Arbonne Body Care and Cosmetics – Fundraising for MetoWe Camp!

I have been lucky enough to try Arbonne products thanks to numerous amazing ladies I am connected with on social media. Arbonne_® products are vegan-certified: their formulas are never tested on animals and do not contain animal-derived ingredients or animal by-products. Due to the growth in Metabolic disease and Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease this is very important to me and to those I care for. The chemicals being added by other companies are hurting our bodies in a toxic world.

To read about the products go to http://www.arbonne.ca/products/index.asp

To read about the company go to https://www.arbonne.ca/company/manifesto.asp

Megan wants to attend A Social Innovation for Change Camp this summer. This camp offers an amazing leadership opportunity that will be able to help Megan bring back to our community through volunteer work and other humanitarian efforts. Megan will be working with industry professionals to help her learn ways to create tangible changes. To learn more about this camp go to Me to We’s website.

http://www.metowe.com/motivation-leadership/take-action-camp/ontario-take-action-academy/#social-innovation-for-change-fostering-creative-and-innovative-ideas-for-positive-social-influence

Megan is 16 years old and a junior at Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School The opportunity to attend this camp would mean the world to her as she looks towards a career in human rights law after fighting for 6 years with a chronic illness called Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease that left me in various states of extreme sickness throughout that time. She has impressed Investor’s Group enough so that they have given her a bursary to  cover some of the costs, but with me as a single mother she need help to raise the remaining funds. Human Rights are a huge passion for her and she will  make a difference in both the local and international community.

Janet Auty-Carlisle is a great friend that I have not had the pleasure of meeting in person but I have known on Social Media for a good 5 years. Whenever there has been an opportunity to support Megan and I in that time she has always stepped up and been wonderful.

Now she is offering to give Megan a nice percentage of all sales in May for Arbonne products purchased online with Janet’s Sales ID.

So if you want to help Megan and you want to help your body by using non toxic products go to

https://www.arbonne.ca/shop_online/shopOnline.asp

Orders can be placed in North America, United Kingdom and Australia. You will need to enter the 9 digit id 115726215 to get the fundraising donation to Megan.

Thank you in advance from your liver and from Megan!

 

Baking Fundraising for Me to We Camp!

Megan Clermont described this perfectly I have adjusted slightly.

Do you like baked goods and helping out a good cause?

For the month of May my daughter will be baking a variety of home baked cookies, breads, and cupcakes with all proceeds going towards fees for a Me to We Take Action Camp this summer. Prices for these items range from $1-$7.50 with a total of $500 needed to be raised for the cost of attendance.

This camp offers an amazing leadership opportunity that will be able to help Megan bring back to our community through volunteer work and other humanitarian efforts. Megan will be working with industry professionals to help her learn ways to create tangible changes. To learn more about this camp go to Me to We’s website.

http://www.metowe.com/motivation-leadership/take-action-camp/ontario-take-action-academy/#social-innovation-for-change-fostering-creative-and-innovative-ideas-for-positive-social-influence

Megan is 16 years old and a junior at Sir Frederick Banting Secondary School The opportunity to attend this camp would mean the world to her as she looks towards a career in human rights law after fighting for 6 years with a chronic illness called Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease that left me in various states of extreme sickness throughout that time. She has impressed Investor’s Group enough so that they have given her a bursary to  cover some of the costs, but with me as a single mother she need help to raise the remaining funds. Human Rights are a huge passion for her and she will  make a difference in both the local and international community.

If you live in the GTA of Toronto Ontario or Southwestern Ontario we would be happy to deliver the baked goods to you. Sadly we can’t do this beyond that geographical area.  There will be 2 days that deliveries will be made to the Toronto area. This offer is limited to the month of May 2013.

In order to support Megan in this amazing opportunity please go to the attached order form and fill out your information and order request and submit to have it sent to Megan.

https://adobeformscentral.com/?f=PbKTYKRgo2IZr23pmmLnIA

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally 2013 looking much better!!

2013 has been a rough year personally with broken bones ruling my life! As of April 12, 2013 we finally got the news that Megan’s toe was healing and she would not require surgery

Over the last couple of weeks my rib has healed enough that I rarely feel the pain unless i am stretching that specific area.

I have seen Megan walking down the stairs without crutches, climbing up the stairs without having to crawl.

She is still reliant somewhat on the chair in the shower but is standing to wash most of her body and her need for me is reducing dramatically.

We have gone out without her wheelchair! We have replaced the air cast with very high quality doc marten’s to provide the added support for her foot. But at least she feels more human!

Alex returned from Halifax completing his first year of university it has matured him so much and he is flourishing in that setting.  I got to meet his beautful girlfriend Beth. They are perfect together and were together for most of this school year. Sadly Beth is from England and had a year in Canada which ends at the end of May when she will return home and the relationship will end. This relationship will likely be the one they both look back on and compare every other relationship too as they start meeting other people. I am so happy for them for experiencing this together and I know Alex will not settle for less than what he had with Beth and I hope the same for Beth. You both deserve happiness and don’t settle for less.

Alex has struggled with finding a job in the last year. This is not unusual for students, the economy is very very hard on young adults who are looking for work. The jobs they apply for are also being applied for by adults who are underemployed and need more money.  Alex started watching job ads and saw one for a Caulking company looking for a student for the summer. He contacted them and met with them and he has now officially started working for the summer at 14 dollars per hour which is awesome for a summer job and will make returning to university in the fall so much easier!

For Megan I am always watching for opportunities to enrich her life experience. As she is not in school very much due to health over the last 5 years i try to make sure there is always something to look forward to, always something to fight for.  In February I was looking at the WE DAY website and I found http://www.metowe.com/ On this site their were summer camps with leadership streams that would be so perfect for Megan. But they are 900 for a week and there would be no way I could pay for her to attend.  I noticed that there was a bursary option with investors group and I looked into that. Megan would need to write about why she wanted to attend the camp and what she hoped to get out of it. She needed 2 other letters of recomendations. I wrote one easily talking about why Megan deserves this and her school guidance counsellor also wrote a nice letter for her.

We forgot about it for the month of April , had no idea how many kids would apply for a bursary , whether there was any shot for Megan to attend. We focussed on getting Megan walking and her toe! On April 30, 2013 Megan got a voice mail from MetoWe for her to call them. Megan and I looked at each other and i know i caught my breath thinking would they call if She DID NOT get a bursary…talked myself into that they would want to thank every student for their efforts.

Megan called them on May 1. Not only had she qualified for a bursary she qualified for the highest amount they have ever given a student from Investors group! She was given 400 dollars towards the 900.00 cost of this camp.  This is going to be so incredible for Megan, It will be in August just before she returns to school and I know she will be so inspired! They are not allowed to bring electronics and have to focus on the program. This is the program she will attend

 

Offered weeks one (July 7-13) and four (August 4-10)

This program is designed for youth who are interested in tackling problems in a new creative way that can help foster positive social change. Social Innovation focuses on providing youth with the skill set of a successful “innovator” Youth will develop not only leadership skills and a better understanding of the issues the world is facing, but creative thinking, idea generation, and collaboration skills–all important for producing ideas that change the world.

This stream will:

• Develop campers’ leadership  and life skills, including communication, collaboration, planning and decision making

• Provide a  deeper understanding of the role that social innovation is playing in reshaping the way we look at social justice issues

• Develop the skill set of a social innovator, including:  creating  social capital , networking, generating creative solutions to problems, coming to terms with and dealing with failure  and fostering the self-motivation to carry out and implement an idea

• Creating a blueprint of a business plan that uses these skills to have a positive impact on the local and global community

Ideal for participants who:

• Have an interest in business

• Are creative, forward-thinking and solution orientated

• Are passionate about a range of social justice issues

 

Stay tuned tomorrow as I share the ideas for how we will fundraise 500.00 for the rest of the cost of this camp in the month of May.

Brimming with Happiness here today!!

 

 

Dr Robert Lustig – Sugar The Bitter Truth

I came across Dr Lustig for the first time on Youtube on November 1 2011. I was flabbergasted when I watched Sugar The Bitter Truth and I learned that high fructose corn syrup and sugar in general was directly related to Fatty Liver Disease and causing us all to be addicted to foods with it. I emailed him the next day and told him about my 15 year old daughter and the issues she had with her liver, extreme vertigo, fainting and insomnia. I researched him online a bit and found that he was a pediatric endocrinologist for 32 years. In that time, he had watched the obesity and metabolic syndrome rates climb, first to the level of epidemic , and now the rates in other countries qualify this as a pandemic. Worse yet, these problems are occurring in infants and toddlers, who clearly cannot be guilty of character flaws. He was the man I had been waiting for since 2008. The one who could help me understand my daughter who had been sick since the age of 11.

He replied to my email and I recall being in tears as he told me that he was performing liver transplants on kids younger than my daughter with NAFLD. He told me kids as young as 2 were showing up with their livers already filling with fat cells. This email and that video changed something in me. I became very passionate about making sure every parent understood that sugar is poisoning their kids. I would tell them my daughters story and beg them not to let their children live on processed foods.

I found out the next year that our children will be the first generation that will live shorter lives than us and that is NOT OK with me. I don’t care if you want to saddle me as a 44 year old obese woman with a liver disease that could kill me but you cannot have our children. This craziness has to stop.

Doctors in general do not understand the serious nature of fatty liver disease. They do not yet understand how it changes from NAFLD to NASH to Cirrohsis but it is happening very quickly and I have seen 10 people die due to that speed and not having the chance to get a new liver. The youngest was 30 years old.

So when I see that Dr Lustig is starting a Responsible Food Mission I signed up immediately This is critical for our future and the future of our children. If things don’t change in the way we manufacture foods soon I will see people dying in my liver support group at younger and younger ages.

So I am calling you to action.

1. Go to youtube and watch Sugar the Bitter Truth http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM

2. Go to http://www.responsiblefoods.org/ and register for his mailing list and call to action we need to support him!

3. Buy his book Fat Chance. Trust me this is the man to believe no matter what else is being fed to your mouths and ears from corporations and lobbyists.

We need to do this together!

Join us on Twitter at @fattyliverhelp

Join us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/fattyliversupport/

and join our new website at http://www.reversefattyliverdisease.com/

My daughter Megan’s story

If you haven’t known me for more than 4 years you are not aware of the incredible challenges that my 16 year old daughter has been through.

She got sick in 2008 with pneumonia, that was followed up with mono, this essentially destroyed grade 6 for her

She got sick in 2009 with extreme menstrual bleeding and fatty liver disease essentially making grade 7 a right off.

She got sick in 2010 with extreme vertigo and spent 10 months in a wheelchair. She almost attended no days of school in grade 8.

Doctors, and family members did not hide that they thought this was all in her head and that she was just trying to avoid school .

Her self esteem was as low as it could be with people calling her a liar and thinking she wanted to be sick

She was put through to grade 9 without completing any real schooling in grade 8. Megan was certain they had given up on her too.

Megan got healthy in June 2010. A ton of work with my holistic coach Brandon Krieger , osteopath Jason B, and Megan hated the extreme healthy foods that she was forced to eat.

But in the end , nothing any doctor has done for her made any difference. Osteopath and holistic eating did the trick.

She entered grade 9 and we ensured her first semester was light. She took applied french, academic math, drama and art. No one had any expectations and honestly I worried she would get sick again in September.

She insisted on getting help from my Aunt Pat all through the summer,she wanted to be prepared for grade 9 math and megan worked extremely hard. It helped that my aunt believed in her and slowly but surely Megan’s confidence was rebuilding.

Megan worked hard on homework, she asked to see my aunt whenever she felt insecure about a math concept. My aunt constantly told her she was doing well and that all Megan needed to do was to take the time to read the question properly before she started working on it. Mistakes she was making were small ones all related back to not reading the question correctly.

Grade 10 started in London Ontario and Megan was only able to manage a month before colds and flu’s started attacking her and she doesn’t heal from those for 2 -3 weeks. She had to once again move to home schooling and online learning. She worked hard and did very well in the credits she was able to accomplish.

Megan struggled so much over these years with low self esteem and no hope for her future. She was terrified that she would be unable to be a functional adult and unable to ever have a normal life. She got so upset about how far behind she was in school. That was so heart breaking for me to hear said she couldn’t hear me yet.

Fast forward to Spring 2012 and I got asked to be a food revolution ambassador for Jamie Oliver. I needed to create a one day event. Megan was in singing lessons and enjoying them. I decided to have the Britown Music school perform during the kids event and i challenged Megan to Sing a song she was learning. She sang her heart out and life started to change!

My daughter Megan actually started flourished! She decided that she wants to be a lawyer, she wants to be accepted to the best schools for University. Her plan is to become a big part of her high school when she returns in September. This is huge for her, she was not in school last year due to her health and lack of sleep. She is fighting back and I could not be prouder of Megan! She is saying Screw you to her health issues and insisting on having the best life she can. She is volunteering for the Anti bullying coalition, she wants to fight for civil rights and her big goal now is to work at United Nations. I am her biggest cheerleader and I will be cheering for her all the way to the top!

Fall 2012 and Megan started Grade 11 with a very positive attitude and got involved in choir, a play, social justice committee, and on and on. Her grades were amazing and she was well liked by all her teachers. She got to participate in WE DAY in Toronto and that just inspired her more.

January 2013 Such a sad change Megan fell down 12 stairs and broke a toe. This would be a simple thing for other people but because megan doesn’t heal it took 3 months to even start healing. Once again stuck at home doing courses online. Once again feeling defeated.

She has another issue somewhere in her body that ensures she doesn’t heal for ages. I will take the xrays from this broken foot and ask to see a specialist to start looking into her lack of healing.

You are an incredibly smart girl with a great support system in my aunt pat, Grandpa Stan and your brother and me! You will continue to shine you will continue to flourish and I am incredibly proud of my baby girl! You prove everyone wrong and you rock and your life will shine no matter what health issue tries to take you out!!

Fatty Liver Disease in Children and Adolescents

Medical Files
Fatty liver in children and adolescents
By Rafael Castillo M.D.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
11:24 pm | Friday, April 12th, 2013

A few weeks ago, a chubby 14-year-old teenager was referred to our clinic due to a mildly elevated blood pressure. We did some blood tests and the liver enzymes were found to be elevated. He has no history of any liver problem like hepatitis in the past; he swore he has never tasted any alcohol preparation, and I believed him. We did an ultrasound to check on the liver and it showed an extensive fatty liver.
We couldn’t help but ask: How many of our young people already have fatty liver, which can remain undetected for many years, until it progresses into something much worse already like cirrhosis of the liver?
As the term implies, fatty liver consists of a collection of high amounts of fat around the liver. There are two types: alcoholic fatty liver disease (AFLD) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The first type is due to an excessive consumption of alcohol, while the second one develops in non-drinkers, usually associated with an unhealthy diet, diabetes, cholesterol problems and obesity.
Simple fatty liver, also called steatosis, is due to the deposition of fats in the liver. There is no liver inflammation or scar tissue formation yet. And the risk of progressive liver damage is relatively low. Usually, individuals with simple fatty liver are symptomless.
Swelling
If the risk factors causing the fatty liver are not controlled, it can progress into a non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), wherein inflammation or swelling of the liver cells are present already. If the swelling persists, this can cause some liver cells to die; and if this becomes extensive as what happens in a few, it may lead to liver cirrhosis, characterized by extensive liver scarring.
I remember when I was in residency training in internal medicine, NAFLD was regarded as a benign condition, likely just a concomitant finding of being overweight, or being a diabetic. But published studies over the last 12 years now strongly consider NAFLD as a disease entity by itself, which can have serious consequences in the future if neglected.
Of course, the progression to a severe form may take many years, perhaps decades. But if one has already fatty liver at a young age, he or she would still be relatively young after three to four decades. And since the risk factors for fatty liver are the same risk factors that cause heart disease, metabolic syndrome and other diseases, the picture becomes more complicated.
The following risk factors have been implicated, which are all present in the adolescent patient we saw recently: unhealthy eating habits like eating high-fat concentrated, fried foods rich in bad cholesterol, “fast foods,” sugar-rich snacks; lack of physical activity or sedentary life; and being overweight or obese.
Fatty liver is now truly becoming highly prevalent even in children and adolescents with the so-called modern diet and modern lifestyle we have today. For the more adventurous teenagers and young adults, a fat-rich diet coupled with alcohol drinking significantly increase their risk of developing fatty liver.
Healthy eating, regular exercise, and drinking in moderation—or better yet, complete avoidance—are simple ways to prevent a fatty liver disease, and if practiced at an early age, can go a long way in preventing fatty liver. Our schools should inculcate this in our youth’s mind, as part of the curriculum.
Increasing prevalence
With the increasing prevalence of obesity in our children and young adults, the risk of developing fatty liver has remarkably increased too. In 2008, obesity has ballooned to 25 percent from 1987 statistics of only 13.5 percent. Type 2 diabetes mellitus, not the insulin-dependent type, has also been increasingly reported in obese children and adolescents.
Not all cases of fatty liver will have a sad ending. But if it’s a loved one who has it, we don’t want to take any chance of it developing into something much worse than just fatty liver. So we need to teach our kids at an early age to practice healthy lifestyle and good eating habits by avoiding fatty foods like junk foods and French fries. Adults should also show them the example on “responsible drinking,” but at their age, they should be encouraged to lay their hands off the alcohol bottle.
Chubby kids may look cute and healthy, but not if they already have some “precursor diseases” like prediabetes, prehypertension and fatty liver. By allowing them to get used to an unhealthy diet and lifestyle, we may be unwittingly compromising the health and lives of these children and adolescents. Let’s take pity on these young souls.

If you or your child has Fatty Liver Disease please consider joining the support group on Facebook called Fatty Liver Disease Support Group. You will need to request to join but we are there to support you with 400 members across the world

What does Terri’s Death teach us for Fatty Liver Disease?

Terri was 55 years old. Not young and not old, in December 2011 she was told by a family doctor that she had NAFLD and that she should go home and eat properly and exercise.

Sadly this is a VERY standard reply from doctors all over the world, and I understand why they feel this way. They are NEVER taught that this disease kills people. They are not being educated about the progression of this disease from basic NAFLD to NASH to Cirohsis. They are looking to help with Asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes, and all other common health challenges facing our society. They know what drugs to prescribe to manage those symptoms. Until they are being educated properly and until people truly take this seriously that will not change.

For those doctors who have seen this disease take peoples lives , they will be the ones who will take this more seriously. How we find these doctors I don’t know but I know that in my group of 400 patients around the world there are a handful of doctors that do know this disease is a serious epidemic not to be taken lightly.

Then we have the patient. They go to the doctor complaining about exhaustion and stomach pains. So they did a stomach ultrasound and found a fatty liver. The doctor is not worried the doctor reassures them that if they lose weight and exercise that the liver will be fine. Patients are used to having lots of respect for their doctors. They are used to seeing them as all knowing, the perfect guides for managing the patients health. Patients go home, they might change some eating habits, they might lose some weight but since the doctor was not worried neither are they.

If the patient decides to investigate the disease they will find lots on the internet now, lots of conflicting data. Then they might go to the Liver Foundation for information. The Liver Foundation relies primarily on research and since there is not enough research data for NAFLD yet they also do not raise alarm bells for the diagnosis. They will provide eating advice, they will provide support groups. But once again you will not go to their sites and be alarmed by this diagnosis.

Drug companies tend to provide funds for research grants and tend to sponsor them. You can’t blame them, if they can create a drug which will solve a health care crisis they want to be on the cutting edge of that research. The thing about the Liver is that most treatments are natural they are not drug related. Most drugs have a warning label telling you to not use if you have liver disease. Your liver has to break drugs down, so if the liver is already compromised another drug is NOT likely to help it heal, its likely to cause further breakdown in the liver as it tries to process ingredients in the drug.

When Terri went to the Emergency room at the end of her life , the ER doctor was SHOCKED to hear that she was not on a liver transplant list. That ER doctor is one of the few out there who would likely NOT pat a patient on the head and send them home to eat better and exercise. If that doctor had been her primary care doctor the results might have been different, But by the time Terri found him it was too late, her liver was too far gone.

This is the case for some members in my Fatty Liver Disease Support Group on Facebook. They start investigating when they are in the final stages of Liver disease and come across my blog or my facebook group. They finally found someone who understands what they are dealing with but sadly all we can do is be their to support them and guide them the best we can.

If you search NAFLD and NASH early then we can help you change your diet correctly. Help you understand that this is not a race to lose weight its a change to natural eating, foods from gardens, and non GMO farms. Its getting back to basics and respecting your body.

Your liver is the only organ in the body that can fully regenerate itself. It takes time but if you want to get healthy we can be there to support that journey.

If you or anyone you love is dealing with stomach aches and exhaustion, have their doctor run a full liver panel as part of the yearly phsyical or request it at any time. Get to know your AST and ALT numbers and your goal is to have less of these enzymes being in your blood stream.

Search for Michelle Clermont on Facebook London Ontario picture of my dog, or search for Fatty Liver Disease Support Group and request to be added to the group.

Please learn from Terri’s story… this is your life take control!

2013 in one word “BROKEN”

After such a whirlwind 2012 with meeting Oprah Winfrey, hosting a successful Jamie Oliver Food Day Revolution, Starting Ignite Health No one could have prepared me for the reality that 2o13 would knock me down and keep kicking at me.

January 2nd my daughter who has already faced more than any child should have to with health issues fell down 12 stairs. She broke her 4th toe on her left foot. Sounded simple enough but here we are April 8 and that toe has not healed and we are going back to the Orthapedic surgeon on Friday. At our last appointment in March the surgeon looked at Megan’s xray in shock. Turned to us and said I have never had to operate on a toe before. Megan’s body doesn’t heal. I know this intutively but can’t seem to get any doctor to look beyond their area of expertise to the bigger issue below the surface.

Since January 2nd I have been taking care of Megan’s needs for showering, for all meals delivered upstairs before I leave for work. Also Toby my 2 year old labradoodle has had to count on me for all care. In that regard I took him to the Dog park on Good Friday. He had a blast there was water in the pond and he was soaking wet. I decided after an hour that was enough and i needed to get him out of there before he got any wetter! Toby is a very rambunctious! He is enthusiastic and still ALL PUPPY! I got him on his leash with the promise of a treat. He was fighting me as i had to drag him out of the dog park. I thought we were through the worst of that and all of a sudden out of my periphreal vision I notice an arm being raised. Toby noticed it too. I felt him tense and all of a sudden he pulled…..I went with him and landed very hard on my chest on Left side.

I now have a broken rib and a bruised kidney to add to the complications of taking care of Megan. I am learning how to do laundry, cook, sleep on my back , how to drive to my job, how not to stretch, laugh, cough, sneeze!

I ponder if God is laughing again, or if he is sending me a message that I still don’t have priorities right? I have a good sense of humour and it helps a lot.

I will be starting therapy on April 12 officially. I need help to understand why I keep beating myself up, picking at my skin, and I send up my white Flag!

I need help to understand what I am doing right and what I need to change, what survival techniques from my childhood are helping me and which ones need to be removed.

We are broken and we are trying to get up!

Terri lost her battle with Fatty Liver Disease

She had just turned 55 in August. She to was one of the patients who were patted on the head and though they didn’t say “you’ll be fine ” instead they said ” okay well lets see you in two more weeks after we give this new medication time to take affect for one of many other factors that was not nearly even a fraction to the real issue of a fatty liver. Yes we did find out that she had been diagnosed in may 2011. However NEVER WERE WE ONCE TOLD ABOUT IT/THE DEPTH if it or YET TREATED FOR IT OTHER THAN THE BASIC COMMON SENSE OF GENERAL HEALTH THAT IS APPROPRIATE FOR THE HUMAN BODY.

So we went about having the impression that she was back to being better . for the most part–(in the meantime she had suffered from a stroke and a mild stroke). Still no treatment or even depth on this liver situation being a key factor to her decline. My mom was my best friend , and we were inseparable. I would do anything for her – and that’s why I agreed to hospice the three last days before her death. She wanted to just come home. I was Still under the impression that she could graduate out of care possibly. In reality at that point I knew it was the last thing I could do for the only person who gave me life. She wanted to not hurt any more. Going to the Emergency Room I was asked within 6 minutes of speaking to the dr info about her transplant status. I froze and could not speak. Terrified- by the fact that we were in an illness/disease in which that could of and should have been an issue from day one .If, in fact it was going to be neglected up to the last week of her life. i explained all i knew, had done, all that i felt and also the despair my mom had been denied. she was baffled by the lack of information . Not only our situation was limited but at that point even all procedures and even iv meds/saliene fluid was very minimal. due to her blood pressure dropping below 60 and under. It was painful and for years she hurt and it always was present yet none of us knew the depth or seriousness. We had just gotten used to dealing with how to ease it. This did not always come though. The doctors are pretty good about helping pain management and perscribing a good supply of drugs that half of, she didnt take or need. This didnt help or impair her liver issue. she had a handful of dr”s and yet the order was written for an abundance of MRI and catscan a and blood work and ultra sound and digital image scans of her body in all areas . Only once she was filmed for the lower back in which then I asked to also take images of her abdominal area. Then we had the actual depth of our situation. Still nothing on reversible measures or how and what we had to look forward to. So MUCCH of this I could go on about for maybe the rest of my life. No let me rephrase that : I know that there are many patients that get left behind. Insurance isn’t always a factor either. It is a great help but what I’m saying is sometimes the unfinished business that our mothers, family friends, neighbors and, even those next to us on the street ; get left behind is due to the whole health care / pharmasudicles industry. Yes we all are aware of coverage issues determining our health for sure. So take it upon yourself to really listen to what their not saying. Then do your own research. Now I’ve done some and it came much to late for my mama Terri. However the best treatment you can truly do for the body is learn it. seriously consider your diet and make your body your temple. if you want to live and not die finding out just how terrible the premature preventable and sad horror is then u i know will consider my plea. im sorry for those who found out too late and I’m sorry for those who simply didn’t find out.
And to Michele , my heart is fully in your search to get the very best for your daughter. I’m also a mother of of two girls not much difference in age and I can only expect that every child will get a long lived and beautiful life that is bombarded by happiness, joy, beauty, knowledge, privilege and love and compassion. I know that your family will see her do very well in life and go through it thankful for your strength and courage to take great concern so seriously and graciously genuine. To all of you who read this please know my mother was one of the littlest headstrong and increadibly caring for others first -ladies known.

she was the one everyone wanted to resemble. many really did. she had talent, skill, smarts and a knack for the best crafting/decorating most had ever seen. she always was requested for her stage presence and eye to create. A cool lady for sure. she had other journeys to travel and i know she will be missed more than life itself. ALWAYS a GIVING, loyal, and good hearted person. Please ask questions and go to the library for your answers. This I know now will be a disease that has other long living options if it is fully taken charge over. Best of health to you readers!

Good news and Bad News

I will give you the good news first:

My incredibly smart Megan has been exempted for 2 of her 4 classes for exams for her first semester. Megan worked to complete her English Essay on Romeo and Juliette she sent that to her English teacher on Monday and today she received the news that she will not need to write that exam and she finished with 89%. Megan was also at the top of her Science class and her science teacher has also exempted her from that exam. Math and French will be handled in the 2nd semester and Megan should be ok for her grades with missing this time at school. Her Vice Principal, Guidance counsellor and teachers are all routing for her success! I have been touched and happy with every conversation with her high school. They are very supportive and are giving Megan some much needed reassurance.

Megan is also making lots of friends on Tumblr. They are all over the world and they all exchanged christmas cards this year. Last night she worked on making homemade valentine cards to send each of them and it was good to see her enjoying that arts and craft moment!

Now for the bad news:

Saturday I took Megan back to the Emergency Department because she is still at the same level of pain she was on January 2nd when she fell down the 12 stairs and broke her foot. The emergency room doctor did another x-ray and determined that Megan’s break is not healing at all. Usually a broken bone will start to develop calluses around the break 10 days after the injury and we were far beyond that point. They put her on Tramadol for pain and referred us for urgent appointment at orthapedic clinic.

The Tramadol gave Megan the best sleep she has had in years the first night. but did not relieve the pain at all. By the 2nd day it stopped helping her sleep so its pretty clear Tramadol is doing nothing for Megan.

Wednesday January 30 was our urgent appointment with the orthapedic clinic at Victoria Hospital in London Ontario. On the way to the car on crutches Megan lost her balance and fell on a muddy incline. Luckily she did not hit her head or land on her foot but it hurt the foot as she had to move it and had to get back up with pressure on the foot. I finally got her to the car and to the hospital. I have to comment that that fact that you have an appointment at 2 pm and don’t get in until 4 pm is a very poor setup for a clinic. This was the same issue when we were there on January 9th. They show no respect for the patients time and in this day and age they should be able to properly plan out closer times for actual appointments. So we finally got into to see the resident and he had a look at the xray and asked about her underlying health issues and we told him about non alcoholic fatty liver disease. He showed a lot of interest in that so i explained it. But when it came to megans foot he really only said do you smoke? NO he asked about eating and she is now eating correctly and lots of fresh foods again. He said come back in a month. Thats it , thats all for a 2 hour wait. They will do NOTHING for her broken foot or her pain.

TO be completely honest the last month was not the best eating for us. I was exhausted working 10 hour days and coming home to help megan and take care of Toby too. I bought a lot of frozen lasagna’s and sheperd’s pie and chicken pot pie etc to make dinner a quick prep. This past Sunday I made a double batch of Spaghetti with lots of veggies and whole wheat pasta, prepped for Beef Stew for Monday night and prepped for Stirfry as well. Megan is drinking a glass of milk everyday and is taking calcium and Vitamin D as supplements too. I am now looking at other supplements and lotions and whatever else I can find to help her heal this bone faster. How much of her life is she supposed to put on hold for a broken toe! So any ideas to speed up healing would be appreciated as this is craziness after 4 weeks she is still in extreme pain and not able to put any weight on that foot. This girl has been through enough in her life already!