you can't always get what you need

11.30.2005

Cris Kerr highlights Naltrexone in her latest issue of 'Case Health - Health Success Stories'.

Naltrexone is traditionally used to help people who have a narcotic or alcohol addiction stay drug free. Naltrexone is used after the patient has stopped taking drugs or alcohol. It works by blocking the effects of narcotics or by decreasing the craving for alcohol. U.S. National Library of Medicine

Cris recently became aware of a drug that appeared to stop the progression of Multiple Sclerosis, potentially enhancing the quality of life of many Multiple Sclerosis (MS) sufferers.

The drug is Naltrexone (also known as ReVia) and Cris's 'Health Success Stories' database contains a growing body of compelling anecdotal evidence that Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) works, and; it works well - BUT, sufferers can't get it.

"Naltrexone has not achieved mainstream acceptance as a treatment option for MS due to absence of clinical trial data. Research, drug development, and clinical trials are commercially-driven by sponsors. That's okay, but there's no recognized body that can officially step up to the plate to speak and act on behalf of patients. I know this because I've tried, without success, to find an authority that is sanctioned to do so."

The present system is inequitable. It doesn't place sufficient value on patient health success stories. It doesn't place sufficient value on advocating for the patient. It doesn't place sufficient value on patient-driven research or clinical trials. If it did, there would be a body sanctioned to speak and act on a promising body of patient testimonials.

How many stories similar to the LDN story are out there? We don't know, because they haven't all been collected, stored, and shared. That makes me feel uneasy and should make you feel uneasy.

We need an organisation chartered to act on this type of evidence; an organisation that values patient testimony and can make recommendations (without prejudice) on behalf of patients from all corners of the globe.

every now and then

11.22.2005
first and foremost....
i'm no fan of the television. i choose to spend my time doing other things. there are a few times i get invited to a sporting event and i go. not because i think i'll enjoy myself but because a friend insisted that i need to experience this...same applies to tv shows. several members at the big b where i work have told me time and time again "ron, you have to see this show! go and rent all the dvd's right now!". after a few days more of pondering the idea, i gave in. i'm now four episodes into season 1 and i'm hooked. the pilot episode was all it took to kick start my hunger. i remember sitting very still as the credits rolled thinking how great it was to watch a show that's well written, well acted, interesting and educational to boot! i liked when doctor house posed the question that are doctors here to treat patients or are we here to treat the illness?

the show tagged doctor house's remarks-ideas as "house-isms". here are a few of them...

You know me. Hostility makes me shrink up like a... I can'’t think of a non-sexual metaphor.
- Spin

What makes a guy start drooling? Chase, were you wearing your short-shorts?
- Spin

Cameron Who was that?”
House “Angelina Jolie. I call her mom. Who thinks that'’s sexy?
- DaddyƂ’s Boy

no i passed on the idea of being a doctor but i still find the medical stuff interesting. i think in some respects that this ongoing facination of medical everything helped me during times of my recent hospital stays; my m.s. testing. many of the different test & procedures seemed almost familiar to me so naturally i wasn't completely on the edge when i went in for my spinal tap. when i saw the huge needle enter my back-into my spinal column, on the monitor above me...that's when the fear woke up.

anyway, watch this show house m.d.. just make sure you don't have a weak stomach; they do "visually" explain a few important things.
11.20.2005

i recently visited my buddy matt's blog and found something well worth sharing! :> matt

Smoke some stink…get smarter?

smokin in vancouver

A recent study shows that smoking pot can actually be good for your brain. How? At first the concept boggled your writer’s mind also…but after careful consideration, it sort of started to make sense.

For the longest time, especially in traditionalist and conservative scientific studies, pot has been the bad guy. Being blamed for memory loss, impaired learning, and causing a host of other health problems way down the line. But a sort of light has been shined on the situation.

While most drugs, namely coke, booze, and smack suppress brain cell growth, cannabinoids have actually shown to create new neurons in rats’ hippocampuses. The hippocampus is the part of your noggin responsible for learning and memory. The study held true for both plant-derived cannibis and synthetic forms of THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), which is the compound responsible for getting smokers high.

So long as studies keep going on like this, new interest will continue to spark, showing how the use of cannabinoids can improve human health. Marijuana has been used in the recent past to address many health problems, such as pain, nausea, vomiting, seizures caused by epilepsy, ischemic stroke, cerebral trauma, tumours, and multiple sclerosis.

A few final points:

  • Don’t see this as an excuse to puff more than moderately. It is based on LAB RATS.
  • The dose given to the lab rats was 100 times more potent than the plant-derived cannabis.
  • Make it happen. You were going to anyway.

Get more info on this breaking puff news here.

toys for boys

i have long been a fan of toys. in my younger days i had to have one of everything it seemed. i would spend countless hours, building brave new worlds where the good always conquered evil. now as an adult i have a greater appreciation for them. these days i spend my time collecting them, only to stand peacefully still on a variety of shelves throughout my flat.

a few days ago while on one of my web surf jonts, i stumbled on this, the new phase of action figures? i don't know too much about this particular one, but without a doubt the detailing is too remarkable. this could certainly change any ideas of fighting; kids may be prone to simply display them. is it teaching art appreciation at an early age? i'm not sure. kids are by nature, hands on. depending how their parents approach the situation could later effect the child in a variety of ways, some that may not be so beneficial. i guess time will tell but personally speaking it's great to see an action figure that looks this good!

music, november 2005

11.07.2005
music

not a day goes by without it...




just announced is the release of the new simply red single "perfect love". here is a link to a download page with 15 versions available! have a blast. if this is any indication of what's to come, it will be amazing!


the wait has ended...

Kate Bush
Aerial

(EMI)



After 12 years of waiting
Kate Bush fans finally get their hands on an album of new material. A double album-sized helping of new songs should keep most fans happy with 16 tracks to delve into. Disc one is a varied set of numbers which mainly centre around her private life, with odes to her son and a moving song about the loss of her mother. But at times these songs feel too personal and are hard to decipher with dense and difficult melodies. They encompasse a range of musical styles - from folk ("Bertie") to new age ("Pi") and classic Kate Bush ("How to be Invisible"). However, some of these tracks never really achieve lift-off and could have been left on the recording studio floor. The Kate Bush of "Cloudbusting" and "Wuthering Heights"-fame is in there but struggles to get out. After the flatness of disc one, the second disc is full of surprises. It's an old-fashioned concept album that takes the listener on a journey. And what a journey! Bush has written a lyric poem set to music, which has an epic quality, transporting the listener to a deeply lush and fertile landscape. Lyrically cryptic, but strangely seductive, side two is the album Pink Floyd might have made in 1979 if Bush had been their lead singer. Concept albums are not everyone's cup of tea - but this is a masterpiece. Reviewer: Darren Waters

i think july 2005

11.03.2005
i think...
this is the part where i spill all my marbles, regardless who might fall!

10 july, 2005
would i consider myself political? no, but i will say that half the voters knew which lever to pull. the other half are so proud of their ignorance.

10 july, 2005
people who stand at the checkout, on a cell phone, while their products are being rung-up should be slapped! how frickin' rude! someone is trying to assist you and you can't even give them the attention they deserve. if your not handicapped, don't park in their spots. if you're so god-damn special you should have been able to send a personal servant to pick your crap up! stores should be allowed somehow to ticket these pricks for breaking the law. we need to raise the cost of these fines; there loaded and they can afford it. the money should then go to help the handicapped. god knows the money isn't spent on parking lot repairs.f you take your children to the store with you, remember they are your responsibility. store clerks have enough to worry about. if your kids act like animals while they are along, drop them off at the local zoo first. when it comes time to leave, go to your children. don't stand 30 feet from them and shout "tabetha! i am leaving!" funny how some parents forget they are in a place of business. perhaps they think since their spending money they can do what ever they want...wrong answer! no matter where you go these days, there are plenty of trash containers for all of our waste. what amazes me is those idiots that shove small paper items in the ash tray area. clue...paper burns and turns to fire! i'll do my best to stop by your next garden party and bring all of my dollar general receipts! we'll turn it into a disco inferno! we spend too much time and money on "famous" people. movie stars and sports icons who get paid millions to take chances and remember all the lines are talented yes but not worth all they get. fire fighters save lives, at the same time risking their own lives and don't get half what the hollywood muscle men get. does it make senes that a stuntman might get 2 grand to jump from a burning building? sure it does, this way you don't have to take the risk. you could skip paying inflated ticket prices and jump from one your self if you're that damn curious about it. oh, i forgot. you might risk the chance of an injury. we wouldn't want that now, would we? ver notice that most of the adds we see everyday are filled with all the "beautiful people". big bulges, racked and ready to spread some sugar. what do big boobies have to do with a canary yellow hummer? if you're in a heterosexual relationship you might get your own personal hummer behind closed doors but buying one wont bring the pretty lady home to you. the average guys "mr wiggly" is not even close in size to what we see in the bvd's! remember its you and yours that you fluff and fold and not his. we should try putting alien creatures in all of our day to day adds. they might scare a few people but we would pay more attention to the products and not weather or not the alien is male or female.

25 july, 2005
the subject of "customer behavior" is one i think of and write about often. as far back as i can remember they have continued to show me just how rude and stupid a person can be without even trying. that's not to say that all customers have those characteristics because there are a few exceptions from time to time. unfortunately, the good ones are 1 in a hundred. at my work we have a selfserve ice cream case which is next to a small free-standing display rack. seems every couple of days, someone tries to squeeze through the small gap between the 2 units and avoid walking around in order to get into the checkout line. on the front of the ice cream cooler is a large magnetic sign that features all the flavors we carry. so yesterday this wildebeest of a woman thinks she'll make the right of passage; that in itself was funny to see! anyway, as she fought her way through, her elizabeth taylor maternity top caught the end corner of the magnetic sign. obviously, the sign fell to the ground. not three seconds later, a tall slender lady (hilton wanna-be!) followed in her footsteps. with her left heel firmly on the ground, she placed her right shoe quick as a whistle smack dab on the fallen sign! she thought nothing of it! she then pranced gleefully to the counter, rented her movies and pulled away in a white 4 door jag. screw charging members late fees, we should be charging dumb ass fees! another on going favorite is the grad student wanna be who calls and asks if we have a movie in stock for rental. i quickly type the title in the data base and respond "i'm sorry all 47 copies are rented out" a brief pause of silence then he says "are you sure?". the wish i could response..."ahhhhh no i am a little incompetent so hold for a moment and i'll ask the duck who's swimming around in the center of our indoor, employee only, swimming pool.