Here we are!!!

Our trip from Minneapolis to Panama was eventful but smooth. Here are the highlights:

We woke up at 2:30am to make it to the MSP airport by 4:15am. I was expecting to go through the "body scan" units at the airport, but found out that only a few of the security checkpoints have those body scan units. So, we went through just the metal detector, and I did get a little pat down from a matronly lady, but she didn't touch any of my private parts.

We flew into Miami to catch the flight to Panama City. We were excited we got upgraded to an exit row, but dismayed when we realized we couldn't lift the arm rests (my favorite way to fly is sprawled against Steve, sleeping, which was impossible on this segment). Sure, we had great leg room, but we also couldn't recline our seats.

We had a dog in the row in front of us, who behaved very well. No barks or anything. The lady told us the dog was a seasoned traveler. 

Much different (peaceful) than our journey from Miami to Panama City. That flight was full and 5 people got bumped. We sat in regular seats (with no leg room) but our arm rests moved, and our chairs reclined. I tried to sleep but didn't get much shut eye. There were 2 children in our immediate vicinity that were screaming (I would guess around 2-3 year old). they could talk but also could throw major tantrums).

Once we landed, we got through customs quickly (yay) and got our luggage. We had one piece of checked luggage that weighed 64lbs so we had to pay extra for it. But, at least everything made it in one piece.

We then had to rush (via taxi) to the regional airport in Panama City to catch our flight to David. Our flight was scheduled for 5pm but when we arrived at 4:10, they said "no". We were worried a bit, but decided to just go along. We found out they meant to put us on the 4pm flight that was JUST leaving. So we rushed, and made it onto the tiny plane. We flew Aeroperlas. The "stewardess" was a friendly young man and we got free cookies and beverages on the 40 min flight. Even the beer was free, although I don't drink.

When we arrived in David, we were in a very small airport. In fact, they only had one room where passengers board. (one gate, I should say). The small Panama City one had 2 rooms. Airport parking is free (even for weeks), and it is nestled on the outskirts of David, which is a bustling town of maybe 200,000 residents.

When we were driving to catch the flight, we drove through the toll roads right in the middle of Panama City, and noticed LOTS of garbage, dumpsters were FILLED with trash and other debris. We found out that the government is taking over the garbage collection and they just haven't gotten up to speed yet.

So, we arrived in David, and Donna, our host (her and her husband own the cute boutique hotel in Boca Chica named Gone Fishing Panama) was there to pick us up. It is about a 50 minute drive from David to Boca Chica. Her Excursion wouldn't start (you need 4WD on these roads out here). Finally we got it to start and went about 1/3 of the way to the resort before the vehicle start spewing out smoke from both ends. We parked at a gas station to cool the engine off, put oil in, and some water in the radiator (once it cooled off), and waited. We couldn't get it to start again, so we taxi'd it to the resort.

We didn't mind this little adventure at all. It was what we wanted to experience. What life really is like living here. Boca Chica is a town of about 250 people, a little fishing village. David is I think the 2nd or 3rd largest city in Panama. It is not a nice looking town, but it is absolutely beautiful in its own way. People walk down the middle of the street, no cares in the world, which makes it frustrating for drivers. There are malls, shopping places, etc but very different from what I am used to back in the states.

We finally got to the resort. We got to drive on the Trans American highway, which in my mind would have been an 8-lane bustling freeway. Nope. Try a 2 lane windy road without any center divide. The drivers are brave (or stupid)... we had an 18-wheeler pass us at 100 kilometers per hour!! Many cars have only one headlight working. I dont think any of them have shocks on their cars. We finally get to the steep,windy DIRT road leading to the resort (we are in a taxi -- a small car). Steve and I are in the back seat with a cooler in between us, he has a box of food on his lap (big box) and towels. When Donna came to town she went shopping, too, so we had to not only load the taxi with our 64-lb luggage, our carryon suitcase, backpack and purse, we had to load it with groceries, too. So all the weight in the car made it impossible to get to the resort. We kept bottoming out. We had less than half a mile to go, but Donna's son came and got us with his 4X4.

WE MADE IT!!

It was almost 9pm by this time, and we had been up since 3:30am Panama time (Eastern Standard time). So we ate a quick dinner and went to bed.

Our room is gorgeous, our deck is beautiful, the view is phenomenol, the ladies who work here are so sweet and adorable. I know one of them is named Lupe. They call her Loopy. We walked on the beach this morning (low tide) and Steve is right now sleeping in the hammock as I am on the veranda / porch overlooking the ocean.

The most interesting thing? I am at peace. I am relaxed. This just rocks. I LOVE Panama so far.

Our plan for today? Relax, swim in the pool, maybe try some kayaking. Later we can walk into town (only one restaurant, which Donna didn't recommend, she said it was dirty and the hygiene was an issue), a pool hall / bar, and a mini-mart. But we still want to check it all out, and it is about a mile away.

Other observations... it is HOT here. And humid. It is just changing into "summer" here, and they say they never get rain in the summer in this area of Panama, but yesterday it rained a little, and they received more rain than ever before, these past few weeks.

I can't wait to write more about our adventures tomorrow, and post more pictures.


New warning over poisoned fillings

This article is from Dr. William C. Douglass, MD. I subscribe to his newsletters, but unfortunately he doesn't have a link to a website to click on his email newsletters so I can post a link to the article. So, I am copying it below and attributing it to him. Mercury is very bad for you, we all know. And many of us have it in our mouths. I removed all my amalgams (not personally!) years ago, and have only composite fillings. Unfortunately my dental insurance doesn't cover them. They cover the cheaper, silver fillings. So, I just take care of my teeth and hopefully won't face any cavities in the future. And while I got the amalgams removed from my mouth, I used my detox foot pads to remove the heavy metals. I do feel a lot better and am not afraid of chronic diseases anymore!


New warning over poisoned fillings

Got fillings? Of course you do... but you might want to rip 'em out -- teeth and all -- when you hear about how they're slowly poisoning you.

Dentists like to call these things "amalgam," which is a fancy way of saying "mercury mixed with silver."

But of course, if they put it that way, patients would run screaming from the clinic... so "amalgam" it is, and by some estimates these poisoned fillings now line 180 million unsuspecting American mouths.

Now, a new report finds that those fillings send 67.2 million Americans beyond safe mercury exposure levels, as defined by the EPA.

What's more, the report by the International Academy of Oral Medicine finds that if the more rigid California exposure standards were used, 122.3 million Americans would exceed safe levels.

And if you use Douglass standards, all 180 million Americans with mercury fillings are in dangerous territory -- because there is NO safe level of exposure to this toxic heavy metal.

Yet here you are, probably being exposed as you read this. It happens every time you chew, chomp, grind, bite or even brush.

And if you're pregnant, your unborn baby is exposed to all that mercury, same as you, putting your kid at risk for autism and other development problems... all because your dentist filled your teeth with a toxic heavy metal -- and probably never even bothered to tell you.

The feds have insisted that a mouthful of poison is perfectly safe, but that claim is based only on useless short-term studies. There's strong evidence now that slow-but-steady exposure to mercury over a lifetime can lead to degenerative disorders such as lupus, multiple scleroris and Alzheimer's disease.

And if that's not enough, take a look at the effect it's having on a type of wetland bird...

Researchers fed male white ibises pellets with different levels of mercury to simulate what they might get from eating contaminated shrimp and crayfish.

Boy-birds who ate the most mercury stopped showing interest in girl-birds and paired with other males instead.

Could this be true for humans, too?

Judging by the number of "alternative arrangements" springing up around the country, I wouldn't be surprised.

No more blogging about my shoulder surgeries!!

It has been 18 weeks yesterday, since my left shoulder surgery. I had my final PT and post op visit with my orthopedic surgeon this past week. I feel great. Well, I have a long road ahead of me still. Sometimes after laying on my left side for hours at night, I wake up with a stiff, sore shoulder. Sometimes I over use it and it is very sore for a few days. Sometimes (like recently) I don't stretch every day like I am supposed to, and it gets tight.

But, overall, My pain is FINALLY less than before I had my surgery. I honestly never believed this possible, only in my wildest dreams. Speaking of wildest dreams, I need to look up that Moody Blues song, it was one of my favorites about 22 years ago!

I won't be posting updates weekly. I think maybe in the spring, or a couple months down the road I will post how I am doing, but overall I am very pleased.

We are heading out to Panama in 6 days. I will miss the dogs but am thankful my friend and her family will be house sitting for us over Christmas.

Carpe Diem!!!

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Purify Your Body

Welcome to the December issue of The Purify Your Body Newsletter.


In this Issue

Take 15% off your order of foot pads!
What disease scares you the most?
Have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS

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Take 15% off your order of foot pads!

Take 15% off your order of foot pads!

Happy Holidays from Purify Your Body!

Take 15% off your order THROUGH DECEMBER 22nd ONLY!! Please use coupon code HOLIDAY2010 at checkout. (Coupon is good for detox foot pad purchases only).

I am leaving for the holidays on Dec 23rd and won't be back until January 3rd. Please get all your Holiday orders in by December 22nd, so I can be sure to get them out to you in time. If you want them for Christmas, please order by the 20th.

I will be having a friend of mine fill all my foot pad orders while I am gone,so don't worry, your foot pad orders will still get to you. However, I don't know if she will be filling any other orders (if you order NutraSilver or my Oxygen Products). So please, if you need to stock up, place the order  ASAP.

ORDER HERE

 

What disease scares you the most?

What disease scares you the most?

I have to tell you that I am not afraid of cancer anymore. I lost my mother to cancer when I was 2 years old, and during my whole childhood it was the thing I feared most. As I learned about natural health, and how we can prevent cancer by detoxing our bodies and by providing our bodies with good nutrition, I overcame that fear. Cancer won't strike me!

However, if I thought about what cancer I would least like to have, I would have to say colon cancer. Our bodies detox through elimination, through sweat, through foods we eat. That is why I do a good colon cleanse every so often, and why I take OxyFlush on a daily basis. I have been using OxyFlush for so many years, and about 4 years ago started offering it to my customers here on www.purifyyourbody.com.

I recommend you try it out if you are interested in having great colon health. Actually, all of the Oxygen products work amazing and offer good health benefits.

Have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS

Have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS

I want to wish all of you beautiful blessings and lots of love this Christmas season. Please be safe, and bask in the joy and magic of the season.

My favorite Christmas hymn is "O Holy Night" and I LOVE Josh Groban's version of it. It brings tears to my eyes. I hope every one of you can feel the magic that this season brings. God Bless You.

 

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I need serious help!!

After a crazy hectic day today (hence my life), I went to the tanning salon. (Yes, I know, I normally don't condone tanning in a tanning bed -- unless you will be going on a trip and don't want to get burned your first day of vacation, so you need a base tan, or if you are in a wedding and wearing a sleeveless gown, sure, I can see tanning in a salon).

Well, I was thinking about two things:

1) I seriously need to learn to relax. I couldn't even lay still and relax for 15 minutes. It sums up my life, always on the go, doing something, etc. etc. So here I am, unable to not fidget for even 15 minutes, when the second thing came into my mind.

2) I am a big time internet / email addict. So here I am, bored as heck with these funny goggles on my eyes, and I am fidgeting. But I find a solution: My cell phone!! I wiggle my way to the edge of this massive tanning bed, and reach and reach and reach.... until I feel the wonderful, glorious touch of my cell phone in my hand. Now, I can check my email while I am "doing nothing but lay there".

Problem solved.

Except that I still need serious help for these issues.

Week 17 Bicep Tenodesis surgery and Subacromial Decompression - my story

Yesterday was 17 weeks since my bicep tenodesis surgery on my left arm (and subacromial decompression / distal clavicle excision). And it was 12 weeks since the subacromial decompression and distal clavicle excision on my right shoulder. So, time is creeping by, and I am HEALING!!

I knew that week 17 would be the magical week. I can honestly say now that I am in LESS PAIN than before my surgeries. This is fantastic (as I am leaving for Central America in 2 weeks).

I am still tender and sore. My muscles still aren't 100% strong. But I can do practically everything that I try to do. I even painted my condo (with help from a friend).

I have to admit I haven't been doing my regular physical therapy, and here I am, at 5:30am admitting this when I see my physical therapist in an hour... shame on me! But I had a tenant move out of my condo, and need to get it ready for a new tenant, I need to find that tenant, and my truck heater broke and it is like 12 degrees F outside, and Steve is sick with the flu, and my dogs need attention, and I am exhausted. So, with a lot going on in my life, there is an immense amount of stress right now.... and so much to do. So I have been doing my stretches maybe about 1x per day at least, and I have been foregoing my strengthening lately. I will talk to the PT today, but since I have been working (i.e. painting, scrubbing, cleaning, carrying boxes) I think that he might say that constitutes strengthening!!

So that is my update for this week. I think maybe now I will wait a few more weeks to report back, as I am on the path to being fully healed, and it probably isn't fun reading minute details every week, with nothing new to say really.

Why do YOU not use your turn signal?

I am wondering why people don't use their turn signal while driving. Or, they use it inappropriately (i.e. they go into a turn lane, and don't turn the signal on until they are already in the lane. This I can understand -- people are stupid and ignorant and don't know the laws, although it still bugs me). But I don't understand those folks who don't ever use it.

Is it because you think you are better than everyone else on the road? That you are more important? (you aren't, by the way).

Is it because you didn't know it is THE LAW to use your turn signal? (in that case, hand over your license, you ignoramus).

Is it because no one else is around you? (I have heard a joke before that starts something like this... "if you are alone in the forest...")

WHY?? Tell me why, so I can understand.

Why Skim milk will make you fat -- a blog post from Sarah, the Healthy Home Economist

Why Skim Milk Will Make You Fat and Give You Heart Disease

by Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist on February 28, 2010

in Healthy Living,Most Controversial

Image001

Joke: How do you dramatically increase sales of a new or unpopular food product to the American public?

Answer: Call it a health food!


This joke, while funny, is also very sad as it illustrates with humor what common sense, logic, observation, and facts cannot for the vast majority of Westerners. Time and time again, Americans are completely duped by the clever marketing of a food product, falling all over themselves to buy it just because it has been touted in the media and by their (equally duped) doctors as a food that will improve their health.


Don’t believe it? How about margarine? Americans, in the span of just a few short years after World War II, all but completely shunned butter and this behavior pattern continued for decades because saturated fat was supposedly the demon of heart disease. See my blog which explains the truth about butter.   Americans are finally waking up to the fact that butter is a wonderful, truly natural healthfood and it is margarine that ironically causes heart disease!


What about soy? This is another supposed “health food” that has been proven to do nothing but cause an epidemic of hypothyroidism is the Western world (you know the symptoms: overweight, losing your hair, depressed, tired all the time). Soy in Asia, as it has been consumed for thousands of years, is always fermented for long periods of time before it can be safely consumed – and even then – in very small quantities! The modern processing of soy which involves grinding up the leftover soy protein, the waste product in the production of soy oil, and putting it in all manner of food products which line our grocery store shelves makes for a dangerous and health robbing line of consumer goods.


I also blogged recently about the latest healthfood scam: agave nectar. Here again is an example of a new food that was marketed using the “health food” label. This approach to selling to the American people is obviously working as these products are readily available in most health food stores despite the fact that this product has a more deadly concentration of fructose than the high fructose corn syrup in soda!

Now, On to Skim Milk!

Hopefully, you are now convinced that labeling an item as a “health food” is a frequently used approach for selling something to the American public. Skim milk falls into this same category.


Prior to World War II, Americans didn’t ever drink skim or lowfat milk. Drinking such a product to stay “thin and healthy” would have been laughable. Americans would only drink whole milk. In fact, the larger the creamline on their milk, the higher quality the milk, and the more likely the consumer was to buy it. Milk wasn’t homogenized in those days, so a consumer could easily see the distinct creamline on the milk to determine quality.


Cream has been considered a true health food for centuries. In Ancient Greece, Olympic athletes drank a bowlful of cream to give them strength and endurance before competition. Why? Because cream steadies blood sugar for an extended period of time. No ups and downs in insulin when your diet has lots of wonderful saturated fat in it. It is only when you eat lowfat that blood sugar issues such as diabetes and hypoglycemia tend to arise.


So, how did skim milk come to be recognized as a healthfood in America? It all ties back to the demonization of saturated fats that began shortly after World War II. Americans started to abandon butter and cream in droves about this time because studies had apparently shown that saturated fat was linked to the growing number of heart disease cases in America. Never mind that atherosclerosis (clogged arteries) was virtually unknown prior to the mid 1920′s when Americans drowned everything in cream and butter. Logic and observation clearly indicated that saturated fat could not possibly be the cause of heart disease – it was obviously something new that had been introduced into the American diet. Of course, this “something” is partially hydrogenated fats which were introduced around 1921 (Enter Crisco. Bingo! First heart attack in 1927). These factory fats are primarily responsible for the epidemic of heart disease yet saturated fats took the fall anyway.


With Americans abandoning whole milk due to its high saturated fat content, skim milk was touted as the new heart healthy food. Americans bought the scam hook, line, and sinker. Skim milk was the new king of the dairy aisle. This behavior pattern has continued for decades despite the average American getting fatter and fatter and the cases of heart disease showing no signs of abating.


In the 1990′s with the beginnings of the childhood obesity epidemic, doctors even started to encourage parents to switch their children to skim or lowfat milk around age 2. This foolish recommendation has done nothing but make kids fatter.


How does drinking skim milk make kids (and adults) fatter? This apparent paradox occurs when you reduce the saturated fat in a person’s diet and he/she turns to carbs (grains and sugars primarily) to fill in the gap. It is the grains and sugars that truly make you fat, not saturated fat. I’ve said before on this blog that the more butter and cream I eat, the easier it is to maintain my weight. MUCH easier. The same goes for all of us. If you drink skim milk, you will be missing out on the satiating, blood sugar and insulin steadying affects of saturated fat, so your body will automatically give you sugar and carb (grains) cravings to make up for it. The body is able to MAKE saturated fat out of sugars, hence the sugar cravings that are impossible to control when you eat a lowfat diet that includes skim milk. Try it! Eat tons of butter, whole milk yogurt and whole milk cheese for a few days and watch your sugar cravings rapidly diminish!


Another big secret is that Big Dairy adds skim milk powder to skim milk. Here’s an excerpt from “Dirty Secrets of the Food Processing Industry” from the Weston A. Price Website:


A note on the production of skim milk powder: liquid milk is forced through a tiny hole at high pressure, and then blown out into the air. This causes a lot of nitrates to form and the cholesterol in the milk is oxidized. Those of you who are familiar with my work know that cholesterol is your best friend; you don’t have to worry about natural cholesterol in your food; however, you do not want to eat oxidized cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol contributes to the buildup of plaque in the arteries, to atherosclerosis. So when you drink reduced-fat milk thinking that it will help you avoid heart disease, you are actually consuming oxidized cholesterol, which initiates the process of heart disease.


One parting fact: pig farmers love feeding skim milk to their pigs. Why? It makes them REALLY fat! Still want to drink your skim milk? I hope not.


Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist.com

 

Week 16 bicep tenodesis update / SAD / DCE

It is now 16 weeks since my major surgery. Last night during my strengthening exercises, I did 5lb weights on both arms, when I did the arm curl. It felt like my left arm was lifting 10lbs to the 5lb weight on my right arm, so we do have strength issues there. And I can't just power lift, because I am looking for toning. Then, once I get my muscle toned, I can start to do heavier weights. It was the first time I tried the 5lb weight on my left arm, and boy was it hard. I only was about to do 20 reps. I will shoot for 30 reps tomorrow. (I do strengthening every day).

On another note, my "sleeper stretch" is improving. I am almost able to put my arm all the way to the ground, just a few inches to go. I have my next physical therapy appointment in a week and a half, and I hope to be able to be close enough to show off!!

I am in pain still. A lot of movements in my left arm cause pain. But, I have to say that it isn't excruciating like it was before the surgery. And, I almost have full range of motion, which is nice. It is just that my arms are so weak that I have trouble with certain movements. Don't know how I am going to paint walls this weekend!!!

I am sleeping better. While I still have a lot of pain at night, and especially in the morning, it IS decreasing. slowly but surely.

Where I am most tender still is the tops of my shoulders, where the acromium is, where they cut off the end of the clavicle. This is very tender on both shoulders, and like I mentioned in a few earlier posts, it is because of the ligament that is up there, I can't remember the name. It is traumatized from the surgery and can realistically take up to 8 months (one person said 6 months, the other said 8 months, so what I want to hear is the 6 month one. That way in 3 months I can hope to have both shoulders back to normal!)

I can't wait. This is a struggle, a daily battle. I am exhausted from all the things I have to do, on top of the physical therapy. If I miss a day of physical therapy I REALLY feel it. It is amazing the difference that it makes. And, I THINK the pain is slowly going away. It is hard to tell when you live with it day after day, hour after hour, minute after minute. I know my range of motion IS getting better, and my strength is getting better as well.

I will just keep on keeping on!

My ultimate goal is to be able to work my garden come spring, and not have ANY pain associated with my shoulders. I can't wait!