Use of Muscle Relaxants And Sharpshooters Print E-mail
By Marvin Cervantes

 For centuries, sharpshooters and marksmen have been employed as strategic arsenals or assets by various armed forces and fighting units. The ability to accurately hit someone from a long distance has long been considered one of the quickest ways to wear down an enemy. This was supposedly proven true during the Battle of Agincourt in 1415 when the English longbow prevailed over the French armor. In what was to be the most decisive battle of the Hundred Years' War, Henry V of England together with 900 soldiers and 5,000 archers were intercepted by French troops that allegedly outnumbered them three-to-one. Making excellent use of the terrain and strategic positioning of the longbowmen allowed the English to wallop the French army. Another more ancient armed conflict that was settled by the power of the long-range weapon was the legendary Battle of Thermopylae. According to the accounts of historian Herodotus, King Leonidas and 300 Spartan warriors together with other non-Spartan volunteers, succumbed to a hail of Persian arrows but only after inflicting a heavy toll on Xerxes' minions over three days of bloody fighting.


However, the sharpshooter really came into his own during advent of modern warfare. The Second World War gave Russian sharpshooter Ivan Sidorenko the chance to make shooting history by registering 500 confirmed kills. As a separate entity among the infantry during the World War II, the sniper was able to establish his worth as a strategic asset and psychological weapon. Instead of volume of fire and overwhelming force, the sniper utilized stealth, high ground and terrain, and superior aim to cause dread and panic that is enough to halt an entire platoon or battalion on its tracks.

The steady, highly calculated aim is the hallmark of a true sniper. With nerves of steel, a sniper can place a pinpoint shot on a still or moving target by considering the wind direction, bullet deflection, target distance, and a host of other factors that impact on whether a kill is made or not. Never a job for the weak and unstable, the sniper often has to work alone or with a spotter --- far from larger units of infantry or fire support. Usually, they employ camouflage and infiltration techniques to get within lethal range of the target. After hours or even days of waiting in ambush, they make a short, controlled squeeze on a trigger that effectively neutralizes a threat or target. One shot, one kill --- the motto of every sharpshooter worth his rifle.

Keeping the rifle steady and one's eyes fixed on a scope under the extreme conditions of war are, at the very least, highly difficult skills to master. While there is little that can be done about rifle recoil, the sniper must remain totally focused on the target and his weapon. Using a tripod, the sniper can sweep on a range or lock-on a target the same way a leopard's unblinking eyes follow the movements of its prey before making its attack. The slightest discrepancy or the minutest movement can cause a miss that alerts the target who can either flee the kill zone, or shot back at the general direction of sniper.
But behind the history, mystique and battle accounts that would mesmerize the uninitiated, lies another story.

Battle conditions are simply unforgiving, where even the most highly trained soldier can "lose a grip." In Vietnam, regular infantry and snipers had to struggle with the hilly terrain where even the sturdiest tripod proved useless. To compensate, the U.S. military issued their snipers with supplies of muscle relaxant medication.

Muscle relaxant drugs were meant to help keep the sniper's arms and body as still as possible while taking aim, compensating for the lack of stabilization provided by a tripod. In theory, some of the stronger muscle relaxant drugs given out could also help the body absorb some of the recoil from the shot. The basic idea was to give the snipers a better chance of getting the job done in one shot, eliminating the danger of missing the target and alerting the enemy to their presence. The use of a muscle relaxant is, according to some reports, still common practice in different battlefields today. This is particularly true in desert and jungle combat situations, which are theater of operations that often lack even, solid ground on which a sniper can stabilize and shoot from. The use of such drugs is, however, not a modern practice. Some archaelogists and historians believe that medieval archers used specific types of herbs that acted as natural muscle relaxants. Indeed, many ancient civilizations used a variet of plants as muscle relaxant medication but conclusive evidence of the use by archers of those bygone eras of such natural, plant-based relaxants has yet to be unearthed. There is some justification to the belief that archers would require some sort of muscle relaxant, particularly because of the stresses of using some of the larger types of bow, but most experts believe that if there was such a practice, it would have been recorded by a credible source.

At present, muscle relaxant drugs are in wide use in many different military organizations but it has yet to achieve acceptability among law enforcement units. The use of a muscle relaxant is currently not seen as necessary among police snipers since the urban environment relatively provides plenty of stable ground. In contrast, a combat unit that is sent to infiltrate a compound in a wooded area would likely be assigned a muscle relaxant supply instead of a tripod --- which can only add more load to an already back-breaking combat pack or bergen. In today's battlefronts --- the use of chemicals to improve the execution of military action such as sniping may has been considered a breakthrough, but it still does cause slight controversy in some circles.

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Ways To Deal With Managing Your Depression And Fears

By Marvin Cervantes

 When your fears and depression have the best of you, it is easy to feel that things will not get any better. This is not true. There is hope in dealing with your fears and depression. For instance, there is much help available in today's society and the best way to deal with your fears is to find effective ways to overcome them. As a result, here are some techniques a person can use to help manage their fears and anxieties.


You never know when the answers your looking for will come to your doorstep. Even if the thing that you feared does happen, there are circumstances and factors that you can't predict which can be used to your advantage. These factors can change everything. Remember: we may be ninety-nine percent correct in predicting the future, but all it takes is for that one percent to make a world of difference.

Challenge your negative thinking with positive statements and realistic thinking. When encountering thoughts that make your fearful or depressed, challenge those thoughts by asking yourself questions that will maintain objectivity and common sense. For example, your afraid that if you do not get that job promotion then you will be stuck at your job forever. This depresses you, however your thinking in this situation is unrealistic. The fact of the matter is that there all are kinds of jobs available and just because you don't get this job promotion doesn't mean that you will never get one. In addition, people change jobs all the time, and you always have that option of going elsewhere if you are unhappy at your present location.

Some people get depressed and have a difficult time getting out of bed in the mornings. When this happens, a person should take a deep breath and try to find something to do to get their mind off of the problem. A person could take a walk, listen to some music, read the newspaper or do an activity that will give them a fresh perspective on things. Doing something will get your mind off of the problem and give you confidence to do other things.

Seek help from God. You might of heard this before, however have you tried asking God for help? Praying and talking to God about your problem can be effective. Although the answers might not come to you right away, you can't go wrong on relying on God. You never know how God will work in ones life. All you can do is to do your best each day, hope for the best, and take it in stride by using the help of God. God will help us through our problems if we ask him.

As a Layman and author of an anxiety book, I have done many interviews with various counselors in how to manage fear, anxiety and depression. The techniques that I have just covered are some basic ways to manage your depression, however your best bet is to get some help from a professional and not to lose hope. Eventually, you will find the answers you are looking for.

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How to Take Yourself off of Birth Control

By Alberto Martinez

 Using birth control methods for safe sex and to protect yourself from unplanned parenthood is always a wise decision. But when the times comes that you and your partner decides to start a family, coming off birth control in order to conceive is often a tricky process. This is especially true if you have been using hormonal birth control methods like injectable or oral contraceptives. Here is a guide if you want to get off birth control for possible conception and pregnancy:


1. Complete your current cycle.

According to Frank Chervenak, MD, chairman of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department at Cornell University, it is advisable to complete the current cycle of your birth control pills or BCP instead of stopping mid-cycle in order to conceive. He says that continuing with your current BCP pack lessens the risk of irregular bleeding.

2. Stop pill intake at least two or three months before you plan to conceive.

This allows your body to resume its natural hormonal cycle without help from the pill. It also allows hormones from the pill to get out of your system. Stopping two or three months or cycles before you want to conceive also allows you to regulate your ovulation so you can chart when are you most fertile.

3. Use a barrier method after getting off the pill prior to the time you want to conceive.

Although this may seem nonsense after getting off the pill, it is advisable to use an alternative barrier method to prevent an earlier conception than you planned. Barrier methods such as condoms can prevent you from getting pregnant while your body is still trying to get accustomed to life without BCP. Also, using a barrier method or another means of alternative birth control saves you from constant worrying and hoping for a pregnancy. Irregular or missed periods soon after you got off the pill are common occurrences but these do not necessarily mean that you are pregnant.

4. Discontinue habits that can affect your ability to conceive.

Habits such as smoking, drinking, and taking in too much caffeine can affect your ability to conceive even if you got off the pill. Also, these bad habits can cause birth defects in your baby just in case you have an undetected pregnancy soon after getting off the pill. Irregular and missed periods are common and you can get pregnant while assuming that your body is just adjusting to the lack of pill hormones. To be on the safe side, discontinue or temporarily quit these habits after getting off the pill.

5. Take folic acid supplements and fertility medication.

Folic acid prevents defects during the early development of your baby. Since it's hard to be sure whether or not you are pregnant soon after quitting BCP, take folic acid supplements just in case you are pregnant. You can expect to conceive and get pregnant two to six months after coming off birth control but still, it is not unusual if getting pregnant takes longer than that. Consult your gynecologist or a Planned Parenthood doctor for fertility medications you and your partner can take to increase your chances of having a baby.

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