Ten Ways to Feel Better

Psychologist Marvin A. Hoss presented the following tips to the Chemical Reaction Support Group:

In a World Filled with Chemical Smells and Toxic Fumes How Am I to Survive?

The 10 very hard answers to fight depression and anxiety:

1. Stay healthy
2. Find substance in life
3. Fight the daemons
4. Keep the faith
5. Resist easy answers
6. Learn all you can
7. Look at the positives
8. Laugh all you can
9. Know your resilience
10. Be unafraid

Tip on CFL Bulb Safety

Any of us could be faced with cleaning up a broken CFL bulb or a broken mercury thermometer, so we need to be familiar with the hazards ahead of time. Read the EPA guidelines now at http://www.epa.gov/mercury/spills/. It's important to note that in cleaning up a broken fluorescent bulb (CFL or otherwise) you should

1. Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one.
2. Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up pieces of the broken bulb.
3. If clothing or bedding materials come in direct contact with broken glass or mercury-containing powder, throw it away!
4. Carefully scoop up glass pieces and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag.
5. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder.

When CFL bulbs burn out, don't throw them away. The mercury can be hazardous in landfills. Take them to a place that recycles them - Home Depot and Ikea are pioneers in accepting them to recycle.

Migration to Blogspot

This blog has been moved from AOL Journals to Blogspot /Blogger because AOL is discontinuing Journals. Fortunately they worked out a way with Google to make it easy to migrate to Blogspot.

I've always found Blogspot easy to work with anyway. I have a blog called The View from Squirrel Ridge on Blogspot and I update it almost every day.

A Woman Tells her Story

A reader named Michelle writes:
hi
I have been reading this site and I know what your all going thru....I'd
like to share my story
2005 I was taking 3 antibiotics for 15 months for a lung problem...stopped
in march. I was in a construction situation for 3 months in a very old
building. I was always sweeping and cleaning.....I was in my pool(cloreen)
and my eyes started burning and then my face....I lived with ice packs on my
eyes and face for 4 months. I thought I was going to have a nervous break
down.my left eye had an infection in it 3 times, couldn't open it.I would
get chills up and down my back and up into my  head.I also would get this
heat attack 4-5 times a day. (almost lived in a shower)(worse than hot
flashes) my left ear would start to hurt, then it would stop. I couldn't
touch it....then nothing
went to different drs. had brain mri, cat scans meds and to this day no one
knows what it is...I started to feel better but  it still comes and goes.
one day I poured Windex on a paper towel and cleaned a window and 5 mins
later my eyes started to burn really bad. I was  cleaning in a hair salon(my
daughters) with Windex and would notice later it would start burning....I
also found that ornamental grasses, fumes from nail polish and bleach and
color for hair...really bad...I have been researching this problem for over
a year and a half....I think it started with taking the 3 types of
antibiotics for so long. they killed my good bacteria and I mentioned this
to my infectious disease dr. and he said no. well, everything I bring up in
my research says to take probiotics when taking antibiotics because
antibiotics for a long time will weaken the imune system.i think this is
what happened to me, but no one will listen..... I have started to take the
probiotics and vitamin 6....every dr. said it could be something else, just
guessing...I'm going to have the patch test in Jan...I know I'm not bothered
by any food...I kept a diary....going to will's eye hospital in Jan to have
my eyes check out.....hope you find help.....I'm staying away from Windex
and any other household product. I use vinegar and water. I have never been
allergic to anything before in my life and I'm 70...it has been a hell of a
year and 1/2.

Skin Care Resources

Harmful Ingredients in Skin Care Products

Do It Yourself: Make Your Personalized Skin Care Products

Ask Annie on Skin Care

Blue Sage Naturals

Mindful of Links

Mindfully.org has multiple pages of useful links including health and environmental information.

Symptom Checker

About.com has an interesting new site called Symptom Checker. It's a tool to tell you what your symptoms might add up to and whether to see a doctor.