All is Well in my World » Natural Health

Take Responsibility!

Nadine Gammon — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 01:05:07 +0000

Hello world. It’s been a while since my last post! What can I say, being mom is a full-time job! It doesn’t feel like a job though. It is amazing. Just watching my little boy grow every day brings me such joy! Being a mom though means that I have to make decisions that could affect Andrew’s life. As a parent I’m responsible for doing as much research as I can about vaccines and how they affect our bodies. I have to question why there’s been such a drastic increase in the amount of vaccines that children get today. Years ago children would get as many as 10 vaccines. Today they get as many as 32-36 vaccines. What is going on here? Thank goodness we have doctors out there who are questioning this as well and are coming up with alternative schedules. I urge you to take a closer look at the ingredients in the vaccines. Find out about the side effects guys. Don’t just go with what your doctor says! Read and learn!

Then, if the whole vaccine issue doesn’t give you a headache, trying to find food that isn’t full of pesticides will. Finding meat that hasn’t been pumped full of hormones will drive you crazy! The first three years of a child’s life are the most crucial when it comes to their diet and the food they consume. How many of you give your child animal crackers as a treat every day? Have you looked at the ingredients lately? Yes, made with high fructose corn syrup. Wonderful right? Not!! It’s so important now to read food labels. They will tell you a lot. A good rule of thumb is if you can’t pronounce the name of the ingredient, don’t buy it! My goal for Andrew is to help him live a life where his mental and physical health are not inhibited by the side effects of additives or chemicals. So, because of this I will do my absolute best to make only organic food for him. I will also be careful in giving him food that is processed.

So basically what I’m saying is, take responsibility for your child. Remember that doctors only spend a few hours in school learning about nutrition. There are many professionals who specialize in nutrition. For me, going to a Naturopath for advice on nutrition has been the best thing for my family. Making sure your child is eating a healthy diet is the best thing you can do for him. Be careful with your little one. We are so lucky that we are able to research any topic and find endless amounts of information. Help your child live his/her best life.

I hope all is well in your child’s world!

You want to have your baby where?

Nadine Gammon — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 21:44:47 +0000

Happy New Year to Everyone. I hope this post finds that all is well in your world. Since taking my fertility massage then prenatal massage classes, I have become quite interested in natural child birth. I still have lots of research to do in this area, but I think when it’s time for us to have children this will be the route we’ll go. I’ve already found that when I mention this to people, they tell my why would I endanger my baby’s life like that? They forget that that’s how we are supposed to have children…naturally. A couple we know have planned to have a home birth. They have experienced the same type of reactions. Here is an explanation of why she’s chosen a home birth as opposed to a hospital birth. I don’t think I could explain it any better than what she says here:

“I’m realizing that some people think our midwife is going to show up with a couple of towels, catch the baby, and be on her merry way without any further thought about the baby’s well being. For those of you who are at all curious, let me set the record straight. Our midwife will be coming to our house, with a second midwife (who have delivered about 300 babies each), fully equipped with everything the hospital has at their disposal for dealing with a normal, healthy birth. They will also have any other medical equipment needed in the event of respiratory distress, and many other problematic infant complications (which are rare in natural births.) The baby will be put directly into my arms, and will hopefully nurse very soon after birth. This releases more oxytocin, which helps the placenta detach and make its way out, and provides a “love cocktail” in the brain, triggering a truly amazing bonding feeling I’ve read about time and time again. The cord will be clamped and cut, not right away, but when it stops pulsating. At hospital births, they frequently cut the cord right away, depriving the baby of up to 1/4 of their total blood supply, and triggering anemia among other problems. After plenty of bonding time, the baby gets his Apgar score, is weighed, carefully evaluated, and given Vitamin K and eye ointment. Along with regular prenatal check-ups and birthing the baby, the midwives do several follow-up visits to the house to check on the well being of the entire family. The care they give is personal, attentive, plentiful, and mostly holistic. They cost a fraction of the price doctors charge, and the care you receive makes you feel like a movie star who has hired a private practitioner to be at your disposal whenever you need them.

We chose a natural water birth at home for no greater purpose than that we believe it is the very best start for our baby. We are fully covered for a $15,000 birth at a hospital, but we believe the path we chose will provide a much safer, more fulfilling experience for all of us. Giving birth in water provides a lot of pain relief, and we have taken a 12 week class on the Bradley Method of husband-coached childbirth to learn how to manage contraction pain. People think I am brave for choosing this, but I couldn’t disagree more. I think to give birth in a facility where 1 in 2 women have unnecessary C-sections as a result of the drugs they are given to induce labor or prevent pain takes a lot of courage! That’s major abdominal surgery, which is risky for both mother and baby and requires a lot longer recovery time. All just to birth a baby, which women have been doing just fine on their own for thousands of years. And this is the average C-section rate at our local hospitals, and at facilities all over this country. The World Health Organization says that the C-section rate should be about 7% given the number of women who actually have real complications during birth, and it is very close to that in most other countries. Yet here in the good old USA, the rate is 31%, the vast majority due to unnecessary interventions they routinely give at hospitals. It’s insane.

If I turn out to be one of the small minority of women who has complications requiring hospital intervention, God forbid, we are very close to the hospital. There are no real emergencies that the midwife can’t catch in plenty of time to get us safely to the hospital if need be. Midwives are also well-trained to deliver a baby with the cord wrapped around his neck while usually not having to cut it prematurely, as a doctor would usually do. The bottom line is that most births could very well happen naturally without any problem, but doctors and hospitals frequently wish to “get things moving” so everyone can go home and have dinner. No one wants to wait on a laboring woman who is taking 20 hours to deliver when a Pitocin drip and a $5000 epidural will really speed things up. But I digress.

I just get a little tired of people looking at me weird and telling me I’m so brave, with that unmistakable undertone of “I can’t believe you would risk your baby’s life like that.” If you’ve actually read this and are interested in finding out the truth about natural childbirth, you should really watch the award-winning film, “The Business of Being Born.” It’s really interesting, informative, and you get to see Ricky Lake give birth in her bathtub. We were lucky enough to have a few friends who had natural childbirths, and who were so totally satisfied, transformed, and fulfilled by their experiences, it moved us to investigate. I can’t say for sure I wouldn’t have chosen to go into the hospital and have an epidural if I hadn’t been so fortunate to discover other options. And we have done an enormous amount of research on the subject to come to this decision. It’s a pretty important one. While it may not be for everyone, it could be for most, as it is for most in the rest of the world. So that’s my case!”

Use your Castor Oil! You should listen to your Grandma!

Nadine Gammon — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 23:30:00 +0000

I have to say, my grandmother never told me to take my castor oil. It was probably the generation before me that used castor oil. I could be wrong and maybe my family just didn’t use it! Here I am, a 26 year old, and I’m telling you in 2009 to use your castor oil. What is it with castor oil that is so wonderful? Did you know that it can be harmful too? The seeds of the castor plant could kill a child. The oil made from the plant can heal children and adults. My introduction to castor oil was in massage school. We practiced doing abdominal massages with castor oil.

It didn’t all sink in until I took Claire Marie Miller’s fertility class back in June, 2009. We used castor oil to do abdominal massages as part of the fertility protocol. Castor oil has many healing properties. It is anti-fungal, anti-microbial and it simply cleans out your system. I’ve used it on a client with PCOS (poly-cystic ovarian syndrome). It actually helped get rid of her cysts and helped her with her menstrual cycles, which were dormant for months. It is amazing. Edgar Cayce was the first person to use castor oil in this manor. Castor oil has even been used as a homeopathic cancer treatment. Castor oil doesn’t have to be taken orally. Castor oil can be rubbed on the abdomen and you will see results. To find out how to make a castor oil pack, see below for instructions.

Castor Oil Pack

1 bottle cold pressed oil ( you will use 1/4-1/2 cup)
1 large flannel pillow case or flannel square that will cover your abdomen
1 hot water bottle or heating pad
1 large towel

Use 1/4 -1/2 cup castor oil (option-can be heated on the stove, be careful that you don’t burn yourself). Pour castor oil on your abdomen and massage in a clockwise motion. Use a little bit at a time, or you will make a mess. After you have used all the castor oil, place the flannel square on top of your abdomen. Then place the hot water bottle on the flannel. Cover the hot water bottle with the towel. Now, relax for about 45 minutes- 1 hour. . Do not wash the flannel. Simply fold it up and put it in a Ziploc bag. You’ll want to use it again. The oilier it gets, the better!

***Warning- Castor oil is sticky and messy, so you may want to put a towel on your couch before you lie down***

What to expect after doing a castor oil pack. If a castor oil pack is done during a massage session with abdominal massage, you should have a pretty good bowel movement that night or the next day. Castor oil is known as a cleanser. We are cleaning out the toxins in your body.
Packs are recommended for 3 or 4 nights on, then 3 nights off. Packs should be avoided during ovulation due to the release of toxins. If pregnancy occurs, stop using the packs, especially if a history of miscarriage exists.

Feed your skin!

Nadine Gammon — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 02:53:08 +0000

Last October I started having some trouble with acne. I went to a dermatologist and was very disappointed with the visit. The Doctor never looked at my skin or asked me questions about my diet or lifestyle. I already knew that those factors would have an effect on my skin. He immediately wrote a prescription for antibiotics and gave me a topical ointment to try. This specific antibiotic causes depression and birth defects. Why would I want to do this to myself? The day after this appointment I went to Creative Health and spoke with Terry Hall-Hines. She told me that I definitely should not take antibiotics to treat acne. She recommended that I read the Clear Skin Diet by Alan C. Logan and Valori Treloar, MD. This book was full of information about how your diet affects your skin. She also gave me an herb call Skin Detox. Terry also told me that my diet would effect my skin. Most of you know me and know that I am fairly healthy. I didn’t believe that I had to change my diet that much!

Soon after my appointment with Terry, I remembered that she had an esthetician that worked for her. I made an appointment with Micki Grist for a facial. Micki was full of information about diet, acne and using all natural products on my skin. She also educated me about products out there that have parabens in the ingredients. You may wonder, what are parabens? Parabens are used as a preservative in cosmetics. Parabens have estrogen in them, which has been linked to breast cancer. Micki uses paraben-free skin care products. The line she uses at Creative Health is called Naturopathica. I really liked this line, however I have had better luck with another all natural line called Arcona. I have seen a major difference in my skin since I started using those products.

I feel really good about using all natural products on my skin. Yes, it’s a little pricey, however, I believe it’s worth the cost. In addition to using all natural products, I’ve also been monitoring what I put in my mouth. I’ve switched to organic chicken and am amazed by how much better it tastes! I also make sure that the fish I buy is wild and not farmed. Sometimes it is a little more difficult to find wild fish. The salmon at Costco is really good. Costco also sells hormone-free chicken in bulk. I love this!! Using all natural products, eating fresh produce and organic meat has really made a difference in my skin!

Micki has facial specials going on until October 15 at Creative Health. Give her a try! I give her two thumbs up!