Do you ever get out of bed in a morning and immediately feel like clambering back under the duvet?

I think we all have days like this but unfortunately, some of us suffer more than others. I suffered a bout of depression after the death of my father. Nothing seemed to be important or worth making the effort for. I mean why bother if you end up dying anyway, right?

I was prescribed anti-depressants by my gp and they seemed to do the trick and after six months I was back on track. The world we live in is not a particularly friendly one at the moment and many people are struggling to just exist never mind anything else. Both parents have to work to make ends meet and children seem to be allowed to roam free and do as they please with no consequence.

I began to feel a little down several months back and did not want to go back to anti-depressants so I had a “Google” for alternatives. One substance was quite prominent amongst the results and I thought I would give it a try.

Rhodiola Rosea

Rhodiola Rosea, also known as “arctic root” or “golden root”, indigenous to the polar arctic regions of eastern Siberia. As a powerful adaptogen rhodiola offers broad non-specific effects supporting overall body function particularly via adrenal stress.

I purchased a tub of rhodiola in powder form from an American company called 1fast400.com . I also purchased empty gelatine capsules to put the powder in as apparently it tasted really bad.

I am in the UK but this company shipped to me without incident via Fedex. It is cheaper to buy supplements from this company only if you are going to buy a few items in one visit. Fedex to the UK is approximately $18 minimum. Alternatively you can use US Postal service but it takes longer to arrive and provides no tracking. Please be aware that you may receive a bill for import duty a week or two after you receive your items. Rhodiola is available in the UK but is usually combined with other substances and it is quite expensive. But isn’t everything in the UK.

I made a few capsules up and began taking two a day, giving me approximately 1gram a day. After about 3 or 4 days I noticed I was becoming less irritable and grumpy. I suddenly had a lot more optimism and felt quite happy in myself.

Of course this could be put down to a placebo effect but I think not. I am still using Rhodiola and combined with my exercise regime, I feel pretty damn good at the moment! I recommend you try it if you are feeling stressed, anxious or just a little down.

The bonus is that Rhodiola also has other health benefits including cardiac health, immune system boost, increased physical and mental performance. You just feel “well” and I for one will continue to take it every day. Some of you may think it wrong to rely on an emotional crutch but at least this is a natural product and seems to have no adverse effects.
I have also tried another product from 1fast400.com called Phenibut and will post about that another time.

It is a despicable thing to claim you are disabled by using a stolen or borrowed blue badge. People, it seems, will always want a thing they are not supposed to have. Maybe it is human nature to just want “things”, I know I want “things” all the time. I would not, however, even consider an item designed to make life a little easier for someone with a disabilty.

A recent BBC News report highlighted the facts about disabled badges and crime. The report explains the surprising facts about blue badges being a valuable commodity on the black market changing hands for as much as £1600 each.

Policing the use of stolen blue disabled badges is apparently not enforced very effectively. It may not help that the photo id is not visible when the badges are displayed in a vehicle. Surely this alone would help reduce casual friends and family abusing the badge scheme.

I have an idea that may well end fraudulent use of the blue badges, or at least make it more difficult for them to be abused.

Each new blue badge issued should contain a small RFID chip. The chip would contain all relevant details for the blue badge holder including registration number of the vehicle it should be displayed in, and a contact email or phone number. The chip could not include too much personal information because criminals will be able to buy the scanners if they want them and personal details could lead to identity theft.

At least then, a traffic warden or police officer using a handheld scanner could check the details of the blue badge against the vehicle it is displayed in at the time. This can be done without entry to the vehicle. If details do not match then the police can make more enquiries or forward details to the relevant authority.

It is a very basic idea but in principle it should work shouldn’t it. I don’t think the technology is going to be that expensive to implement and may well stop people evading congestion charges of up to £5000 a year.