My first Vemma podcast!

Vemma diary: February 2010

Not just for migraines. Vemma can help prevent and lessen the symptoms of many medical conditions. This powerful nutritional liquid supplement will also slow down the aging process, increase energy and strengthen the immune system. Check out my podcast below and then pop over to my website The Health Drink Station for more information...

New Year, new feelings: a different migraine experience

Vemma diary: January 2010

Today I am recovering from a migraine. It is the first one of the year and I hope there aren’t many more to come in 2010. The good news is, I can’t remember my last migraine. It must have been about three months ago. I think this might be a record and I believe I have Vemma to thank for that.

I also have Vemma to thank for lessening the severity of the attacks. Since taking the nutritional supplement every day, my body, it seems, has become better equipped in dealing with the symptoms of a migraine.

I experienced my first migraine when I was 12 years old, and 22 years on, I am finally starting to feel somewhat in control of my condition. That control comes from knowing and avoiding my triggers as best I can and having an understanding and knowledge of what my body needs to help prevent and recover from a migraine attack. Vemma really has been my migraine lifeline.

Even though I feel as if I am gaining some degree of control, the migraine condition can still surprise me.

Let me explain. The day before the attack I was very emotional. I felt anxious, gloomy and unmotivated. I couldn’t think straight. My mood was terrible and there was no snapping out of it. Ok I had a touch of the January blues, but my negative feelings were heightened greatly. I didn’t realise at the time, but a migraine was on its way. Mood swings are known to manifest before an attack.

The next morning I woke with an aura and immediately felt relief. I wasn’t frustrated, disheartened or anxious like I normally am with the onset of a migraine, instead I was relieved that I could finally move on from the horrible feelings of yesterday. It was a new day. Yes I had a migraine, but I would get through it and then I would be ready to get on with living my life again.

Happy 2010!

A migraine-friendly Christmas

Vemma diary: December 2009

The festive season has just begun and already my family and friends are making it a migraine-friendly Christmas for me. My mum has made me a special Christmas pudding without the citrus peel in preparation for our feast on 25th. And last night, my very good friend, Claire, made some mulled cider especially for me so I wouldn't feel left out while everyone else supped on mulled wine. Ah isn't that lovely. Avoiding my food triggers - cheese, chocolate, caffeine, red wine and citrus peel - can be awkward and even isolating at times, but I have no need to worry this festive season. I am able to enjoy the food and drink traditions of Christmas with everyone else.

As well as enjoying a migraine-friendly Christmas, I'm also hoping to enjoy a migraine-free Christmas. I have a very good chance of achieving this, as I drink Vemma everyday. Vemma is doing such a great job at keeping my migraines at bay, I couldn't live without it. If you are a migraine sufferer, I urge you to try it. Check out my Vemma website.

Wishing you all a Merry, migraine friendly and migraine free, Christmas!

How drinking mangosteen juice reduces migraines

Vemma diary: November 2009

Ever since I started taking my daily dose of Vemma, I have believed in the many benefits that Vemma has to offer the body and how much it can benefit certain conditions, especially the migraine condition. There has been no denying that the juice of the mangosteen fruit, which is the main ingredient in Vemma, has helped lessen my migraines over the past two and half years. This rare fruit found in South East Asia really is powerful as it can potentially correct abnormal serotonin functions in blood vessels that lead to migraines.

I have been reading an interesting book called ‘Mangosteen Desk Reference’ by Dr Kenneth J. Finsand. As a migraine sufferer I have experienced many migraines related to allergic responses to food. Dr Finsand points out that amino acids have been found to lay a role in headaches and migraines. He says ‘Fatty acid imbalances are what I consider one of the main reasons we see inflammatory type headaches. I tell my patients that if you have a fatty acid deficiency, you will have inflammatory flare-ups, so the best thing is to balance your nutrition. By drinking the mangosteen juice every day you will be adding nutrition to your body that just so happens to get rid of inflammation.’

Dr Finsand continues to explain that taurine, an amino acid that is found in blood-cell platelets has been shown to be high during migraines. Serotonin, also a product of an amino acid called tryptophan, plays a key role in platelet-related migraines. Normal liver function can be predicted by normal gut function and can be the key factor in normal amino acid levels in the body. Heal the gut, balance liver function and produce normal amino acid levels and this in turn can help reduce headaches and migraines… all achieved when you drink mangosteen.

Get the chiropractor and Vemma on stand by: I'm moving house!

Vemma diary: September to October 2009

My lower back and my bank balance recently took a battering, but now I can finally say 'phew, I'm all moved in'.

Moving home is never easy...emotionally and physically. The searching, the negotiating, the waiting.... Luckily for me, the transaction of buying a place was fairly smooth and quick, so my stress levels did not soar too high. It was the physical strain on my body that took its toll.

The days spent packing... the big day of the move.... and the days spent unpacking. It's enough to make the strongest of bodies cry out for mercy. My mum, dad and brother were there to help... a blessing especially as I have been undergoing treatment on my back and neck since February and I had been given the strict instruction not to lift anything heavy. Inevitably I still lifted and carried and for a couple of weeks my back throbbed with pain. One chiropractic session and one sports massage later and I felt normal again.

Amazingly, I only suffered two migraines during the weeks leading up, during and after the move. If I had suffered many more, it wouldn't have come as a surprise. As a migraine sufferer, I expect the interruption of migraines during times of big change, stress and physical strain. All I can say is, thank goodness for my chiropractor for caring for my spine and for Vemma for keeping me energised, but more importantly, for helping to prevent many more migraines coming my way...

Migraines make me healthy!

Vemma diary: August 2009

When I am in the throws of a migraine, healthy is the last thing I feel, and yet, migraines make me healthy. Let me explain by telling you a short story

Recently, while enjoying a family pub lunch, my mum offered me some of her Coca-Cola. ‘I don’t drink caffeinated drinks, remember,’ I said. ‘You are so healthy,’ she jokingly replied. ‘Not by choice,’ I smiled back. ‘It’s a forced healthiness, because of my migraines.’ Then in sudden realization I said: 'Migraines make me healthy!' Finally, after all these years, since I suffered my first migraine at the age of 13, I have discovered a good side effect, and a very good side effect it is indeed.

Every day I take preventive measures in order to avoid my migraine triggers. I stay clear of caffeinated drinks, I keep hydrated and drink plenty of water, especially when exercising, I don't eat my trigger foods, mainly cheese and chocolate, which are also fatty foods, I try not to drink too much alcohol in fear of becoming dehydrated, I eat little but often and never skip meals so that my blood sugar levels don't drop, I try to get enough sleep and rest and avoid stress as much as possible, and finally I drink a nutritional supplement everyday called Vemma - which is packed full of vitamins and essential minerals - to help lessen the number of attacks I suffer from. All the makings of a healthy lifestyle! Would I still be this healthy if I didn't have this condition? Maybe, but its nice to think that there is some good that comes from being a migraine sufferer.

Vemma for sport as well as migraine

Vemma diary: July 2009

There are many reasons to drink Vemma every day. For me, the main reason is it helps lessen my migraines. I also love to take my shot of Vemma every morning with breakfast because this liquid dietary supplement gives me all the nutrients my body needs. In other words, the mangosteen fruit and essential minerals found in Vemma supports a healthy body and a healthy lifestyle, and creates a much welcome energy boost everyday.

Always keen to spread the Vemma word, and even keener for family and friends to try it for themselves, I gave a bottle to my brother, Justin. He willingly accepted, especially as he is preparing and training for his first ever duathlon (5km run, 20km cycle and 3km run) in 3 weeks time. Will Vemma increase his energy levels, thus increasing his performance? Will Vemma help support his immune system and keep the bugs away? And will Vemma, that aids muscle and joint health, speed up the recovery time after each training session? I'm confident. Follow his experiment and training here.