….MORE GOOD ADVICE FROM AUNT MARY

Photo by Harvy Barrison

This week, Shayne is on assignment in Puerto Viagra, Mexico, where the beaches are full of warm white sand, the margaritas are flowing and just about now he’s putting up a table with a sign that reads “free blood pressure readings.” His dedication is inspiring.

Sitting in for Shayne is popular Bay Area health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains. Most of you in the San Francisco Bay Area know Joanie as the popular host of The Joanie Greggains Show on KGO Radio for 25 years, the #1 weekend health and fitness show. She is also known for her long-running TV exercise show, Morning Stretch. And now she is under Nurse Talk house arrest and does a weekly feature called “Fit Happens.”

Casey and Joanie visit with RN and CNA Presidents Council Member, Zenei Cortez about the “CNA Nursing Angels Family Fund” established by the California Nurses Association for the victims of the horrible limousine fire that occurred on the San Mateo Bridge here in Northern California. The news of the death of two RNs and three other caregivers in the tragic limousine fire brought deep sadness to everyone. Zenei will talk about the fund and how people can donate. For more information about this topic visit calnurses.org.

And Sherry Blackman is an internationally published writer, award-winning poet, and journalist whose work has taken her to 30 countries and has appeared in dozens of national and international publications. Ms. Blackman has written a new book, Call To Witness: One Woman’s Battle with Disability, Discrimination and a Pharmaceutical Powerhouse. The book tells the true story of Jane Gagliardo who in 2002 challenged Big Pharma in a landmark case that forever changed how corporations treat employees with disabilities when she fought her wrongful dismissal due to the challenge of living with multiple sclerosis.

And she’s back! Comedian Lynn Ruth Miller is back with another edition of “In My Day.” Check it out!

And don’t forget to check out our blog some very touching updates from Melissa and Barbara, our courageous friends whom together are confronting life with Barbara’s Alzheimer and Melissa’s MS. Powerful story!

And let us not forget our Lucy and Ethel of all things Medical, Corine Mogenis and Patty Raya with their weekly “Medical Tips You Need To Know.” They’re fun and they give great practical advice.

As always, you can listen to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices with the TuneIn app, the iHeartRadio app, and iTunes as well as Nursetalksite.com, our flagship station, KNEW 960AM, San Francisco Castle Rock Radio, WHAN 1430AM/102.9 FM in Ashland, Hanover, & Richmond, Virginia and anywhere in between.

And don’t forget…laughter is always the best medicine.

Want to live your life to the fullest? If you’re ready for change, serious about investing in yourself and ready to stretch beyond your comfort zone……this is for you.

We would like to share with you our wonderful co-host Shayne Mason. RN, BSN, PHN, MSN, PMHNP(BC) Shayne is giving a free informational Webinar about one of the top online MSN, (Masters Of Science in Nursing) programs in the country. Shayne is also an instructor and alumni at USF and maintains several clinical practices. He will share the particulars of the online MSN program and the increasing opportunities for nurses with graduate degrees, and how to maximize income potential while doing the greatest good for your community.

The University of San Francisco is a world-class institution and if you are a nurse and have been “pondering” getting your masters—this Webinar is for you.

“I’m very proud the University Of San Francisco has partnered with Nurse Talk radio. As an alumni and current faculty, I have experienced first-hand the commitment to care, the individual attention, and the service to the community a degree from USF offers.”

The University of San Francisco MSN program Webinar will be held on May 30, 2013 12:00 PM PDT. Please click the link below to register:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2138389937501726720.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Brought to you by GoToWebinar® Webinars Made Easy®

We thank Shayne and USF, MSN Online Program for the opportunity to share this information with you.

Pattie Lockard
Executive Producer
Nurse Talk

The topics for discussion on every many news programs and across the web seem to be largely concentrating on the genetic testing that can now be done to watch for the mutations that may signal impending cancer and on the benefits and risks of taking the route that superstar Jolie and other prominent women have taken.  Across the globe, the news of this piece has opened discussion, like in this piece in The Guardian.  That opening of dialogue is a good thing.

But what of the women like me who do not have insurance or enough money to take the brave actions Angelina took?  Are we less brave?  We are certainly less valuable in a world that would see any celebrity’s body and breasts as more worthy of attention on a daily basis much less when one of those famous souls must endure some bodily alteration through illness or by choice.  I don’t argue that point here.  Angelina is a gorgeous woman and one whose talents have provided her the ability to make health choices many of the rest of the women on this earth may not make.

As a two-time cancer survivor and a woman whose father died from pancreatic cancer and whose mother has already had three rounds of breast cancer, I was once asked by my oncologist if I wanted to have some genetic counseling surrounding my cancer risks.  I said no.  I said no for a couple of reasons.  First, it seemed clear to me that my family history combined with my own cancer history already told me that I was predisposed to cancer.  No news there for me.  But secondly, even if the insurance I had at the time would have paid for the testing, I surely would have been even more labeled for the future as someone that no one wanted to insure.

Now, as I face my late 50s without any health insurance unless, and until, I can access it again through my employment, or with the new health exchanges when they open, or hold out until I reach Medicare age, there’s no way for me to take any brave or bold stance like Angelina.  I will have to be brave in prayer.  I will have to be brave in trying to mitigate the potential cancer-causing environmental and lifestyle choices that I can.  I will have to be brave in moving on with my life and trying not to wonder if each and every symptom I feel or sense is the beginning of the next cancer battle for me or the end of my life.

If we in the United States truly valued health care as a human right, and began showing it by adopting an improved and expanded “Medicare for All” system, at least I would know that if I developed another cancer I could access care just like anyone else would.  No doubt the debate about genetic testing for cancer patients and what people may wish to do in response to test results will continue.  What I hope may also open up is the honest discussion about how far the Affordable Care Act and its mandates to purchase health insurance may leave us from the day when every woman’s breasts are considered as worthy of the medical attention and care as any Hollywood superstar’s.

If you’d like to follow my daily blog posts: http://donnasicko.blogspot.com/

The University of San Francisco MSN program Webinar will be held on May 30, 2013 12:00 PM PDT. Please click the link below to register:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2138389937501726720

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.  See you there!

Michelle Estrera (left), Jenni Balon, Neriza Fojas, Anna Alcantara, and Felomina Geronga (not pictured) all perished when the limousine they were riding in caught fire on the San Mateo Bridge Saturday night. Photo: Courtesy The Balon Family. Photo originally appeared on SF Gate.

We are very sad to find out that this year’s Nurses Week was darkened by the death of two RNs and three other caregivers in a tragic limousine fire on the San Mateo Bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area. California Governor Jerry Brown issued a statement recognizing the incredible contribution of nurses who “work hard every day to make our state a healthier, happier place.” To read more about this tragic event, and to learn how you can support the grieving families, please visit the : www.nationalnursesunited.org/blog/entry/cna-nursing-angels-family-fund.

AND something special coming up from Nurse Talk and our academic partners. Be the change you want to see in the world and put this on your calendar: Nurse Talk is hosting an informational webinar regarding the online MSN program at the University of San Francisco. Your host is Shayne Mason RN, BSN, PHN, MSN, PMHNP(BC). Shayne is an instructor and alumni at USF and maintains several clinical practices. He is also the co-host of Nurse Talk Radio, where he discusses progressive health care policy to a national audience. He will be discussing the online MSN program, the many and increasing opportunities for nurses with graduate degrees, and how to maximize income potential while doing the greatest good for your community.

The University of San Francisco MSN program Webinar will be held on May 30, 2013 12:00 PM PDT. Please click the link below to register:

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2138389937501726720

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

Last week, the Nurse Talk team was busy at the 1st Annual Marin Healthy Palooza. We did an on-site broadcast and had a great time. So, this week we share with you a show from the Nurse Talk library, and “re-present” two very honorable guests, Ken Zinn, the D.C. based Political Director for National Nurses United and retired army nurse captain, Vietnam War veteran, and founder of the Women’s Vietnam Memorial, Diane Carlson Evans.

Ken talks with us about the announcement from the European Nations that 11 countries have signed on to a “financial transaction” tax, aka the Robin Hood Tax. The Robin Hood tax will raise billions of dollars by taxing financial transactions by incurring a less than half a percent tax on Wall Street transactions. Nurses in the U.S. have been on the leading edge of this concept and are making some headway here at home. Keep an open mind. If you listen to the simple details you might agree – this is a very fair and doable measure. Visit robinhoodtax.org.

Diane Carlson Evans who served as an army nurse in Vietnam talks about the announcement by the pentagon that women can now serve in combat roles in the military. Diane shares her story and tells us that women have been serving in combat since World War 2, mostly as nurses. However, because it was not “official” combat the women were not given weapons, though they were oftentimes still caught in the front lines of battle.

Vietnam Women’s Memorial photo by Michael Sirois

As always, you can listen to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices with the TuneIn app, the iHeartRadio app, and iTunes as well as Nursetalksite.com, our flagship station, KNEW 960AM, San Francisco Castle Rock Radio, WHAN 1430AM/102.9 FM in Ashland, Hanover, & Richmond, Virginia and anywhere in between.

Remember, laughter is the best medicine!

Michelle Estrera (left), Jenni Balon, Neriza Fojas, Anna Alcantara, and Felomina Geronga (not pictured) all perished when the limousine they were riding in caught fire on the San Mateo Bridge Saturday night. Photo: Courtesy The Balon Family. Photo originally appeared on SF Gate.

This year’s Nurses Week was sadly darkened by the death of two RNs and three other caregivers in a tragic limousine fire on the San Mateo Bridge in the San Francisco Bay Area. California Governor Jerry Brown issued a statement recognizing the incredible contribution of nurses who “work hard every day to make our state a healthier, happier place.”

These women, Neriza Fojas, Michelle Estrera, Jennifer Balon, Anna Alcantara, and Felomina Geronga, dedicated their professional lives to others every day in our hospitals and clinics, lost their own unexpectedly in this horrific event.

We mourn the loss of these women who were dedicated caretakers, loyal friends and loving mothers.

The members and leaders of California Nurses Association and National Nurses United extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of these women for their loss.

To honor them and assist their families, NNU has established a fund.

“What better way to recognize nurses and those with whom they work than to honor these women who cared for the patients and each other,” said Zenei Cortez, RN and CNA co-president.

“I just want to say thank you to the nurses for all your support, all your prayers,” said Abner Alcantara, husband of one of the deceased nurses, Anna Alcantara. Abner, a postal carrier, lives in San Lorenzo and has two children, Andrei, 14, and Arianna, 8.

To donate please go the National Nurses United blog and locate the “donate” button. 

You can also make a donation by check payable to:

“CNA Nursing Angels Family Fund”
2000 Franklin Street Oakland, CA, 94612

With the memo line, “Victims of the San Mateo Bridge Limo Tragedy”

Please note that donations to this fund are not tax deductible.

~~~

Thank you so much,

Zenei Cortez, RN and CNA co-president

California Nurses Association

Photo by Mike Fischer

When I was pregnant I always prayed that my babies would be healthy, and have ten fingers and toes. I had so many miscarriages after my son was born that I never thought I would have another baby. When I was pregnant with Missy, I knew it would be OK. I prayed that she would just make it the nine months and be born. I didn’t care if she had 9 toes, 6 fingers… hell, I just wanted her to be born. I would deal with anything as long as she made it into the world. I only prayed once to GOD when I was pregnant with her, and that is what I said, “Just let her make it 9 months and be born and I will handle whatever you give me.”

Last year during the cruise contest I got some ugly, mean messages. People told me I caused Missy’s MS, and it was my fault she had it. I got to thinking…maybe in some way they were right. Maybe I should have prayed more when I was pregnant. Maybe I should have said, “GOD make her healthy.”  Maybe my deal with GOD caused her MS. Maybe he was showing me that I got what I wanted.  Maybe the old saying, “BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH OR PRAY FOR, BECAUSE IT MIGHT COME TRUE,” is right. Maybe I was selfish. I got what I wanted, but now she is dealing with all that pain and suffering because of my dreams.

I told Missy last night, that I was sorry if I caused her all this pain. I was sorry that besides dealing with her MS, she has the added stress of caring for me 24 hours a day.  Yes, maybe I am the selfish one. Yes, I told her last night I was sorry for the pain I was causing her, and will cause her, because our journey has just started with my Alzheimer’s. It is getting worse, and our journey will get harder daily, and her MS is worse.

She looked at me last night and told me to remember when she was little and we would twirl around holding hands then fall into the grass; to remember when she would stand on her dad’s feet and they would dance and sing. She reminded me. “Remember when we would get in the car, just you and me, and drive somewhere on a Saturday, just drive till we decided to stop?” Once we ended up in St Louis, talking and laughing all the way. She told me to remember her growing up, all the time we have spent together. All the love that we have. Everything that we have shared. She told me that all the pain in the world, all the trouble in the future, everything is worth it, because she got to be with me. She got me as a mommy out of all the people in the world. GOD gave her to me, for some special reason. We were meant to be, just her and me. She said that if it was my fault for her pain then it was nothing compared to what she got out of the deal.

So I told her again, I’m sorry if I gave you MS, I’m sorry. She just held my hand and told me to think what we would have missed. To be born or to not have MS…she said she would take being born; that everything now is just a bonus.

And I told her she was my prize.

The truth about hospital germs!  GROSS!! EWWW!  Most people think a hospital is a germ free zone with all that sterilization and disinfecting going on right! The most common hospital bacterial infection is C-Diff. which accounts for about 20% of all hospital infections.  Learn what C-diff is, how it is spread, and how you can do your part to fight it.  We look at other common hospital germs…. and practices to make your time in a hospital more germ unfriendly.  You will want to shower when we are done.  Yuck!  And always remember….Get Educated, Get Empowered, Get Healthy!

Photo by Stephen Witherden

Photo by XpeSports

Fitness was once considered a fad. While fitness is no longer considered a fad, there have been many fitness products that have been sold to consumers wishing to get into shape quickly.

It can be hard to tell the difference between fitness products that work and fitness products that flop.

Today, I’m going to talk about fitness products that did not live up to their promises.

Fitness Flop 1: Electronic Muscle Stimulators/The Electronic Ab Toner.  Cost $50-$250.00

This is a machine that sends electric currents to your abs, making them contract and release. This peroduct is supposed to cause you to burn off body fat.  Losing body fat requires a combination of cardio exercise and a reduced calorie diet. You can’t lose weight or fat by spot reducing or without moving your muscles. The only way to lose fat is to do the work yourself.

Fitness Flop 2: Ab Lounge/Ab Rocker.  Cost-$129-$179.00

The Ab Rocker and Ab Lounge are both a portable piece of exercise equipment that resemble a lounge chair. They claim to work the upper, lower abs and obliques, all while you rock back and forth in front of your television. When a product’s claims sound too good to be true they usually are. While sitting comfortably in one of these rocking chairs you probably won’t break a sweat or feel any muscle burn, therefore you won’t be working the abdominals. There are much more effective ways to work the abdominal muscles that don’t cost a dime.

Fitness Flop 3: Six Second Abs.  Cost $60-$90.00

This is a piece of exercise equipment that allows you to work the various parts of your abs without lying down. The promise behind this product is that in mere minutes of working out daily, you’ll be able to achieve substantial results in a matter of 1-2 weeks. The only positive thing about this product is the included exercise and diet program that hints that abdominal exercises alone do not reduce abdominal fat. The actual six second abs exercise product is a very low quality piece of plastic and the resistance offered by the bands of the six second abs is very insignificant.

Six Second Abs got its name from the time it takes to complete one repetition. I can think of something else you can do with this that takes six seconds!!

I’ll be talking about more fitness flops next week–but now it’s time for my
Fitness Tip of the Week:

Forget spending all your money on equipment that doesn’t work
See if you can do the following 60 second routine everyday
15 sec jumping jacks
15 sec march in place
15 sec wall push up
15 sec wall squat
Repeat at least 5 times–try to do 4 times a day!

I’m Joanie Greggains —–until next week make fit happen!

Who didn’t love the amazing Jonathan Winters? He was the master of improvisational comedy.

As we celebrate National Nurses Week, Casey and Shayne found some interesting gestures of generosity toward those in their profession. One in particular stood out:

It happened in Kearney, Nebraska. A beauty salon (that shall remain nameless) gave nurses free makeovers if they showed up in their scrubs!  Just what you want to do? Lets see…

“Hey Mary, my 12 hour shift is over and I heard X salon was giving nurses FREE makeovers. I think I’ll just swing by and get one.”

“Don’t forget to wear those dirty bloody scrubs you have on or they won’t give it to you!”

As they say, it’s really the thought that counts…

Donna Smith and friends from National Nurses United on last summer’s Medicare for All bus tour.

Listen to our guest this week RN Jeff Breslin of the Michigan Nurses Association on The Safe Patient Care Act. “Every Michigan resident deserves to receive safe care at every hospital, every time. Michigan’s nurses are simply asking for our leaders’ support to make that happen.” Jeff will talk with us about this important initiative that is sweeping the country.

And later, a fierce leader, and one of our favorite guests, Healthcare and Human Rights Advocate Donna Smith, will join us. As some of you know, Donna has been leading the charge for the past 8 years for a universal healthcare system in our country. Donna was featured in Michael Moore’s film “Sicko.” For the past 5 years she worked as the Legislative Coordinator for National Nurses United. She is now the Executive Director of Healthcare for All Colorado. We’ll talk with Donna about all things healthcare, a little politics, the effects of the sequester – particularly the ones you don’t hear about — and more. For more information about Healthcare for All Colorado, visit healthcareforallcolorado.org.

And don’t forget, our resident health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains with another edition of “Fit Happens.” We’ll also tend to email questions and a few “off-the-grid” jokes that only nurses can tell and insist they aren’t going to be bleeped!

Don’t forget to check out Corine Mogenis and Patti Raya with this week’s “Medical Tips from the Inside“ on the Nurse Talk blog. And speaking of the blog, there are some great stories…Get-your-Kleenex kinds of stories that are courageous and inspiring.

Listen up nurses, if you’ve been thinking about getting your Master of Science in Nursing but just keep putting it off because you don’t have the money or the time, think again. Join our co-host RN Shayne Mason and our friends at University of San Francisco Online MSN Program for a free webinar about one of the best online programs available. We’ll be sending you an invitation to join Shayne on May 28th.

Listen to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices with the TuneIn app, the iHeartRadio app, and iTunes as well as Nursetalksite.com, our flagship station, KNEW 960AM, San Francisco Castle Rock Radio, WHAN 1430AM/102.9 FM in Ashland, Hanover, & Richmond, Virginia and anywhere in between.

Photo by Alexandre Dulaunoy

The call came in from EMS as “72-year-old man with end stage lung cancer in respiratory distress. Vitals stable. Family requesting transport to the ER for evaluation. He is on Hospice – the nurse tells us the family is no longer able to cope with him at home.” I went to room 7 to prepare for my patients arrival.

My patient arrived 10 min later on the EMS stretcher. His gaunt frame fought to hold up his head. His skin was dry but pale, respirations were labored but controlled at approximately 32 bpm. His eyes were open wide and they never left my face as the paramedics brought him into the room and moved him to the bed. The venti mask covered his mouth, so I couldn’t quite understand what he was saying to me. The paramedic was delivering his report but I was so distracted by the look in my patient’s eyes that I went to him and removed the mask so he could talk to me.

“My wife is coming (breath) with my son (breath) please let her (breath) in when she gets (breath) here…she (breath) has Alzheimer’s (breath) disease and she (breath) is easily scared (breath).”

I placed the oxygen mask back on his face and reassured him “My name is Bobbi, and I will be your nurse tonight. I promise you I will let your family in the minute they get here.” With just that simple promise I watched his shoulders relax, his head rest on the pillow and his eyes close. As I worked to deliver a Nebulizer treatment to him, get him on the monitor and draw his labs, I asked him some questions. He nodded yes or no to most but did tell me “I do not (breath) want to be saved (breath). If I die here (breath) please just keep (breath) me comfortable (breath)…I have a DNR.” He assured me that his family was aware of this wish, “All except (breath) my wife who (breath) just doesn’t understand (breath) what is happening.”

10 min later my patient was much more relaxed and breathing easier post DuoNeb, Ativan, Morphine and repositioning. His wife, son and daughter had arrived and were now in the room. I found a rocking chair for his wife and brought her a cup of tea and a warm blanket. As I talked with their children about what had transpired in the last few hours I watched his wife tend to her husband.

Her brow was furrowed as she moved to the head of the bed and rested her hand on his forehead. He smiled at her. She said to him, “See…you’re okay now.” She picked at his blankets and smoothed out his pillow.

“My mother is in and out with her thoughts…she has Alzheimers but all in all she is in the present moment lately,” her son told me. “Our sister died of a rare lung disorder when she was 40 and my mother has never been the same. I think my father’s breathing issues are reminding her of that because she is talking about her a lot.”

As the evening progressed my patient grew more agitated and anxious with his increasing respiratory distress despite our interventions. The doctor and I talked with the patient and family and the decision was made to increase his morphine for more comfort. My heart ached as I watched his wife struggle with the information. She understood in one minute but in the next minute she did not. She paced and cried. She tended to him by readjusting his blankets, offering water, kissing his hand. She, on several occasions, would get up close to her husband’s face and cry to him, “Don’t leave me…please, don’t leave me.” His daughter left the room often in tears and his son tended to his mother. He reassured her often with his hand on her shoulder, “Ma, it’s okay. Dad isn’t in any pain and the nurse is helping him…don’t be afraid.”

Two hours later my patient passed away – more peacefully than when he arrived. His family struggled to let him go and to be present for one another. His wife at first didn’t believe what she was seeing – she begged me to help him. How could I make this woman understand that I couldn’t? Tears fell from my eyes as I watched her son hold her as she cried for her husband. She came to me and put her arms around me and I hugged her back. She cried long deep cries of sorrow. My heart broke.

As I write this I continue to cry for this woman. They were married 50 years and now her husband is gone. Her house is empty and her mind is clouded…what will become of her? My best friend lost her husband to cancer 3 months ago and I know the pain she is in; deep dark pain. I pray for them both.

Being a nurse is at times a painful job, and even though I know that giving a patient and their family my heart is necessary, it at times is overwhelming. I saw this patient’s son yesterday in Subway. He approached me and thanked me repeatedly for the care I gave to his father and his mother. He told me that my compassion was worth more to them than anything else I did that night. I guess for the families being present is exactly that….a present!

Summer is approaching and so the heavy winter clothes disappear. More skin is revealed in the warmer weather. When you get ready for that day at the beach, the BBQ or the bike ride do you automatically put on sunscreen and pack it with you to reapply later? When heading out for a day of shopping or even a long drive along the coast, do you don the sunscreen, UV protection sunglasses and/or a hat? Unfortunately, many don’t, so we’re here to tell you that it’s not too late to prevent those sun spots/damage and skin cancer! Tomorrow is a new day! Start wearing face lotion with SPF! Remember your sunscreen! Watch this episode and find out additional tips so that your skin doesn’t tell your age before you want to! Stay young looking, healthy and skin cancer smart!

OK, I don’t care if you’ve been hitting the gym and working out for years, chances are you’ve fallen for a few fitness myths. While some myths may contain half truths, many of these exercise induced myths have largely been debunked by current research, but surprisingly the following 10 are still in circulation.

Photo by NACDublin

MYTH ONE: YOU CAN SPOT REDUCE.
No matter how many crunches you do, it’s not possible to melt fat off just your midsection. You have to work the whole body–weights for muscle strength and endurance, cardio to utilize fat as fuel combined with healthy diet is the only way.

MYTH TWO: AEROBIC WORKOUTS BOOST YOUR METABOLISM FOR HOURS AFTER YOU STOP.
The myth that working out in the morning will keep your body burning calories at a higher rate all day is only partially true. You do end up burning more calories after you get off the treadmill, but only about 20 over the course of the day, not the several hundred extra many people seem to expect.

MYTH THREE: TREADMILLS ARE BETTER FOR YOUR KNEES.
People with knee problems may have been told that running on a treadmill gives you more cushion than running on pavement. NOT! The real stress on your knees doesn’t come from the surface you run on it comes from your body weight, which provides up to four times more pressure on your knees per pound with each step.

MYTH FOUR: STRETCHING BEFORE A WORKOUT PREVENTS INJURY.
Stretching after a workout, once your body is warmed up may help to increase your range of motion, but stretching beforehand when your body is cold will not.

MYTH FIVE: SPORTS BRAS ONLY PREVENT BOUNCING.
Sports bras can actually help prevent your breasts from sagging as you age. The bouncing action of high impact activities can stretch out the ligaments that hold your breasts in place causing them to droop. Solution: wear your sports bra.

MYTH SIX: LIFTING WEIGHTS BULKS YOU UP.
Many women avoid the weight rack because they are afraid of bulking up. Relax: it’s the testosterone in men that helps them build large, bulky muscles. Women on the other hand develop long lean muscles. Plus, muscle can boost your metabolism.

MYTH SEVEN: YOU CAN EAT WHEREVER YOU WANT AS LONG AS YOU EXERCISE.
Not! Exercise does play a role in how much fat you gain, but only about 20%. The other 80% comes from the food you eat. Many people overestimate how many calories they burned during a workout and then overeat.
This is why in order to lose weight you have to keep track of calories you consume.

MYTH EIGHT: YOU ONLY BURN FAT IN YOUR TAGET HEART RATE ZONE.
Actually you burn a mixture of fat and carbs no matter what your heart rate is. The body is built to get the most efficient amount of fuel it can, which is usually not solely fat burning. Get the best results by mixing high and low intensity throughout your workout.

MYTH NINE: YOU BURN MORE FAT ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.
If you work out first thing in the morning on an empty stomach your body will tap into fat reserves to help get the fuel it needs. Unfortunately it will also tap into your muscle supply, burning even more muscle than it does fat, which can be counterproductive as lower muscle mass means lower metabolism.

MYTH TEN: YOU SHOULD PUSH TO MUSCLE FATIGUE.
Pushing yourself to complete muscle fatigue is a sure way of overtraining and not getting results you want. Instead work to about 80 to 85% of your capacity to get the best results.

30 Second Exercise Tip of Week
AB AND BACK STRETCH
-Sitting up straight
-pull in your abs
-reach your hands upwards, and hold for 10 seconds–if in a car do at stop light-never while driving
-repeat 10 times throughout your commute

Keep reaching!

I’m Joanie Greggains–until next week–make fit happen!

As part of their tribute to wasting time, Casey and Shayne tell stories about their childhood. Although not particularly newsworthy or medically related, they are none-the-less rather funny. Casey shares about the time she was hit by a car (not hurt) and ran home and tried to hide it from her mother. Unfortunately, the gentleman that hit her found her phone number in one of the school books she dropped while fleeing the scene. Find out what happened when Casey’s mother finds out. 

Photo by Michael Lehet.

And Shayne…well growing up as an only child in rural Oklahoma was not exactly eventful. He shares about the time he made Jello salad with his mom.

Good show this week! RN Betty Sparks  joins us. Betty is a nurse at Newton Wellesley Hospital and is trained to provide care and treatment in the wake of all types of disasters.

Betty, who was on the ground to help victims after Hurricane Katrina and in Haiti after the devastating earthquake, was working at the medical tent at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. She was there to respond and care for the victims when the bombs exploded. She is trained to do this and she has seen horrific scenes before, but this time it was different; she knew her son was at the finish line with a camera getting ready to photograph her daughter-in-law as she finished the race. Betty is with us to share what it was like to be at the horrific scene.

We always love it when we are introduced or we discover great resources to share with our listeners. Well today we have Bruce Bronzan with us. Bruce is the co-founder and president of The Network of Care. He served as a member of the California State Legislature for 10 years where he was the chairman of the Health Committee and the Select Committee on Mental Health.

Trilogy Integrated Services, the company that developed the Network of Care, is dedicated to improving information and communication in the health and social service fields at the community level. Check it out!

And don’t miss this weeks edition of “Fit Happens“ as our health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains  debunks 10 common fitness myths and Casey and Shayne answer email questions.

Remember: you can listen to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices with the TuneIn app, the iHeartRadio app, and iTunes as well as Nursetalksite.com, our flagship station, KNEW 960AM, San Francisco Castle Rock Radio and anywhere in between.

And don’t forget, there’s one more week before the 1st Annual Marin Healthy Palooza. Don’t miss this unique twist on health fairs and stop by and see us at the Nurse Talk broadcast booth.

No More Access
Last I wrote I had just been admitted to the hospital. I never ever felt ill. Never even had a fever. The second time they took a culture, I showed a gram positive bacteria, but that was later suspected false. Then, on Sunday the 28th the PA Nicole called and said the next set of cultures showed another gram negative, and asked if I felt well. Well I didn’t. But my symptoms were completely unusual, and inexplicable. The truth is I didn’t know how I felt, the only way I could describe it was: I feel like I am burning from the inside out, but I don’t have a fever. And I’m scared.

So back in the hospital I went, for more cultures, more IV antibiotics. We decided to pull the tri-catheter, just in case it was harboring the bacteria. They sent me home, but with the mystery of the hot flashes unsolved. Was it menopause? What was happening!

It’s Always Darkest Before the Dawn
Dawn is a new friend and chef we’ve been hanging out with lately. She’s a wonderful person, truly. I feel so blessed to have had her come into my life. It was over dinner that I described to her the sensations I have been experiencing. She said, “Oh, that feeling. I hate that feeling. That is a horrible feeling.” See, Dawn has been to 82 pounds and back. She explained that what I was experiencing was my body turning back on. My metabolism kicking in. Me, expanding.

Its was a profound “Aha!” moment. What should I have expected? After all, I shut my body down, and now I’m packing it with food. Like an infant, or toddler I’m having growing pains. I’ll tell you, it hurts and is scary because it is unfamiliar. Now that I understand what I’m working with, I’m much less stressed.

The feeding tube is a fantastic success and I am so grateful for its support as I learn how to eat again. I wish I had started it sooner, but my pride prevented it. See, I really saw it as a failure. It’s funny. I feel the same way about all kinds of “artificial” support. I’m ashamed to take anti-nausea medication. I’m ashamed to take pain pills. Pride is a mean thing. Is there ever a time that it serves you? Or perhaps it is misnamed? Misapplied? Maybe I don’t even understand the word. How often do you hear about people suffering needlessly just on account of their pride? I do it regularly.

As it stands now I get 1500 calories while I’m sleeping and do my best through the day to supplement it. Some days, my appetite is strong. Others not so much, but at least my body can rely on those 1500 until my appetite improves. Plus tubes up people’s noses is very, very attractive. You should see how the heads turn!

Chemotherapy of the future and beyond!
For one week I had only one tube. The feeding tube. Apart from the growing pains it has almost been a vacation from cancer. That ended a bit yesterday, with the installation of my new Power Port. Back down to Radiology, where they installed the tri-catheter, I was expecting a similar, very conscious, very present experience. Not this time. They must have missed the knock out drugs last time. Because this time, Dan asked me, “Do you feel the effects of the medication yet?” I said, “I don’t know, what should I feel?” he said, “Ok, no.” The next thing I remember is “We’re all done!”

I am so grateful to have experienced the first installation. It really gave me an appreciation for the skill of the surgeon and I even felt glad that they get paid so much for their expertise. But this time—I was equally grateful to have missed it!

Where does this leave me now? I have a new port, it is healing. I’m feeling nauseated now and again. I’m trying to snack through the day on nuts and things. I’m trying new textures.

This thursday will be a mega mondo chemo day. Everything, including a Lumbar Puncture, and bone marrow biopsy. To be honest, I’m not really sure what this will do to me.

Weighing In
I was not allowed any food for 12 hours prior to my surgery, so when I weighed in on monday, I feel it was my “true weight” without water from the IV or a 10 lb breakfast in my belly. 94 lbs.

Love Handles, aka Muffin Top.  Photo courtesy of Colin Rose

Everyone has stubborn fat you just can’t shift, whether its love handles or back fat. Maybe you obsess over bingo wings, or know your stomach will never be flat, no matter how much you diet and exercise.

Until recently, it was thought our body shape and fat deposits were due to our genetic makeup – turns out this is only part of the story. According to new research, the way fat accumulates around our body reveals far more about our health and diet than we thought, and the key to getting rid of those wobbly parts forever is to understand why you pile on the pounds in certain places.

The wrong foods, hormonal imbalances, stress and toxins can also determine where we store fat. Weight doesn’t go on evenly all over, and while it’s largely genetic there are certain lifestyle factors that determine where fat is deposited.

The Problem: Stomach Fat
The Cause: Stress
Stomach Fat has been linked to stress levels. When we’re stressed cortisol is released from our adrenal glands and this causes the body to lay down fat around the stomach. A recent study at Yale University found that even slim women are more likely to have excess abdominal fat if they regularly feel stressed. Why does enhanced cortisol exposure led us to accumulate abdominal fat you ask. That’s because abdominal, or visceral, fat has more cortisol receptors than fat anywhere in your body. That’s why stressed people from all walks of life store fat around their stomachs.

The Cure:
The good news–you dont have to spend hours on the treadmill – in fact too much cardiovascular exercise can create excess cortisol. You need a balanced workout that includes weights, yoga or pilates and cardio – a balanced workout. Working out without over doing it is a great way to reduce stress.

Stomach fat can also be caused by imbalanced gut bacteria. Too much sugar, grains, alcohol, salt, and junk food feed gut bacteria. Try cutting them out and take a good probiotic.
Foods that restore cortisol balance and so can help flatten your stomach include lean protein, green vegetables, olives and sweet potatoes.

The Problem: Back Fat
The Cause: Your Body Can’t Process Carbs
Many women store excess fat around their shoulder blades. This can be due to your body not handling carbohydrates efficiently. Telltail sign–fat spillage all around your bra strap – hate it!

The Cure:
First of all eliminate grains and refined carbohydrates (such as white rice, pasta and sweets) from diet. Instead eat clean diet of lean protein, fresh vegetables, fruit and lots of water. Short bursts of high-intensity exercise also helps. Try circuit or spin classes.
Resistance work for upper body using free weights and machines should help shrink your back.

The Problem: Bingo Wings–upper arms chunky and rough to touch. Your armpits spill over a strapless dress.
The Cause: This can be due to toxins in your system.
There was a recent study about BPA (Bisphenol A) a toxin found in everyday products like plastic bottles. BPA puts a toxic load on your body and excess fat is one side effect. Within three days of eliminating BPA’s there is a 77% decrease in BPA’s in the body. Bottom Line: Never heat up anything in a plastic container and try and limit the amount you drink from a plastic bottles.

The Cure:
Triceps Dips, Triceps Extentions, Resistance Work that targets upper body. Eat clean to detoxify the body

The Problem: Love Handles–You can grab a handful of fat from each side of your waist
Cause: Too Much Sugar
A thick waist with excess fat can be a sign that your body isn’t handling insulin well. A sugary diet can result in fatty deposits around the waist.

The Cure:
This type of fat can also be due to stress, like stomach fat. Antioxidant rich food such as berries, variety of fresh vegetables an green tea can stabilize blood sugar levels.
In terms of toning up, love handles can be fairly stubborn and don’t always respond well to targeted exercise. However, love handles do respond well to exercise such as Bikram Yoga (Yoga done in heated studio). Sweating is a good thing.

30 Second Exercise Tip of the Week
GLUTE SQUEEZE
Ok here’s something that’s good for every body!!
You can do this anywhere and anytime you’re sitting down.
Lets work that butt.
–Sit up straight
–Squeeze your gluteus maximus muscles otherwise known as your Butt
–Hold for 5 seconds
–Here we go 1-2-3-4-5-
–Do 4 sets of 5 squeezes

Keep Squeezing!

Getting on a plane usually brings excitement and anticipation of a wonderful trip! Did you know that it also can be bringing with it thousands of germs, bacteria and viruses as well?!?! Well we did!

In this episode we will uncover the many places germs are lurking on an airplane. We will explain the things you can catch and what you can do in order to protect yourself while inside that giant cesspool in the sky! Before you board your next flight, watch and learn! We can promise you that will you never feel the same way about flying again – BUT YOU WILL BE SAFER AND HOPEFULLY GERM FREE! Safe Travels

Image courtesy of Nils Poltmann

The first FDA approved robot doctor, a machine created by iRobot, the same company that made your Roomba vacuum cleaner. Image courtesy Businesswire.

Ahhhh, technology! It’s a very good thing, but when are we going too far? Should ROBOTS replace doctors and nurses? Can they diagnose and treat patients? Well it’s already happening in some hospitals. Get the good, the bad, and the ugly on this emerging trend when Casey and Shayne visit with National Nurses United RN Deborah Burger.

Our bodies and our hungers carry messages; carry wisdom. Turning these into our enemies in order to lose weight, or try to change other habits, is almost never sustainable. Author and psychologist David Bedrick returns to the show and will show us how to listen to our bodies, befriend our hungers, and develop more loving strategies to effect change.

David Bedrick

David is the author of the best-selling book, Talking Back To Dr. Phil, Alternatives to Mainstream Psychology. David facilitates an on-air process with Casey about “losing weight”. Check it out on our website or visit www.talkingbacktodrphil.com.

AND, this week’s top 10 craziest things patients have insisted on keeping in their hospital rooms. A hint: A cherished, stuffed, real dog; the family pet for 20 years who recently passed on.

Apparently the patient referred to in this week’s top 10 is not alone.

Here’s a thought for all of you nurses out there who have been thinking about getting your Master of Science in Nursing degree. Our educational partner, University of San Francisco has one of the best Online MSN programs available. Don’t delay – check it out and see how easy it is to get started.

And listen to an all new “Fit Happens“ with Joanie Greggains and check out our resident Medical Tips experts Corine Mogenis and Patti Raya on our blog.

And, as always, listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

And remember, laughter is the best medicine.

Last night I told Missy why I am so happy. I told her why everything is OK and why I am not scared of Alzheimer’s anymore.

One of my good friends died a few weeks ago, they wouldn’t let me go see her. The nursing home wouldn’t let anyone but family in because of the flu epidemic going around their, but I talked to her on the phone. She told me, “Barbie, I’m going home. I’m so so happy. I know in a few days I am dying. The doctors told my children and they are all here, my grandchildren are here…we have had a beautiful few days…but I told them I am so ready to go home.”

She told them to call me. She wanted to tell me that I would be OK. She told me how wonderful her heart felt, even though she was in pain and having trouble breathing now. They had taken off her oxygen so she could talk to me. She told me, “Barbie, its beautiful where we are going, so peaceful, and, oh I can’t wait to see my husband and my mommy and daddy…my sister Ruthie and brother Tommy….and hold my baby girl that died at birth.”

“Oh, Barbie,” she said, “I will be there when you come. I will have all our friends there to meet you, like my husband will have everyone there to meet me…oh, what a homecoming it will be. I just want you not to be scared. I’m not, and I don’t want you to think that with your Alzheimer’s that you wont be ready or know what to do…I promise you you will. I will make sure to help ease any worry you have, I promise.”

She told me she loved me. We have been friends since 1952. She was my first co-worker that I told I was pregnant with Missy….and she was the one that told me, “You will have this one. You won’t lose this one.” Everyday she patted my stomach and worked some of the harder jobs so I wouldn’t have to. She was one of my friends who belonged to our group that sat with the dying who had no one, our group of NO ONE SHOULD DIE ALONE. She was the one who, when I had my brain surgery, told Missy, “Don’t you give up on your mama,” when the doctors told her to turn off the machines. She said “Lets give her a week to see what happens, she is tough. She has so much to live for, she will make it Missy. She will do it.” And Missy listened to her. She is the one who, when my husband died, brought over a half pint of his favorite whiskey to put in his casket; he had asked her to because he knew I wouldn’t do it. Yes, she was my friend, and now I know that she wasn’t scared and that I won’t be either, cause she will be there to meet me when I go home. Yes, we all are going to die and none of us know when….but, Im not scared anymore of my Alzheimer’s and not finding my way home, cause I have so many friends that will be there to show me the way. I’m so happy now. Bless your heart Mary Jean, bless your heart. You were one of my bestest buddies…see you…

Even though people think of vibrating belt machines as products of the 50′s, they were first introduced in 1928 by Dr. Kellog at his health facility in Michigan. Women wanting to lose weight hoped to vibrate their fat away. Vibrating belt machines became even more popular after World War II. Women put away their work clothes and tried to look more like the glamourous actresses of the times by shaking their fat off.

When vibration wasn’t enough, women turned to the next logical step: electric shock. The Relax-a-Cizor first introduced in 1949, promised to zap the fat off. More than 400,000 were sold before they were taken off the market in 1970 due to many unpleasant side effects.

Vibration type fitness machines have made a 21st Century comeback. Unlike the shaking belts of the 1950s, this time the vibration is focused on the entire body. Enter the Vibration Platform. The theory is that when you stand on the vibrating platform, high frequency vibration will coarse through your body. Your body’s natural response to this sort of vibrarion is to tense up. As all the muscles of the body contract together, tendons are thought to lengthen as blood flow to each of the muscles increases.

While there are definitely some benefits to a total body vibration platform, so far it has not been shown to help with weight loss, muscle tone, or body sculpting.

Ok, what about the benefits? Preliminary research has shown that for those with knee joint problems, low bone density or poor balance, standing on a vibrating platform while performing other upper body exercises may help with these problems. For those looking to improve their fitness level, it is possible to use free weights, resistance bands, and other light equipment while standing on the vibrating platform. The additional weight and concentration required by your body to maintain balance can help increase the benefits of other exercises.

The technology is new, so research is still coming in. The greatest downside to this technology is the cost. Entry level models often sell for $2,000 dollars. A better way to go, is to check out fitness facilities that have vibration platforms and give it a try! Shake it Up!!

30-Second Tip of Week:
This week’s assignment is to stay hydrated. I read a statistic that says from 60-80% of people are chronically dehydrated! Your body is about 70% water, so you can imagine the effect drinking a bit will have on your entire system – staying hydrated can improve your mood, make your skin shine, relieve pain, improve your digestion and so much more. So raise a glass of water – here’s to your Health!

Do you know what to do in an emergency? (Other than scream for help or call 911!) Well, we are here to give you tips that may help you save yourself, or someone else, in a crises. We will cover burns, accidents, heart attacks, bleeding and many other every day emergencies. It’s a miniature First Aid Class rolled into helpful information and entertainment. Yes, we even sing in this episode! So sit back, take notes and enjoy, but most importantly – Get Educated, Get Empowered and Get Healthy!!!

Welcome to Nurse Talk, where laughter is the best medicine and random acts of unconsciousness can (and do) occur. This week, live from our studio atop the beautiful U-Haul storage warehouses in Corte Madera CA, we gather to take Casey and Shayne’s blood pressure as well as talk to Dr. Elson Haas, the Founder of the Preventive Medical Center of Marin, and Sandra Evans, the organizer of the 1st Annual Marin Healthy Palooza. If you are in or around the San Francisco Bay Area on Saturday May 11th, you must stop by and visit this unique health fair. All the info is on our website or you can visit www.marinhealthypalooza.org.

And we always joke about our nurses at National Nurses United and how busy they are. Even though we do like to have fun with that, its true! RN and Co-President of National Nurses United Jean Ross will be with us to talk about H.R. 6411, the Inclusive Prosperity Act (aka the Robin Hood Tax). I swear these people never sleep—but that would be wrong because they are nurses and they know the value of a good night’s rest. That said, this week we find over a thousand of our friends, aka the “Sea of Red Scrubs,” on Capitol Hill this week at a rally to support Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison as he reintroduces the Inclusive Prosperity Act.

Rep. Keith Ellison and Jean Ross

You’ve heard us beating this drum for at least 18 months…The Robin Hood Tax makes so much sense it is hard to argue against it. But game on, as there are corporate interests (i.e. Wall Street) who have bought some “blinders” to help our elected officials to ignore it. Here’s how simple it is: a small tax (less than half of 1%) on speed trades—you know the million-trades-per-minute trades—could raise billions for healthcare, education, and infrastructure. It’s not hard, it works, eleven of the European Union Countries have adopted it, the U.S. used to have a transaction tax – and it worked – and lastly, before I have to take a breath, check out the facts at www.robinhoodtax.org.

EVEN if you side with your Republican or Democratic people—this simply makes sense. Why are the nurses fighting for this? Because they see the ravages of our protracted economic slump every day in hospitals across the country.

Marcia Singer

Ever hear about “adult play?” NOT THAT KIND! Well, Marcia Singer the creator of Love Arts Foundation is here to tell us what adult play really is. The self-described shaman, or medicine woman, is both a healer and creative artist.

And we want to welcome CastleRock Broadcasting in beautiful Castle Rock, Colorado to our Nurse Talk family of broadcasters. Check it out at www.castlerockradio.com.

And, as always, listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

And remember, laughter is the best medicine.

Marin Healthy Palooza May 11, 2013, 10 am – 5pm
Mill Valley Recreation Center, 180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley, CA 94965

You won’t want to miss this unique health fair and festival! Nurse Talk will be there and our fitness guru, Joanie Greggains, will MC the event.

SPEAKERS
Health, Wellness & Relationship Experts

DEMOS
Natural Products, Foods, & Services

Workshops
Health Workshops & Interactive Classes

Fun For All Ages
Multigenerational health & wellness fair

WHERE: Mill Valley Recreation Center,

The Marin Healthy Palooza is a new twist on health fairs. A festival combining education and information designed to update and inform the community about prevention, managing chronic disease and overall wellness for everyone in a fun, low key, non pressure environment. The goal of the Marin Healthy Palooza is to provide solid, trusted health information in an easygoing interactive setting. This event will attract a diverse crowd of attendees and our goal is to reach people who are seeking support and information in a non “clinical” setting.

The 1st Marin Healthy Palooza will consist of health seminars, workshops, demonstrations of natural products and services, and fun activities for everyone, from children to seniors.

We encourage you to bring your friends, family members or co-workers so they may benefit from the information and workshops, or just bring them along to enjoy a fun filled healthy day in beautiful Mill Valley located in Marin County.

Visit www.marinhealthypalooza.org for more information.

Check out this fun, new MOVIE TRAILER about National Nurse Magazine “going viral” after launching their all-new interactive, more shareable, DIGITAL EDITION.   After you watch the trailer, go check out the magazine –  brought to you by National Nurses United.

They say you never know what you’ve got until it’s gone and that goes for your vision as well! We all seem to take for granted what we use so much every day. In this episode we discuss what you NEED to know about your vision! We cover the importance of eye exams and the many eye related illnesses that can occur. There will be tips on protecting your eyes from the sun, as well as when you are doing any type of dangerous projects that can potentially cause eye injuries. Think of all of the things your eyes have allowed you to see that have become special memories for you. Aren’t those peepers worth giving a little TLC to? Now, put those eyes to great use by watching this episode. We promise you – you will laugh and learn throughout!

Joanie Greggains

Well, tune in for the answer when Bay Area health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains joins Casey and Shayne this week on Nurse Talk. Joanie is now a regular on Nurse Talk with her weekly segment Fit Happens and her monthly house calls to the Nurse Talk studio to answer listener questions. Wow, does she know what she’s talking about! In just the 45 minutes she was with us I learned so much, including that if I don’t trim down it’s not only bad for my health (of course we all know that), but soon my airline tickets will cost more because they are starting to charge by the pound! Can you imagine?

“Well, sister, I am so sorry I can’t make it to the family reunion this year but my airfare would be over $5k one-way!”

And…a little combination of world news with an oh-so-slight medical twist. While Kim Jong Un, the 28-year-old petulant third generation dictator of North Korea, struggles to find his “inner and outer” power, our crack research team at Nurse Talk decided to check into his country’s healthcare system. Universal Healthcare???? Yip, universally horrifying healthcare. Not a surprise.

But this is very interesting – at least to us…Have you ever wondered about what a business or an organization has to provide in order to acquire and keep a not-for-profit (aka nonprofit) status? Well the truth is most of us don’t really think about it…but we should because some of those nonprofit entities, such as hospitals, are not really held to account with respect to their end of the bargain. Now, we are not saying any of these businesses are not doing a good job and are not operating above board, but a recent study (conducted by California Nurses Association) shows some major hospitals may not be providing enough “charity” care to the communities they are suppose to serve.

CNA Legislative Director Bonnie Castillo

Our guest, RN and Director of Government Relations for CNA, Bonnie Castillo will talk about a new bill, AB 975 that aims to press California non-profit hospitals to fulfill their charity care obligation in exchange for the substantial public financing they receive through their tax-exempt status. It  passed its first hurdle last Tuesday in the California Assembly Health Committee, overcoming opposition from California’s biggest hospital corporations and its allies. The bill won broad support in the committee hearing from nurse members of the California Nurses Association who attended the hearing in a sea of red scrubs.

And, as always, listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

And remember laughter is the best medicine.

Did you know that women’s heart attacks present differently than men’s? Heart attacks in women are one of the most frequently misdiagnosed medical conditions by physicians. In this time and day of advanced medicine, this should NOT be the case! Women have heart related illnesses as often as men, yet these symptoms are brushed off as “anxiety” or “stress.” (And what would make a woman more stressed out than being brushed off by a doctor and told it’s all in her head!)

Watch this episode of “Medical Tips You Need to Know!” as we discuss heart disease in women with New Jersey cardiologist, Aliya Browne, D.O., FACC and heart attack survivor, and women’s heart disease advocate, Lynn Boegershausen. Find out what signs and symptoms you need to look out for. Education is the key here, not only for women, but for physicians, so that advances are made in diagnosing women’s heart attacks with the same accuracy as men’s! Reminder: It IS 2013!!

It wasn’t until several years into my previous, really good, job that a colleague pushed me to sign my husband up for his supplemental coverage through my employer-based plan. I had tried in the past, but somehow the paperwork never quite went through the HR department, and we had spent more than $300/month for four years on that coverage. That was more than $10,000 out of our pockets that might have been avoided, but no one ever rushed to cover my hubby and his health issues.

Then there is me. Being able to purchase health insurance through the Affordable Care Act exchange/marketplace will not change this scenario up much as premiums for people like me – over 55 and a two time cancer survivor – will be anything but affordable. Sure, insurance companies will be forced to write a policy for me, but they’ll also be able to charge me a huge amount – likely more than the $803 my health benefits under COBRA will cost now. And that cost is without dental or vision coverage. To add those features would push my costs to nearly $1,000/month in premiums. Add my husband? Now we’re talking almost $2,000/month for both of us even though Medicare remains his primary coverage.

So, you may ask, why would you opt to be in this situation knowing what our broken system does to heart patients and cancer survivors? Why not just stay in that good job with solid health benefits – at least for one of us? Well, that’s where life and love and being human enters the not so human or life-affirming medical-financial-industrial complex, as I call it, in America.

Last year as I looked cancer in the eye for the second time around, I was physically, mentally and emotionally spent. Working at the capacity required to keep my really good job became so difficult. One of the days when I was in the oncology infusion center with a laptop balanced in one corner of the recliner and my Blackberry working on the other side, and a nurse encouraged me to at least straighten out my arm so the meds could drip properly, I was taken aback by my own situation as a glanced at others in the room. I was alone with my work-related electronics and my fear. We lived thousands of miles from family, and my husband doesn’t do well being the calm, supportive sort at the bedside. There I was with my laptop (wireless available, of course) and my Blackberry and my terror. Other patients had books, fuzzy blankets, slippers, and friends or family along.

My terror was not about the cancer issues or the drip of the meds. My terror was that if I didn’t work hard enough, fast enough and without interruption, I would inevitably lose that good job to someone who would work harder and faster and never give in to such things as cancer or illness. Signals over the months from my employer had been mixed. Some folks were lovely, while other signals were ominous. The fear and worry were adding to my physical issues.

I made my decision that I would revamp my work life to make sure that when the next health crisis comes – and it will, as I am human and my husband is too – I will not be alone or terrified about my job. I made the decision to trade one constant terror for what seemed and seems to me to be a lessor one. But making that decision meant upheaval that we are yet unraveling.

My new job is wonderful in that I do not feel so terrified all the time about losing my job if I get sick or hurt to someone who is younger, healthier and stronger. Now I head up a small, non-profit fighting to advance a health care system in Colorado that would end the kind of situations I face today – and millions of other Americans face regularly.

Medicare for all for life is the only way to go to end the cycle of abuse. I could not end the cycle by sitting smack dab in the middle of it. I was too weak in that position. And I will fight on to make sure my kids and my grandkids don’t spend some of their most productive years dancing the endless dance of profit and pain that our current health care system glorifies. Will you join me? Will you join Health Care for All Coloradotoday as a member or find another way to work to change this mess? Your life – and mine – depends on it.

Start the video about :25 and go to about where he talks about the inseam

Welcome to Nurse Talk where laughter is the best medicine. I’m Casey Hobbs
and I’m Shayne Mason - and we are two of the thousands of nurses on duty today.

Casey: “Oh lord, I don’t know why we had to share that with you but for some reason we felt compelled to play a clip of President Lyndon Johnson ordering pants. He could have used the talents of Nixon’s secretary Rose Mary Woods…erase-erase-erase…my…what a bit of history.”

We’ve touched on this issue before but it’s worth talking about again.

The statistics regarding back injuries are frightening! Approximately 80% of adults are expected to experience back injuries in their lifetime with 10% re-injuring! When it comes to health care professionals, the facts get are even worse.

According to national statistics, six of the top 10 professions at greatest risk for back injury are nurse’s aides, licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, health aides, radiology technicians, and physical therapists. Healthcare industry workers sustain 4.5 times more overexertion injuries than any other type of worker.

Well, registered nurses from hospitals in Kansas City and St. Louis, members of National Nurses Organizing Committee (NNOC), with the help of their state legislators, recently introduced HB 856 - the Safe Lift Bill. Sounds like a no brainer right? Listen and find out how challenging it was to get this bill introduced. Trust us – this is important even if it isn’t a sexy topic. The next time you are in a hospital you want to make sure whoever is lifting or moving you doesn’t have a bad back. That could lead to – well – you may end up on the floor on top of a nurse!

And Michelle Camicia, Kaiser RN has lived almost all of her 46 years in Marin County, California. She attended nursing school at San Francisco State University and earned her Master’s in Nursing from Sonoma State University. Her life was moving along according to plan – but then in May of 2012 she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Casey and Shayne talk with Michelle and Dr. Marla Anderson, Chief of the Department of General Surgery at Kaiser Permanente San Rafael, about Michelle’s personal experience since being diagnosed. They will also talk about Kaiser San Rafael’s prestigious accredited Breast Cancer Center and how it is going the extra mile to support patients.

And of course our wonderful health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains gives us another reason to listen, as she talks about jeans (the pants jeans) that help reduce cellulite! That’s what we said. You won’t want to miss this weeks edition of “Fit Happens,” only on Nurse Talk.

And, as always, listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

And remember laughter is the best medicine.

Among my role as ER and Triage nurse, I was anointed “The Hysteric Whisperer.” Many teenage girls and young women came to the hospital via ambulance or private vehicle presenting in catatonic states, hyperventilating or as “post-ictal seizure” patients. We soon learned, these were anxiety/panic attacks. One teenage girl was brought, ambulance lights blazing and sirens blaring for “seizures” – but made eye contact and was purposefully moving around in the gurney – not in a post-ictal state. The doctor approached the patient and shouted, “Prepare to intubate!”

Three minutes later, I held the girl’s hands and helped her off the gurney and onto a chair. Intubation was certainly not necessary. With an astounded look on his face, the doctor asked “How did you do that? That was magic!” I replied, “Want to know the magic? I put my face down close to hers, spoke very slowly, softly and quietly into her ear, and told her ’It’s OK’ over and over and over. I pet her cheek, made eye contact and suddenly big crocodile tears began to slide out.”

The Haitian population has several factors working against them: the traumatic events of the 2010 earthquake – the country is still piecing itself together. The fact that Haiti is an impoverished developing country with limited resources. Add to that frequent sexual violence against women, family issues, loss of not only loved ones but schools and homes and churches, plus the surging hormones of teenagers, it’s no wonder these young female patients frequently present with anxiety and hysteria.

A nurse’s approach is humanistic. It’s thoughtful. It involves comfort, care, touch, words and warmth. It’s holistic. Nursing approaches patient care – whether in a hospital, a clinic, or a tent in Africa – from another direction than medical doctors. Our professions are intertwined yet quite different.

It’s the art of nursing versus the science of medicine.

- Sue Averill, RN

Medical Tips You Need to Know, Show 3.12 from Princeton Community Television on Vimeo.

Did you ever wonder how many germs live and breathe all over the place? From bacteria and viruses to fungi, these little buggers can be found in the most surprising places! Join us in this discussion to find out WHERE germs are living every day and what you can do to prevent from catching them or passing them around. After this episode we are sure you will never want to leave the house again in fear of catching something! Well, maybe you will once you also find out where germs survive daily in your home! Stock up on the antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer and enjoy!

Wrangler jeans as seen on buttocks who have never confronted cellulite in their lives.

Guys, you may not worry about cellulite, but believe me, women do. Well, ladies, we’ve had jeans that squeeze our stomach in, others that lift our butt and now Wrangler has launched jeans that go after our cellulite.

The jeans “Smooth Legs” skinny jeans are made from fabric treated with caffeine, Retinal and algae extract, all ingredients used in products that “reduce the appearance” of cellulite—notice I said “reduce the appearance” not get rid of. Wrangler says that 69% of women in clinical trials reported an improvement in the “appearance” of their thighs.

The clinical trial held in France required the jeans to be wore for eight hours a day, five days a week during the six week testing period.

All this to reduce the appearance of cellulite–Actually by wearing the Jeans you don’t have to worry about cellulite, as your legs are covered. Maybe that should be the pitch.

But wait there’s more, it’s no longer enough for our items of clothing to perform just one task, now to add to the collection of multitasking clothing, Triumph is set to launch bottom-moisturizing control pants. Each of the pieces in the collection is infused with tiny aloe vera micromoisture capsules. The capsules which last for 100 washes, start to release moisturizer when they come into contact with skin.

Triumph says its collection will help to keep your nether regions in silky smooth condition, all while sucking you in and keeping stray flab hidden away.

Are these the hardest working “control pants” or what!?

30 Second Tip of Week

Do The Squeeze

Here’s an exercise you can do anywhere including your car

We can create our own “control pants”

—squeeze your glutes together

—hold for a count of five then release, one buttock at a time.

—repeat this for 5 minutes or more

—you should feel a tightening in both your abdominal and glute region, no additional fashion investments required.

Casey: “Well, that was a 100-year-old stand up comedian who loves to perform. Our producer found her on YouTube—sitting down doing ‘stand up.’ Proves that laughter is the best medicine at any age.”

Shayne: “How was your week Casey?”

Casey: “Not too bad, fairly uneventful. Of course it usually is. I watched Oprah’s ‘Where Are They Now’ and ’60 Minutes.’ And you Shayne?”

Shayne: “Well I went to beautiful Monterey and spent a few days right on the water. The weather was picture perfect. Had dinner at a beautiful restaurant – right on the water – and then took a midnight stroll – right on the water. I guess you could say it was perfect. Always good to get away. Broadens your horizons, you know.”

Casey: “Yes, so they say. I went to Europe when I was 21. Does that still count for broadening my horizons? That must have been when you were still wearing little coveralls and cowboy boots down in Oklahoma?”

That’s it—another five minutes wasted!!!!

Keeping up with the RNs from National Nurses United—Registered nurses at Jackson Park Hospital and Medical Center on Chicago’s South Side reached an agreement with hospital officials on their first ever collective bargaining contract that includes significant improvements in patient care protections. We’ll talk with RN Monica Lloyd from the great city of Chicago about this and more. And did we say Monica is on fire about this good news!?!

Jackson Park RN leaders celebrate tentative agreement.

And later in the show, if you haven’t found this great app called iTriage, look no further than the Nurse Talk website. iTriage is an amazing resource for everyone. Have a symptom? Go to the iTriage symptom checker. Need information about a disease? You’ll find complete clinical descriptions from A-Z. Is your medical issue an emergency or do you need to find a clinic or hospital near you? Yip, you guessed it; a complete directory of everything in your area including WAIT times. It’s incredible and we use it all the time. You should too. It’s free and it works. We welcome back Co-founder and Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Wayne Guerra for a conversation on this revolutionary tool.

Now some exciting news. For those of you who can’t seem to remember when Nurse Talk airs, or you live in a different part of the country, or you just simply want to listen when you want to listen and not on someone else’s schedule–look no more. Nurse Talk is now available worldwide at nursetalksite.com/category/listen and on your iPhone, iPad, desktop and Android devices via the Progressive radio channel on the TuneIn app.

You can also find us on the iHeart app, iTunes and the old-fashioned way on KNEW AM 960 San Francisco Bay Area and on KKRP LaZeR 1610AM in Cowlington, Oklahoma .

And don’t forget to check out Bay Area Fitness guru Joanie Greggains every week on Nurse Talk. You can email your questions for Joanie to fithappens@nursetalksite.com. Listen to episodes of “Fit Happens” and get Joanie’s expert health tips at Fit Happens Tips. Do you know what one study found toilet water and restaurant ice have in common? You better click over and find out.

Old age comes so quickly. One day you are working, having children, cleaning house and then you wake up one morning and poof – you are old, have Alzheimer’s and have to have someone do everything for you. I sometimes think, “Oh I wish I could go back to one of my worst days when I was younger.” Because now I know it wasn’t really a worst day…it was just life.

Yes, old age comes so quickly. I tell everyone: don’t put off anything, surprise your mate with something that they would never expect you to do, do something for a stranger, tell someone they look beautiful today, whistle a song, sing to someone, dance in the kitchen.

And the most important, look your children right in the eye—make them look at you—and tell them, “I love you, forever.” Make them say, “Oh Mom,” or laugh, or tell you “I love you back.” But, make sure that they look into your eyes when you tell them…because one day, they will have that moment, and yes, they will remember.

Beach at Sea Ranch, by Seigfried Matull

Everybody knows you deserve a vacation. When you wind your way up to the breathtakingly beautiful and magical Mendocino Coast, you will be welcomed and pampered. To thank you for your work, the Redwood Coast Chamber of Commerce has opportunities and deals exclusively for RNs, LVNs & EMTs. Plus, enter to win a two-night stay in Anchor Bay compliments of Mar Vista Cottages! So, go ask for those vacation days!

R&R for Nurses Specials for the Month of April:

GUALALA

Gualala Country Inn
2-for-1 Sunday through Friday
25% discount on Saturday or 1-night stay

Annapolis Winery
Complimentary tasting

Address Beauty Salon – Free pedicure with facial, massage or other purchase

Bones Roadhouse – Free glass wine, beer or dessert with $15+ dinner

Four-Eyed Frog Books – 20% discount

Qigong Class at Gualala Arts Center – 30% discount ($10 drop-in)

Red Stella (Dress/Shoe/Gift/Home) – 10% discount

Surf Supermarket – 10% discount

POINT ARENA

B. Bryan Preserve – 10% discount on lodging and $5 off tour price

Arena Rock Café – 15% discount

Arena Theater – Complimentary concession

Yoga Class at Zen House – 30% discount ($7 drop-in)

SEA RANCH

Sea Ranch Golf Course – Free use of a golf cart with two rounds of golf

Sea Ranch Lodge and Restaurant – 10% discount & complimentary split of sparkling wine

ALSO…

Wellness on the Coast
“We are individual practitioners offering incredible discounts on massage, acupressure, aromatherapy & more.”  Please see the website for more details on these discounts.

Mendo Insider Tours!

Tours designed for you to get an “insider” view from inside a Mercedes Van…for a uniquely Mendocino experience.
(707) 962-4131
www.mendoinsidertours.com

Gualala and neighboring towns are approximately 2 and a half hours north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Hiking, kayaking, surfing, trails, and beaches galore! (And there’s gambling nearby by if Nature is not enough.)

Email or call for a chance to win a free two-night stay, compliments of Mar Vista Cottages in Anchor Bay
To enter the contest with a quick phone call:707-884-1080 or email info@redwoodcoastchamber.com
1.)Your name
2.)Your number
3.)Where you work!

The Details!
RNs, LVNs, EMTs: employee photo ID
needed to receive the discount.
Please mention the R&R for RNs Special.

See www.redwoodcoastchamber.com for details
info@redwoodcoastchamber.com
1-800-778-5252 or 707-884-1080

Premenstrual Syndrome is among the most common health problems reported by women, affecting approximately 1 in 3, and there’s not much modern medicine has to offer. Ancient traditional medicine, though, in Asia and Persia used a spice called saffron to treat menstrual disorders. But what did they know–that was 3,500 years ago (in fact the earliest recorded use of any medicinal plant). Didn’t they realize you can’t really know anything unless it’s put through a double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled trial? Well it took 3,500 years, but now we finally have it. Watch my 2-min. video Saffron for the Treatment of PMS to see the results.

The spice saffron is composed of the female reproductive organs of the flower of the saffron crocus. Each flower just produces a few threads, such that you need 50,000 flowers to make a single pound of spice–enough flowers to fill a football field. No wonder it’s the most expensive spice in the world. Thankfully, the PMS study found benefits using a tiny amount. What if you could get away with using even less, though?

In my 2-min. follow-up video Wake Up and Smell the Saffron I profile one of the wildest studies I saw published last year that documents psychological benefits from even just the scent of saffron. How’s that for the power of plants? The study concludes:  “Smelling saffron… is simple and easy, and it seems there is little side effect.”

For more flower power see my blog and videos on hibiscus tea (Better Than Green Tea) and chamomile tea (Red Tea, Honeybush, & Chamomile and Chamomile Tea May Not Be Safe During Pregnancy). And hey, broccoli florets are just clusters of flower buds; see The Best Detox, Broccoli Versus Breast Cancer Stem Cells, and 26 other broccoli videos. Don’t like broccoli? Well, I have hundreds of videos on more than a thousand other topics.

-Michael Greger, M.D.

Donna Smith last summer with National Nurses United’s Medicare for All bus tour.

This week one of our good friends returns to Nurse Talk to talk about her new project, Healthcare for All Colorado. None other than Donna Smith is with. Donna as most of our listeners know, worked for five years as National Nurses United Legislative Advocate based in D.C. She just returned to her home state of Colorado and now serves as the Executive Director of Healthcare for All Colorado.

Having (successfully) gone through two bouts of cancer, Donna has great advice on how to make your insurance company accountable–at least to some degree. In her new role she will do what she has done for many years, advocate and educate people about what can be done to access healthcare and to eventually change the current system to a nationwide universal healthcare system.

For more information about Healthcare for All Colorado and National Nurses United visit: healthcareforallcolorado.org and nationalnursesunited.org.

And—it’s time to get HIP about the issue of “low bone density.” That’s right it’s time to talk about your “bones.” And no one is more qualified than Dr. Kenneth C. Howayeck. He is an author, lecturer and osteoporosis educator.

Dr. Kenneth C. Howayeck

Dr. Howayeck is an author of books on self-care, including Bone Health Made Easy.. Here’s a jaw dropper–”If you break a hip and you are over 50, 1/4 will die in the first 12 months primarily from that injury!” Not good! Only three in ten osteoporosis sufferers actually know they have this “silent killer” affliction. For great information from Dr. Howayeck check out bonehealthmadeeasy.webs.com.

And from our Scrubs Magazine Top Ten , Interesting Hospital Fashion Moments: top of scrub pants rolled down complete with pink thong and muffin top hanging out…give me a break! Unroll the tops…it’s a hospital, not a nightclub!

Get iTriage on your smart phone or tablet. Check out the symptom checker on at http://nursetalksite.com/itriage

Coming up next week, if you haven’t found this great app called iTriage, look no further than the Nurse Talk website—in fact here’s the direct link http://nursetalksite.com/itriage/.

iTriage is an amazing resource for everyone. For example: have a symptom? Go to the iTriage symptom checker. Need information about a disease? You’ll find complete clinical descriptions from A-Z. Is your medical issue an emergency or do you need to find a clinic or hospital near you? Yip, you guessed it; a complete directory of everything in your area including WAIT times. It’s incredible and we use it all the time. You should too, its free and it works. Co-founder and Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Wayne Guerra joins us for a conversation on this revolutionary tool.

Donna Smith with National Nurses United’s Medicare for All bus tour.

Our good friend Donna Smith returns to Nurse Talk to talk about her new project, Healthcare for All Colorado. Donna as most of our listeners know, worked for five years as National Nurses United Legislative Advocate based in D.C. She just returned to her home state of Colorado and now serves as the Executive Director of Healthcare for All Colorado.

Having (successfully) gone through two bouts of cancer, Donna has great advice on how to make your insurance company accountable–at least to some degree. In her new role she will do what she has done for many years, advocate and educate people about what can be done to access healthcare and to eventually change the current system to a nationwide universal healthcare system.

For more information about Healthcare for All Colorado and National Nurses United visit: healthcareforallcolorado.org and nationalnursesunited.org.

And—it’s time to get HIP about the issue of “low bone density.” That’s right it’s time to talk about your “bones.” And no one is more qualified than Dr. Kenneth C. Howayeck. He is an author, lecturer and osteoporosis educator.

Dr. Kenneth C. Howayeck

Dr. Howayeck is an author of books on self-care, including Bone Health Made Easy… Here’s a jaw dropper–”If you break a hip and you are over 50, 1/4 will die in the first 12 months primarily from that injury!” Not good! Only three in ten osteoporosis sufferers actually know they have this “silent killer” affliction. For great information from Dr. Howayeck check out bonehealthmadeeasy.webs.com.

And from our Scrubs Magazine Top Ten , Interesting Hospital Fashion Moments: top of scrub pants rolled down complete with pink thong and muffin top hanging out…give me a break! Unroll the tops…it’s a hospital, not a nightclub!

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

How can you tell when you really, truly need to arrange help and make more time for yourself? Consider these four warning signs:

1. All you ever talk about or think about is caregiving.

Compassion fatigue is a very real condition to which caregivers are vulnerable. (Professional nurses and social workers get it, too.) Your caring is critical — but because you’re an individual, it’s not the entirety of your life even when it takes up most of the hours in a given day. It’s important for your sanity, and to maintain other important relationships and responsibilities, that you keep your life outside of caregiving moving forward.

Talking to friends and family about their lives and interests is one way to do this. So is spending time on non-caregiving activities, like things you used to enjoy doing. Even if you do them in lesser amounts, do them.

2. You rely on booze or cigarettes to make it through the day.

Substance overuse is a red flag for stress. Sometimes caregivers use substances like alcohol, cigarettes, or illicit drugs as crutches to get them through the long and stressful stretches of the day. Excessive use of caffeinated coffee or power drinks can fall into this category, too. So can mindlessly overeating sweet or salty snack foods that provide empty calories.

Instead of relying on substances to prop you up in a hard situation, it’s healthier to get yourself out of the situation in order to recharge.

3. You can’t fall asleep — and then dread waking up.

Sleep disturbances are a reliable signal of overwhelm. You may be unable to sleep because you’re so wound up, or because your loved one with dementia or another issue keeps awakening and therefore keeps you up. Either way, you don’t get the seven to nine hours you need to feel refreshed and refueled for the long haul. By morning, you may have a sense of not wanting to get out of bed because you’re too tired or not looking forward to what’s ahead.

Resolving sleep issues is key for every caregiver. Arranging respite help is one way you can cut down the stress that feeds many sleep problems.

4. You can’t remember the last time you felt happy or a sense of pleasure.

To be sure, nursing a loved one through a health condition like dementia or stroke recovery isn’t jolly business. But persistent feelings of sadness or emptiness are a warning sign of depression. If you can’t find pleasure in even small ways (the feeling of a walk outdoors, a grandchild’s smile, a good book, a cup of coffee with a friend), you may be suffering from the effects of caregiver burnout — and may be at risk for depression. Weaving more off-duty time into your day and getting support from others can help.

There is such a thing as caring “too much”.

About the Author

Paula Spencer Scott is a senior editor at Caring.com, the leading online destination for caregivers seeking information and support as they care for aging parents, spouses, and other loved ones. Paula is a 2011 MetLife Foundation Journalists in Aging fellow and writes extensively about health and caregiving.

microscopic image of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (Gram-negative Bacteria), photo courtesy of Y_tambe

Apparently, I have a nasty bacteria (Gram Negative-bacteria) that will kill me if we don’t kill it first. I feel fine, so I think we’re on top of it. It makes me feel great that Sharon, the nurse who spotted my erratic fever on Friday followed through and took the cultures that revealed the bacteria. And I thought it was just my nice woolen cap overheating my ears!

Even though I’m back in the hospital, my spirits are high and I’m feeling better. I decided to go ahead and have a feeding tube just to help me get those extra calories while I’m sleeping and to take the pressure off of worrying about food all the time. I’m a worrier. I can’t say having a tube up my nose is the most comfortable thing, but it is a fashion statement of sorts. My whole appearance these days is a fashion statement: I’m a cancer patient. No hair, no eyebrows, no eyelashes, tube up the nose and looped over the ear, chubby steroid cheeks, geeky hat, swollen feet, no butt, chicken legs, tri-catheter. I’ve moved from despair to comedy. I just couldn’t look much more ridiculous. My ideas about my outward appearance are certainly radicalizing. I am this new thing, and I most certainly am not.

In my search for myself in all this chemical induced haze I received some helpful advice from my yoga teacher Kalika. She said:

You my Dear are the teacher.
Listen Brandi,  Keep listening.  I know it’s the hardest
time to be able to hear but you’ve got it.  Keep listening.
Slow down.  ”Be” in nature.  All the things that make you Brandi.
Be Brandi.

Brandi is in my heart, and when I listen, I hear that she is very, very tired right now. Not just from the experience of this Leukemia and the chemo, but from her life lived up to the diagnosis. Previous to this much needed rest I packed three simultaneous lives in one. Brandi the director of Starfall.com. Brandi the yoga teacher. Brandi the wife of Randin Graves living in a remote village in the Australian Outback. I’ve been giving out, for a long time, but I haven’t made much room for receiving. For listening.

All tied up in receiving is this terrified corner of my heart that never wants to be indebted. Indebtedness equates to weakness, vulnerability, and ultimately the risk of intimacy. Again, experiences I learned to avoid by mimicking my father, though I don’t blame him. These are the experiences I chose to value in order to protect myself. And they served me very well, made me strong and independent. Until now, when suddenly I was thrust into the flip-side, real world of dependence. I am humbled, I am humbled, I am humbled! I am grateful, I am grateful, I am grateful!

So my thoughts are, prior to this illness, I experienced the extremes of independence. During this illness I will experience the extremes of dependence. And then, I’ll have the rest of my life to understand and navigate interdependence? And true intimacy?

P.S. I weighed in at 104 lbs today!

There was a research study of more than 17,000 individuals in 2010 linking to much sitting with increased risks of disease and premature death.

1. Men and women who reported more than 23 hours a week sedentary activity had a 64 percent risk of dying from heart disease than those who were sedentary less than 11 hours a week.
2. People who use a computer for 11 hours or more a week, or watch tv 21 hours or more a week, are more likely to be obese.
3. Too much sitting time correlates with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other prevalent chronic health problems.

OK you get it—sitting itself is not fundamentally harmful—except when done incorrectly for long periods of time on a consistent basis. Your body was not meant to be sedentary—look at all your moving parts. (If you’re driving look later.)

Numerous metabolic and other body processes are negatively impacted by long periods of sitting. Here’s some things you can do to get off your butt:

–Get up frequently at least once every hour, stretch, walk around, move for at least 5 minutes
–Use an exercise ball for a chair–unlike sitting in a chair, sitting on an exercise ball engages your core muscles and helps improve balance and flexibility
–Exercise at your desk—many movements you can do that benefit your body
–Cut back on TV, video games and computer at home—make your leisure time is as active as possible

Bottom line: energy creates energy—all together now—”stand up and move forward.”
(Research studies published: Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 2011, British Journal of Sports Medicine editorial 2011)

Author David Bedrick joins us this week.

We have a very good show this week. How many of you have ever wanted to talk back to Dr. Phil? Well, I, for one, have. Now a new book called none other than Talking Back to Dr. Phil has been written by our guest David Bedrick.

In his book, Bedrick tackles the major issues that provide fodder for reality shows and pop culture experts, including body image and weight loss, addiction, domestic abuse and bigotry. That’s right…Talking Back to Dr. Phil moves past simple, pop culture answers to our psychological wounds and shines a light on the path of loving kindness that leads to deep, emotional healing. You really will be dazzled by this great conversation with the author.

Why should anyone care about legislative bills that have to do with healthcare and staffing? Sounds boring? Not so fast! AB 975 Charity Care? Check it out. Or maybe SB 631 Observation Study? You don’t want to end up in a hallway at the hospital for over 24 hours do you? Listen as we check in to see what the California Nurses Association has been doing lately to fight for nurses and their patients.

California State Capitol Building, Sacramento

We have with us Stephanie Roberson the lead lobbyist for CNA working in the Governmental Relations department in Sacramento, Calif. Stephanie has been working with the nurses since 2007.

And Bay Area Health and Fitness Expert Joanie Greggains hits the pavement with her new segment “Fit Happens,” only on Nurse Talk. Check it out. Or if you have a question or comment for Joanie email fithappens@nurstalksite.com or call 1-800-977-1863.

And from our friends at Scrubs Magazine The 10 Best Responses to Annoying Patients. Here’s one for you:

“’All nurses are overpaid, fat and lazy.’ (Yes, I had a patient say this to me once. Then she gave me a “thank-you” gift.) Comeback: “This fat, overpaid, lazy nurse just saved you and your baby’s life.”

The other 9 are even worse!

And we want to give a big shout out to all of you who are listening to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices on the TuneIn app, live streaming from KNEW 960 AM, the iHeart Radio app, iTunes, Nursetalksite.com and anywhere in between. See our website for more listening information or to browse all the shows and segments.

Medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcy, even for those with insurance. How can we fix a system that tends to overcharge and what recourse do patients have?

Originally aired on March 6, 2013 on HuffPost Live
Hosted by:

Marc Lamont Hill

This week Shayne goes home to Oklahoma! Well at least on the radio—as we give a big warm welcome to our new affiliate 1610 AM The LaZer, America’s progressive station in Cowlington, Oklahoma. Greetings and thanks for letting us into your great state.

Shayne: “Well, Casey I am just wondering if anyone else is as confused and tired of the drama that continues to play out in our nation’s capitol? First it was the “debt ceiling,” then it was the “fiscal cliff,” now it’s the 4-door Ford “Sequester.” Have we always had these themed dramas? Lord, I even found instructions on the Internet on what to do if the “fiscal cliff” happens. Check this out:

First, relax! Then call your representative in Congress. Then turn off the TV. Postpone spending. Get some cash ready.

Why didn’t I think of that?”

Donna Smith last summer with National Nurses United’s Medicare for All bus tour.

This week one of our good friends returns to Nurse Talk to talk about her new project, Healthcare for All Colorado. None other than Donna Smith is with. Donna as most of our listeners know, worked for five years as National Nurses United Legislative Advocate based in D.C. She just returned to her home state of Colorado and now serves as the Executive Director of Healthcare for All Colorado.

Having (successfully) gone through two bouts of cancer, Donna has great advice on how to make your insurance company accountable–at least to some degree. In her new role she will do what she has done for many years, advocate and educate people about what can be done to access healthcare and to eventually change the current system to a nationwide universal healthcare system.

For more information about Healthcare for All Colorado and National Nurses United visit: healthcareforallcolorado.org and nationalnursesunited.org.

And—it’s time to get HIP about the issue of “low bone density.” That’s right it’s time to talk about your “bones.” And no one is more qualified than Dr. Kenneth C. Howayeck. He is an author, lecturer and osteoporosis educator.

Dr. Kenneth C. Howayeck

Dr. Howayeck is an author of books on self-care, including Bone Health Made Easy.. Here’s a jaw dropper–”If you break a hip and you are over 50, 1/4 will die in the first 12 months primarily from that injury!” Not good! Only three in ten osteoporosis sufferers actually know they have this “silent killer” affliction. For great information from Dr. Howayeck check out bonehealthmadeeasy.webs.com.

And from our Scrubs Magazine Top Ten , Interesting Hospital Fashion Moments: top of scrub pants rolled down complete with pink thong and muffin top hanging out…give me a break! Unroll the tops…it’s a hospital, not a nightclub!

Last but not least-we want to give a big shout out to all of you who are listening to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices, on the Tune In app, live streaming from the San Francisco Bay Area’s KNEW 960 AM, the iHeart Radio app, iTunes, Nursetalksite.com and everywhere in between.

I walked into room 15 to introduce myself to my new migraine patient and I found her rocking back and forth on the stretcher. Both of her hands were firmly pressed into her forehead and covering her eyes. The chart says my patient is 17 years old but her tiny frame all curled in a ball made her look 10 as she rocked in pain. An older woman sat in a chair in the corner of the room and looked at me with pleading eyes.

I quietly closed the door and moved to the stretcher. I sat the chart down on an empty chair and softly introduced myself to my patient and her mother.

“Hello (name), I am Bobbi and I will be your nurse today…I promise I will get you feeling better soon.”

“Please help me,” my patient answered without moving her hands from her head. I asked her to rate her pain on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the worst pain. She whispers “9”. I asked her an acceptable level of pain and she whispers “not a 9.”

Her mother informs me that my patient has a 4 year history of migraines since suffering a major trauma…she mouths what the trauma was to me with a look of great distress. I nod to her that I understand and move to my patient. I tell her that I will start and IV and hang some fluid to get started while we wait for the doctor to come in. I turned the light off as I left the room.

I put her chart in the doctor’s rack and went to gather supplies. My patient was fourth in the rack to be seen—hence about an hour. I had one other patient at this time so I went to check on them and then returned to my little teen’s room.

I entered her room and softly told her, “I need to turn the light on while I start your IV but I will turn it off as soon as I’m done.” I covered her with warm blankets and put my supplies on the bed.

She continued to rock back and forth without answering. I quickly started her IV and hung the saline wide open for a 500cc bolus. I got two washcloths out of the closet and ran them under cold water. I placed the cloths on her forehead and the back of her neck. Tears leaked from her eyes. I went to ask the doc for some orders for pain meds…the doc said, “I have to examine her first.”

I went back into her room and asked her permission to give her a hand massage. I explained to her that it would help relax her and ease her pain.

I asked her if she was allergic to the scent of peppermint and if she minded me using the essential oil while I massaged her hands…She agreed. Her mom remained sitting in the corner watching my every move.

I slowly and deliberately massaged each of her hands for 10 minutes with the peppermint oil. After the first few minutes she visibly relaxed and tension began to release from her body. After the first hand was finished I moved to the other side of the bed to massage her other hand. She was completely still and her face was relaxed…her mother patted my shoulder as I sat down in front of her and whispered “thank you so much” into my left ear. I finished the massage of her second hand and just sat quietly for a moment observing my patient. She opened her eyes and smiled at me.

“I didn’t believe that was going to help but I feel so much better!” She then rated her pain a 5 on the pain scale. I smiled, refreshed her cold cloths and told her, “I will let the doctor know what we have done and he will be in soon.” I left the room and went to doc…I informed him of my nursing intervention…he looked up and said, “Cool.”

The end result of this encounter: A happy patient—hugs from each lady in room 15—and a satisfied nurse, a patient who only required a bolus of fluid, hand massage and an injection of 30mg of toradol before going home a very happy girl. For me, another example of the power of nursing presence, alternative therapies and transpersonal caring relationships!

Check out Mary Maxwell from Caregiverstress.com—doing what she does best—giving great advice. Love it!

We all know good things happen to bad people or is it bad things happen to good people? Well anyway a few weeks ago over 4000 people were on a lovely Gulf of Mexico Carnival cruise—which turned into a major disaster. The crew and passengers were left to fend for themselves and, boy, things got as bad as things can get. It’s also kind of amazing that we haven’t heard much, if anything, about this in the aftermath? Hmmmm. Our medical records should be so private!! Oh–of course they are–HIPAA!

Casey: “The crazy part of that whole thing? Who was making these incredibly stupid decisions, it seemed to have gone from bad to worse. God help the nurse on that cruise!”

Shayne: “Well Casey it is our lucky day because earlier this week we caught up with one of the ship’s nurses. Lets listen…”

Shayne: “Well, Casey, this feels like another 5 minutes of our lives wasted.”

We do have a great show this week. We are joined by California RN Sherri Stoddard, a veteran nurse with 31 years of labor and delivery on her resume. Sherri is passionate about her career and no less passionate about the health of her community and the country. She talks with us about the health and safety effects of the proposed Keystone Pipeline, and why nurses and healthcare professionals are opposed to it. Whether you are for or against the pipeline, the truth is there are short and long term health and environmental effects that all of us should be aware of. Sherri Stoddard also sits on the Board of Directors of the California Nurses Association.

Nurses at Stop Keystone rally in San Francisco Feb. 17, also call for a tax on Wall Street speculation with portions of the revenue to go for fighting climate change

And later—Bay Area health and fitness legend, Joanie Greggains will be in studio with us. Joanie will talk about her new segment called “Fit Happens.” The segment is heard only on Nurse Talk and premieres March 9th. She’ll also be talking about what nurses can do to take care of themselves. You know we caregivers take care of everyone else and if there is anything left over we take care of ourselves. Stick around Joanie is always fun and has great information about health and fitness.

And we want to give a big shout out to all of you who are listening to Nurse Talk on Progressive Voices on the Tune In app, live streaming from KNEW 960 AM, the iHeart Radio app, iTunes, NurseTalkSite.com and anywhere in between.

The results—seventy percent of the time the ice had more bacteria than the toilet water.

In four of the five restaurants, ice from the self-serve machines had more bacteria than toilet water, as did three out of five cups of ice from drive trough windows.

Sixty percent of the restaurant ice also tested positive for E. coli, which comes from the feces of animals and can cause serious illness.

While a certain amount of bacteria in water is considered harmless, no amount of E. coli is acceptable, however small.

We already know that soft drinks are one of the worst fluids you could drink–number one source of calories that has helped fuel the obesity epidemic in the USA–and if that’s not bad enough, now we find out that soft drinks–dispensed through insufficiently cleaned fountains or filled with contaminated ice–can expose you to more harmful bacteria than toilet water–yuk!

If you just can’t go cold-turkey and give up your fast food soda all at once–then next time you pull up to the window say “hold the ice”!

RN Marsha Podd

A listener, moody, sad, overwhelmed and embarrassed about it, gets advice on postpartum depression and life with baby #2 from Marsha Podd, OB/GYN nurse, author of the best selling Secrets of a Baby Nurse, certified lactation expert, baby sleep specialist and with a degree in child development, and over 20 years of experience working with parents of young children.

Well this week Goldie Hawn starts the show with a run down of the “time zones.” We must admit—her explanation sort of makes sense. Casey and Shayne struggle to figure out what time it is in the Midwest if it is 9am in California and what time it is in New York if it is noon in Omaha. Come on now–face it we all do it! We use our fingers and/or our toes or calculators, if need be, to figure this mystery out. And then throw in the international dateline and we’re really in trouble!

Author Marsha Podd, RN on the show this week

This week on Nurse Talk we have one of our favorite guests in the studio—RN Marsha Podd aka the “Baby Whisperer.” We joke with Marsha that her voice and energy are so soothing we all go to sleep when she visits. Marsha is the author of one of Amazon’s best selling books, Secrets of a Baby Nurse, How to have a Happy, Healthy and Sleeping Baby from Birth. We refer to it as the “Baby Bible.” Find out how to wean your infant from the cradle to a bed and at what age that should happen. Also Marsha addresses a question from a listener about postpartum depression. To learn more about Secrets of a Baby Nurse or about Marsha Podd, visit gotosleepbaby.com.

And DC hospitals are facing a staffing shortage. To counter this trend, RNs have put forth the Patient Protection Act, which “provides a minimum number of nurses on duty by specific unit at all times.” RN and nurse leader Judy Alba will be with us to talk about this and why RN-to-patient ratios are so critical to patient outcomes. For more information about this and other National Nurses United topics visit nationalnursesunited.org.

And this weeks Nurse Talk Top Ten is:  The Top 10 Funniest Explanations Your Patients Have Given You. Check this out! Oh! These are real comments that nurses sent in to Scrubs Magazine, the sponsors of our weekly top ten. A nurse writes:

I had a patient refuse to use her O2 for fear of “getting addicted.” I told her, “Hon, that happened the second you were born; hold your breath and see how long you can go without it. Now put it on please?” She did!

Next week—Bay Area fitness and health expert Joanie Greggains joins us for the kick off of her new segment called “Fit Happens,” only on Nurse Talk. Don’t miss it.

You can listen You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Until next week–go out and find something to laugh about!

RN Mary Fitzgerald of the New York State Nurses Association addresses the continued impact of Hurricane Sandy on health conditions. Photo by New York State Nurses Association on Facebook.

Author, Spearker, Nurse Karyn Buxman, RN, MSN, CSP, CPAE

We’ll also chat with one of our favorite guests, RN, author, humorist and motivational speaker, Karyn Buxman. Karyn will talk to us about why—in April—San Diego turns into one of the funniest places on earth. You won’t want to miss the 26th Annual Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor Conference in San Diego, CA April 4-7, 2013.

The Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor (AATH) is an international community of professionals who incorporate humor into their daily lives. AATH is the leader in providing evidence-based information about current research and practical applications of humor.

And check out Karyn’s new book What’s So Funny About OR Nursing? Karyn has a series of What’s So Funny books sharing how humor and laughter, when practiced proactively and strategically, can truly make a positive impact on one’s health. You really should check them out at karynbuxman.com.

And David Letterman has nothing on us–it’s time for the Nurse Talk Top Ten sponsored by our friends at Scrubs Magazine. The responses are from real nurses—cause you can’t make this stuff up!

Nurses—“Have you ever sighed after a patient demanded a glass of water that was exactly 72 degrees warm or some better-tasting food (um, not gonna happen!), and wished you could make some hospital behavior just plain illegal”? Join the club!

And an email question for the nurses is about a brother-in-law who seems to have a problem when he’s in public places. Is said brother-in-law rude or is there something really wrong with him? You’ll get the answer when you listen this Saturday on KNEW 960AM @ 11am, and live stream at 960KNEW.com.

“Boss, de poll de poll…“–the answers are in! This week’s poll question is: Should the age for Social Security be raised to 70? The results at the time of this writing? 2% said yes and 98% said no and some said “hell no!” You still have time to register your vote below where the tally is live: 

What do you think? Vote and call in your comments for us to use on the show at 800-977-1863!

Coming up next week–one of our favorite quests–RN Marsha Podd, aka “The Baby Whisperer.” Marsha will take your questions and will be talking about moms postpartum blues. To leave a question for Marsha call 1-800-977-1863, press one: Questions for the Nurses.

Until we meet again—remember, you can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Marjie Biller

TM instructor Marjie Biller joins us to talk about the practice and a program specifically created for nurses and healthcare practitioners.”

Check out this recent article about the benefits of TM from Medical News Today: “TM should be part of government-funded health programs—From high stress levels to cardiovascular disease, the TM® technique has proven effective in treating and preventing a wide range of ailments. Said Dr. Vernon Barnes, ‘Adding TM practice at a young age could prevent future cardiovascular disease and save many lives, not to mention reduce the national medical bill by billions…’” With a “B.”

Both Oprah and Nurse Talk host Casey can vouch. Casey says, “I just happen to be practicing TM and I cannot say enough about the benefits.”

For more info check out the TM Women Professionals web site. You can also contact Marjie at 415-715-8778 or mbiller@tm-women.org.

And, just what is the “Fiscal Cliff” and what is it doing to our health? A great scientific experiment is unleashed as we listen to a few callers explain the “fiscal cliff.” Don’t miss it as we are sure you will be disappointed at our low-tech research and analysis. Then our good friend and Capitol Hill correspondent, Donna Smith joins us to weigh in on all things D.C. What does she say about the fiscal cliff, the implementation of Obamacare, Social Security and Medicare? And what’s in store for healthcare in 2013? It’s all on Nurse Talk. Tune in.

AND we have some goodies in store for you with some all new Nurse Talk—coming up—one of our favorite guests, RN Marsha Podd, AKA The Baby Whisperer. Marsha will be talking about postpartum blues and much more. She’ll answer your questions, or those of your mother-in-law, to so call now 1-800-977-1863 and leave a question of any length for Marsha.

Joanie Greggains

And don’t miss our first installment of “Fit Happens” with health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains. Joanie will be with us on February 23rd to debunk some old myths, weight loss trends and more.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Sylvia’s children are making decisions without consulting her, and she’s asked Mary Maxwell to help. Mary’s very matter-of-fact speech to the children serves as an excellent (and humorous) example of how to put your foot down.

Well some of you may be old enough to remember Ernestine Tomlin, the blunt Ma Bell phone receptionist. Now, we find out she’s not just a pretty face–she is an advocate for Universal Health Care! “One ring-dingy, two ringy dingy’s…hello…” and she’s off to the races.

This week we have two very honorable guests to share with you. We promised them we would not tarnish their stellar reputations so they agreed. First, Ken Zinn the D.C. based Political Director for National Nurses United then retired army nurse captain, Vietnam war veteran and founder of the Women’s Vietnam Memorial, Diane Carlson Evans.

Ken talks with us about the recent announcement from the European Nations that 11 countries have signed on to a “financial transaction”tax, aka the Robin Hood Tax. The tax will raise billions of dollars by taxing financial transactions .50 per $100. Nurses in the U.S. have been on the leading edge of this concept and are making some headway here at home. Keep an open mind. If you listen to the simple details you might agree this is a very fair and doable measure.

AND…Diane Carlson Evans who served as an army nurse in Vietnam is with us to talk about the recent announcement by the Pentagon that women can now serve in combat roles in the military. Diane shares her story and tells us that women have been serving in combat since World War 2, mostly as nurses. BUT because it was not “official” combat the women were not given weapons though were oftentimes still caught in the front lines of battle. This is an amazing story about the mostly unrecognized heroines of U.S. Wars.

Women’s Vietnam Memorial photo by Michael Sirois

Shayne and Casey compare social lives. Hmm—how does that go? Tune in and see for yourself.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

1.  Nurses often work long shifts and are constantly on their feet.  The last thing you’d want to do is take another hour of your day walking on the treadmill or going for a jog.  Instead, get a couple of free weights, resistance bands or dumbbells and do some strength training exercises for 30 minutes.  Research shows that even strength training can improve cardiovascular fitness as well. [1]

2.  Have you ever had trouble moving a patient from their bed, lifting them up from a seat or assisting them down the hallway or to the bathroom?  Strength training is the best way to make this easier by increasing muscular strength and neural coordination. [2]

3.  After a long shift moving from patient to patient I can see how it might get difficult to remember patient history, prescriptions, ailments etc.  Moderate strength training and exercise can help you increase focus and mental performance to help you think and care for your patients even better. [3]

4.  Are nights on the hospital floor stressing you out?  Stress might lower your immune system and raise your risk of contracting an illness.  Multiple studies have found that strength training helps reduce stress and strengthen your immune system. [4]

These are just a few benefits of strength and resistance training. If you have some feedback, more ideas or questions I’d love to hear from you at matthew@movemofitness.com or send us a comment on facebook.

Taking all the medical mumbo-jumbo out of the picture, the shoulder joint, a ball and socket formation, is the most flexible of any joint in the body. It also makes the shoulder the most unstable joint. In a subluxed shoulder, popular wisdom, in plain English, explains that the shoulder joint’s failure of the socket to completely cover the ball of the upper arm bone makes the shoulder reliant on soft tissue instead to hold it in position. When the upper arm comes substantially out of the shoulder socket, it allows for less mobility, and subluxation results.

With a shoulder subluxing, the patients sometimes feel a popping sound as the ball joint moves out of the socket then returns. Some patients feel their arms losing feeling. Others get a sense if they raise their shoulders too high, the shoulder will pop out permanently which, of course, it sometimes does. When shoulder subluxes, pain occurs and is positioned primarily in the shoulder joint. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) says most of shoulder subluxations happen because the shoulder slips forward, starting the patient’s pattern of avoiding motions which give pain to the patient, thus resulting in weakness for those motions the patient can’t–or won’t–do anymore. The AAOS says the shoulder will often sense numbness and tingling, traveling down the arm.

Visual signs are often these:
* Swelling or bruising over the spot where the injury occurred.
* Less rounding of the subluxed shoulder as compared to a healthy shoulder.
* Dimpling below the bony protrusion at the top of the shoulder.

Even if you can’t interpret the visual signs that accompanies subluxation as needing HELP, there is the pain, and that’s where Robert comes into the picture. This excerpt comes from Robert, and I offer it to you, coming right from the man’s heart:

“The ER …man what a scary place…not much compassion there. They deal with death every day and it shows they do what they can, but honestly, how would you like the job of trying to calm down family members of a patient on the brink of death…that’s gotta be hard on your heart and soul. Sharon was in ER for a week. The doctors told us not to expect her to recover and said if she did recover at all, she would have total loss of her left side. Ok, with that news shocking the family, what was I supposed to do? This is my soul mate and I knew if I gave up, she would, too. There was no way I was going to let that happen. So first things first. I taught her to eat so they wouldn’t put a feeding tube in her (tough fight there they kept ordering a tube and I kept telling them to wait. I knew she would eat on her own given the chance). Ok, now we’re off to recovery center.

In-patient rehab….These people do great things and they’re very positive and encouraging (what a refreshing change). The therapy she received helped her leg, her speech, her eating and swallowing, just about everything but her arm and hand…this is what I would like to talk about.

I have been by her side since her stroke every therapy she got. I repeated it in her hospital room and her recovery was amazing, but they couldn’t really do anything for her arm (mainly due to the pain). I asked them about a sling to hold her arm and shoulder joint in place (they said the pain and swelling was from pinched nerves in the shoulder). They said that she just had to work through the pain because there was no sling that really worked for the sublux shoulder.

My answer to that: bull*&^%.

I watched her therapist hold her arm in place and her pain went away. I started searching for a sling …and sadly they were right. Every sling I found caused more harm than good…and they wouldn’t let me put any on her. (They did try the givemore sling, but it just didn’t work. Every time she bent her arm, her shoulder fell down). Well, I didn’t stop there.

When she got home, she had in-home care and I started making different slings while her therapist kept telling me what was wrong with each sling (I made 10 kinds). Finally, they started liking where I was going with number 11. When I finished it, her therapist loved it. Her pain level dropped to where she no longer takes pain meds. The recovery of her arm jumped 80% in two weeks. Now, all of her doctors and the therapist require her to wear the sling I made.

All of her doctors and therapists kept telling me to patent the sling and get it out to the public because there were so many people out there that needed one. So I applied for a patent and put together a workshop to make them.

Over the years, many people have tried to make an arm support for patients with shoulder problems. For a sling to meet the needs of the patient, it has to conform to criteria considerations such as subluxation reduction, easily worn/put on, ability to wear under clothing comfortably, weight distribution, freedom of movement of both upper and lower parts of the arm while keeping the shoulder in place. Our sling meets all these requirements.

My sling starts with a comfortable arm support. I start with an elastic arm band with non-elastic cloth ends with elastic hook and loop fastening system for arm size and comfort . This is placed over the bicep of each arm. Each arm support has a strap permanently mounted on the top front and one strap grommet and one quick-release buckle mounted to the top rear.

The straps are made of semi-elastic material. The top 2 straps start in front of the shoulder and go over the shoulder, crossing each other in the top middle of the back, and the strap from the top front of each arm support connects to the opposite arm support at a point at the top of the arm pit in the back at the buckle so you can adjust the upward pull on the injured shoulder. The third strap runs across the back from arm pit to arm pit with a hook and loop adjustment for lateral support of the shoulder joint.”

If you, or somebody you know, have a subluxed shoulder, go to this site:

https://sites.google.com/site/subluxationsling/

Scroll down to the bottom and that’s where you can buy the sling.

Even though I had my stroke 3 1/2 years ago, Robert, who communicates through the therapist, says it might help me restore my arm somewhat. My sling arrived today and I’ll report back to you in three months how it’s working out. As I often say, stay tuned!

*Editor’s note: Joyce has been using the sling for over a month now and says she is pain free!

I sat on the stool near the counter, a few feet away from the stretcher, waiting for this little girl’s mother to finish consoling her child. I was well aware of the fact that this little one knew all too well how painful things were about to get and she was trying so hard to be brave. (2 months prior to this date this child came in and had to have a large MRSA boil lanced and the IV didn’t go so well. She was drawing on the only experience she had and FEAR was very palpable…)

“Do you have to do the IV?” she pleaded with her eyes for me to say NO.

“I’m sorry honey, but yes, I do have to put in an IV…BUT I’ve been doing this for 23 years and I promise you I will do it quickly!”

“The other nurse last time didn’t get the IV and someone else had to do it…it hurt as bad as when my brother hit me in the head with his body on the swing set and knocked me over.”

I tried not to laugh but she was being so cute! I smiled and said, “I can only imagine how bad that must have hurt—But I put that numbing gel on you so this needle won’t hurt so much.”

“Okay I guess I’m ready…but I might still have to cry.”

Sympathy gripped my heart as I gathered my things and moved to the stretcher…I sat down to her level and let mom adjust herself to a holding position. Little sniffles echoed through the small room.

I explained each step and then I explained that, “If we sing Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer this won’t hurt much at all.” On the count of three we began singing—loudly.

By the time we got to “very shiny nose” the INT was in place and I was drawing blood…we kept singing and by the time we reached “All of the other reindeer…” I was done. Her tiny little eyes grew large as she excitedly exclaimed, “I didn’t even know you did it. The singing worked Mom!”

An hour later we were finished with the minimal conscious sedation procedure of lancing 3 large MRSA boils and my little pedi patient was waking up nicely. Her mother hugged me tightly and thanked me repeatedly for my nursing care. “You were an expert with comforting my daughter and I’m so thankful for your IV skills! Thank you so much.”

As I reflected on that experience I realized that oftentimes I get thanked for things of comfort provided, but today I was thanked for both my comforting of her daughter, the distraction techniques used AND for my nursing skills.

As nurses we have so many responsibilities and requirements of knowledge—but it truly is our total package of experience, knowledge and caring that give the patients and their families what they need.

It was a good day.

And speaking of the Bay Area—most of you locals know TV and radio health and fitness expert Joanie Greggains. After 25 years on KGO radio in San Francisco—Joanie crossed the picket line and will be featured on Nurse Talk in a new weekly segment called “Fit Happens.” The segment begins in February.

RN Marsha Podd

Also coming up—one of our favorite guests RN Marsha Podd, aka The Baby Whisperer. One of the topics she’ll talk about—postpartum depression. If you have questions for Marsha call 1-800-977-1863 and leave your question on the message line and she will answer on the air.

IT’s WORTH REPEATING…this week…a look at the V.A hospital system from RN Irma Westmoreland and Bay Area fitness and health expert Joanie Greggains.

RN Irma Westmoreland with her friend, advocating for patients and nurses.

We all know the V.A. hospital system is a lifeline for our returning veterans. What we don’t know or may not think about is the overwhelming case loads for the healthcare practitioners who care for these vets. Recently V.A. System RNs won a NATIONAL CONTRACT that they say will ensure vets the level of QUALITY CARE they deserve. At issue for a long time has been the lack of sufficient staffing among other safety concerns. V.A. RN Irma Westmoreland is with us to talk about this landmark contract. Irma also talks about the advances that have been made within the system to increase and improve immediate care for Veterans. We don’t hear enough about the good that is being done and the improvements being made so this is great news to share.

(Obviously) Fitness Expert Joanie Greggains. Joanie joins the Nurse Talk team in February with her segment, “Fit Happens.”

For those of you who live in the Bay Area—you probably already know and love Joanie Greggains, one of America’s favorite health and exercise personalities. Her TV exercise show, Morning Stretch, aired for 18 years, and her popular #1 talk radio show, The Joanie Greggains Show, was heard for 25 years on KGO Radio 810 AM in San Francisco, CA. Both have made her a familiar, popular, and respected authority in the health and fitness field. Joanie drills through ten “Barriers to Exercise.” Turns out Casey has every one of them. Check out Joanie’s website at www.joaniegreggains.com.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

AND—Flu shot controversy rages on. What do you think? You can add your 2 cents on our home page or by calling our message line at 1-800-977-1863. Nurse Talk took a Facebook poll this week and we got some very passionate answers. We will share this with you in the show. Very interesting—and no less interesting was a mainstream media newscast we’ll share. Fired for not getting a flu shot? One hundred and fifty at TriHealth, Cincinnati’s largest employer live to tell.

RN and co-president of National Nurses United, Karen Higgins joins us to discuss this “vibrant” topic.

Rudi, Lisa and Alejandro of Clowns Without Borders perform for children in Mexico acing the daily tolls of child labor and past traumas.

What a wonderful find this was: Clowns Without Borders, founded in Barcelona in July 1993. The idea began when Tortell Poltrona, a professional clown in Spain, was invited to perform in a refugee camp in Croatia. This performance unexpectedly attracted audiences of more than 700 children, proving to Poltrona that there is a great need for clowns and entertainment in crisis situations. He founded Clowns Without Borders to offer humor as a means of psychological support to communities that have suffered trauma. The clowns have organizations in nine countries Spain, France, Sweden, Germany, Belgium, Ireland, South Africa, Canada and the United States. We’ll visit with RN and president of “Clowns,” Tim Cunningham. This is just a beautiful story.

AND—Flu shot controversy rages on. RN and co-president of National Nurses United, Karen Higgins joins us to discuss this “vibrant” topic. What do you think? You can add your 2 cents on our home page or by calling  our message line at 1-800-977-1863. Nurse Talk took a Facebook poll this week and we got some very passionate answers. We will share this with you in the show. Very interesting—and no less interesting was a mainstream media newscast we’ll share. Fired for not getting a flu shot? One hundred and fifty at TriHealth, Cincinnati’s largest employer live to tell.

And the Nurse Talk Top Ten, courtesy of our friends at Scrubs Magazine. The Top 10 Strangest Things…doctors have said to you on the job!

AND–Big Mike has a cholesterol question for Casey and Shayne. Seems Mike is honest enough to confess to his diet of ice cream, huge amounts of sugar, lots of bacon and tons of carbs. By all accounts he should be at least very unhealthy–if not dead. What do the nurses think? Stay tuned.

And Comedian Lynn Ruth Miller comes back with “In My Day”!

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Oh yes, some things…but over all…no. I would correct the stupid mistakes I made, and spend more of my time with my family…go on more vacations, spend time that I didn’t think I had with those that I miss the most now. Surprise them more.

My husband James Sr., me and my children Jimmy and Missy

To do it all over again, I would make love more, dance more, just walk around the block more…I would sing in front of people not caring what they think more, and I would yell at the top of my lungs how much I love my husband and my kids more.

I would speak out more for those I didn’t…and I would make sure that everyone I loved knew it…

But mostly I would love me more, pat myself on the back more, look in the mirror and say, you did what you could, the best you could. Good job Barbie. And I would buy myself flowers, just for the heck of it. Just for me.

To do it all over again…oh boy, oh boy…to know what I know now…

Casey: “Oh Shayne I couldn’t agree with you more. That poor thing has gone through so much, and now this! I’m sure she and papa-to-be, Kanye West, are ecstatic—but this will be such a public 9-months for them. First the paparazzi will be looking to get the best photos of the “baby bump,” and then they may try to catch her on a private beach in her bikini.”

And so starts some advice for Kim and papa Kanye. We didn’t say good advice, but it is advice.

And a visit with RN DeAnn McEwen, Co-President of the California Nurses Association, about a recent press release announcing the largest nurses union in the U.S., National Nurses United and its affiliation with the National Union of Healthcare Workers. Find out why and why you should be interested.

RN Deann McEwen last year at a rally to step up the campaign to extend guaranteed healthcare coverage to all Californians

Kira Reginato

Should you really move in mom and/or dad? What happens if they move in and won’t move out? Well here comes Kira Reginato to save the day. Kira is the host of a popular northern California radio show called “Call Kira about Aging.” Kira is president of Living Ideas For Elders, an eldercare management firm. And boy do we need her advice. With our parents and relatives aging—we are often the ones who step up to take care of their needs. And we don’t always know where to look for the answers. You won’t want to miss what Kira has to say about all of this.

What do nurses find in their pockets? With the help of Scrubs Magazine we find out. It’s not always pretty! A patient’s set of false teeth! Wrapped in a glove! Crazy but true!!!?

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Casey: “Oh Shayne I couldn’t agree with you more. That poor thing has gone through so much, and now this! I’m sure she and papa-to-be, Kanye West, are ecstatic—but this will be such a public 9-months for them. First the paparazzi will be looking to get the best photos of the “baby bump,” and then they may try to catch her on a private beach in her bikini.”

And so starts some advice for Kim and papa Kanye. We didn’t say good advice, but it is advice.

And a visit with RN DeAnn McEwen about a recent press release announcing the California Nurses Association’s new affiliation with the National Union of Healthcare Workers. Find out why and why you should be interested.

RN Deann McEwen last year at a rally to step up the campaign to extend guaranteed healthcare coverage to all Californians

Kira Reginato

Should you really move in mom and/or dad? What happens if they move in and won’t move out? Well here comes Kira Reginato to save the day. Kira is the host of a popular northern California radio show called “Call Kira about Aging.” Kira is president of Living Ideas For Elders, an eldercare management firm. And boy do we need her advice. With our parents and relatives aging—we are often the ones who step up to take care of their needs. And we don’t always know where to look for the answers. You won’t want to miss what Kira has to say about all of this.

What do nurses find in their pockets? With the help of Scrubs Magazine we find out. It’s not always pretty! A patient’s set of false teeth! Wrapped in a glove! Crazy but true!!!?

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

RN Deborah Burger on Restoring America’s Mental Health System

Shayne and Casey welcome RN and Co-President of National Nurses United, Deborah Burger. Deborah is a frequent guest on Nurse Talk. She recently wrote an article about the need to restore our mental health system. In the wake of the tragic shooting in Connecticut and gun violence at an all time high in our country—many questions are left unanswered. Most of us agree that guns are a huge problem and laws to restrict automatic and semi-automatic weapons must be passed and enforced. But that alone is not sufficient, we must look at and restore access to mental health services and continue to work towards universal healthcare for all.

And related to the tragedy in Connecticut we wanted to share something with our listeners that we find to be a beautiful tribute to the souls who were lost that day. It’s a song written by up and coming songwriter Alex Hobbs (who does happen to be Casey’s nephew). Alex’s heartfelt song is called “Heaven Wasn’t Ready For This.” We were so moved by his tasteful and beautiful gift we wanted to share it with others. Alex will be with us later in the show.

And Shayne gives Casey a pop quiz about “professional boundaries,” one of her favorite topics. Does she pass? To find out listen to this week’s show on nursetalksite.com or tune in.

We’ll also have a little health trivia and your email questions. What should you do if you are a runner and have “shin splints?” Well the answer is pretty obvious but not to this seemingly charming “jock.”

And can you take too much Tylenol? Is ten a day too much? Yip! Tune-in as Casey and Shayne give their advice. (BUT, remember they cannot prescribe, diagnose, or treat and they always request that you see your physician!)

RN Deborah Burger on Restoring America’s Mental Health System

Shayne and Casey welcome RN and Co-President of National Nurses United, Deborah Burger. Deborah is a frequent guest on Nurse Talk. She recently wrote an article about the need to restore our mental health system. In the wake of the tragic shooting in Connecticut and gun violence at an all time high in our country—many questions are left unanswered. Most of us agree that guns are a huge problem and laws to restrict automatic and semi-automatic weapons must be passed and enforced. But that alone is not sufficient, we must look at and restore access to mental health services and continue to work towards universal healthcare for all.

And related to the tragedy in Connecticut we wanted to share something with our listeners that we find to be a beautiful tribute to the souls who were lost that day. It’s a song written by up and coming songwriter Alex Hobbs (who does happen to be Casey’s nephew). Alex’s heartfelt song is called “Heaven Wasn’t Ready For This.” We were so moved by his tasteful and beautiful gift we wanted to share it with others. Alex will be with us later in the show.

And Shayne gives Casey a pop quiz about “professional boundaries,” one of her favorite topics. Does she pass? To find out listen to this week’s show on nursetalksite.com or tune in.

We’ll also have a little health trivia and your email questions. What should you do if you are a runner and have “shin splints?” Well the answer is pretty obvious but not to this seemingly charming “jock.”

And can you take too much Tylenol? Is ten a day too much? Yip! Tune-in as Casey and Shayne give their advice. (BUT, remember they cannot prescribe, diagnose, or treat and they always request that you see your physician!)

Until we meet again remember—bowling is a great pastime and great family fun. We suggest taking your own shoes and box lunch. We don’t know why we suggest that, but we do.

AND remember laughter is the best medicine. You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Image of a brain bleed caused by a stroke in a baby.

This is a brain. It is also the unfortunate outcome of a baby whose mother experimented with cocaine, resulting in a premature birth and a bleed in the baby’s brain. A bleed in the brain means the baby had a stroke. Hey! Wait a minute! Babies and strokes don’t go together, or do they?

Note: for all you baby-makers out there, I’m not trying to scare you from having kids. This post is just a dose of reality.

You probably don’t know the name Duncan Guthrie. He started a charity in 1952 for his daughter, Janet, who had polio, and he was determined to find a cure for the disabling disease. With money funded by the charity, research, in time, led to the first oral polio vaccine which wiped out new cases of polio in the UK. Now called Action Medical Research, the charity encompasses so many other afflictions, and that leads us to babies and strokes.

In 2009, Action Medical Research estimated at least one baby out of 2,300 in the UK born full-term were victimized by a stroke. These strokes often were unexpected at the time of birth or before, i.e. some developing babies had strokes in utero. The researchers didn’t know if the babies, who are now barely three years old, had trouble using language because they hadn’t matured to the point where anybody could tell the difference between a three year old saying gibberish or not.

But of the 100 or so children in the study, the researchers are working feverishly to know how stroke affects their language skills. Magnetic Resonance Imaging, most commonly known as MRI, is administered to the child to watch how stroke affects different parts of the brain. Sometimes, the brain readjusts itself, said the researchers, especially in a newborn, to compensate for the section that was harmed. Known by the medical term as plasticity, the brain takes charge of the imperfect tissue with the good part of the brain. In fact, in the first 28 days of life, stroke is more common than after.

So the big question is, how do you know if the newborn had a stroke? Newborns most likely would show no signs of a stroke unless they have a seizure. Seizures symptoms include staring, rhythmic and spasmodic episodes in the face, arms, and legs, stiffening of muscle groups, and pauses in breathing. Generally, newborn stroke survivors show less movement on one side of their body. “Handedness,” the term given when newborns favor one hand over the other, could be a symptom of stroke.  Parents often mistake this as meaning that the baby is advanced for his or her age. In healthy babies, handedness appears at about 12 months.

According to the American Heart Association Journal (AHAJ), the incidence of stroke in newborns in the first 28 days is very elevated compared to infancy and childhood years. The following can happen at a rate of 1 in 4000 newborns:

• Arterial Ischemic Stroke (where blood flow is stopped in an artery to the brain by a clot)
• Sinovenous Thrombosis (where a clot appears in one of the veins in the brain)
• Hemorrhagic Stroke (where an artery bursts in the brain).

After the newborn period, the risk of stroke decreases significantly and remains low until post-55.

This is what can happen in pregnancy and childbirth:

• Proteins travel from mother to fetus, which aids in clotting. But if there’s too much clotting, a stroke for the baby is more likely.
• At the point of labor and delivery, childbirth can result in physical stress on the baby’s head with the arteries and veins in the baby’s head leading to clots and stroke.
• Newborns have twice as many red blood cells as an adult which can lead to excessive clotting. (Stroke can sometimes be prevented by giving newborns an exchange blood transfusion where the blood is diluted with saline).
• Dehydration can cause the blood to clot, some signs of which are a dry mouth, dry skin, and fewer than six wet diapers a day.

A number of factors that can put a newborn at risk for stroke include:

• If the newborn has a hole in the heart, it facilitates a clot going up to the brain.
•  If there is a genetic history of clotting problems, the risk of stroke increases.
• If serious infections such as sepsis exist, clotting may result.
• If the mother takes an illicit drug, like cocaine or heroin, a stroke, albeit needless, may occur.

For expectant mothers, if clotting disorders are part of your genetic history, tests can be done in-utero ahead of time to help the baby’s outcome. All expectant mothers should eat nutritiously, stop cigarette smoking, and avoid dehydration.

Here’s the bottom line: there’s not much research so far on how to treat strokes in children, including newborns and fetuses.

Baby Joey

An excerpt from a blog, Raising Arizona Kids, tells one story of thousands:

“Chandra Whitfield, of Mesa, learned just a few months ago that her son, Joey, suffered a stroke in-utero.

At first, Joey was an easy going, happy, typical baby, welcomed by his parents and brother Daniel (3 ½).

But at around 8 weeks, Chandra began noticing a few things about Joey that seemed different from her experience the first time around with Daniel. She mentioned her concerns to Joey’s pediatrician at the next well check.

The doctor diagnosed Joey with tortocollis, which can occur while a baby grows in the womb if the muscles or blood supply to the fetus’ neck become injured.

He prescribed some stretching exercises and suggested that Chandra put toys on on Joey’s left side to encourage him to turn his head. That helped, but at four months, Chandra begin to notice that Joey wasn’t reaching for toys with both hands- just his right hand. At his six month well check, he still didn’t seem to be using his left arm and hand – and Chandra decided to trust her ‘mommy gut’ feeling that something wasn’t right.

She asked the pediatrician for a referral to a pediatric neurologist, just to rule out that anything was seriously wrong. Finally, Chandra and her husband, Chris, received some tough news about their little boy.

Joey was diagnosed with left-sided hemiparesis (weakness on the left side of the body) due to a stroke in-utero. An MRI followed and confirmed the diagnosis.

Since the diagnosis, Chandra says she feels ‘as if a fire has been ignited in me.’ She began working to raise awareness about childhood stroke. She and her family have walked in the Stroke Walk, a fundraising event. She’s been selling purple awareness bracelets and donating the funds to the Children’s Hemiplegia and Stroke Association (CHASA), she’s got plans for a website, and volunteers for CHASA.

Chandra also sent a letter to Governor Jan Brewer requesting that May 7 be declared ‘Childhood Stroke Awareness Day.’ Here are Chandra and Joey on the day just a couple of weeks ago when they received the news that the request was granted, and more.

Chandra and Joey Whitfield

Arizona now joins several other states in declaring May as Childhood Stroke Awareness Month. CHASA hopes to build a grassroots effort to add more states to the list.

Joey is a year old now and doing well. He works with a physical and occupational therapist to help strengthen his left side. The testing and therapy will continue, but so will Chandra’s will to get the word out to others to raise awareness—and to grow a community. Because what Chandra says has helped the most is the connection she’s made with other parents of children who have suffered stroke in-utero.”

My God. Babies and strokes. It happens. And now you know.

Photo credit: Johan Van Den Berg

Something was said to me on Christmas that has left me pondering just why being a nurse is so wonderful. The comment was, “She is such a smart girl. She shouldn’t be in the nursing program. She should be a doctor.”

Well…Hmmmmmmmm. I admire the intelligence of some very fine doctors I’ve worked with over the last 23 years and this posting is in NO way a slam to any of them. The person speaking holds himself in high regard in his own profession and I don’t think he even realized what he was saying or how it sounded to a NURSE!

I’m not going to rant about how smart nurses have to be because we all know how smart nurses are. We nurses know that on many an occasion we save the patient from the doctor and we save the doctor from him/herself! I’m not going to go into all the technical things we need to know and all the skills we have to perform on a daily basis. What I want to talk about is the heart of a nurse…what makes a nurse isn’t always their brain. Though of course that helps. It’s their heart. Nurses want to be nurses because of the human connection. We see more than a body part in despair…we see the whole person!

A scenario says it best:

I walked into the ER for my shift on Christmas. Just after entering the nurse’s station my heart began beating a little faster—something was wrong. I sensed sadness and grief. I looked into the eyes and faces of those at the station and immediately knew something terrible had happened. My fellow nurses, the ER techs, and our unit secretary looked at me with eyes of sadness. It took a few seconds before I heard what had occurred. A baby had come into the ER…the paramedics were already providing CPR to try to bring the baby back to life.

The ER team—doc, nurses, ER tech, respiratory therapist—went into action and took over the CPR, provided intubation and drugs to try and save this baby. Now I know from recent experience in this very scenario what this group was feeling—fear, sadness, anxiety, stress, shock, maybe a little panic. And I know from working with this amazing team of individuals for the last 4 years that they were on top of their game. They are intelligent, compassionate and extremely gifted people, ALL of them. If this child could have been saved, they could have done it.

Sadly this baby didn’t live and that crushed this team. The loss of this baby wounded everyone. I in no way know how the parents felt and I would never even try to guess. That grief is beyond anything I’ve known.

What I want to highlight here is the compassion of the team—doctor included! But, I want to show the difference between doctors and nurses. (And I know it’s not black and white.)

The parents of this baby had to be out of the room for a time and the mother was distraught to think her baby would be alone. One of our nurses promised to not leave that baby until the parents returned. She wrapped the child in a blanket and she held that baby for a very long time. She rocked the baby and touched it’s face, hands, feet and hair, allowing her spirit to bath that baby’s spirit in comfort. She gave that mother of gift of a little peace, a little comfort while she had to be out of the room. The rest of the nurses in the ER took over the job of the nurse that was with the baby, never grumbling or complaining about extra work. They wanted that nurse to be with the baby—for the mother! And when that mother returned that nurse came back to the team and they all hugged one another and cried for that baby and those parents, and then they went back to work. Compassion…understanding…human connection.

I work with amazing nurses. They are highly knowledgeable, skilled and beyond talented in what they do. I am proud to be a nurse because of the way we see people…the way we feel and provide care to people. It takes knowledge and skills to do our jobs—but it takes a bigger heart to do it well.

Bravo Maine General Thayer ER nurses! You make a difference with your knowledge, your skills and your heart!! I am proud to be a part of this team.

Registered nurses across the country mourn the loss of life marked by the shooting of innocents in Connecticut. This should be a clear wake up call for the White House, Congress, and state and local legislators to take action to address causes of the violence, including restoring the devastating cuts that have occurred to mental health services across the U.S.

Every day a massive tragedy is being played out on a smaller scale everyday in emergency rooms, in mental health facilities, and on the streets across our country, where, with sometimes devastating consequences, mental health is underfunded to a shocking, and sometimes deadly degree.

Members of National Nurses United, the nation’s largest organization of nurses, say it is time to act with both short term and long term responses. It is incumbent on all of us to:

• Demand private healthcare systems reverse the pervasive cuts to mental health services, especially by profit-focused institutions which view mental health as an easy target for cuts because it is less profitable and has fewer public advocates.
• Increase federal, state and local funding of public mental health programs and public health clinics, which play a crucial role in identifying persons with potentially violent mental health problems.
• Require health insurance companies to provide full coverage for mental health services, and require parity in mental health coverage with other health services.
• Restore school nurses and counselors who are frequently a first target of school budget cuts.
• Challenge the stigma of mental health that undermines mental health programs and stigmatizes people needing mental health care, the overwhelming majority of whom are not violent.
• Guarantee health care for everyone, including mental health services, based on patient need, not ability to pay, as in improving and expanding Medicare to cover everyone.

Sadly, this growing emergency comes as no surprise to America’s nurses who are on the front line of our nation’s mental health crisis. Why must it take such a catastrophe to convene a serious dialogue about the state of our nation’s mental health system? In communities from Maine to California, nurses deal with the fall out that comes from hospitals, schools, and clinics, who have cut their mental health services to the bone.

Evidence is in on the mental health crisis

Budget cuts for safety net programs and fundamental care services, from schools to health facilities, have a crucial impact on communities. In 2011, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, NAMI, released a report documenting deep cuts to mental health services that led to significant reductions in both hospital and community services for vulnerable individuals with serious mental illness.

Across the country, as noted in this AlterNet commentary, states cut some $4.35 billion in public mental health spending  from 2009 to 2012, according to the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors – the most massive cut in funding since de-institutionalization in the 1960s and ’70s. More than $840 million of that occurred in 31 states in 2012 alone.

In Connecticut, NAMI has reported, public mental health system currently provides coverage for less than one in five Connecticut residents with a serious mental health problem. The other four may not be able to afford to pay for those services on their own, particularly since mental health issues tend to disproportionately affect poor people.

A 2010 National Institute for Mental Health study asserted that one in every three to four children suffers from a mental disorder and that about one in ten has a serious emotional disturbance, with few affected youth receiving adequate mental health care. It emphasized that common mental disorders among adults first emerge in childhood and adolescence further stressing the need for early intervention and prevention.

The National Health Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare reports that 60 percent of juvenile detention inmates have at least one mental disorder. Although home and community based services are more cost effective than warehousing youth in the juvenile justice system while they await treatment, the Council notes that these home and community services are “inadequately supported.”

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health,  Think Progress reported after the Connecticut shooting just 7.1 percent of U.S. adults receive mental health services. Out-of-pocket costs for inpatient and outpatient mental health services are staggeringly high.

While there is a national focus, rightly so, on the tragedy in Newtown today millions of people and their families in our country continue to suffer from mental illness and post traumatic stress from domestic and sexual violence who do not receive support or counseling.

These millions are the hidden face of mental trauma in the U.S., and the disgrace of a health care industry in particular that is focused on short term profit rather than therapeutic healing. Nurses will continue to advocate for the support and early intervention patients and all Americans deserve.

NNU nurses have been speaking out the mental health crisis for a long time.

“My first reaction when I heard the news was that he sounded like someone with an untreated mental illness,” said Adelena Marshall, RN who has worked in the mental health unit of the Chicago Veteran Affairs Hospital for the last 20 years and has become the voice of veterans and the expert on mental health matters at the VA.

Last May, Chicago VA RNs with the support NNU had to threaten to hold an informational picket with the Iraq Veterans against the War (IVAW) to decry the appalling staffing conditions on the mental health unit. A couple of weeks later, 20 positions were posted.

“Nurses are on the front line of this issue and need to be part of the policy conversation,” said Michigan RN Jeanette Hokett who works in a 14-bed child and adolescent psychiatric inpatient unit. “They spend the most time at the bedside with the patients and families, and offer a perspective others, such as doctors, don’t have.”

Earlier this year, nurses concerns about access to mental health prompted NNU to convene a roundtable on mental health.  “Often, the emergency room is where desperate people end up,” said one participant, Diane Fagan, a Kaiser Permanente ER RN in Oakland, Ca. “In the eight years I have worked there, I have seen more and more untreated mental health patients coming into the emergency department and spending long hours waiting to see a psychiatrist because so many of our outpatient services have closed.”

Michigan RN Jeanette Hokett works in a 14-bed child and adolescent psychiatric inpatient unit at the University of Michigan Health System. She hears frustration from patients and families on a daily basis.

“There’s not enough for these families to get the support they need,” said Hokett. “I have seen patients come in sicker and stay shorter times. There are no beds. We have waiting lists for people who are trying to get a patient into our facility. While they wait, health care staff works with families to come up with a safe plan for them at home. It may mean a parent has to remove sharp knives from the house and sit with the child 24 hours until a bed becomes available.

“The reality is there are not enough treatment options and they are not always available for families because of financial constraints. If there was better access to mental health care, we would be able to improve the outcome for these patients and improve their lives,” she said.

Ultimately effectively challenging the mental health crisis is an integral part of solving our overall, ongoing healthcare emergency in the U.S.

Deborah Burger is a registered nurse and a co-president of National Nurses United

Portrait of Barbara Taylor Vaughan, Love Never Forgets by Cia Williford

I found Mom’s Christmas list, she had the nurse write it out for her.

1. Try and make everyone happy
2. Give hugs
3. Tell those that I love how much I love them
4. Take a picture in my mind so I never forget

Then at the bottom the nurse wrote, “Oh how I love this woman.”

Doesn’t get any better than that does it…so that is my Christmas gift from my mother. When I get crazied over the next couple of weeks, all I have to do is read this little piece of paper.

This week on the show:

Shayne: “Casey I’m not much for T.V. but I was watching the Barbara Walters’ 10 Most Fascinating People of 2012 and oh my god—who shows up but “Honey Boo Boo!” Now can we talk about good health habits?

Casey: “Shayne I saw it too. Here you have all kinds of accomplished people like—Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and next up Barbara says disgustingly—and here comes–”Weality show feenom—Honey BOO BOO.”

Shayne: That go-go juice of hers is crazy—coffee and Mountain Dew—it makes her “redneckizable.”

Jeff Breslin

Casey: But hey while the nation was watching Honey Boo Boo, the Governor of Michigan was pushing through a radical bill during a lame duck session. Governor Rick Snyder just signed the “right to work” law in the state of Michigan. A state that was built on the strength of labor unions. The state that worked with those unions and corporations to build a strong middle class. Later we’ll have more on this sad day from Michigan RN and President of the Michigan Nurses Association, Jeff Breslin.

Authors Corine Mogenis, and Patti Raya join us with their must-read book.

And…don’t you think most people would like to be more involved and educated about medical decisions that affect them and their loved ones? We’re talking about empowerment here. Later we’ll visit with Corine Mogenis, a medical malpractice paralegal, and RN and legal nurse consultant Patti Raya, the authors of a great book called Medical Tips From The Inside, Things You Need to Know. One reader says, “This is a must have book…you can learn so much from reading this book and how we’ve all been left in the dark. It’s a great gift for parents and in-laws that still think of doctors as GOD [wake up] ! Pick one up for yourself and others – they will be so grateful!”

Also we welcome Ron Hartenbaum and his great staff at WYD Media Management. As of 1/1/13 Nurse Talk will begin national syndication in their capable hands! Also thanks to Jon Sinton at Progressive Voices for putting us in his great line-up of progressive programming on Tune In.

And a big thank you to National Nurses United/California Nurses Association for the courage and support they’ve shown us from the beginning of our show.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Paul, John, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, George and Ringo

Casey: “Because I can’t think of the Beatles without thinking about the 70’s and I can’t think of the 70’s without thinking of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Maharishi achieved fame as the guru to The Beatles and other celebrities. He started the TM program in the late 1970s that claimed to offer practitioners the ability to levitate and to create world peace. The Maharishi is reported to have trained more than 40,000 TM teachers, taught the Transcendental Meditation technique to more than five million people and founded thousands of teaching centers and hundreds of colleges, universities and schools.

Marjie Biller, Transcendental Meditation instructor

And Shayne, I just happen to be practicing TM and I cannot say enough about the benefits. Later in the show we have TM instructor Marjie Biller with us to talk about the practice and a program specifically created for nurses and healthcare practitioners.” For more info check out the TM Women Professionals web site. You can also contact Marjie at 415-715-8778 or mbiller@tm-women.org.

And, just what is the “Fiscal Cliff” and what is it doing to our health? A great scientific experiment is unleashed as we listen to a few callers explain the “fiscal cliff.” Don’t miss it as we are sure you will be disappointed at our low-tech research and analysis.

Donna Smith

Then our good friend and Capitol Hill correspondent, Donna Smith joins us to weigh in on all things D.C. What does she say about the “fiscal cliff”, the implementation of Obamacare, Social Security and Medicare? And what’s in store for healthcare in 2013?

You’ve seen one of these, right? Call Nurse Talk 1-800-977-1863

Don’t forget to call in with your medical questions. It’s fun, it’s easy and if you aren’t sick — maybe your neighbor is — or the cashier at Target! Health is a collective thing you know. Call with your questions 1-800-977-1863, press 1 and roll.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

A great show this week. Shayne shares his softer side when he tells Casey he has already been thinking about a holiday gift for her.

Shayne to Casey:

“O.K Casey  — its sort of a personal thing so I hope you won’t be mad — but I researched some exercise options for you and want to gift you a membership to whichever one of these resonates with you.”

Casey responds, “O.K. if you must — it’s better than having to do the research myself — what ya got?”

Says Lisa M. Wolfe of Demand Media about this hot new fitness option, “If you have an addictive personality, use caution when beginning a weighted hula hoop workout. Hooping may take priority above your other daily activities…”

Shayne: “O.K.:

• Weighted Hula Hooping. Bally’s fitness is now offering classes.
• Strippercise. Toned celebrities like Kate Hudson and Carmen Electra started shilling this female-only fad five years ago, boasting both body and boudoir benefits from sensual “aerobic striptease” classes. This is a cousin to Pole Dancing.
• The Bodyblade. Take the long, sword-like plastic bar, hoist it overhead and shake vigorously for a trunk-targeted workout that supposedly causes up to 270 muscle contractions per minute, giving you washboard abs and ropey shoulders that are rounded, not chiseled.
• Or Cirque du Soleil-Inspired “Aerial Aerobics.” The breathtaking stunts of the world’s best-known circus acrobatics troupe first inspired workouts at trendy gyms like Crunch and Equinox and have now spawned “aerial fitness studios” where you tone up by defying gravity.”

Which ones does Casey choose and why? Tune In.

Next, a practice that is under reported but carries with it deadly consequences. It’s called FRACKING.  Communities across the country are being poisoned by toxic chemicals used in natural gas drilling and the energy companies want to keep this top secret. This is becoming a huge public health risk.

Those fighting the spread of fracking, nurses, doctors, nearby residents, and other environmental activists, are finding themselves at a severe disadvantage because they lack one critical thing: information. What every RN needs to know about fracking, and how they must fight back against the industry. We’ll talk with Pennsylvania RN Patti Eakin later in the show.

And roll out the barrel because we’re going to have some fun with Irwin Keller, a.k.a. Winnie from America’s favorite Dragapella Beautyshop Quartet, the Kinsey Sicks. Of course the Kinseys will be on stage here in San Francisco with their holiday show Oy Vey In A Manger,  when Jewish-Gentile tensions surface, and mayhem ensues–all in glorious four-part harmony. Don’t miss the Chanukah spa classic “I Had a Little Facial” and, of course, the requisite and new Christmas cuisine standard, “Soylent Night.” Video viewing warning for the faint of humor: “A ribald, ridiculous, raunchy, decidedly R-rated romp through the best and worst of Christmas.”

All this and the usual — email questions and health trivia. A listener emails a question about eating over the holidays. He wants to, he will, he has and he wants to know how to avoid tummy aches and acid reflex. Hmmmm. Listen to some good tips and if you too suffer from this uncomfortable disorder we recommend you check out Dropping Acid: The Reflux Diet Cookbook and Cure by Dr. Jamie Koufman.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

For those of you who live in the Bay Area—you probably already know and love Joanie Greggains, one of America’s favorite health and exercise personalities. Her TV exercise show, Morning Stretch, aired for 18 years, and her popular #1 talk radio show, The Joanie Greggains Show, was heard for 25 years on KGO Radio 810 AM in San Francisco, CA. Both have made her a familiar, popular, and respected authority in the health and fitness field. Joanie begins to drill through ten “Barriers to Exercise.” Turns out Casey has every one of them. Check out Joanie’s website at www.joaniegreggains.com.

You can listen to the whole show too! This show was originally broadcast October 20, 2012.

Of course we know the holidays are not just for eating and giving gifts, and from our Nurse Talk house to yours, we wish you all the best this holiday season.

We’ll be back next week with an all new show—until then laugh a little, love a lot and eat and drink moderately! (Note to self.)

Oh lord…on the show this week we have a horrible sound ensemble that includes what is now being touted as “The worst sound EVER”—a knife against a glass bottle, followed by the screeching sound of chalk on a chalkboard, the sound of a ruler on a bottle, and the sound of nails on a chalkboard. If these noises don’t raise the hair on your chin—well—then you must be really Zen or hard of hearing. More fun with this on the show. You can listen here.

AND—we all know the V.A. hospital system is a lifeline for our returning veterans. What we don’t know or may not think about is the overwhelming case loads for the healthcare practioners who care for these vets. Recently V.A. System RNs won a NATIONAL CONTRACT that they say will ensure vets the level of QUALITY CARE they deserve. At issue for a long time has been the lack of sufficient staffing among other safety concerns. V.A. RN Irma Westmoreland is with us to talk about this landmark contract. Irma also talks about the advances that have been made within the system to increase and improve immediate care for Veterans. We don’t hear enough about the good that is being done and the improvements being made so this is great news to share.

Joanie Greggains

For those of you who live in the Bay Area—you probably already know and love Joanie Greggains, one of America’s favorite health and exercise personalities. Her TV exercise show, Morning Stretch, aired for 18 years, and her popular #1 talk radio show, The Joanie Greggains Show, was heard for 25 years on KGO Radio 810 AM in San Francisco, CA. Both have made her a familiar, popular, and respected authority in the health and fitness field. Joanie drills through ten “Barriers to Exercise.” Turns out Casey has every one of them. Check out Joanie’s website at www.joaniegreggains.com.

Casey and Shayne talk a little bit about the meningitis outbreak. For the non-nurses in the audience, what is meningitis? How does one get it? What are the treatments? Is it always deadly?

That and more on Nurse Talk. You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. You can find us on Progressive Voices, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, & iTunes, the whole bit!

Every doctor makes mistakes. But, says physician Brian Goldman, medicine’s culture of denial (and shame) keeps doctors from ever talking about those mistakes, or using them to learn and improve. Telling stories from his own long practice, he calls on doctors to start talking about being wrong.

I have energy. Its not long, long lasting, but it is palpable. My strength is returning. Yesterday, while walking up an incline, I felt the smallest stirring in my glutes. I may get my butt back yet!

Yesterday Randin and I hired a chef to come a few nights a week to cook, (obviously), but also to instruct us. This woman, Dawn, has also experienced the terror of low, low weight. She’s been to 85 and back, and so knows what I am up against. I really believe she can help me through my weight gain, to do it healthfully, and most importantly sustainably, intelligently, and lovingly.

Yesterday was also a chemo day. The doctors were surprised that my blood counts recovered enough to receive it. They tell me there is nothing I can do to effect my counts, that it is simply something that happens on its own. But I’m not sure. I’m not sure because so much has changed for me in the last few weeks. I’m eating for one. I’m not really depressed anymore, for another.

Today I went to see the acupuncturist. It mellows me out. I’m so remarkably tense from my top of my head to my belly. I’m probably tense body wide to be truthful, but I feel the rigidity primarily in my upper body and jaw. I think it is because I am angry at my body right now. My heart is wrapped up and closed, and that includes my arms. (They often do the wrapping).

I think I’m ready to open my heart again, and to trust my body again. To listen to my body. I must remember that this sickness is here to teach me something. It is using my body as the metaphor. I love metaphors. I love poetry. I love language. I love to examine and interpret, and share what I have learned with others. My eyes are opening. I no longer have them clenched shut. I’m blinking and looking about like a newborn. And I’m just as hairless! More!

Most of us don’t run with the crowd that attends the Annual Fall Fashion Week in New York City. BUT…it does seem somewhat exciting and it certainly highlights all of the beautiful fall fashions and—SADLY—the fact that eating disorders are alive and well in the fashion industry. Well, just because we are boring old nurses doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun and run with the “it” people. Nurse Talk presents our 3rd annual FALL FLU FASHION SHOW—and believe me it is a doozy!

Speaking of fashion…oooohhh, oh, ouch. Avert your eyes.

JD from the hit 90′s “medical” show Scrubs, shows us a scrubs fashion faux pas.

And we welcome back Dr. Francine Shapiro. Dr. Shapiro returns to talk about her successful treatment of veterans with PTSD. Dr. Shapiro discovered one of the most important breakthroughs in the history of psychology, EMDR therapy, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Her new book is Getting Past Your Past: Take Control of your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy.

We also have two of her colleagues, Dr. E. C. Hurley, Ph.D., who has been working with soldiers and veterans since he enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam era, and Dr. Mark C. Russell, Ph.D., who is a retired U.S. Navy Commander, and board certified clinical psychologist, with 26-years of military experience. Together with the help of EMDR therapy—these clinicians are producing groundbreaking results for these soldiers with PTSD.

Children, assisted by EMDR HAP, who have overcome their fear of the sea after the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed some 230,000 people in 14 countries.

Dr. Shapiro also talks about HAP, the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program, the mental health equivalent of Doctors Without Borders: a global network of clinicians who travel anywhere there is a need to stop suffering and prevent the after-effects of trauma and violence. Visit http://www.emdrhap.org/home/index.php

AND we’ll check in with RN and Friend of Nurse Talk, Deborah Burger. Deborah is also co-president of National Nurses United. She’ll talk about California Proposition 30 endorsed by the California Nurses Association and supported by Governor Jerry Brown. Prop. 30 would raise from $6 billion to $9 billion every year, mostly through a small increase in taxes for the top income brackets, starting at households making $250,000 or more per year, as well as a temporary one-quarter of a cent increase in the state sales tax—with the revenue going for healthcare, education, childcare and other critical services.

This show was originally broadcast September 15, 2012. Check us out at TUNE IN. Listen anywhere, anytime for any reason or no reason at all!

Most of us don’t run with the crowd that attends the Annual Fall Fashion Week in New York City. BUT…it does seem somewhat exciting and it certainly highlights all of the beautiful fall fashions and—SADLY—the fact that eating disorders are alive and well in the fashion industry. Well, just because we are boring old nurses doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun and run with the “it” people. Nurse Talk presents our 3rd annual FALL FLU FASHION SHOW—and believe me it is a doozy! Click on the player icon above for your 3 minute 20 second preview of the show.

Speaking of fashion…oooohhh, oh, ouch. Avert your eyes.

JD from the hit 90′s “medical” show Scrubs, shows us a scrubs fashion faux pas.

And we welcome back Dr. Francine Shapiro. Dr. Shapiro returns to talk about her successful treatment of veterans with PTSD. Dr. Shapiro discovered one of the most important breakthroughs in the history of psychology, EMDR therapy, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Her new book is Getting Past Your Past: Take Control of your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy.

We also have two of her colleagues, Dr. E. C. Hurley, Ph.D., who has been working with soldiers and veterans since he enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam era, and Dr. Mark C. Russell, Ph.D., who is a retired U.S. Navy Commander, and board certified clinical psychologist, with 26-years of military experience. Together with the help of EMDR therapy—these clinicians are producing groundbreaking results for these soldiers with PTSD.

Children, assisted by EMDR HAP, who have overcome their fear of the sea after the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed some 230,000 people in 14 countries.

Dr. Shapiro also talks about HAP, the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program, the mental health equivalent of Doctors Without Borders: a global network of clinicians who travel anywhere there is a need to stop suffering and prevent the after-effects of trauma and violence. Visit http://www.emdrhap.org/home/index.php

AND we’ll check in with RN and Friend of Nurse Talk, Deborah Burger. Deborah is also co-president of National Nurses United. She’ll talk about California Proposition 30 endorsed by the California Nurses Association and supported by Governor Jerry Brown. Prop. 30 would raise from $6 billion to $9 billion every year, mostly through a small increase in taxes for the top income brackets, starting at households making $250,000 or more per year, as well as a temporary one-quarter of a cent increase in the state sales tax—with the revenue going for healthcare, education, childcare and other critical services.

This show was originally broadcast September 15, 2012. Check us out at TUNE IN. Listen anywhere, anytime for any reason or no reason at all!

Image credit: Cheryl Empey

I have a special box with little things in it…things like menus of restaurants that my friends and I went to, or matchbook covers from a bar that we had a good time in. I have books, and just a box full of trinkets that make me smile…a chipped tea cup from my grandmothers house, an old favorite earring of my mothers, silly things, but things that have a story. I told Missy that I wanted to box them up pretty and write down what their story was.

Missy frowned at me and said, “Oh mommy…those are your memories, your special things, they will never mean as much to someone else because they are your memories of your friends and your good times.” I thought about that and thought she was right…who would want my old matchbook covers or little handkerchiefs? It’s really not the item, it’s all the memories that go along with it.

That’s why I hate Alzheimer’s…its a disease that makes a person just a being…when you take away their stories, their memories…their joy of remembering….you just have the shell of that person.

I have kinda become like my little box of trinkets…when I forget those stories…they will be like me in the future…just some trinkets, like me a body with no stories, no memories, a stranger will meet me in the future and just see a person with Alzheimer’s.  They wont know my stories. If a stranger found my box of trinkets, they wouldn’t know the love, the fun, the memories in them.

I remember when Missy was little, when her daddy and I would go out I always wore my special earrings. Missy loved those earrings, when I would be getting ready to go out, she would put them on…and then put them on me. I only have one of those earrings left, over the years I lost one. I wrote on a little piece of paper today that I want Missy to have that one earring and reminded her of how she always loved to wear them…I couldn’t wait till Christmas, so I gave it to her today. It made her cry. She loved it and she said, “Okay mommy, you are right…tomorrow, we will start writing out your little stories and attach them to your trinkets. They will make wonderful wonderful Christmas gifts to your special friends and family.”

I thought after that, that all of us should do that. Don’t leave your treasures in a box for your family to find…write on it what each treasure and trinket means to you. I am wondering if my grandson will love the little rock that he gave me when he was 5. It’s just a little rock, but I have kept it for almost 30 years.

Just trinkets, but they all have a story…just like every person with Alzheimer’s, we all have a little story.

And Casey offers scientific evidence that “laughter is the best medicine.” What happens when we laugh? We change physiologically when we laugh. We stretch muscles throughout our face and body, our pulse and blood pressure go up, and we breathe faster, sending more oxygen to our tissues. In the last few decades, researchers have studied laughter’s effects on the body and turned up some potentially interesting information on how it affects us:

•  Blood Flow
• Immune Response
• Blood Sugar Levels
• Relaxation and Sleep

Just to test the affects on blood flow and blood pressure, Casey and Shayne conduct a very dangerous “on air” experiment. You won’t want to miss it.

On a bit of a serious note, November is National Diabetes Month, including World Diabetes Day on Nov. 14th. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) urges people to take action and make simple but important lifestyle changes to achieve their health goals — whether they have diabetes or are at risk for the disease. For more information about Diabetes Education and Resources visit http://ndep.nih.gov/.

And RNs Jean Ross and Karen Higgins join us to talk about the recent elections, what the results mean to our country and respective states. Both Jean and Karen are full time RNs and also serve as two of the three co-presidents for National Nurses United.

And Dr. Christina Purpora joins us to talk about “horizontal violence.” A veteran RN writes, “A silent killer has made its way into nursing and slowly eaten away at the core of who we are as nurses.” This epidemic is becoming so widespread that everyone from administrators to nurses’ aides are affected by it. Dr. Purpora is an Assistant Professor in the School of Nursing and Health Professions at the University of San Francisco (USF). Prior to beginning her academic career in 2010, she earned a Ph.D. in nursing at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

Photo credit: Yosep Sugiarto

A category 2 abdominal pain patient was brought into room 5 from the waiting room of my ER. She was an early 20-something who happened to be 17 weeks pregnant. She was complaining of diffuse belly pain, fever and nausea that had escalated over 48 hours. I watched the tech wheel her by the nursing station to go into room 5. She was petite in stature, and even smaller in appearance as she hunched forward guarding her stomach with her arms. A very worried-looking older woman accompanied her.

I quickly exited out of my charting on the computer, grabbed her triage information and scanned it. I went to the med room and collected an IV tray, saline, and a Doppler. As I entered the room I quietly laid my equipment on the counter and walked to the stretcher. Worried eyes looked at me from the face of this attractive young woman. She sat on the stretcher in a semi-fowler position with her knees drawn up to her stomach. She held the older woman’s hand and barely changed expression as a tear fell from her left eye.

I outstretched my hand to her as I introduced myself to them both. “My name is Bobbi and I will be your nurse tonight. I promise to take very good care of you and make you more comfortable as soon as possible.”

She answered tearfully, “Thank you…and my name is ***** and this is my mother. I’m pregnant.”

After she finished telling me about her abdominal pain I examined her, assessed her vital signs again and started an IV, drew blood and hung NS at 150/hr. Using the Doppler I found her baby’s heartbeat to be a bounding 176…this brought a fresh tirade of tears from both women as they visibly exhaled with relief that the baby was okay. Her temp was 102, respiration 22, heart rate 122, blood pressure 126/70, lungs were clear bilaterally with a room air sat 100%. Her skin color was pale and very warm to touch. She rated her pain 8/10. She had positive bowel sounds all quads and was extremely tender to the slightest touch with positive rebound tenderness.

As the next couple of hours went by with tests and the diagnosis of appendicitis, I carefully took care of this patient as we awaited her trip to the OR. She was quiet but strong. she was childlike when the pain intensified and somewhat soothed by her mother’s reassurance. I administered morphine often in small doses to alleviate her pain…I gave her cool cloths for her forehead, dimmed the lights and sat with her. I offered her constant reassurance that her baby would be okay. when my interventions for her and my other patients were completed, I was able to give her a hand massage and Reiki as we waited.

Her mother and I noticed that during the hand massage and Reiki treatment her pulse significantly lowered and her breathing slowed as her face relaxed. The pain meds helped, of course, but the visible transformation of her facial and body features during the relaxation therapies was so obvious that her mother commented on it several times. As I wheeled her to the OR she again asked me for reassurance of her baby’s safety…I gave this to her. Before I left her in the care of the OR team she tearfully took my hand and thanked me for caring about her and her baby…she thanked me for the way I cared for her in the ER. She said with a grin, “The touching therapy helped me so much. Thank you. Can you come and take care of me when I’m in labor?”

Walking back down to the ER I felt so thankful that I was able to take care of this patient in her wholeness…body/mind/and spirit. I have been blessed these last few years to have my nursing skills enhanced with the knowledge of holistic care and the learning of alternative therapies like hand massage and Reiki. My BSN classes included a Reiki course.  I became a level 2 practitioner. I now have the awesome pleasure of teaching Nur. 101 and I’m able to pass on the teachings of holistic care with real life examples of what it looks like.

Being able to nurse someone holistically positively affects not only the patient but me as well… I have a very grateful heart.

Marilyn Kentz

AND so goes another episode of Nurse Talk. BUT of course there’s more to us than that! Comedian, writer, storyteller, sitcom star Marilyn Kentz chats with Casey and Shayne about her new one woman show Will I Ever Wear A Bikini Again? Some of you may remember Marilyn and her friend and neighbor (from Petaluma, Calif.), Caryl Christensen from their 1990′s hit sitcom “The Mommies.” Marilyn talks about the value of humor in her life as well as the joys of aging without grace!

A tribute to our nurses from National Nurses United and all nurses around the world. As we always report, nurses are at the top of the list every year for being the most admired and respected profession. Nurses take an oath to advocate for their patients and they take it very seriously — sometimes at great peril to themselves. This week we take a look back at 2012 when the nurses fought for everything from RN-to-patient ratios to ensure safer staffing for patients, to Medicare for All, the Robin Hood Tax and the fight to save Social Security as we know it.

Donna Smith

At the front of the fight on many of these issues was Donna Smith, NNU’s legislative and healthcare for all advocate. While Donna was literally marching on the streets for others she herself was once again diagnosed with cancer. After a bout with cancer in the mid 90′s that left Donna and her husband Larry broke — the cancer returned. Now it was her turn to fight once again for herself.

What does it take to “live a good life for the rest of your life?” Seeing your doctor and staying healthy is always a good thing and approaching your health from a preventive perspective is even better.  Our guests Ron Cain and Dave Parkes, financial consultants at Pacific Advisors in the San Francisco Bay Area, tell us that it is imperative we approach our financial well-being exactly the same way. Great advice if I do say so myself! “To get your own Living Balance Sheet and schedule your financial check-up with Ron and Dave, contact them here:
www.pacificadvisors.com/davep
Www.pacificadvisors.com/rcain

Remember, laughter is the best medicine. You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

I went to the local imaging center in May, a chain that specializes in mostly MRIs, CT scans, ultrasounds, and X-rays. The technician scanned my arm with an ultrasound and told me that I didn’t have clots. The doctor verified the result in a letter. But what no one told me was the technician went up too far and scanned my thyroid, too. A few weeks later, I got another letter, recommending a biopsy because my thyroid had eight nodules, seven of them too small to worry about. The eighth one gave the doctor concern. I made another appointment as soon as possible which translated into three weeks, but a little background first on cancer and biopsies. .

Nodule. Carcinoma. Tumor. Malignancy. Lesion. I call it the “C word.” But no matter what you call it, cancer is cancer. I thought I had it from all the X-rays and CT scans over the last three, stroke-related years. Today, after the smoking PSAs and warnings on the cigarette packs, and a lot of pink depicting Breast Cancer Awareness, more than a million cancer deaths have been avoided in two decades. Even so, there is still cancer.

The American Cancer Society says that cancer deaths in the U.S. continue to go down for lung, colon, breast, and prostate cancers, which are responsible for most cancer deaths. However, some of the less common cancers have been on the increase in the past decade, including pancreas, liver, kidney, and thyroid cancer.

A biopsy, a sample of tissue taken from the dubious site, is done in order to scrutinize it more carefully. Biopsies are done when an initial reading suggests an area of tissue looks suspicious on an imaging test, for example. Lest you think I am straying from the issue at hand, here’s the reality. Most often, biopsies are done to look for cancer.

So there I was, an uncomfortable stroke survivor, lying prone on a table and staring up at the ceiling, waiting for the biopsy to begin. I started to count the square tiles, count the lights, count the square tiles again. When the radiologist came into the examining room, as I was silently planning my funeral and after-party, the doctor showed me the needle (most commonly used on all biopsies) he would use to remove a small amount of thyroid tissue with the assistance of numbing medication and an ultrasound to identify the nodule.

“You will probably be sore after the biopsy, but the soreness should just last for a few days. Use an ice pack initially, 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off, and take Tylenol, and if the site becomes swollen and/or hot, you can call us at any time. A doctor is always on call,” the radiologist said. “There will be three samples taken, one at a time.” I started planning the inheritance for each of the kids.

The biopsy was over in a few minutes and I took a nap when I arrived home. The pain that would “last a few days” lasted a week, with the intensity getting weaker every day. Mostly, I had a sore throat.

The radiologist sent me a report of the findings in another two weeks, and all it said was “abnormal tissue.” The report also recommended a biopsy again in three months. So, of course, I wanted a second opinion. A doctor friend recommended an otolaryngologist who specialized in thyroids. So I went to see him. The “oto” recommended Veracyte, a thyroid testing company, that goes the extra mile to test the sample completely. The sample was sent to San Francisco where Veracyte is based, the land of the “Big One,” (referring to an earthquake forecast recently for the San Andreas fault that could end up being bigger than earthquake experts previously thought).

According to the Veracyte literature, the test “measures the amount of activity of 142 genes in the thyroid nodule…to be performed only when cytopathology (the examination of cells used to diagnose nodules) is indeterminate.” “Abnormal cells,” the diagnosis on the first report, was about to get a re-do.

Three months later, I went to get another biopsy, this time with four samples, and again one at a time. The biopsy, like the other one, took a few minutes. I knew the drill by now. Ice pack on and off, Tylenol, nap, and the sore throat for a week. The results letter arrived two weeks later. I was glad the “Big One” didn’t hit yet. The letter said that no evidence of cancer was found because the nodule was benign.

Look at all the time I wasted, worrying about thyroid cancer. Three weeks to the first biopsy, then three months to the second biopsy, and then two weeks longer for the results to come. I couldn’t get the time back, but once again, a lesson learned: Don’t worry until you know.

I think I need a root canal. No more delaying, I decided. I’m going in four months–tops.

And speaking of politics — -oh,  I don’t think we were speaking of politics — BUT let’s. Our guest this week is Michael Lighty. Michael is the Director of Public Policy for the California Nurses Association. He talks with us about the upcoming election and the high stakes in California with Propositions 30 and 32. Often times these propositions are written in such a way that they are very difficult to understand — or shall we say interpret.  Michael helps decode and tells us why voting yes on 30 and no on 32 is important for nurses and patients. For more  California voting information or a national voting guide visit nationalnursesunited.org.

Do you ever have one of those nagging recurring nightmares — NAKED IN THE NURSING HOME? Well, Naked In The Nursing Home, The Women’s Guide to Paying for Long-Term Care Without Going Broke written by Harold L Lustig might help reduce the frequency of that dream. Mr. Lustig is a financial adviser who specializes in working with the elderly and their families. So important, and the book is fun to read as well. Here are some of the things you can check out in the book: Tricks and Traps of Medicaid, including mistakes to avoid and secrets to navigating the system; why you may be eligible for free long-term care if you’re a wartime veteran, or the spouse or surviving spouse of one. All worth the price of admission — figuratively speaking!

Naked in the Nursing Home, author Harold Lustig’s father came to him at age 78 and told him he was out of assets, soon thereafter, his mother became very sick.  Harol says if he had known then what he knows now about long-term care planning, his parents would have had a better end-of-life experience.

Listen to the whole show.

Co-Host Emeritus, Maggie McDermott and Host Casey Hobbs when Nurse Talk was a baby.

As we continue to celebrate Nurse Talk’s 4th birthday we, of course, had to drag out yet another blast from the beginning days of Nurse Talk with then co-host Maggie McDermott and one of our favorite callers Muriel. And for those of you who might be concerned about Muriel — we recently contacted her and she has completely recovered from her “chortling” disorder. She is remarried and has started a new career as a minister—a woman of the cloth. Well, it’s always nice to find a happy ending. You can listen to Muriel’s call at the Nurse Talk Comedy Pharm.

Michael Lighty

And speaking of politics — -oh,  I don’t think we were speaking of politics — BUT let’s. Our guest this week is Michael Lighty. Michael is the Director of Public Policy for the California Nurses Association. He talks with us about the upcoming election and the high stakes in California with Propositions 30 and 32. Often times these propositions are written in such a way that they are very difficult to understand — or shall we say interpret.  Michael helps decode and tells us why voting yes on 30 and no on 32 is important for nurses and patients. For more  California voting information or a national voting guide visit nationalnursesunited.org.

Do you ever have one of those nagging recurring nightmares — NAKED IN THE NURSING HOME? Well, Naked In The Nursing Home, The Women’s Guide to Paying for Long-Term Care Without Going Broke written by Harold L Lustig might help reduce the frequency of that dream. Mr. Lustig is a financial adviser who specializes in working with the elderly and their families. So important, and the book is fun to read as well. Here are some of the things you can check out in the book: Tricks and Traps of Medicaid, including mistakes to avoid and secrets to navigating the system; why you may be eligible for free long-term care if you’re a wartime veteran, or the spouse or surviving spouse of one. All worth the price of admission — figuratively speaking!

AND watch out when you go to your doctor for your annual visit. Check the bill because “airline-style” billing is alive and well in the medical profession. Check this out.  One woman found extra charges for asking a question about a pain in her back — cha ching — $50! And another for asking about a foot sprain — cha ching, $65.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Photo credit: Loredana Bejerita

Here’s where I am now: I’m tired of waiting to feel better, so I’m doing things anyway. I’m exercising anyway. I’m eating anyway. I’m washing the dishes anyway. Dr. Asch seems to imply that I will and should be feeling better soon, that there is some latency from Consolidation I and the CNS phases that I need to shed. I admit to feeling a bit stronger, but again I think it has to do more with my do-it-anyway policy than anything else. I just can’t imagine feeling better than this, when the schedule says chemo weekly! I may as well adjust to a body that is poisoned all the time.

Life has been awful and terrifying this past few months. I stopped eating. Went to 85 pounds. Dr. Peterson said, “It’s as if you are disappearing on us.” The truth is I was. I had lost the desire to live. I checked myself into the hospital. Was threatened with a feeding tube. Please don’t panic. I’m not in such a dark place as I was. But I was in a dark place, and touched a level of hopelessness I’d never experienced before:

Life is mundane. People’s conversations are inane. Going anywhere and doing anything is pointless. Everything we do as humans is to stave off boredom another day. Humans are hopelessly bored or boring. Why do any of us bother living, and why should I bother when it is so hard and I all I do is sleep and get poisoned?

I realized that a feeding tube would do nothing to inspire me to eat again. It wasn’t food, it was my outlook. We went with the Mom Plan. Mom pulled me from the hospital, took me home and happily force fed me for 3 days. I’ve never eaten so much pork. I swept the walk, it felt great to use my arms. I sat in the sunshine. I held mom’s little dog. I let go of the terror.

Mom and I went for a drive to examine the changes in the neighborhood. My high school has doubled in size and Pleasant Grove is a construction zone! On the way home we ran into (very nearly literally), my sister Vicki, who had just found the perfect tree for her yard.

Great hope, small packages

I went to Nephi and spent a Sunday with my sister Kim and her family, little grand-kids, doing lovely little grand-kid things, such as showing off for great aunt Brandi while running through the sprinkler. I spoke with my brother-in-law Cory, who I know has seen this dark place, and in whose eyes and arms I knew I would find understanding and compassion. I watched my nephew and his wife cuddling on the grass and felt proud of them, and their beautiful family. I felt the joy working on and improving Dad’s house brings to my sister. I felt the anticipation of a baby horse expected in just a few days.

I enjoyed the surprise visit by Uncle Jerry and Aunt Pat (Dad’s sister), and even let Uncle Jerry trim my fingernails.

I remembered I like little dill pickles.

The experience enlivened me. I still feel like our lives are hopeless attempts against boredom, but the quality of our attempts, what we choose to do to not feel bored, there’s a magic there. Particularly if it builds relationship, to each other, to land, to animals.

I’ve been weeding my garden, some. It’s full of grass.

Oh lord…on the show this week we have a horrible sound ensemble that includes what is now being touted as “The worst sound EVER”—a knife against a glass bottle, followed by the screeching sound of chalk on a chalkboard, the sound of a ruler on a bottle, and the sound of nails on a chalkboard. If these noises don’t raise the hair on your chin—well—then you must be really Zen or hard of hearing. More fun with this on the show. You can listen here.

AND—we all know the V.A. hospital system is a lifeline for our returning veterans. What we don’t know or may not think about is the overwhelming case loads for the healthcare practioners who care for these vets. Recently V.A. System RNs won a NATIONAL CONTRACT that they say will ensure vets the level of QUALITY CARE they deserve. At issue for a long time has been the lack of sufficient staffing among other safety concerns. V.A. RN Irma Westmoreland is with us to talk about this landmark contract. Irma also talks about the advances that have been made within the system to increase and improve immediate care for Veterans. We don’t hear enough about the good that is being done and the improvements being made so this is great news to share.

Joanie Greggains

For those of you who live in the Bay Area—you probably already know and love Joanie Greggains, one of America’s favorite health and exercise personalities. Her TV exercise show, Morning Stretch, aired for 18 years, and her popular #1 talk radio show, The Joanie Greggains Show, was heard for 25 years on KGO Radio 810 AM in San Francisco, CA. Both have made her a familiar, popular, and respected authority in the health and fitness field. Joanie drills through ten “Barriers to Exercise.” Turns out Casey has every one of them. Check out Joanie’s website at www.joaniegreggains.com.

Casey and Shayne talk a little bit about the meningitis outbreak. For the non-nurses in the audience, what is meningitis? How does one get it? What are the treatments? Is it always deadly?

That and more on Nurse Talk. You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. You can find us on Progressive Voices, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, & iTunes, the whole bit!

Mmmmmmmm. Photo credit: Simona Balint

I can’t remember my Social Security number, my daughter’s birth date, how old my grandchildren are, what I had for supper last night, what I watched on TV this morning or what you call those round green things that are red inside and some have seeds and some don’t.  I love them cold but can’t think what they are called. I can’t remember what the grocery store closest by our home is called, what Mike’s oldest brother’s name is, what type of car Missy drives…

But I do remember, that I love cinnamon toast when Missy makes it for me at night when I have bad dreams.  I remember how Missy gives me a bath every morning and rubs on my favorite lotion. I remember that my great granddaughter is name Ava Barbara.  I remember that I love crazy socks. I remember that I love bacon lettuce tomato sandwiches, I love Coke more than Pepsi, that I can’t eat chocolate. I remember that I love to volunteer at the nursing home, I remember that I used to love to dance and sing, I remember that I have lots of friends who love me on Facebook. I remember I have Alzheimer’s and Missy has MS. I remember that Missy told me I don’t have to go to a nursing home, that I get to stay here with her and Mike. So I think what I am remembering today are the important things, that I am loved and safe. It’s OK to forget some of the other stuff.

Oh yeah…its watermelon…that’s what its called….I love watermelon. And I love all of you buddies too!

True presence heals the patient and the nurse.

I could hear her crying and screaming in pain as I entered the ER for my evening shift. The door to her room was closed but the bone-chilling cries echoed out beneath the wooden door and filled the airspace of the nursing station. I inquired about her. “She got here almost an hour ago and we cannot seem to get a handle on her pain…” I looked at the board to see her name—I knew her… My heart raced and I felt a lump gather in my throat…I hadn’t seen her for almost 9 years now. My mind sped back to the time that our paths had crossed.

I was doing home health nursing then and she was a teenager with a newly diagnosed sarcoma. I was to care for her while she received treatments. I was in her home several times a week for a several months. We bonded and I cared about her. She knew my daughter. I wanted her to live…I prayed for her day and night. She was tough…strong and determined. She had spirit and spunk far beyond her years…I wanted to take care of her. Her case brought out the best in me, but also that part of me that wanted to take over and do it all. I struggled with my sense of ego and pride…I struggled to not let her into my heart. It was a losing battle.

Life changed for me and I took another job. I left her in the hands of my co-workers and I cried for days…I battled with the feelings that I had abandoned her.  I had crossed the line with her. I knew that my feelings for her were deeper than they should have been. I took on more of her care than I should have, or at least more than was professional. When I left it broke my heart. I did not know that it broke hers too.

I was pulled back to the present by the day nurse wanting to give me report. I would be getting this girl that so long ago claimed a piece of my heart. I listened to the report and then went in to meet with her. As I opened the door the crying and begging for pain relief hit me in the heart. I looked at her and saw a grown woman whose pale face was contorted in pain. Tears soaked her face as she twisted and writhed on the stretcher. “Please help me, I can’t stand this pain any longer…” I left the room, went to the orders and saw she could have another dose of Dilaudid now…I retrieved it from the med room and quickly returned to her.

As I sat on the stool next to her bed and injected the pain medicine I prayed for relief for her. Her mother sat close by holding her hand. I introduced myself as I cared for her…she looked at me and started a fresh tirade of tears… “Oh my god, is it really you Bobbi?”

“Yes it is” I replied with a smile.

She reached across the stretcher and put her arms around my neck and pulled me close as she cried into my neck. We stayed like this for several moments. I let myself feel the heart-wrenching feelings that I had let go so long ago. “I think of you so often,” she said between sobs. “You were the best nurse I have ever had…I measure everyone next to you.” I smiled and let the compliment enter my heart. “I missed you terribly when you left,” she said. I told her that I had missed her as well and so often had prayed for her. I told her that I watched her in the newspaper and from afar at school…I told her that she was one of those patients that never left my heart.

I managed to get her pain under control with meds, hand massage and presence…and we enjoyed catching up with one another. She was admitted and I went home. As I thought about the encounter I realized that as a young nurse I tried so hard not to let anyone into my heart for fear of being unprofessional. I knew she had entered my heart deeply and it scared me. I always thought of her, prayed for her and worried for her, and struggled with the feelings that I had abandoned her.

As I let myself feel the rush of emotions that occurred when we reunited I realized that I was wrong all those years ago. It wasn’t the fear of being unprofessional; it was the fear of not being able to help her that kept me bound…

Jean Watson’s theory of human caring talks about caring moments and allowing our hearts as nurses to be present with our patient’s heart. I did not realize what was occurring way back then BUT I do know the power of presence now. Being present with this patient gave her and I both healing that night in the ER. Allowing myself to care for her all those years ago touched her and in return in touched me. As we reunited and told one another the power and effect the other had on our lives…healing happened. Watson’s theory came alive for me that night in the ER and I will never be the same.

I have questioned GOD as to why I cant walk any longer…why my feet don’t work and I can’t make them go where I want. I think sometimes GOD answers some prayers in ways that we don’t know about.

Maybe me not walking is to help Missy. Maybe sometimes prayers get crossed. Maybe Missy prayed for help in caring for me, maybe I prayed for Missy to get help in caring for me, and for me not to be such a burden. Yes, today, I thank GOD, I can not get up by myself and walk around…it would be another burden for Missy.

I hate Alzheimer’s, I hate it.

Men basically have two things to worry about: erectile dysfunction and the prospect of prostrate cancer. Big deal. But most men don’t know what it takes to be a woman because they’ve never walked our mile. Permit me to elaborate: wearing a clumsy pad or a tampon that was pushed up too far while our 30+-year period continues to flow; achieving pregnancy with bipolar-ish hormones run through our veins; using itchy make-up, because it was the best buy, that was not tested on animals; losing our diaphragms somewhere, somehow, inside our bodies; experiencing the annual pap smear that will tell you if uterine cancer is in the cards; and, my personal favorite, getting a mammogram, especially after my stroke.

A mammogram is a bitch. Millions of women, including me, have to get a mammogram every year to detect, primarily, cancer and other breast disorders.

A mammography exam is a type of imaging that uses an x-ray, the low-dose type, to examine the breasts, called a mammogram, which is used to aid in the early detection and diagnosis of breast diseases in women. Other machines exist to capture the breasts’ images, but an x-ray is the most popular. If the doctor suspects a problem, you might use another method of scanning the breasts, like an ultrasound.

Mammography plays a central part in early detection of breast cancers because it can show changes in the breast up to two years before a patient or physician can detect lumps. Currently, many associations, like the American Cancer Society, the American Medical Association, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the American College of Radiology, recommend a mammography annually, starting at age 40, when women are most likely to receive the best form of treatment if any cancer is seen. Women who have had breast cancer at a younger age, or who have breast cancer in their genetic history, could have a mammogram sooner than 40, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Here’s where the rules come in.

–Your mammogram should not be given the week before your period, if you’re regular or not, when your breasts are sensitive. –If you suspect pregnancy, tell your doctor or x-ray technologist because your breasts may be too tender to handle.

–If the screening place is a new one, gather prior mammograms and make them available to the radiologist. If your screenings are done in the same place, the radiologists should have them there. Asking doesn’t hurt.

–Wearing deodorant, lotion, or powder on the day of your mammogram could show up as calcium spots, not a good thing, so risk smelling foul for one day.

–If you don’t hear from your doctor or the mammography site, don’t assume the best. Call after one week. Possibly, and likely, someone screwed up in informing you.

In the mammography process, a technologist will put your breasts, one at a time, on a platform, compressing them with a paddle, commonly made of clear Plexiglas. Compression is necessary to put the breasts flat, to spread out the breast tissues to scan as much of the breasts as possible, and to hold the breasts still while holding your breath to not make the pictures a good waste of time.

Breast implants can also make mammograms difficult to read because both silicone and saline implants are not transparent on x-rays. But trained technologists and radiologists know how to compress the breasts to make the view successful without rupturing the implant. (Squish? Just sayin’). Also, a small portion of mammograms show that cancer exists when it is really not there, known as a false-positive result.

The mammography is performed on an outpatient basis and it’s a 30-minute process, tops.

In my case, having a stroke didn’t have much to do with my mammogram except for one thing: my one breast hung down lower than the other because of my sub-luxed shoulder which happened from the stroke. In layman’s terms, the shoulder muscle was detached from what used to be the ball and socket configuration. So the scan was harder to accomplish. The customary views are right breast, top to bottom, and an angled view, and the same with the left breast. Though the technologist had a routine by always starting with the right best, she did the opposite.

“I’ll x-ray your left breast first, then the right. I’m breaking my routine since I always start with the right breast. But it’s going to be harder to x-ray the right. I’m a creature of habit. First right, then left. Right, left. Right, left. But on you? left, then right.”

Is there a phrase that’s stronger than “shut up?” F*%! you, maybe? I didn’t know how to deal with this “Chatty Cathy,” but I started to count. Counting always calms me.

The technologist squeezed my breasts with the compression paddle on each of the four views, and then walked behind a wall while each picture was being taken, not wanting to expose herself to radiation. I used all my restraint to avoid the obvious ouch, ooow, and a few choice words, saved for occasions like this one.

I was hurting after the mammogram, while the technologist spoke again after she was finished.

“I want to see if the pictures came out. I’ll be back. And I want to see if the sides are labeled correctly. I usually start with the right, but in your case, I started with the left breast, saving the worst for last.”

That’s the second time she said that she usually started with the right. And the worst? For last? The technologist didn’t know when enough was enough.

I was all finished dressing myself when the technologist returned and said the pictures were fine.

“I see you’ve dressed yourself before you knew whether I’d have to re-take one of the images. You must be in a hurry to leave.”

I was going to say something, but in the scheme of things, fighting the really tough battles, this wasn’t one of them. I only smiled. And I’m proud of myself. For once, I knew when to shut my mouth, not to say something I would regret later. But if I had to repeat the scan, I wouldn’t know what I’d do. Jab her with my cane? Maybe. But everybody forgives a stroke survivor. Heh, heh.

About two weeks later, I received a letter from the place that did my mammogram. It said, once again, that my mammogram was normal which made me happy, until next year when I’d go through “the squeeze” again. Sigh.

I always loved Mama! I guess she got jealous when they discovered the homeless man with the “golden voice” a few years back…

Now on with the show…I’m sure our listeners have heard us talk about the Robin Hood Tax—a small change for banks—a big change for people. This idea is global not local. A small transaction fee on the banks would raise billions to provide education, healthcare parity, infrastructure, and yes, even care for our fragile planet. What was once a movement—is now legislation—thanks to Minnesota Representative –Keith Ellison. We’ll have our friend RN Jean Ross from the state of Minnesota tell us why this is so important. The UK-based (they named it) worldwide campaign for the Robin Hood tax was launched on 10 February 10, 2010 and is run by a coalition of over 50 charities and organizations, including Christian Aid, Comic Relief and UNICEF. Check out this clip–we chose him because he has an accent and sounds like he knows what he is talking about—sort of.

Billy Bragg – Why banks should pay their fair share

Hal Isen

And we welcome back Hal Isen, the creator of Core Wisdom. What nourishes your spirit and empowers you to live each day with wisdom, vitality and joy? What enables you to fulfill the dreams you have for yourself, your family, and your workplace? How do you unleash your creativity and your power to take effective action? We’ll be talking with Hal about one aspect of that equation called “being present.” What does that mean? Hope you can take some time to listen because this is an engaging conversation that can help nurses express compassion without going into an emotional black hole.  (The show is always available on our site in the archives.) Hal will be part of the new Nurse Talk interactive online chat series starting in November.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturday at 11 am in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

You can listen to the whole show in the audio archive.

AND we must give a great deal of thanks to California Nurses Association, National Nurses United, Massachusetts Nurses Association and all of our other supporters. Without these wonderful organizations we would not have had the opportunity to bring a consistent radio voice to nurses and all who need and love them. It really is an honor to run in the same circles (figuratively speaking) as nurses. Not only an honor but I feel so safe—’cause I know one of them will pick me up if I fall!

You know how life sometimes brings you more than you think you can take? In the end though—what matters most is how well do we live, how well do we love, and how well do we learn to let go. This week the canine love of my life, Sherman, left this Earth and went to doggie heaven. He was five years old and full of love and life. He grew up listening to Nurse Talk and I swear to you he knew how to laugh. He knew he was cute too. While I am so present to his love, I thought I would share him with you.

Chatting with peers and experts on issues of the day just got easier. We’ll connect you!

Hey, don’t forget coming up is our series of interactive live chats…stay tuned for all of the details. If there is someone you want to hear from and chat with let us know by emailing pattie@nursetalksite.com.

Just one more rerun favorite until we have an all new season line up. This week Donna Smith on All Things D.C. and RN Marsha Podd, The Baby Whisperer originally broadcast June 2, 2012. On this show: a salute to teachers, great advice for parents of babies, defining lollygag and other popular sayings.

Donna Smith

Donna Smith, our National Nurses United D.C. correspondent brings us up to speed on all things Washington. Donna also shares a bit of personal news about her own health. Donna Smith is best known as one of the documentary subjects of Michael Moore’s 2007 movie, “SiCKO.” Her journalism career includes 15 regional awards from the AP Managing Editors. Donna now works as a national single-payer healthcare advocate and community organizer for National Nurses United, and co-chairs the Progressive Democrats of America’s national “Healthcare Not Warfare” campaign. She also blogs at MichaelMoore.com. You can hear a 3:20 short of Donna talking about the Robin Hood Tax here:

Marsha Podd, RN

And, it’s always a treat to have our friend RN Marsha Podd with us in the studio. A.K.A. the “baby whisperer”. When Marsha comes to the studio we all go to sleep. We mean that in a good way, as Marsha has one of the most soothing voices you’ll ever hear. Marsha, is the author of Secrets of a Baby Nurse. The book is getting rave reviews and if you know of anyone that is expecting a child, has babies or toddlers already, has looked at a child or even thought of a child–you need this book! To read more about Marsha and her advice for babies and parents visit her website at gotosleepbaby.com.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturdays at 11 am in the Boston area on station WWZN 1510AM or live stream at www.revolutionboston.com and in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Check out our favorite apps featuring Nurse Talk for custom radio on your  listening devices: Progressive Voices, TuneIn and iHeartRadio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

I went to room 13 to check on the patient I had just received report on… the ER was CRAZY but for some reason I felt the need to check on him first. Late teens, sick for 3 weeks with diarrhea, waiting on a stool sample (all other labs were back and relatively normal), loss of 20 pounds… I found him asleep on his left side with his left arm outstretched to expose the 18 gauge needle in the anticube with IV tubing attached to NS running at 400/hr (second liter). He was a handsome boy but pale and thin with dark hair all messed up, skin was dry and monitor showed a normal sinus with a rate of 96. His oxygen sat was normal at 99, blood pressure also normal at 120/76. The room was empty except for him of course and a purse…pink with brown trim (I’m assuming not his).

History was that he had been experiencing diarrhea several times (5-8) a day for 3 weeks, no fever and no vomiting. Pt. does however have pain in his lower abdominal region that is intermittent but ranges from a 7-8/10 on the pain scale. Pt. had a prior bout of this diarrhea last year around this time. No other medical history…otherwise healthy. Pt. comes from an intact home of original parents and he is the oldest.

I went into the room and tidied up. His mother arrived and I introduced myself. She told me that she was concerned her son was dehydrated. I reassured her that his vital signs were now normal (he was tachy upon arrival at 126) and that his orthostatic vitals revealed he was a bit dehydrated to start but that this liter of saline hanging was the second one and we would assess those vitals again shortly to show her his improvement. I told her I would be back and left to check on my other patients. She thanked me and sat down next to him.

After I finished my rounds I returned to room 13 to check on my boy. He was awake and in fact had just returned from the bathroom where he had left me a stool sample. “Oh joy,” I remarked with a laugh and went to collect the sample… I’ll save you the details but I will say it was very foul smelling and it left me suspicious of C-diff. I brought the sample to the lab and returned to the room.

My boy needed something for nausea and pain so I checked with the Doc in charge and then medicated him with Zofran and morphine. As I sat on the stool to the right of his bed and slowly administered his meds, I began to ask the questions that nagged at my brain. “Tell me about the day this diarrhea started…”

After several minutes of talking I found out that this young man was under tremendous stress at home and school…he was the oldest of 3 and his dad was out of work…his mother tells me that he is “OCD” about stuff and “worries about everything” to which he agrees with her. He tells me that he lies awake at night worrying about the family with money…that he is afraid of not measuring up at school and in sports…about how his dad is angry all the time now that he isn’t working and how he fears that they will lose their house…I also find out that for several months he has been taking Advil, 600mg twice a day for headaches… I bring this info to the Doc. (The Doc addresses this with them in the seriousness of such a dose so often and how it may contribute to his issue and instructions are given to not take any more for now).

After his second IV has finished I cap the INT off and sit down. I tell my patient that his labs are normal and we want him to come back for a follow up in 2 days if he is no better. His mom begins to cry… “So what is wrong with him?” she asks.

As I looked into the eyes of this mom and then her son I saw fear…We talked for the next 15 minutes about the stress going on in the home and how her son was internalizing it…and now the compounded fear that her son has about having to start school and play golf with the added pressure of having diarrhea multiple times per day. He then began to get teary. He told me that he just felt sick all the time lately and his stomach was in knots when he thought about the family and school issues… I told them that of course stress is very real and it can turn into illness in the body because we are made up of mind/body and spirit not just body…but that they of course needed to come back for a follow up if he was no better in a couple of days…

I remembered what helps me to get problems off my mind…writing…I offered some advice—“carry a small notebook around and leave it on your bed at night—write all your worries and concerns in it as they float into your mind…when your mind relaxes close the notebook…do this as often as you need to and if you are a Christian you then can ask God to take that notebook full of fears from you and carry the load himself.” My boy…the patient and his mother both thank me through tears. “We are Christians and that advice is well received I can assure you” she said and “I’m going to do the same thing myself.”

I prayed for them several times that night and again the next day as I felt so heavy-hearted for them both. Another day with another patient I just knew was in my path for a reason.

Hal Isen

We know it sounds a little “new age-y” but we promise this conversation will bring value to your lives in many ways. Join Nurse Talk hosts, Casey Hobbs and Shayne Mason as they welcome our guest, Hal Isen. Hal Isen, MFA, CHT, is the creator of Core Wisdom® and LifeCoaching®. He is an educator, management consultant, executive coach, clinical hypnotherapist, artist and author. Drawing on his own direct experience and practice of the Wisdom Traditions, he has developed a methodology that resonates powerfully and effectively with our present day thinking and sensibilities. Go to corewisdom.com.

National Nurses United’s Rose Ann DeMoro

November brings us National Nurses United Executive Director Rose Ann DeMoro. NNU Director DeMoro was once again named to the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare list for 11th straight year. DeMoro is the only advocate for nurses or other working people on the list published annually by Modern Healthcare, a prominent national healthcare industry publication.

DeMoro, who is number 36 on the list of 100, is one of only eight people to be named to the list for each of the 11 years it has been compiled. She is also one of only two women to be named every year on a list that is dominated by figures in government and corporate healthcare institutions. She is a visionary with the courage to fight for what she believes in. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to visit with Ms. De Moro and find out what the future holds for nurses, patients and healthcare in the U.S. This live chat will be video streamed from National Nurses United Headquarters in Oakland, California.  You can watch Rose Ann in action in a recent interview with Bill Moyers:

All dates and times for these just announced events will be confirmed in the next few weeks. A full 2013 online event schedule will be sent out soon too—so check it out! If you are not subscribed to the Nurse Talk eblast now would be a good time to sign up so you will be notified automatically.

THIS JUST IN…Robin Hood Tax Introduced In Congress! The U.S. Robin Hood Tax Campaign today applauded the introduction in Congress of a bill that would impose a tax on Wall Street speculation.  Introduced by Rep. Keith Ellison, HR 6411, the Inclusive Prosperity Act,  would raise up to $350 billion in annual revenues that would be used to breathe new life into Main Street communities across America, as well as international health, sustainable prosperity and environmental programs.  Read more…

COMING UP on the show this week a best of Nurse Talk with RN Donna Kelly Williams on Mandatory Overtime and Author Eileen Kaplan on Laughter vs. Breast Cancer

On August 6, 2012, Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts signed into law Senate Bill 2400, “An Act improving the quality of healthcare and reducing costs through increased transparency, efficiency and innovation.” One provision of the law applies to hospitals as employers prohibiting mandatory overtime for nurses.

In this show, is a discussion on how they did that in Massachusetts. Originally aired June 23, 2102, you can listen to Massachusetts Nurses Association President RN Donna Kelly Williams talk about the Massachusetts State Legislature House & Senate versions of a health reform bill that would ban mandatory overtime. Donna and her street gang of nurses were on the state house steps to support their efforts. Some (non-nurses) may be asking… “Why should I care about this?” You don’t want a tired nurse—now do you? It’s time to take action in your state.

You can listen to a 3 minute twenty second bit of the mandatory overtime segment here:

Also on the show this week is author/humorist and cancer survivor, Eileen Kaplan who wrote a book called Laughter is the Breast Medicine. Eileen is now a speaker and cancer awareness advocate. She shares her journey about surviving breast cancer, and dealing with its aftermath. Eileen is just one of those NATURALLY funny people…who really knows how to make laughter out of lemons! Check our her website, laughteristhebreastmedicine.com.

Robin Hood Tax kickoff, Zucotti Park, New York. Photo credit: National Nurse United

Learn More about the Robin Hood Tax!

New York – The U.S. Robin Hood Tax Campaign today applauded the introduction in Congress of a bill that would impose a tax on Wall Street speculation.  Introduced by Rep. Keith Ellison, HR 6411, the Inclusive Prosperity Act,  would raise up to $350 billion in annual revenues that would be used to breathe new life into Main Street communities across America, as well as international health, sustainable prosperity and environmental programs.

The legislation embodies the Robin Hood Tax, a 0.5% tax on the trading of stocks, 50 cents on every $100 of trades, and lesser rates on trading in bonds, derivatives and currencies.  It marks the return of a sales tax on financial transactions in place from 1914 to 1966 and targets the high-risk, high-speed trading that dominates the markets.

“The American public provided hundreds of billions to bailout Wall Street during the global fiscal crisis yet bore the brunt of the crisis with lost jobs and reduced household wealth,” said Rep. Ellison in a press statement.  “This is a phenomenally wealthy nation, yet our tax and regulatory system allowed the financial titans to amass great riches while impoverishing the systems that enable inclusive prosperity. A financial transaction tax protects our financial markets from speculation and provides the revenue needed to invest in the education, health and communities of the American people.”

The legislation’s goal is to raise meaningful tax revenue dedicated to low- and moderate-income families by strengthening the social safety net and by expanding investments to protect health, rebuilding infrastructure and creating good-paying jobs.  The tax is also to target international needs, including AIDS treatment, research and prevention and for other critical assistance.

“Congressman Ellison is showing great leadership for our country,” said Jean Ross, RN, co-president of National Nurses United. “HR-6411 is a critical step to generate the revenue for the healing and recovery our Main Street communities across the nation so desperately need.  From coast to coast, nurses, health care, AIDS, environmental, labor, faith community and other community activists have come together calling for a Robin Hood tax on financial speculation so that Wall Street will help pay to reverse the damage its reckless behavior caused to our economy. This is a small, common sense tax, already in place and working wonderfully well in dozens of countries across the world. America is ready for the Robin Hood tax.”

“Last summer, scientists proved that we can actually end the AIDS pandemic if we just scale up our investment in treatment and prevention programs,” said Jennifer Flynn, managing director of Health GAP (Global Access Project). “But when we go to Congress, all we hear about are budget cuts.  We need to increase revenue and the Robin Hood Tax is the best of all proposals to do just that.”

“This tiny tax on Wall Street will make our economy more stable and more fair.  The U.S. once had a Robin Hood Tax and we were better off for it, it’s time to bring it back,” said Liz Ryan Murray, policy director for National People’s Action.

“In its essentials, the idea of a financial market transaction tax is simple,” said economist Robert Pollin, co-director, Political Economy Research Institute (PERI), University of Massachusetts-Amherst.  “It would mean that financial market traders would pay a small fee to the government every time they purchased any financial market instrument, including all stock, bond, options, futures, and swap trades.  This would be the equivalent of sales taxes that Americans have long paid every time they buy an automobile, shirt, baseball glove, airline ticket, or pack of chewing gum, eat at a restaurant, or have their hair cut.”

The Robin Hood Tax also helps to control the volume of speculation engulfing the financial markets, where risky bets are causing instability and sidelining billions in funds that might otherwise be directed to a productive economy.  And the sales tax assists in curtailing speculation in food and fuel markets, where bets on these essentials are causing spikes in prices and serious shortages.

The introduction of H.R. 6411 came on the eve of the One Year Anniversary of Occupy Wall Street. Occupy’s call to stop the policies of inequality of the 1% continues to resonate across this country and beyond. Robin Hood Tax campaigners today joined Occupy activists at a labor solidarity event at Zuccotti Park in New York City, and then carried the message  to offices of financial institutions to demand imposition of the Robin Hood Tax.

Speaking of fashion…oooohhh, oh, ouch. Avert your eyes.

JD from the hit 90′s “medical” show Scrubs, shows us a scrubs fashion faux pas.

And we welcome back Dr. Francine Shapiro. Dr. Shapiro returns to talk about her successful treatment of veterans with PTSD. Dr. Shapiro discovered one of the most important breakthroughs in the history of psychology, EMDR therapy, or Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. Her new book is Getting Past Your Past: Take Control of your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy.

We also have two of her colleagues, Dr. E. C. Hurley, Ph.D., who has been working with soldiers and veterans since he enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army during the Vietnam era, and Dr. Mark C. Russell, Ph.D., who is a retired U.S. Navy Commander, and board certified clinical psychologist, with 26-years of military experience. Together with the help of EMDR therapy—these clinicians are producing groundbreaking results for these soldiers with PTSD.

Children, assisted by EMDR HAP, who have overcome their fear of the sea after the Indian Ocean tsunami that killed some 230,000 people in 14 countries.

Dr. Shapiro also talks about HAP, the EMDR Humanitarian Assistance Program, the mental health equivalent of Doctors Without Borders: a global network of clinicians who travel anywhere there is a need to stop suffering and prevent the after-effects of trauma and violence. Visit http://www.emdrhap.org/home/index.php

AND we’ll check in with RN and Friend of Nurse Talk, Deborah Burger. Deborah is also co-president of National Nurses United. She’ll talk about California Proposition 30 endorsed by the California Nurses Association and supported by Governor Jerry Brown. Prop. 30 would raise from $6 billion to $9 billion every year, mostly through a small increase in taxes for the top income brackets, starting at households making $250,000 or more per year, as well as a temporary one-quarter of a cent increase in the state sales tax—with the revenue going for healthcare, education, childcare and other critical services.

Check us out at TUNE IN. Listen anywhere, anytime for any reason or no reason at all!

On behalf of the 5.4 million Americans with Alzheimer’s and other dementias, and those yet to be diagnosed, I am asking you to please HELP STAMP OUT ALZHEIMER’S! Every 68 seconds another American is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. First described in 1906, it remains a fatal disease with no known cure or prevention. One out of 8 Americans age 65 and older will be affected by this disease.

In May 2011 resolutions were introduced to create a postage stamp (like the Breast Cancer research stamp which has raised over $73 million to defeat Breast Cancer) that would raise money for Alzheimer’s research. The Alzheimer’s stamp is a highly symbolic & therefore important piece of legislation that would allow ordinary citizens to show their support for individuals and families impacted by this devastating disease. Most importantly, it would help raise much needed funds for medical research through the voluntary purchase of postage stamps. This is the 4th time this resolution has been introduced in the House and the 3rd time in the Senate. Without congressional cosponsors, these resolutions will die in committee and not make it to the floor for a vote. We have very little time to accomplish this!

Please call the US Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask to speak to your Congressman and Senators (Check the link below to identify who they are.) and tell them we are counting on their support for the “semipostal” stamp and want them to SIGN ON AS COSPONSORS to House Res. 351 and Senate Res. 176. AND call the Alzheimer’s Association’s Advocacy/Public Policy office at 202-393-7737 to ask them to SUPPORT THESE RESOLUTIONS! Thank you.”

http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

RN Alison Whitaker on Vital Signs, RN Jean Ross on Robin Hood and Dr. Jamie Koufman on Dropping Acid

Alison Whitaker in Vital Signs

Casey and Shayne check in with RN and playwright RN Alison Whitaker. Some of you may remember Alison was on the show last year introducing her one-woman play called, Vital Signs. It’s a great show at the Marsh Theater in San Francisco. If you missed Alison Whitaker’s Vital Signs in June…it’s been extended! Don’t miss it again get your tickets at the Marsh Theater.

And we talk with one of our favorite guests RN and Co-President of National Nurses United, Jean Ross. Jean will tell us about the Nurses Assembly in Chicago where over 1200 nurses talked about everything from healthcare to Medicare and promoted a Wall Street Transaction Tax, aka the Robin Hood Tax.

Check out this Bill Moyers (PBS) interview with National Nurses United Executive Director Rose Ann Demoro as she talks about the “Robin Hood” tax. Peeps—no matter what your political persuasion—it makes sense!

And then…for you 60’s hippies…let’s talk about Dropping Acid! That’s right…but of course, not the kind you think. Dr. Jamie Koufman will be with us to talk about acid reflux and what you can do to control or cure it by simply changing your diet. Dr. Koufman has written a book called Dropping Acid, The Reflux Diet Cookbook and Cure. According to the book, acid reflux affects 30-50% of the population. You won’t want to miss this.

Dr. Francine Shapiro

And coming up in the next few weeks. Another visit with Dr. Francine Shapiro. Dr. Shapiro is the founder of EMDR Therapy. EMDR therapy is the groundbreaking treatment EMDR is now being used successfully on Veterans with PTSD.

And for all you 70′s hippies like me—ever try TM or Transcendental Meditation? Remember—back in the day—the Beatles and everybody else who was anybody else was doing TM. I tried but just didn’t get it. Well, I tried again and this time—I got it and it is now a daily practice. We’ll have TM instructor Marjie Biller with us to talk about the amazing health benefits available to anyone.

And what is your Core Wisdom and how do you find it? Does everyone have access to this wisdom? Hey, this might sound a little removed from the traditional remedies we are all accustomed to—but—ride along with us as we explore alternative ways to enhance your health and well being.

Health trivia question this week? What is the biggest organ of your body? First one to respond and bing…It’s a coffee card from Starbucks. Email us at contest@nursetalksite.com or call 1-800-977-1863 and you could be winner.

Remember, laughter is the best medicine. You can listen and laugh every week on Saturdays at 11 am in the Boston area on station WWZN 1510AM or live stream at www.revolutionboston.com and in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com.

And a big thanks to our new mobile app affiliates Tune In and Progressive Voices. Check them out. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Photo credit: Jean Scheijen

Editor’s note: If you are following along with Barbara and Melissa in their journey, this post is from writing done a couple of months ago with both Barbara and her daughter and caregiver Melissa recounting the impact that small things done with great love can make. 

Hello Nurse Buddies, I was in the hospital recently and made many new nurse buddies. My favorite was a tech who gave me a shower. I have not has a shower in 3 years, just baths given to me…This wonderful woman gave me an extra long hot bath, and even let me spray her with the spray nozzle.

She washed my hair and it was better than sex…ha ha…I love you nurses…and techs, and aides…you work so hard, and showed this old woman that sometimes, even at your job, you can have a little fun, and make an old woman’s day!!

Melissa writes: Today mom had a shower, a real hot long long shower. She has only had baths by me in the last 3 years…so today she in a chair in the hospital shower and a wonderful, wonderful, let me say one more time—wonderful tech took extra time and washed mom’s hair, gave her a 25-minute hot, hot shower. The tech was soaking wet because she gave mom the shower nozzle and mom sprayed her, not once but twice! Luckily she had extra scrubs to put on…

Mom was so happy. Isn’t it something that things we all take for granted, like a wonderful hot shower, means more to an 89 year-old woman than a vacation? She told the nurse she wanted to do a commercial for the hospital saying,  “I took my vacation at St Mary’s Medical Center, I had a shower!”

Today that tech earned her wings…When they were done she told me it was her best day at work ever.

For a dollar a month, Indian gooseberry (amla) powder may work as well as a leading diabetes drug without the side effects. Have a question about this video? Leave it in the comment section at http://nutritionfacts.org/videos/amla-versus-diabetes/ and I’ll try to answer it!  Also, please check out my associated blog post on amla and cholesterol.

Surgeon by day and public health journalist by night, Atul Gawande explores how patient outcomes can be dramatically improved by something as simple as a checklist. After a 19-item, 2-minute surgical safety checklist was introduced at 8 sites worldwide, complication rates fell by 35% in every hospital where the checklist was tested. The death rates fell by 47%.  Yet, implementing a checklist system in healthcare has been slow to take hold says Gawande.

“There’s a deep resistance because using these tools…forces us to behave with a different set of values. Just using a checklist requires [doctors] to embrace different values from the ones we’ve had like, humility, discipline, teamwork. “

In his most recent book, The Checklist Manifesto, Gawande shows how even a simple five-point checklist can decrease up to two-thirds of ICU infections.

Welcome to Nurse Talk where laughter is the best medicine. A salute to our Republican friends and relatives—and we do have them. That’s Mitt Romney. We think he’s singing AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL? Oh dear lord.

Shayne says, “Casey that was AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL and we’re told he learned it from Millie Fawn his music teacher in high-school—lets take a listen.”

Ladies and gentlemen, Millie Fawn

We promise when the Democratic Convention rolls around we’ll give equal time to President Obama’s singing! Just a little fun on this sunny summer day.

AND—hey—what about that West Nile Virus?! Well, a listener in Utah wants to know if she should get her family face and head nets to keep them safe. Well now lets stay calm. Casey and Shayne will share the low-down on the facts about this nasty virus—what it is, where it comes from—and simple steps to save yourself the money it would cost to buy those face and head nets.

Michael Lighty

Also—get ready for a little policy talk with California Nurses Association Director of Policy, Michael Lighty. Or—closer to the truth—get ready for some very disturbing facts and findings from a report that cites the huge profits hospitals are making by virtue of their non-profit status. Private not-for-profit hospitals, which dominate the California hospital landscape, rack up tax exemption benefits of close to $2 billion a year beyond what they return to communities in charity care, according to the report.

The study was just released by the Institute for Health and Socio-Economic Policy, the research arm of California Nurses Association and National Nurses United. You really won’t want to miss this conversation. You can read the report for yourself at www.calnurses.org.

AND while we’re on the subject of money we’ll share a great victory for all of us from The California Clean Money Campaign. Trent Lange, executive director for the organization will bring us up to speed on AB 1648, the groundbreaking California DISCLOSE Act, which just passed the full Assembly last week by a solid majority of 50 to 26. This is great news and a blow to SUPER PACS, which can now hide their financial contributions. AB 1648 requires public disclosure of the contributors. A step toward renewing our democracy!

Casey and Shayne answer some email questions and announce the Health Trivia winner from last week. NOW—if you are alert—and you are actually reading this—you can be among the first to answer this week’s health trivia question and win a $25 gift card to Starbucks. All you have to do is email your answer to pattie@nursetalksite.com. Here’s the question: What is the largest organ of the body? First time-stamped email wins!

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturdays at 11 am in the Boston area on station WWZN 1510AM or live stream at www.revolutionboston.com and in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Thursdays at 7pm Eastern on RadioOrNot.com. Check out the iHeartRadio app for free and live custom radio.

Hey, did you know you don’t have to wait until we broadcast our show? You can go right to the Nurse Talk website and listen now. You can listen to all or part of our broadcast.  Download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Photo credit: Laura Morariu

She came to the ER for complaints of dizziness, intermittent nausea and fatigue x 5 days. She denied vomiting, diarrhea or pain. She told me that she is never sick and that this is “really bothering me because I play field hockey and I have to be able to practice…preseason.”

Her skin was warm, dry and pink and her eyes were bright. Pretty girl…I evaluated her in the routine way…heart sounds, lung sounds, and vitals. I put her on the monitor after doing posturals and then had one of our techs do an EKG. This patient’s mother was glued to her side, so I asked her to leave the room for a few minutes of what I assured her were just routine questions we ask every teenager. Her mother reluctantly left the room. I sat on the stool to the left of the stretcher and asked the routine questions regarding drugs, alcohol, abuse and sexual history. Patient has a new boyfriend and yes they had sex, “but only once and with protection.” I collected a urine sample and left the room after I let her mother back in.

An hour and a half later after all test results were back, the only thing that was “wrong” with my little 17 year-old girl was that she was pregnant. I sat at the computer and tried to gather my thoughts. The PA on duty was not a usual for us and he was being quite flip about the fact that this young woman’s life was about to change…big time. His answer, “You play you pay.” I told him I that he was being as ass and that I would go and talk to them if he wanted…”Ya, sure, whatever.”

I took her chart and went to the far end of the hall. I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes…I was cheering at a tournament game for basketball and my boyfriend was playing. I was 17 years old as was he. The next day I was going to take a pregnancy test…the memory hit me hard, and I knew this girl was already concerned she may be pregnant and she was scared.

I asked God to meet me in this patient’s room…to comfort this young woman—and her mother—as this news was going to change lives today. Taking a deep breath I opened the door and went in. I once again took the stool seat to the left of the stretcher. I again asked the mom to step out of the room. (Now this was difficult for me because I know that as a mother I would have wanted to be there…but far too often in this job do I see parents that do not support their children in these circumstances. The patient, by law, has a right under these circumstances to privacy.) I knew in that moment that this mother feared that I would be saying her daughter was pregnant…I saw it in her eyes and in the way she got up to shaky feet and left the room. Just before closing the door she told her daughter she loved her and in that moment I knew she would be a help to this young woman.

Her eyes were fearful as she sat there biting her fingernail…she looked so young in that moment. I told her everything was medically fine but that the blood and urine samples confirmed that she was about 3 months pregnant. Tears immediately filled her eyes and sobs escaped her mouth. I sat on the bed and held her…she clung to me tightly and continued to cry. I rocked her and just let her cry…I knew this pain and I knew the fear that was now slithering into her mind. “Thank you,” she said as she reached for a tissue. When she stopped crying and blew her nose I asked her if she wanted her mother. “Will you stay in here with me?”

I went to get her mother and we went back into the room, “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?” she asked hesitantly. “Yes,” she answered with her head down. I stood off to the side and prayed. “This is going to kill your father.” A tirade of tears assaulted my young patient and I tried desperately to stay silent. “Mom…please, don’t you think I know that?” she cried. In that moment the mother began crying herself and went to her daughter and gathered her in her arms and wept with her. I started to leave and my patient asked me to stay.

I stopped and just sat on the stool. I took a deep breath and cleared my throat…I, in that moment, told them my story—my teenage pregnancy and beyond. The fear that turned to joy as my daughter blessed my “husband” and my life in ways that we never thought possible and how God used her to grow us into the people he wanted us to be. I told them that it was painful, embarrassing and life altering BUT that it was truly a blessing and I wouldn’t go back and change one bit of it. They thanked me and I was thankful that I had that story to share, because in that moment their lives looked black and fearful.

Sometimes I wonder why I stay in bedside nursing. The hours are long and working every other weekend gets really old—the ER is a beast that just roars continually with pain and suffering. But every once in a while I know that I was placed in a patient’s life that day for the purpose of hope and healing.

I received a thank you card yesterday from this patient…she was keeping her baby and going to go to a local college and stay home to have help. Her parents are being supportive and she has hope for a nice future. Amen!!

Photo Credit: Mattox

I hate Alzheimer’s, some days are good days, some are not. I am getting worse, I know it.

Nights seem to be worse. Last night I laid in bed, I thought I was in a strange bed, I was scared. I was afraid that no one would ever come back to get me, that I had been left alone. I laid there for awhile and then I cried a little bit. Missy heard me and came into the room and turned on the light. Oh boy, oh boy was I thrilled to see her. She asked me what was wrong. I told her I was in a strange place and I was so glad she came to take me home. She said, “Mommy we are home. Look you are in your comfy bed. Look around, see it is your pretty room.”

I was so happy. I asked her, “Why am I so scared? Why am I doing this?” Missy told me it was the disease. She told me not to be scared, that she would not leave me alone. But, I worry I will not remember that, and wake up scared again. Missy took me to the restroom, we talked for awhile then I was happy to go back to bed.

She got in bed with me, she told me she would not leave me alone. But, I told her, I remember when I was in the nursing home rehab, and I would wake up there and be scared and I would cry for her and yell out her name and she would not come. I remember the nurses told her then how I cried her name at night and from then on until I came home she stayed with me at the nursing home at night. She slept in a chair, and at night when I would cry she was right there to tell me it was OK. Plus she made me little whoobies to hold when I got scared.

Last night when I reminded her of that, she said she was sorry, that she would try never to leave me alone again, but I know…she can not promise that, things happen…so I am scared. I hate Alzheimer’s, I hate the loneliness it makes me feel, the sadness. I understand about the memory loss, but why why the loneliness and fear?

Today has been a good day, Missy has hugged me more than she usually does, though I have caught her looking at me with sadness. I am so sorry for all the family members that have to deal with this disease, Alzheimer’s not only changes the patient, it breaks the heart for their caregivers. I am lucky, I just hope I can remember that.

Suddenly he moved away from me, behind his mother’s legs. I said, “Oh no, no. You don’t need to be afraid of me. I can not give you leukemia. Its me who has to protect myself from you! You see I can get sick really easily, when I am out and about I wear this mask to protect myself.”

Kids are so good. They at least look for the reasons why, and hem and haw until they get at them. Adults just stare, unless they have a good reasonable, mature cause to ask. Apparently the two TV news spots have been sufficient. On the way out of the store a patron walking in asked, “Aren’t you the woman that was on the news last night.” I affirmed. As it turns out, his wife has cancer, too. I asked the type (cancers and their treatments are so specific, asking the kind gives insight into their treatment). And we said, good luck, and went separate ways. Compassion. One of the best side effects of Leukemia.

I’m thinking about making T-Shirts that say, Its okay. I have leukemia. Feel free to ask. I’m nice except when on Steroids.

I suppose there’s no hope for stardom, since no one will recognize me without a mask on my face. I could be like a super hero in disguise (who writes and loves people and who has very little energy beyond that) Who wears a mask over her nose and mouth so she can see and hear things more clearly without being fixated on what she might say, or distracted by some new diversion. Seeing and Listening are both very good means of touching the subtle.

For California’s Future: Vote YES on Proposition 30!

California nurses, teachers, and responsible business individuals paid a visit to the posh St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco to shine a spotlight on the secretive wealthy donors who are bankrolling the campaign to defeat Proposition 30.

The Tuesday action will include a yacht, SOS life rings, and actors playing the role of the four mega-rich venture capitalists who recently formed a committee deceptively named “Californians for Reforms and Jobs Not Taxes Campaign” to defeat Proposition 30 on the November ballot.

Committee members include Floyd Kvamme, GOP donor and part of a committee fined by the Federal Elections Committee after the 2004 election; David Marquardt and Mark Stevens, venture capitalist donors to Mitt Romney and George W. Bush; and John Cox, fringe candidate for president in 2008, whose PAC has taken money from Phillip Morris.

“These amateur multimillionaires are playing with our state’s future like they play with their yachts and other toys,” said Malinda Markowitz, RN, and a co-president of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United. “Why are they funneling hordes of cash against a campaign to protect our schools, our healthcare safety net, and other vital California services simply to avoid paying a little more of their fair share?”

“For me, an extra 2 percent or 3 percent in taxes is not going to make a bit of difference in the way that I live,” said Frank Jernigan, a retired Google software engineer and member of the Patriotic Millionaires for Fiscal Strength. “But by bringing billions of dollars in new revenues to California for public schools and safety, Prop. 30 will make a tremendous difference in the lives of many.”

Find out more at:

www.nationalnursesunited.org

Jo’s Nurses is a medical mission for current, active nurses who have never volunteered abroad but want to begin to incorporate volunteering into their careers. A small group of nurses (6-8) will travel with One Nurse staff to rural Honduras, where they will work alongside local nurses in various areas of a hospital as well as in rural clinics. One Nurse will provide pre-trip orientation and training so nurses are comfortable and informed.

When: November 5-11, 2012
Where: Rural Honduras
Cost: One Nurse will cover all trip costs except airfare
Application: Use the application on this site and note on your form it is for Jo’s Nurses. There is no application fee for Jo’s Nurses. All applications are due by September 15, 2012. We will let you know by September 30 if you are chosen for the mission.

Requirements:

• Current, active nurses (LPN, RN, ARNP)
• Must be Spanish speaking (translators will not be available)
• Attend 2-3 pre-trip meetings and information sessions (we are working on obtaining CEs for this)
• Nurse to provide airfare round trip Seattle to Tegucigalpa (approx $500)
• Be prepared to share educational opportunities with your local counterparts in Honduras — presentations and while working alongside
• Nurse to update any necessary immunizations and medications
• Nurse must have a valid passport
• Nurse commits to at least one international mission or local volunteer work in 2013
• Preference will be given to Swedish Medical Center employees
• All education levels and areas of expertise are welcome to apply
• Nurses will present their experience as a group to Swedish Nursing Grand Rounds in January 2013.

Jo’s Nurses is named after Marilyn Jo Schuyler, an early supporter of One Nurse at a Time, who set up a memorial fund to assist nurses who have never been on a mission before. She hoped the experience would ignite a passion for volunteering.

We also visit with San Leandro Hospital RN Carol Barazi about Sutter Corp’s announcement to close yet another hospital in the Bay Area—this time in San Leandro—which serves the East Bay. Of the 27,000 patients seen in the San Leandro emergency room last year, more than 60 percent came from the underserved area of East Oakland, patients who will now need to drive many miles over crowded freeways for care.

RN Angil Tarach-Richey, Eldercare Expert

Ever wonder what’s behind the old face? Angil Tarach-Ritchey RN, and national expert in senior care provides us with an insightful look at the lives of the aging. With over 30 years experience in senior care and advocacy Angil passionately talks about her elder advocacy project and book, Behind The Old Face. Angil is a frequent blogger on the Nurse Talk website and comes to Nurse Talk by way of our friends at Nurse Together

Don’t forget to visit our website and blog. Check out the latest healthcare news stories and listen to archives of our shows. Our blog is fantastic and every time I visit and read the entries I am honestly either laughing or crying—which are two of my FAVORITE things to do. I am astounded by people’s courage—the courage they exhibit when they share their journey through grave illness—to recovery. There’s Barbara and Missy, Bobbi, Brandi, Joyce, Angil and more. A big thank you to all of you for sharing your stories with us.

And big news on more ways to listen to Nurse Talk. September 1st Nurse Talk will join the line-up of some great talkers—Stephanie Miller, Ed Shultz, Thom Hartman, Mike Malloy and more on the Tune In mobile app. Tune In allows you to listen anywhere, anytime, any amount—for any reason! With over 40 million subscribers certainly a few more will be pleased to discover Nurse Talk. You can also check us out on Progressive Voices mobile app, iHeart Radio app, iTunes and on the air at The Revolution 1510AM Boston and 960 AM KNEW San Francisco. WOW! What am I forgetting?

A big thank you to National Nurses United, and the Massachusetts Nurses Association for being such great partners—and thank you nurses for doing what you do every day.

Starting this week our newsletter will be bi-monthly so when you get it—there might be something in it! Just kidding…Remember laughter is the best medicine!

When I saw his fear, and heard the question…“What is behind your back,”

I was transported to a time when I was a small child, in the hospital and I asked a nurse that same question…she lied to me and said nothing…then she pushed me over and jabbed a needle in my derriere. I have NEVER done that to a child and I never will; I quickly showed him my empty hands and I slowly sat on the stool.

Photo credit: Contact Ben Earwicker, @BenEarwicker or www.garrisonphoto.org/sxc

A dental extraction that ended up infected brought this amazing little boy to me. Our first encounter was 2 days prior…he was a week out of an extraction and his face was swollen and he was in pain. I started his IV with minimal fanfare and he received pain med, antibiotics and fluid. I gave him a hand massage for 10 min and he fell asleep—mom was happy. He was discharged with a plan…all went well.
This encounter was after another visit to the oral surgeon, a second extraction and debridement and 2 nights of no sleep, minimal oral intake and a now terrified little man.

Mom asked for me and I was so happy that I was on. She hugged me, he screamed and ran to the back wall…I didn’t take it personally, of course, but it broke my heart; the fear in his eyes was intense. Again, this brought me back to when my then 6 year old son was acting like a caged animal prior to his second ear surgery…I remembered the fear he had and how awful it was for him and me!!!

I can proudly say that our ER team did a fabulous job orally medicating him with some Versed and Lorab—effectively bringing his anxiety and pain levels WAY down…and then the IV was inserted and antibiotics, pain med and fluids were given and he then was admitted. Mom was happy. I felt relieved and pleased. Little man was back to talking to me and letting me near him without fear.

Part of my job as a nurse is to calm and reassure my patient and their family; reassure them of my ability and my concern. Children create a special challenge as we all know.

I was so happy to head home the night after caring for this little man and know that I did my best job with him and his mom. My experience came into play and my heart was open to them. I connected with them and it felt good. I was happy that I was there for them. I pray he is 100% better now!!

I came home from work one day and mom said, “We are going on a cruise. I entered us in a contest to go on a caregiver cruise.” I laughed, and said, “Great,” and went into the other room. Later she told me that I needed to go online and vote…that is when I realized what had happened. She was so excited, she said, “If I win this contest, I can do something for you.” I said, “Mommy, the chances of you winning are almost impossible.”

She looked at me so straight and said, “Nothing is impossible. I have Alzheimer’s. The doctors told us a year or so ago that by now I wouldn’t know anyone, and I am not perfect, but I am not gone yet. My mind still works on some days. And you have MS, your doctors told you if you continued to care for me at home that you would not be walking now, and you are. Nothing is impossible…sometimes, when you want, and hope, and dream and pray, and get your family and friends involved in your goal it works…nothing is impossible and you and me are proof”

So, I voted for my first time for the cruise. That was a couple of weeks ago. Since signing up for this contest mom has only had a couple of Alzheimer’s days. Her days are full of planning for a cruise, seeing the ocean for the first time…putting her toes in the sand. She tells me that she thinks the contest is good for her Alzheimer’s. If we don’t win…she says she will not be sad, because some other caregiver is getting a vacation.

This contest is over on September 15th…mom thinks that is a sign, because that is her birthday. IF we don’t win, it will be OK, because being in this contest has done more good for her, and given her something, a goal, and oh, the friends she has made, and the notes of encouragement she has received.  Yes, this has been more than a contest, this has been something for an old woman to try and give her daughter, a gift…something for both of them…to share…its not just a cruise. To her, it’s a goal to keep her Alzheimer’s away for a few days.

So, if we win or not, I am happy for what this contest has given her…and feel so lucky that she is still thinking of me first..she is doing this for me…how many daughters can say that their mommies still put them first? I win no matter what…I have her.

Editor’s note: You can vote for Barbara at the Caregiver Cruise Giveaway Contest. No registration is required. Just click the “vote” button. You can vote once per day until September 15. And, we hope you do. In the words of some mutual friends,  at the Dear Anna Olson project, “They have a real shot at winning this much deserved cruise. PLEASE, PLEASE VOTE for these beautiful women EVERY DAY until September 15th. Barbie is almost 90 years old, has Alzheimer’s, and needs constant care. Her daughter Missy suffers from MS, is often hospitalized, yet cares for her mother in spite of her own illness, fatigue, falls and pain. They have lived selfless lives – caring for others even while suffering these terrible diseases. Please help Barbie see the ocean for the first time, and give Missy a much needed and deserved vacation.”

Illustration by Billy Alexander

The last few days I have been having Missy write notes for me, I can’t write very well any longer. I can type but my writing isn’t pretty. I tell her what to write, then I sign the note and we put them in an envelope and I tell her what name to put on the envelope. Sometimes I put something in the envelope, a little bracelet I made, a handkerchief..something that I think they will like.

These little notes are for when I die. I want Missy to give or send them to these people. I want them to remember me in a little way, with a little note. All I have left are little things…I am not rich. I have no big diamonds or lots of property. These little envelopes are just little goodbyes from me.

I feel like I don’t have lots of time to do this so I try and do 3 or 4 a day, I have a long list.

I remember a year ago one of my best friends died, and I felt so sad so lost for a few weeks. She was my buddy. We would talk on the phone 5 or 6 times a day, and would meet for lunch once a week. We had worked together for over 40 years. She was a part of me. A few weeks after she died I got a box in the mail. It was from her. Her daughter had found it when she was going through all of her things after she died.

In the box were little things, little things that made me so happy. There was a menu from our last lunch together, a Christmas card I had sent her, a picture of us together, a coupon for Depends, some stamps…Just all kinds of little things that to someone else would mean nothing, but to us it was a box of our friendship. She knew I would laugh when I opened it and went through it. She knew I would need a laugh. She knew it would be a sign from her to keep going. She knew it would make me smile and be happy again.

So I make Missy write my little notes. I have her put little nothings in the envelopes. It is my way of telling my buddies to keep on, to keep smiling, to remember. Lately remember is a big and important word to me…remember. Really, what is our life but remembrances and memories with friends and family?

Lovely, lovely little memories, and remembrances…my life in little envelopes.

“Now that my fortress has crumbled, well, I’m lost, naked, bony, pale, and exposed. Ew, like Darth Vadar, or the Wizard of Oz.”  Photo credit: Barry Smith

You might be wondering, well, what’s going on with Brandi? Why isn’t she writing and video making and all that stuff anymore? The truth is I never knew I could be so tired, or weak, or overwhelmed, or scared. Yes, its true, I’ve been having a hard time. Take a gal whose energy level is a ten, and reduce it to -2.5 and well, she starts to doubt. My life is a cycle of pills and tests to take, appointments to make, chemos to process.

I have been blessed with a very strong body, but in the course of my chemotherapy my strong body has become emaciated. I’m down to my essence. I ask: can I really do this? I get winded and my heart races going up stairs. I weigh 90 pounds. My faith is shaken, because my body is not strong anymore. I’m a featherweight.

I have finished Consolidation I and the Central Nervous System portions of my treatment and am currently in the midst of my week break before beginning Consolidation II, this thursday. Nothing has gone wrong. The protocol is simply aggressive and relentless. I remember at the outset meeting the two gents who are ahead of me. What I saw when I met them terrified me. I said to myself, “When I am there, I will not be like that.” While it is true my complaints and despair are not like theirs, I am in my own valley of shadow and confusion.

Consolidation I began in January and was composed of three, three week cycles (A, B, and C), each progressively more toxic and each featuring different types and combinations of chemotherapy over two weeks with a week break in between. By the end of Consolidation IC I was spending most of my day in bed, neutropenic, appetiteless, and nauseated, but certain this was as bad as it could get.

Let me tell you about the Central Nervous System treatment:

• Day one chemotherapy (Doxurubicin, Vincristine)
• 8 doses of radiation to the brain
• 4 intrathecal doses of chemotherapy (Methotrexate, Cytarabine, Hydrocortisone)
• Bi-weekly chemo PEG Asparaginase
• 2 weeks oral 6MP
• roughly 8 days dexamethasone (a steroid).

I despise writing about this. By doing so I reveal my weakness and how I am feeling sorry for myself. I know many cancer patients with much longer lists and scarier possible outcomes. I know attitude is everything. And yet, this is what I have endured, when I believed I had already hit bottom. I confess, I don’t think I could have handled even a fraction more! I’m not sure I’ve handled it yet! Over the past two weeks I thought to myself, “Can’t I just sleep until this is over? One way or another I want this over!” I think this is a veiled way of saying, “I quit.” But I can’t quit. There is no out of this reality, only through.

What I am facing is so much more than cancer and chemo side effects. I’m dealing with myself, at my core. Who is experiencing this? Who will survive it?

What I must accept is so far in this battle I’ve been hiding behind my strong body as if it were a fortress and have neglected stabilizing and fortifying my soul. Now that my fortress has crumbled, well, I’m lost, naked, bony, pale, and exposed. Ew, like Darth Vadar, or the Wizard of Oz.

That’s the finding of a new report by the Institute for Health and Socio-Economic Policy, research arm of the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United, that was presented Wednesday in a Sacramento legislative hearing.

The nurses urged legislators to pass legislation to rein in the abuses by requiring minimum levels of charity care that all hospitals must provide to keep their tax exempt status, as well as more rigorous reporting requirements with real penalties attached for violators.

Nurses rally on steps of state Capitol in Sacramento Wednesday

 
The findings were presented to a special California Senate Select Committee on Charity Care and Nonprofit Hospitals chaired by State Sen. Ellen Corbett.

In California, non-profit hospitals harvested more than $1.8 billion in government subsidies and benefits from their tax exempt status beyond what they provided in charity care in 2010.

The impact is especially severe on struggling cities and counties. They lose more than $1 billion as a result of the tax exemption of nonprofit hospitals, and what local governments pay directly to hospitals in their communities to provide hospital care for the poor.

Shockingly, many non-profit hospitals actually provide “significantly less” charity care than do for-profit hospitals, State Board of Equalization member Betty Yee said at the hearing.

Several of the state’s biggest and best known hospitals, Cedars Sinai Medical Center, Stanford University Hospital, and Sutter Health’s California Pacific Medical Center and Alta Bates Medical Center, are the biggest abusers in racking up government subsidies in the form of favorable tax benefits beyond what they give back in charity care.

Among the big non-profit chains, which sometimes act more like JP Morgan or Goldman Sachs than they do centers for providing therapeutic care and healing, Sutter and Kaiser are particularly egregious. The two corporate giants make up over 45 percent of the total tax benefits for all California non-profits, and were near the bottom in percentage of charity care they provide relative to their profits.

Further, the report noted 100 top executives at California nonprofit hospitals who take home more than $1 million in pay packages, nearly half of them at Sutter and Kaiser alone.

The IHSP/CNA report follows the release last week of another report on non-profit hospitals by the California State Auditor. Speaking at the hearing, Grant Parks, Principal Auditor of the Auditor’s Office, noted that “state law does not require specific amounts of community benefit to justify (hospital’s) tax exempt status.” State law, he said, “is fairly permissive on what can be counted as community benefit…It’s like the Wild West of what is required.”

Ellen Shaffer, director of the EQUAL Health Network, a project of the Center for Policy Analysis, noted that, unlike California, 11 states can suspend tax exempt status, Texas and Alabama require specific thresholds for how much charity care a non-profit must provide, and Indiana, Maryland, and Texas levy civil penalties for late filings of reports – all of which are well beyond what California requires.

Lighty emphasized the disparity in what the non-profit hospitals provide, and cited an example from the Auditor’s report. The Auditor cited Sutter’s California Pacific Medical Center and found that the level of charity care as a percentage of profits was 17 percent for CPMC’s St. Luke’s Hospital, which serves a working class and low income community, compared to just 4 percent for CPMC other facilities that cater to wealthier neighborhoods.

Same city, San Francisco, same hospital system, great disparity, Lighty noted. If a level playing field is not established, those hospitals serving lower income communities and doing more to meet their obligation will be the ones most in danger of closing, just as Sutter/CPMC has been trying to do with St. Luke’s

It’s well past time, said CNA Co-President DeAnn McEwen, RN, “that private hospitals and multispecialty clinics operated by nonprofit corporations actually meet the social obligations for which they receive favorable tax treatment and patients receive the care they need.”

This mechanism is similar to how “normal” levels of fiber consumption (huge by modern standards) Relieve the Body of Excess Estrogen (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/relieving-yourself-of-excess-estrogen/), which may explain reduced breast cancer risk in those eating plant-based diets. Fiber also helps Improve Intestinal Transit Time (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/food-mass-transit/). Stool Size Matters (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/stool-size-matters/) and it Protects Against Diverticulosis (http://nutritionfacts.org/video/diverticulosis-nuts/)!

Have a question for Dr. Greger about this video? Leave it in the comment section at http://nutritionfacts.org/video/how-fiber-lowers-cholesterol/ and he’ll try to answer it!

I can tell when I look into my mom’s eyes if it is a bad Alzheimer’s day, because her eyes don’t light up when she sees me. When you are a spoiled daughter whose mother’s eyes have lit up from your first memory—it’s ironic now that in her last memories she isn’t going to know me. The hardest thing so far….and I bet that will never change.

I remember my mother crying once telling me that her mom didn’t know her anymore, and I didn’t understand the pain she was feeling…now it’s my hardest thing.

Good old Mad TV—just love that. CHUAAAAAA you know whutt????? Uh uh!

National Nurses United Legislative Advocate, Donna Smith

Most of our listeners know…we love our Donna Smith. Since the start of Nurse Talk Donna has been and is—a remarkable contributor and a tireless advocate for single payer healthcare. She is a legislative organizer for National Nurses United and no one knows healthcare/political issues like Donna. And at the heart of the matter—she doesn’t really believe healthcare—and access to it—should be a political issue. Donna says, “It’s a matter of heart and humanity. It just is.” Having just been diagnosed with cancer (for the second time) Donna now faces what so many sick AND INSURED do—her insurance company is denying medications and treatment. Donna talks about this and more …coming up. Check out some of her blog posts at MichaelMoore.com.

AND…listener Sharon B. gets some answers from Stanford nephrologist, Dr. Anjali Saxsena. Dr. Saxsena talks about Kidney disease—the symptoms, the treatments—and the National Kidney Foundation. Learn more at the National Kidney Foundation.

Hives in Phoenix…A listener is having a rough time—but keeps her sense of humor about it all. Gets nothing useful from the nurses—but—she probably knew she wouldn’t anyway!

Healthcare Trivia strikes again. This weeks question: What is the strongest muscle in your body? That’s right—that’s what we said. Here’s a hint—we all use it practically all through the day. You could win a $25 gift certificate to Starbucks if you are the first to respond with the right answer. Call 1-800-977-1863 or contest@nursetalksite.com.

Trivia was brought to you in partnership with iTriage. iTriage was founded in 2008 by two emergency medicine physicians to empower people to make better healthcare decisions, and improve healthcare delivery. The company’s mobile healthcare platform offers a proprietary Symptom-to-Provider™ pathway that empowers patients to make better healthcare decisions.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturdays at 11 am in the Boston area on station WWZN 1510AM or live stream at www.revolutionboston.com and in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Thursdays at 7pm Eastern on RadioOrNot.com. Check out the iHeartRadio app for free and live custom radio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Remember, laughter is the best medicine.

Photo credit: Andreas Krappweis

The room was dark and quiet as I finished up my nursing note.  My patient was tucked into her own bed and finally asleep as her daughter slowly ran her fingers through her mother’s white curls.  I nodded goodbye and stepped out.  Once in the car I checked my phone and found a message from the hospice intake worker that I had another patient to go and see…an urgent open.  I read the directions and something tugged at my brain telling me I knew this address.  I ran into the office to retrieve the paper work.  Once back in my car I opened the file.  The name was that of my friend…my friend that was NOT in the endstage of breast cancer with metastasization.  “What is going on?” I muttered to myself.

I called the intake nurse and asked about the call for this patient.  “I got an urgent call from her doctor telling me that she had just returned from Boston after receiving trial medications that failed…and she is days from dying. She wants to die at home…she asked for you.”  My heart raced and my stomach clenched…tears ran down my face as I heaved in deep breaths…this cant be true…I just talked to her a couple weeks ago and she said how well she was doing…

I prayed during the 20 minute drive for courage, wisdom and strength…I prayed it wasn’t true.

I arrived to be welcomed at the door by my friend’s husband who was in tears.  “Thank goodness your here…she can’t breathe!”  I rushed into the bedroom to find my friend gasping for breath.  Before I could even hug her and find out what happened, I turned up her oxygen to 5 liters (since when did she start using oxygen, my brain yelled!!!) and turned the fan onto her, then started talking softly to her as I stroked her hair off of her forehead.  “Just breathe in and out slowly…that’s it, nice and slow…I’m here now and it’s all going to be okay…slow in and slow out…that’s it, just relax and let the oxygen reach your cells…its okay, its going to be okay.”

As I comforted my friend I surveyed the room.  She was lying on a hospital bed, oxygen was being fed to her by nasal cannula from the compressed air machine and there were a dozen pill bottles lined up on the bed stand.  My eyes found her husband and I gave him a questioning look.  He motioned me to meet him in the other room.  I continued soothing and calming my friend until she fell asleep and then went into the living room.

Between great sobs of anguish he told me, “She was sent home last night by ambulance from Brigham’s and Woman’s…to die.  They set up the home 02 and the bed.  They ordered her lots of pain meds and stuff for anxiety…how are we going to do this?  She was fine last week and then she just got so weak and couldn’t breathe…they x-rayed her and said the cancer was all through her lungs now…”

4 hours later, after her sister arrived, I was driving home with an ache in my chest that truly felt like I would stop breathing myself.  I could not stop crying. I had prepared my friend and her husband as best I could. (She didn’t have long.) I told her I loved her and that I was so sorry for what was happening.  I told her how much her friendship had meant to me and that she was a wonderful mother to her children.  I told her that she taught me how to relax and that she showed me how to laugh with abandon—I told her she would be greatly missed.

She couldn’t talk but she nodded with tears streaming down her face…she grabbed my hands and mouthed,  “I’m not ready.”

5 hours after that I was called to the hospital to be with her.  She was too air starved to stay at home comfortably and her family couldn’t take it.  I arrived to a room full of family—her 2 children (my kids’ ages) and her husband, sisters and friends.  She was getting hooked up to a morphine drip and she was no longer in the present . Her eyes were closed but she gripped my hand when I knelt beside her and kissed her face…I wept.  I was no longer her nurse…I was just her friend…I prayed for her and her family.  I then did something I’ve never done before.

I just knew I was supposed to sing her favorite song…I softly sang to her, Jesus Lover of my Soul, and I watched as her breathing slowed and a peace entered the room, and her faced relaxed.  I was aware that all eyes were on me but I didn’t care about being embarrassed, I cared about my friend’s comfort…her soul.  I sang the song 2 times and by the end of it she was gone…

It was one of the hardest, saddest and most incredible days of my life.  My daughter and I sang that song at her funeral because her husband requested we do so. It was a privilege to honor her in that way.  I tell you all this because I have been thinking a lot about her lately. I miss her and I honestly miss working at a job that allows me to connect deeply to a person and their circumstance.

How does your job allow you to connect to another human being?  Are you using your talents to make another person more comfortable? What is your story of human connection?

–KSL News Video

A temporary construction wall inside LDS Hospital has become a place for oncology patients to vent with colorful words and drawings, providing an open forum for the emotions often hidden from those who’ve never heard the words, “You have cancer.”

– A Rainbow of Feelings on the wall, Deseret News

“Now that I’m bald, I can really see my face and my eyes, and they’re beautiful, and I see my heart in them,” wrote cancer patient Brandi Chase.

Caregivers in the cancer unit say it’s been a great form of therapy.

“It can be hard to get our patients up and moving. Sometimes they’re cooped up their rooms for two or three months at a time,” says nurse Tony Hall. “This gets them out and they can see what other people are going through. It helps their mood and makes them feel like they’re not alone.”

–Cancer Patients Turn Wall Into A Healing Canvas, Intermountain Healthcare News

Donna Smith

My tweet yesterday said I’d write about the three pieces of mail I received from my insurance company, Aetna, this week. All three confirmed it. In their eyes and in every manner of decision they make, I am either a medical loss if a claim must be paid or I am a profit if they can deny me.

If only we had Medicare for all for life…

My first piece of mail from Aetna was the first round of denials of the medication my doctor ordered to help reduce my gut pain as diagnostic effort and other care continues. That instantly made me upset which also makes me feel worse.

If only we had Medicare for all for life…

But it was second piece of mail from Aetna that gnaws at me more. The letter informed me that my employer would be getting a rebate check since Aetna failed to meet the amounts they needed to in approved/paid claims. The letter was a bit celebratory in that it told me that my employer could choose to use the funds for other employee health costs, but I wasn’t celebrating. It would have made me happy and healthier to have my medication. While I am sure many employers were pleased to get their insurance rebate checks, I also suspect few will actually use those funds to better the health of their employees in any significant way.

If only we had Medicare for all for life…

My gut doesn’t feel good. So I appealed, in writing, the decision on my meds. I sent mine on the website on a form and then followed up with a call to make sure they saw it. First they said they didn’t and then another person said they did. That brings me to the third piece of mail from Aetna – the acknowledgement that they have received my appeal. Now they have 30 days to work up the next denial for me or to decide to cover the medication. I’m not holding my breath.

To make matters worse, I then get emails from several political campaigns asking me how happy I am about the changes to the system that forced Aetna to send rebates to my employer. Talk about salt in an already painful wound.

If only we had Medicare for all for life…

Also, just yesterday, I read this in an e-alert from the New Your Times:

“Hospital Chain Internal Reports Found Dubious Cardiac Work”

“HCA, the largest for-profit hospital chain in the country, is confronting evidence of unnecessary cardiac treatments at some of its medical centers in Florida after a nurse’s complaint prompted an internal investigation.

“The inquiry found that the complaint was far from the only evidence that unnecessary — even dangerous — procedures were taking place at some HCA hospitals, driving up costs and increasing profits.”

Get it? “Unnecessary cardiac work.” What a nice way of putting it when the patients had invasive, painful procedures, or had their chests cracked open for profit. Ugly business, and anything for a buck.

So, what’s up with all this fellow patients? It’s a pretty screwed up system, eh? The for-profit providers want to test and treat, and the for-profit insurance companies want to deny those tests and that treatment. Who’s lying? The answer is not clear as not every decision is without medical merit or even some coincidental evidence that it might have been done in our best interests. But who’s to know?

And across the table from me sits my husband who has had many heart and artery issues and procedures over time. Can we ever know for certain all of that was appropriate and necessary? No. What we can know for certain is that big profits were made and that unless a significant number of Americans get sick enough of this system to demand an improved and expanded Medicare for all for life system, the mail and the news will continue to bring messages that simply reinforce the sickness that is entrenched and strengthening within our healthcare system in America.

After lunch she said, I think when you are so sick that I don’t want to think about it so in my mind I make you someone else, that way I don’t have to think about you in pain. I’m sorry if I leave you some days. Don’t leave me, OK?

I told her, “No way…no way Mom. No way.”

Barbara Taylor Vaughan

A visiting nurse came by to see me today, she had to do an update since Missy will be using them again. She didn’t smile much and asked me questions, she never looked at me, just at her computer. She was in a hurry, I guess it’s Friday and she wants to go home. She listened to my heart, took my blood pressure, asked about meds…she never really looked me in the eye, just asked questions.

Missy came home and told her everything was the same, no changes…the lady asked me how I felt, if I ever got depressed…I didnt answer her. She asked again louder as if I didn’t hear. I looked at her and she at me, I told her, “I am too old to be depressed. I have Alzheimer’s.” I asked her, “Do you get depressed? How do you feel today?”

She looked at me, and for the first time smiled…and said, “Yes, I get depressed, and today I don’t feel well.  I am sorry.” I told her, don’t be sorry, but, please, the next time you go to see an old person, look them in the eye, talk to them, not at them, and if you don’t feel well, tell them. I hope you feel better. Have a nice weekend, get some rest and come back and visit with me when you feel better Sweetie.

I am old, I don’t get depressed, I have Alzheimer’s. If you have a job, be proud of it, do your best…have a good weekend, get some rest…

Photo credit: Joseph Hart

Well, Casey and Shayne share a few stories. Casey tells a story about an elderly woman’s escape from an assisted living facility. A World War II Vet—this sweet 89-year-old woman managed to slip by the door attendants, walk down a hill to the parking lot, HOTWIRE a car and drive it around town for 45 minutes—without incident by the way! A missing resident alert was issued and police were called. They found the woman cruising at 24 miles per hour—helmet hair and all–down the streets of a town that shall remain unnamed. Wow—how the hell do you HOTWIRE a car anyway?

Donna Kelly Williams

This week we give a salute to the Massachusetts Nurses Association. We are joined by RN and President of Mass. Nurses Association, Donna Kelly Williams. Donna speaks about the recent victories the nurses have had with respect to keeping Taunton State Hospital opened and witnessing the signing of legislation to make mandatory overtime illegal. She also finds a way to slip in a little about the Red Sox. Remember Boston you can listen to Nurse Talk on Revolution Boston 1510 AM. We thank all of you wonderful nurses for fighting the fight to improve patient care!

Author, Motivational Speaker and RN Karyn Buxman

And–What’s So Funny about Diabetes? Well of course nothing—but there can be humor in the circumstances. RN, motivational speaker and author Karyn Buxman joins us to talk about the healing power of laughter and her new book series “What’s So Funny About…” The first edition of “What’s So Funny”  is about the challenges of diabetes. We’ll visit with Karyn about her busy world and why she trusts the power of humor as a potent healing tool. You can learn more and buy the book at karynbuxman.com.

And we play our new game (while working out the bugs, so to speak) Health Trivia! With a little help from our friends from iTriage each week we will present a quiz about all kinds of health related issues—and if you get the answer right—you get a FREE MRI! Just kidding. A free coffee gift card for $25—that is if our Producer remembers to send it to you.

AND DON’T FORGET TO check out our wonderful blog and listen to any or all of our shows at nursetalksite.com.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturdays at 11 am in the Boston area on station WWZN 1510AM or live stream at www.revolutionboston.com and in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Thursdays at 7pm Eastern on RadioOrNot.com. Check out the iHeartRadio app for free and live custom radio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Photo credit: Julia Freeman-Woolpert

I sat in the back row of the large Catholic Church and watched the young people and their families file in. Most heads were bowed but some were looking around with sad eyes. My heart was racing and I physically felt uncomfortable as I fought to not let tears escape my eyes. The open casket at the front of the church kept calling to me but I couldn’t look at it…not yet. Her family was escorted in—mom was crying and her little brother appeared fearful—no father. They sat next to an elderly woman in the front row that I hadn’t met before.

I have no idea what the priest said that day because as soon as he started talking my mind went to the images I knew of this amazing young woman. Her room was painted in purple. Let me rephrase that—her entire room was painted in purple—including the ceiling! The walls were lined with teenage posters and Polaroid pictures of her and her friends, trees, fish and her family. She took Polaroid pictures of everything! She had a huge fish tank on top of her dresser that held a multitude of fish that she cared for. Each time I entered the room I was taken aback by the amount of clothes that could be found on the floor. She would always say with a giggle, “my mom is going to be so pissed that I didn’t pick up my room before you came over.”

She was obsessed with death and what happens after one dies. Each of my visits would end with her asking me, “Before you go…tell me one more thing that the Bible says about heaven.” I would then tell her another fact from the Bible that I had looked up prior to going to her home…she would get quiet and just think it over. Sometimes she asked about hell…I would answer that as well. She often asked me about Jesus and how I was so sure that He was real…I answered her.

I was this amazing young woman’s hospice nurse. She was 13 when I met her and she was enduring end-stage leukemia. I was responsible for administering antibiotics via her PICC line for the pneumonia she had contracted. She lived with her mother and 6 year old brother in a third floor apartment. Her mother worked full-time and she babysat her brother during the summer…it was summer. She was like any other 13 year old who had to stay home and babysit her little brother—annoyed. She was far too weak to leave the house and do anything else but she still was annoyed.

Her mom’s shaky voice pulled my mind back to the present…to her funeral. Her mom talked lovingly of her 14 year old daughter whom she would miss terribly. She told of her bravery, her passions and her fears. She thanked all those that had helped them during the last 6 months of her life…and then she lost it…and we all lost it…

The funeral ended and I felt sick…my head hurt so bad from trying desperately not to cry…I felt strange.  I was just her nurse and I only knew her for 6 months…I figured I didn’t have the right to feel so sad. I now know how wrong that was, but at the time I didn’t realize it was OK. As I walked to her mom to give her a hug I prayed for strength. Her mom hugged me and cried…she asked me to wait a second and she went to her purse and came back to me. She handed me a Polaroid picture of her daughter and I…the picture she had taken of us the first day I met them. The tears wouldn’t stop. The Polaroid picture is in my Bible…

We nurses do make a difference and we do have a right to feel and experience things with our patients. It is when we let the patient into our hearts that they then feel the care we have for them.

A relationship can then form and that is when a shared human connection can happen. Not all patients want that and there are patients that are so difficult that it just won’t happen…but on any given work day there is someone out there in patient land that needs their nurse to connect with them…believe me—it is worth it!

Photo credit: 2Rainbows

Today Missy cleaned out my closet. We went through all my old clothes, things that I don’t wear any longer and never will. The nursing home has told us they needed nice clean clothes for some of their residents, so we decided to go through my things. Missy washed them up and we will take them tomorrow.

They say Alzheimer’s takes away your memory…it seems like in my stage of it that GOD is giving me a break by letting me remember past things to pass on to Missy, my memories, before they are erased from my mind for good.  Going through the clothes brought back so many memories…the pink blouse that I wore to my husband’s funeral, bright bright pink…he told me he wanted me to wear something that he could see from the sky…so I did. My yellow fuzzy robe, so comfy, so soft…I think someone will love the feel of it…so many nights I wore it sitting next to my husband when he was dying. The red dress with the little black dots, I wore it to my best friends funeral because it was her favorite.

Lots of blouses, skirts, pants…robes, pajamas,

I think of other people wearing these clothes and think…maybe some of my happiness will wear off on them…even the clothes I wore when I was sad still bring back some happy memory of someone else.

So off the clothes will go…how funny that clothes can bring back so many memories.

As Missy was asking me “give away” or “keep,”  I would ask to feel the item, touch it, put it to my face and remember…and then I would say give it away. Maybe tomorrow we will start on my dresser drawers, it has pictures and things in it…who knows what memories that will bring.  I have to go through these things now.  I told Missy today I feel like I hear the timer clicking, and when it goes “ding,” I wont remember anymore…so we must get to work. Goodbye pink blouse and old yellow robe, goodbye.

Wow. What a thing to hear.

Sure, my family tells me this. And my husband too, of course. And I’m sure they mean it! But the people you love are always beautiful. I’ve never considered myself empirically pretty.

This cancer stuff is really working for me.

The bioavailability of some phytonutrients is increased by cooking. See my Best Cooking Method video to find out which vegetables are better cooked and which are the best to eat raw. Check out my 33 other videos on greens and hundreds of other videos on more than a thousand subjects. And note that the study I’m talking about here is published in an open access journal, so you can click on it above in the Sources Cited section and read it full-text for free.

Please also check out my associated blog post: http://nutritionfacts.org/blog/2012/04/19/breast-cancer-stem-cells-vs-broccoli/!

O.K., a little dry but—you can tell he really cares. Try this one:

The Laryngospasms sing “Breathe.”

I think I like the second one better. Check it out on Nurse Talk coming up this Saturday @ 11am on 960 KNEW AM and Revolution Boston 1510 AM or nursetalksite.com.

And…Casey and Shayne take us on a walk down “Pain Lane.” HOW BAD IS YOUR PAIN? A new pain scale chart that starts at 0 with:

“Hi, I am not experiencing any pain at all. I don’t even know why I’m here.”

and ends with 11:

“Blood is going to explode out of my face at any moment.”

What a range! Lots in between too.

And…if you think the conversation about universal healthcare is for those who don’t work and want a handout…please watch this. It is not an isolated incident. It shouldn’t be about political parties or profits–it should simply be a matter of humanity.

And RN Jane Sandoval from San Francisco’s St. Luke’s Hospital joins us to talk about the proposed new 555-bed mega hospital that Sutter Healthcare Corp wants to build. Sounds nice doesn’t it? It is if you don’t know about the move to consolidate services and locate a hospital so far away from the communities that need it the most. The new hospital would force closure of St. Luke’s, the City’s mainstay for medical services for lower income populations.

AND—square dancing gets impossible when your heel is killing you. A caller is forced off the square dancing floor because of severe pain in her heel. Casey and Shayne tell her there is hope…Do Sa Do and Allemande Left.

You can listen and laugh every week on Saturdays at 11 am in the Boston area on station WWZN 1510AM or live stream at www.revolutionboston.com and in the San Francisco Bay area on KNEW 960AM or live stream at www.960knew.com. Thursdays at 7pm Eastern on RadioOrNot.com. Check out the iHeartRadio app for free and live custom radio. You can also download and listen to any show anytime here at NurseTalkSite.com or on iTunes. Like us on Facebook, and you can listen there too.

Remember, “laughter is the best medicine.”

Photo credit: Neil Gould

My mothers Alzheimer’s is getting worse. She has very, very good days, then a day or two of awful, awful days. She seems to be losing her ability to remember how to walk, how to hold things, how to perform tasks that have been simple for her until now. She is aware that she is unable to do these things and it is frustrating her. Her mind comes and goes, most of the time she is smarter than I am on a good day, but then has hours of not knowing who I am, or not remembering what has happened an hour before.

I was so upset tonight because she was bad this afternoon and Mike told me, “But she is still so happy.” Even in the bad—I had not even realized—that even in her frustration, she is smiling and giggly, and happy. She is always smiling. It took Mike to remind me, one day at a time.

Tonight when I was putting her to bed, she sang happy birthday to my dad…she told me how many birthdays he had been gone, and sang again. One day at a time.

• Bradycardia
• Tachycardia
• Normal heart rhythm
• Hypotension

If you chose Tachycardia, you are right! Way to go. Good nursing.

Photo credit: (c) Ewa Kubiak

Today I met a little boy who his doctors have diagnosed with autism. My sitter called and said that her daycare could not take him today so Missy told her to bring him with her. He sat with me and we looked out the window, we watched some TV, but not really.

I tried to hug him but he yelled. I tried to hold his hand but he pulled away. We finally connected making my jewelry. He separated all my colors for me. He strung pearls, and he straightened out all my threads in matching colors. He never looked at me in the eye, just past me…but I talked all day to him. He never answered, but he knew what I was saying. I talked about my grandchildren, my daughter, I sang, and even told him a secret. A secret I told him no one else knows but him.

When he left, he patted the top of my hand—his version, I think, of holding my hand. And he brushed up against me. I want to think of it as a hug. I gave him the pearls he strung and he gave them to his mom…he put them around her neck and I saw he was proud.

Yes, we didn’t talk, but I know I made a new friend. I told him when he left, to come back, and I hope he does. I wonder if tonight he is thinking about that silly old woman who talked all day, and sang. His mother told Missy that she never had seem him so calm and connect with anyone so quick. Missy told her she could bring him anytime she came. I hope she does, I have more jewelry to make, more stories to tell, and songs to sing, and maybe he will tell me his secret one day.

Yes, I had a good good day, I made a new friend, Troy.

Autism…Alzheimer’s…MS…labels…We all have labels…we are all more than that.

Photo credit: Hans Thoursie

Wild dark brown hair
Fine and Full
Flat in the back
Long, wispy and straight out

Red lips in a perfect pout
Closed mouth
What truth is trapped inside?
No more breath

Creamy white skin
Limbs that lay limp
Ten fingers and toes
Soft and cold to touch

Metal and Plastic equipment
Mucous and blood
Sea green sheet
Everything lifeless next to her

Photographs and swabbings
Gloves
Police and investigators
No family

Nurses, EMT’s and techs
Anger, frustration and sadness
Tears that won’t fall
Tightened throats

Hold her tight Lord
Kiss her tiny, delicate face
Heal her bruises
Give her life

Photo credit: Andreas Krappweis

This morning I woke up to my mother singing. She was like a child, still in her crib, waiting for their parents to get them up in the morning, she was entertaining herself by singing and talking to herself. I came in the room and she looked at me and smiled and lifted her arms up to me to get her out of bed, to start her day. She said, “Hello sunshine, I love you, I am so happy.”

It didn’t matter how terrible I felt, after being up all night with terrible MS spasms and pain…now seeing her so happy, especially to see me. And then she said, “Oh I love Mondays, today is Monday. Mikey is home all day long.  Oh boy, oh boy.”

I can not explain in words the love I have for my mother, the joy she brings to my life everyday…all the bad days of her Alzheimer’s…all my pain in caring for her on days I can’t care for myself…wiped all away by just a “Hello Sunshine.” It’s going to be a good week. Thank you GOD.  Thank you for our miracle.

Being a patient patient: cultivating fortitude and calm.

pa-tient
n. a person who is under medical care or treatment.
adj. bearing provocation, annoyance, misfortune, delay, hardship, pain, etc., with fortitude and calm and without complaint, anger, or the like.

Okay. After this week I am officially over it. I am tired of taking pills x number of times a day and at certain hours; going to doctor’s appointments and waiting; my body changing and worrying about every little change and what it might mean and if it is permanent; chemo therapy; the threat of hospital stays, and therefore hospital food; looking into the future and seeing more doctor’s appointments, more chemo, more prescriptions. Bah. I want this to be over. I am not patient, so I don’t want to be a patient.

I keep wondering how it is children are so successful at overcoming ALL and adults less so. My suspicion is children don’t have calendars, nor do they read and understand the entire protocol, nor do they have much previous experience to compare this one against. For the next two years I will be on chemo therapy for two weeks and off for one. I’m not sure, maybe the doses lessen. Two weeks on, one week off, for two years. Oh, my, God. It has been 63 days since I was diagnosed. I’m still much closer to my old life and schedule than I am to this one.

I’m clinging to a life where I didn’t have to be patient. This is real, I can not go back. Not ever. I am a patient. I will have to cultivate fortitude and calm to offset my anger and complaint.

Fortitude. This word works well in hymns and scriptures, but what does it even mean? Dictionary please: Courage in pain or adversity. In other words I’m scared, but as there is no out, I will do it anyway.

What am I afraid of? I could die. I might die. I will die, someday. My life is currently happening, even if it is cancer flavored. Is death the thing I’m really worried about? Not so much, I think truly it is change. I will change through this process—but into what? What will I no longer be able to do? This is what I genuinely fear.

Calm. Can I be calm? Is mine a process of fighting to stay alive, or of accepting the way my life is now? Is this a fight or a surrender?

What will I become after these two years? What new things will I be able to do? Maybe I’ll be able to distinguish when to fight or when to surrender.

I am a patient (the surrender).
I can become patient (the fight).

Emily Sorman

Emily Sorman, LPN will be traveling to Cusco, Peru with the organization A Broader View. There, she will be working in a small community clinic or hospital providing basic medical care. Most indigenous people, especially the children, lack medial attention. These clinics provide necessary health care including dental check ups and immunizations free of charge.

In her own words,”I am excited to be submerged in another culture where I am
not completely comfortable. I want to understand what it is like for those who don’t have access to the resources we have in the United States. I want to learn and brush up on my Spanish skills. Most importantly, I want to help others who are in need. This is my life’s passion, and it is why I became a nurse. I am looking forward to applying to an LPN to RN program in the fall. Many require volunteer health care experience. I can’t think of a better or more unique way to get this experience.”

Emily feels fortunate to have worked for Swedish Visiting Nurse Services as a Home Health Nurse. Due to financial constraints, the company closed its doors April 27, 2012. This job meant the world to her, but she refused to let it get her down. “I am taking this layoff as an opportunity to travel to Peru and while help provide medical care in a clinic. I am grateful for this scholarship, and look forward to sharing my experience with others.”

Photo: veer66 / Flickr

Recent testing of mercury concentrations in three national brands of canned tuna found that:

“55% of all tuna examined was above the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s safety level for human consumption.”

And the problem appears to be getting worse. Previous studies on canned tuna, in 1993 and 2004, showed concerning levels of mercury contamination, but not as bad as it is now. See my profile of the paper in my 2-min. video Which brand of tuna has the most mercury?

Given the average level of mercury pollution found in canned tuna, researchers suggest that your average 9 year old would exceed the EPA limit even if they only ate a can of tuna every 6 weeks! They conclude: “These results indicate that stricter regulation of the canned tuna industry is necessary to ensure the safety of sensitive populations such as pregnant women, infants, and children.”

Some question whether the federal safety limits are even sufficiently protective. A recent review from researchers at Harvard and elsewhere on the adverse effects of mercury in fish proposed that the exposure limits set in the United States should be cut in half. Already, current regulations in the United States allow up to 10 times as much mercury in fish as the EPA limit allows, and so our fish is allowed to have 20 times more mercury than may be considered safe.

Because the EPA safety limit on mercury in fish may not sufficiently protect pregnant women in the United States, a recommendation has been put forth that fish-eating women may want to get tested for mercury before considering getting pregnant. It’s a simple test. Since mercury basically contaminates our whole body, all they need is a hair sample. See more details in my 2-min. video Hair Testing for Mercury Before Consider Pregnancy.

Studies on children of the neurobehavioral toxicity of mercury suggest that no level of mercury exposure can truly be considered safe, but pressure from the fish industry may be preventing safety limits from dropping further. In my video Nerves of Mercury I profile a famous study published in the Journal of Pediatrics showing brain damage in adolescents at below the mercury limits placed on fish in this country. As one former EPA toxicologist told the Wall Street Journal, “They really consider the fish industry to be their clients, rather than the U.S. public.”

Mercury is not just a problem for children. Mercury and other toxic pollutants in fish is thought to be why the consumption of dark fish (such as salmon, swordfish, bluefish, mackerel, and sardines) may increase one’s risk of atrial fibrillation, an irregularity of heart beat rhythm associated with stroke, dementia, heart failure, and a shortened lifespan. See my 2-min. video