MRSA, MRSA, MRSA!

(Please read the title "MRSA, MRSA, MRSA!" as if you were Jan on the Brady Bunch. Maybe you're now ashamed to know me, but I needed a title and it was fitting so...don't judge me!!)

Due to a recent influx of questions to me about MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) and its transmission recently, I thought I'd share with everyone some info. By the way, I used reliable sources and linked every single one of them at the bottom for you to read on your own! :)

Please note that most of the info in the second link is mostly referring to the person actively having sores and not having had an infection in the past. These sources are good because they're academic/state and consistent with research. Plus they're easy for anyone to read. And I color-coded the ones I quoted with the link so you can keep track of exactly where I got each quote!
But if you want more in-depth stuff, I also provided some links to some great journal articles (I encourage you to read them!).


Some important points:

"Staphylococci or 'staph' bacteria commonly live on the skin and in the nose. Usually, staph bacteria don’t cause any harm. However, if they get inside the body they can cause an infection." - second link.
               Note from me: an organism that lives on humans normally but causes harm only if you're susceptible at the time is called an opportunistic organism. The bacteria that cause strep infections do the same exact thing!

"Many people with active infections are treated effectively, and no longer have MRSA." - second link.

"...you can return to your normal routine including going out in public because many activities in the community involve less risk for transmission and because the risk of MRSA infection is low in healthy adults and children." - first link.

"You are more susceptible to get MRSA if you have been very ill, have been in a hospital or nursing home, or have been on many antibiotics. Careful hand washing is the most important way to keep from spreading MRSA to other patients." - first link.
               If you've heard of someone acquiring MRSA (or some other infection) while in a hospital (during illness recovery, post-surgery, or during their stay in a nursing home even), this is called a nosocomial infection. They occur when you're susceptible to an infection and happen to be in an establishment that's got opportunistic organisms everywhere!

The above quotes are just a few of the main things I wanted to share based on the questions I've been asked, but there is a lot more you can read about it! Information is everywhere but don't believe just anyone--look up reliable sources yourself or check the sources someone else used (it won't offend me if you check out the ones I used--in fact, I encourage it!) when they explained it to you. There is A LOT of misinformation out there these days, so you want to be extra careful about what you read. But I assure you this information is trusty!
And if you find an issue with my sources or if you have newly updated research with different information (science is ALWAYS changing!), please let me know and I'll fix/add it!

My sources!
University of Virginia Health System
Minnesota Department of Health
Health Care–Associated Invasive MRSA Infections, 2005-2008 (This one was more on the side of stats and tracking but still a good read!)

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA): burden of disease and control challenges in Europe (This is a REVIEW article but covers a lot of bases and is quite informative!)

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor so all I've told you is what I've learned from research and in courses I've taken. If you want medical advice, ask your doc!

Have an amazing week and good luck to everyone who will be taking finals!

Love,

Aurielle

Somebody Else's Story

During the John Waller concert on Sunday night, John Waller told us how he came up with his song, "Somebody Else's Story." A mother at his home church was thanking a children's pastor and that pastor replied, "I just want to be a part of their story."

I can't wait to be a part of someone's story!
In fact, I hope I already am a part of several stories. A testimony is a powerful thing, and the road to redemption is incredible. I love having a role in that. I just can't wait to be a missionary in healthcare; then it will be my job to be in those stories.

My challenge to you is this:
This month/semester/year, make it a goal to make your school/home/workplace your own mission field. Whether it's an unsaved friend you want to help find salvation, a brother/sister in Christ for whom you can be accountable and help them strengthen their relationship with God (while letting them help you grow in your relationship with Him, too), or someone who's fallen off the wagon a bit recently and needs a little hand up, there's someone who could use more of God in their lives (uhm hello, everyone needs more of God than they already have!!). Be a part of their story and make them a part of yours.  :)


Somebody Else's Story - John Waller

Heaven Just Got Better

Recently, a lot of the people in my life (and I) have been exposed to a great deal of death (or so it seems to me). Whether death is via an accident, an illness, or old age, people mourn and people grieve over the loss of a life.  That's normal. It's even good, I think. But during a concert I attended last night (John Waller. Amazing.), I was reminded that there's a whole other side to that story. God rejoices when we can join Him in Heaven. Heaven is a beautiful and incredible place, but it's even better with those fantastic people there. And it will be even better with you there, too. :)

This isn't the best version of the song, but it's pretty new so this is the only available video of the song on Youtube! If you find a better version, feel free to post it here and I'll update my post with it. :)



Heaven Just Got Better - John Waller
P.S. He's amazing live. If you ever get a chance, go see him. He's very real and uplifting.

Looking for Direction

Recently, I've been trying to give God complete control of my life. Simply put, I am a stressed-out senior who is constantly worried about where I'll be next year, what I need to be doing now, and why all the hoops through which I must jump seem monotonous and impossible.

A popular quote my family tries to remember is:

Worry is like a rocking chair: you can do it all day but it'll get you nowhere.

Another quote I like is:

Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.

Well, I can't really figure out how to put all of my thoughts today into this blog, so I'll just give you the concluding statement:

God has made a way for each and every one of us. We need to actively pursue the goals He has set for us, but we also need to ask Him for the guidance to discover what's out there for us.



Today, I heard this song and it was a reminder to me that I should be more concerned with what God is doing within me and the doors He has opened for me than with the doors that seem to close for me. A closed door is just a new direction; it's time to stop feeling discouraged when a door closes and get excited about the new steps ahead!

5 Stages of Dying...and Studying.

I came to the realization the other night (while studying) that students often go through the 5 stages of dying while studying for an exam or doing an assignment. Believe it or not, I was working ahead (not procrastinating) so I wasn't personally going through this process entirely, but if you read this, you might agree because I'm sure everyone's experienced it! 

So anyway, here's why I think this:

Denial: "Ah this assignment/exam is no big deal. I can start it later.."

Anger: You've started the assignment and it's harder than you thought. "WHY do I have to do this? No one cares about how I, a cell biology student, isolated and purifie...d IgG from human serum!"

Bargaining: "Mr. Dr. Professor Guy, may we pleeeeeeeease (with sugar on top?) extend the due date?!"

Depression: No extension of the due date. Deadline draws near. It may or may not be the night or 2 nights before it's due (or before the exam). "I'll never get this done. Waaaaaah! *Tear* Sigh. I hate my life, I hate school, and I'm quitting to become a professional bum!

Acceptance: Finally you're almost finished the assignment (or it's time for the exam). "Okay. I can do this. I KNOW I CAN. I've definitely got this."


And by the way, this was merely for the sake of sharing a thought I had one night. It is not meant to take away from the seriousness of the psychological effects of actual death. So please don't express opinions that may or may not imply such a thing. Thanks.

God vs. Satan?

Today, I decided to catch up with some of my Formspring questions. Below is one of the questions I was asked:

"If I'm looking at the forces of God versus Satan, and one is actively interested in pursuing me while the other sits there and waits for me to come snivelling to him, then. Hail Satan."

After thinking about this one for a moment, it dawned on me that if one person thinks this way and is vocal about it enough to address me with these thoughts, there must be others.  It's a difficult concept to understand that God wants us to choose to follow him while Satan is pretty much soliciting followers himself. So here's how I answered the question:

"The way I look at it, Satan HAS to actively pursue people. God doesn't. Think of it this way:

Someone is giving away a brand new, huge, beautiful house, fully furnished in an incredible neighborhood, for free.

Another person is selling a beat up shack that needs thousands of dollars in repairs, and he's selling it for 1 million dollars.

Whose deal sounds better? More appealing? You'd need an awfully great salesperson to be able to sell that shack, but people would be lining up to take that first deal. 

Now imagine that the brand new, beautiful home is the kingdom of Heaven, and God is the One who is giving it away for free. See, that's actually TRUE! In fact, He went even further. He's not just giving us that kingdom of Heaven; He sent His only Son--Jesus--to PAY for it!

Now consider the second deal. Satan is actively pursuing people to follow his ways because he has to do it! People wouldn't agree to such a lame deal (hurting people, hurting God, eternal unhappiness and death) if they weren't being convinced by an outside source that they'd be gaining something from it.

I hope this helps you understand the way that I understand this topic. :)"

I wanted to share this just in case someone else might be struggling with the same topic as the person who posted that question for me to answer.

Have a wonderful day!

Leaving 99

Many of you know the story of the 99 sheep the shepherd left behind in order to seek the one sheep that wandered.

Matthew 18:12-14 (NIV)
12 "What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off ? 13 And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost."

Starting with just the beginning, Verse 12 says, "If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go look for the one that wandered off?"
In biblical times, a shepherd's sheep were his children. He would raise his sheep, feed them, guide them, and lead them on the correct path. You won't find too many shepherds today, but what if we broke this down and changed the verse a bit?
What if the verse read, "If a man fathered a great number of children, and one of them got lost, will he not leave his home and go to look for the one who wandered away?"
Well, I know that my own father would travel to the ends of the earth to find me if I went missing! He wouldn't stop for anything until he found me and brought me safely home.

If an earthly father, or a good shepherd, would go to such great lengths to seek out a lost loved one, we can rest assured that our Heavenly Father would accept no limits in seeking out his wandering children.

In fact, this wasn't the only reference to shepherding lost sheep in the Bible. God referred to himself as our shepherd in Ezekiel 34:11-21:
11 "'God, the Master, says: From now on, I myself am the shepherd. I'm going looking for them. 12 As shepherds go after their flocks when they get scattered, I'm going after my sheep. I'll rescue them from all the places they've been scattered to in the storms. 13 I'll bring them back from foreign peoples, gather them from foreign countries, and bring them back to their home country. ...  15 And I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep. I myself will make sure they get plenty of rest. 16 I'll go after the lost, I'll collect the strays, I'll doctor the injured, I'll build up the weak ones and oversee the strong ones so they're not exploited." 

Does any of that look familiar? To me, it looks awfully similar to Jesus' parable about the lost sheep! And this quotation came from God even before Jesus was born on earth. Of course, one also could say that God was hinting to everyone at the time that He would be sending Jesus as a shepherd to all of us ("I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep...I'll go after the lost...doctor the injured, I'll build up the weak ones...").
But how's that for proof that God loves us--it was stated twice at completely different times from the most primary of sources :)

Verse 13 states, "And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off." 
At this point, you might think, well what the other 99 sheep? Where were they when he left to look for the one who wandered? 
At first, I used to wonder the same thing. It's possible that the shepherd in this parable left his 99 sheep with another shepherd or a friend while he went after his lost sheep or something along those lines. However, I had to remember that every parable Jesus told had a purpose--a meaning behind it. Sometimes, it's not about those small details. For example, Matthew 13:44 says,
"The kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." 
The story wasn't telling us to hide the wonderful existence of Heaven or that a physical, tangible treasure like that in the story is what we should strive to find. Instead, Jesus was telling His followers about the greatness of Heaven. You might have to leave everything you have behind when you seek out the kingdom of Heaven, but the end result is much more precious than anything you could have possibly left.
In the same way, the parable of the lost sheep refers to God's great love and dedication to His earthly children.
  
Verse 14 says, "In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost." 
The same verse was written in The Message to say, "Your Father in heaven feels the same way. He doesn't want to lose even one of these simple believers." 
That one lost sheep deeply hurt the good shepherd, so he left to bring it home, but he didn't leave any sheep on their own in the process. In the same way, God will never leave any of His children alone; He knows that the ones who follow Him diligently are safe--He wouldn't leave us to fend for ourselves, and He certainly wouldn't put us at risk of wandering ourselves. He simply wants every single one of His "sheep" to be out of harm's way and He will do what it takes to bring us home. God doesn't want to lose any of us! 

As I said, when Jesus told this parable, He was expressing our Father's great and unfailing love for us; He wanted His followers to know that God will always seek us; we just need to seek Him back. 


A friend once told me a story of a woman whose son was returning home after serving overseas. She was so happy to know that her son was coming home! However, she also knew that some mothers would not be able to feel that same joy, for their sons/daughters were not returning.

With that said, how much more excited is God when we make that decision to seek Him and come home?!
And how much more difficult do you think it is for God to know that so many of His sons and daughters will not be returning to Him?
Isn't there something we can do about that?? ;)



"Leaving 99" - Audio Adrenaline