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Weight Watchers

Written on August 6th, 2011 by Hear Mum Roar in Food, Health and beauty

Soon I’ll be telling you all about how my trip to Melbourne for the Bloggers’ Brunch went. My first trip ever to Melbourne! But first, I’m going to talk about my fat arse.

Before going off to Melbourne, I realised I didn’t have a thing to wear. Literally. I had some nice things that were now too small for me, and house clothes… Bugger. So, in a mad panic, I raced off to look for something warm and nicer than tracky dacks to wear. Now, I knew I’d gained some weight since buying a car and moving to the country, but what a wake-up call this was.

I tried on a size 16 dress, and oh my god, it fit. When I’m not fat, I’m normally a size 8-10. I wasn’t so deluded as to think I was still that small, but 16? Shocker. And so not good on a short frame! I ended up choosing a belted jersey dress and a warm jacket with tights. I still felt fat, but soldiered on…

It did make me realise that I wanted to do something about my weight, finally. I’ve talked about it on here before, so there have been efforts made… But I never really had a proper plan, plus last year was quite full-on with my carer duties, not really leaving a lot of time for me. My partner is still sick, but functioning much better within the home, which is a good start. It has been allowing me some more freedom, some more time for me this year, slowly.

Anyway. I was very thrilled as a result of going to the Bloggers’ Brunch, to be offered a free six month plan for the Weight Watchers Online program. I signed up for it on Tuesday this week, but officially started on the Wednesday. Would you believe I already feel a little lighter? I keep thinking I’m imagining it, because the program seems too easy, and it doesn’t feel that I’ve been trying too hard. But no, my partner has noticed as well, and my pants have been starting to fall down as I work out.

Basically, what I’ll be doing, is at least once a week at Hear Mum Roar, I’ll be posting my progress. I expect you guys to hold me accountable, ok? It’s going to be rather warts-and-all (as evidenced by some nasty photos below!) because I really want to document the improvements along the way. I have shared some of these photos on my facebook page already:

Oh boy, mug shot alert! This was me on Tuesday, at 63kg, looking mortified. Honestly though, who ever looks happy in these ‘before’ shots? My goal weight is 49kg. Please, don’t baulk at the amount, it’s within my healthy weight range for my height. Just remember I’m very short.

Here’s a screen shot of part of the online program where I track my Pro Points:

I find this very easy to use, and I have to say I was gobsmacked that I was given 29 pro points per day plus 49 pro points to eat throughout the week at my disposal. Weight Watchers allows this so if you have a wedding or a party coming up, or even a ‘weak’ moment, you make reasonable allowances for this. I’m finding the points very easy to stick to, so far. You can also earn more points by doing exercise.

Another thing I love is the free iPhone app that comes with the program as well.

This is handy, because you can keep tracking your points even when you’re out and about away from your computer.

So you know, I’ll be weighing and measuring myself every Tuesday, if you’d like to come back to check how I’m progressing. In all my excitement when I signed up on Tuesday this week, I bought two big pumpkins to make the roasted pumpkin and ginger soup in the Weight Watchers ‘Hearty’ cookbook (I received this for free at Bloggers’ Brunch). I was going to make it that night, and would you believe, the pumpkins are still sitting there, waiting to be made? Argh.

My partner’s said he’ll help me tomorrow. Actually, he was going to help me today, but life got in the way. The plan is to cook and freeze in bulk so that I can have a zero Pro Point snack anytime I feel like it. Over time, I plan to make other soups, frozen lunches and dinners.

I’ve been eating a lot more fruit and vegetables and low fat yoghurts. I’ve been playing on Xbox Kinnect (which is much like an Xbox version of Wii Fit) using the ‘Your Shape’ game. I’ve been working up quite a sweat on there, surprisingly! It’s so much fun. I’ve also ordered the Weight Watchers pedometer, and am looking forward to when that arrives in the mail, so I can earn more points that way.

I’d like to say a big thank you to Weight Watchers for their generosity. I’m so excited and feeling the benefits already. If you want to ask me anything about the program, or if you’re on it and would like to share your progress or experience, please tell me all about in the comments section below! Of course, in true bloggy style, I’ve started up my own little daily blog over at Weight Watchers if you’re interested in following my progress along the way. The support of the online community at that site is inspiring! Wish me luck!

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How Can Mums Get the Exercise They Need?

Written on May 5th, 2011 by Hear Mum Roar in Challenges, Good times, Gross motor, Health and beauty, May 2011, Parenting, Saving money, School aged, Teens

I’ve been a lover of exercise since my late teens. Not the crappy PE-type exercise we did at school, or team sports. I’m more interested in workouts such as walking, using weights, aerobics and yoga. I’ve tried pilates in the past and enjoyed it, but I haven’t really gotten into it in a big way as yet.

When we lived in Sydney, we had *horrors* no car. We were in a fairly toffee-nosed suburb, and I would be walking to and from school, half an hour each way, twice a day. (Thankfully, I had some wonderful mum friends who’d offered to help me with lifts when I needed it) When my youngest started kindergarten (first year of ‘big’ school in NSW), I sported a pregnant belly. When my son was born, I’d be out pushing the pram, and very soon after, another pregnant belly. Then, I graduated to a double limosine-style pram, and I can tell you honestly, that put me through my paces. Once my fiance got sick and wasn’t working, I would leave the younger two kids with him as I took my eldest child to school, which made it faster, plus reduced the strain on my back, not having to push that heavy thing around so often.

There were only two types of responses I’d get from the other mums: horror (‘I couldn’t survive without a car!!’ Not really what one wants to hear when they’re trying to be stoic) and encouragement. I’m sure you can imagine which group I made a higher number of friends in! Although this regime was a little too extreme for my joints most of the time, I never had to watch my weight. I ate pretty much what I wanted. It was only once I stopped pushing that heavy pram that my metabolism slowed down a little. Once we got a new car a few months before we moved here, man, I got fat fast.

In some ways, I don’t regret taking such a drastic break from exercise for so long. I have a horrible hip injury from giving birth to my eldest daughter, and I find that an hour a day of exercise is perfect to stop it from jamming up. More than that just aggravates it. After so many years of walking two hours per day, five days a week, either pregnant and/or pushing prams, my body honestly needed the rest. I enjoy walking long distances, but the amount I was doing became a bit of a drag.

Since we’ve moved to a remote country town and need to drive to most places, my exercise slipped even more. You guessed it, I kept gaining weight. My hip started getting stuck and sore again. I’m only 5’1, and small-boned, so the slightest weight gain really puts a strain on my joints.

It’s funny; a year ago I wrote this post, about wanting to get into a new exercise routine. I dabbled in walking, but found it not so inspiring. A walk around the block in this town doesn’t take long at all, then once I’ve done that, I don’t know where to walk next! There are no hills, which I’m used to, and everything’s completely flat. I find it hard to raise a sweat at all, walking around the block. Having grown up as a child in a beach town, and now living further inland than I ever have before, has made me homesick for a good ocean walk. I found a walk I enjoyed, walking in the outskirts of town, and I loved it. No oceans of course, but lots of beautiful farms to look at, and dams with ducks swimming in them. Canola fields and sheep.

Being a new habit and a new town, I didn’t get to go walking as often as I would’ve liked. There was also my partner’s anxiety to consider. I couldn’t/can’t just up and leave the house or the kids with him whenever I feel like it. I’m needed here. It’s far too hot in summer for the farm walk, not to mention snaky.

Recently, my partner and I had a group meeting with his and my support workers about his situation. It became rapidly apparent that I had a need for relaxation, and fast! I suggested yoga, and suggestions of classes flew in, thick and fast. Being in a remote area, this would be costly for us in terms of petrol in addition to the cost of the actual class. I was pretty sure the class timetable wouldn’t fit into our schedule and I knew my chances at actually being able to do my yoga was heavily dependent on what sort of day my partner was having.

So, out of a need to bring some relaxation techniques into my life, I’ve stumbled into creating a fully-fledged work out area. We have an office attached to our shop, in which we had stored a tv and coffee table gathering dust until we found a spot for them. We went to Big W and purchased a simple book on yoga with a DVD yoga session attached for roughly $11.

The result evolved into this:

It’s nothing fancy, but hugely practical. I had a floor mat handy, so I used that to define the space (these were moved to the shop), and pad the concrete floor for extra comfort. (As you can see, the tv is quite grotty, but I took this photo soon after setting it up and cleaned up the area soon after)

I had a bunch of exercise dvds and equipment I hadn’t been using. I tried using them in the lounge room, but it was too disruptive with children so close by. Even if I waited until their bedtime, the two younger ones would be too distracted by what I was doing to sleep! So although this area started out solely for yoga, it’s opened up the opportunity to solve my exercise problem also. I can go to this area by myself when I know it suits my partner and do what needs to be done.

Once I started getting back into exercise, I realised how much I’d missed this! The stress release, the adrenaline, the feeling of accomplishment. I’ve had a little break from working out for the past few weeks as I’ve had the flu, but I honestly can’t wait to get back in there.

I know some mums who read this will be thinking, ‘that’s all well and good, but she has a separate shop, not everyone has that!’ and this is true. Trust me, I can relate, having moved from a cramped two-bedroom cottage housing five of us. I also know how it feels to get stuck in a fitness rut, completely willing to exercise, but finding it hard to make it actually happen, due to being a mum.

Here’s some tips I think might be helpful for mums who are truly finding it a challenge to get that much-needed workout time in:

Wear a pedometer during the day and work towards a step-count goal. Incidental exercise is recognised nowadays as being just as effective as time set aside to work out. It’s a good way to ease back into being more active. I did this a few times when we first moved here, and it encouraged me to do a little more, and planted the idea of looking for places to walk. (Admittedly, I was disappointed with the offerings, but just because it didn’t work for me this time, doesn’t mean it wouldn’t for others)

Look at your obstacles to exercise and try to find creative ways to make it happen. If you can see a chunk of time in your day where your kids can be looked after by someone else, make the most of that time. If gyms and classes don’t suit you due to money or clashing timetables, don’t let that be your reason to give up. If you are able to exercise with your kids and are happy to, then that’s great too. I personally prefer to exercise on my own at the moment, because I find the alone time is better for my stress levels.

Think about what you’ve got that could help you. Do you have an exercise bike or dumbells gathering dust? Don’t be put off using them just because you may not have been up until now. Maybe you just need to find a more suitable time/place to use them. Where would be the best place for you to exercise without disruption? What time would that be?

Ask for support. If you have a partner, ask them to help you make this happen. You might need them to look after the kids, or help move your family schedule around a little to ensure you get this time. Although my partner has severe mental illness and needs my help with a lot of things, there are still times in the day when he’s capable of spending time with the kids whilst I disappear to exercise.If you’re a single parent, can you get anyone to help you with the kids? If not, can you make walking to school with the kids your exercise? If your kids are older, you can ask them to respect this time of yours, and to avoid distracting you unless it’s urgent.

Where suitable, get the kids involved. It’s really dangerous to have little kids hanging around your treadmill, but there’s lots of ways kids can be involved. If you have a wii fit, you can play that together for some family fun, or run around together at the park or in your backyard. Sometimes Missy 10 will have a go of my yoga dvd. She loves the relaxation it brings, and I think it’s great that she finds a stress release right before the teen years. It’s also her NAPLAN year again, and usually she gets a little stressed about it. As mentioned, you can also walk together. I’m going to mention bike riding here too, because although I hate bikes with a passion, I know lots of family do this, enjoy it and it works for them.

Talk to other mums and find out what works for them. Often brainstorming and sharing ideas can lead to inspiration, especially if it’s a recommendation for a great gym or walking route. Also, let’s talk to each other here, share our ideas and see if we can add more solutions to this list.

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Having second thoughts about this caffeine thing

Written on January 24th, 2011 by Hear Mum Roar in Challenges, Health and beauty, January 2011, Parenting

Alright, so that looks like a bit of an improvement after yesterday’s, ‘oh my god, do I really look like that all the time??’ photo.

I woke up this morning, clear as a bell. Bluebirds twittered around my shoulders and a butterfly perched itself on my daintily outstretched hand. Well, not really, but that’s how good I felt. No aches, no more stomach cramps, I had a fantastic night’s sleep, and was in a brilliant mood.

I could see this thing working out. I find everyday with this withdrawal process, it gets harder as the day progresses. I try to keep my days slow and quiet (as much as you can imagine given the age of my children!), and that’s helped me get this far. In the afternoon, I started getting irritable, had mild headaches and joint aches. Nothing too major.

So why is it, that last night I began obsessing and fantasizing about binging myself silly on coke zero? Not tea, I wouldn’t bother for tea. This afternoon, I started telling my fiance all the reasons why it’d be ok if I did. We both knew I was trying to justify my addiction! I am considering just allowing myself to have one a day to wean off it slowly. But then, there’s this other, rational side of me that can see the hardest part is almost over. The best is yet to come.

I have to go now, because sitting in front of the computer and the twinkly lights on the screen has triggered a nasty migraine, but I’ll let you know how this god forsaken thing pans out.

Still Quitting Caffeine

Written on January 23rd, 2011 by Hear Mum Roar in Challenges, Health and beauty, January 2011

So, this is what Day 2 looks like. I know I look like a deer in the headlights, or a train wreck. I think I look quite pale! I still feel quite crappy, but I can feel underneath all the horrible symptoms this ‘sparkle’ trying to creep through. It’s hard to describe, but the easiest way to put it is that I feel I’m much cleaner on the inside.

Last night was a dreadful night. I went to bed, and spent a summer night, under a wool doona, shivering. I felt, and still feel, like a frail old woman. Every joint in my body was throbbing in pain, screaming for caffeine. As my forehead pounded, I kept telling myself that my body was lying to me, and to listen to the truth: the clean feeling underneath it all.

It’s not as tempting to go back to caffeine by now as I thought it’d be. I can see how sick it’s been making me. I can’t allow myself to go back to it. If I do, then all this pain and feeling so sick, will have been a waste.

This morning, I feel as though a migraine is trying to take over, so I won’t be on the computer for very long. I was so stiff in all my joints, that I had to spend a lot of time stretching after getting out of bed. But surely that’s better for me than reaching for a coke or a tea? I feel weak, and I can’t stop sniffling and sneezing.

Thanks for all the encouragement so far. Whenever I’ve thought about doing this in the past, I’ve always dismissed the idea, because there’s this vibe I get from society that it’s too hard, can’t be done, etc. I’ve never really seen a good example of anyone doing it. This is why I thought I’d document this in action, so if anyone is curious about what happens, they can decide for themselves.

As revolting as I feel and look, I know this is going to make me a healthier, better functioning person.

Caffeine Withdrawal

Written on January 22nd, 2011 by Hear Mum Roar in Challenges, Health and beauty, January 2011

I’ve got this long-standing coke zero addiction. Before zero was invented, it was diet coke. If I can’t get that, I’ll drink black tea. I used to drink it without sugar, but in the past few years, I’ve had to have sugar. I can’t drink coffee, as I’m allergic. Anyway. This addiction is messing up my life. I’m usually dehydrated, because if there is coke in the house I will choose it over water every single time. And I love water.

I have chronic sleep problems, aching joints, headaches and irritability, usually. I’ve been off caffeine for a day now. I’ve been taking it easy as much as I can. I had a mild headache up until the afternoon, then things got a little hard to bear. I’ve been guzzling water all day long, and as much as I feel rotten, I can feel that my body is also thanking me for the hydration.

It’s night time now, I’ve had a big nap, and I still have a cracking headache. My joints hurt more, I have heartburn, nausea, I feel exhausted. I’m starting to feel a little bit of crankiness creeping in. I’m so blessed that my partner is functioning quite well at the moment, as we think we’ve finally found the perfect medication for him. Of course, he’s not cured, but thank god he’s been able to take up the slack as I do this. I figure this is a time to grab this opportunity with both hands.

My partner, worried as partners do, suggested he go get me some caffeine. I was heartily tempted. But despite how lousy I feel, I think I’m get addicted back to hydration. I’m realising if this is how bad I feel coming off, then it’s a problem I want to deal with. Like a good book, I want to see how this ends.

I’ve been googling about the withdrawal stage, and was alarmed to discover that it gets worse; vomitting, flu like symptoms, etc. Oh well. Bring it on…

I decided to document my progress with photos, plus I’m behind on my See Mum Shine Challenge anyway. Here’s how I looked when I was finally able to smile:

I think I look a little better in the skin, thanks to the hydration.

But for the real story, here’s the first photo my partner took:

Frustrated, he said, ‘let’s try to get one of you with your eyes open’. I was gobsmacked! I honestly thought I was smiling.

Please wish me luck, and feel free to share any stories of your attempts to quit this drug.

Skincare – are your money and time an indulgence or investment?

Written on July 9th, 2010 by Hear Mum Roar in Health and beauty, July 2010

Today we have a guest post from the lovely Juli from Musq cosmetics! She has written for me before, and it’s always a pleasure. I am a regular user of her cosmetics, since I’ve had a need to find petrochemical free makeup so that my fiance won’t be harmed, due to his severe petrol allergy.

If skin was paid a salary to do all that it does in just one year, we probably couldn’t afford to employ it! The very least we can do is allow it to work in the best possible condition so that it can do all the important jobs it’s required to perform. You wouldn’t expect your car to drive efficiently, comfortably and remain roadworthy without proper maintenance.

Skin’s work load is enormous: to protect, breathe, absorb, excrete, provide sensory information to the brain about temperature or texture, house a variety of body components from hair to capillaries, to stretch and contract (sometimes enormously) remain water resistant and completely renew itself on a monthly basis. It suffers bumps, rashes, burns, tears and a variety of other accidental and self imposed traumas and is able to heal itself, albeit sometimes with scarring. It is our largest organ and can tolerate being be grafted, tattooed and pierced. All this to do and yet skin is incredibly thin, averaging just 1.3 millimetres in thickness and works in a relatively hostile environment. So strong and yet so fragile, skin can be cut by the edge of a piece of paper!

Your skin needs to last a lifetime. Why wouldn’t we want to look after it? It is a complicated structure that needs maintenance for more than aesthetic reasons, and simply showering daily is just not sufficient! Obviously a healthy diet feeds skin from within, clothing gives protection from the elements and scrapes, and removing dirt, splinters, grease, food or other debris gives a degree of cleanliness and minimises risk of infection.

Rather than a large expenditure, one needs only common sense and a change of shopping habits for a better expenditure – products that will properly and safely care for your skin type. “Safely” means safe for your skin, health (as the ingredients are absorbed by skin) and the environment as they will all go down the plughole into the waterways.

Recall what you learned back in primary school about skin and basic nutrition. Skin is a tight barrier closing out tiny germs but also open enough to breathe, excrete and absorb. If its tiny openings are blocked by plastic films these functions are impaired; like not putting a plastic bag over our head we should not be blocking our pores on mass with face and body potions. Logically if what is blocking the pores is also irritating or even slightly toxic, we are compounding the problem. Secondly, we eat real food for nutrition and energy, not lab made ingredients; even though they may create a temporary sense of fullness they impart no nutritional value and are toxic.

Our skin needs real ingredients for nutrition and energy. Like food, skincare should provide a broad spectrum of goodies and in a concentrated form. With the right ingredients our skin can be able flush itself of impurities and inflammation, rebalance oil levels, firm, tighten, stay hydrated, heal and given the ‘kick’ needed to behave like younger skin in increasing collagen.
Cosmetics with plastics may give a temporary smooth veneer or plumping but while only masking symptoms rather than treating problems and feeding, they also have a dark side. These products, no matter how high calibre some of the ingredients may sound, are neither an investment nor an indulgence. Their preservatives are either hormone disrupting parabens or formaldehyde donors such as imid urea. Frequently containing artificial fragrance and colours, propylene glycol, SLS and other petrochemicals you are applying ingredients that are both counter-productive to your objectives and linked to a variety of health concerns including cancer and birth deformities. Autopsies prove with the skin acting as a sponge, the user’s organs collect a diverse range of manmade chemicals.
A perfume alone may contain 300 or more different synthetic ingredients, and the cumulative effect this multitude of synthetics applied daily may not cause your skin to show trauma immediately. Seemingly perfect skins coated in regular cosmetics typically develop sensitivities later on – adult acne, rosacea, dermatitis and premature aging. We see this every day with sufferers coming to our salon, and as soon as they swing over to 100% natural and potent skincare their complexions quickly repair!

Synthetic preservatives, surfactants, emulsifiers, perfumes etc may all work very effectively in assisting the product smell seductive, last years longer or creating masses of fun bubbles but either essential or fun when they impair skin function, irritate it and even injure it to the point of blistering. Cosmetics made from synthetics clearly are not a good investment in skincare!
100% natural and safe cosmetics eliminate the absorption of 1000’s of synthetics over just the course of a year. That makes it an investment in itself! Invest in your skin, it absolutely deserves it, but ensure that what you purchase is going to BE what you expect – just constructive and safe ingredients.

This article is the intellectual property of Musq Pty Ltd. It is available for publication on the internet website Hear Mum Roar. No part of this article may be reproduced or copied in any form by any other party without written permission of Musq Pty Ltd. 18.06.10

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Time to rediscover the old me

Written on May 30th, 2010 by Hear Mum Roar in Uncategorized

This has been destined to happen, and thank god.

Since getting a new car at the end of last year, I have put on more weight than I am happy with. There’s been many changes in my life. We’ve moved house to a small country town, and I’ve gone from a mother who used to spend two hours every weekday pushing a double pram to and from school (when my fiance was working, once he wasn’t I did the walk without the kids), up and down hills, to a mum who lives two minutes’ walk from a new school, and a partner who often takes my daughter to school for me.

It’s partly because I want to look better and fit my old clothes (and new size 8 ones!) but it’s so much more than that. I want to readjust my insomnia once again. That has always been a constant battle for me as long as I can remember. Exercising is a big part of my self-identity, heck, I studied it as a potential career all those years ago! Most of my adult life, I’ve been exercising, be it walking to work, TAFE, basically everywhere. I used to enjoy going to the gym and doing personal workouts at home, as well.

And now… well, I’m living the cliche that I hate. The martyr, who is too tired, too busy and doesn’t have enough time. Oh boo friggin’ hoo. Well, those excuses get a girl nowhere, except sore back and sore joints from carrying excess weight, and constant fatigue. I want my bouncy, energetic old self back, thank you very much, and this video below has given me just the push I needed:

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Benefits of fish oils for kids.

Written on November 7th, 2009 by Hear Mum Roar in Behaviour, Care, Challenges, Constructive, Emotional, Health and beauty, November 2009, Parenting, Preschool aged, School aged

Fish oil is creating quite a buzz among parents everywhere. We’ve been giving our nine year old daughter and three year old son fish oil for seven months.

I’ve been involved in discussions about this on parenting forums during this time, and the consensus is that it’s a fabulous supplement to be giving children. It’s certainly got my vote!

Why do some parents resort to trying fish oil on their children, you may wonder? Well, some parents try it to help with behaviour problems, from mild, to full-blown ADHD. Some parents want their children to have more focus, or better sleep. I’ve even come across parents who use it for children with bowel problems, to soften their stools.

I personally wanted to try it, because my son, who was two years old at the time, was showing some challenging behaviour. We discipline him, provide interesting things for him to do, and mostly give him healthy foods to eat. The trouble was, his focus and attention span was poor. He would hit, kick, bite, push his sisters. When we tried to talk to him about his behaviour, he would hit us, or kick and pull our hair.

He had a lot of trouble sitting still at any time, and even settling down to sleep proved difficult. The kid was just wired! My fiance and I started to get concerned, and considered getting him diagnosed for ADD or ADHD. Then I remembered vaguely hearing something about fish oil.

It was when my darling partner had his first hospital visit from his paint poisoning that I became desperate. The added stress to my son, and complete change in our routine made his behaviour quite unbearable. One night, I stopped off at a supermarket on the way home from hospital, and by this point, my son was in a particularly vile mood.

A jar of fish oil caught my eye, and as my son announced to the entire supermarket that I hit him all the time (I have never hit any of my children, so you can imagine how mortified I was!), I grabbed that jar in desperation and raced to the counter.

My nine year old daughter is a really well behaved, calm, polite child. She is above average at school, and it’s rare for her to have any sort of behaviour problems, apart from normal child development, testing boundaries, etc. But, I decided to give them to her also, as I’d heard it suggested that even if a child doesn’t have any problems or issues, it’s great for the healthy development and growth of their brains. Plus, I was curious to see if it would have any impact on her as well.

And so I began my oldest two children on fish oil. After one dose, my then two year old son began to hug me more often, and constantly started to tell me he loved me. I could’ve cried with joy! Within a week, his sleep habits at night drastically improved, and he was playing more nicely and calmly.

By this stage, he was still misbehaving now and then (what two year old doesn’t?). But, the great thing was, when we tried to talk to him and explain how we wanted him to behave, he didn’t hit, kick or pull our hair. He sat still, quietly listening to what we had to say. At the end of our talks, he would say ok, instead of screaming ‘NO!’ at us. He began to show genuine remorse afterwards, too.

We quickly realised how much the fish oil was helping our son. Our then eight year old daughter was experiencing less mood swings, and said she just felt better. We also realised that with two kids on these capsules, it didn’t take long for the jar to run out. This was getting expensive! And oohh boy, when we ran out of capsules, our house became like a zoo! Our kids became irritable, and suffered terrible mood swings.

Thankfully, some forum friends recommended a cheaper, yet high quality version of omega 3 fish oil that comes in bulk. Healthy Care Kids Omega – 3. It has 125 lemon-lime flavoured capsules for $14.99. This company tests their fish oil for mercury and pesticide levels to ensure they are safe. Our son eats two a day like lollies, and my daughter bites the ‘fish tail’ off, sucks the oil out, and throws the capsule shells into the bin. I know that some parents squeeze the oil onto cereal, or into a chocolate milk. Whatever works, huh?

We buy these at our local Chemist Warehouse, but there is also an online store here, too.

After a few more weeks of taking these capsules, my son really started to act even more differently. He started hugging me more, telling me he loved me and saying over and over again that he was sorry he’d hit me. Then it dawned on me – I couldn’t remember the last time he had hit me! Or kicked, bitten, pulled hair, or generally hurt anyone in this family.

My son around this time, was also starting to really accelerate his speech development. Prior to this, he was talking just fine, but he really started firing along in his vocabulary.

Other unexpected things that happened for him included: beginning to sort the alphabet in order (not planned, this came from him), he began staying at the same activity for much longer periods, and began to show an interest in learning to read.

Now he is three, he is the little boy we always knew was there inside. He still likes to muck up and be a cheeky little three year old, and we wouldn’t have it any other way, LOL.

Our daughter is now nine, and has topped the nation in her NAPLAN scores, getting band six results in each area (highest for her age is six), and in some areas, her little ‘dot’ indicating her mark, went up and outside of band six! She has always been extremely clever, but I’ve not had her teacher tell me she sometimes daydreams or loses focus this year. This was what other teachers had told me in first and second grade.

She went on to get credits in her uni exams for math, computer skills and science. Plus, she got a high distinction for her uni exam in English. Let’s just say, we knew she had it in her!

My fiance and I sincerely believe that the fish oil is helping our kids become the happiest ‘them’ they can be. Now they really can unlock the true person inside.

I’d like to add, that whilst I have no problem with paid advertorials, this isn’t one. This is my personal recommendation to anyone who is interested. I am so thrilled with the results, and am so keen to share it with other parents, that I tell every parent I know about it, in case it can be of help to them. Unfortunately, in my excitement, I think some parents may have thought I was insinuating their children had ADHD or were badly behaved, LOL. I firmly believe though, that for anyone open to it or able to, these little capsules are worth a try, and I highly recommend them.

Have you tried fish oil for your children? If so, how has it affected your children?