Blog, Health, Supplements
I know, the title of this post sounds pretty melodramatic. I’m not denying that, but still. Here were my symptoms. Exhaustion, fatigue, waking up tired, hair falling out, frequent wakefulness at night despite feeling worn out. As a freelance online web developer I work from home, so my bed is accessible when I’m at work.
I’m a morning person, that’s when my energy and productivity are at their peak. That’s been true for me since I was a child. Wake up early (not so early anymore), jump out of bed and get to it. However since the transition to the The Great Northwest, my morning energy levels drop and by around 1:00 pm, I found myself climbing under the covers feeling drained. This went on for weeks, more than four, until I got so freaked out I went to the doctor for a check-up. A blood test came showing my Vitamin D levels below the lowest number on the chart which is 30. My number was 8! Holy Balogne!
My doctor said to take 5,000 mg a day for a week or so. Vitamin D doesn’t build up in your system to even though that seems really high, it’s ok. She said to ramp down to 2,000 mg a day after that. And don’t let me leave out I’m talking about Vitamin D3 specifically. I looked up more information about Vitamin D at the National Institutes of Health which says:
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that is naturally present in very few foods, added to others, and available as a dietary supplement. It is also produced endogenously when ultraviolet rays from sunlight strike the skin and trigger vitamin D synthesis. Vitamin D promotes calcium absorption in the gut and maintains adequate serum calcium and phosphate concentrations to enable normal mineralization of bone and to prevent hypocalcemic tetany. It is also needed for bone growth and bone remodeling by osteoblasts and osteoclasts [1,2]. Without sufficient vitamin D, bones can become thin, brittle, or misshapen. Vitamin D sufficiency prevents rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults [1]. Together with calcium, vitamin D also helps protect older adults from osteoporosis.
It took less than 48 hours to feel my energetic normal self again. In fact I realized I had forgotten what having energy felt like and normal felt miraculous! I wasn’t like a machine, speeding around but I did have energy for all the little tasks and puttering I had been wanting to get to but had been putting off because I was too tired!
So here’s the deal with Vitamin D and the Sun.
Yes you can get Vitamin D from the sun, but likely not enough to really have optimum levels. Indigenous peoples lived mostly outside, I’m guessing you don’t. I don’t! And when I do go outside in the glorious sun I’m covered with sunscreen to prevent cancer and covered up and wearing a hat. I’m still not going to get the levels I need by being in the sun. 1,000 mg twice a day is now a regular daily supplement and what a difference it makes. You can get Vitamin D in pill, capsule and chewable form. If you take the capsules or pills take it with a meal because it may or may not upset your stomach. I find I can take the chewable form anytime without tummy problems.
Talk with your doctor as always before starting any new supplements. Your multivitamin probably doesn’t have more than 400-800 mg a day which for most of us isn’t enough. It may be enough to prevent death, but not enough to get you feeling like your energetic self again.
I wanted to share this with you because I just didn’t believe it could make the difference it has to boost my Vitamin D levels but numbers don’t lie. My most recent blood test showed my levels up to 29, still not over the lowest number but very close. Next time for sure!
Diabetes, Food
Ok, I’m going to say some words that might want to make you hit the back button, BUT JUST DON’T. The other day as I was pushing my mini-cart down the frozen food isle of my local supermarket, wishing there was a sugar free ice cream in some exotic flavor, an organic, non gmo, coconut based, dairy and gluten free frozen whipped topping caught my eye. Before I go further let it be known that I would never knowingly buy or eat the typical frozen whipped toppings because they seem to have a lot of unnatural ingredients in them, in fact I’m not sure there are ANY natural ingredients in them.
And then came CocoWhip! from SO DELICIOUS, the same folks who revolutionized soy milk based dairy free ice-cream. HOLY COW IS IT GOOD!
It tastes sweeter than expected and being fortunate to live in berry land or as we call it The Great Northwest, blackberries are happening right now and the combination of the two, the berries and the topping was definitely greater than the sum of their parts. A serving is 2 tablespoons and with a half cup of berries that was fine. I had used more the first time and it was too much topping (not really, this stuff is delicious!) but you know, all things in moderation.
Also, this post is in no way sponsored, and I’m not getting any kind of a kickback. I just really really like this product and am so happy I have a new guilt-free snack, and also berries are the best, and with a couple tablespoons of CocoWhip… They’re good for you!
Post a comment and let me know if you agree, Cocowhip is a whipped dream come true! #sorrynotsorry
Cannabis
Officials at Hemp Inc., announced they are ready to release its first product in the marketplace, an environmentally friendly super absorbent biodegradable material called SpillSuck™. The product is made from the core of kenaf and hemp plants, and is one of the world’s most absorbent natural materials used primarily for oil, chemical and other liquid spills. Expectations are that SpillSuck™ will be especially helpful in oil spill cleanups. Kenaf is a plant related to cotton, hibiscus and okra with its origin in Africa.
The company’s first 25,000 pounds of SpillSuck™ are in the final stages of packaging, after which the product will be ready for market.
Bruce Perlowin, CEO of Hemp, Inc said:
This is a big deal for Hemp, Inc. (OTC PINK: HEMP) because this is our first environmentally friendly product-to-market from our decortication plant in Spring Hope, North Carolina.
In the announcement they said twenty-five thousand pounds of SpillSuck™ are currently being processed for delivery to the market in the next few weeks. Further, they expect to have another 100,000 pounds of material ready and 2 – 3 weeks after that. Once in full production, the target goal is to process and ship one to three million pounds of SpillSuck™ per month, according to the announcement.
Budget Living, Money, Social Security
When congress passed it’s new budget law that takes effect May 2016, millions of women who were entitled to take half the value of their ex-spouse’s social security and then switch to their fully vested social security at age 70, can no longer do this. For reasons that escape me, while congress (and yes, Obama signed it into law) wrote the changes to close a loophole for married couples where there are two social security incomes, they also thought it would be a good idea to condemn divorced women to accept a lower amount earlier dooming them to collect the lower amount for the rest of their lives.
For those now under 62, the bill extends deeming, which now ends at full retirement age (age 66), through age 70. Deeming is the requirement that if a) you take your retirement benefit and are eligible to collect your spousal benefit, you are forced to take both at once and b) if you take your spousal benefit, you are forced to simultaneously take your retirement benefit. Since Social Security effectively only pays the larger of the two benefits, being forced to take both benefits at once means that you lose one of the two benefits.
I had planned to begin collecting on my ex-husband’s social security until I turned 70 years old and then I intended to switch to my full amount, which hopefully would be more than taking his half early. Remember, you are not actually taking anything away from your ex-spouse’s entitlement. They still receive their full entitlement based on when the file. As long as you were married over 10 years and have been divorced for over two, you still can file but when you do, Social Security figures out the maximum amount you have coming to you based on when you file, sixty-two and a half, sixty-six or seventy years of age.
The earlier you file the less social security you receive, for life.
The earlier you file, the less you receive, and now that is for the rest of your days if you are divorced. This rule is not gender specific, it is not just for women, but the reason this rule exists is an acknowledgement that women earn less than men and frequently work fewer years due to child-rearing.
Now your choices are file and live with that amount for the rest of your life, or postpone filing until you are sixty-six, or seventy. With older women so de-valued in the workplace, and the natural demands of aging, where are our jobs? Target? Walmart? Where do you see our faces in the workplace?
festivals, Spirituality
I first went to Burning Man in 2011 when a “mom” friend of mine mentioned she had purchased a ticket. We talked and decided I would buy a ticket and we would go together and share the experience. Together we planned and found a ride being offered for a fee on Craig’s List in a school bus with a 3 time burner from Washington State. We borrowed a tent, bought way too much food, packed and planned, watched a ton of youtube videos and mentally prepared ourselves for we knew not what.
I did have some trepidation about doing Burning Man over 50. Would the wind and dust overwhelm whatever fun things there were to do? Would I have breathing problems? Was it worth it.
Our “ride” was a veteran burner and invited us to camp with his burning man camp family during the event. This was a huge help as we would be with more experienced burners. First time burners are referred to as Sparkle Ponies for a multitude of reasons including coming unprepared, falling in love repeatedly, not drinking enough water, wearing enough sun screen, eating enough protein, drinking too much alcohol, a wide-eyed expression for more than 48 hours straight, and the list goes on.
My experience at Burning Man had three interesting effects on me. The first was that I had an unexplainable renewed hope for humankind. I think that came from this scene, this immense spectacle that people create for a week with only one motive, to share. The other two things I notice was that I had a complete disinterest in people and things that typically annoy me. Those things still were annoying, but I didn’t care. And the last thing, which did wear off in a couple months was breaking into little spontaneous songs at any given time including in public, and not caring.
Let me say that yes, it was worth it, SO WORTH IT!
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