I occasionally go through periods where I just can't quiet my mind and/or relax my muscles enough to drop off to sleep. It's bad enough right now with my being laid off but it's worse when you know that alarm is going to wake you up in a few short hours for work.
There are lots of tricks you can try from taking a relaxing bath, having a glass of wine, doing some light exercise. Personally, when I'm tired, bathing or exercising is just too much of an effort for me, and I'm not really into drinking so I never have wine around (a whole bottle for one glass seems so wasteful to me), and I really don't wish to get into the habit of having wine daily either.
For starters, a good thing to do is to have a cup of Chamomile tea in the evening. Chamomile is very good for relaxing you, and for your indigestion as well. Actually there are a myraid of wonderful uses for Chamomile tea! I've even used the tea bag as a compress on a cyst and hours later it broke and drained! But sometimes the tea alone is not enough. When I'm really tense and/or stressed it seems nothing really works.
A friend of mine who is very into herbs told me to get valerian root extract. Valerian root is another herb that has a lot of good uses, but for me I use the extract in my chamomile tea to help ensure I relax enough to drop off to sleep. I put 12 drops into a mug of tea and drink it about an hour before I plan on going to bed. I also keep Valerian root capsules handy for those nights that my legs really hurt or my back aches too much to let me sleep.
I have found that I never really need to use it every night long term. It works right away for me (though I've read this is not the case for everyone). So I'll use it for 2-5 days and then stop until the next time I need it (usually not for a couple of months or so). I will say this, Valerian is one nasty smelling herb, but the extract isn't too bad and once in the tea you don't really smell it at all.
I prefer using fresh herbs, extracts, tinctures over the commercially produced products. I would recommend finding an herb shop you trust. If you are not sure about one in your area, I can recommend the Chakra 4 Herb & Tea House that I use here in Phoenix. They have a website and they do ship. I go there to get all my herbs and I've found them to be very friendly and helpful. No, I don't have any connection to them at all other than being one very happy and satisfied customer of theirs.
As with any supplement you might want to try or use, I suggest doing your research, checking with your doctor if you have other medical problems that you have to consider especially. Educate yourself and make informed decisions about your own health, well being, and care. You know yourself best.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Calming Restless Legs
I've suffered with restless legs off and on for a good part of my adult life. I pretty much just dealt with it when it happened then as it wasn't too often or too bad. However, I've noticed that as I got older, the problem seemed to increase. Anyone who suffers with Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) understands how frustrating it is, and sometimes it is also painful. I'm actually not sure which is worse, RLS while sitting, or rather while stuck in a sitting position such as on an airplane or car ride, or when you are trying to fall asleep at night.
Lately, just to add insult to injury, I've been able to drop off to sleep just to be awakened by twitching legs. Now THAT is totally annoying not to mention ridiculous in my opinion, but such is the nature of life I suppose.
Long before the advent of the pharmaceutical companies coming up with a pill and developing RLS as a "disease", my mother had told me about using Potassium to curb the problem. I found that helped. There are lots of foods that are rich in Potassium that you can eat, but if you don't eat these foods, or just can't for whatever reason (for instance-bananas seem to have the opposite effect on me than the "binding" they are commonly known for), then use a commercial supplement as I do. I take one every day. For the most part it helps.
Now in my mid-fifties, I find that the one tablet per day isn't always enough. I don't want to increase how much I take, so I have also found that stretching my legs and then doing about a dozen leg lifts with each leg is what works. Unfortunately that means getting out of bed to do that, and when all you want to do is sleep.............well you can just imagine how thrilling that is.......LOL
For those times that you know you will be in a confined situation and getting up and stretching/walking/running just isn't an option, you might try eating some cherries. It doesn't seem to matter if they are fresh, frozen or canned. Sour cherries are best but the sweet ones work also. Just eat about 10 a day for a couple of days before that long confinement and you should be able to get through it without the agonizing torment that is "restless legs".
My mother suffers with very painful legs, not so much restless, just painful when she does too much walking or standing (and the woman LOVES to walk). She's the one who told me about the cherries, and told me about the book she found it in years ago. It is amazing how many problems can be taken care of with simple everyday foods, especially garlic. The book is called Miracle Medicine Foods by Rex Adams. I highly recommend this book. It is currently out of print, but can still be purchased at very reasonable rates through Amazon.com's marketplace. The book is chock full of wonderful information about what different goods people have used for all kinds of issues from asthma, arthritis, back problems, eye problems, diabetes, etc...........the list is endless.
I used the rating to choose the seller I purchased from and suggest the same for you. I have had no problems at all with the sellers I have purchased from at Amazon.com.
That is not to say you shouldn't seek out a doctor's advice and/or diagnosis, but before jumping to fill that prescription he/she wants to give you, why not discuss with them trying a nutritional/natural treatment first. Go to your doctor armed with the information so you can discuss it confidently with him/her. I think in most cases you'll find your doctor willing to give it a try and to monitor how you are doing. This way, you can avoid the myraid of side effects that just about every drug they give you has.
If you really want to live healthier, try using natural remedies as much as possible. I'm sure even your doctor would agree with that. Modern medicine can, and does when allowed, work very well together with nature's medicine, and being natural does not mean you toss modern medicine out the window, it just means you educate yourself to all the possibilities so you can make a truly informative decision when talking with your doctor.
Lately, just to add insult to injury, I've been able to drop off to sleep just to be awakened by twitching legs. Now THAT is totally annoying not to mention ridiculous in my opinion, but such is the nature of life I suppose.
Long before the advent of the pharmaceutical companies coming up with a pill and developing RLS as a "disease", my mother had told me about using Potassium to curb the problem. I found that helped. There are lots of foods that are rich in Potassium that you can eat, but if you don't eat these foods, or just can't for whatever reason (for instance-bananas seem to have the opposite effect on me than the "binding" they are commonly known for), then use a commercial supplement as I do. I take one every day. For the most part it helps.
Here is a list of foods rich in potassium:
- raisins
- prunes
- apricots
- dates
- strawberries
- bananas
- watermelon
- cantaloupe
- citrus fruits
- beets
- greens
- spinach
- tomatoes
- mushrooms
- soy products
- veggie burgers
- peas
- beans
- turkey
- fish
- beef
- salmon
- cod
Now in my mid-fifties, I find that the one tablet per day isn't always enough. I don't want to increase how much I take, so I have also found that stretching my legs and then doing about a dozen leg lifts with each leg is what works. Unfortunately that means getting out of bed to do that, and when all you want to do is sleep.............well you can just imagine how thrilling that is.......LOL
For those times that you know you will be in a confined situation and getting up and stretching/walking/running just isn't an option, you might try eating some cherries. It doesn't seem to matter if they are fresh, frozen or canned. Sour cherries are best but the sweet ones work also. Just eat about 10 a day for a couple of days before that long confinement and you should be able to get through it without the agonizing torment that is "restless legs".
My mother suffers with very painful legs, not so much restless, just painful when she does too much walking or standing (and the woman LOVES to walk). She's the one who told me about the cherries, and told me about the book she found it in years ago. It is amazing how many problems can be taken care of with simple everyday foods, especially garlic. The book is called Miracle Medicine Foods by Rex Adams. I highly recommend this book. It is currently out of print, but can still be purchased at very reasonable rates through Amazon.com's marketplace. The book is chock full of wonderful information about what different goods people have used for all kinds of issues from asthma, arthritis, back problems, eye problems, diabetes, etc...........the list is endless.
I used the rating to choose the seller I purchased from and suggest the same for you. I have had no problems at all with the sellers I have purchased from at Amazon.com.
That is not to say you shouldn't seek out a doctor's advice and/or diagnosis, but before jumping to fill that prescription he/she wants to give you, why not discuss with them trying a nutritional/natural treatment first. Go to your doctor armed with the information so you can discuss it confidently with him/her. I think in most cases you'll find your doctor willing to give it a try and to monitor how you are doing. This way, you can avoid the myraid of side effects that just about every drug they give you has.
If you really want to live healthier, try using natural remedies as much as possible. I'm sure even your doctor would agree with that. Modern medicine can, and does when allowed, work very well together with nature's medicine, and being natural does not mean you toss modern medicine out the window, it just means you educate yourself to all the possibilities so you can make a truly informative decision when talking with your doctor.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Diet and Exercise
Diet and exercise is always a sensible thing to do. Unfortunately, most of us don't have a clue as to what constitutes a healthy diet and exercise plan. Everyone is more interested in a quick fix and then surprised that the minute they backslide the weight goes back on. The Pharmaceutical industry is making a fortune selling their "diet" pills/formulas. People don't stop and think about what the possible side effects of those chemicals are, and they don't realize or can't be bothered realizing, that they still have to change their eating habits for the pills to work.
The healthiest way to lose weight, and to keep it off, is to change your eating habits and your thinking about food. My mother once lost weight by eating whatever she wanted, but in smaller quantities and not snacking in-between meals. She also was a brisk walker and walked to and from her job which was about a mile or so from home. This worked for her which was great. For me, I have found that even taking in normal amounts of carbohydrates does not allow me to lose weight. I have to really keep my carb intake down (and I'm addicted to them so this is not easy to do for me) if I want to lose weight and keep it off. That is me though and that won't work for someone else.
Low fat isn't exactly the best either as our bodies require a certain amount of fat daily to stay healthy, this is especially important for children.
I see the ads on TV for Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem and while the concept is nice (I tried one of them once back in 1990), they don't teach you how to eat or about nutrition (though they try) for they really encourage you to use their already packaged foods so you don't have to think about it (yes, it is an appealing and easy thing for working folks no argument). The minute you stop that, you gain the weight back again. I spent a year doing that, and included 60 minutes of exercise daily with it. I lost all off 15 pounds in 12 months and NO inches at all off my waist. The minute I stopped using their food I gained back 25 lbs within 6 months. I think it's mostly because most of us don't take that next step to changing our habits and how we look at food. And let's be honest, especially in this economy, junk food and the processed grocery store food is the least expensive.
Weight Watchers might actually be good (I've never tried them just because the idea of regular meetings turned me off), but who has time to do all that figuring and counting? Most working people just don't.
And who the heck came up with that new "food pyramid"? There aren't enough hours in the day to eat that much food. Are these people on drugs or what?
The key is to know your own body, learn it, listen to it and change how you eat based on what works for you without leaving you feeling hungry and deprived. Exercise helps also, but I honestly don't believe that you have to do 30 or 60 or 90 minutes every day of vigorous exercise. Again it comes down to knowing your body and what works. For some folks, briskly walking a mile (that's only a 10 - 15 minute walk) is all it takes. For others they have to run for several miles. Everyone's metabolism is as different as everyone's bone structure and body mass.
We are all different and our bodies react differently to the same things. That's why it is important to know your body, for you are the best person to know it and take care of it.
The healthiest way to lose weight, and to keep it off, is to change your eating habits and your thinking about food. My mother once lost weight by eating whatever she wanted, but in smaller quantities and not snacking in-between meals. She also was a brisk walker and walked to and from her job which was about a mile or so from home. This worked for her which was great. For me, I have found that even taking in normal amounts of carbohydrates does not allow me to lose weight. I have to really keep my carb intake down (and I'm addicted to them so this is not easy to do for me) if I want to lose weight and keep it off. That is me though and that won't work for someone else.
Low fat isn't exactly the best either as our bodies require a certain amount of fat daily to stay healthy, this is especially important for children.
I see the ads on TV for Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem and while the concept is nice (I tried one of them once back in 1990), they don't teach you how to eat or about nutrition (though they try) for they really encourage you to use their already packaged foods so you don't have to think about it (yes, it is an appealing and easy thing for working folks no argument). The minute you stop that, you gain the weight back again. I spent a year doing that, and included 60 minutes of exercise daily with it. I lost all off 15 pounds in 12 months and NO inches at all off my waist. The minute I stopped using their food I gained back 25 lbs within 6 months. I think it's mostly because most of us don't take that next step to changing our habits and how we look at food. And let's be honest, especially in this economy, junk food and the processed grocery store food is the least expensive.
Weight Watchers might actually be good (I've never tried them just because the idea of regular meetings turned me off), but who has time to do all that figuring and counting? Most working people just don't.
And who the heck came up with that new "food pyramid"? There aren't enough hours in the day to eat that much food. Are these people on drugs or what?
The key is to know your own body, learn it, listen to it and change how you eat based on what works for you without leaving you feeling hungry and deprived. Exercise helps also, but I honestly don't believe that you have to do 30 or 60 or 90 minutes every day of vigorous exercise. Again it comes down to knowing your body and what works. For some folks, briskly walking a mile (that's only a 10 - 15 minute walk) is all it takes. For others they have to run for several miles. Everyone's metabolism is as different as everyone's bone structure and body mass.
We are all different and our bodies react differently to the same things. That's why it is important to know your body, for you are the best person to know it and take care of it.
What is Health & Wellness?
There is nothing but talk these days (to the point of nausea I might add) about "health and wellness". The new mentality seems to be a "one size-fits-all" thinking. More interesting is that the studies coming out really are not proving any greater health issues/costs for being overweight/obese than for normal weight people.
Personal lifestyle choices are under attack these days. Or rather, just a select few are under attack because the really dangerous ones people don't seem to mind since they are considered "healthy". Smokers and now the overweight/obese are being denormalized and ostracized for their personal lifestyle behaviors. The claims of higher health care costs and lost productivity are the primary driving force behind this new age of discrimination (and that is exactly what it is). The funny thing is that if you look at the so-called number of deaths and the costs you'll find them to be almost identical. It's like the war on smokers worked so well they are using the same arguments, numbers and costs and applying them to the overweight and obese. Makes you wonder who's next on the hit list of these prohibitionist puritans.
Moderation in most things is the real key to being smart and healthy. Our constitution was written to guarantee that we be allowed to choose for ourselves how best to live our lives.
Personal lifestyle choices are under attack these days. Or rather, just a select few are under attack because the really dangerous ones people don't seem to mind since they are considered "healthy". Smokers and now the overweight/obese are being denormalized and ostracized for their personal lifestyle behaviors. The claims of higher health care costs and lost productivity are the primary driving force behind this new age of discrimination (and that is exactly what it is). The funny thing is that if you look at the so-called number of deaths and the costs you'll find them to be almost identical. It's like the war on smokers worked so well they are using the same arguments, numbers and costs and applying them to the overweight and obese. Makes you wonder who's next on the hit list of these prohibitionist puritans.
Moderation in most things is the real key to being smart and healthy. Our constitution was written to guarantee that we be allowed to choose for ourselves how best to live our lives.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
The EPA Isn't Honest
I don't trust government agencies too much these days. Everything is politicized, including science. I actually wonder if there is any real science coming out anymore. The EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) was an agency I used to believe in. I've since noticed that they are more concerned with political ideology and personal agendas then they are in any real and honest science.
How far back this trend goes I'm not sure, but I do know that their 1993 report declaring tobacco smoke to be a dangerous carcinogen was taken to task by U.S. District Judge Thomas Osteen in 1998. Judge Osteen's decision showed that the EPA did not follow it's own guidelines, cherry-picked the reports it used, and most damaging, publicly committed to the conclusion BEFORE the study was even done!
The former Surgeon General, Richard Carmona, didn't do much better either. His announcement/press release on June 27, 2006 that there is "no safe level" of secondhand smoke just isn't confirmed OR backed up by 85% of the conclusions in the 727 page report behind the release. I guess he figured no one would read it? However, he also relied heavily on the debunked 1993 EPA report. Personally, I think he abused his office to push a personal agenda and should be tried for that.
Now fast forward to today and we have Global Warming/Climate Change and all the associated scare tactics, fear mongering, emotional guilt/blackmail playing out all over again. And once again, the EPA is coming under fire for suppressing a report from one of it's own analysts, because his report isn't parroting the company line.
The analyst, Alan Carlin, was told to stop working on the climate change issue and that his report would NOT be included in the official findings. The EPA of course denies doing this, but Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla. is calling for an investigation into the allegations just the same.
It seems that science is no longer real anymore. You just don't know what to believe. It's like science by press release.........make your announcement and then do the study and manipulate it until you get the results that you already announced to the public.
It's a sad day when you can no longer believe those you trust with such issues. Greed breeds corruption and it's painfully obvious that our government is overrun with both.
How far back this trend goes I'm not sure, but I do know that their 1993 report declaring tobacco smoke to be a dangerous carcinogen was taken to task by U.S. District Judge Thomas Osteen in 1998. Judge Osteen's decision showed that the EPA did not follow it's own guidelines, cherry-picked the reports it used, and most damaging, publicly committed to the conclusion BEFORE the study was even done!
In this case, EPA publicly committed to a conclusion before research had begun; excluded industry by violating the Act's procedural requirements; adjusted established procedure and scientific norms to validate the Agency's public conclusion, and aggressively utilized the Act's authority to disseminate findings to establish a de facto regulatory scheme intended to restrict Plaintiffs, In conducting the ETS Risk Assessment, disregarded information and made findings on selective information; did not disseminate significant epidemiologic information; deviated from its Risk Assessment Guidelines; failed to disclose important findings and reasoning; and left significant questions without answers. EPA's conduct left substantial holes in the administrative record. While so doing, produced limited evidence, then claimed the weight of the Agency's research evidence demonstrated ETS causes cancer.I only learned of this about 4 years ago! I was shocked that an agency we all considered trustworthy would stoop to such levels. But then again, I shouldn't be shocked after all money can buy anything and the tobacco control cartel has lots of it. The tobacco control mob will tell you that Osteen's decision was overruled, but what they don't tell you is that it was overruled ONLY on geographic jurisdiction - the appeals judge stating that Osteen's court had NO jurisdiction in the matter - his findings were NEVER overturned.
The former Surgeon General, Richard Carmona, didn't do much better either. His announcement/press release on June 27, 2006 that there is "no safe level" of secondhand smoke just isn't confirmed OR backed up by 85% of the conclusions in the 727 page report behind the release. I guess he figured no one would read it? However, he also relied heavily on the debunked 1993 EPA report. Personally, I think he abused his office to push a personal agenda and should be tried for that.
Now fast forward to today and we have Global Warming/Climate Change and all the associated scare tactics, fear mongering, emotional guilt/blackmail playing out all over again. And once again, the EPA is coming under fire for suppressing a report from one of it's own analysts, because his report isn't parroting the company line.
The analyst, Alan Carlin, was told to stop working on the climate change issue and that his report would NOT be included in the official findings. The EPA of course denies doing this, but Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla. is calling for an investigation into the allegations just the same.
It seems that science is no longer real anymore. You just don't know what to believe. It's like science by press release.........make your announcement and then do the study and manipulate it until you get the results that you already announced to the public.
It's a sad day when you can no longer believe those you trust with such issues. Greed breeds corruption and it's painfully obvious that our government is overrun with both.
Protecting "The Children"? OR
I read a disturbing story earlier this week. A study done in Chicago, showed that about 15% of the teenagers in the study believe they will die before the age of 35. The article goes on to say that it used to be that teens engaged in risky behavior because they believed they were invincible; but this new study suggests that today, teens engage in risky behavior because they believe they are going to die young anyway so why not take a chance or two. Reading this story made me pause to wonder what we as a society have done to our children to promote such a belief.
I've been saying for years that it is almost criminal how we no longer allow kids to actually be kids. We are so busy wrapping them in bubbles and cotton to protect them from every little bump, scrape, germ that we are creating a generation with unreasonable fears of everything and weakened immune systems. This doesn't even take into account what all the chemicals in our foods are doing to them.
Children today are drugged with our blessing, because somewhere along the line someone decided that normal childhood energy was a bad thing. Energetic kids are labeled with behavior disorders or attention deficit disorders and put on drugs that they will take for God only knows how long. The side affects alone should be a red flag for a parent. Does anyone really know of the dangers of these drugs?
Then there's all the cold medicines they are given for every little sneeze and sniffle. Kids are rushed to the doctor's office or emergency room for every little thing. Has anyone stopped to wonder what all this is doing to these kids?
I remember my childhood, and kids then (50's and 60's) were a hell of lot healthier, and fit, than the children of today seem to be. We weren't sanitized to death - we were actually allowed to get dirty, to run and play. If we fell and got a cut, unless we were in real pain, we just kept on playing and mom would wash it and band-aid it later when we went home. We weren't taken to the doctor for every little thing, mom tried to deal with whatever it was first, and if that didn't work, then a couple of days later she would take us to the doctor. Our mothers just seemed to know back then when a doctor's services were really needed.
When I was growing up, in New York City, I only knew 1 kid with asthma yet these days just about every other child has it. Today, it seems that more and more adult also have asthma. Am I the only one who finds that disturbingly odd?
All this, and it's just the beginning, makes me wonder if we aren't "protecting the children" to death.
I've been saying for years that it is almost criminal how we no longer allow kids to actually be kids. We are so busy wrapping them in bubbles and cotton to protect them from every little bump, scrape, germ that we are creating a generation with unreasonable fears of everything and weakened immune systems. This doesn't even take into account what all the chemicals in our foods are doing to them.
Children today are drugged with our blessing, because somewhere along the line someone decided that normal childhood energy was a bad thing. Energetic kids are labeled with behavior disorders or attention deficit disorders and put on drugs that they will take for God only knows how long. The side affects alone should be a red flag for a parent. Does anyone really know of the dangers of these drugs?
Then there's all the cold medicines they are given for every little sneeze and sniffle. Kids are rushed to the doctor's office or emergency room for every little thing. Has anyone stopped to wonder what all this is doing to these kids?
I remember my childhood, and kids then (50's and 60's) were a hell of lot healthier, and fit, than the children of today seem to be. We weren't sanitized to death - we were actually allowed to get dirty, to run and play. If we fell and got a cut, unless we were in real pain, we just kept on playing and mom would wash it and band-aid it later when we went home. We weren't taken to the doctor for every little thing, mom tried to deal with whatever it was first, and if that didn't work, then a couple of days later she would take us to the doctor. Our mothers just seemed to know back then when a doctor's services were really needed.
When I was growing up, in New York City, I only knew 1 kid with asthma yet these days just about every other child has it. Today, it seems that more and more adult also have asthma. Am I the only one who finds that disturbingly odd?
All this, and it's just the beginning, makes me wonder if we aren't "protecting the children" to death.
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