Archive for September, 2008

Pregnancy Watch: What You Need to Know About Bronchitis

Monday, September 15th, 2008

“A new life…” – pregnancy is a momentous moment for a couple. It denotes the fruit of a man and woman’s love for each other. Most significantly, it signifies that another individual will be given life.

During pregnancy, women take extra care of themselves because it is not just them that they are taking care of. When a woman becomes pregnant, she is most susceptible to acquire many illnesses because of a weakened immune system. 

Cough and colds are common illnesses once a woman gets pregnant. Physicians advise pregnant women to make necessary precautions to prevent from getting cough and colds since it can lead to more serious illness such as bronchitis. 

Bronchitis is a condition wherein the air passageway inside your lungs swells. Cough and colds are the most common symptoms of bronchitis. Hence, if you are pregnant you must keep yourself from getting coughs. 

Ways to Avoid Getting Bronchitis

The main consideration you need to undertake to avoid bronchitis is to avoid getting its symptom. Primarily, you cannot risk having cough or colds which oftentimes develop into bronchitis if not immediately treated. Hence, you need to undertake measures to keep you away from getting coughs or colds:

1. You need to wash your hands as often as possible. If you are outside the premises of your home or office where a washroom is not accessible, it is best to bring a hand sanitizer or alcohol. 

2. It is best if you keep things around you clean especially those you often touch or encounter. There are a lot of germ-killing disinfectants which you can use.

3. Keep away from people who have cough or colds. You are at high risk to develop such illness when you frequently interact with individuals who are inflicted with cough or colds.

4.  If you begin to develop cough or colds, use a clean tissue when you blow. Immediately throw the tissue into its appropriate container.

Effects of Bronchitis to a Pregnant Woman

You need to take the above-mentioned ways seriously to avoid getting cough or colds due to many uneventful consequences it may bring such as the development of bronchitis. 

Several symptoms of bronchitis may cause anxiety to pregnant women in many different ways: 

* Coughing is a symptom of bronchitis. Although the presence of cough is not fatal to your unborn child, it can lead to annoying and discomforting moments.

* Fever is also a symptom of bronchitis. You need determine your body temperature. Medical studies show that pregnant women who incur a temperature higher than 38.9 degrees C may give birth to a child with abnormalities.

* Colds, pain in the throat and chest also bring annoyances to pregnant women. If immediately treated, these do not bring harm to you or the baby. 

If You Have the Symptoms of Bronchitis 

If the symptoms of bronchitis are evident in you, then you or a caregiver must take necessary precautions to tamper the development of the illness so that you will not suffer from the above-mentioned effects of bronchitis to pregnant women. 

1. You need to drink a lot of non-caffeinated liquids. By doing so, it will help by easing your secretion. Some of the recommended liquids for pregnant women are water, fruit juices from fresh fruits, and soups. 

2. A humidifier in your house may be beneficial especially if you are suffering from colds. Additionally, saline drops can also be utilized to relieve your nose from being stuffy. 

3. A warm shower everyday is recommended. It was found out that taking a warm shower can help clear out mucus as well as nose stuffiness.

4. When symptoms of bronchitis are evident, you need to take a lot of rest. A visit to your OB-GYNE is highly recommended.

There are times that taking medications cannot be prevented even if you are pregnant. Such medications aim to alleviate the discomfort and pain you are suffering brought by the symptoms of bronchitis.

Decongestants are medicines commonly given to pregnant women who are suffering from colds or allergies. On the other hand, there are cough suppressants and expectorants available for pregnant women to help them aid from the annoyance of cough.

It is best to consult your doctor before you take such medications to prevent possible harm to you and your baby.

Sugar and Salt: My Life with Bipolar Disorder

Sunday, September 14th, 2008

Sugar and Salt: My Life with Bipolar Disorder is a book about a middle aged woman who had and managed to survive bipolar disorder also known as Manic-depression, but along the way experiences the bitter and sweet moments of life in a not so normal way. She only knew of her illness when she turned 32. In the book, it is vividly detailed what it is like to live in a family threatened by such an illness, how to fit in school or do work while dealing with the undiagnosed illness. She also describes her ordeal of facing the failure of her marriage and other relationships, how she tries to understand that, however she tries to live a normal life it just bounce back and still she lives a very different and more complicated life than the persons she knew. Until she admits that there is something wrong about her and that she needs professional help.

After the acceptance of the strange malady within her comes the long journey to get treatment as she tries one medication after the other after being mistaken for a psychotic. For more or less five years her life was devoted in seeking the proper knowledge and ways to approach the said disorder that she has been putting up for such a long time until the part came where she realizes that for her to get the proper treatment she needs she had to enter a mental hospital. She illustrates the life she had lived in a locked ward and how fortunate she was when her attending physician finally finds a certain medication that her disorder responds to. She feels that she had the key to break free from her long ordeal and finally she gets the normal feeling she always wanted.

As she makes progress in the medication her disorder responds to she reaches the point where she can now get out of the mental hospital and live like a normal person. Jane had to face the world on her own again and start a brand new life. She was able to get the private life she wanted and the dream job that she had been always dreaming of without her bosses and co-employees knowing her deep, dark secret. But, after ten long years, unfortunately she develops an allergy to the one and only medication that has been of very good service to her and must start the treatment all over again.

At some point in the process, she loses the job she had dreamt about and falls back into the deep ditches of depression. It is a very touching story about a woman’s triumph over her bipolar disorder that for the second time has threatened her and once again she survived it. Find out how she managed to surpass it and how you too can mange the disorder through medication and therapy should you find out that you have such illness or maybe a family member experiences such a scary disease. The author, Jane Thompson has worked as a paralegal, a teacher, as a social worker not to mention as a writer. It’s been several years now since she wrote for the publisher of a certain political encyclopedia and has also served as one of the medical writer for a training corporation.

It was such experiences that she came to learn how to express herself with great conciseness and accuracy. When the author decided to write her very own story which is the Sugar and Salt: My Life with Bipolar Disorder, her experience aided her in getting her work printed on paper. And so with her experience, as a medical writer and her stock knowledge about mental health issues, those made it a bit easier for her to write the said story. When the author just started, she had twenty short stories printed already and Sugar and Salt: My Life with Bipolar Disorder is her first book. Currently Jane Thompson is the author of Mosby’s Clinical Nursing, a comprehensive reference in clinical nursing to be included as a reference in the educational program materials of the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. She is also the co-author of Secrets Volume 15: The Best in Erotic Romance, Jane Thompson was also the editor of American Express Presents Top Chefs of the Triangle and a lot more.

All-in-One Vacation Getaways through Celebrity Cruise Lines

Friday, September 12th, 2008

If you are given a week off from your work, how will you spend it? Of course, you want to give yourself a different treat; after all, you want to relax and unwind yourself from the pressure of your work.

Scuba diving? Mountain climbing? Backpacking? Different activities you can choose from, but make sure that you take a holiday that is cost-effective and time-efficient.

For instance, in scuba diving, you need to find the best diving sites in and out of the United States. The same goes in mountain climbing. It is quite time wasting, since you cannot reach the top in just a single day of climbing.

In backpacking, you have to pack and unpack at every hotel; at the same time, you need to find restaurants and everything you need by means of a travel map.

In terms of cost and time efficient getaway, you may consider getting yourself a cruise. Not unlike in the aforementioned getaways, which you need to locate everything, in cruising, you do not have to. All the amenities you want—fitness center, restaurants, swimming pools, casino—can be found in cruise ships.

You do not have to worry about your luggage—you check in your things and once check you suite, your stuffs automatically placed there. Moreover, the best attraction of cruising activities — the parade of delicious dishes on cruise dining rooms.

Each cruise ship has its own restaurant administered by the finest chefs in the world. You do not have to take out some cash out your wallet to pay for those foods—these are all included in the cost of the cruise.

In every port during your local sightseeing activities, tourist guides are readily available to assist you. You do not have to worry about your children; there are several activities, which can keep them preoccupied while you are enjoying your own activity.

Taking a cruise vacation enables you to enjoy every minute of your vacation and frees you of worries concerning traveling.

All cruise lines offers the aforementioned services to their passengers, but you need to take at least one when having your vacation. This article will provide you information on Celebrity Cruise Line, and why make it as one of your options in selecting the cruise line you will sail with.

Celebrity Cruise Line is one of the best cruise lines in the planet. They offer competitive package, which includes informative forums about your preferred location. They also have on-board upscale boutiques and entertainment ala Las Vegas, which is created and designed exclusively for Celebrity by Cirque du Soleil.

You can try your luck at The Casino or even take some fine art masterpieces at the on-board auction. In case you cannot sleep on wee hours of the evening, you can check The Bar at the Edge of the Earth, an exotic lounge provided by Celebrity.

If you want to feel relaxed, have a visit to the famous Aqua-Spa by Elemis. There, you will experience a deluxe manicure, facial treatments, and a relaxing massage. Celebrity also has on-board acupuncture center if you want to feel renewed and invigorated.

Your kids will also enjoy their stay in the cruise ship. Celebrity offers the X-Club Youth Program exclusively for your kids. It has activities and entertainment for a specific age group.

Professional staffs administer all of these activities, which include science and nature exploration, treasure hunts, talents shows, dinner parties, and others. Celebrity reserved some areas in the ship for younger seafaring such as the Shipmates Fun Factory, teen center, and pools. This will make your kids enjoy their own activities while you are on cultural tours.

Cruise adventures are not only for kids and adults. It is also a perfect vacation retreat for individuals with disabilities. Celebrity designed its ships to accommodate mobility-impaired passengers. There are also staffs that are always ready to attend to their medical and other needs.

Celebrity also employs on-board clinic staffed by a licensed doctor and nurse who can speak foreign language as well. They are in-charge of the passenger’s health while on-board.

Foods are available 24/7 in cafeterias and dining areas. You can also request for a room service in case you want spend a romantic dinner with your husband or wife. There are also formal dinner happening every evening for those who want to display their best attire and jewelry.

Lastly, as for the cruise destination itself, itineraries are provided. You have the option of boarding the ship all day or going ashore. You are free to have a check each destination as long as you return immediately to the ship in time of departure.

There are also optional activities available. Just have a pre-arrangement with the cruise line before the scheduled departure.

Enjoy cruising with Celebrity Cruise Lines!