Firstday Today

Before she was a mother she was a single, working woman. She enjoyed her carefree life. She went to work, came home, made herself something to eat, chatted on the phone with friends, and went out wherever she wanted at whatever hour. When people asked her if she would marry and have children one day, she may have said yes to marriage, but no to children. The mere thought took her to a time when she cried far too often as a child wishing nothing more than to escape her dysfunctional family. She just didn’t want to be bothered comforting a child that may or may not grow up with the same worries and fears that she had, it was a gamble that she never wanted to take.

But then along came a man whom she fell in love and unexpectedly she became pregnant. It was then that she said goodbye to everything that she had ever known. Now she is embarking into a new journey, all the while persuading herself to accept motherhood despite her bitter feelings about it. “A mother says this, a mother does that,” she tells herself. Then she looks to other women, books, TV, and radio for every answer that mother’s intuition doesn’t give her.

This realization of having to crucify the old her and become the new her was the start of her crisis. There are those women who suffer with midlife and menopausal crisis, but there are others like the new mother in this story who go from being a single, career-oriented, independent super woman of sorts to becoming a single mother vulnerable, lonely, and confused. A young woman who thought of children as nothing more than “cute”, now has to face the reality that spreadsheets, books, meetings, dating, and entertaining will have to be replaced with parenting books, doctors’ appointments, diapers, baby bottles, bibs, and much, much more!

Her family that she had no time for when she was busy studying for exams, winning accolades, and hanging out with friends, is now an all too important support system. Without her family, friends, co-workers, church, government and strangers, she thinks, she could be like some of the women she read about or watched on television talk shows that became so emotionally and physically drained with the responsibility of caring for their children that one day they just snapped!

The mother who loses her job because of her pregnancy, the family who doesn’t like her choice in a man, the abusive partner who didn’t want a baby, religious leaders who will not accept childbearing outside of wedlock and so many other issues have sent many mothers to the mental institution or to their graves with broken hearts and tears.

As her baby becomes bigger in her womb, she reflects on those simpler days when it was just “Me, Myself and I” like a chocolate craving, she yearns for the life she use to have. Her friends tell her, “Get over it.” She goes into hiding, “they are no comfort,” she tells herself. So she doesn’t bother answering the phone anymore, they no longer have too much in common with her these days anyway.

The crying child, the unsupportive partner, the negative attitude of relatives, and the distance of friends have all contributed to her motherhood crisis. Other mothers like her never planned on having children either, but had them anyway knowing that they had yet to get over those very serious feelings of resentment, something that a mother who has accepted her role will never understand that is why she says things to unhappy mothers that cause more harm than good, “You should be happy. Children are from God. Just think of all the women who can’t have children…” While these mothers act as if they don’t have a clue as to why the new mother feels depressed about how drastic her life has changed, some of these well-meaning mothers forgot or failed to mention how they struggled when they too first heard the news about their own unplanned pregnancies, they put on fake smiles too, all the while thinking, “I don’t want this.”

Unlike her sisters who could bravely undergo an operation to rid themselves of something they couldn’t handle, the new mother on the other hand, had her child and wished she hadn’t. Although she doesn’t look like the type, whatever “the type” maybe she doesn’t want children, she quite honestly doesn’t want hers so she is weighing all her options. But she can’t tell anyone, because no one would understand. She is a mother crying on the inside every day, because she didn’t want children. She doesn’t feel the honor of being a mother, the love of a mother, the insight of a mother, the compassion of a mother, she feels nothing but numb. She almost feels like she has been raped by a God who made her a mother even though she prayed, “Please don’t!”

People around her mistake her eyes of tears for eyes of joy. What does she feel joyful about when it’s hard for her to see the goodness of motherhood? The same God she feels has raped her will have to be the same God who will have to open her eyes to the joys of parenting. Many mothers are pained inside that they even feel this way, but it’s hard when all they can see is another mouth to feed, another invite they have to pass up, another job offer they have to turn down because of childcare hours, another man who doesn’t want to date her because she has a child, another memory of a past she would rather forget, and so many “anothers” too long to mention here.

What can you say or do for a new mother whose mind is in this state without being critical or bragging about how great you feel about being a mother? She isn’t you or maybe you are her and have only been deceiving yourself for years. “I love children, but they can’t touch my things, play on my furniture,or bother me,” some women say. “I love children, but don’t expect me to watch my grandchildren,” some grandparents say. “I love children, but I can’t wait until they get older so they can move out of my house!” many mothers say. Get my point?

Now that the new mother has given birth to her baby, she feels somewhat at ease, but still subconsciously she is hoping to have a speedy recovery and get back to work. Her child makes her disgruntled mother open her eyes more and more to the world around her, she starts to see other mothers like her, still disappointed with the choices they made in life including letting their unborn children live. She questions those spankings mothers give their children, “Could it be that they really aren’t disciplining them, but hating them for their very existence?” What about those curse words they bestow upon their children, “Could it be that the child reminds her of a poor choice she made years ago while dating?” What about those evil stares she gives her child when she thinks no one is looking? “Could it be the child represents her lost freedom?”

While I, you or anyone who knows a mother similar to the one in this article grappling with her role, avoid the temptation to pass judgment, some of us could be considered delusional look at the way some mothers talk the talk of loving their children, but aren’t walking the walk. Maybe this disappointed mother is representative of our truth and we are just too scared, busy, worried, or ignorant to bother with it? I would have said too content to worry over it as well, but it wouldn’t make sense since this article is not written for content mothers.

Maybe our depressed sister in motherhood is more in touch with herself than we think and all she needs is someone to show her where she can find her peace of mind.

(This is an excerpt from a new book on motherhood coming out in 2009 on Amazon entitled, “When Mothers Cry” by Nicholl McGuire.)

Analog and Digital

As a technology, analog is the process of taking an audio or video signal (the human voice) and translating it into electronic pulses. Digital on the other hand is breaking the signal into a binary format where the audio or video data is represented by a series of “1″s and “0″s. Simple enough when it’s the deviceanalog or digital phone, fax, modem, or likewisethat does all the converting for you.

Digital versus analog can refer to method of input, data storage and transfer, the internal working of an instrument, and the kind of display. The word comes from the same source as the word digit and digitus.

The digital technology breaks your voice (or television) signal into binary code a series of 1s and 0s transfers it to the other end where another device (phone, modem or TV) takes all the numbers and reassembles them into the original signal. The beauty of digital is that it knows what it should be when it reaches the end of the transmission. That way, it can correct any errors that may have occurred in the data transfer. What does all that mean to you? Clarity. In most cases, you’ll get distortion-free conversations and clearer TV pictures. The nature of digital technology allows it to cram lots of those 1s and 0s together into the same space an analog signal uses. Like your button-rich phone at work or your 200-plus digital cable service, that means more features can be crammed into the digital signal. Digital offers better clarity, but analog gives you richer quality. Digital like the VCR or the CD is coming down in cost and coming out in everything from cell phones to satellite dishes.

Phone lines

Digital lines are found in large, corporate phone systems. Though digital lines carry lower voltages than analog lines, they still pose a threat to your analog equipment.

Analog lines also referred to as POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service), support standard phones, fax machines, and modems. These are the lines typically found in your home or small office

There are digital-to-analog adapters that not only let you use analog equipment in a digital environment, but also safeguard against frying the internal circuitry of your phone, fax, modem, or laptop.

Cordless phone

The very nature of digital technologybreaking a signal into binary code and recreating it on the receiving endgives you clear, distortion-free cordless calls.

Cordless phones with digital technology are also able to encrypt all those 1s and 0s during transmission so your conversation is safe from eavesdroppers. Plus, more power can be applied to digital signals and thus, you’ll enjoy longer range on your cordless phone conversations.

The advantage to analog cordless products? Well, they’re a bit cheaper. And the sound quality is richer. So unless you need digital security, why not save a few bucks and go with an analog phone? After all, in home or small office environments where you may be the only cordless user, you won’t have any interference issues.

Keep in mind, when talking about digital and analog cordless phones, you’re talking about the signals being transferred between the handset and its base. The phones themselves are still analog devices that can only be used on analog lines. Also, the range of your cordless phoneanalog or digitalwill always depend on the environment.

Cellular Phones

Perhaps the most effective use of the digital versus analog technology is in the booming cellular market. With new phone activations increasing exponentially, the limits of analog are quickly being realized.

Digital cellular lets significantly more people use their phones within a single coverage area. More data can be sent and received simultaneously by each phone user. Plus, transmissions are more resistant to static and signal fading. And with the all-in-one phones out nowphone, pager, voice mail, internet accessdigital phones offer more features than their analog predecessors.

Analog’s sound quality is still superioras some users with dual-transmission phones will manually switch to analog for better sound when they’re not concerned with a crowded coverage areabut digital is quickly becoming the norm in the cellular market.

Better Sound Quality

Digital offers a better quality of sound. Proponents of digital claimed too that because digital scrambled up the signals into bursts, it was more secure than analog and can help thwart “cloning,” an act of grabbing phone account information over the air in order to copy then resell that information for piracy purposes. By some industry estimates, close to $650 million in wireless services has been coveted by these big-eared crooks, which only adds onto the operator’s bottom line a cost that is eventually passed on to the customer. Digital has stronger battery life than analog, and for the most part, better, more modern features on the phones.

Multivitamins – who uses them? Well, you probably do, Americans spend $4,000,000,000 a year on multivitamins alone. 70 % Australians are no less keen on them, spending a tiny $2,300,000,000, and yes … that is a ton of zeros!!

Who needs them? Well the number of people that can say that every day they honestly eat a well-balanced diet of containing lots of fruits, nuts and vegetables, whole grains, dairy, along with chicken and fish is not just low, it is merely non-existent. Of the people who think they are doing well, most do not realize the sheer quantities that have to be consumed to maintain that ‘well-balanced diet’.

Okay, so almost everyone needs a multivitamin, but which one to choose? Having 30,000+ vitamins on the market presents so much choice it normally is a case of finding the bottle you think looks the nicest … or the cheapest. After all, a vitamin is a vitamin right?

Fortunately, 7 Canadian and American biochemists have come to rescue us from our ignorance. They looked at and compared what is in each of these multivitamins by separating and measuring each ingredient – that is, vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and other components.

They put together the ‘perfect’ multivitamin, which actually does not exist as some vitamins needs to be taken separately and it would be the size of large chestnut, and rather difficult to swallow!

They examined how absorbable the vitamins were, whether they were in the right amounts/form and the variety of vitamins and minerals. Also looked at was having the vitamins in the right combinations for the body’s needs. The score was how close each one was to that perfect multivitamin out of 100%.

In order of importance;

Nutritional Supplements %

USANA Health Sciences Essentials……………………………….. 73.7

Solgar Omnium ……………………………………………….. 56.5

Thorne Research Al’s Formula ………………………………….. 46.9

Clinicians Vitamin and Mineral Boost……………………………. 45.1

NFS Nutraceuticals Ultimate Sports Multi ……………………….. 44.5

Thorne Research Basic Nutrients V ……………………………… 44.4

Thorne Research Basic Nutrients III ……………………………. 38.7

Solgar VM-2000……………………………………………….. 37.9

Pharmanex Lifepak ……………………………………………. 28.1

Amway NutriWay Double X ………………………………………. 27.3

GNC LiveWell Women’s Ultra Mega ……………………………….. 26.1

Pharmanex Lifepak Women ………………………………………. 25.6

BioCeuticals Multi Essentials …………………………………. 25.3

Pharmalliance OxiChel…………………………………………. 24.8

Neways Orachel ………………………………………………. 24.1

Solgar Formula VM-75 …………………………………………. 23.1

Radiance Multi-Power …………………………………………. 22.6

Nutra Life Active Men’s Multi………………………………….. 22.3

GNC LiveWell Mega Men ………………………………………… 21.2

Pharmanex Lifepak Prime ………………………………………. 21.0

Nature’s Sunshine Supplemental Vitamins & Minerals……………….. 20.6

Thompson’s Multifort …………………………………………. 17.5

Nature’s Way Mega Multi ………………………………………. 17.1

Thompson’s Immunofort ………………………………………… 16.9

Nutra Life Active Women’s Multi Plus …………………………… 16.4

Eagle Tresos B PluSe …………………………………………. 16.4

Nature’s Way Women’s Energy Mega Multivitamin……………………. 16.4

Pharm-a-Care Women’s Mega Strength MultiVitamins ………………… 16.4

Bioglan Women’s Complete Multi Compex ………………………… 16.4

Pretorius Women’s Live Better Multi Vitamin & Mineral ……………. 16.3

Kordel’s Men’s Multi (without Iron) ……………………………. 15.4

Nutrition Care Formula SF88 …………………………………… 15.1

Blackmores Women’s Vitality Multi ……………………………… 14.1

Metagenics Multigenics ……………………………………….. 14.1

Red Seal Women’s Multi………………………………………… 14.0

Nature’s Own Daily Multi Peak Performance ………………………. 14.0

Mannatech GlycoLEAN Catalyst ………………………………….. 13.9

Natural Nutrition Mega Potency Women’s Multi Vitamin with Selenium … 13.7

Nature’s Sunshine Mega-Chel …………………………………… 13.5

Metagenics Multigenics Phyto Plus ……………………………… 13.5

Blackmores Women’s Multi & Evening Primrose Oil …………………. 13.4

Natural Nutrition Mega Potency Fifty Plus Multi Vitamins …………. 13.4

Blackmores Sustained Release Women’s Multi Vitamins & Minerals ……. 13.3

Natural Nutrition Mega Potency Men’s Multi Vitamin with Selenium ….. 13.3

Red Seal Men’s Multi …………………………………………. 13.3

Pharm-a-Care Men’s Mega Strength Multi-Vitamin ………………….. 11.7

Bioglan Men’s Complete Multi Complex …………………………… 11.6

Nature’s Way Men’s Energy Mega Multi-Vitamin Iron-Free …………… 11.6

Blackmores Sustained Release Multi Vitamins and Minerals …………. 11.5

Swisse Women’s Ultivite Formula 1 ……………………………… 11.5

Pluravit Time-Release Multi …………………………………… 11.5

Thompson’s Men’s Multi with Antioxidants ……………………….. 11.3

Herbs of Gold Executive Multi Vitamin & Mineral …………………. 11.1

Golden Glow Senior’s One-A-Day Multi …………………………… 11.1

Swisse Women’s Ultivite No Iron or Iodine ………………………. 10.9

Swisse Men’s Ultivite Formula 1 ……………………………….. 10.8

Blackmores Sustained Release Multi Vitamins & Minerals + Selenium …. 10.7

Melaleuca Vitality for Women ………………………………….. 10.6

Reliv Now …………………………………………………… 10.4

Nature’s Own Multivitamin Plus Omega 3 Fish Oil …………………. 9.1

Avon VitAdvance Women’s Complete II ……………………………. 9.1

Good Health Men’s Multi-Plus ………………………………….. 9.1

Pharma Foods Pharma Day with Selenium ………………………….. 8.7

Herbalife Formula 3 ………………………………………….. 8.7

Kordel’s Women’s Multi Plus EPO ……………………………….. 8.6

Cenovis Mega Multi …………………………………………… 8.4

Thompson’s Femmefort …………………………………………. 8.3

Microgenics Mega Multivitamin …………………………………. 8.0

Melaleuca Vitality for Men ……………………………………. 7.5

Reliv Classic ……………………………………………….. 7.5

Nutrition Care Formula 33SE …………………………………… 7.4

Microgenics Women’s Pro Active Multi Vitamin ……………………. 6.8

Golden Glow Super One-A-Day …………………………………… 6.7

Herron Clinical Nutrition Men’s Multi-Vitamin & Minerals …………. 6.2

Blackmores Men’s Performance Multi ………………………….
…. 6.2

Good Health Women’s Multi-Plus ………………………………… 6.0

Vitaplex Professional One a Day Multivitamin ……………………. 5.0

New Vision Essential Vitamins …………………………………. 4.7

Centrum Select 50+ …………………………………………… 4.3

Amway NutriWay Daily …………………………………………. 4.2

Microgenics Men’s Essential Multivitamin ……………………….. 4.1

Myadec Gold A-Z Guard ………………………………………… 4.0

Red Seal Total Multi with Minerals …………………………….. 3.9

Centrum Complete from A to Zinc ……………………………….. 3.9

Cenovis 50+ Multi ……………………………………………. 3.8

Guardian Women’s Multi Vitamins & Minerals………………………. 3.6

Herron Clinical Nutrition One-a-Day Women’s Multi-Vitamns & Minerals . 3.6

Cenovis Multivitamin and Minerals………………………………. 3.4

Amcal One-A-Day………………………………………………. 3.3

Berocca Performance ………………………………………….. 3.2

Healtheries Women’s Multi (AU) ………………………………… 3.2

Cenovis Women’s Multi ………………………………………… 3.1

Nature’s Own Daily Multi Essentials ……………………………. 3.1

Pluravit Women ………………………………………………. 3.1

Golden Glow Women’s One-a-Day Multi ……………………………. 3.1

Blackmores Multi + Gingko for 55+ ……………………………… 3.0

Pluravit 50 Plus …………………………………………….. 3.0

Healtheries Women’s Multi (NZ) ………………………………… 2.7

Hivita LiquiVita …………………………………………….. 2.6

Red Seal One-a-Day Multi & Minerals ……………………………. 2.6

Amcal Multivitamin & Mineral Effervescent……………………….. 2.6

Golden Glow Men’s One-a-Day Multi ……………………………… 2.5

Bioglan Daily Plus Max ……………………………………….. 2.5

Cenovis Men’s Multi ………………………………………….. 2.5

Myadec Multivitamins and Minerals ……………………………… 2.4

Nature’s Own Multivitamin & Mineral ……………………………. 2.4

Herron Clinical Nutrition All-in-One Multi-Vitamin & Mineral ……… 2.1

Guardian Multi Vitamins & Minerals Hi Potency …………………… 2.1

Advocare Macro-Mineral Complex ………………………………… 1.1

A staggering 50 out of the total 110 multivitamins did not even reach 10% and only the top 11 multivitamins were above 25% of what the human body needs on a daily basis.

The popular supermarket brands all featured below 10% possibly due to being forced to compete on price with other supermarkets. The downside for you, means the product you take every day is a hugely inferior supplement.

In other words, you get what you pay for. In some cases ignorance is bliss, in others it is a big wakeup call. My father has taken supplements for many years before and after he developed cancer and never once questioned the quality of what he was consuming. After reading this, he too, wondered why he ever thought not to research something so important to his health, when he did such a great job of researching anything else that he bought.

My advice, choose a multivitamin that is backed by a great company with a good reputation and do not just buy any old vitamin because of the price. You would be better off spending the money on something else.