Frostbite Ain't Right

Hey, guys! If you're in Ohio right now, you're likely feeling the cold just like I am. The temperature outside is in the negatives, meaning that it's dangerous to be out and about. Since it's so terrible outside, I thought I'd take a minute to talk about the dangers of frostbite. I've seen some students scoff at this cold weather and go out completely unprepared, which can be extremely hazardous. I've provided a video above for you guys to watch from Inside Edition. Since most of my readers are students, I think this video will be most useful to you guys. Here is some more specific information about frostbite.

What is frostbite? 

According to the Mayo Clinic, frostbite is an injury caused by the freezing of the skin and the issue lying underneath.

What are the symptoms?

Here are some of the signs and symptoms the Mayo Clinic says to lookout for.

• At first, cold skin and a prickling feeling
• Numbness
• Red, white, bluish-white or grayish-yellow skin
• Hard or waxy-looking skin
• Clumsiness due to joint and muscle stiffness
• Blistering after rewarming, in severe cases

Seek medical attention if you experience:

• Signs and symptoms of superficial or deep frostbite
• Increased pain, swelling, redness or discharge in the area that was frostbitten
• Fever
• New, unexplained symptoms

If you do have to go outside for whatever reason, never fear! Here are some tips on how to prevent frostbite.

Prevention:

• Limit time you're outdoors in cold, wet or windy weather.
• Dress in several layers of loose, warm clothing. 
• Wear a hat or headband that fully covers your ears.
• Wear mittens rather than gloves. Mittens provide better protection.
• Wear socks and sock liners that fit well, wick moisture and provide insulation.
• Watch for signs of frostbite. Seek warm shelter if you notice signs of frostbite.
• Plan to protect yourself. When traveling in cold weather, carry emergency supplies and warm clothing in case you become stranded.
• Don't drink alcohol if you plan to be outdoors in cold weather.
• Eat well-balanced meals and stay hydrated. Doing this even before you go out in the cold will help you stay warm.
• Keep moving.

If you guys want more information on frostbite, feel free to visit the Mayo Clinic website right here. Stay safe out there!

Dog Days with Horses

Since I've been at college, I have been missing my horses back home. I have a 16-year-old American Quarter Horse named Chicks Lil Wager and I've had her since I was about 12 years old. Over the past two years, we've bred Chick and gotten two wonderful babies from her! One of them is a friendly little colt named Chick's Brave Warrior and the other is a sassy little filly named This Chick Has Sass. Brave was the very first baby we had in the barn and is now nearly two years old. 

On top of our barn full of horses, we have two dogs named Char and Nala. Char was the first dog we got and was around when both Brave and Sassy were born. Brave was born before we got Nala though. Before we had Nala, Char seemed to get very lonely around the farm. If no one was actively playing with her she'd try to entertain herself by tossing one of her toys to herself or by bothering the horses. However, everything seemed to change for her when Brave was born. Since he was just a tiny colt, he was the perfect size to function as her playmate. She loved to jump over him and lick at his face whenever she could. He tolerated just about everything she did, and, to this day, she still favors him over the other horses in the barn.

I was browsing through my phone the other day and thought I would share some of these moments with you! Here is baby Brave laying out in the sandpit. As usual, Char wasn't very far away.

Another thing she liked to do was lay with him. I came into the barn one morning and managed to capture the two laying down together. This was Brave's favorite spot to lay down because he wasn't tall enough to look over the stall door. Instead of trying to peek over, he would lay down and look under to see what was going on around the barn.

Home Remedy for Migraines

One thing that people don't really know about me is that I suffer from migraines. For me, they started when I was an upperclassman in high school. I had never experienced a migraine up until then, but I have had them ever since. Some people may think that migraines are just really bad headaches, but there is a bit more to it than that. Although, it is important to keep in mind that migraines are different from person to person, this is just me speaking strictly about my own experiences with migraines. For me, I get a really sharp and intense pain in the center of my forehead. It feels like the only way to relieve this pain is by pressing my palm against this spot in the center of my head. However, this pressure offers only a little bit of relief. Once the pain in my head starts to set in, light becomes unbearable. The light becomes so intense, that even the tiny LED on my phone becomes too much for me. Then the nausea begins to set in. My stomach becomes a mess, and I feel like I'm going to need to run to the bathroom at any moment.

There are medications to stop migraines, but I don't have anything that is preventative. If I feel an intense headache coming on, I make sure that I take my migraine medication right away. However, my mom recently discovered a home remedy treatment for migraines that I am very excited to try and share with all of you. For more information, see www.healthyfoodhouse.com

The remedy is as follows:

Ingredients:

• 1/4 teaspoons of Himalayan Pink Salt or Celtic Sea Salt
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice 
• A glass of water (about 8oz)
• 1 teaspoon of raw honey (optional)

Directions:

Add salt and lemon juice to the water and stir until completely dissolved. Add honey to sweeten the mixture.

According to the website listed above, you should notice some improvement within a few minutes. I was developing a headache earlier today, so I decided to try this recipe for myself. Since the honey was optional, I decided to try it with and without honey.

The taste itself was very unpleasant. Salty water with lemon did not taste great. I would highly suggest using honey to help sweeten the mixture a bit, though I ended up adding a bit more than what was recommended. Even with the added honey, this was, admittedly, very hard for me to drink. The salt is very overpowering and the lemon does not help like I thought it would. The taste was just too salty. However, I did notice that my headache was going away, even with the few sips I was forcing myself to take.

I was not able to finish my entire glass of water. The taste was simply too much for me. I had to put a drop of honey on my tongue just to get the taste of saltwater out of my mouth. I think I will try putting less salt in the mixture the next time I try it out. I was quite surprised by the results of this remedy, but I only used this treatment on a mild headache. I was not experiencing a migraine at the time.

If any of you end up trying this remedy for yourself, let me know what you think!