Stress

Elsa, continued

Liz James · January 5, 2018 ·

My world has come to a standstill…..at least it feels that way. I take my hat off to all those mamas who have (human) babies. The 24/7 is real….. even more real when you’ve got one with a health problem.

Elsa’s entry into the world, while received happily by us has been fraught with issues. The last two days, we’ve been unraveling the problem(s) that have plagued her.

Elsa’s problem #1: Hypothermia at birth: Although we live in north Texas, believe it or not, it can get dang cold here. It’s a different kind of cold than up north where it’s drier. Here…. it can be bone chilling in the winter time. We found her within 30 minutes of her birth, but she was already half frozen even in that short amount of time. Despite our efforts of heat lamps, warming pad, time indoors in front of the fire with us, we could not keep her warm.
Elsa’s problem #2: Low blood glucose: It appeared that because she was so cold, she wasn’t eating. Not eating was causing a dangerous drop in blood glucose. Between this and the hypothermia, we were setting ourselves up for losing her.
Elsa’s problem #3: Pneumonia: Babies are so very tender, especially ones born under such dangerous conditions. For whatever reason, I’ve found that calves and foals can be particularly tender at any time of the year. The vet heard rattling in her lungs, and her oxygen saturation came back at 72%. That is not conducive for living long, as eventually organs will begin shutting down.

Once we found out she had pneumonia, we upped our game. Frankly, the vet, rather gently attempted to talk me out of saving her, simply by telling me her chances of survival were slim. That news came Wednesday. Today is Friday, and baby girl is doing better. She has been on a round of two antibiotics, and spent about 48 hours in our bathtub. Because we wanted to do everything we could to support proper lung function and boost her immune system, we’ve been diffusing therapeutic grade Frankincense, Copaiba, and Lemon around the clock. Our bathroom became an aroma tent for her. Two days of tube feeding…. and then we tried to teach her to nurse again, with very little success. We were all disappointed. Honey, (her mama) was THRILLED to have her back this morning after two days of absence. Honey’s mourning was heart wrenching. She went into a depressed mood, and didn’t even call for her baby. It was as if she knew she was dead. This picture isn’t so great, but neither one of them would stand still for a photo op.

Tube feeding is time consuming, but so is keeping a calf in the house….Keeping the house clean is a chore all it’s own. I’ve done load after load of towels and blankets. Little girl has proven that both her bladder and her bowels are functioning… this is GREAT news, as it means her organs are working. Her blood oxygen saturation level yesterday afternoon confirmed that….. it had risen to 95%. Because she is so tiny, she needs food every 2-3 hours. Feed. Clean. Repeat.

Honey, Elsa’s mama, can’t be forgotten in all of this…. she has a bag full of milk at any given time, and has pined for her baby. Throughout all of this, Honey has been a trooper. She is young, and has never been milked before…. so, on top of missing her baby, she had a crash course in getting to know me intimately while I milked. You can’t just walk up and start milking a cow. It actually takes time, trust, and a learning curve on the cow’s part. So this… milking….. has to also be added into the equation. Thankfully, because of scheduling at work, I was given a window of 7 days in a row off (Thank you Jesus!)…. but by next Wednesday, I’ll have to come up with a longer term plan.

This brings me to Elsa’s Problem #4: Last night in the wee hours of the morning as I was placing the tube down her throat for yet another feeding, I felt something odd on the roof of her mouth. No wonder the poor thing can’t suckle well…… she has a cleft palate! After feeding her, I promptly did a little research…. what are our options?…..are we looking at surgery, is death the only option…. what’s next? Surprisingly, I found a small group of farmers and ranchers who have successfully raised cleft palate calves. It appears that if you can get past the initial suckling problems (ie: get creative with feeding), they can actually grow up and thrive. I also found that this particular congenital defect is almost always due to ingesting a plant in the lupine family during a certain time of pregnancy. You know I’m going to be stalking those fields in the spring with the intent of destroying that offending plant.

Today is Friday. Technically, she should be dead by now. I won’t say she’s thriving, but I do believe she is at least 85% better than she was on Wednesday. But the “window”, according to the vet, is still 3 days away.

Y’all keep praying for her. She is a cutie, and she’s worth fighting for!

Hugs and love, Liz

Elsa’s Life Begins

Liz James · January 1, 2018 ·

T’was the night before New Year’s and all thru the barn,
Not a creature was stirring…….’cause it was dang cold on the farm.

The critters were nestled all snug in their beds,
With visions of warm spring days dancing in their heads.

With Charlie in his long johns and I in my leggings…..
We too bedded down for a year’s calm ending.

The morning came quickly, and someone was missing,
…. A cow named Honey had left without sleeping.

A package she left us half frozen we found…
A little calf so cold on the hard winter ground.

Shivering mightily, she lay there so weak…..
We feared our new year would begin with a valley, not a peak.

Spotted and tiny the little girl lay,
We towel dried & wrapped her in a blanket and prayed.

The temperature kept dropping, a crisis at hand,
So we brought her inside by the fire to mend.

A blanket, a fire, Frank & Myrrh on the (belly) button….
This baby girl was gonna grow up to be somethin’!

Slowly she warmed and began to stir,
And with a small ‘mooo’ we knew the coast was clear.

Two hours later she returned to her Mama,
Who was pacing the stall, clearly glad to be done with the drama.

Slowly she warmed and began to stir,
And with a small ‘mooo’ we knew the coast was clear.

Two hours later she returned to her Mama,
Who was pacing the stall, clearly glad to be done with the drama.

We hope your 2018 is filled with HEALTH, Happiness, and Prosperity! Thank you for reading my first year of blogging. You are appreciated!

XOXO, Liz

Say What? The Role The FDA & FTC Play

Liz James · April 17, 2017 ·

You may have seen by now that I have a passion for sharing and educating. I can’t help it… and at times I am unapologetic about my passion. I love sustainable wellness and sustainable living… the methods, the practice, the fact that it is available to everyone who is willing to work for it. I don’t think I would be this way if I hadn’t spent 25+ years in the trenches of the pharmaceutical industry, and seen the carnage that results from loosely prescribing ‘bandaid medication’ instead of getting to the root of what is actually malfunctioning and working to correct what has gone awry holistically. Don’t get me wrong (I feel like a broken record player saying this), there is a time and a place for medications, but why is the consumption of 80% of ALL medications worldwide occurring in the United States by Americans? We’ve been suckered into thinking that a little pill will solve everything.

I post occasionally about Young Living products because it is a company I believe in as a sustainable wellness tool……. they provide me, my family, and my farm-ily with what we need to support our various body systems (in addition to eating properly, exercising daily, nurturing our faith and deep friendships & maintaining emotional life-work-stress balance) so that we can function optimally, despite the abuse our bodies have taken over the years. YL is one of the most ethically sound companies I have ever come across…..far more so than any drug company I’ve found in my pharmacy career, or any traditional mega-corporate food company where profit is king.

As I dive deeper into supplements and all things Young Living on occasional posts, you might think I am speaking a little vaguely on some topics. In fact, you might wonder why I say something like “please Google Frankincense or one of its constituents, alpha-pinene using https://scholar.google.com/ for more specific information”. It’s not because I don’t know. Frankly, it’s the opposite…. it’s because I DO know but cannot legally relay ALL of the information to you.

There are two organizations that will prevent me from providing you with concise and precise information for the following reasons:

The FDA: You can read about the scope of the FDA here . Per FDA guidelines, “we” cannot make definitive health claims on products that are deemed supplements and that haven’t gone thru the vetting process that is dictated by the FDA (this is both good and bad)….despite the fact that there are literally thousands upon thousands of studies on essential oils and their role and place in healthcare. I invite you to begin your personal research on both pubmed.gov and on Google Scholar . Both of these resources are a wealth of information, so bookmark this page. You may want to come back to both links later after we’ve talked more.

A couple of years ago, the FDA & FTC really cracked down on supplement and nutritional companies, and so it became a bit more tricky to share valuable information. Please take some time to read this article from Health Impact News for details.

The FTC: You can read about the FTC here . The long and the short of it is this: While I work independently, I am representing products that I use from Young Living. Having done the research, from a pharmacists perspective, I believe you would not find a more superior health/wellness product line anywhere. However, I cannot make claims to diagnose, treat, or attempt to cure…. I can only lead you as much as possible down the information path so that you can reach your own educated conclusions.

So, sometimes, my words may seem a little vague or “fluffy”. You likely want hard cold facts. I understand that, and I want to help you navigate “what to do when, where, why, and how” with ease so that you too can have optimal wellness. Young Living has created a document called ” Sharing Young Living the Right Way” and in order to remain compliant and in the good graces of the FDA and FTC, I do my best to abide by that document. Please feel free to refer to that link when needed in our discussions. That way, we will speak the same language and you will better understand the path I am trying to guide you down.

Education is important, and so is learning to navigate information. Learning to be the CEO of your own health is a skill that requires honing and development, and too many people assume it’s somebody else’s job to do it for them. That’s a risky proposition if you ask me….. the business of letting someone else (who may have more interest in your ill health than they do in keeping you well) be the manager of you. Everyone has choices. Do not be afraid to take the plunge and do a little research yourself….. and if you have questions along the way….. GREAT! That’s what I’m here for. I’m happy to be your bloodhound, tour guide, and navigator here to help!

this Might Just Be Your Missing Puzzle Piece

Liz James · February 11, 2017 ·

Our bodies. We are a mega city of cells that never sleep and never vacation: 24/7/365. Our cells are shift workers, simultaneously creating and destroying depending on our body’s needs. That makes me tired…. just thinking about how hard our bodies work around the clock!

Just like any mega city employees, our cells need adequate and proper tools to do their jobs and keep things running smoothly. Without proper tools, production and destruction may become delayed or dysfunctional, and for a mega city, that can result in a real crisis.

Enter Young Living’s product Sulfurzyme. In my opinion, this is one of the most important powerhouse products that YL offers us. It is one of the supplements Charlie and I use daily to support our bones, ligaments, and joint health. We both have had some significant “wear and tear” on our farm weary bodies and this product helps us function at our best. (and no….neither one of us walks with even a limp). After doing a little research, I came to realize it supports a whole lot more than just our musculo-skeletal system, and now covet this product even more than I already did.

You see, the mineral sulfur is critically important to our body’s function. Unfortunately, roughly 75% of the US population is deficient. It hasn’t always been this way….current farming practices (ie: stressing soil by not rotating crops, soil overuse, artificial fertilizer use, herbicide use etc) that have evolved since the early 70’s have robbed our food supply of many minerals, and sulfur is no exception. Organic sulfur comes from the plants we eat, and also from the animal proteins we eat (unless vegan). In its most elemental form it is called MSM (methylsulfonylmethane).

MSM is utilized by our bodies to create 2 of the 20 essential amino acids we need in order that we may live and thrive: methionine and cysteine. Amino acids are necessary building blocks required to create protein. Aside from water, protein is the most plentiful substance within our bodies.

Adequate availability of both these amino acids and bioavailable sulfur are known to play a large role in:

Breaking down fat (especially in the liver and arteries)
DNA/RNA synthesis
Detoxifying harmful accumulations of lead, cadmium, mercury, and arsenic within our bodies
Supporting muscle strength and tone
Aids in the production of collagen and provides elasticity in the skin
Supporting hair, skin, and nail health
Facilitating cellular energy production
Facilitating carbohydrate metabolism, especially important for those with insulin production issues
Glutathione production: The principal function is waste disposal in our cells, but it’s also known to promote good eye health. Nearly every type of eye disease has the hallmark characteristic of low glutathione levels. (Coincidentally, our levels tend to drop naturally as we age)
Glucosamine production: the building block for ligaments, tendons, joint lubrication, digestive and respiratory membranes, heart valves, eyes, nails, skin and bone. It gives cartilage strength, structure, and resiliency.
Facilitating normal digestion and bowel movements/ helping to neutralize sour stomach.
Alleviating discomfort from bone & joint pain, muscle soreness

When MSM is combined with a diet rich in Vitamin C….. well, this is when some additional magic happens. There is a synergistic effect between the two, and our cells and body tissue becomes more flexible and more permeable, making the above list happen to a greater degree.

Sulfurzyme is a deceptively simple product, containing just MSM and dried Wolfberries. However, the wolfberries are a powerhouse in their own right (to be discussed another day) and in addition to vitamin C, also contain minerals and coenzymes that further support sulfur metabolism. Taking this combination is much more powerful than simply consuming MSM alone, and the effects of MSM appear to be magnified.

There is no way I can feasibly condense “how” and “why” MSM works as it does in this article. If you’d like to dig deeper on this subject, I’d encourage you to read The MSM Miracle by Earl Mindell, RPh/PhD. It is a small book that would be well worth your time!

** Side note: do not confuse Sulfur with Sulfa (as in the drug class). Nobody is allergic to Sulfur in its elemental form. In fact, if we were to be completely without sulfur, we simply would not exist. So, yes, even if you have a sulfa allergy, you can still take elemental sulfur. **

If you’d like to learn more about Sulfurzyme or Young Living’s other products, please contact me. You (and your body!) won’t be disappointed.

Enjoy your day!
Liz

DISCLAIMER: ALL POSTS, ARTICLES, LINKS OR TESTIMONIALS ON THIS SITE ARE FROM OUR “INDEPENDENT YOUNG LIVING WHOLESALE MEMBERS” WHO RECEIVE COMMISSION ON THE SALE OF COMPANY PRODUCTS. THEY ARE INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCES, REFLECTING THE REAL LIFE EXPERIENCES OF THOSE WHO USED OUR PRODUCTS. HOWEVER INDIVIDUAL RESULTS MAY VARY. WE DO NOT CLAIM, NOR SHOULD THE READER ASSUME, THAT ANY INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCES RECOUNTED ARE TYPICAL OR REPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT ANY OTHER CONSUMER MIGHT EXPERIENCE. TESTIMONIALS ARE NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT ANYONE ELSE USING OUR PRODUCTS MAY EXPERIENCE. YOUNG LIVING IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OPINIONS OR COMMENTS POSTED ON THIS WEBSITE, AND DO NOT SHARE THE OPINIONS, VIEWS OR COMMENTARY OF POSTINGS ON THIS WEBSITE. ALL OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE STRICTLY THE VIEWS OF THE POSTER OR REVIEWER. THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN EVALUATED BY THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT INTENDED TO DIAGNOSE TREAT, CURE OR PREVENT ANY DISEASE.