Mother’s Got A Dot Com

I saw part of a documentary the other night about a bunch of people going through a detox program. Not the drug detox type, mind, but to rid their bodies of accumulated toxins for their overall health and weight.

One of the regimes they took was a colon cleanse. Now, I missed the actual treatment (it wasn’t irrigation), but the result was rather yucky… However, the thought of what we’re actually carrying around in our bowels is worse! They said that 2-4 kgs of slag and residue is quite normal in a person who’s had an average diet.

I’m not a health fanatic, but that sort of info makes me shiver, and every time my stomach gives a twinge, I think: “ooh, poor thing, I know what’s wrong with you…” I feel the need to start investigating what detox methods there are, and go for a mild, uninvasive solution. At 44, I think it may be time…

My trousers are getting bigger. It’s not something I’m imagining – I keep having to hoist them, which hasn’t been a problem in the past, you might say…

I don’t know why – maybe it’s the antibiotics, or maybe my doctor has sneaked some top diet pills into my prescriptions… I haven’t made any changes in my eating habits – come to think about it, I have been less peckish lately. Wonder if I should ask my doctor…

Naah. I’ll just see it as a bonus and hope it lasts!

I went to see my doctor yesterday. When I say my doctor… I’d never met the fellow before, to be honest, but he was all right, and looked like a keeper!

I came out of there with a whole booklet of prescriptions, and strarted popping pills right away.

Now, for the last month, I’ve been sleeping with all my aching joints propped up by pillows, and it’s been an uneasy sleep, to put it mildly. Last night, after the first popping of pills, I felt things easing up almost right away, and I had a good night’s sleep. Yay! I’ve been reluctant to take too much medicine – reading about possible side-effects does that to me – but enough is enough.

Excuse me while I just sit here and enjoy my (almost) painless existence for a while… And then I’ll see if I can do this:

We used to get an American show called Extreme Makeover over here – I happened to watch it from time to time, and it left me with a feeling that there’s hope for everyone when it comes to looks.

The closest I’ve been to cosmetic surgery was in my youth (I was about 18…), when I worked as an assistant for my father, who was then running a small private surgical clinic. He removed moles, performed vasectomies (now, that was fun for an 18-year old girl, and probably for the poor lads too!), an he also performed breast reductions. It left me knowing that I’d never have anything done to mine, but the girls and women who had it done were oh, so happy when they left.

I also have a very dear friend who was born with a cleft palate. She’s my age, and she was patched up as an infant, but very little if any corrective surgery was done afterwards. This left her with a nose that she was extremely unhappy with, all through her youth. I never thought of it – to me, people are who they are. To her, though, her nose was a huge problem. Eventually, at around 25, she had rhinoplasty performed. It took forever, there were complications, but when they took the bandages off, hers was the happiest face I’ve ever seen. It was swollen and blue, but after a while it became just like any other nose… which was what she needed.

Is there a point to this? Yes, sort of. I may not even see the “flaw” in someone, but to them it may be a huge and debilitating problem. Your nose is in the middle of your face, and if you hate the way it looks, it will affect the way you see yourself, and the way you think others see you.
The same goes for any part of your body (well, except for the “middle of your face” part). I see plenty of flaws in myself. Still, I’m not in the market for any kind of surgery. I’ve seen enough to know that I would never judge those who are though – but I do reserve the right to think that some extreme celebrity cases are deeply tragic…

# 3 Brat is terribly affected by acne. It’s really bad, especially on his back, and his face is blotchy too. He is, naturally, very self-conscious about it, and we’ve tried several courses of treatment. The most effective so far has been artificial sunlight. There is, however, a practical problem: The treatment center is in town, he has to go 3 times a week, and he’s in school.

As an alternative to this, I’ve come across a chemical peel treatment that looks promising. One thing is that it’s highly beneficial on ageing skin (I might try it myself…), but if the effect on acne is half as good as they say, it would be worth a try.
It’s not a miracle treatment – the TCA peel cleans the skin deeply, which reduces risk of future acne outbreaks. This means it will take time and diligent use to reduce # 3 Brats’ problems, but he knows that from earlier attempts, and has learned to be patient.

Unlike some of the treatments we’ve tried, it’s not all that expensive either. Actually, the more I read about it, the more I think I’ll need to get a starter kit for myself too. I’ll never have time to groom myself to celebrity standard, but my skin has been sadly neglected as of… forever, and this quick, easy-to-use peeling treatment might just add a little glow to my winter-grey face, with a minimum of effort.

All my great plans about putting Hubby and myself on a diet after Christmas have been sabotaged by his work/no work situation. I don’t want to subject him to more stress than is already there right now, so our diet is put on hold.

I know what to do – out with the starch and carbs, in with the proteines, as in eggs, meat and fish. I don’t think we’ll be able to stay totally carb-free, I’m thinking about allowing us a small daily quota of fruit. No diet pills as such, but I’ll have to find a good supplement for vitamins and minerals.

How the work situation is going? Well, they’ve now decided to close down the whole outfit (hubby thinks they’re doing that to avoid trials), which means he’ll get his 6 months pay, but not more. At least he’ll get out of there – and the sooner the better. Until that’s sorted though, there’s no room for a diet in his life, and mine can wait too.

My back is better, but the pain has migrated to my right thigh, leg and foot, which confirms my suspicion of a problem with the sciatic nerve. See a doctor? Nope. I get by on prescription-free painkillers.

I came across something today, though, that made me drool slightly… I’ve always pictured massage chairs to be large, lumpy, shapeless things, that you’d never want in your sitting room. Not so these from Human Touch.

Massage Chairs that give a full body human-like massage experience, allow you to customize the massage area, intensity and technique, with intutitive controls that put you in command of your massage experience – and look stylish too – give me two of those, please.
They really would fit into any room – there are several models and colors to choose from, and according to the manufacturer, their robotic massage system is based on techniques used by leading massage therapists, physicians and chiropractors. A truly Human Touch…
Looks like absolute bliss – throw in a warm blanket and a butler, and I’d never get up…

- but we don’t want to grow old.

In this country, many old people live in their own homes much longer than they wish to, and in many cases, much longer than is good for them. On overtime, if they’re lucky, they get a bed in a nursing home, having lived for far too long in an environment that they’re unable to cope with at best, and that’s unsafe at worst.

I hope that by the time I’m too frail to cope with the obstacles and dangers of my home, that there are enough places available that offer assisted living facilities to go around.
I believe anyone’s quality of life is greatly enhanced by feeling secure, and although many elderly people don’t need 24 hour care, they may need assistance in dealing with everyday life. Shopping, cleaning, perhaps cooking and personal hygiene can be unsurmountable obstacles when alone. A little help may well be all that’s needed.
Loneliness is also a problem that many elderly people are facing, and with it, depressions and listlessness. Sometimes, another human presence is all it takes…

I hope to grow old in style, with my dear husband at my side until the end. Chances are that one of us will be left alone. I hope the one that remains has a chance to live his/her last years in dignity…

I’m a bit better. I took some pills my mum-in-law gave me yesterday, a powerful muscle-and-other-things-relaxant… (Doesn’t cure it, but it makes having a backache a h*** of a lot more fun…)

Anyway, they did relax things, so today, I’m able to dress myself again. We’re going to a big family do this evening, and I think I’ll be up to it. It’s still very sore, and I’m being careful – I can feel that things are just waiting for an excuse to get worse.

An easy day, then, and no wine for me tonight. I’ll take one of those miracle thingys before going to bed this evening, and hope I’m back to normal tomorrow. Fingers crossed!

My back’s off sick! I can hardly move – #5 Brat had to help me dress today. Miracle Boy chose today to fall out of bed (He’s OK – just a small bruise on his forehead), and I had a world of trouble trying to scoop him up and comfort him.

I now have to negociate lifting him up & changing his nappy (diaper), and I can’t say I relish the thought. Getting into a chair is agony, getting out of it is worse… Luckily, #5 Brat is at hand – she’ll lift him as far as she can, and I’ll do the rest. She’s also promised to help me unload the dishwasher later. Angel Brat!

I’ve taken painkillers and put some campher ointment on – no go. I’m allergic to doctors (no wonder, I grew up with two…) and will probably try to sit this one out. Luckily, it’s the weekend, and help is at hand the next couple of days.
Right. Off to sort out the essentials…