Press Release - Having Nasal Surgery? Wins Award

Having Nasal Surgery? wins Bronze Medal in National Book Contest

Christopher Martin of Upstate New York, author of Having Nasal Surgery? Don't You Become An Empty Nose Victim! won an Independent Publisher Book Award for 2008, placing as a Bronze Medalist in theHealth/Medicine/Nutrition category.

Mr. Martin is excited to have received this award, noting that emptynose syndrome (ENS) – a chronic condition that results from an overly aggressive nasal surgery – merits far greater attention and understanding in the medical field. Symptoms of empty nose syndrome (ENS) include shortness of breath (despite a wide open nose), thick mucus, throat irritation, shallow sleep, high rates of depression, and even documented cases of suicide.

Having Nasal Surgery? has been favorably reviewed by Midwest Book Review, Kirkus Discoveries, and ForeWord Clarion, and has been well-received by top doctors in the field, including Mayo Clinic doctors.

Mr. Martin noted that the principal cause of ENS is removal of the turbinates in the nose. Turbinates are structures that warm and shape the airflow inside the nasal passages. They are often surgically reduced in an attempt to improve breathing. If too much of the turbinates are removed, the nose becomes unable to properly direct airflow to the lungs and chronic breathing problems result.

Since ENS often goes undiagnosed, Having Nasal Surgery? aims to educate physicians and the public about the importance of theturbinates and the impact of overly aggressive surgery on them. Mr.Martin advocates for a standard protocol that mandates allergy treatment and pulsatile saline irrigation prior to performing turbinate reductions. When surgery is performed, more conservative procedures should be used to minimize removal of essential tissues.

Mr. Martin also hopes that further awareness will encourage ENT doctors to explore and perfect reconstructive surgical options for ENS sufferers. Some research has been performed, but much more remains to be done. Barriers to a full understanding of ENS remain to be overcome, including a lack of understanding of airflow dynamics in the nose, concerns about litigation, and the field's orientation toward surgical cures for breathing problems.

For further information, please visit www.emptynosesyndrome.net and watch youtube ENS testimonial videos at http://www.emptynosesyndrome.org/. Mr. Martin may be contacted by email at webmaster@emptynosesyndrome.org.

Three goals for ENT specialists on empty nose syndrome

When we think about ear, nose and throat (ENT) doctors, what exactly is it that we really want from them? Why do we want more awareness among them? Here is what I think are three goals we want from the ENT profession:

1) To simply understand and become knowledgeable about ENS, so they can diagnose the currently undiagnosed. The doctors can identify the specific symptoms and its relation to the specific turbinate reductions. If we have a problem, just like any other sufferer of a serious condition, we deserve to have our problem correctly identified and offered appropriate treatment options. The difference between us and a cancer patient, is at least they get treated. These previously undiagnosed sufferers should thus be able to get appropriate help. And I don't mean a cure because there isn't one available; I just mean being offered the best options available to relieve the suffering.

2) We want ENTs to develop a position statement and legal mandate in the field about nasal surgeries (and its relation to ENS), and properly inform patients, so that ENTs would not cause ENS to other prospective nasal surgery patients. I personally believe ENTs should be required to mandate allergy treatment and saline irrigation prior to performing a turbinate reduction. This is a selfless reason, because the damage has already been done to us ENS sufferers; however, we know how damaging ENS can be and want to save others. A position paper would state what nasal surgeries are most likely to lead to ENS (e.g., total turbinectomies, partial and subtotal turbinectomies, and laser turbinate reductions) and which ones are least likely to lead to ENS (e.g., submucous resection with outfracture or radiofrequency).

3) To explore, refine and perfect reconstructive surgical options for ENS. Dr. Houser is already doing this and he is doing a terrific job at it. ENTs are surgeons. This is how they can help us. What we want is more ENT doctors to take interest in researching and performing reconstructive surgical options for ENS sufferers and perfecting these surgeries so that the surgeons are using the best and most cutting-edge materials available for implants (e.g., SIS, Alloderm); and through experience, they perfect and refine the size, location, and technique of the implants so that ENS sufferers would get optimal relief. ENT doctors could collaborate with plastic surgeons to perfect the technique and research scientists to use the best materials available.

It is point #3, reconstructive surgical options, that is the focus of a new forum section at www.emptynosesyndrome.org.

In my own experiences, I have found some relief from treating ENS with implants, as noted in my book. For example, I have much greater nasal airflow resistance, somewhat deeper sleep, and my nose is overall more moist and the mucus somewhat thinner after the implant. I find the implant to serve a sort of "preservation function" for my nose. In Dr. Houser's research article, it was shown that the implants provide improvement ranging from 25% to 90% relief, but his article also noted that the implants do not significantly relieve pain. The implant thus is not a cure, but it has brought partial relief, for which I am thankful.

What I have also learned in treating ENS is that an implant treats ENS, but its effect is more limited on sinusitis, allergies, asthma, gastroesaphogeal reflux, etc. If you have concomitant problems, you need to treat them as well. Our bodies consist of interdependent organs and the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. You are only as strong as the weakest link. You need to treat all issues. And you can often be preventative in treating an issue, such as the more effectively you treat your allergies, the less your symptoms of acid reflux or sinusitis.

Having Nasal Surgery? wins major national award

Having Nasal Surgery? Don't You Become An Empty Nose Victim! won an Independent Publisher Book Award 2008, Bronze Medalist, in the National category, Health/Medicine/Nutrition. Please check out item #41 at the following link: http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1231

I am elated and will develop a press release shortly announcing this award, with the hope it will attract media attention.

My visit with Dr. Tichenor and free flights for ENS sufferers

I posted the following message at the General Discussion Forum of www.emptynosesyndrome.org, but thought I'd share these messages here as well.

My visit with Dr. Tichenor

Having improved in various ways via the implants, such as increased moisture and heat in the nasal mucosa leading to thinner mucus, improved sleep, increased airflow resistance, I still have some issues to deal with, so I visited Dr. Tichenor. These issues I am trying to tackle include chronic postnasal drip, irritated throat and sometimes bothersome ears.

The visit with Dr. Tichenor went very well. He was very thorough and gave me red carpet treatment. Dr. Tichenor really showed me he was trying to get to the bottom of my issues, unlike most other doctors. It took me about 1-2 hours to fill out all the paperwork regarding my presenting issues, the biggest of which was an irritated throat. He is a soft-spoken doctor who takes his time and listened to my concerns. The nurse also took quite a bit of time with me before I met with Dr. Tichenor. Dr. Tichenor did 4 mucus samples, taking 2 from my nasal vestibules and 1 from the base of the maxillary sinus where mucus built up, and 1 from the ethmoid sinuses where I have a lot of scarring. Depending on results of the cultures, he will determine whether any additional medicine is warranted. Most doctors don't draw cultures because it is not cost effective medicine. He also had his nurse draw my blood to check out my immune system. I had a pneumonia shot about 2 years ago (you are supposed to get one every 5 years) and he wanted to see if it was effective enough in boosting my immune system. So depending on the results of the blood drawn, his office will determine whether I should proceed with another pneumonia shot. Dr. Tichenor also did a nasal endoscopy using a flexible endoscope -as opposed to a rigid endoscope - which was attached to a video monitor. He talked into the video monitor while investigating my nose. He said I might have some mucus recirculation on both sides of the nose in part caused by the uncinate process and one of the ostia (drainage holes) could be made larger. Dr. Tichenor recommended I do not need surgery if I feel better in the future, particularly with respect to my mucus/postnasal drip issues, and there is always a chance such a surgery could make me worse and some doctors might be reluctant to operate on me anyway given my extensive tissue loss; but I could entertain it at a later time. And if I did it at a later time, it must be done using computer-aided imagery, probably for safety reasons....so I'm not entertaining it now but it is an option for me to improve my sinusitis if need be at a later time, but hopefully I can avoid it (This surgery is the same as the one recommended to me in 2003, as noted in my book, but they would not have used computer-aided imagery, so I'm thankful it was avoided.

Dr. Tichenor is also entertaining possibly giving me a round of allergy tests, as he thinks my allergy injections might not be helping me enough and should be reevaluated. All in all, I felt like this visit I was treated as a first-class citizen and he really seemed to be getting to the root of my sinusitis problems (in part caused by ENS). If I can get some of these issues under better control, such as postnasal drip and my irritated throat and ears, I am going to be doing all right.

Glad I had implants and now I'm glad to be solving the other part of the puzzle....If you are in the NYC area or elsewhere and suffer from allergies or sinusitis in addition to ENS, consider paying Dr. Tichenor an office visit. I was glad I did.....

Lifeline Pilots

Thanks to efforts from my friend Paul (http://emptynosesyndromehope.blogspot.com), he has notified me that LifeLine Pilots (http://www.lifelinepilots.org) has agreed to offer free charter airline flights to ENS sufferers. This is great news, particularly for those who might be experiencing economic hardship with respect to ENS. I informed Dr. Tichenor of this development and he was encouraged, as he mentions this group on his website as well (http://www.sinuses.com)

Lifeline Pilots the shortest distance between home and hope
Lifeline, Inc. dba LifeLine Pilots Suite 302, Byerly Terminal Greater Peoria Regional Airport 6100 W. Dirksen Parkway, Peoria, IL 61607

Hours: The office is open Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Central Time. We are available on a 24/7 basis for changes regarding missions already scheduled or in progress. The after hours cell number may be obtained after hours by calling our toll free number: 1-800-822-7972. Office: 1-309-697-6282 Office Fax: 1-800-822-7969 To speak to a Flight Coordinator: 1-800-822-7972.

E-Mail a general question: mail@lifelinepilots.org

Watch the video testimonials...

I encourage you all to go to www.youtube.com, type the phrase of "empty nose syndrome" and then watch the video testimonials of ENS, including my own. We have so far 5 people granting testimonials on youtube (4 more have done them already but just not posted yet to youtube), and all these testimonials do such a great job at describing their symptoms and all they have been through as ENS sufferers. Please visit them and rate them or offer feedback, as I need to do as well. If you are an ENS sufferer or a doctor who is familiar with treating empty nose patients, please consider making a video for youtube. A short video of 5 minutes could go a long way for ENS awareness.

Also, I want to encourage you to visit my friend's web blog (who would prefer to remain anonymous) at http://emptynosesyndromehope.blogspot.com. This blog is a Christian-based blog for ENS. I enjoyed reading the Scripture and found the song "Praise you in this storm" to be quite soothing.....thanks to this friend for making this blog.

CPAP forum and ENS Awareness

I've noticed some people coming to this blog from the following CPAP forum: http://www.cpaptalk.com/viewtopic/t29862/Turbinate-Reduction-Deviated-Septum-Surgery-Quesiont.html.

While I appreciated the attention brought to empty nose syndrome at this forum, some of the comments made at this forum really made me realize the number of obstacles ENS is up against in raising awareness. Unfortunately, I have ran into these obstacles quite regularly due to widespread lack of knowledge on ENS. Thank goodness for the Internet because, if it were not for the Internet, ENS would still be a totally silent problem and doctors would still be mum about it. Because of the Internet, they are forced to respond and take ENS more seriously, and ENS sufferers can correspond with one another more readily. Lines of communication threaten dictatorships. My book might not have been as successful as it has been, either.

So let me reply to the CPAP forum at this blog. I'd post directly on the forum, but rather than create my own username and password, I thought it would be easier to reply here. If anyone wants to reply to me, they can reply to this blog. I do need more comments at this blog ;)

One of the posters wrote the following myth: "Ignore all the dry nose syndrome warnings, that is rare and can be avoided by following suggestion #1." Suggestion 1 was to go to an experienced, conservative ENT. Here's my reply: Dry nose syndrome ("rhinitis sicca") is a term that seems to downplay the significance of ENS. Many people have dry noses as a temporary complication after nose surgery, but doctors might prefer us confuse a mild, short-term dry nose with something far more serious known as ENS. ENS has not only the long-term complication of dryness, but often many serious symptoms as well. Secondly, the poster claims ENS is rare, another false claim made by doctors who would rather just have us be quiet and disappear. Primary atrophic rhinitis is rare. ENS, sometimes known as secondary atrophic rhinitis, is not. And that's a fact. I had a book signing locally so I learned of many ENS sufferers in my area who have it as a result of turbinate surgeries by a well-liked doctor, not the one who did my surgery. I am aware of other very well-known doctors who are causing ENS as well. I, too, would think it was rare if I did not have it or my book signing. As do most people in my area....although now I know that it is possible hundreds in my immediate area have it. With 400,000-500,000 turbinate surgeries performed each year in the US, it stands to reason that more are suffering from ENS than just a few rare. Many likely have ENS, but don't know it. Their symptoms might be more mild than mine, however.

Another poster commented: "I feel very sorry for anyone who has empty nose syndrome - it is horrible. However, ask your surgeon about it. Mine said it was caused by surgeons reducing the turbinates down to nothing. He said most surgeons are now well aware of it and are careful to leave appropriately sized turbinates." ENS sufferers want respect, not sympathy, but I do appreciate the concern. However, your doctor was wrong in suggesting it is only caused by surgeons who reduce the turbinates to nothing. While it is true that reducing the turbinates down to nothing does cause ENS and doctors are more aware of ENS and conservative than they used to be even just 10 years ago, there is still great ignorance about ENS among doctors and patients, and some patients are still dealing with ENS from surgeries in recent months......Turbinate surgeries where either part or full turbinates are removed, the middles and/or inferiors, can cause ENS. I have corresponded with someone who had just 40% of her inferior turbinates reduced, and she has been experiencing harrowing symptoms. Or consider in Dr. Houser's newest research article, "Surgical Treatment for Empty Nose Syndrome," he describes ENS-Type, which is where the turbinates seem fully intact although previously operated upon, but the patient is still experiencing ENS.

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure many doctors would still like us to believe ENS is rare and only happens when an extreme amount of the turbinates are removed, which is really the means to protect a profitable business. Nasal surgery could often be avoided if the patient knew enough strategies to reduce the size of the turbinates through natural means, allergy treatment, proper diet, hydration, saline irrigation, etc.....

As an aside, go to www.youtube.com, search for "empty nose syndrome" and watch these video testimonials. Mine will be posted soon. There are four posted, including one from "Kathy Esckilsen" but 5 others have made videos and hopefully they will be posted soon as well. It shows some testimonials from ENS sufferers; they are revealing and powerful. I look forward to seeing many more in the coming days.

My reply to Jason

Jason,
Here's my opinion for whatever it's worth: the cotton test can help you determine whether you want to follow through with an implant. It is important for determining the size and location of an implant. Since more is being placed in your nose, rather than removing a critical structure as in a turbinectomy, chances are you will only improve. It is adding some needed tissue inside your nose that can partially restore functions. The implant would only make you worse if too much is put in, but this can always be taken out later on if need be.

You mentioned sleep, your earaches and your throat, wondering the effect an implant has on these. In my experiences, the implant has improved my sleep to an extent, as it does increase resistance and helps direct airflow in a more orderly patterns, but has had little effect on my earaches. I still have them. Yet the resistance does seem to have helped my voice get closer to normal most of the time. I have thinner mucus due to increased moisture and heat in my nose, but I do still experience postnasal drip. The jury is still out, in my view, on whether the implants help my throat and perhaps that is because the postnasal drip still impacts upon my throat. I am visiting Dr. Tichenor (http://www.sinuses.com/) who wrote the introduction to my book on April 17th to get further opinion on my ears, nose and throat and will report back here after that. My ears and throat tend to be my most troubling symptoms at present, although I have greatly improved over the years thanks in part to the implants. Going to New York City will not only be helpful for some answers with respect to my nose, but it is also a good opportunity to have fun and it is a time for my father and I to bond.

In the meantime, a friend of mine has started a blog. Check it out: http://emptynosesyndromehope.blogspot.com/

Looking for advice for JS

1 comments:
js said...
Hello to all...I am going to see Dr. Houser on June 5th for an evaluation and a cotton test. Here is my dilema- after getting great advice from Chris and others on how to manage the symptoms of ens, my symptoms have improved. Granted, much of this improvement, I believe, is because of the weather as it is getting into the 40's on a consistent basis in Illinois. I have been subscribing to the GOLDEN RULE of Mucosa health with great benefit. My question to all of you who have implants, or went for a cotton test and chose not to implant is this... should I wait to get implants if Houser offers or should I go ahead with the implants? I must say, fear does play apart of this, as I am afraid to have another person touch me. Sleep and my ears are probably my two worst symptoms. I should probably add in my throat because my ear fullness/ache wraps around my jaw down into the right side of my throat. Also, has anybody wished they did not get the implants because of nasal stuffiness? I guess this would not be a bad thing for me as I feel wide open, not congested or stuffy.One good thing that has come out of my surgeries is that I do not get sinus infections anymore and when I do get a cold it lasts typically 7-10 days, which is very normal. All the pro's and con's on this subject would be greatly appreciated!! Chris... we have discussed this topic before, so I am sorry if this is redudant. Looking forward to as many opinions as possible. Take care.js
March 30, 2008 8:28 AM


JS, looking forward to hearing what others have to recommend to you or share with you. It is interesting how our symptoms seem so similar, yet I have had more battles with sinus infections than you. To the readers of this blog, just click on the time link to post a comment to JS.....(or to read a comment, for that matter)

See 2nd comment and my reply and TE's reply

nicks said...
Hi ChrisThanks for your efforts and keep them up. Rest assured you are doing good for so many people in this world. If you ever have doubts about your efforts never forget the people whom you are helping. They really do apreciate it even if you don't necessarily find out.

My comment:I received my Hydro Pulse although unfortunately I can't use it! The power specifications it runs from (110V 60Hz) are only suitable for USA (and a few other places like Japan). Its no major drama for me as I will be able to use it when we are in KC, but it would be great if like most electronic gizmos these days it could be manufactured to work on 100-240v 50/60Hz so it could be made available to people all over the world (Europe, Australia/NZ, lots of Asia, Africa etc etc). It would also make good business sense too.I was wondering if through your channels to Dr Grossan you could provide this feedback (perhaps even this blog post).
Thanks, Nick
**********************************************
Nick, you can email Dr. Grossan directly at ENTconsult@aol.com to report your concerns or copy and paste this blog post. I'm not sure what could be done to remedy the situation. You could try using a neti pot in the meantime for irrigation or saline nasal sprays or Neilmed, etc.; or there is the SinuPulse Elite as well, which is another pulsating irrigator, although I'm not sure of its specifications. Hope that helps. Best wishes on your move to America!

***********************************************
To Nick:The hydropulse irrigator is also availabe for 220-240v countries. You simply need to look for it on the sites that sel it. It says so clearly and I bought 220v one myself. works great!TE.

See the first comment!

Click on the time link under my March 11 blog post, which will bring you to the first person to comment in the life of this blog!

Great post and suggestions - and thanks for sharing your story, JS! Your story rings all too true among ENS sufferers. Most if not all had no idea what turbinates were prior to our nose surgeries. And I'm interested in that sublingual immunotherapy as well...

A mass, but informative email to 361 accounts....

I just sent an email to 361 people I have either corresponded with about ENS or have signed up as members at emptynosesyndrome.org. I am new to sending out such a large email and I learned that my email account webmaster@emptynosesyndrome.org only allows an email to 250 people per day. That said, it took me 2 days to send out this email. Contents of the email included updates for the emptynosesyndrome.org website (send me an email if you want to get involved with improving the site; serious inquiries only), some treatment ideas, such as Craniosacral therapy and exercise, and a Warm Air Mask that ENS sufferers enjoy a 25% discount on (see the post below).

Some interesting statistics of my 3/10-3/11 mass email:

-An email to 361 email accounts.
-34 email accounts out of order.
-2 people who did not want to receive future mailings (that could potentially help them:)

So, that leaves an email that was sent out to 325 members of the ENS site and those I have corresponded with. I have worked on updating the emptynosesyndrome.org website, between adding information on the Warm Air Mask on the home page, updating the news link, and providng a new cover look to the site. It still needs much improving, but I am going to be taking a break for now, maybe for a week or more so I can focus on my family. I have not gotten more than 6.5 hours per sleep on any night over the past week and it's not because of my children. I am tired and my health isn't terrific because I am tired.

Honestly, I wish I could correspond in depth with everyone that emails me, as I care about you all, but my energy level is really dwindling and I have been getting a fairly high number of emails of late - about 8-10 per day in recent days. While I enjoy corresponding with every person who emails me, it takes time. That said, I have removed my juno email account from the http://www.emptynosesyndrome.net/ so people would not contact me about ENS at my juno account. Rather, I have asked that people primarily contact me about ENS at webmaster@emptynosesyndrome.org, because I cannot access this email account at work, which helps me keep work and home life separate. I have also requested that those who do contact me at my webmaster account primarily contact me if they are interested in assisting with the site (serious inquiries).

There is a solution to all this....if you want to correspond about symptoms, post a comment to my blog; or, there is the emptynosesyndrome.org forum to discuss symptoms and treatments with fellow sufferers as well. In the life of this blog, not a single person has posted a comment. I have been told a few have tried, but failed. If people did post on this blog, I can respond at this blog and it can become interactive. All you have to do is click on the time button underneath any blog post and it will lead you to where you can leave a comment. Thanks for reading...and caring :)

God bless,
Chris

Heart Run, Website, and Warm Air Mask

On a personal note, I completed a 3-mile run as part of the Heart Run and Walk in Central New York this past Saturday (http://www.uticaheartrunwalk.org/). Unfortunately, I did it all wrong. I did no training prior to the run and went into it cold turkey - and I mean "cold turkey!" My legs are still somewhat sore from this run! Normally if I train up to being able to run 3 miles, it is really not a problem. I should not be sore from that and do it with grace and ease...yeah right. I was not planning on running in it, to be honest, as I was expecting 2-5 inches of snow the night before and additional snow (and cold) on the day of. My wife woke me up around 7:20 AM and informed me that it was mild outdoors with only rain rather than snow and, to my surprise, it was. So I got up after only 6 hours of sleep and prepared for the run. Despite all this, I enjoyed it and was glad to do it for a good cause. And my nasal breathing felt good for the remainder of the day because of the increased blood flow to my nose that the running brought, while my throat was extra irritated from the cold air. Enough about that....

If you have been following of late, I have taken over as webmaster of http://www.emptynosesyndrome.org/ as of March 1st. I'm not sure how long I will remain webmaster, but it is privilege and while I continue on as the webmaster of that site, I'll do my best at maintaining it and keeping its contents fresh. The site gets far more traffic than this blog, about 200-300 unique visitors per day. However, I really am limited with time in improving it, given my family responsibilities of my wife and three little kiddos and my job; if others are willing to pitch in, it can be improved. Today I sent out an email to 150+ members of the ENS site announcing this transition of webmaster from David Lemberg to myself, and tomorrow I will send out another email to 150+ members. I would send it out all at once, but the server does not allow me to send out an email to more than 250 members on one day, so it takes 2 days to do that.

On the home page of http://www.emptynosesyndrome.org/, I have added a link and product information for a warm air mask from http://www.polarwrap.com/. Polar Wrap has offered ENS sufferers a 25% discount on this mask. I sure hope others take advantage of this offer and enjoy breathing in warm air as I have of late....if only I had worn it for the Heart run (sigh)....

Update on Book - some international success

I am hoping to send out an email to all 300 members of the empty nose syndrome website soon, as well as the many members who have signed up for my newsletter. The focus of the email will highlight developments in empty nose syndrome, as well as treatment therapies I have found beneficial in recent months.

Until then, I thought I'd share an observation that I noticed this evening. Every so often, in addition to amazon.com, I like to see how my book is selling on amazon.uk (United Kingdom), amazon.de (Germany), amazon.fr (France), and amazon.ca (Canada).

The great news is as I write this post, Having Nasal Surgery? Don't You Become An Empty Nose Victim! is among the top 100 Otolaryngology books in various countries, including the United States, as it is right now #51 & #69 in Otolaryngology, and it has been among the top 100 Otolaryngology books in the United States for the most part since it was released. However, now it has become an international success as well, and is right now among the top 100 otolaryngology books in the following countries (Amazon sales rank changes on an hourly basis, please note, so it might not be on the top 100 otolaryngology books at a different time; I must savor the moment!):

United Kingdom

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 226,771 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category:
#77 in
Books > Health, Family & Lifestyle > Medical & Healthcare Practitioners > Internal Medicine > Otorhinolaryngology

Canada

Amazon.ca Sales Rank: #50,103 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories:
#13 in
Books > Professional & Technical > Medical > Medicine > Surgery > Otolaryngology
#18 in
Books > Science > Medicine > Specialties > Otolaryngology
#18 in
Books > Medicine > Specialties > Otolaryngology

Germany

Durchschnittliche Kundenbewertung: Noch keine Kundenrezensionen vorhanden: Schreiben Sie die erste!
Amazon.de Verkaufsrang: #130.245 in English Books (Die Bestseller English Books)
Beliebt in diesen Kategorien:
#18 in
English Books > Professional & Technical > Medical > Medicine > Surgery > Otolaryngology
#23 in
English Books > Medicine > Specialties > Otolaryngology

A heartfelt thank you goes out to all blog readers, doctors, friends, family, stores, and ENS sufferers who have bought, recommended, or helped me in promoting Having Nasal Surgery? Don't You Become An Empty Nose Victim! I think that is tremendous that the book is selling well on an international level. I even heard about an Australian buying the book. Today, I sold 5 copies of Having Nasal Surgery? to my local health food store, Peter's Cornucopia. I have sold 14 books (and counting) through the local bookstore, Park Row Books, in Clinton, New York as well, where I've enjoyed successful book signings. It also has a sales rank of 250, 588 at barnesandnoble.com, so it is selling there as well.

The primary country where it has not yet sold is France. We need some French to buy the book, as I know many French suffer from empty nose syndorme. There is a complete french forum at the emptynosesyndrome.org website, for that matter. If you are reading this blog and from France, I hope you will consider buying this book. Many thanks.

Until next time, I hope your sinus health is under control! (PS- promise will focus on tips once again in future blog posts)....

A day in my life, racism, and good news....

I have not written on this blog in over 2 weeks, and perhaps that is because life has been rather hectic lately - between taking care of three little ones, possibly taking over as webmaster of the emptynosesyndrome.org website, and my job - and I have been battling a persistent cold on top of all that. This past week was my week off from school and I found myself writing 10 psychological reports as well as a myriad of paperwork details for my job. Thankfully, it will be a good feeling to hit the ground running when I go back to school tomorrow because I completed so much, but it was time-consuming. I'm happy to report that finally my cold is starting to get better (without antibiotics) and so are my spirits. I am going to refrain from discussing treatment techniques in this post, but I have tried a number of different, new techniques of late, if you just hang on and keep reading this blog, I will discuss them; and they might be helpful for your situation.



Many of the readers of this blog probably don't know what a typical day in my life is like. So I want to share with you this past Thursday, a day I had off because of our school vacation, so you can know me better. After going to sleep around 10:30 or 11:00 on Wednesday evening, I woke up around 6:30 to write some psychological reports for my job. As mentioned, this past week was my week off from work. I worked on 2 psychological reports from 6:30 to 8:30. I drank a number of cups of water during this time to help thin the mucus in the back of my throat. The mucus has been feeling rather thick and irritating back there, particularly after a full night of sleep. I have been finding that I can cough up some of this phlegm after I wake up and become more active. Around 8:30, I knew I had to start getting ready because my wife was bringing my 2-month old son to the doctor's appointment at 9:15 while I was at home watching our two girls - ages 3 and 1. So I took a shower, shaved, put on some fresh clothes, did a nasal irrigation (both nose and throat), and then ate a quick muffin and then retrieved the vitamins I am taking. I am taking a number of vitamins including but not limited to Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Host Defense, Bee Propolis, Pantothenic Acid, Zinc, Echnicacea/Goldenseal, acidopholus (a probiotic), my allergy pill, and so forth. My girls were busy watching the Donut Man and Hide 'em in your heart by Steven Green, while also doing puzzles. We began to read a couple stories, just as long as I could keep my oldest daughter's interest. Yet I knew our house was a total disaster and made it my mission to clean it up before my wife returned. I told my little kiddos that mommy will be so proud if we help clean it up. And boy did we clean. We picked up all the toys, cards (go fish), animals, chalk, crayons, etc. that had been laying on the ground. Then I filled and took out the garbage that was overflowing. Then we cleaned the dirty dishes and cleaned and sorted in our front room as well. (I live in a small ranch home, about 1400 square feet, in a semi-rural area with half an acre.) After cleaning up all these areas, we vacuumed in the living room - where it needed it. Then we sorted all the DVD's and VHS tapes that were lying everywhere around the television - above, below it in the cabinet, and on the ground. Then I changed my littlest one's diaper and put on her clothes for the day. (Do keep in mind not all days I am this ambitious at cleaning, believe me). Then we sat and began to read again as my wife pulled the car into the garage. As my wife came home with our little one, she was so happy to see the house clean. It just made her day. She told me that my son's lungs were clear, although he still is coughing and uncomfortable at times, but he has been battling this cold and was put on a nebulizer by 4 weeks of age! It was heartbreaking, but I know he will get over it in time as he is being nursed, and we are health-conscious parents who will choose good foods for him as he gets older. By this time it was around noon and we had lunch - turkey sandwiches, yogurt, veggies, and water - and then soon after left for grocery shopping at the local Hannaford. This grocery shopping took about an hour, ran into some different people I knew at Hannaford's, and my little girl, Abigail, fell asleep while riding in the little yellow and red kiddie cart. We were not sure what to do after that, but we ultimately decided to go to the mall as my wife wanted to shop for clothes. We hit a number of stores at the mall, including the Disney store, Auntie Anne's, Mr. Smoothie, (sorry, I hope I'm not making you think less of our eating habits), as well as Sears and Northern Reflections. My children are often quite the busy bees in these stores, finding the endless array of clothes almost to be like a hide-and-seek maze, but they were quite well-behaved and we were proud of them for that. Our littlest one seemed a bit tired on the way out the mall, but generally they were very well-behaved. Upon returning home, we had leftover spaghetti and meatballs, as well as salad and water. The girls don't go for the salad, but I do! Our girls were in need of a bath, as well as our little boy who has been spitting up much after this cold, so they all got baths this evening. Of course, our 2-month old son gets a smaller bath for his little body than the girls who use the bathtub in the bathroom. After that, my family has devotion time where we read Christian stories together, sing, and pray, which is what we did this evening. Then we brush their teeth. After they were all asleep, I decided to complete another psychological report. I told myself I would only do 1 so I would not be too tired the next day and since I had to complete 2 more on the following morning. Before going to sleep, I do nasal irrigation, acupressure (time-permitting) and then pray. That is one day in my life. I hope I didn't bore you with all the details, but that is what a typical day (when not in school at my job) in my life is like. Here's a photo of acupressure taken from http://www.csc.gov/


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The following story is off-topic from ENS but it is troubling to me. I encourage you to watch the video and reflect on how you can make a difference on behalf of people of a different race. A friend of mine, Mark Montgomery, is an African-American who I know well and have great respect for. He is a strong person who is well-respected and seems to know everyone. When I was applying for my first job as a school psychologist, he called up the director of special education at one school district and next thing you know I was being offered a job. He literally got one for me. I ultimately declined that job offer, but it just goes to show how great of a guy he is. While in college, he and I were tennis doubles' partners on the college tennis team and have enjoyed many tennis outings and very deep discussions on our jobs and the importance of education. In fact, I conducted a "meaning of difference" interview during which I probed into how being African American affects his life. It was an englightening conversation and I learned much including that Mark is part Irish and that he has incurred racism against him in his own life. I was surprised, thinking, how could anyone yell racial epithets against someone of such high standing. Mark was a counselor at Hamilton College (where B.F. Skinner trained, you psychologists out there) and he is currently a professor at Morrisville College where he has invited me to talk with his class about school psychology - that was a good experience, too...Anyway, to make a long story short, Mark sent me an email on the Monday of a couple weeks ago telling me to "check this out." It was a news clip from news channel 10 that discussed how a noose had been found outside of his door at the school where he works. Can you believe that?? This school is only a few schools away from where I work. I hope to get together with Mark soon and I was truly appaled that anyone would think of this as a prank; it may have been thought of as a prank, but truly it's a hate crime. I sent an email to all the staff at where I work encouraging them to watch the video and think about what it is they can do to make a difference on behalf of people of color. I encourage you to do the same. Here's the link: http://www.wktv.com/news/local/15675197.html


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Finally, I had the privilege of receiving an email from a reader of my book who remarked they were so happy that their doctor recommended my book, Having Nasal Surgery? to them. Dr. Ken Fletcher of Georgia recommended my book to this patient. I have never met Dr. Fletcher or am aware of how he knew about my book, but knowing that he recommended my book to this patient is terrific. I owe him one. A big thank you goes out to Dr. Fletcher!!


Until next time, I hope your sinus problems are under control....

This post is just a test....

This post is just a test to see if the 'post a comment' is now enabled....