Weight Loss

In the harsh Australian summer, it is relatively easy for anyone, child or adult, to get sunburnt. Recent information about the hole in the earth’s ozone layer shows us that the danger of exposure to harmful ultraviolet rays (UVB) from the sun is greater now than it has ever been. Australia has one of the highest incidences of skin cancer in the world. Increased public awareness of the dangers of sunburn and risks of skin cancer can only be encouraged. Teach your children about these risks, and set them an example yourselves by taking precautions against sunburn.

Cause

Skin contains a pigment called melanin, stored in special cells called melanocytes. When the skin is exposed to ultraviolet radiation from the sun, more melanin is produced, darkening the skin. This process takes time, and if the skin is exposed to too much sun all at once, then it will burn. If skin is exposed to small amounts of sun, very gradually, melanin will have a chance to build up slowly, and help prevent sunburn. This should always be done using blockout sunscreens (at least 15 + ). Excessive tanning causes skin damage. Fair-skinned children are most sensitive to sunburn, as their skin does not contain the same amount of melanin as dark-skinned children.

Clinical features

Sunburn can vary from mild redness on the skin to severe blistering, swelling and pain. As the burn heals, the blisters may burst and the skin will become itchy and start to peel. Most reactions to sunburn only start several hours after the skin is exposed to excessive sun, and are at their worst around 24 hours later.

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For many mothers, the first few days of breastfeeding are usually accompanied by sore or cracked nipples. Pain is often felt at the beginning of a feed and eases off as the baby continues sucking. This can be very distressing, especially if you are already fatigued after the delivery. Limit feeds to a maximum of 10 minutes on each breast for the first few days. Sore nipples are invariably due to incorrect positioning of the baby on the breast during feeds. If your nipples do become tender, ask a breastfeeding consultant, or your maternal and child health nurse to check the position of your baby while feeding. Avoid using soaps or creams on your nipples, as these can have a drying effect and can actually worsen the problem. Try rubbing some hindmilk into both nipples after a feed; the high fat content can aid healing by acting as a protective barrier against drying. Make sure that when you want to take your baby off your nipple you break the suction by inserting your little finger between your breast and his mouth. If your nipples are very sore, try expressing for 24 hours, to give them a chance to heal. Expose them to the air as much as possible. Occasionally babies can get a thrush infection of the mouth, and this can be transferred to the mother’s nipple during feeding. This condition requires treatment for both mother and baby, and you should see your doctor, who will recommend an antifungal preparation which is safe for you to use. Trying to ‘prepare’ your nipples during pregnancy by using creams, friction or methylated spirits should be avoided.

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We haven’t been to church together in so long that I don’t think we know where it is.

WIFE

Many of the couples in the super marital sex program found jt meaningful for them to attend a religious service together. Where differences in religions existed, couples were asked to visit the church or temple of each spouse at least once. Whether or not formal religion was a part of a couple’s life, most husbands and wives had attended church as a child. Revisiting their place of worship as a shared gesture of commitment was of value to the spiritual communication system within the marriage.

I asked the couples to discuss their belief systems, the answer to questions about the meaning of life and death, about their prayers, hopes, and fears. Some couples requested help from a clergyperson at this part of their program, and in some cases the couples returned to more regular involvement in religious services. Whether or not such reinvolvement took place, the rediscovery of the value of discussing philosophies of life and living was a unifying force in the relationships.

If you have followed along with this program, if you have established your own private sex clinic, you have taken the major strides toward finding super marital sex in your relationship. Even if you have tried and found problems, you have moved closer to changing things for the better. As you prepare to read the final section of this book, dealing with the problems of everyday living as they affect sexuality in marriage, remember what the couples came to call the four “P’s” of super marital sex clinic operation:

Perspective in your approach to sexuality. Remember that your living style, your tendency to run hot or cold at various times, is a key part of your sexual life. A wide perspective on the sexual system is necessary for understanding the fourth perspective of sexuality.

Patience with your self and your relationship. All human growth and development takes place over a long period of time and in waves of progress and regression. Be at least as patient with your marital sex as you are with your children and others you love.

Persistence in your attention to the intimacy within your marriage. Starting to improve, then surrendering, getting distracted by other “more important things,” or getting involved in “fads” of self-improvement only detracts from the task of building intimacy. Take the tests in this book, follow up on their indications, and stick with the changes you select.

Pride in yourself and your marriage is important for continued growth. Our society has valued self-esteem, but marital esteem is every bit as important.

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I’m not actually “in love” with him. I love him, but I’m not in love with him.

WIFE

Leo Buscaglia lectures that we are all one-winged angels who live to our fullest human potential only when we join intimately with another person. Poets, artists, musicians tell us that love is the most important element of all human experience. To paraphrase George Bernard Shaw, love is a good idea, someone ought to try it. In spite of our fixation with the concept of love, we continue either to be falling into or out of it, getting stuck with it, doing something dangerous or illegal in the name of it, killing each other over it, eating or purging because of its absence, or spending considerable time trying to make it. We seem to love to make a mess of whatever love is. If we listen to composers of popular songs, love is akin to a terribly debilitating viral condition rendering its victim emotionally hypnotized, in a type of “love seizure.” Somehow, in some way, we are taught eight basic “love lies” that get in the way of the super love that I will describe later in this chapter, the super love necessary for super sex. We need the joy of love before we can find the joy of sex, but the following distortions about loving create a serious obstacle to finding people to embrace.

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For years, we have been saying it is unhealthy at any age to be overweight.

We have had a set of ideal weights for height and age and have exhorted our patients to lose weight and to conform to these ideals.

Our evidence was based on studies of American insurance companies from 1935 to 1953 but some doubt of the truth of these studies, as applied to the population at large, has been raised by studies in the U.S.

The inhabitants of Framingham, a small town near Boston, have been extensively studied over many years. A similar but not so extensive study was carried out at Busselton in WA.

Of course, the insurance statistics are biased in that only “healthy” people can usually get life insurance, whereas the Framingham study includes the unhealthy as well.

This study showed that being markedly underweight as well as markedly overweight increases the risk of death.

The true significance of this has not yet been established and, until it is, it would be wise to avoid being fat. But there may be no advantage to being skinny.

If you are diabetic or have high blood pressure, reducing weight will greatly lower your risks of an earlier death.

Being either 10 per cent above or below ideal body weight poses no problem. Beyond this however we may run into health risks.

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When a low residue diet is taken, this time is doubled, the muscular contractions of the bowel are increased and the inside pressure is raised. It is this rise in pressure which is believed to produce the herniation which causes the diverticula.

They usually involve the lower portion of the colon or the large bowel but may involve its whole length. When diverticula are present, the condition is properly called diverticulosis.

There may be no symptoms at an early stage. However symptoms such as lower abdominal pain, distension and flatulence or an excess of gas in the bowel lead to the condition being called painful diverticular disease.

When inflammation and infection develop in these pockets, the term diverticulitis is properly applied.

It is important for the doctor to distinguish between these three distinct stages because the presence of diverticula is so common in those over middle age. Any X-ray of the bowel may show their presence but they may not be the cause of the symptoms.

In diverticulitis, the symptoms are more marked and, in acute attacks, there may be severe lower abdominal pain associated with fever. Diarrhoea or constipation may be present.

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It is not always important to know the exact extent of the cancer. The importance depends on what treatment is being considered. For example, say a woman and her doctor were considering an extensive operation to remove the entire womb and both ovaries for cancer of the cervix. It would be important to be as sure as possible that there were no traces of cancer in other parts of the body before doing such an operation. A number of tests would be advisable to check thoroughly for possible secondary deposits.

What if this woman was found to have secondary cancer deposits in her bones? After finding out about the possible alternatives, she could decide to have no actual anti-cancer treatment and to concentrate simply on relief of symptoms. In this case, whether or not she also had cancer deposits in the lungs or liver would make no difference to her treatment, unless she had symptoms which could be originating in these organs. It would also be unnecessary to know exactly which bones were affected, as long as they were not causing pain. Tests to determine the exact extent of her cancer would be unnecessary.

On the othe’r hand, she might decide to have chemotherapy treatment. In this case, tests to find out how well her liver was functioning might be necessary in order to work out the right dose of chemotherapy drugs. It wouldn’t be necessary to know just how many secondary deposits there were or which particular bones or other organs they were in, because the chemotherapy drugs would travel right through the body anyway.

There are three separate aspects to think about when assessing the extent of cancer—we need to know the extent of the primary growth, of lymphatic spread, and of blood-borne spread.

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There are often mild cold symptoms and an enlargement of the lymph glands, particularly those at the back of the head. Some people develop a mild inflammation of the joints.

No problem arises from this disease, except if a woman develops it during pregnancy. If she does, the virus can cross the placenta and affect the baby.

Should this happen in the early stages of pregnancy, while the organs are developing, severe damage to the foetus can occur. The child may be born blind, deaf, with heart defects or retarded.

To prevent these complications, rubella immunisation has been developed. The vaccine contains live virus, but changed so that it causes little illness yet still stimulates immunity.

Because this virus can still cross the placenta, no woman who receives it should become pregnant for at least three months.

The vaccine is normally given to girls between the ages of 12 and 14. Older women who wish to receive immunisation should discuss the implications with their doctor.

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