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Kleptomania is a form of psychiatric disorder. It is a difficult disorder, and an affected person experiences a lot of shame, remorse, stress or feels guilt, which are associated with stealing. It is categorized as an impulse control disorder which affects the behavior of a patient. Kleptomania may be associated with obsessive-compulsive disorder. The patient develops an impulse to steal and cannot control this impulse and later feels guilty.

Here are several tips which you can use in order to deal with kleptomania.

1. Understanding the situation: It must be clearly understood that a kleptomaniac person does not steal with the intention of becoming rich. It is done only for mental satisfaction and to pacify the urge of stealing that comes from within to an affected person. The patient usually does not care about the object he steals, but he only cares about the act of stealing. Usually, kleptomaniac patients steal insignificant things. When an affected patient becomes extremely nervous or fearful, they tend to steal an object. After the act, they feel much better and relieved. Later, a feeling of guilt arises in the person about his stealing act.
2. Treat the affected person gently: A kleptomaniac person requires love, care and great understanding from his/her loved ones or family members in order to recover. The problem and the situation must be recognized and perceived carefully. A person close to the patient should deal with him gently and try to make him understand. In many situations, a kleptomaniac may be aware of his actions but does not confess to avoid harassment.
3. The situation is different from stealing: It must be kept in mind that the actions of a kleptomaniac cannot be exactly termed as stealing. Stealing is an organized activity done by conscious individuals in order to gain something material or money related. Kleptomania is an act of impulse which a patient conducts for psychological satisfaction. The patients are fully aware that stealing is not the right thing, but yet they cannot control their impulse to steal.
4. Treatment procedures: Once a kleptomaniac person accepts that they are suffering from a disorder, professional help must be taken. Cognitive Behavior Therapy is the primary treatment for kleptomania. This includes aversion therapy where a distraction is created when a person develops the impulse to steal an object. Systematic desensitization is another process where a patient is made to imagine a scenario to get over the urge of stealing. Covert desensitization makes a patient imagine negative impacts of the stealing act such as arrest or harassment.

The social life of a kleptomaniac becomes very difficult and both the patient and his family are subjected to a lot of trouble and harassment. Necessary measures must be taken for kleptomania.

In preparation for the possibility of conception, a woman's body undergoes the menstrual cycle every month which culminates into the periods. This is a normal process which all women of reproductive age go through every month. However, in certain cases, the periods can be really painful where you may suffer from menstrual cramps or could be generally in much pain. This condition is known as Dysmenorrhea.

What exactly is Dysmenorrhea
As mentioned above, Dysmenorrhea is a disorder that many women got through while having their periods where they may suffer from painful cramps. The pain usually occurs in the pelvis area along with the lower abdomen and it may also be accompanied by other symptoms.

Some symptoms of Dysmenorrhea
Some of the symptoms of Dysmenorrhea could be any combination of the following factors
I. Very painful menstrual cramps accompanied by lower back pain
II. Diarrhea and nausea along with the cramps
III. Pain in the inner thighs, lower back and hips
IV. Being hypersensitive to light, loud sounds, specific smells and touch
V. Being fatigued all the time, even causing you to faint

Causes of Dysmenorrhea
Dysmenorrhea is usually caused by the contraction of the Uterus. While the uterus does contract a little even in normal periods, during Dysmenorrhea the contractions tend to be a little too much. Due to this the uterus presses against the blood vessels and organs within the vicinity causing oxygen loss to them. This causes elevated levels of pain and discomfort.

Some of the underlying causes which may result in Dysmenorrhea are:
1. Narrowing of the cervix - Also known as stenosis, the lower part of the uterus which is the cervix may become narrow due to scarring and cause Dysmenorrhea.
2. Endometriosis - This is where the uterine lining is found outside the uterus, especially in the pelvic cavity and thus may cause painful cramps.
3. Inflammatory pelvic diseases - This is when a bacterial infection in the pelvic area can spread to multiple organs, including the uterus and thus may cause painful menstrual cramps.
4. Tumors - Tumors or fibroids which are unwanted growths on the inside of the uterus may also trigger Dysmenorrhea.

What to do if you are suffering from Dysmenorrhea
Below are some of the basic steps which you can take to ease pain from Dysmenorrhea
1. Avoid smoking and abstain from alcohol
2. Ample rest during periods
3. Keep the body dehydrated
4. Don't consume foods high in salt
5. Don't drink coffee or any caffeine rich foods
6. Lower back massages and hot water bag treatments to relieve pain

We're all guilty of making fun of snorers but sometimes this snoring can be a symptom of sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a condition where breathing is not continuous and may start and stop many times while asleep. This affects the quality of your sleep and in turn can affect many aspects of your health including your cardiovascular health. Here's how:

High Blood Pressure
When a sleep apnea patient's breathing stops, the oxygen levels in the blood also suddenly fall. This can increase your blood pressure. High blood pressure means that the heart muscles need to work harder to pump blood through the body.

Cardiomyopathy
As a result of high blood pressure, the heart walls may become thicker and the heart muscles become stiffer. This is known as cardioyopathy. As this condition worsens, the heart becomes weaker and is unable to maintain a regular rhythm. This can eventually lead to heart failure.

Arrhythmia
An irregular heartbeat is also known as arrhythmia. This may also be related to the changes in the heart's structure that follow the drop in blood oxygen levels. In many cases, arrhythmia has no visible symptoms and can often go undiagnosed. This can result in the formation of blood clots in the atria which can lead to a stroke.

Sleep apnea is easy to diagnose. If the doctor feels that you show symptoms of sleep apnea, you may be asked to stay on the hospital overnight and undergo a sleep evaluation. This tests a variety of body functions including brain activity, eye movements, heart rate, breathing patterns and blood oxygen levels.

Treatment for sleep apnea depends on the causes for this condition. If you are overweight, regular exercise and a change in diet can help you lose the excess weight and cure sleep apnea. Similarly, if your sleep apnea is triggered by an allergy, treating the allergy can help cure the sleep apnea. Other forms of treatment for sleep apnea may include:

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP)
This is a machine which pumps air into the body through a nasal mask. By keeping the pressure in the machine higher than normal air pressure the upper airway passages are kept open and hence the quality of your sleep is improved. An auto CPAP machine can modulate the air pressure such that it is higher when you inhale and lower when you exhale.;

Oral devices
Your doctor may suggest oral devices that allow you to keep your mouth open while you sleep. This is easier to use than CPAP machine but less effective.

Surgery is the last resort when it comes to treatment for sleep apnea.

When the sugar concentration in the blood increases suddenly and unreasonably, the resulting condition is known as diabetes. Sugar or glucose is generally used in order to provide much needed energy to our bodies. But when the pancreas dysfunctions, it leads to a problem in the insulin production. As a result, glucose or sugar gets directly absorbed into the blood, instead of getting absorbed by insulin. And this leads to the condition of diabetes.

Diabetes Treatment in Ayurveda
For Ayurvedic treatment of diabetes, the first step is usually dietary planning and lifestyle change. Adopting a more active lifestyle, and a healthy, balanced diet low on sugars and starches, is a must. You must begin by avoiding sugars in all forms. This means you will have to get rid of rice, potatoes, white bread, sugar coated cereals, bananas, colocasia and much more. Add a lot of green leafy vegetables to your diet to improve your nutritional status and metabolism. In addition to these, also add some herbs to your diet. Ayurvedic herbs that act as natural medicine for diabetes include turmeric, bitter gourd, gurmar leaves, bael, fenugreek and many more.

Apart from diabetes Ayurvedic treatment, you could also practice yoga, which can help you improve your health. Several yogic asanas help massage your internal organs so that they are healthier and can function much better. Some of the asanas are especially beneficial for the pancreas, which produces insulin. You may have to make some changes to your lifestyle as well. For starters, you will have to maintain a more active lifestyle. You will also have to avoid sleeping in the daytime. Avoid smoking and consuming alcohol and take extra care of your feet.

As an ancient science based on lifestyle related treatment methods that include herbs, massages and life changing tweaks, Ayurveda also provides various methods of managing this ailment. Here's how!

1. Bitter Gourd: Known as an ingredient that is rich in antioxidants, this can be consumed to take care of diabetes. You will need to first remove the peel of at least four to five bitter gourds before crushing them to create a paste. This paste has to be put through a sieve so that the juice of the gourds can be extracted. You will then have to drink this juice every morning, on an empty stomach.
2. Cinnamon: From treating coughs and colds to diabetes and other serious ailments, this is a wonder spice that can be found in most Indian kitchens. You can start by boiling a litre of water and letting it simmer on the gas for about twenty minutes. Thereafter, you can add three teaspoons of cinnamon powder to this simmering water. Strain this mixture and drink the entire batch every day to clear out the toxins.
3. Fenugreek Seeds: For this, you will need to take about four to five tablespoons of fenugreek seeds. These will have to be soaked in a glass of water or about 250ml of water, overnight. In the morning, the softened seeds will need to be crushed before the mixture is strained. The water that escapes should be collected and ingested every day for a period of two months.
4. Turmeric: Turmeric is a powerful and well-known ingredient that is used for curing and managing many ailments. You will need to mix about half a teaspoon of turmeric powder with one teaspoon of amla powder as well as half a tablespoon of methi seeds or fenugreek seeds powder. This concoction will have to mixed in half a glass of water and taken daily on an empty stomach. This can be used by patients suffering from heart ailments as well.
5. Diet: Cereals like ragi, corn, kulit, green millet, and barley are known to beneficial for patients suffering from diabetes. Leafy greens are also a must for such patients along with protein-rich foods like soya beans.

Laser Skin Tightening is a procedure that uses laser to enhance the appearance of the skin and treat minor facial flaws. This procedure is performed with the help of two types of Lasers: Ablative and Non-Ablative Laser. 
Ablative laser is used to remove thin layers of skin, while a non-ablative laser is one which causes growth of collagen and tightens the skin underneath. Non-ablative laser is less invasive and requires less time to recover; although it's less effective than laser resurfacing, which is done with an ablative laser. 

A laser tightening skin procedure can decrease fines lines on the face, making you look younger and giving a smooth appearance to your skin. It can also be used to treat uneven skin tone and improve your complexion, besides helping the treatment of sunburns and scars to a certain extent. This procedure is usually used to treat: 

1. Wrinkles 
2. Age Spots 
3. Skin damage caused by sun rays 
4. Scars caused due to accidents, chicken pox or severe acne 
5. Irregular or uneven skin tone or texture 

Before performing the procedure a doctor is likely to check your 

1. Medical history - Doctors cross check your current and previous medical history, including medications and medical conditions. 
2. Physical examination - A skin test is very common prior to performing such a surgery. 

After the procedure is carried out, you may encounter initial minor problems like acne, itching, swelling or redness. 

You may be advised to take medications and to avoid direct exposure to sunlight. During the procedure, a highly intense beam of light is directed on the skin. This laser beam destroys the upper layer of skin and also heats the underlying layers of epithelial cells. Resultantly, it causes the collagen fibers to shrink, thereby tightening your skin and giving you a younger appearance. Post the procedure, ice packs can be used to cool down the skin.

Are you suffering from social anxiety phobia and are looking for ways to get over it? Social anxiety refers to the anxiety in anticipating any kind of social situation or after a certain situation. The fear of evaluation accounts for being the primary factor of social anxiety phobia. Here are the various ways by which you can deal with social anxiety phobia:

1. Self-help Manual: Self-help manuals are a supplement for this therapy. They act as an effective tool, which helps you to work on your own.

2. Visit a Therapist: In case your social anxiety phobia is hampering things you need to do along with your social activities, and your self-help measures have failed, you need a therapist. Choose a therapist who specializes in anxiety disorders.

3. Practice Deep Breathing Regularly: Engaging yourself in deep breathing, before a situation which provokes or triggers your social anxiety, is effective. You need to undertake deep breathing for several minutes every day. This will make it a habit for you, so that you do not focus too much on deep breathing during a situation, thereby missing out on the conversation.

4. Create an Exposure Hierarchy: An exposure hierarchy refers to a list. In this list, you have to write down about all the various types of situations when your social anxiety phobia gets triggered. The list has to be made in a ladder format, and by performing the easiest behaviors first, you should move up the list. For creating exposure hierarchy, you should note down 10 anxiety triggering social situations you experience, and rate them on a scale of 100. You can also join Toastmasters, which is a website where links to several worksheets based on coping with social anxiety are provided.

5. Create your Goals: When you feel anxious, it is likely for you to eliminate anything positive during that situation. You might be doing great, but yet face distress in everyday activities because of feelings of anxiety. For this purpose, it is recommended for you to create objective behavioral goals.

6. Maintain a Rational Outlook: Try to get rid of any bleak thoughts, which hamper your performance and trigger your social anxiety phobia. Also stay away from any kind of unrealistic thoughts, which are positive in an irrational way. Before any situation which enhances your anxiety, you should convince yourself about how it is a familiar situation to you, which you have dealt with smoothly in the past.

There is a commonly held view that eating disorders are a lifestyle choice. Eating disorders are actually serious and often fatal illnesses that cause severe disturbances to a person's eating behaviours. Obsessions with food, body weight, and shape may also signal an eating disorder. 

Signs and Symptoms of Common Eating Disorders are discussed below...

Anorexia Nervosa-

People with anorexia nervosa may see themselves as overweight, even when they are dangerously underweight. People with anorexia nervosa typically weigh themselves repeatedly, severely restrict the amount of food they eat and eat very small quantities of only certain foods. Anorexia nervosa has the highest mortality rate of any mental disorder.

Symptoms:

• Extremely restricted eating
• Extreme thinness (emaciation)
• A relentless pursuit of thinness and unwillingness to maintain a normal or healthy weight
• Intense fear of gaining weight
• Distorted body image, a self-esteem that is heavily influenced by perceptions of body weight and shape, or a denial of the seriousness of low body weight

Other symptoms may develop over time, including:

• Thinning of the bones (osteopenia or osteoporosis)
• Mild anaemia and muscle wasting and weakness
• Brittle hair and nails
• Dry and yellowish skin
• Growth of fine hair all over the body (lanugo)
• Severe constipation
• Low blood pressure, slowed breathing and pulse
• Damage to the structure and function of the heart
• Brain damage
• Multiorgan failure
• Drop in internal body temperature, causing a person to feel cold all the time
• Lethargy, sluggishness, or feeling tired all the time
• Infertility

Bulimia Nervosa-

People with bulimia nervosa have recurrent and frequent episodes of eating unusually large amounts of food and feeling a lack of control over these episodes. This binge-eating is followed by behaviour that compensates for the overeating such as forced vomiting, excessive use of laxatives or diuretics, fasting, excessive exercise, or a combination of these behaviours. People with bulimia nervosa usually maintain what is considered a healthy or relatively normal weight.

Symptoms:

• Chronically inflamed and sore throat
• Swollen salivary glands in the neck and jaw area
• Worn tooth enamel and increasingly sensitive and decaying teeth as a result of exposure to stomach acid
• Acid reflux disorder and other gastrointestinal problems
• Intestinal distress and irritation from laxative abuse
• Severe dehydration from purging of fluids
• Electrolyte imbalance (too low or too high levels of sodium, calcium, potassium and other minerals) which can lead to stroke or heart attack

Binge-eating Disorder-

People with binge-eating disorder lose control over his or her eating. Unlike bulimia nervosa, periods of binge-eating are not followed by purging, excessive exercise, or fasting. As a result, people with binge-eating disorder often are overweight or obese. Binge-eating disorder is the most common eating disorder.

Symptoms:

• Eating unusually large amounts of food in a specific amount of time
• Eating even when you're full or not hungry
• Eating fast during binge episodes
• Eating until you're uncomfortably full
• Eating alone or in secret to avoid embarrassment
• Feeling distressed, ashamed, or guilty about your eating
• Frequently dieting, possibly without weight loss

Unspecified Eating Disorder-

• This happens when the behaviour does not meet the criteria for any food or eating problems but still pose significant threat and problems.
• This also happens the clinician is not able to assess whether an individual is affected by a certain disorder.

Treatment-

Treatment is available. Recovery is possible...

Eating disorders are serious health conditions that can be both physically and emotionally destructive. People with eating disorders need to seek professional help. Early diagnosis and intervention may enhance recovery. Eating disorders can become chronic, debilitating, and even life-threatening conditions.

When you begin to notice that disordered eating habits are affecting your life, your happiness, and your ability to concentrate, it is important that you talk to somebody about what you are going through.

The most effective and long-lasting treatment for an eating disorder is some form of psychotherapy or psychological counselling, coupled with careful attention to medical and nutritional needs. Ideally, this treatment should be tailored to the individual and will vary according to both the severities of the disorder and the patient's particular problems, needs, and strengths.

The months of July and August comprise of the monsoon season. As per Ayurveda, this is the ideal opportunity for Pitta and Vata aggravation. All the warmth that gathers in the body in the summer is aggravated during the monsoon season. There are various skin diseases predominant in the rainy season. Basic learning of Ayurveda can help us anticipate and even treat difficult skin issues. According to Ayurveda, the skin has six layers, found externally as well as stretching out to the more profound levels of the body. Skin disease is established profoundly into different tissues, such as fat, muscles, blood and so forth.

Most skin treatments are for the outer part. These never reach to the more profound layers of the skin. Ayurveda dependably tries to find the disease by treating it, particularly as indicated by its cause. The disease being deep-seated, it is hard to alter the issue rapidly. Ayurvedic skin treatments may take a couple of weeks to remove the indications. The cure is permanent.

Here is a list of skin diseases, which can be effectively cured using Ayurvedic remedies.

1. Pruritus: Pruritus is characterized as a sensation that incites the yearning to scratch. It is present in both the central and peripheral neural components. Nerve endings in the area of the dermo-epidermal junction transmit the sensation of itch by means of moderate conveying C filaments, and it is likely tweaked midway. Pruritus (Itch) is a typical displaying side effect of both essential skin diseases and basic restorative issue. Ayurveda can effectively treat pruritus.

2. Papulosquamous eruptions: This is an eruptive scaly rash, now and again connected with itching. The primary driver might be Eczema, Psoriasis, Pityriasis Rosea, Lichen Planus, Drug Eruption. This is a very common skin disease which can be managed by Ayurveda.

3. Erythroderma: This skin disease results in the scaling of the majority of the body surface. Erythroderma patients might be systemically unwell accompanied by shivering because of loss of temperature and pyrexia. The pulse rate might get enhanced, and the blood pressure may become low because of volume consumption.

4. Photosensitivity: Sunlight is responsible for causing numerous skin diseases. Photosensitization is less while exposed to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and visible light. At the point when a rash is identified with daylight, then the parts influenced have a tendency to be light, uncovered destinations the face, especially the nose and the cheeks yet barring the eyelids.

5. Psoriasis: Psoriasis is an inflammatory disease of the skin, characterized by erythematous plaques with expansive scales.

Ayurveda is a very effective branch of medicine and can be used to effectively treat skin disease

Gastric acids are chemicals provided by your stomach to aid digestion. But the corrosive effects they induce are counteracted by the secretion of other chemicals. It is when the secretion of these chemicals is impaired that it leads to the damaged stomach lining, causing acidity, also known as acid reflux.

Ayurveda promises some easy home treatments for acidity which are quite efficient in ensuring fast recovery for you. You can use any of these listed Ayurvedic treatments if you suffer from acidity.

1. Amla powder (Indian Gooseberry) and honey
 
Soak one teaspoonful of amla powder in half a cup of water. Add honey and stir and drink empty stomach in the morning. Repeat similarly for the evening.
 
2. Cumin seeds

You can reduce cumin seeds to their powder form, then you have to add half a spoon of it to water; presumably, one litre. Then, keep the solution boiling then filter it. You will have to make sure that you drink this solution instead of normal water. Take this water-based solution every day till recovery. This is quite an effective remedy for acidity.
 
3. Mulethi (liquorice) and honey
 
You can reduce liquorice root to powder, then to half a spoon of this powder add little honey to form a paste. Lick to consume this paste twice daily after meals. Liquorice neutralizes the acids quickly to give relief.

4. White pumpkin juice
 
Take white pumpkin peel and slice it and make a pulpy juice out of it. Half a cup twice daily gives fast recovery from gastritis and acidity. Alternatively, you may eat sweet made of pumpkin (peetha ki methai) after meals.
 
5. Buttermilk

You can take half a glass of buttermilk and add a pinch of each asafetida and turmeric to it. With it, also take care to add a tiny amount of fenugreek and drink it at night, to make the most of its benefits.

6. Jaggery

You can try taking boiled ash gourd with jaggery. This relieves the burning sensation in the stomach to a considerable extent.

People suffering from pneumonia, postoperative partial or complete collapse of the lungs, chronic respiratory conditions like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Cystic Fibrosis etc as well as people suffering from neuromuscular diseases can get partial relief by respiratory physiotherapy. If a person is suffering from retained secretions, increased effort to breathe or volume loss, he or she may be referred to Respiratory Physiotherapy.

Respiratory Assessment Of The Patient

A Respiratory Physiotherapist will assess the condition of the patient with the help of Respiratory Assessment or Respiratory Examination. It includes:

• Auscultation and review chest X-Ray

• Interpreting arterial blood gasses test and blood tests

• History of present illness

• History of past illnesses

• Details of cough, breathlessness, sputum, chest pain  

Other symptoms like headache, fever, CO2 retention, heart failure, peripheral oedema, shivering, palpitations, weight loss, Gastrointestinal Reflux Disease, vomiting and nausea etc.

Respiratory Physiotherapy Techniques -

After the Respiratory Assessment the doctor may prescribe the following:

• Breathing Exercises

Exercises like Active Cycle Of Breathing Techniques can help in clearing phlegm. Since people in respiratory distress often produce more phlegm than normal, it is essential that this excess phlegm be removed. This can help the person breathe more freely. Removing the phlegm can also help prevent infections in the chest and reduce coughing. It is a set of exercises that together help in establishing breathing control, huffing and deep breathing.

• Mobilisation

Early mobilization is one of the most important aspects of chest physiotherapy. It includes positioning, active and passive turning, cycling pedals, standing, stepping etc.

• Manual Techniques

The Physiotherapist may apply pressure on the chest to facilitate airway clearance while keeping the patient in gravity assisted phlegm drainage position.

• IPPB

It employs a device that helps patients take a deep breath, cough and clear lungs. The device offers short-term and intermittent mechanical ventilation of a positive pressure set by a physiotherapist. The device pushes a mixture of oxygen through a facemask.

• Suction

Here too the physiotherapist uses a device to suck out excess mucus from the chest and facilitate breathing. Here the cough is stimulated by a catheter and phlegm is sucked out using another catheter.

• MHI

It is the acronym for Manual Hyperinflation. This procedure is carried out by a Respiratory Physiotherapist to give volume to partially or completely collapsed lungs.

• BiPAP or CPAP

The device delivers pressurized air into the patient's airways through a facemask. The pressure of air prevents collapse of the throat muscles and reduces airway obstructions. In essence, they allow patients to breathe more freely and regularly. 

Conclusion

Right Respiratory Assessment or Respiratory Examination is crucial to applying the right physiotherapy techniques. Right techniques may help patients breathe more freely and avoid respiratory infections.