Going Up! 7 Pointers to Lift a Bad Mood

No one can live a long and healthy life without the will to go on; sometimes mood swings can make us feel that life is too much for us.

A bad mood not only gives you a gloomy outlook, it also lowers your immune function, leading the way to illness. Here are some suggestions to lift your mood, your spirit, and your health.

1. A Laughing Matter
"Laugh Therapy," pioneered by Norman Cousins, has turned out to have real substance. Research has discovered that laughter and joy boost immune functions, especially the production of the natural killer cells that help defend the body from illness and cancer.

Laughter also increases the release of endorphins - compounds that give you a sense of well-being - in your brain. Without a doubt, joyful people liver longer and healthier lives. So read your favorite comics, watch your favorite comedies, and laugh it up!

2. Amino Acid for Restored Mindset
When an imbalance or deficiency is creating a bad mood, the Europeans use supplements of a natural compound found in human cells to regulate mood and restore a healthy mindset. SAMe (S-adenosyl-L-methionine) is produced from methionine, an amino acid that plays a role in the production of uplifting neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine.

One study indicated that SAMe worked on patients who had unsuccessful results with conventional antidepressants. To get a boost from SAMe, take a supplement combining it with vitamins B6 and B12.

3. Hands-On Healing
Human touch increases the production of endorphins, growth hormone, and DHEA, all of which lengthen your life span and lower the negative impact of stress. Studies have found that patients who are regularly touched recover faster than those who are not touched. So give someone a hug and feel both of your moods improve.

4. Boost Your "Youth Hormones"
You don't need pills to flood your body with a rejuvenating flood of growth hormones. Research has found that doing squats and leg presses will greatly increase your natural production of the "youth hormone". Increased growth hormone translates to an elevated mood, among other physical benefits. Keep it up with weight training, knee bends, push-ups, and rowing.

5. Take a Bracing Breath
Breathing correctly is important for dispelling the toxins and wastes from your body; in fact, it is estimated that we expel only about 30 percent of toxins in our bodies through the bowels and bladder-the rest is all respiratory. Breathing is also a great way to clear your mind, boost your energy, and improve your mood. Practice deep, slow, rhythmic, breathing daily with mind-body disciplines such as tai chi, yoga, qigong, and meditation.

6. Smell the Joy
Research has shown that smell has a definite impact on our bodies and minds. When you stimulate the olfactory nerves inside your nose, you activate the limbic system of your brain, which is associated with moods and memory. This concept is instrumental to aromatherapy, a natural health tradition that makes use of the healing powers of plants with strong scents.

Aromatherapy recommends treating depression with jasmine, eucalyptus for exhilaration, and grapefruit to increase alertness and joy. Just put a dab of the essential oils from these plants on your temples, back of your neck, or acupressure points. Another option? Boil the herb in water and inhale the steam through your nose.

7. Feel Fine with Flowers
There is a reason that flowers are the traditional get-well gesture. Colorful flowers have a powerful influence on moods; they can uplift a patient's mood and even combat stress. One study found that during a five-minute typing assignment, people sitting next to a flowering bouquet were more relaxed than those who sat near foliage-only plants.

Flick your switch off for Earth Hour

Do you want to show you care about energy conservation? Simply switch off your lights on March 28 from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., local time.
This is Earth Hour, and Saturday is the third annual worldwide event. Earth Hour is both a symbolic act and the start of a practical habit.
Millions of homes and businesses and hundreds of major landmarks will go dark for one hour to show that energy conservation is important and to send this message to political leaders attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in December 2009.
At the same time, Earth Hour reminds each of us how easy it is to conserve -- just turn off non-essential lights and electronics to reduce our own power consumption.
Lighting accounts for about 11 percent of a typical American home's energy bills, while computers and electronics add another 9 percent. So by shutting off these things when we're not using them, we can lower our load significantly.
Get into the habit this weekend with one hour in the dark. Make it fun by having dinner by candlelight, taking a stroll under the stars, or playing card games by a fire. The Daily Green has a few entertaining ideas for consenting adults too.
Earth Hour started in Australia and is sponsored by the World Wildlife Fund. Anyone can participate -- check out the website for details. At last count, 2,400 cities across 82 countries have officially signed up. 195 of these cities are in the United States.
Some famous buildings will be going dark on Saturday including: The Empire State Building in New York City, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the St. Louis Gateway Arch, the Sydney Opera House, the Sears Tower in Chicago, Seattle's Space Needle, the Great Pyramids and Sphinx in Egypt, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, and Broadway theater marquees in New York City.
Even the flashy Las Vegas Strip will turn dark for an hour. Of course, the slot machines inside casinos will stay on, but almost all of the buildings and marquees on the Strip itself will be dark during Earth Hour.
For the very first time, the famous "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign will go off. Spokespeople say that Vegas lights have dimmed for a minute when a local celebrity dies, but the Strip and the sign have never gone dark for a full hour.
Other businesses are flicking the switch too. The golden arches at McDonald's in New Zealand and Canada will go dark, saving more than 10,000 kilowatt-hours for our neighbor to the north. The Canadian chain says it has also saved 3.1 million kilowatt-hours of energy through improved lighting, heating, and ventilation.
Both Nashville and Los Angeles are U.S. sponsor cities, so the Nashville Predators and the L.A. Kings hockey teams agreed to reschedule their game in Nashville to 5 p.m. The game should end around 7:30 p.m. with plenty of time for the arena to turn off the lights.
Blackberry addicts can log on before Earth Hour to a special website from Research in Motion. The company is encouraging fans of the mobile device to log-off for an hour and enjoy the silence.
You can even download a free iPhone game to remind you -- in advance -- to turn off the lights on Saturday. Anything to get the idea across, right?
Auto insurance company Esurance will offset your car's CO2 emissions at no extra cost if you buy an auto policy before Earth Hour. Of course, the kindest thing you can do for the planet is to drive less often.
Check out these tips for saving energy all year.

Lohan strikes Marilyn pose

Famed photographer Bert Stern recreated his legendary 1962 photo shoot with Marilyn Monroe, this time with Lindsay Lohan baring just about all.

The saucy Lindsay Lohan photos can be seen in the latest issue of New York Magazine, out Monday, Feb. 18, 2008.
Lohan looks rejuvenated at the movie premiere of 'Cloverfield' last month...
'I didn't have to put much thought into it. I mean, Bert Stern? Doing a Marilyn shoot? When is that ever going to come up? It’s really an honor,' Lohan told New York magazine.

A hitch in my giddy-up?

am kinda sick, i think..a lost ball in the high weeds but need to do it against the clock...against the grain? haha whatevah!

there are things i would not want to do even all the tea in China is in front of me...

well, to make the story short-- am not feeling well,that's it!

any answers on a postcard? LOL

MEDICAL CONDITIONS AND TATTOOS

A tattoo is a permanent marking made by inserting ink into the layers of skin to change the pigment for decorative or other reasons. Tattoos on humans are a type of decorative body modification, while tattoos on animals are most commonly used for identification or branding.

Tattooing has been practiced worldwide. The Ainu, the indigenous people of Japan, traditionally wore facial tattoos. Today one can find Berbers of Tamazgha (North Africa) and Maori of New Zealand with facial tattoos. Tattooing was widespread among Polynesian peoples and among certain tribal groups in the Philippines, Borneo, Mentawai Islands, Africa, North America, South America, Mesoamerica, Europe, Japan, Cambodia, New Zealand and Micronesia. Despite some taboos surrounding tattooing, the art continues to be popular in many parts of the world.


Health risks

Modern tattoo artist's nitrile gloves and sterilized equipment

Because it requires breaking the skin barrier, tattooing may carry health risks, including infection and allergic reactions. In the United States, for example, the Red Cross prohibits a person who has received a tattoo from donating blood for 12 months (FDA 2000), unless the procedure was done in a state-regulated and licensed studio, using sterile technique. Not all states have a licensing program, meaning that people who receive tattoos in those states are subject to the 12-month deferral regardless of the hygienic standards of the studio. Similarly, the UK does not provide certification for tattooists, and so there is a six month waiting period without exception.
Modern western tattooers reduce such risks by following universal precautions, working with single-use items, and sterilizing their equipment after each use. Many jurisdictions require that tattooists have bloodborne pathogen training, such as is provided through the Red Cross and OSHA.

Infection

Since tattoo instruments come in contact with blood and bodily fluids, diseases may be transmitted if the instruments are used on more than one person without being sterilized. However, infection from tattooing in clean and modern tattoo studios employing single-use needles is rare. In amateur tattoos, such as those applied in prisons, however, there is an elevated risk of infection. To address this problem, a program was introduced in Canada as of the summer of 2005 that provides legal tattooing in prisons, both to reduce health risks and to provide inmates with a marketable skill. Inmates were to be trained to staff and operate the tattoo parlors once six of them opened successfully.

Infections that can theoretically be transmitted by the use of unsterilized tattoo equipment or contaminated ink include surface infections of the skin, herpes simplex virus, tetanus, staph, fungal infections, some forms of hepatitis, tuberculosis, and HIV. People with tattoos are nine times more likely to be infected with hepatitis C, according to a study by Robert Haley, MD, chief of epidemiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.[citation needed]

No person in the United States is reported to have contracted HIV via a commercially-applied tattooing process. Washington state's OSHA studies have suggested that since the needles used in tattooing are not hollow, in the case of a needle stick injury the amount of fluids transmitted may be small enough that HIV would be difficult to transmit. Tetanus risk is reduced by having an up-to-date tetanus booster prior to being tattooed. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention no data indicates an association between tattooing in the United States and increased risk for HCV infection.[citation needed] In 2006, the CDC reported 3 clusters with 44 cases of methicillin-resistant staph infection traced to unlicensed tattooists.

Allergic reactions

Perhaps due to the mechanism whereby the skin's immune system encapsulates pigment particles in fibrous tissue, tattoo inks have been described as "remarkably nonreactive histologically". Allergies to latex are more common; many artists will use non-latex gloves when required.

Allergic reactions to tattoo pigments are uncommon except for certain brands of red and green. People who are sensitive or allergic to certain metals may react to pigments in the skin with swelling and/or itching, and/or oozing of clear fluid called serum. Such reactions are quite rare, however, and some artists will recommend performing a test patch. Due to the fact that laser removal of tattoo ink causes a release of ink into the bloodstream the risk of anaphylactic shock is also present during removal.
Here is a bit of useful info concerning medical conditions and tattoos
if you have one of the conditions listed here you should seek your doctors advice before being tattooed

DIABETES
diabetes is a serious blood condition in which the blood sugar levels cannot be controlled by the body, usually the condition occurs when the human body quits producing insulin, or rejects the insulin it does produce, diabetics who get tattoos can have serious healing problems if blood sugar levels are not kept at normal levels.


RED CELL DISEASES

ANEMIA-
anemic people have a condition that causes the red blood cell count to go low (usually destroyed), causing the heart to work much harder to supply oxygen enriched blood to the body (red cells carry oxygen) healing will be slowed on anemic people not to mention with the heart pushing more pressure the bleeding factor is greatly increased.
there are a few types and causes for anemia here the most common

G6PD DEFICINCY.
G6PD is an enzyme that helps to protect red blood cells from the destructive effects of certain chemicals found in foods and medications. When the enzyme is deficient, these chemicals can cause red cells to hemolyze, or burst. G6PD deficiency is a common hereditary disease among people of African, Mediterranean, and Southeast Asian descent.

HEREDITARY SPHEROCYTOSIS (pronounced: sfeer-o-sye-toe-sus)
is an inherited condition in which red blood cells are misshapen (like tiny spheres, instead of disks) and especially fragile because of a genetic problem with a protein in the structure of the red blood cell. This fragility causes the cells to be easily destroyed.

AUTOIMMUNE HEMOLYTIC ANEMIA.
Sometimes - because of disease or for no known reason - the body's immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys red blood cells.

SICKLE CELL ANEMIA
most common in people of African descent, is a hereditary disease that results in the production of abnormal hemoglobin. The red blood cells become sickle shaped, they cannot carry oxygen adequately, and they are easily destroyed.

WHITE CELL DISEASES

NEUTROPENIA (pronounced: noo-truh-pee-nee-uh)
Neutropenia occurs when there aren't enough of a certain type of white blood cell to protect the body against bacterial infections

HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV)
HIV is a virus that attacks certain types of white blood cells (lymphocytes) that work to fight infection. Infection with the virus can result in AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome), leaving the body prone to infections and certain other diseases.

LEUKEMIAS (pronounced: loo-kee-mee-uhz)
Leukemias are cancers of the cells that produce white blood cells. These cancers include acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL).


DISEASES OF PLATELETS

THROMBOCYTOPENIA (pronounced: throm-buh-syte-uh-pee-nee-uh)
Thrombocytopenia or a lower than normal number of platelets, is usually diagnosed because a person has abnormal bruising or bleeding. Thrombocytopenia can happen when a person takes certain drugs or develops infections or leukemia or when the body uses up too many platelets. Idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) is a condition which the person's immune system attacks and destroys his or her own platelets.

CLOTTING SYSTEM

HEMOPHILIA (pronounced: hee-muh-fil-ee-uh),
Hemophilia is an inherited condition that almost exclusively affects boys, involves a lack of particular clotting factors in the blood. People with severe hemophilia are at risk for excessive bleeding and bruising after dental work, surgery, and trauma. They may experience episodes of life-threatening internal bleeding, even if they haven't been injured.

VON WILLEBRAND DISEASE
Von Willebrand disease the most common hereditary bleeding disorder, also involves a clotting-factor deficiency. It affects both males and females.

Other causes of clotting problems include chronic liver disease (clotting factors are produced in the liver) and vitamin K deficiency (the vitamin is necessary for the production of certain clotting factors).

HEART AND VASCULAR DISEASES

People with heart and vascular conditions may be on blood thinning drugs, people considering tattoo work who are on these blood thinning agents should consult with their doctor before getting tattooed.


YOU HAVE ANY OF THESE CONDITIONS PLEASE SEEK QUALIFIED MEDICAL ADVICE BEFORE GETTING TATTOOED, ALSO LET YOUR ARTIST KNOW OF YOUR CONDITION BEFORE YOU GET YOUR WORK DONE. A GOOD TATTOO ARTIST WILL UNDERSTAND, AND QUITE POSSIBLY WORK WITH YOU AND YOUR DOCTOR.

ALSO OF NOTE ALL PERSONS ARE REQUIRED BY LAW TO DISCLOSE THE FACT OF BEING HIV POSITIVE TO PERSONS WHO WORK WITH BODILY FLUIDS. FAILURE TO DO SO COULD RESULT IN FELONY PROSECUTION. not to mention it takes a really sick rotten bastard to not tell his tattooist he has HIV or AIDS.