In a message dated 97-05-22 03:03:53 EDT, you write:
<< I did not
want to go overboard and have an excessive amount of protein, not that
it would hurt him, but it would compete with absorpation of other nutrients.
>>
Linda,
Good. With you overboard, who would bail?
Too much protein could hurt anyone, by overloading the kidneys (how's that
for a vague, nontechnical term? The amino acids that make up protein are
essential for the absorption of other nutrients (No Protein=Dump Other
Nutrients Down The Toilet . . . after eating them, or by tossing the
vitamin/mineral capsule down there to eliminate <g> the middle man). Too
much of any good thing brings it to the point of diminishing positive
returns.
<<Deanne, You probably already know this about the tests, and this is
why I am sending it back to the list. Perhaps there is someone
like me, that had to learn the hard way.<grin> >>
Yup.
I have received positive private posts (try that aloud 5 times fast!) about
our discussions as well as the ones posted to the list. When the calls for
our necks outnumber the calls for our opinions, I'll quit writing to you via
the list and we can have all our fun in private. Until then: Everybody out
there is invited to join us. Bring your own teabags.
<< This is why I told everyone to find a doctor that
would treat them as an individual, I am not even sure that neurologist
even looked at the test results. >>
Here's where I'll probably kick up a furor. I do not participate in the
health care system as it is currently structured. I am self employed and
carry no personal health insurance. Because I don't, I do my best to keep
myself healthy so I do not become a drain on that system (meaning everybody
else's pocketbooks). I am fortunate in that most of my problems have been
orthopedic and addressable through methods that are alternative to (and fully
integratable with) mainstream medical care. My dad's PD is the only familial
association I have with chronic disease, so I do not feel greatly at risk for
the high-maintenance illnesses in the world. I know that anything can
happen, but my inner actuarial tells me the odds are in my favor. I am sure
I would feel differently and act differently if my history were different.
I make sure I have out of pocket money for medcial checkups/pap smears/breast
exams. This may mean I don't buy something or delay a payment, but I try to
be more financially organized than that.
On the PAIN list there are people who hesitate to post that they are having a
good day because it feels like selfish bragging to them, knowing that others
reading it are having a hellish time just then. I don't feel good about
telling a whole list of people with a chronic ill condition that I am
thriving, but facts are facts and I have ways of dealing with guilt. One is
to send messages back and forth with you (on-list) about ways to get/stay
healthy.
To get back to the snipped quote above, I refuse to deal with a doctor or
other "care" giver who has no time or interest in really, truly working on a
mystery and finding a workable solution. Why would I even want to be in a
room with such a creature? I quitely and firmly and repeatedly, if
necessary, require that my questions be answered. On another list, someone
told of a doctor with a reputation for terseness. She made a point of saying
something "human" to him on every visit, and of asking after his own well
being. It took several trips in, but she eventually managed to shock his
staff (and have a glorious experience) by hugging him -- and getting a hug
back! So some doctors are just out there, waiting to be rehumanized.
It does not surprise me that docs can become insensitive. They are trained
to dissociate emotionally, see too many people with problems that are
addressable but who don't comply with the prescibed protocols that are proven
to work, and see too many others whose pain and suffering are perplexing,
thus making success unlikely (which hurts either the doc's heart or pride).
In our fitness lab and in my massage practice I have seen thousands of
people who won't do their stretches or exercises or nutrition regimen, who
won't follow through on being referred to an appropriate health care giver,
and who won't honor themselves enough to do what makes them feel better. I
can't live their lives for them, I can only wish them well.
wish you well, too
Deanne
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