Categories
Positive thinking

How to Deal with Difficult People?

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We all have faced difficult people in our lives at one point or another .To get rid of this  an honest but clear communication is  essential.

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We encounter a wide variety of people  our lives through. Many of them touch us in some positive way. Occasionally, however, we encounter those individuals who, for whatever reason, can be difficult to deal with. Perhaps this person is a colleague or your boss or close friend that you feel is deliberately being obtuse, inviting in trouble, or doing foolish things that you find annoying. Sometimes, it may be possible to appease or avoid those people short term. Dealing with them in the long term, however, can be exhausting. The behavior of difficult people can even make you feel like losing your temper, but keep your cool. Staying calm is the first step, especially when you are ready to confront them.

Avoiding a difficult person can improve impossible and not in your best interest, especially if you live or work together. Likewise, attempts to steer clear of them can become a source of stress and anxiety when they are a part of your social circle. When this is the case, it is best to kindly address the problem. Try not to let their actions or mood affect you. You also may want to try expressing your feelings directly. Tell to the person how their actions make you feel and encourage them toward a more positive course of action. Speak assertively, but respectfully, and don’t portray yourself as a victim. Another approach for dealing with a difficult individual is to gain a deeper understanding of who that person is. Ask them why they do or say certain things. If you disagree with their motives, question them further so you can try and discover the root of their behaviors. In doing so, you may be able to gently shift their perceptions, or at least help them understand your ! point of view.

You may want to think about what you want to say to a difficult person before you actually talk to them. If you can, avoid being judgmental or defensive, and try to approach the conversation objectively. If the person is open to the idea, try coming to an agreement. If approaching them fails, let it go and move on. There is no reason to let difficult person or situation have power over your state of being. Remember that a lot can be accomplished when you take the time to listen and offer up alternative perspectives.

Source: Daily Om

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Health Problems & Solutions

Let’s Talk About Schizophrenia

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People sometimes change inexplicably in their late teens – they behave bizarrely, argue unnecessarily with everyone, imagine events, become suspicious or withdraw into a shell. This is actually a disease called schizophrenia and these forms are classic, delusional, paranoid and catanonic. The word itself means “split mind ” in Greek as it was confused with a multiple personality disorder by earlier physicians. Today, these two illnesses are classified separately.
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Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that is likely to affect one in 100 men and women (0.5-0.7 per cent respectively). It strikes people usually in their late teens and twenties. It is rare for schizophrenia to set in after the age of 40 and children are rarely diagnosed with it. They can, however, go on to develop it as adults if they have some other mental illness such as autism.

The onset of schizophrenia is so gradual that it mostly goes unrecognised and untreated, especially in developing countries with inadequate healthcare. In addition, people baulk at the idea of admitting they or a loved one is suffering from schizophrenia though no one has a problem saying they have an incurable chronic illness like diabetes or hypertension.

Schizophrenic patients may be delusional or hallucinate — that is see and hear things that are not real. Their speech may be disconnected, dressing and behaviour may be socially inappropriate and they may cry and laugh for no reason at all. Sometimes the person may be “catatonic” or unresponsive to any external stimulus.

Unreasonable behaviour and a quarrelsome nature may affect relations with friends, family and colleagues. The person may be unable to keep a job. Insomnia and morning drowsiness affect efficiency. The appetite may be poor.

The diagnosis of schizophrenia is difficult as the symptoms evolve gradually over a period of months or years. It is often difficult to pinpoint the exact date at which the changes were noticeable. The symptoms should be present for a month for schizophrenia to be suspected and remain for six months for the diagnosis to be established. The patient or a caretaker can report the symptoms. They should be substantiated by evaluation by a qualified medical professional.

PET scans also do not strictly conform to normal parameters. The brains in schizophrenics have smaller temporal and frontal lobes. The levels and ratios of certain brain chemicals like serotonin, dopamine and glutamine are altered.

The exact reason for these behaviour altering brain changes is not known. However, seven per cent of persons with schizophrenia have a family member who suffers from a similar disease. Many have been born to mothers who suffered several viral illnesses during pregnancy. Environmental factors also play a role — the incidence of the disease increases in persons who are financially insecure or from dysfunctional families with a history of childhood abuse.

Schizophrenics tend to gain weight because their lifestyle is sedentary. Patients also have a predilection for addiction — to tobacco products, alcohol and drugs like cannabis. They are often unwilling to check the addictions to control lifestyle diseases like diabetes or hypertension. Also, they do not adhere to diet modifications or medications needed to keep their disease in check; so this shortens lifespan. They eventually die 10-15 years earlier than their peers. They are also 15 per cent more likely to commit suicide.

Gone are the days when schizophrenics were locked up, immersed in cold baths or given electrical shock therapy. Today there are a plethora of drugs that can be used singly or in combination to control the symptoms of schizophrenia and help the person function fairly normally. These drugs act by correcting the enzyme and chemical imbalances in the brain. Response to medication may be slow and this may be frustrating for the patient as well as caregivers but medication can be increased only gradually to optimal levels. Drugs, combinations and dosages have to be individualised and vary from person to person.

The side effects of medication are weight gain, menstrual irregularities and drowsiness. Some people become very stiff and have abnormal smacking movements or grimaces but doctors are able to tackle this with other medications.

Rehabilitation is important. Once the symptoms are controlled, patients can function in society and even hold down jobs. They need to be trained to handle money and in personal care and hygiene. Medication needs to be continued even when the symptoms have disappeared. The involvement of the whole family helps as the person is then more likely to follow medical treatment and less likely to relapse.

People often ask for a “miracle drug” — a single tablet to treat all diseases. The only universal ingredient to improve health in all diseases (even mental problems) is physical exercise. So go take a walk.

Source : The Telegraph ( Kolkata, India)

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Categories
Ailmemts & Remedies Pediatric

Feeding Problems

Definition:
Feeding problem of infancy or early childhood is characterized by the failure of an infant or child under six years of age to eat enough food to gain weight and grow normally over a period of one month or more. The disorder can also be characterized by the loss of a significant amount of weight over one month. Feeding disorder is similar to failure to thrive, except that no medical or physiological condition can explain the low food intake or lack of growth.
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Infants and children with a feeding disorder fail to grow adequately, or even lose weight with no underlying medical explanation. They do not eat enough energy or nutrients to support growth and may be irritable or apathetic. Factors that contribute to development of a feeding disorder include lack of nurturing, failure to read the child’s hunger and satiety cues accurately, poverty, or parental mental illness. Successful treatment involves dietary, behavioral, social, and psychological intervention by a multidisciplinary

Feeding problems are common throughout childhood and affect both boys and girls.

Causes:
The kind of feeding problem may depend on the age of the child.

Some new mothers take a while to get the hang of breastfeeding and may worry they’re not producing sufficient milk or their baby isn’t satisfied. But as long as the baby is gaining weight at the normal rate, there’s no need for concern.

Occasionally, early feeding problems are due to anatomical difficulties (for example, a severe cleft palate or oesophageal atresia) or more general illness, but these are usually quickly identified.

Minor infections, such as a cold, can interrupt established feeding patterns, but rarely for long.

Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) can also make feeding difficult, affect weight gain and cause great stress for parents.

More serious conditions can interfere with the absorption of food and weight gain, including coeliac disease, cystic fibrosis, inflammatory bowel disease and food intolerance.

In toddlers and older children, emotional and social factors can cause feeding problems. Older children, especially girls, are more likely to develop eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia.

Symptoms:
The symptoms of feeding disorders can vary, but common symptoms include:

•Refusing food
•Lack of appetite
•Colic
•Crying before or after food
•Failing to gain weight normally
•Regurgitating or vomiting
•Diarrhoea
•Abdominal pain
•Constipation
•Behavioural problems

Diagnosis :
Between 25% and 35% of normal children experience minor feeding problems. In infants born prematurely, 40% to 70% experience some type of feeding problem. For a child to be diagnosed with feeding disorder of infancy or early childhood, the disorder must be severe enough to affect growth for a significant period of time. Generally, growth failure is considered to be below the fifth percentile of weight and height.

Feeding disorder of infancy or early childhood is diagnosed if all four of the following criteria are present:

•Failure to eat adequately over one month or more, with resultant weight loss or failure to gain weight.
•Inadequate eating and lack of growth not explained by any general medical or physiological condition, such as gastrointestinal problems, nervous system abnormalities, or anatomical deformations.
•The feeding disorder cannot be better explained by lack of food or by another mental disorder, such as rumination disorder.
•The inadequate eating and weight loss or failure to gain weight occurs before the age of six years. If feeding behavior or weight gain improves when another person feeds and cares for the child, the existence of a true feeding disorder, rather than some underlying medical condition, is more likely.

Treatments :-
Successful treatment of feeding disorders requires a multidisciplinary team approach to assess the child’s needs and to provide recommendations and education to improve feeding skills, behavior, and nutrient intake. The multidisciplinary team for treatment of feeding disorders in childhood usually includes physicians specializing in problems of the gastrointestinal tract or of the ear, nose, and throat; a dietitian, a psychologist , a speech pathologist, and an occupational therapist. Support from social workers and physicians in related areas of medicine is also helpful.

An initial evaluation should focus on feeding history, including detailed information on type and timing of food intake, feeding position, meal duration, energy and nutrient intake, and behavioral and parental factors that influence the feeding experience. Actual observation of a feeding session can give valuable insight into the cause of the feeding disorder and appropriate treatments. A medical examination should also be conducted to rule out any potential medical problems or physical causes of the feeding disorder.

After a thorough history is taken and assessment completed, dietary and behavioral therapy is started. The goal of diet therapy is to gradually increase energy and nutrient intake as tolerated by the child to allow for catch up growth. Depending on the diet history, energy and nutrient content of the diet may be kept lower initially to avoid vomiting and diarrhea. As the infant or child is able to tolerate more food, energy and nutrient intake is gradually increased over a period of one to two weeks, or more. Eventually, the diet should provide about 50% more than normal nutritional needs of infants or children of similar age and size.

Behavioral therapy can help the parent and child overcome conditioned feeding problems and food aversions. Parents must be educated to recognize their child’s hunger and satiety cues accurately and to promote a pleasant, positive feeding environment. Changing the texture of foods, the pace and timing of feedings, the position of the body, and even feeding utensils can help the child overcome aversions to eating. If poverty, abuse, or parental mental illness contribute to the feeding disorder, these issues must also be addressed.

Prognosis :-
If left untreated, infants and children with feeding disorders can have permanent physical, mental, and behavioral damage. However, most children with feeding disorders show significant improvements after treatment, particularly if the child and parent receive intensive nutritional, psychological, and social intervention.

Prevention :-
Providing balanced, age-appropriate foods at regular intervals—for example, three meals and two or three snacks daily for toddlers—can help to establish healthy eating patterns. If a child is allowed to fill up on soft drinks, juice, chips, or other snacks prior to meals, appetite for other, more nutritious foods will decrease.

Positive infant and childhood feeding experiences require the child to communicate hunger and satiety effectively and the parent or caregiver to interpret these signals accurately. This set of events requires a nurturing environment and an attentive, caring adult. Efforts should be made to establish feeding as a positive, pleasant experience. Further, forcing a child to eat or punishing a child for not eating should be avoided.

You may click to see :

*Feeding Problems in Infants and Children
*Problems feeding your baby?

Disclaimer: This information is not meant to be a substitute for professional medical advise or help. It is always best to consult with a Physician about serious health concerns. This information is in no way intended to diagnose or prescribe remedies.This is purely for educational purpose.

Resources:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/feedingproblems2.shtml
http://www.minddisorders.com/Del-Fi/Feeding-disorder-of-infancy-or-early-childhood.html

http://www.brighttomorrowstoday.com/behavior-feeding-therapy.html

Categories
Healthy Tips

Blue Light May be Key to Fighting Winter Blues

As winter approaches and the days get shorter, your mood may get darker too. Sunlight deprivation can make people feel lethargic, gloomy, and irritable, and for some it can lead to the condition known as seasonal affective disorder, (SAD). or winter depression.
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This can make you feel lethargic, gloomy, and irritable. However, while daylight as a whole is beneficial to fight off the syndrome, different colors of light seem to affect your body in different ways.

Click to see :7 Signs of Seasonal Affective Disorder

Blue light can affect your mind, including mood. And according to a new study, blue light might play a key role in your brain‘s ability to process emotions. The study results suggest that spending more time in blue-enriched light could help prevent SAD.

CNN reports:
“Studies have shown that blue light improves alertness and mental performance … The researchers discovered that blue light, more so than the green light, seemed to stimulate and strengthen connections between areas of the brain involved in processing emotion and language.”

Resources:
*CNN October 27, 2010
*Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 9, 2010; 107(45):19549-54

Posted By Dr. Mercola | December 14 2010

Categories
News on Health & Science

Why do One in Ten Kids in the U.S. Have ADHD?

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A U.S. government survey claims that 1 in 10 U.S. children now has ADHD. This is a sizable increase from a few years earlier. ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) makes it hard for children to pay attention and control impulsive behavior.

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About two-thirds of the children diagnosed with ADHD are on some form of prescription medication.

According to AP medical writer Mike Stobbe:
“In the latest survey, 9.5 percent said a doctor or health care provider had told them their child had ADHD … ADHD diagnosis is in many ways a matter of opinion.

There’s no blood test or brain-imaging exam for the condition. Sometimes reading disabilities or other problems in the classroom cause a teacher or others to mistakenly think a child has ADHD.”

Researchers suggested growing awareness and better screening may be responsible for the rising numbers, but there are a number of food additives that experts think may worsen ADHD as well. They include:

•Blue #1 and #2 food coloring
•Green #3
•Orange B
•Red #3 and #40
•Yellow #5 and #6
•Sodium benzoate, a preservative
According to Health.com:
“Will eliminating dye-containing foods from a child’s diet help ADHD? Experts say there’s not enough evidence … Most studies of a possible link analyzed blends of additives, not single ingredients, making it difficult to find a culprit.”

Resources:
Yahoo Finance November 10, 2010
Health.com November 2010
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) November 12, 2010 / 59(44);1439-1443

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