Newbie

August 9, 2005

Shirley,

I found it interesting that you mentioned that your daughter had

problems sleeping as a baby. I also had difficulties with my

daughter, Tracey, with sleeping. She had an awful case of colic as

an infant ... which, in reality, she never really grew out of (it

just morphed to OCD!). She has always been (from day 1) an

extremely " intense " person ... she has never experienced " simple "

emotions. She has always been VERY unhappy ... or VERY fearful, ...

or VERY stressed ... and, on the flip-side ...VERY happy, ... very

loving, ...VERY excited .... etc.

Tracey, like your daughter, has an adorable room that she is very

proud of (decorated in an ocean theme) ... that she uses to store

her stuff and to entertain her friends. (sigh)

As you said about your daughter ... maybe someday Tracey will get to

the point that she is ready to sleep alone in her room. However,

we're not there yet. She IS making improvement with her OCD

symptoms (sometimes at " turtle speed " ) ... but, as long as she's

moving forward I will patiently sit in the wings and make life a

comfortable as possible for her along the way.

Debbie

Shirely said:

Just want to note ... my daughter won't sleep alone either... my

husband works third shift so having her bed next to mine isn't that

big a deal. I always wondered how many others do this,I was to shy

to say I do.... in my case Crystal age 9 would NEVER sleep as a

baby.... I tried EVERYTHIING!!!! Then at age two after going with 3

hours sleep or so a night (needless to say I looked like sh*t) the

doctor said why don't you just put her next to you in your room at

least you could both sleep. (it was effecting her health) So here we

are 7 years later and her little bed is still next to mine... She

has her own room that she has decorated but its just for play and

show when friends are over.

Maybe someday....

Shirley & Crystal (age9) Daytona Beach, Florida

>

August 9, 2005

Thanks for your post. Funny you mentioned the PANDA OCD. I

intended to look through this group's archived posts to see what has

been posted regarding this. My daughter could be a poster child for

PANDAS. Fortunately, her pediatrician acknowledges this connection

(he's a rare breed ... even docs in his same practice refuse to make

a connection between OCD and strep!).

Tracey had REPEATED cases of strep for at least two years (one

infection after the other). She would suffer with strep both in the

winter and the summer months. I could tell that she was coming down

with strep (before the onset of the typical sore

throat/headache/fever) by her sudden increase in OCD symptoms (and

also, in her case, an increase in her urge to pull hair). It got to

the point that the pediatrician suggested that I bring her in for a

throat culture once I noticed her OCD symptoms flaring up.

Tracey had her tonsils removed in January, and so far she has gotten

a break from the strep (of course, surgery didn't " cure " the OCD).

She did, however, have a sore throat & fever a few weeks ago (right

before leaving for vacation) -- that accompanied a short-lived

increase in her OCD anxieties. I brought her in for a strep test

which came back negative ... however, I still wonder if, despite the

negative results, it wasn't indeed strep (?). Who knows...

Again, I am so glad I've found this group. I don't feel like I'm

wandering through the dessert alone anymore!

By the way ... Tracey is a twin too! She has a twin brother,

Collin ... who is, thankfully, OCD free.

Debbie

> > Hello All!

> >

> > My name is Debbie and I am a newbie to this message board. My

11-

> > year-old daughter has been living with OCD for 3 years now.

> >

> > Her initial symptoms were excessive hand washing. Since then,

the

> > OCD has taken on many different " faces " - from repeating

statements

> > (over and over and over) -- to obsession about death (ours and

> >

August 9, 2005

,

You got my attention .... what is melatonin???? :-)

Although my goal for Tracey is for her to eventually be able to

sleep alone in her room ... until she's ready I won't push her

there - simply because society says she should. Very few

friends/family members are aware of her sleeping arrangements (I

refuse to open myself up to the inevitable critism) ... however,

we'll do what works until she is able to defeat these fears.

Debbie

Sometimes I suspect it was the sleeping alone that pushed him over

the edge...that along with puberty.

But now, he occasionally takes melatonin to help him sleep - -

expecially during the school year when he has to get up at an early

hour.

August 9, 2005

Melatonin is a (until now) 'natural' sleep aid. There are two things

you should know.

First, I heard that the fda is about to approve it as a sleep aid.

Second, children and adults need much different doses....I heard

something about (on this message board - a search should find it)

that melatonin was recommended at a very small dose because children

have quite a bit of it naturally while older and older people have

less and less. I believe it was recommended (along with other

things) by a reputably ocd expert at the culmination of a thorough

assessment of one of the children on this board.

When I read up on it myself it said something about briefly and

gently lowering blood pressure...just enough to help someone slip

into sleep.

I ordered some liquid form of it online at the Vitamin Shoppe and

tried it out on myself before suggesting it to my son. About 15

minutes after taking it I felt the muscles in my face relax very

noticably (pleasantly). And now I use it myself occasionally.

I'd suggest looking for that posting on this board.

>

> Sometimes I suspect it was the sleeping alone that pushed him over

> the edge...that along with puberty.

>

> But now, he occasionally takes melatonin to help him sleep - -

> expecially during the school year when he has to get up at an early

> hour.

>

August 9, 2005

Hi again Debbie,

's OCD seemed almost overnight at onset and I wondered about

PANDAS. Except I couldn't recall his being sick. None of my kids

are prone to strep, i.e., getting each year, and if he'd complained

of some sore throat before OCD hit, I couldn't recall. But probably

the 2nd year he had OCD, he got strep and his OCD really increased

those weeks! However, I also noted that it always seemed to increase

when he had a fever, but the strep fever/weeks was the worst. Took

him weeks to calm down, compared to other times/fevers. I've noted

this past year that his OCD no longer increases with fevers (knock on

wood!) as it did before. 's OCD hit right after 6th grade

began, he'll be in 11th this year.

I believe many here - and you've probably read - have said that a

throat culture for strep can show negative but if you get the

bloodwork done for it, antibodies (or whatever) can show up, plus

strep can be in other parts of the body anyway. (excuse any

inaccuracies here! - I just recall bloodwork!)

's twin () showed extreme signs of OCD at a young age

(preschool) but luckily they vanished! He still is particular about

some things but nothing in the extreme. He also had sensitivity to

certain things (sock seams, some materials re clothing) but that also

improved (though he still HAS to wear an undershirt). was

sensitive to things like odors, food texture (that's still true),

hated being picked up high or spun around, etc. I noted in 6th grade

when he FINALLY got some occupational therapy, that the OT centered

in on some things when she had him on the swing, I believe

got dizzy easy or something. Anyway, the OT worked on all that too.

Hope Collin is more supportive of Tracey than was of

during those worse OCD times we had!

>

> Thanks for your post. Funny you mentioned the PANDA OCD. I

> intended to look through this group's archived posts to see what

has

> been posted regarding this. My daughter could be a poster child

for

> PANDAS. Fortunately, her pediatrician acknowledges this connection

> (he's a rare breed ... even docs in his same practice refuse to

August 10, 2005

Hi Shirley:

I'm really behind in my emails but this one caught my eye. I have replied

to you privately before as we live one county from each other. My daughter

who is 10 (11 next month) was just diagnosed with OCD over the summer. She

has always been a difficult child with her emotions are always exaggerated.

I would try anything/everything to get her to sleep as a baby. I would

sleep in the spare room with her bassinet in the room with me. She was

premature so she could sleep in this longer than most babies. It gradually

progressed to me sleeping in her bed with her in her room. My husband

doesn't work nights but has gotten used to this as he is a very light

sleeper and having her in the bedroom wouldn't be an option as he can't

sleep with any light and my daughter is afraid of the dark. We finally got

a bunk bed thinking that she would sleep on top and I could sleep on bottom

until she felt comfortable sleeping by herself so to speak. This has

backfired because of her OCD she thinks that the ceiling is germy and

refuses to sleep up their. It is very embarrassing and I always thought I

was a freak or something. My daughter did start school on Aug. 1st and each

day she says she's using the hand sanitizer more at school. The teacher

doesn't know about her OCD because her therapist didn't want me to say

anything right away.

Sorry this got so long.

Hugs:o)

Jane

www.youravon.com/jnorthrop

jane-theavonlady@...

Re: Newbie

Debbie,

Welcome to the group!! I don't know what I would do without them!!

Just want to note ... my daughter won't sleep alone either... my husband

works third shift so having her bed next to mine isn't that big a deal. I

always

wondered how many others do this,I was to shy to say I do.... in my case

Crystal age 9 would NEVER sleep as a baby.... I tried EVERYTHIING!!!! Then

at age

two after going with 3 hours sleep or so a night (needless to say I looked

like sh*t) the doctor said why don't you just put her next to you in your

room at

least you could both sleep. (it was effecting her health) So here we are 7

years later and her little bed is still next to mine... She has her own room

that she has decorated but its just for play and show when friends are over.

Maybe someday....

again Welcome Debbie

Shirley & Crystal (age9) Daytona Beach, Florida

September 7, 2005

welcome! I've been on and off this board since 2000. I understand. I looked to

Burn the fat

feed the muscle and although it has great info. I started to obsess. I didn't

lose and

stopped for the last two weeks. Now I am back here. Working on day 3. I plan on

eating

the 6 meals, one free day and following the workouts. I am not going to count

for a while.

Just keeping it simple you know....

> Hello everyone. I'd just like to introduce myself - I've read the the BFL book

years ago

and died a couple of challenges but I never really got the results I wanted. I

gained a bit

back and then tried Leanness Lifestyle and found that I had become someone

obssessed

with counting and measuring. Sadly, in the last 3 months I've fallen off the

wagon (and

gotten run over it, once or twice) and I am now 20 pounds heavier than my

all-time low. I

really need to find a lifestyle that I can truly live with if I am to have any

hope of getting off

the yo-yo train for good.

>

> I'm looking forward to learning a lot from all of you,

>

> K.G.

>

> __________________________________________________

>

September 7, 2005

Thanks for the welcome. I've lurked here for a while a couple of years

back and then i got frustrated that my results weren't as fast as I had

hoped and I switched to LL. It worked great at first - I got down to

123 and then I realised that it just wasn't a realistic way of life for

me. I hated that I was worried about the 1 cup of veggies on my plate

(was that really 1 cup or was it 0.75 cups) and Lord forbid I touched a

bottle of olive oil... I know that the program works for many people

and that's great for them, but right now, I just need to simply my life.

K.G.

http://kluskagirl.blogspot.com

>

> welcome! I've been on and off this board since 2000. I understand. I

looked to Burn the fat

> feed the muscle and although it has great info. I started to obsess.

I didn't lose and

> stopped for the last two weeks. Now I am back here. Working on day 3.

I plan on eating

> the 6 meals, one free day and following the workouts. I am not going

to count for a while.

> Just keeping it simple you know.... --- In

,

>

September 7, 2005

Welcome back! There's definitely a happy medium in there somewhere. LL

is extremely effective but it tilts all the way toward the " bug nuts "

end of the spectrum in terms of measuring and counting. :-) BFL is at

the other end. The palm/fist thing can seem TOO basic for a lot of

people. You can tweak it up a little without doing anything extreme or

becoming a slave to the numbers though.

I clicked on your page and saw all the books and plans you've been

through. All of them have some merit. I'm especially fond of The Zone

and the French Women and seem to slip a lot of those into my BFL. It's

just a matter of taking what works for you, disregarding anything

crazy, and learning to enjoy the process and trust yourself. Sounds

like you're well on your way!

On 9/7/05, Kluska Girl <kluskagirl@...> wrote:

> Hello everyone. I'd just like to introduce myself - I've read the the BFL book

years ago and died a couple of challenges but I never really got the results I

wanted. I gained a bit back and then tried Leanness Lifestyle and found that I

had become someone obssessed with counting and measuring. Sadly, in the last 3

months I've fallen off the wagon (and gotten run over it, once or twice) and I

am now 20 pounds heavier than my all-time low. I really need to find a lifestyle

that I can truly live with if I am to have any hope of getting off the yo-yo

train for good.

>

> I'm looking forward to learning a lot from all of you,

>

> K.G.

September 7, 2005

Thanks, . I guess I tend to have an all or nothing approach to diet &

exercise and I am now trying to be as reasonable and stable as possible.

K.G.

p.s. I've been reading your website for years. It's wonderful!

Skwigg <skwigg@...> wrote:

Welcome back! There's definitely a happy medium in there somewhere. LL

is extremely effective but it tilts all the way toward the " bug nuts "

end of the spectrum in terms of measuring and counting. :-) BFL is at

the other end. The palm/fist thing can seem TOO basic for a lot of

people. You can tweak it up a little without doing anything extreme or

becoming a slave to the numbers though.

I clicked on your page and saw all the books and plans you've been

through. All of them have some merit. I'm especially fond of The Zone

and the French Women and seem to slip a lot of those into my BFL. It's

just a matter of taking what works for you, disregarding anything

crazy, and learning to enjoy the process and trust yourself. Sounds

like you're well on your way!

---------------------------------

Click here to donate to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort.

September 8, 2005

The real answer here lies in what your goals are. The end result of

any weight loss program is going to be calories in vs. calories out.

Period. You could effectively lose weight eating only pop tarts if

you ate fewer calories than you expended each day. If your goal is to

lose fat and gain muscle, then the types of food you eat must be a

factor. The weight watchers treats are best saved for free day if

this is the case. Also, on meal 2, there is no protein with the pita

and hummus. Both, according to BFL, are carbohydrate portions, and

should be eaten either/or and not both. Bars are ok for convenience.

I am guilty of eating lots of bars and shakes a day too, usually 3

real food meals and 3 bar or shake meals simply because I can't sit

down to eat and/or fix real food more than for 3 meals.

People tend to overdo free day at first but after a while you won't

feel so motivated to do so. Overdoing it will affect your progress so

the best thing to do is eat only what you really want or crave and

not someone's leftover donut half just because it was there.

There are different schools of thought about cardio. However, 20

minutes of high intensity cardio is sufficient for fatburning. If you

would like to do another jog by all means do it, but it should fall

under the " extra activity " category and not suffice for your cardio.

The high intensity is what provides you with the afterburn that a 40

minute jog will not. The high intensity cardio will continue to burn

fat throughout the day long after you've finished. The leisurely jog

or run will only provide fat burning while you are actually doing it.

I personally don't want to do much more than 30 minutes of cardio so

it had better be worth the trouble.

You'll get the hang of it, but you are better off to do only one

program simply to avoid too much confusion. Being too confused is one

of the first things that make people give up. Hope this helps.

Stasia

September 8, 2005

you go girl! you can do it!

Kluska Girl wrote:

> Hello everyone. I'd just like to introduce myself - I've read the the BFL book

years ago and died a couple of challenges but I never really got the results I

wanted. I gained a bit back and then tried Leanness Lifestyle and found that I

had become someone obssessed with counting and measuring. Sadly, in the last 3

months I've fallen off the wagon (and gotten run over it, once or twice) and I

am now 20 pounds heavier than my all-time low. I really need to find a lifestyle

that I can truly live with if I am to have any hope of getting off the yo-yo

train for good.

>

> I'm looking forward to learning a lot from all of you,

>

> K.G.

>

> __________________________________________________

>

September 8, 2005

I'm new to sprouting too. I've been using the mason jars with lids for

the past month and had great results.

I am faithful about rinsing them several times per day. I soak each

one the first day and then drain all the water and store them laying

sideways until sprouted.

I've had good luck with sprouted wheatberries that are really great

for making bread or dehydrated wheat patties in the dehydrator.

I've also really loved the sprouted nut mix. Delicious on salads!

On Sep 8, 2005, at 4:48 AM, doubletaketwo wrote:

> well we just started growing the mung sprouts yesterday and hopefully

> we will have fresh sprouts in about 4 days.....I have read the

> instructions and was wondering when placing the soaked beans in the

> sprouter .....should you only have one layer of sprouts....or do I

> goof .....I put in a few layers of sprouts.....hope this is not to much

> guess it will be trial and error.....any input would be helpful

September 8, 2005

I have been on this site for a little while now,reading and saving

information that seems important...and yet..I still haven't sprouted

anything

So HELLO,

I'm a french mother of a little girl.I live in London and I really wish to

start a sprouted life...but it is the first step that's being a problem for

me..The truth is I have tried to sprout wheat,about 4 months ago,and it

didn't work too well;the seller from fresh n wild did say that they might

not work coz they weren't for sprouting,but that I should still try..I guess

that first failed attempt did very much discouraged me.I don't own anything

that is really practical for sprouting and am the worst DIY ever .. I know

some of you have described their kit..but I have no idea what they used to

do so.Like what's a mason jar?Or what's that thing you put underneath the

sprouts?What to use to make trays? I didn't understand what came accross as

technical words for me.Is there anyone feeling mercy that lives in London

area and would allow me to have a look at their kit and advise me on where

to get the tools,materials,fabrics,seeds,etc..This is a genuine call for

help.I know it sounds I'm on the dumbside..but well when it comes to build

things I guess I am.My being french and not knowing DIY vocabulary and names

of things didn't help either.I just need to have a fair idea of what I

should use and where to find it.

Please?

LORELINE

September 8, 2005

>

> 7:00(hour after workout) body for life bar

> 10:15 cut up pita with hummus

> 1:30 another bar

> 5:00 grilled chicken sandwich/with bbq sauce side salad

> weight watchers ice cream cone

This not only sounds like you are not eating enough, but you are not

eating enough pure or natural foods and so your diet may be lacking.

If you want to feed your body and burn the fat you really should eat

more quality food and not starve yourself on pseudo food. Drop the

bars and keep them for emergencies, and add shakes instead...they

are absorbed better. Pita and hummus is a little heavy on the carbs

and fat. Try a baked sweet potato or brown rice and some chicken or

tuna for protein. Eat more vegetables! Eat more fruit! The meal

following your workout is the most important and just having a bar

may not be enough. Try having oatmeal and scrambled eggs instead.

Instead of the ice cream cone, if you need a sweet treat, try this:

some fat free cottage cheese sweetened with Splenda and some almond

essence, some strawberries and blueberries, some fat free sugar free

cool whip and maybe even some sprinkles. Tastier than ice cream

anyday and much more nutritious!

September 8, 2005

Hi There,

Thank you for helping me tweak my diet...On days that I don't have

class I can eat more fruit and vegetables and I try to.I have been

looking at the food court on campus and they have more healthier

choices then I thought, like sushi,fruit etc. MWF I have class from

9-4 and I work full time also so sometimes it gets a little crazy. I

do have shakes too and they are pretty good. I am really going to

try and make a meal to bring with me to classes after my workout in

the morning. I am definitly going to try the cottage cheese

concotion!!!!!!!! It sounds scrumptious!!

Lizzy

> >

> > 7:00(hour after workout) body for life bar

> > 10:15 cut up pita with hummus

> > 1:30 another bar

> > 5:00 grilled chicken sandwich/with bbq sauce side salad

> > weight watchers ice cream cone

>

> This not only sounds like you are not eating enough, but you are

not

> eating enough pure or natural foods and so your diet may be

lacking.

> If you want to feed your body and burn the fat you really should

eat

> more quality food and not starve yourself on pseudo food. Drop the

> bars and keep them for emergencies, and add shakes instead...they

> are absorbed better. Pita and hummus is a little heavy on the

carbs

> and fat. Try a baked sweet potato or brown rice and some chicken

or

> tuna for protein. Eat more vegetables! Eat more fruit! The meal

> following your workout is the most important and just having a bar

> may not be enough. Try having oatmeal and scrambled eggs instead.

> Instead of the ice cream cone, if you need a sweet treat, try

this:

> some fat free cottage cheese sweetened with Splenda and some

almond

> essence, some strawberries and blueberries, some fat free sugar

free

> cool whip and maybe even some sprinkles. Tastier than ice cream

> anyday and much more nutritious!

September 9, 2005

Hello Loreline, I would recommend looking at the

website, www..com. There are lots of explainations on

how to sprout there. I don't know what resources you have available

locally, but in a big city like London I would guess there are places

to buy sprouters locally. The simplest is a jar with a screen lid.

My favorite so far is the Easy Sprout, made here in the USA. I have

even sprouted beans in a piece of cloth. If you have a specific

question, write it here and I (or others smarter than me on this

site) will try to answer it. I would also recommend the book " Sprout

Garden Indoor Grower's Guide to Gourmet Sprouts " , by Mark

Braunstein. Maybe you can find it in a library.

Best wishes, Matt

> I have been on this site for a little while now,reading and saving

> information that seems important...and yet..I still haven't

sprouted

> anything

>

> So HELLO,

>

> I'm a french mother of a little girl.I live in London and I really

wish to

> start a sprouted life...but it is the first step that's being a

problem for

> me..The truth is I have tried to sprout wheat,about 4 months

ago,and it

> didn't work too well;the seller from fresh n wild did say that they

might

> not work coz they weren't for sprouting,but that I should still

try..I guess

> that first failed attempt did very much discouraged me.I don't own

anything

> that is really practical for sprouting and am the worst DIY ever ..

I know

> some of you have described their kit..but I have no idea what they

used to

> do so.Like what's a mason jar?Or what's that thing you put

underneath the

> sprouts?What to use to make trays? I didn't understand what came

accross as

> technical words for me.Is there anyone feeling mercy that lives in

London

> area and would allow me to have a look at their kit and advise me

on where

> to get the tools,materials,fabrics,seeds,etc..This is a genuine

call for

> help.I know it sounds I'm on the dumbside..but well when it comes

to build

> things I guess I am.My being french and not knowing DIY vocabulary

and names

> of things didn't help either.I just need to have a fair idea of

what I

> should use and where to find it.

>

> Please?

>

> LORELINE

September 12, 2005

Hi and welcome! I actually have SMA 2, but was diagnosed as

having SMA 1 initially. My parents had my two brothers after me (I'm

the eldest) and they are both completely healthy.

Jenn

September 12, 2005

Actually a lot of folks on this group were diagnosed as one type then

later assigned a different " type number. " Honestly, it seems like the

divisions between the different types are pretty fluid. I think they

now can determine through genetic testing how many back up SMN genes a

person has (the more the better) and this is roughly tied to the type

number. But I think diagnosing any type of SMA involves more than a

blood test. At least it did when I was a kid in the 70s. They had to

do a muscle biopsy and neurological tests. My parents said the whole

testing ordel was rather grueling.

Jenn

PS - There are parents on this list that know *a lot* more about the

newest genetic and testing research than I do. I'm sure they'll post

better explanations in the next few days.

Harbour wrote:

>I wonder how they messed up the diagnosis, Is that possible with Logan? I

>believe they were able to tell just through a simple blood test with him.

>

>Thank you!

>

>~~

>

September 12, 2005

Hi ,

Welcome to the group. I have Type II, as does my younger brother's 11 y.o.

daughter. My older brother was never diagnosed because we'd never heard of SMA

and it was 41 years ago, but likely had Type I. He died before I was born. My

sister and brother are both unaffected, though, my brother and we now know, his

wife are carriers. My sister won't get tested, so her 2 unaffected children

will have to decide if they will get tested themselves.

You'll find very good practical and scientific information, along with emotional

support, at http://www.fsma.org. The following link has a good general

description of the types: http://www.fsma.org/booklet.shtml#causes and here is

a more scientific explanation: http://www.fsma.org/wirth2000b.shtml.

Again, welcome.

--

Alana R. Theriault

Age 39 - Type II

Berkeley, CA

alrt@...

Messenger - althegrrl

MSN Messenger - althegrrl

AIM IM - althegrrl

September 12, 2005

Well, as far as I know he's only had a blood test, an MRI and a simple

" reflex " test.... This has all happened within a few weeks & he was just

diagnosed yesterday, so I honestly don't think any other testing has been

done other than that... I'm not even sure if they plan on doing any further

testing, the doctors have been very matter of fact, acting like they just

need to prepare for the worst because nothing can be done. When I was at the

hospital yesterday they doctor actually said " this doesn't look good at all "

..... right now they just seem to be concentrating on getting rid of his

pneumonia & monitoring his breathing.

~~

_____

From: [mailto: ] On

Behalf Of Jenn Malatesta

Sent: Monday, September 12, 2005 12:25 PM

Subject: Re: Newbie