Trip: from Ecuador to Peru and Bolivia

It’s been a long, long time since I’ve posted. No excuses. No explanations.

I’m back.

Live has been so interesting lately that I really felt like coming back to this blog.

Iit’s been over a month that my 7yo and I left our hometown Quito in a backpacking trip. We’ve been to Peru and Bolivia and decided to do a longer stay in La Paz.

So here we are, living like “paceños”, eating “salteñas” and discovering new food, new climate, new places, and, most important: new people.

In the next days I’ll be blogging about our adventure as an unschooling family on the road.

Meanwhile, this is a picture of Carlos in the “Metropolitano” in Lima, showing all our luggage.

Questions or comments?

If you have questions about backpacking in South America, backpacking with kids, lightweight backpacking, eating healthy on the road or anything you want to ask, just leave a comment. It’ll help me plan future posts.

Thanks for coming back to this blog, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

How Writing Can Help Heal Depression

Depression is a difficult problem that often goes undetected in the sufferer. It can have a paralyzing effect, wrapping the depressed person in a fog of darkness that prevents him or her from thinking clearly and getting help.

It seems so enormous and overwhelming that many sufferers give up without even trying to help themselves. However, writing can be very therapeutic for a depressed person, especially because it does not involve having to face people (which can be difficult). While seeking therapy, counseling, and possibly medication are important steps to take in getting help, writing definitely has a place in healing from depression.

Define the Problem

One of the things that can make depression so frightening is that it is hard to define. When you write, your thoughts and feelings are in black and white and can be evaluated and read by you. Problems look more manageable that way. Being able to view these issues clearly can help you get a handle on them. It can even make your problems look smaller.

Record of Your Progress

As you write down your thoughts, you have a record of your thoughts and feelings to look back on and see your progression. What you were struggling with five years ago or five days ago may look quite different now. As you read your journal, it can help to see that you came through the struggles of the past. That means you can make it through your present struggles as well.

The Inner World

Sigmund Freud had a theory that depression is a symptom of some unaddressed issue of the subconscious that needs attention. He theorized that the inability of depressed people to go about their normal routine – you can not eat, sleep, or concentrate it seems – is your subconscious way of forcing you to stop everything and pay attention to it.

Regardless of what you think of Freud, writing does give you access to your personal inner world that you could ordinarily ignore. Learning what is actually in your innermost being can be very insightful and healing.

Keep It Private for Now

When you write, you do not need the judgment of others or the pressure to appear brilliant or “correct.” You are not writing for others, but for yourself. If, in the back of your mind, you are thinking of who is going to read your writings and what he or she might think of them, you are inhibited. Eventually, you may want to share your writings, but only with your counselor, therapist, or trusted friend. For now, write only for your own healing and be accountable only to yourself.

Taking Action

Writing is helpful in that you are doing something – something that does not require money, making appointments, or anything else that can seem overwhelming when you are depressed. Depression can make you feel very helpless, but knowing that you can take solace in writing – and writing is actually something you can do to help yourself – can help you heal.

Making It Beautiful

As you write, you may be delighted to find that ugly, sad thoughts turn into beautiful phrases. Your depression can be transformed into something moving, meaningful, and creative. This can transform your view of your depression.

Is UV Protective Clothing Worth Buying – Pros and Cons

All clothing protects you from the sun to some extent. UV protective clothing, however, has a specific, protective scale not unlike sunscreen. A lot of UV protective clothing actually contains sunscreen in the fabric itself. Some garments are said to be UV protective due to their weave, color, and/or reflective nature.

SPF and UPF are acronyms you will see as you look into UV protective clothing. SPF stands for “sun protection factor,” and it’s what you see on lotion, sunscreen, and other topical protectors. SPF is measured by how long it takes your skin to turn red in the sun.

UPF stands for “ultraviolet protection factor” and refers specifically to the amount of UV radiation that can go through fabric and burn your skin. Therefore, you are going to see UPF more frequently in reference to UV protective clothing.

If you are considering purchasing this protective clothing, here are some pros and cons to keep in mind.

Pros

* When you wear UV protective clothing, you need not be concerned about rubbing potentially harmful chemicals into your skin. The chemical content of sunscreen has come under scrutiny lately, and many people are concerned about its safety.

* Comfort is a factor – applying sunscreen can be messy, and if you sweat, it can sting and itch. Also, sunscreen, with its oily feel, can cause sand to stick to your skin, increasing seaside discomfort.

* There is no need to re-apply lotions to skin that is often sweaty, sandy, and/or salty if you are at the beach. Rubbing sunscreen into your skin under those conditions can be uncomfortable.

* There is no debate over what to wear outside in the sun. You need only put on the UV protective clothing rather than trying to put together a comfortable, protective outfit from your existing wardrobe.

Cons

* Over time, the UV protective factor becomes less effective; washing and stretching seem to diminish the protection. However, you can actually add wash-in sunscreen to your laundry, boosting the UV protection of the garment.

* Some UV protective clothing has this sunscreen washed into the fabric, which means it may contain some of the chemicals you are trying to avoid by using less sunscreen.

* There is less choice of clothing style – UV protective clothing does not come in every style and color, and depending on your taste, you may be hard-pressed to find a style you like.

* The cost of UV protective clothing is certainly a consideration. It simply costs more than conventional clothing due to its specialized nature.

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