SILENCE, NOT AN ABSENCE OF WORDS BUT A PRESENCE OF AWARENESS !

Pleasant morning 🦚

~"I will make my Inner environment perfect through meditation, that it be impervious to all adverse outside influences. I will begin each day with meditation on the Supreme Being." - Yogananda Paramahamsa.

~"Your sincerity will guide you. Devotion to the goal of freedom and perfection will make you live by wisdom, intelligence and active love." - Swami Chinmayananda.

The real meditation is how we live our life. Now is the time not to accept any idea before bouncing it off our intuitive wisdom (Pashyanthi)...

 

-Does it create acceptance, accommodative-ness, and blessings? Or does it create fear, anxiety, worry, restlessness and helplessness?

 

-Does it encourage love, kindness, peace, and unity? Or does it encourage separateness, division, hate, self-centeredness and violence? 

 

...If we are vigilant and make a stern effort to SEE every thought when it rises, we will soon find that we are going deeper and deeper into our own inner self, where there is no need for our effort to reject thoughts that are unhealthy & unnecessary! 

Let's not blame our karma. Instead, be someone who purely and flawlessly practices the Dharma. Let's not blame temporary negative circumstances. Instead, be someone who remains steadfast in the face of whatever circumstances may arise. There is nothing outside of us. It's all an inside game. If we get the inside right, the outside will fall into place. Becos whatever we do, we do to ourselves. 

The main thing is to be free of negative emotions - desire, anger, etc., the 'six enemies' of the mind. Once the mind is free of them, the rest will come easily. The psychological mind likes drama--because its existence is dependent on conflict with WHAT IS...Opinions, expectations, likes, dislikes, wants, aversions. An unaware mind is drawn to drama...Awareness- is drama free.

A life filled with joy and peace, free of suffering, is a spiritual choice. It has little to do with the circumstances of our lives, and much to do with how we choose to relate to those circumstances. Our beliefs are what create our experiences. As we change our beliefs, we alter our perception, our version of reality. It is not our circumstances that limit us. Rather it is our own beliefs and perceptions that either imprison us...or grant us unbounded freedom.

Have a peaceful week ahead

 

 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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Social distancing and mental health: How to avoid taking the TB route in coronavirus

Social distancing and mental health  

At least 10 people on my Instagram have declared themselves “Queen of Quarantine”. Social distancing and isolation are the two new buzzwords, and the most trending hashtags. While this is great, because we can’t flatten the corona curve without following these tenets, it is easy to forget that for some, isolation can be tough, and even triggering. People with pre-existing mental health issues might find it hard to socially distance themselves – being alone (for someone who lives away from their family) could potentially be depressing as well.

Worse still, is when someone tests positive for an infectious disease. The diagnosis in itself is a huge shock- and then there is the stigma that silently but significantly underlines most of the social distancing and isolation.

But isolation is the need of the hour, and to meet this need better, there are certain lessons we can draw in this pandemic from India’s tuberculosis epidemic and experience. Society often tends to forget to be warm to those who are suffering – and the TB experience stands as testimony to this. Not all forms of TB are infectious. However, TB patients are often compelled to physically isolate. This is because in some cases of TB, such as pulmonary TB, patients are infectious for the first few weeks of treatment and require quarantine measures. Similarly, in Covid-19, though the exact potency of the virus is still under research, we know for a fact that it is highly contagious, and thus, isolation is best advised.

The absence of warmth

In TB, the isolation is often caused by the stigma attached to TB. Patient narratives reveal that people tend to avoid being in the same physical space as them not just while they are on treatment but in some cases even after they are cured. These people could be community members, family members, and in some cases even partners.

In both cases, physical isolation – which translates to the absence of human touch and warmth – has a significant impact on the patient’s mental health, often leading to feelings of alienation, worthlessness, self stigma, and depression. TB treatment is long and is known to have mental health side effects in addition to other side effects. The length of treatment and the side effects often result in psychological distress, hopelessness, depression and in extreme cases mental health breakdowns.

News from all over the world has been pouring in about racism against people from East and Southeast Asia during the coronavirus pandemic. The fear and frenzy is gradually taking the form of a foe with which TB and HIV patients and survivors are all too familiar – stigma. And as can be observed from both these diseases, the stigma associated with a disease often not only heightens the mental health issues a patient may face as a result, but also drives the testing for, and reporting of the disease, underground.

In Mumbai, the hands of potential Covid-19 patients who needed home quaratine were stamped.

If we do not stop and take stock of how these diseases have played out, we are bound to take the same route with Covid-19, and the future of public health then, does not look pretty. If patients abandon treatment mid-way, they might still be infectious or develop an infection subsequently, and pose the threat of spreading this infection. As a result, infection rates could go up and endanger public health.

What can we do to address the impact coronavirus has on mental health?

Phone a friend, revive the art of letter writing even if what you are sending out is actually a long email or participate in a silly social media challenge. While we must continue to remain physically distant from each other, we need to find other ways to rekindle the spark of human connection – the antidote to isolation.

Workplaces should institute work-from-home policies and provide paid leave to those affected so as to alleviate the psychological stress that comes from the threat of financial insecurity. In the informal sector, where workers do not have the luxury of working from home, employers ought to provide access to clean water, soap, and sanitisers as well as economic and social support to workers in the form of paid leave in case of ill health.

The need for empathy

At a programmatic level, we need to develop a National Covid-19 programme along the lines of the national TB programme, and integrate mental health as a critical component of it. Patients and families have to be provided counseling and support right from the time of diagnosis through the process of treatment. Additionally, public information campaigns targeted at communities and health personnel ought to be launched to increase literacy about the impact coronavirus has on mental health as well as the ways to deal with it.

Coronavirus has caused one too many casualties. Do not let your empathy be one of them. When you interact with another person, take your precautions, but remember to see the humanity in them instead of reducing their existence to “potential carrier” or “Covid-19 patient”. Dehumanisation and othering have a catastrophic impact on mental health of the person at the receiving end of such behavior.

Why should that be your concern?

Albert Camus, in his novel The Plague, wrote “From now on it can be said that plague was the concern of all of us.” This is as true for the coronavirus today as it was for the plague then. Covid=19 can happen to anybody. Please remember, we are all in this together.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

Cleanliness Is So Important Right Now—Here's How to Wash Fruits and Vegetables Properly

As the world battles the COVID-19 global pandemic, practicing proper food safety and handling protocol is vital. Though the FDA says that there is no evidence of food or its packaging being associated with transmission of COVID-19, approximately 48 million (one in six) people are sickened by contaminated food each year. Although it's common knowledge that one must thoroughly wash hands and surfaces after handling poultry or meat, most don’t realize that washing produce is equally important to avoid cross-contamination and foodborne illnesses.

Learn how to keep your family safe with these simple steps to ensure your fruits and vegetables are as clean as possible before you consume them during this time of extra caution and cleanliness.


1. Practice the Four Key Steps of Food Safety: Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill.

You should always practice these four easy food safety steps to ensure your food is as safe for consumption as possible.

    When preparing food, it is extremely important to always wash your hands for 20 seconds with warm water and soap before AND after handling fresh produce.
    Make sure to sanitize your workstation, knives, tools, and cutting board before you begin cooking. Additionally, separate produce, poultry, meat, seafood, and eggs while you cook to avoid cross-contamination.
    In order to kill viruses and bacteria, cook food to the appropriate internal temperature and make sure to keep food out of the temperature danger zone (40° - 140°F) for long periods of time.
    Refrigerate and freeze food properly within two hours to prevent potentially harmful pathogen growth.

2. Inspect Your Produce for Damage.

Inspect your fruits and veggies at the store and purchase items that are not visibly bruised or damaged. If you notice physical dents and dings once home, simply cut away any bruised or torn areas. Additionally, it is important to remove and discard the outermost leaves of a head of lettuce or cabbage to reduce contamination risk. Lastly, make sure to throw away and never consume any produce that looks rotten.

3. Rinse Produce Before You Start Chopping.
Make sure to wash your produce thoroughly under cool running water BEFORE eating or preparing. It is important to rinse before (even if you don’t plan on eating the skin) to avoid transferring dirt or bacteria onto your knife, the flesh of the produce or your work surface. The FDA does not recommend washing your fruits and vegetables with soap, detergent nor commercial produce wash, as it may leave additional residue. However, you may want to use a clean produce brush to scrub firm crops like melons and cucumbers.

4. Follow Marion Nestle's Expert Advice.

Marion Nestle, PhD, MPH, a professor of nutrition, food studies, and public health, emerita, at New York University and author of Food Politics, suggests that to be “100 percent safe while eating fresh produce” during the COVID-19 epidemic, “follow the P rules and only eat foods that are: piping hot, peeled, purified, and packaged.”

This means that you should consume food that is heated at sufficiently hot temperatures to help destroy microorganisms and other viruses, opt for peelable fruits and vegetables (as long as you wash your hands before and after), ensure that your cooked food is not recontaminated and remains purified before consumption, and purchase packaged foods (packed, frozen, or dried) whenever possible to avoid contamination.

“If you have fresh produce, wash it," Nestle warns. "When in doubt, cook it to be on the safe side.” She believes that “washing well in water” is key but urges to err on the side of extreme caution.

5 .Dry Your Produce With Clean Towels.

After washing, avoid recontaminating your food and dry with a clean cloth towel or disposable paper towel to further reduce the risk of bacterial or viral transmission from a dirty surface onto your ready-to-eat fruit or veggie. 

6. Store Your Clean Produce in a Safe Place.

Now that you’ve successfully cleaned your produce, make sure to store or refrigerate pre-cut items at 40°F or below if you’re not going to eat them right away, and same goes for fruits and veggies that require refrigeration (find them here). Lastly, make sure your clean produce is not at risk for recontamination and wash again if you suspect it has been re-exposed to harmful pathogens before eating.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

How COVID-19 is different from SARS and MERS

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought the world into a standstill, threatening the lives of millions of people. The viral outbreak, which began at a wet market in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019, turned into a global pandemic in less than four months. So far, the deadly virus has claimed over 33,000 lives and infected 697,244 people across 204 countries, areas or territories. But COVID-19 is not the first viral disease to gain the attention of the world. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been two other epidemics from viruses which belong to the same species. They were SARS and MERS. COVID-19 virus spreads a lot faster than the other two. Dr. Vivek Nangia, HOD & Director, Pulmonology, Fortis Flt. Lt. Rajan Dhall Hospital, Vasant Kunj, sheds light on how these three viruses are different from each other and how they transmit.
 According to Dr. Vivek Nangia, both SARS and MERS had relatively high mortality rate and so the spread of these diseases were localized in certain areas only. On the other hand, COVID-19 has 85 per cent of the patients developing mild or moderate illness. Since these patients are mobile, it results in large number of asymptomatic carriers, who spread the disease to more people coming in contact with them. Now, let’s look at the origin and mortality rate of these three viruses in detail –

THE FAMILY OF CORONAVIRUSES

Coronaviruses (CoV) are a large family of viruses. The nCoV-2019 is the latest member of the family and the most severe one. Before its origin, there were six types of coronaviruses. Other deadly viruses of this family include Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV). Here’s how they are different from each other –
SARS-CoV

Origin – SARS-CoV first emerged in the Guangdong province of southern China in in November 2002. Later it spread to more than two dozen countries, killing nearly 800 people.

Mode of transmission: Following detailed investigations, researchers found that SARS-CoV transmitted from civet cats to humans. They assumed that civet cats got infected from bats – which are frequent carriers hosts of coronaviruses.

In humans, the transmission occurred mainly during the second week of illness. This is when the virus excretion in respiratory secretions and stool is at the peak – as per WHO report. No cases of SARS have been reported worldwide since 2004.

SARS spread through droplets that enter the air when someone with the disease coughs, sneezes or talks. SARS spreads mainly through close personal contact, such as caring for someone with the diseases. The virus also spreads on contaminated objects — such as doorknobs, telephones and elevator buttons.

Symptoms: SARS usually begins with flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills, muscle aches, headache and occasionally diarrhea. After about a week, a patient can develop fever of 100.5 F (38 C) or higher, dry cough, shortness of breath.

MERS-CoV

Origin: This viral respiratory infection was first identified in 2012 in Saudi Arabia and most cases occurred in the Arabian Peninsula. Around 27 countries reported cases of MERS. As of April 4, 2017, nearly 2000 cases have been reported.  About 36% of those who are diagnosed with the disease die from it.

Mode of Transmission: While it is believed to be transmitted from camels to humans, it is still unclear how. The virus does not pass easily from person to person unless there is close contact, such as providing unprotected care to an infected patient. Most of human cases of MERS-CoV infections occurred in health care settings.

Symptoms:  According to WHO, typical MERS symptoms include fever, cough and shortness of breath. Pneumonia is common, but not always present. Some patients also reported gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhoea.

COVID-19

Origin – The novel coronavirus (COVID-2019) originated in China’s Wuhan seafood market December 2019. In less than four months, it has spread to 204 countries, areas or territories across the globe. The deadly virus has claimed over 33,000 lives and infected 697,244 people worldwide, as of March 31, 2020.

Mode of transmission:  Like other coronaviruses, COVID-19 is believed to be transferred to humans from animals. But researchers do not know the exact source of it. In humans, the virus is spread mainly via respiratory droplets that when infected person coughs or sneezes.

Symptoms: Early symptoms of the novel coronavirus include respiratory symptoms, fever, cough, tightness of the chest and shortness of breath. In more severe cases, it can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement

Are you disinfecting your smartphone? Coronavirus may live on it for day

Health experts have advising people to wash their hands more often to protect themselves from the coronavirus infection. Besides, other precautionary measures, people are advised to regularly disinfect certain surfaces like doorknobs, tabletops, bathroom fixtures, toilets, kitchen counters, etc. But are you disinfecting your mobile phone too? Smartphones are an integral part of everyday life and therefore chances of exposure to the virus is very high. If exposed to the novel coronavirus, how long can it stay on a smartphone surface?

Coronavirus lives longer on some surfaces UV light sanitizer

A recent study conducted by the National Institutes of Health in the US found that COVID-19 can remain infectious in airborne droplets for at least three hours. The researchers revealed that the virus lives longer on some surfaces than others. It can live on copper for around four fours and cardboard surfaces for about 24 hours. The viability was highest on plastic and stainless-steel surfaces, where it can live for up to three days. However, the study did not exactly say how long the virus can survive on a glass surface.

Some experts say hard, shiny surfaces can support infectious virus, expelled in droplets, for up to 72 hours. These include plastic, stainless steel, benchtops, and likely glass.

The original SARS-CoV virus that emerged in 2003 could remain on a glass surface for up to 96 hours or four days, according to WHO. It could also survive on stainless steel and plastic surfaces for up to three days.

Your smartphone has plastic panels upfront, and cover. So, given the similarities of the two viruses’ viability, there is a possibility that the novel coronavirus can stay on glass for up to three to four days.

 How to disinfect your mobile phones

Several studies highlight the importance of hand washing and disinfecting frequently touched objects and surfaces. You can use a regular household cleaning spray or wipe to disinfect such surfaces.
An American telecom company suggested using a nonabrasive or alcohol-based (70% isopropyl) disinfectant to clean your phones. Spray the disinfectant directly on a soft lint-free cloth and wipe down your device. Make sure it is powered down and unplugged.

You can use UV light sanitizer, but it is more expensive and their availability in India is subjective.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement