Do you guys remember my posts about Mullet Pig from last year's Susan G. Komen 3-day walk?

Well, his wife is walking again this year, and she needs donations!

Here's the URL for her personal site.

http://www.new.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=118056168624&h=EvXLi&u=xVmnj&ref=mf

I'll get some links to my mentions of Mullet Pig after I get the kids off to school.

Last January I had a mammogram.

The found *something - probably nothing*.  So I went back and they looked at it again.  Definately something-probably nothing.  So they did a Sonogram.  Nothing showed up on the sonogram.  So it was probably nothing...

...but come back in six months, just to make sure it isn't something.

So I went back for another mammogram.  There it was:  Something (probably nothing) but bigger and brighter.

Another series of mammogram shots, and there it was in all of them - something.

So they did another sonogram - nothing.  The doctor did an examination.  Nothing.  Probably.

Come back in three months, we'll take another look.

It could be worse.  It could be DEFINATELY something.

Mood:  Cheerful and not worried, but somewhat annoyed.

I got a call from my mom and sister today.  My sister got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, and she tripped over an ice auger that her husband had left in the kitchen (don't ask).

Anyway, she fell and broke her arm.

Her husband took her to the local ER, and they had to call a doctor in to look at her arm.  He was cranky, and brusk, manipulating her arm around and crabbing at her when she reacted in pain.  She asked him for pain medication, but he continued manipulating her arm, and told her that if she didn't "shape up" he was going to go home without doing anything for her.

Finally, after getting tired of hearing her express her pain, he gave her a shot, and did an x-ray.  She has a horizontal fracture near the middle of the humerous, and a vertical fracture nearer the shoulder.

Later, she found out that the doctor had written in her records that she was "under the influence" and uncooperative (both untrue).

He made a crude sling out of gauze, and sent her home with no pain medication.

For two days, she and her husband tried to call to be seen for the break, and let them know that my sister was in a lot of pain.  They were put off repeatedly.

Finally, they drove 2.5 hours to Bemidji, and were seen in the ER.  A proper sling was put on, and pain medication issued.

Later, the local hospital called to do a follow-up on my sister, and asked if she still had pain or any concerns about her condition.  She replied that she had gone to Bemidji to have the break looked at.  The person on the other end responded "Oh!  Your arm is broken?"

Apparently, the doctor had merely noted that she came in "under the influence", was uncooperative, and complaining of shoulder pain.  Not mentioning the break at all.

This was the same crack medical team that failed to diagnose a cancerous tumor in my grandfather's colon...and instead concluded that he had a heart condition.  (a different hospital actually did a hemoglobin test, which I would think would be a standard procedure in someone suffering from weakness and dizziness...and discovered that he had a hemoglobin count of 3).

My in-laws drive down to the cities to get care for my MIL now, because someone in the hospital near THEM let my MIL go through a whole course of chemo therepy without adding one of the perscribed active ingredients.

I'm collecting a string of anecdotes that adds up to "God save me from having to get medical treatment in a rural hospital".

Some places in America have the best health care in the world.  Others have something that is marginally better than the 3rd world.

But don't let those "liberals" tell you there are "two Americas".

grump.

Oh, the punchine?  My sister makes her living as a violin teacher.  Let's just say, that it would probably be better for her family and for the taxpayers if her arm got proper treatment so it could heal properly, so that she could continue to earn a living.

A while ago I came across a link to a video on Jason Bock's blog.  It was a link to an excerpt from Randy Pausch's "Last Lecture".

I ended up downloading the whole lecture and making my family watch it.  I recommend it highly.

It was a funny, charming, lecture about how to realize your childhood dreams from a guy who has Metastized Pancreatic Cancer.

I go to Dr. Pausch's page from time-to-time to see how he is doing.

He has a medical update page as well.

Dr. Pausch is a great speaker and seems to have lived with the intensity of a dying romantic BEFORE he got terminally ill.

I thought some of you might be moved and inspired by the story.

Today was my first visit to the allergy/athsma clinic for my immunotherapy shots.  So far, no reaction at all.  So I am very happy.  I tolerated it very well.

I also got my flu shot, which I havn't bothered to get the last couple of years.  It was very good to get it.  Now I know I will be at least somewhat protected.

I am going to have to stay on my anti-allergy medications for quite some time, I think.  However, it is nice to be finally starting down the road to a reation-free exsistance.

So now Oprah has been diagnosed with Hypothyroidism .

Here’s the Wikipedia page for hypothyroidism.

I feel bad for her, I really do.  I know what this condition does to a person, and I know how it feels to have it go undiagnosed.  Depression, fatigue, a sense of impending mental break-down or dissipation.  I remember with horror the inability to focus thoughts, inability to discipline oneself.

I understand how much willpower it takes to drag your body out of bed and meet the demands of the day, force yourself against the screaming drag of your own body to force yourself to exercise…only to gain weight.

No amount of make-up can hide the bad skin, no amount of careful self-maintenance can get rid of the blue bags under the eyes, the dullness of the hair.

“You look tired” gets to be like a mantra chanted by everyone you meet.  Sometimes with sympathy or concern, more often with a bit of the gloat behind it.  What they really mean is “You’ve really let yourself go”.

Going to the doctor to find out what’s wrong, you’re told the only prescription you need is more self-discipline and will-power.

Even the Oprah show, which made its name singing the praise of persevering in the face of insurmountable problems manages to slap you in the face, when Dr. Phil says “You’re not fat because of your thyroid.  That’s just an excuse.”

I actually went to the website and left a comment.   I said it was irresponsible for Dr. Phil to say something like that.  I went back later to see if there had been any response to my comment, and I couldn’t find it anywhere.  I assumed it had been deleted.

 I had gone for years with an undiagnosed thyroid problem because of just such a response from a Doctor, who refused to administer a simple blood test, despite the fact that I have a family history of low thyroid, and all the symptoms.  And I DO mean all of them.  The CNP who eventually ran the test said that I was in s life-threatening situation, and not just because of the suicidal thoughts.

But this doctor just gave me the smug look, and the condescending encouragement to do more push-ups…push up from the table.  He actually SAID that.

Normally, I would have stormed out of his office and went to find a doctor who would run the test.  Unfortunately, depression and fatigue caused me to simply shut down in shame and never mention it again…until my friend Sue kicked my ass and told me that she didn’t know what was wrong with me, but I’d better figure it out soon, because she didn’t like who I had become, and she wanted her friend back.

I’m sorry for Oprah that she has to go through this.  But I’m glad that finally, she might address this really important subject, and empower women with knowledge and encouragement to speak up for themselves and demand to be tested if they suspect they have a thyroid problem.

Thyroid disorders require constant maintenance.  I recently went in for my annual test, and found that I might have to have my dosage upped again.  Not a big surprise.  I’ve gained weight, and I’m tired and cranky when normally I would be chipper and happy.    I’ve been unable to focus at my usual level in normal times, and become downright useless in times of stress.  Things that were once easy, have become difficult.  I’m confused, forgetful, and sad.

But I’m going to get a second test done, and it’s likely that a simple dosage adjustment will fix the problem.  It’s such a simple solution.  All you need is the knowledge of what your condition is, and the support of knowledgeable people to help you treat it appropriately.

Little bit of catch-up.

The fourth was fun, for the most part.  We got together with the extended family and did some camping and BBQing and water-skiing and stuff.  There was a parade and fireworks and all that jazz.  Rocky, the kids and the dog all had a fabulous time.

I behaved myself for the most part.  At one point we were in the livingroom watching  the travel channel and there was a show on Niagara Falls.  One of the bits was about the history of the falls as related to the underground railroad.  The show described run-away slaves crossing an ice bridge that formed over the falls, as well as a suspension bridge that went over the river into Canada.  One tour you can take traces the route of escaped slaves over the (now modern) bridge into Canada.

The relative we were visiting was not pleased by the description of people escaping the US to find freedom in Canada.

So he proceeded to tell the children that the slaves brought to America from Africa were better off as slaves in America than they were as free people in Africa.  He asserted that slavery was not as bad as some people claimed, and also, that modern black people should be GRATEFUL that their ancestors were slaves because if they weren’t they’d be over in Africa with all the disease and genocide.

Now, this relative is a Conservative older man, living in a rural area, and is unlikely to change his opinion or outlook in anyway, and is unlikely to actually be able to harm anyone with his opinion either.  So I left and took a little walk and later talked with the kids about the conversation, making sure I let them know where this relative was in error.

Later, back home, we had some other relatives as houseguests, and discussion of the health care system ensued.

Let’s just say that I was called ignorant, and stupid, mocked derided, talked over, interrupted, and my ideas completely re-interpreted and misrepresented and scoffed at.  When I tried to explain how the relative was going off in a completely different direction, he raised his voice and said “Let me finish.”

I got very upset.  I was tired from the first day and night of CONvergence, so I teared up and had trouble speaking.  It is something that sometimes happens when I get really angry and I am exhausted.  I was practically speechless to be treated this way in my own house…and by someone I actually like a lot and respect, but whose personal manner changed dramatically on this particular topic.  It was a bit shocking to me.

What was it that made me stupid and ignorant?  I don’t really know, but the relative in question argued that a basic national health care system that only covered standard treatment for routine medical problems would stifle innovation, because people would not buy catastrophic or “Cadillac” healthcare plans if they had the basic national plan available for free.  I wanted to point out that I never proposed it be automatically free for everyone…but that was one of the times I was waved off as “interrupting” before I could get the clarification out.  I suppose it would be overly snarky of me to point out that the clarification would have been unnecessary if I hadn’t been interrupted.  So the person continued to completely demolish the point he thought I had made rather than the one I was actually trying to make.

 I wanted to point out that the plan I was trying to discuss would actually add consumers to the health care system because people currently going without care would be getting it, whereas people who currently have great coverage would choose to use their great coverage and this would drive innovation just as much as it ever has.  No go.

The person insisted that nobody would spend money for insurance to provide state-of-the-art treatments if they could get the insurance for cheaper less innovative treatments for free.

I said “So you don’t think people can be trusted to understand that they need to pay for better coverage to get better treatment?”

Apparently, this is a terrible thing to say to a Republican with Libertarian leanings.

But it seems to me that the average American understands this.  If you have better coverage…you get better treatment.  If you have crappy coverage, you get crappy treatment.  A minimally adequate coverage will get you treatment that is effective for most of the things that most people encounter in life…and no coverage at all is a recipe for disaster.

I assume that, like now, people will try to get the best coverage they have access to.

All I was trying to say is, wouldn’t it be possible for us to have a program to move the people who have no coverage and crappy, inadequate coverage into the category of having minimally adequate coverage?  While it might not be that great if you get cancer…you’ll love it if you get a broken leg or a sinus infection.

The person responded that it would just cost too much to overhaul a system as big as our health care system for what is essentially an incidental segment of the population.  He asserted that it is really very exceptional cases where people cannot afford insurance and are unable to pay for treatment.

I asserted that the overhaul of the system is coming one way or another.  We can either let it break down its present form and change on its own…hoping the magic of the market fairies will pull a better system from the chaos…or we can plan it and manage it so that hopefully it doesn’t lead to radical disruption of our society.

My discussion partner expressed incredulity at that assertion, and told me that people should just bring down costs by buying generics and such.

I said good luck with that since you have an entire industry built around “motivating” doctors to prescribe new formulations of existing drugs, presenting the new formulations as “innovations”, and fostering the perception that generics are inferior to brand-name drugs (I personally know a drug rep who flat out told me – on several occasions – that I should, under no circumstances buy generic drugs as there was just too much variance in their manufacture and performance…for instance.  I didn't listen to him.  I buy my meds at Costco and go genaric whenever there is one available.  Ther are usually cheap enough to cost me a fraction of my co-pay.)

He countered snidely that I didn’t trust people to be able to make rational decisions on their own.  My attempts to explain the difference between a general understanding of levels of coverage and people making a choice when there is a multi-billion-dollar industry focused on shaping their perception with the complicity of the people who are supposed to be their health advocates fell on deaf ears as he condescendingly explained to me that I had employed a double-edged sword when I invoked personal choice and responsibility.

I guess I had to be punished for defiling said deities by using them in a "liberal" argument.  The Conservative Libertarians have claimed them as their own and nobody else can use them.

Apparently, the magic of the Wonder-Twin Magic Market Fairies of Personal Choice and Personal Responsibility work the same whether you have access to high-quality information from reliable sources or not.  I guess I know better now.

Needless to say, the rest of the conversation is kind of a blur.  I wish I’d walked away from that conversation as well.

Fortunately, CONvergence was in full swing and things can never go that wrong when CONvergence is going on.   I’ll talk about that more in my next entry.

So, I went to the allergist today.  Three bouts with bronchitis in a row, plus endless breathing problems before that, and I'm done.  I don't care what it takes, just break out those needles and FIX ME!!!

For those who don't know, they draw a huge grid on your back, and poke you with some sharp peices of plastic containing concentrations of allergens.

You also get two controls:  one is a non-reactive substance (I assume Saline or something equivilent) and the other is Histamine, the chemical that is produced by the body's attack on the allergins, and which causes the allergy symptoms.

My reaction to the non-reactant control was the expected - and my reaction to the Histamine was the expected ++++

This gives you the range from no reaction (-) to the Histamine reaction (++++) (a scale of 0-4, basically).

Here are my test results:                                                                                         Mold Spores:

Paper Birch                    ++++               Short Ragweed         ++++                        Alternaria                 -

Boxelder/Maple Mix          ++++               Giant Ragweed         ++++                        Cladosporium             +

Mulberry                        ++++               Marshelder              ++++                        Epicoccum                 +

Red Oak                        ++++               Sagebrush Mix          ++++                        Helminthosporium        +

White Ash                      ++++               Russian Thistle         ++++                        Aspergillus fumigatus   +

Shagbark Hickory            ++++                Careless - Pigweed   ++++                         Pullularia                    +

American Elm                  ++++                                                                           Fusarium                    +

Kentucky Blue Grass         ++++                                                                           Penicillium                  +

Timothy Grass                 ++++                                                                           Phoma                       +

Dustmite (D. Farinae)        -                                                                                 Rhizopus                    ++

Dustmite (D. Pteronyssinus)   +++

Cat                                    ++++

Dog                                    +++

Cockroach                           -

My allergist, who seems to have a gift for understatment, said "You are a candidate for shots."   

No wonder I have been having a hard time running.  I'm allergic to the whole darned out-of-doors!  (And the in-of-doors too!)

One up-note...my peak-flow reading in the middle of an asthma attack was 490...a good score for a normal, healthy adult woman.

Another up-note is that I CAN get shots, and don't have to sell the dog and buy pet cockroaches.  LOL!  Although those Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches are pretty cool.

Flashbacks to that one Batman movie.

Effect Measure has an article on Melemine, and the convention of adding the substance to food to boost the appearance of a high protein content.

But now there is talk of the Melamine not being that big of a deal, that there is a second chemical that reacts with a metabolite of the Melamine that has caused the crystals to form in the kidneys of the animals that have been affected.

This leaves a person wondering about the identity and source of the second chemical.

I get the feeling I should be worried about this, but for some reason my brain sticks on that scene in the Batman movie where the reporters are all wan and washed out and greasy and they are reading off the list of things to avoid mixing.  Something like: “Do not combine Shampoo with mouthwash and toothpaste”.

It DOES bother me that we’ve been eating plastic thinking that it is protein all this time.  If a US food producer did this to us, it would be called fraud.  China has some ‘splainin’ to do.

Also, note to you “anti-regulation” people out there…this is what happens when a government doesn’t regulate industry.

Oh yeah, and I'm ALSO put in mind of the sneaky and diabolical cleverness of "Famine" in the Book The Nice and Accurate Prophacies of Agnas Nutter, Witch By Neil Gaiman...where Famine is all chuffed with himself because he has anorexics starving themselves to death in the middle of plenty by binging on non-nutritious foodstuffs.  Melamine shows up in food tests as protein, but it has no nutritional value.

PZ Myers thoroughly debunks Stephan Milloy's crazy stories about how butter-fingered environmentalists are going to go bankrupt paying to clean up all those Compact Flourescent Lights they break.  And, as he drives by, he takes a swipe at Stephans hypocracy in saying that the negligable amount of mercury in the CFL bulbs is dangerous while pooh-poohing mercury from power plants.

Denialism also has a nice treatment for the layman.

The verdict is:  CFL are still a good idea.  Find out where you can recycle them, and find out how to clean them up safely and cheaply when they break.  In other words USE YOUR BRAIN.  Sheesh.

Here's the link to the EPA page

Here's a link to the Earth 911 recycling page.  Just click on the item you'd like to recycle, and you will be taken to a page where you enter your zip code, and they will point you to a facility near you where you can learn how to dispose of common household items properly.

It took a mid-western suburban housewife 20 MINUTES to find and put together this information, and Steven Milloy couldn't figure it out?  Junk science indeed.

I just heard on MPR a lead in that was discussing a view that Virginia Tech should not have let the shooter return to school after he was hospitalized with a mental illness.

Are people really saying that employers and schools have to be held responsible for decisions to not descriminate against the mentally ill?  I couldn't listen to the broadcast, but the teaser was either repugnant, misleading or both.

If someone's behavior at work or school is threatening and dangerous, then the employer/school should be responsible for dealing with it appropriatly.  Merely knowing that they have been hospitalized does not mean that they are responsible to not allow the person on campus/hire them.

How many people have been hospitalized for mental problems and gone on to live normal, productive lives and not treaten anybody.

Ugh.  I am so sad for the victims and the families, and for the whole terrible mess.  All this over-focusing on single issues is perhaps understandable, but it is inappropriate and will not produce outcomes that will be helpful in any way.  People need time to heal before they can respond rationally.

My friend, Karen asked me to put in a plug for her aunt's Fibromyalgia website.  I said I would, and that I would put it in my navigation bar.

Unfortunatly, I misunderstood the purpose of the site.  I thought it was purely an information site.  When I went to look, I found that she was offering services as a coach.  I DO want to help out a friend's aunt...but I DON'T want to appear to be endorsing paid services of a person I don't know helping people with a disease that is not fully understood.

Each individual is different, each individual finds different things effective.  Information is key to that, and I think that this site has lots of information that people might find useful in their personal search for ways to cope.

I imagine that the coaching of an experianced patient might be very useful in managing this very complex condition.

So here is the site.  I hope that anyone who needs it finds important and useful information here.  If you are looking for a coach in dealing with Fibromyalgia, you will need to use your own judgement to determine if Karen's Aunt can provide the expertise you need.  She is very up-front about her qualifications.

Karen's Aunt's Site: http://www.fibroinfoservice.com/

Other information can be found at these sites.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fibromyalgia/DS00079

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fibromyalgia

http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/fibromyalgia/fibrofs.htm

There are lots more information sites available with an internet search for the term.  I try to avoid information sites that advertize products on the front page as part of the site design (as opposed to side-bar advertizing).