Category Archives: health

That moment that will stick in your mind

A few weeks ago I was travelling back from Orange with a work colleague, she was driving and I was happily chatting away, admiring the scenery, looking at the paddocks, the hills, the fencelines when I registered that there was a bent fence post. I had that momentary thought of ‘why is that fencepost bent, it shouldn’t be‘, then I registered the rest of the image, there was a car against it, that’s why it’s bent, then I processed that there was a lady in the driver’s seat and she did not look conscious. There were no other people or cars pulled up, so I told my work colleague ‘I think we need to stop‘, we pulled over, turned around and went back. At the same time, so did the two cars on the highway in front of us.

It was all very surreal, I called the ambulance and the lady on the phone talked us through the whole process of checking for breathing, she wasn’t, we had to get her out of the car and start compressions. I did not find it at all helpful when the operator told us we would do 400 compressions before the ambulance arrived, so I chose not to tell my work colleague that bit. The blokes that had pulled up were not overly helpful, and we just tried to block them out and focus on counting and listening for breathing, while continuing compressions. To cut a long story short it felt like an eternity before the ambulance arrived, when in reality it probably wasn’t, the police and ambulance officers took over, it did not look promising, they were still doing compressions as they loaded her in the ambulance.

We know that this lady was airlifted to a hospital, but beyond that we have not heard any more. I do not know her name or if she survived, I hope she did, and I am taking no news as good news.

Today I drove back past the scene of her accident, I was alone and I felt sad and sick. I thought that I would be OK, but I wasn’t quite, I realised that, that moment, when I was admiring fenceposts rather than looking straight ahead has changed things, that moment and that place will stick with me for a very long time.

I am not writing this for a ‘good job you’ or any such thing, I am writing to say that if you see something that doesn’t seem quite right, don’t just keep driving or walking, stop and investigate because you could just make a difference as to whether a person is alone and not given a chance or whether they get a shot at fighting for life.

It is also a good thing to keep your first aid certificate up to date, I know mine isn’t and it’s now on my to do list to get it updated, you just never know when you might need it.

Locking the Gate

A few weeks ago Muddy Hubby and I went to an information session organised by local members of our community who are concerned about the fact that Coal Seam Gas Mining is coming to our shire. I knew a little bit about it, I’d seen a story on ABC’s Four Corners and done some reading of emails coming through. The night was informative, it was worrying, it was thought provoking. The evening did not try to brainwash us, in fact the organisers encouraged attendees to go away and do their own reading to further gain an understanding of Coal Seam Gas Mining and the impact it can have on our water, our land, our health and our future and make their own decisions about whether it’s something we want to allow into our community and onto our land.

The more I read, the more concerned I get. We now have a No Coal Seam Gas group formed in the shire and people are coming together as a community to say to No Coal Seam Gas Mining. Muddy Hubby and I have decided that for us we would like to Lock Our Gate to Coal Seam Gas Mining, however there is nothing to stop the Gas Companies approaching our neighbours and if they say yes, you can come and put down a well on our place, the gas companies then have capacity to firstly drill down and then across to under our land. This is why it’s so important that our community unites on this, so that as a whole we can Lock Our Gate and keep the water and land safe for future generations.

One of the worrying things is that science has not yet caught up to the mining companies, we don’t largely know what the long term effects are. The CSIRO has information on their website about the basics, but the long-term impact has not yet been able to be studied, yet despite this the government allows the Gas Companies to continue, even with indications being that the long-term impacts are negative. One of the best sources of information is the ABC, here, they even have a map that shows you where there are coal seam gas mines, exploration licences and pilot wells for possible future sites, it was a definite eye-opener for me.

I am however only one person, with my opinion, but if you’re like me and there is the possibility of them coming onto your land or into your area, make sure you do some reading and be informed.

Bootcamp Week 2

Oh My Goodness I am sore this week! Princess Pain worked us hard this week, I don’t think there was one person in our group who was not red faced, lathered in sweat and feeling like they’d had a great workout! Because really when you have that red faced, sweaty look going on, you actually feel like you’ve worked hard and are getting somewhere. At least I do anyway!

This week’s session was based around boxing with cardio activities thrown in between each set. My sparring partner was away so I got to have a catch up with another Mum, not that you really have time (or breath) for talking, but it was good to mix it up a bit.

My nemesis this week was not the ‘Mountain Climber’ but the ‘Burpee’. After sets of boxing I just didn’t have the oomph for full blown ‘Burpees’, but I did give it my best shot! The thing I’m loving about Bootcamp is that while she’s tough she also knows your limitations and doesn’t push you past them unless you want to push yourself. It’s this that actually makes me want to push myself harder, stretch those limits and actually see what my body can do after all these years of inactivity.

Now to make sure I’m on track with my meal planning to try and marry the two together. The morning rush to the school bus and preschool and day care drop out has thrown me a bit out of whack, so I may just have to start my meal planning for a whole week rather than just the whole day, now that will be a challenge for me!

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How’s your exercise going? Do you have a Bootcamp Commando?