Mutterings Of A Mindless Mommy

Blast From the Past – Adam Jasinski Busted for Reselling Oxycodone Pills

Melissa — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:39:21 +0000

I peeked at my Google Analytics stats for today and noticed that my blog was getting a massive influx of traffic, way more than I usually get on a single day. The majority of the traffic is coming in via Google searches related to Adam Jasinski. So what’s a net sleuth like myself to do? Google Adam Jasinski myself to see what is up. *wink* Sure enough, the former Big Brother winner is back in the news amidst new controversy. Adam Jasinski was recently busted for using his Big Brother earnings to buy and resell Oxycodone pills. Yes, our favorite “retard” loving Big Brother winner is also a drug dealer.

Adam Jasinski, 31, of Delray Beach, Fla., has been charged with attempting to sell 2,000 pills in Massachusetts to a government witness.

Federal prosecutors said Jasinski was arrested Saturday after he flew to Boston and showed the witness a sock containing two plastic bags filled with oxycodone, a powerful painkiller that is a popular street drug because of its euphoric effects. Source: Huffington Post

It looks like he could be facing some serious time, up to 20 years in prison.

The H1N1 Fairy has Visited the Mindless Mommy Household

Melissa — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 21:20:37 +0000

With all her germy sparkliness, the H1N1 Fairy has visited the Mindless Mommy household – not once, but twice. While on a flight to Atlanta last weekend, I wrote about my daughter’s experience with H1N1, Asthma, and a Severe Case of Croup. Last week was relatively quiet in our house but Alexander ended up getting admitted to the hospital Friday night after the Ativan they gave him to stop his seizures caused him to have some seriously hard-core hallucinations.

Unfortunately, the pediatric floor of the hospital was full. As in no…beds..available. The new children’s hospital doesn’t open until next month so they are also working in a smaller pediatric emergency room. We ended up staying in a private room in the ER for the duration of his hospital stay. All around us were children sick with the flu. My hands are still dry from washing them so often but alas, our efforts were for naught. Alexander went from a happy kid yesterday morning to a miserable kid with a 103 fever within two hours.

So now the H1N1 fairy has bestowed her germy sparklies on Alex. He’s in the other room now hacking away but playing video games. Yes, I know, bad mommy, letting him play video games. Hey, he’s sick and so he deserves a little treat, right?

Now I’ve started coughing a bit more and my throat is starting to hurt. However, I don’t have any openings in my schedule until next summer so no H1N1 Fairy, you will not pay me a visit.

Super Nanny Supports Asthma Education Campaign

Melissa — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 03:50:09 +0000

If you were only to look at the title of this post, Super Nanny Supports Asthma Education Campaign, then you’d likely think that this would be a positive post helping raise awareness about asthma. However, the new educational campaign – ASTHMyths, which is sponsored by the Allergy & Asthma Network Mothers of Asthmatics (AANMA), is also co-sponsored by Merck & Co, Inc. Yes, the makers of SINGULAIR are partnering with the Super Nanny and a nonprofit to raise awareness about asthma.

This isn’t the first time that “Big Pharma” has joined forces to create an awareness campaign about “insert disease du jour here”, but since I have a vested interest in the negative side effects of SINGULAIR, I wanted to post about this.

SINGULAIR is known to cause depression in its patients, including children as young as five years old. Yes, that’s right, my five-year-old daughter suffered from depression as a result of using SINGULAIR. We thought it was a wonder drug as it cut our trips to the ER for asthma flare-ups in half. However, when she started talking about dying and no one caring if she was dead, I began to worry.

After a call to our pediatrician, she suggested that we stop the medicine. If the problem persisted, then the pediatrician wanted to see Ava. If the problem stopped, then we were advised to never give her SINGULAIR again. The problem completely stopped and within a week she was back to her happy self. However, we are still dealing with the significant anxiety that started shortly after she started the medication. Right now, we have no end in sight to the end of this sometimes-crippling anxiety that she experiences.

One other point I wanted to make is that I’m not really fond of the Super Nanny. If she had been called to our house to address my daughter’s nonstop crying…for hours every night…she’d have likely placed her in time out to “fix” her manipulations. Only a parent, truly in tune with their child, would be able to see that my daughter’s episodes were not her trying to manipulate me. Instead, it is obvious that something was very, very wrong. Sorry for the tangential Super Nanny rant, not a fan of hers, never have been.

I want to thank Jenna from Parents for Safety for the heads-up on this new project. Jenna works tirelessly to educate parents on the neuropsychiatric side effects of Singulair. Thanks Jenna!

Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week 2009

Melissa — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 21:51:55 +0000

I just saw a post on one of my “special needs parenting” message boards that this week, September 20-26, is Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week. She is the mother of a sweet little boy who has a mitochondrial disease. I remember her first posts two or so years ago when her boy was just an infant and she was beginning the road of figuring out what was causing her son’s symptoms. He’s a beautiful little boy and has an amazing family and I’m in awe of his mom’s strength.

In recognition of her dedication to her son, and to mitochondrial disease awareness, I am sharing this with you, the readers of Mutterings of a Mindless Mommy. Please take the time to pass this on, awareness is key!

The mother featured in the video above is not the mom I know on the message board, but this is one of the videos from the UMDF website.

FDA Warns Against Use of Certain Asthma Medications Due to Tampering

Melissa — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 19:43:42 +0000

On September 17, 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advised consumers not to use certain respiratory medications purchased after Sept. 8, 2009 and manufactured by Dey L.P., a subsidiary of Mylan Inc., because the medications might have been part of a shipment being transported on a tractor-trailer stolen in Tampa, Fla., on Sept. 8, 2009.

The respiratory medications, Ipratropium Bromide Inhalation Solution, 0.02%, and Albuterol Sulfate Inhalation Solution, 0.083%, unit-dose vials, have not been recovered and may be dangerous to use because the drugs may not have been stored and handled properly.

Dey issued an advisory on Sept. 11, 2009 regarding the theft. Although FDA is not aware of any reports of adverse events, the agency is advising patients who use these respiratory medications to check to see if products received or purchased after Sept. 8, 2009 are from one of the following lots:

Albuterol Sulfate Inhalation Solution (892,000 doses; all lots contain 3.0 ml vials and display the brand name “Dey”)
Lot number 9G04, NDC # 49502-697-29
Lot number 9FD8, NDC # 49502-697-61
Lot number 9FD9, NDC # 49502-697-61
Lot number 9FE1, NDC # 49502-697-61

Ipratropium Bromide Inhalation Solution (432,000 doses; all lots contain 2.5 ml vials and display the brand name “Dey”)
Lot number F09089, NDC # 49502-685-31
Lot number C09119, NDC # 49502-685-62
Lot number C09120, NDC # 49502-685-62

Advice for Consumers
Do not use Albuterol Sulfate Inhalation Solution or Ipratropium Bromide Inhalation Solution if it is from one of these lots above and was purchased or received after Sept. 8, 2009. Replace it with the same product from another lot.

Notify your health care professional of any adverse effects you may have experienced as a result of taking these medications.

Bring products from these lots back to the pharmacy where you received the medicine to exchange for products from a different lot or call Dey customer service at 800-527-4278. Contact your health care professional if you must switch to another product for any reason for possible dose adjustments.

Report any information regarding the stolen Dey products to FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) by calling 800-551-3989 or by visiting the OCI Web site (http://www.fda.gov/OCI).

An Insurance Company Rant

Melissa — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:07:06 +0000

Considering the focus on health care reform in Congress and from the Obama administration, I though that my insurance company rant is a perfect post for today. On August 12, my daughter went to see the neurologist. She’s been having headaches and so he ordered an MRI. I called the nurse on 8/24, still no approval. I called on 8/28, still no approval. I called on 9/1, still no approval. This is not a rant about the nurse, because every day I called her, she called the insurance company. Instead, this is a rant about the insurance company.

Can you please explain to me how a STAT MRI request takes three weeks to approve? This is ludicrous! We are fortunate enough to have group insurance through my husband’s employer. Approval for the MRI was given the same-day. Ava’s secondary insurance is through the state’s Division of Developmental Disabilities. It is managed through the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System – the same system manages healthcare for the state’s MedicAid-eligible children and families. So a STAT MRI request takes three weeks for the state’s health care system to approve. Un…acceptable.

I even asked if I could just pay for the co-pay or whatever my share of the procedure would be. Alexander’s MRI was several thousand dollars and our co-pay, had he not had secondary insurance, would have been several hundred. I wouldn’t mind paying it if it meant Ava could get in and get the MRI STAT (like it was ordered).

So I called the insurance company and “got mommy” on their asses. Guess what I had when I got off the phone, an authorization code. Now don’t misunderstand me, I was very respectful to the representative. Having worked on the phones before, I understand that the job is a high-stress position and the nice gal that helped me was not responsible for the delay in approval.

I am an advocate for my children, in all aspects of their life but most definitely when it comes to their health. I can only imagine that other parents who either don’t understand the system or don’t know the importance of advocacy have to deal with in regards to their child’s healthcare procedures.

Fun Fauna Night in the Desert

Melissa — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 03:32:06 +0000

Last night at dusk, my dad drove my kids and I out into the desert to go looking for desert fauna (and to just have a nice drive). Shortly after dark, we noticed something in the road hopping straight at us – it was a big ole toad! My dad stopped and caught the toad and brought it over for the kids to see. On the way over, the toad tried to pee on my dad, which the kids thought was rather hilarious. Alex didn’t want to touch it but Ava “petted” it, professed her love for the toad, and made kissy faces at it. My dad then let the toad go and encouraged it to hop off the road. We’ve seen toads before but the kids still love it.

A little while later, my dad saw a tarantula. The kids have seen tarantulas before and both have pet one. The last time they were out, my dad asked Ava if she wanted to hold one and she said “next time.” She reminded us of the conversation and as we all hopped out of the truck (with camera in hand), she walked right up to my dad and let the tarantula crawl on her.

The feeling kind of surprised her so she was glad to get it back on my dad’s arm. I tried to snap a still of the tarantula on Ava but it was super delayed. So there we are, in the middle of the Sonoran desert after dark and my dad is trying to get his camera in the right picture mode with a tarantula perched upside down on his elbow.

I finally suggested that I just video it and I’ll try to capture any pictures. We ended up recording for a few minutes where we were talking to Ava about letting the tarantula walk on her again. At this time I decided to suck up my fear and touch the thing. It was so amazingly soft. I then wanted to really check it out so I got right down in the fuzzy male tarantula’s “face” for a good look. It was beautiful. At that point my lifelong fear of spiders abated and I ended up letting the tarantula walk across my hand.

My dad then squatted down and said “c’mere Ava” – she walked over and the tarantula walked into her hands as her hands were in my dads hand. The big ole fuzzy spider then crawled up onto Ava’s arms. It was a pretty fun fauna night in the desert.

Hallucinations and Simple Partial Seizures

Melissa — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 02:22:25 +0000

Today was one of my scariest days as a mom.

At about 2:30 pm today, I received a call from the school nurse. The kids get out of school at 3:30 pm and so I was a bit surprised to be receiving a call. The nurse said that Alexander was in the office and he was having a bit of a meltdown. She then went on to explain to me that Alexander thought he saw a spider on his shoe in class and that the teacher, the Principal, and the nurse all had to work to reassure Alexander that the spider was gone. No one actually saw the spider, but Alexander was adamant.

The nurse said that Alexander was pretty traumatized by the event and asked me to come in to get him. When I got to the school just a few minutes later, Alexander was sitting on one of the beds in the nurse’s office in a fetal position with his right shoe and sock off.

While I was there talking to him, he swore he saw a spider. He was so absolutely petrified and he completely froze. The nurse quickly jumped up and turned on the overhead light so that Alex could see more clearly. I was rubbing my finger on the spot where he saw the spider to help reassure him that there was not a spider there, yet he remained adamant.

I went ahead and got Ava out of class a little early because I wasn’t sure what my evening was going to hold. I managed to convince Alexander to put his sock back on and then we all walked out to the car. At that point I was near tears and I did not have a clue what I should do.

I ended up calling the pediatrician’s office and managed to make an appointment for 3:50 (by now it was nearly 3:00 pm). After that I called my dad because Dave was out-of-reach and I just had no clue what to do. I wasn’t sure if the pediatrician would be of any help or if I should go to the children’s hospital.

Parents think about it. If your child were suddenly hallucinating, what would you do? I was petrified.

Once I got home, I decided to call the neurologist. Thankfully he was in his office and so I got to immediately speak with him. After I told him Alex’s symptoms he explained to me that they were simple partial seizures. I asked him if he was sure it was neurological as opposed to psychological because Alexander has full recollection of the events and was still absolutely petrified.

The neurologist reassured me that this is one way that simple partial seizures can manifest and that for the person experiencing the seizures, the hallucinations are most definitely real. He told me that all I can do is to reassure Alex that he is, indeed, having a seizure.

The neurologist called in a prescription for Tegretol to add to Alex’s Keppra. Alex was originally diagnosed with complex partial seizures in summer 2008 and has yet to truly have full seizure control.

When I got off the phone with the neurologist I just wanted to cry. I was so absolutely frightened that my sweet eight-year old was having a psychotic break while I watched helplessly. He had a few more episodes this evening but he is now sleeping restfully.

I can only hope that this medicine helps my little boy. I have spoken with the teachers and the nurse at the school who were all equally frightened by the event. They are glad to know that his doctor and I are on top of it and taking measures to help prevent this from happening again.

Tomorrow Alex will stay home with me. I don’t want him to have to go through another day like he did today.

First Day of School – 2009-2010 School Year

Melissa — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 02:32:35 +0000

Wednesday, August 12 marked the first day of the 2009-2010 school year for the Mindless Mommy kids. On Tuesday night, Alexander spiked a 103+ degree fever which topped out at 105.1 on Wednesday morning. Alex slept while I prepared Ava for her first day of Kindergarten. I had to get Alexander to the doctor so we all drove Ava to her school. I walked Ava in and gave her hugs and kisses while Dave waited with Alex (Dave took his company truck to the school). I then bailed on Ava so I could get Alex to the doctor but Dave went back in and stayed with Ava until she went into the classroom.

Here is a picture of Ava as she very enthusiastically posed before school. It is increasingly difficult to get a picture of Ava not posing.

While Ava was having fun at Kindergarten, Alex was spending his 1st day of the school year in a wheelchair at the doctor’s office. He was too weak to walk and I tweaked my back the week prior so I couldn’t carry him.

Finally, his fever waned a bit and I sent him to school on Friday. Here he is before *his* 1st day of 3rd grade.

We’re trying something new this year, waste free school lunches. Head on over to Raising Them Green to hear about how our first week with waste free lunches went.

Ava’s New 7 Pound Weighted Blanket

Melissa — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 03:27:22 +0000

In March of 2007, shortly after I launched Mutterings of a Mindless Mommy, Ava began using her first weighted blanket. In my post, Will The Weighted Blanket Be the Answer?, I discussed my hopes that the weighted blanket would be the answer to Ava’s extreme nighttime anxiety and sleep problems. Well, it wasn’t *the” answer, but it certainly helped a bit.

In April of this year, Ava declared that she needed a heavier blanket. Although her 5-lb blanket fit the 10% + one pound rule, she definitely wanted a heavier blanket. We ordered a 7-lb blanket and it arrived today! She’s sound asleep under it right now (in her own bed in my room because she still has nighttime anxiety) and in true Ava (sensory seeking) fashion, she has her bear on her face.

And for a bonus picture – Ava on “Meet the Teacher” night..