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4B Daily News ��� Wednesday, January 2, 2013 FEATURES Depression haunts reader���s marriage which also can help with Dear Annie: I was diagmedication. And don���t overnosed with depression more look your local community than 20 years ago. When I centers and nearby medical was in high school, I was schools for low-cost counhospitalized for close to a seling services. Just writing year. Because money and us shows your commitment insurance have been spoto getting well. Hang in radic, I have been on and off there. of medication. Plus, once I Dear Annie: My husget on a good medication, I Annie���s band and I have a friend start feeling that I don���t who was given an award a need it anymore. Last year, my husband lost his job, so by Kathy Mitchell few years ago. Many of us I have no insurance and and Marcy Sugar attended the event, and friends from afar sent conhave been off of medication gratulations and accolades. Since since. Annie, my depression feels like then, however, ������Ralph������ brings up it is crushing me. I am tired all the the award at every occasion, showtime and not interested in doing ering everyone with photos and anything. I interpret everything my bragging to the skies. This is getting rather tiring to the husband says as insulting or angry, although I know it isn���t. Part of the rest of us. Some people have made a problem is, we haven���t had sex in few comments to him, saying it���s three years. He says he just doesn���t time to ������let it go,������ but it doesn���t help. Ralph thinks he���s truly hot want to. So I feel pretty worthless. I fantasize about dying. I feel this stuff now, and it���s become unbeardark cloud hanging over me. I try to able to be around him. We all enjoy put on a happy face, but it doesn���t the company of his wife, who help much. My husband knows unfortunately doesn���t try to curtail about my depression, but there isn���t his boasting, but we certainly don���t much we can do without money. wish to be around Ralph anymore. Is there any polite statement we Please help me. ��� Tired of It Dear Tired: There are resources could make to get him to stop the for you. First contact the National ego talk? ��� Had It Dear Had It: Poor Ralph. This Alliance on Mental Illness (nami.org) at 1-800-950-NAMI. is obviously the only thing he has to You also can find a listing of free or brag about, and he���s not going to low-cost health centers in your area stop as long as he thinks he can still through the U.S. Department of get mileage out of it. Try to be tolHealth and Human Services erant. When he mentions his award, (hhs.gov) and the Partnership for plaster a fake smile onto your face, Prescription Assistance (pparx.org), pat his arm and say, ������Yes, Ralph, Mailbox we know,������ and then change the subject or walk away. Dear Annie: This is in response to ������Some Talk, Please,������ who reports that her husband is otherwise a good guy, but rarely talks to her and sulks for sex. She also said that one of her children has been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome. I would like to remind her that the apple does not fall far from the tree. If they have a child with Asperger���s, it is possible that her husband may have the same diagnosis. This was the case with my son and my husband. I strongly suspected my husband had some form of autism. He was gracious enough to see a psychiatrist, who diagnosed him with Asperger syndrome and schizoid disorder. My husband truly is clueless about intimacy. There are resources available on the Internet for spouses of people with Asperger���s and also for those who want to learn how to be intimate. I let my hubby know I am grateful for all he does. I also let him know that when my emotional needs are met, then I will engage in sex. ��� Been There, Done That Annie���s Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. Please email your questions to anniesmailboxcomcast.net, or write to: Annie���s Mailbox, c/o Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254. Do Your Part: Top 5 uses for olive oil By Terri Bennett (MCT) We all know that olive oil is good for you but it isn't just good for cooking ��� it's an eco-friendly ingredient that can be used to do all sorts of things around your home. Here are my favorite ways to Do Your Part with a bottle of olive oil. 1. Olive Oil As Furniture Polish Mix two parts olive oil with one part vinegar for a powerful cleaner for finished wood pieces. Mix only what you need in a small bowl and use a soft rag to get wood glowing again. You can also substitute lemon juice instead of the vinegar to work as a furniture polish. In that case, apply the olive oil and lemon mixture and rub the area briskly with a soft rag or towel. 2. Olive Oil on Stainless Steel There's no need for commercial chemical cleaners on stainless steel pieces in the kitchen when straight olive oil can get the shine you want without polluting the air inside your home. Use a rag to polish the appliances all over with olive oil and then wipe away any extra. Your stainless steel will look just as shiny as if you had used a commercial cleaner. 3. Olive Oil for Kitty This is one technique I use on my own cat to help prevent hairballs. Simply add a teaspoon of olive Medication reduces the risk of stroke That���s when DEAR DOCthe trouble begins. TOR K: I have As a clot travels in atrial fibrillation. the blood, it It doesn���t bother moves through me, but I still have progressively narto take medicarower blood vestions because the sels. Finally, the condition apparclot reaches a ently increases my blood vessel that���s risk of stroke. Dr. K so narrow it gets How does it do by Anthony L. stuck. When it���s that? Komaroff, M.D. stuck, none of the DEAR READER: Atrial fibrillation is a blood behind it can get heart rhythm disorder that past the obstruction. As a causes a rapid and irregu- result, some tissue will be deprived of its blood suplar heartbeat. The atria are the upper ply. Some organs are big two chambers of the heart; they receive blood from enough that it doesn���t the rest of the body. The matter much if the blood atria pump blood into the supply to a small part of lower two chambers of the the organ is stopped. But heart (the ventricles). when the clot gets stuck in Then the ventricles pump an artery to the brain, it blood to the rest of the can obstruct blood flow body. During atrial fibril- and cause a stroke. (I���ve lation, the atria do not beat put an illustration of this normally. Instead, they on my website, AskDoctorK.com.) quiver or ���fibrillate.��� That���s why you are Normally, electrical impulses from a small part most likely taking bloodmedications. of the atrium cause the thinning atria to beat. The electrical Most people with atrial signal then travels down fibrillation should be. to the ventricles and caus- These drugs prevent blood es them to beat. The atria clots, thereby reducing the pump, filling the ventri- risk of a stroke and other cles with blood, and then serious complications. Atrial fibrillation is the ventricles pump. It is coordinated so that the linked to stroke also heart pumps blood effi- through atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaque in ciently. In contrast, during atri- blood vessel walls. Atheral fibrillation, the electri- osclerosis of the coronary cal impulses come from arteries is one cause of all over the atria. Instead atrial fibrillation, and athof pumping efficiently, the erosclerosis of the arteries atria just quiver. There is of the brain can cause an irregular and rapid strokes. The saddest thing for heartbeat, and no coordination between the atria me to witness as a doctor and the ventricles. That is a patient who has chomeans that the ventricles sen not to take the medimay pump when they cine he or she has been don���t have a lot of blood prescribed and pays a price. Unfortunately, I���ve in them. Most important, in had several patients who terms of your question, had strokes ��� unnecesthe atria do not pump all sarily. It breaks my heart. of their blood into the venDr. Komaroff is a tricles. They���re very inefphysician and professor at ficient. As a result, blood pools inside the left atri- Harvard Medical School. um. When blood isn���t To send questions, go to moving, it tends to form AskDoctorK.com, or write: clots. Those clots can Ask Doctor K, 10 Shattuck break free and travel out St., Second Floor, Boston, MA 02115. of the heart. Getting your zzzzs oil to kitty's food once a week. It is not only effective when it comes to preventing those hairballs, it'll keep your cat's coat super shiny. A few drops of olive oil rubbed between palms can be rubbed on human hair too for a healthy shine. 4. Olive Oil as a Moisturizer Olive oil is an effective and non-toxic skin moisturizer ��� especially on our hands in colder months. Apply some directly on your hands and make sure to rub it into the cuticle area for optimum results. You can also use a small amount of olive oil directly on your body after a shower to keep your skin from drying out. Olive oil is effective on skin because it contains vitamins A and E, which are known to have significant healthy skin benefits. 5. Olive Oil as a Makeup Remover And, finally, use a little olive oil on a cotton ball as a safe eye-makeup remover. It's incredibly gentle and works instantly. You'll also be keeping chemical-based makeup removers away from the most sensitive area of your face. Do Your Part to keep unwanted, manmade chemicals off your body and out of your home. Using olive oil for a variety of things other than making your favorite meals is an easy and effective way. Terri Bennett is a veteran TV meteorologist, ecoexpert and author of "Do Your Part: A practical guide for everyday green living" available at DoYourPart.com. Send questions to terri@doyourpart.com. Protect yourself from medical identity theft By Scott J. Wilson Los Angeles Times (MCT) An identity thief who gains access to your credit card or bank account could harm you financially, but one who steals your medical information could also endanger your health. Here are key things to know about medical identity theft: ���When an impostor uses your identity to get hospital care, order prescription drugs or submit fraudulent insurance claims, false information may end up in your medical record. This could be ���a different blood type, an inaccurate history of drug or alcohol abuse, test results that aren���t yours, or a diagnosis of an illness, allergy or condition you don���t have,��� the Federal Trade Commission warned. ���Be wary of callers asking for medical information. ���Medical identity thieves may pose as employees of insurance companies, doctors��� offices, clinics, pharmacies and even government agencies to get people to reveal their personal information,��� the FTC said. Don���t automatically trust groups or people who offer free medical services in exchange for your health plan ID. Shred health care documents you no longer need. ���Be concerned if you get bills for medical services you never received or if you unexpectedly reach a limit on insurance benefits. Another red flag: being denied for an insurance policy due to a condition you don���t have. Check your credit report for medical debts you don���t recognize, and visit http://www.mib.com, run by a group of insurance companies, to see if anyone has applied for life or health insurance using your name. ���To check for identity theft, contact your insurer and health care providers and ask to see your medical records, a right you have under federal law. When you do, it���s best not to say you suspect identity theft because some providers may then block you, believing they must protect the impostor���s privacy (this is a mistaken belief, according to the FTC). They have up to 30 days to comply with your request. ���You are also entitled to ask your insurer and health care providers for an accounting of information that has been disclosed from your medical records and to whom it was given. ���It will help you follow the trail of your information and identify who has incorrect information about you,��� the FTC said. You may order one free copy of the accounting every 12 months from each provider. By Barbara Quinn The Monterey County Herald (MCT) It���s a condition of our modern lifestyle, researchers say. We spend long hours in front of computers and televisions. We work early in the morning and late at night. We get jet lag. And we can���t figure out why we can���t lose weight. There may be a connection, say researchers. Studies are emerging that show a relationship between ���partial sleep deprivation��� ��� sleeping less than 6 hours a night ��� and obesity. What makes weight go up when sleep goes down? Here are some ���potential pathways��� by which sleep deprivation may interfere with our ability to lose weight, according to a recent review of this topic in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Disrupted hormones. Hormones that tell us if we are hungry ��� or not ��� can be thrown off balance when sleep is disrupted, scientists find. Ghrelin ��� the ���gremlin��� hormone that tells us to ���Eat! Eat!��� ��� goes up when we are sleep deprived. And leptin ��� the hormone that signals us to stop eating ��� goes down. Cortisol ��� a ���stress hormone��� ��� may also come into play when our usual rhythms of sleep and wakefulness are disturbed, say experts. Elevated cortisol tends to encourage the storage of fat and the loss of muscle mass, even when we are eating less food. Sigh. Cravings for higher calorie foods. Don���t know about you but when I���m up at night, my first inclination is not for a bowl of salad. Stress hormones tend to encourage our appetite for comfort foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt. Too tired to exercise. Lack of sleep causes fatigue which makes us not particularly excited about exercise. And lack of physical activity cuts back on our calorieburning machinery, complicating weight loss efforts even more. What���s a ���partial sleep-deprived��� person to do? Stick to a regular sleep schedule, says the National Institutes of Health. Plan a 7- to 8- hour sleep period and go to bed and get up the same time every day if possible. Avoid sleep-stealers such as caffeine, nicotine, and excessive alcohol. Eat smaller meals in the evening. Or have a relaxing snack. Tryptophan ��� an amino acid that helps the body build protein ��� may help promote relaxation and sleepiness, especially when combined with a carbohydrate-containing food. Some examples: milk and crackers, yogurt and fruit, cheese and bread. Turn off the computer. Take a hot bath. Relax before you hit the sack. And remember that sleep time is not wasted time. It���s when the body repairs itself and gets us ready for the next day. That���s something to sleep on.