Effects and Signs of Methamphetamine Use

"Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark,

in the hopeless swamps of the approximate,

the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all.

Do not let the hero in your soul perish,

in lonely frustration for the life you deserved,

but have never been able to reach.

Check your road and the nature of your battle.

The world you desired can be won.

It exists, it is real, it is possible, it is yours."

Ayn Rand

What Is Meth?

Methamphetamine is a powerful central nervous system stimulant.  A synthetic drug, Meth has a high potential for abuse and dependence. It is illegally produced and sold in pill form, capsules, powder and chunks; it can also be smoked, snorted or injected.  The fast, powerful high tapers off quickly, leaving the user with a strong desire to do more.

Usually crystal meth is smoked in glass pipes, similar to how crack cocaine is used.  It may be injected (either dry or dissolved in water), snorted, swallowed, or inserted into the anus or urethra.

This drug is referred to by many names, including "Meth", "speed", "crank", "chald," "go-fast", "zip," and "cristy".  The smokable form of this drug is ofen called "L.A.", "ice", "crystal or chrystal", "64glass", or "quartz."

Why Is Crystal Meth Used?

Females often take crystal meth because it can cause extremely rapid weight loss. However, the effects are short term. The body builds up a tolerance to the drug so weight loss tapers off and stops around six weeks after taking the drug. Also, weight that is lost is regained once a person stops taking methamphetamine. For these reasons, combined with how addictive the drug is, methamphetamine tends not to be prescribed by doctors for weight loss.

Some people take meth because of the long-lasting high that it gives. Methamphetamine causes numerous neurotransmitters to be released in the brain, producing a sense of euphoria that may last as long as 12 hours, depending on how the drug was taken.

Methamphetamine is popular as a stimulant. As a stimulant, methamphetamine improves concentration, energy, and alertness while decreasing appetite and fatigue.

Methamphetamines are also taken by people who are feeling depressed. They may be taken for their side effect of increasing libido and sexual pleasure.

What Are the Effects of Meth Use?

This is a list of effects associated with pure methamphetamine use. Because of how it's made, crystal meth is never pure, so the dangers associated with taking the street drug extend beyond these effects.

Short-Term Effects

When methamphetamine is injected or smoked it immediately produces an intensely pleasurable sensation known as a "rush" or a "flash" by releasing high levels of dopamine in the brain. Snorting methamphetamine produces an euphoric sensation, but not a rush.

Even taken in small amounts, methamphetamine can cause:

Increased wakefulness, increased physical activity, decreased appetite, increased respiration, Hyperthermia, Increased heart rate and blood pressure, Irregular heartbeat and cardiovascular collapse.

Other effects of meth use on the central nervous system can produce the following symptoms:

Irritability, prolonged insomnia, confusion, anxiety, tremors convulsions,  paranoia and aggressiveness.

Hyperthermia and convulsions can be fatal.  Methamphetamine can also cause irreversible damage to the blood vessels in the brain, resulting in a stroke.

Long-Term Effects

Long-term meth abuse results in many damaging effects, including addiction.  Addiction is a chronic, relapsing disease, characterized by compulsive drug-seeking and drug use which is accompanied by functional and molecular changes in the brain.

In addition to being addicted to methamphetamine, chronic meth abusers exhibit symptoms that can include violent behaviour, anxiety, confusion, and insomnia.  They also can display a number of psychotic features, including paranoia, auditory hallucinations, mood disturbances, and delusions. The paranoia can result in homicidal as well as suicidal thoughts.

With chronic use, tolerance for methamphetamine can develop.  In an effort to intensify the desired effects, users may take higher doses of the drug, take it more frequently, or change their method of drug intake.  In some cases, abusers forego food and sleep while indulging in a form of binging known as a "run," injecting as much as a gram of the drug every 2 to 3 hours over several days until the user runs out of the drug or is too disorganized to continue.

Chronic abuse can lead to psychotic behaviour, characterized by intense paranoia, visual and auditory hallucinations, and out-of-control rages that can be coupled with extremely violent behaviour.

Signs of Meth Use

Relatives and friends should be aware of the signs of meth use so they can get help for a person who is abusing methamphetamine.  Meth abuse is a dangerous habit that can lead to addiction, mental damage, and death.

Other than actually finding the drug, relatives and friends should watch for less obvious signs that a person is using meth.  Though some warning signs of meth use can be similar to normal changes during the teen years, others are easier to spot.

Meth can stay in the body for a number of hours after it is taken. While a person is high on meth, others may notice some signs of meth use such as:

Dilated pupils

Breathing problems or very fast breathing for no reason

Dizziness

Grinding teeth

Repetitive behaviours

High temperature

Sweating

Lots of energy and increased activity

Talking excessively

Seeming very alert

Looking flushed even when not doing anything

Experiencing a high or a sense of extreme happiness

Lack of appetite

Paranoia

Irritability

Nervousness or anxiety

Fidgeting

Not feeling tired and not being able to sleep

Shaking or jerkiness

Though these symptoms may wear off once the drug is out of the person’s symptoms, meth use has other effects that last once the high wears off:

Periods of increased alertness and energy interspaced with extreme fatigue and depression

Insomnia

Picking or scratching at skin or clothes

Anxiety or paranoia

Confusion and loss of mental function

Lack of interest in food and dramatic weight loss

Losing interest in favourite activities

Withdrawal from family and friends or sudden change in friends

Sudden drop in grades

Getting in trouble at school/university, etc. or with the police

Burns on lips or fingers from smoking meth through a glass pipe

Nosebleeds from snorting meth

Track marks on the arm, or attempts to cover them, due to injecting meth

Loss of interest in personal hygiene, like not showering or brushing hair

Lying or being secretive, beyond the normal teen desire for privacy

Stealing money or valuables to sell for drug money

Possession of drug paraphernalia, like razors blades, straws, and mirrors, or needles and surgical tubing

Violent moods or behaviours

Psychotic behaviour

Stroke

Suicidal thoughts and behaviour

Emergency telephone numbers:

USA                            1-800-521-7128

UK                               0800 77 66 00

South Africa              083 900 MY NA (083 900 69 62)

My name is Meth

"For all sad words of tongue and pen,

the saddest are these, 'It might have been'."

John Greenleaf Whittier

Did you know that Methamphetamine abuse was common after World War II? This illegal drug has continued since to be highly addictive and extremely abused.

Angela Fatino was a very young girl when she started to fight against methamphetamine addiction. The battle lasted more than two years. She finally committed suicide and it was confirmed that there was meth in her system when she killed herself. She was 15.

Alicia Van Davis, author of “The Poem”, died when she was 21. Crystal meth was the cause of her death. After her death, they were cleaning out her apartment and in her top dresser drawer, found a poem she had written.

My Name is Meth

I destroy homes, I tear families apart,

Take your children, and that's just the start.

I'm more costly than diamonds, more precious than gold,

The sorrow I bring is a sight to behold.

If you need me, remember I'm easily found,

I live all around you — in schools and in town,

I live with the rich; I live with the poor,

I live down the street, and maybe next door.

I'm made in a lab, but not like you think,

I can be made under the kitchen sink.

In your child's closet, and even in the woods,

If this scares you to death, well it certainly should.

I have many names, but there's one you know best,

I'm sure you've heard of me, my name is Crystal Meth.

My power is awesome, try me you'll see,

But if you do, you may never break free.

Just try me once and I might let you go,

But try me twice, and I'll own your soul.

When I possess you, you'll steal and you'll lie,

You do what you have to — just to get high.

The crimes you'll commit for my narcotic charms

Will be worth the pleasure you'll feel in your arms.

You'll lie to your mother, you'll steal from your dad,

When you see their tears, you should feel sad.

But you'll forget your morals and how you were raised,

I'll be your conscience, I'll teach you my ways.

I take kids from parents, and parents from kids,

I turn people from God, and separate friends.

I'll take everything from you, your looks and your pride,

I'll be with you always — right by your side.

You'll give up everything - your family, your home,

Your friends, your money, then you'll be alone.

I'll take and take, till you have nothing more to give,

When I'm finished with you, you'll be lucky to live.

If you try me be warned — this is no game,

If given the chance, I'll drive you insane.

I'll ravish your body, I'll control your mind,

I'll own you completely, your soul will be mine.

The nightmares I'll give you while lying in bed,

The voices you'll hear, from inside your head.

The sweats, the shakes, the visions you'll see,

I want you to know, these are all gifts from me.

But then it's too late, and you'll know in your heart,

That you are mine, and we shall not part.

You'll regret that you tried me, they always do,

But you came to me, not I to you.

You knew this would happen, many times you were told,

But you challenged my power, and chose to be bold.

You could have said no, and just walked away,

If you could live that day over, now what would you say?

I'll be your master, you will be my slave,

I'll even go with you, when you go to your grave.

Now that you have met me, what will you do?

Will you try me or not? It's all up to you.

I can bring you more misery than words can tell,

Come take my hand, let me lead you to hell.

So many lives are affected by meth.  This drug has destroyed many good people, torn apart families and even taken lives. If you are living with this dangerous addiction or know of someone in need of help and guidance, please get help now before it's too late.

My next post will cover the effects of Chrystal Meth in more detail.

"The deepest human defeat suffered by human beings

is constituted by the difference between

what one was capable of becoming and what one has in fact become."

Ashley Montagu

Why We Were Chosen

“Don't criticize what you can't understand.”

Bob Dylan

Alcoholics Anonymous believes that one alcoholic working with another is the best form of recovery.  Only an alcoholic that has hit rock bottom can understand how another alcoholic thinks and feels because they have been through the same or similar dilemma. This is the reasoning behind “why we were chosen” - to be a candle of light burning in the darkness of another alcoholic’s hell.

An often seen piece of AA literature is a small pamphlet called "Why We Were Chosen". The source of this pamphlet is a speech given by Judge John T. on the 4th Anniversary of the Chicago Group in 1943.   

This is part of the transcript from the meeting mentioned above. Judge John suggests to the members of the group what God might have said if he had been at the meeting that day.

 

“God in His wisdom has selected a group of men to be the purveyors of His goodness. In selecting them through whom to bring about this phenomenon He went not to the proud, the mighty, the famous or the brilliant. He went to the humble, to the sick, to the unfortunate — he went to the drunkard, the so-called weakling of the world. Well might He have said to us:

Into your weak and feeble hands I have entrusted a Power beyond estimate. To you has been given that which has been denied the most learned of your fellows. Not to scientists or statesmen, not to wives or mothers, not even to my priests and ministers have I given this gift of healing other alcoholics, which I entrust to you. It must be used unselfishly. It carries with it grave responsibility. No day can be too long, no demands upon your time can be too urgent, no case too pitiable, no task too hard, no effort too great. It must be used with Tolerance for I have restricted its application to no race, no creed and no denomination. Personal criticism you must expect, lack of appreciation will be common, ridicule will be your lot, your motives will be misjudged. Success will not always attend your efforts in your work with other alcoholics. You must be prepared for adversity, for what men call adversity is the ladder you must use to ascend the rungs toward Spiritual perfection, and remember in the exercise of this power I shall not exact of you beyond your capabilities.

You are not selected because of exceptional talents and be careful always if success attends your efforts, not to ascribe to personal superiority,  that to which you can lay claim only by virtue of My gift. If I had wanted learned men to accomplish this mission the power would have been entrusted to the physician and scientist. If I had wanted eloquent men there would have been many anxious for the assignment, for talk is the easiest used of all talents with which I have endowed mankind. If I had wanted scholarly men, the world is filled with better qualified than you who would have been available. You were selected because you have been the outcasts of the world and your long experience as a drunkard has made, or should make you humbly alert to the cries of distress that comes from the lonely hearts of alcoholics everywhere. Keep ever in mind the admission that you made on the day of your profession into A.A., namely that you are powerless and that it was only with your willingness to turn your life and will into My keeping, that relief came to you.

Think not, that because that you have been dry for one year or two years, or ten years, that it is the result of your unaided efforts. The help which has kept you normal will keep you so just as long as you live this program, which I have mapped out for you. Beware of the pride which comes from growth, the power of numbers and of invidious comparisons between yourselves; or of your organization with other organizations whose success depends upon members power, money and position. These material things are no part of your creed. The success of material organizations arises out of the strength of their individual members; the success of yours from a common helplessness. The power of material organizations comes from the pooling of joint assets; yours from the union of mutual liabilities. Appeal for membership in material organizations is based upon a boastful recital of their accomplishments; yours upon the humble admission of weakness; the motto of the successful commercial enterprise is: "He profits most who serves best"; yours: "He serves best who seeks no profit."  The wealth of material organizations when they take their inventory is measured by what they have left; yours when you take moral inventory by what you have given”.

This speech led to much criticism by non-alcoholics. Dr Arthur H. Cain wrote an article in a 1963 Harpers Magazine called "Alcoholics Can be Cured — Despite A.A."  One of his complaints was the arrogant "We Were Chosen By God To Save The World" attitude of some of the A.A. members.

AA gives you the choice of the “God of your own understanding”. It is a more spiritual program today since the writing of the Big Book and the subsequent 12 step program. If the word “God” had been replaced with “A Higher Power” or “The Universe”, would their attitudes have changed? 

I know for certain that I would not be in recovery without some kind of Divine Intervention. I also know that to follow the path of recovery, you need to learn tolerance, humility, unconditional love and most of all acceptance of the things you cannot change – that includes others attitudes and opinions.

“You can't let praise or criticism get to you.

It's a weakness to get caught up in either one.”

John Wooden

Who Was The Real Charlie Chaplin?

“A tramp, a gentleman, a poet, a dreamer, a lonely fellow,

always hopeful of romance and adventure”

“I thought I would dress in baggy pants, big shoes, a cane and a derby hat,

everything a contradiction:

the pants baggy, the coat tight, the hat small and the shoes large”

Charlie Chaplin

Charles Spencer Chaplin was born in London, England, on April 16th 1889.  Chaplin's childhood was fraught with poverty and hardship.  His early years were spent with his mother and brother in the London district of Kennington; Hannah had no means of income, other than occasional nursing and dressmaking, and Chaplin Sr. provided no support for his sons. Because of this poverty, Chaplin was sent to a workhouse at seven years old. The council housed him at the Central London District School for paupers, which Chaplin remembered as "a forlorn existence". He was briefly reunited with his mother at nine years old, before Hannah was forced to readmit her family to the workhouse in July 1898. The boys were promptly sent to Norwood Schools, another charity institution.

Chaplin's first stage appearance came at five years old, when he took over from his mother one night in Aldershot. Hannah had been booed off stage, and the manager chose Chaplin, who was standing in the wings, to go on as her replacement. The young boy confidently entertained the crowd, and received laughter and applause.  By age 13 Chaplin had fully abandoned education.   He supported himself with a range of jobs, but said he "never lost sight of my ultimate aim to become an actor."

He went on to acting in firms and eventually directing films, to become one of the greatest performers in our history.  Chaplin received several awards and recognitions during his lifetime, especially during his later career in the 1960s and the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked Chaplin the 10th greatest male screen legend of all time.   In 2008, Martin Sieff, in a review of the book, Chaplin: A Life, wrote: "Chaplin was not just 'big', he was gigantic. In 1915, he burst onto a war-torn world bringing it the gift of comedy, laughter and relief while it was tearing itself apart through World War I. Over the next 25 years, through the Great Depression and the rise of Adolf Hitler, he stayed on the job. ... It is doubtful any individual has ever given more entertainment, pleasure and relief to so many human beings when they needed it the most”.   George Bernard Shaw called Chaplin "the only genius to come out of the movie industry".

In 1975, he was knighted a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth II.

Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin died in his sleep from the complications of a stroke in the early morning of 25 December 1977 at his home in Switzerland.  The funeral, held two days later on 27 December, was a small and private Anglican ceremony, according to his wishes. 

Two months later, on 1 March 1978, Chaplin's coffin was dug up and stolen from its grave by two unemployed mechanics, Polish Roman Wardas and Bulgarian Gantcho Ganev, in an attempt to extort money from Chaplin's widow, Oona Chaplin.   After she refused to pay the ransom, they started to threaten Chaplin's youngest children with violence.  Ganev and Wardas were caught in a large police operation in May, and Chaplin's coffin was found buried in a field in the nearby village of Noville.  It was reburied in the Vevey cemetery under 6 feet (1.8 m) of concrete. In December 1978, Wardas received a sentence of four and a half years' imprisonment and Gantcho a suspended sentence for disturbing the peace of the dead and for the attempt of extortion.

This article was inspired by a poem I found a while ago, expressing self-love, from which we can all learn some real life lessons:

As I Began to Love Myself

A Self- Love Poem by Charlie Chaplin

As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth.

Today, I know, this is “AUTHENTICITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody As I try to force my desires on this person, even though I knew the time was not right and the person was not ready for it, and even though this person was me.

Today I call it “RESPECT”.

As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life, and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.

Today I call it “MATURITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance, I am in the right place at the right time, and everything happens at the exactly right moment. So I could be calm.

Today I call it “SELF-CONFIDENCE”.

As I began to love myself I quit steeling my own time, and I stopped designing huge projects for the future. Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in my own rhythm.

Today I call it “SIMPLICITY”.

As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for my health – food, people, things, situations, and everything the drew me down and away from myself. At first I called this attitude a healthy egoism.

Today I know it is “LOVE OF ONESELF”.

As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right, and ever since I was wrong less of the time.

Today I discovered that is “MODESTY”.

As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worry about the future. Now, I only live for the moment, where EVERYTHING is happening.

Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it “FULFILLMENT”.

As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me and it can make me sick. But As I connected it to my heart, my mind became a valuable ally.

Today I call this connection “WISDOM OF THE HEART”.

We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems with ourselves or others. Even stars collide, and out of their crashing new worlds are born.

Today I know THAT IS “LIFE !

It has always been assumed that the reason that made the character so memorable had its origins in his father's tragic early death from alcoholism and his own incarceration in an orphanage at the age of seven.   But now a new book, Chaplin: A Life, written by the renowned psychiatrist Dr Stephen Weissman claims that the real source of Chaplin's sorrow, and therefore his creative juices, was not so much the loss of his feckless father, but the terrible untold story of his beautiful mother, Hannah.

Instead of being the loving and glamorous parent Chaplin always claimed she had been, new evidence suggests that Hannah - a minor music hall star who performed under the name of Lily Harley - spent part of her youth working as a prostitute with tragic long-term consequences.  Weissman claims that she contracted syphilis - a disease not readily curable in the late 19th century - and that it triggered a harrowing descent into madness, witnessed by the young Chaplin who would never be able to forget it.  

According to one of Chaplin’s mistresses, silent film star Louise Brooks, it left him so scarred he would never have sex without first painting the appropriate part of his body with iodine to try to prevent any possible infection.  Hannah's fate was so horrible that, until now, Chaplin biographers have fought shy of revealing the details. 

He adored his mother, recalling her as dainty and beautiful with violet eyes and fair hair so long that she could sit on it. He loved the way she dressed him in velvet and remembered fondly how she would enact imaginary scenes from the life of one of her many heroines, the 17th century courtesan Nell Gwyn, mistress of Charles II.  But Hannah was not the fashionable actress or the faithful wife that her young son had imagined.   Hannah had three boys by three different men, but had managed to fall out with all their fathers.  

She was eventually forced to take stage jobs in ever smaller theatres to feed her two other children. She even had to pawn her glamorous stage gowns to pay the rent.  Her faltering career finally ground to a halt one night when her singing voice cracked and sank to a whisper in the middle of her act and the audience cruelly laughed her off stage.  Charlie, aged five, was listening in the wings, appalled by her humiliation. But, already a talented mimic, the little boy took his mother's place under the spotlight and finished her act.  

Obsessed with her failing health she took up religion in an attempt to find a cure. Now, instead of going on stage, she would spend her evenings acting out scenes from the Bible for her boys at home.  In 1898 she was diagnosed as syphilitic and suffering from the violent psychotic episodes characteristic of the tertiary stage of the disease.  Left untreated, the disease took such a toll on Chaplin's mother that by the time she was 35 she was confined to the grim Cane Hill Lunatic Asylum on the outskirts of London, where she had to be kept in a padded room.

Her income was now supplemented by Charlie's father, who had begun to take his paternal responsibilities more seriously.  Young Charlie, too, was encouraged to contribute to the family income by doing what he loved best - performing.  Once more, however, his happiness was to be short-lived.   In 1901, his father died of cirrhosis of the liver, aged just 37, and was buried in a pauper's grave.

Notorious for his under-age mistresses and pilloried for his left wing views, Charlie Chaplin will forever be remembered for his tear-jerking performances as the vulnerable Little Tramp - the icon he created in silent movie days - the endearing figure with his bowler hat, cane and slapstick routines was inspired by Chaplin's poverty stricken childhood in the grim back-streets of Victorian London and the British music halls where he first performed.

And so, as they say, never read a book by its cover.  Behind the fame of Charlie Chaplin was a life of torment and sadness.  We can see this in his quotations, a few to follow:

“We think too much and feel too little”

 “I am at peace with God. My conflict is with Man”

“Life could be wonderful if people would leave you alone”

“To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it”

“Nothing is permanent in this wicked world - not even our troubles”

 “Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself”

Related articles:

Wikipedia: Charlie Chaplin

Charlie Chaplin : Official Website

The Dark Secrets about Charlie Chaplin

Books:

My Life In Pictures

My Life with Chaplin: An Intimate Memoir

Chaplin: A life

A South African Tragedy

"There can be no doubt that the average man blames much more than he praises.

His instinct is to blame.

If he is satisfied he says nothing; if he is not, he most illogically kicks up a row"

Golda Meir

Solly became a media sensation after the online community anti-crime organisation eblockwatch asked its members for help to rescue him.   The hippo's mother reportedly gave birth recently, and more dominant males forced him from the herd.  He is believed to have been chased by a larger bull hippo from his local dam ending up trapped in the 8-foot-deep  guest swimming pool at the Monate Game Lodge, near Modimolle, Nylstroom.   Although he was able to swim freely, he couldn't get out because the pool had no steps.

The hippo was named Solly after one of his caregivers.  Solly Sibuyi, 30, who has been a game warden at the lodge for nine years, has been feeding the 4-year-old hippo and checking up on him before and after game drives to make sure "he's still okay”.

On Thursday, two days later, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said a team was preparing to recover the hippo from the pool and transfer him to another dam in the area.  Simon Prinsloo, of Nylsvlei Game Dealers, had said that Solly would be darted with a tranquilliser. Once it had taken effect, the hippo would be blindfolded and strapped into a harness. A crane would then hoist the animal out of the swimming pool.

By early Friday, the hippo was showing signs of stress and was no longer able to stand in the pool, which had been drained of most of its water in preparation for the rescue.  Lying in the murky, feces-strewn water, he emerged occasionally for air, sighing anxiously as he gazed at journalists gathering around the pool.  While the lodge worked to care for the animal, there was no getting away from the fact that pool was not a natural environment for Solly.  Then, just as veterinarian Dr. Alex Lewis arrived, apparently 4 hours late, the hippo tried one last time to get to his feet. He couldn't make it. Exhausted, he dropped his head into the knee-deep water, making a splash, then lay still.

What started out as a day of hope for Solly the hippo turned to tragedy when rescuers were unable to save the 3-ton beast from the swimming pool.

Solly's demise left several of those involved pointing fingers of blame.   Dr Alex Lewis was blamed for his death, accused of being four hours late for the ‘rescue operation’, at which time the animal died from stress. Alex had avoided blaming others in his interviews with the press that day; instead fingers were pointed at him in the newspaper articles that followed.

The Vet’s explanation

Months earlier the farm’s management became aware of this young hippo bull being chased away from the group by the dominant male and losing weight. He was unable to access the only dam on the property and the nutrition available to him was inadequate for the stress he was experiencing, and he progressively lost condition. Last week the hippo found water and protection in the lodge swimming pool. A local game capture company offered to catch him free of charge provided that the farm obtained the necessary permits. The farm declined the offer as they wanted to be paid for the hippo and the permits were never obtained.

Alex has extensive experience in working with hippo and was called out to assess the situation. All he could see was two nostrils emerging every eight minutes.  It is hard for the public to appreciate the challenge of a wildlife vet to make an assessment of the hippo’s health from its nostrils and the history alone. A normal healthy hippo should not fall into a swimming pool. Filling the pool with sand bags to allow him to walk out was not a good option. He would still end up as a problem animal in conflict with the group. Darting him in the pool was also not an option as the tranquilizer dart could kill him due to his poor condition. Statistically 35% of healthy hippos die when tranquilized. Alex decided that the best chance Solly had would be to remove all human activity from the pool area and make it his temporary home. If he wasn't disturbed, he could settle down and get used to it. He would be fed good food until he could gain strength, rehydrate and stand a better chance of surviving translocation.

Solly began to settle down by the second day and consumed good quantities of quality food. His attitude and energy levels steadily progressed. Although the plan was working so far, there was still a possibility that he could die in the days to come as his health and wound status was still unknown.  Some emotional uninformed individuals then began adding pressure not to leave the hippo to ‘suffer’ in the pool any longer. People often get so caught up in saving the animal they forget about all it has to undergo – the dart, the transport, adjusting to his new home and not eating well for the first week there. Alex however deals with wildlife daily and he knows that rushing this process is never successful.

The farm management lost all control of the situation by allowing themselves to get bullied by the press and others. Alex was unaware that the hippo was being harassed or he would have taken drastic measures to intervene. Little did he know that he would arrive to a circus scene that had begun hours before. Over 40 people surrounded the animal trying to take pictures. Noisy machinery was brought in to drain the pool in order to get better pictures. The excuse given for this was that they drained the water in preparation of Alex’s arrival, ‘who was then late’. The tranquilization was not scheduled for that day and at no point had Alex given this instruction! He was still busy treating other animals when he realised what was happening to Solly. A representative from Nature Conservation who was on the scene, did nothing to control the crowd.

Solly started mock charging the people surrounding him, eventually slipping on his side as the water level dropped. He then kept trying to stand up on the slimy floor and kept falling, smashing against the swimming pool sides. He got weaker and weaker and died a few minutes before Alex arrived.

The Vet questions: “At what point did people think it was OK to gather so closely around a wild animal for hours, drain his water and make a lot of noise, before the vet and translocation trailer could even get there? Don't they think that a wild animal should be tranquilized before doing all these stressful things to it? How can human emotion override all common sense? How does greed for a good story take priority over saving an animal’s life? How is the veterinary profession ever to be respected when the media can't report the truth about our vets and take responsibility for their carelessness?”   Solly got chased and harassed to death by the paparazzi but the vet gets blamed!

So who do you think was at fault?  My comment:

Learn to admit your mistakes

before someone exaggerates the story!

  

Article references:

Solly the Hippo dies

Solly the Hippo dies in South African rescue effort

Solly the Hippo dies of a heart attack

Bites, Megabites and Gigabites

“If you think you’re too small to make a difference

You haven’t spent a night with a mosquito”

African Proverb

It is spring here in South Africa, my favourite time of the year.  The flowers are blooming, the birds are tweeting and it is just hot enough to enjoy the weather.  Spring is also the time for showers of rain and if water gets trapped and left stagnant, a lot of mosquitos can breed.

Well last night for some reason we were inundated with mossies – small ones, big ones and the great big irritating ones that sound like aeroplanes.   After going around the house turning off all the lights and using two cans of mosquito repellant, not healthy for the plants, the dogs and the fish, I managed to kill off the majority of them.  Of course when the lights went back on, more came in.

Then I remembered a couple of little candles I had in my back cupboard for use when we sit outside.  I lit up the flames, put them next to the open doors and, Bobs your Auntie, they were gone.

So no wasting money on poisonous chemical sprays from now on unless for an emergency, I will now buy citronella candles.  The have a beautiful yellow colour and smell like lemon.  I decided to find out more about citronella just to make sure how safe it was.

Citronella oil is a volatile oil which is distilled using steam from the greenish blue, lemon-scented leaves and stem of the plant Cymbopogon nardus (Ceylon citronella) or Cymbopogon winteratus (Java type citronella) and the main constituents being citronellal and geraniol. It is a colourless or light yellow liquid with a characteristic woody, grassy or lemony odour. 

Citronella oil may be harmful if ingested in quantity and may irritate the skin and eye. However, it is not believed to be hazardous to humans, including children and those with sensitive skin, if used according to label instructions.  Citronella oil has minimal or no risk to wildlife and environment due to its toxic levels being low and its use being limited. Therefore, it can be used around the home with no expected adverse effects.

Uses of Citronella oil include:

Ø  Insect repellant

Ø  Animal collars and tags to repel fleas

Ø  To calm barking dogs

Ø  Muscle and joint pain relief

Ø  Nervous fatigue in aromatherapy

Ø  Migraines and headaches in aromatherapy

Ø  Astringent for oily skin

Ø  A base for perfume oils

Apparently the plants grow in South Africa – that will be my next gardening experiment !

Tonight my candles are burning and the only bytes I am going to receive will be on my computer !!

If you need any more info on this, buzz me !!!!

A New Month, A New Challenge

“The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.”

Abraham Lincoln

Today is the first day of October 2012 and the beginning of my second Ultimate Blogging Challenge.  Life is pretty weird sometimes.  I have been short of work in my accounting business and last week I received a call from a local guest house to quote on doing their books and the bottle store down the road (cough – I buy my cigarettes there) needs an accountant.  My son has taken me on to do cold calling for his business and expects me to make at least 100 phone calls a day.  To top it all I have the flu and should be in bed! 

Life goes on regardless and I am looking forward to sharing ideas, reading other posts and somewhere along the road, making new and amazing friends.

I am hoping to give you a wealth of information on recovery and these are the topics I intend to follow over the next 31 days:

Mondays:                    Transformation strategies

Tuesdays:                   Health tips                  

Wednesdays:              Recovery news and opinion posts

Thursdays:                  Self- improvement

Fridays:                      Recovery in general

Saturdays:                  The 12 step program

Sundays:                    Life principles

I would be so pleased if anyone has any other ideas they would like me to cover.  Your comments below will be so appreciated.

Here’s to a great challenge!

“Whatever you are, be a good one.”

Abraham Lincoln