Caring for Rigel

Posted on March 14, 2012 by

Well, this on again off again blogging…is now on….again.  Hopefully this time I will stick with it.  I think Rigel’s story will keep me going….

I’ve spoken to so many people about their senior pets, that I feel I need to share all the tips and tricks that has helped us care for Rigel.  Each dog is a teacher, and the human gets to learn something new each time one enters your life.

Mom...must I wear this?

Rigel has a host of issues, and I am grateful for his treatment team.  Yesterday (3/13/12) we discovered a mass on his spleen.  He is twelve and I know that for English Setters this is a good number because the average life expectancy is 10-13 years.  So we feel blessed!

For the past year, our home has been set-up kinda like an assisted living facility for senior pets.  For many people the last years of life are often filled with “how can I care for them,” “am I doing what is best for my pet,” “how do we manage the $$’s,” and oh ya..how do we deal with caregiver burn out!

I will share what I know, what Rigel has taught us, and where my dearest husband has provided valuable insight and knowledge that sometimes has escaped all of us including his treatment team.

Where to start? Rigel’s say mom that easy…finding a good treatment team, tell them about that!  So stay tuned for the next post!

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Norovirus…Young Living Essential Oils to the Rescue?

Posted on February 10, 2012 by
Powerful ways to deal with bacteria and viruses

"Clean Sweep...keeping germs at bay"

As a studying clinical aromatherapist I am always seeking ways to use therapeutic quality essential oils to help the world we live in.

Listening to the news from the TODAY show, there were two segments on the out break of the Norovirus on Cruise Ships and  College Campuses.  According to the CDC one of the best ways to prevent the spread of this virus is to do the following:

  • Proper Hand Hygiene, wash hands often
  • Disinfect contaminated areas (all surfaces) with BLEACH
  • Proper food handing, wash food before use; people who are sick should NOT prepare food

Humm..could Young Living Essential Oils be the answer to minimizing and even preventing the spread of Norovirus?

Young Living has a wonderful product line called Thieves.  Listed below are some of the products that I use in the home, office and when I go traveling.

The CDC article indicated that alcohol-based hand cleaners were not effective in controlling this virus and that frequent hand washing is a MUST.

Young Living has two products that would be ideal for hand sanitization.  Thieves foaming soap can be used to wash the hands without drying them and Thieves hand sanitizer for “on-the-go” situations.  I personally keep the hand sanitizer in my purse and car…never without it!  I also use the foaming hand soap not only to wash my hands but to wash my fruit and veggies.

Now for cleaning surfaces the Thieves Household cleaner would be in my opinion a much better choice that washing everything down with bleach.  It Thieves cleaner smells wonderful, cleans well, been shown to reduce MRSA (See foot note), cost effective and eco-friendly to boot!

As for the virus in the air I would be diffusing Young Living Thieves essential oils in the air with a diffuser that is non-water based.

By diffusing Thieves essential oil blend for 15–30 minutes in your home, office, dorm room, healthcare facility, hospital, daycare centers, hotel room or even a cruise ship would be a great way to help minimize airborne bacteria.

The reason that I endorse Young Living Products as a student of Aromatherapy, is that Young Living makes my work easier for me as a student.  I know that Young Living harvests their product at the right time, distills the essential oil according to the specification for that plant, plant materials are sourced from unpolluted areas of the world, verifies product with chemical testing and respects the plants so that there will be sustainability for future generations.

This information is presented to EDUCATE…not to diagnose, treat, other otherwise take the place of traditional medical care.  Please ALWAYS consult with appropriate healthcare practitioners.

_____________

Notes:

Inhibition of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) by essential oils

John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sue Chao,1* Gary Young,1 Craig Oberg2 and Karen Nakaoka2

Inhibition of MRSA by essential oils

1     Young Living Essential Oils, Lehi, UT, USA 2       Department of Microbiology, Weber State University, Ogden, UT, USA

Received 15 January 2008; Revised 20 June 2008; Accepted 7 August 2008

ABSTRACT:  Ninety-one essential oils, each distilled from a single plant source, and 64 blended essential oils obtained from a commercial source were screened using the disc diffusion assay for inhibitory activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Of the 91 single essential oils, 78 exhibited zones of inhibition against MRSA, with lemongrass, lemon myrtle, mountain savory, cinnamon and melissa essential oils having the highest levels of inhibition. Of 64 blended essential oils, 52 exhibited inhibitory activity against MRSA, with R.C. (a combination of myrtle, Eucalyptus globulus, Eucalyptus australiana, Eucalyptus radiata, marjoram, pine, cypress, lavender, spruce, peppermint and Eucalyptus citriodora oils), Motivation (a combination of Roman chamomile, ylang ylang, spruce and lavender oils) and Longevity (a combination of frankincense, clove, orange and thyme oils) blended essential oils having the highest inhibitory activity. These results indicate that essential oils alone and in combination can inhibit MRSA in vitro. Application of these results may include the potential use of essential oils as an alternative therapy for various diseases sustained by S. aureus MRSA.

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

 

 

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Shari’s 411 Blog

Posted on February 5, 2012 by

Welcome to Shari’s 411 Blog…..

Ok…this is my second attempt at blogging, my original blog site was difficult to manage because I didn’t understand how all this “stuff” worked in the “Virtual World of the Internet.”  Not wanting to give up, I reached out to folks that could help me build my confidence, teach me in a way that I could grasp the material, plus allowing myself the opportunity to fail and brush myself off and start again.  BIG thank you’s go to Anita Hicks of Virtual Assistance by Anita and Glenn Garnes of the Village Connector – The “Good News” on-line newspaper in Maryland.

With a fresh sheet of paper in front of me…Shari’s 411 blog starts again. So what will you find here?  As 411 implies – Information on all kinds of topics that I find interesting, what’s happening in the world, and things that make me make me want to take a stand.  And yes, there will be information about the work that I do as a Holistic Practitioner, the clients that I serve and  products that I feel can be of benefit to you, your family and your pets.

I look forward to sharing and I trust that you will tag along with me and provide me feedback on the topics I blog about!

 

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