Day Ten's Writing Challenge is:

"A Fruit you Dislike & Why"

It has to be Grapefruit.

Who the hell likes this strong tart fruit? 

Many people say it's good for you, but they don't know that grapefruit and its juice can be dangerous if you're on medication. It's been proven to raise the potency of some drugs three times!

Such drugs for for lowering cholesterol, some painkillers, sedatives, blood-thinners, antibiotics, and many others can be affected by eating or drinking grapefruit. It may not be fatal, but it sure can cause nasty side effects.

So if you're one of the few that actually like Grapefruit, please double-check with your doctor if your prescriptions are safe with grapefruit consumption.

Now that I'm on anti-rejection medications, I cannot have grapefruit, which is perfectly fine by me.

We’ve all seen the viral videos of Cochlear Implant activations all over the Internet. The person or their family breaks down into tears when they realize they’re hearing sounds.

​But these “inspiration porn” videos, as I call them, doesn’t show is what happens once the camera turns off.

Here’s the reality of Cochlear Implants that many people, including many in the medical community, don’t realize 

It’s not an “Instant Fix”:

We can’t just slap it on our head and instantly hear and understand everything. It takes a lot of time and adjustment for our brains to learn to translate the electronic signals into sounds that we may recognize.

We have to go through a lot of technical adjustments (mappings) to adjust how we’re hearing. Pitches and loudness have to be adjusted every time.

I’ve had one C.I. for 10 years until an internal failure (long story). I was reimplanted with the newest version in November 2015 and even though I’ve learned to hear well with the first one, I’m having to relearn everything all over again.

It’s not a cure for deafness:

Once we take the external part (the Processor) off we are deaf again. We’re deaf when we sleep, shower, swim (unless we have the waterproof case), or any other time we take it off.

We’re also deaf when our battery dies, there are instances where we’ve forgotten our replacement batteries and have had to go without the C.I.

​I was born prelingually deaf, so I’ve pretty much missed the window for speech discrimination (0-3 years old). People expect that since I have a C.I., that I’d be able to understand them clearly without lipreading. With my first C.I., I was able to understand my husband and my kids without lipreading….sometimes. Now with the new one, I struggle to hear them even when I’m looking at them straight on, but hey, it’s only been 4 months.

It will never match natural hearing:

It is electronically produced hearing. As great as this technology is and it’s improving all the time, it will never match the complexity and range of natural hearing.

For those of us prelingually deaf, we will never know what true hearing is. For those late deafened, they never will be hearing like they used to again.

Even though it’s electronic hearing, after much training and adjusting, people can get pretty close to how they were hearing before.

It takes a lot of training:

Even some C.I. users wonder why they’re not hearing well. It takes a lot of training to hear.

You don’t need to attend aural therapy sessions by a specialist to train to hear. Play the radio or TV in the background while you go about your normal routine. Get an audiobook and print version of the same book and read along with the voice to learn different speech patterns. You can also turn on Speech option in the Accessibility menu of your tablet or phone and it can read out loud any text you highlight. Have someone read the newspaper or magazine out loud next to you. All in all, the saying “you only get out what you put in” stands true here.

You also need a lot of patience, it may take months and months, or even years before your old brain “clicks” and you finally realize that weird high pitched sound is actually a bird singing outside your window.
 

So there you have it, the reality of a C.I. It’s the same as any other medical restoration. You don’t expect that patient who just had knee replacement surgery to suddenly jump up and start tap dancing after their stitches are out do you?

To new C.I. users: Be patient; enjoy the little “a-ha” moments; practice listening wherever you are; don’t forget to escape to the quietness of silence when things get overwhelming; and enjoy your “new ear”.

To everyone else: Be patient, help with identifying sounds; have realistic expectations; and enjoy their hearing “progressions”.

If anyone wants to know more, .

Tracy,
​ ​​"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon

Do you have a Deaf patient at your medical office or hospital?

Need to know how to help them?

Need to understand their communication needs?

Wonder why they're reluctant, frustrated, skipping appointments?

Read all about it in this article.

Feel free to share this article with everyone.

Tracy,
​ ​​"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon

​

​As a parent of teenagers we know all too well their snarkiness, their mood swings, and their know-it-all attitudes. Dealing with these juvenile terrors can drive any parent up the wall but keeping these five points in mind will help ease the frustrations and keep you from losing your temper over them.

Stick to the Rules

Make a list of house rules and stick to them. Rules on curfew, homework, chores and the like are important for kids any age as it sets boundaries which they need for healthy growth. You will need firm consequences for breaking these rules as well.

So when your teen balks at school work and says it’s stupid and they don’t need to know this stuff for the real world, don’t argue with them, or try to persuade them to like it or see your side of it, instead just say “that’s fine, but you know our rules and consequence of not doing it” and follow through.

Stay Out of the Small Stuff

As parents we want to protect our kids from trouble, disappointments, failure and pain. Unless it’s life threatening, you should stay out of this and let them figure it out on their own. Whether it’s an argument with a best friend, a haircut choice, or disappointment in not getting something they really wanted, let them cope, learn, and make decisions on their own.

Do let them know you’ll be there to answer questions and offer advice if they need it.

Be Respectful

This might make you laugh, “I have to be respectful to them?” To a point, yes, they learn from your actions. Instead of nagging and screaming about why they haven’t started their homework yet, how lazy they are and how they’re making you feel, just go in and firmly remind them “Hey, it’s homework time, get started or you lose your gaming privileges”.

Be respectful of their privacy. Don’t snoop on their texts, online interactions or journals behind their backs. You can get programs that set boundaries on their texts and online access to protect them from predators and unwanted website viewing for their safety. Ask them about what they’re chatting about, their favorite websites and games, and their online friends. Be interested in their online presence and such, but stop the spying.

Talk with Them

Even though it may feel like you’re at odds with your teen, talking with them will help find some connections. Just chat about everyday stuff while out on a drive, after they’ve come home from a night out with friends, or around the dinner table.

Don’t ask questions that can be answered with a simple yes or no, instead ask what they liked about the movie they just saw, how are their friends doing, or what level they’re on in their new game.

This will be the time to chat about life lessons too, but don’t turn it into a lecture, share how you feel about important issues, what life will deal them and consequences of possible choices they’ll make.
 
It’s Not About You

Too many times parents try to control their teenagers because it reflects on them. Whether it’s their teen’s choice of dress, their teen’s actions, or living vicariously through them.

Instead of banning your kid from dyeing their hair or a wardrobe choice because of how you feel, tell them how it may reflect on the child themselves. Explain that people perceive others by their outward appearances and may have negative thoughts about them instead of seeing their true nature.

Instead of pushing your teenager towards your own interests so you’d look good, or because you did or didn’t do that as a teenager yourself, find their talents and help them develop and flourish in it. So you were a star quarterback, or you never made it as a dancer, doesn’t mean your teen has to do it for you.

Despite the stereotypical negative perceptions about teens, they are often energetic, thoughtful, and idealistic, with goals and dreams of their own.  Even though it’s a time of conflict and battles, it’s an important time to help your kids become well-adjusted and mature adults.

I know all this because I have two teenagers. They are excelling in school, are excited about their extracurricular activities, have goals for their lives and are mature, respectful and fun to be with. My husband and I are not their "friend", we don't nag them, we praise them and we support and participate in their activities.

Tracy,
 ​​"One finds limits by pushing them" ~ Herbert Simon

​Tobacco is a product made from the leaves of the tobacco plant, known as Nicotiana. It contains the alkaloid nicotine, which is a stimulant and can be found in cigarettes, cigars, and pipe tobacco. They can be chewed, snuffed or dipped and “snussed”. Either way you want to take it, tobacco’s effects on the body is unhealthy and can cause serious health problems if the habit continues. 

Lung Cancer
Smoking tobacco, like cigars and pipes, increases your chances of getting lung cancer. It comprises a big percentage of deaths and even as a result of second hand smoke. Even if you only smoke a few cigarettes a day or even do so occasionally, you are still putting yourself at risk for lung cancer. It is also the leading cause of COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder), which the person suffering finds it hard to breathe as a result of over-secretion of mucus that can cause coughing, as well as wheezing, shortness of breath, and chest tightness.
 
Heart Disease
Tobacco can increase the heart rate and blood pressure due to the stimulant, nicotine. It leads to blockages that can cause narrowing of the arteries, which makes you at risk for heart diseases, stroke and sudden heart attacks. This is due to the impaired oxygen supply and blood that goes into the heart that is a result of these blockages. This mechanism alone drives the heart to beat faster in order to supply the oxygen needs of the heart and the body.
 
Smoking Leads to Reproductive Problems in Men and Women
Smoking may also be a reason for reduced fertility among women and men. It also increases the risk of developing ectopic pregnancy that if left untreated, can be deadly. Smoking also interferes with sex hormone and, thus, causes painful and irregular menses on women and erectile dysfunction among men. It is also known that smoking can reduce sperm production, sperm motility, sperm normal forms and sperm fertilizing capacity because of oxidative stress and DNA damage. Also, women who smoke are more prone to early menopause. 
 
Diabetes
Diabetes is not a chronic disease wherein the body cannot produce nor has inadequate insulin that leads to high levels of sugar in the blood. If this condition is left uncontrolled, it can lead to diabetic retinopathy, vascular diseases that require amputation, kidney failure and an early death due to complications. How is smoking linked to this disease? For one, smoking promotes obesity, which is a risk factor of diabetes. It also increases inflammation and oxidative stress, which is indicative in the development of insulin resistance and abnormal glucose metabolism.
 
Different Types of Cancers
Smoking is one of the major cause for certain types of cancer. It also prevents your body from fighting it once you have it. It lowers the body’s defences and makes it hard to kill cancer cells, making them grow and spread to other parts of the body. What causes these cancers are the poisons contained in tobacco, which can damage or change a cell’s DNA. When there is a damaged DNA, a cell can grow out of proportion and create a malignant tumor.
 
Dental problems may also be caused by tobacco smoking. You won’t have to worry about how much braces cost, but with teeth whitening costs instead. Smoking has a reputation of making the teeth a yellow tinge, which is unappealing and can even cause bad breath too. So, smoking-cessation is a must for those individuals who value their bodies and their lives. 

​

​Teeth color can tell so much about a person. Yellow teeth can be linked to smoking, coffee drinking, and just poor oral hygiene. It is a bit embarrassing to smile with stained teeth too, especially when you are meeting somebody important, or worse, in a job interview. So, to get rid of these awkward moments and wrong assumptions from people, here are 5 helpful tips to keep your smiles bright and healthy. 

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Gargle
Apple cider vinegar has natural whitening properties, that when used together with baking soda, can effectively remove stains. It is also a powerful cleaning agent, but very mild to gums and teeth. It kills bacteria-causing gum disease by maintaining an acidic environment in your mouth. So, make it a habit to gargle apple cider vinegar diluted in water, for a cleaner and brighter smile.
 
2. Citrus peels and strawberries
Citrus fruits like the orange, is rich in vitamin C, pectin, limonene, glucarate, and soluble fiber, which are said to have natural teeth whitening properties. The limonene serves as a natural solvent cleaner and are even an ingredient of many teeth whitening products. The lemon is said to have similar results, too. Both fruits are high in acid content, so rinsing the mouth after using or eating them will help prevent damage to the tooth enamel.
 
Strawberries contain an enzyme called malic acid, and Vitamin C. It also has astringent properties that remove stains from the surface of the teeth. The Vitamin C helps get rid of plaque by washing it away. Mash a handful of strawberries and apply them on the teeth. Repeat the process twice a week.
 
 3. Whitening Gel trays instead of whitening strips
There are various ways to effectively whiten the teeth. Two of the most effective ways are the teeth whitening gels that are used with a gel tray or mold and whitening strips. But, most people find the gels much more effective than the strips because it evenly distributes the gel over the teeth. Whitening strips, on the other hand, could not reach the gumline making it appear darker than the rest. Although, the use of the gel tray will take hours, sometimes even overnight for the gel to work, the results are always far better than using strips alone.  
 
4. Floss regularly and use whitening toothpaste
Flossing, when done regularly, yields amazing results. It protects the teeth from getting damaged when you get rid of food particles lodged between the teeth. This will prevent bacteria-causing diseases to thrive in that area. Flossing also makes a difference in the color of your teeth. Once you get rid of the stains and other debris between the teeth, it will make them look whiter.

5. Brush teeth with baking soda once a week
Baking soda is known to be very useful around the house. Because of its natural mild abrasiveness, it can also be used to remove surface stains from teeth, making them look whiter. Do it once a week only, because too much use can also cause damage to the tooth enamel. It can make the gums feel raw and sensitive, if done regularly. If this is the case, salt can be used as a safe alternative too.
 
 
If these options are not working well enough for the present condition of your teeth, try to get some professional help. Dentists can recommend professional whitening methods that really work. Some of them may be a bit on the pricey side, but they will all be worth it, once you achieve that perfect smile.