This week marks the five-year anniversary of the onset of my first Multiple Sclerosis symptoms. It seems like just yesterday my hand was tingling and something felt “off.” When I reflect on these past five years, some of it seems like an eternity and other portions feel like they’ve flown by in the blink of an eye.

My life has changed so dramatically from this illness. Although not defined by my disease, I do have to live a life that accommodates it. Much more effort is put into making sure I eat healthfully, get plenty of rest, exercise and minimize stress. I’ve learned to live a life of choice, purpose and meaning. Life is precious and I don’t want to waste a second of it.

Another wonderful outcome from my diagnosis was being laid off from my high-profile, high-stress job in the nonprofit healthcare sector. This provided the opportunity for me to pursue my own business and led to the creation of Appelbaum Wellness LLC. Being an entrepreneur is something I always dreamed of and am now living that dream every day. Yes it comes with a lot of responsibility but I was always told if you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life. Well, I LOVE what I do!

The reason I titled this post “Five Years – Fifty More to Go” is that I plan on living healthfully well into my 90s. I am hopeful that medical research will continue to provide better medications and even possibly a cure. In the meantime, I AM Living in Wellness and I hope you are too!

Passover, which began at sundown on Monday night, is a week-long Jewish holiday commemorating the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt and their deliverance from slavery.  The most important aspect of Passover is the celebration of freedom.  The tradition calls not only for remembrance of Jewish enslavement, but of the slavery that still exists today throughout our world. 

Freedom plays a major role in your health.  And, your health is the foundation of your life.  We live in a country that allows you choice when seeking out healthcare options as well as the freedom to be your own unique, authentic self.  Yes, freedom comes in many forms – tangible and intangible.    

I believe it is the duty of every human being to help eradicate all slavery so that everyone can celebrate and live in freedom.  So I ask you to choose to do something today that makes a difference in the life of another.  Help someone else experience freedom, whether physical or emotional.  Together we can make a difference.

How often have you been told, “Don’t cry” when you’ve gotten upset about something?  How does that make you feel?  I know when someone tells me to stifle my emotions, I get even more upset!  Let’s face it, some of us can be quite sensitive and in my case, even a Hallmark movie can set off the water works.

Are you aware that the cleansing of the soul/spirit and showing emotion is healing and releasing? Even more importantly, are you aware that when we cry our tears are filled with toxins and stress hormones and that by being shed or released from the body, it’s no wonder we experience relief? And, isn’t interesting that human beings are the only creatures that actually shed tears?

Many people often state that they “feel better” after a good cry. So wouldn’t it be nice to rid society of the stigma associated with crying (or expressing any supposed negative emotion) so that everyone can benefit from its positive health effects?

So next time you feel like crying, go ahead! Relieve your body and spirit of its toxins and let the healing begin!

Guest Post by Noah Levy

Have You Had Your Home Tested For Radon?

Radon is a leading cause of lung cancer. Radon is found in homes but it can be mitigated. It is a natural radioactive gas that one cannot smell, see or taste. I have sold homes without elevated levels of radon and homes with high levels of radon which had a mitigation system installed. One home may have radon while another home does not.  How do you know if your house has radon? Test it!!

In Illinois when a home is on the market a seller is  required to sign a disclosure pertaining to radon.  The seller is required to disclose  if they are: Aware of elevated levels of Radon, have a mitigation system  or are not aware. That is all sellers  are required to do – they do not need to test their  home. In turn, when the home goes under contract the  buyer  has  a choice if they would like to do a radon test or not – the cost is around $200.00 depending on the size of the home and if the house has a crawl and a basement. The test  takes 48-72 hours and results are available as soon as the test is concluded.

As a Real Estate Professional when I am representing a buyer I always recommend this additional testing during the inspection period. Why? This is the buyer’s only opportunity to check if the home has a safety deficiency and if the test results show radon levels above 4 then the buyer may ask for the deficiency to be corrected.  The seller will need to install a mitigation system to correct the deficiency or disclose the findings of the test on the radon disclosure to another potential buyer.  I have found that most sellers install a mitigation system if the test results show an elevated level of radon. Once a mitigation system is put in place the home is no longer a health hazard. Also, as noted above one cannot smell, taste or see radon so when a seller hears he has elevated levels of radon they quickly want to resolve the problem for their own health too. The cost of a mitigation system varies in price depending on the size of the home. For further information on mitigating a home I suggest contacting VSI. I have referred many clients to them and all have been very happy and have  peace of mind once the system is installed.

Did you recently move into a home and didn’t do a radon test? Have you lived in your home for a long time? No worries. Radon Detection Specialists (the company which I suggest to all of my clients  when they  purchase a home and want to do a radon test) has a home kit that is available.  This home kit is the perfect solution for those of you who have not had a radon test done on your home.  The homeowner leaves the canister out for at least thirty days and then sends the canister to a lab for the results.   The cost of each kit is $25.00- it includes one  canister,  a return label and the results for the test. I highly recommend the home kit – it may show that there is radon in your home (which will be an expense to mitigate) or it will  give you peace of mind knowing that your home is RADON FREE. Either way I think that it’s important for all to  find out.

Doing what we can to stay healthy is important!!!!

The above article, Testing For Radon Can Give Piece of Mind, was written in February 2011 by Noah Levy  – a REALTOR assisting buyers and sellers with their Real Estate needs.  For more information about real estate along Chicago’s North Shore suburbs contact Noah Levy at Noah@noahlevyhomes.com, cell: 312.203.2416 or website: http://www.noahlevyhomes.com.

* Credit to Radon Detection Specialists for pictures.

Check out this video to “virtually” meet me and learn more about how to discover choice, live purposefully and be well.

http://youtu.be/J94GvV5FBkk