The killer bacteria

There is killer bacteria at your doctor's office, in the hospital scope, in the air, on the ground, and on the nine things in your house dirtier than a toilet seat. All those unvaccinated people are going to spread measles and other diseases. People with compromised immune systems should take extra precautions to avoid these bacteria. Blah, blah, blah.

And how am I supposed to avoid doctor's offices anyway? I am a regular visitor. There has been so much new recently on all these topics. And I couldn't care less.

I am the poster child for immune system issues, bad health, and all that. And I take zero precautions. Other than being normal and avoiding sneezing, coughing people.

Isn't there anything else on the news anyway? Where are we in terms of a cure for cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, and fibromyalgia? And lymphedema if we are on the subject of cures.

The killer bacteria are out there but so are many other ailments that warrant news, research, and cures.

Withheld information

A few times in my life, I have had people say me 'we didn't want to tell you but so-and-so was diagnosed with cancer, we thought it might upset you'. I hate this. It goes back to my request not to treat me any different because of my health. Unless you want to shower me with money.

I am capable of handling news about other people diagnosed with cancer. I live in cancerland where everyone has cancer. Its not a nice thing to hear about someone getting cancer but believe me I can handle it. The only time it would upset me seriously would be if it was me again. And it really pisses me off when information is withheld.

Just a little rant today. Its been on my mind recently.

Separately I just learned yesterday that an old friend from childhood who lived across the street was diagnosed with breast cancer and died 8 weeks later. Her cancer was hidden behind a benign breast condition so it was not diagnosed until too late. This makes me sad that this could happen in this day and age of modern medicine. She was 54.

Ignore all the headlines

I think I spend too much time reading the headlines, especially in the category of health news. If I believed them:

• I will get the flu because it is rampant across the country
• The cure for many things can be found in some obscure arctic bacteria
• Booze is so bad for you, you could poison yourself easily.
• Pain killers are now the street drug of choice.
• Our phones are suffocating us.
• Cancer is due to back luck.
• The cure for some obscure form of cancer will be found shortly.

I am so done with all that. I am going to be healthier this year and am promising myself, I will stop  bouncing through the news headlines. We know Dr. Google doesn't know anything. So we should also assume that Dr Internet knows nothing.

Emotionally, grabbing at headlines can be very stressful. The yo-yo effect of the constant ups and downs are significant. Its sort of like scanxiety at a lesser level. I need to take more control of more levels of my life, as I have blogged about before, and this is just another one.

With bad medical diagnoses, we tend to grab at straws looking for the magic cure. Then we develop the bad habit of following anything we can find - usually ending at disappointment - and keep repeating the process because it offered us a small glimmer of hope however fleeting.

So I am going to stop reading the over-hyped headlines that offer false hope and start looking for real information. I can't live on false hopes and the ensuing roller coaster.

Blah, blah blah, blah, blah

Ooohhh.... more information on breast cancer risk!!! Hot damn baby, this must have the clues I need!!!

Nope. Not there.

Here they are:

Hereditary: not me

"Being obese, smoking, drinking alcohol, using birth control pills, lack of exercise, early menstruation, and certain benign breast diseases, have all been associated with an increased risk for breast cancer"

I'll take the fifth here. But I wasn't fat until after breast cancer. And I have always been known to get exercise and have never been a fan of the pill.

And then there is something about how estrogen metabolizes in your body and there is a new fancy test for this. The 2/16 alpha-hydroxyestrone ratio which can be measured in a urine test. And you can balance your ratio by eating more plants.

Finally:

"Having one or more risk factors for breast cancer doesn't necessarily mean you’ll develop the disease, but being aware of the risk factors may inspire you to take preventive steps. This could have a huge impact on your health."

So, nothing new here. Its just blah, blah blah, blah, blah.

Maybe I'm in a cynical mood this morning.