A Three-Fold Blog .....

Three topics today:

Update on Martin, frustrations and a poll. :-)


First, Martin.
A while ago on facebook, I had expressed my frustration at the level of pain Martin had been experiencing recently with his headaches. I have something positive to report. :-)
Let me preface it by saying I know there are a great many people who are suffering from worse things than headaches. We are thankful he doesn't have cancer, or a tumour, - we are thankful he is still alive, and that it's not "terminal". But, it is very difficult not knowing what the cause of these headaches are. Especially because they've been occuring 24/7 for 10 years. Martin has learned fantastic coping techniques and does live with the pain rather well, but even he has said he's not looking for a cure, but a diagnosis would be nice! At least then it would show that it's not "in his head" so to speak. :-)

Anyways - he's been seeing a wonderful naturopath in Langley who is going to bat for him. That day when the burning in his forehead was proving to be unmanageable, we went to see her, and she gave him an infusion of concentrated vitamins via IV, as well as an IM injection of concentrated B (5?) vitamins. That proved to take away the burning (not the actual headache) for about 5 hours, and then it returned. I found an "Arnica" gel (a homeopathic remedy) for him to rub on his forehead, and this too seemed to help. Over the course of a few days, the burning subsided, and is virtually gone, although his headaches remain the same.

When Martin had that IV infusion, he should've "tasted" the vitamins in his mouth. He didn't, which indicates very low doses of vitamins in his body. That's not a good thing either.

So right now Martin will be seeing the naturopath once a week for weekly IV infusions of vitamins, and the injection of B5 IM. This is costly, but the naturopath is being VERY kind and allowing us to pay what we can (which at this point is about half the cost. She was even willing to not accept payment for the first treatment!). As well, she took a blood sample and is sending it for the high end food sensitivity testing. She's also, in the meantime, still looking for an appropriate dentist who may be willing to do pro-bono work for Martin to see if his dental issues are in part causing the headaches. He's had several teeth crack/fall apart, and has a tooth with the filling exposed right now --- makes me wonder about mercury poisoning. However, the test for metal toxicity like mercury is a few hundred dollars, and she wants to do that as a last resort.

So we are feeling a bit hopeful. This is better than the "we don't know what to do for you anymore" attitude seen by so many of the conventional medical professionals.
Please continue to pray!!

Next topic: Frustrations.
This is my frustration right now. I'm an advocate for education and for knowledge. Over the years, I've drawn on my education and experience as a Registered Nurse, Certified birth doula, Certified Lamaze childbirth educator and Breastfeeding counselor ... I've read ALOT about many differing topics. I have tried to be fair and read BOTH sides of any given argument --- then I weigh the pros and cons of both sides and draw what I feel is an informed conclusion. Over the last couple years I have used facebook as a tool for education. When I come across an article/research etc that I feels warrant sharing, I share. Over the last couple years this has resulted in a number of responses from friends - some of which have boiled over into heated arguments.

I want ALL to know this is NOT my intention. I share things for the purpose of education --- and my opinion is usually based on evidence and yes, even science. I am aware that many of my opinions do NOT match others opinions -- but I should feel free to share things without being told "This makes me feel guilty" or "You're so biased" or "you're wrong". I shouldn't be attacked for sharing what I feel is important.

This is my attempt at telling my readers on blogger and facebook, that when I share an article on any topic like parenting, circumcision, breastfeeding vs formula feeding, crying it out, vaccinations, Vitamin D, baby wearing, co-sleeping .... or whatever .......... I would expect respect for the fact that I AM educated and widely read. (and I know, I'm not being humble for the moment). You may disagree - but also understand that if you disagree, you are also likely disagreeing with research, and in many cases, proven science. If you feel guilty when reading any article I post, that's maybe God's way of asking you to look at WHY. And NO ONE can make you feel guilty - not me, not an article, not your friend or mother.......we CHOOSE to allow ourselves to feel guilty - and we can CATCH IT , CHALLENGE IT and CHANGE IT. :-)
There ends my rant.


And finally .... a brief poll:
when you read my blog, where do you come from? From browsing blogs in general, on your Google reader or another blog reader, on your Favourites, or through Facebook? This might help me learn where my readers are finding me. So ....yes, please do comment and let me know! Many thanks!