Feeling Outstanding

The Headache Eliminator

2010-12-21T14:17:00.000-08:00

Migraine Headaches and the Total Gym – The Headache Eliminator

I am 51 years old. One of my first memories as a boy of five or six is havingaa migraine headache. All throughout my pre-teen, teen-age, and young adult years I suffered from migraine headaches. Normally I would have one to two migraines per week and one or two non-migraines per week.

As I reached my forties I started using B.C. and Goodies headache powder to combat headaches. They would often work like a charm, in fact within an hour or two my headaches would be completely gone. There were two problems with the headache powders (you can include Excedrin in this package too); they would more often than not lead to rebound headaches, which were often even worse than the first. Second, these medications were very addictive. The more often I took them, the more I felt that I needed them. With the rebound headache syndrome, I got into a state where I constantly needed relief. I got to the point where I was taking them every day. Then it was two times per day almost every day. Some days I would take as many as four or five. I was terribly addicted.

It got to the point where I had no idea what a "normal" headache was. If I didn't take some kind of medication I could be sure that it would turn into a migraine and provide anywhere from 24-36 hours of excruciating pain with 12-24 hours of recovery, at about 60% of normal, after the pain disappeared.

This Doesn't Sound like Relief!

It wasn't, it really wasn't. By my early forties I had headaches of one degree or another almost every day. And almost every week I would have one or two migraines that the powders just could not get rid of. It was terrible. My social life was completely dead. I couldn't hardly go out of the house for fear I would get a headache. Whenever I went somewhere with my family it was miserable. I was in near-constant pain. Couldn't go out to dinner with my family for fear of a migraine. I was mean, angry and no one wanted to be around me. My work was suffering and I was absolutely miserable.

I had to do something different. It was at this point that I started going to doctors often for headaches. Not that I had never been to a doctor before but now I started a concentrated effort to use doctor's services. I went to chiropractors, spinologists, cranial-sacral chiropractors, naturopathic physicians, medical doctors, neurologists and acupuncture specialists; all to no avail. I received some slight relief from one naturopath that I went to but it was limited.

Along the way I heard that vigorous exercise may be a good help for migraine headaches or headaches of any kind. The thing was, I had been an exercise enthusiast for years. I had tried that several times also without a lot of success. In fact I was a avid runner. Almost every time I got back from a run, I would have a headache.

Has Anything Helped?

I am happy to say that there is one thing that I have discovered fairly recently (within the last six months) that has provided a great deal of relief. Of all the medications, prescriptions, over-the-counter medications and exercises that I have used or done this has been the most beneficial of all.

Loving exercise as I do, a couple of years ago I bought a Chuck Norris Total Gym. I had also tried to use the Total Gym for headache relief but didn't really get significant help until recently. I started a new routine on the Chuck Norris Total Gym that has provided incredible relief. There are a few key points that I need to mention:

1. First, it is really critical that you do this routine when your headache starts, don't wait until it becomes a full-blown migraine.
2. The Total Gym provides different levels of exercise. Level "one" is far easier than level "six". Over the time that I have had the Total Gym I have worked my way up to exercising at a level six. But when using the equipment for headaches, I lower it to a level "four". This may sound counter-intuitive but it has helped my headaches far more at a lower level than at the maximum level.
3. When exercising to the max, I generally do each exercise three sets of twelve repetitions. When exercising for headache relief I start out, as I said before, at a lower level and do more reps. For instance I often work at a level four and do sixteen to eighteen reps.
4. Sometimes, after I have completed one set of my exercise routine, my headache is gone. If this happens, I often quit and save my strength in case the headache comes back later in the day or the next day. When working out for strength I would exercise every other day. By using a lower than maximum level, I can usually work out two or even three days in a row without needing a day off. Especially if I don't go the full three sets.
5. When working out hard for strength, I will take a rest between sets. For example, I will do my set of twelve exercises and then rest for about three to five minutes before I proceed to the second. Then after the second I will rest a similar amount of time before I go on the third. When exercising for headache relief, I try hard not to rest between sets.

Here is the exercise routine that I use for headache relief. For those of you who have a Total Gym, this will be much easier to understand. For those of you who don't I have included pictures at the bottom of the article.

Exercise 1 - # 81 on the Total Gym Cards – Hamstring Stretch (nothing difficult to start with)
Exercise 2 - #5 – Incline Pushups
Exercise 3 - #8 – Chin Ups
Exercise 4 - #26 – Lying Leg Curl
Exercise 5 - #52 – Incline Situps
Exercise 6 - #84 – Toe Touch Stretch
Exercise 7 - #66 – Leg Curl with Fly
Exercise 8 - #67 – Leg Curl with Straight Arm Life
Exercise 9 - #68 – Leg Curl with Biceps Curl
Exercise 10 - #69 – Leg Curl with Upright Row
Exercise 11 - #70 – Let Curl with Seated Surfer
Exercise 12 - #33 – Outer Hips and Thigh

My strategy is to work at a level lower than my maximum. The max that I work out on the Total Gym is level six. When working out for headaches I work at level four. On my first rep I generally do each exercise sixteen to eighteen reps. After I complete the first set I take a drink of water and proceed to the second set of 12-16 reps right away, that is if my headache is not gone. If, during the second exercise I still feed a headache I will usually did a third set of eight to twelve reps.

Results

The results I have received from this exercise strategy have been incredible. When I start this exercise routine soon after I start feeling a headache it takes away the pain after one set about 40% of the time. On the occasions where the pain is not gone after one set about 50% of the time my headaches are gone after a second (and usually a third) set. In other words, when I do this exercise routine on the Total Gym as I have described above, my headaches are eliminated almost 90% of the time, when I start shortly after the pain has started.

I know sometimes I am not in a position to exercise at all when a headache comes on. How effective is the Total Gym after I have already developed a headache? Granted, the effectiveness does go down some, although the first thing I do when I get back home to my Total Gym is my custom headache routine. I have eliminated several headaches that were very well formed with the Total Gym.

I started documenting the headache relief I have been receiving about a month ago. Since I have started documention I have had headaches to one degree or another thirteen times over this time period (November to December, 2010). Ten of them I was able to catch real early, two were pretty well formed before I got to exercise (11/29 and 12/2). In every case but one (12/19/2010) my custom Total Gym workout eliminated my headache. Although not documented, most of these occurrences start sometime between 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. So without knocking them out they would have resulted in a long day of suffering.

Do I ever get Benefits from B.P., Goodies or other Headache Medication?

The good news is, yes. Sometimes the headache gets beyond the point of exercise or sometimes I am just not in a position where I can exercise. If that is the case, I ometimes use either a Goodies powder or a B.P., but only as a last resort. But, I have to be very careful! For instance, I need to be especially cautious how many I take and how often.

First, I would recommend not taking more than two per week for fear of the rebound headache syndrome. Second, I need to be careful when I take them. I nearly always, if possible, use my custom exercise program first before I even consider taking this type of medication. And third, if I do take one, I need to be especially careful the next day or two. If I feel a headache starting to come on, I immediately go to the Total Gym, which usually knocks it out. I especially don't want to get headaches of any degree two days in a row. Sometimes I find myself exercising twice on the day after taking a Goodies or B.P. I especially don't want another headache to the degree where I need to take this kind of medication again that quickly.

Pictures of the Exercises

Here are pictures of the twelve exercises in my custom Total Gym workout for headache elimination. I sincerely hope it helps others as much as it has me!

Topamax - A Word of Caution For a Popular Headache Prescription

2009-02-07T06:18:00.000-08:00

I have made great strides in a migraine headache condition I have had for years but I have not quite been able to knock it out completely. I still come down with migraine headaches periodically. When I went to my family doctor a two weeks ago to see if there was any last steps I could take to eliminate this dreaded affliction she suggested the prescription medication Topamax. I had read about Topamax and was aware of glowing reviews. My doctor also had a very positive outlook on the medication and she confidently assured me there would be no side effects except for potential weight loss, which, she explained, did not happen to every one. In my article I want to describe certain side effects that I did experience from Topamax that people interested in the prescription may want to be made aware of.

First let me uneqivocally state that I am not trying to scare anyone away from starting to use Topamax. Please believe me. I know that a person who suffers from frequent migraine headaches can be in a terrible state. It can be so bad that they are afraid of the next day coming because they don't know what kind of pain the day will bring. My goal is not to frighten people away from Topamax, it is only to make people aware of what I have experienced in the first couple of weeks I have been taking the pills so that they can be ready for it in case they experience similar side effects.

I was instructed to begin taking 1 pill (25 mg) of Topamax 2 times daily for one week and then to increase it to 2 pills (50 mg) twice daily for the rest of the first month. I started taking the prescription on Friday, January 9.

The following were side effects I experienced from Topamax:

Almost immediately after I started taking Topamax, I began to feel tired. This tired feeling was a very unusual. I would have periods of normal energy for a couple of hours, then I would have periods of being very tired for about 30-60 minutes. I became tired very early at night.

For about the first three days I also had a mild feeling of intoxication. I had to be especially careful when driving. When I found myself driving on a 45 mile per hour highway that I was very familiar with, before I knew it I was traveling 65 mph. I almost never travel at 65 on this road. I quickly realized I had to be very careful and watch my speedometer often. I also noticed a tendency to swerve toward the middle of the road easy and had to pay special attention and keep my eyes strictly on the road and not to look off to the side. This was a struggle. I was victorious by letting someone else drive whenever possible.

I was not able to get a good, solid seven sleep for six nights. In fact, for the first four nights I only slept for three or four hours each night. I was very tired for the entire first week after I began taking Topamax.

Eight days after taking Topamax for migraine headache relief I had a serious migraine headache. I expected more help than that. It was a serious migraine, the symptoms were all there. One thing I will say is the pain in the head only reached about 70% of the normal level.

On Monday, January 18 I felt I was able to increase my dosage of Topamax for the first time (actually two days later than my doctor originally advised). I did so in the morning. Almost immediately after I took the two (50 mg) Topamax I felt so worn out that I was hardly able to function until the afternoon. I reverted back to the original dosage Tuesday.Granted, I have only taken Topamax for a week and a half and I am not condemning the medication by any means yet. Many people have had outstanding results with it and hopefully I will too. I just wanted to give people who are thinking of starting to use it the warning that they may have some side effects despite what some people, including your doctor, may tell them. The benefits of Topamax may not be as immediately recognizable on some people as others.

Check out the Feeling Outstanding Causes of Daily Headaches page.

Here's to a headache free life!
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Giving May Be More Important Now Than Ever - What is the Critical Enabling Factor?

2009-01-31T13:14:00.000-08:00

In these times of uncertainties, nervousness and massive layoffs people are very concerned, and rightfully so. The causes of this economic turmoil will be debated for years but I think it is safe to say that it all boils down to too much risk, to much greed and too much ego at the top. Nevertheless, it is what it is and we have to deal with it. Companies are laying off unprecedented numbers of employees at a time, and this is causing many people to be in a real state of need. In this article I would like for us to consider what areas we give to, how we give and what the critical enabling factor for giving is.

First of all, consider the areas that we normally consider giving toward:

Our Community
Our Country
Our Faith/Charity
Our Family

There are three basic types of contribution: time, financial, labor/work. All three of these have a special area of importance. Consider the following three hypothetical situations regarding giving toward your family.

1. Your niece who has recently had her first child was let go from her job. She and her husband have been struggling trying to survive on one income and are having a very hard time. She has a job interview lined up but has no baby sitter for a couple of days as her normal baby sitter is on vacation. Here is an excellent opportunity for a donation of time to help your niece out in a pinch. No, it will not be easy watching the little 18 month old who is not feeling well for 4 hours from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., right during supper time. Realize, this is what your nice needs right now. She needs help and needs it now. She needs your time.

2. Your cousin, who is married and has two children had a good job but was let go seven months ago. He has been in the house he is living in now for 10 years and has a moderate house payment. Unfortunately he was in a very specialized field that paid well, but with current state of the economy finding a job is hard. His severance package was only for three months and his unemployment benefits ran out after six months. His oldest child is a sophomore in college and his two younger children are both in high school. He has literally done everything he can to cut costs, you have seen it and you are aware of it. Yet, you know from talking with him that he probably will not be able to make his next house payment. He does have several interviews scheduled as he has been diligent in his job search efforts. He just needs a boost. Can anyone afford to give him a financial boost and help him with his rent for this month? He needs financial assistance.

3. Your brother, who lives on the north side of town, could see the handwriting on the wall. His company of 210 employees one year ago is now down to 41. Profits have dropped severely. It was clearly stated that 12 more people were going to be let go within the next month. He has only been with the company for one year and he is almost positive he is next on the list to go. He made a bold, but it sure seemed like a smart move and decided to take a job with a different company south of town. The only problem is that he will have to move from his apartment as the commute would be just too far. He needs some labor assistance. He needs some help moving.

Three types of giving: time, finances, and labor/work are all equally critical at different times. But what is the one enabling factor for all three of these? What is the one thing that makes this all possible? The answer to that is health, good health. Without good health, we don't have time to spare; we don't have the ability to give good effort or labor; and without good health we cannot earn money to share. Let's not overlook our health in these times of economic uncertainty. In fact, let's pay special attention to maintaining and building our health so that we can not only withstand the pressures and stresses that will come our way but also so that we can give to others to help them in times of need.

I hope all is going well,
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstandig.com/

MigraDefense - A Powerful Headache Natural Headache Medication

2009-01-20T15:39:00.000-08:00

Five of the most effective natural remedies for headaches are magnesium, buttebur, feverfew, griffonia and white willow bark. All five of these natural products have been shown to reduce headache pain and frequency for some. MigraDefense (by KAL) combines these five items into one, easy to swallow pill. In my article today I will provide a product review of the nutritional supplement called MigraDefense.

MigraDefense combines magnesium, butterbur, feverfew, griffonia, white willow bark plus other elements. The serving size is 2 tablets. It is best if they are not taken at the same time. The container also says that you can take up to 4 tablets as needed. Realizing that some of the ingredients are used as a preventative, this tends to indicate that MigraDefense can also be used for immediate relief.

This is interesting as most headache medication is one or the other, immediate relief or prevention. Aspirin, B.C. Powder, Goodies or almost any of the other over-the-counter headache medications lay very little (if any) claim that their products can be used for prevention. Immatrex, along with other prescription medications may claim they do, but from my experience, many of them lead to terrible rebound headaches and do a poor job at treating the causes of headaches. Whereas most of the herbal, nutritional or homeopathic medications tend to work toward the long term benefit of frequency reduction and have limited effect on the immediate pain.

The primary ingredients in Migradefense are as follows:

Magnesium

There have been studies showing a relationship between magnesium and headaches. A. Trauninger showed magnesium deficiencies to be common in those who suffer from migraines (Oral Magnesium Load Test in Patients with Migraine, Headache, 2002, 114-119). A. Bianchi found sufficient (but not conclusive) evidence of magnesium's ability to help treat migraines (Vitamin Horm, 2004, p. 297-312).

Feverfew and Butterbur
Feverfew is mainly used for the treatment and prevention of frequent and serious migraine headaches. From a "well-designed clinical trial, 170 German patients took a placebo pill or an extract of feverfew for 16 weeks. Those taking feverfew had significantly fewer migraines (Natural Heath, 2007-03-01)." Butterbur is very popular in Europe as way to minimize neurological discomfort.

White Willow
In 1829, scientists in Europe identified what was believed to be the active ingredient in white willow bark-a compound called salicin. Extracting salicin from herbs was considered to be expensive and time-consuming, so a synthetic salicylic acid version was developed in Germany in 1852 and quickly became the treatment of choice (salicin is converted in the body to salicylic acid). The problem was that it was harder on the stomach. At therapeutic doses, people using the synthetic salicylic acid developed stomach ulcers and bleeding.

The German company Bayer eventually created a synthetic, less harsh derivative of salicylic acid, called acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), and mass-produced it under the name aspirin. Despite this, aspirin is still known for irritating the stomach lining. People take white willow bark instead of aspirin because it does not appear to be as irritating to the stomach lining. It may be because the salicin found naturally in white willow bark is only converted to the acid form after it is absorbed by the stomach.

Researchers have also suggested that white willow bark is more effective than aspirin because of other active compounds that are found in the bark but not the drug. Animal research at Cairo University compared a willow bark extract to ASA and found that a willow bark extract was as effective as aspirin in reducing inflammation, even though the salicin content was lower than an equivalent dose of ASA.

Griffonia
Griffonia seeds are used as a herbal supplement for their 5-Hydroxytryptophan content. 5-Hydroxytryptophan also known as 5-HTP is an important building block for the human body to form serotonin. Serotonin plays an important role in the body esspecially as a neurotransmitter to transport signals between neurons in the nervous system. Griffonia seed have also demonstrated an ability to relieve both the frequency and severity of attacks of migraines in many clinical trials. The 5-HTP content was found to be as effective in treatment and prevention of migraines as beta-blockers or methysergide.

The ingredients present in MigraDefense all have strong records in fighting headaches. If you suffer from frequent headaches, rebound headaches, chronic migraines or occasional migraines MigraDefense looks like a supplement that is very well worth a try.

Visit the Feeling Outstanding Headache Relief page for more information regarding headaches, rebound headaches, headache triggers and causes of headaches.

Tom Thorne

www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Sleep Well With These Eight Beneficial Hints (Part II)

2009-01-11T08:22:00.000-08:00

In yesterday's blog we listed tips 1-4. Here are tips 5-8 for sleeping well.

5. Turn off the TV. The TVs flickering light can go through your eyelids. If you need to have noise, turn on a fan or a radio. If you have to have light, use a night light.
6. Don't have that bedtime snack. Eating makes your body perk up again as it goes into the digestive mode.
7. Avoid nicotine and caffeine in the evening. This includes tea, coffee, cocoa and any kind of chocolate.
8. If you still have problems sleeping the melantonin supplement is an excellent non-prescription sleep aid. If you feel tired and worn out in the morning after taking melatonin the previous evening, only take 1/2 of a tablet the next night.

Have a great nights sleep,
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Chocolate, the Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Part IV)

2009-01-03T17:57:00.001-08:00

Let's take a further examination into the supposed benefits of chocolate.

Calories and Weight Gain
Premium grade dark chocolate contains only cocoa butter, a fat that naturally occurs in cocoa beans. It is made up of stearic acid (34%), oleic acid (34%), palmitic acid (25), and other acids. The combined effect of all the fats found in cocoa butter is rather neutral in regard to an individuals lipid profile. Although when lower grade chocolate or milk chocolate is consumed, part of the total fat content of chocolate comes from milk fat or other types of fat, which do adversely affect cholesterol levels.

It has been noted that cocoa does not raise LDL cholesterol but dark chocolate is a very calorie-dense food. Regular consumption will add many extra calories to the daily total. It will affect those who have to watch their calorie intake. One more consideration is that sugar is listed as the #1 ingredient in many, many chocolate products. When considering overall health, sugar, without question has more negative effects than the fat content of chocolate. Sugar is a well known contributor to heart disease, insulin and blood sugar disorder, immune system issues, moodiness, leukemia, dental problems, yeast infections, etc.

In part 3 of this series we will continue looking further at the proclaimed benefits of chocolate, stay tuned.

During the winter time we often come down with the dreaded cold or flu. Source Naturals Wellness Formula can help to reduce the number of such illnesses and shorten them as well. Check out Wellness Formula. The price is very attractive too.

Tom Thorne

www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Chocolate, the Good, the Bad and the Ugly (Part II)

2008-12-31T13:48:00.000-08:00

The first thing a person that needs to done when reading a study is to consider the source. Who conducted the study? If a motorcycle manufacturer conducted an exclusive study on quality of motorcycles would you not expect their respective brand to be at the top? Similarly, who conducted all of the studies on the benefits of chocolate? Taking a closer look, it can be discovered that once the studies funded by chocolate interest groups were discarded, the ones left offered conflicting results.

It must be mentioned though, that some isolated compounds in cocoa did show certain health benefits. If people were to consume pure cocoa, they might be able to enjoy some health benefits such as a positive effect on blood pressure and glucose metabolism. The issue is that the majority of people eat processed chocolate with all the other less desirable ingredients such as added sugar, corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, milk fats/dairy cream, etc.). In many cases the actual cocoa content may very well be less than 20%. With this being the case, the general conclusion that chocolate is healthy is much less persuasive.

In Part 3 of this series we will begin to look at the supposed benefits from a critical thought perspective.

Winter time is here. It's almost tax time which can be a big headache. If suffering from headaches is a part of your life, you may want to try the natural headache supplement called MigraDefense. It combines 5 of the most powerful natural headache remedies all in one punch. Take a look at it on the FeelingOutstanding web page.

Have a great 2009
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Chocolate and Cocoa -- A Heavenly Delight or Not?

2008-12-27T13:36:00.000-08:00

Recently there has been a surge of claims by various companies regarding the health benefits of chocolate and cocoa. If this is true, I am very happy. Chocolate sure tastes good and I haven't had more than a very small sampling in probably 12 years.

This claim deserves attention. In order not to just gloss over the facts I am going to devote a few blogs to this subject. As usual, I will pull no punches. Stay tuned, it will be interesting.

I have had great results using MigraDefense for headaches. If you suffer from frequent headaches I strongly recommend trying MigraDefense.

Have a great week!
Tom Thorne
www.FeelingOutstanding.com

What a Difference a Pillow Makes!

2008-12-21T08:39:00.000-08:00

There are some things that we all do almost every day. One of them is sleep. With the multitude of activities society demands on us today plus the fact that most of us have to work 8 or more hours we only have a limited amount of time for sleep. I think we all agree that we need to make the best of that time! In this article I want to discuss a technique used by many that has provided them with better quality sleep.

It seems that I have gone through a lot of pillows in my days. Often, after I have bought a new pillow and slept on it for a couple of months the characteristics of the pillow change drastically. In fact some pillows gets so bumpy that it feels like I'm sleeping on a pile or rocks. This has happened many times and I call such a pillow "the rocky mountains pillow." Other pillows are so big that you wake up with a sore neck. Chiropractors tout the cervical pillow very highly. I have had 3 cervical pillows over the years. The cervical pillow never was especially comfortable for me and I cannot say that it led to pleasant dreams.

This past summer my lovely wife Amy surprised me with a gift. Actually, she bought one for herself too. It was the Tony Little micropedic pillow. Having tried as many different pillows as I have, naturally I was very skeptical. As I took it out of the box I looked at it and told her that it looked very strange. Reluctantly, I laid my head down on it and my frown quickly morphed into a smile. The pillow was oh, so nice, it was just remarkable. I can honestly say that my wife and two daughters will admit that the Tony Little micropedic pillow is the most comfortable pillow we have ever slept on.

Construction
The Tony Little pillow has a quad chamber design that supports your back and spine in proper alignment while being soft enough to give great comfort. It is filled with air infused microbeads that make it always "self fluffing". Two spandex pillow cases came along with the pillows to help keep it cool and comfortable. You don't have to turn the pillow over to find the cool side.

In my next blog I will tell what I especially like about the pillow.

Have a great Christmas,
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Significant Improvement in Wellness Formula

2008-12-18T12:06:00.001-08:00

My family has used the Source Naturals Wellness Formula product for years to help fight winter time diseases such as the cold and the flu. Durng this time of year I normally take 1 tablet per day. When I start to feel a cold or something wierd coming on I step it up right away. Often this stragegy has prevented illness from getting started.

The biggest complaints that people had about Wellness Formula was that the tablets were large, they did not go down your throat easily, and they had a bad odor to them. I am happy to say that now Wellness Formula comes in medium size gel capsules that go down much easier than the former large pills. The odor is gone also, they do not have a bad odor at all. Another step forward for what was already the leading winter time supplement.

Here's to a healthy winter!
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Two of my Favorite Bands

2008-11-28T16:18:00.000-08:00

Every year the small town of Denver, NC has a community Festival they call 'Denver Days' in the fall. For entertainment this year the Marshall Tucker Band graced our presence. Coming to a small town like Denver where the band was probably lucky to break even financially was a real treat.

The entire band came, there were no studio musicians in their place. They were outstanding. They can jam right along with the Allman Brothers. Yes, Toy Caldwell is gone. But you know what? Chris Hicks is their new lead guitarist. Playing guitar right along side him is Clay Cook, both were great. Doug Gray, one of the finest country-rock vocalists ever to set foot on a stage has lost a bit but his presence alone made up for it. I counted 14 songs and the band played for a total of 2:20. Like I said, they were really jamming! It looked like they were having as much fun as we were. I stood right next to the stage for the entire concert.

As I was driving home from Thanksgiving dinner Thursday evening I was priviledged to hear another one of my old favorites on the radio, Billy Joel. This was a live recording from New York earlier in the year. I was absolutely thrilled when I heard one of my Top 10 of all time, played live once again, 'Piano Man'. To hear the audience singing every word of the song right along with with the piano man was quite touching. Billy, like Doug can't quite sing as he used to but I don't know if I have ever heard Piano Man played as well. The piano was mesmerizing. I sat in the 4th row in Chicago watching Bill Joel in 1977. That song brought back a lot of memories, good memories. Memories of a time when thing weren't so hectic.

It just goes to show what I have been saying. We can keep up our energy, stamina and mental alertness for a long time. The best way to do so is to keep up our exercise program, our good diet, get proper rest and our nutritional supplements.

For more information about herbal and homeopathic remedies visit http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/. Or if you want to trade concert or band stories with a long time rock-n-r0ll fan, I'm all for that too!

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Money, Confidence, Backing and Your Health

2008-11-17T14:29:00.001-08:00

There was an article in the Charlotte Observer today explaining how many "do-it-yourselfers" are cutting back. Not doing as many home repair projects now or making their projects smaller than in the past. This only makes sense with the economic uncertainty that prevails today.

Let's think about the economy at a 50,000 foot level for a second. Consider these two words: confidence and backing. What backing does the U.S. dollar have today? Money used to be (many years ago) backed by gold. What backing does money have today besides the confidence of the American people. And what causes confidence? The President, the congress, the goverment, Iraq, Iran, Afghantistan, Russia? What cause loss of confidence? Certainly the media has a great deal to do with it. How much influence does the media have on our confidence, and therefore the economy?

These are all thoughts that I have pondered over the weekend and if you have any comments please share them. I would love to hear other considerations on this matter.

In my opinion a person's health has a great amount to do with his confidence. A year ago I was in such a quagmire with daily headaches that I was just about to give up. After trying some different herbal and homeopathic remedies I can honestly say that my life has taken on an entire new dimension. If your health is not as it should be check out the Feeling Outstanding webpage. There are many nutritional supplements that can do and do help.

Have a great week,
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

8 Benefts of Whey Protein (Part II)

2008-11-05T08:25:00.001-08:00

Here is the second group of 4 of the Major Benefits to Whey Protein (and it doesn't taste bad either!)

4. Cancer - Cancer patients undergoing radiation or chemotherapy often have difficulty in meeting their daily nutritional requirements due to nausea and just not being hungry. Whey protein is an excellent protein choice for cancer patients as it is very easy to digest and gentle to the system. Numerous studies have shown that whey protein which is rich in the amino acid cysteine, provides an extra boost to the immune system.

5. Diabetes - Type 2 diabetes is a growing health problem, largely in part to the continued rise in obesity. This is a serious health issue right here in the United States. Healthy nutrition practices have been shown to play a role in helping to manage and possibly prevent diabetes. Whey protein, which is a high biological value (BP) protein is a good choice of protein for diabetics who need to carefully manage food intake.

6. Another of the benefits of whey protein for seniors is the ability to help prevent bone loss. A nutritious diet including whey protein may help keep bones and muscles healthy and young. A recent study conducted at Boston University showed that elderly individuals who consumed low levels of protein had a significant loss of bone density four tears after the start of the study.

7. Healthy Aging - As we age, muscle loss and its detrimental health implications are a growing concern. Good nutrition and adequate amounts of whey protein may help maintain strong muscles during aging.

8. Infant Nutrition - Whey protein contains many of the same components found in human breast milk. Infant formulas containing whey protein are the next best thing to breast-feeding.

The benefits of whey protein are many, and should not be overlooked. FeelingOutstanding.com offers a fine selection of whey protein products. I tend to prefer the chocolate flavor.

Have a great day, stay strong

Tom Thorne

www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Management and Your Health

2008-10-30T15:40:00.000-07:00

Do you ever feel this way?

I would imagine that a large percentage of college students have aspirations of management sometime in the professional careers. These desires often become stronger as students graduate and enter the workforce. Management, a leader of people, being able to form and shape peoples lives, having a direct role in the success of a company; what more noble of a calling could there be? Is being a leader or manager in some fashion going to make everything better? Is management fun and thoroughly rewording? Is it "all that it's cracked up to be?"

Competition today places tremendous stress on corporations. The dazzling advances in technology and telecommunications make the development of new products and ideas better, faster and cheaper. Of course, the company with the new products or ideas first has the distinct advantage of gaining new customers and building a reputation as an innovator. Acquiring new customers before the competition does. Truly, these are huge advantages.

Considering the importance that is placed on new products and processes, getting there first is a critical item to companies. Consider if a bank is the first with a new and innovative offering. They have the chance of drawing customers away from other banks over to their side. Couple this with the emphasis placed on 'six sigma' and 'zero defects' and there is a tremendous amount of stress placed of management today. Management all the way down from the C.E.O. to the V.P. the team leader. Company managers are facing more stress and pressure from above then ever before. Pressure to perform fast with high quality and high productivity.

The amount of hours and weekends that many managers work today is just about criminal. When I take a look at some of the managers I see, there is no way I would want the stress and pressure they are faced with, often daily. Some have turned into such grouches that no one wants to talk to them, even on a social level. I am aware of several people who were formerly managers and are glad to be out of the spotlight.

If you deal very well with stress and working long hours, management might not be such a shock and a good fit. If you have a second life apart from your job, you may want to sit tight in your job for a while before you push for a management position. What is important to you? What are your priorities? If offered a management position, consider these questions before you jump into it.

With the stress that management and non-management face in Corporate America today it is essential that we take care of ourselves. For our sanity as well as our physical condition. Visit the Feeling Outstanding Nutritional Supplements page for an excellent selection of nutritional supplements and herbal remedies. An alternative approach for health.

Tom Thorne

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

7 Vital Attributes to be Successful at the Job

2008-10-21T07:47:00.000-07:00

Most teenagers in high school have aspirations of being successful at their occupation and making lots of money when they graduate from school. I would say that even more college students have similar goals to be successful and wealthy upon graduation. For the great majority of people, there are certain job attributes that need to be practiced to achieve such lofty goals.These principles have worked for me. I have watched these principles work for other successful people too. So, let's get started.

1. Effort and a strong work ethic. The first thing a person needs to do when starting a new job, regardless of your qualifications, is to show a strong work ethic. Show that you are willing to go the extra mile, put in the additional couple of hours and put forth extra effort. There's no better way to make a good first impression on management and co-workers.

This sounds so obvious, but it is amazing how many people don't do this and lose that chance for a first impression. A young man once worked for me that was very intelligent, organized, neat, and was a very gifted communicator. His work ethic was poor and that far overshadowed his good qualities. Needless to say, after he had a good chance to improve but chose not to, he didn't last long in my department.

My next blog will include part 2. After we examine all seven, we will then take a look at how these are related to our health and well being.

Have a great day everyone,
Tom Thorne
www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Positive Thinking and Feeling Great! (Part II)

2008-10-12T12:36:00.001-07:00

I firmly believe that diet and exercise are unquestionable keys to good health. And, probably most of you do too. Intrinsically, deep down inside, we all know this. My point is this, when start eating a more healthy diet and implement a sensible exercise program we know that our health will improve.

We need to keep our thoughts at a higher plain when disappointments occur. If we don't lose those 10 pounds in a month (as the advertisement told us we would) or we don't get those super ripped abs in 90 days, we cannot get discouraged. We know what we are doing is right. We have to keep it up. Like it or not, weight is not as evanescent as the advertisements tell us. If we get a cold or the flu, we cannot get discouraged. The right habits that we are now practicing did not cause it.

I absolutely abhor the avalanche of advertisements that this country faces that are outright false. The mendacity of some companies is appalling. There are so many ads that make losing weight, gaining huge muscle mass, developing ripped abs and getting in Superman like condition seem so easy just by taking their magic potion or doing their "quick" exercise routines.

Conclusion:
Living life feeling outstanding comes from practicing good habits daily. To be successful in this quest it is imperative that we make positive thinking one of those habits. Doing the right thing leads to victory. Healthy people don't get there by magic. Positive thinking makes doing the right thing a whole lot easier.

Here's to good health.
Tom Thorne
www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Should I Join a Fitness Center or Not? Part II

2008-10-07T14:30:00.001-07:00

On the other hand, I have been an exercise enthusiast all of my adult life. I was a member of a quality gym recently for about a year. It was a first class facility and the owners were very accomplished weight lifters and weight trainers. Honestly, I never was that thrilled with the experience. It was nice to hob-nob with people seeking the same general goal as yourself but the extra time involved, the inconvenience and the expense soon became a drag. It was never really worth it's value for me.

This can happen to people who become members of a fitness center. And when it does, some get discouraged and quit exercising completely. Does it mean everything is over with, fitness is out the window and gone for good for a person who doesn't maintain their membership? I say definitely not. There are several excellent home gym products available at reasonable prices. And with some creativity a very good exercise routine can be developed around the house with just a small amount of gadgets and minimal expense.

How many of you remember Jimmy Piersoll, the legendary center fielder who played baseball for the Boston Red Sox in the 1950s and 1960s? The person who many consider one of the best defensive outfielders ever to play the game. I remember Jimmy saying many times that the best overall exercise is running. In my opinion, running is much more enjoyable when you are outside than when you are inside a small track doing 9 laps per mile. But, if you have seen the shape Jimmy was in long after his retirement you would know that he was on to something.

Conclusion Fitness centers are great for some people. They help provide the added motivation needed to keep up an exercise program. For others, membership in a fitness center just does not make sense and it is not necessary. Some people have the power within to keep up the workout routine on their own. Some people work out with family members at their own houses. In the near 30 years that I have exercised very consistently, I have been a member of a gym for one of those years. Membership has not been necessary for me. Regardless, we want to do our best to help us stay in shape and live life Feeling Outstanding. If membership to a gym is what you need, go for it, and enjoy yourself!

Visit the Feeling Outstanding Chuck Norris Total Gym page page for a preview into one of the top home fitness products available. The Total Gym is a complete workout in one machine. It comes with complete instructions for set up (which takes about ten minutes) and beautiful cards demonstrating each of the over 80 different exercises. It brings the fun back into exercise.

Here to good health!

Tom Thorne

www.FeelingOutstanding.com

What Does Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Have to do With Our Health? Part II

2008-10-03T14:30:00.000-07:00

Isn't it great to feel young?

Let's examine Maslow's hierarchy of needs with regard to our health. The physiological needs are taken care of for the great majority of people in the United States. Layer 1 (from a health standpoint) is not a motivator for most.

One of my goals is to live life feeling outstanding, and I'm sure many of you feel the same. This is a level five need. This is self-actualization, being all we can be.

When we feed the need to be in excellent health, this higher level need will become stronger. It will involve a desire to fulfill our potential, to live life feeling outstanding, which is a part of self-actualization. When we start eating right (or improve our eating habits) and get on an exercise program, these good habits become easier and we want to do more.

Maslow also went on to study people who were considered to be self-actualized by society and himself. He developed a list of qualities that these people displayed that were different from the general population. There is a characteristic that these self-actualized people demonstrated that is especially significant with regard to health. These people resisted enculturation. They were not susceptible to social pressure to be well-adjusted or to fit in with the crowd. In order to really live life feeling outstanding we have to resist enculturation.

The social pressures on a person to fit-in with the crowd are huge. It is extremely easy to compromise what we know is right during social occasions, at a sporting event with friends or just eating lunch at work. Or to offer we allow our kids to eat far too much junk food to obtain their temporary adoration. Let's be people who seek the higher level need to live life feeling outstanding. Let's be autonomous people who resist enculturation. Let's practice the good health habits that will benefit us both now and in the future.

Visit the Feeling Outstanding Natural Supplements page for an excellent selection of nutritional supplements and herbal remedies. An alternative approach toward living life feeling outstanding!

Tom Thorne
www.FeelingOutstanding.com

What Does Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Have to do With Our Health? Part I

2008-10-03T14:21:00.001-07:00

L.J.: looks like he's "being all that he can be."

One of the most well known psychological theories in the United States is what has been coined as Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. This theory basically states that some needs take precedence over others. For example, if you are hungry or thirsty you will take care of the thirst first. When a layer becomes satisfied, the next layer up becomes a motivator, but not until the previous layer is fulfilled to a reasonable extent.

Five broad layers of needs were defined:

1. Physiological needs which include the basic needs for survival. This need includes items such as water, food, salt and other vitamins and minerals necessary to stay alive. Interestingly Maslow includes sex as a layer 1 need.
2. Safety and security.

3. Love and belonging.
4. The esteem needs.

5. Self Actualization.

The assumption being that once any of the first 4 level needs are met, they are no longer a motivator, or need. The next higher level need takes over. This fifth layer, unlike the first four level needs, does not involve this kind of a balance (homeostasis). This layer of needs becomes stronger the more it is fed. There is a continuous desire to fulfill potentials, to self-actualize, to be all that we are capable of being.

In my next blog we will start to see what this has to do with health and feeling great.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding!

Tom Thorne

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Feeling Great--It Take Willpower, Determination and a Hard Head (Part IV)

2008-09-20T14:18:00.001-07:00

The pressures on our time today are enormous. It definitely takes a lot of will power and determination to eat well and keep up a regular a workout program. It also takes a hard head, or some people call it, a cold heart.

Consider these two situations. My friend Ron knows he shouldn't drink alcohol. He suffers from headaches almost every time he does. And Amy knows that sugar is one of a couple very real causes of headaches in her life and that she needs to avoid it like the plague.

Ron and his buddies were taken to an Atlanta Falcons vs. Oakland Raiders game by a vendor. Ron, who has lived in several different parts of the country was now living just outside of Atlanta. He was a die hard Raiders fan since he was a small child. The Raiders had a pretty good team that yea. He really wanted to rub it in to his native Atlanta friends after the Raiders beat the Falcons, as he was sure they would. Ron was feeling outstanding right now.

The setting was fantastic. They were in the company climate-controlled sky box sitting back relaxing on nice chairs looking down on fans in the bleachers shivering. As the game proceeded, they watched a middle aged gentleman reach over the top of other fans to get his drink while they sat back comfortably and feasted on a nice catered meal. Tender sliced beef, chicken cordon bleu and pasta salad, the whole 9 yards, And yes, of course, the liquor was flowing. Ron was well aware of liquor being one of the leading causes of headaches for him, but the temptation was awful. Amy, on the other hand, was invited to a party for an old classmate. Her friends house was decorate to the max. All kinds of party favors in honor of the great achievement of turning 40. Of course, there was a birthday cake that looked out of this world, along with soda and wine coolers galore. Everyone was mercilessly indulging themselves.

What are Ron and Amy going to do? Is Ron going to cave in to the peer-pressure and drink that beer or two? Is he going to rationalize away the danger and say 'sometimes I can get by with one?' Is Amy going to justify a piece of cake and a cooler by saying 'just this once?' They are both very well aware of the consequences, but food and drink make a devastating temptation. It takes a hard head to do what's right. It takes a tough minded person to turn down that momentary pleasure for the overall good.

Enjoy yourself and have fun!

Tom Thorne
www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Feeling Great--It Take Willpower, Determination and a Hard Head (Part II)

2008-09-19T15:02:00.000-07:00

It seems that everything is working against the rules of good health in today's society. For example:

Here on the east coast, the good TV shows come on at 10 p.m. The network channel news broadcasts don't start until 11:00 p.m.

The 40 hour work week we grew up with is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Many salaried employees find themselves toiling away at an 45-55 hours per week, aned some even much more. And this is what is expected. Do you ever get a headache?

It also seems like the drive to and from work keeps getting longer. If we work 50 hours per week and spend 2 hours per day driving to and from work, that's a total of 60 hours. A lot of time. What happened to that utopian society that was predicted 30 years ago? And many of us have to put in time on weekends as well. The telecommuter, who has the luxury of working form home is some times no better off. When I telecommute I often start an hour early and work late. If I have my PC at home over the weekend it's almost guaranteed that I'll log in for some work time.

When I was a kid, it seems that I rarely had a lot of homework. I did most of the work during class. Through their school years, my kids (the last of which will graduate this year) were often bringing home 2-3 hours of homework per night. And guess what that means, my wife and I, as woefully prepared as we were at times, got to help them!

The extracurricular activities that kids are involved in today are outstanding, but they are also very time consuming. Gone are the days when our kids could play an unsupervised game of baseball, basketball, volleyball, soccer or football in the yard or neighborhood park with some friends. Now everything has got to be a big coordinated effort with uniforms and umpires and crazy parents sitting in the stands barking about every call the referee or umpire makes.

What I'm trying to say is that the pressures on our time are enormous. Sometimes we wonder who has time to exercise? It definitely takes willpower and determination to eat well and keep up a regular workout program. In my next blog, I would like to make a few simple suggestions that may make a seemingly impossible task at least a little easier.

At Feelingoutstanding.com we are all about trying to help with our everyday lives. We are not going to offer a miracle drug that will cure all your ills at the drop of a hat. What we are going to suggest are proven, natural remedies that do help over time.

Here's to your helath, here's to Feeling Outstanding!
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Feeling Great--It Take Willpower, Determination and a Hard Head (Part II)

2008-09-18T15:07:00.000-07:00

Are you feeling outstanding today? How easy it is to wake up in the morning, get ready for work, pour a cup of coffee, grab a cinnamon roll, hop in the car and head off to work. Ah, that great and mesmerizing smell of that coffee. How scrumptious that cinnamon roll tastes. As we get to work, we lavish in a second or third cup, or maybe a soda. Now, we are ready to take on the world. Consider what we have just done. Was that really a nutritious breakfast?

What about lunch? A fast food burger or even a fast food salad laced with preservatives? Please don't misunderstand, I know there is a time and a place for fast food. I know that sometimes we find ourselves in precarious situations where fast or "junk" food is the only option. How often does that happen though?

Will Power and Determination
We are all aware of the basic rules of health; things like diet, exercise and sleep. We have heard these pronouncements again and again. But how many of us really put these good practices into action? It takes a lot of willpower and determination to stick to a balanced and healthy diet or a good exercise program. Or, to make sure that we get enough sleep. It seems that everything is working against the rules of good health in today's society. In my next blog we will take a look at a fews of the plethora of factors that seem to be working against us.

Keep on thinking the higher thoughts, don't be discouraged!
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Health and Wellness--A New Approach, or an Old Approach? (Part II)

2008-09-17T14:53:00.001-07:00

I'm so glad that my days of feeling like this are not even close to as often as they were for 40 years of my life, it feels outstanding.

Sorry to everyone that my blogs got kind of out of order but here the part II to this subject. The 'arcacum' secrets that my buddy gave me to good health. If they sound trite, consider how many really practice them.

1. A regular exercise program. He does a good, solid workout in an eight day cycle. Day 1 is designed for the upper body, day 2 is for the abs, day 3 is geared toward the lower body. Day 4 is a rest day. Then days 5-7 are somewhat different routines but once again for the upper body, abs and lower body. Day 8 is another rest day. He doesn't go overboard. He doesn't work out for hours at a time. His routine generally lasts between 30-45 minutes. But the key is consistency. Of course, he is not perfect at maintaining the 8 day schedule, but he does keep it up very well.

2. Diet. Our 49 year old friend watches what he eats and drinks. Once again, he is not on a crazy diet where he partakes of copious vitamins and minerals daily. What he does do is eat in moderation with a good balance. He takes a small amount of supplements daily, and he sticks to it. To him, the biggest factor is that he does not eat foods that he knows or strongly suspects do not agree with him, no matter how delectable or socially acceptable they may be. That can mean turning down food or drink at times when it is against his will. Mr. 49er considers his health more important than the temporary pleasure obtained from items that he knows will come back to haunt him later.

3. Time with his creator. One more thing that he specifically mentioned was that he tries to spend private time with his Lord and creator every day.

We have all seen many people who get hooked on wild and crazy Superman diets that promise the world, or fad exercise programs that guarantee to make a Hercules out of us in an "incredibly short time." These things do not work, I have never seen one that does. Maybe Mr. 49ers balanced approach is something we should all consider. It works for him.

Have a great day, enjoy yourself, and do your best.

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Theory X, Theory Y and Feeling Oustanding (Part II)

2008-09-16T15:48:00.001-07:00

This manager looks like she is more comfortable with her staff!

A theory X manager really does not view his employees with much respect Let's take a look at how Douglas McGregor explains a Theory Y managers attitude toward his staff is.

Most people consider effort in work as natural.
People will apply self-control and self-direction in the pursuit of organizational objectives, without external control or the threat of punishment.
Commitment to objectives is a function of rewards associated with their achievement.
People usually accept and often seek responsibility.
The capacity to use a high degree of imagination, ingenuity and creativity in solving organizational problems is widely, not narrowly, distributed in the population.

What McGregor then went to theorize is the self-fulfilling prophecy notion. What managers treat their employees as is what they tend to get. If a manager (Theory X) views and treats employees as though they dislike work and need to be forced to produce, he will have a disgruntled crew who takes breaks every chance they can.

On the other hand, if a manager (Theory Y) views and treats his/her workforce as imaginative, creative, willing and able to solve problems and work toward the common goals he/she will have a creative team that is able to come up with new solutions and ways to do things better, faster and cheaper. What McGregor in a nutshell is saying is that a Theory Y manager will more often than not have a more productive team than a Theory X manager.

This is a worthwhile thought to ponder on. Is McGregor on to something? In my next blog we will start to turn this inward toward our own health.

Have a great day, and do your best!

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingooutstanding.com/

Theory X, Theory Y and Feeling Oustanding (Part I)

2008-09-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

The worried manager. I wonder how he feels about his staff?

Arguably, the most influential book on management theory was the classic writing 'The Human Side of Enterprise' by America social psychologist Douglas McGregor. In this classic book he introduced his radical Theory X and Theory Y philosophy. This concept has been taught to one degree or another in colleges and universities throughout the United States since. And to some extent it still receives attention today.

McGregor's thought was that management viewed employees as either a Theory X type or a Theory Y type of individual. Hence the terms, Theory X and Theory Y managers. In Summary a Theory X manager views employees as follows:

The average person dislikes work and will avoid it if he/she can.
Therefore most people must be forced to work toward organizational objectives with the threat of punishment.
The average person prefers to be directed and to avoid responsibility. He/she is relatively un-ambitious and wants security above all else.

In my next blog we will take a look at the opposite side of the spectrum. What McGregor calls a Theory Y manager. Then we will make a comparison in real life and see how on earth this relates to our health.

Have a blessed evening, a good night's sleep and a great day tomorrow. Let's keep our thoughts on the higher plane and reap the benefits that are ours if we do so.

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Health and Wellness--A New, or an Old Approach?

2008-09-13T08:50:00.000-07:00

I once knew a man who had been through a lot in his life. Several broken bones, a couple of concussions, a lot of stress, damaged brain cells, etc. But this fellow was quite unique. Shortly after he celebrated his 49th birthday he challenged a much younger friend to a push-ups contest.

This man, who we will call Mr. "49er", despite all of the 'stuff' he had been through in life still looked like he was in pretty good shape. He was definitely not a muscle bound "Hulkster" or anything like that, but he was not overweight and just looked generally healthy. As the contest unfolded, Mr. 49er won hands down. He did 70 good, nose-to-the-ground push-ups, and he probably could have done a few more had he been pushed! His endurance was outstanding. I was quite impressed.

I asked this chap what his secret was. He replied that there was no secret. When he explained it to me, he was right. Everybody has been taught these principles since they were young children. The problem is that few practice them. Here are the keys he gave me to health and wellness. In my next blog I will share those 'arcanum secrets' with you.

I went down to my kitchen yesterday and noticed a bottle of Peter Gilham's Natural Calm Magnesium Supplement in my kitchen that I had purchased at a local health food store a while ago. I also noticed that the price tag was $21.95, and I know I wasn't offered a discount. This exact same product in the same quantity is offered by Feeling Outstanding for $15.95. The prices on the Feeling Outstanding web page are very good!

Here's to your health, here to saving money also!

Tom Thorne

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Standards for Our Health (Part II)

2008-09-11T18:34:00.000-07:00

Now that really looks like fun! Do we set standards for our health habits? I think we should consider doing so. Here are two simple suggestions.

Get started or continue with a good exercise program. It doesn't have to be a great elaborate workout with many dollars invested in expensive equipment and high dollar apparel. Many of the common, everyday exercises are a great part of a workout. For those who have a hard time staying on an exercise routine adding variety in your workouts is a trick that I have used many times over the years. For example, I might focus on running for a couple months, then move on to swimming, bicycling, sets of different calisthenics, use a rebounder or a trampoline just to name a few. A good standard to set is to exercise 3-4 times per week, 30-45 minutes per session.
Here is one more health standard I would like to note that can help almost all of us. If we know a food or drink is going to upset us, make us sick, give us a headache or cause some other problem, stay away from it.

There are many more health standards that you can think of. Let's get moving. Not next week, not tomorrow, but today. I can nearly guarantee you, once you get started on the path of improved health and well being, living life and feeling outstanding, you will want to do more. It'll become like a higher level need that you want to keep feeding. You, your family and your acquaintances will all reap the benefits.

Visit the Feeling Outstanding Natural Supplements page for an excellent selection of nutritional supplements and herbal remedies. A great start moving in the path of setting standards for our health.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding!
Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Setting Standards For Our Health (Part I)

2008-09-11T17:12:00.000-07:00

The pleasure of eating with a friend. There's not many things better!

What kind of standards do we set for what is certainly one of our most precious assets, our health? Heave we ever though about health standards? Are we complacent about our health? Do we even have standards?

Our health and well-being is an area where many of us have to do some real soul searching. After all, the old adage "you are what you eat" is hard to deny. What kind of health standards do we set for ourselves? Seriously, do we exercise like we know we should? Do we eat and drink (or refrain from eating and drinking) as we know deep down inside we should? Do we get enough sleep?

I am of the opinion that nearly all of us have been taught the basics of good health and well-being since our elementary school days. We really claim ignorance, can we? But honestly, when we take a good, hard look, how many of do what we know should? Sometimes I wonder. What kind of health standards can we set? What is realistic? Just a couple of basic goals or standards, can go a long way. In tomorrow's blog I would like to make a couple of suggestions to help us in our quest to Feel Outstanding.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding!
Tom Thorne
www.FeelingOutstanding.com

2008-09-09T14:45:00.000-07:00

Pine Bark

In my last two blogs I talked about Feverfew and Butterbur, two herbal remedies that have shown very good results for Headaches. Let's take a look at a third.

Dr. Sirichai Chayasirisobhon of Kaiser Permanente Medical Center set out to address the question of whether free radical damage can contribute to migraine headaches. ("Use of a Pine Bark Extract and Antioxidant Vitamin Combination Product as Therapy for Medication", Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain, Vol 46, No. 5, May 2006) He chose a dozen patients who had a long-term history of migraines with little to no success with various drugs (antidepressants, beta-blockers and anticonvulsants).

At the start of the study, subjects completed a questionnaire which was called the migraine disability assessment (MIDAS). The MIDAS was designed to assess the impact of migraine flare-ups on activities at home, work and while interacting with friends and family. This is a great way to start an unbiased test, so that the results before the test are well documented and there can be no dispute.

For the three month study period, each subject was given daily supplements that contained 600 mg of vitamin C, 300 IU of vitamin E and 1,200 mg of a pine bark extract. Subjects were allowed to continue using the medications they were currently taking. Upon the end of the trial period the subjects completed a seconds MIDAS questionnaire. Their responses indicated a significant improvement.

The overall MIDAS scored improvement was more than 50%.

The average number of migraine days was reduced from 44 days in the three months prior to the trial, to 26 days during the trial.

The average migraine severity score (which some will argue is the most important factor) was reduced from 7.5 (out of 10) to 5.5

One subject dropped out of the trial. Of the remaining 11, two reported no change in frequency, duration or severity. Among the other nine, the overall MIDAS score improvement was almost 68%.

These three herbal remedies for migraines have all shown very good results when tested as alternative treatments for migraine headaches. If you suffer from headaches, these three appear to be well worth a try. It is possible that people in this country need to take a new approach toward migraine headache relief. Herbal remedies may be the answer.

Visit the Herbal Remedies for Migraine Headaches web page for more information on herbal remedies for migraine headaches and great product offers. There are ways to help defeat the battle with migraines or headaches in general that many of us are facing.

Here's to good health!

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches and Herbal Supplements - Butterbur

2008-09-08T14:18:00.000-07:00

Butterbur

Traditionally butterbur has been used to treat spasms in the respiratory and digestive tract. In addition, Butterbur is said to inhibit the production of histamine, which helps to keep air passages open. This may help to relieve allergic congestion and seasonal allergies.

Butterbur is very popular in Europe and becoming increasingly popular in America as a sound way to minimize neurological discomfort. The exact cause of this is still unclear but neurologically severe headaches may be caused by a number of biological factors. Some researchers believe that they stem from an imbalance in the central nervous system that encourages the release of blood-dilating peptides. This could result in inflammation of the brain's thin outer layer, the cerebral cortex. As pressure builds, blood flow becomes more restricted, potentially enhancing migraine headache symptoms. (Carle, R., Plant-based antiphlogistics and spasmolytics' (translated from German). Z Phytother. 1988; 9: 67-76).

Other physicians think that many commonly consumed food items trigger migraines or that they could be hereditary. A 12 week clinical study showed that the active compounds in butterbur can prevent peptidoleukotriene biosynthesis, which is an inflammatory process that has been linked to the onset of mgraines. (Bickel D, Roder T, Bestmann, J. Identification and characterization of inhibitors of peptide-leukotriene-synthesis from Petasites hybridus. Plant Medica. 1994; 60:31-322).

Also of note is the writing 'Petasites Hybridus Root (Butterbur) is an effective prevention for migraine" by Lipton, Einhaupl and Gobel (Neurology, 2004; 2240-4).

One thing to note about butterbur is that the plant contains liver toxins called pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs). So it is important to choose a formula that is PA free.

Butterbur is another herb that is worth a try if you are experiencing headaches. I know the pain and misery that headaches bring on. If you are expereincing headaches, migraines in particular, butterbur could very well be worth a try.

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches and Herbal Supplements - Feverfew

2008-09-06T17:11:00.000-07:00

The feverfew plant.

Feverfew comes from the same tribe of plants (asteraceae) as the daisy. Since the 1st century A.D., it has been used for the treatment of headache, stomachaches and fever. Feverfew has anti-inflammatory, stimulant, relaxant, decongestant and anti-coagulant properties.

Feverfew is mainly used for the treatment and prevention of frequent and serious migraine headaches. From the Natural Health (2007-03-01) we are told that "in a recent, well-designed clinical trial, 170 German patients took a placebo pill or an extract of feverfew for 16 weeks. Those taking Feverfew had significantly fewer migraines."

Feverfew should be taken daily as a preventative, rather than a treatment for migraines. Herbal experts recommend tapering off the dose if you are going to quit taking the herb.

In my opinion, treating the source is a far superior method when compared to treating the cause. I worked with treating the cause for 40 years and things just got worse. I am on the road to recovery now and I love living life Feeling Outstanding!

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

We Love Our Junk Food

2008-09-06T16:09:00.000-07:00

The list of the 10 U.S. cities where people spend the most amount of their yearly grocery bill on unhealthy food was released recently. Being from North Carolina I cannot say that I am especially proud that Charlotte was #5. The metro Charlotte region spends 10.9 percent of their annual food dollars in the unhealthy category. This would include items such as cake and brownie mixes, cookies, candies, frozen pizza, full-fat mayonnaise, chips and salty snacks, soft drinks, ice cream, bacon and sausage.

The #1 metro area was Minneapolis-St Paul, where people spend 11.5 percent. The top 10 look like this:
1. Minneapolis-St Paul
2. Richmond, VA
3. Indianapolis
4. Chicago
5. Charlotte
6. Louisville
7. New Orleans
8. Nashville
9. Memphis
10. Milwaukee (good thing they didn't include beer on the list)

This study was for the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S.

So which cites spent the least on unhealthy foods? The bottom five areas are Providence, R.I., Boston, MA, Portland, OR, Hartford, CT and Austin/San Antonio.

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Today's Gas Prices - Is Their a Silver Lining?

2008-09-05T14:15:00.000-07:00

I know that most of us are in the blues regarding the price of gas. I sure am. Even though the national average price has dropped to $3.67 per gallon it still hurts to fill up the car. This blog is about living life and feeling outstanding so see if their is any silver lining to this from the business standpoint.

As oil prices neared $150 a barrell costs seemed to increase for everything from jet fuel to plastic jars. The big question was how many companies would just fold up under this increased pressure?

The surprising answer is not many. The business men and women of this country continue to display amazing resilience. The concept of Theory Y employees that was proposed by Douglas McGregor back in 1960 has seemed to blossom as new ideas and ways to cut costs have been coming from all corners. And there have been a lot more cost cutting measures than just laying people off.

Granted, unemployment, which has jumped to a high in recent years of 5.6% is an issue, especially for those who are unemployed. But we also have to realize that throughout the mid 1990s up until very recently this country has been going through a period of great economic success. When I was in undergradute school at Indiana University in the late 1970s, 5% unemployment was considered to be 'normal.'

Productivity jumped by 4.3 percent in the April-June quarter. That's big news! My point is that with the many ingenious ideas that companies have developed to save money so the could stay in business and the productivity increases that have occured, when things turn for the better, companies should be in better shape.

In hard times as well as good times let's not forget about our health. Let's not forget to take care of ourselves, to eat right, exercise and take the nutritional supplements we need.

Here's to living life Feeling Outstanding.

Tom Thorne

www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Health, Sickness and Headaches - We Can Win!

2008-09-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

Kessler Peak, Mount Olympus Wilderness. We Can Win!

We will never go beyond the barriers in our own mind. If we think we cannot do something, we never will. If we think we will always be sick, clumsy, overweight or have headaches, we always will. To a great extent the battle is in our mind. If we are defeated in our mind, the battle is already lost. If we do not think our aspirations for good health will ever come to pass, they never will.

If we don't think we have what it takes to rise up and set a new standard, it's not going to happen. How many of us have a standard for our health? We need to set a new standard for what certainly is one of our most precious assets, our health. A standard not only to get better, but to stay better. The importance of good heath is paramount. Think of people you know of who are constantly afflicted with a heath issue and how much of life they miss out on. Some people cannot play any sports, swim or enjoy themselves in the sun because of health issues. Let's set a standard for our health, for better health, so that we can enjoy life and help others to do the same.

Sometimes we see people fighting a sickness the same way, doing the same old things that have not worked before. Continually heading down a slippery slope and not improving, continuing down the same treatment path that is going nowhere. We may need to jolt ourselves out of our complacency and try something different.

Maybe, just maybe it's time to try an alternative approach for health. An alternative approach to fight those migraine headaches. Or maybe it's time to get involved in a regular exercise program to lose weight instead of all of those crazy, heavily inflated items that are advertised everywhere we turn. How about trying some green tea for cholesterol or Vitamin B complex if you're stressed out?

Let's overcome our mental obstacles. Let's set a standard. Maybe it is time try something different, an alternative approach for health.

Visit the Feeling Outstanding Natural Supplements page for an excellent selection of nutritional supplements and herbal remedies. An alternative approach for health.

In the midst sedrious economic problems let's try to keep a positive attitude. Our health is our greatest blessing.

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches and Herbal Supplements

2008-08-31T17:04:00.000-07:00

When a person develops a migraine headache, the primary and immediate concern is relief from the incredible pain. All too often individuals in this situation grab a bottle and down one, two or three of the common over-the-counter headache medications to fix the issue. The problem is, that does not fix the issue.

People who take 2-3 or more of these medications per week are at strong risk to become caught in a desperate rebound headache cycle, where they have near daily headaches of one degree or another. There has got to be a better way to fight this modern day scourge on mankind. A person in such a situation has lost control of his or her life. They are slave to an evil taskmaster that will not allow them to do many of the things that they would like and not to enjoy so much of what life has to offer.

Through testing, three of the most effective herbal remedies for migraines are feverfew, butterbur and pine bark. Let's take a look at all three of these promising alternative treatments for migraine. In tomorrow's blog we will start to look at each of these three herbal remedies.

I hope all is well. I received a great comment on CoQ10 and a more common dosage (200-300 mg per day and 90 days to assess benefits), thanks to Mary Kay! If any one has information to share, please do so. We are all in a learning process!

Tom Thorne

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches - Magnesium as a Headache Treatment

2008-08-29T16:04:00.001-07:00

In this third article featuring some of the most promisign and effective nutritional supplements for headaches, magnesium is being featured. There is help for those of you with headaches, and it does not have to be only temporary.

Magnesium Magnesium is a mineral that is used for many purposes. The hsbaltimore, Health Series Institue e-Alert (September 14, 2004) website informs us a good intake of magnesium may promote bone flexibility, help prevent type 2 diabetes and heart disease.Recent studies show that magnesium is also essential for keeping your teeth healthy.

There have also been studies on a relationship between magnesium and headaches. A study by A. Trauninger (Oral magnesium load test in patients with migraine, Headache, 2002, 42(2): 0, 114-9) showed magnesium deficiencies to be common in those who suffer from migraines. Another study by A. Bianchi (Vitamin Horm, 2004, 69: p. 297-312) has found sufficient, though not definitive, evidence of magnesium's ability to help treat migraines. Current recommendations are to take 500-1000 mg of magnesium per day.

The Bottom Line The three natural remedies for migraine headache discussed here all have shown promising results as affective natural headache remedies. When looking at alternative treatments for migraines, these three appear to be at the top of charts. But the two biggest advantages alternative treatments have over prescription medications is their lack of side effects, and the fact that you are not going to go broke trying these supplements for migraines. These points plus the positive test results shown should be reason to include nutritional supplementation to help treat migraines.

For more information on natural supplements, alternative treatments for migraines and a great selection of vitamin products visit the - Riboflavin, Coenzyme Q10 and Magnesium - Three Powerful Alternative Treatments for Migraines.

Here's to Good Health!
Tom Thorne
http://www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Migraine Headaches - Coenzyme Q10 as a Treament Method

2008-08-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

Headaches can be miserable, but there are alternative treatments for migraine headaches that work. In this second of our series on nutritional supplements for migraines we will take a look at Coenzyme Q10.

Coenzyme Q 10 (CoQ10)

First identified in 1957, Coenzyme Q 10 is also known as "Ubiquinone" because it is found everywhere in the body. The highest amounts are in the heart, liver and pancreas. The lowest amounts are in the lungs.

The first applications for CoQ10 were in 1961, when it was found that cancer patients were deficient in the enzyme. Research has shown CoQ10 to be a very versatile supplement for a number of other conditions such as heart disease and migraines. Recent studies have also shown that CoQ10 may help in the treatment of Alzheimer Disease (X.L. Wang, Co-supplementation with vitamine E and coenzyme Q10 reduces circulating markers of inflammation in baboons, Am J Clin Nutrition, 2004. 80(3): p. 649-55). Reports on CoQ10 and migraines have been very positive. From an article in the April, 2002 issue of the journal of the International Headache Society, Cephalalgia, encouraging results have been reported from an open label trial of CoQ10 as a Migraine preventative.

The article "Open label trial coenzyme Q10 as a migraine preventive" by Rozen, Oshinsky, Gebeline, Bradley, Young, Shechter and Silberstib from Cephalalgia 22 (2) p. 137-141 we are told "At present there are very few efficacious migraine preventatives and fewer without significant side-effects... Migraine can be a disabling disorder and migraine preventives have been shown to not only reduce headache frequency, intensity and duration but also to improve quality of life.

Coenzyme Q10 is a naturally occurring substance and essential element of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. It has been the most extensively studied agent for the treatment of mitochondrial disorders and has been shown to have almost no identifiable side-effects in humans. There has been a recent interest in the role that mitochondria may play in migraine pathogenesis...The objective of this investigation is to assess the efficacy of coenzyme Q10 as a preventative treatment for migraine." The dosage used in the study was 150 mg of CoQ10 daily.

Key points from the trial included:
61.3% of the patients in the trial achieved at least 1 50% reduction in frequency of Migraine attacks by the end of the four-month trial.

It took time to achieve optimum results. Data from the study suggests that it takes 4-12 weeks to achieve more than 50% reduction. Coenzyme Q10 is effective for both migraine with aura (classic migraine) as well as migraine without aura (common migraine).

For more information about nutritional supplements for migraines as well as Herbal Supplements for Migraines visit the FeelingOutstanding.com website.

Here's to your health. Here's to victory over sickness!

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches - Riboflavin

2008-08-27T16:54:00.000-07:00

Don't be so sad! Help is on the way with alternative treatments for migraines! There is a better way. A good herbal or nutritional supplement treatment plan can provide relief without the pain of rebound headaches. In this first of three articles, we will look at one of the most beneficial natural supplements for headache treatment.

Riboflavin

Riboflavin is also known as Vitamin B-2. It plays a key role in maintaining health in humans and animals. It is yellow or yellow-orange in color. In addition to being used as a food coloring it is also used to fortify foods such as baby-foods, breakfast cereal, pastas, processed cheese, fruit drinks and sauces. It is also widely used in vitamin supplements.

For over 30 years Riboflavin has been used as a part of the phototherapy treatment of neonatal jaundice. It has recently been used in a new treatment to slow or stop the progression of the corneal disorder keratoconus (corneal collagen crosslinking). There have been studies conducted on riboflavin and its affects on headaches. In both a European and American study riboflavin was shown to effectively treat migraines at a dose of 400 mg per day. (European study: C. Boehnke, High-dose riboflabin treatment is efficacious in migraine prophylaxis: an open study in a tertiary care center. Eur J Neurol, 2004, 11(7): p. 175-7. American study: A.J. Yee, Effectiveness of high-dose riboflavin in migraine prophylaxis, Neurology, 1999, 52(2): p. 431-2)

In a separate study performed by Sandor, Afra, Ambrosini and Shoenen riboflavin has shown that when combined with beta-blockers it may be a useful treatment of migraine headaches. (Phophylactic treatment of migraine with beta-blockers and riboflavin: different effects on the intensity dependence of auditory evoked cortical potentials. Headache,. 2000, Jan). In an open-label trial (no placebo control group), as reported by the Mother Earth News (MEN) web site (Natural Health/2007-03-01/Natural-Headache-Remedies), 400 mg a day for six months cut migraine headache frequency in half and decreased medication use. MEN goes on to say that "another study showed that three months of riboflavin led to a 50 percent improvement in almost 60 percent of the volunteers, versus a 15 percent improvement over the people taking a dummy pill."

For more information about the causes of headaches check out our website. I have been through it for 40 years. I have had amazing relief in the last 8 months. I want to share my story and provide items that have helped with as many as possible.

Tom Thorne

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches - Nutritional Supplements

2008-08-24T13:00:00.001-07:00

This guy looks like I used two about 2 or 3 days out of every week. A migraine headache, or even just a headache is miserable. At times you do not want to live any more, the pain is so bad. This fellow really looks like he has a bad one.

There are three nutritional supplements that have been tested and shown to have good results in treating migraine headaches. They are, Riboflavin (B-2), Magnesium and Coenzyme Q-10. In upcoming blogs I want to go into these three in more depth.

Once again, trying a natural remedy for headaches is a good idea. It's not going to cost a fortune, nutritional supplements (in most cases) are not going to cause unpleasant side-effects, and they may do some real good. The issue with alternative treatment for migraines is that in most cases immediate relief is not going to happen. If a take an excedrin or B.C. powder I will very likely feel better within an hour. Although, this relief in a great many cases is totally temporary. It is likely that if you take this medications often you will receive a rebound headache with 24 hours or so.

You probably will not feel that kind of immediate benefit from natural methods, but over time many studies have shown significant improvement from alternative treatments for migraines.

Tom Thorne
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com

Freedom at a HighLevel!

2008-08-20T17:32:00.000-07:00

Yellowstone National Park, August, 2008.

Freedom. We talk a lot about our desire, our striving, our need for freedom. Two of the more common areas that are talked about are freedom of religion and freedom from debt. Certainly in this country we have a large amount of freedom of religion. I don't think we have enough freedom from debt though!

I would like you to consider another area of freedom. Freedom from pain, freedom from misery, freedom from sickness. For 40 years I suffered with recurring and frequent migraine headaches. For about the last ten years I suffered with near daily headaches of one degree or another. I tried and tried but could not find anything to help for more than a very short period.

Beginning in January of this year I started to strike gold. Small pebbles at first. This is August, 8 months later and I can honestly say that my headaches have shown at least 85% - 90% improvement. I have not had a migraine now in three weeks. There was no silver bullet, it took several different fresh, new ideas and a few new products. Some of the most helpful were the VEMMA nutritional supplement, some changes in eating habits and the Native Remedies MiGone Plus herbal remedy. If you, or anyone you know of suffers from migraine headaches please direct them to these websites. I am very confident they can provide some good information to help relieve this modern day plague.

The freedom I feel over this painful affliction now is incredible. Although I still get headaches occasionally, they are not near as frequent or severe as they were for many years. I feel like I am no longer a slave to this ugly taskmaster. I'm not quite 100% of the way there yet, about 85% - 90%. But I am heading in the right direction, toward the goal post, toward the finish line. It's a freedom like I have never felt.

www.FeelingOutstanding.com

Aura - Is There a Silver Lining

2008-08-19T17:29:00.000-07:00

In previous blogs on the subject of aura I discussed the indicationsof aura as well as the fact that not all migraine headache victims experience aura before they have headaches. In my final post on this subject I want to look and see if there is anything good about aura.

Aura not only happens to those who have migraine headaches but it also can happen to people who have epilepsy before a seizure. It would seem that this could be a benefit if acted upon immediately. But what about our subject of migraine headaches? If I knew that I was going to have a migraine headache 1, 5, 10, 15 or 30 minutes before it happened, would that help? Or would it tend to push me to a point of despair? I'm afraid that I cannot answer this question since I have never experienced aura.

I know that there are certain things I can do (outside of taking pills) when I start to get a headache that often times relieves the pain. The most helpful practice that I do when I start to feel headache pain is work out. If I am at home I hit the Total Gym for about 30-40 minutes. Most of the time if the headache pain is slight to moderate that will relieve it completely. If I am in the office I do a good set of push ups followed by a nice walk at lunchtime. This often provides natural headache relief as well. Whether that could be done at or right after aura, I do not know.

If anyone has any ideas they can share with us regarding if there is anything that can be done at the sign of aura please do so. Headaches afflict many people and we appreciate the help!

Have a great evening!

Aura -- Does Aura happen to Everyone who has Migraine headaches?

2008-08-18T15:26:00.000-07:00

In my last couple of postings I started to talk about aura, or the experience some people have before they come down with a migraine headache. As we saw yesterday, there are many different manifestations of an aura. The question remains, does this happen to everyone who has migraines?

I once had a friend who lived near the west coast and she was telling me about these wild experiences that she had before migraine headaches. Bright lights, distortions of objects, strange smells, etc. I had heard and read about this but never had anyone describe it to me as vividly as she. This lady was an excellent employee of one of the major phone companies. there was definitely nothing wrong with the way she communicated and put out work. She was very competent at her job. She had migraines often, and she did experience aura.

On the other hand, I have been a migraine victim for many years and I never recall having aura. My mother also, who before she passed away fought migraine headaches for years never experienced aura either, to the best of my knowledge.

My conclusion is that some people do have aura before migraine headaches and some do not. Aura, in and by itself is not an indication of how severe your headache will be. The friend I spoke of earlier who did experience aura had very severe headaches. My mother and I who never did, also have had excruciating headaches.

One of the things that has helped some people with their tension, stress and headaches are aromatherapy herbal packs. These beautiful, handcrafted eye and neck pillows come in 5 celestial colors and patterns with optional lavender and peppermint scents. They provide wonderful comfort and great relaxation as many testimonials show. A great bargain and a great gift item.

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Aura Sensations

2008-08-17T10:11:00.000-07:00

An aura is a perceptual disturbance experienced by some migraine headache sufferers before the headache occurs. What are the different sensations that can be experienced?

Visual Changes such as bright lights, zigzag lines, distortions in the size or shape of objects. A spot in the visual field in which vision is absent or deficient. Tunnel vision, slowly spreading spots, kaleidoscope effects, total temporary monocular (in one eye) blindness (in retinal migraine).
Auditory changes such as hearing voices or sounds that do not exist or a modification of voices or sounds in the environment. Buzzing, amplitude modulation or other modulations.
Strange smells.
Feelings of numbness or tingling on one side of the face or body.
Feeling separated from one's body.
Feeling as if the limbs are moving independently from the body.
Feeling as if one has to eat or go to the bathroom. Anxiety or fear.
Anxiety or fear.
Nausea.
Weakness, unsteadiness.
Saliva collecting in the mouth.
Being unable to understand or comprehend spoken words during and after the aura.
Being unable to speak properly, despite the brain grasping what the person is trying to verbalize.

All of these may be an aura, an indication that a migraine headache is coming soon.

It happens often, when you have an important business meeting, when you're going to a nice social obligation, or maybe going to a concert or somewhere else for downright fun. A rotten headache sets in that puts a huge damper one everything. We have to fight the causes of headaches to eliminate them! Check out the Feeling Outstanding website for more information on headaches and a great selection of nutritional supplements at good prices.

Aura - A telltale sign of migraines or not?

2008-08-15T19:13:00.001-07:00

You may have heard or read about 'aura'. Or you may have experienced it. An aura is the perceptual disturbance experienced by some migraine sufferers before a headache. It s also an indication realized by some people with epilepsy before a seizure. There are many sensations that an aura can include such as a strange light, an unpleasant smell or hearing voices that do not exist.

In upcoming blogs I would like to discuss the following:

What are the indications of aura?
Aura normally leads to bad things, but it there a silver lining?
Does this always happen to migraine victims?

Stay tuned, there is some good information coming.

People who have frequent headaches suffer miserably. Especially those with frequent migraines. There is relief, there is help. It takes effort from a person, but there can be natural headache relief, and there are products that assist immensely. The Native Remedies MiGone Plus product is an excellent herbal and homeopathic tool to use in the struggle against headaches. There are also several good strategies to use to determine the causes of daily headaches and to fight and win the battle.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding!

Rebound Headaches--A Personal Story

2008-08-13T16:35:00.000-07:00

I want to talk about a personal story today. The story of a person who suffered from one long rebound headache. This person was my mother. My mom had headaches periodically throughout her life, like many of us do. When she turned about 40, they started increasing. At the same time, her usage of over-the-counter headache medication started increasing too. She used several different brands so I don't think it's fair to pick on any on in particular here. Maybe I should just pick on them in general. She also like her Chinese food that was loaded with MSG.

As can be expected, as her increase in these so-called medications increased, so did her headaches. Was this a coincidence. I don't think so. She got to the point where she was taking two at a time, every day, and sometimes more than once a day.

Two questions are critical at this point. Were these medications that she was taking leading to analgesic rebound headaches? Were all of these medications really decreasing the amount of migraine headaches she received? The way she suffered nearly every single day for the last 15 years of her life show me without a doubt that she was suffering terribly from the rebound headache syndrome.

But what about migraines, if she only had small headaches that didn't bother her much were they not worth it? If the headaches were only small, I would tend to agree. The issue was they were not only small, insignificant little blimps on the radar screen. Sure, she would have a small headache every day, but just about every week she would have a migraine. And sometimes they would last 2-4 days.

When a person gets deeply the rebound headache cycle, they come to fear migraine headaches so bad that they will do nearly anything to avoid them. The common medications do appear to alleviate migraines. Sometimes they do (for a period of time), but not always. When a person gets in the cycle bad enough I don't think they do anything to help. They cause more harm than a person who rarely or never has headaches can ever imagine

What's the solution? We have to stop taking the drugs. A good exercise program , being careful what you eat and drink and a good nutritional supplement can do wonders to combat headaches.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding!

Migraine Headaches and Patent Foramen Ovale - My Experience

2008-08-12T14:59:00.000-07:00

As I concluded yesterday's message, I made an appointment with a cardiologist to check and see if I had a PFO. I was sure I did, I had almost so many things checked for headaches and turned up empty on everything so far.

I had a thorough exam. They did the the echocardiogram and a stress test. I even made the office's "wall-of-fame" for lasting longer than any other who had done the test. I'm not sure how long the period of time their recoreds covered but I made the top of the list.

I had a great talk with the nurse who told me how much fun her job was and that she was making pretty good money. I had a talk with the doctor, almost pleading for him to say that the tests were positive.

After the tests were over (it took about an hour) I was sent home with the assurance that I would be told either a "ya" or "nay" within a week. I went home with a headache (naturally) but my spirits were high. The folks in church noticed a difference on Sunday. I was far happier than normal.

The day for my results rolled around. I called the office as I was instructed. They said "we have good news, your heart is in great shape. Nothing at all wrong." That was not the news I wanted to hear. I wanted something to be wrong. I wanted to know what was causing the headaches that I suffered with for all of these years. It was back to square one, back to the drawing board. But, at least I knew that being 48 years old my heart was healthy. Better than a lot of people. It did seem like small compensation, but honestly I am glad.

The PFO was not my problem. I think in the past several blogs I have shown that PFO is a real cause for migraine headaches for some people and a promising new avenue for relief. It just was not my saving grace.

I have been taking the VEMMA nutritional supplement now for seven months and I know it has boosted my energy level and helped my overall health. You might want to give it a try.

I hope all is well. If you are suffering from headaches I hope that this series of blogs plus my previous series has been some help or given you some ideas.

My Experience with Patent Foramen Ovale

2008-08-11T07:57:00.000-07:00

The Superstition Mountain wilderness area, about 100 miles from Phoenix, AZ. If anyone wants a guided tour I can hook you up with a person who knows the mountains almost like the back of his hands. Let me know if you do.

It was around October - November, 2007 when I became aware of the relationship between a PFO and migraine headaches. It was in this same time frame that I started visiting Dr. Teresa Latendress, a naturopathic physician from the Hickory, NC area. Dr. T. also brought up that I might have a PFO.

This was just too coincidental I thought. I saw this article in the back pages of a newspaper and then Dr. T. mentioning this to me within a couple of short weeks. Wow, I thought, this has got to be my problem.

I threw all financial caution to the wind and immediately made an appointment with a cardiologist to be checked. I didn't even check with my insurance company on coverage, I was so sure this was the resolve to my 40 year experience with headaches that I didn't care what I had to pay to get it fixed.

I went in for my first appointment with the cardiologist in Lincolnton, NC. We had a nice discussion. She was questioning me severely, asking why I thought that there was a connection between PFO and migraines. I laid it on the line to her. I have had headaches for 40 years, I have not found a fix, I have done research into the subject on the web and have found that many doctors feel there is a link between the two. I showed her some of the articles that I printed out and nearly had to force her to read them.

After a long pause she admitted to me that a relationship between PFO and migraine headaches had been suspected for a while. She said there was no "proof" of it yet and therefore she wasn't able to actually discuss it. But, she did agree to have me tested for a PFO. I think she realized that there was enough evidence to back my theory up.

At the same time we discussed methods of dealing with my insurance company. She agreed to put on her report that we were checking for a PFO because there was a history of stroke in my family (which there is). This way she was confident that the big boys with the power, money and influence (insurance companies) wouldn't deny payment. She told me that if she reported that we were checking for a PFO as a cause of migraine headaches all payment would probably be denied.

What did I find out? That's the subject of my next blog.

Natural Headache Relief, Causes of Daily Headaches, MSG and Headaches are all discussed in the FeelingOuststanding.com web page. If you suffer from headaches, check them out. The information may be very helpful.

Here's to your health, here's to feeling outstanding!

Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) Closure and Migraine Relief

2008-08-09T18:05:00.001-07:00

A British double-blind study designed to evaluate the effect of PFO close on Migraine called the MIST (Migraine Intervention with STARFlex Technology) was completed.

Doctors Peter Wilmhurst and Andrew Dowson jointly presented the results at the American College of Cardiology's 55th annual Scientific, Late Breaking Clinical Trials Sessions. Dr Wilmhurst is Consultant Cardiologist at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, Shrewsbury. Dr. Dowson is Director of the King's Headache Service, Kings College Hospital, London.

A PFO is a common heart defect that is a risk factor for migraine headaches in some patients. The PFO allows venous blood, unfiltered and unmanaged by the lungs, to enter the arterial blood circulation. The unfiltered venous blood may contain elements that can trigger migraines in some patients.

The results of this study, which tested 147 patients indicate an approximate 37% reduction in Migraine burden (number of headaches multiplied by the length, in hours of headache) in those patients who received the testing procedure (a STAR implant to close the PFO).

Dr. Dowson commented,
"For the first time we can see trends in a prospective study to suggest that PFO closure may be an effective way to treat certain types of migraine. A reduction in headache burden for a patient with sever migraine may allow that individual to gain more control and lead a more fulfilling and productive life. The key now will be establishing the criteria that will help to determine which patients should be referred to the invenventional cardiologist for further treatment."

This can a a huge breakthrough for migraine headache victims that cannot determine the causes of their frequent headaches. Headaches are miserable and painful. There are natural solutions to many headache problems. MSG is a huge contributor to headaches and goes by many hidden names. But sometimes there is no apparent cause, this may be a case of a PFO.

There we have in on PFO and migraine headaches. There appears to be a definite correlation between the two and the closure has shown a reduction in headache burden for a high percentage of those tested. Let's hope that further research takes place and this becomes a real consideration for those who suffer from the drastic affects of frequent migraine headaches.

Hey, I discovered a great tourist spot in Maui. It's called the Hana Lava Tube. It's a nice self-guided tour that, unlike many Hawaii attractions, doesn't cost an arm and a leg. The owner, Chuck, is a card. If you are making the trip down the Hana Highway well worth the stop.

Here's to your health, here's to feeling outstanding. Never give up, never quit trying!

Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) Closure and Migraine Relief

2008-08-07T16:03:00.000-07:00

We have previously noted a correlation between PFO presence and migraine headaches. Yesterday we saw one study that indicated the closure of the PFO to reduce frequency and severity of migraines.

Also, a link between migraine and stroke risk has been seen. One hypothesis is being investigated is that patients with migraine more often have a PFO and PFO make them more prone to stroke.

Let's take a look at another study that was performed to see if the closure of the PFO has any effect on headaches. In 2004 two groups of researchers from Belgium and Switzerland studies whether percutaneous closure (closing the PFO by a technique that does not require a major surgical procedure) would lead to few Migraines.

The Belgian group gave a questionnaire was given to people after PFO closure. The Swiss group gave a questionnaire both before and after the closure. Frequency of migraine was decreased in both studies after PFO closure.

These studies are critical. If PFO closure proves effective for Migraine prevention, that makes PFO a potentially correctable migraine trigger! Tomorrow we can take a look at another study that compared Migraine patients who had PFO closure with those who didn't. This could be great news to people who suffer headaches and they cannot figure out why. After we look at this next study I will share my experience when I was examined for a PFO.

Exercise! The legendary center fielder for the Boston Red Sox, Jimmy Piersoll used to say that running was the best exercise. I have done a lot of running for exercise in my life. It is great exercise although in my mind, it's boring and very tough our the knees. My favorite piece of exercise equipment is the Chuck Norris Total Gym that has been advertised on TV for years. It's easy to get hooked on! Once you do, you'll get in shape faster than you think possible.

Patent Foramen Ovale Closure and Migraine Relief

2008-08-06T15:41:00.000-07:00

Does the closure of the Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) provide headache relief? There have been studies on this very subject done over the past couple of years. Let's take a look at results of some of them.

Dr. Markus Schwerzmann, MD, of the Swiss Cardiovascular Center Bern, in Switzerland (now at the University of Toronto) lead a study in which a group of patients who had a patent framen ovale, a previous stroke, and subsequent patent foramen ovale close. They asked these patients about their migraine frequency before and after the PFO closure to determine whether the intervention had an impact in reducing migraine headaches.

In 215 patients, the prevalence of migraine with and without aura was established using International Headache Society criteria. The impact of PFO closure on headache frequency and headache impact on daily life was investigated using the Headache Impact Test (HIT-6).

What was determined was that patients with a PFO and a history of stroke had migraine much more often than expected in the general population. If the PFO was closed for stroke prevention reasons, the frequency of migraine attacks was also reduced! This was an unexpected finding at the time of the study. After PFO closure, the frequency of headache attacks was reduced in both types of migraine (with and without aura). In migraine with aura by 54% and in migraine without aura by 62%. A decrease in the frequency of nonmigraine headaches did not reach statistical significance. The HIT-6 score improved in all groups, but significantly more for migraine than nonmigraine headache.

I think this is important news for some migraine headache sufferers. Of course, this does not apply to all headaches or migraines but it may be a huge knowledge gain in the battle! Many suffer from from headaches. Click on this link for information on the causes of daily headaches and for strategies to gain natural headache relief. Or for my favorite workout program check out the Chuck Norris Total Gym.

Tomorrow we will take a look at another study that has been done.

Here's to your good health!

Diagnosis and Treatment of PFO - Part 1

2008-08-05T18:05:00.000-07:00

I think it has been pretty well established that individuals with a Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO) are more prone to migraine headaches than than those without a PFO. (For discussion on what a PFO is and studies related to this point see the previous three postings related to the subject).

PFO can be detected by echocardiogram. In some cases the patient is asked to cough or perforn the Valsalva maneuver to increase pressure in the right atrium. This can increase the flow of blood from the right to left atrium. Transesophageal echo can provide a closer and more detailed view of the PFO.

People with PFO do not need any treatment if there are no associated problems, such as a stroke. Patients who have had a stroke may be placed on some type of blood thinner to prevent recurrent stroke.

For some patients closure of PFO may be recommended. Does closure of PFO provide headache relief at all. We will look at that beginning tomorrow.

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Stay tuned to see whether the PFO closure has helped people gain headache relief or not.

Hope you are all FeelingOutstanding!

Patent Foramen Ovale - Correlation with Headaches - Part 2

2008-08-04T16:08:00.000-07:00

"Patients with a history of stroke and patent foramen ovale have a higher prevalence of migraine with aura than the general population" (Neurology Review.com, Feb04). In a separate paper, the same investigators reported interim findings of an ongoing study examining the prevalence of patent foramen ovale and ischemic brain lesions in patients with migraine compared with healthy controls. Once again the data suggests an increased prevalence of patent foramen ovale and migraine patients.

From the same article in neurology review Dr. Markus Schwerzmann, M.D. of the Swiss Cardiovascular Center is quoted as follows" "What we found was first, patients with a patent forman ovale and a history of stroke had migraine much more often than we expect in the general population. Of the 215 patients, 48 (22%) suffered from migraine...compared to an expected 10%- 12% in the general European population."

In an interim report of a second study Dr. Schwerzmann noted that the patent foramen ovale was present in 25 of 57 patients with migraine with aura (44%).

Another study that was conducted by BTU Doctors Peter Wilmhurst and Andrew Dowson (study conducted in the United Kingdom) enrolled 147 patients who suffered from migraine. Of those patients over 60% had a right to left shunt, a heart defect, which allows blood to cross from the right to the left chambers of the heart, bypassing the lungs. Of those patients, almost 40% had a moderate or large to moderate PFO.

With the studies that have been done, I think that a correlation can be made between migraine and the PFO. This obviosuly, is not the only cause of headaches. Click here to get more information about the causes of headaches and MSG and headaches. Tomorrow we will begin to take a look at what can be done to PFO victims.

I hope that all is well. Look for people to help you out tomorrow, expect it. Here's to Feeling Outstanding.

Migraine Headacches and PFO, Correlation with Headaches?

2008-08-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

Before we get into the question of whether there is a correlation or relationship between the PFO and headaches I think a little more description of the PFO is in order. Referring to the picture on the right

The septum is the muscular wall separating the heart into the left and right sides.
The atrial septum is the wall separating the atria (the two upper chambers).
The ventricalar septum is the wall separating the ventricles (the two lower chambers).

The foramen ovale is a small hole located in the atrial septum that is used during fetal circulation to speed up the travel of blood through the heart. When in the womb, a baby does not use it's own lungs for oxygen-rich blood, it relies on the mother to provide it from the placenta through the umbilical cord to the fetus. Therefore, blood can travel from the veins to the right side of the baby's heart and cross to the left side through the foramen ovale and skip the trip to the baby's lungs.

Normally the foramen ovale closes at birth when increased blood pressure on the left side of the heart forces the opening to close. If the atrial septum does not close correctly, it is called a patent foramen ovale (PFO). This usually work like a flap valve, opening during conditions when there is more pressure inside the chest. If the pressure is great enough, blood may travel from the right atrium to the left atrium. If there is a clot or particles in the blood traveling in the right side of the heart, it can cross the PFO, enter the left atrium and travel out of the heart to the brain, possibly causing a stroke, or a coronary artery, or a migraine headache.

According the the Cleveland Clinic web page migraine headaches are more common in patients with PFO. Neurology seconds this by saying "Research has shown a higher prevalence of PFO among Migraineurs. (April 2004:62:1399-1041)"

What kind of tests have been done to come to this conclusion? Does closing the PFO make any difference? We will examine some studies done on the PFO and Migraines beginning with my next post.

There can be Natural Headache Relief.

Check out the Causes of Daily Headaches web page. The author blows the whistle on the common over-the-counter headache medications in use today. Does today's headache medication cause tomorrow's headache? What is an analgesic rebound headache. This page may be a shock for some, but not for those who have suffered the rebound headache syndrome.

Here's to Feeling Outstanding. Never give up!

Migraine Headaches and Patent Foramen Ovale

2008-07-31T15:37:00.001-07:00

Patent Foramen Ovale (PFO): Can a hole in the heart affect migraine headaches? How? Why? Is it true or just a fabrication of some lunatic trying to make a buck?

First of all, we need to understand what the PFO is. Next, we need to know if there is a correlation between PFO and migraine headaches? Have any studies have been completed on the subject? Were the studies legitimate? What conclusions, if any were made? These are the questions we will be delving into in our next few blogs.

PFO, What Is It?
PFO stands for patent foramen ovale, a hole in the wall that divides the right and left chambers of the heart. Everyone has a PFO before birth. Normally, this hole closes shortly before delivery.

The right side of the heart receives blood and pumps it to the lungs for oxygenation. The blood then goes through the left side of the heart to be pumped to the brain and other organs. When in the womb, a baby does not use it's own lungs for oxygen-rich blood, it relies on the mother to provide oxygen-rich blood from the placenta through the umbilical cord to the fetus. Therefore blood can travel from the veins to the right side of the baby's heart and cross to the left side of the heart through the foramen ovale and skip the baby's lungs.

In adults, a PFO can allow blood that hasn't been oxygenated to get into the left side of the heart and be pumped to the brain and other organs. If this happens, the body doesn't get enough oxygen. It's also possible that blood clots can pass through the PFO and cause a stroke.

I know of a gentleman who gets dizzy after lifting weights and this is often followed up by a headache. This makes you wonder if he is a possible PFO case.

In tomorrow's blog we will start to look into research about whether there is a correlation between PFO and migraines.

As always, hoping you are in good health and that you are winning the battle against headaches.

Included here are a couple of links with additional information on what a PFO is.

I also found a real good set of blogs on fitness. Check it out!

Migraine Headache Relief Part II - The Natural Headache Relief that I Received

2008-07-30T17:05:00.001-07:00

To continue my journal of the last nine months:

04/30/08: The last bit of alcohol that I have consumed to this point was in April when I drank a beer and suffered for about two days after.

05/30/08: No significant changes during May. The daily headaches are pretty much gone, still getting about 1 migraine per week, almost always on weekends.

06/30/08: I had a tough decision to make this month. Was I going to continue drinking coffee or not? I knew deep down inside my heart that the cup I drank on Thursday and Friday were exacerbating the weekend headaches. I drank my last cup the last Friday of June. And of course, paid for it over the weekend. This was the toughest of all habits/addictions to overcome for me. Fortunately I have never been a smoker, that was one thing I didn't have to fight with.

07/07/08: In an attempt to completely root out headaches I started taking the Native Remedies Migone Plus product. Migone Plus is a combination of Feverfew, Milk Thistle and Passiflora.

07/30/08: Today is July 30. Since I have started taking MiGone Plus I have only had one serious migraine. I feel that Migone is helping and I will continue with Migone.

That is my story. I went from having headaches almost every day, 1-2 migraines almost every week and taking 60-75 headache medications of one type or another per month to the point where I have not taken a single OTC headache relief medication in over 4 months. The daily headaches are gone and the migraines are down to 2-3 week intervals. I am quite happy with the results. I can credit several items: prayer, the VEMMA nutritional supplement, eyeglass, good advice from my favorite naturopath, cutting out certain food items such as coffee, alcohol and foods with MSG and the Native Remedies MiGone Plus nutritional aid.

I hope this series of blogs has provided some ideas on how to fight recurring headaches. In my next series I am going to delve into much less known potential causes of headaches, that being the patent foramen ovale and mitra valve prolapse. I hope this will be of a benefit to some as well.

Here's to life and Feeling Outstandng!

Migraine Headaches - Part I - The Natural Headache Relief that I Received

2008-07-29T17:04:00.001-07:00

So, what was the magic bullet? What was the biggest factor that led to the dramatic improvement that I have experienced?

I am afraid that there was not a single magic bullet. My natural headache relief came as a result of several different things that I did and all were necessary. Prayer, change in diet, change in vitamin supplements and change in habits. In my blog tonight I would like to summarize the steps I have taken.

Prior to 11/07: Was taking 60-75 B.C. powders, Goodies Powders or Immatrex per month Had headaches nearly every day. Average of 1-3 migraine headaches per week.

11/07 - 01/08: Went to see Dr Teresa for the first time. She gave me several good ideas. A lot of prayer! No change in headache status yet.

01/06/08: Started taking the VEMMA nutritional supplement.
01/23/08: New progressive trifocal eyeglasses.

01/31/08 My energy level increased very much. Down to taking 12 of the headache medications in January. Still had migraines once per week. Daily headaches not as frequent or severe.

02/28/08 Eliminated MSG from my diet (as much as possible). Down to 6 headache medications in February.

03/26/08 Stopped taking the headache medications (Goodies, B.C., Immatrex) completely. Daily headaches less frequent. Down to 2 headache medications for March. Still had migraines once per week.

To rest of the story will come tomorrow. I am Feeling Outstanding right now. I still need to workout and eat tonight before I hit the sack. It's been a great pleasure sharing my story with you. If anyone has comments on other things that have worked for them, please share them with us. There are many people in this country who suffer and would appreciate Natural Headache Relief ideas that work.

Migraine Headaches - Where am I Now?

2008-07-28T14:22:00.001-07:00

That's me. Smiling! Something I haven't done near enough of us over the past 40 years. Now, I definitely have something to smile about and I praise our God every day for it!

Where am I now? How am I doing now? Much, much better. Yesterday I had my first serious headache (and it wasn't as serious as they have been) in 20 days. For me, that is a huge step forward. I feel like I have control of my life for the first time. I feel like I can do things, plan activities and have fun without the constant fear of a headache. It's a great feeling.

Another thing that has started happening recently. If you look at my picture you can tell that I'm pretty slim. That's not because I don't eat enough. I am a hearty eater and I do enjoy my food. All of my life though I have not been able to gain weight. When I would use the Body Mass Index calculation I would show up an anorexic. Starting about three months ago I started to gain some weight. In fact, I have gained 9 pounds. That moves me to the underweight category. Better than anorexic!

I know that most people I talk to credit my weight gain to the Total Gym exercise program that I am on. After all, muscle weighs more than fat. In response, I say, partially partially. In the first place, I sure didn't have a lot of fat on me. The other fact is that before the year 2008, when I had headaches so often there would be periods of day or two nearly every week when I would just about not eat a thing. It's hard to gain any weight that way.

To summarize, at 48 years old I feel better than I ever have. I just do not agree with the nay-sayers who do not believe in the benefits of nutritional products. Realizing that of all the M.D.s and neurologists that I went to over the years it took a naturopathic physician who works out of a small office in Hickory, NC to point me in the right direction makes a person very inquisitive. Please don't get me wrong, there are many areas where physicians are extremely beneficial. But I think there are some areas where they put too much emphasis in the wrong areas and dismiss some of the simple facts. A balanced approach is needed.

To learn more about headaches, MSG, causes of headaches and ways to treat headaches visit the FeelingOutstanding.com webpage.

Our Eye and Neck Comfort Pillows page demonstrates the beautiful 'Comfort Pillows by Valerie' which are great for stress relief and great relaxation.

Tomorrow, I want to wrap this series up by summarizing the steps I took to gain natural headache relief.

Have a great day, here's hoping you are feeling outstanding.

Migraine Headaches and Herbal Remedies

2008-07-25T15:23:00.000-07:00

Today I want to talk about some herbs that have been known to have good results at providing natural headache relief.

The butterbur herb, pictured on the left is a member of the Asteraceae family. Not only has it been helpful for headaches but also used t0 treat spasms in the respiratory and digestive tract. From the Mother Earth News website it is stated that "Three clinical trials (including one in children and teens) have shown that this herb, taken as a preventative measure, safely and effectively reduces the number of migraines Benefits become obvious at about 4 weeks. The following web site has more information about butterbur: http://store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/clink?herbal-remedies-usa+cqup28+butterbur-information.html

Feverfew is a relative of the common daisy and since the time of 78 A.D. was been used for the treatment of headaches, menstrual irregularities, stomach aches, and fever. It was also used for melancholy and depression. Early European herbalists used Feverfew for reducing fevers, vertigo, and depression, but by the 18th century it was rejected as a medicinal herb and was not used again until the late 1970s. It was then that the wife of a chief medical officer of the National Coal Board in England suffered severe migraine headaches. A sympathetic miner suggested she try a folk treatment. She took his advice and chewed Feverfew leaves and her headaches disappeared almost completely. Feverfew has anti-inflammatory, stimulant, relaxant, decongestant and anti-coagulant properties. To get some more information regarding feverfew check out the following website: http://store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/clink?herbal-remedies-usa+cqup28+feverfew-information.html

Native Remedies has produced a product called 'MiGone Plus' that combines Feverfew, Silybum Marianus (milk thistle) and Passiflora that has worked very well at reducing migraine headaches for many people. For more information on Migone Plus take a look at www.nativeremedies.com/migone_for_migraines_headaches.shtml?kbid=9838&img=migoneplus-120x90.gif

I highly recommend MiGone Plus.The benefits of trying one of the nutritional supplements or herbal products I have talked about in the last couple of days are two-fold. First, they are all natural products and are not going to cause violent side effects or addictions, and second, they are not going to cost an arm and a leg. When compared to prescriptions, even with health insurance coverage, they are very comparable, sometimes better. Without insurance, there is not even a comparison.

I hope you are all doing well. I can truly say that I am almost 49 right now and I don't know if I have ever felt as good as I do now. Many praises to our great creator.

Here's to your health, here's to Feeling Outstanding.

http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/

Migraine Headaches - Common Supplements

2008-07-24T18:23:00.000-07:00

Before I wrap up my story (and it does have a happy ending) I want to list some of the more common nutritional supplements that are often used for headaches. This data is from the Mother Earth News website, Natural Headache Remedies.

Magnesium. Research shows that intravenous magnesium helps break migraine and cluster headaches, particularly in those with low levels of this mineral. Other trials also have shown that oral magnesium may help prevent headaches.
Riboflavin. In an open-label trial (no placebo control group), 400 milligrams a day for six months cut migraines headache frequency in half and decreased medication use.
Coenyme Q10. This vitamin-like substance participates in mitochondrial energy production. When 42 migraine sufferers took either Coenzyme Q10 (100 milligrams three times a day) or a placebo, the supplement significantly reduced the frequency of attacks.

There is one person that I have mentioned frequently in my blogs, that is Dr. Teresa Latendress. Dr. Latendress is a kind person, a dear friend, and a very experienced naturopathic physician. You can get in touch with Dr. T. (as her patients call her) via her web site at http://www.drteresa.4t.com/. You can also read her monthly newsletter at www.FeelingOutstanding.com/Dr_T_newsletter.html.

The supplements mentioned above can be purchased at a very reasonable price through http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Supplements.html

And to purchase the excellent MiGone Plus Native Remedies Natural Headache Relief product visit http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Natural_Headache_Relief.html

Here's to life! Here's to Feeling Outstanding.

Migraine Hedaches and Coffee

2008-07-23T18:14:00.000-07:00

There's something about running water. Beauty, excitement, freedom. I just completed my Total Gym exercise routine. 40 minutes of good exercise and no head pain after. I would have never been able to do that without a headache 7 months ago, or a year and 7 months ago, or 5 years and 7 months ago. Natural headache relief, what an outstanding feeling.

There have been some studies recently about the health benefits of coffee. In my blog tonight I do not mean to dispute these studies that I'm sure were done by a lot smarter people than me, but I do want to share my experience with coffee hoping that it may benefit some headache victims.

Coffee is an extremely addictive substance. I have strongly felt for quite a while that coffee has been a headache trigger. To this day, nearly every time I pass a pot of coffee, and especially when I smell the aroma, I yearn for a sip. Even after I started taking the VEMMA nutritional supplement, started wearing new eyeglasses, stopped eating foods with MSG and really started to feel a lot better I would still get a migraine every 1-2 weeks. Almost always it happened to be on a weekend, so my fun time was taken up by laying in bed with miserable pain.

After a weekend of headaches I would come into work on Monday with a brand new spirit. I was going to stop drinking coffee. Thursday would come around, the week was wearing on me by now. Generally on Thursday I would justify a third or a half a cup, which would usually turn into a whole cup. I do not know what I did to make it seem ok, but somehow I was always able to.

When Friday would come around I knew I was in trouble. I had to either drink another cup or two or have a migraine. So usually, I would drink that next cup (or two). By Friday night or Saturday morning I would be shot, the pain would be at about a level 6 out of 10 already. And it would continually get worse. There was nothing I could do at that point. I had made up my mind that the headache medication was out of the picture. I would live through the headache which would mean one or two days of absolute misery.

We are into early to mid June 2008 on my journey now. About this time I had to do some real soul searching. What did I want out of life? What was really important to me? Was drinking coffee that powerful? Was it more powerful than me? Was I hopelessly addicted? Was I that weak that I couldn't stop? I had to fight it for several days, really fight. I struggled hard and I have been victorious so far. I haven't had a cup of coffee since the last week of June. I think it's more than coincidental that I haven't had a migraine headache since then. I still have had a couple of small headaches, but no migraines.

I still want to eliminate headaches completely. I don't even want minor headaches. Tomorrow I will describe the most recent attempt I have made and the results thus far.

Here's to good health. Here's to Feeling Outstanding.

For more information on headache relief take a look at: http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Natural_Headache_Relief.html

Migraine Headaches and MSG

2008-07-22T17:36:00.000-07:00

A fast running creek, with freedom flowing symbolizes our striving to overcome sickness, to be free from the agonizing pain of headaches and other illnesses that so often accompany our lives.

Our goal is to minimize these events, to root them out of our lives so that we can be happy, help others be happy and just feel outstanding.

As I closed yesterday, I said that I would point out some sources of MSG that may not be so obvious. These are pointed out from the book 'Excitotoxins - The Taste That Kills' by Dr. Russell Blaylock.

According to Dr. Blaylock there are "Food Additives that ALWAYS contain MSG", they include:

Monosodium Glutamate
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Hydrolyzed Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
Plant Protein Extract
Sodium Caseinate
Calcium Caseinate
Yeast Extract
Textured Protein (Including TVP)
Autolyzed Yeast
Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
Corn Oil

There are also "Food Additives that FREQUENTLY Contain MSG"

Malt Extract
Malt Flavoring
Bouillon
Broth
Stock
Flavoring
Natural Flavors/Flavoring
Natural Beef or Chicken Flavoring
Seasoning
Spices

He also warns about Aspartame, "Aspartame is a sweetener made from two amino acids, phenylalanine and the excitotoxin aspartate. It should be avoided at all costs. Aspartame complaints account for approximately 70% of all complaints to the FDA. It is implicated in everything from blindness to headaches to convulsions. Sold under dozens of brand names such as NutraSweet and Equal, aspartame breaks down within 20 minutes at room temperature into several primary toxic and dangerous ingredients:
1. DKP (diketopiperazine)
2. Formic Acid (ant venom)
3. Formaldehyde (embalming fluid)
4. Methanol"

Now I am not a Medical Doctor and I cannot guarantee that this article is 100% accurate. But, with the experiences I have had with headaches and MSG this is something that I have tried to stay aware of and some substances that I have tried to avoid. I think anyone with persistent headaches of any type may benefit from this bit of advice.

We are coming close to the end of my story. Tomorrow I want to talk about my experience with coffee Have a great day tomorrow, be strong, be healthy. Remember, a whole lot of it is up to us.

For more news about headaches and natural tips for headache relief take a look at:
http://www.FeelingOutstanding.com/Natural_Headache_Relief.html

For a great selection of nutritional supplements:
http://www.FeelingOtstanding.com/Supplements.html

Migraine Headaches - Triggers and Addictions

2008-07-21T16:47:00.001-07:00

We are at the early to mid June time frame in my journey right now. My headache experience has improved greatly. But I'm still having a serious headache every 1-2 weeks. I have come so far, I desperately want to go the rest of the way and eliminate them completely. Right now, I would like to talk about a few things I have learned along the way.

Certain foods can act as headache triggers to certain people, there is no question about it. From my experience, the most common headache triggers were:

chocolate, sugar
alcohol (of any type)
MSG (often found in Chinese food)
COFFEE

Ouch, that hurts doesn't it? These were four of my most beloved food groups. After all, who doesn't love a Hershey's bar, or ice cream, or blueberry pie, or a banana split loaded with whipped cream? How many pure tea-tottlers are there? A good Chinese meal every month or so was a staple. And coffee, oh boy, most of you realize the importance of coffee in a persons life.

Along this marathon journey to headache freedom I had to eliminate all of these delectable foods (well, I don't know if delectable is an adequate adjective for beer, but you understand). It was amazing how easy it was for me to give up chocolate and sugar. When I determined that these were definite headache triggers I quit cold turkey. That was the easiest one of them all.

I never was a big drinker but I did enjoy a nice glass of wine at dinner or a cold beer or two, especially on a hot day. Now this one was not easy to give up. I made many excuses for just drinking one more. There was always the "I just need to make sure" excuse. And nearly every time I drank another glass I was sure all over again. All of the advertising and social pressure make this very hard to give up. The most potent of all drinks was red wine. One or two sips would lead to an immediate headache. It would usually take 30-90 minutes for beer or other alcohol to take affect, but it nearly always happened.

MSG was not an easy one either, mainly because I was not aware of the connection between it and headaches until recently. Often when I would go to a Chinese restaurant I would have a drink along with the meal and then blame the post meal headache on the drink. It was my good friend Dr. Teresa Latendress who informed me that MSG definitely leads to headaches for many people. You guessed it, I had to try it for myself to make sure. I have probably had 4-5 meals with food that has had MSG and no alcohol since Dr. T. provided that bit of information to me. And once again, you are right, 4-5 serious headaches. MSG is out of my diet now as much as possible (unless I am not aware of it).

Some people do not know the foods that contain MSG. In tomorrow's post I want to list some foods that are labeled as "Hidden Sources of MSG in Foods" from the book "Excitotoxins - The Taste That Kills' by Dr. Russell Blaylock, MD. And then I also want to talk about coffee.

I hope this information can help some people. It has been a large help to me. Here's to living healthy, here's to Feeling Outstanding!

For additional information on headaches and herbal/homeopathic headache remedies check out: http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Headache_Relief.html
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Migraine Headaches and Exercise - My experience

2008-07-20T06:34:00.000-07:00

Hiking in Alaska. Now that's exercise. Take a look at this dude. He has a short sleeve shirt on. Either it is warmer than the slow covered mountains would indicate or he is cold blooded.

At this point in our journey toward my freedom from migraine headaches I need to talk about exercise. I have always believed in exercise. I look at my father who will be 83 in 2 days. He is one of the best conditioned people of his age that I have ever seen. Why? Because throughout his life he watched his diet and participated in a regular exercise program. When compared with his father, there is no comparison. What I am saying is that it is not all genetic.

The benefits of exercise are well established. I like to exercise. My philospophy has been that when I turn 50 (which will be very soon now), or 60 or 70 I don't want my children and to spend their time waiting on me because I am too decrepit to help myself. I want to be able to play with them, have fun and see them having fun.

By the time I turned 45 (I am 48 now) I realized that things were not turning out as hoped for. As long as I had these daily headaches I was not fulfilling my dream. I was not able to play with my kids. And on top of that, I was a grouch most of the time.

The big problem was that whenever I exercised even lightly, or played sports with the kids, or participated in almost any kind of physical activity I would end up with a headache. The harder I worked out, the worse the headache. It was a sad state of affairs. Doing something good for my body (exercising) made me feel very bad. What was I supposed to do? Even though I knew full well I would develop a headache afterwards I kept exercising pretty regularly all throughout my life up until I turned 45. It was crystal clear that there was a strong and definite correlation between exercise and headaches. My amount and intensity of exercise dropped, and I started feeling worse if other ways (more colds and other routine ailments).

After I started taking the VEMMA product, donned new eyeglasses and started feeling somewhat better I took another bold move. During the beginning of April I went ahead and purchased the Chuck Norris Total Gym. I did not know if I would be able to exercise now without headaches or not but I made the investment anyway.

I am very happy to say that exercise now has proven to be another benefit. I can exercise strenuously without getting a headache. Believe me, 30-40 minutes on the Total Gym is strenuous. I have also found that 5 or 6 times since I have been working out with the Total Gym I have started an exercise session with a slight to moderate headache and by the time I was finished the headache was gone. Now, I feel great after I work out. Exercising is finally dong what it is supposed to. It's a great feeling! I do not know if it is only because of the Total Gym, I am not denying that these improvements may have occured with other exercise programs as well. I am just mentioning the Total Gym here because it is what I use.

Let me leave you today with another view of Alaska.

I hope all is well, you're feeling great and enjoying life. If anyone has any remedies that have worked for to relive headache pain, please share them. This is my story. People who experience the pain caused by headaches are searching for answers. Any input is appreciated.

To learn more about the exciting VEMMA product visit: http://www.FeelingOutstanding.com/vemma_nutrition.html

If you are an exercise enthusiast like me you'll want to check out the Total Gym:
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Migraine Headache Relief - Finally (Part 2)

2008-07-18T15:53:00.001-07:00

Glacier National Park. Beautiful.

A drop in headache medications fron 60-75 per month through 2005-2007 to 12 in January 2008. Two items that have helped so far. A new nutritional supplement called VEMMA and eyeglasses. But I wasn't through yet. I now had some ambition again, drive to get better. Unlike before, I now knew it was possible. February, the short month, I took a total of 8 headache pills (I'm going to generically call the headache medication "pills" from now on). The number of headaches I was getting was continually dropping. March was down to 5.

It was about this time I felt I had reached somewhat of a standstill. It wasn't that all of my headaches completly disappeared. The level of pain had dropped, so that I was able to live through more without taking anything. There was still a dreadful fear of a migraine though. And I still got them. They were down from 2-3 per week to one every 1-2 weeks. Toward the end of March I made a big decision. I was through taking any of the pills. I haven't taken one since March 26.

That is the fourth point that I want to emphasize (#1-new nutritional supplement, #2-eyeglasses, #3-exercise, #4-no more B.C.'s or Immatrex). I rounded up a tremendous amount of courage one day when I had a migraine and decided I was through with the pills. I lived through the pain, but I survived. Now I know that has been a significant change also.

The few times that I did take pills there toward the end, they still led to the same issue. Rebound headaches which would evenutally turn into migraines. That would make a 1-2 day headache turn into 4-5-6 days, with the first 2-3 not so bad and then the last 1-3 just awful. But as I said, I still would get headaches every 1-2 weeks. When I would get a headache it would turn into a migraine. But now I was not taking the pills that did sometimes provided immediate relief. But remember, the pain generally came back worse within 24-48 hours.

I went from a situation where I had headaches nearly every day with an average of 2 migraines per week to having no headaches on most days and a migraine every 1-2 weeks. That is a tremendous amount of improvement.

Nex week I would like to talk about exercise and share some things that I have learned over these 40 years that might help. I would also like to continue the story with the attempts I am making now to rid myself of migraines completely. I am not going to stop, I'm ever so close.

Enjoy life and do your best to stay healthy. Everybody benefits.

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Migraine Headache Relief - Finally

2008-07-17T17:26:00.001-07:00

I am so much happier and at peace now that I have re-gained my life! You would have rarely seen me smile like this for as long as I can remember up until January, 2008.

In the last few days of 2007 I was laying awake at 2:00 a.m. one morning with a blasted migraine headache. My head was pounding. The pain was so intense I could not get to sleep. I turned on the TV hoping that the noise would cause a little distraction at least. On the TV was a "prosperity" preacher. He said that if any of us are having pain or suffering to write him and he would pray for us. I did so. Whether you call it coincidence or not doesn't really matter but it was right after that letter I sent that things really started to happen.

It was Jan 1, 2008 when I received an email from VEMMA nutrtional supplements stating that it was great, fantastic, and everything else. I get emails like this often and I nearly always don't even give them a second look. For some reason I read this one through and sent for it without wasting any time. It was on or around Jan 6 when I received the product in the mail. From the second day after using VEMMA I literally felt a difference. I went 3 days in a row without a headache and I felt a noticeable increase in my energy level.

It was incredible, 3 days in a row, almost unheard of. It was at the same time that I decided to go ahead with Dr. T.'s advice and made an appointment for an eye exam. By the time that I went to the eye doctor I knew that I was feeling some relief from headaches, but I honestly did not feel like they were more than 75% - 80% better. The optomistist did a thorough job as well as the Opti-Mop procedure spoken about yesterday. The doctor who was a kind, middle aged female told me that my left eye was far stronger than my right eye. This was causing my right eye to strain all of the time trying to keep up with my left eye. She felt strongly this could lead to headaches also.

Throughout 2007 I had been taking an average of 60-75 headache "junk" (either B.C. powders, Goodies powders or immatrex pills) per month. I started taking VEMMA on Jan 6 or 7 and I got my new eyeglasses on Jan 23. During the month of Januaty I took a total of 12 doses of headache "junk." That's down from an average of 60-75. That is significant. You don't need to do a t-test on that!

That's not where it stops, but that is where it has got to stop for me tonight. It's 9:29 p.m. and I haven't eaten yet. I'm hungry.

Keep up the good spirits, keep thinking positive, enjoy yourself and have fun.

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Migraine Headache Relief - The Winds of Change

2008-07-16T16:46:00.000-07:00

November, 2007 was a pivotal month. I was at a point where I did not even want to live. I was through with neurologists (I had been to at least 3) and their pills that kept draining me of my energy. I went back to my M.D. once again who told me straight, there was nothing else she could do. She recommended that I go see a naturopathic physician, Dr. Teresa Latendress. Shocked that an M.D. would make that recommendation I didn't waste a lot of time. I made an appointment and went to see Dr. T. right away.

Dr. T. immediately encouraged me with her positive outlook. I told her all that I had done for the headaches and that nothing had produced lasting results. The first appointment I had with her took quite a while! She asked me several question and we had quite a dialog. The amazing thing was that I came away from my first visit with her with a renewed enthusiasm that there was something that could be done.

During that time frame my wife Amy pointed out to me something she saw on the internet. Something that I had never heard of before, the patent foramen ovale. She read in an internet article that this can lead to frequent headaches. Let me quote the ClevelandClinic.org web site a little on this subject. They can describe the condition better than I.

"The foramen ovale is a small hole located in the atrial septum that is used during fetal circulation to speed up the travel of blood through the heart. When in the womb,a baby does not use it's own lungs for oxygen-rich blood, it relies on the mother to provide oxygen rich blood from the placenta through the umbilical cord to the fetus. Therefore, blood can travel from the veins to the right side of the baby's heart and cross to the left side of the heart through the foramen ovale and skip the trip to the baby's lungs.

Normally the foramen ovale closes at birth when increased blood pressure on the left side of the heart forces the opening to close. If the atrial septum does not close properly, it is called a patent foramen ovale. This type of defect generally works like a flap valve, only opening during certain conditions when there is more pressure inside the chest. This increased pressure occurs when people strain while having a bowel movement, cough, or sneeze.

If the pressure is great enough, blood may travel from the right atrium to the left atrium. If there is a clot or particles in the blood traveling in the right side of the heart, it can cross the PFO, enter the left atrium, and travel out of the heart and to the brain (causing a stroke) or into
a coronary artery causing a heart attack.

Migraine headache and PFO: Migraine headaches are more common in patients with PFO. While it seems as though closure of PFO results in improvement of migraine symptoms, larger studies are needed to confirm this finding. "
(my.Clevelandclinic.org/heart/disorders/congenital/pfo.aspx)

The next time I went to Dr. T., very coincidentally, she brought up this very same subject to me. Wow, I thought. This is wierd. Having my wife and Dr. T. bring up this same thing within a couple of days. This has got to be the problem.

One other thing Dr. T. suggested to me at the beginning of our sessions was that I have my eyes checked. I told her that I had already done so twice and that I was given three different pairs of eyeglasses, none of which helped. She insisted that I have my eyes checked though. She told me about a relatively new procedure that some eye doctors did not use called "Opti-mop". It sounded kind of fishy to me so I just sat on that recommendation for several weeks.

It was shortly after this session with Dr. T. that I made an appointment with a cardiologist to have an echocardiogram and a stress test done. I told the cardiologist the reason that I wanted to be checked for a patent foramen ovale. She looked me over, checked me out and said my heart seemed fine, there was no reason for it. I told her about what I had read on the internet and that I was willing to pay the money for it, and to please do it. She did not want to. After a lenghty discussion she admitted to me that cardiologists had suspected that the patent foramen ovale led to migraine headaches but they did not have the proof. She finally relented and agreed to do the test.

I spent the next two weeks waiting for my appointment with a constant headache, but beaming, sure that I had found the answer. The day came, I took the stress test and made it on their 'Wall of Fame' as the person who lasted the longest on their treadmill. I took the echocardiogram with a smile on my face. That smile didn't last as a week later when the results came in and I found out my heart was in fine shape. The patent foramen ovale was not the issue. So now I was back to square one. It was Dec 25, 2007. A very sad Christmas.

But, the winds of change were in motion. I wasn't through visiting Dr. T. Some amazing things happened in the next month. We will continue this story tomorrow. Have a blessed day Thursday. Hope for the best, keep your spirits high and have fun.

My grand-son L.J. is not discouraged! He is reaching for something bigger and better!

To read Dr. T.'s Newsletter visit:
http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Dr_T_newsletter.html

For powerful herbal and homeopathic remedies with an unheard of one year guarantee: http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Native_Remedies.html

Migraine Headache Relief - The Journey

2008-07-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

This is my 17 year old daughter Michlle.
She rarely gets migraine headaches.

My headaches reached their peak about four years ago and stayed the same for three and one half years. It was near the beginning of that time frame that I was introduced to Immatrex. My strategy was as follows, if I woke up with a slight headache, I would follow the experts advice and take a B.C. powder right away. If I woke up with a severe headache, I would take an Immatrex right away. Because of the expense involved, I tried to save Immatrex for the really severe pain.

Normally, if I did not wake up with a headache I would develop one before noon. Once again, if it didn't come on real hard I'd go for the OTC stuff. If it approached like thunder, then I would go for the big boys (big dollar) items. I became so hooked on B.C. powders and Immatrex that I became a slave to the pill. It is a pretty well known fact that both of these medications lead to rebound headaches, but I was so deathly afraid of migraine's that I took them anyway. I really, honestly became frightened at the thought of having a migraine. Even though I would have a headache almost every single day, I still maintained taking these pills, knowing that they were not helping the overall situation. Even with taking as many as I did (up to five B.C.s a day at times), I would still get migraine headaches 1-2 times nearly every week.

It was miserable. I virtually lost all of last summer. Outside of my job, I spent most of the summer in bed, doing nothing. I would exercise and get a headache. I would try to go outside and do some yard work I would end up with a headache. I would eat a nice meal and surely there would be something in it that would trigger a headache. It was awful. I really did not know if life was worth living. Many times in the midst of a migraine I would pray to God asking if my life could end, if this could be the last night.

November, 2007 was a significant month in my life. I was sick and tired of headaches, sick and tired of trying the same old thing, sick and tired of living the way I was. Something had to change. Something different had to happen, or my life was not worth living. In tomorrow's blog I will begin to explain the relief I have had and what I did to achieve it.

For great information on timely medical news visit Naturopathic Physician Dr. Teresa Latendress's newsletter at: http://www.feelingoutstanding.com/Dr_T_newsletter.html

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Enjoy life, have fun, be generous and feel great!

Migrane Headache Relief - Part 2

2008-07-14T17:13:00.000-07:00

I can remember having migraine headaches as a young boy, probably between 5 and 8 years old. In fact it is one of my earliest remembrances. I remember being sent to the elementary school nurse because of headaches many times. And I also remember how much my teacher, the nurse and the principal doubted that I was in any real pain.

As I grew older I accquired a part time job as a substitute teacher while attending Indiana University. I stayed quite busy and it made for a decent part time job while in college except for one thing, almost every day I would come home with a migraine headache. I began to think it was stress that was leading to the headaches, and of course that may have had something to do with it. Almost all of the so called experts at the time told me that headaches were a cause of stress. Funny thing was, I really didn't have that much stress in my life at the time. I honestly didn't. And I was just as likely to develop a headche whether I had a stressful day or not. That theory just didn't fly.

Over time I went to see M.D.'s, neorologists, chiropractors, cranial-sacral chiropractors, naturopaths, neurologists, accupuncture specialists, an Australian spinologist, integrated medical specialists, etc. Unfortunately, the pain continued.

The neurologists and M.D.s prescribed at least 4 different medications that had "helped many people in the past". Some of these medications, like some of the vitamins and nutrients I had taken before did have a very short and limited benefit. The higher I got in the medical field the more potent the drugs became, and the more serious the side effects. The most common side effect I experienced was weakness. Drugs would often leave me feeling like I was operating at about the 80% level and I did not want that. There had to be something better.

The headaches kept getting worse. Not necessarily more severe. There is not much more severe pain than that of a migraine headache, but they did become more frequent. At the age of about 40 or so I became pretty well hooked on BC and Goodies powders. They were the only OTC medication that I could get my hands on that either provided some relief or didn't make my headaches become immediately worse. Within about a year I was taking the powders every day, and usually more than just once a day. Often 2, 3, 4 or even 5 times a day.

I came to realize that these powders were causing "rebound" headaches, but, I became so frightened of migraines that I felt if I didn't take them at the first sign of a headache it would turn into a migraine. Eventually I received a prescription for Immatrex, which did not agree with me at all. Immatrex led to such devastating rebound headaches that I had to quit taking them. I re-tried Immatrex therapy four or five times hoping that my body would be more tolerant, but there was never any improvement.

Before I go on, let me say that any of these medications or treatments I have described may work well on certain people. If they do, that's great. Don't run from something that works. They just did not work for me.

I want to describe how bad my addiction to these medications became in my next blog. But as I said yesterday, there is hope. I have made tremendous accomplishments against headaches. I cannot wait to share my experiences.

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Migraine Headache Relief

2008-07-12T10:41:00.000-07:00

To the right is my 5 year old grand-daughter Aaliyah. Now she looks like she is feeling outstanding!

Have you ever had a headache? Have you ever had a migraine headache? Have you ever had a headache that felt so bad that you wondered if you were going to live through the night? Have you ever had headaches so bad and so often that you were not sure life was worth living?

I was speaking to a person the other day who told me he never had a headache. I paused for a moment, and asked him "Never?" His response was "Yes, never." I couldn't believe it. I still have a hard time believing it. Never???!!! What a blessed person. If any of you never, or rarely have headaches, count this as an outstanding blessing.

I'm going to be talking to you as a person who has had headaches, migraine headaches, as long as I can remember. I can remember as a boy getting these awful headaches but not wanting to tell anybody about them. I didn't want to appear weaker than others and I wanted to participate in sports and games so much that I just suffered. I can remember as a young adult the headaches getting worse and more frequent. I can remember from about ten years ago up until January of this year having headaches of one degree or another nearly every day.

I also remember lying in bed for one or two or three days in a row in abject misery wondering if I would make to the next day, wondering if I even wanted to make it to the next day. The pain being so intense that I couldn't do anything but lay down in a fetal position. Sleep was almost impossible to come by. All I could do was lay down and try to keep my mind on something other than the pain. Migraine headaches have got to be one of the most painful experiences a person can undergo.

I struggled and searched for answers. Over the past 35 years I have went to several naturopathic physicians, neurologists, accupuncture specialists, spinologists, M.D.'s, chiropractors, cranial-sacral chiropractors, massage therapists, integrated medical doctors, homeopathic doctors, etc. I tried several different things on my own including many nutritional supplements. Some had limited success, some had no success.

The good news is that over the past six months my situation has changed for the better very much. So much so that I would like to spend the next few days telling you about it and what led up to it.

For a great workout check out the Chuck Norris Total Gym:
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