The video where I just keep talking

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . October 13, 2009 . 11:18AM

I promise I said “dermatologist,” not “termatologist.” I had a stuffy nose. And I only have 4 chins, not 5.

Congratulations toothbrush fan!

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . August 21, 2009 . 6:01PM

I have a winner! Here are your random numbers:6 Timestamp: 2009-08-21 22:53:40 UTC .

Congratulations, loopy, on your toothbrush and refill set win.

If you are ticked you didn’t win, and I get ticked about not winning freebies all the time, so you are in good company, please don’t stress it. I will have another giveaway very soon. If the toothbrush was the only thing you needed to complete your life’s work, sorry about that. My bad.

Thanks again for reading my blog. It means a lot to me.

Heart attack = kryptonite; Or not! Claudio Vitale may be Superman

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . May 1, 2009 . 9:26PM

Some days, you read stories that are so uplifting that if you don’t share them you feel like you may burst from holding them in. I’ve actually been sitting on this one for days while I worked on other things that needed to be done, but never fear. If my heart suddenly burst, there is one man you could call who could fix me even though he’s recuperating himself: Claudio Vitale.

Claudio Vitale is an Italian brain surgeon who has recently made headlines after exhibiting extreme bravery in his field: he completed brain surgery while having a heart attack. Why is this a big deal?

As a surgeon, Vitale was aware that he was having a heart attack and that for every minute he delayed his own help, a part of his heart was losing function that would not be restored. In other words, he was killing himself to save his patient. His only comment was that he couldn’t leave the patient at such a delicate time (in the procedure). Other stories have commented that if he’d left the patient, the patient would have surely died.

So, let’s break it down. Vitale was dying. The patient was dying. Vitale saved the patient at loss of his own heart functioning permanently.

Amazing courage. I’m in awe of this man. I want to believe that I would do the same for people, but I’m not sure I’m there yet. Regardless, he’s tugged on my heartstrings and some days I need to be reminded of the humanity of the world we live in.

… Bueller? Daughter expresses breast milk to treat father’s cancer

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . April 30, 2009 . 7:24PM

Look, I consider myself a benevolent person and I truly want to find cures to the awful, terrible diseases we have in life. However, as I read this article in which a woman expresses breast milk in the hopes of saving her father from cancer, I struggled to gain understanding in this situation.

Let me sum up the article for you. Dad gets sick with cancer. Grown daughter gives birth and decides HEY! Boob milk is full of immune boosting antioxidants that my dad should be drinking that will help him fight cancer. Dad agrees and drinks boob milk every day.

And, wait for it, he puts it on his cornflakes in the morning.

I want to believe I’m open-minded to unconventional treatments, but this feels overwhelming to me. This story ends on a hopeful note:

Hope at last
A month after starting the regimen, a scan of Tim’s cancer showed a slight, but distinct, improvement. Although doctors can’t say whether the breastmilk’s helped, Georgia says he’s brighter and has more energy.

She has promised to continue feeding Tim for as long as she can. ‘He has been having chemo as well as drinking the milk so there’s no way of really finding out if it is helping,’ Georgia explains. ‘I’m still feeding Monty so I feed him first, then I fill a bag for my dad. We’ll continue as long as I am breastfeeding.

‘It feels like I’m doing the most natural thing for the people I love. ‘I’ve been there when he has drunk it and it’s just not an issue. ‘Not many women can say their dad drinks their breastmilk. But I would do anything to give my dad more time with me, our family and Monty.’

And I am still processing it. If it were someone I loved, would I be ok with it? If it gave them a chance? What do you think?

In which my head blows up: Chronic Migraines are painful

by Jillian @ http://blueshelled.com . April 15, 2009 . 4:55AM

Yesterday, I was reading a blog from one of my co-bloggers, Dad Gone Mad. He was talking about his first migraine and how he only thought he knew what they were about until he’d had one himself. I think this is true about many things, including mental illness—the idea that until you experience it first hand, you really have no idea what you are talking about when you write it off as something that someone should be able to pull himself or herself out of or “suck it up.”

I don’t remember my first migraine, but I remember when they started. I was about 6 months pregnant and, like many of my current maladies, all began with the amazing hormone change that was brought about by one of the loves of my life, AJ. AJ just happened to go with me to my last neurologist appointment, which was, incidentally, my first appointment with this particular neurologist. When he asked when they started, and I replied that they occurred when I had AJ, the neurologist showed a wicked sense of humor, turned to AJ and said, “Ah, so it’s all your fault, then?”

Well, yeah, maybe. Or, maybe I was predetermined to have them as I got older. I don’t know half of my medical history, so I’m missing an important link as far as these are concerned. My mom has only had them for the last few years, but I started mine in my early twenties.

It could be because I’m more tightly wound than most. My levels of stress and anxiety tend to be through the roof. I have to moderate myself carefully to keep them at a manageable level. It means that I have to be very self-aware to avoid a meltdown. I’m usually successful. For me, that is. But stress isn’t my only trigger. Rain, stress, not enough sleep, too much sleep, waiting to long to eat, too much sugar, not enough sugar, msg and caffeine are all triggers for me too. Count noise and light in as well. I’m a sensitive little bugger.

I’ve pretty well given up caffeine, except for chocolate. Don’t ask me to give up chocolate. I rarely eat it as it is, but I won’t give it up completely. Since I’ve been eating more healthfully, my migraines have decreased to about once a month when they were at 3-4 per week. I consider that a success.

There is no doubt they are debilitating. When I’ve got one, I’m not going anywhere. I’m sick to my stomach, with an ice pack on my head and in bed with my Duder dog, who is sensitive to my moods and will not leave my side when I have a migraine. I may lay there for 2 days completely awake, but in pain. I have to give up weekends with my family and even work during them, at times, if I can. It’s been termed chronic pain and just like any other chronic pain it doesn’t truly go away for good. It’s always there. Lurking. Like those bad pictures you took in the 8th grade that you know someone will find and put on Access Hollywood if you were to ever become famous.

I’m just learning to manage it. I’m sorry that Dad Gone Mad had to experience what he did. I’m grateful, though, for one more person that truly understands what the experience is like and has more empathy, however.