Archive for the ‘ My Health ’ Category

Condemned to Live

Yes, this has amazed me too. Why me? I ask myself, I’m nobody special. But that doesn’t seem to matter. For some reason I will never know, I am here, and the world will have to put up with me for awhile longer. To be fair, I must give myself some credit for my still [ READ MORE ]

Are Americans More Prone to A.D.H.D.?

NY Times - A Misdiagnosis, Anywhere There are five responses to this question, and this is the only one that really stands out. Peter R. Breggin, a psychiatrist in Ithaca, N.Y., is the author of more than 20 books and the director of the Center for the Study of Empathic Therapy, Education and Living. This paragraph is [ READ MORE ]

Psychiatry, Heal Thyself

NY Review - ‘The Illusions of Psychiatry’: An Exchange The medical profession has always had a poor record of disciplining itself. This is due, I am sure, to the duplicity of the human race itself – it demands that its doctors be superhuman. Anyone knows many instances of medical incompetency from their personal experience – but [ READ MORE ]

The Epidemic of Mental Illness: Why?

New York Review This is the first of a two-part review of three books on the subject. It seems that Americans are in the midst of a raging epidemic of mental illness, at least as judged by the increase in the numbers treated for it. The tally of those who are so disabled by mental [ READ MORE ]

Dying by Degrees

This is the way to go, people will tell you: not from a sudden trauma, but gradually, over a long period of time. Don’t believe them, there is no good way to die – and I ought to know. Being run over by a truck has its advantages: no complicated explanations are necessary, and the whole [ READ MORE ]

Fasting is no Longer a Religious Practice

Fasting was an important practice in early and medieval Christianity, but it has fallen out of fashion. In our instant-gratification, get-rich-quick culture we cannot deny ourselves anything, especially food. Like anything else, fasting can be misunderstood – as those suffering from Anorexia nervosa have, but its basic purpose is simple: by denying ourselves this gratification, [ READ MORE ]

Fungus in the Blood

Latin American is home to some virulent species of fungus – and some of them like people. I have been fighting a fungus infection of the large toenails for nearly a year. I even have a therapist, Wendy, who specializes in this. I enjoy having her work on my feet (I love being pampered in [ READ MORE ]

No Kayaking for this Old Dog

I just got back from a trip to Turrialba, a town on the east edge of the central mesa, down which a number of rivers cascade on their way to the Caribbean. I wanted to learn kayaking and go on trips down some of them. Everybody was doing rafting, but I wanted to be different. You [ READ MORE ]

Bicycle Accident

Me and my bicycle almost disappeared down a drainage culvert today. There is a one-way suspension bridge for vehicles just south of Orosi. This is a little tricky to navigate for an old-timer on a bicycle like me. A small bus was patiently waiting for me to cross on the other side, and that made [ READ MORE ]

Is pumping iron really necessary?

New Scientist In the 2007 update of its own recommendations on exercise, the American College of Sports Medicine added two episodes of strength training a week, consisting of about 10 repetitions of 10 strengthening exercises of all the major muscle groups. This is part of a larger article: Let’s get physical: Nine facts about fitness[ READ MORE ]

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