In a bid to avoid 💩 🥊 💥 I have been avoiding posting ANYTHING about COVID-19 🦠 for a while. However, today I feel compelled to chaste this article that I have been saving from 18th October 2021 @Medscape.For patients with Long Covid , keep a lookout 👀 for these Respiratory 💨, Cardiac ❤️ and Neurological 🧠 red flags 🚩 🚩🚩. Even MONTHS down the track🦠❤️ ischaemia ( not enough blood to the heart 💜 muscles), tachyarrhythmia (fast abnormal heart beat), myocarditis (inflammation of heart muscle), pericarditis (inflammation to the sack around the heart)🧠 strokes & TIA(transient, reversible mini strokes)🫁 Lung Clots other symptoms Post Exertionsl Malaise, POTS ( Postural tachycardia syndrome), Mast Cell Activation Syndromes (MCAS), New Onset Food Intolerance & diarrhoea 💩 #covid_19 #longcovid#pots#MCAS#mastcell#postexertionalmalaise#stroke#myocarditis#pericarditis#embolism#foodintolerance#chronicfatigue#redflags#strokes#heartbeat#functionalmedicine ... See MoreSee Less

#Repost @siha_the_wise with @make_repost・・・Often we spend our time chasing after dreams and money, neglecting our loved ones. Once a while we should see that what our loved ones need may just be our presence. During these difficult times, its always best to care and be present for our loved ones. There are also people who are struggling to even put food on the table. Thus do donate or help others in need.And thank u for being present with me! On this Kathina day, wish all beings happy and want to show my gratitude to the sangha for their teachings and their kindness.Do share this post if you feel the joy and goodness! Share your kindness and compassion to the people in need! Do donate to a worthy charity of your choice or perform a good deed today! 😸🌻#faultfindingmind #faultfindingnature #goodnessinside #goodnessinyou #mindfulnessforkids #mindfulnessbrasil #mindfulnessmatters #mindfulthinking #mindfulbunny #bunnyoftheday #bunnyinsta #sharingiscaring #sharingparenting #motherhoodquotes #sayingsofabuddhist #positivevibes #positivequotes #positivethinking #positivemindset #positivethoughtsonly #positivevibesonly #bunniesofinstagram #bunniesofig #bunnyart #dwarfbunnies #parentingtips #presentmomentquotes ... See MoreSee Less

#Repost @abchealth with @make_repost・・・There are bad days, and then there are Bad Days..You’ve woken up feeling awful. Maybe there’s a reason for these feelings, maybe not. And yet, there are things to do. People to avoid. Plans you wish you hadn't foolishly made in a fit of past optimism..So then: What do you do with yourself on a day like this? Some days the parameters are clear: to either push through with your plans, or to cancel them all and take it easy..But what about on days when it’s not so clear, when you can't decide?.Writer and mental health advocate Graham Panther has found that making a list of three specific things and being productive can make help manage a day dealing with "very strong feelings"..For him, they help gently challenge the internal monologue he finds running through his head on days like those: “That I'm not much use to anyone when I feel like this; that these big feelings are just another sign of how self-obsessed and cut off from humanity I am; and that I'm not doing what I'm supposed to, that I'm wasting my own time.".He says they can be big, like a handwritten card for someone. Or they can be small, like a text of appreciation. The point is to just do something, outside of your regular programming..“These three little acts didn't directly address the crappy feelings themselves — whatever thing it was that meant I was having such a bad day in the first place. Instead, they simply stopped me feeling crap about feeling crap. They formed a little internal blockade between the overwhelming feelings and the judgements that would normally follow those feelings.”.@abc_everyday .#ABCHealth #Health #MentalHealth ... See MoreSee Less

Mixing Vaccines: The study we’ve all been waiting forUp until now, we had two big unanswered questions regarding COVID19 vaccines in the United States:1. Can we safely mix vaccines? For example, if you had an original Johnson and Johnson (J&J) vaccine can you safely get a Moderna booster? We know that mixing AstraZeneca with Pfizer is safe from clinical trials in the UK. Because J&J is the same biotechnology as AstraZeneca, we hypothesized that mixing would be okay too. But needed to see the data.2. Can (and how do) we effectively mix vaccines? For example, if you had two doses of Moderna, should you get a third booster of J&J? Is this any better (or worse) than a Moderna booster?These questions were answered in a landslide study that was just released today. The timing of the preprint is not a coincidence. VRBPAC (external scientific advisory committee to the FDA) is reviewing the evidence for mixing vaccines on Friday. Any data they review and discuss has to be released 48 hours prior to the meeting.***The study***In total, 458 volunteers were divided into nine groups with roughly 50 volunteers in each group. I threw together a figure to show how those people were divided.Briefly, people that got a primary J&J, Moderna series, or Pfizer series were randomly given a booster four to six months after. For example, those who initially got the two dose Moderna series got either another Moderna shot, a Pfizer shot or a J&J shot.Then participants were asked to report side effects in the 29 days following. Scientists also drew blood from participants to quantify protection: number of neutralizing antibodies and IgG antibodies. What did they find?***Can we safety mix vaccines?***Yes, the safety profile was nothing more than what we expected. Mixing is safe, but you will probably experience a side effect (like chills, fever, headache, or fatigue). In all groups, there were only 2 severe events: renal failure due to a fall injury and gallbladder swelling. After investigation, these events were not linked to the booster. One person reported vomiting 1 day after the J&J booster (Group 5).***Which combination works best?***To me, this was the most interesting…- The most benefit, by far, was for those with a primary J&J shot. A Moderna booster gave the greatest benefit to J&J folks (56.1 fold increase in IgG; 76.1 fold increase in neutralizing antibodies). Pfizer also worked very well (32.8 fold increase in IgG; 35 fold increase in neutralizing antibodies). There was minimal increase with a J&J booster (4-fold increase).-After the primary Moderna series, there was benefit from either a Moderna or Pfizer booster. There was really no difference between the two.-After the primary Pfizer series, the greatest benefit was from a Moderna booster. But a Pfizer booster helped a lot too.-A J&J booster following an mRNA series did help, but not as much as another mRNA booster. I thought this was interesting. Scientists originally hypothesized that different vaccine biotechnologies could help more. In theory, your body got more tools to recognize the virus. But that doesn’t seem to be the case. Only higher efficacy matters. This is, importantly, assuming that J&J doesn’t get better with time. In original J&J clinical trials, the most benefit occurred 4 weeks after the original shot. The follow up period for the current study was 29 days, so optimal benefit may have been missed.***Results will be discussed Friday in great detail***This data will be discussed on Friday at the VRBPAC meeting. And, although we finally have some answers it’ll be interesting to see what happens next from a regulatory perspective:1. The FDA cannot recommend mixing vaccines because none of the vaccine companies have asked for approval. For example, J&J has not asked to approve mixing with a Moderna booster. So, this will likely be punted to ACIP and the CDC to make a “preferential” recommendation next week. A preferential recommendation doesn’t direct anyone to do anything, but it rather says: “if you do this, this is what the experts recommend and it’s okay”.2. Then, the natural next question is can agencies make a preferential recommendation if Moderna is still under an EUA? Or would this have to wait?3. Finally, this study included Moderna as a 100 μg booster. The problem is Moderna applied for a 50 μg booster EUA. Would a 50 μg booster change this study’s results? Probably. So… then what?***Other important meetings are coming up too…***And, to make matters more complicated, there are other meetings coming up at the FDA (then the CDC):1. Tomorrow: What is the safety, effectiveness, and, most importantly, need of a Moderna (50 μg) booster? There’s not much evidence that Moderna people need a booster so this should be an interesting discussion to follow.2. Friday morning: What is the safety, effectiveness, and need of a J&J booster? This should be more straightforward; I expect a booster to be recommended.3. Friday afternoon: What is the safety and effectiveness of mixing vaccines?4. Oct 26: What is the safety, effectiveness, and need of a vaccine for 5-11 year olds?Then the FDA will make a decision and then data and decisions go to ACIP and CDC. And THEN there will finally be a formal recommendation. Phew.We’re starting see a data dump in preparation for all of the scheduled meetings. And, more than ever, we’ll be drinking from a firehose of information. I will (try to) distill the data, meeting information, and cliff notes as we go.Gear up; this will be a lot.Love, YLEFor more graphs and figures and data sources go to my newsletter here: yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/mixing-vaccines-the-study-weve-all ... 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#Repost @princesssassypantsandco with @make_repost・・・Hate to break it to you, but nothing in this world is permanent. We try to cling to things and hold them tightly in our grasp, thinking that somehow we can make the impermanent, permanent. I've experienced a lot of loss from a very young age, but without exception, at some point, I see that not only have they all been a blessing in some way, but we never really lose anything. This certainly isn't apparent on the surface, but if we dig deeper, we can see this. There is always a gift, no matter how it might seem. ....#change #newseason #igyogachallenge #igyogachallenges #igyoga #igyogacommunity #igyogafam #igyogafamily ... See MoreSee Less

#Repost @katvellos_author with @make_repost・・・A lot of people asked me for a workplace version of my "Alternatives to 'How are you?'" post for friendship. So here it is! A month's worth of thoughtful ways to check in with your colleagues without asking those dreaded three words. Of course, feel free to modify any of these to your personality, work culture, and industry. Take what you can use and leave the rest — but *please* do see each other and support each other in the workplace. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀A supervisor once told me that my facilitation of our optional, casual, biweekly team check-in lunches were a waste of people's time,... and she was dead wrong. (This conversation also helped me figure out that I no longer belonged in that company but that's a story for another time.) Research PROVES that workplace friendships increase feelings of belonging, promote greater collaboration and innovation, and they just make work a helluva lot more fun, which means that all those great staff will likely stick around longer. So please don't worry that initiating a conversation like this or inviting people to share more about who they are as a human being is a waste of time, bad for work, or bad for productivity — quite the contrary. Workplace friendship — and feeling like a full, valued, seen, appreciated human being at work — only increases metrics in ALL of those key areas.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Pandemic distancing has made it harder to feel connected at work and workplace loneliness is real. So grab a bunch of these and check in on your co-workers this week. You never know how much it might mean to someone, or the positive ripple effect it could have. 🤗 ... See MoreSee Less

Pulling together some home grown roses for my niece’s birthday. We are still in lockdown and the numbers are phenomenal but thankfully we are safe and healthy. Can’t wait to celebrate her birthday together with the rest of the family once lockdown ends. #happybirthday #homegrown#roses#love#niece#happy#health#family#simplicity#mentalhealth#functionalmedicine#flowers ... See MoreSee Less

My heart is filled with gratitude for all the patients. You have all been my greatest teachers of both medicine and life. Thank you 🙏 for your trust 💝. So Why Music? The usual cliche of Medicine being a Science 🧪 & an Art 👩‍🎨. So much emphasis on Science 🧬 which, of course is ESSENTIAL but not much is spoken about the “art” of medicine. To me, this involves trying to understand the 🌹 Essence of the person, learning when and in what order to approach a problem, the “feeling” of how this impacts a patient. ❤️What are the key drivers of the disease? What, in this person’s life has lead to this very place in time and space? ❤️What has been left unsaid verbally?💝💝💝 is there another way to approach the symptoms ? ❤️People need to be heard 💯and believed. Thank you to all of you who have shaped my life with your life stories, your trust, wisdom & care. 🙏🙏🙏 . You patients rock 🥰. Thank you #gratitude#patients#medicine#art#lifelessons#care#wisdom#love#doctor#functionalmedicine ... See MoreSee Less