I am currently down with high fever and parotid glands swelling due to mumps.
Mumps is a viral disease characterized by fever, headache, muscle weakness, stiff neck, loss of appetite, swelling and tenderness of one or more of the salivary glands situated along the angle of the jaw and inside the mouth, including the parotid gland located within the cheeks just below the front of the ear. (http://www.health.state.ny.us/diseases/communicable/mumps/fact_sheet.htm)
Mumps is a horrible, horrible viral infection one can have. Not only do I have to contend with the warm, tender and throbbing pains on my parotids but that it also comes with various with aches all over the body. I never felt my back ache as much before and my muscles got this weariness almost similar to when you have over exercised the day before. It’s a horrible feeling at all.
My mumps couldn’t have been timelier. We had a fashion show at Fashion Avenue last night which I have to miss. My cousins had a mini reunion last night too as one arrived from Dubai , 2 arrived from Mindanao and 2 others, graduated from College. The happy reunion with several fun things we could have done was replaced by a quiet dinner at home while I am seated far enough from everyone else wearing mask. I was very hesitant comes picture taking time as I really do not want to document my bloated face. So big, I can now imagine how I might look like if I gain 100 pounds more….its certainly not a sight to behold. Ugggh!
Funny that I actually thought of wearing big baggy clothes with probably some pillows underneath and meet up with some close friends just to see if they’d recognize me. All planning and no actual rendition though as the body ache is just so persistent, I am better off vegetating in bed. Ice packs and paracetamols are my current best friends.
As a designer and head of a design team, to be on top of my game, I make it a point that I study current and up and coming fashion trends at least 15 to 30 minutes a day. Since this mumps appeared, I am just totally uninspired. Nothing ticks, nothing jumps from the various photos and write ups I’ve been reading….just nothing. I cannot even summon myself to write something about fashion (so now you have to contend with my whining). It really is a horrible feeling to be in.
Anyway, if there’s anything good that came out of the mumps, that is, I was forced to stay home.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I do love staying home. I love to tend to my garden, to do art activities with my boys, to cook unusual meals etc. However, lately, I’ve just been too busy at work. This past weeks, my day comprise of a quick breakfast, short interaction with the kid, rush to work. And then at the end of the day, it’s picking up kids from school, quick dinner, a few emails then sleep. Most part of my day is just in the office and my work load just keeps piling up. They don’t seem to run out at all.
Well, considering the global economic crisis where various fashion companies are affected, we have nothing short of a miracle in the office with orders coming in almost in a daily basis. While companies have complain of no orders and of losing the market to cheap China prices, we actually have buyers who are putting in much of their business with the company I work for instead of spreading their orders over a number of suppliers. It really is a good place to be in, in business.
In sales and marketing, it is considered good if you have consistent flow of work and YES, I and the company I work for is very thankful for all these blessings. But being consistently busy has its way of creeping up and taking away intangible things too.
I have noticed the overgrowth of the weeds in my garden and the decay of some plants. I have seen our bamboo decorative fences fall off one by one, next thing I knew, we now have this big heap needing real carpenters to put back. I heard my youngest complain, “You are always busy, can you just spend the whole day with me”.
Now that I am forced to stay home because of mumps, my little boy has no compunction coming in and out of my room despite repeated warning that mommy is infectious. Fortunately, being a nurse and after my own research, I learned that masks can sufficiently protect from the transfer of virus and that the MMR (mumps, measles and rubella) vaccine shots that my children received can protect them too.
In life, we all should take some pockets of time to rest without waiting for the situation to force us into it. Being a health buff and believer of homeopathic therapy, I boast of not being susceptible to diseases. However, being too busy, stressed out, lacking enough rest and sleep, did lower my body’s defense system and guess what, made me vulnerable to mumps.
Nothing is beautiful about mumps, I still wouldn’t wish for any one to have it, not even to my worse enemy. But in a lot of ways, it has taught me a lot about creating a balance, of being thankful for the gift of health and of life, and to give importance to the little other personal things that matters too. Be well!
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
NURSES UNLIMITED…The gray stocking takes the spotlight
There’s almost an anti-thesis to fashion when one mentions nurses. What comes up to mind is the immaculately white head to toe get up and a tiny, little head piece sitting just right there at back of the head. There is something obstinate, even ascetic about it. 
What I want to write today however, is the little innocuous incidents that happened many years back while I was still a nursing student involving the gray stockings.
You see, my alma mater, has a rather unique, according to one teacher, very European nursing student hospital uniform. This involves a set of a pink tops, white apron, dark gray stockings, black shoes and the little headpiece that we have to laboriously starch until it stands and iron on high setting. All except the stockings are dispensed at our school pantry at the beginning of our hospital work.
At that time, with few malls to choose from, we are at a mercy of a very few selections of stockings. We really had a hard time finding the right shade of gray, much more finding the panty hose version. Most often, we’d ended up getting the extra long sock type stockings with a garter on top to hold it in place whose life span is comparable to that of a disposable coffee filter. With its rarity and our limited budget to boot, we’d ended up using the stockings over and over again despite the sagging garter line. Quite frankly, nobody suggested garter belts, but I reckon, it must have been hard to find at our malls at that time too.
They say that necessity is the mother of all inventions. I don’t know who ingeniously started it all, but one suggested we put a one peso coin to the garter line and fold it twice and voila! your little secret is safe and you have a stationary garter in place ----or so we thought.
Indeed, this little one peso secret was put to test one uneventful day.
There was nothing out of the ordinary that morning. I was doing my usual hospital routine, one of which was to give NGT ( Naso gastric tube) feeding to a patient. I was holding the feeding bottle over head waiting for the liquefied food to flow through the tubing when to the surprise of my patient’s family members; they heard a clanking and rolling of a coin followed by a slow yet sure descent of the infamous gray stockings.
At that moment, I feel the earth just swallowed me whole. I remembered wanting to run away and cry of embarrassment, but the task at hand (remember the NGT feeding), made me stay put.
Of course, like any incident, it did pass and in no time I had gotten over it. The gray stocking remained one of our favorite topics though whenever our batch mates in college meet up fondly adding their own tribute story to it.
I also recalled one former classmate saying that her very own gray stocking, very untimely choose to take center stage during the doctor’s round. The doctor she was accompanying couldn’t hide his wide-eyed surprise with the gray stocking, with all its glory, cramped up at my classmate’s ankles. Up until now, I couldn’t quite manage to conjure the image of it without getting laughing fits.
What I remembered most about my years as a nursing student though was what our Dean of College of Nursing, Dr. Ofelia Sisno, asked us during one of the subjects she handled.
She said “If you encounter a patient you’ve met for the first time, do you know that person? And do you know how to care for that person?” Most of my classmates, perhaps thinking of possible lawsuits and that nurses should not play doctors, said “No”. However, in a class of about 30 students, one answered “Yes”. “Please elaborate” Dr. Sisno said. And the student answered “ I know enough that I am dealing with a human life and that the person is created by GOD, and therefore I should care for him in the best way I can, in the best way I know as I assess his condition”. Very poignantly spoken and indeed, a true reflection of CDCN’s motto “Primum Homo Esto” or “ Let him first be a man”.
As what Doctor Ofelia Sisno, would tirelessly say to us day after day…” Dare to Care”…now, there’s nothing unfashionable about that at all.
And the gray stocking….well thankfully, with the advent of new technologies, it has gotten its own make over, over the years.
If you have your own story to tell about this adorable gray stocking or of a memorable experience being a nurse, please, write me at fashionscapes@gmail.com. I don’t have budget to pay but who knows we’d be able to make a good compilation of stories.
Of course in some parts of the world, the white get up and the starchy, oh-so-hard-to-stiffen head piece had been dished out, replaced by a funky, bright and much happier ensemble. Nonetheless, the white get up and the head piece had been the stereotype of nurses for many years now.
In my not so distant past, 13 years to be exact, I had been privileged to be called one of the “daughters of Florence Nightingale” otherwise known as nurses. Florence Nightingale also coined as the “Lady with the Lamp” is one of the unsung heroes who have devoted her life in the care of the sick and dying. Famous for her work in the military hospitals of the Crimea, Florence Nightingale established nursing as a respectable profession for women. (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/nightingale_florence.shtml)
What I want to write today however, is the little innocuous incidents that happened many years back while I was still a nursing student involving the gray stockings.
You see, my alma mater, has a rather unique, according to one teacher, very European nursing student hospital uniform. This involves a set of a pink tops, white apron, dark gray stockings, black shoes and the little headpiece that we have to laboriously starch until it stands and iron on high setting. All except the stockings are dispensed at our school pantry at the beginning of our hospital work.
At that time, with few malls to choose from, we are at a mercy of a very few selections of stockings. We really had a hard time finding the right shade of gray, much more finding the panty hose version. Most often, we’d ended up getting the extra long sock type stockings with a garter on top to hold it in place whose life span is comparable to that of a disposable coffee filter. With its rarity and our limited budget to boot, we’d ended up using the stockings over and over again despite the sagging garter line. Quite frankly, nobody suggested garter belts, but I reckon, it must have been hard to find at our malls at that time too.
They say that necessity is the mother of all inventions. I don’t know who ingeniously started it all, but one suggested we put a one peso coin to the garter line and fold it twice and voila! your little secret is safe and you have a stationary garter in place ----or so we thought.
Indeed, this little one peso secret was put to test one uneventful day.
There was nothing out of the ordinary that morning. I was doing my usual hospital routine, one of which was to give NGT ( Naso gastric tube) feeding to a patient. I was holding the feeding bottle over head waiting for the liquefied food to flow through the tubing when to the surprise of my patient’s family members; they heard a clanking and rolling of a coin followed by a slow yet sure descent of the infamous gray stockings.
At that moment, I feel the earth just swallowed me whole. I remembered wanting to run away and cry of embarrassment, but the task at hand (remember the NGT feeding), made me stay put.
Of course, like any incident, it did pass and in no time I had gotten over it. The gray stocking remained one of our favorite topics though whenever our batch mates in college meet up fondly adding their own tribute story to it.
I also recalled one former classmate saying that her very own gray stocking, very untimely choose to take center stage during the doctor’s round. The doctor she was accompanying couldn’t hide his wide-eyed surprise with the gray stocking, with all its glory, cramped up at my classmate’s ankles. Up until now, I couldn’t quite manage to conjure the image of it without getting laughing fits.
What I remembered most about my years as a nursing student though was what our Dean of College of Nursing, Dr. Ofelia Sisno, asked us during one of the subjects she handled.
She said “If you encounter a patient you’ve met for the first time, do you know that person? And do you know how to care for that person?” Most of my classmates, perhaps thinking of possible lawsuits and that nurses should not play doctors, said “No”. However, in a class of about 30 students, one answered “Yes”. “Please elaborate” Dr. Sisno said. And the student answered “ I know enough that I am dealing with a human life and that the person is created by GOD, and therefore I should care for him in the best way I can, in the best way I know as I assess his condition”. Very poignantly spoken and indeed, a true reflection of CDCN’s motto “Primum Homo Esto” or “ Let him first be a man”.
As what Doctor Ofelia Sisno, would tirelessly say to us day after day…” Dare to Care”…now, there’s nothing unfashionable about that at all.
And the gray stocking….well thankfully, with the advent of new technologies, it has gotten its own make over, over the years.
If you have your own story to tell about this adorable gray stocking or of a memorable experience being a nurse, please, write me at fashionscapes@gmail.com. I don’t have budget to pay but who knows we’d be able to make a good compilation of stories.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Lead-free, Nickel-free what’s the BIG deal?
There are various selections of fashion jewelry that floods the market today. While this offers us excellent choices that fit all sorts of tastes and budget, there is a hidden danger lurking behind those unassuming treasures that we ought to know about.
With the exception of a handful of knowledgeable and discerning consumers, very few people know the implication of the word nickel-free and lead-free.
What then does nickel-free and lead-free means, and why should the public be concerned about it?
Nickel has been known to be the most common source of skin allergies. The reaction to it could range from a simple appearance of itchy, or blotchy red rashes to a more severe reaction characterized by wheals, pus formation and at some cases causing deformities.
When detected early, this can be easily remedied by removing the nickel-containing article and a dose of an anti-histamine medication but in severe cases, this requires a more intensive medical intervention. (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/nickel-allergy/DS00826/DSECTION=treatments-and-drugs)
Due to this damaging effect, U.S., several other western countries and the whole of Europe has totally banded the presence of nickel in their jewelry.
Unfortunately in Asia and in third world countries, such regulation does not exist or even if it does, this is not seriously monitored and implemented.
While the wearer may not be allergic, there is such case as secondary nickel allergic reaction. This happens when a non-nickel sensitive person gets in contact with a nickel-sensitive person. A simple hand shake could illicit similar response as when the person gets in contact with a nickel-containing item first hand. Unfortunately for the affected person, he or she would most likely not have known where the allergy came from.
In the U.S., ingestion of lead containing jewelry has been one of the leading causes of lead poisoning among children. So much so that the U.S. government has passed on a strict regulation with regards to lead content not just in the fashion jewelry but also among toys, paints and several other household products as well.
Exposure to lead even in slow incremental doses through skin contact could overtime still lead to poisoning.
I have known a wonderful lady who had been in the fashion jewelry business for more more than 15 years now. She is a hands-on designer who strings and assembles the prototypes of her jewelry herself. While doing so, she got into the habit of putting beads into her lip ready to be strung.
Just last year, she has been in and out of the hospital for various medical diagnosis and treatments. She complains of unexplained fatigue, nervousness, tremors, prolonged diarrhea and others, the diagnosis---lead and mercury poisoning.
She has undergone chelation and several other treatments with the hope of flushing the toxins out. But her condition was rather far too advanced when she found out about it.
How are we to know that the jewelry we are buying is lead-free and nickel-free?
1.) Buy from reputable source
In general, branded jewelry from US and Europe has a standing government regulation to ensure that they only sell lead and nickel-free jewelry. The sanctions are quite severe so most companies comply.
From my experience in exporting fashion jewelry to various brands abroad, all the samples and a random selection from the volume produced items, undergoes testing once it reaches the country of destination.
Likewise, most of the big brands, only work with manufacturing companies that has been audited by a reputable, independent auditing body to ensure not only that the jewelry is safe but that it is produced responsibly.
This is probably the reason why authentic brands also cost higher and why we should all be wary of imitations.
Of course this doesn’t mean that we should only buy expensive branded products.
I believe there are a lot of Filipino companies and manufacturers who have taken the moral obligation to have their products tested.
Take for instance the flip flop brand—Havaianas. While this is a non-filipino brand, yet the Filipino distributor took the initiative of voluntarily recalling the Havaianas flip flops for kids as a precautionary measure for possible lead content. I don’t know Ms. Anne Gonzalez, Managing Director of Terry S.A. the Havaianas Philippines Distributor personally, but I think that it was quite admirable for their company to do what they just did. Putting the safety of the consumer even at the possible loss of profit, is one that other businessmen could learn from.
2.) Read the label
Companies who have undergone and passed nickel and lead testing are confident to put the word—“hypoallergenic” or nickel-free and lead-free into their label.
In the brand “IMPRESSIONE “ and “ARTIZANS” which I personally endorse, we are guaranteed of the items being lead-free and nickel-free.
For the rest of the brands out there, if there are no labels, then ask the sales lady or the company.
In this time and age, communications are relayed in variety of means, choose one that suits you. It might also be worthwhile if one could just make a quick internet research about the company or brand.
3.) If its too good to be true, it probably is
I have a personal confession to make; I am a sucker for cheap bargains. I’d feel good getting the things I want for a fraction of its cost. I’m one of those buyers who’d befriend a salesgirl so that somehow she can call or text me in case my coveted product goes on sale.
Overtime, I have gotten wiser though. Some cheap items actually come with a hidden hefty price tag… your very own health included.
Having known the materials and labor cost involved in producing decent and safe fashion jewelry, getting a pair of earring at P30 for me is rather questionable.
My suggestion is, if the price is too cheap; get a quick inventory of what makes the item cheap.
For instance, if the materials are made of shells or wood or other locally produced components, and there aren’t too many big pieces of metals on it, then perhaps getting the item for a little less than P100 is okay. If a metallic chain necklace cost less than a hundred, I serious doubt if its nickel or lead-free.
4.) Do a personal testing
Your local ACE or TRUE-Value hardware store might carry a local nickel-testing kit that allows one to do their own nickel-testing. Just ask for Nickel-testing kit and the salesperson should be able to locate this for you if they have it on stock.
Of course I am only talking about fashion jewelry here. There are still many other products we use everyday that we should take the time to check. Reading the labels and ingredients for instance, should be a habit, we all should develop.
(photo credit: http://www.theassayoffice.co.uk)
With the exception of a handful of knowledgeable and discerning consumers, very few people know the implication of the word nickel-free and lead-free.
What then does nickel-free and lead-free means, and why should the public be concerned about it?
Nickel has been known to be the most common source of skin allergies. The reaction to it could range from a simple appearance of itchy, or blotchy red rashes to a more severe reaction characterized by wheals, pus formation and at some cases causing deformities.
When detected early, this can be easily remedied by removing the nickel-containing article and a dose of an anti-histamine medication but in severe cases, this requires a more intensive medical intervention. (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/nickel-allergy/DS00826/DSECTION=treatments-and-drugs)
Due to this damaging effect, U.S., several other western countries and the whole of Europe has totally banded the presence of nickel in their jewelry.
Unfortunately in Asia and in third world countries, such regulation does not exist or even if it does, this is not seriously monitored and implemented.
While the wearer may not be allergic, there is such case as secondary nickel allergic reaction. This happens when a non-nickel sensitive person gets in contact with a nickel-sensitive person. A simple hand shake could illicit similar response as when the person gets in contact with a nickel-containing item first hand. Unfortunately for the affected person, he or she would most likely not have known where the allergy came from.
In the U.S., ingestion of lead containing jewelry has been one of the leading causes of lead poisoning among children. So much so that the U.S. government has passed on a strict regulation with regards to lead content not just in the fashion jewelry but also among toys, paints and several other household products as well.
Exposure to lead even in slow incremental doses through skin contact could overtime still lead to poisoning.
I have known a wonderful lady who had been in the fashion jewelry business for more more than 15 years now. She is a hands-on designer who strings and assembles the prototypes of her jewelry herself. While doing so, she got into the habit of putting beads into her lip ready to be strung.
Just last year, she has been in and out of the hospital for various medical diagnosis and treatments. She complains of unexplained fatigue, nervousness, tremors, prolonged diarrhea and others, the diagnosis---lead and mercury poisoning.
She has undergone chelation and several other treatments with the hope of flushing the toxins out. But her condition was rather far too advanced when she found out about it.
How are we to know that the jewelry we are buying is lead-free and nickel-free?
1.) Buy from reputable source
In general, branded jewelry from US and Europe has a standing government regulation to ensure that they only sell lead and nickel-free jewelry. The sanctions are quite severe so most companies comply.
From my experience in exporting fashion jewelry to various brands abroad, all the samples and a random selection from the volume produced items, undergoes testing once it reaches the country of destination.
Likewise, most of the big brands, only work with manufacturing companies that has been audited by a reputable, independent auditing body to ensure not only that the jewelry is safe but that it is produced responsibly.
This is probably the reason why authentic brands also cost higher and why we should all be wary of imitations.
Of course this doesn’t mean that we should only buy expensive branded products.
I believe there are a lot of Filipino companies and manufacturers who have taken the moral obligation to have their products tested.
Take for instance the flip flop brand—Havaianas. While this is a non-filipino brand, yet the Filipino distributor took the initiative of voluntarily recalling the Havaianas flip flops for kids as a precautionary measure for possible lead content. I don’t know Ms. Anne Gonzalez, Managing Director of Terry S.A. the Havaianas Philippines Distributor personally, but I think that it was quite admirable for their company to do what they just did. Putting the safety of the consumer even at the possible loss of profit, is one that other businessmen could learn from.
2.) Read the label
Companies who have undergone and passed nickel and lead testing are confident to put the word—“hypoallergenic” or nickel-free and lead-free into their label.
In the brand “IMPRESSIONE “ and “ARTIZANS” which I personally endorse, we are guaranteed of the items being lead-free and nickel-free.
For the rest of the brands out there, if there are no labels, then ask the sales lady or the company.
In this time and age, communications are relayed in variety of means, choose one that suits you. It might also be worthwhile if one could just make a quick internet research about the company or brand.
3.) If its too good to be true, it probably is
I have a personal confession to make; I am a sucker for cheap bargains. I’d feel good getting the things I want for a fraction of its cost. I’m one of those buyers who’d befriend a salesgirl so that somehow she can call or text me in case my coveted product goes on sale.
Overtime, I have gotten wiser though. Some cheap items actually come with a hidden hefty price tag… your very own health included.
Having known the materials and labor cost involved in producing decent and safe fashion jewelry, getting a pair of earring at P30 for me is rather questionable.
My suggestion is, if the price is too cheap; get a quick inventory of what makes the item cheap.
For instance, if the materials are made of shells or wood or other locally produced components, and there aren’t too many big pieces of metals on it, then perhaps getting the item for a little less than P100 is okay. If a metallic chain necklace cost less than a hundred, I serious doubt if its nickel or lead-free.
4.) Do a personal testing
Your local ACE or TRUE-Value hardware store might carry a local nickel-testing kit that allows one to do their own nickel-testing. Just ask for Nickel-testing kit and the salesperson should be able to locate this for you if they have it on stock.
Of course I am only talking about fashion jewelry here. There are still many other products we use everyday that we should take the time to check. Reading the labels and ingredients for instance, should be a habit, we all should develop.
(photo credit: http://www.theassayoffice.co.uk)
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