Archive for April, 2008
April 28th, 2008Silent GERD - My Arch Nemesis!
If you have been keeping up with my blog - then you’ve read my horrible experience with GERD. (Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease)
GERD is a suck-y thing to deal with. Especially if you don’t even realize you have it until you get really scary symptoms like I did when I woke up in the middle of the night unable to breathe. If you ever had a fear of drowning….God help you when you experience the inability to breathe. For those 45 seconds…..I ran like I bat out of hell and watched my life flash before my eyes. I can’t even joke about that part of it now….and that was 5 months ago. I simply cannot find any humor in it - even though I was diagnosed later with GERD, which is not life threatening per say - like heart disease or something.
BUT….
It IS funny how….when you get better…..you slack off. You think…wow…..I have no symptoms. I must be well. I think it’s the human spirit to just rejoice in wellness and feel somewhat carefree for once (especially when you’ve been sick).
I slacked off….
I was feeling really good. Two visits to the ENT, taking 30mg of Prevacid every day for 3 months. NO food after 6:30 and had dropped about 6 pounds (I wasn’t extremely overweight…..I’m 5′4″ and weighed about 150 - so now I’m about 145 - trying to get to 138). And I have the head of my bed propped up 6 inches.
But I stopped taking my Prevacid. Just didn’t want to take it anymore. I also added chocolate and wine back to my diet. Not a ton….maybe a glass or two of wine a week and just one square of Ghiradelli Dark chocolate 4 times a week.
But that was enough.
Today I feel like crap. The chest pain is back. It truly feels like a heart attack. Which causes anxiety……and it’s a vicious little path I go down.
You’d think after 7 years of not knowing what the hell was wrong with me…and having so much anxiety that it was my heart….that I would stick to my GERD program for as long as I am told to by my ENT Doc.
But no….I let my human spirit rejoice in just feeling “ok” - and I blew it.
When I last saw my ENT doc - just two months ago…he looked at my throat with that lovely little scope that goes in through your nose and down into your throat. He said…..”Wow…it looks 30% better!”
Not 50% better….not 100% better….
So why did I not follow through?
Well…..I’m back on Prevacid starting tonight. I will take it before bed and hope that I haven’t totally messed things up again with weeks of heart attack symptoms ahead of me. Ugh!
I was supposed to go to the ENT for a follow up yesterday - and I called and canceled. I knew it was pointless because I hadn’t taken my medicine for 2 months. So….he would just look and say…..”Umm….it looks worse, why?”
So I’ve rescheduled for the end of May - that will give me 5 weeks back on the medicine and hopefully back to feeling better.
I think silent GERD is the worst. Because you have either NO symptoms - or symptoms way off the mark of what you think heartburn or GERD might feel like.
Other than heart attack like chest pain - I had no other symptoms for years.
Then started the coughing fits at night. Then a sore throat in the morning. Then a naggy little cough all the time - especially after I ate. All the while - the chest pain was getting excruciating. It was squeezing and pressure-like. I would think to myself….”Today is the last day I will see my kids….because this has to be my heart giving out.”
It was an awful way to live. Especially for someone in their 30s and early 40s in great health with no other issues. My blood work was perfect, I eat a mostly vegetarian diet, take walks…..and get on the treadmill for 45 minutes 6 days a week on an 5% incline at 3.0-3.5 mile an hour. Not a marathon sprinter for sure…..but not sitting on my butt eating moon pies and cheetos wondering why I’m 50 pounds over-weight either.
So I guess I’m just throwing this out there for anyone suffering from GERD. I truly can feel your pain. I know there is a lot of controversy out there over medicine for GERD.
I’ve heard many arguments:
1. They don’t know the long term effects.
2. They cause heart problems.
3. It’s not TOO much acid that’s the problem - it’s not enough acid.
4. You’ll get IBS because food won’t digest right.
…there are tons of arguments out there. And I am not a doctor.
All I can offer you is my experience. I was on the Prevacid from Dec 1 to Feb. 28 and I was feeling FABULOUS!!!! Better than ever. It took about 2 months and then that 3rd month - I was feeling really good.
And then…
I stopped. I thought…..I’m healed because I feel good.
WRONG!
So…I’m back to my Prevacid. Back to watching what I eat and trying harder than ever to drop another 8-10 pounds. This is my life…..and I have to take responsibility.
So…..
I hope this helps in some way for anyone out there going through the same thing….or thinking of stopping their meds. It was a bad move for me.
GERD - I’m down…..but don’t count me out - I’m coming back to GET ‘CHA for good!!
Marketing Your Home Based Business Online
Like many women out there - I have to market my home business.
I advertise both online and offline….networking with other women….and word af mouth.
But today I want to talk about specifically online advertising.
My first, obviously way to advertise online is through my own websites.
MoneyMakingMommy.com has a great direct sales directory that gets 1000’s of visitors a month. So I have my business promoted there and of course the MoneyMakingMommy message boards are a good place to post specials that I might have.
I also place my business in TheWAHMConnection.com direct sales directory as well.
A lot of exposure for little money.
Articles….
Writing articles is a good way to promote your products and business. Letting people read about how you run your business, what it takes as far as time and effort - and your income level and goals. Giving people true insight is invaluable. This also helps build rapport and bridge the gap that the internet can sometimes create since you’re not talking to someone in person.
As I said before - message boards are a great way to advertise for no cost. You just want to make sure you understand the rules of each board and that you don’t just spam boards with your ads. You’ll get banned….not a good thing!
Yahoo groups….
Create one or join one that sparks your interest.
But set your rules up front….and stick to them!!
I get so irritated with one of my WAHM yahoo groups for The WAHMConnection. Every week….same ole people, with the same ole ads…..over and over again. They never contribute any “real” info - they are just hell bent on getting THIER “specials” out. I certainly don’t mind ads - but I state clearly in the description that it’s a list to help women grow their business by offering advice, suggestions and tips. It was never meant to be a recruiting forum! Now if I get more than one ad a week from a member - it’s deleted. Plain and simple. The list now has more to offer and the real members like it much better!
Starting your own yahoo group might be a fun way to connect with others that have the same interests as you. It’s free - so doesn’t hurt to try. Just keep spam under control or your members will jump ship.
Finding low cost ad options like 2 Buck Ads can work for some. I have used it and it’s worked well for me. He has been around forever and seems genuine.
Look around for wahm sites that have GOOD exposure. A LOT….and boy, do I mean a lot of wahm sites are create every day. So if Sally Smith starts a website and slaps it on the internet tomorrow - and offers $5 for a lifetime ad - well…….who is seeing your ad? She’s not getting any traffic, she has no google page rank…..she’s not in the search engines…
So be careful of these LIFETIME ads. Ask what you’re getting for the money, their traffic and stats and research yourself where they rank in the search engines under key terms that you think your potential cusotmers are looking under.
You really need to sift through the real wahm sites and the wannabes.
Create a marketing budget and plan. Try to stick to it. Make sure you track ALL ads to find out where your dollars are being spent best. That way you can discontinue the ones that aren’t working and use that money to try something else or get more exposure or time with something that was working.
I would go into it strategically and stay on top of it. Otherwise you’re kinda shooting in the dark.
Helium - Scam or Not?
A lot of home based business moms are feeling the crunch of the economy slow down in their
sales this month. Boy…..do I know it first hand.
So many are turning to other ways to try and keep the family finances afloat.
I myself have turned to Helium.
Many have heard of it. If you haven’t….and you like to write little articles….I suggest you sign up as a writer. You will be paid REAL money into your PayPal account. And if you have a handy dandy PayPal Debit card - that money is accessible almost anywhere.
Helium is not some contrived….mlm-y way to make money. Not at all.
It’s simply an article based website that wants the latest and freshest content out there.
This is done by having writers from all backgrounds write articles on topics they know. Do you need to be a published author? Do you need a college degree in journalism or something? Nope and Nope.
Signing up is easy and free.
Some home based moms are finding that writing for Helium surpasses the income they had hoped for and actually is much more fulfilling creatively!
Go to the following Helium link and watch the little video about writing for them. You’ll hear from other writers and their experience.
Becoming a writer for Helium is not only cash in your pocket - BUT - an even cooler perk is that if you write a good article and it rises to the top….you get exposure for yourself, your business…..your blog…your website….products….service…whatever it is you do from home! OH yes…..FREE advertising….gotta love that.
Signing up takes just a minute….and you won’t regret it! Helium Sign up
Don’t forget to sign up for your PayPal Merchant Account - so that you can keep your earnings separate from your personal stuff. The IRS likes it better that way! No one wants to get on Uncle Sam’s bad side!
