There was an audible groan through the audience at Wednesday night’s performance of Iphigenia in Tauris when it was announced that baritone Russell Braun had a cold.
But the Canadian Opera Company audience was quickly elated — and some clapped with joy — when they learned Braun was going to perform anyway.
A cold can do serious damage to a singer’s vocal chords, Braun says in an interview from his Georgetown home Thursday, so he was cautious about performing when he felt ill.
The 46-year-old performer, who has only once withdrawn from a performance due to ill health, first noticed he was getting a sore throat on Monday night after being asked to sing “O Canada” at his son’s sporting event.
“I’ve been around a lot of colds with the kids back at school and at the opera too,” says Braun, adding he set out immediately on Tuesday morning to fight the cold with everything that he had.
Vitamin C, Cold FX, Echinacea and oil of oregano are Braun’s standard cold treatments. A few years ago the family built a steam room in the basement and, while it seemed a luxury at the time, Braun says it comes in handy to fight congestion.
“Fifteen years ago, 10 years ago, I would have panicked,” says Braun, but he knows all sorts of tricks to stave off a cold and protect his voice in a production.
Admitting it’s a double-edged sword to announce that a performer has a cold — it sets people up to expect something inferior and then they wonder what all the fuss was about — Braun decided it was the proper way to acknowledge to those who know his voice well that he wasn’t in top form.
The role of Orestes is emotionally and physically taxing, says Braun, and throughout the opera’s run which began Sept. 22 he’s learned not to overexert his voice in the explosive opening.
Even when healthy, he says: “I always feel incredibly drained after this opera.”
He’s resting and drinking lots of fluids and hoping he’ll be much better on Saturday afternoon for the next show.
2011年9月29日星期四
2011年9月28日星期三
Traffic officer jailed for giving girlfriend herpes freed
A traffic officer who was jailed for giving his ex-girlfriend genital herpes today walked free from prison on bail after launching an appeal against his conviction.
David Christopher Edward Golding, 28, from Braunston, Northamptonshire, was jailed for 14 months at Northampton Crown Court last month after admitting causing grievous bodily harm.
But new evidence could cast doubt on whether it was Golding who actually passed on the sexually transmitted infection to the woman, the Court of Appeal heard today.
A prosecution-commissioned medical report suggests that it could not be proved that it was definitely Golding who gave the victim the disease.
Mr Justice Burnett, sitting at the London court, granted Golding's application for bail to allow him to go home while new evidence is gathered for his appeal.
Golding, who worked for the Highways Agency, was accused of recklessly infecting his then partner with the genital herpes virus when they were together about two years ago.
But his jailing caused outrage among sexual health groups, who said the sentence would add to the stigma attached to carriers of the 'trivial' condition.
The appeal is to be based around examination of a blood sample given by the woman some time ago, which might cast doubt on Golding's guilt, Mr Justice Burnett told the court.
'This whole matter should not go into the long grass whilst both parties seek further expert evidence,' the appeal judge added.
'It is important that this proceeds with some speed. If the conclusion following the further medical evidence is that causation really could not be proved, then the sooner that is, the better.
'As importantly, if the outcome excludes the possibility of causation by another route, then that needs to be known as quickly as possible because the appellant may, in those circumstances, have to return to custody to continue to serve his sentence.'
Granting bail pending appeals is a rare move for the Court of Appeal, but Mr Justice Burnett said Golding's was an 'exceptional' case.
His legal team may also argue that it was wrong that he pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm, rather than the less serious offence of causing actual bodily harm, which carries a lesser sentence.
At the time of the sentencing, Golding’s parents, Janet, 64, and Christopher, 59, said they were shocked by the jail term.
Mrs Golding said: ‘This is David’s first offence and we are distraught at what might happen to him in jail. He’s a good son who did not deserve this.’
Her husband said that he found the sentence ‘difficult to understand’.
The virus which causes genital herpes could cause an outbreak or lie dormant for years, during which time it is not infectious. Many people remain unaware they are infected.
Those who do display symptoms usually suffer fever, headache and tiredness and small blisters and itching.
Nigel Scott, spokesman for the Herpes Viruses Association, said Golding’s sentence was ‘outrageous’ and compared the case to prosecuting children for ‘giving their friends chicken pox’.
He added: ‘It is such a trivial infection that most people don’t notice it. It has exactly the same medical implications and consequences as an ordinary facial cold sore.’
Marian Nicholson, director of the HVA, added: ‘Many of those who are diagnosed are reluctant to disclose their status but this is because of the unnecessary stigma, not because it is serious ... emphatically it is not.’
The appeal is unlikely to return to court for at least a month, but Golding will be allowed to go home while further investigation is undertaken.
David Christopher Edward Golding, 28, from Braunston, Northamptonshire, was jailed for 14 months at Northampton Crown Court last month after admitting causing grievous bodily harm.
But new evidence could cast doubt on whether it was Golding who actually passed on the sexually transmitted infection to the woman, the Court of Appeal heard today.
A prosecution-commissioned medical report suggests that it could not be proved that it was definitely Golding who gave the victim the disease.
Mr Justice Burnett, sitting at the London court, granted Golding's application for bail to allow him to go home while new evidence is gathered for his appeal.
Golding, who worked for the Highways Agency, was accused of recklessly infecting his then partner with the genital herpes virus when they were together about two years ago.
But his jailing caused outrage among sexual health groups, who said the sentence would add to the stigma attached to carriers of the 'trivial' condition.
The appeal is to be based around examination of a blood sample given by the woman some time ago, which might cast doubt on Golding's guilt, Mr Justice Burnett told the court.
'This whole matter should not go into the long grass whilst both parties seek further expert evidence,' the appeal judge added.
'It is important that this proceeds with some speed. If the conclusion following the further medical evidence is that causation really could not be proved, then the sooner that is, the better.
'As importantly, if the outcome excludes the possibility of causation by another route, then that needs to be known as quickly as possible because the appellant may, in those circumstances, have to return to custody to continue to serve his sentence.'
Granting bail pending appeals is a rare move for the Court of Appeal, but Mr Justice Burnett said Golding's was an 'exceptional' case.
His legal team may also argue that it was wrong that he pleaded guilty to causing grievous bodily harm, rather than the less serious offence of causing actual bodily harm, which carries a lesser sentence.
At the time of the sentencing, Golding’s parents, Janet, 64, and Christopher, 59, said they were shocked by the jail term.
Mrs Golding said: ‘This is David’s first offence and we are distraught at what might happen to him in jail. He’s a good son who did not deserve this.’
Her husband said that he found the sentence ‘difficult to understand’.
The virus which causes genital herpes could cause an outbreak or lie dormant for years, during which time it is not infectious. Many people remain unaware they are infected.
Those who do display symptoms usually suffer fever, headache and tiredness and small blisters and itching.
Nigel Scott, spokesman for the Herpes Viruses Association, said Golding’s sentence was ‘outrageous’ and compared the case to prosecuting children for ‘giving their friends chicken pox’.
He added: ‘It is such a trivial infection that most people don’t notice it. It has exactly the same medical implications and consequences as an ordinary facial cold sore.’
Marian Nicholson, director of the HVA, added: ‘Many of those who are diagnosed are reluctant to disclose their status but this is because of the unnecessary stigma, not because it is serious ... emphatically it is not.’
The appeal is unlikely to return to court for at least a month, but Golding will be allowed to go home while further investigation is undertaken.
2011年9月27日星期二
Researching the Sneeze and How to Handle It
THE paper products aisle generally is not seasonal, with consumers using about the same amount of toilet paper, napkins or paper towels every month. But not so with facial tissue: as cold and flu season rears its congested head, monthly sales increase as much as 65 percent over the summer months.
Generally that surge is good news for Kleenex, the Kimberly-Clark brand that invented facial tissue 87 years ago. But both Kleenex and Puffs, a Procter & Gamble brand, lost market share during the economic downturn to cheaper store brands.
In the 52 weeks that ended on June 13, 2010, for example, Kleenex sales dropped 5.5 percent from the previous year, and Puffs, a Procter & Gamble brand, dropped 3.2 percent, while store brands climbed 6.4 percent, according to SymphonyIRI Group data, which does not include Wal-Mart.
Now Kleenex has something it claims is a first: Along with lotion, Kleenex Cool Touch contains ingredients that promise cooling relief tosore noses. A Cool Touch commercial — by JWT New York, part of the WPP Group — is scheduled to be introduced Monday, and the campaign will include print and online advertising as well as social media marketing.
“This really is a game-changing innovation,” said Craig Smith, the brand director for Kleenex. “This is the only tissue that releases a cool sensation, and it takes soothing to a whole different level.”
Kleenex, which declined to reveal how much it will spend on the campaign, spent $51.9 million on advertising in 2010, compared with $29.5 million by Puffs, according to Kantar Media, a division of WPP.
Soon after being introduced in 1924 as a “sanitary cold cream remover” for women, who had tended to reuse towels for that purpose, a Kimberly-Clark researcher with hay fever began using Kleenex tissues for his sniffles, and advertising soon declared them “the handkerchief for health.”
Internal Kleenex research indicates that softness is the most important quality for 84 percent of facial tissue purchasers, but the company and its competitors still pursue other innovations to stand out on the shelf.
Puffs, for example, which began in 1960, introduced Puffs Plus with lotion in the United States in 1987, and Kleenex responded with its first lotion tissue in 1996.
In 2004, Kleenex introduced antiviral tissues, which promise to contain germs from sneezes better than conventional tissues.
And P&G in 2007 introduced Puffs Plus with the Scent of Vicks, a lotion-infused facial tissue that smells like menthol, with the selling point being not that Vicks helps comfort skin but rather that it has a comforting smell.
Kleenex Cool Touch, in contrast, is unscented. Among households that use facial tissue, 89 percent buy unscented varieties, while only 19 percent buy scented varieties, according to Mintel, a market research firm.
“We find that scent quite frankly is polarizing, with some who really enjoy it and some who don’t,” said Tracy Buelow, the Kleenex brand manager. “When consumers are doing excessive wiping, they get what they term a ‘hot,sore nose,’ and while cooling tissues counteract that hot and burning feeling, scent doesn’t address that need.”
Generally that surge is good news for Kleenex, the Kimberly-Clark brand that invented facial tissue 87 years ago. But both Kleenex and Puffs, a Procter & Gamble brand, lost market share during the economic downturn to cheaper store brands.
In the 52 weeks that ended on June 13, 2010, for example, Kleenex sales dropped 5.5 percent from the previous year, and Puffs, a Procter & Gamble brand, dropped 3.2 percent, while store brands climbed 6.4 percent, according to SymphonyIRI Group data, which does not include Wal-Mart.
Now Kleenex has something it claims is a first: Along with lotion, Kleenex Cool Touch contains ingredients that promise cooling relief to
“This really is a game-changing innovation,” said Craig Smith, the brand director for Kleenex. “This is the only tissue that releases a cool sensation, and it takes soothing to a whole different level.”
Kleenex, which declined to reveal how much it will spend on the campaign, spent $51.9 million on advertising in 2010, compared with $29.5 million by Puffs, according to Kantar Media, a division of WPP.
Soon after being introduced in 1924 as a “sanitary cold cream remover” for women, who had tended to reuse towels for that purpose, a Kimberly-Clark researcher with hay fever began using Kleenex tissues for his sniffles, and advertising soon declared them “the handkerchief for health.”
Internal Kleenex research indicates that softness is the most important quality for 84 percent of facial tissue purchasers, but the company and its competitors still pursue other innovations to stand out on the shelf.
Puffs, for example, which began in 1960, introduced Puffs Plus with lotion in the United States in 1987, and Kleenex responded with its first lotion tissue in 1996.
In 2004, Kleenex introduced antiviral tissues, which promise to contain germs from sneezes better than conventional tissues.
And P&G in 2007 introduced Puffs Plus with the Scent of Vicks, a lotion-infused facial tissue that smells like menthol, with the selling point being not that Vicks helps comfort skin but rather that it has a comforting smell.
Kleenex Cool Touch, in contrast, is unscented. Among households that use facial tissue, 89 percent buy unscented varieties, while only 19 percent buy scented varieties, according to Mintel, a market research firm.
“We find that scent quite frankly is polarizing, with some who really enjoy it and some who don’t,” said Tracy Buelow, the Kleenex brand manager. “When consumers are doing excessive wiping, they get what they term a ‘hot,
2011年9月26日星期一
Check-up genital herpes
Genital herpes is caused by the herpes simplex virus, of which there are two types. Type 1 commonly causes cold sores on the mouth and lips but can also cause genital herpes. Type 2 causes genital herpes but can also infect the mouth. Once it has infected someone, the virus remains in their nerve cells for life.
Most people contract genital herpes by having vaginal, anal or oral sex with an infected person. Even close skin-to-skin contact with someone who is infected can spread the virus. Typically this occurs when the carrier of the virus is experiencing an outbreak of symptoms. But because some sufferers can have a herpes outbreak without showing any symptoms, infection can also occur during these periods.
The first symptoms usually appear within two weeks of a person becoming infected. These last for several weeks and include tingling or sores on the genital or rectal area.
In women, sores may develop inside the vagina and on the cervix. In men, lesions usually appear on or around the penis. Small red bumps appear first and develop into blisters. These become itchy and painful sores that typically develop a crust before healing without leaving a scar.
Other symptoms during the first outbreak can include fever, headache, muscle aches and painful urination. There may be vaginal discharge or swollen glands in the groin area. Some people who have mild symptoms, or none at all, may not know they are infected, but they can still transmit the virus to others.
For most sufferers the virus causes outbreaks several times a year. Recurrences are generally much milder than the first outbreak and tend to become less common over time.
There is no cure for genital herpes, but antiviral medicines may help treat symptoms and prevent future outbreaks. This can decrease the risk of passing herpes to sexual partners.
Genital herpes can cause medical complications in some instances, particularly in the case of babies born to mothers with the condition.
To help prevent the risk of contracting genital herpes, avoid oral-genital contact if either sexual partner has any symptoms of oral herpes.
Using barriers, such as condoms, during sexual activity may decrease transmission when used consistently and correctly, but transmission can still occur because a condom may not cover all infected areas.
Most people contract genital herpes by having vaginal, anal or oral sex with an infected person. Even close skin-to-skin contact with someone who is infected can spread the virus. Typically this occurs when the carrier of the virus is experiencing an outbreak of symptoms. But because some sufferers can have a herpes outbreak without showing any symptoms, infection can also occur during these periods.
The first symptoms usually appear within two weeks of a person becoming infected. These last for several weeks and include tingling or sores on the genital or rectal area.
In women, sores may develop inside the vagina and on the cervix. In men, lesions usually appear on or around the penis. Small red bumps appear first and develop into blisters. These become itchy and painful sores that typically develop a crust before healing without leaving a scar.
Other symptoms during the first outbreak can include fever, headache, muscle aches and painful urination. There may be vaginal discharge or swollen glands in the groin area. Some people who have mild symptoms, or none at all, may not know they are infected, but they can still transmit the virus to others.
For most sufferers the virus causes outbreaks several times a year. Recurrences are generally much milder than the first outbreak and tend to become less common over time.
There is no cure for genital herpes, but antiviral medicines may help treat symptoms and prevent future outbreaks. This can decrease the risk of passing herpes to sexual partners.
Genital herpes can cause medical complications in some instances, particularly in the case of babies born to mothers with the condition.
To help prevent the risk of contracting genital herpes, avoid oral-genital contact if either sexual partner has any symptoms of oral herpes.
Using barriers, such as condoms, during sexual activity may decrease transmission when used consistently and correctly, but transmission can still occur because a condom may not cover all infected areas.
2011年9月25日星期日
New Hope Available for Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Sufferers
Having been undiagnosed and a medical enigma for most of my adult life, I was eager to visit Abby’s Health & Nutrition in Carrollwood to listen to Pam Ross last week.
Ross is a physician’s assistant who specialized in successfully treating chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia in patients for the last three years. She was on a speaking tour discussing her findings.
These syndromes, once misunderstood and oftentimes ignored, have only recently been recognized by the medical community as legitimate illnesses.
Ross has created a treatment in the form of a natural supplement called Virasyl with ingredients scientifically validated over 10 years of university and clinical research.
“Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue are real,” said Ross. “These patients were being shunned. They were treated different than any other patient. They were referred to psychiatry and told, 'Sorry, it’s all in your head.' No. These issues need to be addressed and taken care of.”
To hear those words from the mouth of a physician’s assistant was a validation that I had been seeking for over 15 years.
My story started like many other sufferers. I remember waking up one morning in 1996 feeling like someone had taken a bat and beaten me repeatedly until there wasn’t a bone, tendon or muscle that didn’t ache. Getting out of bed did not feel like an option, but as a working mom to her precocious two year old, staying in bed wasn’t either.
Fast forward 15 years. My baby is graduating high school, and the flu I thought I woke up with has lasted her lifetime.
I personally identify with every patient who was considered to be a hypochondriac and told his ailment was psychosomatic, that he needed to see a psychiatrist because “people like him need special doctors he can talk to.”
I completely relate to the passage of years without answers, being so filled with hope, going for yet another blood test, MRI, ultrasound and x-ray from every “ist” and “ologist” on your insurance and several quacks not on any plan and having that hope dashed when results came back normal.
I understand the definition of “going back to square one,” and I know what it’s like to be treated with harsh chemicals - Buspar for a Persistent Anxiety Disorder that you do not have and Prozac for a depression that you are not in.
I know, firsthand, the overwhelming frustration of knowing something was wrong with you, feeling just 50 percent, looking perfectly healthy on the outside and not knowing what was happening on the inside, wondering if your friends and even your family really believed you because ‘You looked fine,’ feeling with every year without answers, you were slowly losing your mind.
Chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia presents itself in a number of ways. Sufferers often have a laundry list of symptoms like anxiety, problems sleeping, irritable bowel syndrome, interstitial cystitis, flu-like symptoms, low grade fever or chills, neck pain, shortness of breath, unexplained chest pain, skin rashes, night sweats, headaches, TMJ, chemical sensitivities, depression, acid reflux, canker sores, thinking and memory issues called fibro fog, on top of chronic fatigue and widespread muscle and joint pain.
Because doctors could not understand it, it was easier to chemically medicate a potential problem than to deal with the real underlying one. But putting chemicals in the body of a fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome sufferers doesn’t make sense. With the medicine treatment advertised regularly on TV, the side effects often sound worse than living with the chronic illness.
Ross has taken years of listening to her clinic patients’ needs to create a natural antiviral supplement called Virasyl that is at the very heart of what preventing what might be the cause of the illness, a stealthy, insidious virus.
“It may be from a ‘hidden’ chronic viral infection,” explained Ross. “Everyone has had a virus - whether it be chicken pox or a cold sore. Once you are exposed, it is with you for life. It hides in the tissues and comes out to replicate during times of stress or when the immune system is overwhelmed with other antigens or under physical or emotional stress.”
Ross said that stressors like losing a job, a car accident – stress or trauma cause the same response. Blood diverts to the heart and brain away from the GI tract.
Ross is a physician’s assistant who specialized in successfully treating chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia in patients for the last three years. She was on a speaking tour discussing her findings.
These syndromes, once misunderstood and oftentimes ignored, have only recently been recognized by the medical community as legitimate illnesses.
Ross has created a treatment in the form of a natural supplement called Virasyl with ingredients scientifically validated over 10 years of university and clinical research.
“Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue are real,” said Ross. “These patients were being shunned. They were treated different than any other patient. They were referred to psychiatry and told, 'Sorry, it’s all in your head.' No. These issues need to be addressed and taken care of.”
To hear those words from the mouth of a physician’s assistant was a validation that I had been seeking for over 15 years.
My story started like many other sufferers. I remember waking up one morning in 1996 feeling like someone had taken a bat and beaten me repeatedly until there wasn’t a bone, tendon or muscle that didn’t ache. Getting out of bed did not feel like an option, but as a working mom to her precocious two year old, staying in bed wasn’t either.
Fast forward 15 years. My baby is graduating high school, and the flu I thought I woke up with has lasted her lifetime.
I personally identify with every patient who was considered to be a hypochondriac and told his ailment was psychosomatic, that he needed to see a psychiatrist because “people like him need special doctors he can talk to.”
I completely relate to the passage of years without answers, being so filled with hope, going for yet another blood test, MRI, ultrasound and x-ray from every “ist” and “ologist” on your insurance and several quacks not on any plan and having that hope dashed when results came back normal.
I understand the definition of “going back to square one,” and I know what it’s like to be treated with harsh chemicals - Buspar for a Persistent Anxiety Disorder that you do not have and Prozac for a depression that you are not in.
I know, firsthand, the overwhelming frustration of knowing something was wrong with you, feeling just 50 percent, looking perfectly healthy on the outside and not knowing what was happening on the inside, wondering if your friends and even your family really believed you because ‘You looked fine,’ feeling with every year without answers, you were slowly losing your mind.
Chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia presents itself in a number of ways. Sufferers often have a laundry list of symptoms like anxiety, problems sleeping, irritable bowel syndrome, interstitial cystitis, flu-like symptoms, low grade fever or chills, neck pain, shortness of breath, unexplained chest pain, skin rashes, night sweats, headaches, TMJ, chemical sensitivities, depression, acid reflux, canker sores, thinking and memory issues called fibro fog, on top of chronic fatigue and widespread muscle and joint pain.
Because doctors could not understand it, it was easier to chemically medicate a potential problem than to deal with the real underlying one. But putting chemicals in the body of a fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome sufferers doesn’t make sense. With the medicine treatment advertised regularly on TV, the side effects often sound worse than living with the chronic illness.
Ross has taken years of listening to her clinic patients’ needs to create a natural antiviral supplement called Virasyl that is at the very heart of what preventing what might be the cause of the illness, a stealthy, insidious virus.
“It may be from a ‘hidden’ chronic viral infection,” explained Ross. “Everyone has had a virus - whether it be chicken pox or a cold sore. Once you are exposed, it is with you for life. It hides in the tissues and comes out to replicate during times of stress or when the immune system is overwhelmed with other antigens or under physical or emotional stress.”
Ross said that stressors like losing a job, a car accident – stress or trauma cause the same response. Blood diverts to the heart and brain away from the GI tract.
2011年9月22日星期四
Candidates go homeless for a night
Three provincial election candidates slept outside in the rain on Monday night to experience — albeit for only 10 hours — what it's like to be homeless.
With only sleeping bags and the clothes on their back, Mississauga-Erindale NDP hopeful Michelle Bilek, Dalbir Kathuria (Brampton West NDP) and Patti Chmelyk (Brampton West Green Party) spent the night (from about 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.) in Duggan Park in Brampton.
They were the only candidates in Peel's nine ridings to accept the challenge from Peel Poverty Action Group (PPAG) to see what it's like to be homeless for one night.
The trio was joined by David Cullen, a volunteer with the Brampton Neighbourhood Resource Centre who guided them and talked to them about what it's like to be on the streets. Cullen, who was homeless for 25 years, showed the candidates places frequented by the homeless, including the wooded area where they spent the night.
Bilek, who shared her experience via Twitter, told The News they met a few homeless people during the night. She said it reminded her of a period in her life when she lived in a car.
Bilek said it's still difficult to talk about how, for several months while she was a university student, she slept in her car and relied on friends and family to help her while she tried to keep up with her studies.
Of Monday night's experience, Bilek said: "It was cold and there was a little bit of fear of what was going to happen, if we were safe, but we felt the camaraderie of being together and we knew that by doing this it would bring awareness to the issue of poverty, and homelessness is at the core of it."
She added that herself, the other two candidates and Cullen spent most of the night talking about ways to eradicate homelessness.
Although she woke up cold, sore and barely rested, Bilek said it was one of the greatest, and most eye-opening, experiences of her life.
Unfortunately, she noted, things haven't gotten any better for people in recent years.
"Your pay cheque is not going very far and the cost of living is going up," she said. "We're at a critical time here in Ontario where we have to make a move to adjust and put people first and give them the support systems they need. When you're worrying about your bills all the time, you really can't live."
PPAG officials say about 1,000 people a month use homeless shelters in Peel. Furthermore, some 15,500 families are on a waiting list for homes they can afford — and they'll be waiting for as long as 20 years.
With only sleeping bags and the clothes on their back, Mississauga-Erindale NDP hopeful Michelle Bilek, Dalbir Kathuria (Brampton West NDP) and Patti Chmelyk (Brampton West Green Party) spent the night (from about 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.) in Duggan Park in Brampton.
They were the only candidates in Peel's nine ridings to accept the challenge from Peel Poverty Action Group (PPAG) to see what it's like to be homeless for one night.
The trio was joined by David Cullen, a volunteer with the Brampton Neighbourhood Resource Centre who guided them and talked to them about what it's like to be on the streets. Cullen, who was homeless for 25 years, showed the candidates places frequented by the homeless, including the wooded area where they spent the night.
Bilek, who shared her experience via Twitter, told The News they met a few homeless people during the night. She said it reminded her of a period in her life when she lived in a car.
Bilek said it's still difficult to talk about how, for several months while she was a university student, she slept in her car and relied on friends and family to help her while she tried to keep up with her studies.
Of Monday night's experience, Bilek said: "It was cold and there was a little bit of fear of what was going to happen, if we were safe, but we felt the camaraderie of being together and we knew that by doing this it would bring awareness to the issue of poverty, and homelessness is at the core of it."
She added that herself, the other two candidates and Cullen spent most of the night talking about ways to eradicate homelessness.
Although she woke up cold, sore and barely rested, Bilek said it was one of the greatest, and most eye-opening, experiences of her life.
Unfortunately, she noted, things haven't gotten any better for people in recent years.
"Your pay cheque is not going very far and the cost of living is going up," she said. "We're at a critical time here in Ontario where we have to make a move to adjust and put people first and give them the support systems they need. When you're worrying about your bills all the time, you really can't live."
PPAG officials say about 1,000 people a month use homeless shelters in Peel. Furthermore, some 15,500 families are on a waiting list for homes they can afford — and they'll be waiting for as long as 20 years.
2011年9月21日星期三
What's going around?
This week, Grand Strand doctors are seeing a lot of upper respiratory illnesses going around.
At Beach Urgent Care, Dr. Ron Reynolds says he's seeing many patients suffering from an early start to cold season.
Symptoms include nasal drainage, low grade fever, sore throat and coughing. He says it's affecting all ages and for the most part, antibiotics aren't needed. Dr. Reynolds recommends fluids, rest and some good, old-fashioned chicken noodle soup.
At Seacoast Primary Care in Little River, Dr. Ray Holt is seeing a lot of bronchitis cases. He says it starts with cold symptoms, but they tend to go away and leave behind a cough.
The cough may turn from dry to wet and Dr. Holt says Robitussin may help ease the cough at night. He says you should see a doctor if the cough lasts more than a week, you feel short of breath or have a high fever.
At Grand Strand Pediatrics, Dr. Nick Colvard is seeing a lot of asthma flare ups. He says it's probably due to the change in weather. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing and trouble breathing.
If you have these symptoms and they don't respond to your normal asthma medication, you should see your doctor as soon as possible.
Dr. Richard Joslin says he's seeing Doctor's Care Strand Office patients complaining about one of three things: summer colds, allergies or sinuses. Dr. Joslin says the symptoms are similar but the causes are different. He says summer colds are caused by viruses that are usually inhaled and can lead to a runny nose and occasional muscle aches.
If it's allergies, symptoms may include a runny nose and sneezing. A sinus infection tends to cause more stuffiness in the nose but at times may open up and run as well. A sinus infection is bacterial and generally starts as a cold.
Dr. Joslin says treatment for a cold depends on the symptoms. Over-the-counter medication may help treat a runny nose. You should also consume fluids and get rest. A sinus infection often requires an antibiotic, which means a trip to the doctor.
Allergies, if mild to moderate, can also be treated with over-the-counter medication, but if more severe, you may need a prescription.
At Beach Urgent Care, Dr. Ron Reynolds says he's seeing many patients suffering from an early start to cold season.
Symptoms include nasal drainage, low grade fever, sore throat and coughing. He says it's affecting all ages and for the most part, antibiotics aren't needed. Dr. Reynolds recommends fluids, rest and some good, old-fashioned chicken noodle soup.
At Seacoast Primary Care in Little River, Dr. Ray Holt is seeing a lot of bronchitis cases. He says it starts with cold symptoms, but they tend to go away and leave behind a cough.
The cough may turn from dry to wet and Dr. Holt says Robitussin may help ease the cough at night. He says you should see a doctor if the cough lasts more than a week, you feel short of breath or have a high fever.
At Grand Strand Pediatrics, Dr. Nick Colvard is seeing a lot of asthma flare ups. He says it's probably due to the change in weather. Symptoms include wheezing, coughing and trouble breathing.
If you have these symptoms and they don't respond to your normal asthma medication, you should see your doctor as soon as possible.
Dr. Richard Joslin says he's seeing Doctor's Care Strand Office patients complaining about one of three things: summer colds, allergies or sinuses. Dr. Joslin says the symptoms are similar but the causes are different. He says summer colds are caused by viruses that are usually inhaled and can lead to a runny nose and occasional muscle aches.
If it's allergies, symptoms may include a runny nose and sneezing. A sinus infection tends to cause more stuffiness in the nose but at times may open up and run as well. A sinus infection is bacterial and generally starts as a cold.
Dr. Joslin says treatment for a cold depends on the symptoms. Over-the-counter medication may help treat a runny nose. You should also consume fluids and get rest. A sinus infection often requires an antibiotic, which means a trip to the doctor.
Allergies, if mild to moderate, can also be treated with over-the-counter medication, but if more severe, you may need a prescription.
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