Ask muva vol. 13
Dear Muva:
I feel like I live in a pressure cooker most days, and sometimes it is hard for me to even lift my head up to do the most basic things. I am tired before I wake up, I am tired before I go to bed, and I just simply cannot deal. What can I do to feel better in a time when nothing seems to feel like it’s coming right?
Signed, too stressed to be blessed
Dear too stressed to be blessed,
Muva actually understands what you’re going through. It seems these days we are surrounded by stressful situations through no fault of our own. The trick, then, is to find ways to turn off your brain for your own health and wellness. One of the things that works well is meditation and prayer. If you can find a quiet place for 15 minutes each day, turn off all your devices, and find a space to meditate quietly for those 15 minutes, I promise you, your life will feel more manageable.
For the things you’re not able to change because of circumstances beyond your control, my suggestion then is to take little bites out of the situation by dealing with one small thing at a time. Does that mean you’ll feel better in the short term? Probably not. What it does mean, however, is that you’re doing your very best with what you have. You then have to practice faith and let the rest go until a solution presents itself to you.
In the meantime, guard your health, as it is the most precious thing that you cannot buy. An awesome hug also does wonders for your heart too and is calming. Good luck.
Dear Muva:
I have been an exterminator for two decades now and have seen all sorts of things. But I what can’t get over are people who get advice from me, refuse to follow it, and then call me in a panic when they have mice, roaches and bed bugs all vying for attention and have the nerve to fuss about my fees. Can you help me get people to understand that while bugs and rodents are all around us, we do not have to embrace them by leaving open food out all day, dishes piled up in the sink for weeks, and that hoarding creates a nesting environment?
Signed, bugged out
Dear bugged out:
Muva began itching as she read your concerns and wondered aloud if lighting a match would just be easier than getting some folks to be better about where they live!
In full disclosure, Muva gets totally skeeved by anything running on several legs and as such, I have a difficult time trying to wrap my brain around mice, roaches, and bed bugs all cohabitating in one spot! Where do they sleep? Be that as it may, I will do my best to give advice to the readers who may be experiencing one or all three of these things within their homes.
1. Purge one room at a time, if hoarding is your habit. If you have a hard time doing that, seek help from friends and family.
2. After extermination happens, strip all your beds, vacuum all the crevices of your mattresses and upholstery furniture, because bed bugs like invisible spaces to live and hide. When buying furniture, check to be certain that they are free of these bugs, too, as that scenario has happened to consumers.
3. Wash your dishes consistently. Wipe your counters down with bleach and soap, discard of all used food, and for the love of goodness and grace, store all your foods in Tupperware containers large enough to fit them. If the mice have nothing to eat, they are less likely to bother you in large numbers. Set traps as they will get caught eventually. Help the exterminator to help you, and encourage your family to eat in one place and not all over the home. Plug any holes you can find, as mice can and will squeeze through the tiniest spaces, and have your home exterminated monthly until the problem gets better.
4. I have no advice for roaches beyond good luck, because they are the hardest things to get rid of. It may require your spraying the entire place down and staying outside of your home for 24 hours so you can get rid of the majority of them. You may want to do that more than once in a 30 day period to keep them at bay. Roaches seem to have developed a system that makes them immune to whatever you sprayed them with over time. My suggestion would be to move and leave them there, but that is not realistic. So do your best.
Whew, I hope folks take heed to what is said here, and are kind enough to shake out their clothing before entering the homes of others who may be unsuspecting of their private bug infestations.
Keep hope alive.
Leave a Comment