We did it!

One year ago today, Brian and I had our shot gun wedding of the 21st Century kind... I was laid off from my job and needed health insurance. I know this sounds a bit crass, but we had planned on getting married on July 19th, the 5th year anniversary of our first date. April, July... no real difference so Brian arranged the whole thing. Me? I was too much of a mess from losing my job. I was totally freaked out with how I was going to keep paying the mortgage.

We knew we needed to sell my house and fast! My mom and the cat moved in with Brian, me and his mom on April 30th. The day I had all the TV shut off is the day I had my mom move. It was late in the afternoon. I had her new bedroom all swanky and looking like a 5 star hotel.

I walked into my old house and said, "Ok Ma, it's moving day. Pack up the stuff you really need and let's go to your new house. " She was stunned but packed her little bag while I looked for the cat carry case. No way was Savita the Cat going to ride in the car without a case.

Couldn't find the case so we went to Wal-Mart and bought one. All they had was a gargantuan carrier for a dog. It was marked down so we thought we had a bargain. Now I know the cat hated the ride from our old house to the new place, cats like to be enclosed, it makes them feel safe. Sorry cat.

My mom loved her new room. Then, she began to hate it. She locked herself up in her room and became depressed. What a challenge overcoming an elderly mom who is on pharmaceuticals and depressed. But, we did it - different post for another time.

My mother in law hated me at first. She would try to pick fights with me. It was the silent battle to be woman of the house. Who knew? My entire life I had control of my own life, owned a house and was my moms caregiver during her sickest part of her life. Now, I had a new husband AND a mother-in-law... how did I survive?

I spent days at my house, cleaning it and prepping it for sale. I even went and became an accredited ASP Home Stager so that I could stage my house and sell it for top dollar in a sagging Real Estate Market. You can see the video that I made to promote my house through my Realtors website.

The house sold fast and for more than the first Realtor that I spoke to told me. Yay. What a relief to have the house gone. I did learn that I absolutely LOVE staging homes for sale so I'm starting my own business. It's been slow starting with all the elder care but I do believe I've got my mom to a point where she's self sufficient and I'll have more time to move toward my goals.

The holidays came and we had parties with family. The fun was starting for us. Maybe this year we can have a honeymoon or get to play more golf. Golfing is an awesome activity, to me it's meditation in motion. Golfing season is here and we already played 9 in mid-March! We're off to a good start.

Today, is our one year anniversary. Every time I watch my wedding video, I cry happy tears. I LOVED my wedding. Brian planned it in 5 days. My sister came through with flowers on the morning of the wedding. It was awesome. My nephew did the camera work, too bad I forgot to take the camera off night vision. It did give a good effect. If you want to see our first wedding, you can watch it here.

I must say, in this whole year, things have changed A LOT.

My mom is now sleeping through the night and healthier than she's been in decades. My mother in law now loves me. I never took her bait when she was being mean to me. I just gave her more love and was even nicer to her. The meaner she was toward me the nicer I was toward her. One day she said to me, "Why are you being so nice to me?" I said, "Why not?" Then I gave her a hug and told her that I love her. That was the turning point.

Ok, I'm also a wicked good cook and I make meals that are not only tasty but beautiful. Every time I gave her her dinner, it smiled at her.

I'm still unemployed. It's the dawning of gardening season. I'm an accredited ASP Home Stager. I am in love with my husband and have an awesome family. Life is good. Even in the crappiest of economies, we can be happy. All we have to do is change our mind. Think differently about whatever it is that makes you sad. It's like that old cliche, turning a frown inside out.

Make yourself change your mind today and think about all the really great stuff going on in your life, even if it is very small, if you focus on good, more good will come to you.

Peace out. Happy Anniversary to Brian and me... YAY! We made it through the first year.

How to Use Fenugreek as a Weightloss Aide

I've been fascinated with the uses of Fenugreek.

Fenugreek is great for weight loss. If you take a couple of drops in herbal tea or drink a cup of Fenugreek tea on an empty stomach, it will suppress your appetite so that you don't eat so much.

Happy Weight Loss!

Me and my shadow

This morning I got up fairly early so I went and checked on my mom. She looked like she was sleeping... then I thought hmmm, is she breathing? For a few seconds I didn't see her breathing which sort of got my heart racing a little.

I quietly said, "Ma? Ma?"

No response.

She had the light on next to her bed so I shut it off and went back upstairs to make myself a cup of tea and write a post on my blog.

About an hour later I went back to see if she was awake and if she wanted a cup of tea. She was awake and then said, "You know, the strangest thing happened. The lady showed up and turned off my light. She didn't say anything. I laid here as still as I could and kept my eyes closed."

That's when I said, "Ma, I'm the lady. I shut off your light. I was checking to see if you were breathing - you were so I left you alone."

I then told her that if the vision has a shadow, the person is real. I proceeded to walk around the room in the dim light and showed her my shadow. My advice to her was, "Make sure you look for the shadow!"

Who needs pharmaceuticals?!

Fenugreek is an incredible plant. My mother is so much more healthier since she started to drink the tea and use the extract drops. I actually use the extract drops to lower the glycemic level in foods that I make with carbohydrates like oatmeal and oat flour.

I've learned that Fenugreek definitely controls diabetes. In fact, I am beginning to believe that it can cure Diabetes. I know this is a grand statement but I am watching first hand how this awesome herb can heal a debilitating disease like diabetes.

Fenugreek, unlike the pharmaceutical concoctions people take to "manage" diabetes, doesn't have side effects. That's right... NO ILL SIDE EFFECTS! The side effects of fenugreek are, thinner blood - cleaner arteries and weight loss to name 2 that I've experienced first hand. It also lowers the bad cholesterol... now how cool is this herb?!

I found this article Effect of fenugreek seeds on blood glucose and serum lipids in type I diabetes which gives more scientific data about Fenugreek and Diabetes.

My mom's blood sugar levels were in the 125 - 135 range every morning with out insulin or fenugreek. We were controlling her blood sugar through diet and exercise. It was really hard for both of us.

Once she started to take the herb Fenugreek in tea and extract forms, her blood sugar readings in the morning have dropped gradually. They went to a steady 120 for a week, and dropped to about 119... etc. Now, her sugar readings are a constant 114 with the help of Fenugreek.

What does it do? It seems to fix the pancreas so that it can produce its own insulin. It also keeps the carbs and sugars that we eat from spiking blood sugars.

Here's a good article that does a good job explaining Fenugreek, where it comes from and what benefits it possesses Fenugreek’s New Role Lies in Blood Sugar and Cholesterol Control

Reiki - the Chi Quotient

Chi... what is it? You may have heard about it at one time along your travels, but what is it?

Chi is our energy life force, it's the Universal energy that is stored in your body in order to keep your life healthy. When you feel sick, sad or out of sorts, you are probably low on Chi.

There are many things that you can do to restore your Chi-quotient by yourself, meditate, exercise or laugh, to name a few. Or you could visit a Reiki Practitioner for a Reiki session. You can find out more about Reiki by visiting the Reiki.org website.

I've been using Reiki on my mom for nearly a decade. I'm a trained Reiki Master and have seen the power of the human touch on people who are out of balance both physically and emotionally.

Uncle Al is benefiting from Reiki. He is walking better and his mental clarity is improving. He has more lucid moments and fewer episodes of memory loss. It's awesome to see his spirit waking up.

One day, I hope to see Uncle Al like he was the last time he visited my house in 2000. He wants his memory back and I believe that I can help him find it through a balanced MIND BODY and SPIRIT.

It would be great to give him a job around the house, he wants one very badly. His goal is to sit on the lawn tractor and cut the lawn. Every day we are moving closer to this goal.

Stay tuned for video of Uncle Al riding the lawn tractor for the first time.

Health Benefits of Fenugreek - yes, there's MORE!

I remembered that my mom told me she had a kidney stone based on some tests that she had several months ago. They said they were going to wait and let it just pass. It got me thinking... hmmm, I wonder if Fenugreek will take care of the stones.

I did a google search and found this -Health Benefits of Fenugreek

Fenugreek, in my opinion, cures everything!

I'm so happy, I could do the jig

Even though it was raining like mad here yesterday, I went to get Uncle Al because I had promised him on Friday that I'd get him on Monday. He was waiting for me and all so happy when he saw me walk through the door.

Off we went.

Uncle Al, beaming from ear to ear with a big smile. We got outside and I said, "Gee Uncle Al, you are walking very sure footed. You are doing great!" That's when he said, "I'm so happy, I could do the jig. Let me show you how strong I am." All of a sudden, he jumped up into the air and tried to click his heals together. Nearly falling to his knees, he busted out laughing. Once I knew he was OK, I started to laugh too.

It surely set the tone for the day, having Uncle Al trying to "do the jig."

The drive to my house he was very chatty. Reading every road sign and telling me that I'm going in the right direction and that the nav in the car was correct in its instructions.

Once we arrived home, he went and hung out with my mom. I brought them tea and a low glycemic oatmeal cookie. He rolled his eyes in delight... mmmmm'ing through each bite.

During one of my trips downstairs to check on Uncle Al and my mom I saw my mom and Uncle Al standing over her sewing box, Uncle Al holding the tape measure trying to read it because my mom had just told him that he had a 36" leg, even in his slightly demented state, he knew that was crazy! My mom kept insisting that she was right because, "she measured." Uncle Al is only 5 foot tall, so having a 36" leg on a pair of pants would make him have a freaky and short torso.

I then took the tape measure and did the dreaded inseam measurement. My mom stood by chuckling, she thought it was one of the funniest things she ever saw, outside of my giving Uncle Al a shower. His inseam is 24", now that's more like it!

Once I measured the 24" inseam I measured the outside length from his waist to the floor and it was 36", so that's where she got the screwy measurement.

A couple of hours went by and my mom finishes her job of hand sewing the hem on Uncle Al's pants. Well, I should have taken a picture, one leg was way shorter than the other. Uncle Al didn't want to hurt my mom's feelings so he let her try to dress him up. They had lots of laughs.

When I tucked Uncle Al in at the home last night, I said, "go to sleep and dream happy thoughts and think about Josie hemming your pants." He laughed a good hearty laugh and then said, "I dream of living with all of you people one day. I love you so much." He took my hand and kissed it.

Ma's Instruction Manual

Over the weekend I caught a break from caregiving when my sister took mom to her house for the weekend. Unfortunately, my husband is sick, his timing sort of sucked, but those are the breaks.

Mom loves visiting her kids, especially now that she's got control of her mind. The only trouble is her blood sugar doesn't remain constant in the teens when she goes visiting.

This morning her sugar was 163! Ma, what did you eat?

So, today she's back on her healthful eating plan and exercising on the treadmill.

Here's mom's instruction manual.

Morning

Check blood sugar (this tells you how many drops go into the oatmeal - 2 drops is usually good if she wakes up with sugar readings in the 120's or teens.

Each drop lowers her sugar about 15 points.

Make sure she has breakfast by 8am. It should be oatmeal with 1/4 cup of blueberries, a little milk and 2 drops of fennugreek.

Check blood sugar at 10 and if it's in the low 100's, give her a piece of fruit with a cup of ginger tea.

Lunch at noon. The meal should be dark leafy greens to help keep the blood alkaline. Acidic blood is not good for your health, it is what causes dis-ease in the body.

Afternoon snack at 2. Do the same thing as you do at 10am, check sugar readings and give a snack. could be one of the low glycemic oatmeal cookies that I make for her. (recipe will follow in the printed manual.)

Dinner by 6pm. fish, chicken, turkey - we rarely eat beef or pork... this should be served up with lots of vegetables.

Instead of bread, use Joseph's Lavash bread, it's only got 7g of Carbs and it doesn't raise Ma's sugar levels. These wraps make awesome sandwiches. I'll make one for you and you'll never go back to sub rolls or bread again!

The best rule to follow with Ma's diet for even BG readings is no bread, no pasta and no preservatives (nothing in a box that has more than 5 ingredients.)

Ma's meds...

Morning - 6 pills

1 Krill Oil

1 Apple Polyphenol

1 81 mg aspirin

1 Vitamin D

1 CoQ10

1 20 mg Lisinopril (HB pill)

Before bed - 2 pills

1 Norvasc 10 mg (HB pill)

1 Melatonin 30 mg

During the day if her sugar levels are up, give her a cup of Fenugreek tea or put 2 drops of fenugreek into a different flavored tea that she likes, usually she asks for ginger tea.

Pillows

Since Ma was diagnosed with sleep apnea and has a problem using the mask, we found the Sona Pillow at Brookstone's. We bought one for Ma (me too) and now neither of us has apnea episodes at night. I'll show you how to use the pillow or you can read how to use it in this review that I found that tells you how to use the Sona Pillow.

Why do I care?

Today I was asked by a friend, "Why do you care so much about your Uncle?"

I didn't have to think twice for an answer, it was simple. The reason I care is because both him and my mom were abandoned when they were little. Their dad died when my mom was 6 and my Uncle was 9. Their mom lost the house and they slept in church pews. Somehow they ended up at relatives homes and my mom's mother was committed to a mental institution along with their older sister.

My mom often told me the story how she lived with different relatives, one of them was Louise of Louise's Ravioli's. Eventually, when she was in High School she got a job caring for a doctor's children. She lived with them.

As time went on, she became a really good dancer and danced at the Ocean View in Revere. Uncle Al went too. That's where my mom met my dad. At first she didn't like him, but he was persistent.

They got married. Al went to live with them until he got on his feet. He got a job and was able to find his own place. Uncle Al was introduced to my father's sister and his cousin. The plan was for Al to hook up with my father's sister. Instead, he fell for my dad's cousin. He married her.

They could never have kids so they adopted a little girl that they loved so deeply, more than anything in this world.

Janet died about 10 years ago. Maryann moved home to live with her dad. She got married. Brought her husband to live with her and her dad. She cried for a baby. Had invitro several times and now has a beautiful little girl. She locked her dad up and ran for the hills.

Now, Uncle Al sits in the home waiting for me to arrive and take him out. I'll get him tomorrow.

So, why do I do it... why do I care? Because my mom and her brother lost their parents at a very young age, they didn't have anyone who gave 2 shits about them... I refuse to let them die in the same way. I want them to go out with dignity, knowing that they have a family that loves them very much. I want them to see that they made a huge difference in this world, that their lives have (had) purpose.

Oh no... is she ...?

Last night I made dinner for the moms like I always do. They both love eating in their rooms and watching their big TV's so I serve them dinner in their rooms.

Yesterday, I brought Rachel her dinner and she was slumped in her chair. It freaked me out. I did remain calm, sort of. Those of you who know me personally will know that this was a huge feat for me, to remain calm.

I called her name a few times, each time I got a little more anxious... rachel? Rachel? RACHEL??????? I looked to see if she was breathing and she was so I knew she wasn't dead. Thank God.

My heart was pounding. She gave me an incredible Adrenalin rush. I'm not keen on finding her dead... hell, I'm not keen on finding anyone dead!

She woke and said, "Wow! I'm tired. I never do that."

My entire childhood I always worried about my parents dying. My father used to wake up in the middle of the night trying to catch his breath. It scared me when I was little, so much so that I would wake up at night and check to see if they were both breathing. To this day, I do the same thing with both my mom and my mother in law, check to see if they're breathing. I suppose old habits die hard.

He's there... I know he's there!

My poor mom, she still believes there's a man peeking at her through doors that are cracked open a bit.

Nope, no man Ma.

This morning my husband had a brilliant idea. He suggested that I ask her if the cat is sleeping next to her when she sees the man.

I did ask my mom the question and she said, "Yes." I replied, "Ma, do you think the cat is going to stay laying here asleep if there's a man peeking through the door? Savita is the scardiest cat in the world, she'd be long gone. So, as long as the cat is sleeping next to you on the bed, then there's no man.

Let's hope the cat begins to serve a useful purpose other than looking cute and setting you up for a good scratch from her right hook.

Shhhhh... the man's in there!

Yesterday was an interesting day. I spent a good chunk of it reassuring my mom that she wasn't getting screwed by the credit card company and her bank. I suppose it serves me right showing her MSNBC. She watches it all day long.

My mom was pretty upset yesterday morning. For some reason she thought she had to go bankrupt because she didn't see any way out of her debt.

She doesn't have a lot of debt and doesn't have any rent or living expenses since my husband and I take care of it for her. Bankruptcy definitely wasn't the answer. It would be nothing more than a royal pain in my ass, driving to talk to a lawyer.

So... little Josie wouldn't let the bankruptcy idea go. I found her in her room reading the phone book, looking for a lawyer. I said to her, "Make sure you set up for someone to take you to the lawyer before you call and make an appointment. I'm against it so I won't be your wheels. Sorry about that."

I saw how upset she was and I asked her, "Why do you think you need to go bankrupt?"

She showed me the 2 letters she got and they were about the same bill. She believed she was being double billed, but she wasn't. One letter was talking about the repayment plan with a reduced interest rate and the other was her statement showing that we made a payment.

I called the CC company, she talked to them and I thought everything was OK. Then, I went back to doing my thing. A short time later I went back downstairs and she was all worked up about the bank. She thought they "stole" 200 bucks. After some research, she had written a check out of sequence and had forgotten why. Super... problem solved!

Like I do every day, I made the moms and me lunch and brought Josie her salad wrap. She ate it and then she dozed off in her chair. That's when THE MAN showed up. he always comes when she's either sleep deprived or stressed out. Yesterday she was both. I found out later that she hadn't been sleeping the last couple of nights, even with the Melatonin!

It was early afternoon when I stopped in to see my mom. She was wide eyed. I knew immediately that she had a hallucination. I noticed her bathroom door shut as she was mouthing the words to me... "He's in there!" as she pointed to the door.

I said, "What? Who's in there?" I thought... hmmm, my mother in law? Why would she use Jo's toilet? My mom was so convincing that I began to believe her. I turned on the bathroom light and said, 'Ok, I'm going in!" My mom said, "NO! Oh NO!"

I opened the door.

No one was there.

My mom said, "I KNEW that once you came and opened the door he wouldn't be there."

I said, "yes, because he isn't. It's your mind creating it. You know how the dogs that are on Dog Whisperer get so focused on something that they become obsessed and seem crazy? Well, you are doing something similar. You are focusing on assumptions and your mind is making other assumptions and before you know it you've created a reality that only exists in your mind.

Make sure to look for the shadows and that will let you know if someone is real. More importantly, relax. Let the worry go, you don't have to worry about anything, these are your golden years to enjoy, so for God's sake will you enjoy em?!

Rich Girl, Poor Girl

Once upon a time there were 2 little girls that loved each other like sisters. They were cousins.

One little girl was an only child who was given EVERYTHING that she wanted, but was not given love. The other little girl had a lot of brothers and sisters with very little money but she was given lots of love.

The little girl who got everything soon became spoiled rotten, temper tantrums and all. She grew up to be a mean spirited individual, caring only for herself.

The other little girl never asked for anything because she knew her parents didn't have the money. Instead, she used her imagination and made her toys... dolls made out of cloths pins and paper mache. She had a lot of fun.

The little girl who got anything that she wanted always wanted what the poor little girl had, happiness. She thought it could be bought, so she demanded to have everything that this little girl got. She never found happiness in the things that her parents bought for her.

As the years went on, the rich girl continued to search for happiness. The poor girl search for people to share her happiness with because she had more than she needed herself. The poor girl wanted to give the rich girl some of her happiness, because she remembered the pact that they made as children, to be sisters, to help each other through thick and thin. But, the rich girl was too suspicious.

Because the little rich girl grew up with out much love in her life, she became blind to love. Her heart closed and was not able to love, not even herself.

Time went on and the little rich girl had a baby. Her father paid for every invitro procedure because he wanted to give her the one thing that no one could give her, a baby. There were several tries, each costing thousands of dollars.

The poor girl, she grew up, went to college, got a great job, bought a house and then moved her aging mom in to live with her. She got married to an awesome man who loved her as much as she loved him. They enjoyed each others company and laughed a lot.

The rich girl, as soon as she had her baby, had her dad committed to a nursing home. She took over his assets while he sat in a nursing home, waiting for her to call or visit. She never did.

Rich girl kept her dad away from his family, especially the poor girl. She kept him isolated as he began to age.

Poor girl didn't care what rich girl thought, so she went to visit her Uncle. He loved her visits. He always asked for his daughter and asked her if his daughter still loved him. Poor girl couldn't answer his question, all she could do was reassure him that she did.

Rich girl got angry. Very angry when she found out that the poor girl was visiting her dad. She began to harrass her dad and gave him an ultimatum, me or her.

Poor girl and her Uncle talked about it and poor girl said, "Uncle, she is your daughter. it is not right for me to take her dad away from her. Let's part ways now and know that I love you."

Poor girl went away so that the rich girl could visit her father, after all, that was the deal.

Rich girl never visited. Uncle became depressed and suicidal.

Poor girl went to visit and brought sunshine to Uncle. He loved to sing and dance. Poor girl made Uncle laugh all the time.

Poor girl realized that she was not poor, but very rich, rich with peace, happiness and love in her heart.

Morale of the story:

Don't give your kids everything that they want. Let them learn NO. If you give them everything they will never learn how to use their own minds to create a beautiful reality for themselves. Instead, they will be left floundering wondering why the world sucks so badly for them while everyone else seems to be sailing along.

Fun at Camp Sue

Yesterday started out to be a rough day for Uncle Al but after a little time at Camp Sue his troubles will melt away. Here's a great video of my mom playing the keyboard while Uncle Al walked on the treadmill. Uncle Al knows that the secret to his health is in the walking.

Hello Sue, Maryann called, she's breaking up with me...

Never did I realize how painful it would be to hear Uncle Al crying on the phone, telling me that his world collapsed and he doesn't know where to turn.

I asked him what happened and he said, "Maryann called, she broke up with me." I was stunned.

He proceeded to tell me that his daughter called to tell him that because he befriended me that she's dumping him, that she never wants to see him again, that they are over. She told him that she lost his house and bought a new house in New Hampshire where she has a new job. She told him that she's changing all of her contact information so that he won't be able to reach her.

Now, all we can do is move forward.

I talked with the nurse supervisor this morning. She told me that now that Maryann is dumping Uncle Al the state will assign an attorney to take care of Uncle Al. He's pretty much becoming a ward of the state.

The nurse told me to become friends with the lawyer because often times the lawyer will call the family before making any decisions about the patient.

Love that Melatonin!

Last night, I was well prepared to have a good night sleep for myself because I had given my mom a 30 mg melatonin tablet with a cup of nighty night tea. I also shut off the light next to her bed and put a low light at the opposite end of the room so that she could see if she needed to get to the bathroom at night.

I was able to convince her that shutting the light out was causing her the trouble. I told her that it was like a torture treatment, where you are never allowed to sleep... no wonder she was seeing things and going crazy.

My mom has worried about "the crazy gene" as long as I can remember. Her biggest fear was passing this on to her kids. I never forgot it because she always worried about it and told me that she didn't want us to be crazy and that she was sorry she passed it on to us.

Anyway, her crazy gene is dementia. Yay!

Now, I love my sisters, brother and my nephews but if I can avoid being their nurse then amen to that. The whole purpose of this blog is to write notes so that later down the road I can write a manual for everyone who has my genes. It may save them a lot of agravation because I can tell you right now, once Gram and Rachel move on to the other side (Uncle Al too) I'm pretty much going to be on the Golf Course as the Golf Swami!

I digress...

Today, Josie woke up feeling great. Her readings were all awesome. Wooo Hooo!

Unfortunately, I notice termites coming out of a wall near the outside door that is next to her room. I set up the vaccuum and gave her the task of sucking the bugs up before they got into the room.

Thank God we took care of the hallucinations with Melatonin, that's all we need to hear Knock, Knock, Knock... "Susie. The bugs in the room, they're.... "

I believe my mom was sleep deprived. She was hallucinating because she didn't have enough sleep. Her internal clock was screwed up. Man, isn't that a torture tactic?

The pineal gland is pretty darn amazing. I need to do more research and thinking about this interesting gland... I've got so much more to say about it.

Yay for Melatonin!

What is Fenugreek?

I found this really great article that I thought I'd share.

http://www.homeremediesweb.com/fenugreek_health_benefits.php

Here's the text of the article.

Fenugreek Health Benefits



What is Fenugreek?
Fenugreek (also known as Greek Hay and Fenigreek), is an herb that is commonly found growing in the Mediterranean regions of southern Europe and Asia. Both the seeds and leaves are primarily used as a culinary spice. However, Fenugreek was also used to treat a whole slew of ailments in ancient Egypt, Greece, Italy and India/Pakistan ranging from bronchial problems to low libido.

The seeds of the fenugreek herb are an effective nutritional supplement and have also been used by herbalists for many centuries for the health benefits it provides. Fenugreek seeds contain protein, vitamin C, niacin, potassium, and diosgenin (a phytoestrogen compound that seems to mimic the effects of the hormone estrogen). The diosgenin in fenugreek is thought to help increase libido and lessen the effects of hot flashes and hormone-induced mood fluctuations. More active constituents in fenugreek are alkaloids, lysine and L-tryptophan. It also contains steroidal saponins (diosgenin, yamogenin, tigogenin, and neotigogenin) and mucilaginous fiber which are believed to be responsible for many of the beneficial effects fenugreek exhibits.


What are the Benefits of Fenugreek?
Fenugreek is an amazing magic herb that can cure number of ailments. Indian Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicine recommend fenugreek to treat arthritis, asthma, bronchitis, improve digestion, maintain a healthy metabolism, increase libido and male potency, cure skin problems (wounds, rashes and boils), treat sore throat, and cure acid reflux. Fenugreek also has a long history of use for the treatment of reproductive disorders, to induce labor, to treat hormonal disorders, to help with breast enlargement, and to reduce menstrual pain. Recent studies have shown that Fenugreek helps lower blood glucose and cholestrol levels, and may be an effective treatment for both type 1 and 2 diabetes. Fenugreek is also being studied for its cardiovascular benefits.


Uses of Fenugreek
Home Remedy for Balancing Cholesterol
A study in India found people who took 2 ounces of fenugreek seed each day had significantly (around 14 percent) lower cholesterol levels after 24 weeks, and had lowered their risk of heart attack by more than 25 percent. Therefore, a recommended remedy for lowering cholesterol is to take 2 ounces of Fenugreek seeds as part of one meal each day. The seeds can be sprinkled onto prepared food, or they can be consumed with water if they are in capsule form.


Treating Diabetes and Lowering Blood Sugar Levels
Studies have shown that participants with type 2 diabetes had significantly lower blood sugar levels after eating fenugreek. Therefore, a recommended home remedy for treating Type 2 diabetes is to consume 500mg of fenugreek twice daily.


Herbal Cure for Skin Inflammation
A German research group has approved Fenugreek as an effective topical treatment for skin problems such as abscesses, boils, burns, eczema, gout and ulceration of the skin. Therefore, a simple skin inflammation remedy is to take a spoonful of fenugreek and grind it into powder. Mix it with warm water to make a poultice and apply it directly onto the inflamed skin. (A poultice is simply a piece of cloth that has been soaked into the warm water mixture and then applied to the skin).


Natural Cure for Heartburn and Acid Reflux
Fenugreek seeds contain a lot of mucilage, which helps sooth gastrointestinal inflammation by coating the lining of the stomach and intestine. Therefore, for an effective remedy against heartburn or Acid Reflux, simply sprinkle 1 teaspoon of fenugreek seeds onto your food. Another option is to take one teaspoon of Fenugreek seeds and swallow them with water or juice before you start to eat.


Home Remedy for Fever
The Fenugreek herb has been known to help reduce fever when taken with lemon and honey, since it nourishes the body during an illness. Therefore, to treat a fever, simply consume one to two teaspoons of Fenugreek seeds three times a day along with an herbal tea (such as green tea) with a teaspoon of honey and lemon juice. Some health food stores also sell herbal Fenugreek teas (see below), which can be used instead of the green tea.


Breast Enlargement
Fenugreek is often used in commercial preparations and teas formulated to help balance women's hormones and/or enlarge the breasts. Therefore, a simple remedy is to make Fenugreek a part of your regular diet.


Remedy to Ease Child Birth for Pregnant Women
Fenugreek stimulates uterine contractions and can be helpful to induce childbirth. However, pregnant women should only use Fenugreek for inducing labor after consulting with their doctor.


Remedy to Aid Milk Production in Lactating Women
Since ancient times, Fenugreek has been known to increase milk production in lactating women. Research has even shown that milk production can increase by over 500 percent within 24 to 72 hours after consuming fenugreek. Although it is not known why this happens, researchers speculate that the oil contained in fenugreek seeds plays a role. Therefore, a recommended remedy to increase milk flow is to consume one capsule of fenugreek seed (at least 500mg) three times a day.


What are the Side Effects of Fenugreek?
While Fenugreek is generally considered to be safe, there have been reports of a few minor side-effects. For example, some people have reported that it can make them feel nauseous. High doses of fenugreek seed may also cause gastrointestinal discomfort, including diarrhea and gas. Frequent topical use of fenugreek preparations may cause skin irritation and sensitization. Fenugreek fiber can interfere with the absorption of oral medications because its fiber is mucilaginous (moist and sticky). Therefore, Fenugreek should be taken at least 2 hours before or after other drugs are taken. Fenugreek use during pregnancy is discouraged and should only be taken under a doctor's recommendation (since it can be used to induce labor).


Where and How to Buy Fenugreek
Fenugreek is often available in capsules, seed, and powder form at many health food stores. Fenugreek seeds can also often be found at Indian/Pakistani grocery stores. Recently, a few suppliers have also been offering Fenugreek herbal tea bags.

It's 3 AM, do you know where your mother is?

Finally, last night I figured out how to NOT have hot flashes and I was in a GREAT sleep. Ahhhhhh! No pools of sweat. No putting on the ceiling fan and opening the window to cool off while my husband lays in bed bundled up in sweats and heavy socks... Yay!

Until...

3am

Knock, Knock, Knock

Our bedroom door opens and it's my mother! "Susie, is everyone OK?"

I woke up out of a sound sleep and saw my mother standing in my doorway fully dressed. It was 3 am. She was walking in her sleep.

I walked her back downstairs and had her check her blood sugar. 125 was her reading, it was OK.

She was talking about someone stealing the money in my purse. Next thing I knew she took my purse from under a blanket and told me to check to see if my money was in it. I told her I didn't have any money in it and then I found 17 dollars.

I assured her that everything was fine and suggested she go back to bed, we had an appointment in the morning to check her pace maker.

I didn't stick around, I went back to bed.

Around 7:30 I went down to wake her up and she was in the dream state, sort of awake. She told me to be quiet because she was trying to hear what "the man" was trying to tell her. She asked me where her mother was, where was she going.

I read a bit on the net and found out that I need to tell her how I understand how scary it is for her. I also assured her that I wouldn't let anything happen to her, that I was here to protect her. It seemed to make her calm down. Slowly she woke up. When she did, I said, "Come on Ma, we have to go to the Pacemaker clinic today." She said, "What's the point of living?"

Immediately I stopped her and said, "Ma! I've worked too damn hard to get you to this place, I'm gathering information to write a book so that I can help other people like her not have to suffer so much... Please Ma, I need you to live, you're no good dead!"

She smiled and held my hand as she said, "In that case, OK, I'm getting up."

Here's what I think is her problem. At night she is so scared that she has to sleep with the light on next to her bed. I read somewhere that the light is interupting her sleep, because the brain looks for the darkness to rest. The light is keeping her half awake and half asleep. She wakes up and walks around. Moves stuff. Hides things on herself. In the morning she wakes up believing that "the man" took her stuff, etc.

The night before last I gave her a cup of nighty night tea and she didn't wake up at all. Tonight, I'll give her nighty night tea and turn a night light on the other side of the room where it won't shine on her eyes and face. I'll also give her a Melatonin tablet.

I know that as we age we have less Melatonin produced, this is the hormone that helps us sleep.

On the ride to the clinic she told me that she went in to my mother in law's room and tried to wake her up. She thought she was dead because she didn't stir when my mom said, "Rachel, are you OK?" It freaked her out so she came and woke up Brian and me.

Rachel is still alive. She's OK.

My mom, she's just plain ole tired so I have her taking a nap in the dark.

There's got to be a solution to dementia in the elderly.

Miracle Cure: Fenugreek

It's been about 2 - 3 weeks since my mom started to drink Fenugreek tea regularly.

In January, she had a stress test at the hospital where they checked the blood flow in her legs. Her left leg was giving her problems. She complained about pain and numbness in her lower left leg.

In February we went to see her Vascular doctor for a follow up and to see what the doctor had to say about her test results. He told us that her left groin artery, which already has a stent in it from 1997, was 90% blocked and this was causing the pain and numbness. He also told us that after the stress test where they had her walk for a short time (I don't remember how long the test was), her arteries opened up and dropped to 30%. The blood flowed better after she exercised.

Since that time, my mom has been walking about 15 minutes a day on the treadmill. Initially, she started slow, 5 minutes, 7... until she reached 15 minutes. It took weeks to build up to 15 minutes but now she can do it without any problem.

The numbness and pain have also left.

In addition to walking, my mom's also been drinking Fenugreek tea (very important fact so I'm repeating it.)

Today, we saw a specialist who we were talking to about having her stent replaced. He looked over the test results and what the Vascular doctor had recommended. As he left the room, he had my mom change into a johny gown.

The doctor had Josie lay on the table, he put his hands on her feet to feel her pulse. It was strong. The pulse was strong in her left foot. This didn't add up to the test results.

The doctor had a puzzled look on his face. He then took out his stethescope and listened to her foot, yup, strong pulse. He then listened to the pulse in her groin where the stent was put in 12 years ago, it too had a strong pulse. He was SHOCKED. I so wish I had a camera to capture the expression on his face. Instead, it is forever burned in my mind.

The doctor then said, "You know, I was walking down the hall, returning to the room and I was full prepared to recommend replacing your stent. (He had given us other potential solutions before he had left the room the first time.)But, they are strong. You don't have any symptoms to indicate that you need to do anything. I am treating you, the patient and not the numbers so I'm recommending that we do nothing."

My mom was soooooooo happy. The doctor then looked at me and I started to tell him what had changed.

I didn't tell him about the Fenugreek tea. I did tell him about her diet change and her increased activity. It still didn't seem to add up in his mind. I told him that I'm gathering data now to write a book on how I was able to help my mom. I also told him that I've got this blog. I didn't give him the address. I wasn't sure he'd be open to natural medicine.

I rushed home from the doctor this morning because I needed to look up Fenugreek and how it benefits arteries... my God... the stuff is good for EVERYTHING!

Here's what I found about arteries -

Uses.

In medicinal uses a preparation where seeds are soaked in water until they swell and form a thick paste is used to prevent fevers, is comforting to the stomach and has been utilized in diabetes. In combination with conventional medicine e.g. insulin, it is helpful in gout, diabetes and neurasthenia.

The saponins are thought to inhibit cholesterol absorption and synthesis, and may also have a positive effect on blood sugar control in people who suffer from diabetes. In terms of weight control, the soluble fibre in fenugreek seeds can reduce dietary fat absorption by binding to fatty acids as well as create a sensation of "fullness" and reduced appetite. Thus it is a good agent for reducing serum cholesterol.

The herb affects cholesterol levels in the same fashion as Pectin. Fenugreek also contains saponins. The saponin-containing plant fibres could inhibit the intestinal absorption of cholesterol much the same as Alfalfa saponins do (i.e. by absorbing bile acids and increasing the loss of bile acids by fecal excretion, which then leads to an increased conversion of cholesterol into bile acid by the liver).



It is a very well known galactogogue, which is widely used in folk medicine from a very long time ago.

Fenugreek seeds are also considered one of the cleansing herbs used on the body to eliminate built up waste materials, toxins and fat from the arteries.

Fenugreek is also used in anaemia as it contains good amount of vitamin B. Also used in rickets and scrofula.



Alcoholic tinctures are used to prepare emollient cream, ointments and plasters while the mucilage is use externally as a poultice for skin infections such as abscesses, boils and carbuncles.

It is administered as a poultice, ointment, infusion or tincture.



Fenugreek is very widely used as culinary herb and considered safe as a food supplement. It is used as a flavoring for both human and animal feed. However, because fenugreek has potential uterine stimulating properties which could potentially lead to miscarriage, it should not be used during pregnancy in any form.

Who's that Strange Man in my Room?

Well, for the last few months my mom has been stuck on the idea that there's a strange guy who comes in her room and plays tricks on her.

My mom got really mad at me on Sunday because I told her there isn't any strangers in the house. She also got mad at me when I told her that she IS in the basement and we don't have another basement below the house. Again, she insisted she was right.

I have found that this strange man shows up when her blood glucose is above 129 and if she eats Bread, Pasta or preservatives. I've also discovered that it takes about 4 days for the ill effects of bread, pasta and or preservatives to pass.

This morning I woke up and my mom was all agitated. She told me that the strange guy showed up and turned her purse inside out. She continued to tell me that she isn't crazy, that the purse was inside out when she woke up. She was worried that the stranger was going to steal her money but all he did was mess with her.

I assured her that there isn't any stranger in the house and that it's her mind playing tricks. I told her that it's best not to fixate on the strange man because her mind will create an untrue reality that will make people believe that she's insane. I told her that I know she's not crazy, but she could become crazy if she doesn't just let the visions go when they come.

About 15 minutes later I brought my mom a cup of tea and she said, "You know, thinking back at the visions, it's kind of stupid that I get so nervous."

We talked about the visions and how they seemed to go away completely when she stuck to a fruit and vegetable diet with lots of fish protein.

She then told me that at 4:30am she thought she'd get up. Instead, she fell back to sleep but thought she woke up. This is where the strange man comes in...

*queue the scary music*

My mom told me that he told her that he was stealing her money. She woke up on the opposite side of her bed with her purse inside out. Her power of belief is so strong that she believes the man is real, in a sense he is real because ...

MY MOM IS THE STRANGE MAN! She is the one who is hiding things on herself in the middle of the night when she's sleep walking. She's also the one who turned her purse inside out.

Rough weekend with Grammy

4 days ago I decided to give up coffee for 3 reasons. 1.) I ran out of Dunkin Donuts Hazelnut coffee, 2.) It is known to bring on hot flashes and make them intense, I wanted to see if this was true, 3.) It brings on hallucinations in elderly people with dementia

So, Josie and I haven't had coffee since the morning that I ran out, Friday.

No coffee combined with eating a whole wheat tuna sandwich sent her mind into a tizzy. It last for 3 days. She was aggravated with me about everything. Sucking it up is really hard sometimes.

Here we are, the 2 of us having caffeine withdrawals and we have a party to throw for Brian's birthday.

Yesterday morning I had a screaming caffeine headache. My mom was crabby and not talking to me. Oiy!

Donna and Brad arrived at 11:30 with Uncle Al. He was excited for the party. He loves coming to my house.

My mother, she was pissed off and wouldn't come out of her room. She sat and stared at the Game Show Network game show reruns.

After a couple of hours I went in to her room and told her that I have all her kids together, that I did it for her.

She came out of the room. She didn't talk to anyone. She never does... she doesn't start conversations, she never has. I think this is why it's so easy for her to be introvert; lock herself away and never talk to people.

Diabetes does strange things to the mind.

All day yesterday I fed her raw vegetables. Dark leafy greens, much to her dismay. She doesn't like dark greens, her favorite lettuce is iceberg lettuce. I find it tasteless... she finds it delectable. She ate the dark greens anyway because I told her that she needed to alkaline up her blood.

Around 8pm last night my mother was back to "normal" and she apologized for being such a bitch.

Caring for a parent is a lot like caring for a child. They get scared easily and need constant reassurance that everything is going to be OK. They need lots of love and attention.

The big difference between raising a child and caring for a parent is that you watch a child grow and get stronger everyday. With a parent it's the opposite, you watch your parent become less and less capable of the easiest of tasks. In a sense, I'm preparing her for the day she dies, a parent prepares a child for a full life.

But, I still believe diet, exercise and a happy state of mind helps the elderly hang on to what they have and not decline as quickly. Sure beats the alternative of putting her in a nursing home.

What causes hallucinations?

Yesterday, I thought I'd try a little pasta in the chicken soup that I had made for the moms and me yesterday. I absolutely LOVE egg noodles in chicken soup and know that my mom does too. My mom in law could care less about them.

The soup was delicious. I put a couple of drops of fenugreek extract into my mom's bowl of soup. I thought that the fenugreek would help reduce the glycemic index for the soup as a whole.

The soup with the pasta noodles, about a cup of noodles, only raised her blood sugar levels 30 points. She went from about 111 to 143. That's not bad. We were pretty psyched thinking that we had found a solution to eating pasta, our favorite. It's the ultimate in comfort food for my little Italian mom.

A couple of hours had passed and I went downstairs to visit with my mother. She was all wild eyed and talking about needing to go to another part of the house. She wanted to see if the worker guy was going to follow her. She was telling me that the house is spooked. She packed her little black canvas bag (I mean, it's a little bag) with random things that must have seemed important to her at the time of her packing.

She had to get out of this house... this was her main focus. So, I let her obsess as I told her that it was all going to be OK.

I reviewed in my mind what she had eaten and drank. The only big change was the pasta. It really is poison to her system and even with a few drops of fenugreek in her soup, it still causes strange visions for her.

I did some research on the web, to see if I could find a link between diabetes and hallucinations, here's a forum that I found which sort of describes what happens to my mother.

My mom is going to see if she can check her blood sugar when she starts to see these visions of hers. It will be a good way for us to pin point exactly what she can and can not eat or drink.

Additionally, when she doesn't exercise she seems to have more visitors that are not there.

Laughter IS the Universal language

Laughter is the universal language
I found this video on YouTube... no matter what language someone is laughing in, it has the same effect on ones soul.

High Fructose Corn Syrup: Enemy #1

A few days ago my mom was seeing people in the house that were not here. I knew that I didn't give her anything that would trigger hallucinations because I don't keep anything with preservatives in the house. But, she was still seeing people so I knew that she must have eaten something like the sugar free hard candies that she bought religiously when she was driving for .99 from our local pharmacy chain.

We had stopped in to Walgreens just the day before her visitors returned. I left her to roam freely in the store while I was in a 2nd hand clothing store for children next door.

My mom tells me that she "needs" these candies to suck on when she gets a tickle in her throat. Then she said, "You weren't around for me to ask." Pretty lame excuse.

So, instead of getting mad at my mom, I told her the scientific facts about the hydrogenation process and how in the 1970's these "new" fats began to replace lard and butter.

Looking back in my family history, in the 1970's my dad was unemployed because he couldn't bend steel any longer. He had bursitis in his elbow, the one he shattered when he was 9 years old playing on the freight trains in Chelsea.

At this time, my family was forced to go on welfare to help us get by. During those years the government handed out food in totally generic labels. You'd get a big chunk of butter and cheese depending on how many people in your family. There were 7 of us so we got a lot.

Another item we got was corn syrup. High fructose, more than likely it was hydrogenated. My mom used to cook with this and we often used it as "maple syrup" on pancakes or french toast.

Shortly after our ingesting this food is when my mom began to have health issues and my dad died of pancreatic cancer.

So, this leads me to believe that the "new" HFCS is Enemy #1, it snuffs out lives.

Here's an article about it - The Enemy is in Your Food: High Fructose Corn Syrup

Fenugreek - Diabetes Miracle Cure?

About a month ago I saw a news report about a mysterious smell in Manhattan, NY. It smelled like Maple Syrup. People were freaking out, thinking it was a bioterror attack. New Jersey Plant is Source of Sweet Smell.

That was the first time I had heard of the herb.

About 2 days later, I received an email from Dr. Schnell telling me about Fenugreek and how it is known to lower blood glucose levels in diabetics.

Immediately I began to research the herb, hoping that it would give me an answer to creating sweet treats for my mom and Uncle Al, that wouldn't raise their sugar levels. I'm still experimenting with the sweet treat and fenugreek.

My mother-in-law, Rachel had an appointment with the nutritionist this week and she invited me along. I told the nutritionist about our diet and I brought up fenugreek. She dug out a great herb catalogue and gave it to me, a place where I can buy fenugreek in bulk - organicly grown too! I told her about the idea of making treats and how I believe fenugreek will lower the glycemic index of anything high in carbohydrates.

She looked at me with an Aha look, so I think I'm onto something.

Here's a field test of the theory...

Yesterday, I had Uncle Al over for the entire day. With lunch I gave both him and my mom a cup of Fenugreek tea that I found at Whole Foods. I put a picture of the package above.

Before dinner, both checked their sugar readings and my mom was 125 and Uncle Al was 186. I gave them both a cup of Fenugreek Tea. We checked their blood sugar levels again and their readings were, my mom 91 and Uncle Al was 159.

Nearly 30 points were shaved off their glucose readings with 1/2 cup of tea - all within 1 hour!

I give my mom a cup of tea with meals that are high in carbohydrates and her blood sugar doesn't spike.

So... Fenugreek Tea is a miracle cure for Type 2 Diabetes!

The Dementia Experiment

I've been thinking about the link between nutrition and dementia a lot lately.

Dementia is a very wild phenomenon that seems to occur when the brain is agitated and has had a little too much carbohydrates and or sugar.

This morning started off a little bit nutty, all before I had a cup of coffee!

My mom came upstairs this morning, all wild eyed like she had just seen a ghost. It's the look she gets when she's having "visitors." She was convinced that some guy was chasing the cat around the room all night as he blew air threw his lips. There was another guy who worked on the door knob all night. She was swearing to me that it was real, I even got an "honest to God, I'm not imagining it."

How do I fight the logic of someone who believes so strongly that they had seen someone or something, that they didn't see anything? From my experience, as long as the persons eyes are wild, you have to figure out how to get them to stop obsessing over the vision.

I didn't do very well this morning, I told my mom that she was imagining someone in the house. She didn't believe me and walked away saying something like, "I'm not crazy."

In the meantime, I prepared my mom's oatmeal with raisins as well as a cup of coffee. By the time I went downstairs, my mom was back, the wild eye woman had retreated. This is when I can explain about dementia to my mom and how no one is in the house.

I've been making sure that my mom keeps her carb intake to a minimum. We eat a huge amount of vegetables, different types of vegetables. I like to make them interesting and use them to make all of our meals beautiful... like a rainbow. Last night we had a salad with sliced roasted chicken on top. It was a fabulous meal... no carbs and very low in fat. This had all the ingredients for a happy sleep for my mom.

So, what made her have visions?

Yesterday, she got upset with me at Walgreens because I bought a new blood glucose meter for 10 bucks. She had 300 test strips for this particular meter (the doctor made a mistake and sent in a prescription for the wrong blood tester.) My mom had run out of the strips that went with her old meter. She didn't have any refills left on the strips and the pharmacist had to fax the doctor. The pharmacist wouldn't give her any strips unless she paid for them. My mom wasn't listening, she was stuck on a belief that she was right.

Well, I knew I needed to buy the darn meter for 10 bucks so that she could test her blood glucose levels. Otherwise we'd be waiting until today and there was no way that she could wait. Checking her sugar levels is how I know what to feed her!

Yesterday, my mom ate right. I think she did anyway. I'm not sure if she bought some of those sugar free candies for a dollar in the store when I wasn't looking, even one little hard candy causes her to be demented and see people and things.

Ok, back to the experiment...

I'm discovering that nutrition plays a huge role in keeping dementia and diabetes under full control. I found a website, Nutrition Data where you can check the glycemic index of any food! It even gives you a place, once you register to add in your own food labels which it will generate the approximate Glycemic Index.

Here's an example of a Taco Bell taco... Taco Bell taco . No wonder I don't like Taco Bell! It's estimated Glycemic Index is 19, too much.

My experiment is to see if I keep the GI to 10 or under on all foods, in order to help my mom regain her full good health.

Uncle Al Goes to Building 19 in Haverhill

Oh, those of us from Mass. all know about Building 19. In my opinion it's the best store around for getting good stuff cheap.

Years ago when Uncle Al was still driving, he would come over to my house in Groveland, pick up my mom and they'd go shopping over the Groveland Bridge in Haverhill. The Haverhill 19 store is the best. I knew it would be good for Uncle Al and my mom to take a trip to our old neighborhood and familiar shopping.

First, we drove by the old house on Salem Street. Uncle Al didn't remember the house. He vaguely remembered the name of my old street.

When we got to Building 19 he knew EXACTLY where he was and was pretty excited.

I thought I'd make this blog interesting and take a shot at making a candid video of our shopping trip. I had 15 minutes of video that I cut down to just under 1 minute.

The intention of the video is to help Uncle Al live on even after his time is up. He has a granddaughter that he doesn't know and who doesn't know him. Maybe one day she'll want to know who her Gramps is and I'll have video of him to give to her.

Following is the video of an regular day of shopping with Uncle Al and my mom. My mom usually takes off with the cart and gets lost in the aisles and Uncle Al likes to roam and touch everything. My time is spent following Uncle Al around so that he doesn't get hurt and looking for my mother.

Susie, am I crazy?

How do I answer this question after my mom just finished telling me about "the little girl" who visited her in her room.

There is no little girl here.

Fortunately I've been studying dementia and how food effects my mom. What I've found is she can't even eat a crumb of bread or a grain of rice or she'll have hallucinations of people coming into her room or the room changing.

Today, after I explained what I've learned about blood sugar and how it affects the mind to my mom, we decided to stick to the no bread, no pasta, no preservatives rule... so far, so good.

For breakfast she had oatmeal with 1/4 cup of raisins and a little no fat milk. Lunch we had a steamed artichoke and a salad. Dinner will be roasted chicken and steamed cauliflower and string beans.

I'll know tomorrow if my mom is crazy or just gets demented because she's eating carbs.

The Power of Belief: Can Uncle Al Manifest his deepest desire?

Today was a big day for Uncle Al, I went and picked him up at 9 am and brought him back to the nursing home at about 6:30. The big hold up was he had to take a crap and I didn't want him to hold it because we were going to be late. My thought was, late for what?

Instead I called the nursing home and told them that Al had to shit and I wasn't trying to steal him. The nurse busted out laughing and told me not to worry.

The day was interesting.

Before I went to pick up Uncle Al I was thinking about candid video and how great it would be to find real answers to what's bugging Uncle Al. Sure enough, I found out when I put the video camera between my legs and aimed it up at Uncle Al. I thought of my nephew Joe and how he would LOVE this whole idea - so, I did this video for Joe. It's really interesting.




Al wants to see Maryann really badly. Every time he sees me he asks if I've had any luck contacting her. Every time I tell him no. I tell him that I write her email messages and send her the links to his videos that I put on YouTube but she never replies. He looks so sad, he misses his daughter, his granddaughter and son in law. I am hoping that one day I can give him a really great answer.

Today I brought him home, fed him home made chicken soup, I swear to God it is a miracle cure for everything that ails you. Then, we played some music. We set up the electric piano and let it play music automagically - Brian played drums, I danced with Uncle Al.

I thought I had set up the video camera to capture our fun but I didn't press the right "on" button. Anyway, wasn't meant for anyone to see. While I was dancing with Uncle Al I thought, "oh no, people are going to see me, I want to be the mystery voice!" Maybe my mind shut off the camera before I even turned it on?!

It was fun.

Uncle Al walked 5 minutes on the treadmill and then we went to Wal-Mart.

Big day out for Uncle Al. He tried on a pair of sneakers with velcro so that he could walk more. I keep telling him to walk. He was pretty psyched that the sneakers were only $18 bucks. Boy, does he remind me of my mother!

We then found a green "Go Irish" type hooded sweatshirt for 15 bucks which we got for Uncle Al so that he could wear it to Brian's Birthday party (Brian was born on 3/17 we're having a party on the 15th) We also bought him the electric razor that he's been nagging me to buy for him. Today we got it. The price was marked 24.97, got to the check out and it was 44.97 - we got it for the lower price... yay!!!

Sometimes I wonder what I'm thinking when I venture to take my mother AND my demented Uncle to Wal-Mart on a busy Saturday afternoon! But, it all worked out. We blocked aisles and aggravated people. I bet the people we blocked in the aisles woke up in a crabby mood this morning and we just helped them to continue on with their expected crabby day. Uncle Al had a great time, he had a great day!

Uncle Al Talks About LOVE

In February 2008 we were all reunited with Uncle Al. This is a video clip from a year ago.

Uncle Al seemed clearer back then.

Here is a little video clip of Uncle Al telling us that everyone needs love.

Dementia and Hypnosis - the Idea

I've been observing my mom and Uncle Al, seeing what foods they eat and how it makes them react. There are some foods that seem to be worse than others... the culprits, processed food, breads and pasta - pretty much all the comfort foods that have no nutritional value but sure do make us feel satisfied.

This morning I went downstairs to check on my mom. I found her curled up on her bed grasping on to her purse. I knew immediately that she had hallucinations or paranoia which I know is a symptom of dementia.

She didn't eat anything bad for dinner, just Planko bread crumbs sprinkled on her baked haddock dinner with steamed vegetables. Maybe it was the butternut squash? I'm not sure. Looks like Planko breadcrumbs and butternut squash are off the plate for now.

I woke her up and she told me how much she can not stand what goes on in her head. She told me that she knows it's crazy but it seems so real at the time.

She is worried that her kids will suffer from her "crazy gene." Her mom, sister and now her brother all had or have dementia. I promised my mom that I'd do everything in my power to help her and my siblings.

Yesterday, in my Master Training class I learned first hand that the mind has the power to do ANYTHING that you believe that it can do. This gave me an idea that I will try and later report here in a blog post - why not use hypnosis on Josie to see if I can help her overcome dementia?

Each of us has a mind which is a divine tool for all of us to use. Our minds can move mountains, cure disease and bring us happiness. All we have to do is have a thought, believe with enthusiasm and before you know it the thought has become reality.

Now, you can poo poo this idea, that's OK... you are probably not ready to explore the hidden potentials of your mind, body and soul. Let's see if I can make a believer out of you with facts which I'll report here in my blog.

Uncle Al Discovers Wii Music

During one of Uncle Al's visits to my house I showed him Wii Music and how he could play any instrument.

Back in his middle aged days he played the organ and had one in his foyer to his house. Uncle Al loved to write songs about his adopted daughter, Maryann. I can't tell you how many times we all sat and listened to him play this one song that he had written where he would sing about Maryann, over and over and over again. All I remember from the song are the words, "Oh Maryann... Ohhhh Ohhhh Maryann....". Too bad video with sound wasn't readily available back then, I'm sure I would have recorded it for posterity.

Here's a big key to help you if you ever find yourself demented, make sure you have video and pictures of EVERY IMPORTANT event in your life (and more)so that you can find peace when the world around you is so unfamiliar.

I have been reading up on dementia since it seems to be hereditary. I did learn that the short term memory goes first and the best way to keep someone with dementia from having bad behavior is to bring back memories that they remember. It seems to cut down on their frustration level and they don't act out.

Uncle Al loves music and it's an old memory for him that would bring him peace.

One day I had an epiphany and thought, "Hmmmm, I wonder if Uncle Al will enjoy Wii Music because he can play the piano like a concert pianist with out any skill required."

Here's the video clip of Uncle Al playing Wii Music. He's wearing my mom's red sweater. I'm not sure why but my mom keeps wanting to dress Uncle Al. I think it's her way of feeling needed where she's taking care of her big brother. I love how Uncle Al doesn't care and wears my mom's red sweater. He's a joy to have around.

Brain Training

I've been making observations about how my mom is responding to her new exercise and nutrition program in order to keep her dementia at bay. She's on a mission to find a cure for dementia with my help, she doesn't want to end up in a nursing home.

One day earlier in the week I noticed that the days where my mom used the Balance game training in Wii Fit were the nights she did NOT have any hallucinations at night. This was proof that the balance games help to improve coordination in the elderly with dementia symptoms.

My mom has improved in just 5 days of 30 minutes a day on the balance game and 10 minutes walking on the treadmill. She is feeling better and her mental ability is coming back. Today, she set up her pill box herself and did it 100% correct!

I did find a cool website to help us to all train our brains, it's free. Try it!

Brain Training to Improve your mind

Cure for Dementia?

It was an interesting day yesterday with Uncle Al and my mother.

Later when I got back from taking Uncle Al back to the home my mother said, "I don't want to have dementia, I'm not going to have it. Susie, you have to help me fight it off."

We started to talk about the disease, I figured I'd tell her what I had learned about the disease. She wants to read all the information that I read so that she can help me to help her and Uncle Al.

Here's a list that I found on how to prevent dementia -

Current clinic data is not sufficient to provide solid pathways to prevent dementia. However please find below the tips that might be useful to prevent dementia.

Take sufficient amount of vitamin E (800 International Units (IU)) and C every week. Refer to your doctor for the appropriate dose and usage
Eat fish at least 3 times a week. Don’t forget that fat in fish (Omega 3 fatty acids) may prevent dementia
Use antioxidants in your diet
Reduce saturated fats from your diet
Eat British blackcurrant and American fruit boysenberries regularly
Consume vegetables everyday
Keep yourself away from obesity
Monitor yourself, visit your physician regularly to take tests if you are a type-2 diabetes patient
Keep yourself socially active all the time, spend a lot of time with your family and friends
Participate in mentally challenging leisure activities (Ex. playing board games)
Sleep well
Reduce stress from your life
Drink green tea every day
Try to make your self happy and please yourself
Laugh as much as you can
Ask the folic acid supplements with your doctor, discuss the pros and cons of the usage
Avoid depression
Reduce your time with television
Learn about brain workout
Have a dog or cat in your apartment/house
Be aware the risks and prevention of metabolic syndrome
Keep your cholesterol low, avoid high LDL levels
Manage your stress, make yoga and meditation
Music may prevent dementia; listen as much as you can
Don’t take too much alcohol
Treat and manage your hypertension
For females: Discuss the risks and benefits of HRT ( Hormone replacement therapy) if you are in menopause
Avoid any kind of infections especially syphilis
Engage in leisure activities
Quit smoking
Read books as much as you can
Don’t forget to make regular tests for your thyroid function
Avoid any kind of head trauma; If you are riding a bike or chopper always use helmets, while driving your car always use seat belts
Bring daily newspapers and magazines to your work; try to make some time to read them
Solve 3d puzzles, crosswords
Play bridge
Play musical instruments (guitar, piano, flute, double-bass, drums etc..)
Make regular exercises and aerobics
Walk at least 30 minutes everyday
Make team based sports like basketball, football, soccer, tennis, bowling
Engage yourself

My mom and I talked about different activities that she does and which ones seem to keep the people from knocking on the window or doors.

The conclusion that we came to is that the more she uses the Wii Fit balance games, she doesn't hear people knocking on the windows and doors. The balance games improve the connection between the brain and the body, one of the things that deteriorates with dementia.

My mom and I can see it in Uncle Al. In a sense, Uncle Al has helped my mom turn the corner and WANT to help herself because she wants to avoid what he has going on in his life.

Uncle Al Goes to Building 19

Today I picked up Uncle Al at 9:30pm. He was dressed and ready to go.

All the elderly folks who can barely talk wave and thanked me as I smiled and helped Uncle Al up from his seat. We were off to his room to put on his coat and mittens, it was cold this morning and I didn't want his arthritic hands to hurt.

Uncle Al was happy today. He was so excited about using the treadmill yesterday. I made the mistake of telling his social worker that he used the treadmill yesterday. Now I have to wait for permission from the nurses to allow me to help Uncle Al walk on the treadmill.

Instead of walking on the treadmill, I took Uncle Al and my mom to Building 19, the "Good Stuff Cheap Store." He has been asking to go to one for the last week since we've been taking him out just about every day. Today, he got his wish.

Uncle Al pushed the cart slowly, like walking on the treadmill. He looked around and read all the signs out loud. He was thrilled. He had a cute smile on his face. He LOVED rummaging through the bins and was super excited when he found Obama 2008 hats for 1.97. I bought him 2 hats a red and green.

We walked a bit further and there were bright ORANGE fleece pull over jackets for just $5.00. Uncle Al ran over to the jacket and said to me, I have to have this orange jacket, I LOVE the color. Look at how beautiful this color is!

I led Uncle Al to the mirror and he tried on the jacket. He had a big smile on his face as he looked in the mirror and said, "Boy, I look good, don't I?" He looked awesome!

Uncle Al got new sunglasses for .97, the Stevie Wonder kind that wrap around your head. We found a package of 3 pairs of diabetic socks for 6 bucks and a tee shirt for 1.97.

When we got back to my house Uncle Al said, "Where's our stuff, let's look at our stuff." So, I showed him everything and put his name on it with indelible ink. He was happy.

I took him home with his Building 19 stash and a worn out body around 3:30pm. He was thinking about sleeping all the way home. He didn't even read the road signs on the way home, he was too pooped.

Once we unpacked his things and changed his shirt, I brought him to the dining room and sat him down with his friends. I was able to nudge him to go to dinner by telling him that his friends would love to hear about his day out with me. He immediately shook his head yes as he said, "yes, that's right. let's go!" Up he jumped and off we were to the dining room.

As I was leaving one of the residents in the home raised her hand at me and said, "Thank you. Thank you! Thank you!" I walked over to her and said, "You're welcome, but what did I do?" She went on to try to tell me, but she couldn't get the words out.

I kneeled next to the woman named Barbara Hunt and she reached out and cupped her hand around the right side of my face. She thanked me again but still couldn't form her thoughts into words. I FELT her words. She was happy that Uncle Al was happy.

Later I told my mom about the old lady in the home and that's when she told me how Uncle Al told her that he was a real bastard at the home because he didn't care anymore. Then we all showed up and now he is nice again.

I wonder if Uncle Al was terrorizing the old ladies?

Oh, there was this other exchange between another elderly woman sitting across the table from Barbara. She was trying to tell Barbara to ask me how much I charge. I think she wants me to take her and Barbara out for the day like I do with Al.

I can see it now, I'll have to hire a van and take all the old folks to Building 19 for a day of fun.

Uncle Al Begins His Training

Today I picked up Uncle Al around 9:30. We had snow last night so I had to clear the driveway before leaving.

Uncle Al fell asleep on his bed while trying on cloths. I guess he got tired. I would have gotten tired too if I was putting on cloths that were 4 sizes too small.

Finally, I bundled Uncle Al up and off we went, dancing to the elevators... another day out with Sue!

All the way to Billerica, Uncle Al read ever sign on the highway and assured me that I was going in the right direction. Thank God for the navigator in the truck, the peaceful voice of the computer helped Uncle Al feel safe and secure.

Yup, here it is, Exit 43, Lynnfield. Every day, he reminds me that this is the exit to his house. He told me today that he's trying to improve his memory by repeating the routes over and over to re-remember.

At my house we had an active day. I checked Uncle Al's blood sugar and it was 223 before lunch! I know that walking helps bring blood sugar down so I got Uncle Al up on the treadmill and had him walk slow for 5 minutes. His blood sugar dropped to 197.

Lunch was baked haddock, baked potato and asparugus. I wish I had a picture of the look on Uncle Al's face when he tasted the fish... definitely the mmmm look.

I told Uncle Al that after lunch, he was on the treadmill for 5 more minutes of walking. Here's the video. He is starting to feel pretty good and wonders why more people don't do it... I love Uncle Al!

Today, Uncle Al walked for 10 minutes and I could see him feeling stronger with every step. All he needed was a little confidence and encouragement that he can do it if he wants to do it... he did it.

Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree...

This is the first day that I was able to sign Uncle Al out of the nursing home, so I brought him home with me to the NEW and IMPROVED Camp Sue.

Following is extremely rare footage of my mother-in-law, Rachel singing with Uncle Al and Josie (my mom) in the background.

Now this is magic!

Uncle Al sings with Rachel

Uncle Al's Trip to the Supermarket

Yesterday was a cold winter day up here in Massachusetts. It was a sunny day so I went to the home and picked up Uncle Al. I had told him that he can spend every nice day here at my house.

It's good for my mother to be able to take care of her brother. It's actually giving my mom a purpose in life, to help her brother.

My mom knows that if I take care of Uncle Al he will feel better and may regain some of his independence. Seriously, showering my Uncle was a trip and if I can help him to take his own shower and wipe his own duppa then AMEN, my work is done.

I know how I helped my mother when she was in a similar state that Uncle Al is in.

We moved. She couldn't drive her car any longer because she couldn't find her way home, not even with a navigation system. In the middle of the night she'd scream about people outside and in the trees. She saw little kids running through her room and worried about someone stealing her purse.

The deterioration of the mind is so sad.

Fortunately, I learned from Marilyn Diamond and Dr. Donald Schnell that the key to good health, regardless of your age is through proper nutrition, exercise and meditation. This is how I helped my mom, but that's a story in itself, now I am going to document Uncle Al's health progress.

I have been feeding Uncle Al bright colored foods for the last few days, all colors of the rainbow in order to bring life into his tired body. He's been eating baked haddock Parmesan and my chicken soup. Salad wraps too. I have been feeding him 2 meals a day, lunch and dinner and sending him home with healthy snacks for the days that I can't be there to bring him home with me.

He seems to be getting better. He was pretty depressed when I found him a couple of months ago, tired and beaten in so many ways. He gave up hope.

Uncle Al prayed to Mother Mary, he loves the Blessed Virgin with all of his heart. He thought she wasn't listening. Then, we all showed up.

My mother had a bad feeling, she kept telling me that she had to go see her brother.

Way to go Ma.

I had to fight a bit to get permission to take Uncle Al out of the nursing home for the day. Instead, I had to visit him at the home if I wanted to see him. During my visits, I started to re-teach him about meditation. After all, he was the guy who was into TM back when I was at an impressionable age of 8ish. Thanks to Uncle Al and my dad, I got into meditation when I was a little kid.

My idea is to have him use meditation to strengthen his brain and be able to find peace when everything around him is chaos. I also know that because he meditated 40+ years ago, it's an old memory that he can easily recall.

Every day that Uncle Al comes to visit, we practice some form of meditation.

Yesterday, thanks again to my mother, we ventured to the supermarket with Uncle Al in tow. My mother thought it would be a good place for him to walk around since that's what I used to do with her when she wasn't feeling the greatest.

We had Uncle Al push the cart and we walked up and down the aisles for a half hour. We did stop and rest, Uncle Al and I stopped... my mom? She had her little running shoes on and was zipping up and down the aisles finding the items that I told her we were there to buy.

Uncle Al was exhausted when I brought him back to the nursing home. I left him off with a nice hot bowl of my chicken soup and a bag of healthy snacks for today when I wouldn't be seeing him.

Uncle Al stood tall walking and pushing the cart. He felt human. It was so touching, especially when he said, "You know, I almost feel good enough to buy another car!"

Filler background

Everyone in my family can take Uncle Al out of the Nursing Home, ANYTIME we want. You can see the Youtube video of the family Valentine's day party here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBX_Iii0KjM

So, I'm unemployed and figured what's one more elder when you've already got 2 at home with you full time?

Myth: You don't go blind

So, today I took my Uncle Al to my house for the day. I picked him up at 9:30am and returned him to the nursing home at 4:30.

He is demented. No doubt. I understand it a bit because my mother was not far from where he is but I was able to reverse her dementia and it appears to be stable. All through diet and exercise. A total mind body and spirit connection. It's never too late.

Today, my mother was showing her brother how to do Wii Fit. Yes, 80 year old Josie was showing 82 year old Al how good her balance is. Her Wii Fit age was something like 57... she was doing the gig in the corner.

Al was set up on Wii today with his mini Mii. We have a Wii Uncle Al. His Wii Fit age is 71. Oh, it made him stand so tall when he saw his age being 11 years his senior. It was great

The visit at my house was going great until my mom pushed Uncle Al in to taking a shower. Her's Josie, "Oh Al, you can do it yourself, you're not that bad." I was saying to myself, "Ma, yes he is that bad. but couldn't say those words out loud."

Next thing I know I'm in my mom's shower with Uncle Al standing in the shower, nearly naked with just his adult diaper on. Oh Man. Then, the ineveitable happened, he took the diaper off and no, I didn't go blind.

Uncle Al was so happy taking a hot shower, he was in his glory. At one point he looked at me and said, 'how much will you charge me for this shower?" Then I said, "It's on the house, you're my Uncle Al, I love you."

It was intense.... as my loving mother stood outside her bathroom door laughing. Thanks Ma.

You know, it doesn't matter if someone is naked or not, if they need our help to feel more human, we have to help them.

I'm on a mission to help Uncle Al restore his memory. Today I drove him around Lynnfield, he LOVED the drive.

Nursing Homes: Death before death

So, yesterday I was driving with my nearly 80 year old mom. I was taking her shopping to Costco. While driving she told me that she had a dream (or a hallucination, I can't tell sometimes) of her brother Al who is in a nursing home.

We happened to be 5 minutes from Uncle Al's nursing home when she told me the story. The truck didn't take the turn to go to Costco, it kept driving straight up 128 to exit 22.

When we got to the home, it had that nursing home smell. I never forgot that smell from the very first time I stepped into a mental institution to visit my grandmother when I was 8. Nursing homes smell and they all smell the same.... like old people waiting to die.

In the walls of those buildings that might look nice on the outside and may not even look so bad on the inside, but it's all a big facade. It's all about appearances and keeping a perception of a "nice place for mom or dad" just so the adult child can feel good about themselves.

People are locking up their parents when they get old, tossed away like yesterdays trash. Their usefulness expired in the eyes of their children. It's heart breaking to see all the empty faces, with such deep sadness that seems to be sucked up by the walls.

Rehabilitation Centers... Nursing Homes... they are both the same thing. Rarely do people get to leave rehabilitation centers, just like nursing homes. These places are prisons, full of people who still have life in them but have no one to share their spirit.

When we saw Uncle Al, I could tell he thought he was hallucinating. He had that look on his face as if he was saying to himself, "am I really seeing my family walk toward me?"

He recognized my mom (his sister) right away and only recognized me when I told him who I am. He stood up with tears in his eyes and gave me a big hug. I did everything I could not to cry.

Immediately he told my mom and me about a beating that he had gotten the day before. We were stunned. My mom was really upset and kept asking him questions about the beating. He showed us where it happened in his room.

I'm not sure if it was another resident who beat my uncle or if it was a weekend attendant. His story was a bit scattered. He was trying to tell us so much so that no one could hear.

On our way out, I asked to see his Social Worker. I told her what Uncle Al told me. I showed her where the crime occurred. I asked her to assure me that there will be no bad fall out for Uncle Al and that they protect him from harm.

The woman told me that she needed to call my cousin, my uncle's legal guardian.

It's such a screwed up story that I will keep to myself for now.

Uncle Al is in a nursing home prison. His only crime is getting old. Nursing homes, no matter what the sales person in the nursing home tries to tell you, are really just a holding tank for you to go and wait to die.