If you are into social networking, there’s a very good chance that you already know BUTTERFLYWHEEL. She’s everywhere! She connects with people easily and befriend them. If you need it, she takes you under her wings. When I wrote that, I think I just understood why she chose the ID “Butterflywheel” 
Her real name is Monica J. Foster. She’s 35 and resides in North Carolina. She’s married to Bryan Foster who she met online. She has Spina Bifida from birth and is paralyzed from the knees down. She is a “full-time, independent wheelchair user”. She also has Depression since her teens.
Does this stop her? Not in any way possible. Monica feels that the only obstacles she faces is other people’s attitudes towards people with disabilities. What she’s done so far is get her English degree from Pfeiffer University, was a reporter, a professional disability civil rights advocate at a nonprofit and then earned a life and career coaching certification from The Life Purpose Institute, an International Coaching Federation (ICF)-accredited coaching program.
She built her own business which is ongoing, BUTTERFLYWHEEL Life Transition Coaching, Etc. where she is a “life transition coach for people with disabilities and chronic illness, motivational speaker, accessibility consultant and disability awareness trainer”.
To know her is to love her, learn from her, laugh with her and be inspired by her. She doesn’t see obstacles rather “challenges to overcome”. Meet her on Twitter and on her Butterflywheel Effect Blog. She is now writing for BellaOnlne on their Disabilities Section. And don’t forget about her coaching site. If you spend more time with her than you can on those other sites, I’m sure you’ll grow as a person in more ways than you can imagine.
This is an ongoing effort to spotlight people with chronic illness, health issues and disabilities who are making a contribution in some way despite their pain, sickness, etc.
*CONTEST ENDED. WINNERS ANNOUNCED.*
Sunsweet Growers has introduced a new product – Sunsweet Antioxidant Blend. It includes dried cherries, plums, wild blueberries and cranberries. This is a very healthy snack and it is tasty too. It is naturally sweet and can be easily in recipes too.
Eating food high in antioxidants can help prevent infection and slow the aging process. The fruits in this blend are four of the highest scoring oxygen-free radical fighting fruits on the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) chart.
Sunsweet Antioxidant Blend comes in a 5 oz resealable bag. They can be purchased in the produce section of major stores in the US for the suggested retail price of $3.99. Each serving is only 130 calories and has no fat, cholesterol, or sodium. It does contain 4% Potassium and Fiber. (This is daily values based on a 2,000 calorie diet.) It’s always nice to have a healthy snack that is handy especially for those of us that have a chronic illness. I like being able to reach my hand into the bag and enjoy.
Giveaway: Ten readers will win a V.I.P. coupon for any Sunsweet product up to $5.5o and a Reusable Tote bag.
The Rules:
1. Contest starts now and ends Monday, August 3rd at midnight EST.
2. Open to people in the US.
3. Winner will be chosen by Random.org.
4. Winner has 2 days to claim prize.
5. Have fun and tell your friends.
How To Enter:
For One Entry For Each Below: (please leave a separate comment for each entry)
Mandatory to be entered into contest – Visit Sunsweet website and leave a comment about what product you like and why.
For Extra Entries:
1. Sign up for this blog’s RSS feed. (Only for new followers)
2. Leave a comment on a post on my other blog, Connie’s View. Let me know the post please.
3. Fave my blog on Technorati.
4. Write a blog post linking to this post.
5. Follow my blog on Facebook – use the Networked Blogs widget on my sidebar – Leave your Facebook name please.
6. Follow me on Twitter. (Only for new followers) Leave your Twitter ID please.
7. Visit Earn $ Blogging page and leave a comment about something you learned from that page.
8. Tweet this and leave your Twitter ID please:
10 will Win A Sunsweet VIP Coupon and Tote @ConnieFoggles. Eat Healthy! http://tinyurl.com/m6gefs PL RT
This review and giveaway sponsored by Sunsweet Growers.
My mother was told by three doctors that her difficulty breathing is related to stress. She has had numerous tests done and everything comes back normal, except for some signs of asthma. The asthma is not serious and she is on inhalers. But what was noticed during tests was that as she got anxious, her breathing, blood pressure and heart rate went up.
She does have a medical condition, asthma. She is very stressed due to taking care of her sister who is in a nursing home and she does suffer from anxiety. I am not saying that being short of breath is only due to stress, but it does make it worse.
She is almost 80 and won’t agree to seeing a psychiatrist or even a therapist. She’s been this way all of her life, she says. So I try my best to help her the best I can. It is difficult when you know what is best for a close family member but they won’t agree to it.
I’m sure that many of you have been in this position. What have you done to cope or to help?
July is Eye Injury Prevention Month in the United States. The first thing I think about is hurting my eyes from an accident, but something very important to consider is keeping your vision safe from sunlight.
The UV rays from the sun can cause Macular Degeneration and Cataracts. But did you know that you can also burn your corneas? It is necessary to wear sunglasses that block UV rays from childhood. For infants, keep them out of the sun.
When you are doing work where your eyes may be injured, such as mowing the lawn be sure to wear goggles to keep your eyes safe. When playing sports do the same.
Your eyesight is precious. Since there are ways to protect it, do it always.
The BluFrog Energy Drink Contest is almost over so I wanted to be sure to pass the word along. I usually don’t write about contests on this blog, but since the prizes are so amazing, I wanted to be sure my readers had an opportunity to enter.
There’s three ways to enter:
- Twitter about why you think BluFrog is the best energy drink. Be sure to include the hashtag #blufrog and the link http://bit.ly/UiiJy
- Leave a comment about which prize you want to win here – http://itsabluworld.com/contests/
- Write a blog post about the prize you want to win. Leave a comment on the page above with a link to your post. (Kind of like this post)
Here’s the prizes that are offered:
- BigGamer – XBox 360 Elite package
- Happy Blu-Year – Trip to New York City to celebrate New Year’s Eve at Times Square
- Bluapalloza – Trip to Chicago to attend Lalapalloza
- BluStreak – Trip to Orlando and Richard Petty Racing Experience
- XtremeBlu – Trip to Aspen and the Winter X Games
For more details on all of the prizes and the rules be sure to visit the BluFrog contest page. Don’t wait too long! The end date is July 17th at 11:59 pm EST.
Have you heard about BluFrog Energy Drink? It is made of healthy ingredients and no caffeine. It is only 68 calories per 8.3 oz can. There’s no jitters and no crash. No need to purchase to enter the contest, but it’s been getting great reviews. For those of us who can’t handle caffeine, this may help with fatigue.
I thought I’d update you on what is happening with the Myasthenia Gravis since I saw my neurologist from the MDA last week. I am still amazed that with all of the patients he sees that he is able to remember my symptoms, especially ones that are hard to distinguish.
He noticed right away that both of my eyelids were drooping. After speaking to me about my symptoms for a little while and then examining me, we talked about how to handle my worsening strength and stamina. During my last visit he suggested that we increase the Cellcept, which I did not agree with. But this time, it felt it was necessary. Instead of increasing my dose to 3000 mg though, we’re trying 2500 mg. My fear with this increase is that my ability to fight off infections is going to be very low because I am also on Humira.
He agreed that I do need to be more careful than normal about catching colds or anything more serious and to go with the 2500 mg. He also increased two doses of Mestinon. He feels that the MG is worse now because of the heat (I live in Florida and this summer has been pretty bad) and because of starting menopause. Hopefully I won’t need to be on the higher med dose for a long time.
I’m going to get a pneumonia vaccine and talk to my Primary Doctor about any other suggestions on how to stay healthy while being on two immunosuppressants.
