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Written by Geoff Saavedra
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Thursday, 25 February 2010 20:37 |
I am hispanic... latino... of South American descent. My family comes from Ecuador. I have brown skin.
It's not something that I've ever really noticed. I can't ever remember feeling any prejudice. I don't know whether it's because when I was in grade school I was a Heavy Metal kid, because I never had a "typical" hispanic accent, or because I as always so tall and, apparently, mean looking. For whatever reason, I never felt apart from the world. Skin color was never an issue.
When I married my wife, Pauline, skin color never came up. What did come up was something else that was funny- Pauline's mother was scared that I might steal Pauline away... to Mexico! Because, apparently, all...
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Written by Geoff Saavedra
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Sunday, 21 February 2010 20:28 |
My mother left a comment in my Blog Re-Post about the Losartan Trials (Losartan vs Atenolol Trials). After talking with my wife about it and the Re-Post, along with my introduction, I felt that I needed to write this.
Although we have decided that we would never enter Samantha or Olivia in a drug trial, both my wife and I would like to thank those parents who do.
My mother does not believe in animal testing, nor in human testing. And, though I completely understand her view on that, I have to say that I don't understand how it would be possible to make any type of scientific advancement. There is the arguement that testing can be done in the lab, but there are so many unkown variables going on in the human body that just cannot...
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Losartan vs Atenolol Trials |
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Written by Geoff Saavedra
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Monday, 15 February 2010 13:57 |
I took Losartan for about one month before my last surgery, and I am currently taking Atenolol. However, even before I took the Beta blockers, my wife and I decided that we would do everything possible to avoid having our children (should they be diagnosed with Marfan) take Beta Blockers.
Having said that, I do also believe that everyone has to make their own decisions for their own family. I also believe in doing what I can to help out the Marfan Foundation. A fellow Marfan Blogger has posted the following blog, which I am reposting with permission. The original can be found at http://marfmom.wordpress.com/2010/02/15/losartan-vs-atenolol-trial/. I strongly suggest checking out her Musings of a Marfan...
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Written by Geoff Saavedra
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Sunday, 14 February 2010 07:09 |
My oldest daughter, Samantha, and I have a very tumultuous relationship. I don't know if it's because I am male and she's female, I'm her father, or, as Pauline has pointed out, because she has the exact same energy as my mother... maybe it's all three; add on that I'm the one that's with her 24 hours a day.
For meals, Samantha, Olivia and I sit at our table. We eat just about every meal together. Three days out of the week, Samantha is at Pre-School for lunch, and Pauline is only home for meals on the weekend. At the table, Samantha sits across from me and Olivia sits on my left.
This week, I have just realized that I have not been looking at Samantha in the eyes. I've been looking at Olivia much more. It's not that I...
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Written by Geoff Saavedra
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Tuesday, 09 February 2010 10:40 |
I received my CPAP machine last Thursday. CPAP stands for Continuous Positive Airway Pressure.
So, when you have Sleep Apnea, your muscles stop working at some point during the night and collapse, preventing air from entering your lungs. When most people start breathing again, they snore with the inhalation- I don't, I just start breathing again. Someone I follow on Facebook says her husband (now deceased) used to have such a bad case of Sleep Apnea that his throat would actually bleed.
The therapy for Sleep Apnea is to basically blow air into your trachea to keep the muscles inflated. I went to the Sleep Lab to be evaluated for what air pressure to use. Luckily, I, apparently, only need a low setting. I can't imagine what...
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