I’ve heard of the cold shoulder, but never frozen shoulder! It’s characterized by stiffness and pain in one, or both of your shoulders. While it affects only 5% of the population, it’s painful enough to have it’s own frozen shoulder treatment method and clinic. People will occasionally get frozen shoulder for no reason at all, but more often than not, it occurs after a trauma or surgery. It is more common in women and diabetics, and can run in families. It is also more common in patients over the age of 40. 15% of people suffering from frozen shoulder will have it on both sides, but rest assured - once cured, it is very rare for frozen shoulder to re-occur in the same shoulder.

This frozen shoulder clinic specializes in the The Niel-Asher Technique, which is a drug free treatment that takes about 3 months to go through. Approximately 90% of all cases treated at the clinic are considered cured, and patients often see an improvement in their mobility in just a few sessions.

I consider myself to be all about the healthy boobies. And I just realized that I didn’t have my mammogram yet this year. Whoops!

It all started when LaDonna reminded me about Blogathon this week. She’s blogging on behalf of Livestrong and will be giving a Livestrong bracelet to anyone who donates $10 to her campaign. She’s using the theme of healthy living to keep her inspired during Blogathon, and it started me thinking…my last mammogram was in May of 2006.

You see, even though I’m *only* 30 (til Friday, anyway) because there’s a history of breast cancer in my family, I started getting mammograms last year. I need to have them every 12 months - not any sooner than that, or my insurance company won’t pay for it, and that was a HUGE hassle last year because of my age. I don’t want to push my luck! Anyway, I remembered in May I was due but decided to put it off for a month because of the insurance rules, and I just…forgot! I’m going to call and schedule it this week. I’ll get my boobs squeezed in a vice as my birthday present to myself.

Be sure to check out Blogathon and throw LaDonna a donation to get one of those cool bracelets!

I’m turning 31 next week, and along with that comes a need to change my beauty routine. Oh, I don’t mean all at once, but there comes a point in your life where you maybe realize that the products you’ve loved and relied on for years aren’t cutting the mustard anymore. As we age, our skin changes, our body changes, and we need new products to keep up with those changes. Sooner or later, I’m going to start seeing fine lines and spots that will serve as a constant reminder of a sunburn I got 10 years ago.

Emerge Skin Care is a new line I’ve heard a lot about lately, and I’m intrigued. The line was created by dermatologists and has several distinct products to combat some of the problems I’m currently facing, without surgery or other drastic measures. But what makes this company really stand out is their commitment to the environment. Emerge doesn’t print catalogs, and they don’t package their products in boxes. They made the choice to do that in an effort to prevent using (and wasting) 15,000 lbs of paper a year on things most of us throw away. Bravo!

I think my aches and pains after the 10 mile training walk are FINALLY gone. It must have been doing the walk in the heat, and then going out of town and being smushed into a seat on a plane and sleeping in a strange bed that took me so long to finally feel “right”. Nothing like a sore back and bones that creak and crack to make you feel like an old lady!

While I was away on my business trip, I found myself in the hotel room one night with nothing to keep me occupied except the TV. I caught an episode of Intervention, which I actually stopped watching a few months ago, because it’s just such a SAD show! I’ve known people wrapped up in drugs before, and people seem to think they’ll never be that addict who turns his back on his family, his friends, the guy who loses his house, the guy who gets fired for his drug problem, the guy who pawns his TV for $50 to buy crack. I always get so excited at the end of the show when people enter rehab and come out clean and sober, and I hope they can stay that way.

This drug addiction treatment website offers a way to find a drug treatment program for yourself or someone you love. It’s a referral service that can put you in touch with the right kind of program, be it long term or short term, inpatient or outpatient. The service is a non profit organization, and it’s free as well, and open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The site also offers tools to obtain financing for rehab, because most people don’t have the deep pockets of the celebrities we see entering rehab. You’ll also find links on the different types of addition: alcohol, drugs (both illegal and prescription) and how to help your loved one to prevent a relapse once they complete treatment.

Finding the right type of program can make a huge difference in the addict and their ability to get clean, so getting the right type of program is key to recovery, and making a change in your life, as well as the life of your loved ones.

While my pet cause is breast cancer, I think all cancer sucks. Early detection is a big hot button for me, and not only where breast cancer is concerned. I was saddened to learn about Tammy Faye Messner passed away yesterday after a long battle with colon cancer. I was crushed to hear that she put off going to the doctor for a YEAR because she was scared.

People - I can’t say it enough. If you are bleeding, if you feel a lump, if you don’t feel right - PLEASE see a doctor! Cancer can be cured, and you have a fighting chance if cancer is found early enough.

Do you eat your veggies? I’m a classic example of a parent who says “Do as I say, not as I do”, when it comes to eating vegetables. I’ll typically make one or 2 veggies with each meal, but I’m extremely picky about the veggies that cross my own lips. I like corn, I tolerate peas, I like beets (I know - go figure!), and I like broccoli and cauliflower. Hmm, I think that’s about eat. My kids LOVE spinach and lap it up but I don’t touch the stuff. I know you’re supposed to eat some green food at every meal to get your daily dietary supplement, but I’ll admit, I don’t do that most nights.

For those of you who have the love / hate relationship with veggies that I have, you can now drink your veggies! I know what you’re thinking - is that anything like V-8? Blech, no! This is a supplement you just mix with water, and drink. Easy peasy! And right now, you can try before you buy with this My Daily Veggies Free Sample.

Sounds like a great way to get your veggies in when you’re on the go. For instance, I’m on a business trip right now, and for the past two days I’ve eaten burgers and fries and plenty of other fried food. You can probably hear my arteries clogging from where you’re sitting. My Daily Veggies would give me a little edge for times like this, with their recipe of 95% dried whole vegetables and 5% dried whole vegetable extracts. Fiber, minerals, and nutrients - no added salt, sugar, or preservatives!

I’m in Pittsburgh right now for a business trip, and last night I took a quick walk around the downtown area to see the sights. Walking is one of the best ways to see a city, I think! It certainly wasn’t enough to count for a training walk, and the amount of food and beer I’ve ingested over the past few days hasn’t helped, so I need to kick it into full gear when I get back home to Florida.

Here’s a great deal on contacts for all of you kids who are too cool for glasses

Right now, you can get Proclear contacts for a great price (51.95) per package, and on top of that, there’s a fantastic rebate if you purchase 4 packages at once! If you do that, you’ll be eligible to send in for a $30 mail-in rebate. Proclear contacts are monthly disposable lenses, and are available in a normal lens, or select the Proclear Multifocal lenses if you need a multifocal or bifocal contact lens.

You can wear the same pair of contacts for one month (taking them out each night and cleaning them well, of course) which is really nice for people who are regular contact lens wearers.

I was asked to go to the YMCA yesterday to attend a class with a friend, but I had to say no. There’s no way I could keep up in Powerflex, as sore as I am! My lower back is the worst. I feel it every time I walk around. Going up the 3 flights of stairs today at work was pure torture!