Monthly Archives: March 2023

Depression And What Could Be Its Effects

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When doctors talk about the disease of depression, they aren’t talking about occasional feelings of sadness or “the blues” that all of us experience from time to time. Depression is a serious condition that can have a variety of persistent physical, emotional and cognitive effects.
Physical Effects

* Appetite changes. Your interest in eating dwindles and you lose weight and energy. In some cases depression may cause you to overeat and you gain weight quickly.

* Sleep disturbances. You wake up in the middle of the night or early in the morning and can’t fall back to sleep. Oversleeping is another problem you may sleep 12 to 14 hours at night but still not get out of bed the next morning or else return to bed very quickly.

* Changes in energy. You may feel slowed down, as though you were carrying a heavy weight around with you. Even the simplest tasks getting dressed, making breakfast seem like enormous obstacles. Some depressed people feel abnormally restless and are unable to sit still or relax their bodies.

* Sexual problems. If you enjoyed sexual activity before, you now feel a lack of inter­est and desire.

Emotional Effects

* Loss of pleasure. You no longer enjoy what used to give you pleasure hobbies, conversations with friends, a visit from someone you love.

* Increased anxiety. You feel nervous much of the time and may spend many hours worrying about your health or other problems in your life.

* Sadness. You feel despondent and often feel like crying. There may also be feelings of worthlessness and guilt.

Cognitive Effects

* Changes in concentration. You seem unable to focus on what you’re doing and have difficulty making even small decisions.

* Impaired judgment. You have trouble making accurate assessments and tend to exaggerate your own faults, blaming your­self for your illness. This loss of judgment may cause you to “catastrophize,” turning minor events into major upsets.

What Causes Depression?

Although the exact cause of depression is unclear, there’s good evidence that depressed people have abnormal levels of certain brain chemicals called “neurotransmitters.” These chemicals, which transmit signals between brain cells, playa vital role in how you feel, think and behave. However, doctors still don’t know if abnormal brain chemistry actually causes depression, or if this chemistry is merely the result of depressive illness.

It’s unlikely that depression stems from a single cause. Most experts now think that certain factors such as heredity or childhood influences predispose you to the illness, while an event or combination of events for example, stress caused by loss or change actually triggers the symptoms. Here are some factors that have been implicated in depression.

Finding Dog Care Resources Online

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We all love our dogs, and this alone is a good enough reason to care for our dog, but there are many other reasons that we should all offer dog care to our pets, for example the health and happiness of our dog is the first thing to be noticed, and secondly learning how to provide this dog care yourself will increase your relationship and bond no end.

There are many online resources for dog care available, but I would like to show you a few extracts from a book that has everything rolled into one on the way of dog grooming and explain how to´s, techniques, tips and an explanation of the benefits for you and you dog that can be obtained through correct dog care at home.

We all know that there is more to dog care than a brush through there coat – although this is an important part of dog care I would like to drawer your attention to other areas and activities that can result in the mentioned benefits and play a great part in dog care;

Eyes and Ears –
Once you have mastered grooming the coat you can move on to the next stage of grooming, caring for the eyes and ears – again this is not a difficult task, but requires a little more care than the coat. As with humans the eyes, and especially the ears are delicate organs in a dog and we have to be sure we can help our dog benefit, minimize the risks, and at the same time ensure we are not creating any danger for our pet.

Eye Care
The importance of eye care is something that many dog owners do not take into consideration as much as should be, the general eye infections suffered by dogs are caused by bacteria which has been allowed to seep into the eye, so regular cleaning is a must – also whilst cleaning will be the best opportunity to identify the most common eye problem for our pets, Conjunctivitis, this can be noticed by a redness around the eye and a greenish, or yellowish discharge…

Dental Hygiene – A part of dog care many owners omit!
Much of the dental hygiene crosses from grooming into health care, I have tried to separate the two but parts go hand in hand, however there will be another book in the series shortly that will cover health care and mouth issues in your pet deeper, for now we will try to keep with the grooming topic, and base this section around dental hygiene for a healthier, and better looking dog without too much consideration for the health issues – although these are a main factor in dental and mouth care.

Child Safety – They Call Me Baby Speed Bump

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The government can’t solve all of our problems. If it could, the guy who served me a cold hamburger for lunch would be facing hard time. I mean, after all, it’s not like his oversight is a first offense. He’s served other unsuspecting patrons the same greasy, undercooked lump of cow, and should have to pay with his spatula.

There are some things our state governments should tackle, and one of those is the protection of our children. Hey, I don’t like kids either, but they do grow up eventually, and they make lousy speed bumps, so I think our legislators ought to address this problem. Little kids, I mean the ones under say twelve, shouldn’t be allowed to ride motorcycles.

Yes, I can just hear it. Its like the jokes circulating the Internet where manufacturers advise us we should keep their knives out of children or that using their electric hair dryers in the shower is not a good idea. To most of us, these words of wisdom seem so obvious that we are amazed that anyone would feel it necessary to tell us. But, while there is a limit to human intelligence, human stupidity is boundless. Here is a case in point.

I have a client who hired me to file an emergency petition to keep her former husband from transporting their 3-year-old, 32 pound kid on the back of his Harley. Fortunately, the judge made the right decision, and for the time being, Daddy has to pick the kid up in his truck. But the Welfare department and the police felt helpless to intervene against this behavior because it is not illegal. It’s not???? you might be saying. That’s what I said, and I’m a lawyer. It is true. You can’t drive your kids around in a car, van, or truck without appropriate safety restraints unless you want a ticket. It is, however, perfectly legal in all states for a little kid to be placed on the back of a motorcycle and only be protected by Daddy’s driving ability and the strength of his grip on Daddy’s shirt.

The fact that Junior could fly off the bike if Daddy were to hit one of our many potholes or suddenly have to brake because of traffic conditions has no bearing on whether Daddy is guilty of neglecting his duty. I guess if the kid lets go or loses his grip, its his tough break. After all, it was on his watch, and he sure as heck will know better next time, if there is a next time.

The paramedics who scrape his little body off the road, and the coroner who has to verify the cause of death have no gripe. If the little idiot had just held on like Daddy told him to, he’d possibly still be with us. But, who cares? Dead kids make great news copy.

Maybe I’m being old fashioned. After all, I am a lady of a certain age, and while that age isn’t anything I care to advertise, when I was growing up, my parents had the strange notion that they were supposed to protect me. They didn’t let me do harmless things like roller skate on Highway 52 or take rides home from school with strangers. Neither of them drove a motorcycle, so maybe I’m missing the point.

I ask you, parents of the world, am I wrong? Is there an excellent reason for a little kid to ride on the back of a “hog” that I don’t understand? Would we be denying our youth a right as important as, say, their education if we outlawed this behavior? Would our nursery school students stage a protest in Washington if this exciting and fun form of transportation was universally outlawed for them? What do you think? Tell me. Better yet, check your state laws and tell your legislature if your kids aren’t protected from such stupidity before some unsuspecting toddler is killed or permanently injured.

Copyright (c) 2010 Lucille Uttermohlen

Colorectal Cancer Basic Symptoms and New Treatments

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Although often known under one name, colorectal cancer, this disease is usually a combination of colon cancer and rectal cancer. In the early stages, most people don’t even know they have it. Symptoms, if any can be very minor or hard to detect.

The average person may simply feel changes are caused by temporary constipation, indigestion or other conditions that will disappear in time. Reluctance to see a doctor may also be caused by the fear that tests will be painful or frightening. There are so many advances and new treatments for colorectal cancer, however, that there is no reason to worry unduly.

In fact, early detection as well as knowledge about the basics of this disease can go a long way in overcoming fears. Methods of detecting this cancer are not uncomfortable for most people, especially with the new sedatives and anesthetics available. In fact, the average person doesn’t remember the test at all!

Since this cancer is the number two killer of Americans, it is vitally important to have routine tests for the disease. Although regular screenings are the best way to detect this disease in its early stages, there are also symptoms which can serve as an alert.

Some of the early warning signs of colorectal cancer include changes in bowel movements. Some people may have constipation which doesn’t go away even with a change in diet. Others may have the opposite effect, with diarrhea. There may also be bleeding around the rectal area. Sometimes the stools may become very thin, often described as looking like pencils. Some people have none of these symptoms but may lose weight, have a change in appetite or feel extremely tired all the time.

Pain in the rectal area or abdominal discomfort are also signs that it may be time to get additional help and advice. Of course, all of these symptoms could be signs of minor conditions so there is no reason to assume the worst. However, tests for early detection may be warranted. A family history of this cancer is also a risk factor. Other risk factors include a high fat diet and lack of fiber.

Those who are obese as well as individuals who don’t get regular exercise may also be at higher risk. There are many promising new treatments for colorectal cancer. Among the more intriguing are special blood tests which determine if people carry genetic risk factors for the cancer. Since these blood tests are so new, they haven’t yet overtaken colonoscopies (special x-rays of the colon) as the mainline detection method for these cancers. However, they have found genes linked to a higher risk of getting the disease and blood tests to screen for these genes.

In the future, a simple blood test may be enough to detect colon cancer. Other promising methods of detecting or preventing colorectal cancer include the regular use of aspirin and special diets which lower the risk of getting this disease. For now, however, there are tests to detect blood in the stool as well as colonoscopies. After a day of preparing for a colonoscopy, the test itself is usually easy, with a mild sedative administered to prevent discomfort. Afterwards, patients are driven home and are often back at work within a day (some intrepid patients even go back to work the same day).

Recent research indicates that colonoscopies administered early in the day have better detection rates than those given later. So try to schedule that colonoscopy for early in the day.