HEALTH
picture by © suzy1951
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HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU ARE DEPRESSED?
ARE YOU LIVING WITH OR KNOW SOMEONE WITH CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME?
Could You Be In An Abusive Relationship?
WOMEN AND HEART DISEASE - NUMBER ONE KILLER
5 STEPS TO KEEPING A PERSONAL MEDICAL JOURNAL
Chronic Illness and Depression — What came first?
See Videos That Explain Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
BOOKS AND LINKS FOR CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME AND CHRONIC ILLNESS
CHILDHOOD OBESITY AND TYPE 2 DIABETES
Protect Your Family From West Nile Virus
Dieting and Weight Loss Links - Eating Healthy Is The Best Diet
Inflammatory Breast Cancer — The “invisible” Cancer
Important Signs of Stroke and Heart Disease
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KEEPING A PERSONAL MEDICAL JOURNAL — by Catherine Morgan
Whether you are suffering from a chronic illness, pregnant, or just getting older. Keeping a personal medical journal, is important, and can really come in handy. Some may want to do this on a weekly or monthly basis, others on a daily basis, this will depend on the severity of your health issues.
STEP ONE: Just go out and get a notebook that you can use for this purpose alone. This journal will be helpful to you, as well as the medical practitioners you are working with. Especially, if you move, need to change doctors, or are hospitalized. Which reminds me, if you go on vacation, or extended holiday, bring your medical information with you, it will make it much easier if you need to see an unfamiliar physician, or be hospitalized.
STEP TWO: Begin with a page that states your medical history, as well as your current diagnosis or health issues. Take some time with this part. Make sure you include dates of hospitalizations, and prior surgeries, these are questions you will be asked if you see a new doctor or are hospitalized
STEP THREE: List your medications, if you take the same pills on a daily basis, list them on the front of your journal, if you have some that you take, as needed, list them with your daily entries. Make sure when you list your medications, you specify the dosage (ie: Placebo 1mg, 2 tablets, three times a day), also include why you are taking this medication (ie: blood pressure, depression, etc).
IMPORTANT: If you are taking any medications that you don’t normally take (ie: medications for pain, cold, fever), and you are taking them several times a day (ie: every four hours, every six hours), make sure you keep a close record of the times your are taking these medications. It is very easy to get confused, and take more than you are suppose to, and in many cases this could cause serious health issues.
STEP FOUR: Entries. Depending on your condition, you may want to use a page for each entry, or maybe just a few lines, what ever works for you. Of course, start with the date and time. Then, anything relevant to your medical condition (ie: blood pressure, fatigue, pain, blood sugar, etc), as well as your “emotional” condition (ie: happy, sad, depressed, anxious, etc).
The “emotional” thing may not seem very important, but if you have a chronic illness, you may feel very sad or down at times. It’s helpful to see your emotional history for yourself, not only so you can notify your doctor when needed, but also so you can see how many “good days” you are having. It’s easy to forget the good days, when you are feeling down, sometimes it’s just helpful to be able to look back and see for yourself. Little smiley faces (or sad faces) work good for this purpose.
STEP FIVE: Include any specific recommendations from your doctor (ie: amount of exercise, special diet requirements, etc). Don’t forget to include the dates and times of your upcoming doctor appointments. Many times people with chronic medical conditions will need to see several different doctors, and it can all get very confusing.
With that said, you can also find a spot in your journal to write down any questions you may want to ask the doctor during your appointment. Sometimes, you can feel rushed or just forget to ask the doctor something that was important to you. So, make a list, it’s a big help.
So, you have the idea. It seems like a lot of work, but once you get it started, it’s just a matter of maintaining it. Then the next time you have to go to the doctors, you will be able to give the doctor a better and more complete idea of how you have been since your last visit. You may even want to ask the doctor or nurse to jot down your vital signs, test results, or any other important information, right into your journal.
With all the confusion of chronic illness, prescriptions, doctors appointments, and so on. Keeping a personal medical journal for yourself, can go a long way to the betterment of your overall health and wellness. I think you will find it to be very helpful, to both you and your doctors. Good luck, and be well.
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WOMEN AND HEART DISEASE — KNOWING THE FACTS COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE — by Catherine Morgan
You should know that…Women are at a very high risk for heart disease and heart attacks. In fact, heart disease is the leading cause of death among women over 65. American women are 4 to 6 times more likely to die of heart disease than of breast cancer. Women are also less likely to survive a heart attack than a man.
The biggest factors that contribute to heart disease are smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, family history and age. Take some time to look at your lifestyle, family history and your general health. Even though you can’t do much about your family history or your age, you can make lifestyle changes to avoid many of the other risk factors. Here is a list of what doctors recommend:
Don’t smoke. Smoking is a major risk factor for heart disease in women. More than half of the heart attacks in women under 50 are related to smoking. If you stop smoking, you can lower your risk of heart attack by one third within 2 years. Women who smoke and use birth control pills increase their risk even more.
Control your blood pressure. Treating high blood pressure can lower your risk of heart attack and stroke. Losing weight, exercising regularly and eating a healthy diet are all ways to help control high blood pressure. Reducing how much salt you consume can also help. If these steps don’t lower your blood pressure, your doctor may recommend medicine for you to take.
Control your cholesterol level. If you don’t know your level, ask your doctor to check it. Diet is a key part of lowering high cholesterol levels. However, some people may need to take medicine in addition to diet and exercise.
Exercise regularly. Remember, your heart is a muscle. It needs regular exercise to stay in shape. Aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, swimming, jogging or biking, gives your heart the best workout. You can also use fitness equipment like exercise bicycles, treadmills and ski machines when exercising indoors. Finding an exercise partner may make it easier and safer for you to exercise often. You should exercise at least 30 to 60 minutes, 4 to 6 times a week. Talk to your doctor before starting an exercise program.
Eat a low-fat diet. Keep fat calories to 30% or less of the total calories you eat during a day and avoid saturated fat (the fat in meats and coconut oil). Information is available to help you make healthy choices. For example, food labels list nutrition information, including fat calories, many cookbooks have heart-healthy recipes, and some restaurants serve low-fat dishes.
Be aware of chest pain. Be sure to contact your doctor immediately if you suffer from pain in your chest, shoulder, neck or jaw. Also notify your doctor if you experience shortness of breath or nausea that comes on quickly. If you are having a heat attack, the faster you can get to the hospital, the less damage will happen to your heart. Every second counts.
As a nurse as well as someone who suffers from blood pressure problems myself, I would add that being “in-tune” with your own body and how it is feeling is extremely important. You are the best judge of what is “normal” for your body. When in doubt, get it checked out. Don’t risk your life because you are too busy to go to the doctor. And, don’t waste your time with a doctor who doesn’t respect your needs and concerns. If something isn’t feeling right, don’t ignore it. You are the best ‘patient advicate’ you will ever have, so don’t let any medical professional intimidate you into questioning yourself.
The three things to remeber are: Know yourself. Know the facts. Know when to get help.
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LIVING IN THE SHADOW OF MYSELF - a poem
picture by © cloud9999
a poem
Although I fight it, it is never far from me, because it is me.
Living with chronic illnesses that ravage my body, and prevent me from being the person I have always wanted to be.
My former self sits in the shadow of these illnesses, weeping with the sad reality that there is no escape from them.
Suffering from debilitating diseases, that are virtually invisible to the outside world, but still hoping someone will see me….here in my own shadow.
But even if someone did open their eyes and see me, it would still be impossible for them to grab onto the hand of my shadow.
So I must learn to live here, living in the shadow of myself, and try to find peace.
also see: living with chronic fatigue syndrome
