Raisie Bay

Control My Pain Project

a woman in bed, black and white photo

The control my pain project is an online course which helps those with chronic pain restore their health, comfort and happiness.

The six week holistic pain management program leads you week by week into understanding your pain and how it affects you both mentally, physically and socially. It provides you with resources that you can use to thelp you reduce your pain and improve your attitude towards it.

The Program

The program is split into six weeks, but takes around an hour and a half maximum to work through the videos and quizzes. You are then required to put what you have learned into practice for the rest of the week. The aim is that by the end of the program you will have practised each weekly tasks so that they become natural to you.

There is nothing too difficult to digest or to do, the program is pretty easy. It explains everything really clearly and the tasks and quizzes are not difficult to complete.

The program begins by explaining the way our body, mind and what we can physically do are all connected. You are introduced to the biopsychosocial approach to pain management. For this you will learn about how your thoughts and feelings affect both your pain and your social life.

You will learn how things like mindfullness and communication skills can improve your mental and physical health. You will also learn how to practice these alongside relaxation and thought processing techniques.

Each week has video presentations by Pam and Jackie. Jackie is your guide and Pam is a professional  in pain management and rehabilitation and has over thirty years experience.

My Thoughts

The program is a detailed weekly plan which teaches you why an holistic approach can work, what techniques work and how to put them into use.

Personally, I already use a lot of the techniques described but I did identify some problematic areas that I still have and I am putting what I have learned into practice.

Of the techniques that are offered that I already use I can sincerely recommend them. A lot of people with my condition spend a lot of time in the Accident and Emergency Department. I am convinced that the reason my visits have been more limited is because I know of these techniques. During an attack I am able to control my body’s responses with my mind and relaxation techniques. I truly believe that everything is connected and a calm and relaxed approach can improve your physical condition.

I am sure that if you do not know these techniques you will be able to relate to the opposite effect. Just think to a time when your emotional distress has left you feeling physically drained or in pain. Excessive crying can leave you exhausted and may even give you a headache. 

Support and Information

Signing up to the program gives you access to a closed Facebook group and support by e-mail. There is also lots of extra information which supports the program available on the website in the form of a blog and a load of downloadable resources.

If you want to know more you can sign up to a free masterclass in the form of three videos sent by e-mail, this gives you a real feel for the program. 

Joining the program gives you the full course and all  the resources along with a support group. Full access costs $59, around £45 at the time of posting this.

If you do sign up for the free class or the course, be sure to let me know how you get on and what you think.

Disclosure: I was able to try the course for free in return for my honest review.

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Kids Pass, The Family Savings Card

Kids pass have a fabulous offer right now where you can enjoy a whole year of savings for only £34.99. Click the banner above if you would like to know more.

What is Kids Pass?

Kids Pass is a family savings card giving you savings on a whole range of things from food to funfairs. You can search locally for offers or download the app. and search while out or on holiday. There are so many savings to be made.

We used our card when we were on holiday to visit The World of Country Life. We had a fabulous day out and it was great knowing that we’d saved £22.40 on our entry fee.

Cinema Tickets

If you like to going to the cinema you can save up to 40% off your tickets. This includes Odeon, Cineworld, Empire, Vue and other cinemas. Just check which is nearest to you and print off your offer. Or even easier, take your phone along with you with the app. installed and your ticket is available at all times. 

Restaurants and Take Outs

Don’t want to cook, or away from home? Then you can save money on restaurants and take outs. Offers include 20% off meals at Sizzling Pubs, BOGOF at Papa Johns and Pizza Hut, Kids eat for a £1 at Prezzo, 25% of Frankie and Bennys and Bella Italia and so many more. You may even find offers at your local curry house, or chip shop. And if you are on the road, there is 20% off at Road Chef.

If you get into the habit of checking your app. before buying any food out then you will be sure to save loads.

Holidays and Days Out

Kids Pass can save you loads on holidays and days out. You can claim cash off your Butlins, Haven, Parkdean or Away Resorts or Forest Holidays booking. Or if you wish to stay at Alton Towers, Legoland, Chessington or Thorpe Park too. There are also savings at EnergyKids and Clubzone.

The Days Out section is huge and includes all sorts of Adventure Parks, Farms, zoos, aquariums, Go Ape, Bowling, ice skating, swimming, soft play, you name it, you’ll probably find it on Kids Pass.

How Does it Work?

For your fee you can search the site for hundreds of savings. The site is easy to navigate with everything neatly divided into categories. You can choose to look at offer that are near your location, or search for offers on a map. It also keeps a record of all your savings so you know just how much you’ve saved. When you’ve found your offer you can just read the terms and conditions and print off your tickets.

The app. is much easier as you can use it on the go, and there is no need for printing your ticket as you can use your phone to display the relevant details to claim your discount.

To get good value out of your Kids Pass, you do need to check it regularly. That’s why it’s best to get the app. on your phone. Then every time you have a day out or want to order a meal. Obviously, the more you use it the more you will save.

If you are not ready for a full years membership then you can try Kids Pass for 30 days for only £1

Be warned, these offers will be ending soon though! 

I am an ambassador for Kids Pass so anyone joining through my links will earn me a commission. I have, however, brought you a honest description of the program and I have not been paid to write this post.

Halloween Days out coming soon!

a little boy putting a scary pumpkin into a giant dinosaurs mouth.
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My Sunday Photo 16th September 2018

This week I bring you the Bell Tower of the wonderful Bournville Carillon. In fact I am bringing you a post that I fist published in 2015 with a little revision.

 

a large brick tower with a huge bell tower on the top, set against a pale blue sky

The tower is actually the entrance to a primary school. How cool to enter your school through such an amazing building.

The Carrillon was gifted to Bournville, Birmingham by George Cadbury after visiting Belgium. He was really impressed with the Carillon in Bruges which dates back to 1675.

The copper cupola above the tower houses 48 bells, but this is no ordinary bell tower because the bells are not rung by ropes but by a carillon. The bells are fixed and don’t move, the sound is made by the clippers or tongues of the bells and these are worked by a kebyoard called a clavier.

British Empire Medal

The reason I have decided to revisit and revise this post is because the Carilloneur (isn’t that a fab. word!) Trevor Workman has been awarded the British Empire Medal for services to the British Carillon Society and the community in Bournville. Trevor has played the Carillon for over 50 years now.

Here is a short video of the Carillon being played. It’s an amazing instrument that takes a lot of strength to play, so my hat is off to Trevor! It sounds different from the outside though, the tone is much nicer and you don’t get to hear the clonking of the clavier keys. 

Bournville

I am very lucky to live near the Bournville Carillon and on a sunny Saturday afternoon there is nothing nicer than sitting on the village green opposite and listen to it being played.

Also, it’s an incredible place in the run up to Christmas, just across the road from the Carillon, next to the village green, there is always the most beautiful Christmas tree. And the Carillon will play Christmas carols on a Saturday afternoon. There is also a fabulous carol service by candle light.

a beautiful large tree covered with pretty lights for Christmas.

I know it’s a little too soon to be mentioning Christmas. But if you do visit Cadbury World in Birmingham, any time of year, do take a look at the Carillon, it is literally opposite the entrance gates. And if you visit on a Saturday do listen out for it’s beautiful music in the afternoon. 

 
Photalife
Sunday Snap

Education, Home and School.

Last week I was talking about holiday planning and how my family wanted to go to Butlins rather than a Haven holiday camp next year. After educating ourselves, we have decided that due to the lack of destinations of Butlins camps (I’m sure there used to be more) and the increased cost, we are going to stick with Haven. Huge sigh of relief from me! Now we just have to decide where to go, we are thinking maybe Cornwall this time.

This week the focus has been mainly education. It was the girl’s first full week back after the holiday and they have been getting on great. Star has had a few nerves, but she was relieved once she was back in the SEN group. Her main disappointment was being moved down a set in science, one of her favourite subjects that she tries really hard in. I have told her not to worry, just work hard and she’ll get moved back up.

Poor Boo is in so many of the lower sets. She does struggle with learning, but she is determined and works really hard. I have told her that with her attitude to learning she will soon pick it up and move on up in the groups. I will even help her to improve her education at home if she wishes. However, despite her excellent attitude at school, her home learning leaves much to be desired.

Home School

The Little Man has surprised me this week as he has done so much learning with so little complaint. Usually, it’s a struggle to get him off the laptop. Once he’s off it’s an even bigger struggle to keep him interested in learning. Last term I used ‘props’ such as an electrical circuit making kit and a set of magnets and accessories. This meant he could learn while he was ‘playing.’ But getting him to knuckle down with his maths or English was a nightmare. He fidgets constantly, and claims that everything is ‘soooo booooring.’

This week, however, it’s been a pleasure teaching him. We have tackled times tables, telling the time, spelling, comprehension, reading and nutrition. He’s even been cooking, helping me to make nutritious meals and drinks. At the moment, I’m still working out his ability in most subjects. But once I know what he is capable of I will then stretch him. I just hope his attitude to learning continues.

We have applied for places at two other school’s now, a little further afield. I am worried that the further we go the harder it will be for me to pick him up if his Dad can’t make it. I’ve only had to do it a handful of times in the past and my eldest son has had to walk with me because I lack the confidence to go out alone. (I lack confidence in the ability of my wheelchair but that’s a whole other story.) If his school is even further away then I don’t know how I will manage. 

My word of the week this week is education, the girls at school and the Little Man at home. 

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Toffee Apples and Inspired Recipes.

The kids are back at school and Autumn on the way. We are hurtling towards Halloween and harvest time. This time of year always gets me thinking about something delicious from my childhood days, Toffee Apples.

When I was young my Nan lived in a street on the edge of a housing estate. If you walked to the end of the street and through an entry way between two houses, you would find yourself in a field. Not just one field but lots of them, rolling off into the distance. Upon discovery, and many miles of walking there were all sorts of delights to be found, cows, sheep, an old church, a reservoir, bluebell woods, beech trees and a lot more. But today I’m talking about the apple trees that lined one of the fields.

Nan would send us scrumping over the fields. Now, I didn’t realise at the time what scrumping actually was, apart from going to collect apples. Of course the very act of scrumping means to steal the apples. I was a very conscientious child and would probably not have taken part if I’d know we were taking the apples illegally. I was going because I was doing what I was told and because it was fun! We went every year and never got so much as a telling off. Did the farmer even notice his apples missing? Did he care? If we went back later there would be loads of rotting apples lying beneath the trees and I used to wish we’d been back to take more while they were edible.

So, me and my cousins would go to the field and they boys would climb the trees and shake off the apples. The girls would pick up as many as they could, often using our skirts as carriers. Then we would hurry back to Nan who would be waiting with her big pot of toffee.

Nan would make the toffee in a huge iron pan, loads of sugar and a big tin of golden syrup. She would stir it constantly with a big wooden spoon. We would butter trays for the apples, she always had loads to hand. She also had loads of twigs that we’d brought back along with our apples. The washed apples would have a twig stuck inside then Nan would dip each one into the toffee and place them upside down on the trays. We would end up with loads of gorgeous sticky toffee apples, what a treat. We didn’t eat them all ourselves though, there was plenty to go around so we’d take them into the street and share them with the neighbours. 

I always looked forward to Nan’s toffee apples. They would be left with a buttery film from the trays which tasted delicious against the toffee.

Toffee Apple Recipes

With my mind full of these delicious (ill gotten) treats I have decided to look up some lovely toffee apple inspired recipes to share with you. 

I love this idea from Fussy Eater, she has noted that a whole toffee apple can be too much for little mouths, so she came up with Toffee Apple Slices. Apple slices, dipped in chocolate and drizzled with a toffee sauce, sounds delicious.

The lovely Eatz Amazing has several apple recipes but I particularly liked her Unicorn Chocolate Apples.

I’ve also done a toffee apple recipe myself, but of course, it had to be a Toffee Apple and Pecan Cake.

I love apple and cinnamon together and you can find this marriage in The Crazy Kitchen’s  Toffee Apple Cinnamon Bun Rings. 

Apple Crumble has always been a desert favourite of mine and A Mummy Too has made one with toffee too. Yes it’s a Toffee Apple Crumble delight.

Finally, if you are gluten free then the Free From Fairy has a delicious gluten free Spiced Toffee Apple Traybake that you will love.

Have you ever made toffee apples, or even chocolate coated apples? I really have the urge to make some apple inspired deserts now.

four toffee apple deserts, unicorn apples, toffee apple crumble, sliced toffee apple slices and toffee apple and pecan cake
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A little Note About Positive Reviews on Raisie Bay

A little Note About Positive Reviews on Raisie Bay

Some people only write reviews when things go wrong with products, which is good because it lets people know that there could be potential problems. I’ve also seen negative feedback with say things like, I had to return this item because the colour did not suit me…is this useful?

I write reviews on most items I buy because I like to give genuine feedback. If I have a genuine problem with a product I will write my review in the appropriate place.

I write reviews on my blog too, but they are mostly positive. Why? Because I only write reviews for the things I’ve loved. If I don’t love them I let the person who sent me them know with details why and then let them decided if they would rather me write a negative review or not write one at all. It’s always the latter.

This is my blog, my place and I’ll let you know about the things I love. If you want to find out what other people have hated about the product then you will need to look elsewhere.

My reviews may all be positive, but they are still genuine.

Where to next?