What to Expect When You're Thinking About Adoption

"Adoption is created through loss," says Linda Hageman, executive director of adoption services at The Cradle, an Illinois adoption agency.

That's a statement you don't often see among the pretty pictures of giggling babies and happy families in adoption brochures. But it's true. The child loses his or her first parents. The birth parents face the loss of their child. And the adoptive parents often lose long-cherished dreams and expectations about having biological children.

Some parents consider adoption after they've already built a biological family, but many others come to adoption after struggling with infertility. As a prospective adoptive parent you may wonder: Am I going to love this child as much as I would have loved a biological child? Will I have the same parenting instincts? Will our household feel like a real family?

The answer to all of those questions is a heartfelt yes, says Hageman -- but it will take some work first.

Most important, talk about those losses rather than sweep them under the rug. "List all the losses you've gone through in getting to adoption and the feelings you have about them. Do you feel anger? Resentment? Guilt or shame?"

Next, connect with the experts who can give you a real picture of what adoption may be like for you: other adoptive families. "The time to join in the adoption community is before you adopt, not after," says Hageman.

Finally, come up with rituals and traditions that reinforce this child's place in your family. "It's all about establishing markers that help you envelop this child and make them a part of your whole family system."

Thinking about moving forward with your adoption plans?  Hageman and Adoptive Families magazine offer these tips.

Choose your path. Adoptive Families magazine's online "decision matrix" can help you pick which type of adoption may be right for you based on your age, finances, and the characteristics of the child you would like.

Learn more. Attend adoptive family meetings to find out more about the type of adoption you're interested in pursuing. Check local "parent papers" for listings, or call adoption or foster care agencies in your area.

Find a professional. Adoptive Families has a searchable list of agencies. Do very thorough research on any adoption professional you're thinking of working with. Calling the Better Business Bureau and state licensing agencies is just a start.

Take off the rose-colored glasses. Beware of promises to have a baby in your arms in X amount of time. It's hard to wait, but you're better off with an ethical agency that doesn't make too-good-to-be-true claims.

Take time for yourself. Focus on you and your partner. Embark on that last solo vacation. Read a book not about adoption. Before you know it, a little person will be taking up all that spare time.

"Always remember: Family is not necessarily who you were born with but who you choose." -- fiannakyn, WebMD community member

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Antidepressants May Be Helpful for Some Heart Patients: Study

Emotional stress can harm cardiovascular health, experts say, so boosting mental resilience may be key

By Mary Elizabeth Dallas

HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, May 21 (HealthDay News) -- Use of the antidepressant Lexapro appears to help prevent a potentially serious stress-related heart condition, a new study finds.

The condition is known as known as "mental stress-induced myocardial ischemia." Although people with this condition may not develop noticeable symptoms, their heart muscle is not receiving adequate blood supply, according to researchers from Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, N.C.

However, the researchers found that people taking the antidepressant Lexapro (escitalopram) were more than two and a half times less likely to be affected by the condition, which can be spurred by emotional stress.

The study was funded by the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and is published in the May 22 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"Mental stress-induced myocardial ischemia is a serious condition, as patients with the condition tend to have worse heart problems compared to patients without it," study author Dr. Wei Jiang, an associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and internal medicine at Duke, said in a university news release. "This study showed for the first time that it is treatable with an emotion-modulating medication."

The study involved 310 people diagnosed with heart disease whose condition was stable and under control. To identify those with the stress-linked heart condition, the researchers first had participants undergo exercise stress tests on a treadmill. They also had to complete three mental stress tests: First they had to solve a difficult math problem, then trace a star while looking at their hand movements in a mirror, and then tell a story that made them feel sad or angry.

As the participants performed these tasks, they underwent echocardiograms and electrocardiograms, and had readings taken of blood pressure and heart rate.

According to Jiang's team, 127 of the patients developed stress-related heart issues. These patients were assigned to take either Lexapro, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) that's commonly used to treat depression and anxiety, or a placebo pill.

After six weeks, the participants retook the stress tests and had their heart function re-assessed. Of the original 127, 112 completed the study. The researchers found those who took the antidepressant drug were nearly three times less likely to develop stress-linked cardiovascular trouble during the mental stress tests compared to those taking placebo.

Patients taking Lexapro also tended to have healthy changes in heart function and they reported feeling calmer and more controlled than the placebo group.

"Our findings support the hypothesis that short-term use of SSRIs improves levels of biomarkers associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes," explained Jiang. Other SSRIs include Celexa, Paxil, Prozac and Zoloft.

The researchers concluded that SSRIs or other antidepressant treatments could help manage heart disease. They noted that more research is needed to determine the proper dosing of Lexapro for the treatment of stress-linked heart issues and to better understand how antidepressant drugs could also affect patients' risk for serious health conditions, including heart attack or angina, stroke, heart failure, or death.

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bloated

can you some how cure bloatedness? i hate being bloated abd it usually takes like hours for stomach to return to its normal self,is there some way to speed up the process? thanks x

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New Guidelines Raise Safety Bar on Concussions

If head trauma is suspected, health care professional should determine it is safe to return to play, recommendations say

By Alan Mozes

HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, March 18 (HealthDay News) -- Any athlete who suffers a suspected concussion should be withdrawn from play and stay on the sidelines until a qualified health care professional determines that all symptoms have subsided and it is safe to return to the field, new guidelines state.

Issued by the American Academy of Neurology, the latest recommendations aim to keep young athletes as safe as possible.

"With the older guidelines, we were trying to rate concussions at the time of the injury and predict recovery times, but now we know, 'When in doubt, sit 'em out,'" said guideline co-author Dr. Christopher Giza, an associate professor of pediatric neurology and neurosurgery with the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Mattel Children's Hospital.

"The point is that no single quick test is really a litmus test for a concussion," he said. "We know now that we need to make sure a player has had a thorough and proper evaluation, involving a symptoms checklist, a standardized assessment and balance and cognitive testing, before being returned to play. This evaluation has to be done on a case-by-case basis, so each person goes through an individualized recovery process."

Giza and his colleagues reported the new guidelines in the March 18 online issue of the journal Neurology.

According to the academy, upwards of 1 million professional and amateur U.S. athletes suffer a concussion every year.

The new guidelines were issued following a thorough look at all the available concussion research through June 2012.

Among the conclusions: experiencing a concussion raises the risk for experiencing a second, and perhaps more debilitating, one. That risk was found to be highest in the 10 days following the initial injury.

One expert said the new guidelines are needed.

"One of the big problems is that we have a culture within many sports that still encourages young people to play through the pain, including head pain," said Dr. Gail Rosseau, a clinical assistant professor in the department of neurosurgery at the Northshore University Health System in Chicago.

"But one of the most important things we now know is that until those who have had one concussion are fully recovered they are more likely to have a second concussion," Rosseau said. "The stories we hear that are horrific to every parent and every coach is the child who gets a concussion and goes back to play too soon, and gets a second one with devastating consequences."

Just how devastating it can be was outlined earlier this year in the Journal of Neurosurgery: Pediatrics, which detailed the harrowing double-concussion experience of Indiana high school student Cody Lehe. Resuming football too soon after an initial concussion, Lehe suffered a second concussion. Severe brain injury ensued, leaving Lehe mentally impaired and largely wheelchair-bound.

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Eyelash Extension Adhesives May Cause Bad Reactions

Eyelash Extension Adhesives May Cause Bad ReactionInfections and allergies from cosmetic procedure can damage eyes or cause swelling, loss of eyelasheshttp://img.webmd.com/dtmcms/live/webmd/consumer_assets/site_images/article_thumbnails/news/healthday/2013/05/46112.jpgWebMD News from HealthDay

By Robert Preidt

HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, May 16 (HealthDay News) -- For those who aren't born with long, fluttery eyelashes, cosmetic extensions can help achieve that often sought-after look. But eye experts warn that the adhesives used to apply these eyelash extensions can cause allergies and infections.

The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) warns that among the potential dangers associated with cosmetic eyelash extensions and the adhesives used to apply them are infections of the cornea and eyelid, permanent or temporary loss of eyelashes, and eyelid swelling.

The academy said that a recent Consumer Reports article details the cases of several patients who suffered infections and allergic reactions to formaldehyde-based adhesives used with eyelash extensions.

The AAO said consumers should use caution if they're considering eyelash extensions and offered the following advice:

Only go to an aesthetician who is certified and working at a reputable business.Ensure that adequate hand washing and proper hygiene is practiced by the aesthetician.Ask about the eyelash adhesive ingredients before getting the extensions applied.

People who develop an infection, allergic reaction or other irritation after using eyelash extensions or other eye products should immediately seek medical attention from an ophthalmologist -- a doctor who specializes in the treatment of eye conditions, the experts noted in an AAO news release.

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is timing relevant?

So I'm pondering if one did say 8 hours of exercise over a week, could one do those 8 hours in 2 days and it'd be the same or not? I know one would want to eat more on those days but overall would it balance out the same? Very hectic month ahead and want to see how I can get my hours in without messing things up!

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