Archived News of the Week

Symptoms

"There is no such thing as hypochondriasis. There is an answer to every symptom. A person is like a giant test tube with thousands of chemical reactions going on. A number of things can affect the balance of the chemicals and hence the electrical flow. Thank God, then, when you get sick, so that you can alter your internal milieu." Lendon H. Smith M.D. in Happiness is a Healthy Life.

Symptoms are a blessing. Embrace your symptoms. Don't try your darnedest to get rid of them. Try instead to understand what they are telling you. Symptoms are the only way our bodies have to speak to us - to hit us upside the head with a heavy plank thus getting our attention. Here's an interesting aside: Did you know that since the brain can't have a belly ache or joint pain, it expresses its symptoms to us with anxiety, depression, agitation, insomnia and many other psychological problems?

Tell me something: Would you put a piece of duct tape over your annoying red brake warning light on your dash board and ignore the message it is trying to give you? I don't think so. As much as you would not look forward to spending money on your car, I think you would notice your car's symptom and go right to your car doctor for a diagnosis. Would you, by the same token, ignore annoying, painful or even frightening body symptoms? Would you try to make them go away with one of the many OTC drugs and prescription drugs out there with your particular symptom's name on it? (Gas-ex and Beano, Tums, Lactaid, Sleep-Ease, Kao-pectate, Lomotil, Tagamet, etc. ad nauseum.)

Yes, I think (and fear) that some of you might be inclined to downplay symptoms and try to "do it yourself." And if you don't have a me-kind-of-doc to visit with your symptoms, then after many weeks or months, you will have finally realized that what you are doing isn't working. You would then make an appointment with your MD and bring her your symptom list and here's what she might do:

"Doc, I have heartburn."

"Oh, here's some Nexium. And also let's order some really invasive tests for you, where we stick a big long tube up your, oh, never mind." (Don't worry about reducing your stomach acid to zilch thus eliminating your ability to digest your minerals, your food, plus all the various parasites and bacteria you encounter on a daily basis.)

"Doc, my joints are all swolled up, (and I can't talk too good neither)."

"Oh, here, let me give you some Celebrex and if that doesn't work then let's send you to the orthopedic surgeon." (Don't worry about all the heart attacks and the stomach problems that occur with this class of drugs plus the thought of invasive surgery in the nasty, dirty, buggy hospital where, every year, more people die from a "staff" infection than as a result of traffic accidents. And how about this? In the United States - where 40,000 people are being shot to death each year - the chance of getting killed by a doctor is three times greater than being killed by a gun. Ode Magazine, Issue 999)

"Doc, you told me that my bone density tests say that I have osteoporosis."

"Oh, let me give you Fosamax" (Don't worry about your bones looking much better on x-ray but in actuality becoming ever more brittle and breakable. Do you want really pretty bones, or ones that work? Plus, let's not even talk about how this drug can rip up your esophagus.)

"Doc, I have acne all over my face."

"Oh, that's easy, first you take tetracycline for a couple of years, then if that doesn't work, we can give you Accutane. (Don't worry about all the fungus you will be getting with your daily dose of tetracycline, then with the Accutane, messing with your genetic code and maybe becoming sterile and/or having multiple miscarriages.)

And on and on and on. The medical establishment likes to refer to itself as a "Health Care Provider" but it is really just a "Disease Management Provider. (Although, in all honesty, I think that Kaiser (my personal HMO) is really trying; they offer a lot of prevention care, their new motto is "Thrive" and they have cool ads on TV.)

But, obviously, I think there is a better way or I wouldn't be nattering on like this.

Over the years, I have seen a lot and learned a lot and I know that I can deal with most all of the non-pathological issues that patients may have; things like heartburn, swollen joints, diarrhea, osteopenia and osteoporosis, acne, PMS, menopause and many, many other conditions. Some are really easy to fix while others are harder and take some time.

I have learned that most of the time there is absolutely no need to go the pharmaceutical route - these drugs are heavy duty, they can hurt you and they are certainly not benign cute little things like "the little purple pill" would have you believe. On the other hand, you can trust me to refer you to an M.D, if I think that what you have is out of my purview.

My advice: If you have symptoms that are disturbing you, first of all, cop to the fact that you don't feel quite right. Don't ignore your body talk! Then make an appointment to see me so we can figure you out together. It could be something so simple that you will hit yourself in the arm a few dozen times because you didn't come in sooner.

Take care of your symptoms as they appear (i.e. the brake warning light) so you don't get the disease (i.e. drive off the cliff hysterically pumping your nonexistent brakes, futilely wondering "Why me?")

No statement or content in this web site shall be construed as offering diagnosis, cure, mitigation or prevention of any disease. Anyone having questions regarding the content of this site should contact their own health care provider for verification.