Health & Insurance

While out getting our 5th wheel insurance we were also prompted to get our insurance in order too.  So we had called up Mr Moo’s insurance guy to come see us one afternoon.  Premium for Mr Moo is only about $25 a month and he would have no trouble getting his – in fact – we received the papers yesterday.  As for me – it would be harder to insure me – why?  i have diabetes – high blood pressure – cholesterol and now on anti-depressant.  Sure they will insure me – but at a higher premium and i needed to go for a medical.  So lesson to be learned here – don’t wait till you are 45 before you try and get insurance – else it would be a lot harder.  And insurance is a must – those especially with family – and kids.  Those with no kids – also must get insurance – why?  parents – siblings that need to take care of your funeral and stuff.  So think about it – your RV needs insurance – your house needs insurance – why not you?  you are afterall the biggest asset to your entire family right?

Low Blood Pressure

So the first week I used the infrared sauna 5 times a week – to get my pores to open up and to get some toxins out and it was going great.  So I had a doctor’s appointment yesterday and she told me my blood pressure was very low – so i had to stop going so often for the sauna session.  I quickly changed my sauna to only once a week now and looking to buy apidexin some anyhow – to keep my weight down.

You all know that a few weeks ago – my doctor told me that i had put on weight?  Yes! bummer!  someone with diabetes like me – that isn’t good news at all – so i took steps to correct that.  Besides eating right and exercising every day – even on weekends – i am still not going down very much except for the first week.  So i figured some help like a safe diet pill may help?  for now the infrared sauna gotta slow down a wee bit.

Refilling Your Prescription

So you all know I take a lot of medication – and you all know – if not – that i have a really bad habit – i never refill my medication – till i’m outta of it.   And i tend to forget to call in for my prescription till i get home.  So poor Mr Moo needs to rush out after sending us home and go to the pharmacy first before going back to open the store.

Usually, they are pretty quick – for they use a   barcode scanner at the cashier but of late – refilling my prescription can take as long as half an hour.  And then to wait to pay for it – takes even longer.  So just the other day – Mr Moo complained to me – that i should probably use Zellers instead because we never have to wait more than 10 minutes to get his prescription filled.  Or we have to let the owner know about this – because the prescriptions were called in – it’s not like they don’t have a barcode scanner – for scanning all their products – so why the delay ?  probably someone new working? or is it a new scanner that needs getting used to?

Music & Entertainment Good For Health

The girlfriends from New York  are going to get their Wicked tickets for the hottest broadway show  and trying to entice me to visit them – this summer  by offering me a free ticket.  I sure wished I could go for  I used to go for shows or concerts  to de-stress and to have a fun night with the girls.

It’s not only the dressing up that pumps my adrenalin up but the anticipation of a good Broadway show – can make one go giddy.   My girlfriends said that the raving and the reviews for Wicked the Musical were very good and that this Tony award winning show is almost always sold out.  I’m really tempted to go – afterall, New York is not too far from me – and I do miss my girlfriends very much – time for a short break perhaps?

Keeping Kids Hydrated & Cool

It had been a really hot summer here in Nova Scotia and some days – I just wished there were  ceiling fans everywhere in the store if possible.   Nope we don’t have airon – and it gets really muggy sometimes staying indoor even with the doors open.   We have had standing fans but they sometimes don’t work as good as the ceiling fans – some people uses the window fans but if the weather is hot outside – the window fans will just draw the hot air in instead.

But if the kids are outside a lot – how do you keep them cool and hydrated?  Fruits and veggies !  they contain 70 to 95 percent water. Try watermelon, strawberries, lettuce, and cucumbers.  Or make it fun for the kids by freezing cups of applesauce.   Yogurt – whether plain or fruity  – it contains – 80% water.  So there you have it – but the sprinklers in the lawn will work just as good while they are having fun!  keep cool inside and outside with ceiling fans and all the cooling fruits and food.

Brisk Walking

As a diabetic – putting on weight is not a good thing – that can only mean that your blood sugar is going slowly up and surely.  I’ve always pride myself of identifying if something was wrong with me – and try to correct it and I know that I’ve been slowly but surely putting on weight.  I figured it is because this summer i wasn’t doing a lot of exercises nor walking – so in order to keep my weight down – i’m going to start brisk walking again for 30 mins a day – before or after meals.   I looked at some merrell shoes that i can wear for work and not having to change it to do my brisk walking because I would use any excuse I can to get outta it.   But truth be told – comfy shoes are very important for walking – and I won’t mind spending a little bit more for comfy shoes.  What about you?

Mini Exercises

Some doses of exercises throughout the day is good for anyone – especially one who is  a wee bit overweight or has diabetes or has high blood pressure and high cholesterol.  Yes – it’s me I’m talking about – so instead of making excuses about a busy schedule I now incorporate mini exercise. and you can too.

The goal is to get moving for a total of 30 minutes each day – you can choose to  a 5 mins Yoga.   Walk or climb some staircases for 7 – 12 mins a day – but start with 5 mins first and then work your way up to more mins a day.   Try to walk whenever you can instead of talking a bus or taking your car.  Stretch whenever you can – and if you are walking on the computer all day – take 5 mins from every hour and do some light stretching.  Try that for a month and see what happens – i bet you will feel a lot better like I am.

Oats & Raisin For Breakfast

I woke up this morning with a bad headache and also full of guilt because i had a cheese croissant for supper before going to bed.  I wonder if it was too much and my blood sugar was high therefore the headache – because i can’t imagine that i didn’t get enough to eat before sleeping.   So while thinking of what to eat for breakfast – and to somewhat make it a healthy one – Mr Moo showed me a best affiliate program review – because he knows i’m always looking out for ways to make money – and i got distracted.

Anyhow, my headache persisted and Mr Moo made me some oatmeal with some raisins – which prompted me to eat oats instead for a snack if i was hungry from now on at night.  I feel absolutely guilty if i ate noodles or even mini spring rolls – plus we all  know that oats is good for diabetics like myself.  But I think I might need some variety with my oats in the morning – like add a banana or granola – or even some pecan or almonds.  Yums!  try that !  i know you won’t think of oats the same way anymore.

Solids For Baby After 3 Months

A customer who recently had her baby not too, too long ago – told me that she had just started her baby on solids.  I went like “huh?”  how old is your baby?  she said – oh ! he is already 3 months old.   I can’t really remember when we did start Missy Moo on solids but i know we were told by the Pediatrician not to start her till she was at least a year old.   But normally people start around 6 months so i was kinda surprised that this customer would start at 3 months.  But of course, I didn’t say anything – the fact is a 3 month old baby has an immature gut and is not ready to digest food.  The baby also doesn’t have enough control over the muscles in her tongue and mouth to properly swallow solid food, which poses a choking risk.

I heard that introducing solid food early may also increase the risk of developing food intolerances or allergies.  But it is said not to wait beyond 6 months either.  Older babies are more reluctant to change and may not adapt well to the different texture of solid foods.  Also, recent research has found no convincing evidence that delaying the introduction of solids beyond 6 months protects against food allergies in healthy children with no risk factors.  Anyhow – having said all the above – you as the mom would know if your child is ready or not – but in my humble opinion – 3 months is way too, too soon.  I think there is no need to rush introducing solids; breast milk or iron fortified formula are all your baby needs until she reaches 6 months.

Baby Constipation

My girlfriend who just had a baby called all worried one day – because her baby  seems constipated. She asked me if Missy Moo had the same problem when she was a baby.  But truth be told Missy Moo pooped everyday without a problem – but she was on bottled milk – so i don’t know if there was any difference.  Anyhow, I tried to calm her down and told her the that frequency of bowl movements varies with different babies.  However, if the baby’s infrequent bowel movements are hard and dry and difficult to pass, she may be constipated.  And to help the baby relieve some discomfort, my grandmother used to rub my sister’s babies tummy all the time.  You can also bend her legs into her tummy and gently rotate in a clockwise motion.

Doctor Recruitment In Nova Scotia

We are always short of doctors in Nova Scotia and more so in this town – why? it’s the same old story – how to entice the doctor to come and tell them they can enjoy an urban environment when the nearest city is about 4 hrs away and there is no cheap means for you to go up there.  Plus doctors who are already here or have been here don’t want to stay more then their extended contract because – they have to think of their family too.  Even the doctor who specializes in testosterone booster in this area was said to want to retire in the next 5 yrs.

Then entire population in Nova Scotia is about 1 million and i’ve heard that as many as 50,000 is without a family doctor.  And even though 2 new family physicians are said to be coming in the fall – how many can they take?  a few hundred each and when will they leave again.   We do have a family doctor – thank God – but many friends and family do not have one – therefore I’m always on a look out of news about new doctors coming in.

Heat Rash

Is it a heat rash or an allergy?  and how do one treat it – i’ve had this for like a few days now – at first it was darn itchy. So i tried not to scratch it -  but the patch got bigger – so i used some hydro-cortisone  that i had from a previous prescription.  So the itch stopped the next day – but the red patch is still there.  Anyhow – instead of dealing on it – i went onto  http://www.blackheadstreatment.org to check on getting my black heads treated instead.  If anyone out there knows or has the same rash or allergy – please drop me a comment and let me know how to do away – with the ugly red patch – i don’t want to frighten people away and think that i have some disease.

Psychiatrist Gets Fired

Minding my own business and doing my acnepril reviews when a customer came in and told me that a psychiatrist in town with 11 patients later was fired because he had his medical license  revoked and apparently lied about it.

Now what i don’t understand is during his application – shouldn’t the officials in the hospital checked his credentials already?  or can anyone just walk in and say – i want to be a doctor here?  Makes no sense that the health officials are such slackers right?  what if he was an operating doctor – he would have operated without a license.  And what is a 62 yrs old man going around lying about his credentials?  shouldn’t he have earned enough to retire by now?   Even though the hospital said that the patients this psychiatrist had saw was with supervision – how true is that i really donch know.

Dispensing Fees

So here I am trying to get  cheap car insurance quotes when i found out today that there were dispensing fees for every prescription that i fill or refill.  And it’s not cheap either!  how do one afford medication in Canada – every bottle of medication you get at the pharmacy – you pay between $9 – 10.50 and it’s every bottle i am talking about!  We never had to pay dispensing fees back home – so this comes as a real shock to me.

Being diabetic, i take a lot of medication every month – and i was happy about refilling my medication every time  - and didn’t know about this dispensing fees until someone at the car insurance place was chatting about it and that was how i came to know.  I tried to find out if i can refill the entire years medication – and be only charged once – to find out that it doesn’t work this way.  Mannn!!  this is expensive – no wonder the pharmacy i get my medication from – has so many employees because even if they pay their pharmacist – $20/hr that would only be for 2 prescriptions  and the amount of medication that goes out that door ! wow!!  I think i better make sure Missy Moo is in this profession instead of any others.

More Doctors Leaving Y-Town

The rumor has it that 2 more doctors are leaving town  *sigh*.  Just yesterday while shopping for some   boots – friends from the  hospital was in telling me all about the situation and I cannot but feel really upset about it.  Yes, Missy Moo and I have a family doctor – but what about the rest of the town – the 100s of people who don’t already have family doctors and now more are losing theirs?  Mannn!!  with businesses closing in this town – left, right and center – now more doctors leaving ..??  what is this small town coming to..??  i’m guessing that the doctors are leaving because they can’t find jobs for their spouse’s?  and they feel that they have nothing to offer their kids?  in terms of private schools, shopping, entertainment and any enrichment courses?  I can’t really blame them for wanting to leave right, afterall, you have to take care of your own first before you can take care of others no?

Second Opinion Are Good For Your Health

You know how we feel bad to question our doctors or even feel like we are giving them a lot of trouble by asking a lot of questions?  Or is it the doctors that make us feel this way?  But you see – our health deserves a second opinion and 2 years ago, when i was puking non-stop and the doctor diagnose it as a bowel obstruction – i too, should have had a second opinion.  I was in the hospital for the second time after my first operation 10 days ago and the second operation was the one that traumatized me most.

I had gone shopping with a girlfriend because of a suumer sale in the mall, when the girlfriend asked me about her condition and should she get a second opinion. Normally, i wouldn’t insist but i know for sure if you had cancer, menstrual problems like i did, a heart condition, brain tumor, irritable bowel syndrome and varicose vein – i strongly suggest a second opinion.  Had i not been so afraid to ask for a second opinion – i might not have to go under surgery again.   You are important enough to get a second opinion.

Foot Pains For Diabetic

When i first became diabetic – my first thoughts were my foot  – why?  because i’ve heard so much about complication which results to amputating your feet.   But you see diabetics are also prone to foot pains as I became aware of in the later part during the year after i found out about me being diabetic.

I don’t know if you have foot pains or not but when i was getting ready for summer and shopping for rechargeable lanterns I experienced it.  It was not so much of a pain – more like numbness and i hear from my other friends that everyone’s experiences were different.  Some people can lose their felling without pain while others have pain without numbness. Shocking I am sure to some peo9ple at this point – but I’ve also heard of some ppl who have burning sensations.

So is it a nerve disorder – i’ll have to  ask my doctor and what can one do to treat it?

Numbness & Tingling Fingers

I need to go back and see my family doctor really soon because even after taking one a day vitamin I had numbness & tingling fingers yesterday – first on the left hand and then on the right hand.  It didn’t last long a day for each hand – and then it was gone – but it sure worried me – because i’m diabetic.

But that’s not the only reason why i am at high risk – for a heart attack or something to do with diabetes – i also remain seated in the same position for a long time. And i type a lot on the computer.   And even though I’m taking medication for high cholesterol and high blood pressure – one cannot help but be extra careful – so making an appointment with the doctor is a must.

Growing Pains In Kids

Trust me I never knew that kids had growing pains – till Missy Moo complained for weeks now that her legs hurt.  This morning – it hurt so bad that she wasn’t able to walk but she fell down well and fine and whined too much too.  But we know she does have some kinda pain – because she doesn’t know how to lie about stuff like that yet.  Her family doctor had told us that she thinks it was growing pains too – but if it got any worst – we should get her in for a blood test – to make sure it wasn’t something else.

So while i was reading up on  testosterone cream , i went ahead and check out what one can do when your kid has got joint pains – because we didn’t want it to be junior arthritis  and if it was – we need to treat it early too.  I’m so not looking forward to it – if it was.   But I’m gonna try other alternatives on her now that I’ve read more about it.

“Massage” your child’s legs, especially the upper part. This doesn’t involve the typical massage techniques. It just involves squeezing. Put one or both hands on the child’s legs and gently but firmly squeeze. Do this continually for about 10-15 minutes. For the most part, the pain should go away and should allow the child to sleep, or at least have temporary relief from the pain.

You can also prop some pillows underneath the child’s legs to elevate them and use heating pad too – and if it gets any worst – check with the doctor to give her pain medication like ibuprofen.

811 Canada

When Missy Moo was sick last week – well, she still has cramps today – our family doctor told Mr Moo to call 811, should we need any advice in the middle of the night because this health line is manned by registered nurse.  I had asked Mr Moo to call once last week – but according to him – the nurse told him the child had to be with him to be able to access the situation.  Not as helpful as I thought they might be – but i wasn’t deterred like with my  fat burners and tried again – when Missy Moo puked like the Merlion last nite.

I’m pleased to report that the nurse online was really nice and gave me some very sound advice.  So anyone in Nova Scotia and needs medication advice – instead of going to the emergency immediately – you may want to try that first.  I called at about midnite and the nurse picked up my call immediately -so it’s better than waiting for 8hrs to see the doctor to be told to wait it out eh.