Melanie's Daily Blurb

Upsy Daisy White Washed

2007-10-19T19:37:00.000+01:00

Anyone who has a baby is likely to have seen the sweet little programme "In the Night Garden". It is a magical garden that the main character Iggle Piggle goes to at night when he falls asleep, to play with the other characters Upsy Daisy, Makka Pakka, the Tombliboos, the Pontipines and the Wottingers, unique wildlife - the Titifers and Hahoos and even sentient transportation in the form of the Ninky Nonk and the Pinky Ponk. Everything in this programme is magical and great fun, reminiscent for me of Bagpuss, The Clangers and The Teletubbies. Jasmine loves the programme and the characters and claps and smiles and dances to the songs. All the parents I know who have little ones tell me their kids love it too. Now that a toy range has been manufactured, its set to make a killing. Anyway hearing that the toys were available and Jasmine having received birthday money I decided to get her the doll Upsy Daisy, one of the main characters and the only female character available.

When I saw the doll I was shocked. Upsy Daisy is black doll in the show, but the doll available for sale is not. The doll is identical to the TV character in every other way. Now Jasmine being the product of a mixed race couple, I feel that the messages we, her parents give her about race, particularly at this early stage of her development are vital to her confidence and pride as an adult, especially if we are to counteract the overwhelming negativity of the both subliminal and overt messages portrayed about black and mixed race people in the media and in the marketplace. I felt that in addition to the charming story and characters, to make one of the main characters of this mainstream children's show a black character was a very positive thing. I thought kudos to the BBC and Ragdoll Worldwide for their positive reflection of a multicultural society. Sadly that positivity did not extend to their merchandising. You can see more views on this here http://www.newstatesman.com/200708020019 and http://news.scotsman.com/entertainment.cfm?id=1351362007

I quote from news.scotsman.com

"Ragdoll Worldwide, the production company which makes In the Night Garden for the BBC, told The Scotsman it had decided that toys from the series did not have to exactly resemble those seen on screen. Andrew Kerr, its spokesman for global licensing and marketing, said: "In spite of their various differences, the characters co-exist and interact in simple and charming ways. The toy range reflects this diversity. "We decided that their colours, shapes and sizes would be dealt with playfully, as they are in the television programme, and as a result do not always bear an exact resemblance to what is seen on screen. "Regarding Upsy Daisy, her face-tone will no doubt vary both darker and lighter in future interpretations."

Now Ragdoll worldwide may have decided that the toys do not have to replicate the shows characters and interpret the toys "playfully" but why is it that the only thing the have "played" with is Upsy Daisy's complexion while all the toys including Upsy Daisy remain identical and true to the characters in every other respect? As for varying Upsy Daisy's face-tone, it seems this will not be happening anytime this side of Christmas. If you would like to tell Ragdoll Worldwide what you think, nickk@ragdoll.co.uk (Nick Kirkpatrick, Head of International Sales) matts@ragdoll.co.uk (Matt Schweitzer, Senior Manager Media and Merchandising) lynng@ragdoll.co.uk (Lynn Godfrey Senior Director of Marketing).

Also quoted from the news.scotsman.com article is

"A spokeswoman for the National Assembly Against Racism said: "By replacing the only brown character with a white-tinted doll, it looks as if the producers of the doll have reverted to racist 1950s attitudes. The BBC should pull its contract with the manufacturers immediately.""

The NAAR site can be found at http://www.naar.org.uk/index.asp. This statement brought to mind this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0BxFRu_SOw&mode=related&search= where a 17 year old student Kiri Davis examines opinions regarding skin colour and race and recreated the the famous doll experiment of the 1940's by psychologist Dr. Kenneth Clark.(more info http://www.teachersdomain.org/resources/iml04/soc/ush/civil/clark/index.html) It shows that negative attitudes regarding race absorbed by the very young in the 1940's are still prevalent in the very young today. Toys DO make a difference, positive images of black characters in mainstream children's programmes ARE important to the self esteem and development of youngsters. For the BBC and Ragdoll Worldwide to make such a positive, constructive step forwards only to renege when it comes to merchandising shows that educating our children is not the focus of their activities, maximising merchandising profits is, and the fact is a black Upsy Daisy might not deliver as high a profit. I say might because bearing in mind the popularity of the programme, a stand could have been taken, a step towards changing outdated concepts, but it seems that Ragdoll weren't brave enough to find out, to take the risk of putting principals in front of lesser profits. It seems clear that while they are happy to have a black Upsy Daisy in the programme, they do not have the balls to stick to their multi-cultural convictions in the face of the expected pre-Christmas toy rush. Below is the post that I submitted to the Cbeebies Grown Ups Message Board. ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/mbcbeebies/F2704763 )

"Both my daughter and I love "In The Night Garden". It's a great program and as soon as she hears the music my little one stops what she is doing to watch. So naturally I was eager to buy the toys when the range came out. I was very disappointed to find that the Upsy Daisy doll has been whitened. Now I realise that the toys have been manufactured in order to make a profit, and that marketing rules supreme especially in the run up to Christmas, and that it has clearly been decided that a black Upsy Daisy will not make as much money as a white Upsy Daisy, but I feel that should be irrelevant. How much better if a toy from a mainstream children's programme accurately reflected our multicultural society and sought to change this as opposed to supporting this sad fact? What message does this kind of action give our children? Why can't my daughter have an Upsy Daisy doll that looks more like her? The colour of the character hasn't stopped the programme being one of the most popular on TV for this age group, so why have the BBC and the toy manufacturers made this sad and short-sighted decision? What do other parents think?"

If you feel as disgusted as I do, let the BBC and Ragdoll Worldwide know how you feel!

Happy Birthday Jasmine!

2007-10-11T13:08:00.000+01:00

Its official, Jasmine is 1 (her birthday was yesterday)! The day was great and I have had a busy few days, getting presents, baking a cake (organic vegan double layer carrot cake with lemon butter icing and covered in slices of fresh strawberries, yummy), you know the type of thing. She had visitors Tuesday, yesterday, and she will get some more tomorrow. She has been well and truly spoiled! For me it seems this year has gone by in a whirlwind, and yet it also feels as though there wasn't a time that she was with us. The occasion was the excuse for a moment of nostalgia, to look through Jasmine's "keepsake box". It is a box of mementos and has an assortment of items in it, such as all the congratulations cards, her wristbands, a ceramic plaque with her hand and foot prints, from a mould taken of her feet and hands about 3 days after she born, the very first babygro she wore, her "babies first Christmas stocking" the umbilical cord clamp and in a small malachite box the remainder of her umbilical cord that dropped off. (The plan was for this to be buried and a tree planted over it, (to tie her to the earth) by her grandfather in Jamaica, but for one reason and another this hasn't happened (yet). So now I will be adding 1 birthday cake candle. I wonder what she will make of this odd collection when she is older? I remember coming across a small collection of teeth in an ornamental box on my Mum's dressing table. I can't remember if they were mine or my sisters but I thought it was gross. When I said so, my Mum said well they are mine, I paid for them! So much for the tooth fairy. So much has happened in this past year. I have become a mother and Jasmine can communicate, she can feed herself, walk and has become part of a community. (People come up to me to introduce themselves and say "we haven't met yet my name is (xxx), Hello Jasmine". It seems my daughter already has a separate social life and personal fan club. But that is how it should be. Her successes are in some way my successes. I will always represent her past, and Jasmine will always represent my future. I am her teacher and she is mine.

Defending The Indefensible

2007-10-08T22:30:00.000+01:00

Daisy Goodwin Executive Producer of Bringing Up Baby

I have been prompted to write a second post about the Channel 4 programme Bringing Up Baby after reading an article in The Sunday Times News Review. The article can be read in full here. Daisy Goodwin, who devised the idea behind the programme and in the article defends the programme and Claire Verity. The premise of the programme could, had it not been an "reality TV" experiment on babies unable to provide consent and parents at a time when most vulnerable to the opinions of others, have been an interesting exploration of childcare ideologies, especially if there had been recognition of the vast improvements and new discoveries in childcare made over the time scale chosen 50's - 70's and been inclusive of developing awareness of the cognitive and emotional development in an infant. As it was , to me in this article Daisy Goodwin is defending the indefensible. The article begins by claiming that Claire Verity has received death threats, as though we should feel sorry for her. Now let me be clear on this point, I do not advocate violence or the threat of violence against anyone, but I am not surprised that Claire Verity's behaviour towards babies has elicited this response and I do not feel sorry for her, I feel sorry for the babies who have been emotionally and physiologically scarred by this so called child care expert's regime and their parents, who while they may reap the rewards of quiet nights from their traumatised babies now, are likely to raise a withdrawn or angry, emotionally detached child who has difficulties with anxiety, forming relationships and depression and later may look back with regret.

Claire Verity claims to be a "victim". She says she has received death threats. In another article from The Times http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/families/article2490406.ece She complains that the NCT are "bullying her and about a blog that has been created to get rid of her (anyone know the web addy of that blog and of heckled at events she has spoken at. Here are quotes from that article.

“Oh yes,” she says, “I’ve been hung, drawn and quartered by the National Childbirth Trust. The last lot looked like they had just come off some peace camp. They accuse me of being a bully: I think they are the bullies. They have their opinions and their boxes to tick and they stick to them. But they’re just as rigid as any of my routines.

“They look appalling – and they are appalling. I just loathe them. They’ve even started a blog to get rid of me,” she continues, warming to her theme. “There they were, barricading the back of the room, bitching about me. What does she know? She doesn’t have any children of her own.’ Well, I always say: does a heart surgeon have to operate on himself?”

I rather think that a heart surgeon may not have to operate on himself to know how to do it, but he/she would still need to have a heart, something that seems to be lacking in Ms Verity's makeup. The comparison with a surgeon is telling for me, as Claire Verity reminds me of those medical professionals who have become desensitised, for whom a patient is no longer a person but a task, or even worse a chore or inconvenience. Hilariously in the comments section of the article I found these two gems that seem closer to the truth to my mind, especially as I have seen the same observation made on other sites.

"Jo, Wolverhampton, UK
As a mother stood at a recent baby show with my happy child in a sling talking to other happy mothers I presume I am a heckler who barricaded the room? That comment is nonsense as is the fact it was the NCT. Claire Verity was asked why she goes against DoH and SIDS guidelines by one lady in a polite manner. She was not heckled, yet she called security as she has no way of defending her outdated and damaging methods. As a nanny she claims to have bedded Mick Jagger with his wife and child in the next room. If you refuse to let a mother hold her child why not sleep with her husband too? Take every bit of love she has?"

"Mrs K Martin, West Yorkshire,
I was at the baby show where Claire verity asked for security to escort 'hecklers' away. The 'hecklers' were asking her why she goes against Department of Health advice on breastfeeding and where baby sleeps. The question was met with a call to security, rather than any sensible rebuttal of the DoH's information. Says an awful lot about the woman and the methods, I think."

But I digress. What I really want to write about here are the comments made by Daisy Goodwin. As programme maker claiming to show all methods impartially, I feel that she has, in defending the Truby King method used by Claire Verity so vehemently, taken sides in the argument especially when she claims Claire Verity's detractors to be self-rightous child care fundamentalists. There is also no sign of remorse or at least understanding of the strong feelings this programme has generated in viewers, the vast majority of whom are appalled.

Reading the article I truly feel that Daisy Goodwin has completely missed the point that is provoking outrage in so many. She says

"A year ago I approached Channel 4 with the idea of comparing and contrasting in real time the most influential childcare manuals of the past 50 years. I was intrigued at the way the fashion in childcare more recently had swung from the liberal, trust your instincts approach of Spock and Penelope Leach, which were current when I had my first child, to the more authoritarian approach of Gina Ford, who also advocates a routine, which topped the bestseller lists when I had my second child 10 years later. "

Now in theory that all sounds fine, but there are routines and then there are routines. Gina Ford may have a fair few of her own detractors but according to yet another times online article http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/families/article2615136.ece

(Gina)"Ford has also joined the battle, writing to the NSPCC denouncing Verity’s techniques as almost a threat to young lives"

Most viewers are not upset at the thought of a routine. What bothers people is the lack of compassion that Ms Verity shows towards babies, the roughness with which she handles their tiny little bodies, the attitude she displays towards them, as adversaries who need to be broken and conquered, the lack of compassion she shows for the parents, treating the mother child bond as an irrational form of hormonally induced idiocy, the leaving children abandoned, isolated and left to cry for hours at a time, the denial of a babies need for family love, human contact, stimulation, eye contact, and being held, the implementation of a 4 hourly feeding routine that makes breastfeeding an impossibility, as opposed to say a 2 hourly feed and is carried out in a manner that is akin to force feeding. (She was literally ramming as much of the teat as she could down this poor babies throat in the second episode). Would it not have been possible to demonstrate a "routine" method that was not carried out in this way? Daisy Goodwin's article continues:

"There are some aspects of Truby King’s routine, such as putting a child in its own room, which are now challenged by cot-death charities such as FSID, which advise mothers to keep babies in the same room for the first six months, and the programme makes current guidelines on this clear. But apart from that there is no hard medical evidence to suggest the Truby King approach poses any threat to a baby’s physical or psychological health."

To say that there is no evidence that the Truby King approach to baby care poses any threat is ridiculous. There is a wealth of evidence that isolation, abandonment, lack of socialisation, ie eye contact and cuddling causes serious damage in the brain development of the infant.ref AN Schore "Introduction And Effects Of A Secure Attachment Relationship On Right Brain Development, Affect Regulation And Infant Mental Health, Infant Mental Health Journal 22, 1-2,2001, also ref LG Russek and GE Schwartz,"Feelings Of Parental Caring Predict Health Status In Midlife: A 35 Year Followup Of The Harvard Mastery OF Stress Study" Journal of Behavioural Medicine, vol 20,pp1-13 to name just two.

"But this is heresy to the self-right-eous childcare fundamentalists of the Internet who loathe Verity so much that she has been spat at in the street and received death threats.
So what’s really going on here? Why has this maternity nurse replaced Posh Spice as the most hated woman in Britain? Her clients all speak highly of her, the families who used her methods on Bringing Up Baby are still following her routines. What is so sinister about parents wanting their children to be in a routine?"

Nearly everyone that I know who has seen any of the programmes feels the same way about Claire Verities methods. It is not as I stated earlier the use of "routines" that specifically bothers people. Women who raised children who were themselves children of the fifties and used "routines", women who have never had children, fathers, and parents who each had their own unique approach, breast feeders and bottle feeders alike, sleep trainers and co-sleepers. All condemn Claire Verity's treatment of babies. Are we all self righteous childcare fundamentalists of the Internet? This throwaway comment seems absurdly dismissive of the mainstream horror that Claire Verity be upheld as a victim, a paragon of good childcare, an "expert" and has urged so many to sign a petition to be presented to No 10. My personal feeling is that Daisy Goodwin and her colleagues at Silver River and at Channel 4 were only too aware of the uproar that this programme would generate, for who could fail to see the outcry the portrayal of the actions of this woman would provoke in the viewing public. I believe that they rubbed their hands in glee at the thought of their little goldmine, knowing the ratings, publicity and advertising revenue such an outcry would provoke. Maybe (as if) Claire Verity is a victim of unjustified crowd anger. We the viewing public may be the abusive jeering crowd, throwing rotten fruit and vegetables, but we weren't the ones that put her in the stocks and displayed her sins for the populace to witness. What responsibility does Daisy Goodwin, Silver River and Channel 4 take? None.

If you would like to contact Daisy Goodwin http://www.daisygoodwin.co.uk/ or Silver River http://www.silverriver.tv/prog_bringingupbaby.php ,Channel 4 http://help.channel4.com/ or Ofcom http://www.ofcom.org.uk/complain/progs/specific/ here are the links ;0)

I Love Cakes

2007-10-08T16:25:00.000+01:00

Little Jasmine will be 1 year old on Wednesday, so with this in mind my thoughts are turning to cake. I havent decided what kind of cake to cook yet, bearing in mind lil J has never tasted cake. (Cake is for mummies.) I think I'll cook her a carrot cake, but haven't decided for sure yet, as double choc chip is the other option I am considering. Whenever my thoughts turn to cake, I think of my favourite. Ginger Cake. (In particular my own recipe for Vegan Ginger Cake). I bake it when the number of people offering me cake/biscuits etc that are non vegan has hit critical mass, just to remind myself that I can eat cake too, I just prefer to eat cruelty free, additive free cake that is flavour-some instead of contains "flavourings"! We have friends and family coming to visit on her birthday, before her birthday and after her birthday, so I think I might bake a ginger cake too! I thought I'd share my recipe with you. By the way the photo of the Ginger cake is not my ginger cake, its just some generic ginger cake photo that I found, but mine does look a bit like this. I love ginger, its a great tonic for digestion, the urinary system, soothing for period pain, anti-inflammatory, can ease chills and sore throats, nausea and is often recommended for morning sickness and can be useful with migraine and arthritic conditions when eaten in foods, as a tea or applied as a blended oil, so indulge in some cake in the knowledge that as well as being yummy, it may be doing you some good too! ;0)

Melanie's Vegan Ginger Cake

Soya Milk 4fl oz / 4 Tablespoons
Golden Syrup 2fl oz / 2 Tablespoons
Black Molasses Treacle 2fl oz / 2 Tablespoons
Oil (any of your choice) 2fl oz / 2 Tablespoons

Self Raising Flour 6 oz / 6 Tablespoons
Raw Cane Sugar 2 oz / 2 Tablespoons
Fine Chopped Fresh Root Ginger 1 oz / 1 Tablespoon finely chopped
Ground Ginger 1 teaspoon
Spices (vary according to taste from a combination of ginger, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice (pimento), coriander and cardamom)
Salt 1 pinch

Cook in preheated oven at 190C, 380F or Gas mark 6 fpr 25-30mins
Sift flour, spices and salt into a bowl
In a mixing bowl place all wet ingredients and sugar
Sieve dry ingredients into the wet ingredients (double sifting is important)
Fold dry ingredients into mixture lightly. Be careful not to overmix
Fold in chopped ginger and any additional ingredients. (eg chopped walnuts)

Enjoy!

The Art Of Communication & Listening

2007-10-06T20:19:00.000+01:00

I have a sweet little story to tell on the art of communication and perhaps more importantly, listening. I will also warn you that there will be a small but controlled bout of maternal bragging, but I'll try to keep it short. Shortish. Now if you have read previous posts you may be aware that I am a highly enthusiastic promoter of baby signing. This is a method of developing language and communication skills with your baby, before they have the ability to talk. Babies brain development shows that babies have the ability cognitively to understand communication and language at a far earlier stage than the stage at which babies vocal chords are sufficiently developed to allow speech. What you have in between those two stages is frustration and tears for both parent and child. Much of the tantrums of the toddler stage has been attributed to this inability to express themselves and be understood in a way that matches the child's cognitive capabilities. Baby signing bridges that gap, giving the child tools to both understand and express. Many babies will develop their own signs spontaneously, usually around the time they start pointing at things and waving hello and goodbye. There a number of methods and classes available in the UK and it is an approach that is growing in popularity in other countries too. Here in the UK most classes use either Makaton which is based on BSL (British Sign Language) but adapted for children with special needs and which also incorporates the use of signs. UK readers who are parents may be familiar with the children's programme Something Special which uses Makaton.(http://www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies/somethingspecial/signs/) Other classes use signs that are strictly BSL based. On the whole there are variation between signs even within BSL, and some signs you may come across are adapted for easier use by babies. Still generally speaking you can get by with a combination. If you can't find a BSL sign for something but you can get a Makaton sign instead, then why not.

I have been using baby signs with Jasmine since she was 4 months old. At times I thought there seemed like little point in continuing, but once she started with her first few signs, it became like an avalanche of new words. Jasmine often sees something interesting and will turn to me or Daddy to see if we can give her a sign for it. That period of time where nothing at all seems to be happening is most likely when the biggest discoveries in your child's learning of language is taking place. Baby is learning that things have names, people have names and feelings have names etc, and that those names or words have a consistent relationship with the thing they represent. Using words can help you get what you want or need. Signs and words can have a relationship that is consistent. You may think your baby is contemplating their toes and pondering their next filled nappy, but they are actually working out some major stuff! Because Baby signing is both physical/visual and a language skill, it combines right brain and left brain activity and boosts development as a result!

So far, with her 1st birthday a mere 4 days away Jasmine knows and uses signs for the following: All Gone; Bed (Not one she uses very often, strangely); Bird; Bite (as in don't bite Mummy); Brush Teeth; Clap (usually this means I am so clever); Clean; Clean or Wash Face; Daddy (far too over used IMO); Dance (Jasmine is a funky groover); Dog; Don't Touch; Eat / Food; Fan /Fan Me (Sounds decadent but Jasmine made this one up herself when I took a fan out with us for use on the bus in hot weather); Flower; Get Up; Good; Hello / Goodbye; Hurt / Pain; Light / Sun (Baby is obsessed with light fittings. Perhaps she will be an interior designer); Look/See; Milk (2nd most used sign after Daddy); More (often used with milk); Mummy (for when the Milk sign hasn't had the desired effect with Daddy); Music (Jasmine really loves music and asks us to put the radio on in the morning); Nappy (very useful); Phone (used right before she cuts me off mid conversation); Pig (Used to entice Daddy to chase her around the living room making piggy noises); Play/Toy; Rain; Sand; Sleep/Go to Sleep; Stand; Stop; Toilet; Walk; Where (a favourite for peekaboo and hide the toy games); You. In addition Jasmine understands about double the number of signs she actually uses. Jasmine can speak two words, Mumum and Dada. Imagine, she can express and understand such a wide variety of things, but had she not had access to this wonderful tool, she would be restricted to just Mumum and Dada. I believe that although Jasmine is incredibly special to me, her signing abilities are not, she is simply doing what the majority of babies are capable of. You can see why little ones get so frustrated and angry.

So to the cute story My DSLP gets up with Jasmine before he goes to work so that I can catch up from the night time waking and he can get a bit of quality time with her. Now wonderful man that he is, and perhaps this is just my experience, he is a man. Which means that generally he doesn't listen. I find this quality irritating. Its a combination of zoning out and being unable to multi-task, ie watch the news and listen at the same time. Its a focus thing I think. Anyway Jasmine had eaten breakfast and DSLP had just changed her nappy when he decided to clear up her tray in the kitchen which adjoins the living room while she played with her toys. A little while later he noticed she had taken her nappy off and was crawling about in her birthday suit. He said OK then you have your naked run around I'll be back in in a minute. Very shortly after he brings her into the bedroom to clean her and put on a nappy. "You'll never guess what happened" he said. The nappy Jas had taken off had been a pooey nappy and she had then crawled about making a glorious mess, so he wanted me to hold her while he cleaned up. I said "That's very unlike Jas, she usually tells me when she needs her nappy changing" . He looking a bit embarrassed said, well she did do the nappy sign, but I had just changed her so I thought it couldn't be, so I decided I'd check a bit later" I how I laughed! "I told you that you never listen. I hope you have learned your lesson" To be honest it made me feel quite proud. Jasmine being the smart (bilingual), independent young lady that she is had decided that if she wasn't going to be listened to or understood, then she wasn't going to wait on any man, not even Daddy, to do something for her that she could do for herself! That's my girl, start as you mean to go on!

Dying To Be Beautiful

2007-10-06T12:39:00.000+01:00

I'm having a bit of an "ugly day" today. My hair won't go right, I have a cold sore and my eyes are those of a woman whose little angel woke her up one time too many the night before. So we have had a stay at home day today, for me to rest and recharge the batteries and hopefully tomorrow when I wake up I'll feel more like my usual self. We are constantly bombarded with unachievable, unrealistic images of "beauty" that when you have an off day its hard not to feel like a cross between a yeti and elephant man, and that perhaps you should be wearing a paper bag over your head to protect the rest of the world from your hideousness!

Just how unattainable these visions of beauty, that smile down at us benignly from bill board adverts, shop windows, newspapers, magazines, television programmes, cinema screens and just about every type of media you can think of are, was brought home to me by a website I came across on Stumble Upon : http://www.digitalphotoshopretouching.com/retouching.htm
It shows pictures of women who are absolutely gorgeous who are then, using the magic powers of photographic trickery, "improved". The truth is that no-one looks like the men and women who are chosen to represent what is considered to be the apex of beauty, not even those said same models! Need a chin-remodel, rhinoplasty, eyebrow lift, wrinkle removal, etc, etc, etc? You got it. A click of a mouse button here, a blend there and hey presto, now they look good! So if these naturally beautiful, leggy, lithe, never had a stretch mark, spot or bar of chocolate, paragons of beauty are additionally "improved", what hope do the rest of us have of approaching this ideal? Not a hope in hell.

But what is the end result of this body fascism? People, especially women, then feel that they need to have these operations for real! They think they need to nip, tuck, chop, vacuum and enlarge various parts of their anatomy, just to look normal, as if there even was such a thing. There are endless programmes on TV that take a person who does not feel good about themselves and feels that they are so ugly they must need drastic surgery to look even halfway decent, tells them that "you are so right! You do need surgery!" then subjects them to all manner of unnecessary procedures on camera to then turn out the homogenised "look how good you look now, and all you needed was life endangering surgery!" beautiful person. The person is so grateful to have been humiliated, dissected and made to look like a different person, as though their own original, unique, characteristics had no value. These programmes, of which there are so many, simply reinforce to others who also are feeling bad about themselves that for them also, surgery is the only answer.

See http://westwardbound.wordpress.com/2007/10/05/the-necessary-adjustments-mommy-makeovers/ for a brilliant article on this. She discusses the emphasis now being placed on mothers specifically, to "sort out" post baby bellies, saggy boobs and wobbly thighs. Like being mother to a little one doesn't give you enough insecurities as it is! Hey whats wrong with the 9 months on 9months off concept, rest, healthy eating, exercise, and most importantly, self acceptance. I too

" want to live in a society where women are not embarrassed by the way their bodies change over time, as they live their lives. Furthermore, I want the lower breasts, pad of belly fat, and thicker thighs that often come with motherhood exalted as the medals of what our bodies have achieved." Beautifully said Westwardbound!

The incidence of body dysmorphic disorder, anorexia and bulimia nervosa seem to me to be symptoms of a society that constantly gives the message that we mere mortals are ugly and imperfect. Our babies, particularly our daughters are picking up these messages from much earlier stages in their lives than ever before, as mothers insecurities are heightened, and the sexualisation of children becomes ever more pervasive, clothing manufacturers selling THONGS to the under fives (I kid you not I have seen this in clothing shops) nine year olds talking about dieting and sixteen year olds thinking that they need a boob job. Its depressing, because this steals their joy in life, robs these developing souls of their self esteem and denies them the ability to acknowledge their innate beauty that needs nothing more than self acceptance and for inner confidence to be nurtured and grown.

The other aspect of our lives which is under constant attack is aging. While in many cultures the older woman is seen as the embodiment of beauty, wisdom and experience, aging in the western world is seen as a curse. The elderly are seen as invisible and inconveniant. We are told that employers are ageist (this is true to a large extent) and actresses over forty are considered past there sell by date and rarely feature in leading roles, while the same is not true of the leading man. Eternal youth is the ideal, yet when I was younger, I was being told by the media messages around me that I was just as ugly as I am expected to believe that I am now, now that I have a few more grey hairs and wrinkles. Now, I feel that if I wasn't, by the standard of the media, beautiful when I was was young, slim and fresh faced and I still am not "acceptable" now, that I am never going to be, that the bar is always just out of reach, no matter how old we are, no matter how we look, no matter how we are perceived. The key is how we feel, and the truth is that the media and advertisers actually want us to feel bad about our selves! Because that is when we spend our money! We buy anti-aging creams, padded bras and knickers with added support, hair dye, teeth whitener, plastic surgery, make up by the ton, diet pills, the latest magazine that promises to "Make you look younger, slimmer, better, sexier etc in just 1 week". We buy into the fantasy that we can get stuff to "fix" the fact that we feel we are not good enough the way we are.

I remember when I was 17 and I started working in a administrative and sales environment, I felt I had to wear make up every day in order to look professional. It was my mask. Every day I would wear moisturiser, foundation, concealer, eyeliner, eye shadow, mascara, eyebrow pencil, blusher, lipstick, nail varnish, deodorant, perfume, hair mousse and hair spray all applied for a "natural, not over done effect". The irony of it now is plain for me to see, but in those days I was a walking chemical factory. My mum always wore make up, and I had been wearing makeup from a young age and now I wore even more, to appear well groomed. That was just what women do to look good, right? Gradually I came to wear less "products" and when I started studying complementary health I got a whole new perspective. Many "beauty products" are bad for your physical and emotional health. I stopped wearing make up and my skin got really good. I stopped wearing jewellery and I felt lighter. I felt vulnerable at first and exposed, but self acceptance grew. Nowadays I wear makeup occasionally, although usually no more than a lick of lip gloss and some eyeliner. Makeup isn't my mask anymore, I wear it to augment my features, not to disguise them! This subtle difference in outlook is important.

As I said before many "beauty products" are bad for your health. I try to buy products carefully to avoid toxic products, and many products I avoid all together. As a vegan, you spend your life reading ingredient lists. Its quite an eye opener, especially when you turn your eye to beauty product ingredients. Did you know that hairspray can be used to clean off nail varnish? When you are spraying it around your head, you are breathing in particles of it! The same is true of any spray. Eye make up can contain small amounts of mercury, aluminium, and lead acetate all of which have toxic effects. Putting any substance on the skin is the quickest way to absorb it into the bloodstream, far quicker than even digestion. This is the reason behind the effectiveness of an aromatherapy massage or the reason why many medical treatments, such as hormone medications come in the form of a patch. The list of dangerous chemicals is endless. It has been estimated that the average make up wearing woman is absorbing up to 5Lbs of chemicals from make up annually. See http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/womenfamily.html?in_article_id=462997&in_page_id=1799 and http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/main.jhtml?xml=/health/2005/03/18/hmake18.xml&page=1 for more info on these hidden dangers.
I don't use hairsprays, waxes etc anymore and I am careful of the cosmetics I buy, but top of my danger list are deodorants. Have you ever read the ingredients of these products that most of us blithely roll or spray onto our armpits daily? What follows is the list of ingredients of the deodorant I used to use:

"Aqua, Aluminum Zirconium, Tetrachlorohydrex Gly, Glyceryl Stearate,Laureth 23, Magnesium Aluminum Silicate, Polysorbate 20, Behentrimonium, Methosulfate, Laureth 4, Cetearyl Alcohol, Lauric Acid, EDTA, Parfum, Amyl Cinnamal, Benzyl Cinnamate, Citronellol, Coumarin, Alpha Isomethyl Ionone, Geraniol, Limonene, Linalool."

Compare that to the deodorant I use now (Optima Iceguard Natural Crystal Deodorant):

"Natural Mineral Salts, Ammonium Alum"

When I got pregnant, although I rarely wore make up I decided to examine what products I was using, bearing in mind that what ever was in my blood stream was also in babies (Little Wriggler as she was then known) That led to a large bathroom clear out. (No wonder cancers are now so prevalent) What I considered later was had I still been using said same former deodorant, the chemicals being absorbed into my underarm area would also be making their way through the placenta and also into my breast milk. Now I don't know about you but I find both prospects frightening. Even more horrifying is that many mainstream baby products use these worrying chemicals too! This website gives some good recommendations for less toxic beauty products http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/94/goodbadugly and mothers will be able find many organic and natural baby products to buy. By buying products that require less manufacturing of chemicals, there is also a beneficial impact on the environment. In the case of natural crystal deodorants like the one I use, there is also less packaging, as it can last up to a year!

The thing that gets me the most about the Beauty Machine though, aside from the psychological damage, toxic products, and environmental damage is that it is all so external. No matter how we look, we are beautiful and valid and should be able to view ourselves lovingly. The messages are so deceptive, they tell us "to be worthy and appreciated you must look good" instead of saying "to feel good you need to appreciate yourself". All the pressure, products or fashion in the world won't change the person that I am essentially. I, like everyone else, am a spiritual person living in a physical experience. When I die, I won't be thinking "I wish I'd got my boobs done and spent more time on my hair". Life is for living, not striving for acceptance to an unrealistic "club of the beautiful people". It seems to me that the beautiful people are nonexistent, fake, or neurotic, and living in fear of the day their facade falls off! Dying to be one of the beautiful? I say forget it and accept your beauty instead. So I have a cold sore and a bad hair day. Who gives a damn. ;o)

P.S Just wanted to add a little extra. I have just been reading the feeds I subscribed to and found an article by the wonderful Half Pint Pixie, which is on a similiar theme and points out the pure hypocrisy and psychological exploitation of one well known brand. Here's the link http://halfpintpixie.wordpress.com/2007/10/05/dove-part-of-the-problem/

First Steps!!

2007-10-05T00:15:00.000+01:00

I just had to share my joy. On the 3rd of October, exactly 1 week before her first birthday, Jasmine decided to take her first steps! Her show stopping performance brought tears to my eyes, tears to her Daddy's eyes and it made my friend who was on the phone with me at the time well up too. That girl will do anything to get my attention when I am on the phone! :0) I'm so happy just thinking about it!

The Not So Daily Blog, "Melanie's Daily Blurb"

2007-10-04T23:47:00.001+01:00

It seemed such a simple and appropriate name for my new blog. I thought it was cute and catchy too. I was full of hope, enthusiastic and naive. How was I to know it would turn round and bite me on the behind?

First I discover that the word blurb does not mean what I thought it did. I quote http://uk.encarta.msn.com/dictionary_1861690955/blurb.html

blurb

blurb [ blurb ] (plural blurbs)
noun
Definition:

paragraph promoting product: a short piece of writing that praises and promotes something, especially a paragraph on the cover of a book
[Early 20th century. Coined by Gelett Burgess (1866-1951), US humorist]
blurb transitive verb

A paragraph? !!! I don't do short, I do long winded, wordy, rambling and sometimes ranting posts. I do not do blurbs. I thought that blurb meant long winded, wordy and rambling. I thought that was what blurbing was.

The other point of contention. Daily..........Now I do actually know what daily means. I have no excuse on that score. It's just that daily blogging when you have a very nearly 1 year old demanding your constant attention morning noon and night is easier said than done. Also you may have noticed, I don't do short. I can take a couple of days to write a post, depending on the needs of my lil baby, my DSLP (Dear, Sweet Life Partner) and me. Yes I have a need for me time too! I did intend to post daily. It's definitely my ultimate goal, but I just haven't found my posting rhythm, and I'm beginning to suspect that that rhythm wont be daily, for now at least.

The problem is that once you have chosen the name for your blog, there it is. For posterity, and no turning back. I would change it to "Melanie's Not Quite Daily But Almost Regular And Quite Frequent Rambling Long Winded Babbling" Catchy, don't you think?

So I apologise to any readers who have not quite found what they expected to from the description. I'm working on it though :o)

Oh and before I forget, can anyone explain to me what a meme is?

15 Easy Ways To Improve Your Health & Be Happier

2007-10-01T02:35:00.001+01:00

I imagine that the idea of being able to incorporate 15 simple changes to your lifestyle that will very quickly make you feel healthier and happier sounds like an unrealistic claim. Believe me when I tell you that it really is that simple! Taking care of yourself should be fundamental, but with busy demanding lives, often we can easily overlook certain aspects of our physical, mental and emotional health. What follows is a list of recommendations that you can follow to revitalise yourself in every way, giving you more energy and a more positive outlook. This list is not exhaustive, there are many, many other things you can also do to improve your quality of life, but these are things that are easily achievable and require no special equipment and won't take a great deal of time to do. Most of the recommendations here simply require you to make alternative and informed choices. It is simply a matter of taking care of yourself. Taking care of yourself equates to loving yourself, and as we all know, you can't love others until you love yourself!

Drink Well & Wisely. Drink enough water! Water is essential to good health and a general daily recommendation for the daily amount a person needs to drink is 1.5 litres. That might seem like a lot, but that is the equivalent of eight glasses in a 24 hour period. The human body is, in a healthy adult, approximately 75% water. Water is necessary for all for all biological and chemical changes, elimination and cell renewal. The effects of mild dehydration can lead to lowered immunity, illness, headaches, constipation, bad skin and feeling sluggish, which over a long period of time can radically deplete your energy levels. Severe dehydration is how you feel when you are hung over and too much severe dehydration can lead to serious problems. It is a good idea to cut out or at least cut down on alcohol, because as I have just indicated, alcohol dehydrates you, which is why after drinking you feel that way! Now it is known that the occasional glass of red wine can contain anti-oxidants and that stout contains iron etc, so if you decide not to abstain, please remember to have two glasses of water for every glass of alcohol you drink! Tea and coffee are the morning pick me up of choice for most people, but are addictive and because they are stimulants, give you a little energy high that is followed by an energy low, that requires another cup to recover from! Tea and coffee are also diuretic (which means they make you urinate more) so can actually increase your need for fluids. They have also been linked to migraines. Why not try alternatives such as herbal teas or fruit juice (fresh and unsweetened). It is important not to indulge in fizzy drinks for three reasons, the sugar and/or caffeine content leads to the energy high.....energy slump pattern, carbonated drinks play havoc with the digestive system and actually leach calcium from the bones (women especially are often warned of the dangers of osteoporosis but rarely is this mentioned) and the acidity is very damaging to teeth enamel. Drinking enough and choosing what to drink is as important as choosing what to eat. Often thirst is interpreted as hunger by the body. You may find that as you increase your fluid intake, you become more aware of the symptoms of thirst.

Eat Healthily & Regularly Throughout The Day. So what does eating healthy really mean? The fundamental requirements from the diet are carbohydrates, fats and proteins. Now if you have read my personal information you will be aware that I am a vegan, and I do advocate vegetable proteins as the most easily digestible and healthy source of protein. The aim of this article is not to convert though. Suffice to say it is common knowledge that the conventional western diet is too rich in proteins and that this causes many health problems. For more info I recommend you take a look at this site http://www.nwhealth.edu/healthyU/eatWell/protein_1.html The best way to view a healthy diet is not (in most cases) to change how much food you eat but what type of food. I will come back to the subject of healthy carbs and fats as opposed to unhealthy carbs and fats in a moment. The issue that diversely affects most people is a lack of fibre. The UK government has spent a lot of money promoting the concept of "5 a day" Eating lots of fresh fruit and vegetables is key. By insuring a daily supply, you will increase the amount of fibre in your diet, improving your digestion and the elimination of waste from your body, making the absorption of nutrients more effective. By being able to receive more of the goodness from the food you eat, you can reap huge benefits. In addition to fibre, fruit and vegetables contain valuable and essential vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and phyto-nutrients such as bioflavonoids and essential fatty acids. Some have even been claimed as "super foods" because of their host of beneficial nutrients. By making your plate as colourful as possible, you increase the range of nutritional benefits e.g.....orange carrots and pumpkin, green broccoli or spinach, red peppers and tomatoes, purple cabbage or beetroot yellow sweetcorn and bananas and make it more appealing. Get as creative as you can! Switch to wholefoods. For example instead of white bread, eat wholemeal brown bread, instead of white rice eat brown rice or try buckwheat or quinoa, try wholewheat pasta for a change. This is easy to do and results in better fibre, nutrient intake and a lower GI. GI stands for Glycaemic Index and is the measurement of how quickly a food raises your blood sugar level. Carbohydrates are our main source of energy and sugars and "starchy" foods fall under this category. In simplistic terms there are simple carbs and complex carbs. Simple carbs are usually sugars, such as sucrose, glucose, fructose etc. These are digested and converted to energy very quickly. Many parents will be aware of the infamous "sugar rush" and its affects on their little darlings! Complex carbs are digested more slowly and the energy gain is more consistent. Many people hit that mid afternoon energy slump and have a quick bar of chocolate or sweet to compensate, only to feel a greater energy slump sometime later. A baked potato or pasta salad would boost energy far more effectively and for longer! Some foods provide both fast (simple) and slow (complex) release carbohydrates, so for an instant pick me up try a banana! By understanding how different types of food nourish you it is easier to make choices that are suitable for your health and lifestyle. The subject that seems to cause the most confusion is the differentiation between healthy and unhealthy fats! People dieting are encouraged to go on a fat free or low fat diet, but fat is not actually bad for you, in fact it is essential to good health. What needs to be considered is the form of fat you eat. Saturated fats are usually fats that come from animal sources and lead to the production of cholesterol. Healthy fats are poly-unsaturated and mono-unsaturated fats are found in primarily nuts, seeds and some fruits (sunflower seeds, walnuts, avocados and olives being very good sources of healthy fat) and some can actually lower cholesterol. The important thing to remember is that any oil can be bad for you when highly heated, as this destroys nutrient content and increases the action of free radicals in the body, so chips aren't a good way to get your fat quota, but pasta drizzled in an olive oil based dressing or an avocado with houmous will do wonders! Essential fatty acids (omega 3,6 and 9) are very good for you and partially hydrogenated, hydrogenated oils or trans fats should be avoided at all costs. Look at http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/food_matters/transfats.shtml for more info. Salt is also something to be aware of in your diet. Too much salt is addictive and it kills. Food manufacturers include it in our foods because it tastes nice (encouraging the addiction and ensuring we buy more of the product) and preserves food for longer. Salt has been linked to high blood pressure, strokes and heart disease, osteoporosis as it depletes calcium, kidney stones and other urinary system problems, diabetes, cataracts and stomach cancer. If you are a salt addict try and wean yourself off. Your health could depend on it! There are so many "hidden salts" in food that it is best to avoid using salt when cooking and never add salt at the table. Although trace amounts of salts are required by the body, vegetables naturally contain adequate amounts of mineral salts for health. The long and short of it is that highly processed and refined foods, convenience foods and those containing high levels of additives, preservatives colourings and so on are best avoided as they are usually the highest in saturated and trans fats, salt and sugar and the lowest in fibre and nutrient content! Experiment with organic foods and see if you notice a difference in your vitality! This recommendation is not intended to give you hard and fast rules to follow, but to give you information that can guide you to make the best choices and to moderate your intake of foods that dont really nourish you. Indulge when you want to and don't feel bad, but bear in mind what good food really means and ensure you get more good food generally.
Exercise. People groan at the mention of exercise, but being active doesn't require you over exert yourself and doesn't have to be boring! Good for you if you want to be a gym bunny and go to exercise classes 5 times a week, but that isn't for everyone! Dance round your living room like a maniac shaking your booty and singing at the top of your voice, walk up and down the stairs instead of taking the lift, go for a brisk walk with the dog, clean out the shed or tidy the garden. Be imaginative and do whatever you feel able to. All you need to do is increase your heart rate for 10-20 Min's a day and you will begin to feel the benefit. If you're feeling stiff, stretch! (stretch anyway before any form of exercise to avoid strains!) Try Yoga or Pilate's or dance classes, make it fun and build your tolerance gradually. You'll feel more energetic, flexible, your circulation will improve, as will your digestion, skin and stamina. As your muscle tone improves it is likely that your posture will too, so no (or less) back pain and more confidence. Your hair will be shinier and your skin will glow. Also remember, if you don't use it you lose it!
Get some sleep! Now this one can be easier said than done. Sleep is vital because it is during sleep that our body cells regenerate. There is also considerable evidence to show that the mind is active during the different stages of sleep and that each stage is essential to mental and emotional health. My belief is that the dream state also is very important for our spiritual health. If you're eating three meals a day, try not to eat your last meal too late, as this can interfere with your sleep pattern. As I have stated above, exercising can help you sleep by releasing excess energy and tension. Have a wind down period before you go to bed, such as reading or a relaxing bath. Avoiding stimulants such as tea coffee and sugar is wise too. Other reasons why people find it hard to sleep are harder to pin down. Often during the day we have so many distractions, we don't really process the things that are on our minds until we get into bed and turn off the light. If this is you, try and make some quiet time to think things through earlier in the day or talk things through with someone you trust. You could try having a notebook by the bed and writing down any persistent thoughts with a promise to yourself to examine them in the morning! Aromatherapy can be very helpful for insomnia. You can try placing a single drop of lavender on your pillow. For more specific help or advice on applying oils contact an aromatherapist for qualified advice! Herbal remedies such as Valerian can also be useful, but I would caution that a person who is pregnant or breastfeeding, has a physical ailment or condition or who is taking medication get advice from a qualified practitioner and / or doctor before using essential oils and herbal or other remedies.
Relax. Relaxation is vital to good health. During each day in response to various stimuli, our adrenal glands release adrenalin which creates a heightened state of responsiveness and our muscles tense in readiness for physical action. Blood flow is diverted away from "non essential organs" i.e. digestive or other organs and sent to the muscles.(non essential in terms of making an escape or fighting your way out of trouble that is) It's called the flight or fight response or "stress". Now in the distant past, this suited our ancestors very well, when facing real physical danger. Nowadays though, our bodies can be pumping with adrenalin at the thought of a particular stressful work meeting or when contemplating the monthly bills. Often the situations that illicit this reaction are far from physical. Now let me point out that stress is good for us. Without a burst of adrenalin here and there, there would be no excitement, no thrill, there would be no competitiveness or desire, but continuous low level stress is not good and is extremely draining, lower our immunity to disease and depleting our energy. So what do you do about it? You need to learn to relax. Relaxation means different things to different people. Some people relax by reading or listening to music, baking cakes, painting a picture or drawing or spending time in nature. Think about whatever may have been bothering you. Is it really a life or death situation? Is it something you can do anything about? If yes do it, if no, stop worrying. Try to put it in to perspective. Make it less of a focus. Do whatever it takes to bring your stress levels down emotionally and mentally and also make time to relax physically. For all you restless folk out there that means doing nothing much. Try lounging, putting your feet up, having a long soak in the bath, or meditating. Try and become aware of your body, starting with the tips of your toes and working your way up feel and sense how each part of your body feels. Do you have aches and pains, muscle tension or stiffness? Place your awareness there and stretch. Ease the stiffness. Relax the muscle. Spend some time (everyday if you can, even if its only for ten minutes) trying to relax. You will feel happier and you will be healthier. As your body relaxes, the muscle tension will release and your blood supply will be servicing all your vital organs, the adrenalin levels in you body will normalise as you come off of red alert!
Step Away From The Computer And Turn Off The Telly. (After you've read this of course) This may not seem so obvious but hours spent watching TV and using a computer or playing video games are leading factors in a sedentary lifestyle. I like this web page on the topic http://www.medialit.org/reading_room/article393.html. Long periods of inactivity in a slumped position in front of a VDU don't amount to a fulfilling lifestyle and can give rise to back problems, eye strain, headaches and physical lethargy. Yes watch some telly, yes read my blog, but try to limit it! Its good to do other things. Phone a friend, talk to the people you live with, (now there is a novelty for some folk!) play with your kids, or GO OUTSIDE and view some real life or connect with some people who aren't on line! You never know, it might be fun! My point is that all things should be in moderation, including TV and computer use. You could also tackle my next recommendation with the time you are able to free up!

Clear your clutter. Ever heard the saying as within so without? It means that your external environment is a reflection of your internal environment, or to put it another way, messy home, messy mind. If your home is blocked up your body probably is too. Often we hold on to things not because we desire them but because we have forgotten the liberation of letting go. Get rid of the junk. Clear your wardrobe of anything you don't feel happy in, doesn't fit you, and unless you do it now, anything that is waiting for a repair. If you haven't worn it for over a year, what are you keeping it for? If you have clothes that are too small, you may be thinking that they are an incentive to lose weight, but they are more likely to be a reminder of not being happy with who you are right now. Love yourself and only keep what looks good now. Are you holding on to unwanted gifts? Well if you don't like them, get rid of them. Are they not yours to do with as you please or were they given conditionally? If so, isn't that a sign that they were not really given freely at all? If they are not to your taste give them to a charity shop or ensure they go to a good home. Your home should reflect your taste and contain the things that you love! Have you got drawers full of things that might come in handy one day? Or worse still, might come in handy for somebody else one day, you just never know? Let go. If you can trust that the universe will provide what you need when you need it, you will cease to need this kind of security blanket. By making space you make room for the new and the wonderful to enter your life, so don't just take my word for it, give it a go! It feels great and it will get you being active, and feeling energised, and in the process you may be amazed at the events that get triggered off in your life as a result!
Breathe Well. Breathing is fundamental to life. When we stop breathing, we die. Unless you are into meditation or complementary health it may be that you haven't taken time to consider the quality of your breathing. When we take breath into our bodies it enters our nose and sinuses where it is filtered and our brains are sent valuable information from the scents we breathe in, travels to our lungs where it enters our blood stream via the alveoli and then using our circulatory system travels to every cell in our body to nourish with fresh oxygen. The air that is breathed out has taken the reverse journey and carries with it the waste products of cell respiration, carbon-dioxide. So getting good quality air has a huge impact on health. How do you breathe? Its a question that many of us rarely ask ourselves. Do you take quick shallow breaths? Long drawn out breaths? Do you breath from your chest or from your diaphragm? What is the best way? Well shallow breaths tend to mean you are not getting enough air and that you may be stressed. Try breathing like a cat or a baby. If you watch them their chest doesn't move up and down as they breathe, their bellies do. This is relaxed breathing. So many of us are tense, breathing from our upper chest holding our stomachs in without even being aware of it. Relax and take in breaths and allow the air to expand your diaphragm (as though you were breathing into your stomach) and just take it nice and easy. You don't have to hold the breathes or make them especially slow, just try and be aware of any tension and calm your breathing down a little if you notice you are stressed. Relax. As you take better quality breaths, the air you breath will oxygenate your body more effectively and energise you. If you are able to, get regular fresh air. Sea air is probably the best you can get. If you live in a city try and go to your local park. The trees and plants filter pollutants out of the air, so it will be of a better quality even in a busy metropolitan area. If you pollute your own air with chemical sprays, try to find more natural alternatives, and if you are a smoker, well I won't go into the lecture here, I'll save that for another post, you know what you've got to do. You can do all of the other 14 reccomendations and it still wont make that much of an impact on your health if you smoke. So get real with yourself and quit. Its not as difficult as you might think. I should know! (Ex smoker 11 yrs, giving up still the best thing I have ever done for my health)
Stop Procrastinating. Procrastination holds you back. So many of us are walking around with this mental "things to do list" in our heads, taunting and mocking us, making us feel bad with "shoulds" and "have to's" and accusing us with "you haven't got round to dealing with me yet!" This personal guilt trip may be added to by loved ones friends or colleagues reminding us "you said you were going to (fill in the blanks) 6 months ago and you still haven't done it". The longer the thing remains in the back of your mind the harder it seems to become to actually achieve. It stops us doing other things because we think "I can't do (xxxx) because I really should do (xxxxxx) first". Worst of all are the ambitions and dreams that we never make time for, the longer we leave them, the less obtainable they become. What has been nagging you for the longest? Try actually writing these nagging shoulds, have to's and would like to's down. How many of them are still relevant. If you promised you would do something for someone else and didn't do it, do they still need it done, or did they just find another way to get it done? Has not doing stoopped you from having a good relationship with that person? What is the simplest item on the list? Can you do it now? Try and do one thing you have been putting off each day and the list will get gradually smaller. What about the way you have been talking and thinking about these issues? Do you really have to, or was it that you would like to? Is is it really a matter of should or is it a could? words like "have to" and "should" are disempowering and make you feel like a victim, even if the shoulds and have to's are self imposed. Realise when you are doing this and rephrase the task in your mind. try using phrases like I could, I want to, I need to, I can, I intend, in order to free yourself from the victim perspective. It might seem pointless to try to tackle all these things you have been putting off, one item at a time, but it'll free up energy and your list will become nonexistent a lot quicker than deciding you'll do it when time allows for everything to be tackled all at once.(Lets face it that just not going to happen is it?) Try not to put conditions on these things. I can only do (xxxx) once I have done (xxxx), I have to have to (xxxxx) before I can (xxx), I can't do (xxxx) because I havent got (xxxxx). Decide what you can do right now and do it. Once you direct your energy to that end, you'll be surprised how miraculously circumstances conspire to help you get other things done!
Count Your Blessings. We all know at least one positive person. That person is usually a positive person. They walk through life seemingly untouched by the harsh realities of life. Are they merely blessed by the fickle twists and turns of fortune that leave some of us scarred and negative and others blown along on a breeze of good luck and positivity? I believe that people are blessed when they feel blessed. Having gratitude for everything in your life, the good the bad and the ugly and turning every downside into an upside is a skill. Some people have it naturally, but even if you don't, it can be learnt. You can choose to be a glass half empty person or a glass half full person. It is a choice that you make! The more you appreciate the gifts that the universe bestows on you, the more gifts you will be given. Gratitude is a wonderful state of mind. By being grateful and seeing the inherent lessons or gifts in every situation, even when misfortune occurs, we will be able to glean some treasure from it. You might not feel it , but as the saying goes, fake it till you make it! So go on, be ridiculously positive, have a Pollyanna day!
Forgive. For every resentment, slight and hurt that you harbour against a person or people, there is a wound that doesn't heal. You and that person are bound by your holding on to the pain and you will be unable to move forward with your life. Forgiveness isn't actually about the other person, it is more about you making a conscious decision to no longer let a past situation have any sway over your happiness. Letting go and moving on is what forgiveness is about. It doesn't mean that you suddenly become best friends with your adversary. It also doesn't mean that you would let that person put you in the same or a similiar position. It does not even require the other person to show remorse. It simply allows you to free yourself of the pain and resentment and to tell the other person, "I have moved forward. I have learnt from this and it is no longer of consequence to the person that I am now." What if the person you need to forgive is yourself? The same applies. You did what you did, and your frame of reference was that of the person you were then. Who you are now is not who you were then. You can learn from your mistakes and move forward. If you have wronged another, by all means, if it is appropriate, let them know that you are sorry and would not act in the same way now, but don't make their forgiving you a condition of forgiving yourself. Does living in a state of self imposed purgatory benefit the other person in anyway? Does it assuage your personal guilt? Forgiveness is not always easy, and letting go of past hurts can be painful, but if you start small it will get easier and you will feel free of the burden that you had carried. Forgiveness is the way to freedom! For inspiring stories on the subject of forgiveness look at this site http://www.theforgivenessproject.com/stories/anne-gallagher
Be Authentic And Honest With Yourself And Others. Ok this is a toughie. Being honest requires being assertive. Now what exactly am I proposing? That you are brutally honest to the point of hurtfulness? No. What I am suggesting is that you are authentic with how you really feel and communicating that to others. Now this doesn't mean blaming others for how you feel, you will still need to take responsibility for your own feelings. I do mean that it is a good idea to stop agreeing to things that you don't want to agree to. Learning to say no! It means telling people in your life that, for example, perhaps feel a certain way about some issue that you don't agree with them and instead of agreeing with them to keep the peace you state your true opinion. In other words say what you mean and mean what you say, tell people what you do and don't want to do rather then doing things you don't want to do and not doing things that you do want to do. If the people in your life place conditions on their support, affection, friendship or love that are dependant on you behaving how and being who they want you to be and do, then they are not valuing the real you. Do you want people like that in your life? If you live your life to please others, both you and they are living a lie, and although you may be able to please some of the people some of the time, you will never please all of the people all of the time. Often the people we try to please the most are never pleased. Dont enslave yourself to the expectations and conditions of others. Go your own way and free yourself!

Avoid Hypothesising Negatively And Reject Regret. Or put another way, try to live in the moment. Some people live their whole life in the past. Sometimes out of a sense of nostalgia, as in the grass was greener, the sky was bluer, and everything was rosy. Other times it may be a feeling of being trapped by memories of a traumatic and unhappy time from which they are unable to move on. The problem with either approach is that memory is subjective and the reality of that past time may have been less one-sided than it now seems, was it really so much better? Was it really so much worse? Both ways of living in the past hold you back from appreciating your life now, and sometimes from even living your life now. Better to think of your past positively and recognize the elements of your past that have shaped the person you are now, but don't live there! Enjoy now! Then you have people who spend their life ahead of time. Planning, strategising, dreaming how things will be, what they need to do, what they are going to do, how things will need to be. Most damaging to their own emotional health are the people who spend their life anticipating how such and such a person is going to think about what is going to happen and how that will make them react and what will happen as a result and then who else will probably get involved as a result and how much worse that will make everything and some one is bound to say (xxx) and that will have (xxx) up in arms and the whole thing will turn into a riot, and everyone will say it is my fault etc etc until they have created a picture of an intense reality that they then turn over and over in their minds obsessing on and filled with dread when in reality NONE OF IT HAS ACTUALLY HAPPENED. Now I believe that moment to moment we are creating our own reality. This is not a new idea. How we do this is by what we do, how we feel, what we think, what we say and what we visualise about now and how we do these things in relation to our future. By creating a negative and elaborate hypothetical situation surrounding how we believe the our future will be, as in the example I have given, we are doing all of these things, feeling the dread, imagining the events, acting and feeling as though these things had already taken place, and guess what? What that person has feared and obsessed over is probably exactly what is going to happen. Some people do this because they are scared of dissapointment, so would rather be unhappy than contemplate the possibility of happiness. It becomes their default setting. Now doing the same thing but positively will achieve a similar result. If we imagine a scenario in the way we would like it to be, and we behave as though that event had already taken place, think about it positively and feel happy about, the strength of our vision, feeling and thoughts can bring it about, but no need to take my word for it. Try it for yourself! Remember though that this is a powerful tool that will bring results. I'd recommend that when your hoped for and anticipated future turns up that you enjoy the benefits that it brings, savouring the moment and allowing it to be, instead of jumping straight to the next thing! Enjoy the moment and live it now!
Recognise the wonder of nature. You are not an isolated being scattered on the planet separate from all other things. You are a component of a much greater whole. You may be the centre of your own universe but you are not the centre of THE universe. You are a piece of this incredible puzzle that is the whole of creation. You exist through the union of others. That is how you were created. You are part of a system that is dependant upon every other part of the the system. The spark that makes you unique and spectacular, the soul that you possess, the part of you that is divine is in union with every other spark from every other entity and life that exists or has ever existed. You are like a snowflake, unique, beautiful and one of many. If the creative force that is within you is the snowflake, contemplate the snow. Nowhere is this creative force and interdependance more evident than in the ecosystems and forces of nature. Every blade of grass, every ant, grain of sand or tree is unique. Every cloud form or ocean wave original and like no other. Take time out to spend time in nature and contemplate your place within the world, and how amazing, unstoppable and abundant creation is. By viewing things from this perspective, how much better will your life feel?
Don't be a victim, take responsibility for your life. Now this might sound like tough love, and it probably is. Your life is what you make it. If you don't like your present circumstances, you need to do something to change it. Whether you make an internal change or an external change, you created what you are living now and can change what happens next. There is no one else to blame and it is no one else's responsibility to make your life better. What do you want? What are you going to do to bring it about? Circumstances good and bad happen to everyone. Awful things happen to good people. Do you give up then? Negative events shape your past but they don't need to define who you are now or who you are going to be. Decide on your direction and take the first step and the next and just keep going to get to where you want to be. If limitations block you, take a detour or re-evaluate your goals, but please don't stop moving. When you allow anything to become an excuse, a deterrent or a block to your happiness, you have allowed yourself to become a victim. Be a survivor, a striver, an achiever and overcome you personal limitations instead. This is your life now and you don't get a second chance to live it. (Ok you might believe in reincarnation, but thats a different life not this one. Try and get it right this time round!) Allow yourself to succeed and claim the hapiness that is your birthright!

So here ends my 15 recomendations for being healthier and happier. I believe they are the building blocks for a work in progress (life). Making positive changes, choosing different options to those you might be choosing now and trying to find more positive ways of being in and percieving the world, this is what I suggest here. I hope these bricks are something that you may be able to implement in your lives as a foundation to further build upon and develop from, for a happier future!

Children Over Exposed

2007-10-01T02:33:00.000+01:00

In order to start my blog, being completely new to the idea, I did a little research, reading other peoples blogs and websites that were called things like "How to Write A Good Blog". I knew roughly the kind of things I wanted to write about, and because I have recently had a baby, I knew parenting would be one of them. Many of the blogs with parenting as a theme show regular photo's of the authors beautiful child/children on various daily adventures. The blogs that I find the most readable are the ones that share quite a lot of personal information and photo's. I had a chat with a dear friend of mine who was totally horrified that I had put my "actual!" photo on my blog, as though I was now known to the entire universe and "PEOPLE WILL KNOW WHO YOU ARE!!!", Well I basically said that I had little to hide and that although I had put my first name and photo online it wasn't like I had posted my address, national insurance number and a copy of my birth certificate, so my identity is unlikely to be stolen, no-one that doesn't already know me can really be sure that my name is my name and besides so many people have shared photos and other personal things online that my blog is like a drop in the ocean. I compared it to not going outside in case people see you. Anyway I have found that rather than being revealed to the world, it really isn't that easy attracting people to view your blog in the first place!

My easygoing attitude doesn't extend to my daughter though. I have no trouble sharing cute baby stories about what she did today. (I will try to keep a lid on any maternal bragging, but sometimes its easier said than done) but having given the topic some thought I don't think I could be comfortable sharing photos of her online. It's a subject that has come up before. When Baby J was about 5 months old we decided to get some professional family photos taken. The photographer went on and on about how photogenic she was and how children's modelling agencies would snap her up given a chance. At the time I was really worried about my impending return to work, as I had decided that the best thing for all of us was for me to stay home and look after her, but I couldn't see how we could make things work financially. So I am ashamed to say I considered it for a nanosecond. Sanity did regain hold pretty sharpish because deep down I felt it was unethical. Children have no say on how we use their image or what experiences we expose them too. Not being able to make a personal informed choice, how could I make that choice for her? Alternatively I have a friend who has a daughter who is absolutely stunning and is very into fashion and has her own very individual style who has told her mum she would like to try some modelling. She is 15 and more than able to make an informed choice and her mum is willing to support her choice. So for me the matter is one of permission and choice. My baby has not given me permission to share her photo and she has not made a choice to share her image. The long and short of it is that there may be plenty of cute parental anecdotes, but there will be no baby photos here!

Photo's of children taken at home is a subject that came up in a conversation with my sister. We were talking about all the photos taken of me, of her and pretty much everyone of our age group running around starkers in the garden or splashing about in the bath. These photos seemed pretty unremarkable then. Now my sister feels she couldn't take the same kind of photos of her little ones. At first I said that I didn't really think it was an issue. Then I remembered just three weeks before I went to the coast and I was walking along the beach when I saw a family, and their little boy of about 8 years old was running around naked, laughing and giggling. It stuck in my mind not because I saw anything wrong with the scene, but because I realised that he was the only child on the beach who was naked, and also that he was the only child I had seen naked in public for a very long time. Something fundamental has changed in the psyche of British society. The people of the UK are world renowned for being reserved, but this is something different. What has brought about this modesty? Its not prudishness, its fear. So many parents fear the threat of paedophilia that children are kept covered up to avoid making the a target. The media reports so many awful tales and reminds us so regularly of the danger posed by those who are predatory towards children that it is something that remains at the forefront of social consciousness. Parents worry about being accused of inappropriate behaviour, so they don't take photos of the kids splashing in the bath. We try so hard to protect our children and our family unit, we have lost some of their opportunities for innocence and freedom, and this still doesn't necessarily make our children any safer. How sad.

Bringing Up Baby

2007-09-28T18:56:00.000+01:00

Claire Verity: Evil Personified, Vile Dictator

I have been deliberating how to write this post for nearly a week. The emotions that this topic raised in me are not pretty. So whats got me feeling so mad? Channel 4's "Bringing Up Baby" Tuesdays at 9.00pm. For those of you who haven't seen or heard of this programme the basic premise is to compare three methods of raising an infant which are:

a routine based method based on the regime Dr Frederic Truby King from the 1950's

the Childcare philosophy of Dr Spock from the 1960's

the method of The Continuum Concept devised by Jean Liedloff.

Three experts, each an enthusiastic proponent of their chosen childcare method assist a family to implement one of the methods. (At this point I should tell you that my own parenting style is somewhere between that advocated by Dr Spock and Jean Liedloff with Jean Liedloff representing my ideals and Dr Spock representing my compromises. I am also very drawn to the work by John Mostyn Bowlby and William Sears who pioneered work on the Attachment Parenting philosophy which is broadly the same as The Continuum Concept, Frederic Leboyer who wrote "Birth Without Violence" and Dr Gowri Motha author of "The Gentle First Year" and Childbirth and parenting guru Shiela Kitzinger) This child centred approach contends that babies are born with innate instincts and developmental needs for constant physical contact with the mother primarily or other caregiver in her absence, e.g. being carried in a sling and co-sleeping, breast feeding on demand and being given immediate attention to its needs, e.g when crying, plus lots of love and affection. (Jean Liedloff developed her approach as a result of witnessing the natural parenting methods of Amazonian tribeswomen.) By receiving this high level of consistent nurturing and security, the baby will develop confidence and positive self esteem and a happy outlook. This is due to the fact that a babies brain development and emotional development begins at an incredibly young age, partly in response to the cortisol hormone or "stress hormone". Babies who are more stressed by for example, being left to cry or isolated and deprived of emotional and physical contact will be more likely to develop an emotional pattern of depression and fear which forms their basic character for life. Babies deprived of emotional warmth, security and physical contact (such as children neglected in Romanian orphanages, have been found, following MRI scans to have whole areas of their brain missing, due to the lack of the emotional cues that stimulate such brain and central nervous system growth and development. I have taken this information from Steve's Biddulph's "Raising Babies" and the research this is based on is credited to Dr Alan Schore (see http://www.mercola.com/2003/apr/9/child_care.htm )

Compare this then, if you will, to the style of parenting of devised by Dr Frederic Trudy King and determinedly championed by Claire Verity. This women guided the parents of a newborn to implement a strict and timed by the clock system of feeding every four hours, with night feeds to be dropped as soon as possible to minimise length of time parents' sleep is disrupted, to limit contact between baby and carers (mother, father etc) to a maximum of 10 minutes of cuddling per day, the baby sleeps in in a room alone from day one (never mind that this contravenes current advice on SIDS prevention.) and for the baby to spend several hours in the garden every day. Bad enough, but this (to my mind) evil monster of a woman insisted that the baby not be removed from its bed after 7.00pm under any circumstance and that the parents should ignore its cries (never mind dirty nappies, hunger, loneliness or fear for this poor poor baby who up till this point had known nothing but the comfort and safety and nourishment of its mothers womb), that the baby should be held away from the body when being fed and that the parents should not make eye contact with the baby (she actually said "Why do you need to look at it?") Through out the programme she referred to these innocent defenceless newborns as IT!!! The baby was wrapped in a blanket and put in the pram, placed in the garden to get fresh air (don't get me wrong, I have nothing against fresh air for babies but this astounded me) in the rain, for several hours ALONE Claire Verity actually CLOSED THE DOOR and stated "You don't need to listen to it crying". One incident that broke my heart was the older sister of the baby pleading with the dad to be able to give the baby a cuddle to be told by the father that they weren't allowed to. Ye Gods I despaired, even this child had more sense. At one point the mother in floods of tears wanted to go to her baby, as a mothers natural instinct would dictate (an instinct which is there for a reason), but she (both her and her husband being first-time parents) resisted on the authority of this vile woman who has no children and does not possess a maternal bone in her body. My rage has still not subsided.

Now I can understand the reason that this family chose to experience this method. Due to financial circumstances, the mother would need to return to work very soon. It just demonstrates my feeling that the pressure created by the cost of living and expectations for mothers to return to work and therefore require her baby to be raised by paid professionals, strangers who do not love your child, but are just doing their job is actively, is constructively and expertly damaging the development of healthy emotionally nourished children and strong family bonding. The whole basis of the Trudy King ( Who incidentally was a surgeon and also the inventor of baby formula and therefore largely responsible for the decline in popularity of breastfeeding) method is to sever the mother child bond and "train" the infant to fit around the parents routine, to change the parent's life as little as possible, to be CONVENIENT. If that's what prospective parents are looking for, my recommendation is to get a plant or robot instead. If you were to place an adult in isolation for long periods of time, condemn them to an existence devoid of stimulation, deprive them of physical or emotional contact, ration their food supply and subject them to high levels of fear and stress as a result, it would at best be considered a severe form of imprisonment and at worst torture. Ultimately this archaic and cruel system of childcare which is nearly 60 years old (It was also in the 50's, that wonderful era of modernisation, that Doctors decided that hospital births where women lay on their back were the way forward and bottle feeding was touted as the modern and best way to nourish infants, and that originated comments such as "you shouldn't cuddle the baby so much, you'll spoil her" and "haven't you weaned her yet? She'd sleep better if you gave her formula" and my favourite " sometimes you just need to let them cry, it does no harm, its good for their lungs" and a beautiful, sweet and delicate child's entrance to the world was greeted with violence of being hung upside down and slapped.) is damaging to these baby's biological and emotional development of the brain and central nervous system and I would think (although this is merely an opinion on my part) the endocrine system which regulates hormones. This is child abuse. Claire Verity CHARGES £1000 PER DAY to show parents how to abuse their kids and risk damaging them biologically and emotionally!

So who is Claire Verity? Channel 4's site had this to say:

"Claire Verity is a maternity nurse with 24 years' experience and a string of nannying qualifications. Claire revels in her moniker of 'Cruella de Vil' of the baby world and claims that, even though her methods are strict, she can guarantee 100% success. The method she has devised is based on Truby King's routine, which she learnt about during her maternity nurse training. Claire often has a clash of opinion with her clients, especially on her rule of not picking up and cuddling a baby too much. She says that breakthrough happens when suddenly the mothers see that their baby is no longer 'unmanageable' and that they have their lives back – it's then, she says, that they accept she has been right all along "

The web site

http://www.thebabyshow.co.uk/nec-birmingham/show-features/learn/sleeping-routines/

"CLAIRE VERITY – The Celebrity Baby Guru
Struggling to get your baby into a sleeping routine? Help is at hand from Claire Verity, who will be talking on The Comfort Pure Stage with Prima Baby on Sunday 13 May at 12 noon.
Claire Verity is a highly sought after baby expert, who has cared for a long list of babies of celebrities like Mick Jagger, Jerry Hall, Sting and Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits. Over a career spanning 22 years she has advised many people including Princess Diana about baby care. Claire will be speaking about her no nonsense approach which has babies sleeping through the night at eight weeks old.Claire is also currently filming a TV series 'Bringing up Baby' for Channel 4."

Sounds wonderful doesn't she? What I find equally worrying as the fact that this woman is allowed to promote and teach these damaging ideas is that this programme was made in the first place. Reality television for all its good and bad points, should not be allowed to exploit and potentially damage the bonding process and an infants development permanently as "an experiment" merely for casual entertainment. I am all for promoting child centred parenting advocated by experts in attachment parenting / continuum concept (of which there is very little mainstream exposure) and I can see many good points in the relaxed and flexible approach of the Dr Spock method that supports the mother and father and tells them that they innately know what is good for them and their child and supports them to trust their instincts in a relaxed way providing their child with warmth and love, but to inflict Claire Verity and her hideous and damaging ideology on the newborns of first time parents who faced with the authority of "24 years of experience as a maternity nurse and nanny" may not have the confidence to stand against or even question her methods (what I saw told me that the parents were not entirely happy with this method) is unforgivable. If you saw the programme, then I doubt you need convincing. If you didn't I hope I have provided enough information for you to consider signing this petition. Channels should know that this type of programme is unacceptable. http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/parentingshows/#detail . Had the programme been called "A Shocking Expose of Claire Verity Who Teaches Parents To Neglect Their Child For The Sake Of Convenience And Charges Them £1000 Per Day For The Privilege" then my post may have been entirely supportive of Channel 4. Sadly it was not

It took me the best part of a week to decide how to write this post. Once I opened the valve, I decide to go with it and vent my spleen. I hope you don't mind. I have to say I haven't felt this angry about a television programme for a very long time and writing this has been cathartic. I glad I got that out of my system!

More Straight Talking Feedback! Sisters ;0)

2007-09-27T15:45:00.000+01:00

In keeping with the theme of straight talking, I had a chat with my sister today. While we were talking, she was trying to fix her bed (don't ask) and I was watching my "baby-led weaned" darling throw spaghetti covered in houmous around the living room. I asked her If she'd seen my blog and what she thought, because I respect her opinion. She said that she didn't want to phone me because I was suffering communication overload and that I needed to make it more fun and less like I was writing the news, more personal and she said something else about Yucca plants which I won't go into just now. On reflection, she's right. I do need to make it more personal, and write more about my feelings and experiences and daily trials, tribulations, joys and successes. I seem to have an inner teacher that wants to explain things and educate people! So while I am writing about personal stuff, I want to share a moan. Like those T-shirts you get that say "my Sister went to NY and all I got was this lousy T shirt", I need to share this with you

My Sister visited my blog and didn't make a comment, didn't sign my guestbook and didn't sign up for feeds and all I got was some constructive criticism

Thanks Sis, love you loads!

Thinking On Your Feet World Reflexology Week

2007-09-26T22:41:00.000+01:00

The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.

I love feet. Not in a fetishistic kind of way, but fundamentally. What is it about feet? People tend to wrinkle their nose and feign disgust when you bring up the subject of feet. Oh my God, don't mention toes! they yell while visible cringing. Refer to feet and people envision corns and verruccas, athlete's foot, and ingrown toenails. Yes I agree all these various ailments are not pleasant, but feet? Well lets just say I have a different perspective all together. I think feet are beautiful, miraculous and fascinating.

Ok, so now you are probably thinking that despite my initial statement, I do have a fetish. Let me explain. I used to feel as most people do. I associated feet with bad smells and other pre-conceived horrors, with the exception of scrummy gorgeous baby feet! And then I discovered reflexology and I have been amazed by feet ever since. I qualified in reflexology in 1997 and went on to study advanced reflexology courses. For those of you who do not know what the theory behind reflexology is, and may have been told that it is a glorified foot massage, I will give you the basic concept. Feet are representative (ie a reflection) of the whole of the human body, with the toes representing the head and the ball of the foot representing the torso above the diaphragm where there are areas that indicate the heart, lungs, oesophagus, the line from big toe following the arch of the foot to the base of the heel representative of the spine, the heel representing the pelvis and lower digestive / reproductive areas, the area between the the ball of the foot and heel of the foot representing the torso between the diaphragm and pelvis, containing liver, spleen, digestive tract, kidneys and so on. By working on these correspondences on the feet we can implement a therapeutic effect on those areas in the body.

To the trained reflexologist the foot is an anatomical representation of the entire human body, comprising skeletal, muscular, circulatory, respiratory, urinary, digestive, reproductive and endocrine systems. Gentle but firm pressure is applied to specific areas of the foot according to each individuals needs and requirements (following a detailed consultation to assess the clients physical, mental and emotional state and taking into consideration lifestyle factors such as diet, sleep patterns, levels of activity and more) to provide therapeutic relief and healing by encouraging and assisting the body's inherent healing systems and faculties to respond.

Reflexologists can tell many things from the feet, such as a persons overall health, various places of low energy or blocked energy within the body that also indicative of physical and emotional conditions and even life changes such as pregnancy. It is even possible to assess where a women is in her menstrual cycle or whether a man has low or high testosterone or if someone is dehydrated. Reflexology is that precise and that's not all. As well as an anatomical aspect to reflexology, the discipline owes much to Traditional Chinese Medicine or "TCM" as it is often referred to as. (That said, the ancient Chinese did not have a monopoly on the practice. There is much archaeological and other evidence to show that Egyptian, Asian and Native American civilisations all practised the art.) The Reflexology map also includes zones, lines or channels of energy running through the feet, much like TCM meridians, with specific acupressure points. In Ayurveda these channels and the various pressure points are called nadis. The aim of treatment is to help the client achieve balance, removing blockages in areas of stagnation where energy cannot flow and energising areas that are depleted of energy. Indeed there are specific points that run along the area of the foot that corresponds to the spine that relate the chakras of the body. The foot then is not merely an anatomical representation of the whole of the body but an energetic representation.

Also considered by the reflexologist during treatment are the textures, colours and tensions in the foot. Areas of built up lactic acid referred to as crystals by most reflexologist because of its grainy lumpy texture can be gently broken down by the pressure applied for elimination by the bodies natural processes, and where these crystals form highly indicative of the client's overall health. The texture of the skin and areas of colour, bluish areas, yellowing skin, red inflamed, soft swollen areas and hard dry areas all tell the reflexologist much about the clients condition, such as whether the person is a smoker, suffers constipation and so on. As you can see there there is much that the feet can tell the trained eye and applying this kind of treatment can help all manner of conditions, especially chronic disorders. I am writing all this information about reflexology in honour of World Reflexology Week, which runs from September 23rd through September 30th, 2007. http://www.icr-reflexology.org/, http://www.reflexologyforum.org/wrw.htm, both sites have more information about this.(Incidentally reflexology isn't just about treating feet, despite my post being on the subject of feet. Reflex areas can be found on the hands and also the ears. Our body is an amazing example of the microcosm/macrocosm theory in action, as well as a physical demonstration of The Law of Reflection. In TCM the whole of the bodies organs and energetic systems can be assessed by, in addition to the feet, hands and ears , reading the face or tongue. Our human bodies are indeed miraculous.

But lets get back to feet. Feet are the most abused, neglected and undervalued parts of our bodies. They carry the entire weight of our body, for a lifetime. They are jammed into uncomfortable (but gorgeous) shoes. (Despite all I know about the problems they cause I still love high heels, or at least did before my little one came along!) There are more than 7,200 nerve endings in the foot, which is why feet can be so ticklish! (Don't ask me how we know that figure, did someone count them?) This says to me that most people's feet could do with a little TLC. Feet are our connection with the Earth. Anyone who is interested in spiritual, healing or meditative matters will have heard of the concept of grounding. Everyone has heard someone say things like "they are so grounded" or "So&so is so down to earth" or even "That's someone with their feet on the ground" or "You were really thinking on your feet there" and perhaps "I just felt I needed to touch base". These comments describe being grounded as opposed to "they've got their head in the clouds". An awareness of your foundation, your place in the universe, your connection to reality, this is grounding. This awareness starts with your feet. Most of us are aware of our feet when they are hurting, but most of the time we hardly notice them. Every now again just take the time to become aware of your feet, sense them. How do they feel? How does the surface beneath them feel? Take your awareness down to your feet. Get grounded.

So if you can this week, in honour of World Reflexology Week, give your feet a treat. Book an appointment with a reflexologist (you may find many reflexologists are offering demonstrations or introductory treatments this week)or support your local college by booking a treatment there for reflexology trainees. Treat yourself to a home pedicure and if your like me, get that foot spa thingy out of the cupboard under the stairs / off the top of the wardrobe and use it for once. Apply moisturiser and paint your toenails a pretty colours. Get your partner to give you a foot massage while you take a load off and if you're feeling generous, return the favour! If you treat your feet you wont just be making your feet feel nice and relaxed, you'll be rejuvenating your body mind and spirit and getting connected. Best of all if you can, take your shoes and socks off and dabble them in the ocean or a river or pond or alternatively walk on the grass. You'll feel great! Delicious

How Long Should A Post Be? Communication Overload

2007-09-25T19:39:00.000+01:00

I asked a friend for an honest opinion on this blog "so far". What he said was honest and I was thankful. "You wrote all that? Have you thought of writing a book?" In my enthusiasm, my posts have been, lets say just a little, lengthy. The trouble is that sometimes I don't know when to stop typing. I have so much to say.

I have come to the conclusion that this is the Law of Reflection in action and that this is the trouble with my communication, full stop. I talk too much too. I spend too much time on the phone and online and my conversations are usually extended. I join forums, blog, and communicate with strangers on Stumble Upon.(feel free to take at look at my pages http://melanie3i.stumbleupon.com/ ) I have lost count of the number of email addresses I have. I am guilty of over communicating. Is it such a bad thing? It is wonderful that I can communicate with people from all over the world, those who share similiar views and experiences and those who do not. I can let a friend or loved one know I am thinking of them at the push of a button. Whole movements against injustice and oppression can be mobilised on line. Today we can experience the ultimate in free expression. In this world of instant communication, people have 24 hour a day access to the Internet, we are contactable on our laptops, mobiles, by text and email. In short there is rarely a moment in the day when someone is unable to contact or be contacted.

Obviously I exercise some restraint. In this age of the communication explosion I find that my boundaries are more important than ever! I log on and turn my status to "appear offline". Sometimes I leave the answer machine on and don't answer my land line. ( I have even unplugged it when I didn't want the phone to ring and wake the baby! I switch off my mobile phone. Occasionally I leave the house without it because I want to be alone.

To be honest I rarely use my mobile to make calls, with the exception of the "I'd like a cab please" and "I'm leaving now, where shall I meet you?" calls and I keep calls I receive short and to the point because I believe that mobile phones are the new tobacco. I believe that the numbers of people experiencing cancers and other health problems will soar over the next few decades, and just like the tobacco industry has done for so many decades, the mobile phone companies will deny that there are any risks posed by the use of mobile phones and mobile phone transmitter masts. In the 50's almost everyone smoked. Nowadays everyone has a mobile phone. Imagine, some people have 3 or more mobile phones, a work mobile, a personal phone for friends and family and another for everybody else. (I just make do with one.) It horrifies me that some people give their children mobile phones, because unlike tobacco in its early years (doctors used to prescribe smoking to patients!!) the UK Government already admits that mobile phones pose a danger to children under the age of 14. I actually know someone who has given their 9 year old a mobile phone. I don't even like when people attempt to take pictures of my baby with their mobiles. I believe that eventually phones will come with government warnings for everyone, not just children, once (call me cynical) the cost of medical treatment and compensation claims exceeds the revenue of phones, calls and tariff sales. Take a look at these excerpt from this website which also raises the issue of risks posed by land line cordless phones: http://www.childrensfurniture.co.uk/phones.htmlms;

"It is not a question of whether these EMF (Electro Magnetic Frequency) Fields cause health problems or not, that is not in doubt. What is uncertain is just how this ill-health will manifest in an individual. What is certain, through even the most basic understanding of physics is that EMF's do weaken our energy fields and this will lead to some form of illness and disease in humans. Children, in particular, with their developing immune systems and ill or sick people are more prone to the effects of EM Radiation, and are, therefore, at risk the most . I am now convinced that EMF's pose a health hazard. There is statistical association between magnetic fields and cancer that goes beyond the shadow of reasonable doubt . I think there is clear evidence that exposure to EMF's increases the risk of cancer. This is most clear with leukaemia and brain tumours , but in residential studies statistical significance increased for all kinds of cancers. And we are just beginning to have a whole body of evidence that reproductive cancers are increased by exposure”. Dr David Carpenter, Dean of the State of New York School of Public Health"

"A Dutch study has suggested mobile phone use can affect brain function , and further research from Europe indicated radiation from the phones can cause DNA damage"

Needing to protect privacy and solitude is important but difficult to communicate to others."I phoned ten times, why weren't you answering your mobile I was worried?" or "how could you leave the house without your mobile phone?". Have you ever had the experience of someone phoning you on one phone, and when not getting you, phoning you on the other or sending an email. In work situations, sometimes people send an e-mail then call you to tell you that they have sent you an email. Have you ever had some-one do something like this to you or have you ever done anything like this to someone else. I have.

This communication overload is relatively new. Without meaning to sound decrepit, I remember when computers were rare and took a degree in computer programming to do anything more complex than load a computer game, when not everybody had a telephone and mobiles did not exist. You could go out and the only way people would only be able to communicate with you would be if they saw you in person. Families sat round the table to eat their meal and talked to one another. (remember face to face communication within the family that wasn't in front of the telly or PlayStation?) People actually wrote letters too. In some ways there was something more relaxed and easy about being able to do your own thing without checking your phone or email account every 5 minutes - 30 minutes depending on your personal preference. With all this communicating, ironically, we as individuals are losing the ability to listen to one another.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not about to unplug my computer, ditch the mobile, throw away the telly, cut off the land line and stop reading the newspaper, but I do feel the need to streamline. All this communication feels like there isn't enough time to for just being me or conversely, to connect with the people that are close to me. After all, I just can't help feeling that all this external communication diverts me from my inner communication, and my inner journey is what inspires me and gives me something to communicate in the first place. Its when I am still that I am able to receive the answers that truly guide me. Its time to simplify. My blog posts might not be so lengthy. I might actually go and visit some friends. You can still send me an email, or give me a call, but I might not get back to you straight away. I will be selectively incommunicado. I have decided less is more. After all its the quality that counts, not the quantity

Breast Feeding is a Political Statement

2007-09-24T16:09:00.000+01:00

This lovely photo is provided by Bklynlady and is entitled

"Lunch" courtesy of http://breastfeedingphotos.blogspot.com/

You'd think that there would be nothing more natural, or acceptable, but it seems that society in general conspires against the breast feeding mother. Right from the word go, there are subtle pressures that inhibit a mothers will and ability to breastfeed. On the NCT's website (National Childbirth Trust) http://www.nct.org.uk/breastfeeding/ I found this paragraph about breastfeeding mothers;

"Nine out of ten women who stop breastfeeding in the first six weeks are stopping before they want to. The most common reasons given for stopping, reveal that these women often didn't receive the accurate information and support that they needed."

“British breastfeeding rates are amongst the lowest in Europe. Only seven out of ten babies receive any breast milk and this falls to 55% at one week. Just one in five babies are receiving any breast milk by the time they are six months old, although the World Health Organisation recommend that babies need nothing other than breastfeeding for the first six months of life.”

Why is this? Information about the health and child care benefits of breastfeeding have never been more prevalent or accessible, thanks to active promotion by the medical professions and organisations such as the NCT and the La Leche League and of course the Internet. Breast is Best! This fact is as well known as it is logical. Our ancestors whose biology we inherited didn't look for the nearest cow for their babies to suckle from. The idea that that bovine milk (which is primarily what constitutes baby formula) is better for human babies than human milk (barring any contra-indications arising from ill health, diseases such as HIV or other issues affecting lactation) which is naturally engineered to provide exactly for the needs of a human infant, delivering antibodies, and nutrients such as essential fatty acids and amino acids and substances that may not yet have been quantified but may prove nevertheless to essential to infant development in precisely the right proportions for optimum development is not only sad and misguided, but ludicrous.

In his open letter "The Milk Letter, An Open Letter to Patients" Dr Robert M. Kradjian, MD, Breast Surgery Chief Division of General Surgery, Seton Medical Centre (the full article, the main premise of which calls for a separate post can be found here http://www.notmilk.com/kradjian.html ) asserts:

"For example, cows' milk is very much richer in protein than human milk. Three to four times as much. It has five to seven times the mineral content. However, it is markedly deficient in essential fatty acids when compared to human mothers' milk. Mothers' milk has six to ten times as much of the essential fatty acids, especially linoleic acid.(Incidentally, skimmed cow's milk has no linoleic acid). It simply is not designed for humans."

The benefits of breastfeeding for both mother and baby are not temporary, but last a lifetime , providing babies with essential antibodies, and making conditions such as colic, ear infections eczema less likely and supplying long term protection and lowering the risk from type 1 diabetes, heart disease, respiratory disease, allergies, obesity, and even bestowing increased IQ (or is it that alternatives lower IQ?) The answer to why despite all the benefits many mothers discontinue early or perhaps never breast lies in the attitudes, needs and expectations of others and the general practicalities of breastfeeding in a society that has sidelined parenting and a more child centred approach to parenting as inconvenient.

This subjection to external pressures starts in hospitals, where health professionals scrutinise attempts at breastfeeding. For mothers who have just given birth, particularly first time mothers, this is an incredibly vulnerable time and the bonding process can be impeded by too much interference. The opinions are given authoritatively, but differ hugely. I personally lost count of the number of times a nurse or midwife wanted to "help" me and "let me rest" by offering to feed my baby for me! No thanks was my response. Alternatively some mothers feel they are under so much pressure to feed naturally "to perform" so to speak, that anxiety levels are sky high and this in turn affects their ability to lactate.

Partners also have a huge impact in both the decision of a woman to breastfeed or not and the longevity of breastfeeding. Support from a partner is very important and a father can help the mother through the difficulties of breastfeeding. On the other hand Dads may want the best for their child, but the changing role of a woman's breasts from sexual to utilitarian can provoke resentment. There can also be decreased libido for a breastfeeding women as a result of hormonal changes that may prompt a man to urge his partner to give up breastfeeding.

Female family members can add to the problem, particularly if those women are mothers who also did not breastfeed. Comments such as "maybe the baby would sleep better at night if you gave her/him formula" or "well (this or that person) was fed on formula and it never did them any harm" and "are you sure he/she is getting enough? maybe you should think about starting the baby on solids". Weekly check ups with the health visitor raise weight concerns, as breastfed babies are leaner than formula fed babies and don't "perform well on weight/growth charts. It should be pointed out that the charts were based on predominantly formula fed babies and don't adequately reflect the healthy growth patterns of breastfed babies.

Next on the list of attitudes conspiring against the breastfeeding mother are those of "the general public". Often mothers feeding their children in public places are asked to to stop feeding or leave! The NCT called for a law to give mothers the right to breastfeed in public. It isn't actually against the law, but the reaction from some citizens could make a person think it was an act of indecent exposure! (Find out more about this story here http://www.nct.org.uk/media/pressrelease?prid=63 ) The forward thinking Scottish Parliament have already passed such a law. I breast feed my child when and where she needs feeding. Are the sensitivities of others more important than an infants need for food? I think not. Furthermore, if people are so incensed about women "brazenly" (that's sarcasm, can you tell?) feeding their little ones publicly, consider this, why do they not lobby in support of mothers for better (and more discreet) facilities for mothers and babies? I tire of asking various premises for the use of their mother and baby room only to be directed to the public toilet! Unlike infants, most adult's immune systems are well developed, but would you eat in a toilet? I doubt it. So what the alternatives to the toilet or breastfeeding in a public area? Stay at home until your child is weaned in an sort of "new mother purdah" imposed on those women who simply wish to do what is best for their child by those who should know better. The medical establishment, the World Health Organisation and various governments stress the importance of breastfeeding for nutritional and psychological well being of infants, so why is so called "polite" society so determined to vilify and ostracise the breast feeding mother? The negative response to women breastfeeding in public actually encourages women (particularly young women ) to use a bottle and formula instead or to stop breastfeeding to appease the opinions of others and denies babies of optimum nutrition and well being in the manner nature intended.

The popularity of bottle feeding in developed countries is relatively recent. The 50's and 60's marked the burgeoning freedom of women and the depersonalisation of the birthing and nurturing of babies. Why is bottle feeding still so prevalent. I see for reasons as being key,

Advertising and media pressure.
Pressure from Partners, family, health professionals and "society" to conform
Economic reasons such as the need to return to work hastening weaning
The need to share childcare responsibilities with partners, family or carers

When did you last see a baby on your favourite soap being breastfed? Millions are spent by big business to persuade us to by formula, teats, bottles, sterilisers, etc. I found this article from the Washington Post today, (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/30/AR2007083002198_pf.html ) . It describes how a public breastfeeding promotion campaign that would have been highly effective was "toned down" to the extent that it was almost completely ineffective as a result of lobbying by the infant formula industry which hired a former chairman of the Republican National Committee and a former top regulatory official to lobby the Health and Human Services Department. The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA) advised recently that MORE than one million babies could be saved worldwide if mothers were to start breastfeeding within the first hour of birth. This makes the actions of companies such as Nestlé all the more deplorable and has led to world wide boycott being called against the companies products. The following quotes are taken from http://www.babymilkaction.org/pages/boycott.html.

"Nestlé is targeted with the boycott because monitoring conducted by the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) finds it to be responsible for more violations of the World Health Assembly marketing requirements for baby foods than any other company"

"As UNICEF has said: Marketing practices that undermine breastfeeding are potentially hazardous wherever they are pursued: in the developing world, WHO estimates that some 1.5 million children die each year because they are not adequately breastfed. These facts are not in dispute."

You can find more info about the boycott here http://boycottnestle.blogspot.com/search/label/Nestle%20boycott

The need to conform to societies conventions and economics affects how long women breastfeed for too. It is often deemed in western societies "abnormal" to breastfeed a baby beyond 6 months, weaning (starting solids) often being synonymous with the cessation of breastfeeding. This is not the case in other cultures where breastfeeding may continue for far longer. From a biological point of view Dr Robert M. Kradjian advises:

"It seems that nature provides new-borns with the enzymatic equipment to metabolize lactose,but this ability often extinguishes by age 4 or 5 years."

Can you imagine the outcry? I am not suggesting that everyone should breastfeed until a child is of school age, but it does provoke thought. Why do so many women who do breastfeed for more than a few weeks stop feeding at between 6 months - 12 months, why not 18 months or 24 months? Conforming to what is considered normal definitely plays a part. Another significant factor in stopping breastfeeding is financial. Women in the UK are entitled to 1 years maternity leave, part paid, part unpaid. If women do not return to work following maternity leave, they are obliged to return their employers maternity pay contribution. Many families simply cannot manage financially on one income, or afford to repay such a debt. Public attitudes towards a woman's role have changed so much that it no longer questioned if you will return to work, but when. To decide to leave the working world and look after your baby is often considered either a luxury or radical! This means well before the deadline women are trying to arrange child care and wean their babies so that they are less dependant on them. Some women try to use expressed milk and find that adequate support is not given by their employers.

The reasons why women don't breastfeed seem as numerous as the benefits of breastfeeding. I am not writing this post as a means of railroading women into breastfeeding. I understand the difficulties that can be experienced and I recognise the need for women to do what is right for them, their babies and their families according to their personal circumstances. I do hope to present the facts and perhaps use this article to support those who make the choice to breastfeed and highlight the social attitudes and other constraints that limit this course of action.

Personally I have found no more enjoyable bonding experience than that experienced when breastfeeding my daughter. To be able to nourish and provide for her needs physically, emotionally and spiritually in this most basic way is incredibly satisfying. Not to mention the convenience of feeding. I feel for parents who have to get up in the early hours to prepare bottles, when I am able to just pick my little angel up for a sleepy cuddle and feed!

MyFirst Blog Post

2007-09-23T18:25:00.000+01:00

Drum Roll Please (Standing Ovations Gratefully Accepted)

Well this feels slightly momentous. (Truly, I don't mean that statement to sound as pretentious as it does) It's just that I feel a little embarrassed and not sure where to begin. It's a bit like meeting someone for the first time, which in a way I suppose I am. So hello world wide web! In all seriousness, I began creating my blog site and then I agonised over how to begin posting, what to post etc. I realised OMG! I know nothing about blogging, time to do a little research methinks. It turns out there are millions of sites on "How to Blog" and after a few hours I knew I wouldn't be able to read them all. But I did find some really good resources on this subject. http://www.problogger.net/ being the best I have come across so far, and in particular their Blogging for Beginners page: http://www.problogger.net/archives/2006/02/14/blogging-for-beginners-2/

The slightly depressing thing is that I have discovered I've already got it all wrong and I haven't even finished my first post!. For a start the serious blogger doesn't use a weblog provider, but gets their own domain. Secondly the best blogs have a focus, some kind of niche subject matter or message that they want to get across, the fundamentals of which they include in their title. (All the better to get noticed by search engines by.) As is evident from my title, I just intend to ramble on about any particular topic that pops into my head on a particular day, albeit with an emphasis on a particular range of topics. So my blog is without purpose it seems. Hey ho, start as I mean to go on I say.

The thing is I am not focused on any one particular facet of life. I am fascinated by almost everything. I do have passions, experience and talents but like most people I am multi-faceted, (like a crystal) not a one dimensional being and I don't know how to pigeonhole those interests and abilities in one neatly shaped blog. I don't really want to. So what can I offer? Well I am enthusiastic about learning and sharing knowledge and I am like info-sponge. I absorb and can regurgitate various bits of acquired knowledge endlessly. I am also very opinionated (although open minded enough to consider alternative points of view that differ to my own) on the topics that are important to me, some of which are as follows:

Parenting. I have recently become a mother. My daughter is nearly a year old. I love being a parent and have quite a different take on childcare from what is the conventional accepted norm. My holistic view of the world means that I believe child rearing should be child-centred. (Woahhh..revolutionary stuff.) For example my daughter does not have a pram or pushchair. I prefer to carry her as I feel this makes my little one more confident and secure Ala "attachment parenting".This site http://www.thebabywearer.com/ has lots more info on this subject. I breast feed and intend to do so for as long as I can. (Believe it or not I have found that breast feeding is a political statement, not merely a naturally provided form of sustenance for babies. More on that in another post.) I also have never fed my little darling on baby puree (or mush as I prefer to call it) I breastfed exclusively until Jasmine was 6 months and then gave her solid food that was actually solid. Check out http://babyledweaning.blogware.com/ for great tips, ideas and photos. Also (Shock horror) My baby is vegan just like me. I am also a passionate advocate for baby signing, which is the best thing ever. Absolutely the best thing ever. Jasmine is able to communicate what she is thinking about, what she wants or needs or even to make little baby jokes thanks to this wonderful communication tool meaning less crying and less frustration on both sides. With my training in complementary therapy baby massage is another topic I have much to expound on. I believe that babies are first and foremost people and need to be treated as the alert, intelligent and amazing people that they are, not just as sleeping, suckling, poop machines. As you might have gathered parenting is a subject I have a lot to say about.

Next passion: Responsible and ethical consumerism. The fact is SLAVERY exists. Unacceptable though it may be, we in the developed world create the demand for slave labour. I'm not talking sweat shops and economic slavery which are also a modern day reality and horrific enough, but actual old fashioned, deprived of freedom, beaten, threatened and tortured, even raped and forced to work with out pay, denied basic human rights slavery. There are an estimated 27 million slaves worldwide and that is felt to be a conservative estimate by some. http://www.notforsalecampaign.org/ has more info on this as well as http://www.freetheslaves.net/ . A significant proportion of those in slavery are children. Add to this exploitative mix cheap third world labour, the afore-mentioned sweat shops, "free trade" agreements which force countries to accept subsidised cheaper goods from western nations glut of over production which then eliminates internal suppliers and production in that country and leads to dependency on imported goods, exploitation by big business, whole economies of developing countries reliant on income from cash crops bought by multinationals at the lowest prices possible and the poverty caused by natural disasters which are the results of environmental damage (deforestation, desertification, pollution etc) and you have the needs of the many being ignored and denied in favour of the privileged excesses of the few. We can do something about this as individuals. Our cash and how we choose to spend it is the biggest democratic power we still have. When you buy a product you do not merely condone that suppliers conduct and practices, you FINANCE it and create the demand for more of the same. So surely it is much better to support businesses and manufacturers who have ethical practices than support the degradation of your fellow souls on this planet. Have a look at the brilliant Ethical Trader site http://www.ethiscore.org/reports.aspx?free=true if you want information on how to use your purchases to good effect. This is something I feel very passionately about, so you can expect many posts on Fair Trade, Equitable Trade, ethical consumerism, civil rights and the abolition of slavery and environmental issues from me.

I am a vegan. The way we use animals for our own ends is akin to fascism. We brutalise them, exploit them, imprison them, torture them, murder them and deny that they even feel pain or emotion or have the same basic drives as we do such as the need for freedom, safety, companionship and concern for their offspring's wellbeing. The way some people differentiate between "pets" and "farm" (i.e. food) animals, while still maintaining that they are "animal lovers is at best hypocritical. We use animals for entertainment, food, clothing, often without a second thought. But don't let me put you off your dinner when I tell you how your end product on the plate was actually achieved and lets not forget the major environmental and economic effects of farming livestock as well as the nutritional effect a meat and dairy laden diet. Most people just don't want to know. If I can educate even one person about the reality of factory farming and its impact on the environment, the suffering experienced by these sentient beings we call animals or the health benefits of a vegan or vegetarian diet and thereby encourage someone to adopt a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, I will have achieved something significant. Often people would like to adopt a less animal dependant diet but fear that it might be too hard. I have been a veggie since I was 11 years old, and am qualified to give nutritional advice, so maybe I could share a tip or too.

Complementary Health. This is a subject with so many depths and layers (and a subject I am qualified to comment on and have first hand experience of.) I feel it is hard to know where to begin. I can provide help and advice as well as information on methods of treatment, diet, exercise and psychological stress busters. The main focus of complementary medicine is on treating the person as a whole not just as a person with a condition and a random collection of symptoms. This means looking at factors affecting body,mind and soul, taking in to account lifestyle factors and examining prevention and causative factors not just a "cure". Complementary Medicine is about empowering the individual, helping them take responsibility for their personal well being, providing help to make positive lifestyle changes and choices, develop coping strategy's, and therapeutic remedies. I also have much to say about the way that complementary medicine is rubbished in the media and discredited by many in the scientific community. All is not what it seems! There are ulterior motives for this! Multi-national drug companies have much of the medical and scientific community in their pocket. More of that another time. I will also have dark words to type regarding those "Therapists" who offer miracle cures and false hope for extortionate prices, practice with little or no training and use dangerous methods and denigrate the reputation of legitimate practitioners everywhere by their actions. (oh and don't even get me started on "massage parlours". Why can't a brothel just be called brothel, and not create a completely different connotation to a massage treatment by associating it in name only with an entirely different kind of personal service?). Despite these few gripes the subject of healing therapies is dear to my heart and is a beautiful one at that.

Spirituality is another subject I have much to say about, but I am a seeker like everyone else. I believe we are spiritual people in physical bodies and that each and everyone of us is here to learn, to grow, to serve and to increase both personal happiness and the happiness of others and I welcome any opportunity to do these things individually and in my connections with others. I am not religious but I have faith in the Divine. I call it World Faith and I find wisdom everywhere and in every spiritual tradition. I suppose you could call it "new agey" of me (more and more this is used as a term of ridicule) but I don't care! I would like to share my knowledge and experiences in the hope that you will feel like sharing yours in return. I read Tarot and obviously feel a connection to the spiritual and energetic aspects of healing. I am also (so I am assured) effective at dream analysis. I am interested in astrology, numerology and other forms of divination, psychic ability, paranormal phenomenon and more. I hope I can stimulate discussion and provoke some interesting comments.

So I think that has introduced me and my main interests and enthusiasms. I hope you will pop in and take a look now and then and perhaps find something here that is of interest to you, informative or just funny. I may not become a serious blogger and my blog won't be one of the best perhaps, but I reckon it will be fun, perhaps informative and I might meet a few cool people along the way and be able to improve my writing skills at the same time. Lets face it I need a creative outlet for all this stuff, otherwise my brain might explode. ;0)