THE FIRST FEW WEEKS OFF DRUGS OR DRINK: USE THE STRENGTH OF RECOVERING ADDICTS-USE THE PHONE

At your first meeting, the other people there will offer you their phone numbers. Take them. Take every single phone number you can get and use it.
You may feel: T shouldn’t ring. They were just being kind. They won’t want to be bothered.’
This is the kind of thinking that interferes with your recovery. People who gave you their phone numbers did so in expectation that you would ring them. You are helping them to remember when they needed help.
And it is the phone that will give you a lifeline at the times you are not at meetings. You can ring if a craving suddenly hits you at work. You can ring first thing in the morning before you go to work. Or you can ring last thing at night, when you are perhaps alone and frightened.
Pick up the phone instead of picking up drugs or drink.
This is an NA and AA saying that has kept many an addict and alcoholic clean and sober. But the idea is to pick up the phone before, not after.

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FALSE REMEDIES FOR ARTHRITIS: TO THE SPA, FOR MINERAL WATER

Perhaps you are a believer in spring water, or mineral water. They, too, are classified as laxatives and are called “good for arthritics.” Many misled people afflicted with arthritis flock to the spas . . . in order to be near natural sources of mountain water.
My research indicates that the only relief they receive comes mainly from the relaxation. It’s not the water, it’s the rest and vacation. And, at a spa, perhaps the victims have a more balanced diet than they are accustomed to eating. Except for these benefits, the soothing powers of physiotherapy and hydrotherapy can be vastly overrated.
Heat Applications
Also under the heading of physiotherapy come the superstitions of hot-water bottles, rags dipped in kerosene, burnt feathers and red flannels. All these provide bodily warmth. So does sun bathing. But . . . the dangers of heat applications and too much sun bathing are great. For arthritics, the sun may “bleed out” the very oils you are trying to save in your bodily joints. Unless your diet is correct— and contains goodly supplies of the right oils—be careful how much sunning you do.
Temporary relief may be obtained by vitamin D synthesis and blood-vessel dilation due to sun rays. But we’re looking for a permanent recovery.
Oils are the Answer
To counteract the bleeding of oils by the sun is another reason you should use cod-liver oil. More and more medical authorities are beginning to agree that cod-liver oil is valuable.
Dr. Marie and Dr. Strumpell, and other famous twentieth-century physicians, viewed cod-liver oil as an ally in arthritis therapy. Instead of irritating and inflaming your organs, it has the power of synthesising new, reparative tissue while lubricating the joint lining.
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THE BASICS FOR SAFE NON-TOXIC CLEANING SOLUTIONS (BAKING SODA; WASHING SODA)

One of the best ways to improve the quality of your indoor air is by cleaning without toxic chemicals. As an added bonus, ounce for ounce homemade cleaning formulas cost about one-tenth the price of their commercial counterparts. It’s easy and safe.
A commonly available mineral full of many cleaning attributes, baking soda is made from soda ash, and is slightly alkaline (its pH is around 8.1; 7 is neutral). It neutralizes acid-based odors in water, and absorbs odors from the air. Sprinkled on a damp sponge or cloth, baking soda can be used as a gentle nonabrasive cleanser for kitchen counter tops, sinks, bathtubs, ovens, and fiberglass. It will eliminate perspiration odors and even neutralize the smell of many chemicals if you add up to a cup per load to the laundry. It is a useful air freshener, and a fine carpet deodorizer.
A chemical neighbor of baking soda, washing soda (sodium carbonate) is much more strongly alkaline, with a pH around 11. It releases no harmful fumes and is far safer than a commercial solvent formula, but you should wear gloves when using it because it is caustic. Washing soda cuts grease, cleans petroleum oil, removes wax or lipstick, and neutralizes odors in the same way that baking soda does. Don’t use it on fiberglass, aluminum or waxed floors—unless you intend to remove the wax.
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