You Need to Continue Advocating for Yourself

B'SD

9 Av, 5777

This "Doctors too often fail to inform patients of a drug's possible side effects" Washington Post article holds information and suggestions worth noting, especially

"...Fugh-Berman said patients need to become their own experts, researching drugs on websites — such as the government database MedlinePlus — that are 'free of [the pharmaceutical] industry.'

Doctors have a responsibility to listen to their patients about side effects, too, she said.

'I tell medical students: If a patient develops a symptom after they’ve gone on their drug, it’s always the drug’s fault until proven otherwise,” said Fugh-Berman.'"



Click on the link to read the rest of the

 Doctors often don’t tell you 

about drug side effects, 

and that’s a problem.

Learn more about how to manage your medical life. Read the E-book or print edition of EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge. 





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your medicine cabinet with safety.

What's Bothering UKers?

An addendum to today's blogpost:

LAWDY, UKers, what's on your mind 

that you're loading the stats 

on my part of the blogosphere today?

If you want specific information about 

how to cope with a medical 
or mental health issue, 

let me know privately with a PM 
on Facebook, or contact me via the blog 

(my contact info appears in the 
right margin and under every blogpost).

Get ready. You can EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge. 





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your time with smart efforts.

What is in the US Water Arriving to Your Home or Office?

B'SD

8 Av, 5777

Tonight begins the saddest day on the Jewish calendar, Tisha B'Av, the 9th of Av. It is a sad commentary on  how people can rob themselves of a better future.

Somewhat related to the spiritual significance of that reality is that humanity is too often willing to trust individuals who do not deserve the public trust placed in them. That's why I focus on empowering people with fact-based information and lots of coaxing to think carefully.

I'd like to empower my US-based readers with an FYI (For Your Information) about the water they use for drinking, bathing and cooking. Please click on the news item below:

Drinking Water Database: Put in Your ZIP Code and Find Out What's in Your Water

Read more health-improving tips in the E-book or print edition of EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge. 





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your efforts with can-do, health enhancing efforts.

YOU are Your Own Best Medical Advocate!

B'SD

7 Av, 5777

The's an entire passage in the EMPOWER Yourself book entitled YOU are Your Own Best Advocate (page 31). If those words and the explanation which follows them don't  impress you enough, try reading this article about surgeons who operate on more than one patient in the same session:

Double-Booked: When Surgeons Operate On Two Patients At Once

Rickert and others advise patients who want to avoid overlap to ask detailed questions well in advance and to put their request in writing and on the consent form.

“If you say, ‘I want only you to do the surgery,’ doctors will typically do it,’” Rickert said. “They want the business.”

He also recommends asking, “Are you going to be in the room the entire time during my surgery?” and then repeating that statement in front of the OR nurses the day of surgery. “If the doctor’s not willing to say yes, vote with your feet.”

If a surgeon says he or she will be “present” or “immediately available,” a patient should ask what that means. It may mean that the surgeon is somewhere on a sprawling hospital campus but not in — or even near — your operating room.

There's enough information in that article to make your blood pressure rise startlingly high. Click the link above, and read every word.

And when you're ready to advocate for yourself even more than indicated in the advice above, read what's written in 

There are valid reasons that medical and mental health professionals recommend the book.

Read it. Benefit from it. EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge. 





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your efforts with good sense and self advocacy.

Dealing with Addiction

B'SD

4 Av, 5777

Several mental health practitioners or practices are mentioned in the Global Resources section of the EMPOWER Yourself book. I urge you to make use of them, or the ones you prefer, especially if you or a loved one are dealing with any sort of addiction.

Unlike medical problems which can traced back to a definite cause or two, treated with medication, diet, lifestyle changes and/or surgery, the cause of an addiction is hard to identify. It is as much a physical problem as it is a mental health matter. That makes the situation even more complicated to understand and to treat. The overall problem is quite hard for lay people to understand. 

The situation is all the harder for the addict to overcome.

They suffer from the addiction, and from the lack of

awareness as to what is amiss in their minds.

Read on to learn of a subtle but powerful factor driving addiction. Educate yourself a bit, and do what you can to learn more in your quest to help an addict to move beyond it into a more productive, satisfying life. 

The article below is a simple starter kit, hardly the last word on how to overcome addictions. Keep in mind that every journey begins with the first step.

Why People Consistently Fall Short of Overcoming Addiction | E-Counseling.com

A years-ago television drama called ER showed its audience some of the ramifications of drug addiction, and confronting it. A hard-working, conscientious d

E-COUNSELING.COM

Read that Global Resources section and find out where to get help.

Buy the E-book or print edition of EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge directly from the publisher for fast delivery.. 





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your heart and mind with facts, compassion and good sense.

Empowering Yourself to Respond to Rude People

B'SD

3 Av, 5777

​

From time to time, I am asked questions along the lines of  "Has anyone ever said something rude or unsympathetic to you about having a brain tumor? Like you deserve it or make sarcastic, even insulting comments about your intelligence or personality due to having the brain tumor? Or even told you that you have no right to cry or be scared because GOD only gives us what we can handle?"

My answer?

"Yes, and I responded with what became the title of a book, It's MY Crisis, and I'll Cry if I Need to!"

Here's an excerpt about the insulting comment:

Human beings mint coins and they're all alike. But when the Creator mints people, each of us is unique even though we come from the same mold. Our different personalities, skills and longings necessitate different paths to achieving a state of calm after we've been startled or terrified. There are no "One size fits all" methods of calming down or gaining perspective. Yet we need to reach the state of composed thought and behavior in order to live as productively and as happily as possible under challenging circumstances. Sound reasoning enables us to choose the coping mechanisms that work for us.

Challenging? Oh yes. But the alternative to coping is worse. Life's not democratic or fair. It's a workout. Make your choice: Coping aka self-restraint or the continuing, possibly worsening problem before you.

After I revealed my diagnosis to friends and family, we cried together. Then we progressed to choosing coping skills and keeping me strong so I could have a chance to continue living. My choice to focus on sound psychological principles complemented my Orthodox Jewish religious convictions. Many of those sound psychological principles, as well as classical Jewish philosophy and laws are presented in this text. A blend of both appears in the next paragraph.

One of the worst reactions people had to my news was saying with a sense of fatalism and religious superiority over me, "You shouldn't cry. GOD only gives people the challenges they can face." I disagree. Many a good person has experienced a psychological or medical problem, and suffered terribly or not survived it. Some medical and emotional challenges destroy no matter how valiantly we fight to survive them. Other crises can be survived. It isn't fair to lump them all in one "You can do it!" category. It blames the patient, who is suffering already. No one on this planet is authorized to pass judgment on another person's trials and tribulations. That's GOD's job.

Are you afraid that religious people or even not so religious people will blame you for your very legitimate tears and fears, because GOD knows what He's doing? Are they doing it already? These types of pithy remarks get high scores for being truthful and meaningful. But they get big fat ZEROES for actually helping someone to conquer their misery. It's as useless as telling someone dripping blood or holding onto broken limbs in an emergency room that "I FEEL YOUR PAIN." It's no help at all.

A medical diagnosis that presents a crisis is something to legitimately cry about. It is a lack of stability and a lack of reliable givens that we need so much. One of the Gates of Prayer that remains open despite the lack of a Beit HaMikdash (ancient Jewish Temple) is the Gate of Tears. Crying is a form of prayer. It says, "I'm scared, I'm sad, I'm angry, I don't know what to do about my problem. I need your help HaShem (GOD)," and more.

We learn from the Talmud in Bava Metzia 59a "Even though the Gates of Prayer are closed (after the destruction of the grand Jewish Temple called Bait HaMikdash), the Gates of Tears are never closed."

The catharsis of getting my story on paper was a soothing experience. I wrote the book to shut up my misinformed critics as much as I wrote it to empower other people facing medical and/or mental health issues. You can buy the book directly from the publisher for fast delivery. Click here to do so. 

Be sure to read the E-book or print edition of EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge. It clues you in on how to respond to rude relatives, medical personnel and anyone else who decides to mind your business without just cause.





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your mouth with polite, self-supporting comments.

Teen Cancer Community!

B'SD

27 Tamuz, 5777

Some days you just wonder how you'll live past the next few minutes. A cancer diagnosis pretty much sucks the breath out of people. Teens too.

Now there's an interesting resource for teens with cancer. Check out

HOW NOT TO DIE: 

‘STUPID CANCER’ COMMUNITY HELPS ANGRY YOUNG PEOPLE LIVE

EMPOWER Yourself to Cope with a Medical Challenge. 





Face Your Medical Problems with Dignity. Face Your Future with Optimism.

Fill your mind and heart with a sense of a better future.