After over a year of silence...I am back.

Dear readers and fellow mankind,

It's been over a year of complete silence on this Blog. I am thankful that I am back here.

Yes, I still have Alopecia Universalis and I always have this instant connection whenever I see, read or meet someone else with the same condition.

I couldn't help but to share this post when I came across this today.

We as Alopecians will continue to live our life to the fullest and whoever out there who also suffers the same condition like I do or Tommy...you are not alone and never will be. Reach out to any of us if you are having a tough time.

Here's the post I'm sharing...

Brave little kid Tommy! Truly an inspiration!

Sleepless villagers long to return to bombed homes

By Boo Su-Lyn

March 07, 2013

Media are barred from entering Embara Budi community hall. — Pictures by Saw Siow Feng

LAHAD DATU, March 7 — Tired of being squeezed with some 650 people into a community hall here with only four toilets, some villagers want to return to their flattened homes in Kampung Tanduo, which was taken over by Sulu gunmen last month.

The Kampung Tanduo residents said that they fled their village on February 12 to Kampung Tanjung Labian with just the clothes on their backs after some 200 Sulu gunmen arrived, but were forced to flee again to the Embara Budi community hall here last Monday as they feared the intrusion of the southern Filipino militants.

“We sleep on the cement floor; no blankets, mattresses or pillows,” Ben Harun told The Malaysian Insider yesterday.

“It is uncomfortable. I can’t sleep well. There are too many people,” added the fisherman who was born in Kampung Tanduo, which is a seaside village in eastern Sabah.

People waiting for rations at the Embara Budi community hall.

 

Erlinda Hamid says no sanitary pads are provided.

Ben, 48, said that most of the villagers staying in the Embara Budi community hall are women and children, who are not placed separately from the men. Families sleep together in the blue-roofed hall.

Despite losing all his property and livestock — including 100 goats, 38 cows and 100 chickens — after Kampung Tanduo was pounded by air strikes last Tuesday, Ben longed to go home.

"I hope to return to Tanduo... we are suffering here,” said Ben, who was wearing a black T-shirt and checked trousers.

He pointed out that he has been wearing the same clothes for days and that he would just don a sarong after he washes those clothes.

The villagers at the hall yesterday received family rations including two bags of rice, two packs of chocolate biscuits, 10 tines of sardines, two tins of condensed milk, one bag of oil, one pack of fine salt and one bag of sugar.

“We cook food once or twice a day. We must save, if not it’ll be difficult,” said Ben.

The Embara Budi hall that houses 650.

Ben Harun says that people sleep on the cement floor without mattresses, pillows or blankets.

Children ran about outside the hall and in a nearby playground with rusty swings as The Malaysian Insider interviewed Ben through the fence. The police prohibited media from entering the hall that was mostly filled with villagers from Kampung Tanjung Labian.

It is understood that several hundred villagers have also been placed at a small town called Fajar Harapan, which is similarly off-limits to the press.

Clothes were hung to dry on the barbed fence surrounding the Embara Budi hall, and even on bushes outside the building.

I hope to return to Tanduo... we are suffering here. — Ben

The hall, which is located at a Felda Sahabat plantation, is surrounded by oil palm trees. Felda Sahabat has 57 plantations and is twice the size of Singapore. It is spread out across a hilly terrain with straight, narrow roads that the occasional egret crosses.

Embara Budi is located some 5km from Kampung Tanjung Labian. Gunfire could be heard yesterday afternoon from a checkpoint near the village.

Several military and police vehicles zoomed past the hall yesterday, even as the authorities announced that the search operations have been expanded from Kampung Tanduo to Kampung Tanjung Batu.

Armed Forces chief Gen Tan Sri Zulkifeli Mohd Zin admitted yesterday that the nine bodies found were of Filipino militants killed during last Friday’s shootout. Three more bodies have yet to be discovered. One Sulu militant was shot dead yesterday morning, bringing the total Sulu casualties here to 13.

Self-proclaimed princess Jacel Kiram reportedly said yesterday that Sulu militant leader Agbimuddin Kiram and his group of Sulu sultanate followers survived last Tuesday’s aerial assault since invading Kampung Tanduo on February 9.

Kampung Tanduo resident Erlinda Hamid, 22, said sanitary pads were not provided at the hall.

“I really wish to go home,” she said, as she breastfed her one-year-old daughter at a nearby cousin’s house that was filled with flies.

Kampung Tanjung Labian community leader Assaffal Alian, who is a Dusun, said that the rations were supplied by the National Security Council.

“Of course we want to go back as soon as possible. Life is not as normal as it’s supposed to be,” said Assaffal, 48, adding that he arrived at the Embara Budi hall last Monday.

Many southern Filipinos fled to Sabah in the 1970s to escape the civil war in Mindanao.

The sultanate of Sulu, which is a province in the southern Philippines, claims Sabah as its ancestral land and insists that it has done no wrong in intruding into the Borneo state.

Factory worker Farizan Bayah, 23, said that people have stopped harvesting palm oil, pointing to the dense oil palm plantations along the way to the Embara Budi hall.

“People are scared of getting kidnapped,” he said.

Earth: Population = 7 Billion

According to the United Nations estimate; on 31st October 2011, the human race reached a population milestone of 7 billion. As cheers and fears greet the symbolic "7th Billion babies" being born across the globe.

It is estimated that the world reached its 1 billion population milestone on 1804 and it took slightly over 200 years for the world to reach 7 billion. What an achievement! Better access to healthcare (lengthen life expectancy and reduced infant mortality and eradication/ prevention of diseases), education (empowerment of human capital, choice and progressive thinking), energy (fuel, gas, mass production of food) and awareness through the information age are among the main contributors to the population growth. It is something that all of us should be proud of.

Nevertheless, war, poverty, hunger, oppression, injustice continue to plague mankind. The earth as created by God can provide a comfortable and sufficient food and resources to feed all mankind, be it 7 billion or even 10 billion! As the saying goes, the world can feed every man on earth but can never feed the greed of mankind.

As it is written in God's word in 1 timothy 6:10 "for the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil"

Resources and energy footprints are already leaving strains on the earth's abundance with climate change and excessive depletion of resources in the past several decades, leaving a trail of challenges to produce and provide the most basic requirement for survival : Clean water and food.

At the end of the day, it is the heart of every man that will decide the future of the human race. As the world marked the "7th Billion babies", let us recall the world's first baby being born: the child of Adam and Eve, Cain. Cain is the first infant being born in the world (According to the Bible), and after Cain, there was another child, Abel (Cain's younger brother). As all christians would know the story, Cain being the first person being born of man and woman had also became the world's first murderer.

As God said it in Genesis 8:21 "...every inclination of his [a man] heart is evil from childhood..." . All mankind can only find assurance in a peaceful, abundant and fruitful present and the future through faith in God and His words.

Today, we can be proud of the population milestones, but without God in our hearts, our worries and fear of the future of mankind is trustworthy and true.

Let us rekindle our hope in the coming Christmas season, where the answer lies to the Person's birthday that we all celebrate.

God bless

Joshua

Alopecia Girls

My fellow alopecians and friends at the NAAF Conference 2011 Talent show...

Kiah is truly an amazing girl, I wish I have half of her courage and strength...





God bless us all, including all the alopecians like me :)

Proud to be an alopecian :)

Joshua

Heartless society

The incident and video footage pierced not only my heart but soul as well...A chinese toddler was hit, ran-over twice and 18 passerbys offered no assistance whatsoever...





A second video showed (recently happened) remarkable display of compassion and instinct by a dog saving another dog after it was hit. How people can be so heartless these days?...




Lord, forgive us.

Joshua

The predicament unwanted pregnancies

This recent article posted online "The trials of teen mothers" has bring a rather different perspective for reasons leading to child/baby dumping. The mistake might be the same elsewhere but the journey is still much different from the western societies. Traditional asian values still hold unmarried pregnant ladies as disgraced group.

However, the family must realize the universal value of support and love for any family member that has made a mistake, in the case an unwanted pregnancy.

Western values might differ with Eastern values of treating unmarried pregnant family members but it is time for the families in the East to adopt a culture of receptivity and forgiveness and support for a member that fell into the mistake of unwanted pregnancies.

Parents who were too busy in building material wealth have forgone the importance of building a relationship with their children.

Education policies and educators continue to shun the importance sex education.

Society's continue emphasis of the "feel good" factor rather than the "do good" factor is mainly be blamed. Profit-minded culture in business rather than charitable-minded culture. The ever greed for more money and physical pleasure has brought cast a shadow over the good spirit of human nature.

In the end of the day, the ever increasing cases of baby dumping holds everyone in the society accountable that includes myself. Let us all change our heart and minds for society that is caring, loving and charitable.

Joshua

Baby/ Fetus dumping getting rampant these days in Malaysia

I am disgusted and appalled by such disgrace act, even more when the child is left to die in the trash..etc. Some news link by clicking here.

These babies may be the result of unplanned or unwanted pregnancies by large. But how could some one with so little respect for life! Social illness of rampant wild living without sense of responsibility and regard for life and morality.

Baby dumping is a good indicator of plunging moral values in ones society to the bottom.

I support the call of various NGOs, to criminalize baby dumping and prosecute the offenders for murder if post-mortem reveals that the baby/infant was born alive.

In addition, I support the call for prominent lawyer and opposition leader YB Karpal Singh (Democratic Action Party National Chairman) for capital punishment for the offence of child raping. If not, a life-time imprisonment!

May the Lord have mercies on the soul of these poor innocent children and I am sure He does and loves them dearly in heaven at the very moment.

Joshua

Sexual abuses in the Catholic Church

The revelation by sexually abused individuals have cast a shadow over Christianity's most holy week. These horrendous acts by "men" of God on children and individuals must be condemned and punished according to the law.

There should be no cover up by any authority in the Church. As "men" of God, they must and should be subjected to the court of law if not more severely dealt with. People come to God through Christ not priest. It is better for the sheep without an immediate shepherd rather than putting a wolf among the sheep.

These sexual offenders must be expelled from priesthood and must be prosecuted by the civil law, lest they taint the image of Christ.

Christ has such a deep hatred and anger towards the acts of people who mislead the little ones (children) that he said : "If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea." ~Matthew 18:6

If a shepherd sees a wolf among his sheep, wouldn't he drive the wolf away? and keep the wolf away?

The Catholic Church headed by the pope (shepherd) must not tolerate the presence of wolves among the sheep! especially the One that the pope served has such a deep disgust for sin against the little ones!

Joshua

Genocide in Nigeria

The recent killings of christian villagers in Joss, Nigeria is strongly condemned in all possible terms. All peace loving people of faith must exercise their belief. Killing others in the name of God is an act of the demon. All quarters must exercise restraint, to the victims - rest in peace. To their family, my deepest and sorrowful condolences. Some very graphic images are popping out on the internet but I have not posted them on here.

Who would ever have a heart to burn and slash harmless, innocent children and women???

This must be stop, all peace loving people and Christians must come together in prayer and peaceful-activism to end this violence. Love your enemies, the LORD said...it is certainly almost impossible but let us remember the that vengeance belongs to the LORD.

LORD, hear the cries and sufferings of the little ones.

Joshua

"Young sisters who lost their hair cast off their wigs and go to school bald..."

This is must read beautiful article. As an alopecia areata patient, I feel inspired and extremely proud of these two beautiful girls and yes I am thankful to know them and their family personally.

"Together promoting Alopecia Awareness., we're humans too."

Please click on the topic for the article " Young sisters who lost their hair cast off their wigs and go to school bald..."

Emily and Faye, you both are truly pretty and brave heroes!

God bless

Joshua

An emaciated and malnourished child

Kevin Carter's 1994 Pulitzer Prize award-photograph.

"In March 1993 Carter made a trip to southern Sudan. The sound of soft, high-pitched whimpering near the village of Ayod attracted Carter to an emaciated Sudanese toddler. The girl had stopped to rest while struggling to a feeding center, whereupon a vulture had landed nearby. He said that he waited about 20 minutes, hoping that the vulture would spread its wings. It didn't. Carter snapped the haunting photograph and chased the vulture away. However, he also came under heavy criticism for just photographing — and not helping — the little girl:

"The man adjusting his lens to take just the right frame of her suffering might just as well be a predator, another vulture on the scene "

- Adapted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevin_Carter#Prize-winning_photograph_in_Sudan

While people continue to harp on criticsms directly on Kevin Carter, let us look at the bigger picture. Thousands or even ten of thousands of human (no lesser than those who are reading this from the computer screen) die everyday because hunger and malnutrition. How much longer that the world must go on like these?!!!

In humility and with deep regret, I have not done enough and have never being doing enough to assist in alleviating the sufferings of poverty and hunger that hundreds of millions people are facing at the very moment.

The picture has such a deep impact on me that it has changed the entire course of my life personally. No child should go to bed in hunger. The world according to FAO (United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation)is producing nearly twice the amount of food/resources that required by the current 6.7 Billion human beings. In January 2009, FAO estimates that 1.02 Billion/ one-sixth of the world population is malnourished.

As ordinary citizens of the world, we should realize how lucky for those who are reading this from the computer screen (One assumes that when you own a computer and internet connection, you should not be malnourished). It is not only for us to realize how lucky we are but also to take action to HELP our fellow humankind. Living in ignorance and greed must not be our way of life eventhough it has encroached deeply into our society.

Back to Kevin Carter's award winning picture. We may never know if the emaciated girl in the picture survived the day after the picture was taken eventhough we all hope that she does and still living today. Everyone is responsible when a fellow human die in hunger, especially for those who know that this is happening. Let this picture change our course of life, living a life to honor God (for those with faith) by sharing our fortunes with the less fortunate, for others, may it serve as a wake-up call that we are just ordinary people nothing more special than the girl who struggled to a feeding station while being watched by a vulture.

There is no person on earth that could be untouched by this poignant picture unless that they're heartless. It is true that charity begins at home, conserve resources and let not a single grain being flushed away as watse from today onwards, start looking for viable and reliable route to help a child or a community battling poverty and hunger even with a penny/ a cent a day from tonight onwards.

Let us not repeat the mistake that Kevin Carter had done. Let us lend our hand and a reassuring embrace with love and encouragement to the less fortunate today starting with a prayer now.

Joshua

Global economy slump, who are the victims?

With everyday headline coverage of the global economy crisis in the media. Who is the most unfortunate in victims of all?

Definitely not the shareholders or executive officers or board of directors of Chrysler or General Motors of the US Giant auto vehicle industries. The most affected would be the middle classes and more so for the general workers working in various plants which faces the threat of unemployment and ultimately the lost of the mean to provide to the family.

While the economists, bosses, executive officers, shareholders worry about their stock exchange, and restructuring of their bussiness and companies, they have forgotten the most fundamental business or corporate ethics of looking after the welfare of the employees, who some have worked many years and loyally. For most, people working in blue collar jobs are not only often underappreciated but they are first ones to be kicked out in the face of crisis in the corporate/ business world.

Some bosses touched by the torn of human conscience have even agree to reject a pay rise in their salary. What about the hundreds of thousands or even millions dollars of expenses paid by the company/ business for family vacations, food, leisures, or some even private jets?

It is most shocking to see some top executive officers besides being paid more than millions a year, are claiming other mostly non-essential benefits from the company often more than their basic salaries!

I am not saying whether the executive officers should be paid or given those expenses or not but how about those working as blue collar jobs?

Far more unfortunate are those who are already living under poor conditions of less than a dollar a day and without the excess of clean water and basic sanitation!

They continue to go hungry, thirsty, sick, cold as usual or perhaps more during the global economy crisis when charitable organisations are among the hardest hit in the current economy downturns.

While many groups fight for social equality in various causes around the globe, one of the most injustice situation remains by large in silence. The poorest among the poor especially in Africa, parts of Asia and Latin America has to plead for help instead of fighting for fair and equal treatment they should be receiving.

In short, with the current global economy slump, who are the victims?

The answer would be those who are already victims of social and economy injustice before beginning of the the current economy crisis.

Joshua

A letter response to Jon's ex-school

Hi everyone, I am brought to the attention that a highschool kid with alopecia areata has quit school due to the school/ district authority refused to allow him to wear a head gear even with official writing from dermatologists.

Below is my written response to the school's authority (sent on early February 2009) based on the kid's mom letter/discussion on an alopecia forum.

__________________________________________________________________________

5^th February 2009

Our Ref. No.: aasc/asia/oletter/01FEB09-01

Mrs. A., Principal
West Seneca East Senior High School

UNITED STATES

Mrs. A.,

Hello. It is brought to my attention (from a letter written by Sharon Lesakowski- attached for our reference) that a student has quit your school due to the school authority’s refusal to allow him to wear a head covering even though he is diagnosed with alopecia areata (Hairloss due to a medical condition).

The excuse given by the school authority is almost absurd, laughable and mostly unprofessional as per the context given by Mr. Wiley, Assistant Superintendent on a return phone call to Sharon Lesakowski that Jonathan’s way of dealing with his affliction (wearing a bandana) was not acceptable.

This may not be a perfect analogy but it is good enough to reflect a medically illiterate faux pas. It provides an impression that as if the school will penalize a student for flashing gang signs where as the student is actually deaf and communicating in sign language. In this case, it is a student being penalized for promoting gang image where as the student is actually suffering alopecia and requires a head covering to protect his scalp. I believe that you are aware or at least read about alopecia areata. Even though alopecia areata is not a life-threatening or infectious disease itself, covering the hairless area especially the scalp is more than just a psychological comfort to the alopecia patient. Technically, Jonathan’s option of wearing a bandana has physiological reasons behind it. The physiological aspects, a bandana:

1. Keep the head warm during winter.

2. Keep the head (skin) from over exposed with UV during summer.

3. Keep the sweat from going into the eyes due to the loss of eyebrows and eyelashes.

As long as the attire does not offend others in the school, a bandana (with no offensive symbols or design) is not a violation a dress code or district policy given a medically certified condition as what Jonathan has. The school’s policy in Jonathan’s case (his rights) is itself a violation of the United States Constitution’s Bills of Right. In addition, the school’s policy discriminate alopecia patients (in general) of the right to protect their scalp with a bandana. About 2% of the human population and up to 5 million peoples in the United States are affected by alopecia areata (Sources by National Alopecia Areata Foundation, NAAF and National Institute of Arthritis, Musculo skeletal and Skin diseases, NIAMS).

As an education institution, the school has failed to provide a comfortable environment where knowledge is to be imparted without partiality and favour, in this case to Jonathan (for wearing a bandana to protect his head). As an alopecia patient myself, I felt insulted and discriminated by the excuse given by the school authority. Equating bandana wearing in general to promote gang image itself is an unacceptable reason and an insult to community of alopecia patients and patients suffering hair loss due to secondary effect (like hormonal problems, burnt victims, cancer patients).

Personally, I hope that the school authority and responsible personnel to provide a full public apology to Jonathan and his family, nothing short of a personal apology and also issue a public apology via local media. I strongly believe that being in the education profession, one should be courageous enough to admit and apologize for the mistake done whether by moral obligation or work ethics.

I am also affected by alopecia areata and have lost all my hair on my scalp. If I were to come to your school to seek education and I chose not to wear anything to cover up my baldness, would I later be “accused” or “penalized” for promoting the skinhead gang because I appeared bald at school? Therefore, I urge the school’s policies/ school district policies in particular the out-dated attire policy to be reviewed immediately in line with proper sensitivity to the medically unwell and needy patients, upholding the Bill of Rights as enshrined in the United States Constitution and finally to function as a school to provide education and conducive environment for students to receive education to avoid unacceptable mistakes like Jonathan’s situation in the future. All kind of responses is most welcome. Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

_________________

Explaning Alopecia areata & Autoimmune disease.

I would like to begin my first official blog by posting a subject that is not life-threatening but life-altering. The subject is Alopecia Areata (Widely believed to be an autoimmune disease).

As an Alopecia areata patient, I have been laughed, stared, commented rudely and even be labelled as a member of the skinhead gang in the public multiple times. I've even heard from the public calling women with alopecia totalis, alopecia universalis, crazy womens, Alopecia universalis patients as freaks who shaved their eyebrows and pulled off their eyelashes.

Children are being laughed and jeered as baldy, alien or even hairless monsters! Enough is enough! If we are not bound by the Rule of Law but rather the Law of the jungle, I would have given a smack or two slaps on the faces on people who laughed at children with Alopecia areata.

• So, to whoever (on condition that you're civilized, with brains in the body, I don't care where your brains is, as long as you have one in your body) want or have showed rudeness, ignorance to children and women with alopecia especially and also to my fellow brothers. You are welcome to read my blog.

To those who live with Alopecia areata or live with/know someone you loved with Alopecia areata, you are most welcome to read my blog.

• First of all, Immune system and Autoimmune system does not exist separately. The term "Autoimmune System" does not even exist whether in scientific or medical definition. There is only Immune system and Autoimmune disease/condition (One of many ways the immune system can breakdown).

• However, "Autoimmune disorder, Autoimmune conditions, Autoimmune diseases" are often used interchangeably and Autoimmune disorder/conditions/diseases is merely the failure of the body Immune system to recognize one own self (cells and tissues) and therefore "attack" (produce an immune response against) the host's (e.g human) own cells and tissues that makes up the normal structure of the physical body.

• Let us not discuss in depth into scientific terms but rather an explanation based on basic science.

The immune system in general, works in two general pathways:

1. Non-specific immunity (innate pathway)- eg. the physical barrier of skin, acid in the stomach, phagocytics cells in blood that eats up bacteria in general...etc
2. Specific immunity (pathway)

Alopecia areata falls into the minor malfunction of the Specific immunity (pathway).Under Specific Immunity, it further subdivides into two components:

1. Passive immunity- (e.g transfer of antibodies from mother's milk to baby)
   and Alopecia Areata (Autoimmnue condition) is narrowed down to the minor malfunction of the Active immunity.
2. Active immunity- response upon stimulation (e.g vaccination, exposure of disease, infection)

Under Active immunity, it further divides into two categories:

1. Humoral immunity ( produced by B-lymphocytes)- e.g production of antibodies like Immunoglobulins, IgM, IgG, IgE...etc.
2. Cell-mediated immunity (T-lymphocytes)

* Another type of lymphocytes besides B and T-lymphocytes is Natural Killer Cells (NK) which is part of the Non-specific (Innate pathway) immune system.

and the identified culprit (agreed by most) for Alopecia areata is the T-lymphocyte cells (T-Cytotoxic cells which destroys cells) and (T-Helper cell which tells the other white blood cells to destroy cells and enhance the B-lymphocytes to produce antibodies specifically)

Under the microscope: a skin biopsy of a patient with Alopecia Areata shows

• Extensive T-Cytotoxic and T-Helper cells are present surrounding the hair follicles, "attacking" them, so in laymen term the hair follicle is "under siege". Hence, the hair follicle cannot produce any hair, and the nutrients supplied for hair growth is BLOCKED by these T-lymphocytes cells and their allies.

So, above the surface of the skin, no hair is present (Alopecia= a clinical symptom of absence of hair on skin where they normally are/ should be).

Why is Alopecia Areata often starts as circular patches extending outwardly? What's wrong with the presence lymphocytes around the hair follicle and why Autoimmune disease?

I will discuss that in my next blog. Thank you for reading.

Joshua

p/s: You may want to visit Alopecia Areata Support Community or read about Alopecia Areata at AASC-i if you find my blog interesting.