Happy Friday! I did not get much done since Wednesday, because I got the second dose of my Moderna Covid vaccine. They actually wanted to schedule me to have it today, but I requested to do it Wednesday, because I have to work tomorrow. Boy am I glad I did it Wednesday. I am totally relieved to have it done and over with. I get nervous about vaccines because my Immune System seems to go into hyper drive. I have no idea if it is because I have CKD, but I expected a rough 24 hours, at least.
I got the shot at 230 PM on Wednesday. Within 30 minutes I could tell I was going to have a super sore arm, I way more sore than the first one. By bedtime I could barely lift my arm the pain was so bad. If you have ever had a Tetanus booster shot the pain is similar. I also became extremely tired within a few hours to the point where I thought I was going to have to take a nap. I just kind of chilled and stared at the TV, lol. So not me. I was able to finish binge watching Wentworth on Netflix. I so can’t wait for season 9. I went to bed very early and slept in. Again, so not me. Thursday, my arm was not as sore, and I was not as tired, but still no desire to do much of anything. I also got a fever of around 100 degrees that did not go away with Tylenol. By about 10 PM the fever broke. So, about 36 hours of feeling kind of crappy and lazy. I can’t really complain. It was kind of nice to just do nothing for a bit. Today, I am all better and could kick myself for not doing much for 2 days, lol.
Have you had the Covid Vaccine yet? How did you do with it?
I think it takes 36 days to have full efficacy of the second vaccine.
This weekend I have to work so I probably won’t add any new content. I am working on a new logo, and some other things. Next week I will be blogging about the DASH Diet and maybe some St Patty’s rcipes.
Have a great weekend!
Don’t forget to sign up for my mailing list. If you are interested in learning about my Health Coaching Service, use the contact form after the image to message me.
Processing…
Success! You're on the list.
Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Please reload the page and try again.
If you live in the USA you may have recently heard about the Covid 19 virus being an airborne virus. Though no official, other than taped conversations with a reporter and the president, have officially said that it is for certain an Airborne spread virus. But, it obviously is, and for some reason officials are keeping it quiet and downplaying it. Some are beating around the bush and kind of saying it, but not in a way that would make people take it more seriously.
So why is it important the way a virus is transmitted? Because, it makes a difference in how the public can protect itself from getting the virus. You might be thinking if more get it the closer a country can get to Herd Immunity. While that may be true, it would mean a whole lot of people would need to be infected and a whole lot would die to get to a level large enough for Herd Immunity, if that is even possible. There are some thoughts that Natural Herd Immunity may not be possible for Covid 19.
The short video below explains very nicely the difference between Airborne and Droplet transmission, and how dry air vs humid air plays a part in transmission. This is especially important as we head into the Fall and Winter months. I will lay out some basics below and how you can protect yourself especially when others around you may not be interested in protecting themselves or others.
1- Droplet transmission means the particles you sneeze, cough or even speak are large and heavy. They can only travel in the are a few feet before they drop to the ground. If you are not in someone’s personal space you may be safe from droplet size particles. You still have to follow the other guidelines for coughing, sneezing etiquette, handwashing, and disinfecting. Airborne particles are much smaller and lighter, meaning they travel farther easier, and can travel through duct systems such as heating and cooling. This makes them especially dangerous in highly contagious germ situations like Covid 19. Being outside, social distancing, having a good filter system indoors, opening windows and keeping air moving, plus wearing a mask or face covering are all ways to help prevent transmission of Airborne viruses. If you read my posts from last year on breaking the chain of infection, each of these are links in that chain for spreading a virus. If any of them are missed it increases the chance of spreading the virus. You also have to add in good hand washing technique, tissue etiquette, and disinfecting regularly. Be sure and see my post on the difference between disinfecting and cleaning. If people are acting like they have symptoms stay away from them as much as possible, even if they say it is just allergies. I find people are not always honest with themselves, let alone others when they really want to or have to do something. Unfortunately, Covid 19 can be spread by people with no symptoms so you may not even know if they have it.
Why should you care about any of this?
1- If you have CKD, Heart Disease, HTN, Diabetes, or any of the Immune Disorders then getting Covid 19 could be very dangerous for you. People who are Obese are also at higher risk of complications from Covid 19.
2- If you do not have health insurance, or are under insured, and you do catch it you may end up with a very high medical bill if you are one of the unfortunate to get symptoms.
3- You may lose an extended time from work putting a burden on your financial affairs.
4- Studies are showing that even people who get mild symptoms are having post Covid effects even months after they test negative. Viruses are especially dangerous for causing chronic conditions even after the virus has left the body.
5- Worst of all to me, you could give it to someone else and cause them great bodily or financial harm. This could happen even if you follow all of the proper precautions stated above, but at least you would have tried to not give it to anyone. I have not seen my elderly mother in many months, because I work in health care and I am afraid of being an asymptomatic spreader, especially now with everything opening up and testing go away unless you have symptoms.
Be alert, be cautious, love and respect one another, and keep yourself and others safe. Ask questions of businesses, politicians, and others involved in making decisions. There is nothing wrong with knowing what their thinking process is. You are a consumer at their business, and you are a citizen of this country. You have a right to ask questions and be made aware.
This is not exactly what I intended to talk about today, but with it all over the news I figured I would.
Let me start by saying I have a certificate in Herbalism, and essential oils are a derivative of herbs. I like essential oils, or the few that I am familiar with and have been tested and peer reviewed. Also, let me say that most essential oils have limited to no testing on humans for either safety or efficacy, especially for people who already have underlying illnesses. That is why people should never take herbal supplements or essential oils without discussing it with their doctor first. You think because it comes from a plant it must be safe. This is the furthest thing from the truth.
Oleander is a flowering plant. All parts of this plant are toxic, but traditional cultural medicines have used it for various health issues. The main issue with it is toxic to the heart. I won’t go into big terms, you can read the article below, from Drugs.com but it has similar effects to Digoxin a cardiac medication that slows and strengthens the heart. Digoxin has been used for years, but it has a very narrow window to toxicity which can be deadly. It requires lab work and being followed by a doctor to be sure the dose is not too much. Oleander is also toxic to the liver and the kidneys.
So, why am I talking about it? If you follow the news you may have noticed a lot of hub bub about something called Oleandrin, which is some form of derivative of the Oleander plant. It is being pushed by a particular business man as a supposed or purported treatment for Coronavirus. There has not been, apparently, or that I could find of this being tested in animals or humans. It was tested in test tubes and apparently did kill viruses, but also it is true that lots of things kill a virus in a test tube but have no effect in animals or humans.
The only purpose of this post is to bring awareness to the topic, and to caution my readers against using any herb, botanical product, or essential oil to cure Covid 19 or any other disease, without discussing it with a trained medical doctor. Wearing a face mask, handwashing and social distancing are proven to help prevent Covid 19.
Before I get to the main topic, a couple of updates. The Kidney Education Class I did last evening was awesome! I will be doing one in August, hopefully 2. Unfortunately I will probably have to put a cap on how many people can attend. Right now I am using Facebook events and I have to upload each slide individually and then answer any questions. It would be hard with more than 3 people and take quite a bit of time. If you are interested in these free Kidney Classes, go to my Facebookpage, and like the page to watch for updates. You can also follow this blog for updates. You must be able to read and write English, as it is the only language I know.
I am beginning work on upgrading this blog, so I can share my own videos which needs practice, lol, and accept client payments right here on the blog. I am also working on a new Guided Imagery for Weight Loss. That should be ready some time in August. You can view and purchase all of my Integrative Therapies options in my Etsy store.
A new Health report shows that if 50% of Americans, yes only half, wore a face mask, socially distanced and washed hands regularly may drastically reduce the spread of Covid 19. With people complaining that they want their kids to go back to school, and I don’t disagree with that, and people not being able to see loved ones in nursing homes, I simply don’t understand why Americans will not just comply with these 3 easy steps. Not everyone can wear a mask, OK I can sympathize with that. But, you could social distance, avoid crowds, don’t be in closed places for long periods of time, and wash hands frequently. Not one thing is perfect, all can have flaws, but if you can do all 3 think about how much may be accomplished to keep people safe and healthy, and reopen. You can read the full report here.
Living Life With CKD 