Image via Wikipedia

This post is being written from the hospital waiting room. Yesterday my father was feverish and with breathing problems.

Just to remember who didn’t follow my posts for a long time, my father is 80 years old, he has Parkinson disease as well as Alzheimer’s. He is bed for almost three years, his muscles are gone has well as his mobility. We can barely understand what he says and he’s having dysphagia difficulty in swallowing food.

Yesterday I called the doctor and after taking a check to his lungs she told us (my mother and I) that he needed to go to the hospital because she suspected of pneumonia. He arrived at the ER at 9pm and he has just been transferred to the nursing room.

We still have no information on his condition and we are waiting to be able to get in to visit him.

What I see is that my father is very, very weak and I really don’t know how long he’s going to hold on to life

Related articles by Zemanta

• Types of Dysphagia, Symptoms (healthhype.com)
• Causes of Difficulty in Swallowing – Oropharyngeal Dysphagia (healthhype.com)

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• My husband’s check ups
• My father is 80th years old

photo credit: Blip

Lately I have been dealing with some ugly, disgusting and inconvenient bugs. I remember that when I was a small child my mother talked about them and even checked if I had them on me. What I am talking about are Lice.

My son never had them although I knew that from time to time some classroom mates had them, no for the second time in one month we are have an invasion of Lice brought by my daughter from school.

It has been awful. Itching is the worse part of it for the kids. For me just the idea of having Lice crawling, sucking my blood from my scalp gives me the creeps.

Lice are described as:

• human disease agents
• Most lice are scavengers, feeding on skin and other debris found on the host’s body, but some species feed on sebaceous secretions and blood.
• if feeding on blood, they may become considerably darker
• Many lice attach their eggs to their host’s hair with specialized saliva

Yeck!!! this is disgusting.

Well, as soon as one child appeared with lice in the classroom the school sent us a message to check on our kids heads. The problem is that we are often together (daughter, son, myself) hugging, playing so we also got those awful creatures.

Every time they show up we have to kill them with a special shampoo, change bedding everyday, change pyjamas every day (underwear we already change everyday ok!!), wash the combs with boiling water, etc. The washing machine works no-stop so you can imagine the electricity bill.

This week we started using a special Lice Spray that should keep the Lice away from our hair, let’s see if it works.

I know some people don’t talk about this problem because they think they will be discriminated because although it’s not true most people think that Lice appear due to lake of personal hygiene. Lice prefer cleaner and softer hair to put their eggs and grow up. Yeck!!.

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• My husband’s check ups
• My Father is in The Hospital

The fear of doctors made him arrive at the hospital in serious conditions:

• severe Pneumonia
• high level of diabetes
• two stomach ulcers
• anemia
• cardiac arrhythmias
• high cholesterol values
• kidney infection

the doctors told him that he could have died if he didn’t arrive at the hospital that day.

He is now at home following a specific diet for his case, he is getting shots of insulin, he is doing a cholesterol treatment, antibiotics and he has to return next month to remove one stomach ulcer (the other was removed during the time he was in hospital).

He gave up smoking the moment he entered the hospital, he is forbidden of smoking or his lungs can fail, and he has to eat exactly what doctors tell him otherwise he can get worse again.

A annual check up wouldn’t do him any harm…but…he thinks he knows everything.

Take a look at these related posts:

• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• My husband’s check ups
• My Father is in The Hospital
• Our Hair has a Lice Invasion…Yeak

I know that I shouldn’t concern myself unless it continues after the age their permanent teeth begin to appear, around six years old. Experts say that the act of sucking implies some strength that can cause deformation of the teeth and in the future braces might be needed. My daughter sometimes just puts her thumb passively in her month and doesn’t do it aggressively, but I’m still concerned with the implication that might have in the future. For those who doesn’t know how your kid do it just closely monitor your kid and analyze her/his technique. If the child seems to be sucking vigorously, you may start thinking about curbing the habit earlier.

Punishing or nagging our child to stop won’t help, believe me, I’ve tried that several times. I thought about putting some stop nail bite on her thumb, I even tried that once, but is was too painful for her and me. She felt I was punishing her and I felt awful, especially since she indulges in the habit for comfort and security.

I’m going to follow some advice I found on the web and from some expert people I know. I’m going to try to find some alternatives to comfort her as a soft blanket or a teddy bear she loves. The key is to offer an alternative.

I’ve already spoken with a dentist and for now everything looks just fine with her teeth so he told me not to worry too much and that with time she will give up the habit.

What about you? Do you have any advice for me?

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father is in The Hospital
• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• Still a Slim Laura

I consulted a dermatologist that told me that this is a hormonal problem, nothing serious of course but depending on my hormonal levels I get a few pimples on my chin. I never had acne on my forehead, it’s always the chin.

Treating adult acne is not different from teen acne, the difference is that due to our skin changes over the years most acne treatments don’t work. I’m glad this only happens to me from time to time, not all the time. Lucky me.

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• My husband’s check ups
• Side effects of acne treatment
• My Father is in The Hospital

Unfortunately, especially this week that I’m busy doing some stuff to my blogs, I forget to eat. The time goes by and I don’t know if it is the medication I’m taking, the depression itself, I barely eat.  Saturday, my SIL even asked me: Are you taking some sort of natural fat burner or what? This question made me think, being underweight, am loosing even more weight now that I’m at home with all that food available and no one to check on me?

I checked my scale and guess what, although I’m not eating well, I guess the fact that I don’t spend energy on my office job, makes me less needed of calories. This is what I think…  So, no fat lady at home, just plain and slim Laura enjoying being at home.

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• My husband’s check ups
• Side effects of acne treatment

My husband has been a very healthy men over the years. His analyses are always fine except from time to time high levels of uric acid (Gout) that are easily treated with some appropriated pills.

Every year he does a check up through the work medical company and advises are given for an healthy life. As he is a little overweighted he is always advised to be careful with cholesterol. Although he never had high values of cholesterol he has to prevent them of appearing. Nowadays there are available to the public the best cholesterol medications, but we should be careful and not let cholesterol take advantage of our body.

Regarding the uric acid my husband is already very careful and prevents to eat what he already knows that will harm him. I just want him to lose some weight to prevent cardiac arrests and other diseases related to overweight.

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• My Father is in The Hospital
• Our Hair has a Lice Invasion…Yeak

Quoting Wikipedia:

More sensitive patients may also experience redness, scaling, itching, and burning.

This product increases the risk of extreme sunburn; care should be taken (shade, sunscreen, etc.) to protect treated skin from overexposure to ultraviolet light.

I know that maybe I’m being overreacting but my sun has a very sensitive skin, he is in the risk group for sunburns (blond, blue eyes), he plays on the sun all time at home, at school, etc. so maybe I should look for some natural acne treatment with the same treatment rate but less or none side effects.

Any ideas?

Take a look at these related posts:

• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Still a Slim Laura
• My husband’s check ups

So, last year was a difficult one for me at work. I crashed on the 22th of December and by crashed I mean I got to the bottom of the depression I was already having for quite some time.

I am having a social security leave that will be paying me 65% of my salary while I recover and during the time they give me to recover. I’m taking depression pills, a pill to put me to sleep at night and tomorrow I will go to a psychiatrist. I hope he can give me some advice and some extra medication to boost my energy, self-esteem and appetite. I lost a few pounds already, it looks like I’m taking the best weight loss supplements there are because everybody says: you are disappearing.

I’ve been down for quite some time but I was always thinking about my family, the money we needed, well I believe NOW, I’m thinking about my family. I’m not ok on the present job so for sure I’m not going back but I still don’t now in what conditions I will be leaving the office, with or without the money they owe me. I haven’t received December payment not the extra salary we have to receive every year in December. Ive been with this company for almost 16 years and I’m really disappointed with what they are doing to me.

This is a rough month, financially and emotionally but I will recover, gain new strenght and go on with my live. I’m looking for some online money “fountains” so if you have some ways to earn a few dollars a month I will appreciate.

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Adults can have Acne too, I know
• Still a Slim Laura
• My husband’s check ups

Image by Roberto F. via Flickr

Are you suffering from mom burn out? Do you struggle just to make it through each day? Moms everywhere are breaking down because they are too chicken to say, “No”.

“No” may be a tiny, two-letter word, but it can be your secret weapon. And you can say it. Here are some ways you can say “no” without feeling guilty about it:

Sorry, I’m taking a break.
The number one reason why you should say, “no” occasionally is simply that you deserve a break. You are chef, chauffeur, dish washer, and more. You job never ends on any given day of the week. You deserve a break. If you feel bad for saying “no”, say, “Sorry, I’m taking a break”.

My schedule is full.
We tend to jam-pack our schedule full of activities, leaving time for nothing. Cut back on your kids activities. Start a car pool and share driving responsibilities. Do whatever you can to free up some time in your schedule.

I don’t have time.
You’re headed out the door, rushing to the next appointment when the telephone rings. What do you do? Do you come to a screeching halt and answer the phone? Let’s say you do, and it’s a family member, calling to dump their latest woes on you. Do you stand, tapping your foot impatiently while you roll your eyes and listen to the sob story? This is a typical scene for many moms.

I have another commitment that day.
Say it and mean it. Regularly schedule in time with your family or time alone and if someone ask for your help during that time look in your planner and tell them you have another commitment.

Instead of rushing to be everything to everyone, stop. Ask yourself if you truly have time for whatever comes up. If not, say no by walking away, turning off the ringer on the phone, or not answering the knock at your door.

Always remember that you are a mom—not a super hero. When you have to say no, people will understand; if they don’t at first, they will get used to it eventually.

Editor’s note: Still having trouble putting your foot down? Sometimes, we just need some extra guidance, a listening ear or a gentle and loving kick in the butt. You might want to give Aurelia Williams’s free coaching session (affiliate) a go. She’s a life coach and mom of 3 who has adult, teen and school age children so she definitely knows what she’s talking about.

Take a look at these related posts:

• Parenting Tip: Consistent routines bring predictability and comfort to your child’s world
• Parent Tip: Behavior
• Parent Tip: Helping with Chores
• Parent Tip – New Sibling

For quite some months I have been tortured psychologically (I can say this) by my bosses, especially one of them. I have been abused verbally, once I was even pushed against my desk by one of the bosses. The older boss has been making my life like hell. Things gone so far that I simple crashed last week, I had to go to ER and now I am with a working leave, under more medication and next week I will be present to the doctor again.

Everything crosses my mind, quitting my job even if I need the money, send resumes to other companies, or just quitting and try to be a few months at home to get over all the bad times I had with work experience in the past years. Money is very important but I can’t take it anymore. I am so fed up, so stressed, so tired of this life that I really need to change.

Take a look at these related posts:

• Translation job needed English/Portuguese/English
• Complaining again
• My job is a do-it-all Job
• I’m going through a tough time

My daughter had her 3rd tooth falling and it caused an infection because it was very difficult for it to fall. Due to the infection the doctor didn’t want to remove (pull) the tooth and for a whole the tooth kept hanging in the mouth. The antibiotic did wonders and the tooth finally fell.

My son since last weekend was having headaches, sore throat, coughing and tummy ache, but nothing that I wasn’t in control. On Wednesday he had an exercise at school where he had to run on a cold and rainy day…he ended up getting worse. Antibiotic and two days at home. Humm he was happy to stay home for two days.

Today my son is on a birthday party, I just requested an auto insurance quote for my mother’s car and we postponed the Christmas tree setup for tomorrow. My husband is at a friends house helping out hanging some pictures on the walls and I’m about to leave to pick up my son at the birthday party. I hope tomorrow I have a calm day.

Take a look at these related posts:

• My Father is in The Hospital
• My Father In Law almost saw the light
• Sucking Thumb: My daughter does it…Any advices?
• Adults can have Acne too, I know