July 12, 2007 at 8:26 pm (Thyroid Disorder)
Did you know that many women over the age of 40 unknowingly suffer with thyroid disorder? Many times as we grow older our thyroid gland fails to produce enough thyroid hormone for our bodies – resulting in some unpleasant symptoms ranging from hair loss to mental health issues. The positive thing about thyroid disorder is that it is relatively easy to detect in a simple blood test.
If it is determined that you need thyroid hormone replacement know that there are actually two very important hormones that should be regulated T3 & T4. Typically doctors will prescribe a medication that will replace the T4 (Synthroid) hormone as it is assumed that the body is capable of converting some of the T4 (Synthroid) to T3. Endocrinologist are currently debating the practice of prescribing T4 alone as it not always sufficient for patients suffering from Thyroid disorders. Many doctors are also prescribing T3 (Cytomel) hormone medication in addition to the T4 medication. In a study reported by New England Journal of Medicine, patients preferred the combination treatment as it better relieved their symptoms.
When speaking to your doctor about your Thyroid replacement try and ensure your doctor listens to your symptoms and uses the blood work as a tool. Many times doctors will only rely upon lab tests to determine your needs for Thyroid replacement – which is practical – but your symptoms should also play a part in your treatment.
For more information on Thyroid disorders visit these sites:
Stop the Madness
Texas Thyroid Institute
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July 12, 2007 at 8:24 pm (African American, Mental Health)
Imagine how you would feel if you just lost someone that is very dear to you. You would more than likely feel sad, angry, fearful, hopeless, helpless, disoriented? Imagine those feeling lasting day after day – week after week – month after month, year after year – this is what it feels like to live with depression only these feelings are not situational they are caused many times by chemical imbalances rather that life events.. Now imagine suffering with these feeling alone unable to discuss it with your loved ones? This is a reality for many suffering mental illness.
Depression is a real issue affecting the life’s of many African Americans. I would venture to say that many of our young men and women that are incarcerated suffer some form of mental illness. Unfortunately many in our community refuse to see mental illness as an “illness” but rather a character flaw. Mental illness is no more a character flaw than is diabetes…it is a bona fide medical illness which is in many cases is a result of hormonal of chemical imbalances in the brain. Unfortunately we have difficulty accepting things we cannot see – depression is one of those types of ailments….but so is diabetes. If you have diabetes you go to an endocrinologist if you have a mental illness you should go to a psychiatrist or medical doctor to receive proper treatment. All treatments do not include pharmaceuticals – cognitive therapy has been known to be just as effective as anti-depressants in treating depression in some individuals. There should be no shame in seeking help when you have any type of illness and mental illness is a serious illness.
Because of the stigma associated with mental illness in our society and in our culture – many people suffer needlessly and their families suffer along with them. We need to educate ourselves about the symptoms and treatment of mental health disorders. We then need to educate our families, friends, churches, etc. about the negative effects of these illnesses and the treatments available to manage them.
We can no longer afford to act like none of us has an “Uncle Pete” in our circle whether it is a family member or a friend….we all know someone who is in need of our love and support with what can be a debilitating illness. Unfortunately many suffer in silence and isolation out of fear of revealing their illness to others. In many cases treatment and support will allow those suffering to live a very fulfilling and rewarding life.
Is there someone you know that needs your support to deal with their illness?
To learn more about mental illness visit the National Alliance on Mental Health.
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July 12, 2007 at 3:33 pm (African American, Parenting, Teenagers)
It has occurred to me in the past few months that my children’s (18 & 23) preferred style of communication is text messaging. I often wonder why they choose this “radio talkie” mode of communication to the traditional phone conversation. I then came to the following conclusion of why they prefer text messaging – they really don’t want to have a true dialog with us but they want to stay in touch with us old folks. It’s infuriating to me (although I love them) when they text message me when they could have just as easily dialed my number for an old fashion conversation. Don’t they know how difficult it is for us to type on those silly little type pads that are on our phones……or is that the point….we can’t say too much to them using their mode of communication.
Oh well, I guess with technology us older ones will just have to learn to maximize the use of technology as they have.
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July 12, 2007 at 1:46 pm (African American, African American Images)
After watching “Charm School” on VH1 at the urging of my 15 year old, I was dumb-founded. I did not realize these type of shows existed. They bring to my mind a type of minstrel show created to demean and humiliate those portrayed – except in 2007 we have somehow been convinced to portray ourselves in a negative light for all the world to see. What is wrong with this picture – oh lest I forget, the show is meant to “help” the wayward young female participants.
It seems to me that if Mo’nique were really sincere in helping the girls from Charm School, she would have done so without the cameras rolling. How can you help these girls by exposing their flaws to the world. It would seem that you would take them in and “love on them” (as Mo said) without the world watching and then when they have learned to control undesirable behaviors – develop a reality program to showcase the positive changes they’ve made. Although I thought Larissa’s behavior was completely “out of order” with the cursing of an elder I did agree with her when she said Mo was full of it.
Hopefully some of our black stars in Hollywood will take a note from CeCe Winans – Always Sisters Conference and really try to do something positive to help our young people….without the cameras rolling.
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