Where has the time gone?

I can't write unless I'm inspired. I posted this article on my personal Facebook page a few weeks ago, and although I wouldn't say it inspired, me, it has been bothering me. I wish we could quit the debate about immunizations causing Autism. It's a horrid illness, and like any other mother in the world, I would like to know what causes it. BUT. We can't make shit up. I'm a firm believer in not making shit up. Show me the science or shut up is my motto. This article tho? Circumcision? Currently, the rate of circumcision in the US is 81% (CDC), yet the occurrence of Autism is 1 in 42 boys. Hardly 81%. I feel like any news is news these days. It doesn't matter if it will cause public outcry, or mass public confusion.....in fact, the more the better! Are parents really making decisions based on what's in the news anymore? IDK, show me more science, friends.

Planned Parenthood Medicaid Funding Eliminated

Indianapolis, Indiana Planned Parenthood (PP) is facing severe cuts and may start shutting down clinics across their city. A new abortion funding law supported by Gov. Mitch Daniels, that took effect in May de-funded Medicaid for PP, leaving over 9,000 MEN AND WOMEN without services.

Some facts you might not know:

*One in five women in the U.S. has visited a Planned Parenthood health center at least once in her life

*Focus on prevention: 83 percent of our clients receive services to prevent unintended pregnancy

*Provides nearly one million Pap tests and more than 830,000 breast exams each year

*ONLY 3% of all Planned Parenthood health services are abortion services

I'm failing to understand why an organization that does so much education and provides so many essential PREVENTIVE services, continuously undergoes such condemnation. Is it because ONE of the services they provide is abortion? You do realize they don't force you to have an abortion, right? So we punish the masses for a few individuals' decisions? And doesn't the need for preventive services for conditions (which, left untreated cost the nation millions of dollars in palliative care) supersede any moral value placed on an individual act?

Can someone who supports this de-funding measure please enlighten me?

Be healthy, (unless you're a Medicaid recipient in Indianapolis)
Faith xoxo

See the full AP article here
Planned Parenthood, June 2011

I need book recommendations!

I'm a big reader and just finished "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," a fascinatingly disturbing recount of the birth of the HeLa cells. I can't recommend this book enough-it has all the components of a good read-touching story, personal accounts, precedence (for better or worse), and the painful account of illiteracy and medical mistrust that still lingers today. Great read-check it out!

I need another book now! Any recommendations? I like all kinds.....except Sci-Fi :)

Have a great weekend and be safe!

XO Faith

I Was Born This Way

Last year, Chaz Bono started outwardly living his life as a man debuting a name and gender change to the public. He says:

“I always had this idea that sure, I wish I was a boy...but I wasn’t and so I’d deal with it. There were other lesbians that felt that way and so that was part of that community,” he explained. “But then I realized that that wasn’t being a lesbian at all, that’s being transgendered.” Nonetheless, he still held on to that realization for years before deciding to do something about it.

"For me, it was about how I was perceived in the world," he said. "I wanted all of this [gesturing to his body] to match how I feel on the inside...I don’t doubt that I was born this way."

Here's a recent article on Chaz.....Chaz Bono: I don't doubt I was born this way.

Have any of your dealt personally with someone going through a gender identity search? How have you dealt with it? How are they perceived publicly?

How would you feel if your son or daughter came to you saying they thought they were the wrong gender?

For me, I would always want to support my daughters, but I would be concerned about how the public would react. Unfortunately, I think as a nation we don't know what to do with this kind of change, and perhaps aren't prepared for these issues. Tough one!

What do you all think?

Faith xo

Is it innate? Is it God-given?

How Many Gays Must God Create Before We Accept That He Wants Them Around?



Wow, I thought this was intriguing and very eloquent.

Your thoughts?

Have a great weekend!
xo Faith

Massachusetts Bullying Case, No Jail Time?

Northampton, Massachusetts (CNN) -- "Two classmates of a high school freshman who hanged herself in the stairwell of her family's apartment pleaded guilty to charges of criminal harassment, but neither will serve time, prosecutors said Wednesday."

"Mulveyhill and Narey, both 18, each received one year's probation, with special stipulations that include 100 hours of community service to assist underprivileged or at-risk youth..."

WOW, this is sombering. Humbling. Frightening.

"Sean Mulveyhill and Kayla Narey entered their pleas in connection with what was described as the systematic bullying of Phoebe Prince..On the day she died, Prince was loudly berated in the South Hadley High School library. She was taunted again as school let out, and as she walked home crying, one of the students called Prince names and tossed an empty can at her as they passed in a car, according to the 38-page court filing painting a vivid picture of constant hazing. By 4:55 p.m. that day, Prince had hanged herself in the stairwell of her family's apartment in South Hadley."

"...they had called her cruel names, including "whore" and "Irish slut."

The word phrase that really strikes me in the above story, is "systematic bullying"--what must Phoebe have been enduring day in and day out?

I'm a mom of a high school freshman myself, and I've always taught my daughters to be accepting of others and that high school is just a sliver of the life you have to lead.

How do you feel? Was the punishment fair?

Thanks for weighing in.

Be safe,
Faith

Read the full CNN article here.

Bloodsport or Valley of Death?

Sounds violent, and totally up my alley! I'm referring to the Animal Planet's "Killer Outbreak" series featuring potentially deadly viruses and commentary from CDC experts and the victims themselves. In this season, six episodes will cover Anthrax, E. coli, Hantavirus, Rabies, West Nile, Monkey Pox, Acinetobacter Baumannii, Salmonella, Valley Fever, Meningococcal Disease, SARS and MRSA.

Upcoming are Episode 4: Bloodsport (May 6th 9PM/ET) Something's striking down men in the college town of Fort Collins, Colorado. A healthy father of two awakes one night with violent flu-like symptoms. He's rushed to the hospital, but in the matter of days, this healthy young man goes from the peak of health to death's door.

and Episode 5: Valley of Death (May 13th 9PM/ET) When a huge earthquake hits California, thousands of homes are condemned as dangerous and unlivable. A resident rushes to check in on his father after the earthquake. As they pick up the shattered remains of their home, the father is plagued by a persistent cough. Within days, his hands turn black, and he lapses into a coma...


Anyone tuning into these? Anyone see Deadly Animals Among Us? I missed that one!

They sound freaky but in a good way, ya know? ;-)

xo Faith

They love the way I ride it...

Well, my husband finally fulfilled a dream I thought I had successfully pounded, mutilated, and ultimately killed..........he bought a motorcycle. This thing is LOUD, BIG, and scares the hell out of me.

Our conversation went something like this:
Him: OMG (he actually said the full words) you will never believe what I just bought!!
Me: OMG (I didn't say the full words) you bought me a LV Speedy 35?!? Now I'm gonna have to do that thing to you tonight.....
Him: Well, no, but it's BETTER! I got a bike!
Me: Holy Crap, that's awesome! (read: Holy Crap, I'm too young to be widowed...I wonder what happened to that Engineer who used to hit on me...)
Me again: Seriously, couldn't be happier! You've wanted a bike for so long! I can't believe you ACTUALLY bought one! That's so awesome.....(inner turmoil), just make sure you max out your life insurance policy and we'll be golden! Have fun!


So here's to our journey together......




Although I joke about it, I'm actually totally happy for him and I know he's going to get a ton of joy out of it. AND the public health professional in me has to defer to the CDC's recommendations for Motorcycle Safety and reinforce that if you ride a bike, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE wear a helmet!


Ride safe you crazy kids.

xox Faith




Song lyrics from Ciara "Ride"

"The Economics of Street Charity"

Courtesy of Stephen J. Dubner's "Freakonomics" blog, I pose a question to you:

You are walking down the street in New York City with $10 of disposable income in your pocket. You come to a corner with a hot dog vendor on one side and a beggar on the other. The beggar looks like he’s been drinking; the hot dog vendor looks like an upstanding citizen. How, if at all, do you distribute the $10 in your pocket, and why?

Read the blog for guest commentary, but this one was my favorite by Barbara Ehrenreich:

"....Although I’m atheist, I defer to Jesus on beggar-related matters. He said, if a man asks for your coat, give him your cloak too. (Actually, he said if a man “sue thee at the law” for the coat, but most beggars skip the legal process.) Jesus did not say: First, administer a breathalyzer test to the supplicant, or, first, sit him down for a pep talk on “focus” and “goal-setting.” He said: Give him the damn coat.

As a matter of religious observance, if a beggar importunes me directly, I must fork over some money. How do I know whether he’s been drinking or suffers from a neurological disorder anyway? Unless I’m his parole officer, what do I care? And before anyone virtuously offers him a hot dog, they should reflect on the possibility that the beggar is a vegetarian or only eats kosher or Hallal meat. It’s none of my business whether he plans to spend it on infant formula for his starving baby or a pint of Thunderbird."

HILARIOUS!

Comment on how you would distribute the money, if you would......and don't forget to follow me!

Bulimia, Anorexia, and..........picky eating??

Okay, so we all know about bulimia and anorexia, and they are crippling, horrid illnesses. But have you heard of Adult Selective Eating or ORTHOREXIA? JAMA is actually recognizing "extreme picky eaters" as an eating disorder, and categorizing those who increasingly restrict their diet to pure, natural foods.

Not sure how I feel about that. What are your thoughts? Do these individuals hide their "illness" from family and friends, do they need an intervention? Are we seriously comparing these behaviors to life-threatening illnesses?

I dunno, sounds a little like excessive labeling. Have you heard of this?

I'm off to eat my organic broccoli now......


Source:New Eating Disorders: Are They For Real?

Let's Talk About Sex, Baby.....

National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior

Researchers at Indiana U conducted the largest nationally representative study (National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior-NSSHB)of sexual health/behaviors...including a SEXUAL BEHAVIOR GRAPH with a DESCRIPTION OF MORE THAN 40 COMBINATIONS of SEXUAL ACTS that people perform.

C'mon you know you want to know......

Seriously though, this is the largest study since the Kinsey study more than a half century ago, and the unique part is it included adolescent men and women. Studies like this help public health professionals study trends and plan programs accordingly.

Interestingly, the study was funded by Church & Dwight Co. Inc., maker of Trojan® brand sexual health products :)

Two Pennsylvania High School Girls Receive $50,000 in Scholarships

Oh those high school days.....I thought my accomplishments were enough to brag about. Two Pennsylvania girls won $50,000 in scholarships from the Young Epidemiology Scholars (YES) national competition, the nation's leading public health research competition for high school students.

Shoshanna Goldwin of Allentown, PA: “Energy Epidemic: Teen Perception and Consumption of Energy Drinks.”

Gazelle Zerafati of Villanova, PA: “Epidemiology of Migraine in Teenage Girls, A Student Population Based Study.”

Read more here: http://www.rwjf.org/publichealth/product.jsp?id=61908&cid=xem-emc-ca

The public health workforce is diminishing even as the population increases. By 2020, the United States will face a shortfall of more than 250,000 public health workers, according to the Association of Schools of Public Health. The YES Competition was established in 2003 by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the College Board to inspire talented high school students to apply epidemiological methods to the investigation of health problems and, ultimately, encourage the brightest young minds to enter the field of public health.

formspring.me

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/fvawter

"Dead Peasant" Insurance?

With the release of Michael Moore's "Capitalism: A Love Story" came this idea of corporate entities purchasing life insurance on their employees without their knowledge (did you catch that? WITHOUT their knowledge) and then cashing out when that individual dies--whether or not they are still an employee of said company.

WOW. Huge fail.

Here's a list of companies said to have engaged in what's called "Dead Peasant" insurance......

Be well!

Dating Violence-Is your teen at risk?

Hey parents,

As a parent of a teen myself this is a topic I'm not thrilled to think about, but it's SO important to make sure your son/daughter is well-equipped with the skills to recognize dating violence and END IT. Remember-this isn't a one-sided issue; girls can be physically, emotionally, and sexually abusive to boys as well.

Talk with your kids--Watch the above video from the CDC-Break the Silence; this is a great video from the CDC on how to prepare your kids.

Have you talked to your teen about this? What did you say? How did you bring it up?

Happy parenting!
Faith :)

"The Choking Game"

"The Choking Game" report by the CDC, January 15, 2010


Ask your 8th grader if they've ever heard of it.... Then ask them if they've ever tried it. Over 30% of Oregon 8th graders knew someone who had "played" this game.

When I was in 8th grade it was trying cigarettes, or having a sip of beer, now it's strangulation games to experience euphoria. Research indicates that children in rural areas are more likely to engage in this activity than urban youth, and that substance use may play a role.

As if we didn't have enough to think about as parents, having recently dealt with my own daughter and Facebook and cell phone house rules. Ugh, so much to consider. Will this new data prompt you to talk to your kids about these dangerous games?

PBS "A Girl's Life"

Link: PBS presents "A Girl's Life" http://www.pbs.org/parents/raisinggirls/girlslife/

A great video from an expert in the field.

An issue close to my heart--raising healthy, strong, capable young women in a society where even they view themselves as "pleasers," whether it's to boys, teachers, parents, friends, or a force even they can't identify. When for so long women fought for their independence and solidarity, something (music, movies, TV?) is telling young women to shut up and sit down. I didn't realize how one-sided society views boy/girl relationships until I started raising my girls. Now, I try very hard to make sure their behavior is not to "impress," "tease," or otherwise "gain the attention" of boys. Not to say I don't encourage their natural sexual curiosity, but there is a fine balance, right?

What do you think of the video?

Much love and peace to you all as we gently embrace 2010. Be safe :)

Kids and Candy

So, there is a lot of buzz right now about childhood obesity (and rightfully so) and how kids have easy access to junk food. There is talk, and some actual effort, in removing junk food from vending machines in schools as well as taxing this kind of food and beverage in the grocery store. I'm mulling this over............only recently did WIC begin offering fruits and vegetables as part of their repetoire in addition to the 5 lb blocks of cheese and multitude dairy items.

Hmmm........I'm not sure how I feel about that. At what point do we put our efforts into removing the obstacles that impede this natural behavior change (i.e, the high overall cost of nutritious food versus candy, for example) rather than simply taking away the temptation. In addition, if we are truly afraid of childhood obesity, why do we continually vote down any efforts to increase PE in schools? My daughter has PE two days a week. ONLY TWO! I'm not sure that taking away her one candy bar a day is making a huge difference here.

In other words, whose responsibility is it? Parents? Schools? Government? I'd love to hear your thoughts.......

H1N1-Are we overreacting?

U.S. officials have reported that H1N1 activity has declined for the fourth consecutive week, suggesting that the pandemic may have peaked. The CDC reports 43 states had widespread flu activity the week before Thanksgiving, compared with 46 the week before that. I've personally been affected by the flu and it seems to be pretty typical with a high fever, severe fatigue, and a horrendous cough that can last for weeks. It certainly didn't turn out to be the catastrophe it was made out to be by the media....as far as I know we haven't called off any public events or quarantined anybody!

Since the outbreak began in April, 22 million Americans have contracted H1N1, 98,000 have been hospitalized, and approximately 4,000 individuals have died.

How does that compare to the regular flu season?

On average 5-20% of the population get the flu, more than 200,000 people are hospitalized, and about 36,000 people die from season flu-related causes. The peak of flu season has occurred from late November through March.

I guess we will wait it out and continue to hound Rite-Aid until they get more vaccines; people will continue to bid on Tamiflu on ebay, and I will keep stocking cereal and spaghetti sauce in my garage until mid-July when I can be assured flu season is over and I can bask in the warm sun......until it all starts again in August :-)

For more info: http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/

Teen Dating Violence

Each year one in four adolescents report verbal, physical, emotional or sexual abuse from a dating partner

Have any of you had any experience with teen dating violence?? As my oldest daughter enters the dating years I cringe at the thought of her having to protect herself in this way. However, I know it's my job to empower her not only physically, but emotionally and mentally to handle the pressures dating brings. Every time I get the eye roll, or the "mommmmm" I want to stop bugging her about "relationships" but then I hear something like these statistics, and I am reassured my incessant bugging will be appreciated one day ;-) Right??

What are we doing as a nation?

There's a new initiative under way, Start Strong, to target 11-14 year olds to promote healthy relationships as the way to prevent teen dating violence and abuse. Attorney General Eric Holder and Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan are engaging teens, their parents, and program leaders around this issue as the nation commemorates the 15th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

Here are some additional resources:

Choose Respect Initiative
www.chooserespect.org

National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-SAFE

National Sexual Assault Hotline
1-800-656-HOPE

Source: http://www.cdc.gov/ViolencePrevention/intimatepartnerviolence/index.html