In this fast-paced social media world, it can be difficult to find the time to look within or back in time. I hope you find these quotes and questions interesting. So glad you stopped by today!
My first car was an old ugly green Dodge Duster. It had a killer stereo but the bracks were hell. This was my 16th birthday present from my father.
Enjoy!
Melinda
Melinda
A home garden offers loads of benefits beyond boosting your home’s curb appeal and increasing your property’s value. It plays a significant role in improving your physical and mental health. It also helps reduce your expenses (depending on what you grow in your garden) and establish sustainable measures in your home. But if you’re new to gardening and thinking about creating one for your home for the first time, the last thing you want to do is jump right into planting a garden. Here are some things you need to do before you start a home garden.
The first thing you want to do is consider the best place to grow your garden. Of course, this will depend on your home and how much space you have. Be sure that your ideal spot offers at least 6 hours of direct sunlight daily. Therefore, it would be best if you took the time to observe your preferred spaces to figure out which spots receive the most sunlight. If you have too much shade in your yard, all hope is not lost, as there are two options you can try. On the one hand, you can remove the source of shade, depending on what it is. On the other hand, you can consider growing indoor plants that thrive with little sunlight instead.
After deciding on the best spot, clear the ground of weeds, dead trees, stumps, etc. You can hire experts to remove some of these stubborn obstacles if necessary. You can visit websites like duvaltreeandbobcat.com for experienced and safe tree removal services.
The next thing you want to do is decide on what plants you want to grow. Would you like to create a vegetable garden to supplement your grocery needs? Or do you want to spruce up your curb appeal with lush flowers? Knowing the purpose of the garden will help you decide what to grow in it. If you want to grow a garden for food, think about what vegetables, fruits, or herbs you need the most. Also, consider which food items are difficult or expensive to purchase and see if you can grow them. If your garden is for curb appeal, think about what plants or flower pieces you love the most and can thrive in your location.
Wildlife is an important part of your garden because it helps encourage growth in all aspects of the space. From pollinating flowers to creating an experience for you and your household to enjoy. You might also want to think about adding some wildlife that remains in your garden, like fish in a pond or chickens in a pen. For this, you’re going to need to have the right setup required like this automatic chicken waterer for example.
Gardening can be very relaxing, but it can also be very tasking, especially if you don’t have the right garden tools. You can take advantage of many tools, facilities, and equipment in the modern gardening world to make growing your plants easier. Of course, you don’t need to invest in a comprehensive range of garden equipment when you’re a beginner. You only need the basic and most essential tools, such as a rake, hand trowel, hoe, spade, garden fork, and pruning shears. Also, before considering gardening, be sure you’re willing to devote the time and effort a home garden demands.
This is a collaborative post.
Melinda
“Mental health problems don’t define who you are. They are something you experience. You walk in the rain, and you feel the rain, but you are not the rain.” – Matt Haig This is an important truth to grasp. You may struggle with mental illness. You may be displaying the effects of trauma. But none […]
Quote of the Day — Don’t Lose Hope
Thank you for all the great feedback on the Blogger Highlight series, I’ve enjoyed meeting each blogger and sharing their site with you. This week I highlight a new blogger, The Orange Rose.
Shedding the old and creating the new! Please join me for a world of poems, food reviews, self healing content, and mindful thinking content. Thank you 😊
The Orange Rose is a blog for everyone.
Melinda
I love to dream about all the places and things I want to do. They’re not quite goals since the list is long but they’re a reminder of where to go when I’m planning an advantage. I hope this will prompt you to think about all the things you want to do in life and to write them down. Something written down is more likely to turn into a goal or be successful. I learned early in my career, the more I wrote about what I wanted to accomplish, the more accomplished I became.
Here’s the link to my previous Bucket List.
Here’s the link to my previous Bucket List.
Dive with Whales
Dive with the big Manta Rays
Go in a pressurized capsule deep into the ocean to look at a shipwreck.
Ride a Camel (ethically)
Bathe an Elephant in the river
Spend the day talking with Elon Musk
Become a wildlife rescuer
Create a Hydroponic garden
Lavish the countryside and shops in Greece
Own a Shiba Inu dog
Hike Nevada and Verna Falls at Yosemite National Park a second time
See Niagra Fallas
Have a proper greenhouse to grow veggies and flowers year round and grow plants from seeds
Complete my Ancesesty charts
I’ll update again after I have so time to contemplate.
Have a great day.
Melinda
Psoriasis Awareness Month or Psoriasis Action Month holds throughout August yearly. This holiday aims to educate the public about psoriasis and enlighten patients on topics surrounding causes, triggers, and treatment methods. The event was first observed in October 1997 as a full-scale national awareness campaign, publicizing relevant facts about psoriasis through newspapers, radio, and television. Thankfully, psoriasis is treatable; however, dissemination of vital information on all aspects of the disease is necessary, which is the aim of this month.
Psoriasis is a condition characterized by scaly, red, and raised patches on the skin, especially on the elbows, knees, and scalp; however, it could also affect other areas in the body. Psoriasis often causes itching, burning, and stinging in affected areas. Though its etiology is unclear to medical experts, psoriasis occurs when the life cycle of skin cells increases, causing a buildup of excess skin cells that form red patches and scales. Scientists believe that genetics and the immune system are contributory factors to the development of psoriasis.
Psoriasis affects people differently, with varying levels of severity. For severe cases, 10% or more of the patient’s skin may be affected by the disease. In mild cases, less than 3% is affected by psoriasis; however, psoriasis affects between 3% to 10% of the skin in moderate cases. Because psoriasis is often cyclical, particular triggers, such as infections, skin injuries, heavy alcohol consumption, vitamin D deficiency, stress, emotional trauma, certain medications, and smoking, may lead to an episode. Thankfully, psoriasis has various treatment options — creams and ointments can clear skin patches in mild-to-moderate cases. Light therapy, including U.V.B. phototherapy, Goeckerman therapy, and psoralen plus ultraviolet A (PUVA), can also be employed. For severe psoriasis, retinoids, methotrexate, and cyclosporine are the drugs of choice.
This is the most common type of psoriasis and manifests as raised, red patches covered by a white buildup of cells.
This type of psoriasis is common in children and young adults and usually appears as lesions.
This type of psoriasis usually appears as red lesions in skin folds, such as behind the knees, the breast folds, the armpits, and the groin.
It causes white skin eruptions and commonly occurs on the hands and feet.
This type of psoriasis leads to painful and itchy redness over large areas of the skin.
To your health!
Melinda
References:
On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., the African American civil rights movement reaches its high-water mark when Martin Luther King Jr. delivers his “I Have a Dream” speech to about 250,000 people attending the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The …read more
After four years of separation, Charles, Prince of Wales and heir to the British throne, and his wife, Princess Diana, formally divorce. On July 29, 1981, nearly one billion television viewers in 74 countries tuned in to witness the marriage of Prince Charles, heir to the British …read more
On August 28, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson is picketed by suffragists in front of the White House, who demand that he support an amendment to the Constitution that would guarantee women the right to vote. Wilson had a history of lukewarm support for women’s suffrage, although …read more
Elizabeth Ann Bayley is born in New York City on August 28, 1774. She went on to found the first Catholic school and the first female apostolic community in the United States. She was also the first American-born saint beatified by the Roman Catholic Church. Elizabeth Ann Bayley …read more
Convinced they will have a better chance surviving the desert than the raging rapids that lay ahead, three men leave John Wesley Powell’s expedition through the Grand Canyon and scale the cliffs to the plateau above. Though it turned out the men had made a serious mistake, they …read more
Have a great day!
Melinda
Enjoy!
Melinda
Reference:
Do you know what’s in your supplements? At one time I was taking 12 supplements, after reading many stories of people who had dangerous side effects from a supplement, I quit taking them. The only supplements I take are Calcium, Vitamin D3, and sometimes a Probiotic.
Below is an example of supplements gone wrong, causing death.
Kaiser Health News obtained documents of Congressman Tom McClintock’s wife who died from taking the supplement white mulberry tree. The 61-year-old died of dehydration due to gastroenteritis — an inflammation of the stomach and intestines — that was caused by “adverse effects of white mulberry leaf ingestion.”
The report states that a “partially intact” white mulberry leaf was found in her stomach.
The white mulberry tree, which is native to China, is often used in traditional medicine for ailments such as weight loss, diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, according to WedMD and Healthline. It is typically taken in capsule, liquid or tea form.
White mulberry plants are generally considered safe — only two cases of people sickened by mulberry supplements have been reported to the FDA since 2004, according to KHN.
Dr. D’Michelle DuPre, a former medical examiner in South Carolina who reviewed the documents, told KHN that white mulberry leaf also “tend to cause dehydration, and part of the uses for that can be to help someone lose weight, mostly through fluid loss, which in this case was just kind of excessive.”
Taking St. John’s wort may also reduce the effectiveness of other medications, including birth control pills, chemotherapy, HIV or AIDS medication, and medicine to prevent organ rejection after a transplant, according to the NIH. Before taking St. John’s wort, read up on potential drug interactions, and ask your doctor about the risks and benefits of this supplement, as well as how it compares to your other options.
A study found that 28 percent of the time St. John’s wort was prescribed between 1993 and 2010, it was administered in dangerous combinations with antidepressant or anti-anxiety medication, statins, the blood-thinning drug warfarin (Coumadin), or oral contraceptives. For example, combining St. John’s wort with an antidepressant can cause serious complications, including a life-threatening increase in the brain chemical serotonin, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.
The NIH said, currently, there’s not enough positive evidence for doctors to prescribe fish oil supplements to every patient, though. Aside from the mixed research results, omega-3 deficiency is very rare in the United States, according to the NIH. One important drug interaction with omega-3 supplements is coumadin (Warfarin).
Here’s a breakdown of the ways to get you Omega 3’s.
Taking too much kava, or taking it for too long, has been linked to serious liver damage, including hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver failure. As a result, according to the NIH, the FDA has warned that people, especially those with liver disease or liver problems, or those who are taking drugs that can affect the liver, should talk to their healthcare practitioner before using kava. In addition, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health reports that heavy consumption of kava has been associated with heart problems and eye irritation.
Several drugs may interact with kava, from anticonvulsants to anti-anxiety medications, and any drug metabolized by the liver. What’s more, people taking kava need to avoid drinking alcohol due to potential liver harm.
Curious about what other herbal supplements may not live up to the marketing? Check out these NCCIH factsheets and talk to your doctor before trying any supplement to make sure it’s safe for you.
It can feel like there’s a new pill, powder, or gummy popping up every day claiming to support your health. But should you even take supplements?
“There’s no population group that specifically needs supplements other than those with a documented vitamin or mineral deficiency who are ordered by their doctor to take supplements,” says Andrea Paul, MD, physician and medical advisor for Illuminate Labs.
“Certain supplements can be a good first-line solution to some health problems, as they tend to have fewer side effects than pharmaceutical drugs. But purity is much more of an issue with supplements than with prescribed drugs,” she says.
In short: Talk to your doctor before taking a supplement, and make sure it’s a good quality product.
These are just a few supplements that you need to know more about before taking them. The other important test is to see if the pill dissolves. Put a little vinegar and water in a cup and let it set for several hours, if the supplement hasn’t dissolved, it won’t break down in your stomach. You wasted money on a supplement that only travels through your body and out the other side.
Curious about what other herbal supplements may not live up to the marketing? Check out these NCCIH factsheets and talk to your doctor before trying any supplement to make sure it’s safe for you.
Per the NSF and Tufts University, here are some buzzwords to look out for that may indicate a supplement is making a far-fetched claim:
Approval and regulation of dietary supplements is a tricky subject. No, the FDA does not have to approve supplements before they hit the market. That doesn’t mean, however, that the world of vitamins and supplements is a free-for-all. Still, you are smart to take precautions when it comes to picking the right supplement for you.
FDA warns of dangerous drugs in weight loss supplements: Tainted …
The Most Common Food and Drug Interactions
Many Men Are Using Online Drugs For Bodybuilding, But They Aren’t Safe
Finding a pure supplement that dissolves and works is not an easy task. I get so frustrated when a pill does not dissolve, it’s a waste of money. I would like to see manufacturers provide a sample you can check out before buying, but I don’t see that happening. Once you find a brand that meets the requirements, stick with that brand. Be cautious of outrageous claims, chances are they aren’t true. I even check to see if my prescription medication dissolves.
The best way to decide if you need to take a supplement is to be sure to do your research, and not from the manufacturer. The reading material above will provide some of the answers.
Melinda
References:
lookingforthelight.blog 