Don’t Make Yourself a Prisoner

It's possible to make ourselves theprisoners of others. How? By caring
so much what they think that we let if affect how we practice our
religion, how we dress, how we speak, even what names we call
ourselves.
Prisoners have their names taken away and are given numbers. We do it
voluntarily when we change Muhammad to Mo, Wael to Will (I've been
advised by some to do this but I have always refused), and Khadija to
Kim.
Prisoners are told how to dress. We do it to ourselves by giving up
our hijabs and kufis in order to fitin. We enslave ourselves to the
cultural dictates of others. We humiliate ourselves by suppressing
everything that says, "I am Muslim."
Prisoners are sometimes refused the right to pray or to have a Quran.
We do it to ourselves by missing our prayers because we are afraid of
being seen in public; or putting away our Quran and letting it gather
dust.
Prisoners are given no choice in their diets. We do it to ourselves by
eating the non-halal meat that is put in front of us, because we are
ashamed to say, "I only eat halal."
Prisoners learn to remain silent. We do it to ourselves when
othersspeak of faith and religion – sometimes even criticizing Islam
in our presence – and we remain silent because we are embarrassed to
speak up.
"And believe in what I have sentdown confirming that which is
[already] with you, and be not the first to disbelieve in it. And do
not exchange My signs for a small price, and fear [only] Me." – Quran,
Al-Baqarah, 2:41
Allah gave us a great gift, He gave us truth and guidance, and
othersare hungering for it, so don't hideit! We must be ourselves, be
proud (not the pride of arrogancebut of gratitude), let our faith
show, shine our light! A lamp in the darkness cannot be hidden!
Don't make yourself a prisoner! Wear your Islamic clothing without
embarrassment, eat halal without apology, speak your name with pride,
pray on time no matter where you are, read the Quran on the bus or the
subway ifyou wish, and when people ask you about your faith, tell them
with a smile, "I am Muslim." Speakyour truth without fear. Be proud of
Islam. Be free, and hold your head up high, bowing only to Allah/

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Advice from a Cloud (Ifa Cloud Could Speak)

Everyone deserves water to drink, so shower your kindness on sinners
and saints alike.
People will see different things in you: relief, or comfort, or a
fearsome sign of a storm. Pay no attention to any of that; but do your
job peacefully.
It's a beautiful thing to provide shade on a hot day (to comfort those
in distress).
You sometimes drift aimlessly, butby the will of Allah, you get in the
right drift and current again.
Oppose evil with thunder and lightning, but with others be soft as cotton.
Not everything is what it seems: the darker the cloud, the more water
it carries within, to cleanse the earth and bring new life.
Never forget, you are mainly madefrom water. Make sure to always
replenish yourself with pure sustenance.
There's a rainbow right behind the storm.
Can you think of any other advice a cloud might give?

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Antidepressants Can Raise Blood Pressure During Pregnancy

Hypertension can cause problems for both mother and child.
By ANAHAD O'CONNOR
Published: April 09, 2012
Taking antidepressants during pregnancy raises the risk of high blood
pressure in expectant mothers, a new study shows.
Antidepressants are one ofthe most commonly used medications in
pregnancy, and hypertension can cause problems for both mother and
child. About one in five women suffer from depression during
pregnancy, and up to 14 percent of those women end up using an
antidepressant medicationto treat it.
Though the drugs are commonly prescribed to pregnant women, there has
not been much research on the effect theycan have on a mother's
health.
The new study, published in The British Journal of Clinical
Pharmacology, looked at more than 13,000 pregnant women, 1,200 of whom
had pregnancy-induced hypertension with no history of the condition
before they became pregnant. The researchers found that women taking
antidepressants of any kind had a 53 percent greater risk of high
blood pressure. Those who were taking Paxil, which belongs to the most
commonly prescribed classof antidepressants, known as selective
serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRI's, saw their risk rise even
higher, by 81 percent/

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