What to Consider When Choosing a Medical Alert System

Here is a timely article for Seniors, Baby Boomers and anyone living alone. Written by Greg Smith, the founder of Medscope America Corporation.

What to consider when the time comes to choose a medical alert system.

There are several types of medical alert systems. Each company seems to give you a different price, service, and explanation of how they work. So how do you choose a Personal Emergency Response System (medical alert system) when the time finally comes? When choosing a medical alarm you must first look at the company and the services they provide. How reliable is their emergency medical alert equipment? Do they offer 24 hr eldercare assistance? How fast is their response? These are just a few of the questions you have to ask yourself before determining which medical alarm service to go with.

Most medical alert systems are connected to your existing phone line. They connect using standard telephone wires (similar to an answering machine). Once the unit is hooked up, you'll want to test the system to ensure proper connectivity. When the unit is activated (as you test), you will be able understand the volume at which the speaker operates. Most consoles use a very loud speaker and sensitive microphone so you will be able to communicate with an emergency operator throughout your entire home. Most medical alarms feature a wireless, water-proof transmitter (normally you have a choice between a medical alert necklace and medical alert bracelet) that interacts with the personal emergency console when help is needed. The console, located near the telephone, will immediately call or notify a trained professional (when the emergency call button is pressed) who will communicate with you over the console.

The trained professional will then dispatch the appropriate help (ambulance, police, or fire departments). If there is no answer, help will be dispatched automatically. The operator will also inform any friends or family members that you would like to be notified (this information is collected ahead of time). Medical alarms are great for expecting mothers, the elderly, handicapped, or diabetic patients and those who want to enjoy independent living.

Cost

Most companies will rent the medial alert equipment to you for as long as you need it - at no cost. The fees that you incur are usually for the installation of the equipment, and the monitoring of that equipment. To clarify, there is a monthly fee you pay to have that medical alert equipment monitored 24-hours a day by a team of response operators. The installation fee ranges from $0 - $100 and monthly monitoring fees range from $30 - $75. One company that I am aware of that charges no installation fee for their medical alert system is MedScope America Corporation (medscope.org).

Questions to ask when purchasing a medical alert system:

• How fast is the response?
• Does the console have a rechargeable battery?
• Is the console attached to your existing phone line?
• What if the phone is busy during an emergency?
• Is the wireless transmitter waterproof?
• Is there a guarantee on parts, labor, and services?
• How far can the transmitter communicate with the console?
• What is the monthly fee?
• Any other charges. Setup, Activation, or Termination Fees?
• Does it assist in independent living?

Safety Tips

• Keep emergency numbers in large print near each phone.
• Put a phone near the floor in case you fall and cannot get up.
• Think about wearing a Medical Alarm that will bring help in case you fall and can't get up.

For more information about the benefits of MedScope's services, call 1-800-645-2060, or log online at medscope.org

2010 New Years' Resolution

This really happened to me.

My home office PC had an automated backup program running that saved my data to a USB connected external hard drive.  I figured everything was A-OK and there was nothing to worry about.  In truth, I hadn't been careful enoough in selecting software that reported via email/popup/siren/flashinglights when something went wrong.

The external drive failed and I didn't notice.  A couple of months later the local electrical utility company was doing some work about 2 miles from me.  A truck backed into a pole holding a transformer... knocking out power in the area... and breaking my main hard drive in my PC.  The one I thought was safely copying data to the external drive.

Emails, bookmarks, software, data, music files, photos, work, play, family tree data, contracts, etc, etc -- all gone.

Oops!

$1,500 later I had my data recovered to a new boot drive.

I also learned two things:

1. Be careful about selecting my backup software
2. Check to make sure it is running

A couple of months later I read about an online backup solution.  Secure, automatic, remote, reliable, simple to set up and affordable.  In fact, you can back up 2 GB of data at no cost if you want to try it out.  When you need your data it is right there on the Internet.  You can even restore using just a browser!

All of my valuable emails, pictures, scanned images & documents, genealogy databases and reports were gone... without warning.  And it cost me a bundle of $ and some frayed nerves before I got lucky enoough to get them recovered.  I don't want to do it again.

For 2010... promise yourself to visit http://nolimitsuccess.info/mozy.html and when you forget about making backups you can sleep peacefully knowing your computer is looking after things for you. It will be a resolution that is easy to keep!


Happy New Year!

P.S. Did I ever tell you the one about the stolen laptop?  I'll save that for next year!

Marlise Karlin Offers Practical Tips for Releasing Holiday Stress

Today's guest article is from Marlise Karlin, a person who teaches people to reboot their lives through The Simplicity of Stillness®. I know you will find her holiday stress tips helpful.

Marlise Karlin (www.marlisekarlin.com), a person just like you and me who teaches people to reboot their lives through The Simplicity of Stillness®, offers practical and achievable tips to release stress and added pressure during the holiday season. Millions of Americas are already drained financially, emotionally, and physically as a result of their existing daily responsibilities and challenges, and the approaching holidays only increases anxiety and frustration.

A recent American Psychological Association “Stress in America” survey reports that seven in ten Americans say that money is a significant source of stress (71 percent), with similarly high percentages reporting stress resulting from work (69 percent) and the economy (63 percent). More than half of adults (55 percent) also cited family responsibilities as a significant source of stress in their lives.

Marlise Karlin offers healthy alternatives to releasing stress with the following tips:

1. Express: Become aware of why you are stressed and speak about what’s not working – try pacing in your living room – until you’ve said everything you needed to say. Really shout it out in a ‘I’m MAD AS HELL” kind of way. Soon, you will feel a shift in your disposition.

2. Write: If you haven’t formulated what the upset is, or have a hard time expressing yourself, then get out a pen or sit in front of your computer – and just write. You will be amazed at what pours out and how quickly you will feel the stress dissolve.

3. Reboot with The 3 Breath Awareness®: Take 3 DEEP breaths, each one focused on releasing any tension in your body – and connecting to that tranquil place of Stillness within. Envision the silent power of a mountain or the calming blue waters of a tranquil Sea. With each breath feel that infinite peace expanding.

4. Get Going: Change locations, move away from your desk or your present environment. Take a walk, a drive, or even go shopping. Get a different perspective – feel the mind relaxing as you get involved in other activities.

5. Smile & Laugh: We get so distracted; sometimes we need to remind ourselves to smile. Have a heart-to-heart or light-hearted conversation with friends, or even complete strangers, as it can change our state of mind so quickly. Talk with the sales person or the woman waiting in line. Watch your worries fade.

6. Gift Yourself: Buy something just for you. You have discovered how to shift you stress and share your happiness with others. You deserve a treat.

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Marlise Karlin is a person just like you and me who teaches people how to reboot their lives through The Simplicity of Stillness®. After a series of profound experiences shifted her perception of life, Marlise developed The Simplicity of Stillness, simple methods for people everywhere to reboot themselves so the journey of life can be more enjoyable.

Countless people from every culture around the world have attended Marlise’s Programs and are attesting to the extraordinary benefits that her Stillness Sessions® have brought to their lives, from experiencing a sense of peace rarely felt, to finding balance and wellbeing, from releasing years of road blocks, to discovering what they really want out of life and how to create it.

Marlise’s authentic personality allows her to connect with people at a real level to bring balance to their lives through The Simplicity of Stillness. Identified by SheKnows.com as an inner-peace expert, Marlise Karlin is also an ongoing contributor to The Huffington Post and Malika Chopra’s Intent.com Wellness blog.

For more information about Marlise and her Practices, please visit www.thepractices.com

The Secret of Youth – 5 Ways to Keep Looking Young

I want to welcome today's guest author, Jessica Martin. Jessica has written a helpful article, reminding (or teaching) us of five healthy ways we can keep our youthful good looks. Enjoy!

If any of us knew what it took to stay young forever, we could bottle the formula and make millions off it. As human beings, we are bound to grow old and show signs of it, no matter how badly we wish to retain our youth. It’s a natural process of life, and some of us are more upset than others at losing our beauty and youthfulness that we try every trick in the book to stay young. You may try surgeries that alter the way you look, creams and lotions, and pills and concoctions that claim to miraculously decrease your age and have you feeling like a twenty-year-old, but none of them work as well as the below methods that keep you looking and feeling young in a healthy way even as you age gracefully:

• Nourishing food: When you include more fruits, vegetables and other natural foods in your diet, your skin glows with good health and you retain a youthful look. Eat more proteins and carbohydrates that take longer to digest and reduce the amount of fat in your diet. Avoid eating processed foods that contain lots of sugar because they make your complexion pasty and give you an unhealthy look. Also avoid smoking and drinking if you want to avoid bags under your eyes and feeling out of breath and unfit even though you’re not yet 30.
• Regular exercise: Besides keeping you fit and glowing with health, regular exercise helps keep your weight down. When you’re overweight or obese, you look older than you are really are. When you exercise, you feel better mentally and physically, the sweat helps flush all the toxins out of your body, and you keep ill-health and disease at bay, all of which help boost the youth factor.
• A positive frame of mind: When you’re happy, satisfied with life and adopt a positive attitude, you avoid letting stress and tension ruin your health and making you look and feel older than you really are. Stress makes you lose your hair and gives you an unhealthy complexion; it also prone to illness and weight gain, all of which contribute to giving you an appearance that is older than your real age. So stay positive and take each day as it comes instead of worrying over what tomorrow might bring.
• Good hygiene and personal habits: When you groom yourself well and wear clothes that are trendy and that suit your complexion and physique, you look and feel good. Fill your wardrobe with colors and sizes that are flattering and keep your appointment at the salon every fortnight or so to keep your skin clear, your nails trimmed and buffed, and your hair well maintained. When you care about how you look, you feel younger at heart.
• Sleep and water: All of us need at least 6 hours of sleep every night to refresh our bodies and minds and rejuvenate ourselves for the next day. When we go without sleep and our bodies are deprived, we lose our health and begin to look haggard as our sleep deficit mounts. Also, drink water instead of tea, coffee, sodas or aerated drinks that have sugar in them. Water is pure and helps you keep your skin healthy and clear to give you that glow that makes you look and feel young.
  

By-line:
Jessica Martin has contributed this guest post, she writes on the topic of x-ray tech schools . She welcomes your comments at her email address: martin.jess84@gmail.com

Who Needs Calcium Supplements?

This special guest article is by Adrienne Carlson of Pharmacy Technician Certification. Adrienne brings a passion for producing reliable and informative pieces, while also exploring the latest in technology and resources. Enjoy the article!

Who Needs Calcium Supplements?

It’s one of the most important minerals that our body needs, because the strength of our bones and nails depend on it. Calcium is found in various food sources, most significantly in milk and other dairy products, salmon and tofu. Some of us need much more of this mineral than others, and this is why we need supplements to meet our daily requirement. In general, the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for adults and teenagers is between 800 and 1200 mg, for children between the ages of four and ten is 800 mg, and for newborns and kids under the age of three, the RDA is between 400 and 800 mg. Calcium supplements are generally needed by:

• People who are allergic to dairy products: When you’re allergic to the proteins found in milk and other dairy products, you do not get your required dose of calcium. This calls for supplements so that your bones do not become brittle and prone to injuries and fractures.

• People who are vegans: When you don’t eat dairy or meat products voluntarily because you believe in not harming animals for your food, you lose out on the goodness that milk and fish have to offer. More importantly, you don’t get your daily requirement of calcium and have to depend on substitutes like orange juice, cereals that are fortified with calcium, tofu, and supplements.

• People who have lactose intolerance: When you have lactose intolerance, your digestive system does not have the required enzymes to process the sugar in milk. You could either take supplements or try yoghurt as a substitute. Since there is no sugar in yoghurt, you’re safe from digestive problems.

• Pregnant women and nursing mothers: When you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, you require more calcium than normal because you are eating for two. Your RDA is about 1200 to 1500 mg. This means you must drink more milk or take supplements to meet your daily requirement.

• Women who have stopped menstruating: When you cross the age of 40 or 50, you stop menstruating. This decreases the production of the hormones estrogen and progesterone in your body, and your bones become weaker and more brittle leaving you prone to osteoporosis and other ailments. Calcium supplements protect you from aches and pains in your joints and unnecessary fractures.

People who already have high levels of calcium in their body are prone to kidney stones and other complications if they take supplements because their bodies cannot process the extra amount.


Author By-line:
This guest article was written by Adrienne Carlson, who regularly writes on the topic of pharmacy technician certification. Adrienne welcomes your comments and questions at her email address: adrienne.carlson83@yahoo.com

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What do you Think About Your Age? - by George Carlin

Please read this to the end. Written by the late George Carlin, American comedian, author and social commentor. Thanks George! Enjoy. .../Paul

George Carlin’s Views on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we’re kids? If you’re less than 10 years old, you’re so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m four and a half!’ You’re never thirty-six and a half. You’re four and a half, going on five! That’s the key.

You get into your teens, now they can’t hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

‘How old are you?’ ‘I’m gonna be 16!’ You could be 13, but hey, you’re gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life! You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony. YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30… Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There’s no fun now, you’re Just a sour-dumpling. What’s wrong? What’s changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you’re PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it’s all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 and your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn’t think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60.

You’ve built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it’s a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday!

You get into your 80’s and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn’t end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; ‘I Was JUST 92.’

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. ‘I’m 100 and a half!’

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!!

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay ‘them.’

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. ‘An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.’ And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is…

10. Tell the people you love that you love them at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER :
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away

Good Manners are a part of Good Health

This sign is posted at a golf club in California: