Staying off the drugs (prescribed ones, that is) (cartoon, relation, best)
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LOL - I'm not aiming for a long life. No, indeed. It's all about the quality - which to me is defined as good health...Having been seriously ill in my 30's for almost a year...
The older you get - the more likely you are to wind up with some form of disability. And I think the older you are - the more likely you are to accept it and learn to live with it. But then there are the cruel ironies. One of my husband's grandmothers - who loved to socialize and chat - went stone deaf. One of my grandmothers - who loved to read - went almost totally blind.
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Actually, I think my uncle died at age 91 of normal old age. Per docs his systems began to shut down - plumb wore out - kidneys, heart. He had been running himself ragged every day for six months going back and forth to the nursing home to wait on my aunt. Time of his pacemaker implant to his death was four months. Hospitalized only a week at the very end. Other than dying in your sleep which happened to my grandfather, I call that death from old age. He never had an acute or chronic ailment of any kind. Prostate trouble he dealt with by taking Saw Palmetto. My aunt cooked everything from scratch from day one. No processed food in that house. Her weakness was bread and candy, so she got fat and developed diabetes. That does run in the family, her mother had it.
You probably don't have intimate knowledge of your uncle's medical records. If he had a pacemaker - he probably had some kind of acute cardiac event and/or chronic cardiac problems. And cardiac problems can lead to renal failure. Which means he didn't die of "old age" - but of medical problems you're more likely to get when you get older.
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For some odd reason, I am reminded of this - which I stumbled upon a few days ago:
I thought that was quite moving. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
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This I learned unequivocally 33 years ago. Illness occurs when the body is not at ease (or in balance) - thus the word - dis-ease. In most instances, the body is self-healing when it is supported in a way that is compatible with its own innate healing process.
I think that is true of most minor things for people with normal immune systems. For example - if you do nothing for a cold - you'll get over it in 7 days. If you do everything for a cold - you'll get over it in a week . I have never heard anyone say anything like that about pneumonia - especially in an elderly person. Robyn
It is normal for blood pressure to be high when you're a little nervous, like in the doctor's office. Your doctor KNOWS that. They are not supposed to prescribe drugs based on only one reading. Unless, of course, the goal is to push drugs as much as possible.
Blood pressure medication has side effects that aren't so nice, such as depression. Oh, but then you could just take an anti-depressant. But those cause side effects also. No problem, there are always more new drugs coming out.
Once they get you on multiple drugs, the drug companies will love you, because you will be a good customer for the rest of your life.
Perhaps there are some blood pressure meds that cause depression in 1 out of 500 patients (don't know) - but there are blood pressure meds that don't have that side effect Dr. Songbird:
FWIW - your PCP is usually getting paid next to nothing for your visit (especially on Medicare) and your generic drug company is getting about $10 for 100 for a lot of generic drugs. So there's no real profit motive here. Note that the BP med I linked above - lisinopril - well you can get it for free at Publix - a really big grocery store chain here in the south - especially Florida (I don't know why exactly - but you can get free drugs at certain pharmacies these days). Robyn
It is quite bizarre to accuse someone of practicing medicine without a license because they express an opinion about health on a web forum! If you need to have blind faith in the medical industry, no one can stop you. If you don't want to be skeptical and listen to alternate opinions, no one is forcing you.
Maybe it's frightening to think that we should not have blind trust in MDs. Maybe you need to believe there is no danger in taking ever more prescription drugs.
Sorry but there's a huge difference between mere opinion, which I've not seen you express and label as such, and dogma which is preached.
It might surprise you to know that there are a large number of physicians who are firm believers in and recommend alternative medicines and procedures and there's no "blind" faith on my part. I've been around long enough to question many things, including doctors opinions.
This is a retirement board which infers that most of us have reached a certain age and degree of experience with life. I'm sure none of us are strangers to alternative medicine and many of us follow healthy practices in diet and exercise as well as our medical choices. I find it insulting to be told, in so many words, that I'm not bright enough to know what's good for me.
Everyone's mileage differs when it comes to drug tolerances and efficacies. What works for one, be it pharmaceutical or alternatives, may not work for another. I think it irresponsible for an "unidentified, presumably un-credentialed amateur to try to talk others into or out of issues that deal with their health. That's all.
I have always enjoyed a healthy diet and plenty of exercise, i'm not overweight but i'm diagnosed a diabetic, can't always know what is going to happen as we age. I kept it under control for 5 years with diet but as it is a progressive desease i now have to take the medication plus the diet. I'm not ready to go yet still have a lot to do and want to die with my feet on.
Sh** happens. But you take care of it. I think if I were in your shoes - I'd go to a good endocrinologist - get worked up - get his/her recommendations - and then follow up with a good PCP. If you happen to be in the NYC metro area - I have a cousin who's a big shot endocrinologist specializing in diabetes there. You can DM me if you'd like contact info (I would go to him in New York because he's family - but I suspect there are excellent doctors like him in various metro areas all around the country).
Another thing I'd do is get regular eye exams. A really good optometrist will do. Because not only do you want to keep your feet - you want to keep your eyesight too. And signs of diabetes (and other diseases) show up in your eyes. Our optometrist has diagnosed 12 year old - mostly obese - kids with type 2 (adult diabetes) when giving them routine eye exams.
I'm sure that there are other things you should do too - but I don't know what they are (because I really don't know much about diabetes). Your docs should be able to help you more than I can. Robyn
With all this talk about the collusion and evils of the medical/pharmacology industry, one thing that hasn't been mentioned is the number of diseases that have essentially become extinct because of the research and various serums developed. Think smallpox, tuberculosis, polio and many others. It's not all bad, folks.
People forget. My mother - born in 1920 - had diphtheria when she was a child and almost died. Pretty much done away with with DPT vaccinations. I was a "polio pioneer" with the original Salk vaccine. But had friends who got polio before the vaccine came out.
Now - there are parents 2 generations younger than I am who can't remember the diseases - so they resist the vaccinations. Bad choice IMO.
And - although there were some fledgling antibiotics in the 1930's or so - it wasn't until WWII that we really brought our resources to bear on developing them and getting them into the market. Perhaps - if it weren't for WWII - it might have taken penicillin another 10+ years to be available to people whose lives it saved.
The only area where I might disagree with you is tuberculosis. Because of the development of - to put it in common words - antibiotic resistant TB (or - in doc terms - extensively drug resistant TB). Caused in large part by drug use - AIDS - etc. Robyn
That is not relevant. The problem we are having now is thinking that because some drugs are good, more must be better. Antibiotics and vaccines have proven to cure or prevent certain types of diseases. It's really important to separate these from the over-prescribed drugs, especially the ones that cause more harm that good.
OK - give me your Letterman's top 10 list of those drugs <drum roll please>. Robyn
It is quite bizarre to accuse someone of practicing medicine without a license because they express an opinion about health on a web forum! If you need to have blind faith in the medical industry, no one can stop you. If you don't want to be skeptical and listen to alternate opinions, no one is forcing you.
Maybe it's frightening to think that we should not have blind trust in MDs. Maybe you need to believe there is no danger in taking ever more prescription drugs.
What is sillier than having blind faith in doctors or drug companies is having faith in what anyone says anonymously on an internet chat board.
I think most people here know my background. A retired lawyer who did a lot of medical-legal work. A somewhat (I'd like to think) intelligent consumer of health care as well. But does that make me a good health care professional? No way. I am just probably an 8 or so on a scale of 1 to 10 when it comes to non-professionals. And about a 5 on a scale of 100 when it comes to real professionals.
So what is your background? Inquiring minds want to know. Robyn
I'm totally supportive of the drug industry and conventional medicine. Unfortunately, everyone in the system has stopped looking at individuals and only look at a "public health" problem. Since the doctor doesn't have time to pester, handhold and keep track of 100-200 border line high blood pressure patients (most of whom lie to the doctor about their personal lives, diet and addictions), its easier to just put them all on meds and let the statistics average out. Sad that private medicine failed in this way.
What kind of health care plan are you in (Medicare or otherwise)? Perhaps you need another one. Or to interview/research doctors in your area with the same time/enthusiasm you'd put to work when buying a new car. I am much more picky about my doctors than I am about my cars . Robyn
FWIW - it's ironic that you bash drug companies - since they're the primary advocate of having fibromyalgia labeled as a real disease (there are those in the medical profession who think it isn't):
No, it is not ironic at all. I cured fibromyalgia with exercise and yoga. The drug companies want fibromyalgia patients to take substances with unknown effects on the nervous system. That's why they advocate having it labeled a disease -- so they can make profits from it.
Take Lyrica and you might end up much worse off than before. Do yoga every day and your health will generally improve. Which do you think is a better idea?
I have always enjoyed a healthy diet and plenty of exercise, i'm not overweight but i'm diagnosed a diabetic, can't always know what is going to happen as we age. I kept it under control for 5 years with diet but as it is a progressive desease i now have to take the medication plus the diet. I'm not ready to go yet still have a lot to do and want to die with my feet on.
How much exercise do you consider plenty? 20 minutes 3 times a week -- that's what MDs used to recommend.
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. I have never heard anyone say anything like that about pneumonia - especially in an elderly person. Robyn
