For seniors, loss of balance and falling brings terrifying consequences.  When we are babies, it is a normal part of learning to walk, when we are from the ages of children thru adulthood, it rarely happens, but as we age, loss of balance begins to take a serious toll in our lives.

I am of the sandwich generation.  I have 2 girls, 12 and 17, and an 84 year old mother which I care for in the evenings and monitor throughout the day.  My mother has been falling for the past 4 years.  Luckily she is overweight, which cushions her falls and protects her bones.  She has osteoporosis, spinal stenosis, and has broken two ribs during the past year.  After every fall my mother’s caregiver and I aggressively treat her with arnica cream to reduce her inflammation and bruising.  But I have never been able to record the consequences of the fall, and the relief of the cream until last week.

My mother loves her garden and since we are worried that she could fall on the uneven ground, we designed a cement path so that she could safely get around with her walker.  However on Wednesday, some how her bad knee gave way and Mom toppled over, hitting her face on a solar light.  Somehow she was able to pull herself back up, get back in the house and call me.  I came over as soon as possible, saw that she had cut her nose, gave her ice, ibuprofen, and put some Elixer Arnica Rub ^TM on her face.  Seeing that the bleeding would not stop, I took her to the Urgent care facility where she received 8 stitches.  That night I, along with my other duties, I made sure that Mom got another dab of Elixer.

Mom’s bruising is scary since she has poor circulation due to congestive heart failure.  As we feared, her left side of her face looked terrible on the second day.  For the next several days Mom would receive Elixer treatments in the morning and night and each day, the bruising inflammation subsided.  By Monday, I almost had my mother’s beautiful face back to normal.  And Mom feels so much better, the stitches were out, and her physician commented on her speedy recovery, “Just like a young kid’s”, he said.

See for yourself and try Elixer.  Remember, we stand 100% behind our product!

We think that every one should have a jar of Elixer in their medicine supply.

Easy.  Once a week, we have cake night.  Supposedly, I spend a couple hours making a fab new cake recipe and the whole family meets at her house around 9 pm to have cake and light  conversation about the previous week.  Then, much to the joy of my mother and the caregivers, I leave them one half of the cake.  Mom then has dessert for 4 – 5 days, which seems to be the highlight of her day.  The first week, I tried the Mary Todd Lincoln’s Vanilla Almond Cake which we all loved. Last week was a marvelous White Chocolate and Lemon cake, and next week, well it is time for something decadent and full of apricots.

The other addition that has been a great hit for my mother was installing a Roku (little black box) to my mother’s television and subscribing to Netflix.  The Roku attaches  to her DSL/cable line and allows Mom to see her beloved movies at any time.  Now I don’t have to deal with returns or late fees and the movies are downloaded to her computer.  Mom has been seeing old favorites such as her Jacques Tati movies and foreign flicks.  The Roku cost approximately $66 in total, and Netflix charges are around $7.95 a month.  I couldn’t ask for a better or easier solution.

So do something special for your parents and write in with your tips.  I know that we would all appreciate it.  Life for our seniors is not all about pills and creams, but about adjusting and being sensitive to their life changes.

My mother and Suzanne at Cake Night

Things have changed on my home front.  My mother Mina, the creator of the Glorious Charlotte Russe, fell and smashed her shoulder two months ago.  Now she is in a free-falling descent and is under 24/7 care.  No longer do I pick her up every night to have dinner at my house, or even prepare a dinner to be served at her house.  She can hardly move, has no balance, has limited speech and horrible coughing  jags while she eats. So what can I do to cheer her up?

Easy.  Once a week, we have cake night.  Supposedly, I spend a couple hours making a fab new cake recipe and the whole family meets at her house around 9 pm to have cake and light  conversation about the previous week.  Then, much to the joy of my mother and the caregivers, I leave them one half of the cake.  Mom then has dessert for 4 – 5 days, which seems to be the highlight of her day.  The first week, I tried the Mary Todd Lincoln’s Vanilla Almond Cake which we all loved. Last week was a marvelous White Chocolate and Lemon cake, and next week, well it is time for something decadent and full of chocolate.

The other addition that has been a great hit for my mother was installing a Roku (little black box) to my mother’s television and subscribing to Netflix.  The Roku attaches  to her DSL/cable line and allows Mom to see her beloved movies at any time.  Now I don’t have to deal with returns or late fees and the movies are downloaded to her computer.  Mom has been seeing old favorites such as her Jacques Tati movies and foreign flicks.  The Roku cost approximately $66 in total, and Netflix charges are around $7.95 a month.  I couldn’t ask for a better or easier solution.

So do something special for your parents and write in with your tips.  I know that we would all appreciate it.

Okay, Suzanne looks better windsurfing than us ladies

Windsurfing opened up a new window in my heart and my dream, which is to do it every morning.  To thank Celeste, I gave her a jar of Elixer Arnica Sports Rub figuring she might try it out since she is so active.  Eight months later, on Thanksgiving Day, I got a call from Celeste who wanted to order a jar for herself and one for her daughter.  Seems that when Celeste was 19 years old she broke her ankle rock climbing and since then she always has been in pain. But as she says “…with Elixer my pain goes immediately away, and I can go out and party”.

I don’t think I could have said it any better.  I can’t wait until we go back to Kaua’i for some more windsurfing classes and especially to see Celeste, my number one fan.  Mahalo for your kind testimonial, Celeste and have a wonderful holiday.

For 5 days we didn’t know what happened to her, and finally a call came from her sister explaining the devastating accident.  I had no back up for Catherine, and became my mother’s care giver from Hell.  But as soon as I heard the news, I rushed over to Catherine’s apartment and gave her a 32 oz. bottle of Elixer. Her sister immediately began a treatment of Elixer on Catherine to help manage her pain.

Catherine, although in no way healed, at least is doing much better. “The cream is wonderful.  It has made the pain bearable. I’ve been able to cut down on the prescribed pain killers to one pill in the morning and night” she said.

Today, life is easier for Catherine, my mother and I.  I quickly found several wonderful caregivers to replace Catherine during this period.  My mother is happier getting rid of the caregiver from Hell, and Catherine is slowly mending.  However, before you do a stupid chore that deals with heights, just ask yourself if you can afford the ramifications of a potential accident.  I know that I am getting older and my reflexes aren’t as good, so I’m staying off of make-shift ladders and reaching for plants and objects that require superb balance and luck.

Stay healthy and wise.

The US postal service has “flat rate” boxes.  These are great since they allow you to fill up a box at a rate you can afford.  The post office will ask you to fill out a couple of forms and the cost would be between $10 and $14 a box depending on which size you send.

Cards and letters are great since everyone needs a family. If you know of a person, family or group that would like to send anything, please feel free to forward this on.  This Squadron is set to be in Afghanistan until June 2010.

Send Items To:

GySgt Kathryn Denham – To get things delivered you have to send to someone in a unit. Kathryn has agreed to be that person.

HMLA – 367 Scarface

Unit 42065

FPO AP 96427-2065

Put a note in the box “to the men and women of HMLA – 367″

Food (They get 3 meals a day but there is no food available between meals) so they would desperately like:

• Granola Bars
• Jerky
• Nuts
• Candy – chocolate can be sent until March – afterward melting is an issue

• Fruit Cups
• Crackers
• Mints
• Chips
• Cocoa
• Coffee

Personal Items:

• Blankets
• Toiletries (There are 15 women in the squadron that have special needs)

• Scarves / Sunglasses
• Liquid Body Soap/Shampoo/Conditioner/Lotion/Razors/Combs

• Toothpaste (do not send mouthwash)
• floss/ gum

This is a wonderful opportunity you and your family about giving to those who our serving our country and are in harm’s way. Whether it’s a holiday box or a monthly box, it will be met with a smile and grateful hands and hearts.  And a big “thank you” from Marlaine and I.  Happy Holidays from all of us at Frush Botanicals.

Thursday Night - Not looking good

For seniors, loss of balance and falling brings terrifying consequences.  When we are babies, it is a normal part of learning to walk, when we are from the ages of children thru adulthood, it rarely happens, but as we age, loss of balance begins to take a serious toll in our lives.

I am of the sandwich generation.  I have 2 girls, 12 and 17, and an 84 year old mother which I care for in the evenings and monitor throughout the day.  My mother has been falling for the past 4 years.  Luckily she is overweight, which cushions her falls and protects her bones.  She has osteoporosis, spinal stenosis, and has broken two ribs during the past year.  After every fall my mother’s caregiver and I aggressively treat her with arnica cream to reduce her inflammation and bruising.  But I have never been able to record the consequences of the fall, and the relief of the cream until last week.

My mother loves her garden and since we are worried that she could fall on the uneven ground, we designed a cement path so that she could safely get around with her walker.  However on Wednesday, some how her bad knee gave way and Mom toppled over, hitting her face on a solar light.  Somehow she was able to pull herself back up, get back in the house and call me.  I came over as soon as possible, saw that she had cut her nose, gave her ice, ibuprofen, and put some Elixer Arnica Sports Rub ^TM on her face.  Seeing that the bleeding would not stop, I took her to the Urgent care facility where she received 8 stitches.  That night I, along with my other duties, I made sure that Mom got another dab of Elixer.

Monday after the stitches are taken out. Once again, Mom is BEAUTIFUL!

Mom’s bruising is scary since she has poor circulation due to congestive heart failure.  As we feared, her left side of her face looked terrible on the second day.  For the next several days Mom would receive Elixer treatments in the morning and night and each day, the bruising inflammation subsided.  By Monday, I almost had my mother’s beautiful face back to normal.  And Mom feels so much better, the stitches were out, and her physician commented on her speedy recovery, “Just like a young kid’s”, he said.

See for yourself and try our free sample offer.

We think that every one should have a jar of Elixer in their medicine supply.

I worry about the consequences of the limits.  I know myself, if I have badly sprained a muscle, have a headache or a high temperature, I will take a pill.  I’m not going to a doctor.  Like many American, my husband and I are self-employed, pay for health insurance, but with a $5000 deductible, can’t afford to go see a physician every time we get a minor injury or have a cold.  It cost us $150 for a visit, in which the insurance pays little or nothing.  So we will just have to stockpile our over-the-counter medications.

It also means that physicians can no longer prescribe Vicodin and Percocet which also contains acetaminophen.  Let me try to understand this – is the government telling us that Oxycontin (often called synthetic morphine and highly addictive) along with codeine (also habit-forming), is safer to use than the acetaminophen?  Huh, I guess it is better to have more drug addicts in this world.  We all know that as Americans we are way too stupid to be educated on the use of acetaminophen.

Don’t get me wrong.  I don’t like any of these drugs and am very careful using them for me and my family.  I created Elixer Arnica Sports Rub ^TM because my eldest daughter had a serious sports injury and a delicate stomach.  The last thing I wanted to see was her popping Motrin to reduce her shoulder inflammation and pain.  But I do recognize the need for these non-steroid, anti-inflammatory (NSAID) medicines in our homes.  I just hope that the FDA sees the light.

So, since the government clamp is coming down on all of us, I have a proposition for you.  We are now offering a free sample of Elixer per US household; so that you can see what a wonderful job it does combating muscle and joint pain.  Just fill out the on-line form and you should be receiving a packet in the mail in a week or two.