CommenTerry

Trust the Real Professionals

I'm getting a bit irked by all the negativism about flu shots being propagated by amateur doctors and nurses who think they are somehow smarter than the real ones. I've never had more than a minor reaction to the flu shot. In addition, I've never gotten the flu in a year which I had the flu shot. The consensus of the medical professional has me in the majority.

While I'm on that subject, there never seems to be any shortage of "know mores", as I call them, who think they know more about medicine than those who went to medical school, more about law than those who went to law school, and more about any subject or discipline than those who have had years of experience in those areas. They also seem to have access to information that no one else seems to know about. We should all aspire to be as smart as they!

Everyone Talks About Aging, But ...

We are all familiar with Charles D. Warner's famous quote, "Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it." I believe the same can be said about aging. There are commissions on aging. There are clinical studies on aging. There are entire fields of study on aging, such as geriatrics. There are anti-aging products such as creams and lotions. People even go under the knife to make themselves look younger. Yet, none of this has been able to stop or even slow down the actual aging process. The hands of Father Time still batter the human body and people continue to get old as they always have.

Ah, But Where Did the Original Come From?

I don't completely buy into the idea that one can't catch a cold, the flu, or another virus without being around other people. For example, someone has to be the first to get the flu each year. How does that person catch it? The people who are experts at this might say the person caught it from a bird. Okay, then how did the first bird get it? Then they might say that birds get it from insects. Okay, then how did the first insect get it?

Twelve (Non-Financial) Reasons Why People Avoid Doctor Visits

We are all aware that the high cost of health care is a prime reason many people won’t see a doctor when they should. People who are the most concerned about cost are usually those not covered by health insurance. However, health insurance is overrated. It is not the “get out of illness free card” that it should be. It is not a magic bullet. It is not a be-all-to-end-all.

In fact, even many people who have good health insurance also avoid or put off seeing their doctor, often until they have developed some kind of advanced-stage illness. Here are some reasons why this happens (in no particular order):

1) Doctors’ appointments can’t always be scheduled at convenient times.

2) One often faces long waits in a doctor’s office.

3) Not every medical condition can be easily treated or cured. Some can’t be cured at all. People fear being told that they have a disease that will soon kill them.

4) Many common diagnostic tests are painful and/or humiliating.

5) Many cures and treatments are more ghastly than the disease itself.

6) Some conditions are difficult to describe, creating the potential for a dangerous misdiagnosis.

7) Some of the other patients in the waiting room often have contagious diseases.

8) When one is sick, he or she doesn’t often feel like getting out of bed, getting dressed, and going to the doctor’s office.

9) Nurses and/or receptionists often have bad attitudes.

10) Not every doctor has a good bedside manner.

11) There’s often paperwork and red tape involved, in addition to meddling by the insurance company.

12) The examining rooms are cold.

Lame Reasons to Not Get a Flu Shot

For those who aren't allergic to eggs and don't have some other mitigating circumstance, it's a good idea to get a flu shot each fall. For most people, it will either prevent the flu altogether or lessen its severity. When I bring up the subject of the flu shot to some people, they'll claim that the shot once gave them the flu. This is impossible, as a dead germ is injected. What probably happened is that they were already infected before getting the shot or before it became fully effective (that takes two weeks) and just assumed that the shot is what gave it to them.

Of course, that kind of logic is like driving past a windmill, getting the flu two days later, and then assuming that windmills give people the flu! The other common excuse I hear for not getting the flu shot is that "I never get the flu." To that, I just smile and reply, "I never get it either."

Laughter Is Never a Waste of Time

The more sanctimonious among us will say time spent watching comedies on TV is a total waste. I say not necessarily. Medical science has proven that laughter has a healing effect. As long as one doesn't spend excessive amounts of time in front of the TV set, I see no problem with getting a daily dose of comedy. Time spent improving one's health is never a waste, no matter what anyone says.

What Makes Us Worry?

Have you every wondered what makes us worry? I can't speak for anyone else, but there are four major root causes for all my worrying. If I could just make these things go away, I'm sure I would never worry again.

The first concept is cost. I often worry about how much something is going to cost me. I'm often afraid that I'm going to pay too much for it. Many times, I want certain things, but I don't want to pay anything at all for them. If everything were free, that portion of my worrying would disappear.

The second concept is consequences. That are many things I would like to do, but I'm too worried about the possible consequences to ever give them a try. I also worry about the consequences of things that I have no control over. For example, backed up traffic might cause me to be late for work, so I worry about the consequences of that. If there was no such thing as consequences, that portion of my worrying would be over.

The third concept is responsibility. I worry because I'm responsible for various things. I am expected to take care of certain things and make sure certain tasks are done. If I fail to live up my responsibilities, that will reflect negatively on me. If there was no such thing as responsibility or if I could always dump mine on someone else, I would worry a lot less. 

The fourth concept is limitations. My time, money, energy, etc. are limited. I only have so much of each to go around. Therefore, I worry about how I'm going to ration them and use them wisely. I'm always afraid they will run out and/or I won't have enough. If I had unlimited amounts of all those things, my worrying about them would almost certainly cease.

What are the root causes of your worries? How do they match up to my list?

Building a Health Firewall

None of us can fully protect ourselves from all the possible bad things that could befall us. That's just a sad fact of life. However, we can build personal firewalls to greatly reduce the risk of being hit by some things and delay others for as long as possible.

The risk of serious illness can often be diminished and death can often be delayed by building the firewall of good heath habits. This firewall consists of (but is certainly not limited to) eating right/getting proper nutrition; seeing your doctor and dentist regularly; getting recommended vaccinations (like the flu shot); having various checkups and diagnostic tests at recommended intervals; drinking plenty of water; getting enough sleep; avoiding excessive stress; abstaining from illicit drugs, smoking, and excessive alcohol use; managing your weight, sugars levels, blood pressure, and cholesterol; taking vitamins and supplements as recommended by your doctor; and exercising regularly.

Sometimes, no matter what people do or how they live, they are going to suffer serious illnesses and/or die at an early age. Others can do pretty much anything they want and still enjoy good health and a long life. In most cases, however, one's health and lifespan have a direct correlation to his or her lifestyle and personal choices. So why not build the firewall of good health habits to tilt the odds in your favor when it comes to protecting the most valuable thing you will ever have?

Don't Worry -- And Don't You Dare Make That Down Payment!

I can't remember where I heard this, but worrying about something in advance can be compared to making a down payment on a something you may never get.  Let's say I owned a car that you wanted to buy. Now let's suppose I asked you for a non-refundable down payment, even though I told you I might actually sell the car to someone else. Would you give me that money? Of course not!

However, we (yes, I'm including myself) will constantly worry about things that may or not happen. Then, when the thing we worried so much about doesn't happen, we can't get any of that worrying back. We worried for nothing.

Resist the Temptation to Overmedicate

With so many all-in-one cold and flu remedies on the market today, there is a real temptation to overmedicate. Most healthcare professionals agree that this is a temptation that should be resisted. Many over-the-counter medications combine treatments for multiple symptoms all in one pill. For example, one pill may treat a runny nose, cough, congestion, sore throat, fever, head ache, and body aches. In most cases, all of these symptoms are not present at the same time. By taking pills like that, people are treating symptoms they don't have.

While it might not be so economical, it's better to use different treatments for different symptoms. For example, use a cough and cold pill for a runny nose, sore throat, and coughing; a decongestant for congestion; a pain reliever for head ache and body aches; and a fever reducer for fever. Most pain relievers, such as acetaminophen, will also reduce fever and that's okay. Bottom line, it's just not a good idea to take medicine that not's needed, no matter how cost-effective multi-symptom medications might seem.