Nearly half of the heroin addicts followed in a 33-year study had died by its completion. The study, appearing in the May issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry, describes the destructive impact heroin has on the people who use it.
The condition we call fibromyalgia has been known about since the early 1800s, but it was only in 1990 that if was defined. The College of Rheumatology set out some criteria in regards to the condition:
Pain with pressure on at least 11 of 18 specific points on the body.
Three continuous months of pain in all four quadrants of the body. Read the entire post…
EMERGENCIES
Stopping the Bleeding in Severe Wounds
If you are helping a person who is bleeding severely, and you’ ve called 911 for emergency medical help, which hasn’ t arrived, be ready to stop the bleeding yourself using the following steps:
Apply direct pressure to the wound, using a clean cloth (or if necessary, your hand). Read the entire post…
Bursitis and tendinitis are terms used to describe the inflammation of the bursae and tendons near joints and bones in the body. A person with bursitis or tendinitis may have pain, tenderness, and stiffness near the inflamed bursa or tendon. Weakness may then develop in the nearby muscles. Bursitis or tendinitis occur most often in the shoulder, elbow, wrist, hip, knee, and ankle. Read the entire post…
Q.I seem to have very weak ankles. All I have to do is walk across the yard, and if there is a stone or unlevel ground, my ankle turns. Is there any exercise I can do or ankle support I can wear? Read the entire post…
Q.I have two fractures in my back (T-11 and T-12). My doctor told me to do no bending, heavy lifting or climbing. I am very health-conscious, and I am wondering if there are any exercises I can do for my stomach area. Read the entire post…
Q.I am a 46-year-old woman in great health but a few pounds overweight. I try to walk at least a mile a day. In the middle of the night I wake up with such horrendous leg cramps that I cry. They come and go all night. Is there something I can take to help stop these cramps? What precautions can I take to prevent this from happening? I’d hate to have to quit walking. Read the entire post…
Q.I thought my doctor said my knee pain was due to “torn cartilage.” Did I possibly misunderstand him, or is there such a thing? Read the entire post…
All treatment for developmental dysplasia of the hip is aimed at putting the thighbone in its usual position, allowing the femur and hip socket to grow as it normally would. Babies treated for this condition are expected to grow and develop like other children their age. Read the entire post…
Well, we’ve gone one step further in our evolution as grownups. We bought a house. So now, when I wake up with night sweats worrying about whether we are crazy, I remind myself that it’s all for our baby girl. For her, I will gladly try to wrestle some security out of this cold, cruel world, in the form of neat monthly payments for the sake of ownership.
I am also fantasizing about the baby’s room. I am giddy with the thought that I don’t have to ask any sour landlord permission to paint the walls (either Golden Goddess or Rising Sun, I’m still debating). I can fiddle with the exact arrangement of the darling crib, dresser, and rocking chair. I am even contemplating a serious artistic task — painting the ceiling a sky blue with white, fluffy, quasi-realistic looking clouds. I love this dream. Read the entire post…