Elderberry syrup is an essential I keep in my family’s natural remedy-based medicine cabinet, especially during the winter months. Unfortunately store-bought elderberry syrup can be incredibly expensive for how much you get and also mixed with some yucky ingredients and sugars. If you haven’t learned how to make homemade elderberry syrup yet, you are in the right place. This guide is quick, easy, and fool proof.
I was ECSTATIC when I tried this healthy hot chocolate recipe out a few years ago and it ended up actually being delicious! It meant that I could enjoy hot chocolate again for the first time since my cancer diagnosis in 2008. The bonus is that chocolate in its less-adulterated form of CACAO is actually GOOD for us. After some tweaking over the years, I finally got it exactly the way my family loves it, but there are also some options for changing it up for your individual dietary needs.
This frothy recipe with minuscule guilt-factor is extremely scrumptious and makes it hard to resist another cup. I think you’ll love it! 🙂
If you find yourself weighing the pros and cons of the flu vaccine vs. actually getting the flu, then this post is for you. Chances are you have already done a bit of research, but what is true versus sensationalized or fear-based information?
For all of you who followed me last year on Facebook, you may know that my ENTIRE family got the flu last Christmas. It was a good TWO weeks before we all were “flu-free.” But we still will not get the flu shot this year. Think we’re crazy?
Read on to see why we are perfectly sane. 😉
This is my super honest, experiential review of Freely Funded: The Debt-Free Healing Strategy. These have to be some of the best fundraising ideas for cancer treatment. Not often do I get to be a part of the inner workings of such a great project as this, but my husband Kevin and I got to be around from the start. And you know I love stories, so let me tell you how. 🙂
We chose to be a part of this project because over the past 10 years since my cancer diagnosis I have met many MANY people whose #1 obstacle to healing was their ability to pay for the treatment they wanted. The need for this program is IMMENSE!
In this review, I will talk about the origins or Freely Funded, my thoughts as I watched and completed each module, and the pros and cons of purchasing a course like this.
In my last post I wrote way too many words about the measles portion of the MMR vaccine. 🙂 Measles tends to be the attention-getter of this one, (Disneyland anyone?) But the MMR also contains live-virus mumps and rubella and a whole bunch of other interesting and controversial ingredients.
In today’s post about I’m going to talk all things mumps, rubella, rubella in pregnancy, outbreaks, at-home care, and even how my sister found out that she lost all her vaccine-induced rubella immunity when she was tested in pregnancy, 25 years after her MMR vaccine! Of course when she needed it most.
Glad you are here! 🙂
In November, 1983 I received my one life time dose of the MMR vaccine when I was 15 months old. No one seems to be concerned that to today’s standards I am under-vaccinated. And if you were born before the 1990’s, you probably are too. 😉
TWO MMR vaccines for children are now recommended; one at 12 months and the next at 4 years of age. Not to mention that the MMR vaccine has only been evaluated for effectiveness up to 20 years post-injection.
This is the research we sifted through when we were making a decision about the MMR vaccine for our children and weighing the risks vs. benefits.
The MMR vaccine for Measles, Mumps, and Rubella is a HOT topic with lots of angles to explore. The vaccine itself is designed to prevent three distinct illnesses, but MEASLES tends to get most of the headlines and media attention, especially right now as outbreaks are making the headlines and legislation for government mandated vaccines comes down the pipe in many states.
Throughout my research on all three illnesses, there was a noticeable disconnect between the fearful and emergency-like undertones from the mainstream media and what I learned from reading actual primary resources (along with talking to mine and my husband’s grandparents who both went through these childhood illnesses with their children and as children themselves.)
Then there’s this video showing the Brady Bunch kids in the 60’s laughing and joking about having the measles in contrast to a current-day Law and Order SVU episode where they declare a measles state of emergency. It’s seriously baffling. Stop everything and watch it before you read on.
I originally discussed all three MMR diseases in this post but decided after writing such a lengthy amount about measles that I was going to break them into two with an additional post on the MMR alone. You can find the other parts of the MMR in the Mumps and Rubella portion in Part 8 and read the data, ingredients concerns, alternative vaccine schedules, and more about the possible autism link in my next post on the MMR.
I am so happy to get this list of Atlanta Vaccine Friendly Pediatricians out there to you guys!
Many of these suggestions came from the experiences and research of wonderful and dedicated naturally-minded moms in the Atlanta metro community. Through our connections over social media and local meetups, we have been able to share our experiences about which doctors are accepting of our precious kiddos’ unvaccinated or delayed vaccination status and respectful of our wishes to care for our children in the ways we believe is best.
If you are looking for vaccine friendly doctors in other states, please see Dr. Sears complete list of vaccine friendly doctors.
If you are looking for Atlanta area holistic physicians for adults, you can check out my post on Atlanta Holistic and Alternative Doctors and Doctors for Cancer (and overall wellness.)
Feel free to post your questions, suggestions, and experiences in the comment section for myself and other moms (and dads) who come along!
The rotavirus vaccine is a newish vaccine that jumped onto the CDC childhood vaccine schedule in 2006. It has some interesting quirks regarding its development, use, and history. Making a decision about rotavirus vaccine isn’t easy, but I think this post will help you get to a more confident place. Here we go. 🙂
The Budwig Protocol is the common name for the diet and lifestyle developed by Dr. Johanna Budwig in the 1950’s to help restore otherwise hopeless, advanced cancer patients back to health.
Note: “The Budwig Protocol for Cancer” was originally published on January 26, 2011 and has been updated in 2024.