Your Health

[Janice]

I've been healthy all my life. I've been sidelined this year with some neck and back problems, but that's not the point of this thread. I've learned one thing -- good health is a blessing and when you're ill, it overshadows everything in your life. It affects not only you, but your loved ones too. Chronic pain is mind-numbing.

Are you blessed with good health or do you have health issues?

[*Pleasant Tomorrow*]

Physically I'm generally healthy, but I'm not so great emotionally. It's affected my family a bit because they have to put up with my random bouts of crying for no reason or points where I'm extremely bitchy, mean and miserable. I've noticed, after being off of my medicine for a few months now, that the medicine actually did work and that I need to try and go back on it.

It's always affected a lot of different aspects of my life...social ones, opportunities for advancing myself...stuff like that. I can't do as good of a job as I might be able to if I didn't have to deal with this.

[Number 9 Dream]

I'd say I'm pretty healthy despite my chronic migraines. I can sleep those off, though.

Lately, though, my emotional health hasn't been too good.

[dawsongirl]

Emotional/Mental health is basically crap. Used to be fine until I hit 18 or 19. Ever since, it's been a trainwreck.

Physical health seems ok. I got sick 3 times this past 9 months because I started working in a germ factory, but the year and a half before that, I don't think I was very sick at all. I have allergies that I think have gone from seasonal to constant, I became somewhat lactose intolerant because of the mental health issues, and not a day goes by when I don't have to blow my nose (that is so annoying). But I don't live at the doctor or anything.

[Ireneparalegal]

Ohhhh Janice, you already know my health issues.

Chronic back pain. Some days it is a 3 (on a scale of 1-10)...it never goes away. Other times it shoots up to a 5 or 6. The only time my pain has been completely gone is when I had those steroid shots in my spine and also when I had an epidural for my c-section. Temporary relief only. I have had to be taken to the E.R. over 15 times for a shot of morphine or demerol when the pain became excrutiating. God, that shot works wonders. I feel soooooo good after that. The only drawback of course is feeling sleepy and sluggish for 2 days.

My last setback was last September after coming back from our vacation and I ended up in bed for three weeks. I HATE THAT.

[Mr. Television]

At this moment I'm fine but I've had health problems in the past. I have asthma and I've had some pretty bad attacks. Back in Junior high I was taken to the ER practically every weekend. I haven't had a real bad attack though since about 1998. I could hardly walk back then without almost passing out. Then my big health scare was in 2004 when I had a bad pain in my left arm. It would shoot all up it and I would start sweating all over even when it was cold out...this was in winter. Then eventually the pain started shooting to my chest...I thought I was having a heart attack. I went to the doctors and they couldn't find anything wrong. It lasted for about 6 months until it just slowly went away.

[Mr. Television]

Originally Posted by Ireneparalegal

Ohhhh Janice, you already know my health issues.

Chronic back pain. Some days it is a 3 (on a scale of 1-10)...it never goes away. Other times it shoots up to a 5 or 6. The only time my pain has been completely gone is when I had those steroid shots in my spine and also when I had an epidural for my c-section. Temporary relief only. I have had to be taken to the E.R. over 15 times for a shot of morphine or demerol when the pain became excrutiating. God, that shot works wonders. I feel soooooo good after that. The only drawback of course is feeling sleepy and sluggish for 2 days.

My last setback was last September after coming back from our vacation and I ended up in bed for three weeks. I HATE THAT.

I feel for you Irene. I don't have back pain all the time but I get it every couple of years and it's some of the worst pain you can have. One time I rolled over the wrong way and it took me over 2 hours just to get out of bed.

[Kay Scarpetta]

Physically, I'm good. I have a bad neck/back but other than that, I'm ok.

Mentally...

[freshprinceofLA]

My health is pretty average. I really haven't been absent from school on a day that counted since the 5th grade. But I do have some health problems. 2 of my pinky toes have been brused black & purple for almost 2 yrs now it doesent affect me much but they hurt fr time to time but its ok.

[GoldenGirlsFan92]

I've always been healthy, but lately I have even been more healthier.

[ponytail]

I'm in pretty good health now, but 10 years ago I wasn't. I was feeling pretty bad. Anxiety, depression, I lost weight. I couldn't sleep. I couldn't concentrate. I was forgetful. I thought I was going crazy. I ended up quitting my job. I went to 7 doctors and the emergency room twice. They all took test and said there was nothing wrong with me. But they were quick to prescribe me Paxol. I took maybe one or two and quit. Finally I went to a naturopathic doctor. My first visit she spent 2 hours with me. She asked a lot of questions. My thyroid was low, my hormones were not balanced. I'm suppose to do weight lifting and walking and Qi Gong or Tai Chi. Any way she straighten me out with changing my diet, vitamins, herbs. No sugar! I use a progesterone cream for my hormones. I feel so much better. Stress and a poor diet will raise havoc with your body.

[Already Gone]

Hypothyroidism has always been my biggest health concern. For anybody who is unfamiliar with that it, it just means that the thyroid gland is underactive. I've been on medication for it since I was a toddler and will be for the rest of my life.

Bad knees and back problems are also things I have to contend with. Right now, i'm feeling great. I'm trying to get alot of exercise and eat healthier and it appears to be working.

[Courtnee]

I'm healthy. But I have hip and back problems.

[TripperFan]

As Janice knows, I've had rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia for 24 years, and the past couple of years have started to develop ostoarthritis in my left thumb. It was actually the worst during my late twenties, but the RA has actually improved over the last ten years (I got rid of all my silver tooth fillings which was a huge help).
I've also have some intestinal issues from time to time, along with my asthma, but generally I consider myself in pretty good health now. It's been decades since I've had the flu (get a shot annually) and a long time since I've even had a cold and I don't get them often.

As you say, good health is EVERYTHING. You can have all the material possessions and money in the world, but without your health you can't enjoy it. I think my arthritis has actually made me a much stronger person. I've had to work through some pretty tough episodes with it and have proven to myself just what you can do when you put mind over matter.

I get the neck and upper back problems myself (I think a lot of it was caused from being on SO for hours on end a couple of years back). That's one of the reasons I haven't been posting as much - between working at a computer all day, and then being on in my free time, it was really aggravating it. I just know now that I need to take frequent breaks, get up, walk around do other things and then can go back on for an hour or so.

[TripperFan]

Originally Posted by Walking Tall

At this moment I'm fine but I've had health problems in the past. I have asthma and I've had some pretty bad attacks. Back in Junior high I was taken to the ER practically every weekend. I haven't had a real bad attack though since about 1998. I could hardly walk back then without almost passing out. Then my big health scare was in 2004 when I had a bad pain in my left arm. It would shoot all up it and I would start sweating all over even when it was cold out...this was in winter. Then eventually the pain started shooting to my chest...I thought I was having a heart attack. I went to the doctors and they couldn't find anything wrong. It lasted for about 6 months until it just slowly went away.

I wonder if the pain in the arm and chest wasn't something to do with anxiety and stress. My husband got into the exact thing a couple of years ago. He was working two full-time jobs and was out of shape badly. They ran a load of tests on him for about 3 months and the same result - everything was fine - they said he just had to change his lifestyle and that it could still be a warning sign. He did - starting dieting and working out, lost about 45 lbs. and looks and feels great again.

I hear you on the asthma. I had childhood asthma from the age of 2 and could count on being hospitalized every June and November without fail. Usually it would start as a cold, then within a day go into pnemonia and a two week hospital stay. Back then, they didn't even have inhalers so you'd just lay in the ER with an oxygen mask on and they'd give you a shot of adrenaline. You basically just had to stay there and wait for it to subside on it's own. Once they came out with the puffers, it sure made my life easier. Haven't been hospitalized since for it and the first time I used one, it basically saved my life since we were in Northern Ontario on holiday and were miles from a hospital or doctor. A pharmacist gave my mom the inhaler without a prescription, but it was a true emergency. I was lying on the backseat of the car, totally blue lips and nails and was losing consciencousness (bad spelling!).