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A Lifesaving Resource For Women In The Unenviable Role Of Primary Long-term Caregiver

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:11:48 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Alameda, CA - Sixty-six percent of all caregivers in this country are women, a number that is increasing as the population ages. Many of these women are so caught up — even trapped — in this role they seriously neglect their own needs, which can lead to physical, emotional and financial burnout. In The Caregiving Wife’s Handbook: Caring for Your Seriously Ill Husband, Caring for Yourself (Hunter House Publishers) by Diana B. Denholm, PhD, women will find the support and tools they need to get through this stressful time with compassion while keeping themselves emotionally whole.

Since caring for an ill husband has traditionally been seen as a “wifely duty,” the caregiving role becomes especially complex when the husband is dying of a long-term illness. Every day brings a new set of challenges, demands, adjustments, and often unwelcome changes. It is a time when support and clear thinking are desperately needed — and this book can help!

As the primary caregiver for her husband for over ten years, Dr. Denholm learned firsthand how little help is available to women caring for dying husbands. Over time, she combined this experience with her training as a practicing therapist and communication expert to develop the tools and strategies she shares in this book.

Dr. Denholm’s twin goals are to help wives communicate with reluctant spouses about important issues and to take care of their own physical, emotional and practical wellbeing. She includes real-life examples from six case histories, stories that help readers discover they are not alone and that many of their emotional responses, including negative ones, are common and normal.

Receiving five-star reviews on Amazon.com, Dr. Denholm was also recently featured in a lengthy article in the New York Times and her timely book is a finalist for the ForeWord book of the Year, drawing much-needed attention to a critical issue that affects millions of women yet is hardly ever discussed or explored in social discussion or in the media.

The Caregiving Wife’s Handbook addresses sensitive issues with insight and directness and offers clear-headed solutions. The helpful list of 50 Do’s and Don’ts and information on how to manage emotions, how to approach awkward subjects, and how to negotiate hot-button issues are practical and empower women to bring more balance, free time and even fun into their lives.

Diana Denholm, PhD, LMHC, holds a doctorate in psychology, is a board-certified medical psychotherapist, and has been in private practice for over thirty years. She has pioneered many of the communication and self-care tools she shares in this book and she has used these methods successfully with her many clients.

For more information on this timely and important book, visit: http://www.hunterhouse.com.

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Offbeat Creativity With Almost Anything

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:07:49 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Minneapolis, MN – Phil Hansen, a multimedia artist known for his experimental approach and offbeat techniques, is jumpstarting your creativity in his first book, Tattoo A Banana And Other Ways To Turn Anything and Everything Into Art (Penguin), bringing his outrageous creativity to a wider audience.

Tattoo A Banana is a simple, step-by-step guide to creating art with anything at hand – like a piece of toast, your own fingerprints, or a stack of marshmallows. Part handbook and part manifesto, this engaging, inspiring, and downright entertaining book takes us inside the mind of a groundbreaking artist — and encourages us to create, reimagine, and make something out of (almost) nothing.

With the same intention as his new book, Hansen is delighting audiences of all ages with his new interactive website, PhilInTheWhaaat.com (PITW). “I recently started a Creativity Series, showing simple everyday creativity that anyone can do using familiar objects around the home, paired with a twist of unconventional techniques,” he says. “I want to help people build their creative muscles by experimenting with a variety of nontraditional creative processes. We're all naturally creative and the more creative processes we experience, the more connected dots we have to form new ideas,” he continues. “This helps us build the foundation to be more creative.”

Hansen’s PITW projects are demonstrated through fun, fast-paced instructional videos that are as entertaining as the projects themselves, including how to paint with Coca-Cola, constructing a cardboard beard, and printing images on toilet paper.

Phil Hansen is an internationally recognized multimedia artist who works at the intersection of traditional visual art, pointillism, and offbeat techniques, using media that connect to the subject matter, such as karate chops, tricycle wheel imprints, burger grease, and worms. His work has been featured on the Discovery Channel, Oops TV England, Japanese TBS, Clips Mania Germany, CNN, CBS, Good Morning America, the Rachael Ray Show, Dr. Phil, and many other media venues. As a commercial artist, he has worked with clients that include Grammy's, Skype, Diesel, Arby's, Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum, The Cherry Arts Festival, and dozens of other large and small companies.

Available June 5th at bookstores; pre-order online at Amazon.com, Powell's Books, Barnes & Noble.com and Books-A-Million.com
Tattoo A Banana And Other Ways To Turn Anything and Everything Into Art
(Penguin)
ISBN13: 978-0399537479
$15.00

Please visit: http://philinthewhaaat.com

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Baggage At A Wedding Doesn’t Always Refer To What’s In The Suitcases

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:01:46 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Los Angeles, CA - Perfect for anyone planning a summer wedding, Eat Drink and Be Married (iUniverse) by Rebecca Bloom will resonate with every woman who has ever attended a destination wedding of a friend, only to realize that when best friends come together they bring waaaaay more than ugly bridesmaid dresses in their baggage!

Funny, fast-paced and realistic, Eat, Drink and Be Married puts readers in the middle of college girlfriends who are attending their former roommate’s wedding in Lake Tahoe. While these best friends rehash old times, they discover they are each hiding a piece of themselves from one another.

As the flaws in their own relationships surface, it takes a bottle of booze, a mountain of laughs, a bucket of tears, and three days in the company of those who know and love them the most to force each one to step out of their normally-organized lives to come to terms with their past before walking down the aisle. Hilarious, candid and tender, Bloom’s rich dialogue grabs the reader’s attention from the very first page and holds them to the unforgettable end.

A book that seems destined to become a part of new wedding traditions and memories, Eat, Drink and Be Married should be on hand for anyone planning a wedding. With its diverse, easy-to-relate-to characters, readers will laugh and cry as they are reminded of the innermost workings of their closest relationships – but they will never be bored!

Receiving great reviews on Amazon.com, Eat, Drink and Be Married is an engaging read that shows what happens when women get together with best friends at a destination wedding, yet realistic enough to make readers not a little envious and wishing they were a part of the entertaining world that surrounds Bloom’s endearing characters.

Rebecca Bloom is proving herself to be a writer to contend with. Her previous novels, Girl Anatomy and Tangled Up in Daydreams were featured in numerous national and regional publications, including The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, New York Post, In Style and many others, as well as various electronic outlets including EXTRA, Good Day Live and Dallas Morning News.

For more information on this engaging page-turner that every modern woman can enjoy – please visit: www.rebeccabloom.com.

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

This Was A Cry For Justice – But Was Anyone Listening?

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:56:52 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ellaville, GA - Jackie Carpenter always believed she was a ‘woman of faith’ – but when tragedy struck her family, she faced the stunning realization that her faith did not even begin to measure up. Scheduled for release this fall, A Cry for Justice by Triple Horse Studios is an emotionally-charged movie that tells the true story of the worst time in Jackie Carpenter’s life – when her son was fighting for his freedom after being charged with felony murder.

Jackie Carpenter was an ordinary businesswoman and mother when her phone rang that fateful day in 2008. Believing she had been blessed with an almost-perfect life and family, Jackie’s idyllic world changed the instant she received her daughter-in-law’s frantic call telling her that her son had been arrested after he accidentally shot and killed a would-be thief while protecting his property. Little did she know the long, hard fight that was ahead, trying to prove his innocence.

After her son was arrested, Jackie had trouble dealing with that inner voice that asks: What happens when a good person who serves God as a Bible teacher and church organist is struck by a tragedy and assaulted daily by Satan? What happens when you turn to God but cannot hear Him speak? What happens when you pray for a miracle and nothing happens? What happens when a person of faith discovers she lacks the faith to overcome tragedy?

A Cry for Justice is based on Jackie’s two books that tell her story. The Bridge: Between Cell Block A and a Miracle is Psalm 91 came first and told the story of how Jackie brought her family through the initial crisis. Georgia Justice: A Journey to Faith (Xulon Publishing) followed and relates the author’s journey that began with her belief she had enough faith to lean on God during a crisis but then, after her son’s arrest, she came to the stunning realization that the faith she had did not even begin to measure up to where it needed to be when tragedy struck. For information on Jackie’s books, please visit: www.bridgetoamiracle.com.

A Cry for Justice is both electrifying and poignant in its portrayal of this courageous woman’s battle against mind-numbing fear, while never losing sight of her faith in God. It is a guide for believers and non-believers alike, helping them take the first steps to escape the tightening grips of doubt and depression and begin the journey to renewed and strengthened faith, hope, and ultimate victory. A Cry for Justice will linger in the hearts of moviegoers long after the movie ends, and its moving account of tragedy, trial and triumph is sure to help those currently facing a crisis and those who have no idea a tragedy might be a part of their tomorrows.

Jackie Carpenter has been a featured guest on television, radio and numerous newspaper articles. For more information on this author and her extraordinary story of faith, hope and love, please visit her website at: www.georgiajusticemovie.com.

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Shea Vaughn, Mother Of Celebrity Vince Vaughn, Is Transforming Lives For The Better With SheaNetics®

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:51:20 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Chicago, IL – We all do it; we know we need to get off the couch but can’t muster the motivation to move. Well, Shea Vaughn just made it easy for us. A mind-body expert, master trainer and presenter, author and wellness coach (who happens to be Vince Vaughn’s mother), Shea is a recognized spokesperson for helping others create a life of well-being.

Shea introduces us to SheaNetics®, her doctor-endorsed, revolutionary wellness and exercise lifestyle practice that blends Eastern and Western values and movements for a powerful mind-body experience. SheaNetics® reshapes and enhances the overall quality of your life and gives you the mental strength and physical ability to make positive lifestyle changes. As the founder and CEO, Shea’s goal is to make sure anyone who wants to make a change has the mental and physical tools necessary to help them live the life they deserve. It is a first-of-its-kind combination of both physical and philosophical concepts working together to power your pathway to well-being.

The exercises are an energizing blend of effective, proven-to-work formats and include the special performance-enhancing qualities of Tri-Core Power Training - an exclusive with SheaNetics®. The 5 Living Principles of Well-Being are at the heart of SheaNetics® - Commitment, Perseverance, Self-Control, Integrity and Love. Together, these principles unite the mind and body toward a common goal of living life on your terms and living it well.

Shea’s mantra is “Embrace It, Own It, Live It,” and she describes it perfectly when she says, “SheaNetics® is like a best friend. Your journey to well-being begins as you Embrace It with the same spirit of commitment you would give anything you hold dear. Own It means accepting responsibility, persevering through the hard times and asking yourself: “Am I giving it my best?” Live It by being in the moment, making better choices, setting better examples and enjoying the benefits of your efforts.”

Shea recently released “Breakthrough,” an inspirational guidebook to finding total well-being. She also offers “The 30-Day Breakthrough Program,” her answer to losing weight and keeping it off. Her collection of SheaNetics® workout DVD/CD’s can be purchased at her website, as well as distinctive jewelry that she has added to her line of products. Shea is presently positioning to add SheaNetics® group exercise in fitness clubs nationwide, along with plans later this year to introduce her innovative all-body-building, core-busting exercise machine to the fitness and medical industries.

Shea Vaughn is a national mind-body expert, corporate wellness speaker, noted fitness professional, gifted choreographer and media personality whose charm makes her instantly likable in person and on camera. She has appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the Marilyn Denis Show, and is a regularly featured health and fitness expert on Chicago’s Windy City LIVE and The Best Ever You Network, and a frequent wellness commentator for other TV, radio and print media.

SheaNetics® is an exciting mind and body experience that is a pathway to lifelong well-being. For more information please visit: www.sheanetics.com.

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Celebrity Vince Vaughn's Mother, Shea Vaughn, Shows Us How To Get The Life We Deserve

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 17 May 2012 15:46:06 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Chicago, IL – If you don't wake up every morning eager to see what gifts the day has to offer, Shea Vaughn has a few words for you. She is the founder of the SheaNetics® concept, a fresh and thorough approach to wellness, exercise and mind-body health. “SheaNetics takes the benefits of fitness one step further,” she says. “It's about uniting the mind and body to reach your goals.”

In her new book Breakthrough – The Five Living Principles to Defeat Stress, Look Great and Find Total Well Being (HCI), she tells the story of the mental and emotional sides of SheaNetics® and the inspiration and answers to living life on your terms and living it well. This doctor-endorsed practice reflects Vaughn’s east-meets-west life philosophy and has found universal appeal and application; placing her on the leading edge of the expanding interest in holistic lifestyle thinking and the positive effects it creates for individuals and corporations alike.

In her book, Shea shares how The 5 Living Principles of Well-Being lie at the heart of SheaNetics® and are powerful tools used in individual coaching and corporate lectures on how to create meaningful and productive results. She also explains how the exercise portion of SheaNetics® is an inspiring and time-saving blend of many respected formats for a creative and effective total body experience – strength, flexibility, body-sculpting and stress relief in one.

Breakthrough provides great life lessons and simple recipes for well-being including Shea’s 5-Day Breakthrough Boost. “All together it's an easy and effective way to jumpstart your journey to a healthy lifestyle, defeat stress, look great and find total well-being,” Vaughn explains.

Shea Vaughn is a national mind-body expert, master trainer and presenter, author, wellness coach and a recognized spokeswoman for helping others create individual and business well-being. Vaughn is also the founder and CEO of SheaNetics®, the revolutionary wellness and exercise lifestyle practice that delivers a powerful mind-body experience and ignites your potential to look and feel your best on the inside and out. Shea has appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and the Marilyn Denis Show; is a regularly featured health and fitness expert on Chicago’s Windy City LIVE and The Best Ever You Network and is a frequent wellness commentator for other TV, radio, and print media and corporate events. Her SheaNetics® DVD/CD Mind-Body Collection offers dynamic, one-of-a-kind full body workouts and along with her new book Breakthrough, invites everyone to break through to a new beginning and the life you deserve.

For more information, please visit www.sheanetics.com

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Protect Yourself As A Patient - Know What You Need To Do For A Safe Healthcare Experience

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 11 May 2012 18:00:55 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“…Dr. McGuckin sounds the alarm on deadly, costly infections and how to prevent them. Before you or a loved one heads to the hospital, reach for this guidebook. It could save a life.”—Ceci Connolly, former national health correspondent, The Washington Post

Ardmore, PA - We all assume that going to the hospital will help us recover from an illness or injury. Going to any facility where a lot of other sick people are treated, however, can result in patients actually getting worse before they get better, simply because they “catch” someone else’s infections. Spread by healthcare workers as they move from sick patient to sick patient, or by visitors who may have touched unclean surfaces in the hospital before going into a patient’s room, these healthcare-acquired infections are difficult and costly to treat.

What most people don’t know is that healthcare acquired infections are preventable. Written by Dr. Maryanne McGuckin, an expert in infection prevention with 35 years of experience, The Patient Survival Guide (Demos Publishing), will lead us from being a patient at risk, to one knowledgeable about the simple precautions one must take to avoid easily preventable healthcare-acquired infections.

Dr. Maryanne McGuckin’s career spans several faculty and staff positions at the University of Pennsylvania. She most recently was a member of the Senior Scholars / Senior Fellows program with the Health Policy Department at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Toni L. Goldfarb is president of TLG Publications, a medical communications firm.

For information, please visit Dr. McGuckin’s informative website: www.patientsurvivalguide.net.

Available at all major bookstores and online outlets
The Patient Survival Guide: 8 Simple Solutions to Prevent Hospital and Healthcare-Associated Infections by Dr. Maryanne McGuckin
Published by Demos Health and distributed by Publishers Group West
ISBN: 9781936303311
Paperback: $16.95

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

When Failure Is Not An Option

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 10 May 2012 18:22:03 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Greenwich, CT - For readers who are seeking a book that will deliver the thrill of a James Bond movie, the suspense of a Jack Ryan scene, and the action of a Jason Bourne flick, look no more—Jordan Sandor returns in Jeffrey Stephens new novel Targets of Opportunity (Pocket Star Books)! Book reviewers have embraced Jordan Sandor, comparing him to all three top action heroes, while comparing Stephens to Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, and Tom Clancy.

In the first book in the series--Targets of Deception, which suspense master Robert K. Tanenbaum called “a fast-paced thriller”—Jeffrey Stephens introduced CIA agent Jordan Sandor, whom bestselling author Steve Alten praised as “terrific.” Sandor is back in Targets of Opportunity, playing for bigger stakes and facing deadlier challenges.

Whisked from his Manhattan town house to a gabled CIA safe house in Virginia, Sandor faces off with a top terrorist agent from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. In exchange for protection from his own side, Ahmad Jaber is offering the CIA explosive information on a secret, unholy alliance forged among operatives in the Middle East, a ruthless South American, and Kim Jong-II’s North Korea. Jaber does not have specifics - only that the strike will target the heart of America.

Sandor leverages Jaber’s information and assembles a small strike force to penetrate North Korea. The team knows they will not all return, but the intel they gather will be vital to American security. As their discoveries plunge Sandor into a frantic race against time, the fanatics callously bring down a passenger jet as a diversion and unleash an assault on a French intelligence installation. With the stakes being ratcheted up with every move, Sandor struggles to defeat a master terrorist whose perfectly disguised plan of destruction leaves Sandor wondering where or how he will strike next.

As a storm rages in the Gulf of Mexico, word comes that two enemy submarines have penetrated U.S. waters. With the U.S. military hampered by the hurricane, Sandor turns to a few daring Navy SEALs to duel with the enemy they cannot see… knowing only that the subs are carrying nuclear weapons aimed at a target of opportunity whose destruction would change the world order forever.

Brilliantly conceived, electrifyingly paced, Targets of Opportunity captures a terrifying twenty-first-century reality: terrorists can—and will—try as many times as it takes to attack the U.S. For the brave men and women who defend our country, failure is not an option. Targets of Opportunity leaves readers hanging on for Sandor’s next step, accompanying him until the very end.

Please visit Jeff at his website at www.jeffreystephens.com.

Available at fine bookstores and online
TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY by Jeffrey S. Stephens
Pocket Star Books
ISBN 9781451672565
$7.99
April 24, 2012

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Happiness Is What Everyone Wants! The Challenge Is We Often Go Looking For It In All The Wrong Places - And Teach Our Kids The Same…

Ascot Media Group — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:09:39 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“Drawing on her own extensive research and experience, Maureen Healy wisely leads parents and caregivers into the heart of awakening and activating the innate confidence with which every child is born. This is a book that parents will read over and over again.” - Michael Bernard Beckwith, author of Spiritual Liberation: Fulfilling Your Soul’s Potential

Deerfield Beach, FL - Ask Maureen Healy, an emotional health and parenting expert, and the author of Growing Happy Kids: How to Foster Inner Confidence, Success, and Happiness (HCI Books) and she’ll share the very best things she has learned in over 20 years of global experience fostering children’s happiness.

She has traveled from the Bronx to the base of the Himalayas helping young children lose their self-doubt and sadness. On the way, Maureen has also helped countless parents discover how to help their kids become more confident and happier no matter what.

Happiness can happen for everyone. Do you want to teach your audience simple ways to become happier? There are things they can do about it immediately to put a smile on their face, and on those of everyone around them. Maureen Healy can help your audience develop the skill of becoming happier and begin seeing how they can spark that in their kids, too. Ask her the following questions and she’ll explain:

The Science of Happiness: Happiness and all emotional health start with having a healthy brain. Neuroscientists (brain doctors) all say that so much of our brain’s development is as a result of our choices in eating well, sleeping enough, exercise, positive thinking and making smart choices. By making smart “brain choices” you create the foundation for your happiest life.

How Everyone Needs a Happiness Teacher: You wouldn’t get into a car without a lesson on how to drive, where the gas is and how to put on the brakes – would you? So why go searching for happiness without a teacher that can shorten your experience of pain. I promise the only thing you (and your children) have to lose is your unhappiness.

How Helping Others Makes You Happier: Science and spirituality both show that by helping others you feel happier. It doesn’t matter if you do something “small” like walking a sick neighbor’s dog or something “bigger” like organizing a fundraiser for someone who needs a little extra help. The mere effort of helping others actually makes you happier.

Avoid the Blank: (I’ll be happy when ____): Every parent, adult and child at some point gets caught up in thinking that I’ll be happy when (fill in the blank). The blank is the problem. You may have filled it in when my husband vacuums the house, the kids pick up the toys from the floor or someone besides me walks the dog. This type of happiness always leads to disappointment so Maureen shares her wit and wisdom on where real happiness comes from (Hint, Hint: It’s not from filling in the blank!).

Happy Kids have Rich Inner Lives: Science shows that children find their happiness from something inside of them. It is not connected to their socio-economic status, their parents’ marital status or where they live. Happier kids are reported to feel more grateful, generous and spiritual than their unhappy counterparts.

Here are 7 Keys to Raise Stronger and Happier Kids Today:

Build Confidence Daily (even for 5 minutes!): It is the everyday things we do with our children that help them feel stronger, and happier no matter what. So you may say affirmations together on the way to school (they are captive here!) or read a bedtime story every night that teaches about your child’s power within --- the point is that small things done over and over again really build your child’s sense of strength.

Get Them Moving: Children need to move their bodies and get their energy released in a healthy way. Because physical activity, eating right, and a good night’s rest are the biological basis of your child’s emerging sense of self-confidence. Also, be sure they do something they love from making a garden to becoming a soccer star. (Let them pick it!)

Sign Them Up for 1 Weekly Confidence Building Activity: Your child’s weekly confidence building activity may be a sport like soccer or something else like singing lessons. Most importantly, they need to see themselves succeed (really important) and also have a regular way to see themselves master a task thus building outer then inner confidence.

See Success Together (visualize, affirm, meditate, pray, and sing): Oprah always says that if you can believe it, you can achieve it. So help your child believe more fully in him or her self. Perhaps it is doing affirmations together like “I love me” and “I am amazing in every way” or doing a guided meditation, singing a song that sparks them up or drawing a vision board. Let your creativity loose so you both become more self-assured. Have fun with this!!!

Get Inspired: Do something inspiring together whether it is going to see magnificent waterfalls, flying a new kite on the beach or learning hula-hooping. By doing something that lights your child up, they learn how to build a new skill and you’ll see their confidence soar.

Create an Uplifting Space: Decorate your child’s space so they see happy photos of themselves, their awards displayed, goals (or vision board) hung up and they have their favorite things all around them. By making the space feel good to your child they’ll realize this world is supporting them, their dreams can come true and everyone wants to see them succeed. (Feng Shui can help too!)

Play More: Happier children know the importance of play whether they are outdoors helping their parents’ garden or playing tag with their peers! So the more you help your child build skills, see their power within and play in their daily lives the happier they’ll be. I promise.

This book helps any adult nurture in themselves and their children a deeper sense of confidence and ultimately happiness. The Five Building Blocks of Confidence presented in this book has made countless children and parents feel more confident.

NOTE TO MEDIA:

BOOK VIDEO: www.growinghappykids.com/node/55
PRESS: www.growinghappykids.com/press

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Maureen Healy is a children’s emotional health expert with more than 20 years of global experience. She writes a popular blog for Psychology Today, and the PBS Series, This Emotional Life. Her work has been featured on ABC, NBC, the CW and in popular magazines like Spirituality & Health and Parenting, too. Maureen also uniquely brings together western science and eastern wisdom to help any adult raise happier kids today. More info: www.growinghappykids.com.

Contact: Kim Weiss/HCI Books
(800) 851-9100 ex. 212 or kimw@hcibooks.com
Author is also available on short notice – call her directly at 828-450-2023 or contactus@growinghappykids.com
Growing Happy Kids: How to Foster Inner Confidence, Success, and Happiness
Maureen Healy
ISBN: 978-0757316128
$14.95
April 2012

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Startling New Facts Revealed About Al Capone

Ascot Media Group — Tue, 08 May 2012 16:05:33 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Bonita Springs, FL – Only a family knows the unvarnished truth about someone. Everyday, face-to-face interactions can reveal character more effectively than anything else. Al Capone's brother, Ralph Capone, knew this – and that's why he begged his granddaughter Deirdre Marie Capone not to publish the Capone family secrets until she was the last living member of the family. Uncle Al Capone, The Untold Story from Inside His Family (Recap Publishing) is the result, revealing for the first time many startling facts about one of the most famous gangsters of the twentieth century.

In one hard-hitting chapter after another, Capone examines her great-uncle's involvement in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre, the real reason he went to Alcatraz, ethnic prejudice in the early twentieth century, and much more. She offers compelling evidence that Al Capone was specifically targeted for prosecution by law enforcement agencies with the collaboration of the media, which made gross exaggerations of her uncle's exploits and fueled a phenomenon of half-truths and utter falsehoods. From the family's roots in Angri, Italy to the author's ongoing investigations today, this debut offers a comprehensive and moving portrait of an iconic American family and one woman's efforts to make peace with the past.

As a child, she didn't know he was a notorious gangster; he was just her Uncle Al. He taught her how to swim, ride a bike, and play the mandolin. But after he died on her seventh birthday she began paying the price of being a Capone. From age 7 to 13 her classmates were not allowed to play with her. When she was 10 her father committed suicide due to the burden of the Capone name. At age 18 she was fired from her first full-time job because of her name. As soon as she could, she left Chicago and her family name behind.

Readers have found Uncle Al Capone dramatic, unyielding and provocative. A moving, highly readable portrait of the Capone family and its mob ties, the book takes a close look at what it means to survive a legacy of notorious criminal activity. Through years of meticulous research and exhaustive interviews with aunts, uncles and cousins, Capone tells the story that eluded dozens of writers: Al Capone as a loving, if flawed, family man.

Deirdre Marie Capone has been a guest on a number of regional and local radio and television shows, and appeared on NBC's Today Show, the CBS Sunday Morning Show, the Fox Network and The History Channel.

Please visit: http://www.unclealcapone.com.

Available at bookstores, online or at www.unclealcapone.com
Uncle Al Capone: The Untold Story from Inside His Family
(Recap Publishing)
ISBN13: 978-0982845103
$17.99

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Step Into Her Shoes – One Size Fits All

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 04 May 2012 15:54:53 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ridgefield, CT – It reads like a deeply personal account of a year in a woman's life. But it is, in fact, fiction. It reveals the passion, commitment, and daily challenges in the life of every mother, professional woman and citizen. This Mother's Life (Infinity Publishing) is written as a daily journal, exploring topics as wide-ranging as politics, religion, relationships and divorce.

Nina Mohadjer chose to write a novel instead of an autobiography because in many ways, the life she chose to portray is one common to every working mom. “This character doesn't have a name because I would like to have every woman identify with her,” she says.

“...[W]e know how it is to do the splits as we stretch to balance family and work for twenty hours a day. Only a woman who has children and a boss can understand how....unforeseen events have to be expected and taken into account. Only she will understand how running from a parent–teacher conference to a new policy meeting to a night of intimacy is an everyday task,” Mohadjer continues.

Reviewers have applauded her candor and spirit. “It is gritty, big time, Nina has put into a book things women might 'think' but being ladies would never say, but she says it all....She drills down to some no-holds-barred conversation....It’s all in there, marriage, sex, prejudice, raising children, how women feel about each other, everything. This is a brutally honest book that comes from her life and maybe from yours.” Another reviewer calls This Mother's Life “riveting” and “heart wrenching.”

Readers will recognize the journey of this remarkable woman as she moves from feeling foreign wherever she is, to feeling at home in the heart of her dreams.

Nina Mohadjer was born in 1970 in Iran, raised in Germany and has lived in the US since 1993. With a German law degree, an American law degree, and a MBA, she speaks five languages and has worked for several years in eDiscovery for class-action lawsuits. Mohadjer started writing at age seven and has always been fascinated by women’s rights and life’s challenges. Growing up between two cultures made her realize that she was not only bi-cultural, but also at times torn between the two worlds. Nina lives in Ridgefield, Connecticut with her two teenage daughters.

This Mother's Life is available in softcover and eBook online here and at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com $12.95 ISBN13: 978-0-7414-6710-2

Please visit http://www.ninamohadjer.com/

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

The Power And Grace Between Nasty Or Nice: Replacing Entitlement, Narcissism, And Incivility With Knowledge, Caring, And Genuine Self-Esteem

Ascot Media Group — Tue, 01 May 2012 14:59:59 GMT

“This is like no self-help book you have ever read. It's both highly original and grounded in practical reality. Its focus is deeply personal while also shedding light on our larger culture. The authors come across like the kind of people they are helping others to become - gracious and powerful, smart and humble, connected to others, and fully themselves.” William J. Doherty, Ph.D., professor and director of the Minnesota Couples on the Brink Project at the University of Minnesota and author of Take Back Your Marriage.

"…our genetic survival will depend on human beings who cooperate, care for one another, and who have the capacity for limbic resonance, rather than just pursuing more and more stuff.”

Deerfield Beach, FL - This thought-provoking book goes far beyond the tired clichés of typical self-help books. America, and many other nations, is so out of balance that we are too often confused by who is "the victim" and who is "the perpetrator." Those who are too "nice" get exploited, and those who are too "mean" get what they want at others' expense.

From their ecological-systemic perspective, psychologists John and Linda Friel explain the role of evolution, genetics, and biology; personal, marital, and family dynamics, and cultural and political forces in creating a society that is riddled with entitlement, narcissism, incivility, fake self-esteem, and a disturbing lack of basic knowledge. In their latest book, The Power and Grace Between Nasty or Nice: Replacing Entitlement, Narcissism, and Incivility with Knowledge, Caring, and Genuine Self-Esteem they show how and why these must be replaced by caring, humility, genuine self-esteem, and real knowledge.

Power without graciousness results in bullying and nastiness. Graciousness without power results in being a doormat. When we temper power with graciousness, we elevate ourselves beyond our purely brutish selves and become competent, grateful, humble, effective, and truly powerful---attributes that are sorely lacking in a fast-shrinking world where anxiety and over-reaction often reign supreme. Using cutting-edge neuroscience and down-to-earth examples, the Friels show how you can move into the power zone between victim and perpetrator, and how even one very small change held firmly for six to twelve months can cause more system-wide change than anything else you can do, whether it’s in your home, your office or in your community. You’ll discover:

Non-citizens now launch half of all Silicon Valley start-up companies.

The U.S. divorce rate is very high in southern states—Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Texas—that do not support gay marriage, and lowest in northeastern states like Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York, which do support gay marriage.

The term "American Exceptionalism" was coined by Soviet Communist Party leader Joseph Stalin.

There is a genetic link between how much we contribute to charities, whether we are liberal or conservative, how many risks we take, how much pleasure we get from volunteering at a soup kitchen, and how tolerant we are of others’ differences. Thomas Jefferson wrote: "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be"

Why conflict can be a life-enhancing part of human relationships and why avoiding conflict can be just as destructive as constantly pushing for it.

Why the opposite of dysfunctional is dysfunctional. One who is hyper-independent is just as dependent and needy as one who is clingy and helpless.

Why cutting off all contact with relatives—even in quite abusive situations—will keep you almost as hooked in to them as if you simply stayed home and lived with them.

Why not always getting along with a family member is normal; and why not speaking to them for years is not normal, and is destructive to all members of that family.

Why the ability to allow disappointment to enrich your life is one of the keys to happiness.

And, why any system in nature—the solar system, the nervous system, a system of work-mates in a work-group in a high-tech corporation—will never change until there is a disturbance in the system. This provocative and profound book will show you how to navigate those changes by bringing your best self forward.

About the authors: John C. Friel, Ph.D., and Linda D. Olund Friel, M.A., are internationally recognized authors and skilled clinicians. They are psychologists in private practice in St. Paul, MN. John also has an office in Reno, NV. They are New York Times bestselling authors, selling over 500,000 books, are the founders of the ClearLife® Clinic Program, and have appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show, ABC News 20/20, in USA Today, Parents, and Cosmopolitan.

Available online or at bookstores or to order directly from the publisher, contact:
(800) 441-5569 or www.hcibooks.com
The Power and Grace Between Nasty or Nice: Replacing Entitlement, Narcissism, and Incivility with Knowledge, Caring, and Genuine Self-Esteem (by John & Linda Friel)
ISBN-13: 9780757315862
$14.95
May 2012

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

A Young Woman Who Never Dreams ‘Small’ Is Helping To Transform Lives

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 19:23:27 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dallas/Fort Worth, TX – Have you ever set a major goal in life such as becoming an award-winning actress, being signed by a record company or publishing a book? Bridgette Murphy dared to dream big and guess what? She became a successful author and had an opportunity to act with Oscar winner Hillary Swank.

If you don’t dare to pursue a dream then life will pass you by, leaving you to ask: “What if?” In Bridgette Murphy’s Bold, Fierce and Transformed: The Process of Life-Changing Transformation (Xulon Press), she shares how to be bold enough to recognize the barriers but daring enough to move forward in order to accomplish our goals; in other words, how to reach our full capacity in spite of life’s adversities!

“It’s about being fierce, persistent, and passionate enough to break through every obstacle and reach your desired destination,” says Murphy.

Not willing to accept the barriers life delivered, she chose instead to dedicate her life, gifts, and talents to inspiring others and helping them come into their purpose. This is profoundly evident in her book which offers the encouragement to press beyond internal and external barriers, pursue your passion and God-given purpose – and reach your true potential.

Bold, Fierce and Transformed is a life-changing book that invites you to take a transformational journey. It is a practical guide to help readers understand that no matter where they are now, it's not where they always have to be. Infused with inspirations, Murphy’s book challenges each reader to stretch beyond their comfort zone and venture into a land of personal growth.

Murphy is the President and CEO of Bridgette Murphy Enterprises – a global enterprise that specializes in delivering practical, purpose-driven messages to religious organizations, educational institutions, women, young professionals and adolescents through the art of dancing, writing and speaking.

A passionate writer, visionary, innovator, teacher and in-demand corporate speaker, Murphy has helped women and youth come into their purpose as they understand their value, find their passion for life, and reach their true potential. Please visit: www.bridgettemurphy.com for more information.

Bridgette Murphy’s inspiring and motivating book will challenge you to your core to be bold, be fierce, be transformed!

Available at www.bridgettemurphy.com, online, and at bookstores:
Bold, Fierce and Transformed: The Process of Life-Changing Transformation
By Bridgette Murphy
Xulon Press
ISBN: 978-1-61996-415-0 Paperback/$14.99
ISBN: 978-1-61996-416-7 Hardcover/$22.99
ISBN: 978-1-61996-417-4 e-Book/$7.49
March 2012

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Father Walks His Daughter To School Every Single School Day For 10 Years Straight!

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 19:15:50 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Delray Beach, FL – On May 16, Frank McKinney will walk his daughter Laura to St. Vincent Ferrer School for the last time – a tradition that started over 1,650 walks ago, and has carried on unbroken since Laura’s first day of Pre-Kindergarten on August 21, 2002.

That’s right; Laura has never been driven to school in the 10 years since she started Pre-Kindergarten. Rain, cold, wind, even hurricane warnings… it didn’t matter! Frank and Laura experienced epic adventures, stories, and wildly imaginative games on their daily odyssey!

What began as special time to spend together, just Dad and Daughter, has grown into an amazing daily ritual that now involves as many as one hundred of Laura’s schoolmates who are eager to join them on the first Friday of every month.

The 7-block walks, through the McKinney’s jungle-like back yard, past an eerie nature preserve, and over a 1949 drawbridge, inspired Frank McKinney’s young reader fantasy novel; Dead Fred, Flying Lunchboxes, and the Good Luck Circle (www.Dead-Fred.com).

Perhaps the most inspiring part of the story is it happened in today’s world of too-busy-to-care dads and disconnected parent/children relationships.

Still walking hand-in-hand when most teenagers wouldn’t be caught dead with their dad, Frank and Laura use this time to share their love for each other and all that is good in this world.

A five-time bestselling author in three genres, McKinney's release, Dead Fred, Flying Lunchboxes and the Good Luck Circle (www.Dead-Fred.com), captures a fantastical account of this monumental streak.

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Exclusive Details On One of the Most Important Artists of the 20th Century

Ascot Media Group — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:40:04 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Los Angeles, CA - The price Jerome Robbins paid in his personal life for his art was extraordinarily high. Watermill Revisited, the new e-book from Christine Conrad, provides a unique understanding of the controversial ballet Watermill, and weaves her long relationship with this internationally acclaimed director and choreographer into a fascinating story that connects Watermill with the underlying stresses of Robbins’ romantic relationships.

Filled with details never before revealed, Conrad explains how Watermill followed an extremely shattering personal time for this brilliant artist. And as Robbins pointed out in his work notebooks, it was autobiographical and he was ‘healing.’

Created in 1971 for New York City Ballet and influenced by Japanese Noh drama, Watermill has been described as one of the most unusual pieces from this renowned choreographer. Reviewers either loved or hated it and it was decidedly controversial where ballet audiences were concerned. The combination of its slow pacing, unconventional images, and bold sexual dance moves provoked a mixture of stunned silence or enthusiastic applause at the end of performances.

Water Mill is the name of a beach town on Long Island where Jerome Robbins had rented houses. He loved being by the ocean. It was his retreat from the city; a place where he found peace in the solitude and scenery and allowed him time to reflect and regroup.

In Watermill Revisited, Conrad makes the link with an earlier ballet, Facsimile, that told of a similar tale of triangulating between lovers – a pattern Robbins was never able to conquer in his lifetime. Filled with details from journals written by this very private man during his lifetime, this absorbing book gives lovers of theater and dance a read not easy to put down.

Watermill Revisited is the author’s second book about Jerome Robbins; the first being her pictorial biography Jerome Robbins: That Broadway Man, That Ballet Man. However, in Watermill Revisited the writer goes into greater detail about her relationship with Robbins and adds new levels of intriguing details about him that have never been revealed until now.

Watermill Revisited follows Christine Conrad’s well-reviewed novel Mademoiselle Benoir, written in epistolary form and inspired by a true story. Conrad began working full-time as a writer for film and television in Los Angeles in the early 1980’s, and is well-known for originating the screenplay of Junior which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger. Her short stories have been featured on BBC Radio and she has received rave reviews from The London Times, Daily Telegraph, and others. Raised in NYC, she has worked in theatre, as an editor in book publishing, and as New York City film commissioner.

Christine’s life took an unexpected turn when a serious illness in the mid-1990’s galvanized her to become an advocate for women’s health. This encouraged her to write two best-selling books on natural hormone replacement and launch her non-profit foundation www.naturalwoman.org that has helped thousands of women get life-changing treatment.

Christine Conrad continues to live and work in Los Angeles and is currently working on several different projects. For more information please visit: www.watermillrevisited.com.

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Trish Stevens

Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Heartbreak, Terror and Joy

Ascot Media Group — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:38:24 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Las Vegas, NV - Two Kinds of Color (Createspace) by Deborah Kennedy may be fiction but its characters and events reflect the author’s real life story: growing up black in a racially divided family who were mostly conceived through prostitution when her mother was pimped out by her father. Kennedy proves herself to be a compelling writer with a deep sense of compassion and an intensity that adds raw emotion to her amazing story.

It's not a memoir, but a character-driven mystery thriller with an intriguing plot that deals with the lives of a dysfunctional family made up of a prostitute white mother, a vain and greedy black man, and four children, two white and two black. Two Kinds of Color is both compelling and poignant in its portrayal of a mother’s love and heroic sacrifice for her children.

In this story, paralleling much of Kennedy’s own life, Freddie Walker is a very beautiful and sensuous woman who begins working as a prostitute at age sixteen for a vain and greedy pimp/businessman. Jimmy Tate is her pimp and his notorious reputation and illegal gaming practices allow him to make all the money he can. Raising children in the brutal world of hustlers of Chicago's South Side is tough, but she does her best.

The mesmerizing power of the story keeps readers turning the page. A murder, a prison sentence, foster care and a fortune made on Wall Street are plot twists so incredible they must have come from real life. The reader learns what Freddie Walker didn't tell her children, and how those children ultimately redeemed their legacy of heartbreak, terror and joy.

Two Kinds of Color is a powerful story with characters that leap off the page, vital and real; the kind of story that creates smash hits at the box office. It sheds light on the underworld of prostitution and focuses on the truth of the pimps that abuse the children caught up in this world. It is a story of best friends, of having faith and belief in God, and of trust and love.

Kennedy’s goal in writing this extraordinary story was to bring hope to women and their children trying to get out of this lifestyle, and to offer encouragement to children of racially divided siblings that no matter what one experiences in life, nothing is more important than family – even if they are two kinds of color…

For more information on this talented writer please visit: http://www.twokindsofcolor.com.

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Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Intense True Story of The Eternal Battle of Good and Evil

Ascot Media Group — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:34:58 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

San Antonio, TX - People often wonder: What is evil? What is death? What is hell? We Do Not Wrestle with Flesh and Blood: The True Story of a Man’s Death and Resurrection is the incredibly true story of Benjamin Smith – a young man who experienced all three firsthand and lives to unlock the source of evil in the depths of human souls.

This factual story relates the inner personal battles of a young man seeking truth and freedom in central London in the early 2000s. When Benjamin Smith left his small hometown in Texas to attend college in London, he was seeking only one kind of salvation: freedom from the crushing boredom of a safe life lived and its predictable nine-to-five future.

Daring to ask if there was more to existence than a report card and a resume, he sets out to join Alex, the son of a Russian oligarch, at a prestigious English business school. The plan seems simple and foolproof: make powerful friends and make a ton of money! Believing that from effortless power and money, freedom and peace would surely follow. Isn’t that how it goes…?

Set against a fast-paced dialogue between wildly diverse cultures, the story relates how the subtle deceptions of evil can eventually destroy a life. Masterfully written, this story is a witty but profound spiritual testimony of Benjamin’s experience when he encounters evil incarnate in the form of a sycophantic, Rasputin-like Russian, a friend of Alex, whose mysterious powers and dark intent cause Smith’s ambitions to deteriorate into a haze of drugs, deception, and danger.

As Benjamin takes readers on a wild, “stranger than fiction” exploration into the subtle deceptions of evil that lead him to a traumatic death experience—these deceptions nearly cost him his life and will have eternal consequences!

Through Benjamin’s intense death experience and subsequent spiritual awakening, he cracks the code to unmask the nearly irresistible core of evil.

Receiving five-star reviews on Amazon.com, Smith’s book is described as “raw and brutally honest” and “a very deep and true story of one man's life and fight with the sins and evil of this world.”

To learn more about this young man’s true journey between good and evil, please visit: http://www.brsmithbooks.wordpress.com and www.brsmithbooks.com.

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Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

SheaNetics® - A Pathway To Well Being That Will Transform Your Life

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 19:47:31 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SheaNetics® is an exciting mind and body experience that is a pathway to lifelong well-being. For more information please visit: www.sheanetics.com.

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Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

Reach Out and Grab The Life You Deserve

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 19:24:34 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, please visit www.sheanetics.com

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Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com

A Lifesaving Resource For Women In The Unenviable Role Of Primary Long-term Caregiver

Ascot Media Group — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 19:13:25 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Receiving five-star reviews on Amazon.com, Dr. Denholm and her timely book were also recently featured in a lengthy article in the New York Times; drawing much-needed attention to a critical issue that affects millions of women yet is hardly ever discussed or explored in social discussion or in the media.

For more information on this timely and important book, visit: http://www.hunterhouse.com.

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Jillian M. Sachtleben
Ascot Media Group, Inc.
Office: (281) 333-3507
jillian@ascotmediagroup.com
www.ascotmediagroup.com