New Lupus site from the DHS

I found a new website that is sponsored by the Dept. of Human Services that could be useful to some of us.

The URL is:
http://www.couldihavelupus.gov/speakout.phphttp://www.couldihavelupus.gov/speakout.php

Rhia

Pepsi Taking A Stance to Aid those Victims of Domestic Violence

"30 Ways to Add More Life to Your Years"

It is not that often something touches me enough that I feel the need to post and share. 99 percent of what I share is my own writing or now much information on Lupus, other autoimmune disorders, and other chronic illnesses. But, today this really struck the right notes for myself, and I thought you might enjoy this also.

I will also enclose the URL from Care 2 where I read this...

Deep down we all wish to live a rich and enlightened life. That is why we make those resolutions every year, for greater biological efficiency, less disease, increased finances, a more successful career, and an increasingly better quality of life. It is still not too late. Only a few months have passed and there are several glorious months left to turn a new leaf, open a new chapter or just quietly revel in the sudden newness of your life.

You can still make your decisions about how you can add more life to your years.

Here is a good list of some wise suggestions to enhance the quality of your life on day-to-day basis. I hope they will bring much sweetness and a tremendous change in your outlook towards life.

1. Great love and great achievement involve great risk. Take the risk anyway.
2. When you love someone, love them deeply and passionately. You might get hurt, but it is the only way to live life fully.
3. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship. Make amends immediately.
4. When you realize you have made a mistake, hurt someone’s feelings, take immediate steps to correct it. Ask forgiveness.
5. Keep your arms open to change, but don’t let go of your personal values.
6. Talk slowly, but think quickly. Rationally.
7. Quiet the voice in your head that says “I can’t do this.”
8. Don’t quit, no matter what. Confucius said, “everything comes to those who wait.”
9. Always live in a radiating possibility; become part of life’s song.
10. Make conscious effort to change at least one negative attitude in your personality everyday. Surprise yourself.
11. If you must fight, do it in a fair manner. Without calling/dropping names.
12. Avoid judging people by their relatives. Accept them for who they are.
13. When someone asks you a question that you wish to avoid answering, smile and ask, “Why do you want to know?”
14. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
15. Spend some time alone. It has great potential to recharge your energies.
16. Try to live a good and honorable life because when you get older and reflect upon it, you’ll get to enjoy it a second time.

Marry the man/woman with whom you love to talk with. As you get older, the conversations will essentially become a more important feature, in your life with each other.

Be kind to the environment for your own sake. Avoid litter, plastic, defacing walls and natural surroundings.

Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.

Once a year plan to go to someplace you have never been before. It rejuvenates you like no other.

When you are having disagreements with loved ones, deal with the current problem. Never rake up the past.

When you lose out on something, don’t lose the lesson.

The best relationship is the one when your love for one another is greater than your need for one another.

When you say, “I love you,” mean it.

When you hug someone, open your heart. Do it with love.

Make eye contact. Look people in the eye softly when you speak to them. Try it and see the difference.

Your character is your destiny. Build your character.

Sometimes, not getting what you want is actually a blessing in disguise. Always look at the blessing.

Take serious care of your health. Health indeed is wealth, not a cliché.

Live life like it is your last day on the earth. King size.

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/30-ways-to-add-more-life-to-your-years.html

Rhia

One Day at a time...

I have so wanted to be back here daily, but between still not having my health completely restored, trying to get to all of the doctors follow up visits, fighting horrible fatigue, trying to help Jim.. he really got deeply down in the dumps just about the time I finally began feeling better. I think he spent so much time concentrating on having the faith and strength to help me live through those weeks and weeks of severe pain, severe illness, several surgical procedures (and I have one more to take the stint out of my primary bile duct next Wednesday),plus trying to work, and deal with his own pain issues with his back, everything came crashing down around him about 2 weeks ago. So, I had to try and muster enough physical, mental and emotional strength myself so I could help him pull through his anguish. Thank goodness for a dear friend of his that really helped,and the love of my Mom and his step Mom, we are still in the midst of worry about the situation next week. I have been through so much, but so has Jim, my Mom and my kids. My own PCP admitted they thought three different times I may not make it through all that I did. So, my life has definitely changed in so many ways. I am trying not to put off the little things daily, but enjoy them. I have had to slow down, but that alone has put beauty back into my life. Please continue to keep me and my family in your thoughts and prayers over the next weeks to come... xoxox Rhia

It's Been Awhile

Lots of drama ...almost too crazy to even speak of...I don't know if you would even believe it. I really do not know where to begin but to say honestly, on Feb 2nd an ordeal of epic proportions began for me, and I almost did not survive it. All of what went on even up until today, really changed my vision as to how I look at life each day. I basically got extremely ill very quickly on Feb 2nd, being take via ambulance to our local hospital. It appeared I had gallbladder issues, thus I had what was supposed to be a "basic" surgery...that turned unto anything but basic. By accident I got a slit in my liver, from the gallbladder surgery, the sent me to a hospital in Dallas..where I was for almost a month. I had several surgical procedures, was on many antibiotics and medications, and has a slight heart attack again while I went through all of the other mess. I am still going from doctor to doctor and still have a procedure next week in Dallas to take out a stent that is in my main common bile duct, due to it collapsing. We won't know if all of that has healed properly until I have that done next week. It has been an extremely frightening, nerve racking, depressing, and emotional roller coaster over the past almost 3 months. I will definitely be writing much more and now really feel a book should come out of all of this. I hope all is well with you and yours...take care... and love each day as it was your last.... xoox Rhia

Our Nation Shall never be the same...

I don't know how many of you understand the full blow to America that the Supreme Court has dealt us after their decision to allow corporations to be considered "people", but I hope you are mad as hell. If not yet, once you see the video attached, I hope you are just as torn to pieces inside and out as many of us are. Here we have fought tooth and nail, for decades to make sure democracy stands. We have fought to make sure our amendments written by our own forefathers so many years ago stand as our own way to voice how the people. by the people and for the people stand. Whether it be who we choose to elect into government, what church we attend, what college we attend, what we choose as our own profession for work, all of those decisions have been upheld because up until now the upholding of the constitution giving us the rights has been intact...but no more.. all that our forefathers fought for, all of the blood shed that gave us, and generations to come has just been trampled into the dirt, rolled up into a ball, and thrown into a fiery furnace called corporate America. They will rule who is our President, they will rule who is in our Senate, their dollars pumped into ads for who they choose to be in the Senate, House and even the Presidential office, shall be taken by them, and our votes will mean basically nothing.... how can any one sitting as a Supreme Court Justice see that giving corporations rights as a person is a good thing for our country? Talk about senile?? I have to wonder if Alzheimer's has set into our Supreme Court and delusions are coming from our Justices, yet no one has noticed that have lost their minds... Be scared.... be very scared.... this is going to mean our rights, will be the rights of corporations yet they are the ones with the money to back up whom they choose... the shall buy Senators and have them in their own hip pockets, like puppets on a string... dancing to the beat of what greed has already done to this nation.... the poor get more poor and the rich get richer and greedier!

I hope this video makes you mad.... really mad.... mad enough to open your mouths, voice your opinions and say hell no, we will not stand for itl...


http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article24472.htm

Incredibly Good News About my Grandson!

I have incredibly good news! Logan is going home today. They feel he is doing fine, but he is going home with several asthma medications and inhalers as well as some type of new nebulizer for breathing treatments. Today makes it 10 days since he was admitted. Please continue to keep Logan, Amanda, my daughter and the family in your prayers. My daughter is just completely exhausted in every way, physically, mentally and emotionally. Plus I know the next few days and especially nights will be worrisome for her. I am sure she will be sitting by his bed for a few nights making sure he is breathing okay. Bless her heart and his. She wanted me to tell all thank you for the messages, the prayers, the concern.... she appreciates each and everyone of you. As of course well I myself also.. thank guys and gals for being so caring, for I know uplifting Logan through prayer, as well as uplifting his doctors in prayer had helped to get him back home and on the road to be completely well. A Huge Hug to all, Rhia

I have a really special story about one of our dearest friends that lives in San Fransisco. He is a nurse there, and actually his schooling puts him higher than an RN actutally. He works the ER and that is what he loves, is helping those coming in many times you never know what you might do that day or night to save a life.
His name is Danny. He is about 42. He is a member of a nurses union in California. The head of the union approached Danny, as well as a couple of others from their hospital about joining the volunteer efforts for Haiti by being on the USS Comfort, which is one of the floating military hospitals, something like it holds 900 beds... and it completely self contained.

So Danny said yes!! He leaves this coming Wednesday to fly to Jacksonville FL where he will board the ship. He will be gone at least two weeks. :) I commend him and all of the civilian people who are donating their time they could be pulling shifts and earning their wages, to make such an amazing difference and with any Have to think about it, he said YES! immediately! We are so incredibly proud and envious a little of him. For I have said it 50 times, if my health was not an issue and they needed me for something I could help with, I would be on the first ship or place, headed that way.

So through Danny's unselfish act, we are living the situation through his eyes.It is truly incredible that he, as well as the other thousands of volunteers go to provide rellef to those who otherwise might perish with the thousands that already have.

Mother Natures Wrath- Greatly Shadows our own pain

As the pictures came rolling in one by one this morning of the Nation of Haiti, and all that no longer exists for one of the poorest nations in the world, it puts our own pain and suffering into perspective, as that horrific disaster continues to wipe our hundred’s of thousands of innocent lives. Mother Nature spares no one... from the youngest of infants to the eldest of elders, body upon body, sheets, plastic, or whatever they can find to cover the dead over, while the ones that have been released from the mortuary to their loved ones... and are laid to rest by their own families having to dig the graves. Many thousands will not be claimed, since it is very probable entire families are wiped completely out, thus mass graves, one today of 7,000 people was dug and they brought corpse after corpse laying them to rest together forever, not one living to be able to tell of the horror that was in their hearts during those devastating minutes when the Earth literally shook so hard beneath their feet, it knocked down 4 and more story buildings, obliterated the Embassies, schools, hospitals, houses, stores, sending every stone to lie upon the ground like an atomic bomb had hit the entire 1 million plus people, and the Capitol of Haiti. These people already know daily struggles and suffering. Many of them already living in cardboard boxes, in small shacks on the mountain sides, now not a one standing. Often many of those millions living off of less than 2.00 a day for an entire family. Now, the most valuable thing there is no longer monetary, but life saving water and food.

There are visions of children injured wandering around as they pass those not so fortunate laying covered up around their feet. The injured sitting in the street, some not able to walk, no one to help them, for those that walk by, cannot even help themselves. I cannot begin to explain in the depths of my heart, just how fortunate I feel. Even though we suffer from Chronic Illnesses, Pain, and so many hardships, nothing compares to what those Haitian survivors are dealing with. Homes and all wiped away. Many of their loved ones dead, or buried beneath the massive piles of rubble. No shelter from aftershocks that range sometimes over 5 on the Richter Scale. No clean water, no food and n0 fuel to go and be able to get supplies. As many countries including our own US go hurriedly to help, it will be lifetimes for some of those before they will ever see what seems like home. It is a day of sorrow, it is a day of bravery, it is a day of sacrifice, of humbleness, of mourning for those that lost their lives, and even more grief for those surviving knowing all too well without medical assistance, water and food, they may die also.

10 Awesome Exciting Achievements in Lupus Research For Medications and More

http://www.lupus.org/webmodules/webarticlesnet/templates/new_empty.aspx?articleid=2847&zoneid=99

This is an exciting situation for those of us suffering from Lupus (SLE) and other autoimmune diseases. There are several medications that are on the brink of being possibly approved this year 2010 for combating the horrible symptoms, and the damage that Lupus does. Positive results for slowing down, shortening, and possibly halting flares have been shown in clinical trials, along with little or no serious side effects. Plus there has been much advancement in finding the bio-markers that could be partially or all the cause of those of us who come down with Lupus and/or other related autoimmune illnesses.

I am so thrilled and cannot wait until I can possibly try one of these medications.

I hope all of you who are Lupus patients, family, friends and caretakers are as excited as I am...

Rhia