to a physician’s assistant that was freshly out of school and listened to me. I was disappointed when she explained that she had to treat me by a normal protocol and then take it from there. I had been through all of this before but she had listened and I really had no other choice so I agreed and was prescribed a nebulizer and a more aggressive antibiotic. Not surprisingly none of my symptoms cleared up but surprisingly for the first time someone believed there was a real problem and she promised to follow this through! She referred me to an allergist (they said I had allergies but not to an extent to explain my symptoms), followed by an infectious disease specialist (nothing found), followed by an internist (nothing found), followed by a pulmonologist. All of this took a very long time and I was really struggling and I had high hopes for this doctor.
The pulmonologist saw me and prescribed me a stronger oral antibiotic and did some testing, I never felt I was getting any answers from him despite the fact I had started coughing up blood intermittently. Much to my surprise he had been working with a pediatric pulmonologist specializing in cystic fibrosis. I was given a referral to them (and discovered they were the same office that had seen me during the sweat testing in middle school). I did not know at the time I arrived for the appointment that they were for CF I just knew they were another doctor and I really had very little hope that anything would be different this time. MUCH TO MY SURPRISE I WAS MET BY A TEAM OF SPECIALISTS AND DIAGNOSED WITH CYSTIC FIBRORIS WITHIN 10 MINUTES!! I STARTED CYRING AND WHEN THEY TRIED TO CONSOLE THEM I TOLD THEM THEY WERE TEARTS OF JOY!!! Finally I was believed and understood.
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