organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #59-pat summitt my buddy revisited

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #59-pat summitt my buddy revisited: MY STORT REVISITED #59-PAT SUMMITT MY BUDDY REVISITED pat summitt the former coach of the tennessee womens basketball team was diagnosed wit...

my story revisited #59-pat summitt my buddy revisited

MY STORT REVISITED #59-PAT SUMMITT MY BUDDY REVISITED

pat summitt the former coach of the tennessee womens basketball team was diagnosed with alzheimers disease and announced it on tv
she became the face of early alzheimers disease
i wrote a blog about her and her pr person contacted me and at one point suggested i be on a panel at her alzheimers organization seminar
it didnt work out though that i could do it 

we were diagnosed at the same time
she with mild alzheimers disease in its early stages 
she was able to coach another year before she had to quit
i was diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment due to alzheimers disease at about the same time as she was diagnosed
mild cognitive impairment is the stage right before early or mild alzheimers disease
both of our brain scans for amyloid would be positive
both or our spinal fluid analysis would be positive
both are memory tests would be abnormal but hers was worse than mine

she lasted a few years after that dying in the final stages of alzheimers
like after my youngers brothers progress with the disease i really thought that now 8 years later that i would be in the mid to late stages of alzheimers
but
luckily im not

below is my blog on pat summitt
__________
PAT SUMMITT MY BUDDY REVISITED
 
pat summitt is my buddy
after she announced that she had early alzheimers i posted a blog
about her called pat summitt my buddy
and got warm responses from people about that blog
it was sent to her office by several people and i got a nice
response from her pr person

we are buddies because we share the same diagnosis
we are buddies with the rest of those millions in the united states
with this diagnosis

it was hard to watch her this year on the sidelines
i recognize that stare
its the stare my mother my father and my younger brother
had and has
its part of the disease
the disease attacks parts of the brain and one thing that
happens is that facial expression or lack of one

i have a stare or so my wife she says and my sons they say and
the nurses that worked with me say i have
but thats not the stare im stalking about
thats the im pissed off stare

since writing this blog i have made contact with people all over
the united states and several countries who have the diagnosis or their
family member has or had the disease

one thing that happens to people many times is that they stay
in their jobs too long and either get fired or realize they cant
do their jobs any longer and quit
they stay too long

i chose because of my occupation as a physician and because i
was able to find out i had a problem before i made mistakes or
before anyone else noticed to quit as soon as i found out
i could not live with myself if i had stayed and harmed someone

in the adni study and via this blog and because of the two articles written
about me (see the upper right side of this blog)
ive made contact with a lot of
people who are still working because they have to or because they
want to but know that the day is coming when it will all end

there is a lot of people out there like this
many know and many dont know
as we are able to diagnosis people earlier the numbers we do
know about will increase greatly
we as a society will need to figure out what do do with all these
people
many like pat still have a lot of potential left and a lot to give

yes pat its time for you to go and stop coaching
it was obvious watching you
you are now a hindrance to the program it needs to move on

but pat you still have so much you can give to your university
i sure hope that they take advantage of this time you have where
you can still help them before the disease takes the rest of you
away

pat
i watched you for years read books about you and love to watch
the fire you have for your job
thats how ill remember you
we wish you the best
we wish you the best in the fight with this disease
we both know though that it wins eventually
but youll go out as a winner though

pat summitt my buddy
we all love you
__________
one of the points i made in my old blog was that folks with memory loss hang on to their jobs too long 
many arent diagnosed but end up getting fired for mistakes or poor job performance
i didnt want that to happen to me so once i found out for sure my diagnosis i resigned

early diagnosis can sometimes save you a lot of misery

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: how to keep from getting the flu

organicgreendoctor: how to keep from getting the flu: HOW TO KEEP FROM GETTING THE FLU   each year for the last 40+ years i have gotten my flu shot usually i wait until mid october to get mine t...

how to keep from getting the flu

HOW TO KEEP FROM GETTING THE FLU 

each year for the last 40+ years i have gotten my flu shot
usually i wait until mid october to get mine
the only time i missed getting the flu shot during that time i got the flu
i was dog sick with the flu for a few weeks
so i made sure i got the flu shot every year since then

this year its important that i get one to protect mr hudson from getting the flu since he is immunosuppressed from getting the kidney transplant and also mr n our new grandson is too young to get his flu shot yet

now i qualify to get the senior flu shot
its a flu shot with a higher dose in it since older folks have a suppressed immune system
so make sure if you are a senior citizen that you get your senior flu shot
now
there is a problem this year
there is a shortage of the senior flu shots 
so your only choice may be to get the regular flu shot
if thats all thats available then get that one
it wont work as well as the senior shots but it will work

this year the clinic i go to is giving the shots when you see the doctor even the specialists
so
i had an appointment with the gastroenterologist as a follow up on my stomach issues which flared up badly in march when i had what i think was covid 19
yes again i was dog sick with that
finally i am gaining my weight back and am on a medicine that seems to help
but
i thought ill just get my flu shot while im there

they were out of the senior flu shot and werent sure when they could get more so they offered the regular flu shot so i took it
right in the arm
no fever no body aches just mild soreness the next day
soreness usually means your body is starting to work building antibodies against the flu

so if the senior flu shot is not available at least take the regular flu shot
its better than not taking one at all

while you are at it
do these other things that can help you not to get the flu this year

wear a mask
keep your distance from others
wash your hands

sounds familiar right

wouldnt it be bad to have the flu then get covid 19 on top of that

when folks get the flu it can lower their immune system to make them more susceptible to other infections like strep throat and pneumonia and of course covid 19

so
follow those covid 19 recommendations that many of us know how to do 
and
get your flu shot

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: covid 19-tier system that makes sense

organicgreendoctor: covid 19-tier system that makes sense:   COVID 19-TIER SYSTEM MAKES SENSE science is usually right about things its becoming obviously clear now after several months that these th...

covid 19-tier system that makes sense

 COVID 19-TIER SYSTEM MAKES SENSE

science is usually right about things
its becoming obviously clear now after several months that these things below make a difference in the spread of the virus

wearing a mask
keeping your distance from others
washing your hands a lot

for those of you who dont do these things
well you may have a lost generation in your family

its simple to do all three of these things
simple things that will save thousands of lives in the next few months

i cringed this last week when i saw that florida was just opening everything up
let the chips fall where they may the governor seemed to say
those chips that you will hear fall will be your grandparents parents aunts uncles and those other folks over 65
they represent around 70% of the deaths from covid 19

then you hear about herd immunity
letting everyone just do what they want to 
no masks no restrictions on what people do
the result
instead of thousands of deaths we will have millions of deaths
mostly 
our grandparents and aunts and uncles an parents and others over 65
we could potentially lose a generation of older folks
who
provide love and comfort to your kids
babysit your kids
provide the bridge to the ancestors that came before them
many of you know what its like to lose a parent or grandparent too early
now
if we allow this wild type or natural herd immunity to occur
thousands of those grandparents will be gone 

remember only about 10% of americans have gotten covid 19 so far
herd immunity wont ever happen with this virus if its done naturally
it will take a larger population of folks probably over 50% but higher would be better to get the vaccine to reach that point where herd immunity will kick in
but
the virus would still be around maybe forever like the flu
we might have to get a covid 19 vaccine every year

this is a highly infectious contagious virus more than the flu is that will mainly kill a lot of us old folks
your grandparents your aunts your uncles etc

think about this when you hear folks talk about herd immunity without vaccines
think about this when you hear states like florida open everything up 
you gonna see a lot of greyheaded relatives die there

remember its the young folks and kids that are the vectors for this virus infecting us old folks

in california they have a four tier system for opening things up
purple red orange yellow
we are in the purple tier but barely in it
starting tomorrow we will probably move to tier red
most businesses can open and schools can open
yes salons and nails salons can open as can churches museums zoos movie theates
some businesses like restaurants have to be on limited capacity for indoor dining
i dont think bars are on the list

this is all based on science and how well a county or region is doing with the virus
eg
the cutoff for going to the red tier is <7% case rate and <5% test positivity rate
we are below both of these

south dakota has a test positivity rate of 30%
north dakota has a test positivity rate of 26%
can you say maybe big bike rally didnt help any

so starting tomorrow all k-12 schools will be able to open if they want to
most public schools will be be open here but will remain virtual

the lowest tier is yellow and thats where everything is mostly open
the cases will have to be at a minimal number

this system is based on science and data

now im sorry to say about all this is that this fall things are going to get worse a lot worse
theres labor day weekend causing an uptick
theres all those schools having outbreaks
theres all these things opening up now
theres cold weather coming and folks have to move inside
theres the flu coming
theres the time in the fall when these viruses naturally just take off in numbers
all these things are happening at the same time

there may be tsunami of covid 19 infections before the years end

be safe
wear a mask
keep a safe distance
wash your hands

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-these meds may put you at risk

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-these meds may put you at risk: ALZHEIMERS NEWS-THESE MEDS MAY PUT YOU AT RISK in alzheimers disease the chemical acetylcholine gets depleted this acetylcholine is used in ...

alzheimers news-these meds may put you at risk

ALZHEIMERS NEWS-THESE MEDS MAY PUT YOU AT RISK

in alzheimers disease the chemical acetylcholine gets depleted
this acetylcholine is used in the nerve endings where nerves connect to each other so the nerve endings will fire

if a nerve cell is damaged this acetylcholine level is lower so the nerves dont fire like they should
in alzheimers disease the end result is a problem with memory
as alzheimers disease progresses the acetylcholine levels go lower and lower and the memory gets worse and worse

the drug i take aricept (donepezil) inhibits the enzyme thats found in the nerve endings so the amount of acetylcholine available in the nerve endings goes up and there is memory improvement
this rising acetylcholine level is also why you see some side effects
eg
if you stare at my calves you will see that my muscles fasciculate 24/7
it basically looks like something is crawling under my skin 
thats the increased acetylcholine in the muscle nerve cells nerve endings causing that

in alzheimers disease the basal forebrain gets attacked first by the disease so the acetylcholine starts to get depleted

now if that person who gets affected just happens to be on one of the 100 or so anticholinergic drugs then that acetylcholine can get even more depleted

a recent article linked here from the american academy of neurology journal called neurology describes a recent study looking at those effects
here is a news report on the study 

anticholinergic drugs are used for allergies and colds and bladder issues and blood pressure control and anxiety and depression
some names you recognize are benadryl claritin allegra zyrtec and other allergy pills and metoprolol and atenolol or other beta blockers and those bladder control meds sold over the counter and as prescriptions

here is a list 

so if you have biomarkers already that are abnormal like the amyloid and tau proteins which many of you do already you just dont know it yet then you already are depleting your acetylcholine
when you add the anticholinergics you are just making it worse
according to the study its 4 x as worse

if you happen to have the apoe 4 gene like i do and like at least 25% of you do then you will be making it 2.5 x as worse

if you take at least one of these drug you have a 47% chance of developing mild cognitive impairment

older folks are more vulnerable to their effects 

a large number of folks on these drugs and with those risk factors will develop mild cognitive impairment the precursor to alzheimers disease

what i would do would be to look closely at the anticholinergic drugs you are taking and decide if you really need them
if you dont really need them then stop them
if you really need them talk to your doctor about alternative drugs
eg a beta blocker blood pressure med can be replaced with a different class of drug
sometimes though folks just have to take an anticholinergic drug then you just have to take it
but
then you want to be more aggressive about living a healthy lifestyle

here is a list of drugs that have possible and definite anticholinergic effects
dont stop yours without talking to your doctor
some of these drugs have to be tapered off or replaced with another drug

for me
i try to avoid drugs that affect the acetylcholine levels since i already have a deficit in my brain cells
taking an anticholinergic drug could possibly make my memory worse

thats why when you go in for a memory evaluation they look closely at the drugs you take including prescription over the counter herbal and supplements

sometimes folks can stop them and have an improvement in their memory

again
do not stop taking these drugs without a doctors approval

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: garden news-garlic planting

organicgreendoctor: garden news-garlic planting: GARDEN NEWS-GARLIC PLANTING we use garlic a lot in cooking so i try to grow enough each year then store it in our garage to use as we need i...

garden news-garlic planting

GARDEN NEWS-GARLIC PLANTING

we use garlic a lot in cooking so i try to grow enough each year then store it in our garage to use as we need it during the year
i hang them in woven garlic weaves to hang from the garage ceiling
they almost look like a macramé if you know what that is

the garlic from last years planting is about half gone

we should have enough to last us until these garlics i planted this week are ready to harvest

the secret to growing garlic and actually any vegetable is to have
a good rich soil

here is a picture of where i planted my garlic bed
the bed is 3 ft x 8 ft
this spring and summer it started out as where i planted my zucchini squash and my tatume squash
when the squash season was over i removed the squash
then i added about 4 in of rich compost
that we made ourselves here in the garden
then i added a sprinkling of an organic garden fertilizer
then i forked this in with a garden fork 
then i added a solution of fish emulsion seaweed molasses to the soil
then i covered it with several inches of a mulch
then i kept it watered for a couple of months
then when i got ready to plant the garlic the soil was this rich dark full of nutrients that any veggie would love to be planted in
i simply raked back the layer of mulch and planted the garlic

the picture of the garlic above shows the upper left one wrapped in that purple mesh 
that is a silver white soft neck that does good in central california
you have to get one that works in your area
i ordered this one from botanical interests a seed company from colorado who makes organic seeds that you see being sold in a lot of organic nurseries here and also elsewhere like texas

the one on the right some of which are broken into cloves with the red are a red spanish garlic i got from a local organic nursery
it was actually grown here in the santa barbara area so i know its adapted to this area

the one on the bottom left is a red italian garlic that i grew in my garden last year
it produced the best garlic ive grown since i have been here
we have been using it since last may in our cooking and hopefully we can make it until this new crop is ready to harvest

when i plant these i plant them with the pointy end upwards

i plant them about 1.5 inches deep about 6 inches apart
i cover them with soil then water them in with my fish emulsion seaweed molasses mixture
i water them at least once a week with a drip system
i add the fish emulsion etc every 2 weeks
i sprinkle coarse ground corn meal on the soil twice a month to cutdown on fungal diseases since we get a lot of morning fog 
i spray them once a week with hydrogen peroxide every week this also helps to kill bacterial and fungal diseases
in texas i never seemed to have to worry about these but here the increased moisture from the morning fog creates an environment the germs love

then i just keep an eye on them until april or may when the leaves seem to start dying then i harvest them
i try to let them dry out some before i harvest them so they wont be wet when they are harvested

then i just wait until its time

garlic is really easy to grow much easier in the austin area then here

you can even grow some in a pot

just

remember you put a $5 plant in a $50 hole

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #58-i knew then when i wrote th...

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #58-i knew then when i wrote th...: MY STORY REVISITED #58-I KNEW THEN WHEN I WROTE THAT BLOG last week i wrote the blog about going up for the adni study  the visit that start...

my story revisited #58-i knew then when i wrote that blog

MY STORY REVISITED #58-I KNEW THEN WHEN I WROTE THAT BLOG


last week i wrote the blog about going up for the adni study 
the visit that started my trip towards retirement
as i read the blog below that i wrote after the adni evaluation i can read between the lines
i didnt really say what i knew inside was the beginning of the end of my career
i remember like other mornings writing my blog about this that i shed a tear thinking a lot about my mother who died a few years earlier with alzheimers and my younger brother who was in last half of his jouney with the disease

even though i hadnt got that phone call yet when i wrote that blog
the caller the research director said dr nash you have memory loss greater than you should have based on your age and your degree of education
we think you should see a neurologist

those words changed my life our lives my patients lives my families lives

i wasnt surprised though when she said those words
i knew already
i knew the minute during the neuropsychological exam when i struggled to do part of the exam
i knew that my time had arrived

now when i do that part of the exam i dont struggle to do it

so what i did
i knew that once i got my official diagnosis from the neurologist then i was through so i planned the next 4-6 weeks to be ready for that day
as i wrote the blog below it would be about 2-3 weeks before i got that phone call
but i knew already

i began to slow down my practice
i stopped seeing new patients
i started refilling medications early so folks could have a few months buffer to find a new doctor
i had folks come in early for their well child exams and their physicals and their follow up visits
so when that day came when i had to stop i was as ready as i could be to stop practicing 

so there was no surprise really when i got that phone call
im sure why wife she was in some denial
but
i had already accepted what was coming
__________
11-18-2010
FOLLOWUP ON ADNI STUDY(ALZHEIMERS STUDY)
well i went to the center for the initial evaluation for the
adni study
good thing was that i did not have to do a lumbar puncture
yesterday
bad thing is that when i go back i have to get it done

but after going through 3 1/2 hours of psychological,
neurological, and neuropsychological evaluations the
lumbar puncture doesnt seem quite so bad

i was warned by testers that that is how most people
feel who go through the testing

after the complete evaluation is completed in a few weeks then
a decision will be made as to which arm of the study
i will be placed in
the bad thing is that for the adni study have to go through the
neuropsychological evaluation again

the mri scan and lab work will also be done after the followup
evaluation probably next month

no matter whether i am placed in the adni study
i will have labs and a mri scan and a neuropsychological
evaluation annually for as long as i live
i will be able to receive those results when they are done

if i am placed in the adni study i will get more evaluations
over a 2 year period
much of the labs and scans that are done in the adni study
are experimental and are not done outside of research
you cant go to a local xray place and get the
scans done or to the lab and get the genetic studies done
these results will never be given to me

the testing done outside of the adni study-routine labs, mris,
neuropsychological evaluations- though are results
that i will receive after they are done and can be used to
plan my future

overall i am glad that i went
hopefully i will be able to contribute a small bit of information
to fighting this disease

i will blog in the future  about each visit when i go
__________
if you notice i didnt say in that old blog that my neuropsychological exam was normal
like i wrote above i knew what it showed the minute i took it

the organicgreen doctor 

organicgreendoctor: what happened to those chinese mystery seeds

organicgreendoctor: what happened to those chinese mystery seeds: WHAT HAPPENED TO THOSE CHINESE MYSTERY SEEDS  i recently read about folks who got those chinese mystery seeds in the mail that they didnt or...

what happened to those chinese mystery seeds

WHAT HAPPENED TO THOSE CHINESE MYSTERY SEEDS 

i recently read about folks who got those chinese mystery seeds in the mail that they didnt order
they seemed to have been sent all over the country

i didnt get any chinese mystery seeds in the mail
if i had i know what i would have done with them

so what did folks do with those chinese mystery seeds they got unsolicited in the mail
well you can only imagine

according to this thorough article on them 

some folks ate them
some folks called 911
some folks just planted them
some folks just threw them away

we are talking about tens of thousands that got these seeds in the mail
i still cant believe folks ate them

one person planted them and said nothing came up and all the plants around that area just died
even the fbi is involved in investigating these chinese mystery seeds

the usda said folks should not plant them
they also should have said dont eat them stupid
they recommended folks notify their local state agricultural authority 
they recommended mailing them to the usda or their local agri authority

they said it may have been a brushing campaign
this link here explains what a brushing campaign or scam is

i would say from reading about these mystery chinese mystery seeds that the scam worked
why would someone eat unknown seeds
what if they were poisonous
thats called natural selection to get rid of the stupid gene

the seeds turned out to be all kinds of seeds
one was the dreaded bindweed the bane of gardeners around here
once its in your soil you cant hardly get rid of it

another was amaranth
i grow that one to use the leaves in salads some grow it for the seeds but its the bane of a lot of farmers as it competes with their crops like soybeans eg

was it a brushing campaign or was it a way to get bad seeds into our environment 

i thought about this for awhile 
what would i have done if they had appeared in the mail
i would have tried to get them identified
but 
i probably would have dumped them in the toilet and flushed them away

then
i read about this method
had i got the seeds and had i known about this method of disposal 
i know thats what i would have done

you take the seeds and wrap them with duct tape
then
mail them to the usda

yep
no way would i have planted them
definitely would i have not ever eaten them
i would have used the duct tape to dispose of them
yep for use

did you get any chinese mystery seeds in the mail

if you did what did you do with them
please dont tell me you ate them

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: covid 19-a grim milestone this week

organicgreendoctor: covid 19-a grim milestone this week:   COVID 19-A GRIM MILESTONE THIS WEEK this week we should hit the grim milestone of 200,000 deaths in the us due to covid 19 the world will ...

covid 19-a grim milestone this week

 COVID 19-A GRIM MILESTONE THIS WEEK
this week we should hit the grim milestone of 200,000 deaths in the us due to covid 19
the world will reach a million deaths due to covid 19
the us represents 20% of the cases even though we have only 4.25% of the worlds population

the next wave which may be the largest yet in the us may raise that number another 100,000 to 200,000 this year which would make it at least the third leading cause of death in the us this year 
it might become number two or if its real bad it may be number one

this implies that we have done something wrong
i saw a program on taiwan who has around 20 million folks but have had only 7 deaths

i ask what did they do right that we seem to have done wrong
those are the questions we need to be asking

for starters
if we had done these four simple things at the beginning 
wearing masks
keeping our social distance from others
washing our hands frequently
avoiding large groups
well
then the 200,000 lost lives here in the united states would have been cut in maybe half

we could have saved 50,000 to 100,000 lives
whats so political incorrect about all that

failing to do so is killing our elderly and our friends and our close relatives 

20 of the 50 states are starting to have another uptick in cases
its predicted that the cases will began to climb such that the 2nd wave or 3rd wave or whatever wave it is will overcome us
it will be larger and wider than those before

why 
we arent doing those four things well

the labor day holiday where folks moved around a lot and got close together started it off
we didnt learn from memorial day did we
the schools opened causing more outbreaks in younger folks who dont necessarily get real sick but become vectors who carry it to their more vulnerable contacts like teachers parents grandparents aunts uncles etc
the colleges and universities opened and many have turned into a vector stew pot spreading the covid 19 among themselves and to others outside the universities
sports teams for all ages have started up 
another vector source
now professional teams and maybe rich universities can afford to bubble the athletes but most colleges dont have those resources
then the cold weather forces folks inside where the covid 19 can get concentrated in the air

then there is the twindemic thats about to start up soon
thats the flu
and
the covid 19
both peaking at the same time

i just read where the flu is already in san francisco so it is probably elsewhere in the country
the best way to prevent getting the flu is to get a flu shot 
i get mine in early october
then
you do those things that we should all be doing to keep from getting the covid 19
those things i listed above

the covid 19 vaccine is coming
even it comes early which it probably wont most of us wont be able to get it until next year
so
for this winter 
you need to get your flu shot and do those 4 things i listed above

history is not going to look kindly at how the us handled the covid 19 pandemic that left us and is leaving us with such death and economic devastation

history always takes the politics out of what happens and tells the truth

get your flu shot 

the organicgreen doctor

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-can it lead to alzheimers disease

organicgreendoctor: alzheimers news-can it lead to alzheimers disease: ALZHEIMERS DISEASE-CAN IT LEAD TO ALZHEIMERS DISEASE yes probably maybe what is it its obesity recently i wrote a blog about how obesity can...

alzheimers news-can it lead to alzheimers disease

ALZHEIMERS DISEASE-CAN IT LEAD TO ALZHEIMERS DISEASE

yes probably maybe
what is it
its obesity

recently i wrote a blog about how obesity can lead to a higher risk of dying if you got covid 19
the two are related
the increased risk of dying from covid 19 if you are obese is related to its effect on the immune system
the increased risk of developing alzheimers disease if you are obese is probably related to the decreased blood flow to the brain that occurs in obesity

here is a recent research article that looked at this issue
here is a summary article reviewing that research article

there is decreased blood flow to the brain if you are obese
that includes if you are overweight bmi of 24.9 to 29.9 or obese bmi >30 or morbid obese bmi>40
the higher the bmi the greater the decrease in blood flow to the brain

the researchers used functional pet scans of the brain
there was decreased blood flow to all regions of the brain but especially those areas that are associated with alzheimers diseases
like
the temporal lobe parietal lobe hippocampus posterior cingulate precuneus

the blood flow worsened as the bmi increased
the more obese you are the less blood flows to your brain

my bmi was 25 so i was considered overweight so i was having some decreased blood flow to my brain just from that
then you add on high blood pressure not treated high cholesterol not controlled having the apoe 4 apoe 4 late onset alzheimers gene well none of that was slowing down my disease any 
it was speeding it up

look at your bmi
lower it as much as you can and you will increase the blood flow to your brain
and
maybe decrease you chances of getting alzheimers disease

consider getting involved with your local alzheimers walks

here is the information on my team organicgreendoctor that will walk in this years santa barbara walk to end alzheimers on saturday november 7 2020

the opening ceremony and closing ceremony will be virtual
so anyone can watch it online

then

each individual member will walk in their neighborhood or favorite hiking trail wearing their purple alzheimers shirts for the 2-3 mile walk 
this is the safest way to do the walk this year
please wear your mask and keep a good social distance from others
hopefully next year we can all be live

join us wherever you live for our walk this year

you can donate and or join our team organicgreendoctor 
at this link
then walk in your own neighborhood the morning of the walk to honor those lost in our families to this disease and to those who are affected now by this disease

the organicgreen doctor 

organicgreendoctor: garden news-growing community project

organicgreendoctor: garden news-growing community project: GARDEN NEWS-GROWING COMMUNITY PROJECT   thats growing like in growing vegetables the community garden where i have my garden plot and where ...

garden news-growing community project

GARDEN NEWS-GROWING COMMUNITY PROJECT 

thats growing like in growing vegetables

the community garden where i have my garden plot and where i volunteer 2-3 days a week grows vegetables in the center of the garden that are then donated to food kitchens shelters soup kitchens etc

we rely on volunteers to make this work
precovid 19 we would have groups of folks come in to help with some groups as large as 20-30 people to help in the garden
they would do things like weed the garden especially help us keep the bind weed or morning glory under control
i didnt know bind weed until i moved here
if its not controlled it will take over your garden
they also put out yards and yards of mulch
they helped harvest the veggies
they helped prep the beds
they helped plant the veggie seeds
the helped to plant the veggie plants

you name it that needed to be done in the garden and they helped
the groups were from high schools middle schools elementary schools colleges universities charities businesses

they kept our garden cleaned up and helped us keep our garden veggies growing

but 
since the covid 19 hit in march we have not had any volunteers come in to help
except for a few of us regular folks

we have been struggling to keep up with what needs to be done in the garden

so enter the bucket brigade
ill link here to their website

the bucket brigade is known for helping clean up the debris and mud from peoples property after the montecito mud slides in 2018 that killed a lot of folks and destroyed homes and businesses and led to the closure of the highway one and 101 for weeks

they are a high energy volunteer group of a few thousand that attack a problem and like the mud slides help clean things up
they get dirty when they do their jobs

the name comes from the use of buckets to haul mud and debris from the properties

so now they are partnering with those names on that sign above to grow veggies and fruits for folks in need and to encourage folks to grow their own veggies 
think victory gardens during ww2

we are having and its about to get worse a national problem with food and folks not getting enough food to eat

this project hopefully will help some with this food shortage in this area

eg
they will salvage old lumber thats donated or thrown away to build raised beds of different sizes for folks to use to garden in
these will be given away

they have located abandoned garden sites eg a local church has a large lot that will be used to develop a large sort of victory garden

in our garden the volunteers will add some of these raised bed for our garden to use
they will help plant our seeds and plants and harvest them
they will weed and help prep the beds and move the mulch and whatever we  need them to do 
they are get it done volunteers that ooze with energy

the benefit is to those in need of our veggies and that need will only grow as things dont get back to normal

also in that list above is an organic seed and garden nursery that will be donating seeds and plants

we in this country may if things get worse may have a real food shortage for those who need help

just look at those food kitchen lines sometime in your area

so
i look forward to working with this group in our volunteer garden to help us do our part in this moment of need

the organicgreen doctor 

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #57-how it all started

organicgreendoctor: my story revisited #57-how it all started: MY STORY REVISITED #57-HOW IT ALL STARTED two years after i did the adni initial evaluation i looked back at that day when i went to dallas ...

my story revisited #57-how it all started

MY STORY REVISITED #57-HOW IT ALL STARTED

two years after i did the adni initial evaluation i looked back at that day when i went to dallas to do the evaluation to see if i would qualify to be in the research study 

i mentioned my long term care insurance i had bought a few years before
i had passed a memory test in order to qualify for the insurance 

my goal was to be followed long term via the research study so that somewhere along the way if i had memory issues i would detect it early

little did i know that that day i went for the research study would be that day it was detected
__________
03-12-2012

HOW IT ALL STARTED
this is how it all started
in november of 2010 i tried to enter an alzheimers research study
as a normal subject

this posting seems so innocent
little did i know what was coming

im reposting several of my blog entries to retell what happened
for my benefit and to some of the readers benefit who have
family members friends with this disease
thats all of you

here is the blog titled alzheirmers disease neuroimaging initiative

11-17-2010
ALZHEIMERS DISEASE NEUROIMAGING INITIATIVE 
those of you who know me or my family know that
my mother had alzheimers and spent the last months of
her life in a nursing home before she died
we experienced the effects of alzheimers on a loved one
we saw the devastating effect it can have on a person and
their family
we saw the dwindling of our mother over time
we all dread this happening to us but know that it may
be coming to visit all of us eventually

our father before he died probably had early stages
of azheimers but his death from heart disease
occurred before the disease progressed too far

our close younger relative was diagnosed with azheimers in
the mid 50s

i am in an occupation where i can not afford to have any
cognitive difficulties as it could cause adverse effects on
my patients
this has been one of my fears for several years
should there be signs or evidence of impairment then i would
want to discontinue working
so far i have not noticed any problems that would cause me
any concern

i have wanted to get involved in a study so that i could be
monitored over time so that when the early stages occur then
i will know and can start planning my life appropriately and
can start medications that can slow the progress of the disease

for example i have purchased a long term care insurance policy
so that when the time comes in the future that i need more
care we have a safety net financially that will provide care
for me
usually in our family this occurs in the late 70s and 80s
but it can occur younger as we have seen in our family

today i start that journey on being monitored
my wife she and i are going on a 3 hour trip to a teaching
university so that i can be involved in a study they are doing
on early mild cognitive impairment  called the adni study

i will undergo 5 hours of testing today
i will undergo neuropsychological testing (hope they dont
ask me to remember names or spell correctly)

i will have blood tests done to make sure my baseline health is
ok     tests will also be done on dna and rna to measure
markers that may be monitored in people with alzheimers

i will undergo a mri of the brain today that will look for any
changes to the brain

i will undergo a pet scan of the brain today that will be looking
for deposition of a protein and carbohydrate in the brain that
occurs in alzheimers patients

i will undergo a lumbar puncture
(the only sucky part of the visit) to test for the protein
and the carbohydrate in my spinal fluid

after all of this done if i qualify i will be entered in the study
hopefully as a volunteer normal control  but if i were to have
mild cognitive impairment which i dont think i have then i
would be put into the study as a study subject

they are picking 5 people from this location to be part of a
200 patient study nationwide

i will have to go there several times over the next 18 months
to do the same tests
i will continue to be monitored there after the study for as long
as i live

what benefit do i get from this
i feel like i am contributing my small part to help figure out this
terrible disease that will some way affect everyone who is
reading this blog
i hope that things i learn about myself may help my siblings
and my children and their children and....
i will know where i am with this disease as i continue to age
so that my wife and i can plan our  lives for the future

tomorrow i will blog on what it was like being tested
__________
well on our drive home that day almost 10 years ago after that visit it was fairly quiet as we both thought about what had just happened
there was some denial going on
but
i knew that my time had arrived

the organicgreen doctor