Journey to heatlh

I would like to include everyone on this journey to getting healthy. It's simple, believe it or not. Yes that does mean exercising and eating healthily. But not just those two things. It also means getting rid of the chemicals we are exposed to daily via our bath, beauty, and cleaning products. Exercising can be as simple as walking and a little strength training to running full marathons. I do not run marathons, but I do run. Currently my exercise program is following the Ballet Boot Camp challenge from Prevention magazine as my strength and walking/running on my treadmill when I cannot get to the track as my cardio. My cardio is HIIT, high intensity interval training.

If you have never done HIIT it is simple, just go at the fastest speed you can handle for 30 - 45 seconds and normal for 2 minutes. For someone starting out I would recommend a warm up of walking for 5 - 10 minutes, go at your fastest speed for 30 seconds, then slow down to half of your fastest speed for 2 -3 minutes and repeat for a total of 30 minutes and cool down for 10 - 15 minutes. If you cannot go at your fastest speed for 30 seconds, start with 15 and each week add 5.

As for eating healthy that's simple too. STOP eating junk food and drinking soda. Just stop. That's it. Drink water of which you can flavor with fruits such as cucumber, lemons, etc. and herbs such as mint. You can also drink unsweet tea again flavor it with lemon if you need to. Reduce your carbs. That does not mean to stop eating them, because you can't. Carbs are what gives your body the energy it needs to move plus everything has carbs. But that doesn't mean to eat a ton of it. Bread, tortillas, etc. should be whole wheat. Personally I get most of my carbs from veggies and fruits.

Now getting rid of chemicals will be a bit harder but will start to make you healthier. Every bath product, every cleaning product, every beauty product you use is laden with harmful chemicals. Start slow and simple. I live in South/Central Texas so it's hot and humid most of the year, here we have two seasons, hot and hotter. Which means dry skin. I've tried every moisturizer out there and none worked. They were either greasy or just didn't moisturize. So I started making my own.

Now I'm not saying make your own products, unless you want to, then by all means do so. When you make your own you know exactly what is in them. I started out making lotion bars. They are solid yet when you hold them between your hands for a few seconds they melt enough to moisturize your skin. I use them on my entire body. My kids use them. My husband uses them or rather has me rub it into his hands. (He does hard labor daily so a hand massage feels great and costs me nothing to do it.)

I also made my own sugar scrub, which I use over my entire body. My skin is soft, supple and smooth. I have moved on to my own laundry detergent and dish soap. Since I have to wash dishes by hand I require a gentle yet effective soap. I will let you know how these turn out. I did try the baking soda/vinegar rinse, but that didn't work well with my hair. It also didn't work for 2 of my kiddos hair. My oldest can use that combo but not the other two. So I am still looking for the best method there, again I will let you know.

The best time to try the chemical free (at least for hair) is during the summer (given that you are off) or when you go without seeing anyone as it takes a bit of time for your hair to get used to no chemicals. I have managed to get my hair to washing once a week (twice if needed) with store bought shampoo. At least until I find a method that works for my hair.

I hope you are willing to join me on this journey to everlasting health. If you have any suggestions for going all natural let me know. It is a slow process but it is worth it.

Remember, when life gives you lemons ... use them and plant the seeds.

Ashford Part II

This is the second part of my story on how Ashford destroys the hope, health and future of students that need to attend college online to obtain their degree.

Once I discovered the monetary issue I decided to research as stated before. Upon MY research (again the staff refused to tell me anything or would claim they didn't know) I discovered that Ashford was sending back my Pell Grants. Half of the grant in question was received in October 2009 and the other half received in March 2010. Yet they did not charge me for the amount until November 2010. Now once I discovered what they did and finally got someone to admit it, I was told that it was the half from 2009. So it took a year for them to decide to charge me? And AFTER I completed the degree requirements and graduated?
A bit fishy if you ask me. Now you may be asking why they were sending back the grants, was I ineligible, etc? The answer is simple and it had nothing to do with me being ineligible because I was eligible. Ashford does that so they can line their pockets. Plus on a couple of occasions I was told that Ashford does NOT get paid on grants but they DO get paid on loans. The whole loan origination fee and all.

I kept notes of everyone I talked to every time. I filed grievance and the appeal. Of course that did not do any good. Several times I have talked to people who state that they ALWAYS use the FULL amount of the grants/scholarships before loans are used. Obviously this is not true. I record the phone calls from start to finish just so I have the call recorded as well. I was also told many times that it was a simple error on their part and would be corrected. Isn't it nice when stories change?

When I asked to speak with the dean I was told there isn't one. But, aha! there is, though the dean has changed since I last attended. I was also told there was not a president of the school, again there is. So many lies are told to current and past students and prospective students. Such as (I just got off the phone as a "prospective student" inquiring about financial aid) this: Advisor: "there is no reason for the Pell Grant to be sent back, other than the student is not compliant with their classes. As long as the student attends and completes class the Pell will be used first and completely." The advisor assured me that the grant will be used unless sent back by the student or the student fails to complete at least four classes. Four classes because that is what the grant will pay for, you pay for them upfront. Failing or having to retake one class (I wanted everything to be clear) will not affect the grant, per the advisors words. And to be clear, NO I did not fail any classes!

Sadly no one that I spoke with when this started works there any longer. I would love for employees and ex-employees to contact me. You may remain anonymous if you wish. I have saved every email from Ashford, including the ones for "job placement" and "upcoming fairs", etc. I have asked to be removed several times from their mailing list, but I have not.

Like many other students I am unable to obtain a job utilizing my degree as I do not have it to show and employers simply do not want to hire someone that says one thing but cannot prove it. I attended college to further my education so that I could get a job that would support my family. Due to the fact that I cannot I have wasted time, energy, and money (student loan, ink, paper, etc). My health has suffered and now I must begin paying back student loans. If I wanted to lose out on all the money that I have incurred I would have donated it to a worthy cause, not to the pockets of the owner of Bridgepoint Education.

You may be asking what I am after at this point. I am simply out to make this company do what is right. Correct their wrongs. If you are looking into attending them or if you successfully received your diploma, good luck when trying to transfer credits to another college/university as it is very difficult to do so.
I'm sure there will be a part III to this but I have run out of time today and still have more research to do, phone calls to make, but my responsibilities as a mom come first and foremost. So I will end this post here to go play with and teach math to my daughter. Once again if you have, had or know of someone that has or is having problems with Ashford please contact me.

And when life gives you lemons ... use them and plant the seeds!

Ashford Part I

Once again I have started researching Ashford University which is owned by Bridgepoint Education. The university is located in Iowa but Bridgepoint is located in California. I had to take a break from everything related to Ashford due to the stresses of life and what this "university" did to my health. I'm sure you are wondering what the university could have done to me and I will be more than glad to tell you.

In May 2008 I started classes at Ashford University, in September 2010 I finished all required courses for a BA in business administration. In August 2010 a "graduation fee" charge was added to my account, in September 2010, I paid my "graduation fee". My fee was accepted and applied toward my "graduation". I finished my last class in the beginning of Sept and was ecstatic  I was done. I would have my bachelor degree. Upon completion I expected to receive my diploma, but I did not. I waited until the end of Sept to give the staff time to process everything and send it out. I call at the end of Sept to find out when to expect my diploma. My "advisor" told me to give it until the beginning of Oct and if I did not receive my diploma by then to call back.

The beginning of Oct came and went and no diploma. I called again to find out where it was. Once again I was told to give it two weeks, which would be near the middle of Oct and if I still had not received it to call back, as the staff was "still processing the fees, printing diplomas, etc of all the recent graduates". Those two weeks passed and still no diploma. Now we are at the end of October and once again I call to ask where my diploma is. This time I was told it was in the mail and I should receive it within two weeks, if not to call back.

But two weeks came and there was no diploma in the mail. The beginning of November 2010 marks where everything went wrong. Ashford decided to add a charge of almost $3000 to my account and put holds on my diploma and transcripts. When I called in in Nov to find out where my diploma was I was told they were unsure as I should have received it already. When I asked about the charge I was told by my adviser that she was unsure what it was from and would research it. It certainly was not for failing classes because I passed every one.

Another week passed and still no answer to my missing diploma nor the mysterious sudden charge. Each time for the next several times of calling in I was given no answer other than "I'm not sure what it's from", "I'm not sure why you haven't received your diploma", etc. It took a few months just to find out what the charge was and when I finally did, I asked for proof. I was denied any proof and told by several people, particularly management that "Ashford does not have to provide proof", oh, but yes you do actually. When you are charging a person for something you must provide proof as to what it is for and how it is legit.

Why would they charge me something I did not owe? My best guess is because I decided I would not continue my education with them. I was unhappy with the way things were ran. "Advisers" never contacted you and it took several attempts just to speak with someone. "Teachers" were not helpful nor were they understanding. They expected you to do all work even if a serious health issue arouse, making it almost impossible to get to a computer to type up 8 - 12 page papers or to log in at least 3x a week. "Advisers" were changed (ie: fired/quit) but the student was not contacted about the change. Yes I made my complaints about those such problems and no I was not going to continue with a school who does not care about the student. Rather the university and the owner care about lining their pockets. The papers weren't bad, neither was the logging in 3x a week, but when you are at a hospital everyday from sunup to sundown, with over an hour drive each way plus other responsibilities that come first, teachers and staff should be understanding. But they are not. I do not know anyone that would be willing to continue spending money with a university such as that.

Ashford has committed many financial frauds and has essentially stolen federal funds and funds from students. Why not pay the $3000 you ask? Because I do not owe it, Ashford took my funds and put it into their pockets rather than applying it to my account, that is why.  Upon my research I have discovered that Ashford has done this and other such wrong doings to many other people. If you have attended Ashford and they did you wrong or you know someone that they wronged please, I urge you, to contact me ASAP! I have been in contact with different State Attorney Generals as Ashford is being investigated for fraud and I am wanting to help other students/employees find a solution to their problem with Ashford. I have gone into debt with student loans for a piece of paper that I will most likely never receive. I will answer every email sent, every comment made. For a quicker response please email me.



Here is what is supposed to be a widget linking you to a petition against Ashford. Please go and sign it.

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When life gives you lemons ... use them and plant the seeds.