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Is my daughter drinking to much formula? She is 11 months old and drinks 30 to 34 oz from morning to bedtime?

  • Posted on January 1, 2010 at 7:32 pm

My daughter will drink 30 to 34 ounces from morning till bedtime along with water, juice, and her meals. I read that at her age she should only drink 20-24 ounces in 24 hours and she is triple that. She’s not as chubby as other babies I’ve seen but taller

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5 Relaxation Tips for Parents

  • Posted on July 1, 2009 at 10:12 pm

Letting Go
In our stressful world, it is important to develop an ability to let things go easily. This is vital for our mental and spiritual health. Try to find moment in the day or at the end of the day, where you can let go and release everything that has happened. This is especially important to do before bedtime. You may like to fill an imaginary balloon with any stresses and anxieties and let it go, or try throwing unwanted thoughts and feelings and watch them disappear or float away. Use your imagination, be creative and make this an enjoyable experience for yourself.

Eat Slowly
When we are rushing from one activity to another, it is easy to forget to look after ourselves and just eat on the go. If you can, try to sit down to eat and eat as slowly as possible – enjoying every mouthful. Your body will thank you for this and you will feel the benefits of deep relaxation. If you can, bless your food or say a short prayer for a few moments. This may sound strange, but there have been studies that our thoughts and intentions can have a profound effect on our food.

Smile
Even if you don’t feel like it – smile. Watch as this little facial expression can make a difference to your mood. For a deep relaxation, try this Buddist exercise of tummy smiling. Imagine you are smiling from the depths of your stomach. As you practise this, you will find that you instantly feel more relaxed and content.

Take a Break
If you are able to stop during the day, schedule a short 5-10 minutes break for yourself. This will help you feel more calm and in control. Use these few minutes to experience deep inner calm and silence. Just allow your thoughts to slow down, let go of the tension in your neck and shoulders and imagine you are being showered by drops of peace and a bubble. If you have time, kick off your shoes and socks and walk on the grass outside. As you build up a practise of this, you will notice how you can be refreshed and rejuvenated in just a short time.

Stop and Breathe
Stop for a few moments and let your mind become still. Take in a deep breath and breathe in a feeling of peace. As you breathe out, breathe out peace into the room. Close your eyes and give yourself a 30 second face massage. End with a brisk rub of the ears for a fantastic rejuvenator.

Practice Meditation
Sit or lie down and let your mind drift away with this meditation.

Close your eyes, be very still and imagine you are lying down on the beach. Feel the warm sand underneath your body. You can hear the waves of the sea.
Now, very gently you are going to relax each part of your body. Start with your feet, let your toes completely relax and become soft. Now release all the tension in your ankles and let your legs become soft and heavy. Relax the muscles in your tummy and back, feel your back sinking into the soft golden sand. Let your shoulders and neck become soft and heavy as all the tension melts away. Your arms feel heavy as they sink deeply into the warm sand. And now let your head completely relax. Relax your eyes, your ears, your cheeks, your jaw, your forehead. Become completely still and relaxed. Feel the warm sun on your face and body as you sink further into the lovely soft sand.
Enjoy this wonderful feeling of being calm and peaceful. Stay there for a few more moments, enjoying the feeling of being completely relaxed. Extract from The Wishing Star and Nature CD

http://www.relaxkids.com/library/article.aspx?number=40

Article Source: 5 Relaxation Tips for Parents

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Headaches: The Great Productivity Killer

  • Posted on July 1, 2009 at 10:12 pm

Headaches are one of the greatest productivity killers. When you’re trying to get something done and a headache comes on, it’s game over. Even if you try to make it through, you’re not going to be nearly as productive and you’re likely going to be more miserable than ever. While it’s no fun, there are some natural and simple methods to cure your headache!

The Quick and Natural Way to Cure Headaches

The idea behind relieving a headache is to do it naturally and quickly. There are plenty of over-the-counter medications, but they have their own side effects that just create a new problem. If taken too frequently, headache medicines may even lose their effectiveness.

Here are some natural headache remedies that you can use to quickly eliminate that headache:

• If you’re at home, take a warm bath. Many headaches are caused by contracted muscles and a hot bath will relax those muscles. This is especially great for tension headaches.

• If it is a stress headache, exercising can relieve it. Taking a walk to increase blood circulation can help dramatically.

• If the headache is caused by dehydration, drinking water can help, but it may take several glasses until the problem is solved.

• Massaging the shoulders and neck can relieve a tension headache. This is because the tightened muscles causing the headache are loosened.

• For a caffeine, sinus, or allergy headache, a cold or hot compress can make the headache go away.

• Try to sleep the same hours every night. Too little or too much sleep can cause headaches. You also want to try to keep a consistent bedtime.

• Try not to sit, stand, or work in the same position for long periods of time. This can put strain on your back, shoulders, and neck. This strain can lead to a tension headache, so change position frequently to keep this from occurring.

• If bright lights make your head hurt, avoid them. If you already have a headache, try to sit in a room with minimal light. People with migraines tend to benefit from this technique.

• Reduce your intake of caffeine in order to avoid caffeine headaches. This can be one of the worst types of headaches. Unfortunately, there are many people who attempt to solve this headache by taking in more caffeine. The problem is that this type of headache tends to be caused by caffeine withdrawal, so it’s a catch 22.

• Avoid foods that trigger headaches. If you notice a pattern that your head hurts after eating a certain food, that is your sign to avoid it. Try eating organic fruits and vegetables because of their nutritional value and health benefits.

Since everyone is different, different remedies will work for different people. You may need to experiment to find out which one is going to work best for you. Once you find your remedy, stick to it.

How to Prevent Headaches

You can prevent headaches by controlling your stress levels, exercising, and eating balanced meals. All of these go hand-in-hand because stress can be relieved by exercising and eating healthy foods. It may require a lifestyle change, but you’ll not only feel better but you’ll relieve the majority of your headaches!

By implementing these changes and eliminating your headaches, you’ll boost your quality of life and get more done.

Susan Creal, Founder Success Driven Woman, LLC

Susan is the founder of Success Driven Woman, LLC, a company supporting women entrepreneurs who wan to LEAP to the next level to find more money, more time, unstoppable self-confidence while creating lasting change.

Susan’s coaching style is a no-nonsense; get it done approach, coupled with
sincerity and compassion. For more information visit www.successdrivenwoman.com

Article Source: Headaches: The Great Productivity Killer

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TV Free evenings!

  • Posted on July 1, 2009 at 10:12 pm

1 Try to avoid exposing your children to too much news. Most stories focus on disasters and negative pictures of world events. More and more children are becoming anxious about world events and this anxiety is causing an effect on their happiness and school work.

2 Avoid allowing children to eat dinners or snack in front of the TV. Not only does this reduce the amount of social interaction and family chats, but also encourages children to eat mindlessly which can lead to overeating.

3 Take televisions out of the bedrooms. Keeping TVs in bedroom makes it so much easier for children to watch programs that are not suitable. TV before bedtime, is not a relaxing activity as it the flickering screen and fast moving stills stimulate the mind rather than it calm down. (You could however try the Relax Kids DVD, which is full of lovely animated meditations, which are both calming and restorative).

4 Make a list of all the activities that you could do as a family with the TV switched off. Reading, games, colouring, puzzles, cooking, crafts, walks, bike rides, family chats. Have a chat with your children and see if they can come up with any other alternative activities they would like to do. When the children enjoy spending quality time with you, they will forget the addictive flickering cartoons.

5 Try introducing 5-10 mins of relaxation together. Dim the lights, put on some classical or chill out music and allow everyone to sit comfortably. You could try reading a Relax Kids relaxation (see below), or just sit still listening to the music. Ask the family to close their eyes and listen to the sounds in the room or practice deep breathing. You might like to try a CD such as Relax and De-stress for older children or Quiet Spaces for younger children.

SINKING
Close your eyes and be very still. You are very quiet and calm and relaxed. Now just imagine your body is so relaxed that you feel as if you are slowly sinking into the ground. The bed or chair that you are on
feels very warm and comfortable and safe. Now, let your feet become heavy and relaxed, and feel them slowly sinking downwards. Down, down, down they go, as they become heavier and heavier. Now let your legs become heavy and sink downwards. Now, let your back softly sink down deeper and deeper. Relax, relax, relax. Your arms feel heavy and are sinking. Relax, relax, relax. Your head is heavy and relaxes deeply. Feel your eyes becoming heavy, feel your lips and jaw becoming heavy, feel your cheeks becoming heavy, feel your forehead becoming heavy. Stay in this wonderful deep relaxation for as long as you wish. All the muscles in your whole body are completely relaxed as you enjoy the feeling of sinking deeply. Repeat to yourself, I let go, I let go , I let go. Take in a deep breath and as you breathe out slowly, feel yourself becoming more and more relaxed. Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. Relax relax relax.
Extract from The Wishing Star book and Quiet Spaces CD

http://www.relaxkids.com/library/article.aspx?number=49

Article Source: TV Free evenings!

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Vision Mapping for Effortless Lifestyle Balancing

  • Posted on July 1, 2009 at 10:12 pm

Most of us long for the effortless lifestyle, where we get up in the morning and our life is mapped out and the day just automatically flows with that map being followed. Most of us tend to live the fast paced lifestyle which can resemble a roller coaster ride with many highs and lows throughout the day.

Today we are facing not only the adjusting and re-adjusting of our own personal life, but the energy adjusting of the world which is becoming a global situation of its adjusting and readjusting. We are all facing things that we have never had to experience before, much of our experiences are new and we are learning to function in areas we have no experience in and to do things that don’t come to us naturally.

What exactly would it take for us to live an effortless lifestyle, what would it look like and what would it feel like? These are very good questions and of course there isn’t one exact answer to any of these questions as each of us are unique and have unique situations, but I can give you some general ideas that could generally apply to everyone.

” Create and maintain a daily morning exercise that centers you, could be yoga, gi gong, meditation, vision map video, walking, exercise

” Make a grateful list

” Practice positive talking and conversations, talk only about positive things

” Find time to play every day, this can include something creative, writing, singing, laughing, skipping, playing with the kids, walk on the beach, read a daily joke online; anything that will make you laugh and your heart sing.

” No matter what happens find the good in it as soon as possible

” Create and maintain a daily evening wind down routine prior to bedtime, includes watching your vision map video

Some of these things may seem very simple and insignificant; and others may be really very hard to do, but once you get in the daily habit of practicing them you will find your life has that tone of effortless and you will find much more joy.

There are many emotional hurdles for all of us, it is not the hurdles that bog us down it is how we handle them and move past them. Effortless lifestyle is developing and practicing our inner life and
using quick and easy tools that give us fast results. Most of these tools can be done anywhere and at any time, they are quick, easy and simple.

Whether we realize it or not many of us are addicted to struggling and go from one crisis to another, not even knowing that is what we are doing, it is just so automatic that it feels almost normal. We feel that it is a struggle for happiness, a healthy lifestyle and a being able to find our purpose. So many of us feel we are sort of fighting this battle on all levels, it can be physical, mental, emotional, social and even spiritual. There is that old saying of there has to be more to life than this, and there truly is; all that needs to be done is just some simple and easy exercises that create an effortless lifestyle balance.

Darlene Siddons is the producer of Vision Map Videos for personal empowerment and business promotion, Darlene’s mission is to encourage individuals to find and maintain their inner balance and to bring prosperity into their life. Find samples and how to order at Spirited Boutique

Article Source: Vision Mapping for Effortless Lifestyle Balancing

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Acid Reflux Treatment – Natural and Artificial Cures

  • Posted on July 1, 2009 at 7:57 pm

Introduction

Acid reflux or gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) refers to that unpleasant feeling of heartburn that affects millions worldwide. There are both natural and medicated treatments available to effectively treat this disease.

Medical treatment for GERD aims to cut down the effect of the stomach acid on the esophagus. This is achieved by either neutralizing the acid’s effect or by suppressing its production. This protects the esophagus from further damage and allows it to heal if it has been already affected. You may need to continue taking medicines to avoid acid reflux symptoms from recurring. If GERD is left untreated, it may result in a serious condition called Barrett’s esophagus, which may eventually lead to esophageal cancer.

Recommended Cures

You may find some of the treatments listed below to be useful. As always, you should consult your doctor to determine which treatment will be best for you.

Lifestyle changes

Most acid reflux cases are mild and can be taken care of through appropriate lifestyle changes. These involve changing the kind of your food you eat as well as your style of eating.

Your doctor will advise you not to eat for at least two to three hours before bedtime. She may also advise you to keep your head propped up against a pillow while you sleep. You may also be advised to shed those extra pounds and cut down on smoking and drinking. Instead of large meals, you should take care to eat smaller, more frequent meals to reduce the pressure of acid against the esophagus valve.

More than ninety percent of GERD sufferers can link their acid reflux indications to certain foods. A sufferer of such a condition should avoid acidic and fatty foods. Beverages such as coffee and caffeine-rich soft drinks like Coke and Pepsi should not be consumed. Look for low risk alternatives such as low-fat cheese and delicious fruits like apples and bananas.

Over-the-counter Remedies

Antacids – Drugs such as magnesium hydroxide and aluminum hydroxide neutralize gastric acid and thereby reduce discomfort. A single dosage of antacids can reduce acid reflux symptoms for up to three hours. Antacids are available both in liquid and tablet form, with liquid antacids being more effective.

Histamine (H2) receptor antagonists – H2 receptor antagonists such as Zantac and Pepcid are more powerful than antacids. Also known as H2 blocking agents, these drugs can inhibit acid production for almost half a day.

Prescription Drugs

Proton pump inhibitors – These drugs are even more powerful than histamine receptor antagonists. Proton pump inhibitors such as Prilosec and Prevacid are used to treat severe acid reflux conditions such as ulcers in the esophagus. These can be effective in blocking acid secretion for up to sixteen hours.

Promotility agents – These drugs are used to help in stomach emptying and thus reduce the amount of food it contains. This in turn reduces the chances of acid flowing back into the esophagus. About a fifth of acid reflux patients have problems emptying their stomachs.

Surgical options

Surgery may be a last resort if the above methods fail or if the sufferer has other medical complications. Even otherwise, people may still opt for surgery, because it can provide a sort of immediate success and free the sufferer from the inconvenience of continual drug treatment. However, you should know that surgery is not always successful and you may still require medication after surgery. Fundoplication is a standard surgical procedure for treating GERD.

Alternative Treatments

Some sufferers look for alternative treatments such as folk or homeopathic remedies. These include eating bananas and ginger root powder.

If you found this information on Acid Reflux Treatment useful, you’ll also want to read about Acid Reflux In Babies.

Article Source: Acid Reflux Treatment – Natural and Artificial Cures

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