Suspend-It

My company is teaming up with the Bikram Yoga studio located just within the area to promote health and wellness among its employees. They had an orientation about the benefits of Bikram Yoga during our break last Wednesday. Although I already know all of those since I availed of a one-week unlimited trial last October, I attended the orientation to get a good grasp on the rates and promos.

I was not disappointed. They’re giving us a 30% discount for the monthly rate! Hooray! ^_^ I just wish they’d agree to extend the discount to family and friends as well. My friend Mark would really love that especially since he’s been stressed for the longest time. My sister, on the other hand, definitely needs to do yoga to accompany her intake of Fastin. That way, she’ll get toned up while losing weight.

I talked with the HR about the extension of the discounts after the orientation and she said she’ll do her best to include family and friends as well. I’m keeping my fingers crossed on this one. It’d be so much fun if I can do yoga with my friends. 0:D

My team was given a large budget to celebrate our five-year anniversary – the first celebration ever. To commemorate it, we all voted on eating a famous and very expensive buffet in a five-star hotel, then go drinking til we drop-dead afterwards.

We actually didn’t think the General Manager would agree, but he just laughed, said, “Sure!” and signed the cheque.

We celebrated our anniversary just this Friday. Some of us have already been to that hotel since that’s where our General Manager got married last March 2007. But even then, we still find the place magnificent, especially the Sunset Bar outside. The Sunset Bar is composed of one big gazebo for the main bar, surrounded by several gazebo kits that offer a captivatingly-romantic view of the sunset, plus a nightly poolside barbecue with fresh seafood, marinated meats and an array of salads, tropical fruits and local desserts.

I don’t expect us to celebrate our 6th year there again, but I’m still keeping my fingers crossed. You never know… 0;)

I went to my college friend Ayla’s baby’s Christening last July 19 in Alaska. It was the second time I’ve met her entire family. The last time was on her 18th birthday when we were still in college.

Although Ayla has been telling me that her dad has kidney problems and is now bloated due to it, I was still quite surprised at how frail he looked when I saw him. Nevertheless, during the Christening, he did his utmost to be his usual charming self and entertained us stupendously.

Then I received an sms from Ayla yesterday afternoon, “Please pray for my dad. He passed away awhile ago…”

I found out that her dad could actually have extended his life longer had he agreed to the usual dialysis treatment. But being practical and knowing the end result, not to mention the cost of such treatment, Ayla’s dad decided to just endure his sickness and rely on pills. It’s so ironic that while the rest of the world are searching for the best weight loss pill, there was Ayla’s dad whose lifeline depended on a pill.

Anyhow, I did some research to avoid having to lose someone because of kidney problems and found these tips on eHow.com on How to Prevent Kidney Failure.

• Control your blood pressure at all costs. Chronic high blood pressure is one of the most common causes of acute kidney failure in adult men and women.

• Ask your doctor about taking garlic supplements. These supplements can help reduce blood pressure quickly, but at the same time they will inhibit the blood’s ability to form clots, so they should only be taken under medical supervision.

• Quit smoking. Cigarette smoke causes a variety of health problems that can increase your chance of kidney failure. If you stop smoking, it will also lower your blood pressure, which is important for preventing kidney failure.

• Stop drinking alcohol. You can reduce the strain on your kidneys by cutting all alcoholic drinks out of your lifestyle. These drinks require that your kidneys work very hard and not drinking them can help prevent kidney problems.

• Drink plenty of water. Even though your kidneys may be damaged, they should still be able to process water. Try to drink at least eight glasses each day.
  See your doctor and have regular blood and urine tests done. These tests will notice any developing issues before you start to notice symptoms.

Do take note that watching your diet is a central theme and that having regular check ups are vital in this. I hope this helps.

To Ayla, again, my deepest condolences.

For those who do not know, medical malpractice is basically “A form of negligence where an injury results from a medical professional’s or medical facility’s failure to exercise adequate care, skill or diligence in performing a duty.” In short, it is the result of a healthcare provider’s failure to provide the expected standard of care.

You see, despite the fact that doctors are THE health experts, we need to keep in mind that they too are humans; they are prone to errors and misjudgments. Consequently, many people are injured or even killed due to medical mistakes.

That’s why the world is a much better place to live in with lawyers such as the Rochester medical malpractice attorney. Just to give you an idea, some of the most common ways that medical malpractice occurs is through failure or errors in:

• timely diagnosis and ordering appropriate treatment
• ordering necessary tests and proper medication
• consulting with specialists
• surgical procedures

Do take note that medical malpractice claims are one of the most difficult areas of litigation. This is because the negligent action must be documented and proven within specific guidelines. Consequently, to ensure that you are on the right track, make sure to get only a skilled medical malpractice lawyer that can qualify the merit of your case.

I’ve seen, heard, and read about colon cleansing and its advantages and disadvantages. Several products, such as Colonix, which claims to produce this effect, are out in the market nowadays. Then again, is it necessary?

Just so you know, Colon cleansing or colon therapy, according to Wikipedia, “encompasses a number of alternative medical therapies intended to remove fecal waste and unidentified toxins from the colon and intestinal tract.”

I browsed over some readings and the usual claim is that colon cleansing, also known as colonic irrigation, removes toxins that can cause a variety of health problems, such as arthritis, allergies and asthma. Consequently, it promotes healthy intestinal bacteria, boosting your energy and enhancing your immune system.

Then again, up to now, there is little scientific evidence to support or refute the benefits of colon cleansing. In fact, the bowel itself is not dirty and cleans itself naturally without need for assistance. Also, frequent colon cleansing may interfere with the proper functioning of the colon and can lead to dependence on laxatives or enemas to defecate. To cap it off, the FDA has issued several letters warning manufacturers and suppliers of colon hydrotherapy equipment about making false claims of effectiveness, safety issues and quality control violations.

Do take note that doctors prescribe colon cleansing as preparation for medical procedures such as colonoscopy. However, most don’t recommend it for detoxification. It’s generally unnecessary and at times may even be harmful.

Before having your colon cleansed, consult your doctor first.

Lawyers have now been more specialized. There are lawyers for family law, federal law, accounting, engineering, contracts and bonds, and now Mesothelioma lawyers. Cases of mesothelioma have been increasing these days. It is probably because it is caused by years of exposure to asbestos fibers so the effects come out late. Asbestos has been used years ago as insulation to heat tubes of submarine and ship engines. Since a lot of Americans worked for the wars in the past, much of them are suffering from asbestos after-effects.

A friend of mine had an uncle who suffered from mesothelioma. Later on her uncle died and did not receive any benefits from his company. The medical insurance also did not cover all the expenses so their family went broke because of the expenses. It was just recent that they availed of the services of a mesothelioma lawyer. The case was already filed and is doing well. The company he worked for already agreed to have an out of court settlement to their family because the case was against them.

I have had an upset stomach since Tuesday last week, when I went to the mall to get my company’s promotional tote bags. At first, I thought it was just something I ate, or perhaps even a stomach bug. So I wrote it off as diarrhea and went through the normal process of eating healthy food to detoxify and to help whatever I ate get out of my system immediately. At the same time, I took hydrite to make sure I don’t get dehydrated.

My excretion narrowed to once a day but it’s still watery. After one week of my excretion being in the same consistency, I decided to have fecalysis for fear that my amoebiasis might have been triggered. After all, in the majority of cases, amoebas remain in the gastrointestinal tract of the hosts. However, they did not find anything in my fecalysis. The doctor just advised me to change my diet – eat healthy food such as psyllium and oatmeal. That’s what I did.

Still, nothing happened. So I consulted my doctor again and she said the first signs of diarrhea may be easy to recognize, but pinpointing the cause often is not. Consequently, we tracked back to what had been happening in my life and realized that all this time it was stress that’s producing that effect. I was actually quite surprised by this fact. My symptom of being really stressed was vomiting. I did some research and found out that:

Stress can also make conditions that cause diarrhea, such as irritable bowel syndrome, worse. Here’s how it happens: stress or nervousness can cause the bowels to move faster. As a result, stool moves more quickly through the large intestine. Normally, water is reabsorbed into the body from the stool as it passes through the large intestine. The faster the stool moves, the less time there is for water to be reabsorbed. Therefore, more water remains in the stool. The result? Frequent, watery stools, otherwise known as diarrhea. Not only is the diarrhea uncomfortable, it can also interfere with your life. Fortunately, if you are a healthy adult without a fever or bloody stools, there’s no need to let the diarrhea “run its course”. Instead, you can treat diarrhea and get back to life. (http://www.imodium.ca/en/imodium-en1.asp)

Managing stress is one way to help your body systems return to normal and prevent diarrhea and other stress-related digestive problems. One of the most effective methods of dealing with stress is to recognize the source and either avoid it, if practical, or find healthy coping methods.

According to an article I read, one of the healthy coping methods include aerobic exercise which, it turns out, is also good for the digestion. Experts recommend performing about 20 minutes or aerobic exercise most days of the week. Stretching is a good way to relieve muscle tension. I have had no time to exercise for the past months, so I guess now is a good time to get back on track with sports, perhaps swimming.

Diarrhea is uncomfortable, but often preventable. Then again, when prevention does not work, and over-the-counter medications do not help treat diarrhea, it may be time for you to see your doctor.

I’ve heard that infrequent exposure to even small amounts of asbestos can lead to some disease, but I never realized how dangerous that was until one of my colleagues shared that his father, who was an electrician, was diagnosed with mesothelioma. He furthered that it was a scary time for his entire family since asbestos fibers are so toxic that the doctor said they (family) are also at risk for developing mesothelioma through particles that cling to his father’s clothing, shoes, skin and hair. (By the way, I did some research and this type of “second-hand” exposure to asbestos is known as para-occupational exposure.)

At the moment, there is no known cure for malignant mesothelioma. But the most common treatments available are surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. My colleague’s father was lucky because his mesothelioma was detected at an early stage. Consequently, they were able to treat it with just a few chemotherapy sessions.

This is why it is always a good idea to consult your doctor at once if you experience any unusual symptom – so you can be immediately diagnosed. Then again, as always, prevention is better than cure. If you can avoid high risk jobs, then do so.

I got a call yesterday from my younger sister telling me that my niece was bitten by a stray dog. Kids usually are very fond of dogs. They see a dog in the street and hurry up to touch it. Sometimes they get bitten, which is what happened. Fortunately, the bite was not too deep but still she was given an anti-rabies shot.

We decide to own pets because of the happiness and companionship they give us. For this they deserve to be treated well. They need shelter and pet supplies. You cannot blame the dog for that obviously. It was abandoned and was probably hungry or sick that time. It is the owner’s responsibility when something like this happens. Abandoning pets is risky not only for your pets but also for other people. So I urge pet owners to be more responsible with their pets.

Getting an auto insurance is a healthy thing to do, I tell you. In case of accidents, you’ll have a lot less to worry about regarding finances. This is surely a great investment since stress makes you vulnerable to various diseases and you don’t want that. I am adding this to my long list of things that I recommend.

Don’t forget to ask your friends or business contacts which company is reliable and credible! You’ll never regret doing this, I promise.