Flu shot? The facts

Northern Rivers Vaccination Supporters shared a post.

1 day ago

MEASLES WARNING: Two NSW residents contracted measles while overseas in South America and New Zealand.

The people visited the following locations at the following times while infectious:

Thursday 15 August
- Train from Hazelbrook to Central at 7:15am (last carriage)
- Train from Central to Wynyard arriving at around 9:00am
- Plus Fitness gym, AON Tower, 201 Kent Street, Noon to 1:00pm
- International Towers Sydney, Tower 2, 200 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo
- Pharmacy 4 Less Late Night Chemist, 171 Pacific Highway Hornsby, 3:30pm-4:00pm
- Chef’s Noodle Hornsby, 175 Peats Ferry Rd Hornsby 3:30pm-4:00pm
- Train from Wynyard to Central departing at 5:00pm
- Train from Central to Hazelbrook departing at 5:17pm (first carriage)

Friday 16 August
- Train from Hazelbrook to Central at 7:15am (last carriage)
- Train from Central to Wynyard arriving at around 9am
- Plus Fitness gym, AON Tower, 201 Kent Street, Noon to 1:00pm
- International Towers Sydney, Tower 2, 200 Barangaroo Avenue, Barangaroo
- Hornsby Westfield, Seafood@Hornsby and the food court, at lunchtime
- Train from Wynyard to Central departing at 5:00pm
- Train from Central to Hazelbrook departing at 5:17pm (first carriage)

Monday 19 August
- Hazelbrook shops, including IGA and the pharmacy, mid-morning

Be alert for symptoms, which include fever, sore eyes, a cough, followed by a rash. Read the full media release and talk to your GP about checking that you are vaccinated: www.health.nsw.gov.au/news/Pages/20190823_01.aspx ... See MoreSee Less

Northern Rivers Vaccination Supporters shared a post.

3 days ago

5 things I’ve learned since losing a child
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1️⃣ It gets easier to control the grief, but it’s still just as deep.

When Riley died, I thought I’d cry forever. But over time, I learned that grief is a bit like a muscle – with practice, you can mostly control it, you can choose when to flex it. I learned how to speak about Riley without getting emotional, in a very matter-of-fact way. Whether it was chatting with parents at baby expos or doing a public presentation, I would rattle off details of Riley’s death almost as if I was describing somebody else’s story. But while I’ve learned to control switching the grief “off”, I still feel the need sometimes (usually at home, alone) to switch it back on. At those times, it feels just as raw and painful as the day that he passed away – it all comes rushing back to me, every heart-wrenching moment.
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2️⃣ How to answer “How many children do you have?”

I have stumbled over this painful question so many times, but have come up with a rule of thumb that works for me.
If there is the chance of becoming friends (or having an ongoing relationship) with the person who has asked me, I will usually be frank and say that we have two daughters and a son that passed away a few years ago. But if the person who’s asking is someone I will probably never bump into again, I am more comfortable with saying that I have two daughters.

I don’t think there’s a “right” or “wrong” way to answer this question – it’s all about what you feel most comfortable with. But that’s what works for me!
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3️⃣You still get frustrated at your kids sometimes

There is nothing like losing a child to remind you how precious your children are and how fleeting life can be. When Riley died, I wanted to become the Perfect Parent for Olivia. I wanted to have never-ending patience, and vowed to never snap or get frustrated at her ever again.

That maybe lasted for a couple of months at best! And while I do my best to do some things differently (eg. Less TV and more quality family time), the kids sometimes still frustrate us. There’s nothing like stepping on a piece of lego in the dark or finding that every single towel in the house has been used to mop up a wet trampoline that you realise that kids are still kids… and it’s human to get irritated from time to time!
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4️⃣ The hard days are unexpected

For me, the anniversaries are just weird, and not usually as painful or emotional as I expect them to be. I feel lost and strange and wonder whether I’m feeling the feelings I’m supposed to feel on those days.

The hardest day for me is the day before his birthday. Like the parent of a living child, I wonder if I’ve done enough. Have we made enough plans? Are we honouring the day enough? Are we doing enough “for” him? Some years I start to panic because I never can figure out the best thing to do on this day, nothing feels quite right. We don’t feel much like “celebrating” his birthday as the day is really a painful reminder of what could/should have been. But then I get terrible Mum-guilt if I don’t celebrate it in some way!

Then there are the moments that pop up unexpectedly – driving around looking at Christmas lights, feeling sad he never had a Christmas. The day our youngest moved into a “big girls” bed and I realised that our baby-days are long gone now. Finding a picture of me when I was pregnant with him, remembering how excited I was, and also how naïve I was. To me, these small and random moments are the hardest ones.
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5️⃣ Real happiness is possible.

The morning after Riley’s death, I woke up and I couldn’t see any end to the pain, I couldn’t see any light at the end of the tunnel.

And then, over the days and weeks and months after his death, we tried to focus on doing something positive for other families, raising awareness about the dangers of whooping cough and the importance of vaccination. It was Riley’s legacy, but it was also for us. We were desperate to find the good in something so bad, the silver lining to his death, and I think we’d found it.

I’ve realised that child-loss is not unique – it happens. And at some point, we will all lose people we love. That’s the price of loving people, I guess. Around the world, most of us a grieving in some way, yet many of us (sometimes with a lot of counselling, therapy etc!) manage to live happy and loving and fulfilling lives.

I truly believe that we have to make our own light in our dark tunnels.
We have to choose to be happy, if we want to be happy.

And it’s not about “finding” happiness – I think it’s about doing things that make others happy, being grateful for the good things in life, and also letting go of any guilt you have about being happy after losing someone you love.

I still miss him every day… but I try my best to choose happiness ❤ ... See MoreSee Less